Chapter Six: Harper
Reaching up to rub my head, I curse myself. I can’t believe I was so stupid. Showing off in front of Brendan backfired big time. Now I’m in my least favorite place in the world. I rise slightly to speak to the nurse.
“Can I just go? Nothing’s wrong with me. It’s just vertigo.”
“Miss, you fell from the roof of your house.”
“Brendan caught me he said.”
“He broke your fall, but you still fell. You were unconscious for several minutes.”
“It always happens. It’s like shock or something. I blackout every episode. I’ve been dealing with it for years.”
He stops walking and puts his hand on his hip. “It’s your right to leave, but what harm would a quick x-ray do just to be safe?”
I exhale slowly. “You’re right. I just hate it here. No offense.”
He smiles. “None taken. We’ll get you out of here quickly. You picked a good day to fall. It’s slow today.”
“Bright side, I guess.”
“There you go.”
He wheels me into a room where another woman takes over. I'm helped off the gurney and wobble just slightly. It's always strange for a few hours after an event.
“Does anything hurt?” the technician asks.
“No.”
“You’re sure?”
“Yeah, I’m sure. I actually feel pretty good all things considered.”
“Okay.” She takes my chart. “Name and date of birth, please?”
“Harper Rose. March 15, 1988.”
She smiles. “Okay, Harper. Let’s do your x-ray.”
Not long after, I’m back on the gurney, waiting in a room with a curtain drawn around me. A doctor pops in, looking down at my x-ray results.
“Hi, Harper. I’m Doctor Davis. How ya feeling?”
“Good. I want to go home.”
"Okay. Your results look good. No concussion and your vitals are stable. I see no reason to keep you, but if you start to feel any pain, come back, and we'll check you out."
“Thank you.”
I sign my release papers, and after refusing a wheelchair, I walk out front, quickly realizing I don’t have anything with me. No wallet, no phone. I shake my head. How the hell am I going to get home without calling family? Dad will lose his shit if I tell him what I did now. I guess I have no choice unless I can talk an Uber driver into waiting to get paid until we get back to my house.
When I enter the waiting room, I stop in my tracks. “Brendan?”
He looks over at me, setting the magazine down he was reading. “Hey, you. How are you? Everything okay?”
“You waited?”
“Of course. I know I haven’t been the best neighbor, but even a jerk like me wouldn’t leave you after this. I had to make sure you got home okay.”
I almost can’t speak. “That’s really nice.”
“You’re shocked. I get it. Somewhere in here, there might be an ounce of kindness. I just used it on you I guess.”
“Thank you.”
He bows his head slightly. “You’re welcome.”
“For everything. For catching me. For getting help. For staying.”
“I’m totally pissed off at you for this. You know that, right? You had no business up there.”
“Lesson learned.” I lift my hand like I’m under oath. “Promise.”
Brendan smiles. “Vertigo, huh?”
“Yeah. It’s been happening for a few years. I went through a really stressful event. Since then, it just randomly happens, but especially if I’m up high.”
“Like on a roof.”
“Yeah. I got up there fine, but when I looked down at you, that was it.”
“If you weren’t so intent on decorating every square inch of your house this wouldn’t have happened.”
“You can’t hate Christmas that much. Who hates Christmas? Are you Jewish or something?”
Brendan laughs. Actually laughs, leaving me once again speechless. “I’m not Jewish, Harper. Let’s get you home.”
“Why won’t you talk about it? Did something happen to you? Something bad at Christmas time?”
He looks hard at me before exhaling loudly. “Yes. And that’s the end of this topic. Please.”
I nod. “Sure, Brendan. Sorry.”
“It’s okay. I just… I can’t.”
“I get it. Sometimes things hurt too much. I understand, probably more than you know.” He searches my eyes for a moment, opening his mouth as if to speak, but staying silent. “If you ever decide you want to talk, you can talk to me. I’ll listen.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. Ready to go?”
“Yeah.”
We walk out together, and as I stumble slightly, Brendan gently grips my arm for support. It’s nice to know he does have some manners. We stop at the edge of the parking lot.
