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“Shit.” Geri hangs up the phone, sitting down on the edge of his bed. He’d been pacing while he spoke, but all of the anxious energy left him as soon as he got his third ‘no.’
“Fuck!”
That was the last pharmacy that was reasonably close to Pelican Town.
None of them carried testosterone gel.
Sure, he could get shots! He’d spoken with his doctor about it before moving, had a prescription on standby if needed, but Geri’d been crossing his fingers, hoping he wouldn’t have to cross that bridge. So much for that— he’d either have to drive over an hour every three months for gel, or ask Harvey to give him the shots. Geri knew he couldn’t do it himself, but he… really didn’t know the doctor that well.
The bridge had been built and he was standing in front of it.
Groaning, he rolls onto his stomach and buries his face in the mattress. Taking a breath, he screams until he starts to feel better. Then screams some more, until he starts to laugh at the infuriating absurdity of it all. Finally feeling lighter, Geri pushes himself up and heads outside the face the day.
He’s reminded that evening, for the hundredth time, how grateful he is to know Shane. He’d found out Geri was trans when he’d swung by the farm to visit the chickens Geri’d bought, only to see the farmer shirtless— top surgery scars on display as he plowed a new section of earth. Now, they’re resting in a booth at the saloon, Geri unable to keep himself from giggling as they split a pizza.
“Do you want me to come with? I’ll kick his ass if he’s rude.” Shane grins as Geri fails to stifle another burst of laughter.
“Yoba, you don’t need to fight him! Harvey seems nice enough, I just… you never really know how people will react.” Geri shrugs, Shane’s expression turning earnest.
“I know. Seriously— do you want me there?”
Geri’s look softens to one of pure adoration before he ducks his head, wiggling his hand.
“I think I’ll be okay, but if he is weird, I… might ask him to teach you how to do the shot?” Geri glances back up. Shane seems shocked, to put it lightly, but collects himself quickly.
“Of course. If you trust me to do that for you, I’ll help.”
“Thanks, Shane. You’re pretty amazing, you know that? Right?” Geri grins, breaking into laughter when Shane just flips him off.
They walk home together that night. When they stop in front of Marnie’s ranch, Geri pulls Shane into a quick hug. He feels Shane stiffen for a moment before hugging back, almost tentatively.
“I meant what I said, okay? Thank you.” Geri smiles softly as he pulls away, waving goodbye when Shane turns to head inside. He isn’t sure, but he thinks Shane might’ve blushed. If Geri flops onto his bed that night, kicking his feet like a schoolkid with a crush… that’s between him and his cat.
The next morning, Geri bites the bullet and calls his old clinician, informing them he would need the prescription for shots. He tends to his crops while he waits for it to hit nine o’clock, though the work does little to calm him down. He’s a ball of anxiety as he steps into the small clinic, cracking his knuckles as he walks past Maru. Knocking on the door to Harvey’s office, it isn’t long before Harvey’s voice invites him in.
The office is… well, it’s a doctor’s office. Geri rubs his wrist, letting out a short breath as he scans the small room. His eyes settle on the wall behind Harvey’s shoulder— not eye contact, but close enough he won’t usually be called rude. It’s as good as he’s gonna do right now.
“Geri! How can I help you? You didn’t get hurt in the mines again, did you?” Harvey’s voice is instantly worried, and Geri splutters out a laugh, shaking his head.
“No, I- I’m okay, actually. I just… have some medication I’m going to need help with.” he admits. Harvey’s eyebrows go up, a look of recognition flashing across his face as he nods for Geri to continue.
“Look, I’m sure you’ve seen my medical records and the prescriptions on there, and I can’t give myself a shot so can you just-“
A warm hand settles on his shoulder, cutting off his rambling.
“Of course. In all honesty, I…” Harvey trails off, cheeks flushing before he clears his throat. “I’m sorry, I haven’t told anyone in town.”
“…We’re the same?” Geri can hardly process the rush of relief as he finally manages to make eye contact with Harvey. His doctor’s like him, he’ll understand, Geri doesn’t have to handwave or explain things away or tailor himself for a cis doctor. Even the doctor at his old clinic had been cis, kind but out of touch with Geri’s lived experiences, unable to give much context or reassurance beyond a general list of things to watch out for as his body began to change. Geri lets out a stunned breath; Harvey breaks into a grin, nodding.
“We are. I’ve been on testosterone for… oh, twelve years at least.”
