A/N: Hi all! Sorry this took so long; I had to work seven days straight this week, since the boss was out of town. UGH! Anyhow, I should probably issue another tissue alert!! I cried writing this chapter! THANK YOU!!! for all of the terrific feedback. I promise to write more as time allows. Enjoy…
03:47 EST
Prince William Hospital
Manassas, VA
Harm jerked his head forward, shaking off sleep yet again, as he waited for Mac to wake up.
A nurse noticed, and sighed. Walking out to the nurse's station, she spoke briefly with the charge nurse, before going down a few doors to find a fold away bed, rolling it into the room where Mrs. Rabb was still sleeping off the sedatives the doctor had given her.
"Mr. Rabb," she said, as she moved the fold away bed beside Mrs. Rabb's hospital bed. "I know this won't be as comfortable as your own bed, but it has to be more comfortable than that chair. Your wife probably won't wake up for several hours yet, so why don't you lie down and try to get some sleep for a few hours?"
Harm eyed the fold away bed with a cross between distaste and longing. He knew the nurse was right~ he really needed to get some sleep~ but he also knew that the tiny bed wasn't nearly large enough for his six-foot-four-inch frame. Sighing in resignation, he nodded to the nurse.
"Thank you," he said, as she smiled and moved to make up the bed for him. As soon as she was finished, he settled himself onto the bed and fell asleep almost immediately.
The nurse smiled, covering him with a blanket, and then checked on Mrs. Rabb, before lowering the lights, and leaving the sleeping couple in peace.
A few hours later, Mac slowly opened her eyes and looked around the dimly lit room. She noticed the monitors beside her bed, trying to figure out what they were all for. She recognized the one that kept track of her heart rate, blood pressure, oxygen saturation, and respiration. Noting each of the numbers displayed on the screen, she looked at the other monitor that was near her, and realized that it was a fetal heart rate monitor. Her eyes filled with tears as she realized that there was only one heartbeat being monitored, and the events of the previous evening came rushing back.
A noise caught her attention, and she moved so that she could see what had caused it, wincing in pain as she did so. Seeing Harm sleeping on the small fold away bed, a tear slipped from her eye as she saw the lines furrowing his brow, and the way he tossed and turned. She lay back on the bed, crying softly, trying not to wake Harm.
A few minutes later, she felt his strong hand on her arm, and she looked up into his stricken eyes.
"I'm sorry," she whispered.
"You have nothing to be sorry for," he said, brushing a lock of hair from her eyes. "You have every right to cry…"
Mac shook her head. "No, I don't," she protested. "Harm, I'm so sorry… it's my fault… it's all my fault. If I'd listened to you… if I'd taken it easy… then we wouldn't have lost…"
Harm's eyes widened, as he carefully pulled her into his embrace. "Mac, Honey, this is not your fault. The doctor said there was nothing that you could have done differently to prevent this… it's a direct result of the endometriosis."
Mac pulled away, her eyes wide. "What? I thought Dr. Martindale said~"
Harm shook his head. "The surgery, and the fertility drugs you were inadvertently given, allowed you to conceive, but the endometriosis has weakened your uterus to a point that it couldn't support three fetus'," he told her. "As it is, you may have to spend the rest of the pregnancy on bed rest, and there's still no guarantee that we won't lose this one, too."
Mac took a shaky breath, and shook her head. "We can't lose this one," she said, her voice barely above a whisper, as she firmly clutched onto him. "We just can't."
Harm held her close as she began to sob. They sat there clinging tightly to one another in their shared grief for a very long time.
08:00 EST
Prince William Hospital
Manassas, VA
AJ silently entered Mac's room, to see Harm and Mac holding tightly to one another, soundly sleeping in the hospital bed. He gave a small smile at the sight, before sitting silently in the chair beside the bed.
A nurse entered and smiled softly at him. "They've been that way for hours," she told him quietly. "None of us have had the heart to disturb them."
AJ nodded. "Thank you," he said, also keeping his voice low. "I have the feeling that they're both sleeping better than they would be if they were separated."
"Are you related?" she asked, as she checked the monitors above Mac's bed and made a few notes on the paper in her hands.
"I'm Sarah's father," he told her, smiling slightly as he fondly remembered the day that the adoption had become final, and the look of happiness on Mac's face as she hugged him after they'd both signed the papers.
A noise at the door made them both look in that direction, and AJ stood when he saw Trish, Frank, and Grandma Sarah enter the room.
The nurse began to protest, but AJ put a finger to his lips, motioning towards the sleeping couple.
