The Long Day Is Over

Harper was sitting in the doctor’s lounge at the hospital in her jeans and a t-shirt that would be going into the garbage the second she got home thanks to the lovely blood splatter across the chest of it. In her lap was her cell phone, Roman’s contact information displayed on the screen ready and waiting for her to hit call. She had been sitting in that same position for nearly half an hour.

Finally she hit the little phone icon and brought her cell phone to her ear, waiting patiently as it rang. Her stomach nearly came out of her mouth when the line clicked and she heard Roman ask her sleepily, “Is this another hypothetical do to with what we’re going to be doing while you’re here?”

“No.” She told him with a smile. She hadn’t even thought to look at the clock before she had called him. It was almost midnight there, which meant she had woken him up at nearly two in the morning for him. She instantly felt bad and told him, “I’m sorry for calling so late.”

“It’s fine, what’s up?” Now she felt even worse.

“Uh… I had to change my flight.” She told him, holding her breath for his reaction.

He asked her softly, and slowly, “To?”

“Just a few hours. I get into Nashville at one instead of at ten.” Harper told him, and she didn’t wait for his response before she explained why, going straight for the whole story, “I forgot my jacket at work and when I went to go get it some idiot turned left on a red light and… I fucking totaled my brothers car and my attending wouldn’t let me leave until they decided I was good to leave and I just wasn’t gonna make that early flight.”

“I’m sorry, you what?” Roman asked her, going off on a sort of tangent with his voice raised in pitch that actually made Harper smile a little, “Did you just seriously try to slip in the fact that you got into a car accident as if it was no big deal? Are you okay, what happened?”

She let out a small laugh, which surprised him, but went on to assure him, “I’m fine. Although… you may not want to take me out anywhere while I’m there… I have some pretty nice bruising and a couple of stitches.”

“On your face?!” He exclaimed rather loudly, and Harper again let out another laugh. He was beginning to wonder how much pain killers they had given her.

“It’s fine, really. No fractures, no breaks. Just some stitches and a bruise or two.” Harper assured him again.

He was having none of it, “Where and how many stitches? Where are the bruises?”

“Four stitches at my hairline by my temple, six on the top of my cheekbone, and three above my eyebrow. I have a small bruise on the side of my head, and a nice sized one on my forehead opposite of where my stitches are. Are you satisfied Dr. Josi?” Harper asked him with an amused smile.

“How much drugs did they give you?” Roman asked her, rolling his eyes at her doctor comment but he still had a small smile on his face.

“None. I’ve just been up since four o’clock this morning, I’m a little loopy… you know, a natural high.” Harper explained to him, adding in for good measure because she knew that would be his next question, “I wanted to call you to let you know about changing my flight so you didn’t show up at the airport hours earlier… and I didn’t want to just show up looking like this.”

“You’re going home now? Speaking of, how are you getting home?” He asked her curiously.

“I’m walking down the street to the drug store, buying a few last minute things and then taking a cab home. Scouts honor.” Harper told him as she got up from the chair she had been occupying for a while. She cradled the phone against her ear as she attempted to slip into the scrub top she had been given in case she didn’t want to go home covered in her own blood.

Unsurprising to her Roman told her, “I’m not getting off of the phone until you’re home. Or at the very least in the cab on your way home.”

“I figured as much.” She stated as she stepped out of the doctors lounge. She waved to everyone at the front desk before she headed out and down the sidewalk toward the drug store that was a few buildings over. It wasn’t until she was nearly at the doors of the store that she exclaimed out loud, “Damnit! I left my jacket there again!”

“You sure you don’t have a concussion?” Roman asked her with a smile.

“A mild one.” When he didn’t respond she laughed and told him, “Roman, seriously, relax. I’m practically a doctor, in fact in like two weeks I will be one officially. I’m fine, I promise.”

“If you say so.” He mused.

She fired back with, “I do say so.”

Her first stop in the drug store was to fill her prescription for her birth control, a little awkward while she was on the phone with her boyfriend she had decided. While she waited for that she roamed around, filling her little basket with things she knew she needed for her trip; a cover for her toothbrush head, body wash, shampoo, makeup remover and a hair brush because she knew she would forget hers.

While she shopped Roman, as he had told her before, stayed on the phone with her, she had decided that she found his worry cute rather than annoying like she might have if he were a different person. As she stood debating body wash scents she made him laugh by asking him, “Cucumber or Blue Fig and Orange scent?”

“Cucumber… I guess.” He told her.

Harper grinned to herself, “Blue Fig and Orange it is.”

Roman let out a laugh, “You’re a little shit, you know?”

“I know.” She told him with a smile as she tossed the body wash into her basket and then asked him, “Do you happen to have lotion?”

“Lotion?”

“Yeah, you know, like body lotion?” Harper asked him, adding in, “I can’t be the only person on the planet Earth who likes to moisturize… who am I kidding you’re a guy the extent of your body care is two-in-one shampoo and body wash.”

“I will have you know I use an all over wash.” Roman informed her, her brow quirked and he didn’t wait for her response to tell her, “Hair, body and face.”

She let out a laugh, “You would.”

“I’m kidding. I mean I do use a two-in-one but I wash my face with actual face wash.” Roman informed her, as if she hadn’t been in his bathroom before to know that he only had one item in his shower.

