By JudyL

September 7, 2003

This story takes place after TSbyBS and is a companion piece to "Picking up the Pieces."

Disclaimer: I put in my bid for ownership, haven't heard anything… must have been lost in the mail.

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Naomi hung up the phone without leaving a message. She'd been trying to reach Blair for the last three days. He hadn't returned any of her calls. She nibbled her lower lip then dialed again.

"Banks," the voice answered.

"Captain Banks? It's Naomi Sandburg," she said hesitantly, not sure of her reception.

"Ms. Sandburg. What can I do for you?" Simon asked cordially.

"Have you seen Blair? I've been trying to reach him."

"He and Jim took some time off, they left right after our little get together the other night."

Naomi blinked. She'd stayed in town to offer whatever support Blair might need from her after the mess with his dissertation. She hadn't imagined he would leave without contacting her.

"Ms. Sandburg?"

"I'm sorry, Captain. I was just surprised. Do you know when they'll be back?"

"Not for sure. Jim asked for a week, but said he might extend it if necessary. He and Blair had some things to work out, you know." Simon's tone indicated she had better know.

"Yes, I'm sure they did. Look, Captain, would you tell Blair I'm going to see Liz? He'll know who I'm talking about. I planned to stay in town, but if he's not here…"

"I'll give him the message, anything else?"

"No, just… thank you for supporting him through all this. I'm glad he has friends he can count on."

"He'll be all right, Ms. Sandburg. You're right, he does have friends here and we'll make sure he's okay."

"Well, thank you again. Good-bye Captain."

"Good-bye Ms. Sandburg."

Naomi placed the phone back into its cradle. Her baby's life had changed so much in the last three years. And now because of her, what should have been a great milestone in his life was lost amidst the fiasco that had destroyed his career. A fiasco she had helped propagate.

She covered her face with her hands. "Oh, baby, I'm so sorry. I just wanted to wish you a happy birthday. I've messed everything up." Tears of regret trickled through her fingers.

*****************

Blair and Jim entered the loft and dropped their bags just inside the door. The last week had been a soul searching experience, necessary to reestablish their troubled relationship, but also tiring.

"Man, I think I could sleep for a week," Sandburg said dropping onto the couch, leaning his head against the back.

Jim wandered into the kitchen and grabbed a couple bottles of water from the fridge before joining his partner on the couch. "Yeah, what is it about vacations that you need time off to recover when you get home?"

Silence filled the loft for a few minutes as they just veged, glad to be home.

Suddenly, Blair jumped up off the couch and headed for the door. "I've got to get my laptop. I can't leave it in the truck."

Jim grinned as he watched his friend breeze out the door. "He doesn't look that tired to me," he said to himself noticing the light on the answering machine blinking furiously. He stood and went to listen to the messages.

The first couple were hang-ups, then Naomi's voice. Jim winced mentally. He still hadn't completely forgiven the woman for her part in the dissertation mess.

Blair? Sweetie? Are you there? I really need to talk to you, baby. Silence. Okay, well please call me at the hotel when you get in. I just… I love you, baby. More silence. Okay, Happy Birthday, Blair. I'll talk to you later. Beeeeeeeep.

Jim hit the stop button. Birthday? Oh God! He racked his brain for a second and realized it was the end of May. Blair's birthday was the 24^th. Shit. How could I have forgotten that? Well, there were a few distractions this year. Jim grunted. Yeah, just a few.

He heard Blair coming back and quickly went back to the couch. Blair pushed the door open and dumped some more of their stuff by the door then gently placed his laptop on the kitchen island.

"Hey, Jim, I brought some other stuff up. I think we can get the rest in one trip."

Jim nodded and stood. "Okay." He got to the door first and glanced back toward the answering machine. "Oh, hey, Chief. We've got messages. Why don't you listen to them real quick while I get a load." He was through the door before Blair could answer.

Blair stared at the door for a second then shrugged and went to the machine. "I doubt it's more than some frustrated reporters still after a story." He hit play and deleted the hang-ups. He smiled briefly at the sound of Naomi's voice then frowned. I forgot to call her. He reached for the phone stopping cold at her birthday wish.

The next message played unheard, as Blair was lost in thought.

My birthday? Man, I totally forgot with everything… Ah, geez, that's why she came into town. Well, hell. The big three-O certainly turned out to be the big bummer everyone said it would be.

He leaned against the kitchen cabinet and replayed the messages, carefully deleting the one from Naomi. There were a couple from reporters which he also deleted. The last one was from Simon, telling them to call him when they got back and to let Blair know his mom was going to visit someone named Liz.

Jim came back in as Blair deleted the last message, dumping another load by the door. "Anything we need to worry about, Chief?" Jim asked carefully observing his roommate.

