Chapter Text
THURSDAY
“Alright,“ Jack loaded the gear into the jeep and closed the trunk. “This was a quick one. What’s the plan for tonight, kids? Grab a few drinks at Barney’s or gather up for the post- op deck party? Bozer?”
“I’m voting for the deck.”
“Riles,” Jack turned to the tech genius of the team.
“Nah, I´ll pass. I’ll hit the hay early tonight,” which nobody believed so she added “well, after I kill some zombies on my xbox,” she grinned.
“Right… hoss? Men’s night out...on deck?” He leaned on the jeep nodding expectantly.
“Actually,” Mac began “I have other plans tonight.” The shock hit everyone at the same time. The team gathered up behind Jack in an interrogative mood.
“I, uh, have a date.” he said sheepishly. Jack hit his chest miming a heart-attack.
“YOU what now? When did YOU have time to meet someone? Don’t tell me in a library,” Jack laughed out.
“Noooo, it was a book store, Jack.”
The team got into the car and drove off home. First they would drop off Riley at home then head to Mac-Manor.
“We were reaching for the same book- the new edition of H.P. Love…”
“Who cares about the love book, get to the point: What’s her name, what does she look like, how old is she, we want hard facts, Mac!”
“Her name is Marnie, she is a biologist, she… is about 1.60 tall, athletic, long ginger hair, black framed glasses ‘cause she doesn’t like lenses, uh, she is like…”
“Sounds like the looks of Daphne and the brains of Velma from Scooby-Doo.”
Jack stopped at a building entrance and Riley hopped out, wishing the three boys a goodnight.
At home, Bozer and Jack made themselves comfortable on the deck, as usual, while Mac got ready for his date.
He was nervous like never before. It’s been so long that he went on a date. Last time he attempted to meet up for a date, the girl got shot by a psychopath and left for Australia for recovery.
Mac thought about that for a moment but the threat has been eliminated ever since, so there was no reason for worries. So he walked down the stairs to present his outfit to Jack and Bozer. They aproved of his simple but elegant black pants, white shirt, black blazer: “Go get ‘er tiger!”
Mac rolled his eyes and left. He pulled up into the restaurant’s parking lot and did a once over before going in.
The restaurant was one of the finer ones with a crystal chandeliers and sleek waiters. He looked around, scanning the dining room and the tables with candles and center pieces.
“Looking for me?” He turned around to the lovely voice behind him.
“Marnie, you look...,” he mustered her top to bottom. Her ginger hair fell on her shoulders on both sides perfectly framing her soft face and enhancing the golden brown color of her eyes. The cherry red lipstick matched the color of her satin dress. “...stunning.” Mac offered his elbow and the both of them were led to their table.
FRIDAY morning
Mac woke with a major head ache and a dead cat replaced his tongue. It was mostly dark in his bedroom except for a small crack between the curtains where broad daylight filtered through, stabbing him in the eyes, worsening the head ache by a thousand times.
The attempt to turn away made him dizzy and nauseous. He had two options: Stay in bed and try not to move while the sun bore a whole into his skull or make a painful run for the bathroom.
He chose the latter.
Mac kicked off the blanked and stumbled out of bed, almost falling on his face. He made it just in time to the toilet heaving and vomiting his soul out.
When he thought that there was nothing left in his stomach he eased down on the cold bathroom tiles, breathing heavily. “What the…?”
Coffee might help.
Mac pulled himself up to the sink. He washed his face with cold water but the reflection in the mirror showed the brutal truth. “The walking dead,” he thought. He turned the water off and made a few careful steps out of the bathroom towards the kitchen.
Halfway there he heard the coffee machine. Bozer must have heard him and anticipated his needs.
But when he turned around the corner it wasn’t his roommate that greeted him in the kitchen.
“You’re awake!” Marnie stood in the kitchen with a mug of coffee in her hand. She was wearing an oversize hockey shirt and some white tennis socks. Her hair was braided to the side, her make-up from the previous night gone.
“Marnie...You...I…” Mac stammered when another wave of nausea rolled through his stomach. He swallowed hard and tried to focus.
“Are you okay?” The girl set down her mug on the kitchen counter.
“Yea, I’m fine, just, uh…Can’t remember last night.” He took a few shaky steps towards her. Mac was rummaging in his memories to find some fragments of their date night. But there was nothing.
