Title : A Tale Of Three Rings - An Eternity Between Engagement and Wedding. (There's a story there, somewhere...)
Author : Jaggie 107
Disclaimer : JAG characters belong to DPB, CBS and Paramount. I hope all parties will allow me to have a little fun for a little while, and replace them all when I'm done. Thank you.
Rating : PG (maybe)
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The woman sat on the park bench, watching her son play on the swings, idly twisting the rings on her left hand. Beside her a young woman, heavily pregnant, sat in silence. A trace of tears and reddened eyes bore testament to a state of despair.
"Excuse me, I couldn't help notice, are you all right?" The woman asked gently, not wanting to cause the young woman any more distress than she already appeared to be in.
"Oh, yes, I...I'm fine. I guess it's just hormones...I seem to cry a lot lately. If Mike were here...he...oh!" More tears fell at the mention of the name and the young woman buried her face in her hands.
The woman handed a square of kitchen towel over as a makeshift handkerchief. At the questioning look from the young woman she smiled. "It's all part of being a parent; you learn to travel with all necessities, just short of the kitchen sink itself."
"Thank you." The young woman wiped her nose, sniffed and wiped again, and then looked across at her benefactor. "Is that your little boy?"
"Yes, it is. I'm still on maternity leave right now, so I'm making the most of my time with David while my husband gets to know his daughter."
"Oh, two! You have two children!"
"Yes. I think my husband has had enough though. Two trips to the Emergency Room seem to have been his quota for fatherhood."
"Emergency? You had problems?"
"Only with him. The babies and I got on famously, and they arrived with little or no delay. My husband, on the other hand, fainted - twice. While I spent the time in Maternity he was down in ER being stitched up. It's not something he likes to brag about, being a bona fide naval aviator who thinks nothing of sitting in a cockpit and being launched by an oversized elastic band into the wide blue yonder of an ocean. Watching his wife giving birth should be a piece of cake, but isn't. According to my mother-in-law, his father had the same problem."
The young woman smiled.
"That's better. Life is so much easier to deal with if you can smile, even a little."
"Thank you. I'm happy being pregnant; really I am. I'm just not sure if my boyfriend is. We're supposed to be going through this delivery together; he's been there for me all through the classes. He just announced this morning that he might not be able to make it, and I haven't been able to reach him all day."
"When are you due? It doesn't look like it's too far away?"
"Yesterday." The answer was short and a little sharp, and the young woman grinned apologetically. "Sorry. Being this size just gets to you after a while, and especially when dates are passed!"
"Have you tried the deli on Patterson? They serve the hottest pepper bread..."
"Tried it."
"How about a parade salute? The guns going off might just set you off?"
"Nah," the young woman shook her head again. "I've sat through three parade salutes and a fly-by. Nothing moved."
"Oh. Well, do you know what you're having? A girl or boy?"
"Twins, if the size of me is anything to go by. Although the doctor swears there is only one on the monitor, he hasn't been able to determine the sex. Stubborn little mule is keeping it's back to the camera."
The woman laughed out loud. "That's funny!"
At that moment the little boy on the swings waved and called out to his mother, who smiled and waved back. During the pause, the young woman eyed the three rings on the woman's left hand.
"Can I ask you a personal question? Why three rings?"
"Oh, these are my wedding band, my engagement and eternity rings."
"Eternity? You can't have been married for THAT long! Oops!"
As the young woman clamped her hand over her mouth in dismay, the woman laughed out loud. As tears of laughter rolled down her cheeks she put her hand out to the young woman.
"If you're going to get that personal, young lady, my name is Sarah."
"I'm Charlie. Short for Charlotte."
"Hello, Charlie." Sarah smiled at the young woman and then glanced at the three rings on her own finger again. "There is a little story with these rings, if you'd like to hear it?"
"I'd love to!" Charlie turned on the bench to look at Sarah and waited for her to start speaking.
"Well, I've been married to my husband for just over a year, although I've known him for fourteen years. It took eight years for us to get through all the mistakes in our lives and reach the point where we knew we wanted an eternity together. Having said that, it then took him another five years to convince me that he really wanted to marry me, even though we had David by then."
