11:30 on a Wednesday and the infant of the Taylor residence is having a blast.
He's kicking his legs and cackling as his mother looks down at herself in disbelief.
"Really?" She exclaims as she tries to hide her amusement. She doesn't want to entertain this but it is kind of funny and he didn't do it on purpose. It isn't his fault.
"You peed on me." She says as she takes her shirt off. Onyx watches her as she grabs a diaper for him. "It's my fault though, I guess. I should've waited a little bit longer to change you."
They've been up for less than ten minutes and she should have known better than to try to change him that quickly. He was bound to pee on her and she wasn't fast enough to cover him back up before he sprayed her. There isn't a lot on her clothing but he still got her a bit.
To be fair, they both got a good night's sleep last night. So good, that Harper slept through her alarm that was going on for twenty minutes before she actually got up.
She bathed Onyx the night before so that it would cut down on some of the time needed to get ready this morning. But with her waking up late, she's still pushed back.
Now she has to shower, do her hair and get dressed all in 40 minutes. Pushing it, she is.
"Alright, sprinkler. Are you done?" She looks at Onyx who's gone back to a calm state. He's just kicking his legs and looking at her now. She changes his diaper and gets him dressed before wiping down the changing table.
Harper sets Onyx into his bouncer and brings him into the bathroom with her while she showers. She tries to be as quick as possible, not wanting to take up too much time and actually be late.
When Yoongi he gets her a few nights ago about going out for coffee, she was surprised about it. He specified that it was to talk about ground rules and things that she may have pertaining to Onyx.
Harper's immediate thought was that it was something that could be talked about in either one of their apartments. They didn't need to go out for that. Even now, she still feels that way. Not because she doesn't want to go out for coffee.
But for a few other reasons that would be difficult, almost embarrassing to explain to other people. It's her embarrassment to deal with alone, though. She won't put it on other people.
She'll just have to keep Onyx soothed and herself calm as well. There's a reason that she doesn't take him very many places in the public and why she, herself, doesn't go very many places either.
Harper gets out of the shower and dries herself off. She puts lotion on her body before dressing in a black sweatsuit similar to the one that her son has on.
She checks the time as she starts to take her hair from the bonnet and scarf. She took the time to blow it out and flat iron it the night before, wanting to change things up for herself.
Combing her hair straight, it falls a little past her shoulders. She makes sure that the part in the middle is straight before checking herself in the mirror once more.
Harper pushes her lips to the side as she bites the inside of her cheek.
Should I put makeup on? I'll be in public... not by myself. I don't want to be out with Yoongi looking.. tired. God forbid someone sees us together. What would they think seeing me like that with him?
What would they say? Would they make a comment? Would they whisper to each other about it?
Harper's eyebrows furrow as she frowns. She doesn't know why she's even thinking such thoughts. It doesn't matter what they'll think. Them going out for coffee isn't what it looks like. It isn't a date. They're just going to discuss arrangements for Onyx... with Yoongi as the sitter. That's all that this is.
She tries to convince herself of what she knows but still falls short of believing herself.
Her alarm goes off, letting her know that it's time to leave and she sighs.
She takes Onyx out of the bouncer and puts his shoes on before getting him into his car seat. She grabs his blanket and puts it over him, tucking it into the sides. Making sure that she has everything in his diaper bag, she puts her shoes and coat on and heads out the door.
######
Yoongi types away at his computer, writing up synopsis notes after a two and a half hour surgery. A pretty easy way to occupy his morning, if he does say so himself.
His phone buzzes on his desk and he looks at it. It isn't the alarm that he set going off, but rather, a text message from Taehyung.
He taps the screen and unlocks his phone to look at it.
Tae: We're going out for lunch down the street. Care to join?
Yoongi licks over this lips as he licks his phone up to text back. He sits back against his chair and type sour his response. He sends it off before getting back to his notes.
Twenty minutes later, he's saving and submitting them as there's a knock on his door.
"Come in. It's open."
The door opens and Nurse James sticks his head in.
"Afternoon, Doc." Yoongi greets him with a light smile.
"Good afternoon, Dr. Min. I was asked to come get you for lunch. Tae is running a few minutes late so Hailey sent me down. They'll meet us there. I had to pop into Hyde's office for a minute though so they might already be on their way."
