Guess what? I finally updated!!! ;) :D ;). I'm so
proud of myself! And thank all of you for understanding about
finals; they are so freaking stressful! Well I know you're all
thinking I forgot about you, so here it is~ hopezen~
"Sara, how far along are you?" Soon-Lee asked.
"Eight months down. One more and I can finally chase the other two around," she earned laughs from around the table; they all knew.
"What about you, Margaret, any children?" Peg asked. BJ had mentioned many times that the woman often seemed to want a large family.
"Oh, yes," she giggled it, "three," she nodded her head.
"Three children in five years? How on earth did you manage, child?" Mildred Potter was a woman who had seen and heard of many things, but that was a feat.
"Well, Alex and Kat were a two for one. I can't believe their going to be four in December. And Jess just turned two," she said proudly.
"Congratulations, Margaret," Soon-Lee sipped her lemonade, "and what about your husband?"
"He's outside with the others," she had quite a mischievous smile on her face.
"I don't see him," Peg looked out the French doors to see the men sitting at the table.
"Hello?" someone walked into the house that had the front door wide open with some carefully held packages.
The ladies looked out to the room they were just in at the man in the doorway. He was tall with curly brown hair. He had quite the stature and figure. He was holding a few nicely wrapped packages under his arms.
"Trapper?" Margaret went to greet him.
"The one and only," he was still as cocky as ever and a bit surprised to be welcomed by Major Houlihan in Hawkeye's house.
"Oh, I'm glad you made it. I don't know what we would have done if you didn't," she took the packages from him. "Come, on, Hawk's in the back," she led him through the kitchen.
"Well, well, well, and who are all these lovely ladies?" he gave them a big half-cocked smile. "If I knew this was a family get together, I would have brought Louise and the kids."
"Trapper, this is Mrs.," she made sure to make that clear to him, "Peg Hunnicutt, Mildred Potter, Soon-Lee Klinger, and Sara Woodman."
"Pleased to meet you ladies, but if you'll excuse me I have an old friend to meet," he saw Hawkeye talking to Radar, Klinger, and Mulcahy and three other fellows he didn't know.
"Trapper?" Hawkeye, Radar, Klinger, and the Father said at the same time, but not in unison.
"The one and only," he said again.
"What are you doing here?" Hawkeye was surprised to see him. "Did you do this Beej?"
"No, I didn't even think to invite him," he wished he had.
"Well, if you didn't who did?"
"Your wife," Trapper answered, surprised as everyone else. "I get this message from my secretary to pick up these. She said, 'Mrs. Pierce was quite adamant about you getting those packages and making the trip, so you had better do it.' I don't know what your wife said, but she sure did put some fear into Georgia with a threat on me to get here."
"What packages?" Radar noticed that he was empty handed.
"These packages," Margaret gently set them on the table and ripped one open.
"Well, if that don't beat all?" Sherman chuckled.
"How did you do this?" Hawkeye opened another one of the packages.
"Well, I had the pictures and I sent them down to Boston to be blown up, I was going to get them myself, but then I thought that it would be a good idea to call McIntire up and just have him do it."
"Wait a minute, my secretary said that Mrs. Piece insisted on me getting these," he got all of their attention.
"Will you two just tell them all ready?" Daniel had to come see the commotion.
"Tell us what?"
"What did you do?" Charles saw the smile on Hawkeye's face; it was one he never forgot.
"Charles Emerson Winchester the Third, I'd like you to meet my wife, Margaret Houlihan Pierce."
They all stared at the couple; their smiles were there, but they lost their appeal. Soon-Lee had a very satisfied look on her face. Sara had to bite her lips shut so she wouldn't burst out laughing. Daniel had a very proud smirk; now he knew why they didn't feel it was right to tell them over the phone. Hawkeye and Margaret couldn't do anything but smile at them; they knew their friends would have a hard time believing them.
"This is a joke, right?" Trapper asked.
"No, Trapp, this isn't a joke," Hawkeye took her left hand to show off her beautiful hand that held her ring of coarse. "See this beautiful creature attached to this ring? Well, here's the match," he held up his with his right hand tenderly holding her left.
"It's a joke," Charles looked them over.
"I told you they wouldn't believe us," Margaret had a humored smile plastered on her face.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~
"Charles, I don't remember you being such a helpful person?" Margaret was quite amazed that he volunteered to help her take some of the dishes to the kitchen.