“Stay here. I’ll bring the car around.”
“Car? I thought we came in an ambulance.”
“We did. I found out how long you were going to be back there, so I grabbed a cab to run me home real quick.”
“Oh. I’ll pay you back.”
He tilts his head. “For what?”
“The cab ride.”
He shakes his head with a smirk on his face but walks away without saying anything. I didn't think he had a nice bone in his body, but here is he practically doting on me. All I had to do was nearly kill myself falling from a roof.
The sexy beast pulls up and comes to a stop directly in front of me. Brendan steps out and rushes over to open the door for me. “You do have manners.”
Brendan nods. “Occasionally.” Once I’m settled in, he joins me on the other side. “No damage?”
"Nope. I'm sorry I scared you. I black out when it happens. The doctor told me it's my defense mechanism kicking in. It happened once when I was driving. Luckily Elise was with me, and she took over the steering wheel before we crashed."
“How scary.”
“Yeah.” I nod. “I was so scared I didn’t drive for three weeks. Now I practice some de-stressing techniques, and I haven’t had an episode in months until today.”
“You seemed okay up there.”
I glance at him as he puts the car in gear. “I leaned forward too far when you started to walk off.”
“Why?”
I shift my gaze out the window. Why? Because you’re the hottest man on the planet and I live for every interaction even if you’re rude. “No reason.”
“I feel like I’m the one that owes you an apology, Harper.”
I look back at him. “What for?”
“You should feel like you can come over and ask for help when you need it. I should do things like hang lights and shit.”
“Because you’re a man?”
“Exactly.” I raise my eyebrow before falling into a fit of laughter. Brendan peers at me. “Why are you laughing?”
“You think I’m a damsel in distress that needs a man to save me?”
“That’s not what I said.”
“You think I need a man to do things for me?”
“Also not what I said.”
"Well, what are you saying?"
He jerks the car to the right and pulls over, shutting it off abruptly. “What I’m saying is that hanging lights on a roof is a challenging task that two or more people should do." I start to speak, but he lifts his finger to silence me. "I'm also saying, that as a single woman living alone, there may be times you would like someone to help, and as a man that, believe it or not, was raised properly, you should feel like you can count on me, but you can't because I've been a dick." I start to speak again, but he shakes his head. "And you can laugh all you want, but if you didn't need help, we wouldn't be sitting here in my car right now after a trip to the hospital."
I twist my lips. He’s got me. “Can I speak now?”
“Sure.”
“I’m fiercely independent.”
“A fact I’m well aware of.”
“I don’t like being treated like a fragile doll because I’m a woman. I mistook your comment. I appreciate everything you did for me today.”
He smiles, leaning closer as he does. “You’re welcome.”
“I don’t try to annoy you with my Christmas cheer. It’s just that it’s my favorite holiday. It’s very important to me to celebrate in the biggest way possible.”
“I don’t try and kill your joy. It’s the worst possible time of the year for me. I wish I could just disappear the entire holiday season and come back in January. I haven’t figured out how to do that yet.”
I nod, knowing he doesn’t want to talk about it. “So every December we’ll both just annoy the shit out of each other.”
“I guess that’s the plan.” He pats my leg. “Let’s get you home. Are you hungry?”
I shake my head. “No, I’m usually nauseous for a few hours after.”
“Gotcha.” His eyes linger on mine for a moment before he restarts the car and pulls back into traffic.
We ride home in silence. I don’t know what he’s thinking, but I have a million questions. “Brendan?”
“Yeah?”
“Why don’t you have a girlfriend?”
“Why don’t you have a boyfriend?”
“Can’t find a good one.”
“Same.”
“You can’t find a good boyfriend?”
He shakes his head. "Oh, now I'm gay?"
“I’m kidding. You’re obviously not gay.”
“Why is that?”
Because the universe is not that cruel. Because you are perfection. Because then I can’t fantasize about you. “I can just tell.”
“You are correct. I’m definitely not gay. What I am is a picky fucker. As you can probably guess, I’m also not the easiest guy in the world to get to know.”
