The Bad Times Of Face

When will face be happy

He didn't sleep well at all that night. He kept tossing and turning and woke up drenched in sweat. He kept reliving the incident at Villa Cucina all night long. When he woke up in the morning he was still feeling tired. He managed to drag himself over to the kitchen.

"Hi, kid. Sleep well?"

Face knew he shouldn't lie to Hannibal and he realized he still looked tired. But he didn't want him to know he was having nightmares about the shooting.

"Not exactly. My ribs kept bothering me somehow."

"You ain't going on no missions any time soon, Face. Your body ain't healin' that quickly after what ya went through."

"Yes, I know. That's what Zowie told me too."

"So what about that date, kid? When are you taking the lovely doctor out?"

"It's more like she's taking me out, Hannibal. By the way, I won't be home tonight. Zowie is picking me up."

"What will you do, Facey? Rock climbing, deep sea diving, benji jumping, horseback riding?"

"What are you ramblin' about, fool? He ain't ready to do none of that with them ribs! You're crazy."

"B.A.'s right, Captain. I think Face should take it easy for a little while."

"So, what will you be doing then: lying in the sand on the beach watching the sun set, gazing up at the star filled sky or just gazing into each other's eyes, perhaps skinny dipping in the ocean?"

"If you must know, she is taking me out to dinner to her favorite Italian restaurant."

Face tried to hide his nervousness, but the guys all sensed it and they looked at each other knowingly. They all realized he had to heal both physically and psychologically. But they also knew he wouldn't admit how he felt about eating out at an Italian restaurant so soon after the shooting.

"Are you okay with that, kid?"

Face felt his Colonel's piercing blue eyes on him. He couldn't admit it. He just couldn't. He was a Special Forces officer. He shouldn't be afraid. He could handle this. He would handle this.

"Yeah sure. Why not? She said this place had excellent vegan dishes and I'm kinda curious to taste some of them. I know the company will be great too."

As Face still got tired easily, he took it easy for the rest of the day. He decided to work on his tan in the garden for a while and ended up falling asleep. Hannibal kept a close eye on him all day long. Finally evening came and Face decided it was time to get ready for his date with his lovely doctor. He went upstairs to the bathroom to take a nice, long, hot shower and to get dressed for his big date.

"Do you think it's a good idea to let Facey go on a date to that restaurant, Colonel?"

"Honestly I don't know, Captain. But I think Zowie picking out a restaurant to go on their first date and even an Italian one means she is on to something too. I think she did this on purpose to get him to react. She needs him to open up so she can help him get through this. I'm sure that Zowie knows what she's doing. She is a professional after all and I do trust her!"

Face went upstairs intending on taking a nice, relaxing shower and pick out his outfit. He remembered Zowie telling how good he looked in Armani, so he decided to pick out another one of his Armani vests. He grabbed a crisp, white, silk shirt and immediately had a flashback to the night of the shooting. A blood soaked white shirt flashed before his very eyes and Face dropped the shirt to the floor.

"No."

His heart was racing in his chest and Face did his utmost best to get a grip again. He couldn't freak out. Not now! Not here! His friends would never understand.

"Just stop it," he said to himself while picking up the shirt and deciding on a light blue one instead. He also grabbed a pair of designer jeans and a pair of socks and went over to the bathroom to take a shower. He let the water run and got undressed. He took of the t-shirt he had been wearing on top of his swim trunks. The scar on his abdomen was still a visible proof of what had happened. His trembling fingers touched the scar and he immediately felt the pain he had felt when he got shot. Why hadn't he seen that third guy? Why? He was a military trained man, an excellent sniper and a Special Forces officer. He should have studied the situation better before acting foolish like he had done. Innocent people could have gotten hurt or his friends.

He had to stop thinking like that. Face finished getting undressed and got into the shower and tried his best to relax. After all, he was going on a date with the gorgeous Zowie and he was looking forward to spend some alone time with her and get to know her better.

Meanwhile, Zowie had arrived at the Langley premises. Hannibal let her in. She looked very pretty. She wore a very beautiful summer dress topped off with real feminine high heels. She had also let her long hair down.

"I'm supposed to pick Temp up. Is he ready to go? He isn't feeling sick or anything, is he?"

"No. Face's gettin' ready. Takes forever. Been fryin' in them sun all the day long. Restin'. Now he's in the shower and ain't gettin' out no more until you smell him from a mile to come."

"Don't forget that he needs to pick out the right cologne and the right outfit to match with the lovely lady."

Zowie couldn't help but laugh. She knew Face was a vain kind of guy.

"He'll be right down, Zowie. Don't worry! So, you're taking him out for dinner?"

"Yes. I have this nice and cozy Italian restaurant I go to ever so often and I wanted to take him there to taste their delicious vegan dishes."

"Do you think he's up to that?"

"To be honest, Hannibal, I'm not sure. His body is healing very well, but he also needs to start getting over the psychological impact of the matter and that's not easy. I guess I wanted to confront him with a similar environment and see how he reacts to that. Don't worry. It's not Villa Cucina I'm taking him to."

"You know, I'm kinda curious myself. I don't think he's gotten over what happened, but he won't open up to anyone about that. He tries to act tough, you know."

"So I've noticed. But why? I mean, he's only human."

"He grew up in an orphanage and he learned at a very young age to take care of himself. I guess that's part of the reason he tries to act tough and tries to solve every problem by himself. He hardly ever told us he got hurt. We've learned about that the hard way during 'Nam. Whenever he says he's fine, he's not. Just remember that, but I guess you know that by now."

"Yes, I do. Thanks for the advice, Hannibal. Don't worry! I'll keep a close eye on him tonight. I care about Temp a lot."

"So I've noticed and I believe he cares a lot about you too considering the fact he gave up all of those dates he made with the nurses on staff at DC. We're very happy he chose to be with you, Zowie. We all like you a whole lot."

"Thanks, Hannibal. That really means a lot to me. Let's just hope he'll be okay tonight."

Face still hadn't come back down.

"Hey, Jack. You ain't down yet. Need me to drag ya out?"

"Patience, B.A. It takes time to look this good."

"Hurry up, sucker. Zowie ain't gonna wait on you no more if you keep this up."

"I'll be down in 5 minutes."

Within 5 minutes he was actually down dressed in a nice Armani blazer vest, a light blue dress shirt and a pair of Armani jeans. He looked great and smelled great as well.

"Hi, Temp."

"Hi, Zowie."

"You're looking great."

"Thanks. You're looking gorgeous."

"Thank you. So, are you ready to go?"

"Uh ... Yeah ... I sure am. Let's go."

"Bye you guys. Have fun."

"Don't wait up for me!"