War

By Supergirl6512428 < Supergirl6512428@cs.com>

Rated: PG-13

Submitted: January 2003

Summary: Metropolis Towers have been attacked by terrorists. Jimmy leaves Sara to fight the war on terrorism and is totally unaware that Sara is pregnant with his child. Jack has come back for a fresh start with his father and son relationship with Jimmy. Will Jimmy return in time to see his child be born, and will he accept Jack as his father again?

Author's Notes: First of all I would like to advise readers that this story handles a sensitive subject and may upset some readers. Now to my thanks, again I have to say thank you so much, Jen; without you this story would have never made it. Hope you like the story, feel free to email me.

***

Prologue:

The snow fell softly on the roads as an old Jeep Grand Cherokee drove down the dark, winding road that would lead them to Smallville. Clark rubbed his eyes as he tried to stay awake; he hated driving to Smallville, but he couldn't travel 'Superman Express' because Jimmy was going with them, and Sam and Ellen were tagging along. The family was going to Smallville for the Kent family reunion, where three generations of the Kents gathered. It was the one chance where war stories were shared, where political views were the root of many fights, where the Kent children gathered and played with each other, and where the Kent women chatted about gossip around town, cooked and sewed. A smile tugged at Clark's tired face at that last thought. 'Cooking and sewing? Well, Lois and Sara will break that chain-they can't cook to save their lives!' A frown set on his face as he watched Sam and Ellen sleeping in the back seat. They weren't supposed to come, but Lois had forgotten that they were coming to Metropolis for Thanksgiving and had to bring them along. Clark's eyes then set on Jimmy who had Sara, Clark's daughter, in his arms as he slept. Jimmy came along because he had been Sara's boyfriend for four months; he was family, and he had no real family of his own to spend Thanksgiving with.

***

Morning graced its appearance just as Clark drove on the dirt road to the farm. The car rocked gently from the rocks, waking everyone up. Lois stretched her arms out and realized that she had Clark's Smallville State College sweatshirt covering her. "Morning," she mumbled.

"Morning, sunshine," Clark said with a smile.

Lois then looked out to the window to see the Kent family waving from the porch. She waved and managed to laugh out, "Oh, hey, it's the welcoming committee!"

"WOW! These people are all Kents?" Jimmy squeaked as he looked out the window.

Sara held his hand and replied, "Every last one of them."

***

Martha squeezed her way through the crowd to greet her son and daughter but stopped in her tracks when she saw Ellen and Sam. "Oh! Ellen! Sam! How are you? We weren't expecting you two."

Ellen smiled and said, "Nice to see you again, Martha."

Clark shook his father's hand and kissed Martha on the cheek. "Hey, Mom, how are you?"

"Oh, I'm wonderful, Clark. The men are in the barn; why don't you introduce Jimmy and Sam to them?" Martha suggested as she helped carry the bags to the house. Clark nodded and disappeared with Sam and Jimmy.

A brown haired, hazel eyed girl with a red dress took Sara by the arm and asked, "Where did you get that hottie with the cowboy boots?"

Sara laughed. "Jessie! What am I going to do with you?" Jessie was Sara's cousin and was only a week younger then Sara; they were best of friends. "If you must know, Jimmy works with my mom and dad, and we've gone out on a few dates…"

"And…"

"*And* what? There's nothing to tell!" Sara said with a laugh.

Jessie nodded and asked with a giggle, "Does he kiss well?"

Sara turned her head toward Jessie. "Jessica Marie Kent!"

"What? You can't blame me for asking. I mean…look at him!" Jessie laughed as they entered the house.

***

At the dinner table, the political opinions of Billy, Martha's older brother, and Jonathan were getting the best of them. "Come on, Bill! We don't know who we're fighting here!" Jonathan exclaimed.

"So, you want to let these b…"

"We have children in the other room!" Martha barked.

"Sorry, Martha. Jonathan, do you want these losers to get away with what they did to Metropolis?" Billy demanded a little calmer.

Jonathan shook his head and replied, "No. I want to get these guys good, but I don't want no son of mine drafted to fight a war when we aren't sure who did that heinous act to the Metropolis Towers."

There was a silence around the table. Finally Martha broke the silence and commented, "Well, we're lucky that no one was drafted in this family."