"Oh. Is everything alright? Did something happen?" Yoongi asks as he stands up. He puts his phone into his pocket and walks to grab his coat from the hanger.
"One of the toddler patients in his office has to get shots and is not happy about it at all."
"What? Really?" Yoongi's face twists in surprise.
Unheard of, really. Taehyung is great at administering shots. It's a nurse's duty typically but he prefers to do it himself if the kids are squirmy or don't like needles. And most kids don't.
"That's what I said. But it isn't his patient. It's Walker's. Tae just heard all the fuss he was putting up and intervened to calm him down. Kid was screaming his head off in there."
"I assumed he had parents with him." Yoongi says in a questioning tone as he puts his coat on. He grabs his keys out of his pocket and steps out of his office.
"His father was there but Hailey said he wasn't very present." Nurse James explains as they walk down the hall. "He's not the one that usually brings him. The kid's grandmother is. So he was clueless as to what was going to happen. Couldn't even tell her if he'd had any recent bursts in speech."
"Bursts in speech?" Yoongi repeats. "Does he have a delay?"
"Walker isn't sure if it's a delay or if he just doesn't want to talk." James shrugs. "He understands everything clear as day and uses the sign language that he knows to communicate. He just doesn't talk very much."
"Hm." The corners of Yoongi's lips turn down. "That is weird."
"Makes it worse that Walker's referred him to a speech therapist and he hasn't gone at all. Neither of his parents have made the appointment. Which isn't really a shock at all because they don't call or come to his appointments typically either. If his grandmother doesn't bring him, he misses appointments in a row until she can. He's going to be three soon."
"Jesus. And how long has this been going on?"
"Since he was two is when they started clocking it. If anything, it's gotten worse."
Yoongi frowns as they get into the elevator to get to the lobby floor. He doesn't understand how both parents could continuously forget or refuse to take their child to therapy when it's clear that he needs it. It's neglect at this rate and that annoys him.
"Hailey said that she's going to make a CPS call before she leaves for the day. There's a bunch of things she's been noticing and this has put the nail in the coffin for her."
"I'm surprised that it took her this long. The constant missing of appointments and refusal to take him to speech would have been it for me." Yoongi states.
They get out into the lobby and Nurse James nods.
"Hailey's been reporting to Walker so I think she assumes that she was going to take care of it. Obviously, she hasn't."
Yoongi shakes his head as they leave the building. It's like Taehyung said. Anyone can do the work and get past the education but that doesn't mean they can do their job effectively and efficiently. Not every doctor or nurse should be a doctor or nurse.
The medical professionals part ways as they walk to their vehicles. Yoongi checks the time on his phone and his alarm goes off right after.
Perfect timing.
He puts his seat belt on and pulls the visor mirror down to check his hair. He runs his fingers through it and pushes some of it behind his ears before flipping it back up.
He pulls out of the parking lot and drives to the cafe that they'll be having lunch at. When he gets there, his eyes wander before landing on his coworkers' vehicles.
Yoongi parks next to Taehyung's car and gets out. He walks into the building and scans the seats, finding his group in a c- shaped booth. With James next to him, he waves Taehyung over.
To his growing irritation with the woman, he sees Kyra slide out of the booth as well. The three of them walk over and greet him and Nurse James. Yoongi says hi back before checking out of the conversation. He crosses his arms over his chest and looks around the restaurant.
He tries to ignore his annoyance with her presence but fails miserably the way he sighs through his nose.
Yoongi's eyes drift toward the door as the bell sounds. A couple walks in holding hands and his exhales the sudden breath that he was holding.
Looking at his wristwatch, he checks the time again.
"Yoongi, are you ordering anything?" Hailey asks as they approach the counter.
"Uh," He hesitates, not fully paying attention. His eyes land on a familiar head of curls and he looks at Hailey. "Yeah. I'll be right back."
He walks away toward the infant being held by his mother. Harper smiles at Onyx as he coos at her. Seeing Yoongi approach from the corner of her eye, she looks to him.
"Hey. I'm a few minutes late. I'm sorry. I had to stop and get gas but all the pumps were being used so I had to wait for people to finish."
"It's okay. I'm a little late, too. I was just going to go order. Do you want anything? Coffee, bagel, sandwich?"
