Medical leave (a Mirandy fanfic)

Chapter 9: the liberties we take

That night Miranda didn't sleep at all. She tossed and turned but didn't get to sleep. Every time she closed her eyes she remember what the twins had said, that she "had" Andrea. Had she been she so careless that even her daughters had managed to see through the impervious façade she had struggled to build over the years? 

She held feelings for the younger woman, there was no denying it. But she couldn't afford to spur her daughters expectations when she wasn't even sure Andrea would return her feelings. Yes, she had responded to her flirting all the week. She sometimes even doubled the bet and dared to tuck a strand lock of Miranda's hair back in place, or wipe off some smudged make up or peck Miranda goodbye when the editor left in the mornings or when the brunette retired to her bedroom. But that meant nothing, flirting with the Dragon Lady was a feat that could easily cheer a merry audience of drunkards some Friday evening at a dingy bar. Not that Miranda thought so lowly of her first assistant, but she had learnt that the hard way.

Hence, Miranda was the first to wake up... or more like, get out from bed that Saturday morning. It was barely seven in the morning and the girls wouldn't be up for another half an hour. She padded her way to the kitchen to set the coffee maker, when a waft of freshly made coffee hit her nose. Andrea was already in the kitchen, wrapped in her robe, skillfully pouring coffee and rummaging through the cupboards. She had gotten used pretty quick to that hideous arm sling, it hadn't been a week since the accident and she looked confident with the discovered hability in her left hand.

The brunette could put up with basically anything, the harder the task, the more she struggled. She always managed to overcome any hardship with flying colours and Miranda was proud that she hadn't been wrong when noticed the sparkling determination in those chocolate eyes. Andrea Sachs was ambitious, intelligent and carrer-driven but also very kind and very beautiful. Miranda thought that anyone who could have her in their life was very lucky, and the editor would do anything to stay near Andrea, even if it was simply as her boss. 

-"The sugar is in the pantry, over your head" - Andy gave a small jump and looked at her like a deer caught in headlights - "Good morning, Andrea"

-"G-good morning, Miranda. I'm sorry if I woke you up, I tried to be silent but couldn't find the sugar and..."

-"Andrea, it's ok. I couldn't get much sleep last night so I thought I'd start Saturday a bit earlier"

-"Oh, I-I couldn't sleep much either. My arm hurt a little and I couldn't find the right position and, well, when realised it was already morning" - the brunette smiled tiredly -

-"Oh, that's not ok. You need to rest, we can postpone our visit to the Museum if you'd prefer to stay in"

-"NO! No, really, I'm fine. I mean, the pain is manageable most of the time but I just... couldn't sleep last night, that's all"

-"Well, let me help you with breakfast then" - Miranda reached for the sugar and handed it to Andy and looked for bread in the pantry - 

-"Thank you. Uhm, Miranda..." - she spoke tentatively - "There's something I wanted to ask you"

-"What is it?" - Miranda continued to rummage through the pantry - 

-"Uhm, is my presence here a... uhm, a nuisance" -  Miranda froze - "I mean, you've been most kind to me and I haven't felt so cared in a while" - she smiled sadly while fidgetting with the belt of her robe- "but I know how careful with your privacy you're and what a bunch of vultures the journalists can be. I wouldn't want to put you in a tight spot or shame you in any way by having people misunderstangind our situation, I mean..."

-"Andrea!" - Miranda turned around and noticed the brunette tried to hide her watery eyes behind her fringe - "What could you possibly be talking about?"

-"I, uhm, I'm sorry if I gave the girls the wrong impression, I clealy overstepped. It won't happened again" - she grimaced and clutched her arm sling strap-

- "Andrea, I still have no clue what you're talking about but I will tell you a few things" - Miranda turned around to look straight at the young woman- " Firstly, you're not a nuisance at all. If I urged you to stay here is because I care for you and you deserve to be taken care of in the best possible way. Secondly, I'am more than used to dealing with those slandering scavengers people insist in calling "journalists". And finally, I don't care what people think of our current situation, whatever that may be, but I can tell you one thing for sure..." - she approached Andrea and with a finger under her chin, Miranda compelled her to look at her in the eyes - "If anyone ever is ashamed of being with you, that person doesn't deserve a single second of your time, rest assured" - the editor cupped her face and her thumb wiped a traitorous tear that had managed to escape and slid down Andrea's cheek - "Now, how about  some toasted bread? A pair of birds told me that you favour blueberry mermelade? - Miranda said with a coy wink and turned around but before she could take a step, an arm circled her waist and Andy shily hugged her from behind-

-"Thank you, Miranda. You don't know how much this means to me. Thank you" -Miranda smiled fondly and placed her hand on top of Andrea's, right over her stomach-

-"Anytime, darling. Anytime" - she had allowed herself to bask in the other woman's warmth, she could very well take the liberty to call her "darling". Even if it was just here, in this very moment, under blurry circumstances,  Andrea was her darling.

-"I-I'll go change and be right back to help with breakfast" -  she unlaced her arm and scampered away to her room, shocked by her own boldness but also deeply relieved.