"Did you think he didn't love you?"
"Oh, no." Sarah smiled, going back in her mind to the very first time they met, in a Rose Garden. "I always knew he loved me, even from the very first time we met. I've...had a lot of issues in my life to come to terms with, and my husband has been patient enough to wait. We've hurt each other over the years but throughout everything we've always found each other to talk to, and ultimately to love each other. Charlie, the thing to remember is that while you love someone, you can also find that they can hurt you, and that sometimes you don't even like them, but if the love is real, it will always be there, and the greatest love is when you're 'in' love with someone, and they're in love with you. For me, my rings represent that there was an eternity between getting engaged and finally getting married, but that the love we share is also for an eternity."
Charlie nodded. "I know I love Mike, and he loves me, and that we're in love with each other. I'm the one who wouldn't get married, because I didn't want to cause him problems with his career choices. The pregnancy wasn't planned, we thought we were protected - we even used three types of prevention!"
"Wow, this baby of yours is determined, then!" Sarah laughed softly, and leant forward to touch Charlie's hand. "You said earlier that Mike had been to all the classes with you. That sounds quite committed to this baby."
"He is, really. I just... I was talking this morning about where I would be giving birth - I'm registered at the local hospital - and he was on his way out to Norfolk. He just said he might not make it, and left!"
"You don't think that maybe he got the wrong end of the conversation, and misheard you?"
"I don't know... I guess, maybe, he could have... oh, my goodness!" Charlie looked at Sarah, tears starting to well in her eyes again. "I've been a bit vague lately, I might even have been talking about something else, and just let the thought of the baby take over my thoughts."
"I would agree with you there, sweetheart." A man's voice sounded above Charlie's head as she wiped at the tears in her eyes. Glancing up she squealed and scrambled to her feet - or at least tried to! At nine months and counting, her size precluded any graceful movements. Mike Roberts helped Charlie to her feet and into his arms, holding her close and kissing her forehead. "You know, Charlie, I thought you were talking about 'living' in a house, not 'giving' birth, and all I meant was that I wouldn't be able to make it to view any houses while I've got my induction class at Norfolk. Once I'm in, it'll be easier to sort things out. My CO knows I'm on standby to get to the hospital with you as and when I'm needed."
Charlie nodded, smiled, and hiccoughed, and then turned to Sarah. "Sarah, I'd like you to meet my boyfriend, M..."
"Mike!" Sarah laughed and leant forwards, putting her arms out to the younger man, who grinned and hugged her.
"Hello, Mac."
"Would someone mind telling me what I missed here?" Charlie asked, confused to say the least!
Sarah sat down again and Charlie moved up so Mike could sit down beside her. "I've known Mike almost as long as I've known my husband, Charlie. He's the younger brother of a friend of mine, Bud Roberts. Bud was my husband's best man when we got married."
"Charlie hasn't met Bud yet, Mac. He and I... we kind of lost touch after AJ went missing." Mike explained, his voice lowering slightly. Sarah nodded, but her eyes settled on the younger couple knowingly.
"I know he said some things to you, Mike, that weren't the most tactful. After all this time together I know him almost as well as I know Harm; it didn't take me long to get the details out of him. He was so miserable, and he had no idea where you had gone. Would it be hard to see him?"
"No... I think I understand what he must have gone through at the time; going through this pregnancy with Charlie has helped me a lot. It would be nice to be with family again - Charlie knows about Bud and Harriet, and the boys, and the JAG family history... Charlie?" Mike turned to his girlfriend as she squealed in delight and pointed a finger at Sarah.
"That's you! You're the Mac that Mike has spoken about, and Harm! This is amazing! Oh, I can't wait to meet Harm! Oh, Mike, this is so great!" Charlie put her arms around Mike's neck and squeezed.
"Just what did you tell Charlie about us, Mike?" Sarah smiled at the couple, and waited patiently for an explanation for Charlie's exuberant outburst.
"I guess I told her how much you and Harm helped Bud and Harriet get together, and then how much you helped Bud get me into the OCS program. I once said to him that I didn't have the friends that he did, but I was wrong - I do have those friends too, you and Harm, Harriet, Sturgis, even the Admiral! It just took a little growing-up to realise."
