Independence Day
A/N This is just a little something that came into my head. It is my first real story for TMP and is unbeta'd. All mistakes are mine.
Disclaimer: I do not own The Mindy Project or its characters. I just like to play with them. I DO own a copy of The American President, but I don't think that counts for much.
Walking through the halls of the hospital, Danny Castellano realized how tired he was. He had been roped into covering Dr. Reed's day of holiday call with the promise that Jeremy would cover Labor Day instead. Of course, the labor unit had been full all day with patients from their practice.
The seventh delivery of the day had been a long one that eventually resulted in a C-section. Mother and baby were transferred to recovery and the nursery respectively, and yeah, he was tired. And hungry. And there were still more laboring mothers that needed to deliver. Looking forward to a snack and a quick nap, Danny turned in to the lounge then stopped short, his hope for a quiet rest quickly fading.
"Oh, you have got to be kidding me!"
"Hey, Danny! How did the section go?" Mindy glanced at Danny then back to the television.
"It was fine. What are you doing here, Dr. Lahiri? And why are you watching…what is this?" Danny walked to the edge of the couch and glared at the television.
"It's The American President, Danny." She shot him an incredulous look. "And I'm here because Jessica from Labor and Delivery called me because you were really slammed and she thought you could use the help. Apparently we are the only practice with patients here today. How weird is that?"
"What! So she thought I couldn't handle it?" Danny got an irritated look on his face and turned like he was about to storm back downstairs.
Mindy grabbed his arm and stood up with him.
"Chill, Castellano. She told me you were in surgery and that it was looking like at least one more was headed that way. Plus, three other women called and are on their way in. You can't be two places at once, Danny, and she thought you needed a break." Danny visibly relaxed at this. "And besides, between you and me? I think she has a little thing for you. She always watches you and she blushes every time you talk to her."
Mindy nudged him with her elbow and gave him and exaggerated wink. Danny responded with a half smile.
"Oh, yeah? Huh." He chuckled as he went to the vending machine. "I guess it's okay she called you. But don't try to push me into a relationship. This is the Fourth of July, not Valentine's Day. You want anything from here?" Danny contemplated his snack options then dropped some change into the machine.
"I don't see your point, Danny."
"This is a day to celebrate the birth of our country, not romance," he said as he walked back toward her.
"Oh! Can you get me a—" Danny held up a bag of chips before Mindy could finish.
She grinned at him as he sat down and handed her the bag. "Thanks!"
Danny ignored her gratitude and continued. "It is a day celebrating the end of war and oppression. It is a holiday about freedom and patriotism. It is not romantic."
"What do you mean July 4th isn't a romantic holiday? There's red and white for love and blue for the ones who are sad about being independent. Plus, there are fireworks, which are only the most romantic things ever. Well, besides shooting stars and slow walks in the rain. Anyway, it's patriotic and romantic."
"I'm not going to win this, am I?"
"Nope." Mindy smiled, then scooted closer to Danny on the couch and rested her head on his shoulder. "Now watch the movie."
The two sat in comfortable silence while the movie played. After a few minutes, Mindy felt Danny's head loll against hers and realized he was asleep. Mindy tucked her body closer into him and thought to herself that she was glad he didn't seem terribly interested in the perky Jessica before drifting off to sleep as well.
They both jolted awake about an hour later when their pagers went off. The slowly untangled themselves from each other and reached for their pagers before standing to go back downstairs. Mindy stretched then looked to Danny.
"Hey. Do you wanna go to that diner a couple of blocks down when we're done? Their French toast is amazing!"
"You don't have plans with Zach or whatever his name is?"
"It's Brack, and we broke up last week." Mindy shrugged at him as she waited for an answer.
"Oh, uh, sorry. Sure, yeah, then. French toast sounds good. It might be late, though."
"That's okay. I have other movies to watch while I'm waiting." Mindy smiled then started through the door, but Danny caught her wrist.
"Hey, Min?" She looked back at him and was caught by the intense look in his eyes as they searched her face.
"Yeah?" Mindy swallowed hard once, mouth dry as she still held his gaze.
"Happy Independence Day."
end
Thanks for reading! Happy 4th of July!