Don't Trust Him | Daniel Brühl [Complete]

Chapter Seventeen | A Healing Heart

Sage's POV:

Thanksgiving was one of the best holidays we've had at our new home. Halloween was great, but it isn't really a family themed holiday. Jay, Ash, and I had checked in with our separate families. Apparently they were all doing very well. I was really excited that Daniel was able to join us. Even though he didn't have to, he brought an amazing dessert with him to the dinner we had. Today we were going out to look for Christmas gifts for each other. Daniel tagged along with us for that as well. We didn't get up early on black Friday to avoid all of the insane crowds; all of us like going later even though most of the deals were over. "Can you help me find a present for Jay and Ash? I really wanna get them something special for Christmas." Daniel said as we broke off in teams of two. "Sure. We can help each other." I replied. Later I'd get something for him, since he was walking around all the stores with me. We both got Jay some gaming stuff. I already knew that Ash was getting him a new camera for his streaming/recording set up. So I didn't wanna get any streaming accessories in case she got some of those for him as well. The only breaks from shopping we had were when we went and ate lunch at one of our favorite restaurants.

When Daniel and I were finished with our shopping, we just hung out in the mall. We were all in the same car so we had to wait until Jay and Ash were finished. So the two of us got into one of the many photo booth that were at the mall. We took a few nice pictures mixed in with some silly ones. We did the same once our friends met up with us. Each one of us left with a couple of strips of photos. 'I'll put these in my bullet journal for safe keeping.' I thought inside of my head as we all got into the car. "You guys wanna go to the diner for dinner tonight?" Ash asked us after Jay pulled out of the parking lot. "Yeah, that's fine." I replied. Once we got to the diner we were seated at a booth near the back. I sat next to Daniel while my friends sat next to each other. Each of us actually ended up ordering coffees and breakfast foods. The four of us talked about our shopping experiences, which weren't too bad. I was just glad that most of the jerks weren't out and about today, especially since it was black Friday. After eating we just sat and talked as we drank more coffee. The sound of a phone buzzing interrupted our conversation. It ended up being Ash's phone. "It's Joe." She said, and my stomach filled with anxiety. "What do you think he wants?" Jay asked. "I don't know. I guess we'll find out." She replied as she answered her phone. All of us were practically sitting on the edge of our seats.

We were listening to what Ash was saying to Joe to try to find out what was happening. But we didn't really know until she hung up on him. Apparently the police had found Chris Folk and arrested him on a warrant that was against him. All at once the feeling of adrenaline mixed in with my anxiety. I hoped that there was evidence that proved Chris was the one who killed Elizabeth Green. So much time had passed that I actually forgot that we were involved in this investigation. "Do you think he actually did it?" Jay asked after a moment of silence. "Chris Folk very well could have killed Elizabeth. He always seemed to creep her out even before the two of us got engaged." Daniel said, breaking the silence that had settled down upon us. His big brown eyes started swirling with emotions; most of which were sadness and pain. I gently rubbed his back in an attempt to comfort him. He turned towards me and gave me a weak smile. "Well.... I really hope that they find some evidence against him, especially if he did kill her. People around here need to stop treating you like garbage." Ash said as she gave a few people in the diner ugly looks. "Yeah. You're such a wonderful person who deserves to be treated with kindness." Jay agreed. "They're right, Daniel. You're a great guy and wish more people would be able to see that." I said as I moved closer to him. I gave him a side hug that he returned.

Eventually we paid for our meals and left the diner. Daniel ended up staying with us for another night. And he was so sweet to ask if he could sleep next to me again. Of course I said he could; he looked so sad and broken when we got back to the house. After Ash and Jay went to their room, Daniel and I went to my room. I stepped into the bathroom to change into my pajamas. When I walked out I found Daniel sitting on my bed, looking down at his feet. "Hey, are you alright?" I asked as I sat down next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Yeah, it's just... I'm really glad you guys are in my life. You all are so kind and wonderful. Sometimes I feel like don't deserve you guy's kindness." He said softly as he looked over at me. "You so deserve our kindness, Daniel. You're a sweet, gentle, kind, and loving man who deserves all of the kindness in the world." I replied as I gave him a side hug. He hugged me back before kissing the top of my head. After he changed into his pajamas we climbed into bed. The two of us cuddled for a while before I eventually fell into a deep sleep. A few days went by and I ended up staying over at Daniel's place. But I made sure to bring some of my art stuff so I could get work done as well. I wanted to spend as much time with him as I possibly could.

