Chapter Ten:
Conversations

MAY 3RD, 2022

1910 EST
FAIRFAX COMMUNITY CENTER
FAIRFAX, VIRGINIA

One of the things Clara liked the most about Narcotics Anonymous, other than the obvious benefits of it, was the free snacks. The cookies and various other baked goods that came in from time to time did a good job at holding her appetite at bay until she went home for dinner.

At the end of meetings there were a couple of people Clara made small talk with, but she wouldn't necessarily go as far as to say she had any friends. Not to say that the point of NA was friendship, but still. It wasn't lost on Clara that she was usually the youngest person at a meeting. There were occasionally people in their mid-to-late twenties who would drift in and out, but even Clara's sponsor Tracy was thirty-two. She might not exactly be in Clara's age bracket, but she was someone Clara could make small talk to while she ate her post-meeting chocolate chip cookie.

She could still talk to her of course, but things had been a little awkward between them since Tracy dropped the bomb that she was moving.

"Hey."

Clara turned around just as she took a bite of her cookie, crumbs dropping down into a napkin. She saw Tracy strolling over to her, the older woman dressed in her work clothes.

"Hey," Clara greeted, her mouth still slightly full of cookie. She was finally able to swallow. "What's up?"

"I know you hate me for moving," Tracy said, a teasing twinkle in her eye to combat the serious tone in her voice.

Clara rolled her eyes. "I don't hate you."

"I know," Tracy replied with a smirk. "But I figured something out that can maybe help you forgive me."

Clara raised an eyebrow. "And what's that?"

"I think I found your new sponsor."

"Huh?" It was impossible for Clara to hide her surprise. She didn't think it was the job of the old sponsor to appoint the new one.

"He just moved to the area a couple months ago and I think you'd like him," Tracy said. She nodded over to an older man standing on the other side of the room talking to another person in the program. He had dark hair and graying stubble, and Clara could tell by the way he was standing that he used to be military. He also could've been a police officer possibly, but Clara would bet he was military.

Tracy sensed her unease immediately. "He's a really cool guy, I promise," she assured her. "Why don't you come over and say hi?"

Clara found herself following Tracy across the room to the guy, half-eaten cookie still in her hand.

"Victor," Tracy greeted him warmly. "This is Clara - I told you about her earlier."

The man turned to look at the two of them and smiled. His smile did something to soften the rigid edges of his stance.

"Hey Clara," he stuck out his hand. "How are you?"

"Pretty good," Clara returned his handshake, using the firm grip the Admiral had taught her to always have for a good handshake. "What about you?"

He shrugged. "I'm doing fine," he glanced over at Tracy. "So I hear you're looking for a new sponsor."

Clara shrugged. "And I guess it's going to be you?"

"If you want me to be," the man, Victor, replied.

Tracy looked between the two of them. "I'm still not leaving for another three weeks," she explained, looking at Clara specifically, since she looked the most skeptical. "And you don't have to pick a new sponsor immediately. I just thought…" she shrugged. "I just thought you and Victor would be a good match."

"You can call me Gunny," Victor told her. "My friends call me Gunny."

Clara's eyebrows shot up. "As in Gunnery Sergeant?"

"Retired now, but yeah, that used to be my rank," Gunny/Victor replied. "Do you know someone in the Corps? Is it your dad, or a boyfriend-"

"Uh, no," Clara nodded, a slight blush rising up on her face. "My mom's a Colonel. My dad's Navy, though. I know all things military."

Gunny smirked. "Well then I guess we have that in common."

"I guess we do."

1800 LOCAL
BONDI BEACH
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA

It had been years since Mic had lived in his bungalow across from the beach, but he still found himself at the beach from time to time. It had been years since the bungalow had been standing - it had been torn down several years ago to make way for more upscale condos. Over ten years had passed since Mic had lived in the bungalow by the time it was torn down, but the loss still stung.

The beach was still there though, which was nice. Considering it was a weekday evening, it wasn't super crowded. There were the occasional joggers or people walking their dogs, no doubt residents of those new overpriced condos, but other than them Mic was by himself, something he ultimately didn't mind. He needed time to think, mull over the events of the day.

Ellie and AJ would be flying out from Melbourne on May 15th, and Mic and Gillian would be not long behind them, flying out from Sydney two days later. They had a lovely thirteen hour flight to San Francisco and then a slightly more bearable five hour flight into Dulles. The price for two tickets had been a pretty penny, and Mic was still trying to decide if the flight would be worth it, or even necessary.

