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Post by Raebee on Feb 2, 2011 5:09:54 GMT -5
Danian pushed open the doors to the diner and scanned the room, looking for a spare table. Spotting a booth near the window, he moved across the room and slid into it. Glancing out the window, he watched the snow drifting down from the sky.
Pulling out his phone, he messaged Aya. I'm here. See you when you get here. Hope you're ok.
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Post by kristay on Feb 2, 2011 5:50:12 GMT -5
As soon as Aya got the text she had been waiting for, she got out of bed and got dressed. She had been curled up under the covers of her bed for the past day, refusing to go out. Cameron had been covering for her since her mom had started to worry. She pulled on a pair of black skinny jeans and a purple long sleeved tee-shirt. She glanced at the mirror to make sure she didn't look too bad before grabbing her glasses and a black bomber jacket. Lastly, she pulled on her black Converse sneakers before picking up her purse which had her cellphone, wallet and keys. The girl opened the door to her bedroom without another backward glance and headed down stairs.
Cameron was in one corner of the large living room reading a book, the house cat on his lap. Kai and Xander were in another, lazily playing another one of their rainy day songs. Her redheaded cousin looked up briefly. "Finally ready to join the rest of the world again?" She rolled her eyes as she headed to the door. "Going to see Dan. Tell mom okay?" All she got was the sound of him turning the page and a 'Mmmm'.
She didn't bother with a car; Aya could have had borrowed Cameron's but she decided to walk. She shrugged on her jacket before she opened the door and made her way. It was a short walk to Palmer's and when she finally arrived, she pushed open the door and searched for Dan. A tiny smile of relief turned up the corners of her mouth as she saw him by the windows. Aya walked over to him and slid into the seat opposite Dan. "Sorry, did you wait long?"
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Post by Raebee on Feb 2, 2011 6:28:49 GMT -5
Danian smiled as he heard her voice, and looked up from the table he'd been tracing patterns on with his finger. "Hey. No not long, only about ten minutes". Glancing at her face, his smile widened. "Did you want anything? I got a bit hungry so I ordered fries. If you want anything else, we can get that too."
He didn't ask what was wrong, he figured she'd get to it if and when she was ready. He'd learned quickly enough from his sisters that unwanted questions earned him the silent treatment, or worse depending on how many he'd asked. Instead he sat silently across from her, smiling easily as he resumed his tracing.
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Post by kristay on Feb 2, 2011 7:02:32 GMT -5
"Oh." As if on cue a waitress came by to ask if she wanted anything and she ordered a mint chocolate chip shake and french fries. She left with Aya's order and Aya turned to stare out the window. "I'm sorry if I called you out of the blue... I..." She shook her head and sighed softly, deciding to lean her head against the window. Aya glanced at her handsome friend and smiled a bit sadly. "How are you double-one? I've missed your smart-aleck comments about everything."
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Post by Raebee on Feb 2, 2011 7:12:21 GMT -5
Danian grinned sheepishly and ducked his head slightly. "You mean apart from getting my arse kicked? Everything is great. So great that I had to come here to eat. Jade banned me from our kitchen cause of my shopping skills. Otherwise I would have just said you could come over."
He studied her face as she leaned against the window and his smile dimmed slightly. She didn't seem in any hurry to tell him what the problem was, and for some reason it bugged him. Throwing caution to the wind, he leaned forward slightly, resting his hand on his chin. "Where is the smile I saw the other day? Not this one, the happy one?"
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Post by kristay on Feb 2, 2011 7:28:34 GMT -5
She couldn't help but smile a bit more at that. It was hard to imagine Jade, someone infinitely smaller than Dan, beat him up but that, it seemed was the fact in the Arthur household. "I would have loved to see your sister beat you up actually." Aya moved away from the window and nestled her chin on the palm of her hand so she could stare at Dan unabashedly. "Next time then."
Aya blinked, a bit surprised that he was so forward with her. She smiled a bit more though; it was just like him to not care about small talk and go straight for the kill. "It's a long story though, you don't have to listen to me if you don't want to. It started about a year ago, that's pretty long." She grinned a bit wryly, not sure how he would take learning about her love life before and her not so full of love life now. But as she looked at Dan, she had an odd feeling that even if this was the second time they had met, she could trust him.
