Thanks for the support for this story. Please bear in mind that as the story unfolds, I do not take lightly what Jeannie will go through. Rest assured that this will not be a death fic or anything even close.

This story was originally written last month as a writer's challenge for a camping trip (!) and the first chapter was going to be it - a simple one shot. But then I added more - and considering what October has grown to mean in the US (I won't spoil the end of the chapter here), I wanted to develop it.


Chapter 2

Mike noticed Jeannie was nervous and not herself after he and Dan returned from the hike. She put on a good face as she and Steve cleaned and prepared the fish they caught, but Mike noticed that the two were working in parallel, not joking or even speaking. The eye contact between the pair was minimal and that continued through the rest of the weekend. Something was wrong; the senior detective knew his daughter too well. Still, he didn't want to cause a scene, but instead wondered if there had been a disagreement between her and his former partner - or whether there was something deeper going on.

Dan also noticed the change of atmosphere. "Everything okay?" Dan asked Steve when they had a moment alone.

"Sure," was the quick response with nothing more said. Dan got nothing more than polite small talk from Steve the rest of the weekend.


Several months went by, and Steve's participation in activities with Mike, Jeannie and Dan became fewer and farther between. It was a conscious decision on his part; he simply wanted to distance himself and protect the ones for whom he cared so deeply.

Generally, work commitments was his top excuse. At one point in the early summer, he volunteered to attend a criminology symposium for six weeks at the University of Maryland. The time away from San Francisco was a welcome change, but did nothing to undo the thoughts he now had about fully immersing himself in work and avoiding any serious social commitments. He would develop relationships at work, along with casual acquaintances and liaisons - but that would be as far as he would go.

Still, it wasn't as if he didn't think about the people he grew so fondly of in San Francisco - Mike and Jeannie, in particular. He thought so highly of them - and deep down he knew they were as important as family. But acknowledging that feeling meant that he wanted to protect them. Certainly he kept them in his thoughts and prayers - and would still call occasionally, but the idea was to retreat from the closeness of their relationship. The best way to protect them from any possible heartbreak that his health condition caused was to back away.

Heartbreak, he thought to himself. I've had a lot of that both figuratively and literally. The latter thought brought an ironic grin to his face. I just want to spare them of the same.


Steve's ever growing absence in their lives did not go unnoticed by Mike. The situation saddened him. Over the weeks following the camping, Jeannie shed some light about the conversation at the lake which made her so upset. Mike knew his former partner well and knew that the wall he was building around himself would be increasingly difficult to break down.

But perhaps over time... He vowed not to let Steve slip away that easily all the while giving him space to work through what he needed. After all, he's been through more stress and trauma in the last year than most have in their lifetime. Not only did he nearly die, but the extent of his injuries will impact the rest of his life.

He detected still quite a bit of hurt, however, with this daughter - and for that he didn't quite understand as well as he did Steve's withdrawal. When they learned that Steve was working most of the summer in Maryland, Jeannie took it especially hard as she spent many of days following in a quiet funk. Women, Mike finally concluded.


Steve returned at the end of July to prepare for the next semester at Berkeley. He felt better than he had in awhile; the time away served as more of an affirmation that he needed to disconnect. Now, the preparation for the next academic year gave him another excuse not to be overly social or reconnect with his close friends.

Mike called Steve on his return and the friends did manage to squeeze in a ballgame before the semester started. Then, there was silence. Steve immersed himself in his teachings, while Mike refocused his efforts to his job. There was a certain emptiness inside of the older man.

But that emptiness did not stay for long. Mike's world came crashing down when his daughter approached him weeks later.

With paleness and watery eyes, she whispered as she sat down at the dinner table, "Mike, I need to talk to you about something."

"What is it, Sweetheart?" Immediately, Mike felt a knot in the pit of his stomach.

"I found something. Oh, I just don't know how to tell you this," her voice quivered.

Mike dropped his napkin at the sound of the nervousness in Jeannie's voice. "Honey, tell me."

"I found a small lump on the side of my breast. I called our doctor and I'll be seeing him tomorrow." Remembering Jeannie's mother and what happened a dozen years before, Mike was crushed beyond words. Tears formed in his eyes. He jumped around the table and embraced his daughter in a bear hug. She too remembered her mother's experience and the fear and dread overcame her as she began sobbing in his arms.

tbc