Chapter Text
It was already mid-day and Harl Hubbs had been laying on his bed for far longer than he had in his entire life. He heard a knock on the door. Letting out a yawn he made his way to the front of his apartment. He had been wanting to put in a doorbell for a while now, one that played music and that he could hear over his projects but, well. He opened the door.
"Duke?"
"Did you just wake up?" Duke asks, a quizzical look behind his shades,
"Oh? yeah...yeah! I've been...sleeping in."
Duke Detain was not the most observant man at the best of times, but he hadn't gotten a single call over anyone getting 'Harl'd' since he stopped Tippy. And Harl Hubbs day definitely didn't count, because nothing got Harl'd. Even if it was only a few days ago, it wasn't like Harl to go off the grid-well not like this anyways… how did that man pay taxes if he didn't have a job? He glances behind Harl at his apartment, scattered with projects, different little nick nacks lining… well, everywhere, it looked like a mess. But neat, in a way that only Harl Hubbs could pull off.
"Uh.. did you need help with anything? I…"
Duke realized he had been staring and shook himself out if it
"no, no, but" He gestured towards the stairs. "Shouldn't you be making your rounds? You're usually up way earlier than even me!" He supposes that's because he takes the night shift and gets home just when Harl wakes up, but usually Harl is almost done helping everyone by the time he's up again.
Harl smiles at that. “Well i have been working on SOME things, more or less anyways.” he gestures towards a mostly obscured work table.
“It's… a work in progress. You want coffee?”
Duke watches as Harl hurries to make some coffee, humming as he does so. Something was off, obviously, but he couldn't quite put his finger on what. He shook his head, he would have to touch up on his 'people skills' if he wanted to analyze his friends motives.
Harl hands Duke his mug. “Need anything else?” Duke thought for a moment. “Y’know, what actually would be really helpful?” Harl smiled curiously. “If you went out and did your rounds. For me ok? I don't like seeing you holed up here.” Harl shrugs “Well, it certainly couldn't hurt.”
Duke glanced out the window of the apartment while Harl got ready. The orange of the afternoon sky illuminating the room with a soft glow as duke fiddled with his coffee. He took a sip, coffee rarely did much for him but it was still comforting and made him feel cool. “Alright, I'm ready! I just have to pack my bike.”
“You want help?” Duke asks as they make their way downstairs to the auto shop, the smell of oil and rubber filling his nose.
“Nope, I got it!” Harl responds happily as he bounds down the last few steps and sends a wave Tread.
“Harl! Where have you been- y’know my trucks been needing a-a... tune-up! and some parts, I've got a race against Ann in a few weeks. Also I still haven't gotten that lawnmower motor fixed yet”
Harl hums at that “Well I have been pretty busy, how about you bring your truck down to the junkyard and I'll see what i can do! And I'll work on that motor too, I don't really know what you would need it for, lawnmowers aren't very fast- oh! I can add some horsepower, but I'll have to reinforce the frame and make some alterations to the motor...So it might take a bit longer?” Harl frowns momentarily as he thinks about how to fix the engine.
“Now THAT is what i'm talkin’ about Harl, you get me. I’ll see you later!”
“Bye Tread! Now c’mon Duke, people aren't going to help themselves!” Duke followed as Harl grabbed supplies to put on his bike. A short breeze ruffled some leaves off the ground and into the air.
"So, what have you been up to?" Duke asked.
"Oh y'know...stuff"
"Stuff…?"
"Yeah, stuff!" Harl stacked some more items on his bike precariously before managing to strap it down.
"care to elaborate on that?"
"Nope!" Harl smiled as he got on his bike. "Well uh, off to help people, I guess?"
"You guess?" Duke raised a brow, oh yeah, totally not suspicious at all.
Harl shrugged “Gotta start somewhere right?
Duke sipped some coffee while Harl peddled away. "Oh yeah, definitely know what I'm doing today."
~
As Harl biked his way down the street he could already feel the doubt in the back of his head, but he pushed it away. “Hey Shirley! Need any help?”
she looks up with a smile “Hey Harl! Haven't seen you in a few days, uh- I'm A-OK here, I think I overheard Freya saying the trucks needed a new paint job though! Oh and please remind people to look at my flye- HEY” she runs off to yell at the poor soul who put their recycling in the trash. He chuckles as he peddles past her truck and towards the fire station, the scent of fall leaves him in a good mood as he bikes across town.
“Hey! Heard some helping was needed here?” Harl says as he hops off his bike, Freya meets him with a smile. “We’d love some help from the town hero, if you're up to it.”
“Ehh a little more could never hurt!”
