It was now Monday, and I was sitting in the shower getting ready to go to my follow-up doctor appointment. I was nervous, I wanted my stitches to be healed enough to take this stupid boot off and go swimming again. I couldn't wait to get back to my normal life.
I got out of the shower and got ready, slipping on a blue floral patterned blouse, blue jeans, blue flats, and some blue floral earrings to match. I put some curl enhancing cream in my hair and brushed it. I hobbled over to my bed and sat down to put the boot on. Grabbing my phone, I went downstairs to the kitchen.
I was in a good mood, things have been good between Robert and me, and we're always staying up late texting. We've just been waiting for what the doctor says about getting my stitches wet or not to plan our first date.
"Good morning, love," Mum said as she scooped smoothie mix out of the blender into some bowls for her and me, and a slightly larger dish.
"Morning, whatcha making?" I asked, coming over and hugging her.
"Pouring us some smoothie bowls and I made some extra that I figured we could take to the Wildlife Hospital for the Irwins and anyone else who might want some," she explained.
"Ooh! That sounds wonderful! Do we have mixed fruit as well?"
"Yep! There's a tray in the fridge. Go ahead and pull it out and we'll eat, then pack the rest up for them."
I reached into the fridge pulling out a platter of sliced kiwi, mango, dragonfruit, and berries. Setting it down on the counter, I uncovered it and carefully grabbed some of the fruit and added it to my smoothie bowl, along with some granola and toasted coconut flakes my mum already had out.
Mum and I ate our smoothie bowls, packed up the rest of the smoothie and fruit and got into her car to go to my appointment, stopping by the zoo first.
"I can bring it in myself, mum," I said once we pulled into the zoo parking lot, by the back entrance to the Wildlife Hospital.
"Okay, well set it here while you're getting out," She suggested.
I got out of the car first and then grabbed the dishes of food, in order to make sure I didn't drop anything if I was holding it while I got out. I walked to the Wildlife Hospital entrance, where coincidentally Robert was also headed to.
"Oh, hey!" He said, noticing me from the other side of the building.
"Hey!" I replied, smiling at him. His blue eyes made my heart flutter every time he looked at me, the splash of freckles seemed more prominent on his face than usual, and I figured he had just been getting more sun lately.
"Whatcha got there?" He asked as we both stopped in front of the door.
"Oh, my mum made some smoothie mix and sliced some fruits for a healthy snack for everyone," I explained, looking down at the dishes in my hands.
"Oh, sweet as! Let me get the door for you!" He offered, smiling.
"Oh, could you? I didn't think about that part yet."
"M'lady," he jokingly said as he opened the door for me, causing me to blush.
Robert followed me down the hall and to the break room, where he opened the refrigerator for me to slide the trays in there. Closing the fridge, I turned around to be inches away from Robert's face.
"Uhm...Hi," I said awkwardly, my cheeks heating up. I mentally slapped myself. We were this close together and all I could say was hi?
Robert pushed a strand of hair behind my ear. "Hey beautiful," he said.
I could feel my heart speed up, as he slowly lowered his head down to mine, his eyes closed. I closed my eyes as well and tilted my head up towards his...
"Hey, guys!" Bindi yelled, ruining the moment and obviously scaring the crap out of us. Robert jumped, his hand smacking me right in the face.
"Ow!" I yelled, bringing my hands up to my nose.
"I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to startle you two, but I saw Laurie in the parking lot and she said you two were back here, and to grab Ashley so you don't miss your appointment," Bindi explained.
"Uh, Ash? I think you're bleeding," Robert said, pointing to a couple of drops of blood on the floor. I slowly pulled one of my hands away from my face and noticed it had some blood on it.
"Great," I said, rolling my eyes.
"Come sit at the table a second, I'll get some paper towels," Robert said urgently, pulling a chair out for me.
"I'm so sorry, I didn't think you guys were gonna be so close to each other, and like I said I didn't mean to startle you," Bindi said, further apologising.
"Oh no, it's totally okay, love. Don't worry about it, just a bloody nose," I said, tilting my head back as Robert came over and pressed some paper towels to my face.
Thankfully my nose wasn't bleeding too bad and we got it cleaned up quick enough. Bindi left to go check on Rose and some of the other animals in the hospital while I washed my hands, Robert leaning back against the counter to my side.
"I'm sorry, I didn't know Bindi was going to do that," He said, his cheeks turning red.
