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
"Margaret?" Hawkeye calls as he walks into the house after a long day of work.
"Outside." She calls to him. It is a beautiful summer day in Maine, not too hot, not too cold. Margaret has all three kids outside. Kimberly sees Hawkeye and runs as fast as her wobbly legs can take her, "Dada!" She smiles brightly as he scoops her up.
"Kimberly." He smiles. "How are you Angel? Good?"
"Yes." She says as she hugs him around his neck.
"Daddy!" Zack says running over to him, causing a chain reaction with his older sister.
"Daddy!"
"Hi you two." He says and gives them both a kiss, "And hello to the most beautiful woman in the world." He smiles, kissing her.
"Hi yourself." She says, brushing a piece of hair away from her face.
"Dad wants us over for a lobster dinner tonight."
"What time?"
"5:00. We have about an hour and a half."
"Daddy?"
"What princess?"
"Can you teach me how to ride my bike?"
"You know how to ride it honey…"
"No… with two wheels." She smiles sweetly at her father.
"Are you old enough?" He teases.
"Yup! I'm 5!"
"Well then, alright. Let's go try it." He says, placing the baby on the ground, "Wanna watch mommy?"
"Sure.:" She says, "Come on Zachary. Be careful with her Hawk."
"Always." He smiles.
"All 5 year olds know how mommy." Natalie says, quite sure of herself.
"I'm sure of it." Margaret says as she watches Hawkeye prepare the bike.
"Alright, all set, jump on." He smiles.
"Don't let go." She says, making sure he gives her an answer before she jumps up onto the bike.
"I won't until you tell me to ok?"
"Kay." She smiles.
Margaret busies herself with the other two because she does not want to watch her fall and get hurt.
"Look at me mommy!" Margaret hears about twenty minutes after Hawkeye first put their daughter on the bike. She looks up and smiles.
"Good job Natalie!" She says. She watches her daughter as she masters her bike.
"I want to show Grandpop!" She smiles.
"Alright." She smiles back at her. Margaret and Hawkeye let the kids play for about a half an hour and then, "Alright kids, come on, we have to go in and get ready for Grandpop's."
"Ok!" Natalie smiles, letting her bikes crash to the ground.
"Come on Kimberly." Margaret calls to the baby who smiles and runs away from her. "I'm on to you little girl." Margaret says, trying to grab her daughter, but just misses her. She smiles and chases after the almost 1 year old who was laughing her head off, "Alright you little monster." She says, scooping her up, "Lets go get you dressed."
"Mama, no." She says, squirming.
"Yes." Margaret laughs as they walk up to the baby's room, "Lets go get you changed baby. What do you think, shorts? You'll be running around anyway." She smiles. She puts her into blue overall shorts and a purple shirt, tying a purple and blue ribbon in her hair. "Ok little girl, lets get your sneakers on and you will be all set." She says, putting her purple and white sneakers on her feet. "Alright then, how about you go down with daddy now and I'll get your brother and sister ready?"
"Mama." She says, reaching up to her. Margaret picks her up and gets a hug.
"I love you too Angel." Margaret calls for the other two kids and gets them ready. At 5:00, they all leave and head over to Dan's.
As soon as Kimberly sees her Grandpop, she is attached to him. She is not only a daddy's girl, but a Grandpop's girl too. She loves to sit with him and will not let go for anything.
"Grandpop." Natalie says. "I have to show you!"
"Show me what?"
"Come outside." She smiles sweetly.
"Ok Nattie." He says following his oldest granddaughter out. "Well, what do we have here?" He asks, seeing the two wheeler.
"Watch." She says as Hawkeye helps her onto the bike.
"See!" She smiles proudly.
"Great job Nat!" Dan smiles, "Who taught you?"
"Daddy."
"Well, that is great."
"Where's Nana?"
"Inside cooking."
"Oh!" She says, falling off her bike, running inside.
"I really have to work on breaking with her." Hawkeye sighs as he picks up the bike and pulls it out of the way.
"So, are you inviting Anna's kids to Kim's birthday?"
"Why would we?"
"Because they are family."
"Not mine."
"Ben…"
"I don't see a reason to invite them dad."
"Because they have been around Kimberly for her entire life."
"Dad… we see them five times a year."
"More than you see the Colonel and the Hunnicutt's."
"Fine, we'll invite them, and hopefully they won't show."
"Thank you." Dan smiles.
"Uh-huh." He says in his own sarcastic manor.
"Margaret's family coming?"
"Yes."
"I'm sure she is happy."
"She is."
"Why are you being short with me?"
"I'm not."
"You are."
"Drop it." Hawkeye says, venom dripping from his voice.
"Don't you dare talk to me like that. You may be 38, but I am still your father and I demand respect from you. I don't care how old you are!"
"What do you want from me? To pretend that I love Anna's family? I don't. They annoy me, like Ferret Face!"
"So don't invite them."
"You just begged me to have them."
"Don't do us any favors!" Dan says.
The two men sit in silence for a few minutes. Hawkeye isn't too sure why he blew up at that question from his father. He really doesn't mind Anna's kids, but for some reason, tonight, he just didn't want to hear about it.
"Alright, listen, I shouldn't have asked you to invite Anna's kids."
"They will be invited." Hawk says. Neither man really apologizes, but they are both in better moods. "So, I was thinking about taking Margaret away for a weekend. Would you mind watching the kids fro us?"
"Of course not." He smiles, "Where would you be going?"
"Away." He laughs.
"Creating another grandchild for me?"
"I doubt it. Margaret says she's too old."
"She's only 37."
"I know, but it looks like Kimberly is our last baby."
"Well that's ok. I think she likes being the baby." Dan smiles.
Hawkeye begins to open his mouth, before Margaret calls to him. "Hawk?"
"What?"
"Can you take Kimberly outside with you?"
"Sure." He says, seeing his daughter peeking out from behind her mother, "Come out and see me Kim." He smiles as she runs over to him.
"Dada!" She smiles.
"Are you getting in the way little girl?" He asks, picking her up, getting a smile from her. "I thought so."
"Daddy, come play!" Natalie calls.
"Alright." He says, handing his youngest to his father.
Once again, his wife sticks her head out the door, "Hawk, telephone."
"Who is it?"
"Luke."
He sighs, "Alright," and walks into the house. A few minutes later, "I have to go into work."
"For how long?"
"I'll hopefully be home in a few hours."
"Alright." She says sighing.
He givers her a look of apology, and kisses her cheek, before going out and saying goodbye to the kids. "I'll see you in a while."
"Bye."
Natalie was not happy. She goes over to her mother with a frown, "Mommy…"
"What honey?"
"What does daddy have to work again?"
"Because someone at the hospital got sick and needs daddy's help."
"When I am sick daddy works." She pouts.
"Honey, you don't want to get as sick as the people daddy helps."
"But I would see him."
"Daddy is a surgeon. He fixes the insides of people, and you don't want that to happen."
"Did he ever fix you?"
"Yes." Margaret says.
"Were you sick mommy?"
"I was."
"Why?"
Margaret smiles at her, is a very inquisitive child and loves to ask a ton of questions, "I had appendicitis in Korea, where I met daddy."
"Where you hurt?"
"It did hurt. See, I have a scar." She says, showing her the scar Hawkeye left.
"I have a scar too mommy." She says showing her the small white line on her knee where she fell on the pavement about six months ago.
"I know you do." She smiles.
Then she remembers the topic of the conversation, "You see daddy a lot when you are sick."
"I saw daddy a lot, but I wish I didn't need surgery. It's not a good thing honey," She says, "but, daddy's the best, and he helps a lot of people. He misses you a lot though."
"I miss him." She says, leaning against her mommy.
Margaret bends down and gives her a kiss, "Do you want to know something?"
"What?"
"In a few weeks, daddy will be home for a ew days, because Uncle BJ will be coming to visit."
"Good." She says.
Margaret wasn't satisfied with her daughters attitude change, so she continues, "And Aunt Peg, Erin, Gillian, Michael, and Katie. Grandpa and Grandma Potter are coming too."
"Good!" She says, finally smiling.
"That's my girl." Margaret says, smiling back at her. She stands up and pats her daughters head.
"Mommy, are Grammy and Pop-Pop coming?"
"Yes."
"Good."
"Are you feeling better?"