Jimmy sank into his chair and thought, 'Yeah, real lucky.' The day before Jimmy left for Smallville, he got a notice saying that the Army was drafting him for the war. Jimmy didn't tell anyone other than Perry, who was like a father to him. A smile crossed Jimmy's face as that was the only time he had seen Perry cry, but, of course, Perry said he merely had something in his eye. Jimmy's smile dulled to a frown; how would he explain this to Sara and the Kents?

***

Sara and Jimmy were wrapped in a blanket looking at the stars above that seemed to cover the sky. "They're beautiful, aren't they?" Sara asked as she snuggled closer to Jimmy.

"Yep."

Sara looked up, and a playful smile surfaced as she pointed out, "Oh, look, there's a monkey."

"Really? That's nice," Jimmy said as he thought about how he was going to explain this to Sara.

Sara put her hand on Jimmy's face, making him concentrate on her bright blue eyes. "What's wrong, Jimmy?"

Jimmy laced his large fingers in Sara's petite hands. "Sara, you know that I love you right?"

"Of course I do. Jimmy what's wrong?" Sara asked even more concerned.

Jimmy sighed, "I was drafted to go to war."

Sara looked at him blankly, not comprehending what he just said. "What?" "I was drafted for war; I leave next week."

Sara got up and stepped down from the porch. "Can't you stay? I mean, we have Superman and Supergirl, and the colonels of every army and navy. I can pull some strings to get you out! Jimmy, please don't leave me!"

Jimmy followed Sara, put his arms around her and said, "I have to go. I want to go."

Sara shook her head and asked, "Why?"

"I want to fight for my country and become someone, not just a simple camera boy from the Daily Planet," Jimmy replied as he looked down at the powdery snow on the ground.

"Oh, I see what this is all about," Sara realized. "It's because of your father, isn't it? You want to show him, don't you? You want him to accept you." Jimmy didn't answer. "Why do you feel the need to prove anything to him? He hasn't been in your life; do you think this will change his mind?"

Jimmy turned around to see the moonlight shining off Sara's tears. "Sara," Jimmy whispered as he pulled her closer, "Listen to me. I'll come back to you, and when I do, I want you to be the girl that I come home to."

"I just don't want to have a notice or some guy coming to the door saying you're… dead." Sara finished as Jimmy put his hand to her face, wiping away her tears with his thumb.

Jimmy then pulled Sara closer to him so that his lips brushed against hers when he whispered, "You'll never lose me, Sara." Jimmy started to kiss Sara, moving his hands to her waist.

***

Clark smiled as he looked out the window. Sara had had many boyfriends over the years. There was Crag, Jeff, Jay, Luke, and one even called Lex, which made Clark shudder at the thought. But, Jimmy was different from all the rest. Yeah, the other boys said that they loved Sara, but Jimmy * loved* Sara with all his heart. He mooned over her like nothing else. Jimmy was her best friend. A frown set on Clark's face. Jimmy told him tonight about being drafted to the war. He even asked Clark how to go about telling it to Sara. Clark gave Jimmy an honest answer and simply told him to go with his heart, and by the looks of it, it seemed to calm Sara down. Clark saw Sara and Jimmy part; Sara took off her necklace that her parents had given to her before they sent her to earth, and overheard Sara say, "Here. Keep this until you come back. They'll watch over you."

Jimmy looked at the locket that sat in his palm and said, "I can't take this. It means too much to you."

"Jimmy, you mean the world to me, and with my parents looking over you, nothing will happen to you," Sara said as she kissed Jimmy and walked into the house.

Before Sara could reach the porch, Jimmy took her by the arm gently and pleaded, "Marry me."

"What?" Sara asked in shock as she turned around to see Jimmy on one knee with a small box in his hand.

"Sara Lane Kent, be my wife," Jimmy repeated with his blue eyes meeting Sara's.

"I-I will!" Sara stuttered as Jimmy placed the ring on her delicate finger. Jimmy rose to his feet only to be pulled into Sara's kiss.

***

Jimmy walked in the door setting his bag on the floor. He looked back at the people who had become his family over the years and especially this past week. He couldn't believe that he was actually doing this-he was just a photographer, not an Army soldier. There was no turning back now. Jonathan shook Jimmy's hand and said, "Take care of yourself, son. I want you to come back to us."

