Meeting the Parent
The early morning sun pierced through the disheartening atmosphere in Dov's room. He lay sideways across his bed, with Megan's feet on his stomach. She'd been leaning up against the headboard, telling him all he wanted to know for hours now.
She'd tried a few times throughout the night to convince him to get some sleep; but he'd respectfully crushed the idea into the ground. He wanted to hear about every second of every day; her memories, her hopes, her dreams. From bottom to top, inside and out. He wanted to know everything.
"And if that night wasn't terrible enough, when I finally did get out of there, it pitch black out. I jumped in my brother's car and took off." She ran her hand through her dark hair, and Dov watched in awe as it fell perfectly into place and framed her delicate features. "And just my luck, it was pouring rain. I took a corner too fast, hydroplaned and landed in a ditch." She laughed at her miserable driving and wiped her damp eyes.
"You're a daredevil, Ms. Hayes." He laughed as he traced the outline of her feet, suppressing the smile their size always put on his face. "A daredevil with tiny feet."
"Dov!" She laughed, yanking her feet away. "You make them feel bad about themselves."
"Sorry feet." He laughed, crawling up next to her, laying his head on the pillow. "So, what happened after that?"
"Well, I went home a month later after I got the car repaired." She sighed. "He was so mad."
"Did he get mad at you a lot?" Dov asked quietly. She looked down at him, a little alarmed. What had he heard?
"Why do you ask that?" She responded, her voice a little uneven. Dov sat up to look at her.
"Chris told me what life in Timmins was like for you." She cringed, trying to keep the tender memories safely tucked away.
"I don't know what you mean." She deflected, not willing to meet his gaze.
"Look, you don't have to tell me about it specifically. I just figured, while we're on the subject of your life," he placed his hand lightly on her forearm. "I want you to know something." He sat up properly and faced her. "We've all got demons. Me included. It doesn't make you a bad person, or a victim of anything."
"Dov, you really don't know what you're talking about." She shook her head, choking back the sickening feeling in her stomach.
"Yes, I do. You think my life was all rainbows and butterflies? Megan, I get it." He shook his hair out of his eyes. "I just want you to understand, that if you do ever decide to open up about it, it's not going to change anything."
She looked up at him with a mixture of fury and understanding in her eyes.
"I don't need you to make everything okay, Dov." She whispered at him, wringing her hands together nervously.
"That doesn't mean I'm not going to try." He whispered back.
She ran her fingers lightly through his hair. "When do you have to work?"
"After last weeks haul, I get three days off." She smiled at him, relieved.
"Wanna go to bed?" She asked.
"I could deal with that." He threw back the blankets and she slid down next to him, resting her head on the same pillow. He pulled the comforter back up and admired the way the sun illuminated her fair skin and shocking blue eyes before pulling the cord and lowering the blinds, allowing darkness to surround them.
"Night, love." He said quietly. He felt her shift uncomfortably, again. "Alright, what is it?"
"You keep calling me love." She admitted sheepishly.
"Oh, I'm sorry! I don't mean to make you feel uncomfortable or anything like that; it's just what I call you. I'll stop, I swear." He rambled on.
"No, that's not it." She interjected. He snaked his arms around her waist and she intertwined her bare legs with his. "It's just, I didn't think anyone would ever call me that." She laughed quietly, feeling a little pathetic.
"I wouldn't worry about that anymore."
It wasn't long before he'd fallen asleep, still holding her small frame tight to his body. With her free hand, she ran her thumb over his bottom lip, allowing a small, contented smile to tug at her lips. She kissed him gently before tucking her head underneath his chin and closing her eyes.
Apparently, they had the same effect on each other. Because for the few hours she did sleep, every second of it was heaven.
The growling of Dov's stomach woke both of them up.
"Sorry." He mumbled into the pillow. "I guess I'm hungry."
"When did you last eat?" She asked, rolling onto her back.
"Lunch, yesterday." He still hadn't opened his eyes.
"I'll make you something." She rolled off of the bed, but not before checking the clock. "Shit!" She jumped up, and ran her hands through her hair.
"What? What's going on?" He propped himself up and shielded his eyes from the brightness of the room.
"It's almost one. I have to go see my Mom, she has a doctors appointment in a half hour." She grabbed her bag off of the floor and found a sweater dress, before unzipping her sweater and whipping off her shirt and sliding on the warmer option.
"I'll drive you there." Dov said, getting out of bed and finding some new jeans.
"No, no. I'll take the bus. It's fine." She slid off her shorts and pulled on some leggings.
"I think not. Let's go." They jogged out to the car. On the way, he detoured to McDonalds and got them both breakfast.
"You're a lifesaver." She said as they pulled up to the Toronto Grace Health Centre.
"Just call me when you want me to pick you up, okay?" He leaned over to kiss her on the cheek, but she stopped him.
"Would you maybe, want to come with me?" She asked meekly. "You don't have to, it's just, I'd rather you be there."
"Of course." He smiled at her. "Of course I will." He kissed her on the cheek anyway and then met her around the other side of the car, where he threaded his fingers through hers.
"I don't know how she's going to be." She whispered as they walked towards the front doors.
"I'm sure she'll be fine." He squeezed her hand and then held the door open for her.
Her whole body tensed as they rounded the corner into the communal area where the patients spent most of their day. She stopped at the sight of her mother. Dov could feel her breathing speed up, so he wrapped his arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple.