"Yes."
"Good." She says kissing her cheek.
"Mama!"
"What?"
"Hi!" The baby smiles.
"Hi Kimberly." Margaret smiles.
"Dada?" She asks, looking around for him.
"He's working Angel." Margaret tells the baby.
"I'm hungry Mommy." Zack says, running up to her.
"Well it's a good thing, because dinner will be ready soon."
"Good." He says, running back over to his grandfather and little sister.
"Let's go help set the table." Margaret says as she picks up Kimberly from Dan's lap and takes her oldest hand.
"Nana, can I help?" Natalie asks as she walks into the kitchen.
"Of course you can. I need help setting the table." She smiles at the little Pierce.
"I can do that!"
"Ok." She says, handing the 5 year old silverware.
They set the table and eat dinner. After dinner, Dan takes the oldest two outside to play while the other girls stay inside and talk.
Around 7;30, Margaret and Anna are sitting on the couch and talking in the living room. Anna has Kimberly on her lap for the moment, but she begins to get fussy, "Mama." She says, reaching over to Margaret.
"What?" Margaret says, taking her from Anna, "Are you tired? I bet you are."
Kimberly lies her head against Margaret, "She is a mommy's girl." Anna smiles.
"Only when daddy's not around." Margaret smiles.
"Oh that's not true, look at her." She says. Margaret looks down at the blue eyes looking up at her and smiles, "Look at those eyes."
"They are her fathers." She says smiling. "Aren't they Kimberly. You and your sister look like your father."
"Natalie does, but I think Kimberly resembles you a lot. She has your mouth, nose, skin tone, and even the wavy hair."
"Yeah but there is no denying that Hawk is her father." Margaret laughs.
She laughs, "No, no there is not."
"Mama." She says, looking up to her.
"What?" She asks, cuddling her closer. She smiles at Margaret and closes her eyes.
"She's up late."
"Yeah, she usually goes to sleep around seven."
"I can't believe she'll be one."
"Neither can I. Hawkeye is looking forward to having BJ and the Colonel out in a few weeks. Oh, and your kids are invited too."
"Alright, I'll let them know. What day are your friends arriving?"
"July 3rd. The Colonel will be staying for four days, and the Hunnicutt's will be staying for eight days."
"I'm sure the kids are thrilled about seeing them twice in a matter of three months."
"They are. I thought Natalie would forget living in California, but it seems that she remembers more than I thought."
"She's close with BJ…"
"Very. Just as much as BJ's kids are to us." She smiles, looking down at Kimberly who was desperately trying to stay awake, but losing the battle. "Well, I think we better be heading home. I don't know how much longer Kim is going to last." She says, standing up and walking to the back door, "Nat, Zack, come on guys, we are going to go home."
"No!" Both kids say.
"Yes. We need to go so we can get baths and then go to sleep."
"Mom, I want to stay!" Natalie calls.
"Me too." Zack agrees.
"Not tonight guys." Margaret says as her kids begin to pout. Margaret and Hawkeye are strict to not give into pouting.
The kids look at their grandfather, "You heard your mom. Come on, I'll walk to the car with you." He smiles, taking their hands. The kids kiss Anna and then get into the car. Margaret thanks her in-laws and then straps Kimberly into the car seat. "Thanks again Dad." She says, kissing him.
"You're welcome honey. I'll see you soon."
"Right. Bye."
"Bye. Bye kids."
"Bye Grandpop." They both say, and then with a final honk, Margaret drives home. She isn't going to bother trying to give Kimberly a bath tonight because she would lose her patients with the almost one year old. She is far too tired and Margaret doesn't want her crying. So, instead, she gets her ready for bed and then puts her down for the night. Next she gets Zack and Natalie a quick bath and snack and then get them into bed. Natalie is upset because she can't talk to her daddy before she goes to bed. He is in surgery when they call and Margaret won't let her stay up the extra hour to talk to him. She tells her that he will be home sometime tomorrow and she will be able to see and talk to him then. Margaret kisses her head and goes downstairs to relax. She turns on the TV and cleans up the room a bit. "This place never stays clean." She says aloud as she picks up dolls, trucks, and blocks. Normally she'd make the kids clean up their mess, but they were too tired to do it today, before they went to bed. Around 11:00, the phone rings.
"Hello?"
"Hey."
"Hi." Margaret smiles, "How are you?"
"I'm fine, how are you?"
"Good. Are you coming home tonight?"
"Actually, yes, I'll be home in about an hour and a half, I hope. I just have to make my rounds and I'll be done. I thought I'd be home earlier, but…"
"No need to explain. Your daughter isn't too happy with you."
"Why's that?"
"Because she didn't say good night to you."
"I'll go in and say good night to her when I get home."
"You better not wake her up."
He laughs, "I won't. She'll really be mad at me."
"So, about 12:30?"
"Yes."
"Should I wait up for you?"
"You can if you want to."
She smiles, when he says she can wait up for him, he is usually on time, "I'll wait up. Are you hungry? Do you want me to make you anything for when you come back?"
"No, I can get something when I get home."
"Pierce… I can make you something."
"Margaret, its fine. I probably will be too tired to eat anyway."
"You should eat."
"Margaret…" He warns.
"Ok, ok." She smiles on the other end, "I'll see you in a bit."
"Alright honey, I'll see you soon."
"I love you."
"You too." He says, and hangs up the phone with a final goodbye.
She smiles, and looks at the clock. She is absolutely exhausted but wants to stay up to see him. Sometime around 11:30 and 12:30 she falls asleep. Hawkeye gets home at 12:30 on the dot, and quietly comes in through the garage. He goes into the family room and sees his wife sleeping on the couch. He smiles and walks into the kitchen to make a sandwich. After he eats them he goes over to Margaret and gives her a quick kiss on the lips. She wakes up and smiles, "How long have you been home?"
"About twenty minutes."
"Did you eat?"
"Yes. Are you ready to go upstairs?"
She yawns and sits up, "Yes, are you?"
"Yes." He says, pulling her up from the couch, "I'm beat."
"So am I." She says, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes.
"I have to jump into the shower first." He says.
"Ok." She smiles.
"Do you want to join me?"
"Not tonight." She groans and brushes her teeth and gets into bed. She knows that she will most likely be sound asleep by the time he gets into bed, but just knowing that he is there tonight makes it nicer. She is looking forward to curling up against him tonight. About ten minutes later, he is getting into bed, "You're done already?" She asks almost surprised.
"I am." He says, pulling her close to him, "Are you surprised?"
"I am." She says, laying her head on his chest, "You are never that quick."
"I have a reason to be today." He says, kissing her, "This is the first time in two days that we are together."
She smiles and inhales deeply, "I know." She says, and closes her eyes. "What time do you have to go into work tomorrow?"
"By twelve, and hopefully I'll be home by nine that same night." He says, pulling her even tighter against him.
"So I'll see you in what, three days?"
"Smart ass." He mumbles. "Go to sleep."
"I am."
"No your not, you're talking…"
"Hawk…" She warns.
"What?"
"I love you."
"Love you too." He says, and that's the last word for the night. They sleep soundly until Kimberly wakes them up. Hawkeye gets up with her and the other kids and cooks breakfast.
"Daddy, I want pancakes." Natalie says, smiling as she comes into the kitchen.
"You want pancakes?"
"Yes, please." She adds in, pulling her chair over to her daddy and stands with her stomach against the cabinet.
"Well, you are in luck Natalie Ann Pierce, because today, we have three types of pancakes. The first type is blueberry."
"No! I don't want blueberry daddy."
"You don't?"
"No."
"Well, who would want blueberry's?"
"Mommy!" Zack smiles, as he brings a chair up onto the other side of Hawkeye.
"I think you are right pal. Mommy will want the blueberry. Next, I have plain. What do you think about plain?"
"That's ok, but I don't want them either." Natalie says.
"Kimmy wants dem." The three year old says, smiling at his father.
"Your right, Kimberly can have them."
"And you daddy." Natalie chimes in.
"I'll eat plain and probably some blueberry ones too." He smiles, "So, we have Blueberry, and Plain pancakes."
"One more of them daddy." Natalie says.
"What did I forget?"
"Chocolate chips."
"Chocolate chips! In pancakes! I don't know who would EVER eat them." He teases.