Mic had to admit, his shock and borderline outrage was buffered by a curiosity - how were Harm, Mac, Bud and Harriet doing after all of these years? He wanted to remain steadfast in his built-up resentment, but he also couldn't help but wonder.

Though he certainly wasn't high up on Harm and Mac's list of favorite people, things hadn't exactly ended on bad terms with Bud and Harriet - that was a silver lining Mic had going for him.

They would only be there for two weeks, flying back the first week of June - what was the worst that could happen in that span of two weeks?

"I knew I'd find you here."

Mic looked up to see Gillian standing over him, blocking out the setting sun. She was still in her work clothes, a gray pantsuit, and was holding her heels in her hand.

"How'd you know?"

"Whenever you go out by yourself you're either at the golf course or at the beach."

Mic smirked. "Right."

Gillian sat down next to him in the sand, placing her heels between them. She eyed him teasingly. "Do you want me to pay you back for the flights?"

"No, don't worry about it," Mic shook his head. "Consider it an early birthday present."

"Yes, because I'd love to be dragged around DC keeping you on a leash as a birthday present."

"Hey, at least you'd be in DC," Mic replied. "You haven't been there before other than for a flight connection."

"True."

Mic leaned over to gently bump his shoulder against Gilian's. "You won't have to keep me on a leash the entire time - I'll try to be on my best behavior, I promise."

"Do you really?" Gillian eyed him dubiously. "I'm going to be honest, love, I'm having trouble believing you."

"I promise I won't ruin this for Ellie," Mic insisted. "I'll be civil as long as he is."

"Michael-"

"Okay, fine, fine. I'll be civil regardless of what he does."

Gillian nodded approvingly, looping her arm around Michael's and gently resting her head on his shoulder. "There's another thing…"

Mic tried his best to ignore the dipping feeling in his stomach. "What?"

"I don't think we should tell Ellie about all of this…at least not right now."

"Well then, when should we tell her?" Mic looked down at Gillian. "She's going to have to find out eventually-"

"She's probably nervous enough about him coming to visit - we'll tell her after. When she starts asking questions about why we're coming to America with her, that'll be the perfect time."

Mic nodded. "I don't think she's nervous about it," he replied. "She keeps talking about it like it's Christmas."

Gillian laughed. "She's not nervous about AJ - she's nervous about you."

"Why is everyone so nervous about me?" Mic demanded. "I've told you I'll be fine."

"Sure, love. Whatever you say."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Nothing," Gillian shrugged. "I believe you, don't worry about it."

2200 EST
MACKENZIE-RABB RESIDENCE
FAIRFAX, VIRGINIA

It was early spring, the nights were getting warm again, so Mac didn't mind waiting out on the front porch for Harm to return. She sat in one of the matching white wooden rocking chairs they'd received from The Admiral as a housing warming gift when they moved back to Virginia, her sweater wrapped loosely around her - despite the warmth, there was still a chill in the breeze. She watched Harm's Lexus as it sat idle and dark in the driveway - for some reason he'd decided to take Clara's Jeep instead of his own car.

Things had been quiet after Mac told him 'the news' after Harm's initial shock and subsequent outrage had subsided. Mac had waited until after dinner and the kids had gone up to their rooms, dropping the bomb on Harm while splitting the task of washing and drying the dishes. It hadn't exactly been an argument, per say - at least not one of their worse ones. Harm had been upset that Mac had waited that long to tell him, which had been understandable. Mac did feel guilty about that, but she had to admit Harm's reaction to Mic Brumby coming back into their lives via his daughter dating their nephew was a little over the top.

"Mac, I can't believe you're being so calm about this!"

"I don't like it any more than you do, I just don't think freaking out about it is the best solution-"

"I'm not freaking out!"

"Honey, yes you are."

After they finished up with dishes, Harm unceremoniously announced he was going out for a drive, which had been about an hour ago now. Instead of going to bed irritated, because Mac wasn't really angry as much as she was just irritated, Mac decided to wait up for her husband.

Early on in their relationship, when she was pregnant with Clara and when she was young, whenever her and Harm would get into the occasional argument or disagreement, Mac would find herself paralyzed with anxiety. The anxiety wasn't a byproduct of Harm necessarily, but rather a byproduct of her upbringing and previous relationships. Every time they argued, Mac became petrified that it meant the end of things for them, that he would leave and never come back. As absurd as the thought was, it was something that consumed her whenever things would go south.

Now, after a little over twenty years of being a couple and almost twenty-five years of knowing him, Mac no longer had this anxiety, which once upon a time she'd worried would always be an instinct. They'd had their arguments, plenty more disagreements, and their fair share of rough patches, but now Mac had the comfort that Harm wasn't going anywhere. They'd been able to weather far worse things than Mic Brumby.

