There Would Be No Greater Gift – Part II
Response to Teacup's JAGged Lines
Challenge # 3
Using the lines:
Line 1: I wanna know
Line 2: Come back and save me
Line 3: Now my head is pounding
Line 4: Don't keep me waiting
Line 5: You leave without a word - no message, no number
Bonus Line: They don't like the game you play
Many thanks to Teacup. :-)
*** ***
Rabb Residence
30 December 2010
1722 EST
*** ***
"Colin!" Mac exclaimed as she dried her hands on the dish towel. "Didn't Mommy tell you not to play with your spaghetti? Spaghetti goes in your tummy," she paused and looked at her son, "not in your hair."
Colin shrugged. "My hair yummy! Like basketti!" He took the almost full pasta pull and dumped it on his head.
"Oh, no! That was a no-no!" Mac walked over to her son's highchair. "Talk about terrible threes rather than the terrible twos," she mumbled under her breath.
"Momma, can I have juice, peez?" Emma asked from her seat.
Mac lifted Colin out of his seat and held him safely at arms length. "In a minute, sweetie, I have to clean your brother up first." Mac looked down and noticed she now had sauce all over her fairly new white top. Rule number one, she remembered; never wear white on pasta night.
The telephone rang just as Mac began to exit the kitchen. "Now my head is pounding!" she exclaimed. Someone has terrible timing, Mac thought as she reached for the phone. "Hello."
"Hello, Mrs. Rabb," came the voice on the other end.
Mac smiled. At the sound of her husband's voice, all of the day's troubles melted away. "You leave without a word – no message, no number."
"I thought you forgave me, Mac. Duty called."
She laughed. "I know. I was just having a little fun. How are you?" she asked while putting Colin back into his highchair.
"I miss you and the kids."
"We miss you, too." Mac began to picking pasta out of Colin's hair.
"NOOO!!!!" he shrieked. "I like my yummy hair!!"
"Mommy! I wanna apple juice!"
"What's going on over there?"
Mac sighed heavily. "Come back and save me."
Harm chuckled. "Are you saying that you, Colonel MacKenzie-Rabb, can't handle twin three year olds? Are you asking the Navy for backup, Marine?"
"Oh, shut up," she mumbled.
"Sorry," he apologized sheepishly. "What happened today?"
Mac pressed a hand against her forehead to help sooth her headache. "We had pasta for dinner tonight, and Colin decided he want to have yummy hair like basketti. I bet you can figure out what he did."
"Oh, no. He dumped it on his head."
"That he did."
"Did Emma decide she wanted to have yummy hair like her brother?"
"No, thank goodness! Emma has been pretty good today, but I forgot to get her apple juice."
"Isn't it obvious, Mac? They don't like the game you play."
Mac scoffed. "Some game."
"So," he ventured, "do you have any plans for New Year's Eve?"
Mac frowned. Of course she didn't have any plans. Harm was TAD to the Atlantic Ocean and that special green nightgown found its way to the back of her closet. "Actually, I do not. My husband is TAD, and our children will be asleep long before midnight."
"Actually," he emphasized, "your husband will be returning to Norfolk by 0800 tomorrow morning."
"That's wonderful, Harm!"
"So, what do you say? Can we go out tomorrow night?"
"I would love to…"
"Uh-oh. I sense a 'but' coming along."
"It's just that we don't have any reservations or a sitter."
"I beg to differ."
"Harm?"
"I have reservations to your favorite French restaurant, and I already called Danielle to see if she could babysit."
"I wanna know how you managed that."
"I've had these reservations since the beginning of December, Mac."
"That's so sweet, and the kids love Danielle."
"Is that a yes?"
"Absolutely!"
"Good. I hate to cut this conversation short, but I'm swamped, and I would love to talk to Emma and Colin before we hang up."
"Of course, of course! Here, talk to Emma while I clean Colin up." Mac handed the phone to Emma. "Talk to Daddy, sweetie."
"I wanna talks, too!" Colin exclaimed.
"You will," Mac assured him, "but I have to clean your hands first."
"Hi, Daddy!" Emma exclaimed excitedly into the phone.
"Hello, sweetheart. I miss you!"
"Miss you, Daddy. I made a picture for you. I wanna gives it to you nows."
