Grey skies and Tail Winds

by spanspekkopf

Summary:

Harvey meets someone new while opening up the clinic, and he then thinks a lot about his own introduction to Pelican Town. Oh, and he can't stop thinking about her.

Notes:

Hellooo, this is my first fic and I hope someone enjoys it as much as I enjoyed writing it, I'm hoping to update weekly with chapters for ppl who like a slow burn as much as I do. Please tell me if u enjoy, I'm excited to share.

Not a songfic but I am listening to music n making a playlist as I go for anyone that wants it, pls let me know.
I wrote this one to Here Comes The Sun- The Beatles, I Love you - The Bees, I Cant take my eyes off you - Frankie Valli.

Chapter 1: Spring, Year 1 - A.O.S

Spring, Year 1 - A.O.S.

Meeting her that day felt like a fresh, hot coffee on the crispest spring morning.
It felt like the heat of the first steaming sip as it starts to warm you from within. Moving through you, melting off the frost from your morning walk and gradually you start to see the colours of the day more brightly. He knew the feeling well, he loved that first morning coffee.
It was the first day of spring, the type of day so perfect you can really tell that it's finally spring, the ideal temperature of warming sun with a cool wintry breeze, the air fresh with the smell of wet soil being pushed up by new growth, the feel the world waking up from a frozen sleep and starting to breathe again.

She walked in looking about as fresh and new as the beautiful day she had arrived on, new dungarees and bright red bandanna - not a speck on her, not yet faded by sun and wear. It was almost funny to look at, she was dressed as if for a farm themed photo shoot. That newness, paired with the excitement she approached everything with made her feel almost not real in this world, like she was placed here, from another world, with a list of tasks to complete.

She held her hand out to him enthusiastically and introduced herself with a bright confidence, explaining her new place in the town with a wide and encouraging smile on her face. He smiled back in a way he hoped was equally as bright and shook her soft hand, introducing himself in a way he hoped was also friendly and confident.

“It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Harvey, the local doctor. I perform regular check-ups and medical procedures for all the residents of Pelican Town. It's rewarding work. I hope you'll find your own work equally rewarding, in time.” They broke their handshake. After what felt like an incredibly long stretch of eye contact with her, He looked away quickly and took his glasses off to clean them on his sweater, despite the fact they were not at all dirty.

And that will do for a normal introduction, he thought to himself.
To the point. Perhaps unfriendly? Perhaps he stated the obvious? Oh he had definitely stated the obvious. He was standing behind the counter of the GP surgery, with a white coat that said DR H.L above the breast pocket. Of course he was the local doctor. I hope you find your own work rewarding? Was that patronizing? He should have just said welcome to Pelican Town, or was it all fine. Maybe everything he said was fine.

Maybe it was more than fine, as she seemed to glow at his introduction. She smiled warmly and replied excitedly - ‘I really hope so too Dr Harvey. That's why I've come here. We'll see, I guess. It has to be more rewarding than a grey office anyway!’.
She then turned to Maru for an equally cheerful introduction, mentioning she will be back soon to register with the surgery. She offered them a small kind wave as she passed through the jingling door, hurrying off.

'Well, she seems nice. I wish her well with that farm. I think this will be good for the town - Some new life.' Harvey said watching the bell above the door still swinging lightly.

‘She doesn't look much like a farmer, physically I mean. She was certainly dressed the part. Surely it will be a challenging adjustment for her?’ said Maru.

Harvey didn't answer her. Either he didn't hear her or he wasn't listening, either way - he continued to stare at the back of the door.

‘Such a sedentary life to hacking apart tree stumps and tilling soil? Not to mention the state of the buildings. She'll have to speak to my mother. It would be impossible to sort that place out alone.’ she continued.

‘Hmm’ He mumbled, His eyes fell to the doormat, eyebrows knitting slightly.

