Make Time For Me

“Who says that the watcher is not a part of it? Well, thank you for your help, Jason. I can’t offer you a brew because Ellie specifically mentioned that you weren’t supposed to steal her beer.”

“That’s okay, she won’t mind as long as I bring a six-pack by this week. Your bedroom window doesn’t look out this way.”

“Obviously not. I guess it’s a good thing that I can look out towards where people live, too – towards the island. That’s what I need to learn. I need to be a part of that. So I won’t just be looking out there.”

“You travel pretty light.”

Olivia shrugged.

“I don’t believe in baggage, I guess. Oh, this kitchen is beautiful! It’s lovely!”

“Do you cook, too? Because if you cook, you simply have to marry me. You simply have to.”

Olivia laughed.

“I bet you asked Ellie to marry you because she stocks the fridge with beer. And… wow, a lot of greens and fruits and veggies and cheese, and are these boiled eggs? That settles it, I’m marrying Ellie. I’ll fight you for her.”

Jason laughed, grabbed a beer, popped the top, and sat down at the kitchen table as if he was quite at home.

“I am too smart to fight you or Ellie. I watched Ellie arrange the living room, and that old couch? I swear she just lifted it and put it where she wanted it. And you, you might look like you won’t pack much of a punch, but I saw what you did to that garage door. I’m not fighting either of you.”

Olivia grinned, grabbed a juice, and sat down. It might only have been eight hours and she might have had her comfortable shoes on, but it was still nice to sit and take a load off.

“See now, fighting men are easy to come by. Smart men, on the other hand…”

They were both laughing in easy camaraderie, and it took Olivia a while to realize just how strange that was. She never laughed with new people like that. She got along with everybody, but she was very wary when it came to making actual friends. It was rare for her to be comfortable in a new kitchen, with a colleague who might as well have been a stranger.

“Well, if you’re not going to come to dinner with me, I guess I’ll get going and see if I can gently point Paul towards something I like for dinner. Come by if you feel like it. I’ll send you his location, it’s easy to find if you feel like it. I’ll let you settle in, Olivia. Welcome to The Outpost.”

Olivia smiled and walked him to the door, and she felt good as she watched him drive away.

It was a new beginning for her.

And it felt good.

Olivia looked at the kitchen table and nodded.

It was 6.30, and she had made breakfast. Breakfast was the only meal of the day that she was any good at. Give her eggs and flour, and she could do things. So she’d made pancakes and scrambled eggs, and cut some of the fruits in the fridge, and she hoped that Ellie would like it.

She couldn’t find out until Ellie got home, and if she didn’t get home in—

“Hey! That smells good! Did I get a roommate who can cook? Awesome!”

Ellie bounced into the room. That was not something that somebody who was definitely well above 5’6” and had four visible tattoos on her neck and arms, and was built like a tank, should be able to do, but her personality and her personal aesthetic seemed to be a constant battle, and everybody won.

“I can only make breakfast unless you like tuna salad and Spam sandwiches, so I made breakfast.”

“And it looks amazing. I didn’t have dinner, things just seemed to keep happening.”

“I wasn’t paged.”

“I know, it wasn’t anything we needed more people for, but the people who were there didn’t have a chance to stop working, so I am extremely happy to see this! Best roommate ever!”

Olivia laughed.

“A bit early to decide that, but if breakfast is all it takes, then I must have the best roommate ever. I should get going, but please stuff yourself, and as soon as we can, we’ll figure out how we divvy up chores and groceries. You really stocked the fridge and pantry, I should pay half.”

Ellie shrugged.

“Don’t sweat it, consider this one a welcome gift. We’ll split it next time. I like grocery shopping, and you’re in luck because I make the best pasta sauces and the best stir-fries, so we’re covered. Between us, and Paul, we will not starve.”

Olivia grinned.

“I keep hearing about Paul and his amazing skills.”

“Wait till you try his cooking. It’s like, Cordon Bleu level stuff. Even Angela eats when Paul cooks and that evening we went to his place was the only time I ever saw food cross Angela’s lips.”

“Sounds like high praise for Paul.”

“Very high. Now go on, if you’re going to walk, you’ll be on time now. There are bikes to rent, apparently, I’m thinking of that. My bike is being shipped over next week.”

“Bike?”

“A Harley, baby! I modified her myself, and she is a beauty.”

Olivia tried to picture Ellie on a modified Harley, and it was easy to see the woman on a bike, from her combat-boots-clad feet to her short black hair with one white streak. Olivia was sure Ellie would bounce on the Harley, too.

It would be something to see.

“I should get going. I’ll walk, I guess, easier to find my way if I get lost.”

“It’s easy to get to the hospital. You just follow the signs and turn GPS on. It’s only the cottage that’s not on it, but I’m sure you’ll get the hang of it, don’t worry about it! Until you do, just get Jason to drop you home. And get him to bring his own beer!”

Olivia laughed.

“Sure, I’ll do that. See you later!”

Olivia managed to get to hospital without getting lost, and managed to run into three people walking dogs – big dogs – and since she loved dogs, she decided to get a start on making herself a part of the community, too. She was pretty pleased with herself by the time she got to the hospital, with ten minutes to spare. She was changed and ready to report to duty when she was paged. Female, 34, pregnant, minor accident.

Olivia swung into action.

“Leggett, here! She’s going into labor. She’s twenty-two weeks, we need to stop this.”

Olivia nodded, aware that risks had risen considerably, and briskly got to work, keeping a cool head as controlled panic flowed around her, an environment where she thrived. She followed orders before Dr. Heart gave them, letting her training and her instincts take over as she did what needed to be done. In twenty minutes, they had the situation under control.

“Good work, Leggett. You kept a cool head. You knew what needed to be done.”

Olivia smiled at Dr. Heart.

“We need to monitor her overnight, then see if she needs bed rest. I’m inclined to recommend it, but we should see.”

Dr. Heart nodded.

“I don’t recommend bed rest as a precaution unless it’s necessary, so we will monitor her. Ah, there’s her husband. Bud Addams, Dr. Olivia Leggett. She’s one of our new residents. She helped save your baby, Bud. Liza is sleeping, and she’ll be asleep for a while.”

Bud, a big grizzly bear of a man who looked half mad with panic, nodded and looked helplessly at Dr. Heart. She quickly explained what had happened to Bud.

“I told her she didn’t need to drive to the store now. I told her I’d get it after my shift, she should just take things easy. You know this isn’t easy for us, but we want this baby so bad, Dr. Heart.”