Chapter Four

Harvey

'Harvey? Harvey can you hear me?' A woman's voice called to him.

Someone was gently shaking him.

'What a lunatic. Did you see how he came at me? Dude broke my fucking nose!' A man's angry voice joined in.

'Your nose isn't broken. You shouldn't have hit him across the back like that like that, he hit his head when he fell. You might have given him a concussion.' The woman responded.

'Are you a doctor? What the fuck do you know? I was defending myself! He's crazy, he attacked me!'
The man whined.

'Dr Harvey, can you hear me?' Another man's voice joined in repeating the woman's question, 'It's Demetrius, Maru's dad. Can you open your eyes for me?'

Harvey slowly opened his eyes. People were looking down at him. He was lying on his side, and couldn't remember how he got there. He felt dizzy, or was he drunk? Oh yeah, he had been drinking – he remembered that. The side of his head felt like it had been cracked open. He ran his hand through his hair, his fingers met with wetness. He looked down at his blood streaked palm, the red glistening under the dim light in the room.

'Oh, fuck!' he exclaimed and tried to stand up but someone strong pushed him back down, forcing him in to a seated position.

'Easy there, don't get up too fast,' Demetrius said in a calm voice, both hands on Harvey's shoulders restraining him, 'Stay there for a moment, you hit your head pretty hard.'

'Who hit me with a truck?' Harvey turned his head, wincing with pain, and saw Jane's face. She reached her hand up to his head and moved his hair aside looking at the blood. Her gentle touch sent a shiver down his spine. He studied her face, her freckles were fascinating, such an interesting trait. Her red hair looked so shiny and so soft, he just had to reach up and touch it.

'Dude, seriously. You're a dick!'

'Alex! Give it a rest!' Demetrius warned him.

'Here, it's clean'. Gus passed Jane a bar towel. It was green and probably said Heineken on it, but he didn't care because he was playing with her hair twisting it through his fingers.

'Harvey, how's your head feeling?' She asked putting the towel against his wound. Why was she talking to him like he was a child? There were cubes of ice inside the towel; he could feel the coldness coming through the cloth. He smiled at her for a moment but then gritted his teeth when she put pressure on his wound.

'It's quite painful. Perhaps I should go and see that idiot at the clinic. Oh wait – that's me, isn't it! Dr Idiot! I'm probably going to need stitches. I guess I'm fucked!' There was laughter, but Jane didn't seem amused. He winced again as she adjusted the position of the towel. 'I need a drink.' He managed to get up without being stopped.

'Oh Harvey please, look I'm sorry I said that before.' Jane bit her lip.

He leaned against the bar, using the counter to support himself up. His back hurt too, across his shoulders.

'Here, drink this.' Gus slid a glass of water in front of him. It sloshed on to the wood. There was condensation on the outside of the glass – it did look tempting, but Harvey shook his head.

'No, I'll have a beer.' He pushed the water to one side, dragged a bar stool closer to him and wobbled as he sat down. When Gus didn't get him the beer, he tapped the counter in front of him with his index finger three times. 'Beer. Now. Please.'

'Harvey, maybe have the water instead.' Robin, Demetrius' wife's voice came from somewhere behind Harvey.

He could feel blood dripping down his cheek. He closed his eyes thinking about sleep and felt himself slipping sideways. Demetrius steadied him.

'Hey, steady on Doc! Come on buddy let's get you home,' Demetrius said grabbing his arm and not giving him a choice. 'Alex will you get his other arm?'

'You're joking aren't you? I'm not helping him. The man's a loon!' Alex said angrily and stormed out of the bar.

'I'll help you,' Jane spoke up and grabbed Harvey's other arm, 'come on let's get him home. He's going to feel terrible about this in the morning.'

'I can hear you, you know.' Harvey piped up. 'Don't talk about me as if I'm not here, because I'm pretty sure I am here.' He started laughing. He was in a playful mood.

'He's definitely going to have a sore head in the morning,' Gus chuckled. This caused a roar of laughter in the bar, which lightened the mood somewhat.

There was a chorus of, 'Good night Doc,' as Demetrius and Jane helped Harvey out of the bar. Harvey welcomed the cool evening air as he stepped out in to the night.

His mouth felt dry, he really fancied that cold glass of water. His head throbbed and he felt very woozy from all the beer he'd drunk. As they helped him towards the clinic he listened to them talking.

'Have you ever seen him in this state before?' Jane asked. He could feel her wavy hair brushing against his face as they walked. Hmm ... her fruity shampoo. He smiled.

