Post by melinda on Aug 5, 2014 9:34:29 GMT -6
ch 11
By the time Frank woke up, still groggy but deliriously happy, Margaret was already dressed, her hair up in a bun (which reminded Frank so much of Korea).
"Margaret," he giggled. "I thought we could stay for...breakfast."
She tossed him his shirt. "I had a piece of toast and some coffee."
"But..."
She wouldn't even look at him. "I know what you mean, Frank. There will be no breakfast for us, not now, not ever again."
"But Margaret..."
"Don't Margaret me!" she shrieked. "Do you really think last night meant anything to me? Come on, Frank, surely you can't be that st..."
"But I thought you loved me!"
She sighed. "Are you really going to make me say it? Why do you do this, Frank?"
"I don't understand..."
Now she turned to face him. "It's over, Frank. I don't love you. I'm sorry...I'm sorry if I misled you. That was not my intention."
"But.." then he remembered how she responded the last time he cried out her name. "If you don't love me...what about last night? What was that about?"
"It was pity, Frank. I felt sorry for you. There, I said it. Now are you going to get in the car, or do you need money for a bus?"
He looked down. "Hand me the keys. I...I believe it's my turn to drive." Meanwhile he quickly hid the little jewelry box he'd been carrying around with him for the past fifteen years. What he would do with a ring, he had no idea. But what he'd do with the rest of his life, now...
"Are you coming or not," Margaret barked.
And that was the last thing either of them said to each other all the way to Oklahoma.
Margaret had never hated herself more than she did those last few hours of the first half of their trip.
0000
"Dad.." Erin started as they both sat on the front porch, waiting for his makeshift family to arrive for lunch."
"Yes, honey?"
"You and daddy always told me I could ask you guys anything..."
Hawkeye nodded. "I still mean that. Ask anything you like. I take it you have something on your mind?"
She sighed. "Why did you and Daddy always make fun of Mr. Burns?"
Hawkeye spit out his orange juice. "What...where did you get that idea?"
"Daddy told me you guys did. Is that true?"
Hawkeye sighed. "Erin, honey, there are different types of teasing..."
"I know that. But he didn't say you guys teased him. He said you guys laughed at him. Why?"
Hawkeye just shook his head, missing BJ more than ever. He would have been the one to answer that question. "I don't know, Erin. I guess, I guess your daddy and I were bored. It didn't mean anything. It was...it was just a way to pass the time."
"Dad," Erin looked at him. "I get picked on...all the time. It's not very nice. No one deserves it."
He looked up and had to smile. Leave it to a teenage girl to get the best of him. Still, she didn't know Ferret Face, not the way he and BJ had. "Erin, before you get to feeling too sorry for him...he wasn't a nice man."
"He came to pay respects to Daddy, didn't he?"
.
"Erin, the only reason he came to Maine was to try to get Margaret back!" Hawkeye heard how he was sounding, and he hated himself, but there was still, after all those years, something about Frank that just...that just...irked him.
"Couldn't he have just called Miss Houlihan or written her a letter?"
"Erin.." he looked at his daughter. "Is there something really troubling you? Surely this all can't be about Frank and Margaret."
She looked down. "They had an affair, when he was married, right?"
He nodded. "That's right."
"His kids, he said they hate him."
"Well..." Not that he blamed them, but even Hawkeye knew better than to express that thought.
"Dad...the baby picture in Daddy's wallet...he and my mom were holding me. Did you and Daddy cheat on my mom?"
Hawkeye covered his mouth, his mind going about a million miles a minute. He'd always known this day would come. He'd just always assumed that it would be BJ to explain their situation to Erin, not him. "I...I...I don't know what to say."
"So you did," Erin still looked at him. God she was making this impossible.
"I...We didn't mean for it to happen...we didn't know we had those feelings for each other...hell, we didn't even know we could have feelings for another man, let alone each other. We didn't mean to fall in love, Erin. It just happened."
"Maybe...maybe that's why my mom is so mad. Maybe it's not me she's mad at. She might be mad at you."
"You're smart, kiddo. You understand people. Ever thought of becoming a doctor?" he smiled as he patted her hand,
She shook her head. "No offense, Dad. I like your friends and all...but they are weird."
they laughed, then the first of his friends, probably Radar, pulled in the driveway.
00000
So Margaret took a deep breath, and without saying a word to Frank, she stormed up to the front porch. The Gorens, the sign said. She had found Peg.
She knocked on the door, and it was a woman. Yes, even from BJ's old pictures, there was no doubt this was Peg. The Peg.
"Can I help you?" Peg smiled, not quite opening the door.
"We need to talk."
"Excuse me?"
"I was a friend of your husband's..."
"Roger never told me of any female...:"
Margaret shook her head. "Not that husband. I'm Margaret Houlihan, or as BJ might have referred to me, Hot Lips."
Peg started to shut the door, but Margaret put her hand in the doorway.
"Miss Houlihan, I'm sorry, but I don't have anything to say to you..."
"Oh, but I have plenty to say to you. Are you going to let me in, or do you want me to stand here and tell your story of how you abandoned your daughter because your ex-husband fell in love with a man?"
By then, Frank had walked up behind Margaret. "You'd better do what she says. If she says she'll do something, she means business."
Peg, looking around and seeing neighbor housewives gathering their laundry- their still wet laundry- from the clotheslines, and she knew she had no choice but to let these two "friends" of BJ's in her home.
As Margaret and Peg stared at each other, neither budging, Frank looked around. "I think I need to use the little boys' room..."
"Stay put, Frank." Margaret ordered. "I just may need you to keep me from doing something I'll regret to this...this...this poor excuse of a mother."