"Oh it's okay, don't worry," I replied.
Robert walked me back to my mum's car, opening the door for me like a gentleman.
"Thank you! Have a good day," I said to him.
"I will, let me know what doc says!" he said back.
I nodded as he carefully closed the door.
"So, what took you so long?" My mum asked as she drove away from the zoo.
"Well I know you saw Robert walk up to the door too, so he helped me in and followed me to the break room and opened the fridge for me. We kinda had a moment and he was going to kiss me but then Bindi popped in and scared us. Robert jumped so hard, and his hand hit my face, and gave me a small nose bleed," I explained, blushing slightly. My mum and I were so close, that telling her that Robert and I almost kissed wasn't awkward at all, but I still laughed off the embarrassment of Robert accidentally giving me a nosebleed.
"Oh, how sweet! Don't worry, soon enough you'll have an even bigger and better moment and it'll make up for it!" my mum said. It was nice being so close to my mum, but sometimes I wish I had an actual best friend around my age to get excited about things like this with me.
We got to the hospital just in time for my appointment. We told the receptionist my name, and she led us to a small exam room.
"Dr Reymar should be in here in just a few minutes," the receptionist, a short, curvy lady with a blonde pixie cut.
Soon the doctor came in.
"Good morning, Ashley. You're here to get your stitches checked?" Dr Reymar said as he walked in.
"Yes sir, just here for my follow up to get them looked at and see how healing is going," I replied.
"Alrighty, if you could swing your legs up onto the hospital bed so I can take the boot off and roll up your pants leg if that's alright," he said, sitting down on a small stool.
"Oh, of course," I said, doing as he asked.
"And have you noticed any tenderness, redness, swelling, or pain to the area?"
"Not at all, just a bit itchy. But the aftercare packet said that should mean it's healing properly?"
"Yep, now let's have a look," he said, carefully rolling up my pants leg. He removed the thin layer of gauze I had wrapped around it, as the aftercare said to reduce to thin layers after a few days. He carefully poked at the spot on my leg, rotating it to check all of the stitches and see what stage of healing it's at.
"Okay, good news! You're cleared to go swimming, just make sure you clean it after, and I'd recommend keeping a wetsuit on for a week or two," he informed me, "but no more boot!"
"Yay!" mum and I said at the same time. I quickly texted Robert the good news
Me: good news!!! I can go swimming!
Robert: SWEET AS! First date a go then?
Me: sure, when and where tarzan :)
Robert: what about Wednesday, your birthday?
Me: sweet as!
I smiled down at my phone. Our first official date was planned, more or less. This was so exciting. Even if Robert and I weren't officially calling each other boyfriend and girlfriend yet, I still couldn't be happier. Maybe our parents were right when we were little, maybe this was the universe bringing us together as kids and being so close was the start of us all along.
Mum and I left the hospital, getting into the car.
"So, Robert and I are planning to go do something together on Wednesday, my birthday," I told my mum.
"Oh, how exciting!! I wonder what he'll have planned!" my mum replied, sounding excited.
"Oh, of course!"
"However, when we get back to the zoo I have to help Terri with getting one of the giraffes ready to be transported to another zoo here in Australia. But remember my friend Elaine?"
"Yeah, she's got a daughter about my age, right?"
"Yep, that's Cait. I was supposed to be at home this afternoon, but since I have to help out at the zoo, I need you to be at the house to greet them. They'll be staying a few weeks with us, as they're getting a house built down here and Elaine wants to oversee the final touches. And then they'll move into their place along with her husband, Allan." My mum explained.
"Oh, that'll be nice to have someone close by that's my age. I know Elaine did volunteer work at the zoo when we first moved here and that's how you two met, isn't it?"
"It sure is! And yes, you need a girl friend too," my mum giggled.
"Oh I know," I laughed, "Wait, don't they live in Gympie?"
"Yes, it's a two and a half-hour drive, they're supposed to be here around 2 this afternoon, so you're free to do whatever as long as you're home before then to show them their rooms and then you're more than welcome to bring them to the zoo."
"Yeah, I can do that! Are we just going straight to the zoo or the house?" I asked.
"The zoo, I figured you'd want to spend some time there, you have a few hours before you gotta run home."