"Yes well I don't remember you ever being able to cook such a meal," he replied to her sarcasm. "I don't think I've eaten so much food in my life." He was amazed that she had cooked that much that well, but he really offered to help so he could talk to her alone. "Margaret," he began as the entered the kitchen, "how on earth did this happen?" He didn't say it rudely, but more in surprise.
"You mean me and Hawkeye?" she guessed.
"Among other things, but yes you and Hawkeye. I never would have pictured the two of you together."
"Well," she smiled and frowned at the same time remembering so much at once, "I've seen a part of him that no one else has."
Charles confusingly stared at her. He was taken back by the emotions she showed in her face and the comment she gave. The way she said it; it was said with such ease and truth.
"Please, Charles, I don't want to bore you with the details," she went on to take care of the dishes.
"No," he encouraged her. "Please."
"Well, I was having a hard time adjusting and I just sorta ended up here looking for a friend," she left out many details.
"A colleague of mine told me you were in Boston," he said as casually and politely as he could.
"I was, for a while, but I didn't like it very much there," she really wanted to avoid talking about it.
"You must be joking," he chuckled.
"No," she smiled to agree with his laughing. "I just didn't care for it."
"Margaret, Boston is the most entertaining city in the world. Why would you allow your skills to go to waste here?"
"My skills aren't going to waste Charles, I'm just using them a different way."
"Did you by chance know Brian Danforth?"
The name hit her like a truck. She froze with dishes in hand over a stack. She quickly went on with what she was doing. "Charles, could you get the rest of those for me?" she ignored his question. She didn't want to answer it. She was concerned about Charles or even Trapper knowing him, but he seemed more between them in social status; she didn't really expect it.
"Of, coarse," he did as he was asked.
"Good, now we can go back outside," she held the door for him to follow her.
She didn't intend on answering his question, but in equal respect he didn't intend to make her answer it.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~
"So where are you working, son?" Sherman was wondering where Hawkeye commuted to work.
"Here. Margaret and I run the clinic," here it came. The second thing he was going have to explain, only this one wasn't as much fun.
"Here? Surely there can't be that much need of a surgeon here," Father Mulcahy wondered.
"Yes well, I don't do much surgery so it works just fine."
"You mean that you don't any cutting?" Trapper couldn't believe it.
"Nope, uh, except for an appendectomy here or tonsillectomy there. Nothing too serious."
The men he was sitting with; Father Mulcahy, Trapper, Sherman, and BJ; were amazed at how easily he said it (everyone else was finishing eating or talking girl talk). It didn't bother him. They thought that it Margaret had given it up too. Both of them were phenomenal in the OR.
"Charles, did you know Hawk quit surgery," BJ asked him as he and Margaret came out to join them. He meant to say it better, but it came out he was disappointed; he was a little though he knew he shouldn't be.
Margaret slightly bit her lip; she was still a bit shaky from what happened in the kitchen and now Hawkeye was going through it. He didn't really quit surgery; he just didn't feel like he needed to do it anymore. After he came home the war haunted him and he didn't want to work with the cold instruments and the unconscious patients. He really did enjoy being Crabapple Cove's general practitioner. Margaret knew he loved; she did too, but she did miss the feel of being in the operating room. Even after Alex and Kat and even Jess, Hawkeye wanted her to know that if she wanted to go back, she could. She knew he was dreading the conversation, but he was would fare much better than she did about Brian.
"You can't be serious," Charles chuckled. He thought BJ must be joking.
"He is Charles," Margaret joined in too.
"You too, Margaret?" Charles couldn't believe his ears.
"Well, I really don't feel the need to move the entire family to Portland for me to work when I have a perfectly wonderful job right here," she noticed Hawkeye's little smile. "Now if you boys will excuse me, I believe there is some gossip I'm missing out on," she left to go talk with the women.
"How did you do it, Hawk?" Trapper watched her walk away.
"Well it was pretty easy. When I got home I just didn't want to do it anymore."
"No, I mean you and Hotlips," he quickly corrected him.
"Yeah, it's not like you just married a normal person!" Radar jumped out of nowhere behind Hawkeye.
"Don't sneak up on me like that," Hawkeye held his chest. "And what do you mean, she's a perfectly normal person."
