My Boss-Harrington

Part 2

The rest of the day went by agonizingly slow, every time you peered at the clock it seemed to be at a stand still. Harrington also got more and more confident in his chosen profession as the day went on, his personality helped him fit in with the stereotype that dentists' could be smug. The goal was to avoid him as much as possible but that plan was foiled almost instantly. It seemed as if every time you turned around he was there, either wanting to make small talk with you or asking questions. You tried not to let on that anything was bothering you so you tried to be polite and courteous but you were your father's daughter, subtly had never been your strong suit. By the time your last patient had checked out of the office it fell silent, you were charting in one of the exam rooms when Heather came in and shut the door quietly. "So what do you think? he's still just as hot as he was in high school right?," she whispered to you. You didn't really want to take part in this conversation but knew that if you didn't she would make a big deal out of it and get the other girls involved. "Oh, yeah he looks exactly the same!," you tried to whisper back with as much fake exuberance as you could muster. "He is so lucky that I am Mrs. Hargrove or I would be trying to get all over that," as she said that she moved her hips in a circle causing silent giggles to come out of both of you. After you both were able to settle down she looked at you like she did when she got an idea, "He's not wearing a ring Hazel and neither are you, why don't you take a crack at him?" Looking up from your chart you stare at her over the rims of your glasses, "do you really think he would be even remotely interested in me Heather?," you asked her in your most exasperated tone. "What would it hurt to try?, I mean we aren't in high school anymore." You simply stared at her with a stoic expression, silently wishing this conversation was over. "I'm just saying that it might be good for you to get out AND that he hasn't been back in town long and could probably use some reacquainting to all the new restaurants." "Nice try, but I don't think so, he's our boss and I would prefer to have a boss over a boyfriend." She shrugged her shoulders and smirked at you, "suit yourself." She made her way to the door and headed back in the direction of her office. The idea of you going on a date with Steve Harrington had never been far from your mind as a teenager but now it was something that needed to stay as far away as Pluto is to Earth. You could see from where you were sitting that Harrington had opened his office door and was reading another textbook. You made yourself look away and finish charting, the sooner you got your work done the sooner you could leave. When five o'clock finally did roll around you quickly made your way to the front, saying your goodbyes to the girls as you grabbed your stuff and made your way to your jeep. Slamming the door behind you, you felt like you could finally take a deep breath, you closed your eyes and tried to calm down after the day you had. You started the ignition but stayed for a few minutes longer pondering over your options, quit and get a new job outside of Hawkins, stay and get over these feelings or hide in your apartment until the end of time. Your favorite option was the latter of the three but you knew it was entirely unrealistic. You looked in your rear view mirror and saw him and the girls exiting the building, you don't want to have any more encounters like the one you had earlier with Heather so you pulled out of the parking lot and headed towards the police station.

Walking into the station you felt more at ease immediately, you had spent numerous hours there growing up and it had become like a second home to you. You saw Flo organizing paperwork at her desk so you walked up and leaned over the counter like you had done a million times before, "afternoon Flo, how was your day?." She looked up and smiled at you, "just a typical day here, although I do wish that Callahan would stop turning all my files upside down." "If that wish comes true let me know, I want to be prepared for the end of the world," she chuckled at you, knowing that you were probably right. "How was your day?, wasn't that Steve Harrington suppose to start?" Your face dropped immediately but in an effort to conceal your feelings you just cocked your head to the side and told her, "yeah he did, it was just another day at the office though." Flo either hadn't seen your face drop or knew that trying to get a Hopper to open up was a waste of time, so she just continued to try and get her paperwork cleaned up. "That's good hun, your father is in his office if you want to see him," you tapped the counter and began walking towards his office. "Thanks Flo." You knock on your dad's office door and it didn't take long before you heard a "come in," from the other side. You make your way in not noticing that there was someone else sitting across from him. " You wouldn't believe the day I've had dad," you say exasperated as you pulled the door shut. "Well come tell us about it," the voice was definitely not your dads, you immediately look up to see what was going on and all the bad from the day was instantly forgotten. You rush over to your sister and lock her in a hug, thankful that after the day you had you were able to see her. "I thought you weren't coming in until Wednesday?," you asked as you released El from your grip. She was laughing, obviously just as glad to see you, "dad called and said that you might need a pick me up today so I hopped on a bus and came early." "What about your classes?," I asked still surprised that she was standing in front of me. "I finished Friday, I was waiting on Mike and Dustin to finish and was going to ride with them but I think I was needed here more." You pull her into another hug, happy to have her home. It was then that your dad spoke up, "how about we go and get some dinner," he was standing now, ecstatic to have both of his girls in town. You all drive over to Tokyo Capital, and had your first family meal in what seemed like decades. You found out that El had decided on nursing and would be staying at Kennedy-King for two more years, apparently she did some volunteering at a local hospital and finally felt like she found her niche. You all sat around talking for hours until finally they had to kick you out to shut down the restaurant. You hugged El goodbye and she hopped into the cruiser, your dad insisting that he walk you to your apartment. Your apartment was above one of the attorneys offices in town not too far from the restaurant, it was spacious, simple and not your dad's cabin in the woods. It was open concept with original hardwood floors and white walls. You were organized and clean and everything was always in its place. One bedroom and one bathroom with a tiny kitchen was more than enough space for you, your records, and your books. Your dad walked you up the stairs and waited for you to unlock your door and for you to step inside. You turned around to face him, leaning into your door. "How'd it go?," he asked firmly, knowing you would try to lie to him and tell him everything was fine. "It started off okay, but by the end of the day I was avoiding him. He's different but at the same time exactly the same and that brought back the feelings I used to have and it scares me." You both made silent eye contact for a minute or two before he gave you a tight hug, he knew you would hide your feelings just as he had done for many years with almost everyone in his life. "I love you kiddo, things will get better. Everybody will adjust or you'll have a longer commute." He kissed the top of your head and before you could say anything he was making his way downstairs and back to El and the cruiser.