Jimmy smiled and said, "I will, Mr. Kent. Thank you for the great Thanksgiving. I guess I'll see you all when I come back." Jimmy picked up his bag and walked outside with Sara.

"Jimmy, promise that you'll come back to me," Sara said as she held his hand. Jimmy stopped walking and looked deep into Sara's blue eyes. "Honey, I promise on every star in space that when I come back we'll get married and have a hundred kids."

An eyebrow rose on Sara's forehead. "A hundred? Boy, you must be kidding," Sara laughed.

Jimmy smiled as he put his forehead against Sara's and whispered, "I love you."

"I l-"Before Sara could finish, their lips locked in a most passionate kiss. Jimmy's fingers entangled into Sara's golden blonde hair as his other hand traced her slender body. Their moment was broken as a bus drove towards the dirt driveway.

"Do you have the necklace?" Sara asked as she kissed him again.

Jimmy smiled and showed Sara that it was around his neck. "It'll never leave me. I love you."

"I love you too," Sara sighed as Jimmy entered the bus and disappeared among the men on the bus that drove away.

***

War:

It had been 9 months since Jimmy had left Metropolis to fight the war in Afghanistan. Life in Metropolis didn't seem to slow down but got faster for Sara Kent. Her career had sky rocketed to super stardom. Sara was in a whirlwind, but every now and then, she took a breather and wondered where Jimmy was-if he was okay, and if he still loved her like she loved him. The biggest thing that Sara had to face for the last nine months was that she was pregnant with Jimmy's child, and she didn't know if that was the reason why Jimmy wasn't writing.

***

Sara sat in Perry's office as he went over the stories for the afternoon edition. It was a slow news day, and Perry wasn't liking it. Sara traced the scraps and dents on Jimmy's camera and smiled to think it was almost like a necklace to Jimmy. Wherever he went, the camera went with him. Sara almost laughed out loud when she saw a certain finger print on the back of the camera. She and Jimmy had gotten a tip from a source that a scientist was trying to clone Lex Luthor, so Jimmy and Sara met up with the scientist only to be pushed out a window. Superman wasted no time saving them that day but almost dropped Jimmy's beloved camera. He caught it and managed to push his thumb in a little too hard, making the finger indent.

Sara was shaken out of her daydream by Perry yelling at Ralph. She looked out Perry's window and saw an Army officer looking around the empty newsroom. "Excuse me, Perry." Sara slowly got up and walked out of the office.

"May I help you, sir?" Sara asked.

The man smiled at Sara's new figure, but then took to a straight face. "Yes, is a Ms. Sara Lane Kent here?"

The baby kicked. Sara put her hand on her stomach to ease the baby's nervousness and replied, "I'm her."

The soldier pulled a chair towards Sara and stated, "You may want to sit down for this, Ms."

Sara waved off the offer and said, "I can handle it. What do you need to tell me, soldier?" The soldier handed Sara an envelope and took off his hat. His eyes were filled with sadness and regret as Sara took it. Sara's hand trembled as she opened the note. Her eyes got wide and teary. "No, this can't be true!"

"I'm awfully sorry," the man said as he walked away.

Sara entered the office. Lois looked up and saw tears rolling down Sara's cheeks. The sparkle in her eyes was gone, and goose bumps ran up Lois's body. Lois automatically asked what happened. "No. Oh, God, tell me it's not true!" Lois whispered as she walked toward Sara to comfort her.

In the embrace of her mother, Sara broke down. "It's true! They say that Jimmy is missing in action!"

"Shhh, it's okay, honey, it's okay," Clark assured both Sara and Lois who were crying hysterically on his shoulder.

Through her tears, Sara saw a thin man with short white hair wearing a black jacket with a white turtle neck under it. Before Clark could stop Sara, she was in the newsroom approaching the stranger.

***

Jack smiled at Sara's bulging stomach; Jimmy didn't tell him that he and Sara were expecting a child. "Sara how-" Before Jack could finish his sentence, she punched him in the mouth, sending him to the ground.

"You jerk! You're the one who killed Jimmy!" Sara screamed and tears slid down her face as she ran out of the Daily Planet.

"What on Earth is she babbling on about?" Jack demanded as he stood up and rubbed his jaw.

Perry slowly walked over and looked Jack square in the eye. "I should give you a good punch, too."

