Chapter 9

April 1958

There are times when life seems to be hard as hell, and other times when it seems to be as close to heaven as it could get. Just when things start to look up, something happens that makes you jump over a hurdle. Sometimes that jump can be a few inches and sometimes it’s a few feet high. Either way, you know you have to jump it because you don’t want to trip fall.

Margaret had caught Nicole in the hallway that night after she received the phone call. She got her to spend the night and stay with Matt. Margaret debated about calling Dan but she thought better of it. She didn’t want him to worry unnecessarily, so she would call him in the morning when she knew more. After she had Nicole settled and told her what to do about the baby, she ran off into the night toward the hospital. Apparently Hawkeye hadn’t been far from Boston when he got in that accident because that’s where they brought him.

She had stayed next to his bedside from the second he got out of the operating room and hadn’t moved for 5 hours. She had dozed off for about two hours but woke with a start when she heard the door open. She sat up and straitened her back as best as she could. She had been slumped over the bed while she sat in a chair. "What time is it?" She asked groggily.

"Eight," the nurse said. "Can I get you anything?"

"No. How is he doing?"

She smiled at Margaret, "Vitals are good. He’ll be in rough shape for a while."

"I know. When will the doctor be in?"

"He was in an hour ago and he’ll be back in about three hours."

"Okay." Margaret sat silently as she watched the nurse to make sure she was doing everything right. As soon as she was gone all of Margaret’s attention was back on her husband. She wanted to be there when he woke up so she knew he was going to be okay.

She stood up and brushed some hair off of his forehead. "What am I gonna do with you?" She whispered. "You always keep me on my toes, that’s for sure. I never know what to expect." She leaned down and kissed him on the head. "Speaking of surprises, I should call to check on Matt. Then I have to call your father. I’m going to tell him you’re okay, so you better not make a lair out of me."

Margaret sat down and grabbed the phone. She decided to call home to Nicole and check on her and Matt. She had to get home sometime, but she wasn’t ready to leave until Hawkeye told her to leave, and since he was still knocked out on pain medication than he wasn’t going to say so.

"Hello Nicole. It’s me."

"Hi Mrs. Pierce. How’s Dr. Pierce doing?"

"He still hasn’t woken up. How’s the baby doing?"

Nicole smiled at the baby that was laying in her arms. "He’s eating. He’s been wonderful. He didn’t wake up last night."

"He didn’t?" She was stunned. "Are you sure?"

"Yes ma’am. I checked on him a few times and he slept through the night."

"Wow. That’s the first time he did that."

"He’s fine. You don’t have to worry about him. We’re both fine."

"Thank you," Margaret breathed. "Is there somewhere you need to go today? I can get someone to come watch him so you can leave."

"It’s not a problem, really. We’re going to run down the hall in a little bit and get my books so I can do some studying…"

"You know what? Maybe I should call someone. I don’t want to interrupt your studies."

"Its fine," Nicole insisted. "I study better here than I do at home."

"Are you sure."

"Sure I’m sure. Call me and let me know how Dr. Pierce is doing. I can stay here with the baby until 9PM."

"Thank you. Give him a kiss for me."

"Sure. Bye."

"Bye."

Margaret hung up the phone and then sat there for a moment. She needed to take a minute and think about what she was going to say to Dan. She didn’t want him to worry too much. The best thing he could do right now was keep Danny. She looked at Hawkeye for a moment and then dialed his father’s number. No one was there. He and Danny must have gone out for breakfast. She would have to call later. In a way she was glad because she didn’t have to talk to him at the moment. She didn’t have any real answers to give him anyway.

The doctor came three hours later and told Margaret that Hawkeye should be waking up soon. She wasn’t going to leave his side so she called Nicole again to check on the baby. She said that he was fine and was very entertained because she was reading her books to him like they were a children’s story. Margaret was so glad that she had someone to take the baby for that many hours. Now all she had to do was call Daniel, but she couldn’t get up the courage again.

Margaret stayed by Hawkeye’s side and waited for him to open his eyes. It was afternoon when she saw his eyes start to flutter. She jumped up and started to call his name to bring him to faster. When he opened his eyes and focused on her she smiled at him. "Hi honey," she whispered. "Do you know where you are?" He shook his head no. "Do you know who I am?" He rolled his eyes and nodded yes. "Do you remember what happened?"

"Yeah," he said hoarsely.

"How are you feeling?"

"Sore. What’s wrong?"

"Well, your shoulder was displaced and they had to lodge it back, and they had to do surgery on your knee. That’s why the pain down there. Your left side is pretty bruised, and you were unconscious for a while."

He sighed and groaned. "The other…"

"The other person is fine. You and my car are the only ones that got hurt."

He smiled a little bit. He had taken her car to Maine instead of his own. She still had the convertible thunderbird she had when she rear ended him almost 2 years earlier. He always liked her car better than his so he and Danny took it up to Maine because it was such a nice weekend. "Totaled?"

She nodded. "It’s okay. As long as you’re okay, everything is okay."

"Sorry."

"Hey, its okay."

"Did you…call my dad?" He was in pain and having trouble speaking.

"I tried earlier, but he wasn’t there. I’ll call him after the doctor comes in and talks to you." He nodded yes. "The baby is at home with Nicole."

"How…"

"How long have I been here?" He nodded yes. "Since you got here; midnight. Do you need something more for the pain?" He shook his head no. "Do you need anything?"

"Just you."

Margaret smiled and sat down in the chair she had pulled up to his bed. "You scared me."

"Me too."

She chuckled. "Don’t you ever do that to me again! What were you doing on the road last night?"

"Coming home."

"You shouldn’t have been on the road. You said you were coming home in the morning."

"I wanted to…surprise you."