"Me!" Zack says.
"Me too!"
"Well, lets see." He says, smiling as he takes a handful of chips and throws them into the batter, "How many do you two want?"
"Three each." Natalie says.
"Can you eat three?"
"I can eat ten!"
"Well, I highly doubt that, but three each would be fine I think. Lets check it out." He smiles and makes the pancakes. About fifteen minutes later, they are almost ready to eat, "Hey you two, go get mommy up ok? But be nice about it. Don't jump on her." He says, winking.
Natalie and Zachary run up the stairs quietly and push completely open the door that is slightly ajar. Margaret hears them but pretends to continue sleeping. She hears Natalie shush her brother and then the next thing he knew, they were on top of her.
"MOMMY!"
"I don't want any." She teases, burying her head in the pillow.
"Mommy! Daddy makes pancakes for me to eat." Zack says pulling on her nightshirt.
"I don't like pancakes do I?"
"Yes you do!" Natalie smiles, snuggling against her, "But you need to come down."
"Why?"
"Daddy says so."
"Oh… and who is the boss of this house?"
"Mommy." Zack smiles.
"That's right." She laughs, sitting up, "Well, I guess I shouldn't keep daddy waiting should I?"
"Nope!" Natalie smiles.
"Where's Kimberly?"
"In the playpen."
"Oh, ok. Well, lets go down and have some dinner."
"Mommy… it's breakfast!"
"Oh." Margaret teases her son, "Are you sure?"
"Yes."
"Well then, lets go have lunch."
"MOMMY!" Both of them call.
"Ok, ok, breakfast." She laughs, kissing them both, "Did daddy make me coffee?"
"Yes." Natalie says, "Daddy knows what you like mommy."
"Well, it's a good thing then." She smiles, "I need coffee."
The three of them go downstairs, and on the way to the kitchen Margaret grabs Kimberly out of the playpen.
"Morning daddy." Margaret smiles.
"Morning mommy." He replies, handing her a cup of coffee.
"Did you tell these kids to come up and wake me up?"
"Me! Of course not." He smiles, kissing her cheek.
"Did too daddy." Zack says.
"Man, my only son rats me out." He laughs, "Go sit down Zack, you too Nattie." He says, and places plates down on the table in front of them.
"Me dada!" Kimberly says, seeing her siblings getting food and not herself. "Me daddy!"
"Ok, ok, you too." He says, letting Margaret cut up her pancakes. She talked early, like both her brother and sister, but she doesn't have the vocabulary build up like Natalie did.
"How are they?" He asks the kids.
"Good!"
"Good!" Zack smiles with a mouth full of pancakes.
"Well, I'm glad you like them. I aim to please. What about you Kimberly, do you like your pancakes?"
"Yes." She smiles and shovels a handful of pancakes into her mouth.
"Kimberly Claire…" Margaret scolds the almost one year old, "Not so much. You're going to choke."
She smiles at her mom and spits some pancakes out, "Eww." Natalie says.
"She's your daughter Hawk." Margaret says, trying to show her disapproval but smiles a bit.
"Which one?"
"Both."
Around ten, there is a phone call, "Mommy, phone's ringing." Natalie calls.
Margaret was in the middle of changing Kimberly, "Can you get it for me honey?"
Natalie smiles and picks up the phone, "Hello?"
"Who's this?"
"Natalie."
"Natalie, this is Aunt Lorraine, is your mommy home?"
"Yes." She smiles, "Mommy, Aunt Lorraine."
"Ok." She smiles, picks Kimberly up and puts her in the playpen, "Hello?"
"You have an answering service now I see."
"I do." She laughs. "How are you?"
"Well, how are you?"
"Great."
"I'm calling to let you know that our Alma Matter wants us to speak about our life as an army nurse in the war."
"Us!"
"Yes, us. The dean will be calling you shortly, but I wanted to let you know."
"Oh gosh, when?"
"August."
"I don't know if I can do that, I mean, I have the kids, I don't know if Hawk can take off for that…"
"Well, its during one of the medical conferences, so maybe he'll be going to it."
"Oh I don't know… maybe it will work out."
"It doesn't give us a lot of preparation time, but hey, its something to look forward to."
"It sounds great." She smiles. She always likes addressing people, especially nurses,
"That is if I can go."
"Well I hope you can. It's been quite a while since we've seen each other."
"I know, too long. Are you going to be around the area July 6th?"
"No, I have a long weekend meeting that weekend, why?"
"Well, I was just thinking, that is Kimberly's birthday, and you could come up here.'
"I wish I could Margaret."
"Oh well, maybe next time."
"Definitely." She smiles.
The two friends talk for a while longer then hang up. Margaret calls Hawkeye and tells him about the conference ,and he informs her that indeed he could go to that conference, and that if he was BJ would be too, so it could work out. An hour later, she is confirming it with her old Dean and making reservations. This trip will be taking place two weeks before Natalie goes to kindergarten. Margaret has a lot to do to get Natalie ready and prepare for her speech at the conference. She decides to wait till they get home to go clothes shopping with the younger girl.
Five days before the party, Margaret is a wreck. Her parents will be there tomorrow, the Hunnicutt's the day after that, and the Potters the day after that. She was on a cleaning frenzy and the kids were driving her up a wall. Kimberly is busy getting into everything she cleans, and finally, she was on her last straw.
"Kimberly!" She shouts, picking her up, "That is enough." She says, and places her in her playpen. She of course screams because she wants to walk around, but her mommy won't let her, "You can scream all you want little girl, but I am NOT picking you up." It is almost her nap time, so Margaret figures she'll cry herself to sleep, which in fact did happen. "Finally." She says as the crying stops.
"Mommy!" Zack screams, "Nattie hit me."
"Mom, he broke my puzzle all up! Then he broke my other puzzle."
"I hope that basement is cleaned up." She warns.
"MOMMY!" Zack whines.
"That's it! I want both of out side, playing in the back yard. Do you understand me! I am tired of you two fighting. Get, now." Margaret says, and points into the direction of their back yard. Both kids run outside and start to play with their toys, however, Kimberly begins to scream again because her brother and sister rudely wake her up. Margaret could keep an eye on the older two as they play while she is cleaning her kitchen. There is a tree in their backyard that the kids love to climb. It is a little tree, and if Hawkeye is around he allows climbing, however, with Margaret inside, she doesn't like them climbing. She looks outside and sees Natalie beginning to pull herself up, "Natalie, get off that tree right now. I am not out there to watch you and I don't want you falling and getting hurt."
"Mom… I am a good climber! I don't fall."
"Did you hear what I said young lady!"
"Yes." She says. She frowns at her mother, but reluctantly gets down off the tree.
"Stay off that tree Natalie."
"I will."
Margaret goes on cleaning her kitchen, listening to Kimberly scream. She finally gives into Kimberly and picks her up, sitting down on Hawkeye's recliner and leans back a bit. The baby is asleep in seconds, and she puts her back into the play pen so she can finish cleaning. She looks out at the kids who are busy playing. They can be best friends one second and worst enemies the next, "I don't understand how four people, thee being under the age of 6, accumulate so many dishes!" She sighs, and continues to wash them.
About fifteen minutes later, she hears a scream and a thump. She throws down her dishtowel and runs outside, "What happened?" She asks, looking across the yard.
"Mommy." Natalie cries, sitting under the tree.
"Oh for god's sake." Margaret says, running over to her, "What happened?"
"I fell."
"Fell where?" She asks.
"From the tree."
"Why were you in the tree!" She shouts at the little girl, "Didn't I tell you NOT to climb the tree!"
"Yes."
"Are you hurt?" She asks, thinking, 'dumb question Margaret, Natalie doesn't just cry about nothing.'
"My hand mommy." She says.
"Let me see it." She says as she shows it to her. "Oh my god, Natalie!" She says in alarm at the arm that was quickly swelling up. She pushes on her arm a bit and she screams. "I don't believe this." She says, "I think you broke your arm." She says, picking her up, kissing her cheek.
"It hurts."
"I bet it does." She says, beginning to feel totally responsible for her daughter being hurt. "Zachary, lets go, inside now. I have to call Grandpop." She calls her father-in-law, who is on his way over as soon as he hears. Margaret was beginning to become frantic. She grabs ice and puts in on her hand, of course she screams in pain, "I know honey." She says, "Keep it on, it will stop the swelling." She calls Hawkeye and he tell her to bring her right in and they will get her fixed up.