'No never. I don't think I've ever seen him drink alcohol before. He's normally got a cup of coffee and his nose stuck in one of those medical journals.' Demetrius answered.

'So tonight... that wasn't normal for him?' she asked, clearly trying to find out if Harvey was an violent drunk. Shit, is that how she saw him?

'Hey! I was honouring her defence' Harvey blurted out. He wasn't sure if he'd said that right.

'Hell no! Do you think I'd allow Maru to work for him if he was some kinda nutcase? He's a good guy, but he has his problems just like we all do. To be honest I think Maru is sweet on him, but I want her to concentrate on her studies.' What?

'No...um.. defending her honour.' Harvey tried again, but they ignored his inebriated gibberish. 'Maru is what now?'

'I can see why she would be,' Jane clearly wanted Harvey to hear her, 'but he is kind of an idiot at times.'

'Hey!' Harvey protested.

'Shush!' she nudged him in the ribs with her elbow, 'Keep walking.'

'Don't shush me shushy!' He made a shushing sound and giggled.

'Aren't we all idiotic at times?' Demetrius asked, 'anyway, everyone here in Pelican Town likes Dr Harvey and despite how he behaved tonight no one's going to hold any bad feeling towards him.' Oh that's nice.

'There might be one person.' She said through her teeth. She clearly meant Alex. Ahh, it was all coming back to him now. He hoped he had broken the asshole's nose!

'Alex, he's an asshole!' Harvey growled. He remembered punching him several times. He looked down at his right fist, and noticed the skin on his knuckles was scuffed. This caused him to start laughing again.

'I'll take him from here,' Jane offered.

'If you're sure? I have to get back to Robin anyway.'

'Yeah I'll be fine,' she said taking more of Harvey's weight as Demetrius let go of his arm. She groaned under his weight.

'Okay, well. Good night Doc, I'll leave you in the capable hands of Jane.' Demetrius headed back towards the bar. 'Try not to get in to anymore trouble.'

Jane didn't even ask Harvey for his keys. She rummaged through his pockets like she was foraging. He waited for her to open the front door and then said, 'I'm fine, you can leave,' as he stumbled up the stairs to his apartment.

'Harvey - you are clearly not fine. I think I'll stay for a while to make sure you haven't got a concussion. You hit your head pretty hard.' She flicked on the lights, and then pointed to his head.

'Oh shit, that...' He remembered the wound on his head, and made his way back down the stairs. Pushing open his office door he said, 'I may need your help.'

'Wait? No! You're too wobbly.'

'That's why I need your help.' He grinned, finding the situation suddenly very amusing. Searching through his cupboards he found what he needed; a curved suture needle, a pair of scissors, a packet of nylon thread, and a bottle of sterilising spray. He threw it down on his desk. 'Please sterilise your hands Jane. I'm ready when you are.'

'What the hell Harvey? I can't stitch you up. I can't even sew!' She seemed quite worried. He was amused and couldn't help laugh. 'Harvey I'm serious!'

'Okay, fine. Pass me that mirror over there.' She did as he asked and he took it from her. Their hands touched briefly. He held it up at an angle and assessed his wound. 'Three sutures should do it.'

'Harvey are you sure you should be doing this? I mean, you've been drinking?' She had a look of worry on her face.

'Hold the mirror please, and don't move it.' He positioned the mirror, then washed and dried his hands. 'Don't worry. I know what I'm doing,' he smiled at Jane.

Tearing open the needle packet he held the curved metal up in front of his face. The metal glinted under the florescent lighting. He saw her throat twitch as she gulped nervously. He tore the packet open, removed the thread and pushed the clear nylon through the eye of the needle.

'Harvey!'

'Here goes nothing.' He pinched his skin together and pushed the needle through, pulled the thread and tied it off. 'Hand me the scissors.' She passed him the scissors with the hand not holding the mirror. He cut the excess thread. 'Thank you. Just two more times.'

'You must be numb from the booze. You didn't make a sound Harvey. Surely that must have hurt!' She stated, to which he responded by shrugging his shoulders and smiling drunkenly. Doctoring was his expertise, whether he was drunk or sober he was good at it. That, and she was right the alcohol was masking the pain.

When he had finished and had cleared everything away she helped him up to his apartment, steadying him with her hand on his shoulder.

'I actually don't remember hitting my head.' He said undoing his belt buckle. He dropped his pants on the floor and tried to pull one of his legs free but the pant leg wouldn't detach from his foot because he'd left his shoes on. He was quite confused and was stumbling around like he was a prison inmate in leg-irons.

'Here, let me help.' She sat him down on his bed. He flopped backwards looking up at the ceiling. She undid the laces on his shoes one by one, letting them drop to the floor. 'Aren't doctors meant to be smart? You left your bloody shoes on!'