"This is Harm's family," he told her, as he moved closer to them.
"Why don't we take this outside?" Frank suggested, and AJ nodded in agreement.
"Who has Miranda?" Trish asked, as soon as they were outside of the room, moving towards the waiting area.
"Harriet has her today," he replied. "We're trying to work out some kind of schedule. Now that you're here, that will help." He motioned for them to take seats, and he sat down as well.
"How are Harm and Mac?" Trish asked.
AJ sighed. "I haven't spoken to Mac yet, and Harm was trying to put on a brave front last night, but I imagine they are both taking this very hard. They were ecstatic about having triplets, and to have lost two of them…" he trailed off and sighed. "The doctor says that it's possible that Mac will be on bed rest for the duration of her pregnancy, which is not going to go over well with her, I can imagine. Especially since they have a baby at home to take care of already."
"We'll do everything we can to help out," Trish assured him. "I know Harm was looking for a housekeeper, but I don't know if he managed to find one yet."
AJ shook his head. "He told me yesterday afternoon that he'd contacted an agency about hiring one, but he hadn't even begun the process of interviewing anyone. He wanted to tell Mac, first."
"Maybe he can hire a full-time nurse to take care of Mac, and Miranda," Frank said.
AJ nodded. "That would be a good idea."
"Mom?" Harm's voice sounded from the front of the waiting area.
Everyone looked up to see him standing in the doorway, his disheveled appearance mute testimony to the tragic night he'd just endured.
Trish stood and hugged him, as did Grandma Sarah.
"How are you, Darling?" Trish asked him.
Harm shrugged. "Fine."
"How's Mac?" Sarah asked.
"She's awake now," he replied. "They came to draw labs, and the nurse told us you were all here. She'd like to see you all… you can go ahead and go back." He looked at Frank. "May I speak with you?"
"Of course," Frank said, nodding to the others. "We'll be there soon."
They nodded and started off towards Mac's room.
As soon as they were gone, Harm looked to Frank, his eyes expressing everything he was feeling. "Dad…" he said, his breaking as Frank pulled him into a fierce hug, and Harm finally let go of all the emotion built up inside of him.
Trish paused a moment to look back at her son and husband, and she gasped, causing AJ and Sarah to stop and turn to see what had caused her reaction.
Even the normally stoic, former SEAL got a little misty-eyed at the sight of Harm clinging to his stepfather while his body shook with heart-wrenching sobs.
Trish wiped away the tears in her eyes, pulling herself together. "Let's go see Mac, shall we? Harm's in good hands."
They all turned and moved to Mac's room.
Trish tapped on the door, before poking her head inside.
"May we come in?" she asked.
Mac looked up and smiled wanly at Trish. "Of course," she said softly.
Trish, Grammy Sarah, and AJ entered the room, moving to stand by Mac's bed. Each one of them took a turn giving her a hug.
"How are you feeling?" Trish asked, as AJ went and rounded up chairs for them to sit in.
"Tired," Mac replied. "I don't think the sedative has worn completely off yet."
"We won't stay too long," Trish promised. "Do you need anything?"
"I need the breast pump, and some bottles," she replied. "And I'd really like someone to bring Miranda here… I really need to see her."
Trish looked at AJ and nodded.
"We'll work something out," AJ promised.
"Where are Harm and Frank?" Mac asked.
"They're out in the waiting room," Trish replied. "They're talking."
Mac nodded in understanding. "I'm probably going to be moved to Bethesda tonight or tomorrow," she told them. "Dr. Martindale was here a little while ago, and she wants to monitor me for a few days. I guess that will be easier if I'm at Bethesda."
"When will they know for sure when you're being moved?" AJ asked.
"In a few hours," Mac said. "They want to make sure I'm stable enough to move without risking the other baby."
Everyone nodded, as a nurse entered the room. "Your husband asked me to tell you that he and his father were going outside for a walk," she said to Mac.
Mac nodded. "Thank you," she replied.
The nurse checked the monitors above Mac's bed, making notes on her chart, before checking the bag hanging on the IV pole.
"Do you need anything, Mrs. Rabb?" the nurse asked Mac.
"No, thank you," Mac said.
"You know how to call me, if you need me," she said, before leaving the room.
Mac nodded, and placed her hand on her abdomen, feeling the baby still remaining moving around. It was at once comforting, and difficult for her.
"How far along are you now?" Trish asked.
"Eighteen weeks," Mac said softly. "Almost half way there." She took a deep, shuddering breath, and then the tears started. "We were so happy…"
AJ moved to sit beside her on the bed, pulling her into his arms. She placed her head on his shoulder, sobbing softly, as he held her.