"Uhm.. just some coffee and a cinnamon muffin, please." Harper puts Onyx into his car seat and reaches into her wallet for the cash.
"Anything cream or sugar?"
"Two creams, three sugars."
"Alright. I'll be back." Yoongi walks away and gets back in line.
There are a few people in between him and his coworkers but he doesn't mind. He waits patiently for his turn to order. He gets what Harper wants before deciding on something of his own. He decides on a blueberry muffin, a large panini and a cup of coffee that he's going to add creamer and two sugars to.
He pays for the order himself and stands by as it's being made. He looks around catches sight of Tae. The pediatrician gives him a questioning look and Yoongi nods his head in Harper's direction. Taehyung silently goes 'oohhh' and nods his head in understanding.
Yoongi's name is called a few minutes later and he takes the tray of food and walks to the table. He sets Harper's plate in front of her with her muffin and her cup of coffee as well. She tastes it and smiles at him.
"Thank you. How much did mine come to?"
Yoongi shakes his head as he takes his coat off. "Don't worry about it. I don't remember anyway." He waves it off and Harper presses her lips into a thin line.
She looks down at her muffin, peeling the paper away slowly. She removes it from her food and places it on the table. Instead of picking the muffin up to bite it, she rips a piece off and puts it in her piece.
Yoongi unwraps his panini and sets half of it on her plate. She looks up at him and he gives her a small smile.
"It's a really good sandwich. Try it. If you don't like it, that's okay." He gently encourages.
"Thank you." Harper replies quietly. She picks the sandwich and Yoongi looks down at his own, feeling nervous all of a sudden.
'Just for coffee'. He reminds himself.
He clears his throat and swallows thickly.
"So I, uh. I figured we'd come out and talk. I was thinking that this would be the best time. I'm stacked with work for the next two weeks so I just wanted to make sure that I'd have the time to do this. I know it might feel weird with me asking you to meet me on my lunch."
Harper offers a smile and shakes her head. "No, it's okay. I wasn't really doing anything, anyway. This was a good time, I don't mind. Your career is important so, whatever works best for you."
Yoongi's lips part the smallest bit before he looks down at his coffee. His eyebrows twitch lightly as he watches the light swirls of creamer. The sound around him seems to drown out as his brows begin to pinch together.
Such a small sentence. One that she probably didn't even put much thought into when she spoke it. One that she probably didn't intend for him to dwell on so heavily... that she didn't expect to hit him so hard.
Why can't he shake this? Why does it plague him all of a sudden? After all of these years? After all of his accomplishments? Why is it so prevalent in his mind now?
"So I thought about making a schedule for him or trying to put him on one. That way he gets a good routine down when you start watching him. I read that routines help sleep for moms and babies as well."
Yoongi blinks himself to the present and looks up at Harper.
"Sounds good. Um... I was going to ask about any specific things that you do or like rules that you have with him. I'd prefer to have rules or guidelines so that I know exactly how to care for him. I mean, there's a baseline for caring for babies but every parent has their own set way of doing things. If I can do them like you do then it'll keep the consistency which is also great for infants, too."
"Oh, of course. I don't really have any like huge ones, I guess." Harper says as she thinks. "I mean.. the only really big one is that he's allergic to bacitracin. I can't think of a situation where you'd need it for him at this age but yeah."
"So no Neosporin or things like that then." Yoongi states.
Harper nods. "Right. I don't know what I would use to substitute it but I've just been avoiding the thought of him getting any type of infection where he's need an antibiotic. If he ever did get like a small cut or something that wasn't deep, I'd just use A&D. That doesn't have bacitracin in it. It prevents the infection so I don't-." She stops talking suddenly.
Yoongi smiles at her as his eyes full with amusement.
"You are a doctor. I do not have to tell you this information. Oh my god." Harper says quietly. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay." He chuckles. "I have a PhD but you're his mother. You're more educated than I am. No Neosporin, no bacitracin. A&D ointment and-. Do you use the A&D rash cream too?"
"He hasn't gotten a rash yet. Thankfully." She crosses her fingers and then knocks on the wooden windowsill next to them. "But if he ever did, then yes. I'd try that or use baby powder. Whichever works best but I don't know yet because he hasn't had one."