"Well you did!" He gave her a sad smile and she kissed his hand. "I love you so much."

"I love you." He gave her a sleepy look and yawned. "Don’t leave."

"I won’t. Go back to sleep. I’ll be here when you wake up." She gave his hand a gentle squeeze and watched him go back to sleep. When he was asleep she moved away from him and went to the phone. She needed to call Dan and she couldn’t put it off anymore.

When she told Hawkeye’s father what happened his first reaction was to get in his car and drive down to Boston. Margaret stopped him and told him that Hawkeye was fine and that she was taking care of it. She told him that the best thing he could do was keep Danny. That’s when Dan insisted he come down and be there to watch Matt too. Margaret thanked him and told him not to bother because she had that taken care of. She would keep him up to date and have Hawkeye call him when he could.

When the doctor came back in he talked to Hawkeye and told him what was going on. Hawkeye was mad because he had to stay in the hospital for another few days and then wouldn’t be able to do anything for a while because of his knee and shoulder. What really made him made was that he couldn’t work for a while and was going to have to go to physical therapy after a few weeks.

Later that afternoon Margaret talked to him to find out what happened. He said a truck came out from nowhere and t-boned him. Both of them were going at high speeds, but the man in the truck was the one at fault. Margaret cringed when she listened to the details of the accident, but she was just glad everyone was okay.

It was dark outside and Margaret was sitting next to her husband making sure he was eating. He was in a bad mood and very snappy. She just dismissed his mood and went into Major Houlihan mode to get him to do what he had to. After he was done eating he looked at her and glared.

"Don’t look at me that way, buster! It’s for your own good."

Hawkeye slowly started to smile. "You’re killing me."

She shook her head at his choice of words. "Don’t say that." She thought she was going to lose him early that morning and was scared to death. She couldn’t imagine her life without him.

"Sorry. You need to get home."

She looked at her watch. "I know. The baby is probably screaming by now. I’ve never been away from him for so long."

"I know," he smiled. "Go home."

"Are you sure you’re okay?"

"Yes!"

"I’ll be back tomorrow when I can."

"Go!" He pointed with his good hand.

"Stop being so mean!" She stood up and gave him a kiss. "I love you," she said against his lips.

"I love you baby. Thank you for staying with me."

She smiled at him. "I wouldn’t have had it any other way."

"Give the baby a kiss for me."

"I will. Get some sleep."

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Margaret left her husband with reluctance, but she didn’t have a choice. She had to get home to take care of their child. She missed the baby too. She had never been without him for that amount of time, and now that she knew Hawkeye was okay, she was okay to go home. All she had to do was find out what she was going to do with the baby the next day because Nicole had to go to school.

Margaret walked down the hall and got her keys out as she did so. She could hear the baby crying from outside the door. It was a little after 7PM and the baby was normally screaming by that time. She opened the door as quickly as she could and walked in. "I’m home," she said. She walked right into the living room where she saw Nicole pacing the floor with the baby. "I’m so sorry. I should have been here sooner. How long has he been doing this?"

"About ten minutes. I gave him his 6PM bottle and he fell asleep for a while, but when he woke up he started to cry and hasn’t stopped."

Margaret tossed her coat and purse on the couch and gathered the baby into her arms. "That’s not too bad. How was he the rest of the day?"

Nicole smiled. "A perfect gentleman. We had a good time together today."

Margaret smiled and reached for her purse. "Thank you so much. I’m so sorry about this. I didn’t mean to ruin your plans."

"It’s not a problem Mrs. Pierce. I was glad I could help. Do you need me tomorrow?"

Margaret was fishing through her purse looking for some money while she was juggling her crying son. "Do you want to?"

"Sure. I can come over around 3PM. Is that okay with you?"

Margaret handed her a wad of cash. "That would be great. I’ll be home by six thirty so you don’t have to worry about him crying. He does it every night."

"That’s fine. Thank you," she said as she put the money in her pocket. "I’ll be by tomorrow."

"Thank you honey," Margaret said as she walked her over to the door. She closed the door and locked it behind Nicole and then focused solely on the baby. "What’s the matter baby? Momma’s here for you now. I missed you today. I called about twenty times to check on you," she smiled. "I must have drove Nicole crazy." She started to walk towards the bathroom and the baby let out a cry and then started to calm down a little bit. "There you go, honey. Isn’t that better? Don’t you feel better when you calm down? How would you like a nice warm bath? It’s just you and me for the night again. Daddy’s okay. He should be home in a few days. He asked me to get you in there sometime to see him. Your brother is fine. He’s with Grandpa. Do you remember Grandpa? He came down to see you when you were first born."

Margaret talked to her son and calmed him down enough to give him a bath. When she was done with that he was nice and calm and clean. A nice warm bath was always good for him. At 8:30PM she sat down with him in the nursery and fed him. He was asleep before he was done and then she laid him in his crib. She jumped in the shower quickly and then went to sleep in her own bed for the night. She woke up at 3AM and waited for the baby to call her. When he didn’t she got up and checked on him. He was still asleep and that’s when she remembered Nicole said he had slept all night. She left the room quietly and then went back to bed.

The next day Margaret spent on the phone at home. Hawkeye kept calling her when he was awake and complaining about the nurses. There wasn’t anything that she could do, but he thought complaining about it to her would change something. The truth was that he was bored. He was sore and he was mad.

In between talking to him all day she was talking to his father and her parents and everyone that heard what happened. Most of them wanted to come and help out, but she told them not to. She could handle it for now and it was easier to do it this way. Everyone bought it except her sister. She knew Margaret too well and told her she would be there the next morning to help with the baby and Danny when he came home for as long as she needed.