"Naw, but you might want to call Simon. He wanted to know when you got back." Blair pushed himself away from the cabinet, suddenly feeling every one of his thirty years. "I think I'm gonna take a shower and hit the sack. You mind if we finish unpacking tomorrow?"

"No, that's fine. You want something to eat?" Jim asked, noting the air of… sadness that enveloped his Guide.

"No thanks, too tired to eat." Blair trudged into his room and reemerged a few minutes later to go into the bathroom.

Jim picked up the phone and called Simon as soon as he heard the shower start. "Hey, Simon… Yeah, we're back… He got your message… Listen, Simon, did you know it was Blair's thirtieth birthday last week?… Yeah. Me too… You think we could get the gang together?… Great… No I really don't think he will… right, it'll be a good time to do it… Okay, I'll see you in the morning."

Ellison hung up the phone and stared in the direction of his best friend. As you would say, Chief, this sucks! But I'm going to make it up to you, I promise. Jim's eyes narrowed as several ideas flickered to life.

*********************

Blair stomped up the stairs to the loft. He just wanted to smack Ellison. Some friend! I can't believe you left me… Stupid jerk! He dropped his backpack by the door and fumbled with the keys.

Jim had told him to drop off the files they'd finished and meet him down by the truck. "Hurry, Chief, I've got an important call coming in this evening that I can't miss. Don't make me leave without you."

So Blair had rushed down to Records and been waylaid by Stephanie, the clerk. She'd insisted that he go over each file with her to make sure everything was in its proper place.

Twenty minutes later, Blair found himself staring at an empty parking place and had to catch a ride with a friendly uniform.

The key turned and Blair grabbed his pack as he pushed the door open. "I can't believe… What?" Why are the lights off? Turning to drop his pack below the coat hooks, he flipped the light switch by the door at the same time. He tossed his keys into the basket and spun toward the kitchen.

"SURPRISE!"

Blair back-pedaled until he hit the door. His heart thundering in his chest as he took in the grinning faces before him.

A banner hung on the wall across the windows proclaiming "HAPPY BELATED BIRTHDAY, BLAIR!" The table was laid out with cake and ice cream and drinks. A mound of presents sat on the coffee table.

Then they started to sing. "Happy belated birthday to you…" Henri and Joel started it, dragging Rafe, Megan and Rhonda with them. Simon scowled then joined in. Jim stood a little to one side looking a bit nervous.

As the song ended, purposefully off-key, Jim moved slowly toward Blair. "Happy Birthday, Chief," he said softly, hopefully.

Blair met his friend's anxious eyes and took a deep breath. A small grin snuck onto his face. "Thanks, Jim," came a soft reply, then he addressed the rest of their friends.

"You guys are about a week late, you know?" mischief clearly sparkling in Blair's eyes.

"Naw, Hairboy," H replied with a grin. "You can't give a belated birthday party on time."

"Besides, Sandy," Megan said sidling up to give him a hug, "they don’t allow parties like this in the hospital."

Blair gladly returned the hug, raising his eyebrows as they parted. "Parties like this? Something I need to know about?" he asked turning to his partner.

Jim just shrugged and grinned.

"Come on, Sandburg," Simon said steering the younger man toward the cake. "You need to make a wish and blow out the candles so we can eat."

Rhonda lit the candles, all thirty of them and stood back. Everyone watched as Blair stared at the cake, seemingly lost in thought. Finally, he took a deep breath and blew out the candles, smiling at the applause and "happy birthdays" that filled the room.

Joel put his hand on Blair's shoulder. "What did you wish for, Blair?" he asked quietly as Jim cut the cake and Megan scooped the ice cream.

"Can't tell you, man," Blair said with a smile, "otherwise is won't come true."

Joel smiled back, glad to see the same old Blair. "I've been worried about you," he supplied.

"I'm okay, Joel, really. Thanks."

"Yeah, I think you are."

Blair's smile turned to a grin. He threw his arm around the big man's back and laughed. "I guess it was kind of silly," he said almost to himself.

Joel quirked an eyebrow. "What's that, Blair?"

The Shaman of the Great City looked up and met his friend's questioning gaze. Contentment shone from his face as he answered. "Kinda silly to wish for something you already have." They both surveyed the other people in the room.

H and Rafe were teasing Megan because she insisted the cake be put on one plate and the ice cream on another so the cake wouldn't get soggy. Rhonda was handing napkins to Simon and Jim telling them to wipe the crumbs off their faces.

Blair's eyes met Joel's again. Joel nodded. Family. It's all about family. The big man dropped his arm over the smaller man's shoulders and gave him a squeeze. "Happy Birthday, Blair. And many more."

The end.

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I used the actor's birthday Blair's birthday in my universe. I noticed that TSbyBS played in May of 1999 and that corresponded with GM's 30^th birthday. It was just too good to pass up.

Comments are always welcome, please let me know what you think. Judy

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