Yoongi nods in understanding. "And as far as feeding him, he's on just formula right now?"
"Yes." Harper confirms. "When he turns five or six months, then I can start giving him baby food and I think six months is when I start mixing rice cereal in his bottles. Sometimes I give him little tastes of applesauce anyway but not a lot. I don't want to give him anything that his digestive system can't take yet, you know?"
Yoongi nods again. "I understand. There's a lot think about food wise while he's this small. Well, the entire first year or two of his life really but mostly the first year. It kind of helps mold what he'll like and won't like. Something he just may not like at all and that'll be his preference. But introducing him to veggie and fruit purées in his first year will help."
"I can't wait until he can eat them. I'm so excited to feed him more things. He's a baby and all he's ever had is formula so he doesn't have a preference right now. But I can't wait too see what he likes and doesn't like, how he'll react to different flavors."
"Are you going to give him a taste of his first lemon?" Yoongi asks and she gasps.
"I should." Harper thinks. "It'll be funny. It doesn't hurt him, it's just really sour. I've watched videos of babies eating lemons and avocados and tasting spicy sauces. They're always so funny."
"They always make funny faces like they hate it and then go for more. That's the best part." Yoongi chuckles.
Harper looks over at Onyx and he starts to fuss and takes him out of the car seat. He has his knuckles in his mouth, sucking on them as he shakes his head.
"You're hungry again, mister?" Harper coos as she reaches for his diaper bag. Her heart skips as he begins to cry quietly.
Yoongi watches as she takes lightly bounces Onyx in one arm and unzips the bag with the other. She takes out his can of formula and a bottle already filled with water. Though she's got everything ready, it'll be a bit difficult for her to get the formula into the bottle and soothe Onyx at the same time.
Yoongi watches her facial features as she becomes tense. Onyx's crying will worsen if she puts him down to make the bottle and that won't help her tension at all.
"I can hold him while you make his bottle."
Harper says nothing as she hands the baby to him. Her lips are pursed as she opens the can of formula and the bottle. Her heart is beating quickly in her chest and her chest begins to feel a little heavier with each passing moment.
Yoongi soothes Onyx, holding him against his chest and rocking him. He looks around as the baby's cries quiet down. A few people are looking in their direction. Most look away when he makes eye contact with them or looks in their direction. One older woman continues to stare.
Yoongi stares right back at her, blinking at her until she becomes uncomfortable. She frowns and looks away and he rolls his eyes before looking back at Harper.
She's shaking the bottle up as she looks at her son. Onyx is gripping the string of the lanyard around Yoongi's neck. He raises his fist to put it in his mouth and Yoongi laughs.
"Hey, I thought you only ate hoodie strings, man?"
Onyx looks at him as the lanyard is pried from his tiny fist.
"I think you just like strings." Yoongi states. Onyx coos and slobs in response. It gets onto the man's dress shirt and Harper pokes her lips out.
"Ouu. I'm sorry. Let me feed him."
"It's fine. You don't have to apologize. It's just a little baby slob. It won't hurt anything. Right, Onyx?" Yoongi asks, holding the baby up to look him in the eyes.
He looks over at Harper and then glances down to her untouched sandwich. "I can feed him if you want. You haven't eaten anything yet. And your coffee will get cold."
"So will yours."
"I actually prefer it that way. This place just doesn't specialize in iced americanos. Have to go up the street to Marty's for that."
"They don't sell them?"
"Oh, they do." Yoongi says, reaching for Onyx's bottle. "They're just not good at making them. A personal opinion, though. Some people might like them... I assume."
Harper passes the bottle to him, watching it transfer from her hand to his. He starts feeding Onyx and Harper watches as she picks up the panini. It's still warm and the cheese on it is melted to perfection.
She takes a bite and savors the maple taste of the breakfast sausage and smoky taste of bacon. The crisp sound of the bread is just right, letting her know that it's been toasted but only lightly.
Harper chews the food, feeling like she hasn't eaten in days. That would be untrue... The last time that she ate was the night before. She had a full pack of ramen noodles before she became too tired to stay awake.
Eating for Harper is more of a here and there kind of thing. She doesn't really have an appetite for much of anything at all. And when she does, it's only small amounts due to the lack of time that she has to actually consume it.
Harper eats but she doesn't eat.
