BISTRO
LA
'…Yeah, so Mac decides to do his thing to their laundry detergent…' Diane already knew who Mac was; some of Jack's best stories involved his crazy-brilliant-mad-scientist friend. '…and next thing we know, Bozer, his BFF/roommate/surrogate brother, makes really awesome food, not so awesome movies…' As Bozer hadn't come up yet, Jack felt the need to give a very quick description of him. He was perfectly sure that he'd nailed it, so turned his attention briefly back to his steak, looking down and cutting another mouthful as he talked. '…winds up with a whole load of hot-pink clothes!'
Unbeknownst to Jack, while he'd been cutting his steak, Diane's eyes had widened in realization.
Bozer was not a common name at all.
And how many Bozers could there be in LA who made awesome food?
Jack's best friend's best friend was also the Bozer with whom her daughter worked.
Her daughter's friend was also friends with Jack.
This, Diane thought, could get very, very messy very, very quickly.
MACGYVER'S RESIDENCE
PASADENA
'…Case is going good; Riley's awesome hacker skills got us a breakthrough yesterday…'
Bozer grinned as he sipped his coffee, lost in either his memory or admiration or possibly both, as Jack almost choked on his mouthful of bagel.
His Riley worked for the FBI's LA office.
Bozer's hacker-chick-co-worker-who-used-to-hate-him was called Riley.
His Riley was Bozer's co-worker and friend.
Fortunately, Jack thought, neither Bozer nor Mac noticed, as Bozer was too caught up in his story and Mac was too caught up in his poppyseed bagel.
This could get real complicated, real easy.
FBI OFFICES
LA
'…Mom was really happy on the weekend.' Riley gave a soft little smile over her sandwich, as she and Bozer ate lunch together in the breakroom like they always did. 'She had a good date on Friday night, apparently. He took her to this slightly fancy but not too fancy French bistro downtown...' Riley seemed to stare into the past for a moment, eyes becoming a little unfocused. 'The universe owes Diane Davis some happiness, even if it is with her ex.'
She took another bite of her sandwich, chewing thoughtfully and still lost in her memories.
Meanwhile, Bozer almost dropped his own sandwich (identical to Riley's, as he'd made them).
Jack had taken his no-longer-ex girlfriend Diane to a slightly fancy but not too fancy French bistro on Friday night.
Bozer knew that because he'd recommended the restaurant.
Riley's mom's ex-boyfriend that she was now seeing again, something that Riley had not been happy about, was Jack Dalton.
(Riley's reaction made so much sense to Bozer now, since according to Jack, he'd kind of been Riley's father-figure.)
Who was Bozer's BFF's best friend.
And also Bozer's really good friend.
His life had officially become a soap opera.
Bozer shook his head and groaned as his phone chimed for the sixth time in five minutes. Riley quirked an eyebrow at him, looking up from her laptop.
'You gonna get that?'
Bozer huffed out a sigh.
'Yeah, I probably should, or he's just gonna keep texting me…' Bozer pulled out his phone and rolled his eyes. Jack, in a series of texts that involved an increasing number of emojis, was trying to convince Bozer to steal Mac's phone so that they could work out whether Doc was a dude or a chick. He shook his head and started muttering to himself, thinking out loud. 'Seriously, Jack Dalton, you're an idiot…and what in the world is with the Dallas Cowboys emoji, man? How is that relevant to this conversation?'
As Bozer muttered to himself about how hard it was to steal from his BFF/roommate/landlord and about the importance of privacy, Riley's eyes widened and she stared at her computer screen, not really seeing the lines of code in front of her at all.
Bozer was friends with Jack.
Her Jack.
Oh, God, this was going to get messy.
MACGYVER'S RESIDENCE
PASADENA
Bozer walked into their house, rubbing the back of his neck as he tossed his jacket over the back of the couch.
'Hey, Boze. How was work?' Mac, who was cooking dinner, greeted his roommate. Judging by the smell and the fact that Mac was putting a large casserole dish into the oven and wearing a tomato-sauce-stained apron, it was lasagne. There was also a whole array of women's high heels, which looked second-hand, sitting in the corner of the living room, which definitely hadn't been there that morning. Mac looked up after putting the lasagne in the oven, and saw where his roommate was looking. He gave a little shrug as Bozer raised an eyebrow at him. 'They're for an experiment; Doc and I were debating whether or not you could stab someone with a stiletto heel…'
Bozer just nodded, by now very accustomed to his crazy-brilliant-mad-scientist-puppy of a best friend. He padded into the kitchen and grabbed a beer from the fridge.
