Disclaimer: I don't own anything from MASH, no matter how much I would love too, I don't so please don't sue me!
Summary: Follow Hawkeye and Margaret's life, together from the beginning!
A/N: Thanks for all the great reviews! Keep them coming! I hope you enjoy the this chapter! Please R&R
In February, Daniel asked his son and daughter-in-law to come visit for a few days. Hawkeye was worried about taking off from work, but he also wanted to go and talk to his old med school professor at the Portland Hospital, just to see what jobs were coming around. He took off for another week and a half, which was fine. He has put in enough hours in the past few months to take off for a month straight. They were all looking forward to seeing Daniel, and he was looking forward to seeing his family. He was even more excited for his son to finally meet Anna, who he kept good company with. Hawkeye and Margaret would be leaving at eight on Monday and not returning till the Wednesday after next. Margaret made plans to go visit with her parents, so they would stay down in Philadelphia over night to do so. Margaret was only four months pregnant, and her morning sickness was becoming less frequent, so she felt she could fly early in the morning without any problems. Dan was there to pick them up at four pm sharp. The kids immediately spotted Dan and ran to him, clinging to his legs as he bent down to hug the two.
"Hi kids!" He smiles at the two.
"Hi Grandpop!"
"Hi Pop!" Zachary replies, trying to copy his sister.
"Hi Honey." He smiles, kissing Margaret on the cheek, "How are you feeling?"
"Hi Dad. I'm feeling better."
"Not too sick in the morning?"
"Depends on the day. It's less frequent however."
"That's good." He smiles, turning to his son, "And you…"
"And me." Hawkeye laughs, hugging his father.
"Are you taking care of my daughter-in-law?"
"Always." He says, "You look good."
"So do you."
"How have you been?"
"Fine, and you?"
"Fine."
"Good." He smiles. He was very proud of his son and of his son's family. "How would you like to help me work tomorrow, and see a few old patients?"
Hawkeye groans, but says, "Sure, sounds like a blast."
"I knew you'd jump at the offer." He laughs, picking up his grandson, "Shall we?"
"Let's go." Hawkeye smiles, as they grab the bags and go out to Daniel's car.
Hawkeye's car was still there and running, so they didn't have to rent one. Hawkeye and his father talk the entire car ride up, before Natalie asks about the dog. Hawkeye and Margaret are going to have to get her a dog one of these days, but neither one wanted a dog yet. As soon as Natalie was out of the car, she ran inside and over to the dog. Zack likes dogs, but he has to get use to them first. Brandi was new, and he was a bit worried of the three year old dog who was jumping all over his sister. He stayed with his grandfather while the puppy plays with his sister.
"Do you want to go play with the doggie Zack?" Dan asks his grandson.
"No." He says, looking down at the excited dog.
"Maybe in a little while." He smiles.
"Natalie, go put your things in your bedroom honey." Margaret says, pulling her daughter away from the dog.
"Ok!" She says, grabbing her stuffed animals. "Zack too."
"Yup, you two buddy." Hawkeye smiles, as Daniel puts him down and he follows his sister upstairs. Hawkeye takes the bags from his wife and follows the kids upstairs. He puts the suitcases in his room and in the kids room before going back downstairs with his family.
"So, tonight, how does dinner out tonight sound?" Daniel asks.
"Sounds good." Margaret smiles.
"Where at?"
"Down at "The Cove"" he says, smiling.
"Sounds great."
"Tomorrow, I invited Anna over…"
"Oh?" Hawkeye asks, a bit bitter.
"Yes, I want you to meet her, and she is anxious to meet my family."
"That sounds good too." Margaret smiles, watching Hawkeye's facial expression very closely, his blank look pissed her off, "Doesn't it Hawk?"
"Yeah… Great." He says, "What time is dinner tonight?"
"Reservations are in an hour."
"Sounds good." Margaret smiles. "I'll get the kids changed and you two, just do what you two always do… nothing." She laughs, "Natalie, Zachary, come on, upstairs you two so we can get some clothes on you."
"We do have clothes on mommy!" Natalie says, looking down at her pants and sweater.
Margaret smiles, "Well, we are going out to dinner so you two need to have some clean clothes on."
"Oh. Ok mommy. Can I wear my dress Aunt Annie gets me?"
"No you can not wear the dress Aunt Annie GOT you." She corrects her daughter in a subtle manner. "Lets go quick."
"Why?"
"Because we are meeting a friend of Grandpop's tomorrow and you can wear it then."
"Ok." She smiles, and runs upstairs. Margaret picks Zack up and kisses his cheek, and walks upstairs.
Margaret pulls out a purple dress for Natalie and a nice pair of pants and a sweater for Zack, "Take your clothes off honey." She tells her oldest, as she quickly changes her son.
"Ok mommy!" She says, as she holds her hands up for her mom to put her dress on.
Margaret lets Zack up and pulls the dress over her, and zips her up, "Ok, go back down with Grandpop and daddy and take Zack with you."
"Ok." She says, as the two go downstairs. Margaret goes into her room and changes into a nice pair of pants and a nice shirt. She went back downstairs and sat next to her husband, "Your turn." She says.
"Right." He smiles and stands up, quickly changing and coming back down. They then all proceed to go to the restaurant. When they came home, everyone was tired, so Margaret and Hawk got the kids to bed, then they sat with Daniel till around midnight, when they decided to turn in. Hawkeye stayed awake in bed. He was not looking forward to meeting Anna, but knew that it must be done. He wasn't a child anymore and his father has been alone for almost thirty years, so why couldn't he be happy that he found someone? He tried to have a good outlook on meeting her tomorrow, but visions of his father with a different woman, one other then his mother, clouded his outlook. He looked at the clock that was near him and saw that it was two o'clock in the morning. He just wasn't tired. He pries himself away from his wife who was lying on his chest and quietly went downstairs. He grabs his coat from the closet and heads down for a walk by the ocean. It was cold, but he didn't feel it. "You are worrying about something or someone who you haven't even met!" He tells himself aloud. He walks around for a half an hour before he goes back to the house. He checked on the kids and went to bed.
The next morning Margaret was sick again, but she insists that she will get up with the kids. She found that having the kids around got her mind off of throwing up.
