Part Eight

 

It’s New Year’s Eve, and hopes are high. Dance one year in, kiss one good-bye. Another chance, another start. So many dreams to tease the heart.

We don’t need a crowded ballroom, everything we want is here. And face-to-face, we will embrace, the perfect year.

--Sunset Boulevard

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Luka knocked on Harmony’s door. He could hear the strains of some music floating through the air.

 

Floating, falling, sweet intoxication! Touch me, trust me, savor each sensation! Let the dream begin, let your darker side give into the power of the music that I write – the power of the music of the night…   

 

Luka smiled to himself as Harmony opened the door. She was dressed in a long, black dress and her hair was wrapped up in an intricate style. 

 

“Luka, hi.” She smiled. “I wasn’t expecting you for a while. One minute.” She scurried into the living room and turned off the CD player.

 

“That was nice. What was it?” Luka asked.

 

“The Phantom of the Opera. What am I doing? Do want to sit down? Would you like some coffee? Hot chocolate? Tea? I have just about anything. Except hot cider. I’m allergic to apple juice,” Harmony said.

 

“You’re allergic to apple juice?”

 

“I can’t drink it with out getting sever headaches,” Harmony explained. “We have a little while ‘til the party. Do you want anything?”

 

“Coffee will be fine.”

 

“Cool. I’ll be right back.”

 

Luka glanced around the room. He was seated on a couch that was in front of the left wall. There was a love seat that was on the same wall where the door from the foyer was. A TV was on the north wall, and a desk was next to the window on the right wall. The desk had several pictures on it, as well as a laptop, and two piles of papers.

 

Harmony walked in and noticed Luka studying her desk. “I see you’ve noticed my ‘workspace.’ You’re lucky. I cleaned it up today. Usually it’s a mess. I also had to find some tax returns, so I had to dig around a bit ‘til I found it. Do you want cream or sugar with your coffee?”

 

“Sugar,” Luka said.

 

Harmony smiled. “It may take a little longer than expected. My damn coffee pot is messed up.”

 

Luka grinned. It was nice to see Harmony back to her normal self. After being released from the hospital, he had seen very little of Harmony for about a week. She had been keeping a low profile, sleeping mostly, and taking a sudden trip to New York for three days. She hadn’t told anyone why she had gone to New York, and most of the staff surmised that she was visiting her sister. Luka hadn’t pushed the topic, but was bound and determined to find out the purpose of the trip. 

 

Harmony returned with two steaming cups of coffee. She handed one to Luka and he thanked her.

 

“Were you in on Thursday?” Luka asked.

 

Harmony shook her head. “What happened?”

 

“Well, if you’re looking for something really stupid that Malucci did, here’s one for the books. You see we come into the trauma…”

 

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“Did you see Carter’s hair?” Harmony gasped, trying not to choke on her laughter. “It was sticking straight up! God, I can’t imagine what he used on it!” she exclaimed, as she and Luka walked into her house after the County General New Year’s party. Luka was planning to take the twelve-hour over night shift to make up for lost time while he was sick. He had asked Harmony if he could change at her house and she agreed.

 

“Yeah, that was really goofy,” Luka concurred.

 

“Jien-Mei didn’t seem to mind, though,” Harmony said devilishly. “Do you want to use my bedroom or the upstairs bathroom? Come on, you can see both.” She sprinted up the stairs. “The bathroom is right here.” She motioned toward it. It had the same black and white tiles that the foyer had, and looked very cheery. “And here’s my bedroom.” She stepped inside. The wallpaper was a soft blue color and the bedspread matched. The bed was up against the wall opposite of where Harmony and Luka stood, in the middle of the room. There was a window on the east wall, and a balcony on the west.

 

“Are you going to change too?” Luka asked.

 

Harmony shrugged. “Sooner or later. I’m not going back to the hospital though. I’m working tomorrow morning and I think Romano would kill me if he had to pay me any more overtime. Between Carter, Malucci, and myself, County is almost broke.” She smiled.

 

Luka smiled too. “I’ll use the bathroom.”

 

“’K.”

 

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Luka decide now was the time to approach Harmony with the question of why she went to New York. They were out on the balcony, waiting for the new millennium to arrive. “I don’t mean to be nosy, but why did you go to New York?”

 

Harmony’s airy mood vanished. She sighed. “I should have told you this a long time ago. I guess I was hiding from my past.” She took a deep breath. “I have a thirteen-year-old daughter in Albany, New York. I got pregnant when I was fifteen and gave her up for adoption. While you were sick, I got a call from the adoptive mother. She told me that the girl wanted to meet me. I didn’t want her to come while you were sick, so I went to see them earlier this week,” Harmony admitted, covering her face with her hand.

 

Luka smirked. “Hey, at least now I know you’re not perfect.”

 

Harmony grinned and they kissed. “I love you,” she whispered. They kissed each other again as fireworks began to shoot off, filling the sky with their color.

 

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Harmony blinked and slowly opened her eyes. From her position in the bed, she could see a soft snow falling outside. She glanced at the clock on the nightstand. 7:09. She softly groaned. It wasn’t fair. She didn’t want to get up. She didn’t want to forget last night. She buried her body under the covers. She could feel Luka’s arm wrapped around her waist. A comfortable feeling. A calming, relaxing feeling. She sighed happily. It felt so right. Luka beside her. The memories of last night. The taste of Luka’s sweet kisses. The soft caress of his hands on her body. The seductive sound of his accent. She sighed beside herself.

 

Luka stirred and woke up. “Good morning sexy,” he whispered to Harmony.

 

She smiled. “Good morning.”

 

“What time is it?”

 

“7:15. We should get ready.”

 

“We should. But we don’t have to.”

 

Harmony’s smiled turned into a grin. “No, we don’t.” She snuggled closer to her lover and closed her eyes.

 

Luka put his arm around Harmony. For the first time in a long time, things were starting to go right.