Harm slept easily while the replacement blood replenished what he had lost. A.J. watched over him like a hawk in case any nightmares or restless sleep should overtake him. A.J. couldn't help but stroke Harm's hair and down his cheek, just for the chance to touch him even though Harm was sound asleep.

Before long the transfusion was nearly done and the doctor returned. "I need to check him over before I release him. He shouldn't be left alone tonight. Will you be staying with him?" the doctor asked.

"Yes." A.J. answered.

The doctor handed him two prescriptions, "You might want to get these filled while I do my examination. One is for pain, he'll need it when the shock wears off. I'm sure stabbing himself was the last thing he expected. The other is to prevent infection. I would recommend that he stay home for a few days, maybe get an early start to the holidays." She said.

"I'll see to it." A.J. said and went in search of the pharmacy.

The doctor checked the progress of the transfusion. She also watched him carefully for signs of any further distress. As she was checking her sutures, Harm began to stir.

"Take it easy, I'm just checking my handy work." She said, trying to reassure him.

His eyes snapped open and he looked around franticly. The doctor recognized the look and snagged a trashcan that was close at hand. She watched as the young man emptied his stomach and continued to wretch violently.

"How long has this been going on?" she asked.

"Since I got back from the Patrick Henry. I've been working hard to reclaim my place at JAG. It's just stress, that's all." Harm mumbled.

"Let me be the judge of that." Dr. Carlyle said.

"It's not like when I went to Laos. It's more like just before finals at the academy."

Dr. Carlyle examined him closer and discovered something that peaked her curiosity. She really wanted to explore what she had found but knew the other man would be returning soon. "All right, I'll give you something to counteract that. You really need to take it easy and relax. There's no sense in making yourself sick over things you can't control. This should be a warning for you."

"I'll try. But I do have to keep up with my work load." Harm said.

"I'll make sure he takes it easy, don't worry." A.J. said from the door.

Harm turned red in embarrassment when he heard. "Nothing to be embarrassed about. You're going to take it easy until you leave for home and when you get back we will discuss your tendency to take on more than your share of the work. It would seem that the others were taking advantage of you in that regard." A.J. said.

Harm was about to argue but a wave of nausea hit him and he curled into a ball and wished it away. He was surprised when the admiral began to stroke his forehead, giving him something else to concentrate on other than his rebelling stomach. "Take it easy, breathe slowly." He whispered. "Everything will be all right."

Dr. Carlyle gave Harm the anti-nausea injection while he wasn't paying attention. Harm barely flinched but the admiral held him close anyway. "When he feels up to it, you can take him home. Just remember not to leave him alone tonight, just to be safe." She said. Both men nodded and the doctor left them alone.

"You don't have to stay, sir. I'll be fine." Harm said.

"I know you will, but I'm staying anyway." A.J. said.

A.J. helped Harm to his feet and held on to him as they went back to the car. Harm tried to sleep during the drive back to his apartment but was still nervous around the admiral. The anti-nausea stuff the doctor had given him was making him sleepy again. "Just lay back and try to sleep." A.J. whispered as he noticed Harm drifting off.

"I'll try." Harm mumbled sleepily and was off in dreamland even before A.J. got to the driver's side.

Despite the seatbelt and shoulder harness, Harm was able to curl up and get comfortable. Sometime during the drive back to his apartment, Harm leaned over and laid his head on A.J.'s shoulder.

Harm was still sound asleep by the time A.J. pulled into the parking lot at his apartment. Carefully, A.J. rearranged the young man so he could get out of the car without awakening him. A.J. didn't have the heart to wake him so he undid the seatbelt and lifted Harm out of the car. He carried Harm all the way to his apartment. Harm snuggled deep into the admiral's embrace and sighed contentedly. Even though he didn't consciously know it, Harm had finally found what his heart had been looking for, for so long.

Chegwidden lost his heart once again as he watched the younger man sleep so peacefully in his arms. "I don't know who hurt you before, but I will make it my mission in life to see that it doesn't happen ever again."

A.J. didn't have the heart to let him go just yet. He sat with him on the couch and held Harm close. / Such innocence in sleep. / A.J. thought. Before too much longer he realized he was enjoying the situation a bit too much and decided it was time to put Harm to bed for the night.

"Time for you to go back to bed now, Harm. I'll see you in the morning." A.J. whispered into his ear. Harm mumbled something totally unintelligible as he carried the young man to bed. A.J. eased him down so as not to awaken him.