~
Harls hands were shaking before he could even get the second coat of paint down and he hated it. He took a faint breath before realizing, yeah no he has to stop, right now, and before he could even think his legs were taking him to the nearest room and he was shutting the door behind him. The dark room is a comfort.
"Harl?" Clemmons' startled voice rings out from the room.
"Oh, hey-sorry I didn't-uh." Harl struggles to catch his breath as Clemmons gets up from the couch he was on.
"no its- are you ok?"
Harl folds his arms over his chest and shrugs. "Never better right?" He chuckles weakly.
"Looks like you need this room more than me- uh I mean, this is the panic room...so." Clemmons says.
"Oh." Harl slides down to a sitting position in front of the cool door, leaning his head back on it. I guess that explained why the room looked so… comforting.
"Uh. Well have you ever had a panic attack before?" Clemmons makes his way across the room and sits next to Harl, folding his knees up to his chest.
Harl tries to speak, releases he cant clears his throat, tries again, he couldn't. He takes a shuddering breath and curls in on himself. Trying to focus he grips his legs feeling the soft material. He could never stand how rough denim was, it always gave him a headache and he was thankful he wore his cotton linen overalls today.
Clemmons speaks again after a beat. "I think you're having one- right now I mean. Do you want a hug?"
He shakes his head vigorously. No. Nope definitely not.
"That's ok, I usually don't like them either, usually Bob just talks to me until I feel better, do you know when they started?"
He felt something warm and wet hit his face and realized it was tears, he dries his face on his sleeve.Sliding his hands on the rough carpet, he feels the tiny beads of fabric graze his skin. He sighs. Squeezing his eyes shut he tries again
. "junkyard, other day."
Clemmons was quiet for a while after that, just sitting while Harl put himself back together before he spoke again. "It's ok. Yknow? Like.. it sucks but it's not like… don't beat yourself up about it ok?"
Harl nods, and Clemmons continues on talking about what he did that day, and eventually Harl feels good enough to get up, Clemmons following him to his feet.
“I'll tell Freya you went home because it was getting late.” He nods at the window, showing the hazy blue-pink sky just before dusk.
“Oomf-” Clemmons let's out a strangled sound as Harl hugs him tightly.
"Thanks.." the hug is returned with a pat on the back before Clemmons steps away.
"There's a door in the back, you can get to your bike faster that way." Clemmons gives a smile as he points Harl towards the door and waves him off.
~
By the time he gets to the junkyard, Harl’s a little less shaken up. He hops off his bike to start looking for Cluster. Hoping his anxiety isn't as noticeable as the last time he was here.
"Cluster? I- ah!" Harl let out a screech and stumbled back as Cluster popped out in front of him.
"What did I say about that! You almost gave me a heart attack!"
"Eh! Sorry Harl, Jowel was gettin' antsy, had to take em' around the tunnels." he steps around the pile of junk, Jowel following close behind.
Harl REALLY just wanted to go back home and tinker on his stuff there, but... the junkyard was comforting, and he DID want to finish the lawn mower.
“Maybe you should’a taken my advice-” Cluster says as he scrambles on top of a scrap heap to get a better look at Harl, or more accurately, stare him down until the boy gives him a straightforward answer for once.
Harl smiled tentatively "cluster I'm fine, I swear! If I wasn't I'd tell you, you know that!"
"You're a horrible liar."
Harl slumped "I know…" Well, it was worth a try anyhow.
"So, what is it this time, Harl Hubbs day or that doorman fella you fancy? You could do way better than him, by the way."
How did he even know? Did he talk about Tippy too much the other day? He chose to ignore it.
"Harl Hubbs day was great! I helped so many people, nothing got Harl'd- well… Maybe a little at the beginning but, well then everything was great!!"
Cluster hopped off the junk pile, which really was more of a wiggle, and joined Harl on the ground again. "... So, ya' don't think you overdid it?"
"What? No, I love helping people!" Harl laughed. "Now you're just being silly."
Cluster grabbed harls shoulder "You don't think you burned yerself' out, then? After, aw, I dunno, spending over 2 months in space with limited contact with people and immediately fixing to help a whole town was a good idea?" He swears, this kid just gets more and more oblivious every day. He was barely fit enough to help all those people without help of his own. Harl Hubbs was oblivious, but he was also stubborn as an ox and wouldn't take help for himself. Cluster stared at him hard.
"I- '' an engine roars through the air and cuts the conversation short as a large truck swerves into the junkyards previously peaceful landscape.
"Hey!! HARL!!! I brought the truck like ya asked! How's that lawnmower commin'?" Harl chuckles at Cluster and turns slowly to face Tread.