'Mac…I got a problem, bro.' Bozer downed some beer, as Mac looked concernedly over at him. 'You know Jack's no-longer-ex girlfriend?' Bozer drank some more beer as Mac just nodded. 'She's Riley's mom.'
Bozer's roommate stared at him for a moment, before muttering something about Doc maybe being right about improbability, then addressed Bozer.
'I'm guessing none of them know?' Bozer nodded and drank more beer. Mac paused for a moment. 'Are…are you going to tell them?'
Bozer sighed and rubbed the back of his neck.
'I probably should, shouldn't I?' Mac nodded. 'It's gonna get messy, bro…Riley wasn't happy about her mom dating Jack again.' Bozer took another sip of beer. 'He was kinda her dad, so…yeah, complicated.' Mac just nodded again, a little helplessly, and reached out and put a hand on Bozer's shoulder in comfort. Bozer sighed and spoke. 'Promise not to tell Jack, not yet, bro?'
Mac nodded and held out his pinkie to Bozer. Bozer gave a little smile, and hooked his own pinkie around Mac's, and they shook on it.
'I promise, Boze.'
DALTON AUTO REPAIR
PASADENA
'…Brother, I'm in a bit of pickle.'
And then, it hit me.
Oh, no.
I'm starting to think that Doc might be onto something. I still don't think I'm a magnet for improbable events, but these last couple of months have been full of them, and I have absolutely no logical explanation for it.
Mac was very, very grateful at that moment that he was underneath the 1969 Dodge Charger that was Jack's latest personal project (Mac had stopped by after work on Jack's request to help him out with an issue with the suspension), because as a result, Jack didn't see his face, or else he'd probably have inadvertently broken his promise to Bozer.
Jack continued, as Mac watched the older man's booted feet pace around through the gap between the car and the floor.
'Mac, brother, Diane's daughter…the girl who was kinda you before I met you, in the whole took-you-under-my-wing sense, she…she's Bozer's hacker friend who used to hate him.' Jack paused. 'I know I should tell them all the truth and everything…but…I don't think Riley's willing to forgive me, and you know how she and Bozer are stuck working together and how they had that whole situation, and I don't know how she's gonna take the fact that me and Bozer are friends…' Jack plonked himself on the ground, and Mac felt that he now had his expression under control, so he rolled out from beneath the car and patted Jack's arm consolingly. Jack turned to him with a little smile. 'Thanks, brother. Can you not tell Bozer about all this, for now? I need to come up with a plan of action…'
Mac nodded.
'I promise, Jack.'
I know, I know, I know.
I've watched plenty of movies. I live with Bozer and we've been best friends since the 5th grade.
I know getting yourself into this kind of situation never ends well.
But what else could I possibly do?
They're my two best friends.
MACGYVER'S RESIDENCE
PASADENA
That night, Mac rubbed the back of his neck as he sat in bed, lost in thought.
He was sort-of stuck between a rock and a hard place, with Jack and Bozer's situations and the promises he'd made to both of them.
He thought that he should urge both of them to tell the other the truth as soon as possible, and then convince both of them to tell both Diane and Riley the truth.
There is really no way that this can't all come to light without there being some yelling and complications of some sort, surely.
But I think that this is better than all the other options.
I think…
Look, I can probably work out how to put a square peg into a round hole, at least, in the way that they did with Apollo 13, which was sort-of cheating, but social problems aren't my strong suit.
Mac glanced down at his phone on his bedside table.
Maybe I should get a second opinion…
He picked up his phone.
Hey, Doc, can I get some advice?
Mac knew that Doc had tomorrow off, and the day after too (a real luxury for the doctor), as they'd planned to discuss the results of Mac's experiments regarding the stiletto heels that night, but Mac hoped that Doc would A, forgive him for asking for advice instead, and B, would be able to actually give him some advice. A second opinion.
If you're willing to postpone our discussion regarding the potential lethality of stiletto heels, this has got to be bad!
What's wrong?
Despite his preoccupation and concerns, Mac gave a little smile anyway. Doc, he'd found, had a somewhat dark, make-light-in-the-darkness sense of humour, which according to him, was common among ER doctors, just as it was among soldiers in Mac's experience.
