Chapter Text
John is walking from the farm house out to the barn building, The sun is peaking out and he inhales the fresh air, one of the things he loves most about being out here in the country side. Spring is slowly coming, the ground is still half frozen and the grass yellow and dead, but he can feel the slightly warmer temperature and knows soon everything will come anew again. He opens the door to the barn, being trailed by two dogs, jumping and running around him as he makes his way in there and is greeted by a few nays and some moos-he mostly has sheep, but does keep a few cows and a couple of horses. And chickens, can't forget those-they provide him with plenty of eggs, enough for himself and he happily shares with a few of the elderly neighbors he fondly checks on several times a week.
He sighs and scratches a couple of furry heads before putting some feed and hay in front of his beloved animals. He goes around and grabs the milking machine, so he can milk the two cows. He use to do it by hand, but finally decided to buy a little machine and he must admit he really likes it. Those cows give enough milk for himself and a few others. They have a calf every year that either turn into meat for the rest of the year or a little money to help buy feed. He loves all his animals and feels more comfortable around them than humans at this point.
They don't judge him and that is what John has felt his entire life, judged. First for being raised by his grandparents, for being poor and not having much, but he knew they did the best they could and he is grateful for them. He could have ended up in a home and that would have been far worse. They loved and cared for him to the best of their abilities and left him this place. This is home and he loves it and can't imagine doing anything else in life but be a farmer, this is where he belongs.
Second, they judged him for being insecure and maybe a bit clumsy, never knowing how to really talk to anyone without getting nervous and if it were girls, it got even worse. His attempts to talk to the opposite sex have all been failures and relationships like wise. Not even sure they could be called relationships, he kissed a girl in middle school, but it was more on a dare and to avoid being teased, but he still remembers it did feel nice, right until she kicked his shin and ran away. The only other was Carol and he had loved her for so long or at least he thought he did. Their first try at anything in the back of the car had been a complete disaster. He had been so nervous and ended up coming before they even started, leaving him feeling totally embarrassed. After they got married they had sex a few times, but it was always with the lights off and even though it felt okay, he somehow knew it probably could be better. She never indicated she really liked it and if he was to believe what he had seen online and in the movies, she should be enjoying it.
He pushes those thoughts out of the way and then leaves the barn, after putting the milk in the little cooler, making his way out to the big pasture to check on all the sheep. Lambing season is coming up and that is always such a busy time, making sure all the new lambs arrived safely, are kept warm and are cared for by their mothers. He loves it though, all the new babies bring him a special kind of joy, he has always had a soft spot for them and how fluffy and cute they look.
A couple of hundred woolen heads are looking in his direction and a few of them come over, seeing if he has anything else for them to eat, besides the hay laid out for them. He pets a couple and then walks among them, a trained eye quickly looking them over and making sure they are healthy and none of them are sick. He hates to see any animal suffer, it just cuts to the very core of him. He knows death is part of farm life and that is okay, but suffering of any kind just tears at his heart. Maybe because he knows a little about that, even though his pain isn't so much physical, but more emotional.
He spots an ewe limping and quickly catches her. He lays her down and checks her over and realizes one of her hoofs is infected and swollen. He can see the pain in her eyes when he touches it and tries to get a better look. He can't really see what the problem is, so after a few failed attempts, he picks her up in his strong arms, puts her over his shoulder and walks back to the barn, sticking her in an empty stall.
He reaches into his front pocket of his thick coveralls, grateful for modern technology and not having to walk all the way to the house to call the vet. He hits speed dial to Dr. Andrews and soon has his cheerful wife on the phone.
"Morning John, what can we do for you today?".
"Morning Mrs. Andrews.....I've got an ewe here with a hurt hoof, does he have time to come have a look today?".
"Of course or it might be me daughter coming around, they haven't divided their cases yet, but rest assure, she is highly trained just like her father.....she is back helping out, after we bought Mr. Harriott's practice, we needed some more help".
"Mr. Jenkins at the feed store told me that when I was there last week".
"Gossip sure travels fast in these villages John".
He says grimly "don't I know it, but I appreciate it Mrs. Andrews".