Not what he had for dinner, not what they talked about all night, how he got home and especially not if they…”
“Oh, don’t worry, you were the perfect gentleman!” Marnie assured. “You had a few glasses too many and I drove you home. So, I met Bozer and he helped me with you. Hi, Boze!” she smiled to the roommate who appeared behind Mac.
“Hey Marn!” They fist-bumped and turned their attention back at Mac.
“I wanted to call an Uber to get home myself, but that is when you decided to projectile vomit on my dress.” Mac moaned shamefully. “Oh no” He wanted to dig a hole and hide and never come out of it ever again. But for now, the hangover was punishment enough, he thought.
“Bozer offered me to sleep over on the sofa and wash my dress. He gave me one of your t-shirts, I hope you don´t mind?”
“No, no of course not. I am so sorry.” That surely was not enough apology but it was all he had in him for the moment. He aimed for the sofa, too.
“Man, you were hammered last night.” Mac didn’t notice that Bozer had left and returned in the meanwhile with a perfectly clean and dry dress. “Here you go, Marnie.”
“Thanks Boze-man.” Marnie disappeared into the guest bathroom.
Mac took a deep breath and made some shaky and weak steps towards the sofa. He tried very hard not to make any fast and sudden moves. When he finally made it he lowered himself down as careful as possible and closed his eyes.
Exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale… he tried to concentrate on his breathing.
“I made a mild chicken broth for you, for later, when you feel like it. Mac? Bozer touched his gently shook his shoulder.
“Later, yes” Mac whispered back, not daring to speak. His throat and stomach hurt from heaving and vomiting. Now, the thought of eating, even if it was as much as a soup, caused his stomach to cramp up.
“Alright.” Marnie came back into the living-room changed into her last night’s dress.
She kneeled down to Mac and gently cupped his face in her hands. “Hey,” she whispered,” I have to go now. I hope you feel better soon so we can go on another date, perhaps.” Mac looked up but squeezed his eyes in pain. “Just get some rest.”
She kissed him on the cheek and left with Bozer. “Gotta go too, man. I called Jack, he’s coming over in a few to look after you in the meanwhile. Take it easy!”
Mac so much managed to groan an answer than to verbalize one.
He let himself tilt to the side and managed to pull the blanket over his head when he heard the entrance door open again. Bozer probably forgot something and came back for it. He barely registered the noises and movement, except for when he heard the door being closed again.
He welcomed the silence and fell asleep.
FRIDAY evening
He was walking through a forest, all alone, wandering aimlessly. On a clearing he found a room – four concrete walls without entrance-Marnie was in there!. A deafening silence made him turn around and all of a sudden he was tight inside the the room without an exit. “Marnie” She was right next to him but when she tried to touch her, the room was flooded with blood. He called out for her but swapped away by a wave and the current pulling him under. He was drowning in blood. He tried to surface and managed to get his head up. He caught a glimpse of Marnie standing high above and looking down with an evil grin.
Mac called out to her, called for help, called for Jack.
“Hey, Mac, hey wake up buddy” He heard Jack’s voice before he felt the nudge on his shoulder and a gentle shake. “Come on, kiddo, you´re having a nightmare. Wake up.”
“Wha…Jack,” Mac cracked his eyes open to a concerned Jack hovering above him.
He managed to sit up, to his surprise without getting dizzy or nauseous at all.
“How are you feeling, hoss?”
Mac thought for a moment, listening in on to himself and things seemed to be back to normal again.
“Fine, I feel, okay. I guess I really just needed a nap,” Mac got up and swayed a little.
“Easy bro, let me give you a hand.” He reached out to stabilize his young friend.
“It´s okay. I think I’ll take a shower.” Mac wobbled a little on his feet. There still was a dull throb in the back of his cotton filled mind but it was bearable. He stepped in the shower and hesitated for a moment thinking of the nightmare he just had. His hand a little shaky he turned the shower on and let the hot water wash over his aching body.
When he felt relaxed enough he stepped out and got himself dressed- just some sweats and a t-shirt- comfortably for a relaxing weekend off duty.
The hall outside was filled with with the sweet scent of cinnamon and vanilla. French toast- a thing Jack picked up on one of his undercover missions in Amsterdam.
“Hungry? I bet you are!”
