Date: 8/29 is my birthday! Also Michael Jackson's. And Slobidan Milosovic's. Um. No relation. Just coincidence.

I want to walk with you
On a cloudy day
In fields where the yellow grass grows knee-high
So won't you try to come

Come away with me and we'll kiss
On a mountaintop
Come away with me
And I'll never stop loving you

~ Norah Jones :: Come Away with Me ~

Hour follows hour…

12/24 8:29 pm

They bundled up in coats and scarves and hats and gloves and headed out into what was now a capital winter wonderland. Sue always loved snow in the city because it made everything seem so clean and bright. They walked along, Sue with Levi on the leash and Jack by her side. After a block or so, Jack linked his arm with Sue's, holding hands problematic with their bulky gloves.

"Remind me to thank my mom when we get back."

"For what?"

"Inviting you to come spend Christmas with us." And Jack looked at her in that way that made her stomach flutter and she felt herself flush, glad for the cold temperatures that had already redden her cheeks.

"I would have to say that so far this is turning out to be one of my favorite Christmases."

"And think, it's not even half over yet."

"That's a nice thought."

They arrived at a park and Sue glanced around to see if any other people were around before letting Levi off of his leash. Jack found a stick and began to play fetch with the dog when something hard hit him on the back. He heard Sue laugh and when he turned around she was on the run. He scooped up a handful of snow, packed it into a ball, and threw it toward her. She ducked and it missed. They chased each other around the park, snowballs flying, Levi occasionally getting in on the action by catching a snowball mid air.

Jack finally caught up with Sue, half-tackling her and bringing them both to the ground. He was happy for the foot of snow that padded their fall. Sue lie on her back and Jack, lying on his side, was half on top of her. They were both laughing hysterically until they realized just how close they were to each other. Jack didn't move, just gently brushed her hair out of her face and stared into her soft brown eyes.

"Sue, I…"

She cut him off with a kiss, not wanting to hear the words, not wanting to have to face the consequences that went with those words. She just wanted to live in the moment, feel what she was feeling, and not remember that their jobs forbid them from being together.

Across the street, a man watched the couple – lovers in the snow – and teemed with rage.

~*~*~*~

Sue pulled back from the kiss, but Jack came after her again. Before he could re-connect, she gently pushed him away. "We need to stop doing this."

"Why?" Confused.

"There are any number of reasons, but the most important being I'd rather not give your neighbors a free show," she gestured to the dozen apartment buildings near the park. "They should be watching It's a Wonderful Life right now, not 'The Jack and Sue Show'."

"Good point." Jack stood and proffered a hand to help Sue up. She stood, brushing the snow off of her pants, and put Levi back on his leash. "I guess we should get back."

"Yeah, it's almost 10:00."

Jack linked his arm with hers as they walked back. When they were a half a block from his apartment, he stopped and faced Sue. "You said there were any number of reasons. What are the other reasons?"

Caught off guard, Sue stalled. "What?"

"You know what I mean. When you stopped kissing me. You said there were a number of reasons why we shouldn't be kissing. What are the other reasons?"

"Oh, that… I don't know, it was just something I said." Sue wondered why she was always so afraid of telling Jack how she really felt about him.

"I don't believe you."

"Jack…"

"Just tell me."

She sighed in defeat and thought for a moment, choosing her words carefully. "You know the regulations at work."

"Unfortunately," Jack sighed.

"Well, we're not at work right now. It's my favorite time of year, the snow is falling, and I get to spend Christmas with my best friend. I don't want to have to think about the consequences. I just want to have today and tomorrow because as soon as I get back from vacation, it's back to reality.

"We… Have this thing. I don't know what it is, but it's something. And I'm also trying to figure that out. I guess what I'm trying to say is every time you…" Jack leaned in and kissed her again and Sue felt her knees wobble from the intensity of it. "Kiss me I can't think," she continued, breathlessly.

Jack chuckled. "From my perspective, we need to make the most of what time we have left together out of sight of the F.B.I. And that means kissing you as much as possible, as long as you don't mind, of course."

"No!" Sue blushed. "I don't mind at all." Jack wrapped his arm around her waist and they went inside.

~*~*~*~

"I need to change my pants. They're a little too wet for church." Sue unhooked Levi's leash and hung up her coat.

"Your suitcase is in my bedroom. I'm going to make sure my parents are up."

Sue walked into Jack's bedroom and found her suitcase on a chair in the corner. She walked over to it, but stopped mid-step realizing exactly where she was. Jack's bedroom. She turned and stared at the bed for a minute. It was king-sized and looked exceedingly comfortable. Sue fought the temptation to give it a test run. Instead, she forced her eyes to travel around the room. The furniture was masculine, but refined. Dark cherry wood headboard, nightstand, dresser. The requisite television in one corner.