"Ye welcome, John...take care" and the phone call ends. John sighs and scratches his curly hair under the beanie. He wonders about Dr. Andrews' daughter, but have never met her. Mr. Jenkins told him she has been working in a fancy clinic in London for a few years and rumor has it she was set to marry a rich attorney. He shrugs, he has grown very fond of Dr. Andrews ever since he started helping Dr. Harriott years ago and John had been delighted when he decided to take over when Harriott retired for good. Dr. Andrews was a no none sense guy, very kind and John really liked his wife too, he takes his dogs to the clinic once in a while during office hours, so not to have Dr. Andrews drive out to him. They live a couple of villages over, but have only lived there for a few years, before that, they lived even further away and that is probably why John has never met their daughter. He met their son, Tom and he was a nice fella, a human doctor in their village and just as kind hearted as his parents it seems.
John puts the phone back in his pocket and gets on with the farm work for the day, figuring the vet wont show up for at least a couple of hours.
Same time:
I am sitting across from my dad at the breakfast table, quickly downing a toasted English muffin and some coffee. My mom comes back in from the office, carrying the clinic cell phone and the appointment book. Funny how she has a cell, but still prefers to enter the appointment by hand. We have tried to convert her to the iPad, but that is not happening. Dr. Ben Watson is taking the clinic calls today, so it is up to my dad and I to deal with the many farm calls around the area. I open my iPad and look expectant at my dad as he skims over the appointments for today from the book my mom handed him.
My dad wrinkles his nose and mumbles a few things as he goes down the list, putting check marks along the way and then hands me the book "here...let me know if you don't know where they live".
I take the book from him, taking a quick picture of it, knowing that the ones without the mark, those are the ones he left for me. I skim the list and it looks fairly easy today, pregnancy tests, a couple of castrations, sick cow, sick cat (owner home bound) and an ewe with a hurt hoof. Most of the names look familiar, but I am still getting to know people around here, I have only been back for 3 weeks.
I grew up watching my father practice veterinary medicine and there was never any doubt this would be my calling too. I use to ride with him everywhere on farm calls and loved it. He got on with Dr. Harriott when I was a vet school, after the practice my dad worked for, got bought by someone that just didn't get along with him. He decided it was time to move on, so they sold my childhood home and moved closer to the new practice and it was probably the best thing they ever did. My parents love their new village and my dad's dream of owning his own practice came true when he took over for Dr. Harriott a few months back. And that is when I got a pleading phone call, to please consider coming to help, even if it was just temporary.
The last name on the list pops out and I look at my dad "Mr. J. Standring, ewe has hurt hoof?".
He looks up from his breakfast "John Standring.....he lives on Sparkhouse Farm, it use to be his grandparents'.....nice guy, but very quiet".
My mom pours some coffee and looks at me "yes extremely quiet, but he is very handsome, Lucy.....people don't notice, but he is, prettiest blue eyes you ever saw".
I protest "I hope you are not trying to set me up, Mum! I just got out of a relationship and I certainly don't want another.....I would be happy to live like a nun for the rest of my life", but then realize what I said and mumble "well, maybe at least for the next 6 months".
"Lucy!" and my mom pretends to be offended, but then laughs, sex has always been an open subject in our family, maybe because my mom is a nurse or use to be anyway. Now she is happy running the clinic and practice, keeping books and making sure appointments are made and kept.
My dad rolls his eyes at us both and chuckles "you two are bad" and then gives me a serious look "your mother is right, John is a nice looking fella, but he is so shy you hardly notice and you might hear people talk about him in the village a bit, don't bother with that.......I think people just don't know him and think it is odd he is still single, well since his wife left him".
"His wife left him? Why? Was he mean to her?".
He shakes his head strongly "ohh no, I don't think John has a mean bone in his body, he could never hurt anyone. He really cares about his animals and treats them very well and we both know, that is not always the case around these farms".
I nod "yeah, some just see these animals as their livelihood and they are, but they are also living, breathing creatures".
"Exactly! Anyway, rumor says that she just married him for money and then left him after a few months and moved to the city. He was able to get out of it with the skin on his nose, but he has been alone ever since".
"How sad".
My mom chimes in "I know, honey and I am not trying to set you up, but he is a very kind man.......he brings his dogs in here sometimes so dad doesn't have to travel to his farm and you can tell a lot about a man in how he treats his animals".
"I know".