“Mh… I’ll stick to simple toast for now. Bozer’s chicken broth still there? I don’t want to upset my stomach again so soon.”
In that moment they heard a knock at the door. “Hold on.” Jack went to open and see who it was.
“Hi, is Angus here?” Mac heard a female voice from where he was standing.
“And you are….”
“Oh, sorry, I am Marnie. You must be Jack.” She reached out to shake hands. “I uh…”
“Marnie?” Mac appeared behind his “babysitter”.
“Hi, you look, better!”
“I feel better, too. What are you doing here? Come on in.” he glanced at Jack to make room for her to enter.
“Well, I wanted to call you to see how you were doing when I noticed that I left my phone here. So I came back. I think I left it in the bathroom when I was changing after… you know…” she quickly ran down the hall towards the bathroom- the situation was quite awkward. She didn´t hear Jack’s embarrassing questioning.
“After you what? She was here?” he whispered, “all night? And she CHANGED, changed WHAT?”
Saved by the bell. Jack’s phone rang and a second later all color faded from his face. He barely picked up when Matty´s voice boomed through the speakers. Every time he tried to answer or say anything at all their boss lady interrupted him and seemed to get louder by the second.
With a final “Yes Ma’am!” he hung up and shoved the cell back into his jeans pocket. By that Mac was grinning like a Cheshire cat and Marnie returned with her phone.
“Who was that,” Mac asked sheepishly.
“You`re lucky you are in a lady’s company or else I would dust your butt this instance. I have to go back. It seems I might have, possibly, accidentally neglected to write a report. You sure you don´t need me?”
But even before Mac could answer Marnie agreed to stay over. “I didn’t have any plans this weekend anyway, so, I can stay.” she smiled at Mac. That smile. It made time stop, heartbeats skip, breaths be held and even the strongest man falter and feel like a mouse.
“Uh… sure, sure, fine… yes.” Jack was halfway through the door “Oh, and make sure you eat something.”
SUNDAY afternoon
A day later Jack came by the house. He had tried to call Mac several times but he didn´t pick up. Marnie was with him the day before so he probably was “busy”. Still that was no excuse to not pick up the phone. He was worried. Jack wasn’t sure why but his guts told him he needed to check up on his boy.
From outside the house seemed quiet. He pulled up next to Mac’s Jeep, Marnie’s smart wasn’t there anymore. The curtains were drawn shut, the windows closed. Something was wrong.
He opened the door cautiously. It was dark inside, the air felt warm and damp.
“Mac?!” Jack stepped in and shut the door behind him. The house was quiet which was suspicious enough. He was about to draw his gun but felt betrayed when his hands grabbed air. “Shoot”
Suddenly he heard a glass roll in the far back bathroom- Mac’s bathroom.
Jack took a deep breath and walked over to the door where the noise came from. Slowly he pushed the door open. “Oh Mac.” he exhaled. The young agent was sitting on the bathroom floor, doubled over, hands clutched to his stomach. Jack quickly knelt down beside him bracing his shoulders.
“What´s wrong?” he looked around and saw an empty bottle of pepto on the floor.
Mac was breathing heavily, his face was pale, his skin clammy and his body tense and trembling.
“Marnie” he croaked.
“No, no, buddy, it´s me, Jack. What happened?”
Mac looked at him, confused and disoriented behind glassy red eyes. “Stomach flu,” he uttered between clenched teeth. “...knew… couldn´t be… wine.”
“Yeah, uh, makes sense if it you’re sick again.” Jack rubbed the young agent’s back. “We have to get you to a hospital.”
“No, I´m going to be fine. I have … “he scanned the bathroom floor and finally pointed to the empty medicine bottle with pink juice dripping from it “...that. And I also took some painkillers for the headache. Jack, not the hospital, please.” he pleaded grasping his protector’s strong forearm.
They looked deeply into one another’s eyes until Jack nodded slightly.
Mac exhaled, the tension in his body relaxing enough for him to loosen the grip on both, Jack’s arm and his stomach but not letting go entirely.
“Help me up?” Mac leaned in on Jack while the latter pulled him and himself up from the floor.
“Let’s get you in bed and I’ll call Matty that you’re not going in tomorrow.” Something was seriously wrong with his boy. He never lets anyone help him let alone ask for help. He felt Mac’s weight on him- a testament to how weak he really was. He barely moved his legs on his own.