Hawkeye has his meeting at noon with the head of the hospital and he was able to discuss perhaps getting a position as chief surgeon. He was waiting for a position like that to open up for a while now, and decided to take the time and talk to the head of the hospital. Margaret, Dan and the kids stayed around the house. Hawk came home in a good mood which made Margaret happy. That night, Anna comes over for dinner, and it was quite an experience.
"You must be Anna." Margaret smiles as she opens up the door.
"Yes, I am, and you must be Margaret."
"I am."
"It's nice to finally meet you! I've heard a lot about you!"
"All good I hope."
"Of course. And they must be Natalie and Zachary.'
"Yes they are." Margaret smiles, "Natalie, Zack come here."
"What mommy?"
"I want you to meet your Grandpop's friend Ms…"
"Logan." She smiles. She didn't have a problem with or mind having the kids call her Anna, but she knew that Margaret may have.
"Ms. Logan." She smiles.
"Hi!" Natalie smiles, extending her hand out to the new woman, just like her mommy does.
"Hi." Anna smiles shaking the little girls hand. "You look a lot like your daddy."
"Yes!" She smiles with enthusiasm.
"And you Zachary look just like your mommy."
He smiles at her and looks up at his mother, Margaret smiles back down, "Say hi!" He plays shy with her, but Margaret knows better then to buy into that, "Go on, you definitely aren't shy."
"Hi!" He says, all smiles.
"Mommy? Where's daddy?"
"He went with Grandpop to the store. He'll be home very shortly."
"Ok!"
"Can I get you a drink or anything?" Margaret asks Anna as they walk into the living room.
"No, thank you honey, I'm fine."
"Alright." She smiles.
"Don't worry about me, I know my way around here." She laughs.
"I'm sure you do." Margaret smiles, picking up Zack and placing him on her lap. He was being extremely shy today, and Margaret couldn't figure out why.
"So how long are you four up here for?"
"Till Saturday." She smiles.
"My granddaughter is coming up on Thursday, she is about Natalie's age. I think they'd have fun playing together."
"I think she would too."
"She's four, and she has an older brother who is eight."
"I think Nat will enjoy having a girl her age to play with. Hawkeye's best friend BJ has three kids, the oldest, Erin is 6, Gillian is 4, and Michael is 1, so they all are use to playing together."
"Laura gets bored up here sometimes, so Natalie will be a welcomed addition."
"So, I hear you moved here about a year ago?"
"Almost. Your father-in-law was the first person I met. He is really a dear man."
Margaret smiles, "Yes, he is. I really lucked out with him as an in-law."
"Now, are your parents still alive?"
"Yes, they are."
"Does Hawkeye and your parents get a long as well as you and Dan?"
"Hawkeye and my mother do, but him and my father, that's another story."
"Not close?"
"Close to killing one another every time they see each other is more like it."
"That's a shame."
"It is, but when you see how different the two are, you wonder why they haven't killed each other a long time ago. My father is regular army, Hawkeye is anti army. My father is still sore at me that I never married an army man… well stayed with an army man. My younger sister did, and the two of them get along wonderfully…. My father and brother-in-law that is."
"Well maybe one day your father will see you eye-to-eye."
Margaret laughs, "Doubtful, but here's to hoping."
"And I hear you are having a third child?"
"Yes." She smiles.
"How far along are you?"
"Not far enough." She laughs, "Almost four months."
"Are you sick with this pregnancy?"
"Not as bad as with Natalie. Its not constant. Some days I'm sick, and others I'm perfectly fine."
"That's how I was like with my kids."
"It's worth it in the end."
"So is this going to be the last for you two?"
"Probably, but I'm not sure. Hawkeye would have ten more… but I'm getting older now, and if I had another kid it wouldn't be till I was almost 40."
"You can't be 38 years old yet."
"Not yet, 36 actually."
"You're still young." She smiles.
"Not as young as I use to be." She laughs.
"Oh honey, I know that feeling."
Margaret really likes Anna. They hit it off very well, and she hopes that Hawkeye and her would do the same. The kids like Anna also. Hawkeye and Daniel come home after about fifteen minutes of the two women talking and smile.
"Hello?"
"Hi." Both girls call.
"DADDY!" Natalie says, running over to him. Zack does the same, getting off of Margaret's lap.
"Dada!"
"You two couldn't have possible missed me after only a few hours of not seeing me." He smiles, as the two follow him into the kitchen, before he picks them up."
"Daddy, come meet her!"
"Her? Who's her?" He teases.
"Ms. Logan."
"Do I have too?"
"Yup, go." She points to the living room.
Hawkeye sighs, placing the kids on the ground and walks into the living room, kissing his wife first, "Hello." He knew there was no way out of this gathering. He couldn't just say he wasn't feeling well and that is the reason he didn't want to go out to a dinner. His dad has him trapped. They were having a home cooked meal, and he could not get out of it.
"Well it is nice to finally meet you Ben." She smiles.
Hawkeye shudders at his real name being said. No one calls him that, who he didn't know. Margaret was his wife and barely ever called him that, "Hawkeye is fine." He corrects her.
"I've heard a lot about you Hawkeye."
"I've heard a bit about you too." He says, picking Zack up who was at his feet patiently awaiting him to do just that. "Hey buddy." He says as his son looks cautiously at the new woman.
"Ben? Do you want a drink?"
"Yes, a very, very, very dry martini if you don't mind."
"Sounds good." Dan calls back to him, and begins to mix the drinks. He wants Anna and Hawkeye to get as much talk time as possible. He really hopes that the two of them hit it off. So far it looks promising, but you could never tell with Hawk. He was far too unpredictable.
"Grandpop?"
"What princess?" He asks his smiling granddaughter.
"Can I have juice please?"
"I don't know." He teases, "Have you been a good girl today?"
"I've been a very good girl." She assures him.
"Well then I guess you can pick out what kind of juice you want. I have Apple, Cranberry, Orange, and Grape juice. What kind's it going to be Miss Natalie?"
"Um…" She smiles, thinking, "How about, Grape."
"I think that is a good choice." He says, pouring her a cup and putting a lid on it. He didn't mind letting her go into the living room without a lid, but her mother would have.
"Ok, there you go miss."
"Thank you Grandpop." She smiles and hugs his legs, before running out of the kitchen.
"Natalie! Walk." Margaret says, firmly. "You know better than to run in a house."
"Ok mommy." She smiles, and sits down on the floor, watching the cartoon that was on TV.