Jack put up his hands. "Hey, I'm just here to see Jimmy, and she's the one sucker punching me. Now what's going on?"

"Jack, Jimmy went to fight the war-"

"Why on earth would he do that?!" Jack exclaimed.

"To please you, Jack. Jimmy thought he had to be a war hero to have you love him," Clark answered angrily as he walked off to comfort Sara.

***

Sara slammed her car door and took a deep cleansing breath, but the tears seemed to swell up. Her heart shattered all over again. How was she ever going to live without Jimmy? What would she tell their child? Oh how she hated, despised Jack for not being a better father to Jimmy. 'If Jack would have been there for Jimmy and his mother…if he didn't walk out on them…Jimmy would still be alive!' Sara thought as she hit the steering wheel in anger, only to jump at a light knock on the window. Through the tears Sara saw Clark and unlocked the door; he quietly slipped into the passenger seat and looked out the window. "How long has it been since you were in space?" he asked curiously.

Sara shrugged. "Nine months, but who's counting." Ever since Sara became pregnant, her powers had disappeared, and Dr. Klein didn't now why or if they would come back.

Clark smiled. "Well, you're overdue for a trip there. Come on." Clark got out of the car, and Sara followed.

***

The stars surrounded them, and tears swelled in Sara's blue eyes as she remembered what Jimmy had promised her before he left. 'I promise on every star in space that I'll come back to you.' Sara looked over to Superman, who had closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" he screamed making Sara jump.

"What are you doing?" Sara said incredulously as she looked around to see if anyone heard. Then it dawned on her that they were in space, and no one could hear them.

Superman opened his eyes and shrugged. "It felt good. Try it."

Sara smiled. "No way."

Superman made a face and said, "Hey, I went to a shrink with your mother for a month. They told me that releasing your feelings releases the stress. I'll even do it with you. We'll count to 3."

"1…2…3."

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Sara screamed. It felt like she was going light- headed; her problems seemed to run away. Maybe if she screamed loud enough, Jimmy would wake her up from this horrible nightmare. Tears streamed down her face as she fell to her knees with Clark holding her and ensuring her things would get better.

***

Rachel jumped from what she heard in her headset and looked out the spaceship window. "NASA, are you catching this?" Rachel asked furrowing her brow.

"Copy that, we do. What is it?" NASA responded.

Rachel shrugged and said, "It's Superman and some girl; they're crying." Rachel was surprised when she said it because all the stories she had heard about the Man of Tomorrow were that he was emotionless-never cared about anyone, never showed the true him, etc. Rachel listened closer to what was being said outside of the spacecraft and heard Superman saying something. "What is he saying?" Rachel questioned NASA.

"Actually, he's not talking. He's singing!"

Superman gently rocked Sara like an infant, singing in his native tongue. Zara had taught him years ago how to sing the song, and said that any child would fall silent. Superman smiled as he looked down at Sara to see she was fast asleep from all the commotion. Something shiny caught Superman's eye, and he saw a NASA spaceship with a very curious astronaut peering out the window. Superman gave the woman a cold stare and flew away with his sleeping daughter, knowing this would soon be on the news everywhere.

***

Sara woke up to a hunger pain. Over the last nine months, Lois and Clark had driven in every drive thru in Metropolis. Superman had even gone to Italy to get the finest pasta for her. But this time she wouldn't wake them up. No, she would walk. Sara slipped out into the cold night and walked along the sidewalks shining from the street lights. All the while Sara's thoughts were getting the best of her. Her mind was going crazy. 'What am I going to do with out Jimmy? What is our child going to say? I hate Jack…I hate myself for not telling Jimmy about the baby,' Sara thought as she rubbed her stomach. Suddenly a hand reached out and grabbed her by the arm pulling her into a dark alley way. "HEY!" Sara screamed.

"Shut up!" the stranger growled as he ripped Sara's purse from her hand.

"I don't have anything on me," Sara cried as the tears welled up. In jams like this Sara would usually play it cool. She was always calm and collected, but when she found out she was pregnant, the simplest things made her cry.

The man dug through Sara's bag and his eyes seemed to light up when he took out her wallet. Suddenly his eyes turned to stone when he found out how much Sara had. "Two bucks?! No credit cards?! Where's the rest of the money?" The man yelled slapping his hand against the wall inches away from Sara.