"You have to admit, Hawk, it was pretty out of the blue," BJ could barely believe it himself thought he knew that his friend had always had a strong attraction to her.
"Sara, how far along are you?" Soon-Lee asked.
"Eight months down. One more and I can finally chase the other two around," she earned laughs from around the table; they all knew.
"What about you, Margaret, any children?" Peg asked. BJ had mentioned many times that the woman often seemed to want a large family.
"Oh, yes," she giggled it, "three," she nodded her head.
"Three children in five years? How on earth did you manage, child?" Mildred Potter was a woman who had seen and heard of many things, but that was a feat.
"Well, Alex and Kat were a two for one. I can't believe their going to be four in December. And Jess just turned two," she said proudly.
"Congratulations, Margaret," Soon-Lee sipped her lemonade, "and what about your husband?"
"He's outside with the others," she had quite a mischievous smile on her face.
"I don't see him," Peg looked out the French doors to see the men sitting at the table.
"Hello?" someone walked into the house that had the front door wide open with some carefully held packages.
The ladies looked out to the room they were just in at the man in the doorway. He was tall with curly brown hair. He had quite the stature and figure. He was holding a few nicely wrapped packages under his arms.
"Trapper?" Margaret went to greet him.
"The one and only," he was still as cocky as ever and a bit surprised to be welcomed by Major Houlihan in Hawkeye's house.
"Oh, I'm glad you made it. I don't know what we would have done if you didn't," she took the packages from him. "Come, on, Hawk's in the back," she led him through the kitchen.
"Well, well, well, and who are all these lovely ladies?" he gave them a big half-cocked smile. "If I knew this was a family get together, I would have brought Louise and the kids."
"Trapper, this is Mrs.," she made sure to make that clear to him, "Peg Hunnicutt, Mildred Potter, Soon-Lee Klinger, and Sara Woodman."
"Pleased to meet you ladies, but if you'll excuse me I have an old friend to meet," he saw Hawkeye talking to Radar, Klinger, and Mulcahy and three other fellows he didn't know.
"Trapper?" Hawkeye, Radar, Klinger, and the Father said at the same time, but not in unison.
"The one and only," he said again.
"What are you doing here?" Hawkeye was surprised to see him. "Did you do this Beej?"
"No, I didn't even think to invite him," he wished he had.
"Well, if you didn't who did?"
"Your wife," Trapper answered, surprised as everyone else. "I get this message from my secretary to pick up these. She said, 'Mrs. Pierce was quite adamant about you getting those packages and making the trip, so you had better do it.' I don't know what your wife said, but she sure did put some fear into Georgia with a threat on me to get here."
"What packages?" Radar noticed that he was empty handed.
"These packages," Margaret gently set them on the table and ripped one open.
"Well, if that don't beat all?" Sherman chuckled.
"How did you do this?" Hawkeye opened another one of the packages.
"Well, I had the pictures and I sent them down to Boston to be blown up, I was going to get them myself, but then I thought that it would be a good idea to call McIntire up and just have him do it."
"Wait a minute, my secretary said that Mrs. Piece insisted on me getting these," he got all of their attention.
"Will you two just tell them all ready?" Daniel had to come see the commotion.
"Tell us what?"
"What did you do?" Charles saw the smile on Hawkeye's face; it was one he never forgot.
"Charles Emerson Winchester the Third, I'd like you to meet my wife, Margaret Houlihan Pierce."
They all stared at the couple; their smiles were there, but they lost their appeal. Soon-Lee had a very satisfied look on her face. Sara had to bite her lips shut so she wouldn't burst out laughing. Daniel had a very proud smirk; now he knew why they didn't feel it was right to tell them over the phone. Hawkeye and Margaret couldn't do anything but smile at them; they knew their friends would have a hard time believing them.
"This is a joke, right?" Trapper asked.
"No, Trapp, this isn't a joke," Hawkeye took her left hand to show off her beautiful hand that held her ring of coarse. "See this beautiful creature attached to this ring? Well, here's the match," he held up his with his right hand tenderly holding her left.
"It's a joke," Charles looked them over.
"I told you they wouldn't believe us," Margaret had a humored smile plastered on her face.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~
"Charles, I don't remember you being such a helpful person?" Margaret was quite amazed that he volunteered to help her take some of the dishes to the kitchen.
