And chapter number three! Hope you like it. Thanks for reviewing, it really means a lot to me. Thanks you all! Enjoy.

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19:45 local
Circus site
Washington, D.C.

As they exited the car, Mac noticed they still had the third ticket. Harm had an idea.

"We can give it to one of the kids here so he or she doesn't have to buy a ticket."

"Yes, let's do that."

Inside the tent Harm told Mac to search for their seats whereas he would be there in a few. She wondered what he was about to do but did as she was told.

A little later Harm returned with a huge portion of candy floss in his hand. She laughed at the sight and thanked him as he handed it to her.

Their seats were in the front row and as soon as the show began, everyone around them was silent.

During the first part, they really enjoyed themselves. They watched horses, acrobats at the trapeze and on a rope and even tigers. It was very exiting.

After one hour, there was a break of twenty minutes. Most people left the tent, but Mac and Harm stayed in there.

Next to them sat a little girl, about five years old, and her mother. The woman had bought a toy from the circus for her daughter, a shining tiger, before the performance. Now, the mother was searching for something in her bag and the girl, everyone called her Tina, was playing with her tiger. Suddenly, she was distracted by something and dropped her toy. She bend down to pick it up again, but then realized it had fallen through a gap which could be found in every row.

Tina started to cry. Her mother saw immediately what had happened and tried to calm Tina.

"Don't cry. It's only a toy…"

"But I want it back!"

"I know darling, but we can't afford to buy another one. It's just too expensive."

At that, Tina cried even more.

Harm and Mac had watched the scene. Mac was reminded of never being able to get a new toy or anything else she had longed for. All she had had was a father that screamed at her and hit her and a mother that abandoned her. Harm watched Mac. She looked sad, so Harm figured she remembered her childhood. He wanted to help her, to comfort her, but he didn't know how. Suddenly, he had an idea.

"You want her to get another one, don't you?"

Mac, still in thoughts, just nodded.

Harm stood up and went to the next sale stand. He returned with a new tiger and gave it to the child. The mother was touched and simply said "Thank you".

Harm answered "You're welcome" and went back to Mac who watched the girl beaming with joy. As he approached her, Mac was smiling broadly and thanked him, too. Both were very happy, Mac because the little girl was happy and Harm because Mac was happy. The show continued.

Mac leaned her head against Harm's shoulder and they both enjoyed the closeness. When the clown appeared, Mac couldn't stop laughing and Harm watched her. 'She is so beautiful when she's happy. I don't want her to get hurt ever again. I would give anything and everything for her and her happiness. She is my life. I wish we could make it work between us.'

Mac noticed Harm gazing at her, stopped laughing and stared back at him. They exchanged a deep glance, both sunken in each other's eyes. They broke eye contact after a few minutes, both smiling lightly, and turned to the show again. But they couldn't resist the urge to gaze at each other from time to time during the whole performance, enjoying themselves even more.

At about half past ten the show was over. The masses made their way back to the parking lots. So did Mac and Harm, too. They went to Harm's car in comfortable silence. When they arrived there, Harm opened the door to let Mac get in, and then he went to his side. Mac smiled all the time feeling very flattered by his behaviour. Though they were ready to go, Harm didn't start the engine. Mac looked at him and their eyes locked in another long, deep glance. Mac interrupted the silence by whispering:

"I loved this evening, thank you for everything."

Harm replied with a hoarse and soft voice: "Yeah, it was great…"

They continued their glance and started to get closer. They slowly drew closer and closer to each other until they could feel each other's breath on their skin. Harm slightly touched Mac's lips with his and then started to draw away, but Mac placed her hand onto his neck and pulled him closer again, kissing him with so much passion it took his breath away. He was surprised at first, but then just kissed her back. After a while both finally stopped. They exchanged one last glance and then Harm drove off. The drive to Mac's apartment was done in complete silence. Arriving at her place, he gently accompanied her upstairs.

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