Roman stayed on the line while Harper paid for her items and then she got lucky enough to flag a cab down on her way out of the store, which was when she told him, “I’m getting in a cab now.”

“Text me to let me know you got home, okay?” He asked her.

“I will.”

“And get some sleep, please.” He said, making her smile as she gave the cab driver her address. Roman noted the fact that she didn’t give him her address, but rather an address from down the street and that made him smile.

“I’m going to finish up packing and then I promise I’ll go to bed. I’ll see you tomorrow.” Harper told him.

“See you tomorrow.”

She stuffed her phone into her jean pockets and relaxed against the seat back for the remainder of the ride home. She paid the driver and then she made her way out onto the curb, once the driver was out of eye sight around the corner Harper walked three buildings over to her own building and headed inside. She had never really been comfortable giving her address to cab drivers, least of all when she was alone in the cab.

She locked up behind her and then headed straight into the bedroom where her little carry-on suitcase was sitting open on her bed waiting for her. She tossed her bag from the drugstore into the suitcase, stopping to grab the little bag of Salt and Vinegar chips she had purchased, which she opened and started to munch on while she decided what she still needed to pack.

It was after two-thirty in the morning by the time she was finished and had zipped her suitcase up and set it with her bag by the bathroom door, where she had hung her outfit for traveling up. She had to be up by at least seven, at the airport by eight-thirty and the only thing powering her though was the fact that in a few hours she would be in Nashville.

She knew that she needed to sleep but she still hadn’t even changed out of her clothing from the hospital and all she wanted to do was stand underneath the hot water of a shower. So she headed into the bathroom and turned the shower on, tossing her clothing into the hamper in the closet and her scrub top and bloody t-shirt into the garbage that she would toss out on her way to the airport the next morning.

She was careful not to get her hair wet, pulling it up into a bun and tucking it into a shower cap for good measure as she stepped into the shower. Harper had to have stood under the hot water for half of an hour at the very least, managing to wash her body despite the spots on her left side, her elbow and rib cage, where she knew bruises would form eventually from being knocked against the door of the vehicle.

When she was out of the shower and into a pair of fresh pyjamas it was quarter after three in the morning. She crawled into bed and stared at the ceiling for hours, she had gotten maybe two hours of sleep when her alarm clock went off.

- - -

Roman was already waiting for her at the airport when she sluggishly arrived at the baggage claim. Not surprising to Harper James was standing next to Roman, who immediately approached her and pulled her baseball cap off of her head and inspected her face.

She smiled and told him, “I told you I’m fine.”

He brushed his fingers over her jaws and told her softly, “Looks like it hurts.”

She shrugged, “A little bit.”

She pulled herself out of his grasp and wrapped her arms around his waist, so Roman slipped his arms around her, pulling her tightly into him. They hadn’t been together in so long and the last thing Harper wanted was to spend their first minutes together again with him inspecting each little bruise and cut on her face. As she leaned against Roman, the side of her head resting against his chest, forehead on his neck, eyes closed the baggage carousel started to move.

James asked her, “What does your suitcase look like?”

“Silver.” Harper mumbled, adding in a second later, “One of those fancy hard shelled ones with pop out hearts. My mom thought she was being funny.”

“You love it and you know it.” James told her with a grin and Harper smiled gently.

Roman asked her, “You want to go home to sleep or stop for food?”

Her response was her stomach growling, and with a laugh Harper said, “I could go for a cheeseburger and fries… and a milkshake.”

“Lunch it is.” Roman announced as James grabbed Harper’s suitcase and pulled it off of the baggage carousel, checking the name just to double check.

He announced, “I’m starving, let’s go.”

Harper slipped her baseball cap back on and followed the two men out of the airport and to Roman’s SUV which he had parked, of course, in the furthest level of the parkade. Harper dropped into the backseat, stretching out before she announced, “Try not to get into any accidents, I have anxiety.”

Roman laughed, “I often try not to get into accidents while driving but okay.”

“Thanks. I’m gonna have a nap, wake me up when we get to the restaurant.” Harper stated as she pulled her hat lower on her face and closed her eyes.

James was shaking her awake fifteen minutes later to tell her, “You snooze you lose we’re gonna go in and have lunch without you sleeping beauty.”

“I’m coming.” She told him, tossing her hat onto the seat next to her before she slipped out of the back seat and then she wrapped her arms around Roman and James’ backs as they headed toward the restaurant, a smile on her face.

Once they were seated James told her, “You look like hell, by the way.”

She narrowed her eyes at him as Roman stifled a laugh behind his menu as she told him, “Thanks, I appreciate your concern for my wellbeing.”

Roman threw him under the bus, “Oh he was a wreck when I told him you changed your flight because you got into a car accident, that’s why he made me take him with me to pick you up, so he could make sure you were okay in person.”

Harpers eyebrow raised towards James and with flushed cheeks he informed her, “He didn’t tell me if you were even okay. That’s kind of what you should start off with, don’t you think?”

“It makes me happy to know you were concerned.” Harper told him with a grin as she closed her menu.

James stated, “I’m always concerned about you Harpoon.”

“It’s nice that I have a friend who cares enough to be concerned… the first thing Ben asked was if I totaled the car.” Harper stated, adding in with mild annoyance, “I’m not bitter or anything that my own brother has no regard for my life or safety.”

“Yeah, totally not bitter.” James stated, making her and Roman laugh.