RESIGNATION

CHAPTER 10

Michael put his granddaughter down and led her to the plane as Rick was getting up from the ground after just putting the engagement ring on Lisa's left finger. Abigail ran to her father and jumped into his waiting arms. Michael walked up to Lisa and hugged her.

"I just heard the cheering. Congratulations Lisa. Welcome to the family."

"Thank you Michael."

"Let's see the ring. Let's see how it looks on your finger."

Lisa put out her hand to let Michael admire the ring

"Oh, the ring looks so beautiful on your finger Lisa. So, where's Dana?"

"She is spending Christmas with a friend of hers from school instead of coming with me. She didn't want to spend Christmas away from Macross so, her friend's parents agreed to let Dana stay with them "

"Its shame she decided not to spend Christmas with us."

"At least she is spending Christmas with someone." Rick said.

"That's true. But I still wish Dana decided to come with you."

"She has a mind of her own, just like her mother." Lisa said.

Rick whispered to his daughter. "Go over and say hello to your mommy and hug her."

Abigail let her arms out. Lisa reached out, took Abigail in her arms and hugged her.

"I love you mommy."

"I love you too Abigail."

"So have you two set a date yet?" Michael asked as they walked off the flight line.

"No, but I'm sure Lisa wants to get married right away." Rick said as he had his arm around Lisa's waist.

"That's not true, Rick. But I do want to get married soon."

June 20, 2020

Everett Baptist Church

"Hi Rick. I just wanted to see if everything's ok."

"Yes, everything's ok dad. Dad, thank a lot for escorting Lisa down the aisle and to give her away."

"Oh, don't mention it, Rick. It's the least I can do. She's about to become part of my family now, you know."

"Thanks dad."

"Are you about ready to go, Rick?"

"Yes, I'm ready to go. Uncle Jonathan, thank you for agreeing to be my best man."

"Rick, you're family. You're a Hunter. We Hunters always stick together and help each other."

In the back of the church, Lisa in her wedding gown and on her knees was talking with 4 year old Abigail.

"Are you excited to be mommy's flower girl Abigail?"

"Yes mommy."

"Remember, all you have to do is walk down the aisle holding the basket of flowers. Dana will walk with you."

"What if somebody takes a picture of me?"

"Just remember to smile and keep walking, ok Abigail?"

"Ok mommy."

"Thank you Dana, for walking with Abigail down the aisle."

"Oh, it's no problem Aunt Lisa. Abigail and I are like sisters now."

Just then Bateman arrived for the start of the wedding.

"Abigail, are you ready?"

"Yes granddaddy."

"Are you ready for your moment in the spotlight, Lisa?"

"I'm nervous but I think am ready, dad. Dad, thank you so much for giving me away and for paying for the wedding and everything. You didn't have to do it. Rick and I would have gladly paid for our own wedding."

"Nonsense Lisa, don't even think about it. You're part of my family now. Besides, Rick paid for the ring; I might as well pay for something."

Mr. Bateman sneaked a peek at the front of the church. He saw Rick and Uncle Jonathan walked out and stood at the altar waiting for the wedding ceremony to begin. When the bride maids and grooms men, ring bearer and Jennifer reached the front of the church, the organist began playing Wagner's Bridal March. Bateman bent his arm and offered it to Lisa.

"Are you ready to become Mrs. Rick Hunter, Lisa?"

"Oh yes, let's go. I've waited too long for this moment." Lisa said as she put the white veil over her face.

Bateman laughed. "Ok, Lisa. Here we go."

As Lisa was walking down the aisle of the church, she couldn't help but cry when she realized that after all that has happened to her in the past 6 and a half years, she is finally marrying the man that she loves and was destined to spend the rest of her life with.

As Rick saw Lisa walking down he aisle of the church, he couldn't help but smile. Lisa looked so beautiful in her white wedding gown. But mostly, Rick smiled because he was lucky that he was able to get another chance with Lisa. 'Cathy, I know you're down on us and smiling. Thank you for understanding that I still love Lisa.'

Everett Memorial Hospital

A year and 5 months later

Lisa was in tremendous pain as she was going through labor. It was her first pregnancy and birth and she knew it was going to be painful. She didn't realize just how painful it was. A gaggle of nurses and doctors were surrounding her lower body and looking at her vaginal opening. When she wasn't pushing and trying to breathe through the birthing pains, she really felt like she was on display. Having her legs spread apart and her vaginal area exposed and opened didn't help matters for Lisa. The head OBGYN doctor told her to push again. Lisa was pushing with all her strength with Rick dressed in hospital scrubs behind her back, his hands on her shoulders and encouraging her. The doctor then told Lisa to push one more time because the baby was almost out. Lisa pushed again with all her might. 'Now I know why it's called labor.' Lisa mused to herself as she was pushing.