"Let me see her." Dan says to his daughter-in-law as he walks through the door, "How did you do this Natalie?"
"Climbing." She sniffs, as her grandfather takes off the towel with ice wrapped in it.
"Climbing? Why were you climbing?"
"I wanted too." She pouts. Her hand was turning a purplish color as the swelling continued.
"Well, you get to have your first x-ray."
"Not her first." Margaret shudders, thinking about the accident they had when she was one.
"Well, the first one you will remember."
"Thanks for coming over. We have to get to the hospital. Hawk's waiting for us."
"Right, good luck Nattie." He says to his sobbing granddaughter.
She cries the entire car ride and Margaret feels awful. Hawkeye was waiting by the emergency room door. He sees Margaret and goes to the car, "What happened Princess?"
"I fell."
"Fell where?"
"Out of the tree." She sniffs, as her father picks her up.
"Where were you?" He asks Margaret.
"Inside doing dishes. She got up into the tree earlier and I told her to get out…"
"You didn't listen to mommy?"
"No." She sniffs.
He sits her down on a gurney and looks at her sore arm, shaking his head, "I won't be surprised if it's broken. Lets get you to x-ray and check it out. Margaret, you can go with them. They will probably need you to hold her."
"Will it hurt daddy?"
"Not too much honey. They need to move it a bit to get the picture right but after that you will be fine."
"Kay." She sniffs.
"Where are the others?"
"With your father. He came over as soon as he heard."
"Why was she up in the tree without you watching her!"
"I told you that I was doing dishes and she was up in it earlier and I told her to get out. She rarely disobeys me…"
"Jesus Margaret. Didn't you…"
"Stop it, ok! I already feel bad enough that this happened. I don't need you blaming me too. They were fighting, I sent them out back to play, and she got hurt… I…" She says turning her back on Hawkeye.
"I am not blaming you." He says, turning her around and gives her a hug, "We have done that tons of times and they both were perfectly fine. We let them outback all the time to play by themselves. It's not your fault."
"I should have watched them closer… I…"
"Margaret, it's not your fault. I was out of line if I made you think that I blamed you also."
"I feel so guilty." She says, biting back the tears, "I should have watched…"
"Stop." Hawkeye says, hugging her. Natalie looks at her mommy and daddy and bows her head, "You have to listen to mommy Natalie."
"I know." She says.
"This wouldn't have happened if you didn't."
"I know."
"Well, lets go take a picture of that arm."
"Will you do it?" Natalie asks, looking at her father.
He looks at Margaret, "Sure." He says, and they take her to X-ray. Hawkeye takes the picture and they develop it soon after. He looks over the picture, "Damn." He says, seeing the hairline fracture of his daughters radius. He goes back over to his wife with the picture, "She broke it alright… right along her radius."
"How long will she be in a cast?"
"The earliest three weeks."
"Longest?"
"Six weeks."
"Ugh…" Margaret sighs. "It's only a hairline…"
"Yeah, which is why I think it will only be three weeks… but who knows."
"Dammit." She curses, looking over at her daughter.
"Daddy, do I need a cast?"
"Yeah princess." He says, "Let's get you all fixed up and then you can go home."
"Will you come home too?"
"I'll be home for dinner." He says, as he has a nurse call the person who is going to cast her.
She cries as they put the cast on her arm. Then, in three weeks she will be coming back to check her arm. Margaret and Natalie say goodbye to Hawkeye and head back home. On the way back, they stop for ice cream and get some for all the kids and Dan.
"Mommy." Natalie says from the back seat.
"What honey?"
"I never climbing the tree again." She says.
"You can still climb it, just not when you are out there alone. Only when daddy is there to catch you if you fall."
"No… I'm scared." She says.
Margaret smiles at the five year old, and continues driving home. Margaret sees Natalie looking out the window and knows what question is going to be next, "Mommy?"
"Yes?"
"Can we get ice cream?" She asks.
"Well…" Margaret smiles, "I don't know." She teases.
"Please! I hurt my arm." She pouts.
Margaret laughs, she really has the guilt trip down, "Sure, are you paying?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because mommies are suppose to pay."
"Oh, alright." She smiles, "Shall we get some for your brother, sister and grandfather?"
"Yes we should!" She smiles, as Margaret pulls into the parking lot. The ice cream shop is run by a woman whom Hawk went to school with. Of course, the two dated for some time before he left for college. Natalie within two seconds begins to talk about her arm and how she broke it and how it hurt, but her daddy fixed it. Margaret ordered ice cream, pays for the ice cream, and the two girls get back into the car and head home.
"How's her arm?" Dan asks as his daughter-in-law comes through the door.
"She has a hairline fracture right across her radius." Margaret sighs, "But, we got ice cream for everyone."
Dan laughs, "Ice cream fixes broken bones?"
"It must, because Natalie doesn't seem to realize its broken right now." She smiles, watching her kids dig into the ice cream. Kimberly is sitting in her highchair and only ate three bites, but it is already all over her, in her hair, on her face, on her clothes, everywhere.
"How does that taste Kimmy, good?" Dan asks his youngest grandchild.
"Yes." She smiles.
"Here, lets eat ours before they melt." Margaret says, handing him a spoon.
"Does your arm hurt Nattie?"
"Not now."
"Well that's good."
"Grandpop, can we go fishin?" Zack asks him.
"Next time I am off from work we will."
"Can I go too?" Natalie asks.
"You went last time with me, this time it's Zack's turn."
"But I hurt my arm!" She says, hoping the guilt will work.
"Which is another reason you can't go with me. The cast can't get wet kiddo."
"Oh." She pouts.
"Natalie, don't pout." Margaret warns. She hates pouting more than anything.
"Its not fair."
"You only need to wear the cast for a few weeks, then it is coming off."
"I don't care."
"Are you done your ice cream?"
"No."
"Well finish it. If you don't stop pouting then I am taking away the ice cream."
That changes her attitude and she finishes her ice cream. Margaret was thankful that it was her daughters left hand rather than her right one. She was right hand dominate, and it would be awful if she couldn't use it.
"Are your parents coming in tomorrow honey?" Dan asks.
"Mmh, yes." She says, "I was going to pick them up, but they insisted that they are going to take a cab instead. They didn't want me lugging all the kids out."
"I could have watched them."
"You know my father…" She says, sighing.
Dan smiles, "Yes, yes I do. When is my son officially off from work?"
"Three days. I think BJ is going to go into the hospital with him on Thursday. They get in late Wednesday night."
"Ah. They usually do that don't they."
"Yeah." She smiles, "It's a shame that they live a continent away, because they work really well together."
"I hear you don't do to bad with them either."
Margaret blushes, "We were a really great team over in Korea."
"What about Sherm, when is he getting in?"
"Thursday. He'll head right over to the hospital too knowing him, to see those two
clowns." Margaret says. She turns her head towards the kids, just as Kimberly threw her ice cream on the floor, "Kimberly!" She scolds her, "NO! Look at this mess!" She groans and scowls at the child, "That is NOT OK Kimberly. NO!" She says firmly, but does not yell, "I just cleaned the floor." She groans yet again, but gets on her hands and knees to clean the mess up. Dan gets her a wet cloth so the floor does not become sticky, then Margaret wipes the child up and puts her into her playpen, where she screams.
"Kimberly, you better keep quiet little girl."
"That is nearly impossible with a one year old." Dan says as he cracks a smile.
"Don't I know it…" She sighs, taking the dirty towel into the laundry room. She needs to wash towels and sheets today so her father and mother had them for tomorrow.
"So, how are you handling all the kids together?"
"The girls will sleep in Natalie's room, the boys in Zack's, and the babies in Kimberly's. My parents and the Hunnicutt's will be in the two rooms upstairs, and the Potters will be in the den."
"Well that sounds like a good lay out."
Margaret smiles, "It works for us. I can't wait to see all of them. I only saw them, what, two months ago, and I miss them already."
"I haven't seen the Hunnicutt's in a while."
"The kids have gotten huge, Erin especially."
"You'll have a fun time with them, even with Natalie's broken arm, right Nattie?"
"Right." She smiles at her grandfather, "Mommy, are Erin and Gillian staying in my room?"
