Her full birth name was Hayley
Harriet Hanson but that was before, at the tender age of 21, she made the
regrettable decision to marry William Quimby, but after her disastrous marriage
ended though she chose to remain Harriet Quimby as she rather liked the name,
her ex-husband on the other hand remained a complete bastard.
In the years following her divorce
she had not remarried or even thought of doing so.
She worked hard in a rewarding job,
she had a supportive family and a large circle of friends, and she was content
with that.
Harriet was not without admirers
however and she had not exactly lived as a nun, she had had boyfriends but she
had not actively sort a replacement for Mr Quimby, her philosophy was “what
will be, will be”.
She was a phlebotomist by profession
and proud of it but she was really tired of people saying “What’s a
phlebotomist?”
And then having to explain her
occupation to them, so she made the decision to reply, when asked what she did
for a living, that she was a nurse and volunteered no further information, it
was just simpler that way.
Which was a shame because she loved
her job, and she really was proud to be a phlebotomist, she liked dealing with
people and liked engaging with them and she was good at it.
Some of her colleagues favoured the stand-offish
approach, keeping a dignified distance between themselves and the patients, but
that was not Harriet’s way.
Harriet found the pleasant exchanges
helped the day pass by, she couldn’t do it with everyone of course, some
patients thought they were customers and that she was on a par with a shop
girl, but they were few and far between.
Nathan Robinson was wearing a brown
leather jacket and tan needle cords as he sat in the health centre waiting room
amongst the sick and the lame, although he was neither.
He was 35 years old and never
married, although he’d come close a couple of times, he was medium height, slim
build and had thinning sandy hair and grey eyes.
He was however very nervous as he was
sat waiting there for a blood test, not that he was squeamish where blood was
concerned but he did hate needles.
“Mr Robinson” called a willowy young
woman with bobbed dark brown hair, wearing a white uniform with red piping.
He stood up and followed her into a
small clinical room.
“Good morning nurse” he said
“Hello Mr Robinson, but I’m not a
nurse”
“Hello doctor?”
“No, I’m not a doctor either” she
corrected him
“You’re not the cleaner, are you?” he
asked
“No” she replied and laughed
“A vampire then?” he asked
“Don’t worry I’m not going to drain
you” she reassured him “You look too pasty already”
“Really, I thought I was palely
interesting” he offered in a hurt voice
He looked at her hand, she wasn’t
wearing a wedding ring or any other significant rings for that matter, but what
he was focusing on was that her ring less hand was holding a needle and he
swallowed hard.
“You’re afraid of needles” she said
“I wouldn’t say I was afraid” he
responded defensively although in truth he was Trypanophobic.
“What would you say then?” She asked
“I am merely wary of them” he
insisted.
“Chicken” she said unsympathetically,
she was well used to needle phobe’s and her easy manner and playful teasing
would soon put him at his ease.
“Harsh” he responded still focusing
on the needle
“Now if you don’t sit still I’ll have
to take it from your jugular” she said menacingly
“So, you are a vampire” Nathan said
She ignored him and drew the first
sample
“So, what’s the blood test for?” She
asked
“Are you allowed to ask me that?” he
asked
“No” she replied, “so what’s it for?”
“I have an infection”
“Urgh” she exclaimed feigning horror
“Not that kind of infection” he
assured her
“Do I need to double glove?” she
asked
“No it’s alright I don’t really have
an infection” Nathan said
“Good” she said and drew another
sample
“It’s just part of a general medical”
he said
“Oh” she responded
After he’d left the room, she
chuckled to herself as she remembered their exchange and she thought what a
very pleasant man he was.
Nathan himself was quite taken with
the young willowy phlebotomist who’s easy many put his mind at rest to such a
degree that he was able to take more than a moment or two to appreciate the
loveliness of the lovely girl with the very large needle, but it was just over
a week later when she saw him again.
Nathan was on his way to meet friends
in Abbeyvale, and took a short cut through St Candida’s park as it was a nice day, and he saw a small group
of young women sitting on the grass and he recognised one of them.
“Hello nurse Nosferatu” he called and
made the sign of the cross when she turned around
“Oh hello chicken” she responded and
made it sound like a term of endearment which wasn’t her intent, but she was
not unhappy about it.
“Should a phlebotomist be out in the
sunlight?” Nathan asked
“What’s a phlebotomist?” one of the
group asked and Harriet shook her head and took it as her sign to leave.
She said her goodbyes and quickly
caught up with Nathan who had gone ahead.
“Thanks for that” she said
“For what?” he asked
“For exposing me as a phlebotomist”
she said
“Ay?” he exclaimed in confusion
“But you are a phlebotomist”
“I know” she said “but I hate the
fact that I always have to explain it”
“Sorry” Nathan said
“So, what was your medical for?”
Harriet asked him as they walked through St Candida’s park
“Blimey you’re even nosey when you’re
off duty” Nathan responded
“Yes” Harriet replied, “So what’s it
for?”
“Oh, I’m starting a new job next
month so I decided I would get a full MOT before I started” he said
“And what do you do?” she asked
“I’m a University Professor” he said
proudly
“A Professor?” Harriet replied;
however she was a little impressed
“Aren’t you a little young?”
“Not in my field” he replied
“And I thought Professors were
intelligent” she said
“And I thought nursing was the caring
profession” he retorted
“So, what are you the Professor of?”
she enquired
“Music” Nathan replied
“Really, what kind?” she asked
impressed
“My field of expertise is early 20th
century” he replied
“Like Puccini?” She said hopefully
“Like jazz” Nathan said
“Jazz? How disappointing, you got
interesting for a second and then wham dull as ditch water again”
“I like jazz” he said defensively
“Jazz is very exciting”
“And people study that at
university?” she asked derisively
“Of course, as part of a rounded
curriculum” he replied
“Do you play, or just teach?” she
asked
“Yes” Nathan replied
“What instrument? The washboard?” She
asked and laughed out loud with delight
“That’s skiffle, not jazz” he
corrected her “Philistine”
“What then?” Harriet persisted
“Clarinet” Said Nathan
“Really? But that’s a proper
instrument” she said shocked “Are you any good?”
“Well, I enjoy playing” he answered
“You’re really bad then” Harriet said
and laughed
“Why not come and judge for yourself”
he said
“When?” she asked
“Now” he replied “we’re playing a set
at the Jazz Shack on Finchampton Street”
“Oh ok” she answered
After the gig, if you could call it
that, because they only played two numbers, he joined her at her table.
“You were very good” she said “better
than you led me to believe”
“Well thank you ma’am” he said in a
false American accent
“But I still don’t like jazz” she
said shooting him down
When it was time to go, he suggested
“Perhaps we can do it again”
“Oh, I don’t know about that” Harriet
said
“Why not? I thought we had spent a
very pleasant afternoon together” he stated
“We have absolutely nothing in
common” Harriet retorted
“We share a sense of humour” he said
“That doesn’t count” she responded
“I think a good sense of humour is
essential in a relationship if there is a prospect of someone seeing me naked”
Nathan replied
“That’s not much of a prospect”
Harriet said
“Come on Harriet” he said “what harm
could it do”
Harriet was quiet for a moment then
she said
“Ok I will come with you to the Jazz
Shack to hear you play again, on one condition”
“Name it” he said with enthusiasm
“You have to come to the opera with
me”
He went to speak but she silenced him
with a look
“And I don’t mean Gilbert and
Sullivan either”
“Puccini’s Madame Butterfly, one of
the greatest pieces of early 20th century music ever written” she
said with authority
“It’s a date” he said
“Yes, I suppose it is” she said
almost to herself
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