‘Harvey, since we're quiet today, can I please build an experimental explosive device in the back courtyard? I promise it will only destroy the whole building AND Pierre's store if it goes wrong!?’
Maru asked him with dripping sarcasm, grinning from ear to ear.

‘Sure Maru, as long as you can hear the reception bell from out there.’ he replied dully, still and staring at the doormat with a thoughtful look on his face.

She laughed at him, ‘BEEP BEEP, PAGING DOCTOR HARVEY LIEBERMAN!’ she then proclaimed loudly with an enormous smirk on her face, ‘You’ve not heard a thing I’ve said since she walked out.’

He snapped out of it, turned to her in the empty surgery, and replied feeling embarrassed but jovial. ‘Doctor Attending! Oh I apologize for zoning out briefly there Assistant Nurse Maru, I should have been paying more attention. It's practically an emergency room we have here. Who's my next incredibly urgent patient?’
He held his hand out for a chart he knew didn't exist, while putting his other hand above his eyes to look dramatically across the waiting room for a patient he also knew didn't exist. The clinic was reliably, and somewhat disconcertingly, silent.

They both laughed as she slapped his open hand away.
‘Well - something has scrambled your airwaves this morning. Bad signal in the frontal lobe? Or is something jamming the frequency…’ she said suggestively, clocking her eyes over to the door.

‘Oh shush, I was thinking about the farm, as ACTUALLY, I was listening to you. and I do agree. I was thinking she may find it all rather hard going, despite her disposition about it all. I'm wondering if she will injure herself doing unfamiliar tasks. As her potential physician, I'm quite concerned, that's all’ he said defensively, and (half) truthfully.

‘Yes, that was definitely it. Just her health and well-being.’ she said sarcastically, nodding with a very serious expression.
‘and not at all that she was ACTUALLY.. rather attractive’ she added quietly, gathering up and straightening some files, eyebrows raised in jest.
‘Oh please. As if I would have noticed.'

Oh please, he thought to himself sheepishly, he absolutely did notice. Their new town farmer was bloody gorgeous. Not a thing wrong, head to toe. His face began to redden.
‘Right, we have a day to have. Don't you have inventions to blueprint on surgery time without me knowing?’ he said, yet again cleaning his glasses on his sweater and staring at the floor intently.

‘No actually, I have a clinic room to restock first, THEN I was going to pretend to work until your first appointment.’ she said matter-of-factly.
‘Such a to-to list this morning, Off you go then. By the way, no explosives in the back courtyard. of any sort, ever.’ He says smiling, stretching out his shoulders before flopping down onto the desk chair, and booting up the big grey PC. She strolled off to the empty clinic room smirking knowingly to herself with her arms full of invention notebooks.

He enjoyed the dynamic he and Maru had built in the year she'd been working there, she had become a great friend and almost a little sister to him, and she teased him as such.
She had been right though, something had definitely scrambled his airwaves. He could not stop thinking about the farmer as he stared blankly at the blinking load screen. He was concerned, captivated, jealous, and impressed.

She had trotted into the surgery with such a mission in her eyes. Her head held high with a confident urgency to her, as if her life depended on meeting everyone in town as fast as she could. She just had to plant and nurture the seeds of friendship quickly, before the seasons changed and the crops withered away. She had enormous, bright, wide eyes, investigating every small detail the village had to offer. She had the same intrigue and resolute friendliness meeting the old and the young, the friendly and the more guarded - no lack of stride when met with reserved concern or cold politeness- or in the case of some villagers outright insolence. Regardless, everyone was being given a fair chance at this new friendship.

He envied her patience, resolve and what seemed to be a wholehearted lack of anxiety. He had felt so like her when he had first arrived in Pelican town, so eager to be of assistance and friendship, excited to have a new shot at life - but he lacked the confidence to grab it by the horns the way she had. His friendships grew slowly, he didn't quite know what to say or where to place himself outside of the doctor patient relationships he had to build. He arrived older than she had and blamed that for his start being more reserved, technical and shy.