"So, Anna," Margaret smiles, "Where were you originally from?"
"Portland." She smiles, "My kids were all raised there, but when my husband died a few years ago, I decided that I needed a change. And I hear you have been in the army practically your entire life."
Margaret laughs, "Yes, my father like I said earlier was regular army. Where he moved, we all moved."
"That must have been difficult."
"Not really, you get use to it."
Margaret and Anna talk all evening, Hawkeye on the other hand really didn't say much. He was very short with the woman if she talked to him, and ignores her the rest of the time, and it made Margaret mad. They were going to have a long talk tonight after the kids and Dan went to sleep, there were no if, ands or buts about it. The evening would be very nice if Hawkeye wasn't acting like such an asshole. Margaret didn't apologize to the woman because she thinks that should be something he should do. She just sat there and bites her tongue as her husband ignores his fathers girlfriend. He was so ignorant sometimes, and she couldn't stand it.
"So, what do you say to a dinner out tomorrow night." Dan asks.
"That sounds like fun." Anna says, smiling.
"It does." Margaret says, looking at her husband. "What do you think Hawk?"
"Wonderful." He says, in the most sarcastic tone he has, not looking up from his son and daughter playing on the floor.
"So it's set, what time?"
"Five thirty would be the best with the kids dad." Margaret says.
"That's fine." Anna smiles.
"Are you seeing your parents this trip out honey?" Dan asks his daughter-in-law.
"Probably not this time. They are really busy and we want a peaceful vacation."
Margaret laughs. "I'd rather not run around the entire east coast this time."
At nine, Anna leaves. "Hawk, can you give the kids a bath please?" Margaret asks.
"Sure." He says, "Come on you two."
"Dad, can I help you clean up?" Margaret asks, as she comes into the kitchen.
"I have it honey, thanks." He says.
"Are you alright?" She asks. She knows her father-in-law fairly well, and he did not seem too happy to her.
"Fine." He smiles.
"I'm sorry about the way Hawkeye acted tonight." She says. She had to say something to him.
"I expected it."
"He acted like an ass towards her."
"Honey, he does that with every woman I have brought home. I am use to it by now."
"He's a grown man, and he shouldn't act like that."
"Really, Margaret, it's nothing new." He smiles at her.
She didn't want to hear that. He was a complete ass, and he had no right to be, "Ok." She says, giving into him.
"How have you been feeling?" He asks, changing the subject.
"I've been alright. I was sick this morning, but that was all. Hopefully that wont last too much longer."
"Your almost at your four month mark, I'm sure you will stop being sick soon."
"I can only hope." She says, "I better go see how my husband is fairing."
"Right honey." He smiles. "I'll see you in a bit."
Margaret nods and walks upstairs to find her family, Margaret heard, "Natalie, stop it." When she walks into the stairwell. She smiles and walks to the bathroom.
"Ok you three. It's bed time." Margaret teases.
"Mommy… no." Natalie says, playing with a toy.
"Yes. Get up." She says, taking one kid and Hawkeye grabbing the other. "Daddy and I need some time to talk."
"I want to talk too!" Natalie says.
"Me too." Zack says, lying his tired head on his mothers shoulder.
"You can talk tomorrow, but tonight, we go to sleep." She smiles, kissing the side of her son's head.
The two of them get the kids ready for and into bed. They were both exhausted, and so were the parents. Hawkeye was not in the mood to deal with the children tonight, so he was very firm in telling them to go to bed.
"You and I need to talk." She says, as they go into the bedroom. "What the hell is your problem?"
"Problem?"
"Don't play dumb with me Pierce. You treated Anna like absolute shit!"
"No I didn't."
Margaret was getting mad now, "You either ignored her, or I got frostbite because of the icy tone of your voice."
"You don't understand Margaret…"
"What I do understand is rather then your father finding someone he likes, and you supporting him, you are acting like a child and making him feel horrible for bringing a woman into the house after your mother has been dead since you were ten years old."
"Drop it Margaret."
"God forbid you wanting your father to be happy for the rest of his life…"
"Shut up, I want my father to be happy…"
"Then why not allow him to date someone he likes?! Why not respect his decision?!"
"I'm not talking about this any more." He says, and storms downstairs, grabbing his coat and walking out the door with out another word. It was almost ten thirty, and he was pissed. He started to his car, but decided to take a walk instead. He was too mad to concentrate on driving, all that shifting would just have pissed him off even more. He walked down by the ocean, the cold air was blowing right through him, however, he didn't mind. "How dare her place the blame all on me. So, I don't like the woman, where is the harm in that? I don't have anything to say to her, so I don't talk. The only questions she asked me tonight were questions I could answer in one to two sentences. Its her fault… it's not mine." Hawkeye told himself. He was furious, "He is 66 for god's sake. He doesn't need someone in his life. He has lived this long without someone, why start now?!" He walked along the water for about an hour before heading back and going to the place he has gone so many times in the past. Margaret was wrong he told himself, not him.
Margaret was in the house, trying to unpack a bit more. She was furious. "He is acting like an ass… a complete ass." She told herself. "How dare he treat Anna like that!" She was beyond words, she was livid at him. She tried to understand where he was coming from, but she couldn't. She couldn't understand how a grown man could not respect their fathers choice. She sighs and goes downstairs, to join her father-in-law in the living room. He was watching TV, so Margaret took the couch next to his chair, "What are you watching?"
"Nothing too interesting honey." He smiles at her.
Margaret and Dan sat in silence for a while, before she spoke, "He's such an ass sometimes."
Dan smiles, "I knew he would get like this. He hasn't changed since he was twelve when I brought home the first woman after his mom's death."
"But he shouldn't be… he's a grown man, and it is horrible how he acted tonight."
"I'll just make sure not to bring her around when he is here…" He sighs.
"Don't make accommodations for him being an ass." Margaret says. "He has no right to tell you that you can't have someone you like in the house or around him."
"He never said that…"
"It was implied." She sighs. "He's just an ass…"
"He's upset."
"I know." Margaret says, "I just hope he warms up to her."
"What do you think about her?"
"I really like her. She seems extremely nice."
"She is. She reminds me a lot of Hawkeye's mother. In fact, so do you." He smiles. "She has the same personality that Claire had. And she was tough, like you. She and Hawkeye were very close. I tried to keep her death a secret from him, telling him all the time that she was fine, and she would get better, but then she took a turn for the worse, and I couldn't keep her death from him. It was just the two of us for the longest time, mostly because he couldn't handle as a kid the thought of having another mother."