"Mike, you are an outstanding officer, and a gentleman. You were there for Harriet when Bud was injured, and he will always be in your debt for that. It was no small feat to keep her focussed while Bud was fighting for his life."
"He told you that?" Mike's voice dropped to a whisper. "I... I always knew he wanted to say something, but he could never really say 'thank you'. It was like my dad all over again, and so I just accepted that he would say it if he could. I never really expected him to put it into words with anyone."
"Well, he did. If you give him the chance, he'll tell you himself too."
"I'd like that." Mike nodded and looked from Charlie to Sarah. "So, where is Harm?" he asked, looking across the park for the tall, dark haired officer.
"He's... " began Sarah, and then stopped as her sixth sense told her Harm was behind her. "...right here," she added, turning her head up to smile at her husband, who leant over the bench and dropped a kiss on his wife's waiting mouth. Mike stood up and put his hand out to shake hands with Harm, who promptly ignored it and pulled the younger man into a warm hug.
"Mike, it's great to see you!"
"You too, Harm." Charlie glanced up shyly from beneath her blonde fringe at the man Sarah was married to. Harm caught her glance and as he caught sight of her size he dropped into a crouch and grinned at her.
"Hi, I'm Harm Rabb."
"I'm Charlie; I'm with Mike, I mean... he, we... omigosh!" Charlie shut up, going beet red. Sarah leant over and held her hand again, and Mike sat back down beside her. Harm's grin got wider, and he winked at Sarah.
"I see you've still got the knack, flyboy," Sarah murmured, and Charlie was curious enough to raise her head at that comment.
"The knack?" she queried, looking from Harm's grin to Sarah's smile.
"Harm's 'flyboy' grin has made many a woman's knees weak - me included, which I don't mind admitting nowadays, in select company only. He can't help it - it's in the genes. His father had it, and his son has it." At that comment the little boy who had been playing throughout the conversation between the adults suddenly realised his father had joined the group and he cried out loudly.
"Daddy!"
"Hiya, sport." Harm got to his feet and fielded the dark-haired ball of energy that was his son. Picking him up he set the chubby child's legs round his neck and held the equally chubby hands in his. Sarah got to her feet too and stood beside her husband and child. Charlie had attempted to get to her feet when there was a sudden 'whoosh' and a wet puddle.
"Mike...!" Charlie squealed, sitting back down in shock. Sarah moved towards her new-found friend and smiled.
"It's okay, Charlie. We're near the hospital. Your waters have broken; it looks like all this excitement has made Baby Roberts curious."
"Oh, man!" Mike glanced from his girlfriend to his friends, and then back again to Charlie. "This is it, kiddo! No turning back now."
Charlie managed a half-laugh, and then a contraction hit. "Oh!"
"Action stations, Mike. You don't have much time." Sarah pushed the couple towards the car park, with Harm following, still carrying David on his shoulders. The little boy wasn't really aware that there was a sudden urgency to everyone leaving the park, and he was just happy to be on his father's broad shoulders.
Harm dropped David into Sarah's arms and she in turn lowered him to the car seat in the people carrier and strapped him in. Mike had helped Charlie into their Jeep and was helping her breathe through another contraction. Harm ran over to them.
"Mike, you want me to call Bud?"
"I...yeah, if you would? It might just break the ice to find out his brother's going to be a father!"
"It'll be okay, Mike."
"Thanks, Harm."
"Go. Hospital. Now!" Charlie muttered through gritted teeth, managing a quick smile at Harm and Sarah who was now stood beside her husband. The older couple waited while Mike reversed and pulled out of the car park, heading for the hospital. As they lost sight of the vehicle they turned to each other.
"What an exciting life you lead, Colonel Rabb. I leave you alone in a park with our son for a couple of hours and you find a new friend, an old friend, and mend fences at the same time."
Sarah laughed. "Ha, you're just jealous!"
"Of anyone who gets to spend time with you when I can't? Always." Harm smiled down at Sarah before placing a soft kiss on her mouth. "Love you, Ninja Girl."
"Back at ya, Flyboy."