When Nicole came over at 3PM the baby was just waking up. Margaret gave Nicole some directions and gave her some money to order some dinner when she was ready for it. She wanted to get over to see Hawkeye.

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Hawkeye was sitting up in bed when Margaret walked in. He was much more alert than he was the day before. "Margaret, where have you been?"

She looked at him oddly. "What are you talking about? I talked to you a half an hour ago."

"Well…it seemed longer," he snapped.

She smiled and walked over to him and gave him a kiss. "I brought you something."

"Oh yeah?"

"Uh huh," she showed him a bouquet of roses. "I thought they might cheer you up a little."

"Thank you."

She placed the vase on his bedside stand and reached into her purse. "I also brought you some chocolates."

"Wow, thank you. This is the first time I ever got anything like this from a woman."

She smiled at him and gave him another kiss. "How are you feeling?"

"Like a hostage!"

"I know. Two days and you can come home. Did you talk to your father?" She sat down on the side of the bed and faced him.

"Yeah. I talked to Danny too."

"Yeah?" She smiled. "How is he?"

"He’s on cloud nine. He’s allowed to get out of bed and move around. He can go in and out…"

"Hawkeye, stop it. You’ll be out of the hospital in two days."

"It’s not soon enough."

Margaret rolled her eyes. He had been in a bad mood all day long. When he called her on the phone it was just to complain. "Stop whining."

"I…uh…" He couldn’t think of anything to say. He sighed and looked at her. She had a smirk on her face.

He rolled his eyes. "How’s Matt?"

"Really good," she beamed. "You wouldn’t believe what he did!"

"Walked?"

"Hawkeye!"

"Sorry. Go ahead."

"He slept through the night the last two nights and was in bed by 8:30PM. Can you believe that?"

"That’s great," he smiled. "No more screaming for hours on end, huh?"

"I think we’re almost through with that."

"Good."

She looked at him closely. He looked so pitiful lying in bed like that. Hawkeye could never sit still unless he was sleeping. This was going to drive him crazy. She leaned in and gave him a tender kiss on the lips.

"You’re looking better than you did yesterday."

"Yeah."

"Did you eat anything?"

"Ever damn piece of slop they gave me. They told me they were going to get you to come here if I didn’t. I thought it would be easier if I ate it rather than you shoving it down my throat."

She chuckled. "I’ll be here until 6PM. Last night when I came home Matty was crying and I don’t want Nicole to have to deal with that. She’s helping us out enough."

"Yeah."

"My sister is coming in tonight."

"She is?" He wasn’t very excited. He liked her sister, but he didn’t want people there when he went home.

"For how long?"

"The only way you’ll see her is when she comes in to visit you. They’ll be gone by the time you get home."

"Good," he breathed a sigh of relief. "What do mean ‘they’ll be gone’?"

"Abby and the girls."

"They all staying at our house?"

"Well the reason she’s coming is so that she can take care of our baby and I can take care of you, ya big baby."

He didn’t find that amusing. "You’re not funny."

She smiled. "Hawkeye, lighten up. Don’t be so moody."

"Why are you in such a good mood?"

She picked up his hand and looked into his eyes. "Because my husband is alive and he’s going to be okay. And our son slept through the night, and I don’t have to worry about our other son because he’s safe with his grandfather. But mostly because I didn’t have to live through the nightmare of becoming a widow."

Now he felt like an idiot. He was glad to be alive, but he was frustrated. What was worse was that he would be that way for a while. He hated the thought that he couldn’t take care of himself. "I’m glad I’m alive too. Now give me a kiss."

She smiled and leaned in to kiss him being careful of his left side. He was full of bruises and his shoulder was very sore from being put back in place. "So, I don’t think we’re going to go dancing like you promised me."

He laughed. "No. Not anytime soon."

"Aw, that’s okay."

"Glad you’re so understanding," he smiled.

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Margaret was right next to him all day the next day. Her sister had come down and was taking care of the baby for her. Hawkeye didn’t seem to be too glad to her, but he also didn’t want her to leave. His mood kept getting worse and she was looking forward to getting him out of the hospital and back home. Hopefully he would be easier to handle.

During the day she took care of him and they talked. When he wasn’t in such a pissy mood he was nice to talk to. Sometimes he could even be funny. Throughout most of the day he was getting phone calls that would interrupt their conversations from people checking up on him. All of Crabapple Cove must have called at least twice and then there were his collogues and friends that lived in the city. Some calls he took and others he made his wife answer and tell them that he was asleep.

She tolerated his mood all day. She had taken care of patients much worse than him. In fact, she started to realize just how much she missed working while she was there in the hospital. She would watch the nurses and doctors come in and she really missed it. She didn’t say anything to Hawkeye though. Not yet anyway.

Hawkeye was lying in bed complaining because Margaret had to go. "Take me with you."

She smiled at him. "Sorry, honey. I will tomorrow. How’s that?"

"Not soon enough."

"It’s as good as you’re gonna get."

He sighed, "Do you have to leave?"

"Sorry. Why don’t you want me to go?"

"I feel better when you’re here," he said looking into her eyes.

"All you do is complain and yell at me."

"I don’t mean to," he said softly.

Margaret smiled at him. He was so pitiful. "I have to get home. We have an infant at home and one of us needs to go take care of him. Since you’re confined to this bed, I have to go do it."

"What time are you coming back?"

"10AM?"

"Make it 9AM."

"Okay." She bent down and gave him a kiss. "Hopefully you’ll be home in the afternoon. Abby will be there until you get settled."

"Margaret," he whined. "You said she would be gone by the time I get home."

"Yes, but honey, how will I get you home if I have Matt in my arms?"

He sighed. "You’re right."

"I have to go now. I’ll be home if you want to call, just don’t call after 8PM unless its an emergency."