"She sounds like she was a nice woman. I know from what Hawkeye tells me, that she was one of a kind. I wish I could have met her."
"So do I honey." He says to her. They sit in silence before he talks again, "Without Hawkeye here, it gets very lonely. I've been alone for almost thirty years, I don't want to be alone anymore."
Margaret feels horrible for her father-in-law. She understands how much that this bothers Hawkeye, and understands why he is acting like an ass, but she can't feel anything but sympathy towards Dan. "When do you think he will come back?"
"When he is ready. You know as well as I do that there is no changing his stubborn ways. He will be out until he is good and ready to come home."
She knew that was true. The two of them were very strong willed, as were their two children, or so they figured.
"Where do you think he went?" She asks as eleven o'clock came along.
"I don't know, probably to the same place he always goes."
"Oh."
"Do you know where it is?"
"Yes." She says sighing.
"If you want me to keep an eye on the kids, you can go and see if he's ok."
"I'm sure he's fine." She says, looking at the clock.
"If you do decide to go out, wear something warm. It's going to be freezing."
"I will."
By eleven thirty, she takes her father-in-law up on his offer and heads out to where she thinks her husband would be. She grabs her jacket and a blanket, knowing that she would be freezing sitting with him. She walks down by the ocean till she sees his silhouette. She sees that he does notice her, and so she doesn't say anything. She walks up next to him.
"Are you cold?" She asks.
"I'm fine." He says, "You shouldn't be out here… you'll get sick."
"You've been gone for a while. I wanted to make sure you're ok."
"I'm fine." He replies again, "Now get back to the house before you get sick."
"Not until you do." She says.
"I'll be back shortly."
"Then so will I."
He looks at her and walks back towards the cliffs. He sits down, and she follows, pulling the blanket over her, and offering some to him. He takes it, only to keep her somewhat happy, and the two just stare into the moonlit ocean. "Why did you act like that today Hawk?" She asks after a few minutes of silence. "Don't you want your father to be happy?"
"I do…"
"So why not try and get along with Anna?"
"Do you know what that will mean? My mother has been completely replaced. My kids will be calling Anna Grandmom, rather than my mother."
"That's not true."
"Oh no? So what will they be calling Anna if my father marries her?"
"We'll find something to call her."
"They can't call her Ms Logan, because she will be Mrs. Pierce. Something only my mother is called."
"We would think of something. Don't you want him to be happy Hawk?"
"Yes Margaret, I do… however…"
"She won't replace your mother, and you don't have to like the fact that your father really likes this very nice woman, you just have to respect it. He's been alone for almost thirty years Pierce…"
"Don't you think I know this? I was there when he became a widower."
"And she is also a widower…"
"It doesn't matter…"
"It does matter. Hawkeye, your father likes this woman. Why can't you accept the fact that he has found someone that makes him happy?"
"Because, it's not the same look he had with my mother. He is not happy. He is trying to just fill a void that is unfillable."
"Is that even a word?"
"You know what I mean."
"Just respect his decision, and come out to dinner with us tomorrow."
"No."
"Hawkeye."
"I'm not going out to dinner with everyone tomorrow, you can go with the kids…"
"What is that going to do to your father and Anna?"
"I don't care."
"Just think about it ok? Get to know her. She is really nice."
He sighs, he knows that she is right, but what can he possibly do? He feels like his father is replacing his mother with her, even at the age of 37 he feels that way. He watches Margaret shiver, and he pulls her close to him, wrapping his arms around her tightly. "You really shouldn't be out here this late. It's freezing."
"Why do you think I brought a blanket?"
"Well it obviously isn't helping you much." He says, rubbing her arms trying to get her a bit warmer.
"Well it isn't helping you either."
"I'm not as cold as you are."
"I don't care, it's still the same temperature and you should be inside too."
"You shouldn't argue with a doctor…"
"And you shouldn't argue with your wife." She says, leaning her head against his chest.
"Point taken." He sighs, and kisses her head, "I just can't understand ever finding a woman I love equally to you, and I guess I can't see how my father does it."
"He doesn't love her equally. He likes her enough to spend time with her, and to not be lonely."
"I guess…" He sighs. "I hope to god I never have to go through what he went through, or put my kids through what I went through."
"It's out of the cards Hawk."
"I know… but I can hope."
"So will you try?"
"I'll try to respect her…" He sighs.
"That's all I ask." She says, looking up at him.
"Come on, you have to be freezing, lets get back to the house." He says, standing up.
"I am… and I'm exhausted." She says, yawning, taking his hand. They walk back to the house, which is only about a ten minute walk, and head inside. Hawkeye turns out all the lights downstairs and joins his wife upstairs. They change for bed, and go to sleep. The next few days were really rough for Hawkeye. He tries his hardest to be civil towards his father and his fathers girlfriend, but he can't do it. He was respectful, but rude at the same time. It seems like every time he thought he could like the woman, she did something or said something to piss him off. He made the best of it, but was thrilled to get home. He needed a break from reality, and him going home was just that. Every thing was back to normal fairly quickly, and he worked every day. He was really looking forward to working in Portland if in fact he does get the job, but he wouldn't hear for a month or so.
March 1
Hawkeye was very distraught on day when he came home from work, he had a very big decision to make, and he couldn't think of only himself. He has his family, and one on the way to think about. He got a phone call earlier in the week about a job offering in the Portland Hospital in none other than Maine. He was asked to be the Chief of Surgery, a position that he has been waiting to open up since before he went to Korea. His wife was five months pregnant, and they would have to move in two months. He didn't know if it would give him enough time to find a house, change jobs, settle in and have a baby. Margaret loves this house, how could he sell it? How could he leave his best friend, his life. He and Margaret started a family here, they set their roots, and now he was going to ask her to uproot everyone and move to Maine? How…
"Hawk?" Margaret says, as she shakes him from his thoughts.
"On the porch." He smiles, as he sees her come through the door.
"You are home early." She smiles.
"Yeah. Where are the kids?"
"Peggy took them to the park." She says, sitting next to him, "I think you and I need to have a little talk."
"About?" He asks, playing dumb.
"I don't know, and I was hoping you could tell me. You have been very distant the past few days, and I want to know why."
