The Long Day Is Over

It was nearly nine in the morning on Christmas day by the time Harper had finally been able to head home after her night shift. She was exhausted, and couldn't think of anything she wanted more than to sleep, but her growling stomach had other plans for her. So instead of heading home she made her way across the street from the hospital to the diner she frequented when she didn't have the time to go home or make herself something.

She took a seat in her favorite booth, tucked in a corner where she could see everything that was going on around her. Coleen, her usual waitress, stopped at the table with a strawberry milkshake and a smile and told her, "You look like you've had a long day."

"Either you're that good, or I'm that transparent." Harper said with a chuckle.

Coleen laughed and responded with, "A little bit of both. Now, did you want your usual or something different?"

"Usual is good." Harper told her, and so then she was left alone. That was when she reached into her bag and pulled her cell phone out, finding messages from almost everyone she knew. Most were Merry Christmas texts from friends, family, and James and Steven. There was a picture waiting from John and Bristol both so she opened those first to find Bristol had sent her a picture of John, cooking breakfast with no shirt on and the caption 'Merry Christmas to me' and Harper rolled her eyes. John's picture made her laugh out loud, it was of him, stupid face and all, sitting proudly in front of the presents under the tree.

So she sent them both a picture of her table and a Merry Christmas as well before she moved on to the message waiting from Brad.

Dude, you're like two hours late. Hurry up and get home, I got you the world's greatest present.

She rolled her eyes and responded.

I'll be home soon. Got stuck staying late, Christmas and New Years are the best time to be on the transplant list I'm telling you. Just grabbing food, couldn't wait until I got home. See you in half an hour.

Just as she put her phone away Coleen brought her pancakes and blueberry syrup and set them down on the table, before she sat down in the booth across from Harper. It was usual when Harper had breakfast here after a night shift for Coleen to sit with her for a while to chat and catch up. It was something they both enjoyed.

"So, how are things going with that boy of yours?" Coleen asked her and Harper's eyebrow raised. Coleen smiled and went on, "You've been so busy, we haven't gotten the chance to catch up but I distinctly remember you telling me that you met someone last time you were here."

Harper's cheeks flushed as she cut up her pancakes and she told her, "Things are good. I mean... as good as they can be considering he's all the way in Tennessee and I'm here."

"That's quite the distance." She commented.

"Two thousand three hundred and three miles to be exact." Harper stated with a nod of her head, and then she smiled and joked, "But who's counting?"

"So how are things?" Coleen pushed, watching Harper with curiosity as she shrugged.

She had a few quick bites of her pancakes and then she told Coleen, "I don't really know. He hasn't talked to me since last night. I sent him a text during my break at like four, and I wasn't expecting a response but now it's almost nine-thirty and still nothing."

"He could still be sleeping you know." Coleen pointed out and instead of telling her that Roman didn't sleep this late Harper simply nodded. When she didn't say much of anything else Coleen asked her, "But you like him? He treats you well? All that stuff?"

Harper smiled and nodded her head again, "I do, and he does."

"Good, good. I'm happy for you kiddo, it's about time you found someone who treated you right."

Once Harper finished her pancakes and paid her tab she slung her backpack over her shoulders and headed out of the diner and to her bus stop down the street. She busied herself with a textbook while she waited ten minutes for the bus and then she busied herself on the fifteen-minute ride to her apartment with that very same textbook. Had the woman beside her, a regular on her bus route, not nudged her at her stop Harper would have missed it completely.

She jumped up and off of the bus, and then across the street and down four buildings to her building. She took the stairs two at a time, the prospect of her bed far more enticing than the possibility of falling down the stairs at any time. When she walked into the apartment she tossed her textbook onto the kitchen island and hung her backpack over one of the bar stools beside her and she nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard, "Morning."

She turned to find Roman sitting on the couch with her brother, the two of them watching sports highlights, go figure. Her brow lifted into a high arch and she asked him, "What the hell are you doing here?"

"So elegant." Brad joked and Roman chuckled.

He told her, "I know it's not a long visit, not even a full day, but I thought I'd come here since I knew neither of us really had plans for Christmas."