Sara flinched and insisted, "I have nothing! Really, that's all I have!"

A smile tugged at the man's mouth as he eyed Sara's earrings. "My, my, what do we have here? Diamond stud earrings?"

A tear streamed down Sara's cheek; Jimmy had given her the earrings for her 21st birthday. He had spent all his money that he was saving up for a Harley to pay for them. "Please, not the earrings," she begged.

"Sorry hon. Cough them up! NOW!" the man yelled.

"Someone help!" Sara screamed so loud that it pierced the man's ears.

The man looked around to see if anyone was coming and yelled, "You stupid girl!" He pulled out a gun, but something knocked the gun man to the ground. Sara stood there for a second. The figure of the rescuer was so familiar-the way the hair was cut, the manner of the man's hands…"RUN!" the hero barked making Sara jump out of her contemplation. "ANGEL RUN!" Sara did what the man said, but two blocks from the town house it dawned on Sara who had saved her. A tear slid down her cheeks…but it was impossible.

***

'Angel' kept echoing in Sara's head as she sat in a boring White House briefing. 'It couldn't have been Jack…couldn't have been dad…' Sara thought as she dug through her purse for more tape for her tape recorder. As her fingers then touched a cold piece of metal; its shape brought tears to Sara's eyes…'It can't be…it can't be…' Sara kept saying to her self as she took the item out of her bag and gasped out loud, "OH MY GOD!"

Everyone looked at Sara who was still staring at the object. Sara looked up and blushed. "Sorry. Ran out of batteries." They took the excuse and went on with the conference. Sara traced her fingers over the necklace. It was still gold and shiny like the first time she had received it. Sara's trembling hands opened the locket to see the picture of Zara and Ching smiling at her. She had to tell Lois and Clark.

***

Perry pressed his fist to his desk. "Now Lois I want you two off that story!" As usual, Lois was refusing to listen to Perry's request to dump a story that was getting too risky.

Lois put her hands on her hips and yelled, "but I have *proof* that it was Intergang!"

"Lois! I don't care-" Perry stopped to see Sara burst into his office with tears streaming down her face and a smile a mile wide.

"HE'S ALIVE!" Sara squealed.

"Who is?" they all asked at once.

"Jimmy!" Sara cried in joy

"But how?!" Lois asked.

Sara showed Lois her necklace. "I gave Jimmy my necklace before he went to war, and last night I got mugged-"

"What?!" Clark exclaimed as he leaped to his feet.

Sara dismissed Clark's reaction. "But someone saved me, and I didn't know until I found my necklace in my purse! Jimmy saved me!"

Lois bit her lower lip. She knew Sara had been missing that necklace for months. As Sara sat down she pointed out, "Honey, you were missing that necklace for a while now. Maybe you put it in your purse and didn't find it until today."

"No," she insisted. "I gave it to Jimmy. I saw it *around* his neck when he left for the Army."

"Sara, you've been taking Jimmy's death pretty hard-we all have-and you've been working yourself way too hard. Why don't you go home and take a rest; all this stress isn't good for the baby," Perry instructed.

"No!" Sara declared as she stamped her foot like a spoiled child. "You have to believe me!"

"Sara, sometimes the mind plays horrible tricks on us when we're stressed. If he was really alive, why isn't he here now?" Clark asked.

Sara played with her necklace and second guessed herself; maybe her mind *was* playing games. "I guess you're right. I'm sorry to interrupt," Sara finished abruptly as she got up and walked back to her desk in the bullpen.

***

Night had fallen on the busy city. Sara still sat at her desk trying to meet the deadline for the early edition of the paper. The Daily Planet was dark; the only source of light was Sara's desk lamp and the soft glow of the vending machine. Sara glanced up at it; her stomach gave out a loud growl. She walked up to it and noticed that the last Hershey Bar was there. In went her dollar. As she started to punch in the code, she heard something fall and break. "Hello?" Sara asked as she squinted in the dark to see if she could make out a figure or anything. She shrugged it off, got her chocolate bar and went back to her desk. The vase that held a rose had dropped and shattered. Sara grumbled as she started to clean the mess up and noticed the light was shining off a boot. Sara jumped to her feet and demanded, "Who are you?"

