Chapter 20
Kate smiles at him and admires his sheer beauty. Even with a crutch and an obvious limp, he still excudes authority, especially now that he is wearing the work whites. And Kate loves to see him in that uniform. It makes him look even more beautiful and sexy, because the white is a nice contrast to his dark tan. As he reaches her a dark car halts beside them and a man in uniform gets out. He takes both their bags and Mike's briefcase and puts them in the boot. Then they all get in the car. To Kate's surprise, Mike takes a seat beside her in the rear, smiling at her as he does so. "It's much cozier in the rear with you then up front with the driver." Kate grins at him and before she can stop it, he leans sideways and kisses her on the cheek.
Seeing her furious look, he hastily says "Sorry, but I just couldn't resist. You were too cute just then." Not able to be angry with him for long, Kate shakes her head and answers softly "It's okay Mike. Just don't make a habit out of it." Not five minutes later they are at NavCom. The driver gets Mike's briefcase out of the boot and even holds the door open for him. Mike climbs out of the car and takes his briefcase. With a smile he thanks the Midshipman for the drive. He just smiles and salutes Mike. "T'was a pleasure Sir. I'll wait here till you are ready. Then I'll drive you home. And when your shore leave ends, I'll be picking you up again to bring you to the docks, Commander."
Thanking the young man once more, Mike starts to go into the building with Kate by his side. As they walk up to the elevator some heads turn in their direction. Seeing this, Mike whispers to her "Seems those idiots never saw someone walk around with a crutch before." Kate has to smile too. "Maybe they never thought to see the Mighty Mike Flynn using one. Who knows?" Mike nods and is about to say something more when they reach the upper floor. They exit the elevator and make their way to the ballpen and to Maxine's office. At the ballpen, all eyes turn to Mike. He just rolls his eyes and continues on his way with Kate beside him. Getting to Maxine's office, Mike knocks on the open door. Without looking up from her work, Maxine tells them to enter.
Halting in front of her desk, Mike clears his throat to get her attention. Now she looks up and is startled at seeing Mike right before her. But what shocks her is the item which he is holding with his right hand, the crutch. Standing up and going around her desk to stand right in front of him, she asks "What's this about? I thought you were cleared for active duty. Have you managed to trick the doctor and your physio therapist? Why Mike? Are you really that afraid of losing your job as CO of the Hammersley that you are willingly risking your health? Is it really worth it?"
Lowering his head a moment and then looking straight at Maxine, Mike replies "We are only here to hand in our reports. That's all. Anything else have to wait till the work is done." Taken aback at his nearly insubversive manner, Maxine only nods. "Alright Mike. But we talk about this later and that is an order. Understood?" Now it's on Mike to just nod. He hands over a folder with all their reports in it. Maxine goes over them fleetingly and looking back up, she says "Good work you two. Now, as for new orders, the Hammersley will be serviced. So you and your crew will have one week uninterrupted shore leave." Glad to hear this Mike and Kate exchange a quick look, before turning back to Maxine.
Luckily for them, Maxine didn't see their little exchange. She tells them to report back to her in one week time. Then she dismissses Kate and wishes her a nice shore leave. With a last look to Mike, Kate exits the office and is on her way home. Back in the office, Maxine has now closed the door to ensure a bit of privacy. This is a talk between friends and therefore not destined for other ears. Not wanting to have anything standing between them, she sits down in one of the chairs that are opposite her desk. Giving Mike a sign to take a seat too, Maxine watches him while he lowers his body down on the chair. Taking notice of his slight grimace, she shakes her head about his stubbornness.
"You are really the most stubborn fool I know Mike. And you know that normally I would have to punish you for this stunt you pulled. But as you are my friend, I let it slide this time." Changing the subject, she asks "What have you planned for your shore leave Mike? I hope nothing too strenious?" Mike shakes his head vehemently "Certainly not. I'll lay low this week and just rest this leg as much as possible. I don't want to overdo it, or I might do more damage then actual healing." Satisfied with his answer, Maxine nods. "That is good to hear" ,she pauses and stands up, going on "Enjoy your shore leave Mike. We'll see each other in a week. Dismissed." With a grin from ear to ear, Mike gets slowly up, grabs his crutch and exits the office, waving goodbye to Maxine while doing so.
Just as he had told Maxine a few days ago, Mike lays low. He spends most of his shore leave at home, resting either on his couch or in his bed and in between he makes a few exercises for his leg, getting his usual muscle tone back. At the end of the week he doesn't need the crutch any more to get around. He is able to put enough weight on his injured leg to carry him. With a satisfied grin, Mike grabs his mobile and makes a call to an old friend, whom he knows from his academy days. Back then they formed a band with two more mates and performed regularly on several events, mostly on academy grounds, but sometimes in local bars too. They had lots of fun back then.
Remembering those times fondly and wishing to surprise his crew, but mostly Kate, Mike arranges a meeting with his friend Al and their other two mates Billy and Craig. They agree to meet at a local bar in which live performances are happening daily. But before Mike is on his way there, he goes into his hobby-room and grabs a black guitar-bag from its resting place on a shelf. Carefully he opens the zipper and reveals an old yellow Fender Stratocoaster, his favourite guitar. After a quick check that all strings are still attached, he closes the zipper and takes the bag, going out to his ute. Putting the bag on the backseat, he gets behind the wheel and starts the engine. A few minutes later he reaches the bar, which is situated at a known spot for tourists and locals alike.