The Day After

CHAPTER FIVE- REPERCUSSIONS

After a quick swim I find a nice sunny spot to dry off. Daniel looks at me while I lay down on the rocks and after a while he comes and joins me. The sun felt nice, and after all the problems over the last few weeks it was nice to enjoy the warm feel that the sun brings. I think Daniel is loving it too, I can see him lying there, his back stretched out his hair a mess, and a smile on his face. I close my eyes and continue to soak up the remaining sun and just relax. Once we get back into town and arrive at my apartment I invite him in for coffee which he gladly accepts.

"You always know exactly where to take me when I need time out" I say as I sit at the table and hand him a cup.

"Well I got into a lot of trouble in my early teenage years, so I needed a few hideouts" he replied.

"What kind of trouble?" I asked him curiously.

"Drugs mostly, my mother raised me as a single parent and let's just say I didn't make it any easier on her." He said reluctantly. "You shouldn't be asking questions about me, when you've just lost someone you care deeply for, i'm here for you you know." He says to me and then it suddenly hits me, my dad is dead, gone. I may have hated him in the end, but he was always there for me when I needed him.

"Thank you so much for the last few days, it's been exactly what i've needed" I was looking him in the eyes now, not wanting to look away or be anywhere else, I felt safe. I leaned in close and for a second I think we're going to kiss but then he pulls away. I'm frankly a little confused and a bit embarrassed.

"Mmm, I like you Melinda i'm not denying that because I know it's obvious, but your dad just died and you have conflicted emotions right now, if we are going to start something I want to make sure it's real and right and it won't be either of those things if we start it now" he says it like he's thought about it a lot so I back off and smile at him and then I start laughing, I don't know why I'm laughing, maybe because my dad just died and for the last few days I've been watched over by cops and through all this I've still managed to have a crush! I laugh louder at the thought and after looking at me confused for a while he starts laughing too. We laugh hard for a while and then it starts to die down and I start to cry. It's a shallow cry, like crying out from an empty heart and he hugs me and I start to bawl soaking his shirt.

"Hey, it's okay"  he says softly "i'll be here as long as you like".

"No, you should go, I'm a mess right now you shouldn't have to put up with me" I say trying to calm down to make myself look like I can take care of myself.

"I'm staying, now do you want me to put on a robot costume and dance to 'YMCA' or do you want to watch  'Pride and Prejudice' and eat ice cream with your best friends?" he asks me and I look up at him confused. My confusion doesn't last long as Monique and Jade come walking through the door with cookies and cream ice cream and 'Pride and prejudice' in their hands.

"How did you know" I ask him as I get up to hug my best friends.

"We told him" they say in unison "you didn't think you could hide him from us did you" says Monique laughing.

"Yeah after all he's here like all the time, we heard about your dad and no matter what he did, it sucks to lose a parent" says Jade and her smile turns into a frown. I pull her into a hug while Monique sets up Pride and Prejudice.

"Well i'm staying because I promised I would so... who wants ice cream?" Daniel asks and no doubt all three of us says yes.

"Have you seen Pride and Prejudice Daniel?" I ask him and he shakes his head. Monique and Jade gasp and I laugh. "Well you're watching it now, at first it's a little confusing because they talk really fast so just bare with it" We all sit down on my couch and start watching Pride and Prejudice. I sit in the middle, Daniel being on my left and Monique being on my right, Jade sits on the single armchair next to the long couch, I think Jade is upset, I could see my situation is bringing up stuff that happened with her dad, I don't press the subject and let it go for now.