My dad gets up "alright, lets get going then and please ring me, Lucy if you need me".
"I will, dad" and I hug him goodbye and my mom hugs me "so glad to have you home".
"I'm happy to be home, but I might look for my own place if I decide to stay".
"Oh, we understand that, honey...." and I grab my stuff and head to the truck.
The day passes quickly and I love the English country side. Yes, it is still a bit cold, but spring is just around the corner. I grew up in these hills and small villages and have always felt at home here. I enjoyed my time in London and the fast pace of a world city like that and the shopping is divine, but in the end, once a country girl always a country girl.
I drive towards my last stop of the day, Sparkhouse Farm and along the old stone fence leading into the courtyard. The old farm house on one side and several barn buildings on the other. I can tell the farm is old, but you look closer and realize it has been well loved and cared for. New windows are evident in the charming farm house and a solid, beautiful stained front door greets you. I turn the truck off and hear a couple of barks and two sheep dogs come running from behind the barn, soon surrounding me, sniffing and competing for attention. I laugh and pet their eager heads, bending down and are immediately licked on my face several times. I giggle and one throw itself on the ground, turning over for me to scratch the exposed belly.
A voice comes from behind the barn, followed by footsteps "Sam and Abby! You better behave and not maul the vet". A big, tall man, dressed in blue coveralls and a black beanie comes into view and I stand up, walking towards him "Mr. John Standring?".
We meet in the middle of the court yard and he looks at me, shyly and a bit uncomfortable "yeah, but please just call me John".
I extend my hand "John, I'm Dr. Lucy Andrews.....it's nice to meet you".
He looks at my hand for a minute and then quickly wipes his on his coveralls and takes my hand, his big paw covering my and my wrist "it is nice to meet you, Dr. Andrews......your mum said you might come".
Our eyes meet and my mom was right, he does have the prettiest blue eyes. He looks a bit shy and I give him a smile, trying to ignore how nice his hand feels wrapped around mine "please just call me Lucy......the rest is a bit too formal for me....".
"Okay" and there is a a few moments of silence and I reluctantly let go of his hand. He swallows hard and tries to ignore how soft my hand felt in his.
I try to brake the awkwardness "so you have an ewe with a hurt hoof?".
He snaps out of whatever he was thinking "yeah....she is over in the barn, if you want to come have a look".
I grab my bag from the back and follow him in the barn, loving the smell of fresh hay and the animals. He turns on the light and I pet a couple of heads on my way to the last stall. He notices and smiles, but then quickly looks away when he realizes I caught him watching me.
John opens the stall and goes in and gently take hold of the ewe, lifting her leg "it's this one and I couldn't see what it was or I would have taken care of it me self".
Nodding, I reach for her leg, my hand brushing over his fingers as he still holds her. I feel like I got hit by lightening and he pulls his hand away like he got stung and mumbles "sorry". I don't comment on it and just feels between her two toes and she tries to pull away and protests loudly. I stop and pet her "I know, sweetie....I'm trying to help you".
He can't help but look at me, noticing my small hands, working over the surface of the animal and how much shorter I am right next to him. He feels like a giant. He looks at my dark hair, currently in a loose braid and how long my eyelashes are. It has been a long time since he was this close to a woman. He looks at my fingers and hands, seeing I am not wearing a ring that would indicate I am married. He wonders about me, but then reminds himself that I would never be interested in someone like him. I am way out of his league.
I open my bag and grab a flashlight, holding it with one hand and trying to feel with my other. It is not quite working and I finally just stick it in my mouth, so I can use both my hands to feel. I finally touch a bump deep between the toes and I look up at John, who is just staring at me, his eyes fixed on my mouth and the flashlight. I try to speak, forgetting I still have it shoved between my teeth and just some weird sounds come out.
It jolts him out of what ever trance he might have been in and I see the curve of his mouth bend upward a little and I let go of the ewe's foot and remove the flashlight and then start to laugh and getting out between giggles "sorry...that probably didn't make much sense...".
Our eyes meet and he laughs too, shaking his head "no, not really.......it sounded like some foreign language or something".
"Sorry.....what I was trying to say was that I can feel a bump, I think it might just be an infections, but I'll have to cut it open and get it to drain properly".
"Okay....want to do it in here or outside?".