"I think somebody's sleepy." Yoongi says as he looks down at Onyx.
He's finished most of his bottle and is now fighting to stay awake. His eyelids flutter as he looks up at Yoongi. His eyes can barely focus on the figure holding him.
Harper and Yoongi's attention is drawn away from the baby as the older woman from earlier approaches. She stops by the table and looks between the two adults between taking a peek at Onyx.
Harper's heart beats a little faster and Yoongi holds Onyx away from her.
"Excuse you." He says to her. "Is there a problem?"
"Oh no." The woman says with a wave of her hand. "I just wanted to see him. He looks a little young to be out and about in a place like this, no? He could be a little disruptive to the customers. That wouldn't be very good for the business of the cafe."
Her tone is sweet and if you stood from afar and couldn't hear her words, maybe you'd think they were of value. Maybe you'd think she was giving compliments or simply being as kind as her tone suggests. But neither Harper nor Yoongi take it that way.
"Thank you but if the owners thought the presence of small children would affect their business, they wouldn't have a section of their menu with puréed foods and finger foods for infants and toddlers. They also wouldn't advertise as being family friendly. We appreciate the concern, though." Yoongi finishes a polite smile and the woman smiles uncomfortably.
She looks back and forth between him and Harper again before looking to Onyx.
"Hmph." She hums as she fixes her purse on her arm and walks away. The sound of her heels clack against the glossy tiled floor with each step that she takes.
Harper looks down at her half eaten sandwich and bites the inside of her lip.
This is exactly what she didn't want. It's exactly what she wants to avoid during every outing. And the way that the woman was looking between her and Yoongi to Onyx.
Harper swallows thickly before gently pushing her plate away. She takes a deep breath to keep herself before picking up her coffee mug. The rest of the meal is relatively quiet with just small talk in between the spaces.
Yoongi knows that the woman made Harper uncomfortable but he doesn't know what to say to make her feel better about it. He isn't sure if there's anything that he can say and he definitely doesn't want to say the wrong thing. Or something that would be of no help or use to her at all.
As they pack up their things and Harper sets Onyx back into his car seat, Yoongi begins to feel some sense of panic. It's subtle but he recognizes it anywhere.
He doesn't know why or where it comes from. But every time he glances at the sullen look on Harper's face, he feels it.
What is it? Disappointment? Anguish? Fear?
But of what? Why? Why is his heart beating so quickly as they walk toward the exit. As they head out of the building to part ways, why does he feel like something more should be said? That he needs to say something more?
Yoongi holds the door open for her to exit before stepping out himself.
"Thank you for lunch." Harper speaks to him. "I'll have to repay you for this."
Yoongi opens his mouth to say 'no need' but stops himself. He doesn't want to say that. It isn't that he needs her to repay him at all. A part of him... wants her to. But how would he go about saying that? How would he express enjoyment of her company? Whether it be for Onyx like today or with her like on Halloween.
"When you think of something, let me know." He gives a smiles. "I'm free the next two Thursdays and I am a big fan of cheesecake, in case you need any hints." He says playfully.
Harper smiles genuinely back at him. "I will keep that in mind." She calls as she walks to her car. She unlocks it and opens the back door to get Onyx settled into his seat. When he's all clicked in, she waves to Yoongi and gets into the driver's seat.
He waves back but freezes when he feels a hand on his shoulder. He looks over and sees Hailey and James standing there looking in Harper's direction.
Yoongi doesn't give either of them a chance to say anything before he's walking away toward the parking lot. His cheeks heat with each step. He gets into his car and pulls out of the lot.
"Who was that?" Kyra asks as she walks over from the building.
"I dunno." Hailey says curiously as she watches Yoongi's car drive down the street.
The woman looked familiar but she's a lot of people in a 24 hour time period. She could be anyone, really.
"She's really pretty, though." Hailey adds and James hums in agreement.
The two nurses walk to their vehicles and Hailey waits for Tae as James pulls off. Kyra's eyes follow Hailey before she shakes her head out of it and walks to her own car.
She sighs when she gets inside and fixes her ponytail, tightening the bundle of curls on her head before heading back to the hospital.
With two hands on the wheel, she tries to clear her mind to prepare for the remainder of her shift.
A|N
#Intro chapters completed :)