"What do you mean?"
"Don't try and get around this Benjamin Franklin Pierce. I know you better than you know yourself, so talk to me. What is going on?"
"A few days ago I got a phone call, " He begins, knowing he wont be able to get out of not talking to her, "I was offered Chief of Surgery in Portland."
"Honey, that's wonderful! You've waited for that position forever!"
"I know…"
"So, what's the problem?"
"I don't know if it's the right time…"
"What the hell are you talking about?!"
"I'm talking about the fact that I just got offered the position, we would have two months to find a house in Maine, move away from everything out here to there, settle in, have the baby…"
"Hawkeye…"
"I know how much you love it here."
"I do, as do you."
"And I know how you have moved all over the place since you were young…"
"So?"
"I didn't think we would move again… at least not so soon."
"Hawkeye, when I married you, I married everything about you. If you decide to move, I'll go with you, if you decide to stay, I'll stay with you. If we move one more time it isn't going to kill me."
"The kids…"
"Will adjust. If we are fine with it, they will be fine too. This is your decision Hawkeye…"
"Don't pin this all on me."
"So you want me to become head of surgery in Portland?" She kids.
"Margaret…"
"I'm sorry, look, it's a big decision, but we'll make it work. So what, I'll have the baby in a new place, that's not too big of a deal. We'll be flying anyway, right?"
"We'll check with the doctor." He smiles.
"This is your decision, and I'll back you up 100 percent, so will the kids."
"They don't know any better." He smiles.
"But I do. When do you have to make a decision?"
"Wednesday."
"That's three days, relax. What do you want to do Hawk?"
"I don't know." He sighs.
"If you decide, we'll take a weekend and go look at houses. I'm sure we can find a house as nice as this one, if not nicer. Maybe we can find a Victorian."
"We'll have to see."
"We can ask your dad and Anna to find a realtor and a few houses for us to look at. I'm sure Anna would be willing to…"
"We can do it our self." Hawkeye says, trying not to sound too cold.
"It's your decision… One more move won't kill me." She smiles.
"What if it's another, and another?"
"Then, I go with you, I told you this Pierce."
He smiles over at her, and takes her hand, kissing it, "What time are the kids coming back?"
"In about a half an hour." She says.
"Come sit with me." He says, pulling her towards him. She stands up and sits in-between his legs, leaning back on him. He wraps his arms around her once again growing stomach, "How are you feeling?"
"Fine. We are really going to have to start thinking about names again."
"Yup." He smiles, kissing her neck.
"So I guess I better start packing, and looking for a house?"
"I don't know…"
"Oh come on Hawk, you have to have an idea."
"Yeah, I do…":
"And?"
"Right now, I'm leaning towards taking the job, but I'm not sure. I guess we'll just have to wait and see." He smiles, kissing her cheek. "So, what about names?"
"Now?"
"Why not?"
She smiles, "Alright, well Peg and BJ took Kaitlyn, so we can't have that one." She smile.
"That's ok, I don't want a Katie."
"I can't believe we are due within three days of each other." Margaret smiles.
"I can… there was a reason we both decided not to have kids for one night." He laughs.
"I know." She blushes, "What about the name Tara?"
"I like that name. What else do you got?"
"I really like the name Kimberly, but I don't want it shortened. It will be though, won't it?"
"Your name wasn't shortened."
"Yes it is, Maggie…" She shudders.
"Oh come on, who really calls you Maggie?"
"My family."
"Besides them… I use to get called Benny."
"Benny?"
"Yup."
"Who called you that?"
"My mother, grandmother, grandfather, pretty much who ever didn't call me Hawkeye."
"I guess we could make Kimberly work…"
"It may get shortened sometimes, but not all the times." He smiles. "We need to give her a middle name."
"What about Claire, after your mother?"
"Kimberly Claire Pierce? I like it."
"Alright, what about for a boy?"
"I like the name Bradley."
"I like that name too." She smiles.
"What about Bradley Thomas?"
Margaret smiles, they have named the kids after friends or family, especially ones who have passed on, and she agrees with the name, "What about Bradley Thomas John or Bradley John Thomas?"
"That's a good name… we'll have to see which name suites him more."
"If we do Bradley John Thomas, he could be named after BJ, your friend Tommy and Trapper."
"Yeah…" Hawkeye smiles.
"What are we going to do with three kids?"
"I have no idea." He says.
They sit like that for a little while longer until the kids come running into the house and out to their parents. They smile and hug the kids. "Did you have fun?"
"A lot of fun dad!" Natalie smiles.
"Well that's good."
"Thanks Peggy." Margaret says standing up and quickly hugging her nieces and nephew.
"Not a problem." She smiles.
"Mommy, come see!" Natalie smiles as she pulls her mom up off the chair, or at least tries to do so.
"See what?"
"A picture I drawed you."
"I would love to see a picture you drew for me." She says. All the kids follow her inside
Peggy looks at Hawkeye, "Are you all set for Thursday?" She asks him.
"Yes, I figured I'll drop the kids off at around six if that's ok."
"Perfectly fine. We are looking forward to having them." She smiles, "So what do you have in mind for your fifth anniversary?"
"Well, I figured we'd go out to dinner, and she wants to see this movie that is out, so we'll probably go there."
"Sounds nice." She smiles, "You two will have a blast."
"Yeah, it will be a fairly easy night. Mostly relaxing."
"So did you decide on moving or not?"
"Not yet, but I will have to make one soon."
"We'll miss you if you move, but it's a great opportunity Hawkeye."
"I know Peg, I've heard it from just about everyone, especially Beej."
"Yeah, I bet."
Hawkeye smiles as his son runs into him, "Hi Zack."
"Daddy!" He says, hugging him.
"I missed you the past couple of days. You've been sleeping every time I have been home."
"Mss yoo." He says, lying his head down against his chest.
"Well, I better be going." She smiles, "BJ should be home soon, and I haven't seen him in a day or so."
"Right." Hawkeye says, standing up with his clinging son, "I'll see you soon." He smiles.
"Thursday." She says, kissing her nephew, "Be good Zack."
"Bye Bye." He says smiling, giving her an open mouth kiss back.
Natalie comes running outside after saying good bye to her cousins and aunt, "Daddy, can we play?"
"What do you want to play?"
"Outside." She smiles.