"Yes well I don't remember you ever being able to cook such a meal," he replied to her sarcasm. "I don't think I've eaten so much food in my life." He was amazed that she had cooked that much that well, but he really offered to help so he could talk to her alone. "Margaret," he began as the entered the kitchen, "how on earth did this happen?" He didn't say it rudely, but more in surprise.
"You mean me and Hawkeye?" she guessed.
"Among other things, but yes you and Hawkeye. I never would have pictured the two of you together."
"Well," she smiled and frowned at the same time remembering so much at once, "I've seen a part of him that no one else has."
Charles confusingly stared at her. He was taken back by the emotions she showed in her face and the comment she gave. The way she said it; it was said with such ease and truth.
"Please, Charles, I don't want to bore you with the details," she went on to take care of the dishes.
"No," he encouraged her. "Please."
"Well, I was having a hard time adjusting and I just sorta ended up here looking for a friend," she left out many details.
"A colleague of mine told me you were in Boston," he said as casually and politely as he could.
"I was, for a while, but I didn't like it very much there," she really wanted to avoid talking about it.
"You must be joking," he chuckled.
"No," she smiled to agree with his laughing. "I just didn't care for it."
"Margaret, Boston is the most entertaining city in the world. Why would you allow your skills to go to waste here?"
"My skills aren't going to waste Charles, I'm just using them a different way."
"Did you by chance know Brian Danforth?"
The name hit her like a truck. She froze with dishes in hand over a stack. She quickly went on with what she was doing. "Charles, could you get the rest of those for me?" she ignored his question. She didn't want to answer it. She was concerned about Charles or even Trapper knowing him, but he seemed more between them in social status; she didn't really expect it.
"Of, coarse," he did as he was asked.
"Good, now we can go back outside," she held the door for him to follow her.
She didn't intend on answering his question, but in equal respect he didn't intend to make her answer it.
~ * ~ * ~ * ~
"So where are you working, son?" Sherman was wondering where Hawkeye commuted to work.
"Here. Margaret and I run the clinic," here it came. The second thing he was going have to explain, only this one wasn't as much fun.
"Here? Surely there can't be that much need of a surgeon here," Father Mulcahy wondered.
"Yes well, I don't do much surgery so it works just fine."
"You mean that you don't any cutting?" Trapper couldn't believe it.
"Nope, uh, except for an appendectomy here or tonsillectomy there. Nothing too serious."
The men he was sitting with; Father Mulcahy, Trapper, Sherman, and BJ; were amazed at how easily he said it (everyone else was finishing eating or talking girl talk). It didn't bother him. They thought that it Margaret had given it up too. Both of them were phenomenal in the OR.
"Charles, did you know Hawk quit surgery," BJ asked him as he and Margaret came out to join them. He meant to say it better, but it came out he was disappointed; he was a little though he knew he shouldn't be.
Margaret slightly bit her lip; she was still a bit shaky from what happened in the kitchen and now Hawkeye was going through it. He didn't really quit surgery; he just didn't feel like he needed to do it anymore. After he came home the war haunted him and he didn't want to work with the cold instruments and the unconscious patients. He really did enjoy being Crabapple Cove's general practitioner. Margaret knew he loved; she did too, but she did miss the feel of being in the operating room. Even after Alex and Kat and even Jess, Hawkeye wanted her to know that if she wanted to go back, she could. She knew he was dreading the conversation, but he was would fare much better than she did about Brian.
"You can't be serious," Charles chuckled. He thought BJ must be joking.
"He is Charles," Margaret joined in too.
"You too, Margaret?" Charles couldn't believe his ears.
"Well, I really don't feel the need to move the entire family to Portland for me to work when I have a perfectly wonderful job right here," she noticed Hawkeye's little smile. "Now if you boys will excuse me, I believe there is some gossip I'm missing out on," she left to go talk with the women.
"How did you do it, Hawk?" Trapper watched her walk away.
"Well it was pretty easy. When I got home I just didn't want to do it anymore."
"No, I mean you and Hotlips," he quickly corrected him.
"Yeah, it's not like you just married a normal person!" Radar jumped out of nowhere behind Hawkeye.
"Don't sneak up on me like that," Hawkeye held his chest. "And what do you mean, she's a perfectly normal person."
"You have to admit, Hawk, it was pretty out of the blue," BJ could barely believe it himself thought he knew that his friend had always had a strong attraction to her.