He was incredibly anxious then, even though he had significantly less risk than this new farmer had. The surgery was sponsored by the district for the first six months. He was replacing an established retiring doctor with a full book of patients who had no other surgery to turn to if they hated him, plus he had years of experience and medical confidence under his belt. All the ingredients for success - one of his radio friends had said he had all the gear and no idea.

If that's what he had, she had even less going for her. None of the gear, and less than zero idea. Years spent at a dull desk job developing skills in sitting down and losing your mind in a grey cubicle, paired with an old ruin of an inherited farm, in a run down town - with no money. He didn't envy that fate, even so - She was so bright, so confident? How? He would be quaking in his sensible brogues. He had felt a pang of envy for her having such a confident, friendly and vigorous sprint of a start compared with his shuffling pace. He was beyond impressed with her, almost inspired. He almost couldn't wait to see how her endeavors played out.

He would think back later, after years of friendship (and doctors visits of varying emergency levels) that his opinion of her that bright morning was cemented there and then -
She was enthralling. A real force to behold, like the sun warming the world in spring.
And that all he wanted to do was get closer to that warmth.

:)

Chapter 2: Spring, Year 1 - Obstacle Avoidance.

Summary:

The farmer makes herself a part of the community, Harvey decides it’s time to make a change.

Spring, Year 1 - Obstacle Avoidance.

Spring ticked along, and as did life. The nature surrounding them was getting livelier and the town was also abuzz with new goings on, all down to a certain new presence on a rocky, weedy farm.

She was becoming the main topic for town chatter as she gradually made herself known in the neighbourhood. She could be found all over town exchanging perky pleasantries with everyone she passed, helping people with errands and worming her way gradually into everyone’s hearts, one by one. She somehow managed to fit her burgeoning friendships in alongside her first attempts at growing crops and hacking down trees across her vast new encumbering property.

Harvey's life remained pleasantly the same through spring and he kept himself busy tending his patients, stressfully juggling the surgery's financial books on his fingertips and enjoying his quiet hobbies. He had recently taken up learning to cook, to a varying level of success. His mother hadn't been able to teach him in his childhood due to her health, and his grandmother believed that grandchildren were for overfeeding, but were of little use in the kitchen besides being a trip hazard. He had decided to start with home made bread - to little success so far. He tossed another embarrassingly flat attempt at a baguette into the trash can next to the Mullner’s house on his early morning walk, no one would find his failures in there.

As he got on with his usual routines, she seemed to be everywhere he’d go. He’d run into her in Pierre’s store, in the park or he’d spot her inconspicuously over his book in the library. He was amazed how she seemed to map the town on foot on a daily basis.
Their encounters were brief at first, smiling and friendly- but as usual he just couldn't shake his own awkwardness, even though she felt so warm and comforting to speak to. Almost too intuitive a listener, her genuine interest in their conversations with warm eyes looking up at him would fumble him into cold doctor speak more than he could frankly endure. He would stumble over the things he wanted to say and end up spouting some doctors nonsense, something about her being young or her staying healthy without trying. Good Yoba.

Whatever he ended up saying, he knew he’d be cringing to an almost painful degree the minute she turned away from him. Every conversation was torturous in the aftermath leaving him running his hands through the rapidly greying hair at his temples, feeling foolish. He was too old to be struggling this much. He’d lie in his sad single bed at night staring at the ceiling and woefully reliving whatever doctor Harvey drivel he had mumbled at the townsfolk today - He wanted to make friends in pelican town so badly, it was the only thing missing from his not-so-new start. But so far he had seemed to only be capable of having… patients.
Something had to change.

As time moved on and the farm grew, so did the farmer’s friendships… and so did her seemingly endless list of tasks. She was always rushing somewhere, with a pack full of clanking tools like time was liquid dripping through her hands far too quickly. Everyone's warmth towards her grew too, she was mentioned daily in almost every room he found himself in. She had helped so and so with this or that, she was working to reopen the community centre, she was suspected of secretly using the old mines. Be it gossip or praise, no one seemed to have any dislike or doubt for her, her presence in the town seemed to bring some life back into it. Into all the townsfolk too - into him.