He puts Zack down on his feet, and turns to pick up a Frisbee. The kids absolutely love to chase after it. Both of his kids were very good at taking turns, so their was little fighting over who was going to catch the Frisbee each time. He smiles as the kids run all over the yard, trying to get the Frisbee. Margaret came out and sat on the porch, watching her family play in the yard.
"Daddy! Throw it far." Natalie pleads.
"You can't catch it far."
"Can too! Watch!" She says, as she runs to the opposite end of the yard. Hawkeye throws it and she catches it, "See!"
"I stand correct it Natalie, you can catch it far."
"Daddy!" Zack says, running to where his sister is, "Me too! Frow far. Frow verwy far."
Margaret laughs as she watches Zack try to compete with his sister. He tries to be just like her, but can't succeed all the time. He gets very frustrated with himself when he can't do everything like Natalie, and shows his disapproval. Hawkeye makes it so the Frisbee is able to reach his feet and he is able to pick it up very quick, "See daddy! I got too! I got too!"
"Good job son." He says, as he runs the Frisbee back to him. Hawkeye scoops up the charging one and a half year old, and playfully throws him down gently onto his back, tickling him. Natalie runs after and jumps onto his back wanting to get into the wrestling action.
Margaret just sits on the deck and laughs. She was so lucky to have a husband who loves their children more than life itself. She could sit there everyday and watch him play with the kids. They miss him so much when they don't see him for a day or two at a time, and he makes up for all the time apart from them in a few hours of being home. She loves that about him. He looks up at her and smiles, "I'm out numbered." He calls to her.
"I can see that." She says.
"They are getting way to strong for me." He says, flopping down on the ground, the kids squealing in glee that they have finally beaten daddy.
"I think you are just getting old." Margaret laughs.
"No, that's not it." He assures her.
"Are you three hungry?"
"Yup!" Zack says, running up to his mommy.
"What about you Natalie?"
"No, I want to play some more."
"Are you hungry daddy?" Margaret asks.
"Yes mommy, I am very hungry." He says, knowing the only reason Natalie wasn't hungry was because she was outside with her daddy.
"Oh!" Natalie smiles, "I'm hungry now too mommy!"
Margaret smiles, "Well come in and wash your hands. I have dinner all ready."
Zack was just starting to try new foods, and chicken was one of his favorites, which was what she cooked today. The kids were finished dinner very quickly, which meant the parents had to be done just as quick. Margaret knew how much the kids still wanted to spend time with Hawkeye, so she did the dishes tonight, and he played with the kids. He took them outside and they played in the front yard a bit, chasing after the football Hawkeye was throwing. Margaret came out, and Hawkeye threw her the ball. She caught it and threw it back to Hawkeye, smiling. The sun was just setting, and it caste a beautiful orange shadow over Mill Valley. She was truly going to miss it out here if in fact Hawkeye did decide that they were all going to be moving, but she would move where ever Hawkeye asks her too, even if he wanted to move them to Wyoming, she would do it. Maine was nice too, not as warm of course, but nice. She was looking forward mostly to be closer to her family, and Dan. She thought that the kids needed to be near their grandparents.
At six thirty, they went inside, and Hawkeye gave the kids a bath. Margaret was upstairs cleaning up their bedrooms. She got one child ready for bed after they were done with the tub, and then the next, when they were done. They then had a snack and by 8:00, both kids were in bed, and it left the night for Margaret and Hawkeye. They spent the night sitting on the couch and watching some TV together, talking during most of the programs. They went to bed at twelve, and at two the phone rang. Margaret answered, "Hello?"…. "One second"… she says to the person on the phone, "Hawkeye, phone call, for you."
"Who is it?"
"The hospital."
"Damn." He mumbles, taking the phone. "Hello?"… "When?"… "No, no, I'll be right in. Give me about a half an hour." He says, handing the phone to Margaret. He gets out of bed, "I have to go into the hospital."
"Why? I thought you were off till tomorrow night."
"I was, but my patient needs immediate surgery, and I have to do it." He moans, pulling on pants and a shirt.
"Will you be home soon?"
"I don't know." He says, which in his lingo, usually means no. "I'll call you." He says, yawning, kissing her head, and with that he leaves the house. He gets to the hospital and remains there for three days. Margaret hasn't heard from him in a day, and the kids were very upset.
"Mommy?"
"What honey?"
"When daddy coming home?"
"I don't know Nattie, but I don't think it will be too much longer." She sighs.
"I miss him." She says.
"I know, but you saw him two days ago."
"I know." She sniffs.
Margaret sighs, and picks the almost four year old up, "He loves you Natalie, and I'm sure he will call us soon." She says, kissing her cheek.
"I miss him." She says.
Margaret knew that this was taking a toll on her kids, not seeing Hawkeye or talking to them. They have not talked to him in almost two days, he called last night, but the kids were already in bed. "You'll see him soon honey. Hopefully he will come home tonight." She sighs.
"I going to stay up." She assures her mommy, not letting go of her neck.
"No, you are going to go to sleep. Daddy will see you in the morning if he comes home ok?"
"Ok." She says.
"Daddy is just very busy helping the sick people honey." She says, sighing. She sat down in the chair with her daughter and rubs her back, silently praying that Hawkeye would chose this exact second to either call or come home to comfort his daughter. It was very difficult to explain to a child, no more than three years old, about how daddy can't always be around because he is a surgeon. They don't want to hear it, and Margaret doesn't want to make that an excuse, but what more could she do? "How about this Natalie, you and Zack and mommy will all go out for ice cream tonight. How does that sound?"
"Good." She says, wiping her eyes, "Daddy too?"
"Maybe we'll stop into the hospital and see daddy." She says, smiling. She knew that her kids had to see their daddy, as did she. "How does that sound?"
"Good." She says, smiling.
"Ok, go in and play with your toys for a while and then we'll have dinner and go get ice cream."
"Ok." She says, smiling, and jumps off of her lap, over to play with her brother.
Margaret keeps her promise, and at six thirty, they go into San Francisco and get some Ice cream, then make their way over to the hospital. Margaret keeps a tight grip on her daughters left hand, and with her free hand, held Zack as they walked into the hospital and went up to the surgical floor. Margaret went to the desk and sees a receptionist she hadn't met yet. "Hello?" She asks, when the woman chose to ignore her for over two minutes.
"One minute." The receptionist says, going back to her personal phone call.
"I don't have one minute." Margaret says.