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Post by Raebee on Feb 2, 2011 7:34:16 GMT -5
Dan pretended to scowl, then laughed lightly. "Sure, any time. Just as long as I can use you as a shield. Jade's tougher than she looks, she's got some serious hidden muscles."
He looked quickly at his watch and shrugged. "I've got heaps of time. It's not like I know anyone else around town who would need me for anything. And even if they did I think I might blow them off if I get an interesting story instead."
He looked up as the waitress brought over their orders. Taking a fry, he chewed it thoughtfully. "So start from the beginning so I understand completely. And don't leave anything out."
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Post by kristay on Feb 2, 2011 7:49:46 GMT -5
Aya shook her head in amusement and continued to smile, in a better mood. She wasn't sure if it was just being in a place with such a nice environment or if it was being with him, but she was already feeling better and she hadn't even explained yet.
Once their food arrived, she thanked the waitress and sipped at her shake. "Okay, if you insist. When my family was still in MABTown, my mom co-owned a cafe with a friend of the family and we worked there part-time as... well, whatever the cafe needed. My cousin was the head pastry chef actually. Anyway, I think it was during the grand opening of the store... I met a guy, Monte. We hit it off quite well actually and we...", she paused as she felt her breath hitch in her throat, "We fell in love." Aya laughed a bit. "I know it sounds over-dramatic and silly but we really did fall in love." The girl paused again to run a slender hand through her short hair.
"Anyway, just a few months into our relationship, I found out I was sick." She looked out the window, the thought of her illness still a very painful memory that she couldn't get past yet. "Breast cancer. It was funny because I knew it ran in the family but I never expected it to happen to me when I was still 16." She shrugged as if it wasn't real but it really had been a mind-numbing experience. "I had to move away to receive treatment and Monte and I promised we'd wait for each other. It worked for the next few months but he stopped calling... And the letters I sent were returned, unanswered. So of course, I thought he wanted to stop it, you know?" Aya smiled a bit sadly into her glass.
"That was probably the hardest part of when I was away. All that crying...", she shook her head. "Anyway, I never thought I'd see him again, but apparently his family moved to this town too, right after the hurricane. I saw him yesterday." Aya sighed and glanced at Dan briefly. "I found out that it was just... Just really bad luck for us, you know? It wasn't that he stopped calling, the calls just wouldn't come through. And it wasn't that he sent back the letters, but that he never even got them in the first place." She laughed a bit, but it sounded hollow, even to herself. "He was just as broken up about it as I was. I felt so bad... I had resented him for so long and then... He was hurting just as much as I was."
Aya paused in her story to grab a french fry, eating it and chewing slowly. "He has a girlfriend now. Said he still loved me but I think he was trying to tell me that it would never work out. I was so numb that day, Dan. So... numb." She didn't want to cry in front of him but she knew that was probably what she was going to do anyway. She pressed her cheek against the table and looked at Dan. "I think I left my heart with him when I turned my back on him the other day. I dunno if I'll ever get it back. Don't know if I want it back." A soft sigh escaped her lips as she watched him, waited for his answer... Waited for whatever he was going to say.
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Post by Raebee on Feb 3, 2011 3:44:01 GMT -5
Dan listened as she talked, slightly non-plussed. Whatever he thought she was going to say, this was not it. He watched her face and wondered how on earth she was holding up. When he'd had to leave Belle, sure they were 13 but he'd thought she was the one. He hadn't left his room for months.
Taking her hand he smiled softly. "That sounds like the worst luck in the entire world. Are you..erm..in remission now? My uh...my mum got breast cancer when I was 11. That's why I came here. She uh... she didn't make it though. She died just before I turned 13."
He blinked suddenly, wondering why on earth he'd told her that. The only person in this country other than his siblings who knew about that had been Belle. "Sorry. That was morbid of me. I'm sure you're going to be fine."
Squeezing her hand lightly he smiled once more. "And this guy...he sounds like a genuinely good guy if you felt that way about him. And it's too bad that he has a girlfriend now. But honestly do you really not want a chance at the happiness that you're entitled to have?"
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Post by kristay on Feb 3, 2011 6:06:11 GMT -5
She felt Dan take her hand in his warm one and she looked at him a bit surprised. Aya had never expected his story to be similar to this one. "I... I'm so sorry about your mom." Aya squeezed his hand and looked at him with concern. "No, it's not morbid... And, oh god... I really am sorry for ranting and not even thinking." She had never thought of the possibility that this cheerful boy who stood before her would have such a painful past and that made her a bit guilty even if she knew that people like Dan and her? They didn't want the pity.