He yawned and drifted off to sleep.

Jane

He was asleep, on top of his bed. She removed his pants from his ankles, and pushed his legs on to the bed so he wasn't hanging off. She hadn't noticed his underwear at first, but when she saw them she couldn't help but laugh. There were cartoon aeroplanes on his underpants. What an odd choice for a grown man she thought, but she knew you could buy anything on the internet these days. She took his glasses off his face and placed them on his bedside cabinet where he could easily find them in the morning.

He was a big man, not overweight, quite tall and powerfully built. He was quite a handsome man, despite his daft moustache. She removed his necktie, and undid the top two buttons on his shirt.

She jumped when he grabbed her hands, but realised he was still sleeping and relaxed when he let go. 'Fucking hell!' she yelled loudly. She was surprised her scream hadn't woken him up, but after the day's events she imagined he would sleep like a rock.

Jane scanned his apartment with her eyes. It was quite a small living space, he kept it tidy. There was a desk by the window with a Ham Radio, which peaked her curiosity. Why would Harvey need a radio... was he a spy? She laughed; no way... he'd make a terrible spy. But what if he really was a spy!

She picked up the wired handset and said, 'May day, may day, may day,' and then put it back in it's cradle giggling.

She wandered over to the bookcase and ran her index finger across a row of books. Medical books, more medical books, books about building model aircrafts, and other subjects she didn't find interesting.

His kitchen was in the corner. She checked on Harvey to make sure he was still asleep, and then looked through his kitchen cabinets and finally his fridge freezer. She was shocked there was not one item of fresh fruit or vegetable anywhere. His freezer was chock full of TV dinners.

'For a doctor you really don't look after your own health do you,' she said out loud. He didn't stir.

She found a blanket in one of the cupboards and threw it over him. He was snoring loudly like a piece of construction machinery.

She sat on his sofa and watched him sleep, he looked peaceful. She thought about what he'd said in the bar about her being on a date with Alex. Why would he even think that?

Earlier on that evening

Jane had an extra long shower. Falling in to the fountain had chilled her to the bone so she'd turned up the temperature and stayed under the hot water another twenty minutes letting it wash away her stresses. Her bathroom was very steamy when she stepped out of the shower cubicle. She felt relaxed, her muscles had loosened and she was free of aches and pains. That kiss had done miracles for her.

Wrapped in her bathrobe she opened her wardrobe and flipped through her clothes. Dungarees, jeans, chinos, combats, and dresses. Jane owned three dresses, one black suit dress for formal occasions, a pink skater skirt she thought was quite pretty matched with a frilly white blouse that was attached to the hanger, and a sparkly red sequinned dress she'd probably never wear again.

She chose the pink skirt and blouse. Looking in the mirror she told herself, 'You look nice Jane.' She smiled at her reflection feeling happy with how it looked on her. She moistened her lips with a pearlescent lip balm and sprayed her neck and wrists with a light eu de toilet. She pulled on her sandals, grabbed her clutch purse and headed out to Gus' place.

She wondered if he would be there.

She entered the bar and ordered herself a drink from Gus. 'Hi Gus, how's your day been? Can I get a beer please?'

He passed her a beer and smiled at her saying, 'It's been good thanks, but I've not been able to get out in to the sunshine today with all the inventory checking I've been doing. You look lovely in that get up – have you got a date tonight?'

She blushed, 'No, I just felt like getting out of my overalls for a change.' She took her drink and found a table with a good view of the doorway. She felt a bit silly, like a school girl with a crush.

The door opened. A couple walked in holding hands. Aww, that's so sweet she thought. She watched them order their drinks, the husband had a beer and the wife had a glass of white wine. They found a table on the other side of the room.

Jane sipped at her beer feeling nervous. What would she say to him? Should she play it cool, and pretend not to notice him?

The door opened again and a man walked in. She didn't recognise him, but that wasn't unusual. She kept to herself so there were bound to be lots of residents she was yet to meet. He had a swagger to his walk, and he appeared to be searching the room for something or someone. She drank a bit more of her beer, watching the man order himself a drink. She couldn't hear what he was saying to Gus but she could see he was at ease talking to him, like he had a tonne of confidence. The man glanced her way, perhaps Gus mentioned her during their chat, because he came over to her table.

'Hey there, can I buy you a drink?' The way he smiled at her was like he was posing for a selfie. 'What you drinking there, beer? He was grinning at her; perhaps he thought he was Mr Smooth.

'Actually... I'm ok for a drink.' She said nervously trying to look past him, keeping her eye on the door.