Then, the smile faded as he started typing.
A couple of months ago, Longhorn started dating an ex-girlfriend again. Said ex-girlfriend has a daughter, who is a co-worker of Samwise whom he has a slightly complicated relationship with (they were friends, then there was a misunderstanding and they hated each other for a while, now they're friends again).
They've both just discovered that connection independently, and both told me and made me promise not tell the other one (I'm keeping those promises, of course).
Neither of them knows that the other one knows. I don't think either the ex-girlfriend or her daughter know.
I want to tell Longhorn and Samwise to tell the truth, to everyone involved. This is going to be messy, no matter what – there's a lot of history with Longhorn, his no-longer-ex and Samwise's co-worker - I figured it would be best that the truth comes out as quickly as possible and everyone is honest…
But I'm not so good at this sort of thing. I'm worried I'm going to make it worse by trying to make it better, so…what do you think, Doc?
Doc took a while to reply, which Mac figured was because A, it was a complicated situation that required much consideration, B, there was only so fast Doc could text, and C, in hindsight, Doc might not have been the best person to ask; since they had so much in common, he might not be so good with these things either (genius IQs tended to come with lower EQs, after all).
(But who else could he ask? Penny would be another option, but she wasn't so good with secrets, and besides, she might well be too close to this, like he was.)
That is a really complicated and highly improbable situation…definitely movie or soap opera worthy!
With the caveat that I am not very good at this sort of stuff either, I think you're right. The sooner the truth is out, the better, and far better for them to tell the truth then wait for the no-longer-ex and her daughter/Samwise's co-worker to work it out.
But maybe get them to tell the truth gently? With food as a buffer?
Mac nodded. Food was a good idea. It was an excellent social lubricant.
Yeah, it is a really, really improbable chain of coincidences. My life is not usually full of those, I swear. It's just been the last couple of months!
Thanks, Doc. The food is an excellent suggestion, I'll make sure that happens.
Feeling much lighter, Mac resolved to talk to Jack and Bozer the next day, and grinned as he typed out another message.
Now, do you want to hear all about my experimental results, or are you going to sleep now?
Mac's grin widened as he got Doc's reply, and he shifted into a more comfortable position and started texting back.
Like there's even a choice there!
What did you find was more important in terms of determining depth of penetration, angle or force?
DIANE'S RESIDENCE
LA
She had to tell Jack. She had to tell Riley. In person, the very next time she saw them.
There was no other choice, really.
Diane could only hope that any animosity her baby girl felt towards Jack wouldn't damage her friendship and work partnership with Bozer.
She knew how big this FBI case was for her daughter's career.
More importantly, she also knew that Riley truly did value her friendship with Bozer, and Diane didn't want Riley to lose (or, more accurately, push away) someone she cared about because of this.
For far too long, she'd been the only person that Riley had loved, and as much as she loved their close relationship, it had saddened her greatly that Riley had so few people she could call family.
Now that Riley had Sam and Bozer, Diane didn't want her to lose either of them.
RILEY'S RESIDENCE
HIGHLAND PARK
For so long, Jack had seemed so far away.
Like he'd walked out of their lives and walked all the way to Alaska or dug a tunnel to China or something.
(And that was kind of true – he'd gone over to Afghanistan three days after that fateful night, after all.)
He'd seemed unreachable.
Been literally unreachable.
(He'd refused all contact with them, ignoring calls, texts, emails and even the solitary old-fashioned letter that Riley had sent him that she wasn't even sure her mom knew she'd sent.)
And then, even when they'd come back to LA, lived in the same city as him (at least, they'd assumed he hadn't left LA, even though Riley's clandestine check-up on his old condo had come up blank), he'd still seemed so distant.
A figure in the past.
And then…her mom had literally collided with him in a supermarket.
And she'd unknowingly been listening to occasional stories told about him (always with fond exasperation) by Bozer for weeks.
He seemed so close again.
Like she could, almost, reach out and touch him, figuratively speaking.
Riley's thoughts were interrupted by a knock at the door, so she got up and opened it.
Beth stood on the other side, holding a Tupperware container, the air vent in the lid popped, emitting a wonderful smell. Riley's neighbour smiled up at her.