"Okay. Give me a kiss."

"I just did."

"I need another one."

She smiled at him and gave him a soft loving kiss. "I love you baby."

"Love you," he mumbled.

"Cheer up!"

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Margaret went home and had dinner with her sister and nieces. Matt always slept through dinner which was wonderful since he always wanted to be held. It was nice to see her sister and her nieces again. Margaret talked to her about taking the kids out while she brought Hawkeye home and got him settled in. She knew he was embarrassed because he couldn’t move well, and she didn’t want to make him feel bad.

They had put him in a wheel chair when they discharged him. Margaret got him into a cab and they drove the four blocks home. He had refused to take a wheel chair home with him, so she had to help him out of the car and walk into the building. He was having a hard time and they had to stop and let him rest a few times. It was a good thing the building had an elevator because he would have never made it up any other way. When they finally made it upstairs he leaned against the door while she unlocked it.

"Hurry up," he groaned.

"I’m hurrying. Hang on."

"Isn’t your sister here?"

"They went to the park."

"Oh."

She opened up the door and put her arm around him to help him. "Where do you want to go?"

"Take me to the couch."

She helped him over to the couch and laid him down and propped a pillow under his knee. "How’s that?"

"Can I have a pillow behind my head?"

"Sure. Are you cold?"

"No, no, I’m fine."

"Hungry?" She placed a pillow behind him.

"No."

"Can I get you anything?"

"No." He laid against the pillow and caught his breath. It was harder than he thought to be up and about. She stood back and watched him and didn’t move. He noticed her staring, "Can I help you?"

"What? No. Are you sure you don’t need anything?"

"I’m fine. Call my dad and see when he’s bringing Danny home."

Margaret sat down on the coffee table and looked at him. "He’s bringing him back the day after tomorrow. Did you want him to stay longer?"

"No. I miss him. When is Abby coming back? I want to see the baby."

"A half an hour. Why don’t you get some sleep?"

"Sounds good," he yawned. "Can you get me a blanket?"

"Yep." She leaned in and gave him a kiss and then went to the linen closest in the hallway and grabbed a blanket for him. When she came back he was already sleeping. She covered him up and kissed his forehead. It was nice to have him back home.

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When Abby brought the kids back Hawkeye was awake and sitting down with his leg resting on the coffee table. Abby had a key, but rang the doorbell because she knew Margaret was home. Margaret opened the door and let them in. The two oldest girls came running in and went to see Hawkeye. Abby had one a half year old Molly in the stroller with Matt. She had fallen asleep on the way home for her afternoon nap. Matt was ready for a bottle and was getting fussy when they walked home.

"Hey," Margaret smiled. She moved out of the way as Lizzie and Hannah ran over to Hawkeye.

"Hi," Abby sighed. She pushed the stroller in and Margaret took it from her. "Your son is ready to eat."

"I knew he would be. I pumped some milk, and have a bottle ready for him." Margaret picked the baby up and smiled at him. "Hi honey. Are you ready to eat? Daddy’s home."

"Margaret," Hawkeye called. "Bring him over here." His back was to the door and he couldn’t see Matt.

"Coming," she said. She walked over to the couch and showed him the baby. "Can you hold him?"

"Yeah." Margaret placed the baby on his chest and let the two of them get reacquainted while she got the bottle. Abby was lying Molly in Matt’s crib so she could finish the rest of her nap.

"Uncle Hawkeye, does your leg hurt?" Six year old Lizzie asked. "Aunt Maggie said that it did."

"It does hurt."

"Oh." She paused and looked at him noticing how much attention he was paying to the baby and none to her or her sister. Not that her sister cared. Hannah was over in the corner playing with some of Danny’s toys. "Do you wanna see him smile? I can make him smile."

"Sure." Hawkeye really wasn’t in the mood to deal with little girls. They always took a lot of energy out of him because he didn’t know how to handle them. Since he was stuck on the couch and didn’t want to be mean to the little girl, he listened to her.

Margaret came out of the kitchen with a bottle in her hand and saw that Lizzie was making the baby laugh by talking to him and smiling. She could tell that Hawkeye was feeling a little uncomfortable. Most of the time it was amusing, but it wasn’t right now because he was in pain. She knew that all he wanted to do was hold his son and be alone with him. "Excuse me," she said to Lizzie. Lizzie moved out of the way and Margaret sat the bottle on the coffee table. "Can you feed him?"

"Yes. Just help me get him settled."

Margaret adjusted Matt and then gave Hawkeye the bottle. "You got it? Are you comfortable?"

"Yeah."

She looked at the two girls, "Come with me and we’ll get a snack." Hannah jumped up and quickly grabbed her aunt’s hand.

"I wanna stay with Uncle Hawk," Lizzie said.

"No. The baby’s gonna have his bottle and then go to sleep. You need to come with me."

Lizzie knew not to argue with Margaret. She had made that mistake once when she was three and hadn’t done it since. "Okay."

"Call me if you need me," Margaret said to her husband. Hawkeye smiled and nodded. All he wanted to do was be with his youngest son for a few minutes. He loved how his wife could read his mind like that.

Abby came out of the nursery and smiled at Hawkeye lying there with Matt on her way to the kitchen. Margaret and the girls were sitting at the table with milk and cookies. "I think we’re going to head home after Molly wakes up."

"No," the two girls said in unison.

"Yes," their mother said firmly. "You have to go back to school. You’ve missed two days already." Lizzie was now in kindergarten and Hannah would be in the fall. "You can’t have too many days off."

"Why not?" The curious child asked. "I don’t like school."

"Too bad. You have to go and that’s that!"

"Fine."

Abby looked at Margaret and saw her smirking. "What are you smiling at?"