Trish looked at Sarah, and their own eyes filled with tears.
14:22 EST
Bethesda Naval Hospital
Bethesda, MD
Harm took Mac's hand, as she leaned her head back and closed her eyes, sighing.
"Why don't you sleep for awhile?" he suggested. "It could be a couple of hours before AJ gets here with Miranda."
Mac opened her eyes and looked at him. "I hope not; I really need to see her right now."
Harm nodded, and gave her hand a light squeeze. "Do you want me to call him?"
Mac shook her head. "No; he'll be here as soon as he can." She moved over on her bed, and patted the space beside her. "Why don't you lie down here with me for awhile? Maybe we can both get some sleep."
Harm stood, slipping his shoes off, and carefully settled himself beside her on the bed, so that he was facing her. He pulled her into his arms, kissing the top of her head.
"Harm?" Mac said softly.
"Yeah?" he replied quietly.
"You don't have to be strong for me, you know," she told him. "I understand that you're probably at least as upset as I am, and I won't think any less of you for showing me how much you're hurting, and it won't upset me if you want to talk about it."
Harm pulled back slightly, so that he could look into her eyes. "Thank you," he said, kissing her forehead. "I talked to Frank, and even cried with him, so for now, I'm okay. You know that you don't have to be strong for me, either, right?"
Mac nodded. "I know."
"Good," he said, "now close your eyes and try to sleep for a bit."
Mac gave him a tight smile, and kissed his chin. "I love you."
"I love you, too," he said.
"Harm? We're going to get through this, right?" she asked softly.
Harm tightened his hold just a little, and then pulled away enough to look into her eyes. "It won't be easy, but I promise you, we will get through this," he said, brushing the tear that slipped from her eye away with his thumb.
Mac nodded, and finally closed her eyes, as Harm again pulled her close to him, and they settled in to sleep.
One hour and eighteen minutes later, Mac awoke when she heard Miranda fussing. She looked up and saw Trish holding her, bouncing her gently, trying to soothe her.
"Trish," Mac said, gently rousing Harm awake. "I thought AJ was going to bring her by?"
"He did," she replied, as Harm groggily sat up and brushed a hand through his hair. "But he received an emergency call, so he had to leave again, and since we were here, we volunteered to stay with her."
Harm moved to one of the chairs near the bed. "Where are Dad and Grammy?"
"Frank took Sarah to get something to eat, and then to check into our hotel. We booked us rooms at the Marriott down the street. Frank booked you one, as well," she told her son.
Miranda began fussing in earnest, reaching for her mother, and Trish tried again to soother her.
"Here, Trish," Mac said, holding her arms open, after she'd raised the head of the bed. "I'll take her."
Trish handed Miranda to Mac, and Mac held her close, kissing the top of her head.
"It's okay, sweetheart," Mac murmured. "Mommy's got you."
Miranda squirmed until she was being cradled in Mac's arms, and then she turned her head and began trying to nurse.
Mac smiled, as she leaned forward and pulled her arm out of her hospital gown, moving it out of the way and allowing Miranda to latch on. She sighed when Miranda settled down, happily nursing, and she rubbed her finger along the baby girl's cheek. "That's all you wanted, wasn't it?" she said softly.
Miranda looked up and smiled at her mother, and then went back to nursing.
Trish shared a smile with Harm, and sat in the other chair near the bed.
"AJ packed you a bag when he went back to the house to get some more things for Miranda," she told Harm. "If you need anything else, someone can go to the house and get it for you."
"Thank you, Mom," Harm said. "AJ told me last night that he spoke to my CO, and I can have a couple of days off. I know I've used up most of my leave time, but right now, Mac is my priority."
Mac smiled at him. "Dr. Martindale said that I'm staying here for at least the next forty-eight hours; we'll see how it goes from there."
"She's supposed to come and see you before she goes home for the night, isn't she?" he asked.
Mac nodded. "That's what she said earlier."
"If she thinks you'll be okay, I may go to work tomorrow afternoon for a few hours," he said. "There's only a few more days before the weekend starts, so I'll try to work as much as I can until then."
"That's probably a good idea," Mac said. "Someone will call you, if there's a problem, and your family is here. As long as I get to keep Miranda with me as much as possible, I'll be okay."
"Are you sure?" Harm asked. "I don't want you overdoing it."
"I'm sure," she promised. "And I'm sure Trish, Frank, and Grammy will make sure I don't overdo it."
"Count on it," Trish said, smiling.