Harm smiled sadly. He loved his job, but the traveling was hard on the entire family. "You did? I'll be home tomorrow, and you can give it to me then."
"Oh!" Her eyes lit up. "Yay!"
"Emma, it's your brother's turn to talk to Daddy," Mac said.
"Okay," she said sadly. "Daddy, Colin has to talks now."
Mac took the phone from Emma and gave it to Colin. "Hi, Daddy!"
"Hey, buddy! I heard you weren't being very good for Mommy. Is that true?"
"Yes."
"Why did you dump your pasta on your head?"
"Cause I wanna have yummy hair!"
"Colin, we eat our food. We do not play with our food."
"I'm war-ry, Daddy. I won't do it again."
"Okay. Tell Mommy you are sorry, too."
Colin looked up at with mother with his big, blue eyes. "I'm sorry, Mommy. I did a no-no."
"Apology accepted."
"I did it, Daddy," Colin said to his father.
"I heard. I'm very proud that you apologized. Now, can you give the phone back to Mommy?"
"Okay. Mommy! Daddy wants to talks to you."
Mac took the phone back. "I'll see you tomorrow."
"I love you. Give the kids a hug and a kiss for me."
"I will. We love you, too."
"I have to go now."
"We'll see you later," and with that, Mac hung up the telephone. As she did so, she made a mental note to take that green nightgown out once again.
***
***
Rabb Residence
31 December 2010
1326 EST
*** ***
Harm was exhausted when he finally arrived home. He placed his sea bag and briefcase in front of the door, and hung his cover, overcoat, and jacket in the closet.
He started to walk to the kitchen. "Mac?"
No answer.
"Colin! Emma!"
Once again there was no answer.
"Hey, where is everyone?"
Harm stepped inside the kitchen and walked over to the island. On the countertop, there was a plate of oatmeal cookies and a note addressed to "DADDY" in a child's handwriting; below the word 'Daddy' both his children had signed their names. He smiled and unfolded the paper. In Mac's handwriting, the note read:
Daddy,
We
are very excited that you are coming home today. We wanted to make
something extra special as a way to say we missed you very much.
Mommy said you like homemade oatmeal cookies, so she helped us make
some.
We love you very, very much --- all the way to the moon and
back!
Emma and Colin
Harm folded the note back up and decided to take it upstairs for safekeeping. With a content smile on his face, he went upstairs to see where everyone was hiding.
First, he checked Emma's and Colin's room. He saw that they both were taking a nap, and he decided not to wake them. Then, he went to his bedroom. When he entered the room, he saw that Mac was asleep, too. She was sleeping on his side of the bed and hugging his pillow tightly to her.
Silently, Harm walked over and kneeled by the side of the bed so he could study his wife. Watching her sleep was one of Harm's favorite things. He remembered when Mac was pregnant how he would stay up for hours after she had gone to sleep just so he could watch her. The moon would cast a glow in the window just bright enough to illuminate her face. Her hair would be slightly tousled, one arm would be tucked behind her pillow, and the other arm would rest protectively over her growing belly.
Harm smiled at the memories this brought back. Mac looked so peaceful, and he almost didn't want to wake her. After enjoying the scene for a few more minutes, he finally decided to wake her. Gently, he brushed the stray strands of hair way from his wife's eyes before he cupped her head in his heads and placed a feather light kiss on her lips.
Mac's eyes fluttered open. "Welcome home, husband," she greeted with a sleepy smile.
"It's good to be home, Mrs. Rabb. You're tired, huh?"
"The kids and I had a busy day."
"Yeah, I bet. I saw the cookies and the note."
She smiled again. "They were really excited."
"I was going to go and thank them, but I didn't know if I should wake them yet."
"I know you really want to see them, and they really want to see you, but they should sleep for at least another twenty minutes or so."
"Okay. It'll give me time to catch a few winks and take a shower first," he said as he started removing his shoes.
Mac rolled over so she could face him once again. "If you're too tired, we can postpone our plans."
"I'll be fine, but if you're too tired we can reschedule, Mac."
"I'm feeling much more awake now that you are home. I'm really looking forward to this."
"Me, too. When was the last time we went out?"
"Too long ago, Harm. I can't even remember."
He loosened his tie and sat on the edge of the bed. "My New Year's Resolution is to take you out more often." He leaned over so his lips were only inches away from Mac's.