Some pictures on the nightstand drew her attention and she walked over to get a closer look. One was Jack and a little girl who Sue figured to be his sister, Elizabeth. Jack looked to be about 4 and he was carefully balancing the toddler Elizabeth in his lap. Next to that picture was a candid from one of their many flag football games, although Sue didn't recognize the shot. It was the whole group of them – Myles, Jack, D, Bobby, Tara, Lucy – and the photographer hadn't centered the shot very well. Everyone was off to the right, and Sue could just make out one more person in the picture, half cut-off. It was David. She'd remembered that day, it was fairly early on in her relationship with David and he was getting used to hanging out with the gang.

Sue noticed that everyone in the group was staring at the camera except for Jack. He was grinning, but he was looking right at her. She picked up the picture to get a closer look and plunked down on the bed. Had Jack known for that long? The picture was nearly a year old, taken not too long after their little marriage experiment. But then Sue realized that that was when she knew, when she realized that she could put up with Jack 24 hours a day. When she realized she wanted to put up with Jack for that long. She smiled and brushed her fingers along where Jack stood before returning the frame to the table.

She rummaged through her suitcase, finding a suitable pair of gray slacks that would prevent her from having to change any more clothes and shut the door so she could change. When she finished, she walked over to the mirror and frowned at her hair. Between the snowball fight and their tousle on the ground, her hair was a mess of knots. She picked up her brush and began to comb through her hair.

Jack made sure Mary and John were awake before he went to his room and found the door shut. Not wanting to catch Sue in a state of undress – well, not wanting to at this point and time anyway – he sent Levi in to give her a heads up. Sue noticed a change in light to her right and looked down to see Levi scampering in. Her eyes traveled up and she saw Jack's waving hand. She grinned. "You can come in. I'm dressed."

He swung the door open and leaned against the doorframe. "Not the answer I was hoping for," he smirked.

Sue outwardly ignored him, but felt that familiar warmth in her middle. She continued to brush her hair, having detangled as well as she could. Now she was trying to decide what to do with it. Jack sat on the bed for a moment and watched her.

"What are you trying to do?" Sue read his lips in the reflection in the mirror.

"I don't know. I was thinking about pulling it up."

"I like it down."

"I know you do."

"Here, let me try." Jack stood and walked behind her. A bemused expression on her face, Sue watched as Jack parted her hair into three parts, twisted each part, and piled it into a disheveled mess on top of her head.

"Not exactly the look I was going for."

"Probably not, but it does give me space to do this." He bent his head down and kissed the back of her neck near her collarbone. Somehow, on his first try, Jack found one of her favorite spots. Sue gasped and clutched the dresser to steady herself, feeling her face flush. "Wow. I need to remember that." He was going to kiss her again when Sue spun around, releasing his hold on her hair.

"Oh no, no more. We have to go to church. This is not what we should be doing before we go to church."

Jack chuckled and sat back down on the bed. "Okay. You're right."

Sue went back to brushing her hair, concentrating on each stroke, trying to settle her racing heart.

~*~*~*~

"Where are we going to mass?" Mary asked as they emerged from the bedroom minutes later.

"I like to go to St. Paul's. It's a beautiful church and they have an interpreter. Makes mass a lot easier."

"Sounds like a plan," Jack said as he helped Sue into her coat. Levi came over and nuzzled their legs. "Sorry boy, you have to stay here and guard the Christmas presents. Do you think you're up to the task?" Levi barked. "I'll take that as a yes."

"Is the church within walking distance?"

"Yep. It's just a couple of blocks away. And with the amount of snow out there, driving would pose quite a problem."

"I hope you're able to get out tomorrow," Mary said, concerned.

"Me, too."

Jack was thinking he wouldn't mind being stranded with Sue for all eternity, but having his parents around might dampen the mood a bit. "Well," he said, "we should probably get going."

The foursome walked the few blocks to St. Paul the Apostle Church. It was a beautiful church, stained glass, polished granite and marble, built in the late 1800s. They entered the church and Sue directed them to a section of rows near the front.

"One of the bonuses about being deaf," she said, gesturing toward the pews, "is preferential seating."

They entered the pew, Jack first, then Sue, Mary, and finally John. As they sat, Sue noticed one of her friends in the next row. She stood back up and gently touched her on the shoulder. The friends hugged and began to sign. Jack, although he didn't want to intrude, attempted to follow along but was quickly lost.