"Yes they are."
"Good." She smiles.
"Mike wif me." Zack tells her.
"Right, Michael is staying with you."
"Good." He says, repeating his sister.
"Are you looking forward to school in September Natalie?"
"Yup! I want to learn all kinds of stuff!"
Dan laughs, I'm sure you'll be a great student." He turns his attention back to his daughter-in-law, "Do you want me to take the three kids for the day so you can finish cleaning?"
"That would be wonderful." She smiles, "Do you mind?"
"Not at all. Anna will be thrilled to see them."
"I'll pick them up around five, is that ok with you?"
"Why don't you and Hawk come for dinner?"
"Oh, we…"
"I won't take no as an answer."
"Well then, ok. That sounds great." She smiles, "Kids, go get yourself ready, Grandpop is taking you to his house."
"I'll get my Angel of a granddaughter ready." He laughs, picking Kimberly up out of her playpen. She instantly stops crying and lies her head on her grandfather's shoulder, looking sadly towards her mommy. Margaret looks over at the almost one year old and smiles. The child reaches over to her mother and Margaret picks her up from her grandfathers arms, kissing her cheek, "You have to learn to listen to mommy." She smiles.
"She'll start listening as soon as her father starts listening…"
"Well then, I guess I'm in trouble." She laughs.
"I guess you are. Come on Kim, lets go find your shoes."
"Her sandals are in the foyer." She says.
"Do you want your sandals Kimberly?"
"Yes." She smiles.
"Natalie, Zachary, hurry up you two." She says, as they come running down. She gives them each a kiss, "Daddy and I will see you all for dinner at Grandpop's."
"YAY!" Both kids shout, "Bye mommy."
"Bye guys. Be good."
"See you in a few hours Margaret."
For the next four hours, Margaret does nothing but clean. She does all the necessary laundry washes the floors, does the bathrooms, and dusts everything from top to bottom. She leaves the outside for Hawkeye to do, because, personally, she despises doing the lawn mowing. Around 4:00, Hawkeye comes home and finds an almost empty house. He calls out, but no one comes. He hears movement upstairs so he heads up to his room where his wife is finishing folding laundry. He stands in the doorway just looking at her. He crosses his arms and leans against the door jam, until she turns around. She smiles at him, "What are you doing?"
"Watching you."
"Why?"
"Because you are the most beautiful woman in the world." He says.
She smiles and gets a tear in her eye. It has been a while since he has said that, and she forgot just how much it meant to her. He walks over to her and kisses her, "Where are the kids?"
"Your fathers."
"When do we have to be over there?"
"Five."
"Not enough time, is there?"
"No." She sighs. It was the first time in a while that they have been alone, and she wishes they have a bit more time to spend.
"The house looks great."
"Thanks." She smiles, turning her attention back to her laundry, "You need to mow the lawn sometime today or early tomorrow."
"I'll do it later on tonight."
"Ok." She smiles.
"How's my daughter's hand?"
"She hasn't said anything about it."
"Good. I'm going to jump into the shower, quickly, before dad's."
"Ok, but hurry up. I need one too."
"We could…"
"Not today." She says, finishing folding her laundry.
"Oh, you and I are going to go away, just the two of us, this winter."
"Hawk…"
"Margaret, it is only for a few days and my father will watch the kids. You can pick where you want to go."
She thinks for a second, it does sound tempting, and then Kimberly would be one and a half by the winter, "We'll see."
"We can go as long as you want… or as short as you want." He calls to her as he starts running the water. He gets a shower in record breaking time, well, for him it's record breaking time, and gets out so Margaret can get one. In about fifteen minutes, they are ready to head over to Dan's.
"How's your hand Nattie?" Hawkeye asks as his daughter runs up to him.
"Ok."
"Does it hurt?"
"Not too bad." She smiles.
"Good." He says, kissing her head.
"How was work Hawk?"
"Fine dad. Thanks for taking the kids for us."
"No problem. Margaret had her hands full with the cleaning."
"And the house looks wonderful." He repeats himself. He very rarely said anything about the house, because it was usually clean when he gets home, however, he knows that she had to have worked extra hard and wants that little bit of gratitude. He sees Margaret smile again at his comment.
"Daddy, come play wif me." Zack smiles.
"Come play 'wif' you?" He mimics.
"Yes."
"Where?"
"Outside, wif Brandi!" He smiles, pointing to the Lab who is patiently waiting at the screen door.
"Do you need any help in here dad?"
"No, go play with your son. If I need you, you'll hear from me."
"Well, alright then, lets go Zachary." Hawkeye smiles, "Are you coming too Nattie?"
"Yes." She smiles.
"Margaret, would you like something to drink?" Anna asks.
"Yes, that would be wonderful."
"What would you like?"
"Um…"
Dan cuts in, "Give her an old fashion" he smiles.
Margaret laughs, "That sounds good actually." She looks over to where Kimberly is playing and walks to pick her up.
"I'll make my son and myself a martini, and we can all head outback while dinner is cooking."
"Wanna go outside Kimberly?" She asks the anxious one year old.
"Yes!" She smiles and claps her hands.
Margaret puts her on the ground and she bangs on the screen door to get out, "Kimberly, you are going to break that, don't." She tells her and opens up the door, "Hawk… Kimberly's coming over to you." She calls.
He meets the baby at the top of the deck steps and picks her up. She was getting better with steps, but still not perfect, "Coming to play Kimmy?" She smiles and lies her head on her fathers shoulder. He puts her down on the ground and throws the ball to his daughter. "Good job Natalie." He smiles, as she catches it, despite her broken arm. "You're up Zachary."
All three of the kids love to be outside, which Margaret was glad about. She doesn't want her kids becoming TV junkies, and with summer here, they were outside 80 of the time. Margaret and Hawkeye have done a good job so far keeping the kids away from the TV.
"Me daddy!" Kimberly says as she holds her arms out for the ball. Zachary helps his little sister catch the ball and smiles.
"Good job Kimmy!"
"I see you have gotten over the no nicknames for Kimberly?" Anna asks.
"Not really. She is still called Kimberly a lot more than the other names, so I can deal with it." She smiles, "And besides, I'm at fault with calling her Kim or Kimmy every once in a while."
"Mommy, I'm thirsty." Natalie says, walking over to her mother, "Can I have some of yours?"
Margaret smiles, "You can't have this honey, it's for grownups. Let's go get you some water."
"Can I try yours?"
"When you turn 18 you can." She smiles.
"Ok." She says, as they both walk into the house, "Mommy, my cup is the pink and blue one."
"I know which one is yours."
"Zack's is the blue and red one." She says, "And Kimberly's is the little purple and pink one."
"I know honey." She laughs, filling up the cup with water, and passes it to her daughter,
"Take this outside, and don't spill any."
"Yes ma'am."
Margaret fills up the next two cups with water. She knows that once the younger two sees Natalie with a drink they will want one too.
"Mommy!" Zack says, as if right on cue.
"Here honey." She smiles, handing him his cup.
"Thank you."
"You're welcome."
Hawkeye brings Kimberly and they go onto the porch, he picks up his drink and takes a swallow of it, "Dad, the next one needs more gin."
"I was thinking the same thing. It is not nearly dry enough." He laughs, "Margaret, I have a question for you."
"I may have an answer." She grins.
"Next Thursday I am short a nurse, Kelsey is on vacation, are you by any chance free?"
"I would be, but I don't have anyone to watch the kids…" she sighs.
"I could watch them." Anna says.
"Really?"
"Sure, it's no problem."
"That would be great!"
"I would need you for Tuesday and Thursday if possible."
"Next Tuesday?"
"No, the Tuesday after."
"That's fine Dad, I'd be glad to help."
"Wonderful."
"So have you and Hawkeye decided on a vacationing spot yet for this winter?" Anna asks.
"What?" Margaret says.
"He was saying that you two would be going away this winter, and we would be watching the kids."
"Oh, that," Margaret says, shooting a look back at Hawkeye. She didn't know that he already asked his father and Anna to baby-sit, "I don't know yet. We'll have to discuss that soon though, I assume."
"You assume right." Hawkeye smiles.
"Mommy, I'm hungry." Natalie complains.
"We'll be eating soon Nat." Anna smiles.
"Ok Nana."