He was still finding it difficult to crack his own doctor's shell around people, but inspired by his first meeting with the new farmer, and seeing her warmth creep through town, he decided it was time to start paving his own friendships a little bit more intentionally too. Extending a good morning into a small conversation, asking his neighbours more about themselves. If she could manage it, so could he.

He decided to work on Maru too, who he had definitely become most comfortable around, but he thought an added effort wouldn’t go amiss. After the surgery closed one day, he told her to wait a moment and brought down one of his old HAM radios, asking her if she’d like to take it apart with him and learn how it worked. She was delighted, and regularly stayed after work to tinker with the old machine with him, even finding ways to improve its range and clarity. He was pleased to be sharing a real interest that wasn’t medical papers with her.

The farmer’s run-ins with Harvey about town soon became intentional weekly visits to the surgery in the morning - but he noticed they were never to register as a patient as she had said she would. He was not sure what spurred these visits for her, but he noticed she was making a concerted effort all over town, visiting and chatting, taking part in town events like the egg hunt - she was really becoming a local. The more he saw her, the less painfully awkward he would become.

She’d come into the surgery with bright smiles bearing handfuls of wildflowers to brighten up the counter or offer wild fruits she’d found. Her gifts gradually became more personal - she knew everyone better than they knew themselves somehow, as if she had some kind of insider information as to their favourite things. Both he and Maru looked forward to her visits, she’d usually come bearing a coffee for each of them and some pleasant morning chatter.

As surgery staff, they continued to be concerned for the work she was putting into that farm, especially as Maru would hear from her mother how quickly the landscape was changing - and they would both notice how tired the farmer often looked when visiting them. Although he was trying to be vying away from doctor chatter, sometimes he just couldn’t help it.

“Feel free to stop by if you’re feeling exhausted. I know that being a farmer is pretty tiring work…Don’t overdo it!” He reminded her with concern, at the close of one of her visits.
She laughed “You're too kind. I will - but so far I’m ok!”
He and Maru exchanged a glance. She shook her head at them clearly conspiring.
“You could always register with us today? Just in case?” Maru said with a cheeky smile, holding a registration form out to her.
The farmer laughed and heaved on her heavy looking pack.
”No time today! Next time, though! Have a good one you two” she said happily,
and she rushed off.

He would make more of an effort when the farmer came visiting, deciding to open up more and have some topics stored in the back of his brain in case he felt awkward. How beautiful the valley was when she would bring in the spring flowers, or how he was enjoying the new specimen trickling into the public museum. She’d muse about her farm plans and he’d listen intently, suggesting names for her future chickens (he suggested ‘rest’ and ‘field snack’, she rolled her eyes). She’d ask what he had been reading when they ran into each other in the library or the park - he told her it was various historical books about the town - He wasn’t quite ready to talk about the books he really read, the poetry anthology he had slid into a drawer when she had arrived would be too embarrassing to reveal just yet.

One visit on a rainy morning, they chatted about the difficulties of running a farm, and the way they were both struggling to make ends meet in their rural ventures. She asked about running a surgery and hearing of her farm woes, he decided to open up to her about the difficulties he was facing with the surgery. It felt like he had an ally here, finally.

“Why did you move here Harvey? Maru mentioned you came from the city” She asked him one morning curiously.

He chuckled, before replying “I happened to be left an old doctor's surgery in my grandfather's will” They all laughed.

‘Haha, oh no. Nothing so exciting. I saw the job open up when the previous physician retired. I came here because I liked the small town atmosphere, and the potential for a holistic approach to patient care. I’ve grown to really love it. Plus it's much greener than the concrete I have come from - nicer for a good walk. The air is cleaner, and the library is quieter. When Vincent isn’t there anyway.” He replied smiling.

