Face the Blood: Laurie & Zach
Jun. 17th, 2009 04:57 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
x-wallflower-.livejournal.com posting in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
xp_logsBackdated: Wednesday 17th June, 2009. Late Afternoon
Laurie calls her Dad to catch up while she and Crystal wait in line at the ticket counter.
Laurie listened to her cellphone dial as she stood in line for a boarding pass to her flight to Dubai. Crystal was a calm presence beside her, serene despite the delays their flight had suffered. Laurie had always thought an eight hour delay would frazzle anyone but Crystal she supposed had been taught from a young age to hold a particular outward regal air.
"Dad?" she asked as the phone picked up on the other end.
"Laurie, honey!" Zach's voice came in clear over the phone despite the distance. "I'm sorry I didn't get to see you the other weekend, I was up in Albany, physical therapy appointment."
He sounded just like he always had, with the exception of stopping to take a breath every few words, almost like an asthmatic. Having a spear of asphalt shoved most of the way through one's chest by a psychopathic Horseman of the Apocalypse could do that to even the strongest of heroes, and Zach Garrison was many things, but a hero wasn't among them.
Someone coughed discretely behind her, and Laurie looked up to see the line had moved several feet as she'd listened to her father. She smiled an apology and moved to join Crystal who had already moved forward.
"That's okay, Dad. I'm really sorry I couldn't be there to help you with the therapy," she said, holding the phone to her ear with a shoulder as she manhandled her bag into place at her feet. "How's it been going? Did they say how long it'll take?"
"Well, they say I'll only have to wear this stupid heart monitor until the end of the month," Zach complained, sounding tired, and more so than the time difference would account for. "But I'm feeling better than I was two months ago. But how about you? My daughter, world traveler. How're things in... uh..."
"Sarajevo, at the moment," Laurie said with a grin. She'd been so many places in the last few months, it felt like much longer. "We're about to head off to the Middle East for a month or so. I think Jordan first, then work our way from there. Now, have you been taking all the medication they gave you? You sound tired, Dad. You've not been overdoing it, have you?"
An exasperated chuckle came from over the phone. "I'm doing fine, Laurie. In a few more months, the doctors say, I'll probably be off the last of the Pacerone for the arrythmia, but..." Zach sounded rather defeated as he sighed. "Some of the pills he says I'll have to keep taking. I'm lucky to be alive, you know. Thanks to you."
"You wouldn't have even been there if it hadn't been for me," Laurie reminded him, pulling her bag along behind her as they moved forward again. "I shouldn't have left you alone."
"Hey now, Laurie... don't think of it like that," Zach said. "If I hadn't been with you, I'd have been stuck on the George Washington Bridge when it came down. Or out in the streets when those mobs went crazy. Don't you ever feel guilty about what happened, kiddo."
"I guess," Laurie responded, not sounding terribly convincing. "But, still...I'm sorry I freaked out on you, Dad. You were just trying to keep us safe. I'm starting to realise that sometimes that means doing things we don't always like."
"You're a good person, Laurie," her father said, voice somewhat stronger and colored with pride. "Even when you might not like it, I know you're going to do the right thing. You probably get that from your mom."
"Thanks, Dad," Laurie said, smiling at the praise. It felt like it had been awhile since someone had told her that. "We're almost at the ticket counter, so I gotta go. I'll call you again in a week?"
"Sure thing, Laurie. You be careful out there, okay?"
"I will," Laurie promised, pulling her bag up to the counter and smiling at the attendant. "And Dad? Love you. Remember to not overdo it being all manly and stupid or something."
Laurie calls her Dad to catch up while she and Crystal wait in line at the ticket counter.
Laurie listened to her cellphone dial as she stood in line for a boarding pass to her flight to Dubai. Crystal was a calm presence beside her, serene despite the delays their flight had suffered. Laurie had always thought an eight hour delay would frazzle anyone but Crystal she supposed had been taught from a young age to hold a particular outward regal air.
"Dad?" she asked as the phone picked up on the other end.
"Laurie, honey!" Zach's voice came in clear over the phone despite the distance. "I'm sorry I didn't get to see you the other weekend, I was up in Albany, physical therapy appointment."
He sounded just like he always had, with the exception of stopping to take a breath every few words, almost like an asthmatic. Having a spear of asphalt shoved most of the way through one's chest by a psychopathic Horseman of the Apocalypse could do that to even the strongest of heroes, and Zach Garrison was many things, but a hero wasn't among them.
Someone coughed discretely behind her, and Laurie looked up to see the line had moved several feet as she'd listened to her father. She smiled an apology and moved to join Crystal who had already moved forward.
"That's okay, Dad. I'm really sorry I couldn't be there to help you with the therapy," she said, holding the phone to her ear with a shoulder as she manhandled her bag into place at her feet. "How's it been going? Did they say how long it'll take?"
"Well, they say I'll only have to wear this stupid heart monitor until the end of the month," Zach complained, sounding tired, and more so than the time difference would account for. "But I'm feeling better than I was two months ago. But how about you? My daughter, world traveler. How're things in... uh..."
"Sarajevo, at the moment," Laurie said with a grin. She'd been so many places in the last few months, it felt like much longer. "We're about to head off to the Middle East for a month or so. I think Jordan first, then work our way from there. Now, have you been taking all the medication they gave you? You sound tired, Dad. You've not been overdoing it, have you?"
An exasperated chuckle came from over the phone. "I'm doing fine, Laurie. In a few more months, the doctors say, I'll probably be off the last of the Pacerone for the arrythmia, but..." Zach sounded rather defeated as he sighed. "Some of the pills he says I'll have to keep taking. I'm lucky to be alive, you know. Thanks to you."
"You wouldn't have even been there if it hadn't been for me," Laurie reminded him, pulling her bag along behind her as they moved forward again. "I shouldn't have left you alone."
"Hey now, Laurie... don't think of it like that," Zach said. "If I hadn't been with you, I'd have been stuck on the George Washington Bridge when it came down. Or out in the streets when those mobs went crazy. Don't you ever feel guilty about what happened, kiddo."
"I guess," Laurie responded, not sounding terribly convincing. "But, still...I'm sorry I freaked out on you, Dad. You were just trying to keep us safe. I'm starting to realise that sometimes that means doing things we don't always like."
"You're a good person, Laurie," her father said, voice somewhat stronger and colored with pride. "Even when you might not like it, I know you're going to do the right thing. You probably get that from your mom."
"Thanks, Dad," Laurie said, smiling at the praise. It felt like it had been awhile since someone had told her that. "We're almost at the ticket counter, so I gotta go. I'll call you again in a week?"
"Sure thing, Laurie. You be careful out there, okay?"
"I will," Laurie promised, pulling her bag up to the counter and smiling at the attendant. "And Dad? Love you. Remember to not overdo it being all manly and stupid or something."
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}