"The baby is out! We have to clear its lungs and airway."

Seconds later, Lisa heard the baby cry for the fist time. She began to cry for joy.

"It's a boy!"

Rick turned and faced Lisa and kissed her gently on the lips. "I love you mommy."

'I'm a mother now. Oh wow. I can't believe it. I'm a mother now with this wonderful man I'm married to.' "I love you too daddy."

When Lisa first found out she was pregnant and had an ultrasound done, the doctor asked her if she wanted to know what sex the baby is. She said no because she wanted to be surprised. But she and Rick knew what to name the baby if it was a boy, Roy Bernard Hunter, in honor and memory of Rick's big brother, Claudia's fiancé and one of Lisa's closest friends. They knew Roy would be proud and he would be strutting around the base with his chest out like a rooster if he was still alive. They wished Claudia was still on Earth to see the name of the love of her life being carried on. They know that Claudia would be proud also.

Minutes later, after they cut the umbilical cord and cleaned the baby off, taken foot prints of the baby and taken measurements and weight of the baby, they brought the baby to Lisa wrapped in a hospital blanket. As Lisa looked lovingly at the baby, she can't believe that this little bundle of joy was inside her body just minutes ago. As she was cradling her baby in her arms, using her index finger to tickle Roy's chin and as she was cooing lovingly at him, Lisa thought back to the whirlwind of events that had lead up to this moment. She quit her job as a private consultant, left Macross City for good and moved to Everett with Dana so they can be with Rick and his daughter. Then her dream finally came true when she married Rick.

Just as soon as she and Rick came home from their honeymoon in Hawaii, Michael Bateman Rick's father-in-law offered Lisa a job that shocked her at first but it was a job she couldn't say no to; executive vice president and COO of Northdyne Aeronautics. His reasoning for it was that Rick still had no interest in taking over the business and he was looking for someone in the family he can groom to take over the business when he eventually retires. He was getting up in years and he wanted to retire soon so he can enjoy more time with Abigail. Also, Lisa was a captain in the RDF, which didn't hurt. As for Rick, she mused to herself, it was not surprising that Rick turned down Mr. Bateman's offer to take over the company. Rick never felt comfortable behind a desk, because he's too much of a pilot. If he stayed in the RDF, he probably would have refused to be promoted to admiral knowing he couldn't fly anymore.

But then, life threw her a curve. Just as soon as she settled into her new life with Rick and Abigail and her new job, she found out that she was pregnant with her and Rick's first child. The joy she felt when she found out she was pregnant, was overridden by what she is holding in her arms now, her and Rick's first baby.

22 years later

Everett Baptist Church

A middle aged Rick Hunter dressed in a tuxedo knocked on the door of the bridal room. "Is everyone decent?"

"Yes dad, we're decent. You can come on in." A grown up Abigail said.

As Rick walked in, he saw something that brought tears to his eyes. His youngest child Caroline Rachel Hunter is in a wedding gown and Lisa, Dana Sterling and Abigail was surrounding Caroline helping her with the final touches.

"Oh dad, don't tell me you're about to cry again? You did the same thing when I got married." A humorous exasperated Abigail said.

"I can't help it, Abigail. My baby girl is getting married."

"Mom, would you please get dad out of here before he starts crying again?" A playfully mad Caroline said.

"Come on father. Let's get you out of here before you start bawling again."

"Rick," Lisa said as they outside of the bridal room. "You can't get too emotional about this. Otherwise, you can't walk Carol down the aisle."

"I can't help it, Lisa. Our baby girl is getting married. All of our children are either married or getting married."

"What do you think I did when I saw Roy standing with you at the front of the altar of this church a little over two years ago?"

"Well, if I remembered correctly you were sitting in the front pew crying your eyes out."

"Touché, Rick. That's only because our only son was getting married."

"Now you know what I'm going through, Mrs. Hunter." Rick said playfully as he and Lisa kissed.