From their car came the plaintive call of an almost-five year old. "Kissing... eyuch!"
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The End
Author : Jaggie 107
Disclaimer : JAG characters belong to DPB, CBS and Paramount. I hope all parties will allow me to have a little fun for a little while, and replace them all when I'm done. Thank you.
Rating : PG (maybe)
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The woman sat on the park bench, watching her son play on the swings, idly twisting the rings on her left hand. Beside her a young woman, heavily pregnant, sat in silence. A trace of tears and reddened eyes bore testament to a state of despair.
"Excuse me, I couldn't help notice, are you all right?" The woman asked gently, not wanting to cause the young woman any more distress than she already appeared to be in.
"Oh, yes, I...I'm fine. I guess it's just hormones...I seem to cry a lot lately. If Mike were here...he...oh!" More tears fell at the mention of the name and the young woman buried her face in her hands.
The woman handed a square of kitchen towel over as a makeshift handkerchief. At the questioning look from the young woman she smiled. "It's all part of being a parent; you learn to travel with all necessities, just short of the kitchen sink itself."
"Thank you." The young woman wiped her nose, sniffed and wiped again, and then looked across at her benefactor. "Is that your little boy?"
"Yes, it is. I'm still on maternity leave right now, so I'm making the most of my time with David while my husband gets to know his daughter."
"Oh, two! You have two children!"
"Yes. I think my husband has had enough though. Two trips to the Emergency Room seem to have been his quota for fatherhood."
"Emergency? You had problems?"
"Only with him. The babies and I got on famously, and they arrived with little or no delay. My husband, on the other hand, fainted - twice. While I spent the time in Maternity he was down in ER being stitched up. It's not something he likes to brag about, being a bona fide naval aviator who thinks nothing of sitting in a cockpit and being launched by an oversized elastic band into the wide blue yonder of an ocean. Watching his wife giving birth should be a piece of cake, but isn't. According to my mother-in-law, his father had the same problem."
The young woman smiled.
"That's better. Life is so much easier to deal with if you can smile, even a little."
"Thank you. I'm happy being pregnant; really I am. I'm just not sure if my boyfriend is. We're supposed to be going through this delivery together; he's been there for me all through the classes. He just announced this morning that he might not be able to make it, and I haven't been able to reach him all day."
"When are you due? It doesn't look like it's too far away?"
"Yesterday." The answer was short and a little sharp, and the young woman grinned apologetically. "Sorry. Being this size just gets to you after a while, and especially when dates are passed!"
"Have you tried the deli on Patterson? They serve the hottest pepper bread..."
"Tried it."
"How about a parade salute? The guns going off might just set you off?"
"Nah," the young woman shook her head again. "I've sat through three parade salutes and a fly-by. Nothing moved."
"Oh. Well, do you know what you're having? A girl or boy?"
"Twins, if the size of me is anything to go by. Although the doctor swears there is only one on the monitor, he hasn't been able to determine the sex. Stubborn little mule is keeping it's back to the camera."
The woman laughed out loud. "That's funny!"
At that moment the little boy on the swings waved and called out to his mother, who smiled and waved back. During the pause, the young woman eyed the three rings on the woman's left hand.
"Can I ask you a personal question? Why three rings?"
"Oh, these are my wedding band, my engagement and eternity rings."
"Eternity? You can't have been married for THAT long! Oops!"
As the young woman clamped her hand over her mouth in dismay, the woman laughed out loud. As tears of laughter rolled down her cheeks she put her hand out to the young woman.
"If you're going to get that personal, young lady, my name is Sarah."
"I'm Charlie. Short for Charlotte."
"Hello, Charlie." Sarah smiled at the young woman and then glanced at the three rings on her own finger again. "There is a little story with these rings, if you'd like to hear it?"
"I'd love to!" Charlie turned on the bench to look at Sarah and waited for her to start speaking.
"Well, I've been married to my husband for just over a year, although I've known him for fourteen years. It took eight years for us to get through all the mistakes in our lives and reach the point where we knew we wanted an eternity together. Having said that, it then took him another five years to convince me that he really wanted to marry me, even though we had David by then."
"Did you think he didn't love you?"