"Oh dear," Frank sighed, and suddenly he almost wished he was back in Korea.
tbc
By the time Frank woke up, still groggy but deliriously happy, Margaret was already dressed, her hair up in a bun (which reminded Frank so much of Korea).
"Margaret," he giggled. "I thought we could stay for...breakfast."
She tossed him his shirt. "I had a piece of toast and some coffee."
"But..."
She wouldn't even look at him. "I know what you mean, Frank. There will be no breakfast for us, not now, not ever again."
"But Margaret..."
"Don't Margaret me!" she shrieked. "Do you really think last night meant anything to me? Come on, Frank, surely you can't be that st..."
"But I thought you loved me!"
She sighed. "Are you really going to make me say it? Why do you do this, Frank?"
"I don't understand..."
Now she turned to face him. "It's over, Frank. I don't love you. I'm sorry...I'm sorry if I misled you. That was not my intention."
"But.." then he remembered how she responded the last time he cried out her name. "If you don't love me...what about last night? What was that about?"
"It was pity, Frank. I felt sorry for you. There, I said it. Now are you going to get in the car, or do you need money for a bus?"
He looked down. "Hand me the keys. I...I believe it's my turn to drive." Meanwhile he quickly hid the little jewelry box he'd been carrying around with him for the past fifteen years. What he would do with a ring, he had no idea. But what he'd do with the rest of his life, now...
"Are you coming or not," Margaret barked.
And that was the last thing either of them said to each other all the way to Oklahoma.
Margaret had never hated herself more than she did those last few hours of the first half of their trip.
0000
"Dad.." Erin started as they both sat on the front porch, waiting for his makeshift family to arrive for lunch."
"Yes, honey?"
"You and daddy always told me I could ask you guys anything..."
Hawkeye nodded. "I still mean that. Ask anything you like. I take it you have something on your mind?"
She sighed. "Why did you and Daddy always make fun of Mr. Burns?"
Hawkeye spit out his orange juice. "What...where did you get that idea?"
"Daddy told me you guys did. Is that true?"
Hawkeye sighed. "Erin, honey, there are different types of teasing..."
"I know that. But he didn't say you guys teased him. He said you guys laughed at him. Why?"
Hawkeye just shook his head, missing BJ more than ever. He would have been the one to answer that question. "I don't know, Erin. I guess, I guess your daddy and I were bored. It didn't mean anything. It was...it was just a way to pass the time."
"Dad," Erin looked at him. "I get picked on...all the time. It's not very nice. No one deserves it."
He looked up and had to smile. Leave it to a teenage girl to get the best of him. Still, she didn't know Ferret Face, not the way he and BJ had. "Erin, before you get to feeling too sorry for him...he wasn't a nice man."
"He came to pay respects to Daddy, didn't he?"
.
"Erin, the only reason he came to Maine was to try to get Margaret back!" Hawkeye heard how he was sounding, and he hated himself, but there was still, after all those years, something about Frank that just...that just...irked him.
"Couldn't he have just called Miss Houlihan or written her a letter?"
"Erin.." he looked at his daughter. "Is there something really troubling you? Surely this all can't be about Frank and Margaret."
She looked down. "They had an affair, when he was married, right?"
He nodded. "That's right."
"His kids, he said they hate him."
"Well..." Not that he blamed them, but even Hawkeye knew better than to express that thought.
"Dad...the baby picture in Daddy's wallet...he and my mom were holding me. Did you and Daddy cheat on my mom?"
Hawkeye covered his mouth, his mind going about a million miles a minute. He'd always known this day would come. He'd just always assumed that it would be BJ to explain their situation to Erin, not him. "I...I...I don't know what to say."
"So you did," Erin still looked at him. God she was making this impossible.
"I...We didn't mean for it to happen...we didn't know we had those feelings for each other...hell, we didn't even know we could have feelings for another man, let alone each other. We didn't mean to fall in love, Erin. It just happened."
"Maybe...maybe that's why my mom is so mad. Maybe it's not me she's mad at. She might be mad at you."
"You're smart, kiddo. You understand people. Ever thought of becoming a doctor?" he smiled as he patted her hand,
She shook her head. "No offense, Dad. I like your friends and all...but they are weird."
they laughed, then the first of his friends, probably Radar, pulled in the driveway.
00000
So Margaret took a deep breath, and without saying a word to Frank, she stormed up to the front porch. The Gorens, the sign said. She had found Peg.
She knocked on the door, and it was a woman. Yes, even from BJ's old pictures, there was no doubt this was Peg. The Peg.
"Can I help you?" Peg smiled, not quite opening the door.
"We need to talk."
"Excuse me?"
"I was a friend of your husband's..."
"Roger never told me of any female...:"
Margaret shook her head. "Not that husband. I'm Margaret Houlihan, or as BJ might have referred to me, Hot Lips."
Peg started to shut the door, but Margaret put her hand in the doorway.
"Miss Houlihan, I'm sorry, but I don't have anything to say to you..."
"Oh, but I have plenty to say to you. Are you going to let me in, or do you want me to stand here and tell your story of how you abandoned your daughter because your ex-husband fell in love with a man?"
By then, Frank had walked up behind Margaret. "You'd better do what she says. If she says she'll do something, she means business."
Peg, looking around and seeing neighbor housewives gathering their laundry- their still wet laundry- from the clotheslines, and she knew she had no choice but to let these two "friends" of BJ's in her home.
As Margaret and Peg stared at each other, neither budging, Frank looked around. "I think I need to use the little boys' room..."
"Stay put, Frank." Margaret ordered. "I just may need you to keep me from doing something I'll regret to this...this...this poor excuse of a mother."
"Oh dear," Frank sighed, and suddenly he almost wished he was back in Korea.
tbc