7 years later

Sound Harbor Estates

Estate home of Rick and Lisa Hunter

Kent Island, Washington

Rick and Lisa's children, spouses and children began to gather on their estate to celebrate Rick and Lisa's 30th wedding anniversary. It was a bright and sunny June day and a light early summer breeze was coming off of Puget Sound making the day more special. If it wasn't special enough, the SDF-3 made it back to Earth orbit. Dana was reacquainted with her childhood friend, Bowie Grant, now an officer in the RDF and met his wife RDF pilot Karen Penn, Bowie's parents and his Aunt Claudia and was reunited with her parents Max and Miriya. It was also the time Dana met her sister Aurora for the first time who is also a pilot in the RDF and is dating a red haired hot shot pilot named Jack Baker.

While she loved having her friends, children and grandchildren at her house, Lisa's nerves were getting frazzled. Trying to find some quiet refuge from the noise of the growing crowd that was gathering at their house, Lisa spirited away from the maddening crowd with a glass of artificially sweetened iced tea one of their maids Maria made for her. Lisa then retreated to the peace and solitude of their bedroom and closed the door but didn't lock it.

Remembering a promise she made to herself years ago while Rick was still married to his late wife Cathy, Lisa began looking around in the closet searching for the boxes that contained their photo albums. Even though she is surrounded by high tech equipment at her job, she is still an old fashioned girl at heart. Every day she writes in her diary with a pen and like Rick, she still keeps photos in a photo album instead of storing pictures as jpegs on a memory card. She kept searching around in the closet until she found the boxes that contained their photo albums. Gently she lifted the boxes above her head and laid the boxes on the floor. She really didn't care what photo album she will look at first, she just blindly reached her hand inside one of boxes and grabbed a photo album. She then sat on the edge of their bed.

The first photo album she grabbed was one of her own personal albums. It contained pictures of her of when she first came to Macross Island for the rebuilding and refitting of the SDF-1. She then closed her eyes and let her mind travel back in time. She remembered everything so vividly as if it was only yesterday. She was a young ensign fresh out of the academy. She was one of the first graduates of the RDF Academy and she requested her first assignment to be at Macross Island. She did it to get back at her father who wanted her to be stationed at RDF headquarters in San Francisco. She didn't want to be stationed at the same place her father was at. Lisa and her father fallen out years ago. It started after her mother died and it escalated when her father had her boyfriend Karl Riber reassigned to Sara Base on Mars. The straw that finally broke the camel's back that was their relationship was when she heard that Sara Base was attacked and everyone on the base was killed. There were no survivors. She blamed her father for her boyfriend's death. Her best friend and academy roommate, Claudia Grant was already at the island and she and Roy was already an item.

Lisa then opened her eyes and started looking at the album. The first pictures she looked at were her and Claudia at a beach on the other side of the island away from the ship and the city. Claudia was in a white two piece bikini and Lisa was in a micro hot pink two piece bikini. Lisa couldn't remember what her caused her to buy that bikini because she never really looked at herself as being a wild girl although she did had a bit of a naughty streak in her back then. She then thought about how her dad would have reacted if he ever saw that picture of her and that bikini.

"Boy, dad would have had a conniption fit if he ever saw that picture."Lisa said to herself.

She couldn't remember who took the photograph, whether it was Kim, Vanessa or Sammie. It couldn't have been Roy but knowing that sly fox, Lisa wouldn't have put it past him for Roy to do that. She started to take a good hard look at the picture of herself in that bikini. She then remembered a conversation she had with Rick as they were looking at that same photo album shortly after they got married. Rick took one look at the picture of her in the pink bikini his eyes then got big and bugged out. He then whistled that whistle that was familiar to so many women.

"WOW Lisa! You look hot in that bikini!"

"Oh Rick! You're only saying that because you're my husband." Lisa said as she was beginning to blush a deep crimson red.

"No, it's true Lisa. Maybe you should wear that bikini all the time."

Lisa had a shocked look on her face. "Rick, I can't believe you would say something so sexist and chauvinistic like that. Next thing you know, you would want to keep me barefoot and pregnant." Lisa said as she hit him on the head with a pillow.

"That not true Lisa." Rick said feigning innocence. "I would never do something like that. Although I wouldn't mind if you wear that bikini all the time until you start showing."

"You pig!!" Lisa said as she kept hitting Rick on the head with the same pillow. Rick put his arms on his head trying to protect himself from the blows Lisa was giving him on his head.

Lisa chuckled at that memory. She then looked the picture again. She have to admit she did looked hot in that bikini considering the fact that she was in the RDF at that time and kept herself in great physical condition all the time.