"Lou, I have to go, I have an anxious patient here." She says, quite rudely, and hangs up the phone, "Now, what can I do for you?" She asks in a tone that was not appropriate in Margaret's eyes.
"Is Dr. Pierce available?"
"No, the doctor is in with a patient."
"I'll just go wait in his office then."
"No Ma'am, you can't do that."
"Why can't I?"
"You can wait in the waiting room."
"I will not." She says, "Are you new here?"
"Third day."
"Well, Dr. Pierce is my husband, and these two children are his kids… and if you possibly could tell me where he is, I'd appreciate it."
"I told you, he is in with a patient, now wait in the waiting room and I will get to you soon."
Margaret was beside herself. This woman was not listening to her at all. Her temper was almost at the boiling level, "He is my husband…."
"Sit down please Ma'am."
Margaret was almost about to reach over and grab the woman to get to listen to her, when the normal receptionist comes in, "Hello Mrs. Pierce." She says smiling, "Hi kids."
"Hi!" Natalie says, grinning, but Zack, he played shy, and buried his head against his mommy's neck.
"Hi Janice." Margaret smiles, "Do you know where my husband is?"
"Yes, he's in room twelve, but he should be out shortly." She smiles.
"I told her that already." The new receptionist says.
"Mary, this is Dr. Pierce's wife. "
"Oh, I'm sorry, I had no idea!"
"Maybe that's because you weren't listening to me." Margaret says, through clenched teeth.
"Well Mrs. Pierce, it is nice to meet you, and what a lovely family you have. She looks just like her daddy." Mary smiles.
"Funny how your tone changes when you find out who I am."
"Daddy!" Natalie says, smiling as she sees her dad walking out from the patients room, she pulls out of Margaret's grips and runs full force at Hawkeye, "Daddy!"
He smiles as he sees her, and squats down to catch his daughter and scoop her up into a rather large hug, "HI Princess." He says, "I've missed you so much."
"I miss you too daddy." She says, as she kisses him.
He smiles when he sees his wife and son, and makes his way over to them. He kisses his wife, "Hi."
"You haven't called, so we came to see you. You look exhausted."
"I am. I was in surgery pretty much for three days straight. I'm sorry I haven't had a chance to call." He says, as he puts down his daughter and takes his son who was lunging at him from his mothers arms.
"Daddy, daddy, daddy!" He says, as Hawkeye takes him.
"Hi buddy." He smiles, "Are you being a good boy for mommy?"
"'ood oy." He says nodding his head.
"I miss you daddy." Natalie says, hugging his leg.
"I've missed all of you too."
"When coming home daddy?"
"I'll be home around five in the morning, so I'll see you for lunch." He says.
"GOOD!" Natalie says, raising her arms to Margaret, who willingly picks her up.
"And mommy and I have an anniversary to attend, and you two get to stay at Aunt Peg and Uncle BJ's house." He says, watching Margaret's eyes get wide.
"Really?"
"Yes, we have dinner, a movie and a night of relaxation all to ourselves on the fifth."
"Oh my gosh that's great!" Margaret smiles. "Where are we going?"
"My secret." He says, kissing his son again.
"Dr. Pierce, please report to surgery, Dr. Pierce to surgery please." The announcement calls.
He sighs, "I have to get going." He says, sincerely sorry.
"Ok." She smiles, as she puts Natalie down and takes Zack, "Say goodbye to Daddy."
"Daddy…" Natalie says, starting to tear up.
"I'll see you tomorrow afternoon Nat, I promise." He says, picking up his oldest and giving her a kiss and a hug, "And you and I will play all afternoon ok?"
"Ok." She says, as he puts her down on the ground.
"I love you."
"Love you." She smiles.
He kisses Zack, "See you tomorrow buddy." He says, smiling. "I love you."
"Oove ooo." He says, smiling.
Then he kisses Margaret, "The fifth is all ours. I'll see you tomorrow morning."
"Ok. I love you."
"You too." He says, giving them all one more kiss, before he heads into surgery.
Margaret takes the kids, says goodbye to the receptionists and heads out to the car. She gets the kids into bed and cleans the house, before going to sleep at around midnight. She was five months pregnant and exhausted. Hawkeye as promised, arrived to his house by 4:30am, and went right upstairs, checking on the kids quickly and then slipping into bed with his wife. She wakes up, looks at him, smiles, then lays against his chest, he kisses her head and they fall asleep. As promised, Hawkeye plays the entire day with the kids and spends the night with his wife. They had their anniversary at the most romantic restaurant and took time to get to know each other again. Margaret loves being with him, and that night, they just spent time together. Nothing went on, except for them talking and then having a chance to sleep in past 6:30 in the morning.
He also had the chance to discuss moving with her, and they both chose to do relocate to Maine. Hawkeye was not going to have a chance to be head of surgery in California because he was the "new guy." They needed to do this, and it was the perfect time. Margaret and Hawkeye have a lot of things to do to prepare for the move, first was to get a house. The four of them will be flying back to Maine to look at houses that Dan and Anna have set aside, which resemble the taste of the Pierces. In two days, Margaret and Hawkeye chose a large Victorian style house, three streets away from his father. The house was a six bedroom house, with four and a half baths, a living room, dining room, large kitchen, large bathroom, family room, den, finished basement, and a very large fenced in backyard complete with a porch and a view of the ocean. Margaret was excited about the house, and they picked out paint while they were in Maine. For the most part, she stuck with the same colors from the old house. Mr. Gillis offered to paint their house, for free, and they graciously accepted his offer. Hawkeye and Margaret booked a moving van and they were all set to move on April 10th. They had a few loose ends to tie up, but other than that, they were ready to start their lives in Maine
The Pierces and Hunnicut's were very upset to not being around with one another, especially when both Peg and Margaret were due in less then four months. They spent the last few days together, and when moving day came, they helped them pack up.
Margaret walks through the empty house. The movers took the things about an hour earlier, and they have to catch the plane two hours later. She sighs as she walks the halls of the once full house. This house was where they started their family, and now they were leaving. She was use to moving, but this time it really bugged her, she was really upset because she had roots.
"Margaret, are you ready?" Hawkeye calls.
"Yes." She sighs, walking down the steps.
"Are you ok?"
"Fine." She says, toughing up.
"I'll miss it here."