"Dude, ouch." Brad told him, and Roman chuckled again. Harper stayed where she was in the kitchen, eyebrow still raised, and Brad joked to her, "You raise that brow any higher and you could open your own fast food restaurant, you know."

Harper rolled her eyes at him but other than that she completely ignored him as she looked at Roman and asked, "So you got on a plane and flew six hours to spend twelve with me?"

He nodded his head and he said, "I didn't want to be lonely on Christmas, so I figured I'd come here. Honestly, it was that or spend the day with Shea and his fiance and... I like them but that's just pathetic and depressing."

"That's true." Harper told him, grinning, and then her grin faded when she said, "I mean, I was gonna spend Christmas with my little brother so... yeah I'm glad you came."

"Hey!" Brad exclaimed, making both Harper and Roman laugh. Brad rolled his eyes at the two of them and he told Harper, "Alright Harpoon, you've had breakfast, let's go."

She shook her head, "I am having a nap. At least two hours. Sorry."

"You suck."

"I have also been up for almost twenty hours, don't test me Bradley." Harper warned him, and she held out her hand for Roman and told him, "Your options are to nap with me or hang out with my brother. Your choice."

Roman practically jumped up from the couch to follow her down the hall to her bedroom, which made her laugh. Harper closed her bedroom door behind her and while Roman stripped out of his t-shirt, sweater and jeans Harper slipped into the closet to shed out of her own clothing. She put everything into her work laundry bag, she liked to keep dirty clothes worn at the hospital separate from the rest of her clothing clean or dirty. She pulled on a pair of spandex shorts and a baggy t-shirt and then she headed back into her bedroom.

Harper laughed at the sight of Roman already under her covers in her bed and he smiled over at him. While she walked to the bed she pulled her hair out of it's braided confines and ran her fingers through it before she pulled it up high on her head in a bun and out of her face. She pulled the covers back and got in next to him before she dropped back with her head on her pillow with a sigh.

He asked her with a grin, "Tired?"

"Exhausted." Harper said with a nod of her head in confirmation. She grumbled, "Not that I'll sleep now anyway. I should not have gone for breakfast. Actually, I shouldn't have stayed to help with the trauma that rolled in while I was leaving. I should learn to not be such a nice person."

With a chuckle, Roman told her, "I like that you're a nice person."

Harper rolled her eyes and told him, "Flattery will get you nowhere with me. Especially after a long night shift like this."

"It was worth a try anyway." He said with a grin, sliding his arm underneath her pillow to pull her back into his chest, and then he kissed her cheek gently and told her, "I'll wake you up in a few hours."

"Sorry, your visit is gonna be me sleeping and or zombie-like." She mumbled, well on her way to sleep.

When Harper woke up again it was nearly noon, and she could hear voices outside of her bedroom. She stretched, yawned, and then got up and finally made her way out of her bedroom. As she headed toward the living room she heard Brad call out, "She lives!"

She rolled her eyes and she detoured to her original destination just so she could smack his head as she walked past him and she went right into the kitchen where Roman was cooking. She wrapped her arms around him from behind, chin against his back and asked, "What are you doing?"

"Making lunch. My specialty of grilled cheese and tomato soup." He told her and she chuckled.

"God food sounds good right now." Harper mused, reaching around him to steal a cheese slice. He slapped at her hands but she was slightly faster than he was, and had the slice unwrapped and half in her mouth by the time he even turned to face her. She smiled over at him, and then she leaned against the fridge with her eyes closed while he cooked.

He asked her gently, "Still tired?"

She nodded her head, "I don't think even ten pots of coffee could cure this."

"Well, you can go back to sleep." He told her softly and she opened her eyes and looked at him like he was crazy.

"Sleep or food? It's not a hard choice for me. Food. Every time." She told him, rolling her eyes when he laughed.

She watched him pour her a bowl of soup, and place a sandwich on a plate for her before he handed it to her and said, "Well, your highness, your meal awaits."

"You're a dork." Harper told him, but she took the bowl and plate and leaned up to kiss his lips quickly before she set herself up at the kitchen island to eat. Roman took the spot to her right, and Brad to her left and they ate in silence.