"You're right Rick; I did look good in that bikini. My Lord, was I ever that young?" Lisa said to herself while at the same time shaking her head not wanting to believe it was that long ago. At the same time, she didn't even want to think if she can still fit into that same small hot pink two piece bikini. "Not after 40 plus years, 2 kids and a desk job all these years." Lisa said to herself.

She then sighed. Ever since she and Rick got married, Lisa tried everything to keep the body she had when she was in the military. She dieted, became an exercise fiend and tried to watch what she eats. Even though her body didn't changed all that much, she still has her long auburn hair even though there are streaks of gray in them, her face still is very much smooth even though it does have some wrinkles showing and Rick kept saying to her that she still has a great body and he loves her no matter what, Lisa still can't help but wonder why she couldn't keep the body she had when she was in her 20's.

"Why couldn't I keep that figure all throughout my life?" Lisa said to herself.

She then flipped the page and saw something that made her lose her breath. It was a picture of Roy in black swimming trunks with his arm around Claudia. She then started tearing up. It has been years since Roy died after that battle in the skies above the Pacific Ocean but even after all these years have passed, the raw emotion, pain and grief was still fresh as if it only happened yesterday. She decided it would be best to put that album away and look at something more cheerful.

The next album she looked at brought a smile to her face. It was their wedding album. She opened up the album and started looking at the pictures of their wedding. Abigail looked so cute in her dress with the small basket of flowers she was clutching in her tiny hands. She then looked at a picture that brought tears to her eyes. It was a group picture of Rick, Lisa, the wedding party and the church pastor who married Rick and Lisa. In the picture were Uncle Jonathan, Aunt Rebecca and "Dad" Michael Bateman. Uncle Jonathan, Aunt Rebecca and Dad Mike all passed away years ago. Uncle Jonathan died unexpectedly of a sudden heart attack several months after Rick and Lisa's wedding while Lisa was pregnant with Roy, which devastated Rick, Lisa and Aunt Rebecca. Aunt Rebecca died several years later. Dad Mike paid for both their funerals. Dad Mike always had always been a philanthropic person and that the one thing Lisa loved most about Dad Mike. She and Dad Mike drew really close to each other after she and Rick married. Dad Mike looked at Lisa more like a second daughter rather than a replacement for Cathy. Dad Mike died while Abigail was in college.

Both Rick and Lisa miss them very much but it hit Lisa the hardest because Lisa dearly loved them both because they treated and loved her as if she was their own daughter. Shortly after Uncle Jonathan died Rick, Lisa and Dad Mike wanted Aunt Rebecca to live out her remaining years with them but she said no. The Hunters have always been known to have a stubborn streak. It brought to mind a Bible verse Lisa remembered reciting in Sunday school when she was young. "To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven. A time to be born and a time to die." She began dabbing her tears with a tissue when she heard a knock on the bedroom door and a familiar voice was calling her.

"Lisa, are you in there?"

"Yes I am Rick. Just turn the knob, the door's not locked."

Rick then opened the door. "Lisa, our grandchildren are wondering where you are. Lisa, are you okay?" Rick asked in a concerned tone of voice when he noticed the tears in Lisa's eyes.

"Yes, I'm okay Rick. I'm just keeping a promise I made to myself years ago."

Rick then walked over to where Lisa was at and sat next to Lisa. Rick looked at the album and smiled. "You've been looking at our wedding album."

"Yes."

They spent a good deal of time looking at other photo albums when they heard a knock on the door. Standing in the doorway was their butler and friend, Charleston.

"Excuse me for bothering you Mrs. Lisa and Mr. Richard."

"Oh, you weren't bothering us at all, Charles. We were just looking at our old photo albums." Lisa said.

"Oh thank you Mrs. Lisa. There is a lady downstairs who just came in and she says wants to see you both. Her name is Ms. Claudia Grant."

Lisa leapt off the bed and raced downstairs.

Moments earlier, a driver came to the ferry to meet Claudia and to drive her to the estate. Claudia's jaw dropped when she saw the size of the house and the estate. The house, more like a mansion that Rick and Lisa live in are so big, a full time staff has to be on the premises to keep the house in shape. 'Wow, life has certainly been good to Rick and Lisa these past years.' Claudia said to herself. Claudia got out of the car and walked up to the door and rang the doorbell.

"Yes, can I help you ma'am?" A rather distinguished dressed and looking British gentleman asked with a genuine smile.

"Yes, you can. My name is Admiral Claudia Grant and I'm here to see Rick and Lisa."