"Me too." She says, as they grab the kids and head out of the house one last time, locking the door. "I'll miss it here a lot."
The Hunnicut's all take the Pierces to the airport where they say their final goodbyes.
"Thanks for everything." Margaret says to her friends at the gate.
"Thank you too." Peg smiles, hugging her friend. "Let us know when you get there ok?"
"We will." Hawkeye says, hugging Peg. "Bye Beej."
BJ smiles, he hated goodbyes, so instead, "See you soon Hawk."
Hawkeye shakes his head but laughs, "Midget, Munchkin, Monster, I'll see you three later." He says to Erin, Gill and Mike, hugging them all, "Take care of your mommy ok girls? She'll need your help when she has the baby."
"Ok Uncle Hawk." Erin smiles. "I love you."
"I love you too." He smiles.
The kids were very upset to leave their cousins behind. Natalie didn't know what to make of it, but she knew that she wasn't going to see her best friend for a while.
They all said their goodbyes and the Hunnicut's promised to visit once the baby was old enough. Hawkeye and BJ already talked about going to every medical and surgical convention that both of them were invited to, and then they got on the plane. They flew seven hours to Maine, across the country, which they have done about ten times, but this time, they wouldn't be coming back to home, they were going home.
Margaret looks out at the patterned land below and sighs again. Hawkeye takes her hand and kisses the side of her head. He knows how hard it is for her to move, and how much she loved that house. He knew that they will settle very quickly into the new house, and everything would be back to normal. They were going to be starting a new life here, one with a new baby. They are very excited and nervous at the same time. Hawkeye was certain that this would be the last time they move.
Their first week was very hectic. They were trying to settle in before Hawkeye has to go to work, and Zack ended up sick. He woke up at two am their second day in the house crying as he walks into his parent's room. Margaret turned on the light and picked him up. "Shh, what's wrong honey?" She ask, kissing his cheek, "Hawk, does he feel warm to you?"
Hawkeye rolls over and sits up, placing his hand on his son's forehead, "Yes." He says, before taking him to check him out. "You don't feel too well do you buddy? What hurts huh? Does your ear hurt? You are pulling at it a lot." He says, as he gets his medical bag and looks into his ear, "Ouch." He says, as he checks the right then the left ear. "He has a pretty bad ear infection." He says to Margaret.
"Oh no." She says.
"Don't worry about it. I have some medication for him." He sighs, standing up and getting him some medicine. He puts a few drops into his son's ears, then coaxes him into taking some medicine. Margaret keeps him in their room that night, and he falls asleep around 3:00, sleeping till almost 8:00.
Between him screaming and crying all day because of his ear, Natalie being bored, and the parents trying to fix the house up, it was a long week. It seems that every time Margaret went to do something, Zack would start to cry, and this was no acceptation, "Ok honey." She says, picking him up, "I know you don't feel well, but I really need to finish putting some of our things away. You picked a lousy time to get sick Zachary." She says sitting down on Hawkeye's chair, rubbing his back. "Maybe you can go to sleep… what do you think? Then Natalie can help me and you can start to get better."
"Mommy, I'm bored." Natalie complains.
"Go find daddy and tell him to give you something to do. He's outside."
"Where Grandpop?"
Margaret sighs, "He'll be over soon."
"When?"
"Natalie, go find daddy." She says firmly, realizing Zack fell asleep. She goes upstairs and puts him into his bed, and then walks into the new baby's room to open up some boxes. They spent the entire day unpacking things, and by that night they were only 75 done.
That night, a horrible storm came through Crabapple Cove. Margaret hated loud noises, and being in a new place makes the noise sound louder than usual. She woke up instantly to the first sound of thunder, and curled up against Hawkeye. He puts his arm around her, trying to offer her comfort. Three or four more claps of thunder were heard and then they heard another noise, footsteps coming towards their room. Natalie was woken up by the thunder, and was crying.
"Mommy…" She says, crawling up onto the bed, in between her parents.
"What's wrong honey?"
"It's loud." She says.
"I know princess," Hawkeye says, taking cuddling her against him, "but you usually are ok during storms."
"Too loud." She says, "Want to go home."
"We are home." Margaret tells her.
"No, want to go home on plane mommy, want to go home."
This makes Hawkeye feel absolutely awful, and he begins to wonder if moving his family across country was the right thing to do, "It will be ok honey." He says, kissing her head.
"This is our new house Nattie, you know that." Margaret says to her frightened daughter.
"Want to go home on plane." She says, crying.
"We live here now Natalie" Hawkeye tells her, "It's new, and I know your scared, but this is our new home, and we are going to have a lot of fun here. Tomorrow, you are going to go over to Grandpop's house because he has something for you to play with, but we can only have that if we live here."
"What he have?"
"He has a new swing set for you kiddo."
"Oh." She says sniffing.
Hawkeye wipes her tears away from her face, "But you need to live here to have it, and Brandi will be over there, and you can live here so you can see her all the time."
"Oh, ok."
"So is it ok that we live here?" Margaret asks her daughter.
"Yes." She says, starting to calm down, "Mommy?"
"What honey?"
"Can I sleep in your room?"
"Just for tonight." She smiles, kissing her daughter. Natalie quickly falls asleep, "It will be fine Hawk." She says.
"I know it will. It just will take some time to get use to living here, for all four of us." He smiles, kissing her forehead, "Good night."
"Night." Margaret smiles, and falls asleep.
It took a week or two for the Pierces to get use to living in Maine, but gradually they were able to make it feel like home, just like they need to do. Hawkeye loves working for the Portland hospital, and he loves being so close to his father. Everything seems to be settling down right before the baby was coming, which was a god sent. The kids were happy, healthy, as were the parents. There was still so much to do, but for right now, they were fine. The house was beginning to feel like home, just like they had wanted it too. They had a big arrival in under three months, and Margaret was getting antsy. There was so much to do and so little time.
TBC…
Thanks for all the great reviews! Keep them up! I'm just trying out something different. I always wanted to read a story that followed the way through Hawkeye and Margaret's life together so I figured I'd have a go at writing one. R&R Please, but be kind! There are PLEANTY MORE CHAPTERS TO GO! Forgive the small mistakes…I didn't post till almost 2:15am. I know they can be annoying, and I will do my best to minimize them! I posted this at three in the morning…
Thanks for all the great reviews! Please keep them up! Please R&R!
Thanks
STARY