“Clearly. What are you looking for?”
“Nothing.”
“Okay, let me rephrase that. What’s your ideal woman?”
Brendan glances at me before shifting his eyes back to the road. “I don’t know. I just know what I don’t want.”
“And that is?”
“I don’t like high maintenance, needy woman. I don’t like superficial women, or people in general for that matter, that only care about things like status and money.”
“Says the man that drives a sports car and wears expensive clothes.”
He chuckles. “I didn’t say I didn’t like nice things. I said I don’t like people who only focus on those things.”
“Fair.”
“I cannot stand ignorance. There is simply no reason for it.”
I nod. “Okay.”
“I’m a very moderate person. I don’t do anything in excess for the most part.”
“Well, I’d probably annoy you.”
“Why?”
"I think it's fun to let loose occasionally. I'm responsible most of the time, but why not now and then drink a little too much, laugh a little too hard, fall from a roof.”
Brendan smiles as he drives. “I could stand to be a little more like you, minus the roof part.”
I laugh softly. “What do you do for work?”
“I’m a financial advisor. You?”
“Graphic designer.”
“Interesting.”
“I enjoy it.”
“You must be doing well to buy your own house.”
"I've been saving a long time so that I could have a solid down payment."
“At least you’re responsible with your money.”
“Yep. I have to be able to afford all my Christmas decorations.”
Brendan just shakes his head as he turns onto our street. We pull into his driveway, and he shuts the car off. “Can I help you inside?”
“I’m fine.”
“Let me say this a different way. I’m helping you inside. I won’t be comfortable until I know you’re settled in okay.”
“Well then okay.” I wait for Brendan to come to my side and open the door. He guides me inside by gently holding my arm. I am a little wobbly still so I’m kind of glad he’s helping. We walk up the stairs, and he pulls my keys out of his pocket.
“I took the liberty of running inside to get your keys so I could lock up. I hope that’s alright.”
“Of course. Thank you. I really put you out didn’t I?”
“No.” He unlocks the door and helps me over to the couch. I sink into it, happy to be home and out of the hospital. Brendan hovers over me, watching me with concern.
“I’m okay now. Thank you for your help. I’ll just take it easy the rest of the night.”
“Promise?”
“I promise. It takes a lot out of me. I need to rest.”
He nods. “Why don’t you take my number and if you need anything, just call me.”
My eyebrow raises. “You live five steps away.”
“And if you fall? You’re gonna walk to my house?”
He’s being very overprotective, but given the prior hostility, I’ll take it. “Okay, thank you.”
“Where’s your phone?”
“Kitchen island probably.”
“Be right back. You want water?”
“That would be great, actually.”
He nods before heading for my kitchen. I assume our floor plans are the same. I hear him opening cabinets and then the water running. He comes back a few minutes later with a glass of water and my phone.
“I programmed my number in your phone.” He hands it to me. “Don’t hesitate to use it if you need me.”
“I won’t. Thank you again.”
“You’re welcome. Sure you’re okay?”
I nod. “I’m sure.”
“Okay. See you later.”
“Bye.”
I watch him walk out and then exhale slowly. That was so unexpected. He’s nice! I dial my sister, tapping my foot until she answers.
“Hello?”
“Elise. Guess what?”
“Tell me.”
“Scrooge is nice.”
“No way.”
“He is. Really nice.” I scrunch my face when I realize I’ll have to admit what I did today to tell her how I know Brendan is nice. Dammit.
“I don’t believe you.”
"Well, he is. I, um, I tripped today, and he was really worried and went out of his way to help me."
“Tripped? Doing what?”
“Stuff around the house. Outside.”
“Harper?”
“Yes?”
“You’re lying.”
“Not exactly.”
“Spill.”
I exhale. “If you promise not to tell dad.”
“Okay.”
“Promise me.”
“I promise. Tell me what happened.”
“I was hanging lights.”
“And then?”
“I, um, had a vertigo spell, and I fell.”
“Fell from where?”
“The roof.” I squeeze my eyes shut waiting for her to scream at me.