"Please come in." Charleston asked with a motion of his hand.

"Thank you."

Claudia walked in and looked around the house and her jaw dropped again. The house looked even more beautiful on the inside.

"Would you please wait here for a moment while I go find them? It shouldn't take too long. You can have a seat if you want to."

"I will. Thank you very much, sir."

"You're welcome ma'am."

Claudia only had to wait for a moment before she heard a scream of joy. It was Lisa who was running down the stairs. Claudia barely had time to stand up when Lisa threw her arms around Claudia's neck, hugging her very tightly and crying at the same time. They held their embrace for a long time until Claudia broke it off so she can hug Rick who was standing close by.

"I don't suppose you rich people will have the time to talk to poor working stiffs like me?" Claudia joked.

"You know we always have time for you, Claudia." Lisa said.

"You two have a big and wonderful house."

"It's one of the perks you get when you're married to the president, CEO and majority shareholder of Northdyne Aeronautics." Rick joked.

"That's only because you wouldn't take over the job from your father-in-law, Rick. I had to step in for you. Let's not forget that."

"True, but I did finally took his offer of being executive vice president and COO with the stipulation that I will still be allowed to do some test flights."

"By no coincidence, that happened to be the position that I started out at when I first worked for dad and Northdyne. You only got that job after I became president."

"No matter where I go or what I do, Lisa always has to be my boss. I tell you Claudia I can't win for losing." Rick said humorously as he was shaking his head.

"That's right Rick, and don't you forget it."

Rick, Lisa and Claudia laughed at Lisa's comeback as they sat down in the living room. Over tea, Claudia began to tell Rick and Lisa what happened with her and the REF in their 30 plus years in deep space in their mission to Tirol.

The SDF-3 was going as fast as its hyper-fold reflex engines could take them. The force was halfway towards Tirol when they met up with the Sentinels. An inter-galactic group dedicated to stop the Regis, Regent and their horde. It was shortly after that Claudia found out that there was a mole and a traitor on her staff. It was General T.R. Edwards. He made a deal with the Invid that would give the Invid control of the SDF-3 and help them take over Earth in turn for him getting revenge on the people who thought done him wrong. He was stopped in time and was killed but many good people and friends were lost, including Breetai who fought to the death with the Regent. What made Breetai's loss especially hard to take was that shortly before he died, he fell in love with a Zentraedi woman and they had a baby boy. A first for the Zentraedi race since the Zentraedi was a race of clones and they did not know anything about sex, love or babies are created. That was until Miriya married Max who is a human and they had Dana and later on Aurora.

When Rick and Lisa heard Claudia mentioned T.R., they cringed. They never liked T.R. Edwards and what T.R. did in deep space only proved their suspicions of T.R. When Roy was alive, he told Admiral Gloval, Claudia, Lisa and Rick to watch their backs whenever T.R. was around them. T.R. Edwards only looked out for T.R. Edwards. T.R. Edwards only got to where he was because he became a patsy for Russo and Lisa's father Admiral Donald Hayes and their cronies in the UEG. Admiral Hayes was killed at Alaska Base and Russo was killed when Khyron attacked the SDF 1 and 2. Edwards left Earth with the REF because shortly after Khyron's attack, there was a purge in the UEG and the Senate. Many of the bad apples in the UEG and the Senate were either jailed or forced to resign. The only place Edwards felt safe was in deep space with the REF, even though he hated the REF and the RDF. But Edwards is dead and the Invid was stopped.

Claudia finished her "debriefing" by saying if it wasn't for the Sterling's, her brother Vince, her sister-in-law Jean and nephew Bowie, she wouldn't had made through the tough assignment and the tough decisions she had to make. She sometimes wished that Lisa was with her but she knew that Rick was more important to Lisa and Claudia understood. Now that she is back on Earth and the mission is accomplished, she wants to retire. But the UEG and the Senate has other plans for her. They either want her to stay in the RDF, become civilian secretary of the RDF or become secretary of the Department of Home world Security. Claudia sighed because she said she was looking forward to retirement but deep down, she, Rick and Lisa knew she couldn't be happy doing nothing except sitting in a rocking chair at the RDF retirement home and as she put it "listen to her arteries harden."

The last of Lisa and Rick's family to arrive was Abigail, her husband David Turner and their young children Regan, Jackie and Aaron came running up the porch and hugged their grandparents.

