Scott and Jean in Alaska

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Scott and Jean sit on the porch steps at his grandparents' and talk about flying and what-ifs.


Jean was sitting on the porch steps, chin propped on her hands as she
stared off into the middle distance. She was lost in thought, but from
the little smile on her face it was clear that whatever the thougths
were, they were good ones.

Scott came out onto the porch, a cup of coffee in either hand, and
offered one to her. "I think the amount of sunlight is messing up my
sleep schedule," he said, sitting down beside her on the porch steps.
He laughed suddenly. "Of course, now I'm drinking coffee. I'm very
inconsistent at times."

Looking up, Jean smiled and took the cup from him. "Eh, the coffee's a
social thing as much as anything else. Honestly, we both drink enough
that one cup hasn't got enough caffine in it to seriously dent the
system. Unless it's Moira's coffee we're talking about. And surely
you're not objecting to the excess sun..."

"Me? Surely you jest." Scott took a sip of his coffee. "I love it up
here," he said abruptly. "I really do. Have I told you that Phillip
offered me a job back at New Year's?"

Fairly content to just cradle the cup in her hands, Jean nodded. "You
mentioned, yes. Tempted? It really is lovely here..."

"Yes and no," Scott admitted softly. "I think I'd like it, but... too
much to keep me at the mansion, really." He smiled. "Doesn't mean I
won't come up here and fly for Phillip on my occasional vacations,
mind you."

"Of course. And vacations are good for you. You take them too
infrequently." Jean's gaze returned to the middle distance. "I should
not be indulging in 'what ifs', should I?"

"I don't know," Scott said after a moment. "Depends on if you like the
'what ifs', I think. If you do, you might want to make them into a
'what is'." He stopped, blinked, and shook his head a little. "And now
I sound like Nathan."

She laughed slight. "Yes, a bit. And yes, that would be the good way
of looking at it. Things to work for. That's... doable." Taking a sip
of the coffee, Jean slid over to lean against Scott's shoulder. "Have
I mentioned today that I love you? Also, thank you for bringing me
here."

"I love you too," Scott said quietly, feeling that odd, unfamiliar
sensation again. What was it? Oh, right. Contentment. "And I'm glad
you're here." He grinned briefly. "Even if it took a lot of explaining
over the phone to Deborah and Phillip."

"And your efforts in that direction are much appreciated. I was quite
glad not to have to explain everything when I got off the plane.
They've been very kind."

He was fairly sure that Deborah hadn't been convinced, entirely, until
they'd gotten off the plane and she had... not seen Jean, Scott
thought with a sudden flash of insight, but seen the way he was
looking at Jean. "Speaking of planes... you want to come on that
flight with me tomorrow?" he asked hopefully. "Small-scale cargo run
over the mountains - resupplying a base camp. The scenery should be
beautiful. I mean, the plane's a Cessna, not the Blackbird,
admittedly..."

"Love to. I miss flying..." It was a quiet admission, just one of many
things that had changed and Jean was still coping with. But now was
too nice to think about it all - it was too calm a night, too
comfortable, just being out here with Scott. "And I have no trouble
believing the scenery will be beautiful. This whole area is gorgeous."

"Idyllic," Scott agreed softly. "Someday..." He trailed off.

Jean started to say something, then looked up instead, smiling, as she
sensed an approach. "Hello," she said as the door opened. "Don't mind
us, we were just discussing how beautiful it is here. You two are very
lucky."

"No place in the world Deb and I would rather live, I think," Phillip
said amiably, coming over to stand by the porch railing, since Jean
and Scott had the stairs rather occupied. "Even if we were actually to
retire and let one of the youngsters run the charter service, I think
we'd stay." He smiled down at them. "It gets in your blood after a
while."

"Or really quickly," Scott murmured a bit wryly.

"That, too."

Jean could happily stay here forever, but saying so was venturing into
that scary land that was called the future, and now was probably not
the time. "I can imagine," she said, instead. "When did you two move
out here?"

"Well, let's see," Phillip said, making a thoughtful face. "Right
after I left the Air Force, so that would be... 1962. Scott and Alex's
father Chris had just turned three. For me it was moving back, too -
my family had lived here most of the time I was growing up, although I
joined the Air Force as soon as they'd take me." He smiled. "I was
dead-set on flying for a living, as far back as I can remember."

"Seems to run in the family, that." Jean smiled at Scott. "Although, I
have to admit, I love to fly almost as much as Scott."

"Deb's not as fond of it," Phillip confessed fondly, "but thankfully
she's also got the patience of a saint." His eyes twinkled as he gazed
down at them. "Maybe I should be offering jobs to both of you?"

Scott gave a soft laugh. "Please don't," he said. "It's too tempting already."

"Yes, it is dreadfully unfair of you," Jean agreed. "We both have over
developed senses of responsibility, I'm afraid. If you make it too
tempting we'll just agonize over it, and surely you wouldn't want
that..."

Phillip just smiled. "Deb and I really have to get down to that school
one of these days," he said. "It's got to be a remarkable place, to
inspire this much loyalty." Before either of them could respond, he
went on. "Ah, well. Suppose I'll have to just be satisfied with making
sure the two of you know that you're welcome here anytime you want.
And that the offer's a standing one."

Jean smiled back. "On going temptation to struggle with. Well, at
least it's character building."