"Oh, no." Sarah smiled, going back in her mind to the very first time they met, in a Rose Garden. "I always knew he loved me, even from the very first time we met. I've...had a lot of issues in my life to come to terms with, and my husband has been patient enough to wait. We've hurt each other over the years but throughout everything we've always found each other to talk to, and ultimately to love each other. Charlie, the thing to remember is that while you love someone, you can also find that they can hurt you, and that sometimes you don't even like them, but if the love is real, it will always be there, and the greatest love is when you're 'in' love with someone, and they're in love with you. For me, my rings represent that there was an eternity between getting engaged and finally getting married, but that the love we share is also for an eternity."
Charlie nodded. "I know I love Mike, and he loves me, and that we're in love with each other. I'm the one who wouldn't get married, because I didn't want to cause him problems with his career choices. The pregnancy wasn't planned, we thought we were protected - we even used three types of prevention!"
"Wow, this baby of yours is determined, then!" Sarah laughed softly, and leant forward to touch Charlie's hand. "You said earlier that Mike had been to all the classes with you. That sounds quite committed to this baby."
"He is, really. I just... I was talking this morning about where I would be giving birth - I'm registered at the local hospital - and he was on his way out to Norfolk. He just said he might not make it, and left!"
"You don't think that maybe he got the wrong end of the conversation, and misheard you?"
"I don't know... I guess, maybe, he could have... oh, my goodness!" Charlie looked at Sarah, tears starting to well in her eyes again. "I've been a bit vague lately, I might even have been talking about something else, and just let the thought of the baby take over my thoughts."
"I would agree with you there, sweetheart." A man's voice sounded above Charlie's head as she wiped at the tears in her eyes. Glancing up she squealed and scrambled to her feet - or at least tried to! At nine months and counting, her size precluded any graceful movements. Mike Roberts helped Charlie to her feet and into his arms, holding her close and kissing her forehead. "You know, Charlie, I thought you were talking about 'living' in a house, not 'giving' birth, and all I meant was that I wouldn't be able to make it to view any houses while I've got my induction class at Norfolk. Once I'm in, it'll be easier to sort things out. My CO knows I'm on standby to get to the hospital with you as and when I'm needed."
Charlie nodded, smiled, and hiccoughed, and then turned to Sarah. "Sarah, I'd like you to meet my boyfriend, M..."
"Mike!" Sarah laughed and leant forwards, putting her arms out to the younger man, who grinned and hugged her.
"Hello, Mac."
"Would someone mind telling me what I missed here?" Charlie asked, confused to say the least!
Sarah sat down again and Charlie moved up so Mike could sit down beside her. "I've known Mike almost as long as I've known my husband, Charlie. He's the younger brother of a friend of mine, Bud Roberts. Bud was my husband's best man when we got married."
"Charlie hasn't met Bud yet, Mac. He and I... we kind of lost touch after AJ went missing." Mike explained, his voice lowering slightly. Sarah nodded, but her eyes settled on the younger couple knowingly.
"I know he said some things to you, Mike, that weren't the most tactful. After all this time together I know him almost as well as I know Harm; it didn't take me long to get the details out of him. He was so miserable, and he had no idea where you had gone. Would it be hard to see him?"
"No... I think I understand what he must have gone through at the time; going through this pregnancy with Charlie has helped me a lot. It would be nice to be with family again - Charlie knows about Bud and Harriet, and the boys, and the JAG family history... Charlie?" Mike turned to his girlfriend as she squealed in delight and pointed a finger at Sarah.
"That's you! You're the Mac that Mike has spoken about, and Harm! This is amazing! Oh, I can't wait to meet Harm! Oh, Mike, this is so great!" Charlie put her arms around Mike's neck and squeezed.
"Just what did you tell Charlie about us, Mike?" Sarah smiled at the couple, and waited patiently for an explanation for Charlie's exuberant outburst.
"I guess I told her how much you and Harm helped Bud and Harriet get together, and then how much you helped Bud get me into the OCS program. I once said to him that I didn't have the friends that he did, but I was wrong - I do have those friends too, you and Harm, Harriet, Sturgis, even the Admiral! It just took a little growing-up to realise."