"Really? My New Year's Resolution is to take you out more often, too."
"Great minds think alike."
Mac sealed the distance between them and kissed him. Then she asked, "What time is our reservation for?"
"1830. Danielle said she'll be here around 1730."
"Okay. I'm going to go downstairs and make sure everything is ready for her tonight. I'll be right back."
"Don't keep me waiting too long."
"I won't, sailor."
*** ***
La
Chaumiere
Georgetown, VA
1833 EST
***
***
"Sarah, you look gorgeous."
She linked their arms together as they took a step forward in line. "So do you. It's nice seeing you in civilian attire for a night out. However, I'm still partial to the dress whites and the mess dress. Oh, and the winter blues are pretty nice, too."
He grinned, "Mac, you forgot to mention the service khakis and summer whites."
"You and your ego," she laughed.
"You always look absolutely wonderful."
"Oh, stop," Mac said. "You've been saying that all night."
"I'm only stating the obvious."
"Are you sure this dress looks okay?" Mac asked for the second time that evening. She had on a v-neck gold sequenced short sleeve dress that rested just above her knee. "There is just something about it that I don't like."
"Relax, Mac. I love the dress and so does Danielle. If you don't want to take my word for it, at least believe Danielle. She's a teenager, and fashion is the highlight of her day."
Mac sighed. "Maybe the dress is okay. You know," she ran her fingers over his tie, "I should've worn a red dress. Then we could have matched."
"Or," he pointed out, "I could have worn a gold tie."
"I don't know if gold is your color," Mac smiled.
"Maybe it isn't," Harm agreed.
By now, it was their turn to be seated. "Right this way Monsieur et Madame Rabb," said the host with a heavy French accent as he led the couple to their table.
"Thank you," Harm said after they were seated.
"May I interest you in our finest bottle of Piat D'or?" he asked as he placed two menus on the table.
"No, thank you, sir."
"No? Perhaps a bottle of ch—"
Harm smiled apologetically at Mac before he interrupted the host. "Not tonight, sir."
"Very well, then. Please, let me know if I can be of any assistance this evening. Your serveur will be with you momentarily," he added before leaving.
*** ***
Rabb
Residence
1941 EST
*** ***
"I don't wanna play 'Go Fish' anymore," Colin announced as he stood up from his seat on the floor. Can we play 'Hide-n-Seek' instead?"
Danielle shook her head. "No, I'm sorry. It's too close to bedtime for that."
Colin frowned. "Okay," he said sadly.
"I promise we can play that they next time I watch you. How does that sound?"
Colin's face lit up and he smiled. "Okays!"
"Since it is almost bedtime, maybe you should pick out a story for me to read to you."
"But Colin picked one last night!" Emma said. "It's my turn!"
The babysitter looked at the clock. "If you start getting ready for bed soon, we'll have enough time to read two stories. How does that sound?"
"Good!"
"Can we call Mommy and Daddy?" Emma asked. "I wanna says night-night."
Danielle smiled. "I think your mommy and daddy would love that." She reached over to the coffee table and picked up the telephone. "Who wants to talk first?"
"Me!"
"Me!"
"I said it first!"
"Did not!"
"Did too!"
"Settle down," Danielle warned. "I will talk first, and then I will put the speaker phone on so both of you can talk at the same time." A few seconds passed before Mac's voicemail picked up. The sitter sighed. Her parents were the same way. They always have their phones with them, but that didn't always mean the phone was on or could be heard ringing. Danielle hung up the phone and dialed Harm's number.
*** ***
La Chaumiere
Same Time
*** ***
"So, did you like it?" Mac asked referring to the spinach soufflé her husband had picked out for dinner.
"Mm. Yes, it was very good. I bet you enjoyed yours, right?"
Mac grinned. "I sure did. You should have tried some."
"No, thanks. Steak au poivre isn't on my list of approved foods," he said with a trademark smile.
She tossed her head back and laughed, she was about to say something else when the waiter returned.
"Excusez moi. I'm sorry to interrupt your conversation, but I just wanted to make sure that your meal was to your approval."
"Thank you," Mac smiled politely. "Our meals were excellent."
"Are you two ready to order your dessert now?"