"Hey! Yeah just, park it over there-'' he motions towards a recently built garage section of his little hub. " I'll fix it up in no time!"
"No ya wont" Harl turns back to cluster with an eyebrow raised. "Lemme do it, I'm capable. You- go home."
Harl chuckles "Cluster, I think I can handle a-"
"Get!! Go on! Don't make me sick Jowel on ya!" The older man pushes Harl back toward his bike with surprising strength considering his size.
"Well uh! guess I'm heading home Tread-" Harl struggles to get out as he's pushed toward his ride "Cluster can help!...I hope."
"Now, get on home and DON'T start working on anything else, ya hear? I told you to go get rest, not hole yourself up in your apartment like some sorta troglodyte, that's my job aroun' here! Go on then, off ya go"
~
Harl barely got out of the junkyard before Duke stopped him. Harl suppressed a groan.
“Hey Duke! Need any help? I was just heading home.” He was exhausted… if he could just get home, to his nice comfy bed (More or less, it was scattered with scraps from his late night projects).
“Nah, I'm good, just starting my shift. Want company?” Harl shrugs and gives a nod from his bike.
“So, I heard you helped repaint the fire trucks today?” Duke leans across his car precariously, luckily driving at a slow pace so Harl could keep up on his bike.
Harl managed a smile “Oh, yeah! They definitely needed it. And a good wash too, a lot of them were covered in soot! You'd think they'd clean them regularly, huh?”
“Never finished though?”
Harl swallowed. Looked like Duke was in integration mode. “Yeah, it was getting late.” They drove in silence after that before Harl spoke up again.
"Hey Duke, Im… Not in trouble am I?"
New Car swerved "What? No, I was just, trying to get you to talk to me."
“Oh, I thought we were talking?” Harl says.
“No I mean like, talking, like why you've been so distant since you got back from space.”
“Have I been?” Harl makes a face at that.
“Yeah, I mean I get if you're just avoiding Tippy because you have a crush on him but-”
Harl wheezes. “Its- it's that obvious??”
“I mean, yeah. I was hoping you were a criminal or something? Becau-” Harl cuts him off again, biking around a stop sign.
“You WANTED me to be a criminal?!”
“I mean…” Duke looks at him before going back to staring at the road.
“No. I just, I'm not very good at talking to… People who haven't just robbed a bank I guess? It's situational. Tom says I need to work on my ‘People Skills’” He snorts at that “Tom! Of all people..But no.” He flips on his turn signal as they reach a bend.
“I just, if you need to talk, we can do that. I didn't mean to pry or anything. I'm not good at this“ Duke was hoping to get some answers at least. Maybe it was all a Tippy problem. Their… romance? Tension?? Whatever it was, it was prominent enough that even he could see it. But Duke's gut was telling him to keep an eye on Harl and that feeling usually wasn't wrong. Usually.
"Clemmons thinks I've been having panic attacks." Harl blurts out, and proceeds to nervously ramble.
"And yeah, I miss Tippy, we spent so much time together it's weird... Without him. I haven't been sleeping very well. And I know it's only been a few days since we got back but..." Harl stops pedaling in front of the auto shop, Duke wouldn't have noticed if New Car hadn't stopped. He should have taken Tom up on his offer. maybe, probably. He should pay attention to Harl now, though.
"Uh-wow that's rough." He kicks himself mentally, Cubby would be ashamed if he could see him- wait no he could see the balloon over the horizon- wow it was dark already? To be fair he was filling out Vito's paperwork all afternoon- focus detain!!
"I-I mean.." Duke opens his door and walks around to the other side.
"How do you do it?"
Duke startles "huh?"
"I don't know like… you work just as hard as me, I've never seen you get tired of your job." Harl fiddles with something in his hands and Duke realizes it's some unused scrap pieces.
"I mean. I have though, it's not easy right? Helping people all the time." Duke leans against the door and shrugs his shoulders.
"That's why I've got New car though, sometimes I need help too."
Harl makes a face at that. "That's not very helpful though."
"What do you mean?" Duke's eyebrows furrow.
"I mean like. You can't help people if you're too busy asking for help, it's not that helpful to like. Need help, yknow?"
"Who… Told you that?" Harl just shrugs and goes to unstrap the wagon on his bike.
"You know you can ask for help if you need it, right?" Harl doesn't give him a response and starts fiddling with some scrap project he had hidden in there
"Harl?" Duke glances at cubby again. Harl hums in response. “Meet me out here tomorrow morning. 6:00 sharp.”
“Ok! Why so early though?
"You'll see."