Survival

4. On the Outside Looking In

To say that dinner with a family of people Stephanie had just met was awkward was an understatement. She couldn’t convince her body to relax, so she spent the evening caught in uncomfortable rigidity and painful awareness of her every word and movement. Miranda introduced her husband as Jonathon, and their daughter, Lily. And then there was Daniel. She introduced herself, keeping her eyes carefully averted and willing him to pretend they’d never met before. As if he could hear her thoughts as clearly as the words that fell from her mouth, he followed her lead.

Their loving banter reminded Steph of her own family, being so tightly nit and fun loving. It all felt so far out of reach.

Earlier, she had been ushered to the dining table just off to the side of the kitchen, with a beautiful view of the forest on the edge of town. There was plenty of food served, with plenty left over. Even as they tried to include her, Stephanie stayed out of the conversation. It was enough for her to just watch and listen to the cheerfulness of their conversation. Even Daniel seemed to come out of his shell a little, to tease and joke with younger sister.

Even so, Daniel’s eyes would flicker up to Stephanie’s every once and a while and his smile would fade. The Daniel she had met in English class would reappear, as guarded and serious as ever. The feeling of being unwelcome increased in Stephanie’s stomach with every one of these glances, until she could no longer eat.

As the evening wore on, and the light outside dimmed, Stephanie felt more alien and out of place as she ever had. Miranda and the rest of the family appeared totally unaware of her discomfort. It was difficult to keep a small, polite smile on her face when all she wanted to do was bury her face in a comforter and never get up again.

Daniel never blew her cover, though he could have at any point during dinner. Maybe his detachment was a blessing.

After dinner, Jonathon took all of the plates and went to wash up. Miranda ordered Lily up to bed, and after a little fuss over the small command, Lily left. Stephanie still sat, feeling hollow in her seat, unsure of what to do. Mrs. Seymour threw a winning, motherly smile her way and saved her, finally.

“I’ll bet you’re tired,” the lovely woman said and gestured for her to get up.

Stephanie did as she was told, giving Miranda a shaky smile. “Yeah, I should head back to the hotel. Thank you so much for the dinner, you really didn’t have to.”

Steph was aware of Daniel’s piercing gaze on her, silently questioning why she was faking her age.

“You’re welcome any time, Stephanie.” Miranda’s eyes slid over to Daniel, and flickered with disapproval for a moment. “Daniel, why don’t you offer to walk Stephanie home?”

Stephanie stifled the look of horror that almost crossed her face. Could she not catch a break? All she wanted to do was run home and crawl into bed. It hardly mattered whether she was walked home or not. It was painfully clear that she wasn’t welcome in his house, let alone in a conversational presence with Daniel. What had happened to the tolerant, mystifying, and almost… caring boy in English class?

Daniel’s eyes outwardly showed what Stephanie’s hid.

“I have homework,” he protested.

His grey eyes bore straight past Stephanie and into his mother.

“Daniel Seymour, don’t be so rude!” Miranda chastised, hands on hips.

“Don’t worry about it, Mrs. Seymour. I can make it back just fine on my own.” Stephanie barely disguised the plea in her voice. “But again, thank you for the offer.”

Miranda pursed her lips. “Don’t be silly, Stephanie. Daniel will more than happily escort you home.” If looks could kill, then Daniel would certainly be pushing up daisies by now. Miranda was not going to take no for an answer, it looked like.