Mac took a deep breath. Ten years of friendship were at stake. If she said yes they might survive this hurdle. If she said no then it was all over.

'Go ahead,' she finally said.

Harm sat in the chair across from her and lowered his head. He spoke in quiet, hushed tones and explained to Mac how he had become increasingly disillusioned with his career and his life at JAG, how his personal life was going nowhere and how he truly felt like he was drowning in the swamp that had become his life.

Mac listened with some degree of empathy. She too had been experiencing similar feelings. She too had wanted to flee JAG in search of something more fulfilling. As she listened she felt her heart begin to soften, maybe there was hope for their friendship yet.

Harm continued talking, finding the whole experience quite cathartic. He knew he had won Mac over and he was pleased with this. Then he added one more comment and completely blew their relationship out of the water, once and for all.

'And I'm so lonely. I've got no one. I've got nothing in my life.'

And that was it. He had said he had no one, nothing; ergo Mac was no one, nothing to him. She moved around towards him. Harm, realising what he had said, tried to back pedal but it was to no avail. He knew the consequences of his words and for a brief moment, as Mac approached him, he truly thought she would hit him. He knew full well he deserved it.

Instead, she surprised him by extending her hand. He took it and she shook his hand firmly.

'Well, Commander Rabb, it has been an experience working with you. I wish you all the very best at The Pentagon.' She released his hand, grabbed her bag and cover and walked out, head held high. He wasn't going to get the better of her.

Harm stood in the doorway of her office in disbelief. Ten years of friendship, so many of them he had spent in love with her, had ended with a simple handshake and statement. He watched her walk to the elevator and press the button. She seemed so calm and controlled that his pain escalated.

'What's going on?' Bud asked coming to Mac's door.

'I think I just ended my friendship with Mac.'

'Why the hell did you do that?'

'I don't know, I didn't mean to. It just sort of happened.'

'You stupid bastard,' Bud said more to himself than aloud as he watched Mac get into the elevator.

'What?' Harm reeled around.

Bud realised his comment had been audible. His first thought was to apologise but instead he repeated it. 'I said, 'you stupid bastard.''

'You're right, I am.' He ran to the stairwell and took the steps three at a time. He descended in record time and saw her walking across the car park.

'Mac! Mac!' he called to her. She either didn't hear him or chose to ignore him. 'Mac! Mac!' he called again. She kept on walking.

'Mac, please!!!' he screamed, not caring who was about. She stopped in her tracks.

Good he thought to himself, running to catch up with her.

'Mac, I just wanted to…'

'I don't want to hear it. You've said enough.' She took a step towards her car.

'Please,' he said trying to grab her arm.

She spun out of his grip. Her anger blinded her to anything but getting away from him and she took several steps towards her car and straight into the path of the Academy's bus there for a tour of the grounds. She never had a chance.

Harm sat bolt upright in bed. It had been the third time he'd had that dream and he didn't know what to make of it. He looked at his clock, 0327 stared back at him.

'Goddamn it, this needs to stop,' he muttered to himself.

He got out of bed and headed to the kitchen. After grabbing a bottle of water from the refrigerator he sat on the sofa. After a while he leant back and closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep. His dreams were more peaceful and he muttered something to himself.

'Talking to yourself is the first sign of madness,' Mac said.

Harm opened his eyes and Mac was sitting on his coffee table dressed in sweats.

'Huh?' he replied groggily.

'You were muttering.'

'What are you doing here?'

'Well, that's nice. You invite me to go running with you, you con me into coming over here first and then you don't remember. And you call yourself my friend.'

'I'm sorry Mac. I really I am. I'm… I'm…' Harm was genuinely remorseful.

'Harm, it's okay,' Mac said concerned, patting his arm.

'No, no, it's not. I should be a better friend. I should be nicer to you. I should…I should…do a lot.'

'What's brought this on?'

'Nothing, I've just been thinking.'

'Oh, must have been a big occasion.' Mac laughed but Harm didn't.

'Go get changed Flyboy. You promised me a run and breakfast. Remember?'

'Yeah, I do.'

Within minutes Harm was changed and ready to go. Mac went to leave but he grabbed her arm.

'Mac, wait a minute. Look, I just need to say how much I appreciate our friendship. You mean so much to me and I know I don't say it often but our friendship means the world to me.'

'Wow! Thank you, Harm.' She was moved. 'Are you sure everything's alright? You're not sick or going away?'

'No, nothing like that, I just wanted you to know it because you never know what'll happen and I didn't want to regret not saying it.

'True, I could go and get hit by a bus,' she laughed and turned to the door.

Harm turned ghostly white. 'Yeah,' he muttered.

'Did you say some…?' Mac turned around and noticed his pallor. 'Harm?' She went to him.

'Harm, what's wrong?'

He shook his head, visions of the bus from his dream still racing through his mind, echoing her words. 'Harm, you look like you've seen a ghost?'

He put his arms around her and took the biggest chance of his life. He kissed her tenderly at first and when he realised she had responded, he kissed her deeper and deeper. Finally, Mac broke away.

'What was that for?'

'I couldn't live without you.'

'I'm not going anywhere.'

'Promise?'

'Yeah, I promise,' she replied softly before kissing him back.

There was no run that morning and the breakfast Harm had promised came in the form of breakfast in bed later that afternoon.