'Hi, Riley.' She gave a slightly awkward little shrug. 'I've got two days off, so I made apple pie, and I really shouldn't eat a whole apple pie on my own, so…' She held out the Tupperware container to Riley. '…I thought I'd give you half!'
Riley smiled back at her and reached out and took the container.
Thinking would be far better with pie.
Most things were better with pie, and Riley knew Beth made excellent blueberry pie, so it stood to reason she'd make great apple pie too.
And it smelled incredible.
'Thanks, Beth. Enjoy your two days off!'
The doctor's smile widened.
'Thanks, Riley! I hope you enjoy the pie!'
With a little wave, she headed back next door, and Riley closed the door and went to the kitchen to grab a fork and plopped herself back down on the couch, before digging into the still-warm pie, straight out of the Tupperware container, and getting lost in her thoughts yet again.
(She ate the entire half of an apple pie that Beth had given her and wound up skipping dinner because she was too full.)
(She had no regrets.)
(The apple pie was amazing.)
(And it'd helped with her thinking – she'd decided what she had to do.)
THE CHALLENGER CLUB
(JACK'S GYM)
(IT'S VERY POPULAR AMONG A CERTAIN CROWD…)
SOUTH PASADENA
Jack nodded a greeting to Cynthia, a former Air Force pilot who ran the gym along with her husband Scott, and headed towards the punching bags, wrapping his hands as he walked.
He took up position in front of one of the bags, took a deep breath and centred himself, then started punching, losing himself in the familiar motions, in that rhythm, in the exertion.
Unbeknownst to him, Jack was being watched.
A slim blonde woman was running the Special Forces-style obstacle course in the centre of the room, watching him out of the corner of her eye.
Sam knew the names of all of her fellow regulars, and Jack was definitely a regular.
From what she'd heard around the gym, he'd been working out here for over two years, ever since he'd gotten home from the Sandbox and recovered enough from the injuries he'd sustained over there.
She'd seem him limp a little a few times; his left knee was a bit dodgy, and he wore a brace on his right wrist and the knee, but otherwise, he moved very well.
Sam knew he definitely could be deadly if he wanted to be.
She also knew that this Jack was Riley's Jack. The man who was the closest thing to a father Riley had ever had. The man who'd protected Riley and Diane from Ellwood, and then walked straight out of their lives immediately afterwards. The man who'd, in an extremely improbable incident, stumbled back into their lives.
(That was something that she'd only realized a couple of days ago, when all the pieces clicked into place.)
She also knew that Bozer was friends with him, close friends, and that both he and Riley were aware of the connection, though neither was aware that the other knew.
(She was a behavioural expert, who knew them both well, especially Riley, who worked with them and socialized with them – she ate lunch with Bozer and Riley when her work allowed. It'd been child's play.)
Watching Jack now, Sam knew that he knew of the connection too, though he also didn't know that Riley and Bozer knew too.
And one didn't need to be a behavioural expert to know that all three of them were very, very preoccupied with their newfound knowledge, and that there was the potential for this to end very badly.
Sam, now using a treadmill, watched as a slim, dark-haired woman, about the same age as Jack, approached him, and gestured elegantly with her head towards the sparring ring.
Jack nodded with a grin.
'Ready for me to kick your ass, Patty?' Patricia Thornton, D.A. and Jack's regular sparring partner (as best as Sam could tell, their record was nearly 50:50, favouring Jack slightly, which was very impressive on the D.A.'s part), raised an eyebrow at him, and Jack just gave a snort of laughter. 'Eh, I know you love me, Patty!'
Twenty minutes later, Thornton reached out a hand to help Jack off the mat.
'Feeling better?'
Jack stared at her for a moment, before shaking his head rather fondly.
'You always know, don't you, Patty?' He pointed at her. 'You've got to be a real menace in the courtroom. Best in the business, right?'
She just smiled an enigmatic little smile at him, unwrapping her own hands before heading for the women's locker room.
As she did, she made eye contact with Sam, and in that moment, Sam knew that the older woman somehow knew that she'd been watching, and that she also, somehow and even more bizarrely, knew of that very complicated situation that Jack, Riley, Diane and Bozer were now in.
(Sam had absolutely no idea how, but she was sure that Patricia Thornton somehow knew.)
AN: Well, it all had to come to a head eventually…and yes, sort-of cliff-hanger, but this was the best place to end it! *Apologizes and attempts puppy-dog eyes*