But as the days went by I wondered if Joe would ever get back to us. I hoped that there was substantial evidence against Chris Folk on the Elizabeth Green murder case. I kind of had too keep telling myself to keep calm and be patient. I wanted people to stop seeing Daniel as some kind of murderer and see him as a normal citizen. The two of us were cuddling as we watched tv when he kissed my temple. I felt myself blush and I couldn't help the smile that spread across my face. I kissed his cheek and we started a little tickle war. He ended up winning as usual. I've never been able to fight the soft spot I have for him. I wondered if he had soft spot for me too. Of course he has been very sweet to me, but I still wasn't sure. "You always let me win." He said with a little laugh. The sound of his laugh combined with the smile that was on his face made me melt. For a while I've been trying to figure out if I really was developing a crush on him, or if I was just imagining it. Like how you think you're falling in love but you aren't. But with him it was so much different. I've never felt so safe and loved with anyone else before. "I can't help it. You just know my weak spots better than I know yours." I replied with a little giggle. I blushed when his eyes glowed with a warmth in them. "I might know where your ticklish spots are better. But you know my heart and inner thoughts a lot more than I know yours." He said as we went back to cuddling. Hearing that made me wanna open up to him more.

So I let him ask me any questions he wanted and answered them the best I could. He kissed my forehead, making me smile and blush. I tried hiding my face by burying it in the crook of his neck but he already seen. "Don't hide. You look so cute when you blush." He said. My stomach filled with butterflies. His words just made me blush so much harder. My heart was beating a lot faster as well. I shyly pulled away from him and my insides melted from the way he looked at me. "Daniel, stop." I said with a little giggle. "Stop what?" He asked adorably. "Stop looking at me like that." I replied. His smile grew as he wrapped his strong arms around me. He held me tightly, yet gently. I snuggled into him and breathed in his comforting scent. "I can't help it! You're so cute and I... I have a soft spot for you." He said as he slightly broke the hug to kiss my forehead again. "I have a soft spot for you too." I admitted as I snuggled into his chest again. He felt so much like home. All I wanted to do was spend forever in his arms. But I knew that wasn't possible. Although the two of us stayed in each other's arms as long as we could any time we hugged each other. After a while we went into the kitchen to start cooking dinner. We decided on having spaghetti with garlic bread and a salad. He started on cooking the pasta as I washed and cut up everything for the salad. I suddenly thought about doing this with him for the rest of our lives. Like... me living with him and whatnot.

'Stop it, Sage. He's still hurting from losing Elizabeth. It'll probably be a while before he even thinks about starting a new relationship, especially a serious one.' I thought, and it hurt a little. If that thought hurt the way that it did then maybe I was falling for him. 'Then I'll wait until he is ready for a serious relationship.' I said inside of my head. But there was no guarantee that he'd develop feelings for me. Yeah he has a soft spot for me, but that didn't mean that that would blossom into anything. I was brought out of my thoughts when I felt a stinging pain in my finger. When I looked down I noticed that I cut myself. "Daniel, do you have any band aids?" I asked. "What happened? Did you cut yourself?" He asked. The look on his face was full of concern and his eyes were filled with worry. "Yeah." I replied. "Come here." He said as he gently grabbed the hand that wasn't injured. I followed him into the downstairs bathroom where he told me to sit down on the edge of the bathtub. I did as he said as he looked through the cabinet for medicine, band aids, and q-tips. "This is going to sting a little." He said as he gently put the medicine he found on my bloody cut. After he cleaned my wound he put the medicine on it with the q-tip. Then he put the band aid over it. "Thanks." I said, feeling embarrassed. I felt so stupid for getting so lost in my thoughts that I accidentally cut myself. "Don't mention it." He said as I stood up and he pulled me into a comforting hug.

We went back into the kitchen and cleaned everything up. We threw away the contaminated vegetables. Plus he washed the cutting board and knife. I still helped him cook dinner, but I didn't cut up anything. I didn't trust myself with sharp objects after what had happened. But Daniel was really sweet about everything. Once the food was ready we ate as we talked. "I hoped your finger heals up quickly." He said with a sympathetic look in his beautiful brown eyes. "I'm sure it will." I said. He seemed to know that something was bothering me, but he didn't say anything. I was actually kind of thankful that he didn't. I didn't feel like telling him about what I was thinking about at the moment.

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