Summary
In which Sera is late, and Harper is supportive.
Part The First
Sitting in the back of the truck her grandfather had died in, cigarette in hand, and Converse thrown on the ground, Sera would have done anything to be in a different place, with different circumstances. For the fourth day in a row, the sky above was covered in dark, grey clouds. Her eyes were closed, and her head thrown back against the cab window, but she could feel the cool wind blowing around her, and hear the leaves rustling. She couldn't wait for the storm. An alarm went off on her phone, and she looked down, startled by the sudden noise.
"Fuck, I'm late." She muttered, rolling her eyes.
Reluctantly, Sera dragged herself out of the bed of the truck and stepped onto the dew-covered grass. Looking at the black and white Chucks, she shook her head and threw them in the passenger’s seat. As a second thought, she shut the tailgate and then slumped into the cab.
A single turn of the key brought the old Toyota to life, and she drove out of the forest onto the main road. After a mile or so she passed a big wooden sign
"Welcome to Carron, a happy place." It read
"Happy my ass." Sera said, scoffing.
It was only about ten minutes from the city line to where she was headed, but then again, everything in Carron was ten minutes from the city line.
Sera pulled into the parking lot and looked up at the brightly painted sign above the door of the building, then, with a deep breath, she opened the door and walked into the Mental Vine. She was greeted at the door by Kelsey, a kind old woman who had come from the West Coast with the woman who owned the practice.
"Hiya Kelsey. Is she ready for me?" She asked
"Well, you are ten minutes late, but... You know her door's open anytime, Sera." Kelsey replied
"Thanks, do I need to fill anything out this week?"
"Nope, we got it all taken care of last week."
"Cool."
She had been coming to Harper Quinn for the past two weeks, and was still a little apprehensive, so it took her several moments to open the door.
As she walked in, Harper smiled a sly little smile, and said "you're late, Sera"
"Um... Yeah, sorry... I was... Well, I just... I was outside of the city. Just... Anyway... Um..." She replied, sitting down on the couch
"Don't worry about it, I don't have an appointment after you, so we can run over the extra ten minutes. Did you... Realize you weren't wearing shoes?"
Sera looked down at her feet and blushed upon realizing that they were bare.
"Oh, shit, uh, sorry." She said, pulling her knees to her chest
"It's why we have carpet. So, how are you?"
"I'm... Fine I guess, just a little... Off."
"Off?"
"Well... I mean.... I'm coming to you for a reason."
"So...?"
"I'm... I'm tired of feeling like this. I'm tired of being so anxious that I have to puke before I leave for school, I'm tired of having to convince myself to not buy a pack of Razor blades."
"Why do you feel like that? Is it something at home? At school? Sexuality issues?"
"No, I don't think so. I mean, I know I'm like Super Gay, so it's not that."
"What about school?"
"It's the same as always. Two friends, and no real issues."
"What about home?"
"I... I don't think anything's different."
"You hesitated there, what's up?"
"Well... I told you about my grandfather, right?"
"Yes, you said he was killed in an accident about two months ago."
"Yeah, well... Ever since then, I haven't really seen a lot of my dad. I don't know if I'm avoiding him, or if he's avoiding me, but... I've also noticed my mom has been covering herself up a lot more, wearing long sleeves in the middle of spring, and scarves, and... I'm worried, Harper."
As she said it, finally actually spoke the words, it felt like every muscle in her body relaxed, and like she could finally breath after months of having iron bars wrapped around her lungs, and she started crying silently.
After several moments, Sera felt a soft touch on her shoulder, and slowly opened her eyes to find herself looking into the bright green eyes of Harper Quinn.
"Sera" she said "I know you're upset, and I know that right now, all you want to do is give up, but all that would do is show the Universe that you were too weak. I know you're not weak, and I know you're not going to allow yourself to surrender."
Sera took a deep breath and forced the tears to stop falling from her eyes.
"You're right, Harper. Thanks."
"That's why people pay me."
"I guess that's true."
"Sera... If you really think he's hurting her, then I have to report it."
"No! Nononononono. Harper, you can't."
"Sera, I have to, legally."
"Please, if I'm wrong... You can't Harper."
Harper looked down at the carpet and bit her bottom lip. After several seconds, she looked back up and said "Sera... I must tell someone, for your sake, and for your mother's. I'm afraid that if you are correct, your father could very well lose control, and you could lose your mom. Please, Sera."
"But... If I'm wrong, he'll be so angry."
"I know, but I don't want you to have to take that chance."
"Okay... Okay. I trust you. I trust you."
The rest of that session was far more peaceful than the beginning, they spoke briefly Sera's school life, and her two close friends.
"Tracey is.... Eccentric, she likes to wear bright colors, crazy earrings, and on special occasions dyes her hair every colour of the rainbow. Oh, and sometimes, I swear, she's as dumb as a fuckin box of rocks, but... She's pretty much family. Misty, on the other hand... She's on the other end of eccentric, wears black and purple, and that's it. Lot of piercings, big combat boots, and false hatred of the world, and yes, her name really is Misty." Sera said, relaxing some.
"They sound like a couple of characters; did you ever have a relationship with either of them besides friendship?" Harper asked
"No. Christ No. They are wayyyyyy to much for me to be anything but friends with."
"Ok, just curious."
"No, you aren't, you wrote all that down."
"Okay, yeah I did, but it's important."
"They're good people."
"I'm sure they are."
It was at that point that a notification went off on her phone.
"Sorry, Harper" she said
"Don't worry about it, go ahead and check it."
Text from Ivy Silver (Boss lady)
Sera, are you coming in today?
Yeah, am I late?
No, but if you don't hurry you will be
Okay.
"Hey sorry, Harper, I have to go." Sera said, standing up
"Work?" Harper asked
"Yep."
"Do you have to go? We still have a few minutes."
"Yeah, I really do."
"Alright Sera, see you next week."
"Yeah, see you."