Slowly they moved toward the bedroom and after a few steps they made it to the bed. Jack lowered his young friend down on the edge of the bed first, then he cupped his head and lowered him even further on the pillow. After that he raised Mac’s legs into the bed and covered him all the while the young man didn’t even open his eyes.
“I’ll get a bucket in case...you know.” Mac didn´t answer but wasn’t asleep yet, so much Jack could tell from the irregular breaths the boy was taking.
When he came back with the bucket he noticed that Mac turned onto his side, knees close to his chest, eyes tightly squeezed.
Jack turned back out of the room to get a cool cloth and placed it a minute later on Mac’s forehead.
“Thks,” came a faint whisper. Jack smiled. “You´re welcome. Rest now. I’ll stay here tonight. You call me if you need anything and if it gets worse, then…”
“It won’t,” Mac cut him off.
Jack nodded sadly “Okay” Mac looked him straight in the eyes. “Try to sleep, I’ll be on the sofa.”
He slumped down on the couch and turned on the TV but was absentmindedly switching between channels. He tried to recall the last time he had food poisoning or stomach flu, if at all. Usually his stomach would just about devour anything that goes down there. Turkey? No, they had some awesome Iskender- he just had too many of them. Guatemala? Nope, just too much again. China then. Those fried scorpions probably weren´t fresh anymore. He sighed. There was nothing he could do right now for Mac. Just wait it out and hope that he didn´t get worse.
Something startled him- he must have nodded off because the TV was off- programmed on a sleep timer, so it’s been at least 3 hours since.
He heard Mac violently heaving. That meant that the medicine the boy was taking earlier wasn`t working too well for him. It pained him that he had to watch him suffer through this ordeal. He wanted to go to him, comfort him but at the same time Jack knew he wouldn´t want him there right now.
At some point it all was quiet again and Jack succumbed to sleep as well.
It was in the middle of the night when he woke again to some noise. The house was dark, only lit by some moonlight here and there shining through the windows.
He heard the noise again coming from Mac´s room.
Jack got up and went to see. Slowly he opened the bedroom door “Mac?” he whispered. But Mac was fast asleep. At some point he must have opened the window because a fresh wind blew through the window and let the curtains dance. There was a framed picture of Mac and his grandfather on the floor. The wind and the curtains must have knocked it off- that was probably the sound that woke him up- but not Mac. Another testament of how exhausted he was.
Jack nodded in agreement with himself- he solved the case- and carefully stepped back out again.
MONDAY morning
Bozer stayed all weekend at Leanna´s. He didn’t bother going home and went straight to Phoenix to meet up with Riley. Matty told them about Mac´s condition and assigned another team to the planed mission. Riley and Bozer were to assist with the background intel to keep them busy.
“Good morning sleepy head”
Jack was standing in the kitchen making some breakfast. “How are you?”
Mac pulled the blanked around him tighter.
“Tired,” he croaked. “My throat feels like I swallowed a cheese grater.”
“Feel like eating something?” at that moment two toasts popped out of the toaster.
Mac made a face.
“Guess that’s a no. Well, at some point you’ll have to eat something and until thennnnn…” Jack turned around with a hot steaming cup of “Chamomile tea?”
“Yup, you HAVE to before you turn into a mummified raisin!”
Mac surrendered and took the cup.
“How´s the headache?” Jack wondered
“I’m fine.” Which translated to “I have a huge headache but I won´t admit it because people worry enough as it is already” and Jack knew that.
He rose his eyebrow and went to Mac´s room to retrieve an almost empty bottle of pain killers.
“Here. Take one.”
“Nah, I´m good, I swear. I´ll take one if it gets worse.”
“Gotcha!!! So you DO HAVE a headache!”
Mac rolled his eyes and instead of answering he took his cup and headed for the deck.
TUESDAY morning
The team arrived one by one, whike Matt was the first one, already talking on the phone: “No, he is not entitled to a phone call…. He doesn´t have anything I could possibly want… Tell him to go to hell… no, better, to rot in prison.” Matty hung up, visibly pissed off by whoever was on the line. Seeing Mac in the war room didn´t make it any better.