The man entered the dim light. He was skinny but strong; his face was tight, almost like a solider, but his eyes sparkled with a boy's ambition, and the buttons on his suit sparkled like the stars. He put his hand on the side of Sara's stomach. Sara flinched at the touch of the man's warm hand as it traveled up to her cheek. A tear was quickly swept away with his thumb. "I promised on every star in space that I would come back."

Sara stepped back at the sound of his mellow voice. "Jimmy?! No…they said you were…dead…how do I know if you're real and that I'm not in an awful nightmare?"

Jimmy pulled Sara closer and whispered, "Let me show you." He quickly wrapped her in his embrace and gave her a passionate kiss.

Sara's lips hungered for his kiss. It almost hurt her heart how she lived so long without him kissing her. All her problems simply disappeared with each passing moment.

Jimmy parted, but not too far away from her and kissed her forehead. "Why didn't you tell me?" he whispered, indicating her stomach.

A tear slid down her cheek, as she realized that it wasn't a dream, that indeed Jimmy was alive and wasn't going to disappear. "I'm sorry; I…didn't have the heart to tell you. I knew that if I told you, you would have stayed, and it meant so much to you to fight this war."

Jimmy placed his hand on Sara's stomach, and she covered his hand with hers. A few seconds passed, and Jimmy felt the baby kick. A large smile crossed his face. "How much longer do we have?"

Sara smiled. "Any day now."

***

The ringing of the phone echoed through the quiet townhouse. Lois groaned in protest and snuggled closer to Clark, only to feel his strong arm reach over her for the phone. "Hello?" Clark mumbled.

"CK?" the voice said with a laugh.

Clark blinked at the clock as it flashed 2:30; it was way too late to be making prank calls. "Who is this?" he grumbled wearily.

"CK, it's Jimmy. Listen, Sara's in labor, and we're in the taxi heading to the Mercy Saint Hospital. Meet us there." The line went dead.

Clark was so tired that his head hit the pillow, and he closed his eyes. 'Sara is in labor,' echoed through his head. He shot up and jumped out of bed. "Lois, wake up!"

Lois covered her head with the blankets, shielding her eyes from the lights.

"Lois! Get up! Sara's in labor!" Clark exclaimed as he zipped around the room looking for his shoes.

Lois threw the covers off and yelped as she almost tripped over her high heels; she was saved by Clark. "Thanks," she sighed in relief. Her mind was moving in three places at once.

Clark kissed her and beamed, "Come on, hurry up."

***

Lois and Clark raced into the hospital not sure who had brought her there. "Where is Sara Kent?" Lois asked the head nurse, who was a young attractive red head.

"I'm sorry I can't let you up," the nurse replied.

Lois slapped the desk. "Why the heck not?!"

"We only allow one family member, and someone is already there," the nurse stated.

Clark put his hands on Lois's shoulders and asked with his handsome smile, "Please could you let us up? You see it's our only child who is having a baby, and we don't want to miss it."

The nurse gazed at Clark's muscled arms. He wore a white tank top and jeans, the only things that he had managed to throw on. "Well…it's policy that we…uh…don't let anyone else up."

Clark pulled out his puppy dog eyes. "I know you're just doing your job. Come on, Lois, we'll see them later."

As Lois and Clark turned heel to walk away the nurse passed on, "she's in room 231 on the second floor."

Clark turned around, winked at the nurse and said, "thank you." He hurried down the hallway with Lois.

"Gee, you must have been a heartbreaker in Smallville," Lois managed to giggle out as she held Clark's hand.

Clark put his arm around Lois's shoulder and replied, "You bet."

***

"Okay, Sara, one more push, and we'll be home free. But take a break for a minute," the doctor instructed her. The door opened and Lois and Clark ran in.

"Oh honey! Are you okay?!" Lois squealed out as she whipped back Sara's bangs and kissed her forehead.

"Yeah mom, I'll be fine when I get this thing out of me!"

Clark laughed, "Aw, angel, it'll be over soon. Who called us?"

"Jimmy," Sara replied.

Lois and Clark were about to protest when Jimmy came running in. Lois's eyes filled with tears as she ran to him. "Jimmy!"

He stepped back a little from the force of Lois hugging him and laughed, "Hey, Lois. Told you I would come back."

"Yeah, you did," Lois said amazed as she wiped away her tears and kissed his cheek.