He sat in the empty seat and slid closer to her. 'It's cool, my treat I'll buy you a beer. So uhh... you the lady farmer then?'

'Lady Farmer? That sounds like something you'd trim your pubic hair with.' She laughed her own joke. ' My name is Jane.' She held out her hand, but to her surprise he brought it up to his lips and kissed it. She burst out laughing. Was this guy for real? 'Do men still do that?'

'Real men do. I'm Alex, nice to meet you Jane,' he kissed her hand again before releasing it, 'I love your perfume, it's got a really floral scent to it. I bet the men chase after you like bees to honey when you wear that.' He leaned in a breathed her scent in. What the fuck?

'I don't actually wear it that often,' she said feeling uncomfortable. She shifted in her seat trying to see if he'd come in to the bar, and she spotted him sitting on a bar stool hunched over a beer with his elbows on the counter. When did he arrive?

'You should, you smell gorgeous and you look so damn hot in that dress.' He leaned in towards her, and she noticed his eyes gazing down at her legs.

'What about that drink you were offering?' she reminded him in an attempt to get rid of him. His comments were over the top. Maybe they worked on ditzy blonde girls but they didn't and would never work on her.

She watched Alex talking to Harvey, but Harvey didn't seem in an interactive mood. Maybe she should go over and rescue him. Before she decided whether to go over or not Alex was back with two beers.

'Here you go,' he passed her a bottle of beer but didn't let go and for a moment they were having a tug of war with the bottle. 'Ha ha, I knew you enjoy that,' he said when he finally released his grip and let her have it.

Confused, she got up and walked towards the bar. What was that? Was that meant to simulate her jacking him off? What a weirdo!

She placed a hand on Harvey's shoulder. 'Harvey are you ok?' she asked concerned, and also hoped to sit with him and get away from that creep.

'Yes, I'm perfectly fine.' He sounded really drunk. Why had he let himself get in this state she. 'How's your date going?' He sounded sarcastic. Date? What was wrong with him?

'Date?' What was he going on about? Oh, did he mean... he thought she and Alex were on a date. Was he jealous?

Before he responded he had a coughing fit and he used his inhaler. 'You're sitting with Alex, and he's buying you drinks. My assessment is... you are on a date.' He was being rude.

She was worried about him; he was so drunk he couldn't find his pocket so she helped him put his inhaler away. She wouldn't stand there being spoken to rudely so she said, 'Have a coffee Harvey; you look like you need one.'

He chose to ignore her advice; instead he asked Gus for another drink. She shrugged. 'It's your choice; you're the doctor so you know best.' She went back to her table, wishing she hadn't bothered going to to speak to him. She heard Gus say something to Harvey about a coffee.

'Give me that beer,' she ordered Alex and sat down next to him. 'Men are so... insufferable!'

Alex laughed, 'Yep, that's us!' he excused himself, 'I need a piss.' He disappeared off in the direction of the male toilets. Oh what a wonderful way with words he has. Why was she still sitting with him? She should probably go home, it was getting late anyway.

After a short while Alex came back looking rather smug. She was about to tell him she was going to head home when she heard Harvey shout across the room.

'YOU COCKY BASTARD!' Harvey stood up so clumsily that his stool fell over and clattered to the floor. The sound reverberated around the room. There were gasps, and people were muttering inaudible comments.

The room went so silent she heard Gus say, 'Come on now Doc how about that coffee?'

'YOU THINK YOU CAN HAVE ANY WOMAN YOU WANT!' Harvey shouted as he headed for Alex. He seemed enraged. What the heck was going on? She saw Alex put his hands up in some sort of negotiation tactic.

'Woah, woah. Calm down old man. What's your prob-' He didn't have a chance to finish speaking. Harvey punched him in the face, which caused Alex to stumble backwards. 'Joba! What the fuck! You lunat-'

Jane was frozen to her seat. Harvey punched Alex twice more, each time there was a loud smack sound as Harvey's fist landed on Alex's face. Alex didn't stand a chance. Harvey was really going to hurt him if she didn't intervene.

'HARVEY STOP!' Jane shouted at him. It worked, it got his attention. He smiled drunkenly at her. Unfortunately she shouted, 'HARVEY!' a second too late and was unable to warn him. Alex had picked up a bar stool and brought it down across Harvey's back. He dropped instantly and everyone heard the loud crack as his skull hit the hard floor.

Fuuuuucccckkkk!

On the sofa

She felt her eyelids getting heavy. 'Good night Harvey,' she whispered and curled up on the sofa, listening to his snoring before falling asleep herself.