“Thank Yoba.” Geri grins back, grateful for Harvey’s steadying hand on his shoulder. “I can’t remember the last time I had a doctor who I could be, like…”
He makes a vague noise, prompting a short laugh from Harvey.
“There’s a big difference between compassion and genuine understanding, I know.” Harvey’s smile is kind; “If you need any resources or assistance, tell me and I’ll be happy to help.”
“I think you’re my favorite person in the world right now, seriously. You’re definitely my favorite doctor.” Geri runs a hand through his hair, grinning brightly back. Harvey’s furious blush upon hearing those words will be on Geri’s mind for the rest of the day.
When Geri picks up his prescription from the next town over, he swings by the clinic and drops it off with Harvey— since he won’t be giving himself the shots, he figures this’ll be easier and Harvey is happy to store his testosterone vials for him. The day for his first shot comes quicker than he’d like, and soon Geri’s standing in front of Harvey’s clinic with a thermos of coffee in hand. Taking a slow breath, Geri shoulders his way through the door and flashes a small smile when he sees Harvey standing behind the front counter. Following Harvey back to his office, Geri offers him the thermos.
“Here. As a thank you.” he still can’t quite manage eye contact, but Harvey gives him a grateful smile as he accepts the thermos and takes a sip.
“You’re more than welcome. Thank you for the coffee, it’s my favorite!” Harvey grabs a fresh syringe and the bottle of testosterone. Geri leans against the counter next to him, watching as he prepares the dose. “Do you want the injection in your stomach or thigh?”
“…Stomach, I guess? Probably easier.” Geri shrugs. Harvey nods, glancing over when he notices Geri cracking each of his knuckles— then repeating the motion, over and over.
“The bottom left cabinet, there should be a bin with some stress toys. If you want to use one.” Harvey offers, almost hesitant. As if he might offend Geri. The farmer just blows out an anxious breath and immediately turns to rifle through the cabinet. He pulls out a small stuffed chicken, displaying it to Harvey with a grin.
“Oh! There are stuffed animals too.” Harvey laughs softly.
“Hang on, c’mere-“ Geri fishes out his phone, standing next to Harvey and holding it up so they’re both in frame, his free hand displaying the plush chicken. Harvey, unsure of what to do with his hands, just holds up the bottle of hormones and syringe. Geri snaps a picture and texts it to Shane.
[9:17 AM] Harvey’s great, he’s letting me hold a chicken while he gives me the shot!!
Slipping his phone back into his pocket, Geri tucks the chicken under his arm and gives it a quick squeeze before lifting up his shirt.
“Ready when you are.”
Giving an affirmative hum, Harvey carefully pinches some skin, pulling up and-
Geri hisses through his teeth, staring pointedly at the chicken tucked under his arm as the needle pierces his skin. He’d expected the pain, but what he doesn’t expect is Harvey’s soft voice cutting through his thoughts.
“-great, you’re doing great. That’s the whole dose, now: one one-thousand, two one-thousand, three one-thousand, four one-thousand, five one-thousand.” Harvey counts out the seconds before he removes the needle and gently replaces it with a piece of gauze. “Perfect! We wait before removing the syringe to prevent any medication from leaking. Hold the gauze for me?”
Geri nods, carefully holding the gauze while Harvey disposes of the used syringe. He comes back with a bandaid, throwing away the gauze before removing his gloves and tossing them as well.
“Was that okay?” Harvey asks, as Geri lowers his shirt and squeezes the chicken with both hands. He looks at the stuffed animal instead of Harvey.
“It was a shot, but.. you’re better at giving them than anyone else, so that’s a plus.” he finally glances up at the doctor, smiling a little when he notices Harvey’s flustered expression.
“I try my best. It helps me to know why things are happening.” Harvey picks up the thermos Geri had brought him, taking another sip of the coffee. “Was that useful?”
“Yeah, it really was.” Geri chuckles and nods, bending down to put the plush chicken away. “I should probably let you get back to your work, huh?”
“I don’t have any appointments scheduled.” Harvey lets out a soft sigh, before his face scrunches up with embarrassment. “I didn’t mean to say that. It’s good I don’t have clients often, of course! It can.. get a little lonely, is all.”
Geri hums softly in understanding, tipping his head back and closing his eyes for a moment. He’d been a mess when he first moved in, mute from stress and barely able to bring himself to leave the farm. He’d latched onto Shane the moment he’d seen the other man, and for some still-unclear reason Shane hadn’t reacted with disgust or fear to Geri’s silent gift deliveries. Sometimes he still relied on scripts to communicate with his neighbors— he gets being lonely, even in a tight-knit community like this. Turning his head towards Harvey and finally opening his eyes, he finds the doctor watching him curiously.