Clark patted Jimmy lightly on the back. Jimmy was going to give him a handshake, but was pulled into a big hug. "I knew you wouldn't desert my daughter," Clark said happily.

Jimmy laughed, "Not with Mad Dog Lane in the family."

Clark chuckled but was cut off by the doctor talking to Sara. "Okay, Sara ready to push?"

Sara nodded, took a deep breath, and began to push.

Jimmy held her hand and whispered sweet words, but for a moment the room fell silent as the baby came with a joyous cry. "You have a healthy baby girl!" the doctor announced.

Sara began to cry as Jimmy handed their new baby girl to her. "You did it angel," Jimmy whispered as he kissed her.

"No. *We* did it," Sara said as they looked down at their daughter. The tiny infant opened her eyes, and they were a brilliant green.

***

Jimmy entered the waiting room where Perry and Alice were sitting but stopped short in his tracks when he saw Jack leaning against the wall, hands shoved in his pockets and eyes of regret. Perry looked up and couldn't bring himself to say anything as he bear-hugged Jimmy. "You came back to me, son," Perry stated as he finally found his voice.

Jimmy smiled. "Yeah, I did. I'm fine. Just a little mix up of where I was."

"How's Sara?" Alice asked excitedly.

Jimmy's smile got even larger. "Oh, she's doing great. You two can go see her if you like."

Perry and Alice nodded and left Jack and Jimmy by themselves. "I'm glad you're okay, Jimmy," Jack said.

Jimmy looked at the floor. "Yeah, I thought that's what you were going to say."

Jack flashed an angry look at him and barked, "What do you want me to say?"

Jimmy gave him the same look. "How about, 'Son, I'm relieved that you're alive?' How about, 'Jimmy I love you?!' You never said that to me in my whole life!" Jimmy slapped his hand to his forehead and continued, "I was so stupid to believe that you would think any more of me as a son when I risked my life out there and almost died to have you accept me as your son!"

Jack lowered his head. "I'm sorry that I haven't been the father that I should have, but give me another chance Jimmy."

Jimmy shook his head. "No. You said that once before, and you disappeared on me again! I'm not letting you do that to my family!"

Jack carefully looked at Jimmy. "What are you saying son?"

"I want you out of my life, Dad. I don't want you anywhere near my family," Jimmy stated firmly.

"You can't do this!" Jack yelled

"Newsflash, dad, I just did!" Jimmy yelled as he walked away.

"Just tell me what Sara had-a boy or girl?" Jack asked softly.

Jimmy turned around and smiled at the thought of his daughter. "A beautiful baby girl. Alley Grace Olsen. Good bye dad."

"Good bye Jimmy," Jack said quietly as he watched Jimmy gather with his *real* family at the window of the nursery to see Alley.

***

Sara watched Jack from afar as he started to walk away. She didn't want Jack to be severed from ever seeing his granddaughter; quickly she wheeled herself towards him. "Jack! Jack please, wait!" Sara called.

Jack turned around to see Sara wheeling herself to him. "Sara, you look great for someone who just gave birth awhile ago."

Sara blushed. "Oh please, I'm a train wreck. Jack, please see Alley; stay with us."

Jack frowned as he looked passed her shoulder at Jimmy. "No. Jimmy doesn't want me in his, or Alley's, or even *your* life. So I'll do what I do best-disappear."

"Jack, please, *I* want you in Alley's life. I want her to know her grandfather and to know how her father became a great man because of him," Sara pleaded.

Jack shook his head, "No. Jimmy is a great man without me. Perry molded him into the man he is today, and I don't blame Jimmy for not wanting me as his father. I'm sorry Sara." Jack kissed Sara on the cheek and walked down the hospital hallway. Jimmy watched Sara put her hands to her face and start to cry. He cursed Jack for doing that to Sara…But it was his own fault, too, for going off to war and starting this mess. He approached Sara and kneeled next to her wheelchair. "Honey, you tried. It's okay."

Sara shook her head. "No, it's not. Why can't he see that his granddaughter needs him or will need him some day?"

Jimmy looked down the hall and watched Jack disappear outside. "That's just Jack for you. Now come on, Angel, we have more important things to gloat over." Jimmy wheeled her back to the nursery. Jimmy looked at all his friends around him and thought, 'Yeah. This is my *real* family.'

THE END