A/N: Hi guys. I really want to apologize for the really long wait. I've got a lot on my plate right now. Unfortunately, this may be my last update for a while. I'm starting university on Tuesday, and I'm really freaking out about it. I'll still try to update on a semi-regular basis, but it may not happen, and I'm really sorry for that. But I hope you'll all stick with me. Umm…some confusion to clear up. This is not a purely Jack/Sue fiction. They will have their moments (after all, someone has to do what the producers didn't), but there are other relationships and friendships that this story will revolve around. Okay? But don't leave me! They will have their moments! I promise!

Chapter 4

Jack watched from the car as Bobby chatted with Howie and Otis. Bobby looked less-then-thrilled about Howie's abrupt appearance at his meeting with Otis, and usually Jack would have laughed at the expression on his best friend's face. But today, he was definitely not in a laughing mood. His mind kept replaying the things Mikayla had said (or yelled) to him. "She obviously missed the entire point." Jack thought to himself as Bobby returned to the silver Volvo. They watched Howie and Otis saunter away from the bench on M Street before Bobby began driving away.

"Lunch?" Bobby asked.

"Sure. Slappy's?"

Bobby nodded his head thoughtfully before coming to a red light and risking a look at his friend.

"You know," Bobby cleared his throat as he refocused on the traffic in front of him. "Howie and Otis really rag on each other, but they've obviously been through a lot together. Knowing Howie, he's probably made a tonne of mistakes and ticked Otis off to no end, but I can't imagine one without the other. They would both deny it, but they're best friends, you know?"

Jack shot Bobby a withering look, which Bobby ignored. "Best friends or not, I'm pretty sure if Howie took off and didn't bother to tell Otis where he was going, Otis would have a right to be put out and angry."

Bobby nodded. "Well," he said, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel. "If Howie did take off and Otis wanted to talk to someone about it, I would want him to know that my door is always open. I'd rather he talked about it than walk around looking like he was going to shoot the next person he sees."

Jack shot Bobby another look before allowing a ghost of a smile to grace his features. "You're not as subtle as you think you are, Crash."

"Obviously not with that nickname I'm not, but don't go changing the subject Sparky."

Jack sighed. "I don't know what you want me to say." "There's too much TO say. She just left. I didn't know if she was alright, I didn't know where she was living. She could've been dead and I wouldn't have known. I spent the good part of 3 years worrying about her. She didn't care enough to keep in touch."

"Well, Mikayla said that you two have been friends forever."

"Our mothers were friends. They worked together as nurses, and when Mikayla's mother went into labor, my mom was her coach because her husband was away on business. Nobody could watch me, so I went with her. We met when I was a few weeks old and she was just a few hours old. Our mothers started getting us together to play a few times a week, and it just stuck. We were friends all the way through grade school."

"So, you've really been mates forever, huh?"

Jack nodded. "Until she took off," he muttered, looking out the car window at the passing D.C. scenery. "She said she left because she wanted me to have the life that she didn't think she would be able to have since she was pregnant. She said she didn't want to ruin my life."

Bobby kept his eyes focused on the road. He wasn't the most sensitive guy around. Heck, he made fun of D and Myles when they ate salads instead of 'manly food'. "But this is my best mate. And he seems really torn up about this…Gah, I'm not good at this. D is way better at this then I am." Bobby cleared his throat and his thoughts. "Jack, I know you probably don't want to hear this right now, but I probably would've done the same thing." Jack shot him a third look, which he ignored again. "You helped me out a lot when I started getting into trouble with gambling, right?"

"You've been my best friend our first week at Stanford." Jack said in answer.

"But when I started doing all that stupid stuff, you were working to become a lawyer. You risked a hell of a lot to help me. If I thought that your helping me was putting your future in jeopardy, I would've taken off and tried to help myself so that you could become a lawyer."

"I'm not saying that I don't get that reasoning. Yeah, I would've done all that I could to help Mikayla and her kid. I probably wouldn't have gone to school in California. We would've both ended up in Cedar Lake for the rest of our lives. But if you had left, would you have kept in touch?"

"I think I wouldn't have wanted to worry you, so I would've at least called once in a while."

"That's the thing Bobby!" Jack slammed his hands down on the dashboard in frustration. "After 18 years of being friends, all she felt I deserved was a lousy note! She left it in my mailbox! I came down one morning and found it there. She didn't even have the guts to give it to me face-to-face! She just left!" They sat in silence for a minute while Jack collected his thoughts. "You said you wouldn't have wanted to worry me?" Bobby nodded. "Well, she did! I spent 18 years protecting her from everything I could, and when she left I spent the longest time worrying about her!"

"So," Bobby cleared his throat. He had never seen his best mate act like this, and, to be completely honest, it was scaring him a little. "You were kind of like a parent to her, protecting her, worrying about her?"

"Exactly. Her parents weren't around much because they worked a lot. I'm the one that took care of her when she needed it."

"Well, are you sure you're angry at her? Or were you just worried about her?"

"It took me a long time to get over her leaving. Even once I started getting over it, there were still moments when I couldn't help but think about her and wonder if she was alright!" "I left Cedar Lake because of her. I couldn't stay there while the memories of her were still there, haunting me. She drove me out of my home. She nearly ruined me." "And now that I've distanced myself from all that, it's come back to bite me in the ass!"

"So, why don't you tell Garrett all this, and he'll transfer her to a different unit. This could really mess with the team dynamic."

"Because. She doesn't deserve to be shunted from place to place. She's new in the city, and I would just prefer to live in peace."

"And do you think that'll ever be able to happen with you and Mikayla going at each other every five minutes?"

"We'll get through it. We always have. 15 years of separation is a lot to work through, but we'll get there."

"If you're sure." As Jack nodded his head, Bobby had a thought. "If she meant so much to you, why didn't you tell me about her?"

Jack sighed. "When I met you, I was still pretty shaken up by Mikayla's sudden disappearance. And I don't usually put things that don't work out on my resume."

"But -"

"Crash, I appreciate what you're trying to do but the only way to work this out is if I talk to Mikayla."

A/N: Sorry about the ending, as per usual, and sorry about the shortness. I was going to try to cram three conversations into this chapter, but I don't want to overwhelm you all, so this chapter is Bobby and Jack, next chapter will be Sue and Mikayla, and probably a sprinkling of Jack and Sue. Don't know when you'll hear from me next, so: Keep reading; have a good life; be nice to each other. Oh, and a shout-out to my mentor, my inspiration, my brother, my friend, my soul mate. Happy 65th Birthday, Freddie Mercury.