"Who? Me?" She pretended to be innocent.

"Yes you."

"Oh nothing."

"You just wait until your boys get old enough and start talking back. It won’t be so funny then." Margaret just smiled at her. "I’m serious."

"I know."

Abby rolled her eyes and got herself a cup of coffee. "How’s Hawk?"

"Tired and sore. It’s probably a good idea you do go home today. He’s a real bear when he’s sick."

"I’m sure. Do you have a camera?"

"Yeah, why?"

"That’s a good picture in there on the couch."

Margaret looked behind her and smiled. It was a very nice picture. "I’ll get it out in a few minutes. I wish Danny was home. I know Hawkeye really wants to see him. This house feels so empty without him."

"I wish we would have been able to see him too."

Margaret and her sister talked for a while longer and then Margaret helped her pack. She found the camera in her bedroom and got it out. She went into the living to take the picture and saw that it had changed. Both Hawkeye and Matt were sleeping. Hawkeye must have tried to get rid of the bottle and it fell on the floor instead of the table. Matt was lying on his stomach across his father’s chest. Margaret smiled as she took the picture of the two of them. Then she grabbed the blanket on the bottom of the couch and pulled it up to cover the two of them. It was so cute that she had to take another picture. Neither Hawkeye nor the baby woke up from the flash.

"Maggie…"Abby started. Margaret looked at her and put her finger to her mouth. "Sorry," Abby whispered. Margaret walked over to her and they stood in the hallway. "We’re gonna get going."

"Okay. Thank you for coming to help us."

"Anytime. That’s what sisters are for."

"I’ll walk you to your car."

"You don’t have to."

Margaret smiled. "You have three little girls and luggage. You need help."

"You’re right. Will you get the girls for me and meet me out there?"

"Sure."

Margaret said goodbye to her sister and her nieces outside. She would have liked them to stay longer, but now wasn’t the best time for houseguests. Abby understood that and had to get home and get her oldest daughter back to school. She knew Margaret was going to have her hands full taking care of her two boys plus her husband.

When Margaret walked back into her apartment she saw that Hawkeye and Matt were still sleeping. They both looked so comfortable and she didn’t want to move Matt and take the chance of him waking up. He was just as grumpy as his father if someone woke him up. She decided to get together some things for Hawkeye. He would only be able to wear sweat pants and shorts for a while. She needed to dig them out for him while she had the time to look for them. She wanted to set the bedroom up nicely for him too. They had kept the TV she had in her old apartment and put it in their room, but had never plugged it in. She wanted to move it so he would be able to see it and watch TV when he was in there.

Hawkeye opened his eyes slowly and looked around. He breathed a sigh of relief because he woke up at home. He looked down at his chest and smiled to himself. Matt was still sound asleep. He always thought that children looked cutest when they were sleeping. He rubbed the baby’s bald head gently and felt him breathing steadily. Occasionally he would go into a sucking motion like he was looking for a bottle.

Hawkeye picked his head up to see if anyone was around, but he didn’t see anyone. He relaxed against the pillow and looked down at his son. "You know something," he whispered softly. "When I was sitting in Mommy’s car on the side of the road waiting for help, all I thought about was you and your brother. I didn’t want to miss you growing up and I didn’t want the two of you to grow up without a father. I thought about Momma too. I love her with all my heart. I didn’t want to make her a widow, although I thought she might kill me when she saw what happened to her car. She didn’t though. She was just glad I was okay."

Margaret walked into the room when she heard a voice. "Are you okay?"

Hawkeye looked up and smiled. "Fine. I was just talking to Matty."

"You know he’s asleep?"

"I know."

She smiled and walked around the couch to sit on the coffee table so it was easy for him to see her. "You missed him a lot, huh?"

"Oh yes."

"I couldn’t imagine being away from him for that long. If something ever happens to me and I have to be in the hospital, you have to bring him in."

"Nothing will happen."

She smiled. "Do you want me to move him?"

"No," he shook his head.

She leaned in and gave him a kiss. "Can I get you anything?"

"A pain pill."

"Of course," she jumped up. "I should have known."

"It’s okay."

Margaret came back with some water and some medication for him. She helped him with his drink and then sat it back on the table. "I set up the bedroom for you."

"Thanks."

"How are you feeling?"

"Better now that I’m home."

"How’s your shoulder?"

"Sore, but I’m alright. How are you?"

She smiled at him. "Good now that you’re home. You’re in a better mood."

He chuckled. "Enjoy it. I don’t know how long it’ll last."

"You better make it last."

"Have I told you how much I love?" She smiled and shrugged her shoulders. "I love you more than anything. I never want to leave you."

"Good, because I don’t want you to leave me."

"No, I’m serious. When we’re in our 90’s, we’re going to heaven together."

She chuckled. "Yes. Don’t worry; you’re not leaving this house until that ring is back on your finger."

Hawkeye looked at his naked left hand. He was all bruised on his left side from the car accident and they had to take his wedding band off of him and it couldn’t fit back on now. He was too swollen. "It does feel funny to be without it."

"I’m glad!"

"Why?" He asked curiously.

"Because you know it’s missing. That ring means you belong to me."

He rolled his eyes and grinned. "I know, and the one on yours means you belong to me."

"Right!" She nodded. She saw him try to move. "Let me move him. You’re too uncomfortable."

"Margaret, he’s 13 pounds. I think I can take it."

"No." She picked the baby up and placed him in the bassinet that was in the corner of the room. "Isn’t that better?" He didn’t answer her because he didn’t want to admit that she was right. And he didn’t like the fact that holding his newborn son was too much for him. "Maybe it would better if you did hold him. At least your mood would be a lot better."