“What?!”
“Brendan caught me. I blacked out like I do, and he called an ambulance and got me to the hospital.”
“Jesus, Harper! Are you hurt?”
“No. Not at all actually. They did an x-ray and a few tests. I’m fine.”
“Unbelievable. What have we told you about doing shit like that alone?”
“It hasn’t happened in so long I didn’t even think about it.”
“Why are you so stubborn? You could’ve waited for Scott and Dad.”
“It’s nearly Christmas, and now that the snow melted I just wanted them up. It was stupid. I get it. I won’t do anything like that again.”
She exhales. “You better not. If Brendan hadn’t been there—”
“I know.” I swallow hard. “I don’t want to think about it.”
“So, he’s nice?”
“Really doting. Waited for me and made sure I got settled in okay. Gave me his number and told me to call if I needed anything. He even laughed.”
“Interesting. Any idea why he’s been such a Scrooge?”
“No, only that something bad happened at Christmas. He doesn’t want to talk about it.”
“That’s sad. Something bad happened to us too, but we handle it.”
“Everyone deals with stuff differently. We all know I go overboard to make it hurt a little less.”
“Yeah, I know. It’s coming up soon.”
“Next week. Do you think it’ll ever not feel like being stabbed in the heart when we think about it?”
“No.”
“Me neither. How’s dad?”
“He seems okay. He said he’s thinking about going back to church.”
My eyes widen. “Really? I thought he was done with that.”
“It’s a process. I think he’s slowly finding a new normal.”
“Good. Five years is a long time.”
“It is. What are you doing now?”
“Resting.”
“Good. I’ll check on you tomorrow.”
“Thanks, sis.”
After hanging up, I lean back on the couch thinking about the day and admiring my tree. Something about Brendan fascinates me. Not just his obvious good looks, but everything. Maybe over time, we’ll get to know each other better. Deep down inside, there’s a good person in there. I’m sure of it.
~~~
The next morning, I open my eyes to the sound of a hammer. I climb out of bed and head downstairs. After opening the front door, I peer outside and what I see makes my mouth fall open.
Brendan sees me and smiles. “I was hoping to finish before you woke up.”
“What are you doing?”
“Hanging lights, of course.” I watch in complete shock as he finishes nailing a strand to the porch column. “I hope it’s what you had in mind.”
I can’t even move. I’m so shocked. “You hung lights?”
“Did you think I was going to let you get up there again?”
“No.”
“No, and I knew half-hung lights would drive you crazy, so I finished it.”
“You finished it?”
"Yes, and you were right. It was unbalanced, so I hung them on my side too."
“Are you fucking kidding me?”
His eyes open wide as he chuckles. “No.”
“I don’t even know what to say.”
“Get some shoes on and come out. I want to make sure it meets your vision.”
“Yeah, okay.” I go inside, slide my feet in my shoes, and close my robe around me before stepping outside. I walk down the stairs and look back at his work. “It’s…it’s beautiful, Brendan. Gorgeous.”
He smiles with pride. “I like how it turned out. Any changes?”
“No.” I look up at him. “Thank you so much.”
“My pleasure, Harper. How did you sleep?”
“Good. Really good. I feel fine.”
“Great news.” He searches my eyes, and as I gaze up at him, I realize I would do anything right now to kiss him. “Do you need anything else done?”
I blink. “What?”
“Anything else?”
“Oh, um no. That was the last thing.”
“Perfect. I’d say you have the most festive house on the street.”
“Just how I like it.”
“You should go inside. It’s cold.”
“Yeah, it is. Thanks again.”
“See you later, Harper.”
“Yeah.” I walk back inside feeling like I’m moving in slow motion. That was so nice of him it’s almost unbelievable. He even decorated his side! I sit on the couch stunned. I knew there was more to him than what he shows. He wouldn’t have done that if deep down inside he wasn’t a nice person. It might just be a Christmas miracle.
~~~
A few hours later, as I wrap a few family presents in the living room, my doorbell rings. I walk over and open the door, surprised at who it is.
“Eric! What are you doing here?”