"Do you want chicken or a hot dog Natalie?" Dan asks.
"Hot dog."
"Ok." He smiles, "What about you Zack?"
"Hot dog." He repeats his sister.
"How did I guess."
"Nana, guess what?"
"What Natalie?"
"Uncle BJ is coming in two days!"
"Oh really?" She plays.
"Yup, and so is Aunt Peggy, Erin, Gillian, Katie and Mike!"
"Well, you are going to have a lot of fun with them aren't you?"
"Yes, well, with the girls." She smiles.
"Well, that's good."
"Ben, do you want another?" Dan asks, standing up to get himself another martini.
"Sure." He smiles, handing him his glass. "Thanks."
"Daddy, I try." Zack says, as Hawkeye gets the glass back in his hand.
"No."
"I want!"
"You aren't going to like it Zack… it's yucky."
"I TRY!" He shouts.
Hawkeye hands him the glass and he takes a sip, quickly followed by a look of utmost disgust, "See." Hawkeye says, laughing at his son, "Now, you won't yell at me ever again will you?"
"No." He says, quickly taking a drink of his water.
"Pierce!" Margaret yells, "You don't give a drink to a three year old."
"He asked for it."
"I don't care, you still don't give it to him!" She groans.
"He didn't like it."
"Suppose he did?"
"Margaret…" He sighs.
"I want to try it too." Natalie complains.
"See?" Margaret says, "Now they will all want a sip."
"You don't need it Natalie."
"Zack got to taste, and I want to taste too."
"No." Hawkeye says firmly.
"Not fair!" She pouts.
"Pout all you want Natalie Ann, but you aren't getting any." Hawkeye tells her. They all eat dinner and then go home. Margaret is very nervous about what her father will think when he sees Natalie's arm the next day. She is a very responsible parent, but her father may look down upon her when he sees her hand.
"Daddy!" Margaret smiles as her parents walk in through the front door at precisely 3:00.
"Hi little girl." He smiles, putting down the bags to give her a hug, "How are you?"
"I'm fine, how are you?"
"Fine."
"Hi mom." She says, hugging her mother.
"Hi honey."
"Where are my grandkids?"
"Natalie is in the basement, and the other two are sleeping. Let me get her…"
"Nonsense, I will call for her." Al says, heading to the top of the basement steps, "Natalie, come up here you little solider."
Natalie runs up into her grandfathers arms, "Pop-pop!" She squeals.
"Hi honey…" He says, before noticing her arm, "What happened to your arm?"
"I broke it."
"How?"
"I climbed the tree and fell out."
"Where was your father?" He asks, immediately placing the blame on Hawkeye.
"Work."
"Where was mommy?"
"Inside."
"Inside? Margaret, what the hell were you doing inside while your daughter was climbing the tree?"
"The dishes. I told her…."
"She is five years old, she shouldn't be climbing trees when you are not there to look after her! She shouldn't even be outside."
Immediately Margaret begins to get flustered, "Dad, I told her already to not climb the tree. She didn't listen to me."
"Is this true?" He asks the child.
"Yes." She sniffles.
"Well, you know better than to not listen to your mother don't you."
"Yes."
"But you should have been outside with them Margaret."
"I know, but they have played outside without me many times in the back yard. They know better than to climb when we aren't there, and also, the yard is fenced in so they won't go out front…"
"I…"
"Let's stop this before we all say something we will regret." Kate chimes in, "Nattie, would you like to help put our things upstairs with me?"
"Yes." She smiles brightly.
"Good. Let's go upstairs, but we have to be quiet, because your brother and sister are sleeping."
"Grammy, I know that." She smiles.
"Let's go, can you carry my little bag?"
"Yes I can!"
"Thank you honey."
"Grammy, can we get ice cream?"
"When?"
"Tonight."
"I don't see why not." She smiles.
"Yay!"
"We'll have to wait till after we eat dinner though."
"Ok." She smiles, as they put the suitcases into the room and head back downstairs. "Mommy, guess what?"
"What?"
"Grammy taking me for ice cream after dinner."
"She is?"
"I figured we could all go." She smiles at her daughter.
"That sounds like fun."
"When is Hawkeye due home?"
"Around five."
"Good, I'm looking forward to seeing him."
"He's looking forward to seeing you too." Margaret smiles.
For the next day, Kimberly is attached to her Grammy and Pop-pop. She loves all the attention she is getting from them. Margaret smiles at the two with the baby and the older two grandkids. She is a bit disappointed at the fact that her sister could not be there for Kim's birthday, because she's one week away from her due date and the doctors have her on bed rest. Margaret for the first time sees how much Kimberly looks like her mother, and also herself. She still has a lot of her father in her, but she definitely resembles a Houlihan.
The Hunnicutt's arrive around 4:00, right before Hawkeye gets home from work. They were thrilled to be off the plane and seeing their friends.
"What happened to your arm Natalie? Did your mommy push you again?" BJ winks at her.
"No, I fell out of the tree. I was climbing when mommy wasn't there."
"Oh, I see." He smiles at the young girl, "You'll be ok soon though."
"Yup!"
"Why don't you girls go upstairs and put your bags in Natalie's room." Peg smiles.
"Ok mom." Erin says, and grabs her little suitcase, lugging it up the stairs followed by her sister and cousin.
"Can you believe them." Peggy says, pointing at their husbands on the porch, "They have been together for two minutes, and already they are talking each others ear off."
"I can believe it." Margaret laughs, "Hawkeye has done nothing except talk about you guys coming for the past week. He is thrilled to have BJ in work with him tomorrow."
"They hate not working together."
"I know. I find it funny that it never fails, if one is on vacation and the other is working, they both go in."
Peg smiles, "I know." She looks down at the girls who were playing nicely together, "I think we have a new pair of best friends to deal with too."
"They are pretty cute together." Margaret smiles at Kim and Katie, "I can't believe how big they have gotten."
"I know. Have you thought about having anymore?"
"No, I'm done, what about you?"
"I maybe want one more, but we'll see what happens."
"Lucky number five." Margaret laughs.
"I think BJ is hoping for another boy if we do have one."
"How old are your kids Peg?" Kate asks, walking into the conversation.
"Erin is seven, Gillian is five, Michael's three, and Kaitlyn is one."
"Pretty even with my grandkids." She smiles.
"Yeah, it was odd how that happened, but nice because all the kids have a playmate, well, minus Erin. She likes to pal around with the girls though."
"Did you bake the cake yet Maggie?"
"No, I'm going to do that on Friday, I think."
"Morning I would hope."
"Yes mom."
"Ok." She smiles.
"Just making sure."
"I'll probably have a ton of little helpers to bake with so it won't take nearly as long to do." Margaret laughs.
"I'll be glad to help with what ever you need."
"Thanks Peg. Hawk and BJ I think are going tomorrow to pick up Colonel Potter so we can make the cake while they are gone."
"Sounds like a plan. Erin will want to help."
"I think they all will want to help."
Margaret and Peg work their tails off on Thursday and Friday while their husbands are busy at the hospital. All the kids spend most of their day playing outside or in the basement. They loved being able to run around with each other while their parents were busy preparing for the party.
On Saturday, the party occurs. Hawkeye is busy talking only to BJ, the Colonel and his father. It is a beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky. Katie and Kim aren't too fond of having all the people around and stuck pretty close to their parents. Kimberly held onto Hawkeye most of the time because he stays around people she knows. When they sing Happy Birthday to the little girl she cries. She doesn't like the loud noise that was coming from around her. She's just like her mother when it came to noises. The only noise she liked that were loud are fireworks. She was more interested in the pretty colors then the noise.
Margaret cuts the cake and places two small pieces in front of the babies, who immediately get their hands and faces messy. Margaret laughs at the two girls as they try and eat the cake.
That night, Peg and Margaret get the two youngest in the bath and quickly out before they become too clingy to their parents. They girls are exhausted, so the sooner they get them into bed, the better it will be on everyone. The girls are placed in Kim's crib and they immediately start babbling to each other. Margaret and Peg laugh and leave the room, "They are only one and already are staying up talking to each other." Peg smiles.
"I know, it wont be too long before we have to yell at them to keep them quiet." Margaret replies.
The two women go downstairs and sit out back with the remaining guests. "Do you two want a drink?" BJ asks the returning women.
