This story is totally AU and takes place starting between Season6 and 7. Lisa had gone to France, and Jack had his heart attack. I did some checking on the ages of the characters, and many are approximate even for the show. We are going to go with Lisa being around 41 in Season 1 making her 47ish going into Season 7. Jack was listed as mid-60s, so we will go with him being 64 in Season 1 and turning 70 in Season 7. I like the age difference with them anyways.
Lisa sighed as she leaned forward and looked out the window at the tiny dots below. As the plane descended, the tiny dots were starting to come into focus, with clusters of them marking small towns and then nothing for as far as she could see. She was nearing home. She leaned back and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as she did. None of this was what she imagined. After 15 hours of travel, she was about to face the music. Good grief, what a mess, and she had no other option but to face facts and eventually Jack.
Lisa closed her eyes and tried to calm her nerves before landing. At least her seat was comfortable, but she was in first class, her preferred way to travel, especially back and forth to France. She'd been home not too long ago, but it was long enough now it felt like a lifetime. Thinking back to the last trip, just about two months ago now, she felt herself almost sick to her stomach thinking about it. That had been an agonizing trip home, worried sick about Jack. That frantic phone call from Tim of all people had been one she'd never wanted to receive, that Jack had collapsed and was in the hospital. A follow-up call a couple hours later while she was at the airport booking the next flight back to Canada gave her the update from Tim that it had been a heart attack. All of it almost gave her a heart attack, and that flight home had been just awful, not knowing his prognosis or much of anything. Tim had picked her up at the airport, and for as much as he irritated her to no end and had irritated Jack, rightfully so, over the years, had been really sweet and comforting. Lisa could see the worry on Tim's face, and she knew the two men, while barely speaking at times over the years, had become quite close. Tim had updated her, and she'd been quiet, listening to the latest and trying to process everything including what she knew she needed to tell Jack.
Jack had been stubborn, but oh, Jack was always so stubborn. To be fair, as Lisa thought back to two months ago when she'd tried to help Jack with his recovery, she had been protective, maybe overprotective, but as she'd told him years and years ago, that's what she does for the people she loves.
Because, through all of this, through the trip to Paris, the villa she'd purchased, the admissions from Jack that he hated anything and everything related to his trip to France, to even things back at home like Georgie showing up, the family in their business all the time-all of it, all the mess, she did love him. With all of that, though, she couldn't live like this. It wasn't enough, and now, with this trip home, she needed to talk to Jack, tell him her plan, and figure out a way to deal with Jack going forward. She had to go forward; from the feedback she'd gotten from Jack over the last several months, going forward WITH Jack wasn't an option.
This trip home had to address that and there was no other option. She had much to discuss with Jack, and she knew things were only going to get messier than they had ever been.
Lisa listened to the message on the intercom about landing in the next half hour. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes again. Looking out the window was making her antsy, and she could tell her blood pressure was rising, not that she was psychic. Her doctor had told her the same, but with the mess of things the last few months, that was no surprise at all.
With her eyes closed, thoughts began to swirl through her head. Home. She was almost back home, but with all the time she was spending in France, trying to get over Jack, Lisa wasn't sure what home was anymore. She'd told him when she'd first left for France a few months that she would love to see him on her doorstep there, knowing full well that he wouldn't come. True, he had come to France once after years and years of her prodding him, but after he finally admitted he hated it so much, she knew he'd never be back. Home was now a question. Where was it really? She loved Fairfield, but with all the changes, maybe it was time to just let it go and close out the chapter, the very large chapter of her life that included Canada and specifically Jack. There was a lot to discuss.
Lisa never imagined she would return to France after his heart attack as upset and lonely as she was. He'd made it very clear he didn't want any help from her, that he didn't want her to go to Arizona with him, and well, that had about shut her down completely. She'd hoped to have this discussion with him then, while he was getting back on his feet. Arizona had sounded like a decent opportunity for that because initially, things were okay when she came home to help care for him, well, all except he didn't want care. He wanted to forget the heart attack had happened, and Lisa seemed to be some constant reminder to him that it had indeed happened, that he was old, and that he wasn't what maybe she felt he should be.
Truth was, Jack, regardless of age, was a better man in every way possible than anyone she'd met. She'd never thought of their age difference as a problem. They really did have so much in common even with a 23-year age gap. Except for when they first started dating now, gosh, six years ago, she'd never thought about the age factor. Sure, she heard the kids call him Grandpa all the time, and now, he was a Great-Grandfather, but age was just a number. They'd been so compatible in so many areas. She loved confiding in him, sitting with him, taking walks with him, spending time with him-all of it. She'd thought that traveling with him would be the next big thing for them. Well, fate sure did have a way of throwing a curve ball.
Lisa opened her eyes, realizing she'd dozed off briefly. The plane was now just above the tree line. She rubbed the bridge of her nose, realizing that she was completely and utterly exhausted. That was also no surprise with all that was going on right now. She hadn't slept well in some time, too many things on her mind. She was kidding herself if she thought a good night of sleep at home would make her feel any better. She knew better than that. The plane landed smoothly, and with that, she took a deep breath. She sat forward slightly and glanced around, just praying that she didn't know anyone on the plane. It would be just her luck someone like Val Stanton or even Dan would be on the flight. She'd been focused getting on the plane, sitting down quickly, and closing her eyes to think through this next step, coming back home to Canada. Her quick glance didn't identify anyone she knew. She didn't want to see or run into anyone until she was able to talk to Jack. That was important to her.
As she waited for the doors to open once the plane had taxied to the gate, she took one more deep breath before standing.
"Showtime," she said, shaking her head as she gathered her things.