Chapter Text
Dana and Heather have been living together in Portland, Oregon for a few months now in domestic bliss. Heather had recently started working as a resident at a large teaching hospital and Dana was restlessly retired enjoying her pension. Heather worked tirelessly and Dana volunteered regularly at the hospital NICU, holding medical fragile babies who needed the skin on skin contact.
They had eased into a nice routine for some months when Heather finally got a weekend off. Dana wanted to do something special for her friend and now lover. That had been a new development too; a natural progression of their strong friendship and them living together. They had their own rooms in Heather’s childhood home but they spent most nights holding each other in either one of their queen sized beds.
Dana had the free weekend all planned out, with Heather’s input of course. The younger women didn’t like surprises. The two of them would drive a couple hours up to Washington State to hike through some of the national park Capital Forest. They had discussed the possibility of camping but neither of them were thrilled with the idea of sleeping on dirt, so Dana reserved a hotel room for them near one of the vast park’s entrances.
The road trip was uneventful, with Dana driving her old Volvo and Heather listening to an interesting medical podcast. After an hour Dana became bored with the podcast and begged for the radio. Heather acquiesced to the classic rock station and enjoyed watching as Dana sang along to what Heather fondly called “white dad music”.
During the drive Dana had started to get a headache but she had chalked it up to driving towards the sunrise and ignored it.
They had packed a generous amount of snacks and drinks, both for the car ride and the hike itself. Dana and Heather both had light backpacks filled with snacks and a through first aid kit for emergencies.
Leaving at the crack of dawn, Heather and Dana arrived at Capital Forest at around ten in the morning. Dressed in matching cargo pants and flannels (unplanned) and wearing hats, sunglasses, and raincoats (planned), Dana and Heather parked then got out of the car. They had lucked out in regards to weather; it looked like it had rained last night but the skies were clear for the day.
They walked in relative silence, enjoying the flora and fauna as they followed a large trail. Dana, who had grown up on the east coast and lived in Pittsburgh most of her life, was amazed by the sheer size and volume of trees. Heather, who had grown up coming here with her family, pointed out significant plants and fungi, telling stories and history about the forest.
After a couple of miles, the two women stopped in a clearing to sit on stumps and rest. It was then that Heather noticed Dana grimacing as she rubbed her temple.
“Feeling alright D?” Heather asked, walking over to rub the older woman’s shoulders the way she liked.
“I think I’m getting a migraine,” Dana groaned. “I took my rescue pill when I got an aura but that didn’t stop it completely.”
“Next time can you let me know earlier when you are in pain, babe? I know you’re a stoic “do it yourself” type of gal, but you can always ask me for help,” Heather said softly.
“I know dear,” Dana said, rubbing her eyes again. “I just thought I nipped this one in the bud.”
Dana had been getting migraines since age ten. She had learned to live with them. She took daily medicine for them and limited her diet from rich foods. She still drank coffee, but that was her only vice, other than the occasional cigarette. Dana had gotten her migraines under control years ago, though she still carried around emergency medication with her everywhere. Unfortunately, after getting punched in the face a few months ago her migraines had come back with a frequency. She kept her old neurologist in Pittsburgh up to date, as well as her new neurologist in Oregon. Dana had wishfully thought that the fresh air of their hiking trip would keep her headaches at bay.
Heather gently kissed the back of Dana’s neck behind the blonde’s ponytail. “When can you take your next dose?”
“Twenty minutes,” Dana replied. “I’m either going to get really sleepy or really cranky though. You’ve been warned,” Dana joked.
“Let’s head back to the hotel then,” Heather said and faced Dana, reaching her hand out to help pull Dana off the wood she sat on.
Dana groaned. “Sorry I’m ruining your weekend adventure babe.”
Heather shot Dana a stern look. “You are not ruining anything, love. We can take a sunset walk after you’ve rested if you feel better.”
“Ok,” Dana agreed. There was no reason to argue with her darling doctor.
“Let’s go,” Heather said, taking Dana’s hand. They held hands the whole way back to the car.