I was glad my mum's friend and her daughter would be staying with us for a bit and then moving here as well. Like mum said, I do need a girl friend. It would be nice to have a friend my age who is a girl, and not an animal. I just haven't had much luck with being friends with girls my age, most of them cared too much about looks and makeup and drama and boys and I would always rather be at the zoo.
We got to the zoo and I made my way through the Wildlife Hospital to the room where Rose was being kept. I'm so happy to be out of the dang boot, walking around and doing things is so much easier. I reached into the little incubator and pulled out the little koala, giving her a snuggle.
"Oh my goodness sweetheart, you've gotten so big," I said to her. I have been still coming and seeing her while I've been at the hospital, but today I really noticed how big she has gotten compared to when she was first brought in.
"She sure has! How's your leg feeling?" came Terri's voice as she walked into the room.
"Oh much better! I'm so glad to be rid of that stupid boot," I chuckled.
"I'm glad. Robert should be in here soon, your mom let him know you were here and boy, did his face light up," she said, smiling fondly at me.
I blushed slightly and smiled. "I'm glad he's so happy to see me."
"He's always been such a happy kid, but I noticed since you two decided to give things a go, he's been happier. He sings and hums while doing chores and feeding the animals. I'm so happy to see him this way," she said. I didn't realise I'd have such an impact on Robert.
"Oh, how sweet. I didn't realise I'd have such an impact on him."
"Trust me, honey, you do."
The door opened again, with Robert now joining us in the care room.
"Well, speak of the devil," his mum said.
"Yeah, we were just talking about you," I added.
"All good things, I hope," he said chuckling, giving me his amazing smile.
"Definitely," I said back.
"Well, I ought to get back to the giraffes, we couldn't find the target training stick and it doesn't appear to be here either. I'll see you kids later," Terri said before leaving the room.
"Rose sure has gotten big, hasn't she?" Robert said, reaching to pet her in my arms.
"She sure has! It's incredible how fast they grow at this age," I replied.
"Oh, definitely! They said it'll be another week or two before she can go in with our other koalas for a bit, and then maybe a month after that for her to be released."
"Already!? I can't believe it's been that long."
"Neither can we. Dr Sam is very impressed with how she's been going, she's definitely a fighter."
"She sure is," I said, smiling down at Rose as she was yawning.
"Oh, my mum's friend and her daughter will be staying with us for a while. They're coming to supervise the last few steps of the house they're getting built here in Brisbane," I explained.
"Oh, sweet as! It'll be good for you to have a girl friend around, that isn't Bindi, she's a bit older than you," he chuckled
"Yeah, that's what mum and I said earlier. It'll be nice. Her name is Cait, and she is our age."
I put Rose back in her little incubator, and helped Robert do some of the paperwork and non-animal things, seeing as I didn't have any spare khakis here, I took mine all home to wash. At around 1:30 I started walking home, to be there to greet Elaine and Cait.
I was tossing some hay in the guinea pig cage and giving them treats when I heard a car pull into the driveway. I went downstairs and outside to see Elaine and Cait getting out of a little grey truck.
"G'day!" Elaine called, she was a taller woman with bright green eyes and red-brown hair. Cait was shorter, with more strawberry blonde hair and the same bright green eyes as Elaine.
"G'day!" I said, going over and helping them with their bags. "How was your trip?"
"Good, it's not a horribly long drive, nothing compared to going down to Sydney," Cait said, giggling. She had freckles splashed across her face and they danced as she laughed.
"Oh, yeah driving to Sydney is horrible. I can show you to your rooms and you can get settled, and then I'm sure mum will be home or we could go find her at the zoo if you'd like," I said, pushing open the front door and showing them up the stairs.
"Oh, I'd love to go to the zoo! We haven't seen Terri for a few years, we've been doing our own wildlife conservation work out there in Gympie and haven't had a chance to come for a visit," Elaine replied.
"Well, this will be Cait's room," I said, opening one of the spare bedrooms, it had pale pink walls with a mural I did of a fantasy forest with an elegant unicorn and a waterfall. It was done in a cutesy style, but not quite My Little Pony-esque. We kept this as a spare room when my dad's side of the family came to visit, many of my nieces and aunts have stayed here over the years.
I opened the door across the hall. "And Elaine, this is yours." The room had light tan walls and was originally my dad's office. Some photos of crocs that he and Steve had caught were placed here and there.
"I'll give you a few to get settled and we can head to the zoo. Just let me know when you're ready," I said, going back downstairs.