Once they were done, and Harper was leaning her head in her palm with her elbow on the counter barely keeping her eyes open Brad told her, "So I'm going out. That big ass present is from me, please refrain from opening it before I get home sometime tomorrow. The present with the wrapping paper with dicks on it is from Bristol and John, you have some seriously fucked up friends."

"Sounds about right." Harper stated with a nod of her head as Roman stifled his laughter.

"Oh and mom's coming to visit tomorrow. So, you know, if you have any more issues you'd like to take out on her please do so before I get home." Brad told her as he put everyone's dishes away.

Harper exclaimed, "I do not have issues with her."

"Sure you don't." He muttered.

She rolled her eyes and grumbled, "It's not my fault she left before I could apologize."

"Whatever, just try to play nice. I'll see you tomorrow." Brad told her as he shoved his feet into his shoes and grabbed his keys.

Curiously Harper asked him, "Where are you going anyway?"

"Allie's." He told her, rolling his eyes as she raised her eyebrow at him.

"I thought she was mad at you?" She asked.

He nodded, "What else is new? But I figured I'd rather not hang around here with you and your boyfriend, so I guess I'll go apologize for whatever stupid thing I did that I don't know about."

Harper let out a laugh when he left the apartment, and she shook her head in amusement. Roman's brow lifted and he asked her, "Are you two always this amusing together?"

"Apparently so."

Roman got up from his chair and he told her, "Oh, I have something for you."

When he disappeared to her bedroom and came back with a wrapped present her cheeks flushed and she told him, "I sent yours to you in Nashville, really late yesterday, because I didn't know about this little surprise visit."

He shrugged, "I'll get it when I get back. I just wanted to bring this with me because I wanted to see your face when you open it."

She looked up at him wearily, "It's not a severed head is it?"

He laughed, "Would a severed head fit in that box?"

"Okay, an ear?" She asked him with a raised eyebrow.

He laughed again and told her, "It's no body parts, you watch too much CSI."

"Adam Rodriguez is hot as hell, who can blame me?" Harper stated, and when his eyebrow raised she shrugged, "What? He is."

Roman motioned for her to open the present in her hand, "Hurry up you dork."

She rolled her eyes at him and took herself and the painfully obvious store wrapped present to the couch, peeling away at the tape as slowly as she possibly can with a wide grin on her face as she did so. Roman watched her impatiently, wanting nothing more than to reach out and grab the present and rip the paper off it himself but he exercised self-control.

Once the wrapping paper was gone Harper found a black box with the name of what she assumed was a jeweler on the top. She looked over at Roman in both curiosity and unassuredness. He told her, "Just open it."

So she pulled the top of the box off and when she found a watch inside she let out a tiny, quiet breath of relief. It had thick black straps, with gold features and a burgundy face with gold numbers going around the inside of it. She looked over at him and asked, "Did you pick this out yourself?"

He nodded his head proudly, "Not an ounce of help from anyone. At least not until I had already bought it."

Her brow raised, "What does that mean?"

"I may have sent a picture to Bristol to ask if she thought you would like it." He told her.

Her brow raised even higher, "You sent a picture to Bristol? Like... my Bristol? How?"

His cheeks flushed, "Well at first I asked James but you know what he's like. So then I just stole her number out of his phone when he wasn't looking."

"So you're saying you hacked into your teammates phone to get my best friends number to ask her about my Christmas gift?" Harper asked him, and when he nodded she sniffled and wiped a pretend tear from her cheek as she told him, "That might be the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me."

He laughed, and rolled his eyes, and then he told her, "Put it on already."

So she put it on, with the watch face on the inside of her wrist, and when she caught his raised eyebrow she explained, "I bang into things a lot. I'm not taking the chance of breaking this like my last one."

"You are a very strange and odd person." Roman told her.

She grinned over at him and nodded, leaning over she kissed him quickly and told him, "I've been told that before."

"It's my second favorite thing about you." He told her.

"What's the first?" She asked him with a smile.

"It changes every day." He told her, and then he reached out and brushed the tiny scar above her top lip and he told her, "Like today it's this."

"Why?"

He shrugged and said, "I don't know. It just is."

"Now you're a strange and odd person." She told him.

He grinned over at her and said, "I guess we're meant to be."