"Everything's fine, love." His words sent chills through her body, but also gave her the confidence to lead the way over to her mother, who was gazing out the front window from her recliner.
"Mom?" She stepped in front of Dov. The older woman turned and instantly lit up at the sound of her daughters voice.
"Megan! Hello my dear." She reached her frail arms up to hug her daughter. "How are you?"
"I'm good, Mom. How are you feeling?" She leaned against the arm of her mother's chair.
"Feeling like I'm the definition of that '100 Years' song." They have the same smile, Dov noticed.
"Mom," Megan looked up at Dov. "This is my boyfriend, Dov." He stepped forward and shook the woman's hand.
"Nice to meet you, Ms. Hayes." He smiled earnestly.
"Dov, hm? Like Columba." She smiled at Megan. "But please, call me Leah." She turned to Megan. "Honey, grab us some chairs." Dov stopped her by placing a hand on the small of her back, before turning and finding them some chairs himself.
"I like this one." Her Mom whispered.
"Mom!" Megan laughed, standing up to grab the chairs from Dov. The two took their seats and chatted for a little while before the doctor came to get them.
"Ms. Hayes? Would you like to come to the examination room with us? We've just got some test results for you." The doctor said.
"Oh, Dr. Rayner, I'm tired of all of these results. I'd rather just stay here and let what happens, happen." Her mother waved her hand dismissively.
"Mom! Come on, let's go." Megan stood.
"Why don't you go, honey? I don't want to know; I'd rather stay here and try to steal your adorable boyfriend." She winked at Dov.
"That works too." The doctor pointed out.
"And I'm fine with that option as well." Dov smiled his crooked smile and raised an eyebrow at Ms. Hayes.
"God, Mom. You're in your fifties and you're still a M.I.L.F." Megan laughed. "I'll be back in a few minutes." She and the doctor exited.
"So, Dov." Ms. Hayes turned to him, her blue eyes positively captivating. "Tell me about yourself."
"Well, I'm a police officer." He began.
"Really? That's wonderful!" She put her hand on his. "Meg deserves a good man." She smiled. "Sorry, but I've got like a week left. I'd like to at least know who my daughter is sleeping with." Dov was taken aback by this woman's relaxed and candid attitude.
"I'm sure you'll be around longer than that. And Megan and I are still a pretty new couple, so we haven't really…" He immediately regretted even starting that second sentence.
"So you haven't hit that?" Ms. Hayes faces split into a stunning smile.
"I, uh…" He laughed.
"Don't worry about it. She hasn't got the greatest track record with men, so it's a relief to know she's with someone that isn't just hittin' it and quittin' it. You know what I mean?" Ms. Hayes leaned back in her chair.
"I think so." Dov couldn't get over the familial resemblance.
"Oh, dear." She sighed, sinking comfortably back into her chair. "This is a great place, don't get me wrong, but the view of the street? Not quite as relaxing as the view of the lake at the old sick people's home." She pushed hair out of her face.
"How come you moved out here?" He asked, leaning forward a little.
"It was Meg that moved me out here, poor girl. She showed up one day, sweatshirt and glasses, said that I was coming to live near her. Said her brother couldn't pay the bills anymore, so she was gonna take care of it. A day later, I'm here." She shrugged her shoulders.
"That's interesting." He furrowed his brows together. At that moment, Megan came back around the corner with the doctor, wiping her eyes.
"We've gotta get going, Mom. Dov's got to get to work." She leaned over and kissed her Mom on the cheek.
"Alright. You kids have fun now." She winked at them.
"It was great meeting you Ms. Hayes." Dov smiled.
"Please, Leah!" She scolded him jokingly.
"Sorry, sorry. It was great meeting you, Leah." Megan pulled on his hand and effectively dragged him from the room.
"Can we go home please?" She asked once they were finally situated in the car.
"What's wrong, babe?" He refused to put the key in the ignition until she talked to him.
"Just something the doctor said. I don't want to talk about it." She said curtly.
"Can we talk about it later?" He rubbed her thigh lightly.
"Maybe." She looked up at him, arms crossed.
"Alright." He started up the car and drove home.
"How are you feeling?" He walked into the living room and knelt in front of her. She looked like a child, wrapped in a blanket and lying on the couch, staring into the fireplace.
"Tired again." She mumbled.
"What did the doctor tell you?" He sensed a resistance in her voice.
"That she's in a lot of pain, and they want to put her into a medically induced coma." She whispered.
"What? She seemed fine today." He fell back in sheer surprise.
"Apparently she's literally just used to it." She shrugged her shoulders. "I can't believe this is happening to us." Tears filled her eyes and she buried her face in the pillow.
He curled her hair behind her ear so he could see her face, and carefully wiped away her tears. She reached up and grasped onto his hand, clutching it next to her heart.
"Oh, Dov." She opened her eyes to look at him, still shaking and sobbing. His gaze remained fixed on hers as he lowered his forehead to touch hers. He gently caressed her long dark locks and shivered as her ridiculously long eyelashes fluttered against his skin.
"Come here." She sat up and patted the couch next to her. Obediently, he lay down next to her and she crawled onto him. As comfortable as she was, bundled up in her blanket, she loved the feeling of his body under hers even more.
Dov stayed silent until she fell asleep, before finally allowing himself to exhale and rub the sleep and tears out of his own eyes. As much as he hated seeing her upset, the dreadful memories being dredged to the service had been weighing him down since last night; but he knew he had to be strong for her. That was one benefit to being a cop. You could fake anything.