He smiles. "I hope you don't mind the drop by. I saw Elise at the gym this morning, and she mentioned you moved in here. I'm just around the corner about two blocks."
“No way!” I throw my arms around his shoulders. He swings me around as my eyes shift up to see Brendan coming back from his run. He walks up the stairs slowly, studying my guest. “Oh, hey, Brendan.”
“Hi, Harper.” Eric turns and looks at him. “Um, this is my friend, Eric. Eric, my neighbor Brendan.”
Eric extends his hand, and Brendan reluctantly shakes it. "Nice to meet you, man."
Brendan nods. “You too.” He quickly disappears inside his house.
“He’s nice.”
I laugh. “He is. He just takes a while to warm up. Anyway, come in.”
“You’re sure?”
“Of course. It’s been so long. How have you been?”
“Good. Things are good. I moved back like three years ago, but I was just busy doing life and stuff. Didn’t get in touch with the old crew.”
We sit on my couch as I move wrapping paper out of the way. “I don’t hang out with them either. When things got rough at home, I had to focus there.”
“Oh yeah, I heard about that. Sorry for your loss.”
“Thanks. So, what’s new? Girlfriend? You were dating, um, Karen, right?”
“Yeah, we broke up about a year ago.”
“Oh, sorry.”
“It’s okay. I’ve uh, slowly been opening up about some things.” I crease my brow as he continues. “I’m not entirely sure that I’m straight.”
I nod. I always suspected. “Oh. How do you feel about that?”
"Fine. It's just hard because my family is so religious, you know? I told my mom, and she's hoping it's a phase."
“That must be rough.”
“Yeah. I’ve been on a few dates. Not sure.”
“Are you attracted?”
“Sometimes. I still feel it for women sometimes too.”
“Maybe you’re bi.”
He nods. “Maybe. You’re not freaked out?”
“Why would I be?”
Eric shrugs. “People are weird sometimes. A few of my buddies don’t want to hang out anymore.”
I put my hand over his. "That sucks, Eric. To me, you're the same person you always were. Who you sleep with at night doesn't affect me."
“I wish that was everyone’s attitude.”
“Me too.”
“So, your neighbor, what’s his story?”
“I don’t really know. I’ve only lived here a few weeks.”
“He’s hot.”
I laugh. “Yeah, he is. We’re getting to know each other.”
“He didn’t seem happy to see me.”
“He’s always like that. I thought he hated me at first. Turns out he just hates Christmas.”
“And Mrs. Clause moves in next door.”
We both laugh. “Basically. I figure he’ll warm up in January.”
“Best of luck.” He smiles. “Well, I won’t keep you, but let’s get together and hang out. We’re practically neighbors ourselves.”
“Definitely.”
I walk Eric to the door and hug him once more before I lean against the doorframe watching him leave. I start to go inside, but Brendan’s door opens.
“Hey.”
“Hi, Brendan.”
“You good?”
“Yep. You?”
“Yeah.”
I try to pull my eyes off his incredible body, but it's hard when his hair is still wet from his shower, and his sweats reveal more about him than he might know.
“How was your run?”
“Good. Did your friend leave?”
“Yeah, he just stopped by after bumping into my sister. Turns out he lives close.”
“How do you know him?”
“We went to high school together. Used to hang in the same crowd.”
Brendan nods. “Okay.”
Okay? “Is there something else you want to ask?”
“No.”
“You sure?”
Brendan walks toward me, stopping so close to my face, I have to tilt my head to look at him. “Forgive me. I’m feeling inappropriately protective. You can take care of yourself.”
I smile. “It’s okay. I appreciate your concern.”
“Good. I’ll um, I’ll see you later.”
“Sure.”
We walk back in our homes, both of us glancing at each other as we go inside. I want to believe that interaction was driven by jealousy more than protectiveness, but even if Brendan does like me, we are about as opposite as you can get. It would never work, and then what? We're neighbors. That would be the epitome of awkward.
I sit on the couch as a slow smile invades my face. Still, it would be kind of nice if he did like me. A girl can dream.