“Isn’t it stressful knowing your patients so well? What if something was to happen to us? That must be a lot of pressure?” She replied, interested.

He smiled at this question. Got ya, he thought.
“Well, you aren’t registered, so anything that happens to you is not currently my problem. Linus may know, I hear he is currently handling your care?” He replied brazenly, smirking at her over his glasses. Maru let out a surprised laugh and paused her typing to slide the clipboard and form over to the farmer.

“Ah Dr Gossip I see. Linus took me home ONCE - but fine! It is time, I guess.” She laughed. She took up the form in a feigned sulk and began filling it in. “But really, is it not hard treating people you know?”

“I mean, I feel responsible for this whole community, it's kind of stressful. It’s a pretty small community. And I’m fortunate to be able to build a good relationship with my patients. I guess it is harder than in a city where people pass through quickly, it can be less personal. Maybe that’s a good thing sometimes though, patients seemed to listen to me more when I was just their doctor, and not also their friend” he replied pointedly.

“Ok” she laughed, “I’m doing it!” She pointed to the form with the pen.
”Finally - my mother could have dropped a log on you by now though” Maru Chimed in
“Did you run a surgery in the city before you came here?” The farmer ignored Maru pointedly and went on.

He chewed on that question thoughtfully, and possibly paused for too long. Both Women were looking at him now. He’d made it weird.
“No.” He said slowly, picking up a file on the countertop, and looking at it instead of either of them.”..I worked in an Emergency room.”
“Well that certainly is a change of pace.” Muttered Maru
“Wow! How was that?”
He looked at his watch. Not this conversation.
“It certainly wasn’t a walk through a scenic vista. Anyway, I have Evelyn coming in five minutes!
I am going to have to go, have to clean up the radio parts from the consult room. It was nice to see you today” he smiled at the farmer as he moved towards the doors.
“Oh-okay - I’ll catch you soon” the farmer nodded her goodbye to him as he left, into the back of the surgery.

The farmer looked at Maru with an eyebrow raised, who shrugged in confusion and looked toward the door he had just departed through. They shared a moment of concern.
“Well, Interesting. He’s never told me that - but to be fair to him I haven’t asked." she mused whilst typing.
“Perhaps I shouldn’t have?” The farmer said.
”Hmm, hard to know. I wouldn’t have known not to. I’m sure he’ll talk about it if and when he wants to.” Maru replied.
“How are those long awaited forms going?”

In the consult room (which he had actually already tidied of radio parts after his nightly walk the day before) he sat down, a little crumpled and thoughtfully tapped Evelyn’s patient file on the edge of the bed. He didn’t like to talk about his residency in the emergency room. It was one of those situations like when one met firemen or police officers - the conversation tended to go in the direction of the morbidly curious - what was the worst fire, the goriest crime… or the most life threatening injury they had ever faced. This was not a conversation he enjoyed. He became a doctor to help people, not relive their worst moments over a coffee at 9am.

He worried his exit may have been a little abrupt, but frankly, it was better than having to talk about it. If there was a time and a place for awkwardness, perhaps it was now. He heard her say goodbye to Maru and then the bell of the door as she left, exchanging pleasant good mornings with Evelyn who had just arrived.

Maru peeked her head around the door.
“Are you ok? I can send Evelyn in whenever. She has her magazines, If you need a moment to…clean?”
she looked around the suspiciously tidy consulting room.
He shook his head, “No no, I’m fine. Send her in.” He said, smiling in a way he hoped was convincing.
Maru raised her eyebrows and nodded.

Right, time to make an effort - he thought to himself. He slapped his thighs and stood up, straightening his white coat as the door opened to a frail old lady. He smiled openly, ‘Ah good morning Evelyn, your flower beds are looking wonderful- working too hard I see!’

:)

Notes:

Look when i said slow burn i meant it ok.

Series this work belongs to:

• Part 2 of New Growth