He had changed the topic quickly enough and she decided to follow suit. "Well... It's not that I never want to be happy again... I think everyone wants to be happy, you know?", Aya sighed softly and hung her head before glancing at him through dry eyes, "I just don't know where to start anymore... Don't know how..." She released his hand and sipped at her shake again, already wishing she hadn't let go of Danian. It felt like when her hand was firm in his, Aya knew at least where to go... And now she was just... By herself. Aya shook her head, I'm going nuts.
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Post by Raebee on Feb 4, 2011 1:53:19 GMT -5
Danian frowned slightly, not out of irritation, just deep in thought. He tried to remember all the things he'd done once he'd left but it just seemed to him that after months of wallowing, he just decided to get out of bed. That's not going to help her. She doesn't need to be told to stay in bed.
Grabbing a couple fries, he pushed them into his mouth thoughtfully. "Well.. I think the best way to start, is to keep doing the things you have been. Seeing as the only thing I know that you've done, is go grocery shopping, you should do that again. You seemed happy there. And I know it sucks, but it will get easier."
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Post by kristay on Feb 4, 2011 3:29:26 GMT -5
Aya snorted in amusement and gave Danian a look. "So you're saying I should do the groceries as much as I possibly can, huh? Well as long as you're with me at the grocery store, I won't feel so bad, double-one." She smiled at him and finished her shake before picking up a couple of french fries and popping them in her mouth. "I know I sound bratty and silly, I'm just angry that he didn't pick me. I know he waited and I really do appreciate that he did. Just... disappointed I guess that it never turned out like I expected it too." Aya laughed at him and gave him a bigger smile, just like the one he had seen on her face at the grocery store. "Cancer really does help in making you a jaded person, huh? I'm trying to get out of this funk, I really am..." She shook her head, she was going in circles.
"I sound so selfish, even to myself. All this time we've been talking about me." she took her hand in his and smiled again. "Aside from getting your ass kicked by your younger sister, which I would love to witness by the way, how have you been?"
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Post by Raebee on Feb 4, 2011 20:43:44 GMT -5
Dan laughed lightly and shrugged his shoulders. "I guess I can do that, as long as you don't tell Jade I can do it properly. And you don't sound bratty. Or silly. Or any of those other things. It's natural to be hurt, especially if, as you say, you guys were in love. Can I ask you something though? You said you'd spent your time crying. So...did you go through the grief stage already? Where would you be with it if you hadn't seen him? Where were you at the grocery store?"
He gobbled the rest of his fries, and leaned his free elbow on the table and sighed slightly, still smiling. "Well, as other than you I don't know anyone other than my family here, I don't have a job, and I'm not going to school. So... I guess I'm bored."
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Post by kristay on Feb 4, 2011 23:36:28 GMT -5
Aya smirked. "Then it's a date double-one." She laughed with him, knowing that if he was responsible for groceries would piss off Jade terribly. "Well, your secret is safe with me Dan." She grinned sneakily at him, ignoring the twinge of heartstrings when he mentioned how they were in love. "I'm not sure there are stages for heartbreak. All of it's kinda just... a lot of grief. Not like the death thing actually. I guess we can't compare notes then huh?" She laughed a bit before answering. "Yeah, I cried. A lot actually; I try not to anymore... I feel like it's a waste of time now, feeling sorry for myself."
Aya gasped before breaking down into giggles. "That's a bit sad, don't you think? Well, why don't you get a job somewhere to pass the time? I want to apply for a part-time job to keep busy but if my mom builds a store here with her friend, then I might just work for her instead." She gave him a tiny smile though. "You know you can always hang out with me double-one."
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Post by Raebee on Feb 7, 2011 21:16:34 GMT -5
Danian chuckled, glad to see her laughing again. "That's more like it. I think I'm gonna have to hang around a bit with you anyway, whether you liked it or not. Cause someone has to keep that smile on your face". He fought the desire to move and sit next to her, to put his arm around her. "Do you not want to talk about it anymore? I'm sorry, really. My mum used to say I'm not very uh...tactful. I try but when I really think something, I can't stop myself".
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