"That sounds good." Margaret smiles, "What are you making Hunnicutt?"
"What ever you want."
"Just give me a scotch on the rocks please." Margaret smiles.
"Coming right up, and you honey?"
"Old fashion."
"Alright." He says making them quickly and handing them to the women.
"So you finally get a second to rest Margaret." The colonel smiles.
"Yeah, I have been doing non-stop running for the past week. Cleaning, Natalie breaking her arm, cleaning, baking. I really appreciate all of your help though." She smiles at Mrs. Potter and Peg.
"It was no trouble dear." Mildred smiles.
"So Margaret, I hear you are going to be speaking at your Alma Matter in August."
"Yeah, about the war and what it was like being out there. I am a bit worried about it because it has been ages since I've addressed that many people at once."
"Just think of it as you bossing all the nurses and doctors around at the 4077th and you'll do just fine." Hawkeye grins at his wife.
"Yeah, thanks a lot." She says, rolling her eyes.
"So have you two decided if you are both going to be at the conference?"
"Yeah, we'll be there." BJ says.
"Did you even have to ask?" Margaret asks Peg.
"No, but I like to be sure, because with these two, they won't tell you there is a conference that we are all going to until a week before we leave."
Margaret smiles. It is almost 10 when they decided to get the other kids ready for bed. The women decide that it is the men's turn to get them rounded up and into bed. They got the babies and the men can get the kids. Hawkeye rounds them up and they all go upstairs. Fifteen minutes later, the adults are back downstairs and head out onto the porch for a drink and some conversation. Afterwards everyone goes back inside and heads to bed.
July flies by and August arrives. Natalie's hand is not in a cast anymore and Margaret is busy working on what she needed to discuss at the conference. She is on the phone with Lorraine almost every day, trying to figure out what the two of them would be discussing. She is beginning to get very nervous, and doesn't know what she was thinking when she agreed to this lecture. It is only two weeks away, and Margaret feels she is really behind. Hawkeye is beginning to really hate coming home because all she does is yell except for when she is talking to Lorraine.
Hawkeye walks through the door and into the living room, sighing when he sees Margaret on the phone again. "This phone bill is going to be awful." He says to himself.
"DADDY!" Zack shouts as he runs at his father full force.
"Hey buddy." He smiles, picking him up, kissing his cheek. He looks over to his wife who shoots him a look of death. "We have to be quiet buddy, mommy's on the phone."
"DADDY!" Natalie shouts, louder than her brother and runs into the room.
"Natalie, mommy's on the phone, don't yell." He says, kissing his daughter. "Where's Kimberly?"
"In her playpen." Natalie smiles.
Hawkeye puts her down and walks over to the couch, giving Margaret a quick kiss on the cheek. She immediately turns her head away from him and continues her conversation, writing notes down. Hawkeye was fuming. She has no right to turn her head away from him. He walks over and picks Kimberly up from her playpen, putting her on the floor.
"I had her in there for a reason." Margaret says as she watches the baby's every move.
"She'll be fine. I'm here to watch her." He says smugly. He knows how much this conference means to her, but he is really starting to hate her personality. She is making this speech her life, and treating everything else like absolute shit.
After about fifteen more minutes, Margaret hangs up the phone, "You are going to have to make dinner tonight, I have too much work to do." She replies to him, walking away.
"What do you want?"
"I don't care."
"Margaret…"
"I don't care Pierce."
"You need to pick something, because I am not going to be yelled at when you don't want what I cooked."
"I DON'T CARE PIERCE! I have too much work to do to worry about you guys, and since you are here, you can be the mother for once."
"Ok, I'll be the mother, the kids and I are going out before I say something that I am going to regret. Would you like to come with us?"
"No." She says, plainly.
"Ok, I'll see you later." He tells her and closes the door, "Natalie, Zachary, Kimberly, come on gang and get your shoes on. We are going out for dinner."
"Mommy too?" Zack asks.
"No." Hawkeye says, turning his head towards their mother, "Mommy is far too busy to go out and have a dinner with us." And with that, he ushers the kids out the door before Margaret could say another word.
"What an ASSHOLE!" She screams at the top of her lungs, hoping he heard it. "How dare him! How dare he say that to me. I don't know why I married the man sometimes!" She is so into her own feelings that she doesn't even bother realizing that this was her fault. She gets back to writing what she is going to say at the conference and thinks of questions that are going to be asked.
Hawkeye and the kids go out for burgers, and then head over to his fathers. He was not in the mood to see his wife right now.
"So what brings you over here?" Dan asks his son, picking up his one year old granddaughter.
"Well, I took the kids out for dinner and then we came over to say hi."
"Where's Margaret?"
"We left her home."
"Why?"
"Because she is too busy to do anything."
"Oh, right, her speech."
"Yeah, that."
"So, let me guess, she got hot headed, you got hot headed, exchanged words and left?"
"No, she exchanged the words, I just walked out. I am so sick and tired with every time she needs to do something or write something, she blows up at everyone. It is getting old fast."
"You get the same way…"
"I DO NOT!" He argues.
"See?" Dan smiles, making his point. Hawkeye smiles and nods, he knows that his temper is just as bad as Margaret's at times. "Just let her go. Her speech is very important to her right now, and she wants everything to go well."
"I know… but…"
"Two more weeks of this. You look like you can use a belt."
"Sounds good." He says, taking his youngest back from his father. She immediately runs to her toy pile and begins to play.
The two Pierces have a drink and talk for a while, until Hawkeye decides he should bring the kids back to the house. He was not looking forward to seeing his wife. He gets into the house and finds the downstairs almost completely dark.
"Where's mommy?" Natalie asks.
"Probably in my den." He says, seeing the door closed. He calls out that they were home and then gets the kids ready for a bath. He quickly gets Kimberly's done and then puts her to bed. He then calls for Zack and goes into his own room to see where his wife is. He finds her sleeping on their bed, her arm draped over the tablet where she was busy writing her speech. The floor is littered with crumpled up papers. He smiles at the mess and closes the door. He doesn't want the kids to disturb her while they were upstairs.
Zack comes running into the hallway, "I'm all ready daddy!" He says.
Hawkeye laughs at his naked three year old son, "I can see that. Come on, get into the tub buddy."
"Kay." He smiles and goes into the bathroom and in the tub. Hawkeye is right behind him, "Daddy, can I play?"
"Not tonight pal. It's already 9:15 pal, way past your bedtime."
"A little?"
Hawkeye smiles, "Not tonight." He quickly washes Zack up and then drains the water.
"Alright buddy, you're done, go into your room. Natalie, come on princess!"
"Daddy, I need my pajamas." Zack says with the towel still wrapped around him.
"I see that. Let's go find them." He laughs, walking into the blue room. "Here pal." He says handing him what he was to put on. Zack smiles and allows Hawkeye to help him get changed.
"Daddy, do I need a bath?" Natalie asks.
"Yes you do. I'll be with you as soon as I finish up with your brother."
"Ok." She says. "Mommy's not in the den daddy."
"I know honey, she's in our room."
"Why?"
"She's sleeping."
"Sick?"
"No, not sick, tired."
"Ok." She smiles, walking into her room.
"Alright buddy, time to brush your teeth then it's bed time."
"Ok." He says, walking back into the bathroom. Hawkeye draws Natalie's bath water and helps his son brush his teeth. "Alright buddy, let's get into bed."
"Kay." He smiles, and runs into his bedroom, jumping into his bed. "Daddy?"
"What?"
"You home tomorrow?"
"I'll be home for dinner."
"Oh." He sighs.
"How about, after we eat dinner tomorrow, we go to the park?"
"Yes, you and me."
"And your sisters." Hawkeye smiles, pulling the covers around him.
"No daddy, just you and me."
"Wont your sisters be upset?"
"Yes." He says, after thinking.
"So, should we all go?"
"Yes."
"Ok. You and I will go on the boat with Grandpop sometime soon, just the guys ok?"
"Good idea!" He smiles. Zack loves spending time with his father, especially if it is alone. Hawkeye took him on the boat before for some 'guy time' and he wanted more of it, so, now, it was all about spending time with his father, away from his sisters.
"You go to sleep now ok?"
"Yes." He says, "I love you daddy."