Harm and Mac silently communicated with each other. "Yes," she answered. "I would like the chocolate mousse, and my husband would like…"
"…The banana mango delight," Harm finished just before his cell phone rang. "Excuse me," he reached for his phone.
The waiter nodded. "I'll leave your two be. Your desserts should be ready soon."
After the waiter left, Harm answered his phone. "Hello."
"Hi, Mr. Rabb."
"Hey, Danielle. What's up? Is everything okay?" He had a concerned expression on his face. Harm looked up and saw that Mac was studying his expression intently.
"Emma and Colin would like to say goodnight to you and Mrs. Rabb. I hope you don't mind – I told them it would be okay."
His expression softened and he smiled. "Of course it is okay."
There was static in the background as Danielle switched to the speaker phone.
"Night, night, Daddy!"
"G'night, Daddy! I wuv you!"
"And I love both of you all the way to the moon and back! Goodnight." Harm's smile grew even wider when he looked at Mac. "I bet you want to talk to Mommy now."
"Yeah!"
"Yes!"
He chuckled softly. "Okay, here she is," he handed the phone over to Mac.
All of Mac's worries faded away once she took the phone from Harm. "We have the greatest kids in the world, Harm," she whispered.
"We sure do," he agreed. "We absolutely do."
Mac cleared her throat and then pressed the phone to her ear. "Hi, Colin. Hi, Emma."
"Hi,
Mommy!"
"Mommy! Hi!"
"Are you getting ready for bed?"
"Yes, Momma. That's why we called-ed."
"We wanted to say night-night."
"That was very thoughtful. You two made Daddy and Mommy very happy." She smiled when she heard then giggle. "Can someone give the phone to Danielle so I can talk to her, please?"
"My mommy wants to talks to you," Emma said.
"I heard," Danielle took the phone back. "Go pick out a book and I will read it to you in a minute." She switched the speaker phone off. "Hello, Mrs. Rabb. Are you enjoying your evening?"
"Yes, we are having a wonderful time. Thank you for asking."
"That's good."
"Are the kids behaving?"
"Absolutely! They are being perfect little angels."
"I'm very glad they are behaving. Mr. Rabb and I should be home in an hour or so."
"Okay."
"Don't hesitate to call if you need us."
"I know. I can stay as long as you need me, so take your time."
"That's very sweet of you. I'll call after we have our dessert and let you know what the plans are."
"Alright."
"Okay, bye." Mac closed the phone and stared at it for a minute or so. When she finally looked at Harm she had tears in her eyes.
"Hey, what wrong?" he asked softly as she handed him his phone.
"Nothing is wrong. Everything is perfect." She sniffled. "Thank you for everything. You know, so much has changed in the past six years."
"I know," he nodded.
"That accident I had on Christmas Eve scared me," she said in a voice barely above a whisper. "I was terrified that I would never see you again. I was afraid that we wouldn't have a chance to figure things out between us." She wiped a single tear away. "I was afraid we'd never get the chance to attempt to beat the odds."
Harm reached for Mac's hand. He knew exactly what Mac was talking about, and he had to blink several times in attempt to clear his mind of the horrific accident and how petrified he was when he received the call from the EMT. "We got those chances, Mac. We beat those odds, and we proved all the doctors wrong."
"I know. I'm so grateful for that, and so incredibly grateful for you and everything you've given me. Thank you, Harm."
"Mac, you always keep thanking me, and like I have said before, there is no need for you to do so. We are in this together. Even so, I feel that I don't thank you enough."
"Thank me?"
"Yeah, for everything. For marrying me, for the kids, for this great life," he paused and looked studied her for a minute, "for being you."
She smiled. "I don't know what I would do without you."
He smiled back. "I don't know what I would do without you, either." They had been so caught up in the moment that neither one of them had noticed the familiar refrain for Frank Sinatra's 'Come Fly with Me' playing in the background. "Listen, Mac. They are playing one of our songs." He stood up from the table and offered his hand. "May I have this dance?"
Mac accepted his hand and stood up. "For the rest of your life, Flyboy."
Harm leaned over and placed a kiss on Mac's cheek. "That is a beautiful thing," he whispered in her ear.
Mac draped her arms around Harm's neck and kissed him back. She smiled to herself knowing that the green nightgown won't have a chance to make an appearance that night.