“Blondie, why are you here? Dalton, why is he here?” Matty took the center stage in the front of the war room and fired deadly laser beams through her eyed. All heads turned to stare at Mac and Jack- the duo didn´t feel awkward at all.
“I, uh…” Jack stammered
“Oh hell, learn to speak Dalton or shut up! What are you doing here Mac, we don´t need you to share your stomach contents with us!” Matty´s anger was just for the show but everyone knew she was the kindest woman and always caring for her team.
Mac smiled “I´m fine, promise” He closed the door behind him and took his usual seat in the brown leather armchair.
“If you vomit on my carpet, you´ll get me a new one.” Matty warned but turned back to the big screen to continue with the new mission- nothing serious, just some observation task, but still necessary.
She explained who the target was and why it was crutial to keep tabs on him. The mission was simple enough: Mac was to take position outside a pawn shop where they expected the target to enter. In case he escaped, Mac would be the last stand. Bozer played the shop owner and his job was to place the tracker which Riley would log from a safe distance- as usual, in a surveillance truck disguised as food- truck. So, from time to time, she had to sell a hot- dog or two with Jack as her assistant. The costumes provided looked hilarious but nobody was to say a word, especially about the little propeller hats they had to wear.
Everyone took position.
The target arrived and went straight in. So far so good. The mission went according to plan when…
“Mac…,” a familiar voice called out from behind him. He turned around surprised.
“Marnie, hi.” Mac looked nervously to the pawn shop and secretly prayed that nothing went sideways. “What are you doing here?”
“Uh, grocery shopping.” She pointed at some market stands in a side street. “They also have amazing organic ice cream. Want to join?”
Just as he was about to decline, the target left the pawn shop and Riley confirmed over the ear piece that the logging was successful and they could now track his every step.
“Sure, I was about to get a hot- dog first and I´ll meet you there?”
“From that greasy truck over there? Are you sure, after what you went through a few days ago? You know, you still look…meh…and I really don’t want you to pass on your food experience again…”
Mac heard his team’s giggles over the comms and grimaced.
“You´re right, I´ll just get a water… or… something… be right back!”
A little confused, she watched him cross the street to the truck, shrugged though and headed for the market.
Mac leaned in on the open truck window, pretending to buy something.
“Yeah, Mac, don’t pass on your food man, she’s a keeper,” Jack bickered, Riley and Bozer giggling in the background.
“Very funny, you guys. C´mon give me a water, I won’t be long. Meet you back at Phoenix’s.”
“That’s okay, Mac, we’ll wait” Jack grinned handing him a cold bottle of mineral water.” Just stay in range.”
“Right.” Mac turned to follow Marnie and switched off his comms on his way.
He didn’t have to go far, let alone find Marnie. She was already waiting with two ice cream cones in her hands, smiling. “I thought I´d cut it short- you seem stressed. Need to be somewhere?” She handed him one of the cones. “I got you mango- all organic.”
“Thanks, how did you know it was my favorite?”
“Lucky guess.” She shrugged.
“Want to try?”
“Nah, I´m good. I like to experiment- I have a cherry-chili with dark chocolate chips. I´d let you have some but I don´t want you to get sick again”, she stopped to look straight in his eyes. “I was worried, you know.”
Mac winced “No need, I’m fine now. Stomach flu is all over, hopefully”. They walked a bit in awkward silence licking away on their ice-cream. When they stopped at a crossover, Mac finally turned to face her “Look, I have to go now, but, if you’re not too busy tonight, I’d like to take you out, maybe? Make amends for the …you know.”
“I’d love to, um, are you sure you are alright? I mean, you feel okay? No nausea, or anything?” Marnie smiled. His body tensed uncomfortably. “It usually takes a week or two to recover from a stomach flu?”
“I’m fine, really, never better. So, I call you later?”
She hesitated, looking past him a little embarrassed for even doubting his wellbeing but agreed after all. “Right, then, talk to you later.” She kissed him on the cheek, then turned and left.
Mac sighed relieved.
“Whelp, that was a little awkward.” He heard Jack over the comms. Didn´t he switch them off? “What? How?”
“Ah, you know Riles, likes to play spy kids whenever she…”
“Oh no, YOU wanted to spy on him and blackmailed me!”
“Whaaaat? I would never…”
“Get your asses back to base NOW”, everyone wince at the high pitched shout.
“Matty, you too?” Mac felt naked…