"Mike, you are an outstanding officer, and a gentleman. You were there for Harriet when Bud was injured, and he will always be in your debt for that. It was no small feat to keep her focussed while Bud was fighting for his life."
"He told you that?" Mike's voice dropped to a whisper. "I... I always knew he wanted to say something, but he could never really say 'thank you'. It was like my dad all over again, and so I just accepted that he would say it if he could. I never really expected him to put it into words with anyone."
"Well, he did. If you give him the chance, he'll tell you himself too."
"I'd like that." Mike nodded and looked from Charlie to Sarah. "So, where is Harm?" he asked, looking across the park for the tall, dark haired officer.
"He's... " began Sarah, and then stopped as her sixth sense told her Harm was behind her. "...right here," she added, turning her head up to smile at her husband, who leant over the bench and dropped a kiss on his wife's waiting mouth. Mike stood up and put his hand out to shake hands with Harm, who promptly ignored it and pulled the younger man into a warm hug.
"Mike, it's great to see you!"
"You too, Harm." Charlie glanced up shyly from beneath her blonde fringe at the man Sarah was married to. Harm caught her glance and as he caught sight of her size he dropped into a crouch and grinned at her.
"Hi, I'm Harm Rabb."
"I'm Charlie; I'm with Mike, I mean... he, we... omigosh!" Charlie shut up, going beet red. Sarah leant over and held her hand again, and Mike sat back down beside her. Harm's grin got wider, and he winked at Sarah.
"I see you've still got the knack, flyboy," Sarah murmured, and Charlie was curious enough to raise her head at that comment.
"The knack?" she queried, looking from Harm's grin to Sarah's smile.
"Harm's 'flyboy' grin has made many a woman's knees weak - me included, which I don't mind admitting nowadays, in select company only. He can't help it - it's in the genes. His father had it, and his son has it." At that comment the little boy who had been playing throughout the conversation between the adults suddenly realised his father had joined the group and he cried out loudly.
"Daddy!"
"Hiya, sport." Harm got to his feet and fielded the dark-haired ball of energy that was his son. Picking him up he set the chubby child's legs round his neck and held the equally chubby hands in his. Sarah got to her feet too and stood beside her husband and child. Charlie had attempted to get to her feet when there was a sudden 'whoosh' and a wet puddle.
"Mike...!" Charlie squealed, sitting back down in shock. Sarah moved towards her new-found friend and smiled.
"It's okay, Charlie. We're near the hospital. Your waters have broken; it looks like all this excitement has made Baby Roberts curious."
"Oh, man!" Mike glanced from his girlfriend to his friends, and then back again to Charlie. "This is it, kiddo! No turning back now."
Charlie managed a half-laugh, and then a contraction hit. "Oh!"
"Action stations, Mike. You don't have much time." Sarah pushed the couple towards the car park, with Harm following, still carrying David on his shoulders. The little boy wasn't really aware that there was a sudden urgency to everyone leaving the park, and he was just happy to be on his father's broad shoulders.
Harm dropped David into Sarah's arms and she in turn lowered him to the car seat in the people carrier and strapped him in. Mike had helped Charlie into their Jeep and was helping her breathe through another contraction. Harm ran over to them.
"Mike, you want me to call Bud?"
"I...yeah, if you would? It might just break the ice to find out his brother's going to be a father!"
"It'll be okay, Mike."
"Thanks, Harm."
"Go. Hospital. Now!" Charlie muttered through gritted teeth, managing a quick smile at Harm and Sarah who was now stood beside her husband. The older couple waited while Mike reversed and pulled out of the car park, heading for the hospital. As they lost sight of the vehicle they turned to each other.
"What an exciting life you lead, Colonel Rabb. I leave you alone in a park with our son for a couple of hours and you find a new friend, an old friend, and mend fences at the same time."
Sarah laughed. "Ha, you're just jealous!"
"Of anyone who gets to spend time with you when I can't? Always." Harm smiled down at Sarah before placing a soft kiss on her mouth. "Love you, Ninja Girl."
"Back at ya, Flyboy."
From their car came the plaintive call of an almost-five year old. "Kissing... eyuch!"
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The End