"Granddad, are you going to give us a ride in your airplane?" Aaron said to Rick as he was being scooped up into Rick's arms.

"Of course I am giving you a ride in a plane. As a matter of fact, I am taking all of my grandchildren up for a ride."

Abigail was horrified. "Dad I thought you promised me you wouldn't give the children flying lessons!"

"I'm not giving them flying lessons, Abigail. I'm just taking all of the grandchildren up for a ride."

"But you know once you take the children up in a plane, they will want flying lessons from you, especially my children!"

"No they will not, Abigail. How would you know that?"

"They're my children dad!"

"You're blowing this out of proportion Abigail."

"No I'm not dad! Mother…"

"Oh no, Abigail don't you even get me involved in this young lady! It's between you and your father."

"David…"

"Don't look at me, Abby." Her husband said as he rose up his hands. "I'm with your mother on this. Work it out between you and your father."

"OH! I don't believe this! Can't I even get any support around here?" Abigail said as she stalked off.

"Abby! Wait! Come back! You're making a mountain out of a molehill! Abby, please don't be doing this on your parents wedding anniversary!" David Turner said as he began to chase after his wife.

"Don't worry about her, Rick. Abigail will get over it."

"I know, sweetie. Hey kids, how about you say hello to your cousins and play with them?"

"Yeah let's go!" Their grandchildren said at the same time. They jumped down from their grandparents arms and ran off to be with their cousins.

Rick gently got hold of Lisa's hand and gently guided her around so he can face her. Rick with a loving smile on his face kissed Lisa. As he was watching his children playing with their cousins on the lawn of his parent's estate home, Roy looked over and saw his parents kissing. He couldn't help but smile as only a proud grown up child could. Roy's wife Jacqueline noticed her husband smiling and walked up to him.

"What are you smiling about Roy?"

"I'm just looking at my parents, Jackie. They have been married 30 years and they still act and kiss like they have just met and fallen in love."

"Well, considering what your parents went through to get to 30 years, it's not surprising."

"I know Jackie. I hope we'll still be that much in love when we reach our 30."

"I think we will Roy. We have good examples in your parents."

"That we do, Jackie. That we do." Roy then put his hands on his wife's waist and looked at her straight in the eyes. "I love you Jacqueline Hunter."

"I love you too, Roy Hunter." Roy's wife said as they began kissing.

As Rick and Lisa finished kissing, they looked over at what they started and saw their son and his wife kissing. They couldn't help but smile.

"I think we started something, Lisa."

"I believe you're right, Rick."

"Do you think we should tell them to go inside and into their room while we look after Jack, Donald and Amanda?" Rick asked with a smile.

"Rick shame on you! That would be an awful thing to say in front of their children!" Lisa scolded as she playfully slapped Rick on the shoulder

"Hey, I was only kidding Lisa. There's no need to get violent." Rick said jokingly.

Rick then put his arms around the small of Lisa's waist. "Do you want to try to spread it to Carol and Chris?"

"I think we can as long as we don't get carried away with it." Lisa said with a smile.

Rick smiled as he and Lisa returned to kissing. After a while, they broke off their kiss and looked at the scene that is going on the lawn of their home. As Rick looked out at his grandchildren playing in the grass of their estate in the sun, and his children and their spouses talking with each other, and his friends enjoying being back on Earth, Rick couldn't help but smile. But then he thought of something and the smile disappeared. Rick stood in the shade of his porch, looked out at the joyful scene and folded his arms across his chest and leaned his shoulder against a porch column. Lisa noticed his change of mood and became worried. She put her arm around her husband's shoulder.

"Rick is something wrong?"

"No Lisa, I'm fine. I was just wondering. I wonder…if things would had turned out differently had I not ran away like a coward that winter day so long ago in Macross. Would things still turned out the same? Would we still have all of this? Would we still be happily married, be rich and have this beautiful home and estate? Would we still have our children and our grandchildren?"

Lisa thought about it for a moment. She then walked over and positioned herself behind Rick. She draped her arms over Rick's shoulders and kissed her husband on the lips as Rick turned his head so he can see his wife.

"It would probably turn out differently. Then again, it would probably not. I don't know the answer to those questions, Rick. But I do know this, I'm glad where life has brought us to and I wouldn't change a thing."

"Me neither, sweetheart, me neither." Rick said as she lovingly rubbed Lisa's arms as he looked out at his grandchildren playing on the lawn.

Author's footnote: The Bible verse mentioned in this chapter is Ecclesiastes 3:1-2.