"So you know who that is?" Mary asked.

"I think it's a friend. I'm a little lost. I may know some sign language, but not that much." He tried to watch again. "I recognize that sign," he said as Sue signed his name. Her friend signed, "Jack?" then glanced his way. His eyes darted to the side, and he blushed, realizing he'd been discovered. He missed Sue's friend add, "He's cute."

Sue turned back to Jack. "I'd like you to meet someone."

Jack stood and offered his hand. Sue's friend shook it. "This is Sarah Gardner. She only signs, so you get to practice."

"Nice to meet you," Jack signed.

"Nice to meet you, too. I've heard so much about you."

Jack glanced nervously at Sue. "All good, I hope." He threw his arm around her shoulders.

"Of course. But I was just telling Sue she failed to mention how cute you are. I guess she just wants to keep you for herself. Not that I blame her."

Sue flushed and Jack kissed her on the temple. He brought his arm back down so he could sign. "The feeling is…" he paused, trying to think of a sign. In the end, he finger spelled "mutual."

"I can see that."

More people filtered into the church as Sue, Jack, and Sarah continued talking. Then off to the left a familiar face appeared. Jack noticed him first and draped his arm back around Sue's shoulders. Sue glanced at him and then followed his eyes to where David stood. She smiled and waved him over.

"It's good to see you, David," Sue spoke and signed for Sarah's benefit.

"Good to see you, too."

David and Jack shook hands, Jack keeping his left arm around Sue, just lowering it to her waist. Sue had to bite her tongue not to call Jack on his sudden possessiveness. Jack introduced both Sarah and David to his parents and the group made small talk until the carols started indicating mass was going to begin.

"I should go find a seat. I just wanted to say 'hi'." He turned to leave but Sue called after him.

"David…" but she didn't know what to say.

He smiled. "I'm really happy for you, Sue. You look like you're doing great. Merry Christmas."

Sue smiled sweetly. "Merry Christmas," she signed.

Sarah gave her a look and Sue signed back, "Everything is fine."

Mary was whispering to Jack, "Who is that?"

"Sue's last boyfriend."

"Oh." She paused. "When did they break up?"

"I don't know."

"Oh."

"You said that already."

Mary glared at him. "Let's sit, shall we?"

They plunked down into their seats as the opening processional began. A woman walked up to the left of the altar and began signing, a half a second behind the speaker.

"Our opening hymn will be 'Joy to the World'."

The music began, loud and lively, and soon the choir joined in causing goosebumps to form on Jack's arms. He looked at Sue, at her eyes on the interpreter, and tried to imagine what it would be like not to hear. He'd thought about it before, many times since meeting Sue. He'd once even bought heavy-duty earplugs and wore them for an entire weekend. It had made him much more aware of the difficulties that faced Sue and much more interested in learning ASL, but he hadn't imagined what it would be like to sit in a church on Christmas Eve and not hear the carols.

Sue turned, sensing he was looking at her.

"What?" she signed.

"You can't hear the music." Jack cringed after he signed, realizing how stupid that sounded, but Sue just smiled.

"But I can feel it." She took his hand and Jack tried to understand what she meant. He watched the interpreter, whose signs were beautiful and emotive. He closed his eyes and concentrated on the music, sensing in the air the vibrations of the instruments and of a thousand people singing. He opened his eyes and looked again at Sue. He could feel it. He gently kissed her on the cheek and focused on the mass.

~*~*~*~

As the mass ended, everybody went about putting on their winter gear. They said their goodbyes to Sarah and headed back to Jack's apartment. Once they arrived, Jack's parents kissed the children – as they had secretly begun to call them – and went to bed.

Still energized from the brisk walk home and the amazing mass, neither Jack nor Sue felt much like sleeping.

"How does hot chocolate and an old Christmas movie sound?" Jack asked as Sue settled down on the couch.

"Perfect," Sue responded with a smile. She flipped the channels on the television, finally finding a movie that she enjoyed that was also captioned. Jack returned moments later with steaming mugs of hot chocolate.

They sipped their drinks and watched the remake of Miracle on 34th Street, which Sue enjoyed because of the signing Kris Kringle. When they finished, the both set their mugs on the coffee table. Jack had a couch with recliners at either end, so he popped out the footrest and got comfortable. Sue, who had been perched in the middle of the couch, looked at him. He smiled and propped his right arm on the back of the couch, an invitation for Sue to lean against him. She settled in, perfectly fitting against his frame, and Jack linked his arms around her. And Christmas dawned on them as they slept peacefully in each other's arms.