Harm grumbled in his sleep when A.J. let him go and the older man had to smile at the way he was reaching for him. "I'll be here when you wake up, just rest now." And Harm drifted off again. A.J. covered him up again and went back into the living room.

A.J. had to wonder who in their right mind would hurt someone like Harm and vowed that he would never be one of those. A.J. drifted off, dreaming of what their life together might be if he could win the heart of the young aviator.

Many nights in the last twenty years, Harm's dreams were of the cold and callous words Billy spoke the night he found out about the miscarriage. However, for some reason, tonight Harm dreamed of someone he couldn't quite make out, though he did know it wasn't Billy. Whoever this man was, he was kind, so gentle and loving. This stranger, though he didn't seem to be a total stranger, was so in love with him and he with the stranger. Harm felt his hands touching him in his most secrete place and he could feel the wonder coming from this unseen man, the joy at having someone so special. He dreamed of their first time and was so amazed that even though it had been so long, it didn't hurt.

Then the dream changed, at first Harm was afraid. But the dream was still a happy one. This time both of them were someplace warm and safe. Harm knew something was different about his body and when he felt a wrenching cramp in his lower body, he knew what it was, he was in labor. He was giving his mystery lover a child. Harm could feel the amazement coming from his mystery lover. He knew he wasn't in a hospital but Harm knew he was safe, his mystery man would make sure of that.

/ "It's a boy. Harm we have a son. Oh I love you so much."

"It's not over yet. I don't know if I have the strength to do this again." Harm said.

"Yes, you do, babe. Looks like you're gonna get a break before the next one. Just lay back and try to relax."

"That's easy for you to say, all you've got to do is catch and cut the cords." Harm grumped.

"Yeah, but look what you've got to show for all those months. You're doing great, it'll be over soon and we'll get you to Bethesda and checked out."

"Oh man, here we go again." Harm wailed as the next contraction slammed into him.

The second one didn't take as long as the first and soon both men were holding their squalling children. "This one's a girl. Megan Rose and Alan James welcome to the world, we're your parents." /

This wonderful dream played itself over and over again, revealing a bit more each time but not enough to tell him who his mystery lover was.

By the time morning came, Harm was well on his way to recovering his reserves and his heart on the way to welcoming a new and lasting love.

"Up and at 'em, Rabb. You've got a flight to catch in a couple of hours." A.J. called from the kitchen.

That was enough to not only wake him up but scare the tar out of him. Harm was startled enough to nearly fall out of bed again. "Let's not do that again, please. Just take it easy and climb out of bed slowly. Breakfast will be ready soon." A.J. said.

"That is too strange." Harm whispered.

As soon as he was upright, he felt the throbbing in his hand. Harm resisted the urge to make a fist of his bandaged hand and to shake it. He moved slowly, least dizziness rush up to slap him down.

"What are you making?" Harm asked.

A.J. turned when he heard Harm's question. He had to grin at the sight of Harm shuffling out of the bedroom. His hair was all spiky and running in a dozen different directions at once. Harm's eyes were half closed though he didn't seem to be having too much trouble navigating the distance between the bedroom and the kitchen.

"Eggs, toast, some cereal, I found some fruit that didn't look too bad and I've got the coffee going. Sit down and I'll bring it to you." A.J. said.

Harm wasn't quite running on all thrusters so he didn't argue. "I expect you to rest and relax while you're at home. I do not want to go through seeing you so sick like the passed few days." A.J. said. He shuddered at the memory.

"I'm sorry, sir. I just thought, I felt I needed to prove myself worthy of your confidence in bringing me back. I didn't mean to make you or anyone else worry." Harm said.

"Believe me, Mr. Rabb, if I didn't want you back we wouldn't be having any discussions on any matter. I'm glad you wanted to come home. To be honest, I really didn't want you to leave, but I understand you had to put an end to one dream before you could build on another." A.J. said. "When you get back, we'll discuss your tendency toward taking on more work than you can possibly handle."

"Yes, sir. Thank you. Now that I think about it I see that over working myself wasn't the answer. I do promise that I'll do better. Work smarter, not to insanity." Harm said.

"I'll clean up, you finish whatever packing you need to finish and I'll drive you to the airport." A.J. said.

"Thank you." Harm said.

Harm couldn't understand, at least for the moment, why the admiral was being so kind to him but he wasn't going to say anything. He would take this time away to figure out what had happened in the last couple of days and what to do about it.

The drive to the airport was quiet but comfortable. "I'll see you when you get back. Give your mother and stepfather my best." A.J. said.

"I will, sir." Harm said and was gone.

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