He didn’t want to respond. "What’s for dinner?"

"It’s 2:30PM. Are you hungry?"

"I didn’t have lunch."

"Oh, that’s right. I’m sorry, honey. What do you want?"

"What do we have?"

"Everything. I went grocery shopping last night because I knew I wouldn’t be able to go anywhere for a while. So, what do you want?"

"I don’t care. Surprise me."

"Alright." Margaret walked into the kitchen and started to get out some lunch meat and cheese to make him a sandwich. Before she was finished the phone ran. The phone in the kitchen had a long cord on it so that a person could talk on the phone and still be able to do what they had been doing. She picked up the phone and held it up to her ear with her shoulder so she could finish.

"Hello? He’s doing fine. I’m making him a sandwich right now. Yeah, I’ll tell him. How’s Danny doing? Tell him I love him and I miss him. Okay, I’ll talk to you later. Bye."

Margaret hung up the phone and poured a drink to go along with the sandwich. She walked into the living room and saw Hawkeye trying to figure out how to sit up some more. She put the plate and cup on the table. "Let me help you. That’s why I’m here. You okay?"

"Yeah," he breathed. "Who was on the phone?"

She gave him the plate and sat down on the coffee table. "Your father."

"Why didn’t you let me talk to him?"

"He had to go. He and Danny are going out on the boat."

"And he didn’t want to talk to me?!"

"I didn’t say that! What’s the matter with you?"

"Nothing."

"I’m going to get your medication so you can take it with your meal."

"Fine."

She stood up and rolled her eyes when her back was to him. He was going to be a pain in the ass to take care of. She knew he didn’t like things having to be done for him and he didn’t like to ask for help. He was going to have to learn which wasn’t a bad a thing.

Hawkeye spent the rest of the day on the couch going in and out of sleep. His pain medication had a lot to do with that. Margaret was grateful for the times he went to sleep because he was a real pain when he was awake. All he did was complain about little things that had absolutely no relevance to the situation. She could have understood if he would have complained about the pain, but he complained more about things like the crack in the ceiling, the stain on the carpet, along with much more.

"Margaret!"

She rolled her eyes and sighed. "Yes?" She managed to say politely. She was in the kitchen trying to fix dinner.

"I have to go to the bathroom."

"One second." She looked at Matt, "You be good for a few minutes and Mommy will be right back." He smiled and didn’t care in the least that she walked away from him.

"How do we do this?"

"Well, what do you have to do?"

"I have to piss if you must know!"

"Alright. I can get you a bottle so you won’t have to get up."

"No! Help me up."

She walked over to him and got him in a sitting position. She had to do everything on his right side because the left side was too banged up. "Okay, we’re gonna stand now. Are you ready?"

"Yep."

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "Put all the weight you need to on me."

"I weigh a lot more than you."

"I know. I can take it. We did it earlier getting out of the cab."

"Yeah."

"Ready? Go."

He groaned as he got upright for the first time in 5 hours. "Damn it!"

"You okay?"

"Yeah, just help me to the bathroom." They started to walk, rather she started to walk and he started to hop. He couldn’t put any pressure on his knee and if it wasn’t for his dislocated shoulder he could have used crutches. "Stop." Margaret stopped and waited until he was ready to go again. When the made it into the bathroom Hawkeye didn’t know what to do. "What now?"

"Pull down your pants and go."

"But you’re here."

"So?"

"I can’t go to the bathroom in front of people."

"I’m your wife. I’ve seen it a thousand times. Why does it bother you?"

"Margaret, you know I can’t go when you’re in the bathroom with me."

"And what do you propose we do? You can’t stand without me. Would you like to sit?"

"What? I could never get up if I sat on something that low."

"You better think of a way because you’re gonna have to do more than piss some time."

"You should go down to the drugstore and get me one of those things that raise the toilet seat."

"Can you wait that long?"

"No," he sighed. He didn’t have a choice now. "Can you…um…help me…with my pants?"

"Hawkeye, you don’t have to be so shy about his. I’ve seen you naked. I’ve seen every single body part and every inch of skin. We’re married and we have a child together."

"Just help me."

She supported him with her body and pulled down his sweatpants and boxers a little at a time. She would pull down the right side, then the left, and get going back and forth until they dropped to the floor. "Okay. Go."

"It’s not that easy."

"Just go. The baby’s in the kitchen alone."

Hawkeye tried to go pee, but nothing happened. He was so embarrassed and humiliated by the whole situation. He fully expected his wife to laugh at him, but she did no such thing. "What’s wrong with me?"

"Stop thinking about it." It took him while before he felt any release. Being a nurse Margaret knew it had more to do with the medication than with his embarrassment. She thought it was amusing that he was embarrassed in front of her. She never knew why he was that way.

"Done. Can you…?"

"Yep." She helped him pull his pants up and then they hobbled over to the sink where he washed his hands in silence. "All finished?"

"Yeah. Just get me to the couch please."

When he was on the couch he laid his head back on the pillow and closed his eyes. "Are you okay?"

"No, I’m not okay," he snapped.

"Dinner’s almost done. I’ll bring it in for you." He didn’t say anything to her and she walked back into the kitchen. She looked at Matt who was relaxing on the table in his baby chair. He smiled at her which made her walk over to him. "You know something? Don’t tell anyone, but you’re father is weird. He can take a shower in front of other men, but he can’t pee in front of his wife." Matt kicked his feet excitedly at the tone in her voice. "That is weird, isn’t it? See, I knew you’d agree with me."

"Margaret," Hawkeye hollered. "I thought dinner was done."

"It’s coming! Hold your damn horses." The baby thought that was funny because he started to laugh.