"I love you too." He replies and kisses his son before closing the door partially. Hawkeye absolutely loves hearing his kids say they love him. That simple comment from the kids could change his mood from awful to thrilled in only a few seconds.
"Alright Nattie, you're turn."
"Ok daddy." She says, and goes into the bathroom. She gets into the tub and starts to wash up. She was getting far to independent for Hawkeye's liking. The only part she still needs help with is washing her hair. By the time she is in bed, it is 10:00. Hawkeye is exhausted from all day surgery and then coming home to take care of the kids. He wasn't ready to go to bed yet, so he goes downstairs and watches some TV until almost midnight, then he heads upstairs and joins his wife in bed. He doesn't cuddle up to her like he usually does because he is still mad about how she was acting earlier, and he probably would have slept on the couch if he felt like moving from the bed. He turns off the lights and goes to sleep. Around 3:30, Margaret wakes up and looks around the dark room. She rubs her eyes and turns on the light to check the time, then she proceeds to get out of bed.
"Margaret…" Hawkeye mumbles, "What the hell are you doing? Turn the damn light off." He continues as he shields his eyes.
"Sorry." She says, "I'll turn it off in a second." She goes into the bathroom, brushes her teeth and comes back to bed, turning the light back off. She lies there for a few minutes before, "Pierce. Hawkeye!"
"Huh?"
"How was dinner?"
"Fine."
"Where did you go?"
"Tony's."
"You were gone for like three hours."
"Went to dad's for a bit." He replies.
"What time did the kids go to bed?"
"Kim went at 9:15, Zack at 9:45, and Natalie at almost 10." He really doesn't feel like being all nice to her after the way he was treated earlier. He keeps his back to her, and she rolls over on her side, hurt that he won't answer her anymore and finally feeling awful because of how she treated him.
"I'm sorry." She mumbles, after staying silent for a while, "I'm sorry Pierce, it's just… I am so worried about this conference. I don't feel ready for it and it is only two weeks away… not even!"
Hawkeye rolls over and faces her, kissing her neck, "It's fine, don't worry about it."
"I just…"
"Margaret, don't worry about it ok?"
"Ok." She sighs. She can tell he is still annoyed at the way he was treated today, but he'll be alright in a day or so.
Hawkeye stays away from Margaret while she is working on her speech. He spent most of the nights and days working and when he comes home, she is already sleeping. He couldn't wait till the speech was over and done with which would be in less than two weeks.
Three days before the conference, Margaret asks Hawkeye to read over her notes for her speech. She talks a lot about working with doctors, working that close to the front, being in charge of the 4077th, being a Major, the surgical techniques and a very important instrument that was created in their unit.
"I like it."
"You're just saying that…"
"No I'm not, I really like it. You have really gone into detail about many different aspects of the 4077th. The only part that you left out is that it was hell on earth."
Margaret smiles, "I figured I'd leave that part out, because I don't want to remember it."
"How about irrational fears?"
"Nah."
"I think you'll do wonderful."
"Honestly?" She asks her husband.
He kisses the side of her head, "If I didn't have to watch the kids during your speech, I'd be there with bells on."
"And if you were a nurse, but you are too good for nursing aren't you?"
"I plead the fifth." He smiles, getting swatted. "You better pack this now so you don't forget it."
"I am. I need your help packing though."
"Why?"
"Because we have five people to pack for… and I am not doing them all. I expect you to help with the kids and get your stuff."
"Alright." He smiles. "Now?"
"After we get the kids into bed."
"Ok."
After the kids are in bed, Hawkeye and Margaret pack up their things first, "I'm assuming we will be going out once or twice during our stay."
"Yes. Peg and I heard of a place down there that is good, and you need a nice shirt and pants for."
"What are we doing with the kids?"
"Leaving them with the babysitter that the hotel gives."
"Oh, alright."
"We are only going to be down there for five days, so we don't have to pack to much."
"Where is Lorraine staying?"
"In the same hotel, and she is bringing her fiancée."
"She's getting married? To who?"
"Some guy named Jason. She says he is really nice and she loves him. I am looking forward to meeting him."
"Don't mess up their relationship Margaret…"
"What does that mean?"
"She's your best friend… you are her best friend… every guy will not be good enough."
"No, that's my sister." She smiles, "Pack your shiny blue shirt with the tie I like."
"Only if you pack something I like." He says with his eyes shinning.
"What are you thinking about?" He goes over to her top dresser drawer, and pulls out a skimpy, sexy, black number. "I don't think so!" She says, "We have the kids, they will be in the room next to us, and I don't think we'll have time to do…. Anything."
"We always can make time." He says, "And, no teddy, no blue shirt."
She sighs, and grabs it from him, packing it at the bottom of her suitcase. He comes up behind her and wraps his arms around her waste, kissing her neck.
"Cool it Romeo." Margaret smiles, pushing him away, "We have a lot of work to do before we leave, and I want everything to be done."
"Just a quickie?"
"With you it's never a quickie. I can't remember a time when we didn't spend two hours, at least, together. We'll have plenty of time down in North Carolina."
He groans, kissing her one last time, and continues packing, "Alright, I'm done." He smiles, "Now what?"
"Zack. You go start on Zack's clothes, and I'll be in soon to help. I'm almost done my packing."
"Right." He smiles, walking out of his room and into his son's room. His night light is bright enough so he could see what he is getting out of the drawers. He mainly picks out the nice play clothes that the has and leaves the dress clothes up to his wife. He grabs six shorts, six shirts, and two pairs of shoes for the boy, and brings them back into his room, "Do you want more than six of each?"
"Yes. I'd like each kid to have 10 outfits, and 3 dress outfits. Kimberly, I want 12."
"Alright, I'll get the play clothes, but I'm leaving the dress clothes to you."
She smiles, "That's fine."
He goes into the girls room and gets the cloths that they will want. He grabs a few dresses for Natalie, ones that he knows she likes, and includes them into the 10 clothes pile. By the time he was in Kim's room, Margaret was picking out dressier clothes for the kids. "Hawk?"
"Yeah?"
"Did you get the blue dress Natalie likes?"
"Yeah. It's already in our room."
"What about the purple one?"
"I couldn't find it… is it in the laundry pile?"
"Probably." She sighs. "I'll have to do laundry tomorrow."
"What shoes do you want for Nat?"
"Sandals and sneakers… I'll get them."
"Alright. I'll start putting their things into the suitcase."
"Ok." She says turning the light on in Natalie's closet, waking her up.
"Mommy…" She pouts.
"Sorry baby, I have to get your shoes for our trip." She says, grabbing her shoes and turning off the light, "Lay back down." She says, kissing her.
Natalie lays down and closes her eyes. Margaret sighs a breath of relief. She hates when Natalie is woken up because she usually is miserable and wont go to sleep for almost an hour. She lucked out tonight.
"Who were you talking to?"
"Natalie. The light in her closet woke her up hen I turned it on."
"And she went back to sleep?"
"Yeah, surprising eh?"
"Yeah." He says, folding the last of Kim's clothes, "Ok, I'm done."
"Thank you." She smiles, kissing him.
"No problem." He says, caressing her cheek with the back of his hand, "You ready for Tuesday?"
"Three days away…"
"Yeah. It was a good idea to leave the day before the conference, so you aren't crazy before your speech."
"I'm nervous, but excited, if that makes any sense."
"It does. You'll be wonderful. I promise."
"I'm looking forward to seeing Lorraine again. I miss her."
"I am too. She's fun."
"And the Hunnicutt's."
Hawkeye smiles, "I miss living out west with them…"
"Maybe one day we will again." Margaret shrugs.
"I doubt it… unless Beej moves out here, which is a long shot."
Margaret smiles, "You see him a lot…"
"Three times a year isn't a lot."
"It's better than three times every two years."
"True." He smiles.
"I'm exhausted." She says, as she finishes packing her last suitcase, "Lets go to bed."
"Right." Hawk smiles, and crawls into bed with her, pulling her tight against his chest, and closes his eyes.
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 know they can be annoying. I am working on fixing them.
Next story will be focused more in detail, as I have been asked, however, not overdone. I will be giving it to a beta, so hopefully all will be good. As you can all tell, this story is focusing on family, next chapter, which will be up within a week, is about career and change.
Thanks for all the great reviews! Please keep them up! Please R&R.
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