GL - A FEW DAYS AWAY - Chapter 21
TITLE: A Few Days Away
FANDOM: Guiding Light
PAIRING: Otalia
SUMMARY: Set mid-friendship, this is a hurt/comfort piece as I'm a hurt/comfort junkie. Olivia, Natalia and Emma decide to have a few days away...hopefully more interesting than the summary suggests. Please request before archiving.
RATING: PG for mild violence
Author's note: This is my first ever attempt at fanfic so I'm having to gather a lot of nerve to post it. With very deep thanks to my Canadian Buddy, Critic2000, who beta'd and prodded for this story to see a conclusion and provided insightful and useful comments throughout. I know most of Europe loves her for providing us with Otalia clips as soon as possible but to me, she's my very dear friend. (Course, the clips help ;o))
ADDITIONAL NOTE: Apologies if this isn't everyone's cup of tea but huge thanks again for those that are sticking with it, even if it's not going in the direction most probably hope or want it to go... but I have stated it's a hurt/comfort piece and it will remain in that vein throughout - you have been warned ;o)
Thank you for your continued interest, I know there is a lot of very good fic out there so I'm touched when you stop by to read mine. You've all been very kind - huge thanks
DISCLAIMERS: I do not own Guiding Light or any of the characters.
With additional thanks to my beta who helped when I got stuck on the physics, she knows what I mean ;) Onward, ever onward...
( Chapter 1 ) ( Chapter 3 ) ( Chapters 4 & 5 ) ( Chapter 6 ) ( Chapter 7 ) ( Chapter 8 ) ( Chapter 9 ) ( Chapter 10 ) ( Chapter 11 ) ( Chapter 12 ) ( Chapter 13 ) ( Chapter 14 ) ( Chapter 15 ) ( Chapter 16 ) ( Chapter 17 ) ( Chapter 18 ) ( Chapter 19 ) ( Chapter 20 )
Chapter 21
As moments stretched into minutes Natalia began to wonder if Olivia had fallen back to sleep. It was as she was halfway through reviewing her mental list for the second time that Olivia finally stirred.
Pushing herself back into a sitting position and wiping her face Olivia said softly, “Sorry about that.”
“What’s to apologise for?” Natalia could tell by the way she kept looking away from her Olivia was embarrassed by her emotional outburst.
“I...I just,” Olivia stuttered, either lost for words or reluctant to disclose.
“Was it something I said?”
“Oh god, no, no it wasn’t that I just...”
“What then? Please, you can talk to me.”
“I know I can it’s...” Olivia’s eyes had been searching around the room and now, looking cornered and edgy she pleaded, “Can we talk about this later?”
Natalia studied her, becoming more determined to get to the bottom of this but relenting for the moment she nodded, “Okay, for now but I want some answers Olivia.”
Olivia looked at her, regretful and stricken, ready to bolt.
Choosing not to add her own fears to the pot, Natalia stood up, “Come on, let’s go get your hair sorted out so we can go and pick up Emma.”
***
Having lain down onto Natalia’s lap, Olivia floated.
After the intensity of the imagery and noise before, the combination of Natalia’s hands and the steady pulse beneath her head, soothed and calmed her.
When Natalia queried about still washing her hair and taking her medication, she had nodded her agreement, she would have agreed to anything.
So, for the moment, Olivia floated.
As her sanity settled and her senses returned, she became aware of how much strain the position she was in was actually hurting her side and that she was unsure how to extricate herself after such an embarrassing outburst.
Sitting up, wiping what she hoped were the last of her tears and unable to look directly at the incredibly patient and giving woman before her, she apologised, “Sorry about that.”
“What’s to apologise for?”
How to answer that question?
“I...I just...”
“Was it something I said?”
Oh way to go Olivia, now you’ve got her all worried and thinking it’s her fault.
“Oh god, no, no it wasn’t that I just...”
“What then? Please, you can talk to me.”
She knew she could and responded as such. More than probably anyone else she’d known, more than Buzz even, who seemed to be one of the only other people who actually ‘got’ her and could see beyond the facade the rest of the world took at face value. But what really could she tell her? She probably already thinks I’m insane, probably thinks it’s more than heart medication I need to be taking.
Looking around the room for answers, trying to avoid the steady, supportive stare before her and not really sure if she was sure of her own mind at that moment she pleaded, “Can we talk about this later?”
A beat.
“Okay...”
Phew.
“For now.”
Drat.
“But I want some answers Olivia.”