"After dinner, he’s gonna give you your bottle and you can both take a little nap. You keep him in a better mood when he’s got you in his arms. Hopefully he’ll cheer up when your brother comes home." She grabbed a plate and dished some food out onto it. "Mommy will be back in a second." She went to the living room and handed Hawkeye his plate. "There you go."

"Wait," he said when she walked away. "Aren’t you gonna eat with me?"

"What?"

"I don’t want to eat alone. I want you to eat with me."

"Well, I have the baby in there, and…ah...okay," she said when she saw the hurt look on his face. "Let me bring him in here and then I’ll sit down and eat with you."

"Okay."

For someone who was always in a bad mood and everything bothered him, he didn’t like to be alone. She catered to him all she could. It was only the first day he was home, but she wasn’t sure how much longer she could take him with that attitude.

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Margaret had given the baby a bath the next evening and was in the nursery getting him dressed when she heard a loud noise and then heard her husband. "Son-of-a-bitch!" He yelled.

Margaret quickly pinned the baby’s clean diaper up. "Hawk, are you okay?"

"No, damn it!"

Margaret left the baby in just his diaper and placed him in his crib. She ran out into the hallway. "Oh god."

"Help me."

He was lying on the floor in pain. She knelt down next to him. "Can you get up?"

"If you help me."

She helped him up slowly and over to the couch. "Are you okay? Did you hurt anything?"

"My ego," he moaned.

"Are you sure that’s it? How’s your arm and your knee?"

"Okay."

"Good." She placed her hands on her hips and went into a Major Houlihan stance. "What the hell is wrong with you?!"

He looked up at her, "What?"

"Have you lost your mind?"

"What the hell is your problem?"

"What do you think you were trying to do?" She yelled. "You know you can’t walk on your own. Why didn’t you call me?"

"You were busy."

"And? You couldn’t wait two minutes until I was done with Matt?" She thought about the baby all alone in his room and listened for him. He was fine and not making any noise she let him stay in there.

"I had to go to the bathroom?"

"Do you know what you could have done?"

"Yes, Major," he said with teeth clenched. "But I’m fine."

"This time!"

"Shut up! I don’t need you treating me like a baby."

"WHAT?!" She screamed. "Don’t tell me to shut up! You’re the one acting like an ass. You could have hurt yourself."

"But I didn’t. Now leave me the hell alone."

She sighed with frustration. "I can’t believe…" In mid sentence the baby let out a scream. "Ooo, you’re lucky!"

"Right," he mumbled as she walked away.

Margaret tended to the baby and got him dressed for bed. He would need a bottle soon, but Hawkeye needed her more at the moment. Matt was content for now. She brought him out to the living room and laid him on the blanket that was spread out for him. She placed one of the toys that he could lay under and look up at over him so he didn’t get bored.

Hawkeye watched her the whole time and felt like a complete asshole. He knew better than to take the chance to walk on his own. He looked up at her when she looked at him and waited for her to talk. "Do you need to go to the bathroom?"

"Yes. Will you help me?"

"Yeah." She helped him into the bathroom and held onto him. He always took forever, but she didn’t say anything to him. When he was done she helped him pull up his shorts.

"I wanna go to bed."

"Okay. I’ll be in after I feed the baby and put him down for the night."

"No. Let me feed him in our room. Okay?"

"Of course." She helped him to the bed and let him get comfortable. "I’ll be back in a few minutes."

Margaret brought the baby to him and let Hawkeye feed him. She went and picked up the rest of the house so she could go to bed as soon as she put the baby in his crib. She walked back into the bedroom a half an hour later and picked the baby up and brought him to his room. She was so tired. Taking care of Matt and Hawkeye all alone was a lot.

Hawkeye was lying on his right side facing in towards the bed. She crawled in and he placed a hand on her hip. She rolled onto her side and looked him in the eye. "I’m sorry," he whispered. "I’ve been treating you like shit the last five days."

"Yes, you have." He had been home for two days now and was treating her worse than he had been in the hospital. She would continually forgive him because he was hurting, but it was getting harder and harder.

"Why do you put up with me?"

"Because I love you Hawkeye." She brushed his cheek gently with her hand. "You’re hurt and you need to be taken care of. If yelling at me makes you feel better than what am I suppose to do? I’m here to make sure you get better."

"I’ve been so aggravated!"

She smiled, "I can tell."

"Margaret, I don’t like people doing things for me."

"I’m not people, I’m your wife. I’m here because I want to be. I want to take care of you and get you better. You may as well enjoy getting waited on hand and foot while you can, because it’s not gonna last forever."

He smiled and gave her a kiss. "I love you baby."

"I love you too." He moved his right hand to her cheek and started to gently run his finger down her face and neck. He got to her chest and started to grin. "Pierce!"

"What?"

"How can your mind be on sex when you can barely move?"

"Because I’m me."

She smiled and shook her head. "I’m not doing anything. You could get hurt."

"You want to be wild."

"What?"

"You plan on being rough? You know I like that." He wiggled his eyebrows.

She rolled her eyes. "You’re crazy."

"Crazy in love."

"You’re so corny."

He grinned and kissed her again. "I’m gonna be nice to you from now on."

"Good." She moved her finger to his chest and started to move it lightly. "Even all banged up, you look really sexy."

"So do you."

"I’m not all banged up."

"I would like to bang you up."

Her eyes widen. "Pierce!" He laughed at her and she smiled and shook her head at him. "You know, despite your bitchy attitude, I really like having you around."

"Why is that?"

"Well, for one thing, you help with the baby when you can. For another, you lie around in your sweatpants, and only your sweatpants."

"Why, Major Houlihan, are you telling me you like my body?"

She smiled at him. "You have made some improvements. Your chest, and look," she touched his stomach, "You have a six pack."