"Can you get her outside? More light and you don't have to try to understand me with a flashlight in my mouth".
"Sure" and he picks her up with ease and carries her outside in the courtyard. He goes over to the stone fence and leans against it, flipping her on her back, pinning her between his legs. He might be wearing coveralls, but I can only imagine the thighs under there as he holds her. He is clearly very strong and use to work these lands. He holds her front legs and I pour some antiseptic on her hoof, reach for the scalpel and look at John "ready? She wont be happy about this".
He nods "yep".
I make a quick cut and get rewarded with lots of oozing from the incision. I hold her leg out, so it doesn't get on John's clothes. I inspect it "ouch, no wonder she was in pain".
"I know....she must have stepped on something out there".
"Likely" and I pour more cleaner on it. It finally stops and I stuff it with antibiotics and powder it up, quickly wrapping a pink bandage around her hoof "okay, there.......she is good to go". John looks at the pink foot and wrinkles his nose, which I find adorable and I smile "come one.....she is a girl, she likes pink......you can probably take it off in a couple of days".
"Do you have blue for boys?" and our eyes meet, his has a slight twinkle in them.
I shake my head "nope, just good old fancy tan......my dad refused to order any. The pink is just some leftover from my old job, figure I might as well use it and not let it go to waste".
"Make sense to me" and he quickly lifts her over the fence, so she can join the herd again. She quickly makes it over to the flock and looks relieved to be back in familiar surroundings again. John watches her for a minute, I can tell he really cares about his animals and that they all mean a great deal to him.
"Bet she feels much better " and I pack up my bag.
He looks at me "yeah, I'm sure....thanks for coming by" and he looks a little uncertain when I lift my bag up and start walking to my truck. He finally follows me and the two dogs are fighting for my attention.
I put my bag away and then kneel down to pet both of them and get licked in the face several times and it makes me giggle.
John is mortified and stammers "so...so...sorry....Dr. Andr.....I mean Lucy.....I.....Sam and Abby, you are not behaving".
I hug both dogs one last time and stand back up, giving him a big grin "it's alright, they just want to be loved....just like everyone else".
He gives me an odd look and sort of nod, then stares at the ground for a second, shuffling his feet "yeah, I guess" and then stands there for a minute, looking very lost.
I think he is still feeling bad about it and I just reach out, lightly touching his arm with my hand "it's totally fine, John....I don't mind being mauled by dogs, I love animals, I'm a vet remember?".
He stares at my hand on his arm, trying to come up with something to say. He can't remember the last time anyone, let alone a woman, touched him in a friendly gesture. He finally mumbles "I love animals too".
"I can tell.....you really care for them, my dad told me the same thing this morning".
He says quietly "your dad is a great man, I'm very fond of him and he is a good vet too and your mum is always so cheerful".
"I know.....I feel blessed" and I smile at him. He gives me a nervous little smile in return, but at least it is something.
He fiddles with his beanie, brushing a couple of curls out of his face "so will you just sent the bill as usual?".
"Yeah, my mum will see to that" and I extend my hand "it was very nice to meet you, John, you have a lovely place here" and I nod at the farmhouse "looks like you have been working hard updating it".
He hesitates, but then takes my hand "nice to meet you too, Lucy and yeah, it is a work in progress and probably will be for a long time".
"It looks great" and we finally let go of each other and I walk to my truck. I turn towards him "see you around, John".
He pets the two dogs and gives me a shy smile "yeah, see you around, Lucy" and I get in and leave.
John stands rooted to the court yard for a bit, watching as my truck drives up the road. He shakes his head, trying to understand what just happened. Did he just manage to have a short, but somewhat normal conversation with a someone of the opposite sex? And I didn't make faces at him or looked disgusted in any way, I had actually smiled at him a couple of times or did he imagine that? He did hear me giggle and he liked that sound, a lot. He swears he felt weak in the knees when he saw me smile and he certainly remembers how soft my hand felt when he shook it. He touches the inside of his palm with his thumb, trying to print that memory in his brain forever.
He stands there for a little while longer and then finally sighs deeply, beating himself up internally "knock it off, she would never want you, she is way out of your league and a vet for heavens sake. Get a grip, John!". He stomps across the court yard, heading for the tractor and mentally adds "besides she is too short for you".