Of course she does stupid. And maybe when I get some, maybe when I figure out just what the hell is going on I’ll...
“Come on, let’s go get your hair sorted out so we can go and pick up Emma.”
Thinking she’d dodged a bullet and grateful for a new distraction, Olivia smiled at the prospect of seeing Emma and finally getting her hair washed.
***
“Okay, how do you want to do this? Bathtub or sink?”
Olivia considered for a moment, “Which is easier for you?”
“Ah ah...I can manage either way but you? You have injuries to consider so stop being macho and tell me which is going to hurt you less? Bobbed down and bent over the sink or kneeling over the bathtub?”
“Macho?”
“You heard me.”
Olivia smiled, since leaving the bedroom Natalia had obviously decided to take a firmer approach with her, which could have raised her alpha hackles but she found it so endearingly cute she decided to play along with it.
“Well in that case, bathtub.”
“You sure?”
Thinking she may have answered wrong she queried, “Sink?”
“No, no bathtub is fine. Grab those towels and I’ll get the water running.”
While Natalia checked the temperature of the water from the shower head, Olivia knelt next to the bath and placed a towel to the side and one on the tub itself to lean over.
Edging over the bath, Natalia knelt next to her. Using the water jets and her free hand she scraped Olivia’s hair forward away from her neck and into the tub.
“Is the water okay?”
A mumbled “Yes.”
Thoroughly wetting Olivia’s hair, Natalia returned the shower head and then squeezed out some of Olivia’s shampoo into her hand, the scent at once familiar.
Rubbing her hands together she looked at the penitent woman before her, hesitated for a moment and then reached over to begin massaging the shampoo into her hair.
Aware of how closely she was leaning into the kneeling woman, Natalia’s hands stilled when Olivia let out what sounded like a groan.
“Am I hurting you? Are you alright there?”
The reply came back slowly, “I’m good.”
Continuing with the massage until she was happy Olivia’s scalp had been cleansed and concerned about the length of time it was taking, Natalia reached up for the shower head again before resuming her place by Olivia’s side and rinsing the suds away, carefully directing them away from Olivia’s eyes.
“Wait there a minute while I grab the towel, don’t move yet okay?”
Switching off the water and returning the shower head again, Natalia reached for the extra towel and draped it over Olivia’s head, gently pressing it against her hair to soak up the majority of the water before wrapping around and fixing it in place as Olivia sat back up.
Olivia looked flushed.
“You okay?”
“Great thanks, that felt...um, feels wonderful.”
Helping Olivia stand she asked, “Shall I make some more coffee?”
“You really are a godsend.”
Smiling Natalia replied, “I have my moments. I’ll go get another pot started, then we really need to ring Ruth and sort out about picking up Emma.”
Turning to leave she continued, “And don’t think of trying to dry your hair yourself Ms Spencer, I’ll be back in a bit.”
With that, she left.
***
From the moment she’d knelt beside the bathtub Olivia was starting to question whether this was such a good idea. Then she felt the warmth of Natalia beside her and the water jets in her hair and could only mumble a ‘yes’ when asked if the water was okay.
It was like being back in her place of refuge, the place she hadn’t realised how much she wanted or needed until last night. Then, she’d been caught up in a dream she could not break free from until the gentle sensation running through her hair and the warmth at her side broke apart all the tethers holding her in place and allowed her to be free and breathe.
Now she luxuriated in experiencing it again.
Thinking there could be no better place on earth, Olivia was surprised to discover new degrees of better as fingers began to push through the strands of her hair and massage her scalp, the shampoo cold after the water’s warmth.
Bliss.
The fingers stopped.
A voice close to her ear, “Am I hurting you? Are you alright there?”
Clawing her way back to the real world and wondering what she had done to elicit such a response she gradually answered with understatement, “I’m good.”
The fingers continued again and Olivia internally sighed.
Too soon the shower head was rinsing away the suds and Olivia made a slight move to reach for the towel before hearing Natalia telling her not to.
Then a towel was draped over her head, tamping down gently on her wet hair and she was finally allowed to sit back up.
“You okay?”
Are you kidding? “Great thanks, that felt...um, feels wonderful.”
Natalia helped her stand and her knees appreciated the relief, almost as much as her entire self did when Natalia offered to make more coffee.
“You really are a godsend.”
Acknowledging her words and reminding her they still needed to call Ruth, Olivia was nearly struck dumb when Natalia delivered her parting shot and scuppered her next plan. Then she considered, what could be so bad having someone dry your hair as well?
If it’s as good as the washing - nothing.
TBC...