Sure enough, Mac watched a pair of familiar headlights turn the corner onto their street, and Harm pulled Clara's Jeep up to the curb in front of their house. As Harm exited the vehicle and walked up the sidewalk, they said nothing to each other.

"Why'd you take Clara's car?" Mac finally asked as Harm reached the porch steps.

"She told me earlier that the brakes were making a weird noise," he explained. "I wanted to check it out."

"Oh. Do you think it's fine?"

Harm shrugged. "I think so."

He crossed the porch over to Mac, sitting down in the rocking chair opposite her. He reached over to take her hand in his. He leaned against the back of the rocking chair with a sigh. "What are we gonna do about this, Mac?"

"Figure this out like we always do," she replied. "Get through it, like we always do," she turned to look at him. "I really don't think it'll be that bad, Harm. It's been twenty years."

"I know, Mac," Harm answered. "It's just….I don't have a good feeling about this."

"Harm, you've never had a good feeling about Mic, before he even turned out to be…Mic," Mac sat up to look directly at him. "That's why I waited so long to tell you - which I am sorry about, by the way."

"I know," Harm offered her a small smile. "I accept your apology."

"Do you promise to try and keep yourself in line?" Mac asked. "If not for me, then the kids?"

Harm chuckled. "I'll be nice Mac, I promise," he said. "I'm just meeting his daughter, I don't have a problem with her. It's not like he's coming back here. Yet."

"Maybe he won't be coming back," Mac replied. "I mean…I'm not wishing AJ bad luck in his love life but they've only been going out for a couple of months. I might not be anything that serious."

"Yeah," Harm nodded. "It's probably nothing serious."

A few beats of silence passed between them. Mac looked out at the dark street. There was a moth circling the porch light above them.

"I talked to Clara earlier," Mac finally spoke.

"Oh yeah? I mean she is our daughter."

Mac laughed and rolled her eyes. "Right," she looked down at their hands. "I had lunch at the diner. She…" she looked up at Harm. "Did you know she wants to move back to San Diego after college?"

Harm's eyebrows shot up. "No…that's news to me."

"Yeah," Mac nodded faintly. "That's apparently her plan."

"And are you supportive of that plan or not?"

Mac shrugged. "I think it'll be fine," she said. "She always liked it out there better than here, anyway. I mean obviously I don't want her to leave but…yeah, she wants to go back there."

"I don't think it'll be the end of the world if she moves back," Harm replied. "It's only, what? A four hour flight?"

Mac sighed. "I know, I just feel like….Do you think I pushed her away?"

Harm gave her an incredulous look. "What?" his eyes widened. "Mac, what on earth would make you feel that way?"

"You know why, Harm."

"Honey, you two are way past that. You know that," he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. "Her wanting to go out on her own is a good thing. It's normal."

Mac only nodded, not quite believing Harm. He leaned over to give her a quick kiss on the cheek. "We'll get through this," he told her. "Like we always do."

TWO DAYS LATER

1030 LOCAL
SYDNEY INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA

Gillian had insisted on driving, convinced Mic was too high strung to do it. The flight from Melbourne to Sydney was only ninety minutes, so they were able to time their arrival to the airport perfectly. Ellie was sitting in the back seat, her seat belt the only thing keeping her relatively still - Mic could've sworn he hadn't seen her this excited over something since she was a little girl.

With some random pop radio station playing in the background, Gilian reached over to rub Mic's shoulder.

"Easy, tiger. This isn't a boxing match"

Mic shrugged her hand away. "I'm fine."

"I think your blood pressure would probably state otherwise."

"I'm just a little nervous. Am I allowed to be a little nervous?"

Gillian sighed. "I suppose."

Oblivious to her parents' conversation in the front, Ellie suddenly jumped up from her seat, phone in hand.

"He's here!" she announced so loudly that both of them jumped. "He's here! Oh my god he's here, I need to go get him-"

Ellie was out of the car in the flash, slamming the back door shut behind her as she ran into the airport. Mic and Gillian watched her go with vague shock.

"It'll be fine, love," Gillian reached out to squeeze Mic's knee. "Just take deep breaths."

"Gillian-"

"Do you want to hold my hand? Would that make you feel better?"

"I'm not in labor," Mic snapped. "Christ."

Gillian drew her hand back, pursing her lips. "Fine. Weather this storm all on your own, see if I care."

"Obviously you care or else you wouldn't be worried about my blood pressure," Mic eyed her through his sunglasses. "And you think I'm the testy one today."