“I still can’t grow a mustache, you know.” Geri cracks a grin as Harvey bursts into laughter, his hand instinctively coming up to touch his facial hair.
“Well, I can’t grow anything resembling a beard.”
“Strengths and weaknesses, I guess.” Geri laughs as well, affectionately scratching his beard. It wasn’t exactly magnificent, but it was his and he loved it. “…If you feel up to it, you could join me and Shane at the saloon for dinner tonight.”
Harvey blinks at him, surprised by the suggestion. “Shane won’t mind?”
Geri tugs his phone out of his pocket and shows Harvey the reply Shane had sent to the selfie:
[9:24] A man after my own heart
[9:26] Tell him he’s got good taste
“Nah, he won’t mind at all.” Geri chuckles, slipping his cellphone back into his pocket. “So, want to join us?”
Harvey thinks for moment; Geri’s only seen him come to the saloon regularly in winter, when it’s quieter to begin with. He turns the thermos in his hands, slight warmth still seeping through the metal. Finally, he nods.
“Sure, I’d enjoy that.” Harvey smiles softly. Geri grins back, pushing himself away from the counter.
“Awesome. We’ll meet you at 5:30, okay?”
“I’ll see you then.” Harvey nods, watching the farmer leave.
Outside, Geri pulls out his phone as he moves to lean against a nearby tree, shooting Shane a quick text.
[9:56] I invited Harvey to join us for pizza tonight, cool?
[9:57] Fine with me
[10:02] I don’t wanna do anything today :|
[10:03] will Morris kill u if I come distract u while u stock shelves?
Shane’s reply comes quickly, a simple ‘idc’ that finalizes Geri’s plans for the day. He slips on his sunglasses and heads to JojaMart, grabbing a shopping basket before making his way to the freezer aisles out of Morris’ line of sight. Shane’s already there, half-heartedly pretending to stock the shelves.
“How’d it go?” He glances over when Geri crouches down next to him. Geri gives him a thumbs up, not ready to speak yet. Shane just nods and turns his attention back to the shelves, both of them grateful for the quiet company. Geri can’t remember ever connecting with someone like this back in the city— there was never anyone he felt comfortable to express symptoms around. Silently passing Shane an earbud, they spend the rest of his shift moving together from shelf to shelf, listening to music while Shane does the bare minimum, always just out of Morris’ sight.
Once Shane’s shift ends, they walk to the saloon together, Geri waving when he sees Harvey locking up the clinic. Harvey waves back, coming over to join them for the short trip. Sliding into their normal booth, Shane sits next to Geri this time. Gus seems surprised to see Harvey there when he brings over their usual order; Harvey almost seems surprised to be there, like he isn’t sure it’s really happening. By the end of the night, Geri’s heard Harvey laugh more than he ever has before, the sound bright and genuine as Shane gives them the latest Joja drama report. Geri grins, affectionately bumping his head against Shane’s shoulder. When he catches Harvey’s eyes, Harvey fixes him with an affectionate smile— Geri feels his heart flutter in his chest.
He still doesn’t want to mess up what he and Shane have, as much as he’d love to invite Harvey out again. Geri can content himself with one evening, he thinks— until Shane stops beside the saloon, he and Harvey stopping as well.
“You need a shot each week, right?” Shane asks. Geri nods, giving a one-shouldered shrug.
“Yeah, I‘ll probably do the same and meet Harvey first thing in the morning. That way I’ll still have time to do things if it doesn’t wipe me out.”
“Alright. I think that means we need to make this a regular thing.” Shane smirks when Geri pulls him into a hug.
“One hundred percent! Harv, want to do this again?” Geri looks expectantly at Harvey, one arm still wrapped around Shane’s shoulders. He watches the doctor’s expression fade from surprise to fondness as he nods.
“I’d love to. You’re sure about every week?”
“Positive, doc.” Shane nods, “I had fun tonight.”
Any lingering doubt disappears, Harvey fixing them both with a bright smile. “I did too. I’ll see you both next Thursday, then.”
Geri and Shane both agree, Geri waving goodbye as Harvey leaves for his small apartment. As he takes the long way home with Shane, it hits Geri like a ton of bricks, absolutely no denying it— when it comes to Shane and Harvey:
He’s got it bad.