"Margaret, I may be injured, but I’m not dead. You might want to move your hands up before some else starts to come up."

She grinned evilly, "What’s the matter? After all these years you still can’t control it?"

"Not with you." He moved her hand back up to his chest.

"What’s the matter? You started it."

"To tease you," he said honestly. "I can’t do anything."

She smiled at him. "To tease me, huh? It looks like your plan backfired."

"Yeah," he sighed.

She chuckled and gave him a kiss. "I’ll leave you alone. Wake me up if you need anything."

"Okay. Do you know what time it is?"

"9?"

"Yes. Why the hell are we in bed?"

"We’re old."

He smiled at her. "As long as it isn’t just me."

"No, it is," she nodded. "I’m not old. I’ve been taking care of two babies. I have every right to be tired."

"Oh," he said sarcastically. "Well, I was in a car accident. I’m broken and bruised. I have a right to be tired too."

"Then I guess neither one of us are old."

He nodded. "Just tired." They both slowly started to smile. "I love you."

She kissed him, "I love you too."

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"Hawkeye, I’m going to go downstairs and meet your father. He should be here soon."

"Why?"

"Because I told him I would meet him down there when he called."

"Oh. What about Matt?"

"He’s sleeping. He’ll be fine. Would you feel better if he was closer to you incase he cries? I can move him out of his crib and into the bassinet in here."

"No. I’ll be fine."

She bent down and gave him a kiss. "I’ll be right back."

"I know. I’ll be right here exactly how you left me."

She smiled and grabbed her keys as she walked out the door. She couldn’t wait to see Danny. She had missed him so much and she was hoping that having Danny home would cheer Hawkeye up too. He had been very down and she wanted him to start to be happy again. She thought that if his whole family was together again, it would cheer him up because family was everything to him. His wife and boys were his life and having them together would make his life feel more complete.

She was standing outside the building on the sidewalk and saw when she spotted Danny and Dan walking down the street. Danny saw her and slipped out of his grandfather’s grip and started to run to her. "Mommy!"

Margaret bent down and scooped him up into a big hug. "Oh, Danny. I missed you so much."

"I missed you too," he said as he laid his head on her shoulder and held on tight.

She gave him a kiss on the cheek. "You feel so good to hold."

Dan walked up smiling. "That boy was ready to come home."

She smiled and gave him a one armed hug. "Thank you for keeping him. I really appreciate it."

"No problem. Now, where’s my son and my other grandson?"

"Matt’s napping and Hawk’s upstairs waiting for you."

"Mommy, is Daddy hurt?"

"Yes, so you have to be careful when you give him a hug. Be gentle like you are with Matty."

"Did Matt miss me?"

"Of course," she smiled. "You weren’t here to tell him stories and show him how to play with cars."

"I can now," he smiled proudly.

"That’s right. Let’s go upstairs and see Daddy. He’s been dying to see you."

UPSTAIRS:

"Hawkeye, someone’s here to see you." She sat Danny down on the floor and he ran over to his father. Margaret and Daniel stood by and watched with smiles on their faces.

"Hey buddy," Hawkeye smiled brightly.

"Hi." Danny looked at his father finny. He was lying on the couch will bandages all over his knee. He had some small ones on his face from scratches from the glass of the windshield.

"Well, can I have a hug?"

Danny hugged his father gently and stood strait and looked into his father’s eyes. "What happen to you?"

"I was in an accident."

"You got hurt!"

Hawkeye smiled. "Yeah, I did. But I’ll be okay." He looked Danny over. "I really missed you, buddy."

"I missed you."

Dan walked over and sat down in the chair. "How you doing?"

"Been better. How about you?"

"A whole hell of a lot better now that I’m seeing you with my own eyes. You’re pretty banged up."

"Didn’t you believe Margaret or I when we told you?"

"I did, but seeing your kid hurt is harder than hearing about it."

"I’m sure. How was Danny?"

"Better than you ever thought of being when you were his age."

Margaret laughed and sat down in the other chair pulling Danny onto her lap. "How was the drive?"

"Fine. Where’s Matt?" He was dying to see his new grandson. He had only seen him once when he was first born and it had been two months since that happened.

"Sleeping," Hawkeye said. "You have to wait until he wakes up. Margaret will kill you if you go in there and wake him up."

Margaret looked at her father-in-law. "Can I get you a drink?"

"A nice martini would be wonderful," he said with a small smile.

"Me too."

She looked at Hawkeye disapprovingly. "You can’t have any. You should know better than to mix alcohol with medication."

"Daddy, want some milk wif me?"

"Yeah. That sounds good."

"Okay," he smiled. "I get it. Come on Mommy." He hopped off of her lap and grabbed her hand to pull her to get up.

Dan looked at Hawkeye. "I told him to be helpful."

"Ah," he nodded.

Daniel stated the night and then headed home the next morning. Seeing that his son was fine made him feel much better. Margaret had everything under control and he felt like he would be in the way if he stayed much longer. She had her hands full with her three Pierces and she didn’t need another one to take care off at the moment.

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A week later Hawkeye was able to get up and move around the apartment by himself. He could lean on things and put a little weight on his leg now. His favorite thing of all was that he no longer had to have an audience when he went to the bathroom. He still had a lot of improving to do, but with each step back towards independence he felt better and better.

He also had more fun lying around the house now that Danny was home. He brightened up the place with his stories and laughter. Margaret had too much to do and wasn’t always able to keep him company, but Danny was right there. He had become his father’s right hand man and the two of them spent more time together now than they had ever done before. Margaret was right; Danny made Hawkeye feel a lot better. She knew that they had a special bond. For two years it was just the two of them. Danny may not have remembered that because he was too young, but he felt it.