"You snapped at me first. It was self defense," Gillian pulled her own sunglasses down to glare at him. She then looked down at the cupholders between them. "Why don't you drink some of your latte? You've barely touched it."

"Yes, because drinking coffee right now would be the perfect thing to relax me."

"You know," Gilian took her sunglasses off and snapped them closed. "I've tried my best to be understanding about this whole situation, but I've had it with you taking my head off the moment you get stressed out about something completely unrelated to me-"

"This is not unrelated to you, it's your daughter-"

"Oh so when she starts going out with the nephew of your mortal enemy, she's my daughter?" Gillian laughed. "I wonder where she gets the gene for wanting to date Americans from, huh? Because all of the men I've ever dated have been Australian. Can you say the same for all of your relationships-"

"That's not what I meant-"

"Because you know what's hilarious? If you hadn't gone across the ocean and fallen head over heels for that Marine thirty seconds after you met her, we wouldn't be in this situation now, would we?"

"I-"

"And for the record, I don't enjoy this any more than you do!" Gillian exclaimed. "Do you think I enjoy being dragged into drama between you and your ex fiance from twenty years ago?"

"There's no drama-"

"Then why are you acting this way?"

"Tell me how I'm supposed to act, then!" Mic replied. "Out of all the guys from the United States who decided to move down under for whatever fucking reason, my - our daughter had to go and shack up with the one who is the godson of my ex fiance? Do you think I asked for this?"

"God, I hope not."

"Because I truly don't know what I did to deserve this-"

"Wait, shut up."

"Then you want me to just act like I don't know him? That everything is fine and normal-"

"Michael, shut up."

"And you think I'm the unreasonable one here-"

"Shut up! They're here!" Gillian turned away from Mic and looked over his shoulder, a broad smile instantly plastered across her face. She unbuckled her seat belt and stepped out of the car. "Hi you two!" she greeted warmly, briefly ducking back into the car, "Mic, get out and say hi."

"Gillian-"

"Get. Out. Of. The. Car."

Mic obliged, getting out of the car and walking around to greet the happy couple. Ellie was standing on the sidewalk next to AJ and his suitcase, looking the same way she usually did on Christmas morning. She had her arm linked with AJ, who was smiling but nervous.

Good, Mic thought to himself smugly, He should be nervous.

"Of course we'll do more formal introductions at the house, but this is Ellie's father, Mic."

Mic suddenly found three sets of eyes watching him. He blinked - it felt hotter outside than normal.

"It's a pleasure to meet you Mr. Brumby sir." AJ replied a little hastily, sticking out his hand.

Jesus, he's just like his father.

"We've already met - I mean, it feels like we've already met," Mic corrected himself quickly. "Ellie's told us all about you."

Ellie beamed. She pulled AJ closer. "We're super excited to have you here," she said, looking pointedly at her parents. "Aren't we?"

"Yes, we're so happy you decided to visit."

"Positively thrilled," Mic added, less convincingly.

"Here, Mic can put your suitcase in the trunk," Gilian said, ever the delegator of tasks. "Let's get out of here, we're clogging up traffic."

Mic looked at her with raised eyebrows. "Can I?"

Gillian laughed and smiled at him while shooting his daggers with her eyes. "Of course you can, my darling dear," she said. "The heart attack you had didn't paralyze you."

"No it's fine," AJ interjected. "I can get it. It's no big deal-"

"No, I can get it," Mic insisted, suddenly feeling like he had something to prove.

"Sir, if it's too much-"

Mic's eyes widened. "It's not, trust me. I can still lift a carry on-"

"Mr. Brumby I didn't mean to assume anything-" AJ stammered.

"Alright!" Gillian clapped her hands. "That decides it! I'm loading the suitcase. Everyone else get into the car, I'm getting the damn thing."

As Ellie and AJ climbed into the backseat, Mic lingered beside Gilian as she opened the trunk.

"Just take deep breaths, love," he told her. "It'll be fine."

Gillian glared up at him as she picked up the carry on, placing it into the trunk with a hard thump. "Alright," she said. "I get it. Just get in the car."

"Do you want me to drive back, you seem a little high strung-"

"If you're not in the car in the next three seconds, you're walking home."

Gillian forcefully shut the trunk, and Mic walked back around to the car's passenger side, hoping that it would stop feeling so hot outside by the time they got home.

10 chapters in! Yay! I'm very happy about bringing Gunny back, he was always one of my favorite characters. I also think it's worth mentioning that a fair chunk of this chapter was written while I was on a ten hour layover in London, about to lose my last marble. Nothing against London, but that layover damn near killed me.

Thanks for reading, as always!

-Harper