happiness begins [joe jonas]

13

"It's so good to see you again." Dani smiles as she leads Emmie into the kitchen.

Towards the end of the week, Dani had reached out, asking if Emmie wanted to meet up. They hadn't seen each other since the weekend before and Dani had taken quite a liking to her. Since having the kids, Dani had missed out on spending time with her friends, so Kevin had offered to take Alena and Valentina out for a few hours, whilst Emmie and Dani got to know each other better.

"It was nice of Kevin to take the kids for you." Emmie tells her.

Dani chuckles lightly.

"They'll be glad to spend time with their Dad." She laughs. "But as much as I love them, it's nice to have some free time."

The two of them sit at the kitchen island, in front of the huge window which overlooks the garden. Emmie couldn't believe how beautiful their home was. It was a similar style to Joe's apartment, except for the fact that it had a childs touch. There were many drawings in frames, hung upon the walls, a heigh chart stood against the side of the refrigerator. A pot of crayons, paint and glitter sat upon the table. Emmie guessed this must've been Alena's belongings. It was vibrant, but it fit in perfectly.

Dani wandered over the the refrigerator, grasping a jug filled with fresh fruit juice. She places it on the island, reaching for two glasses.

"Don't tell my girls your drinking this." She grins, pressing a finger to her lips. "It's their favourite."

She pours a glass each, sliding one across to Emmie who happily thanks her. Dani sits beside her once more, holding her glass between her perfectly manicured fingers.

"Your nails are so pretty." Emmie gasps, once she had noticed. Dani held her hand out in front of her to show off the pink and white french tips.

"Thank you!" She smiles. "You should come with me, next time. Yours would look so good, a cute baby blue colour."

Emmie smiles weakly, glancing down at her own nails. They weren't exactly the best looking. She had a habit of biting them down when she got nervous - which had been pretty often recently. Dani places a hand on hers, giving her a soft smile, breaking Emmie away from her thoughts.

"How's work going?" Dani asks.

"Kevin told you?" Emmie questioned. She knew he probably had, considering he had mentioned Joe would talk about her a lot.

Dani nods.

"Joe's quite fond of you, y'know." She grins. "We hear a lot about you, me and Kev."

Emmie gives her a shy smile. She had never been the topic of conversation before, especially to one specific person, so she had no idea how to react.

"All good things, I hope." Emmie mumbles.

"Of course."

"Works going good." She changes the subject. "It's weird to be back after such a long time."

Dani glances at her, curiously. Joe had only said so much to her and Kevin, but had never mentioned the passing of Emmie's best friend. He knew it was never his place to say.

Emmie looks down for a moment, a hint of sadness flashing across her face.

"It's been a tough couple of weeks." She mutters, picking at her nails. "I- I lost someone really close to me.."

Dani's eyes widen slightly, her expression softening.

"Oh my, Em. I'm sorry, I didn't realise." Dani rushes, hopping down from her stool and hugging her from behind. Emmie grasps onto her hand, and they stay like that for a while.