“Baby doll, I know you’ve got more questions, but I really need to sleep now,” he said, staring longingly at Lisanne’s bed. “Can we talk in the morning?”
“Of course,” she said softly, moving the boxes of food so he could lie down.
He caught her hand and pulled her toward him.
“I’m so fucking happy you’re here,” he whispered. “It makes it hurt less.”
He leaned his head against her waist then stood up slowly. Giving her a small smile, he dropped his jeans and slid down between the sheets and rolled onto his side.
Lisanne bent down to kiss him, but he was already asleep.
Rodney motioned something, hissing in a stage whisper, and Lisanne raised her eyebrows. “He can’t hear you.”
“Oh, God, sorry. I keep forgetting. Jeez, all this makes my problems seem pretty damn pathetic.”
“I know what you mean.”
“I had no idea this thing with his brother was so serious. Sounds like he’ll do time.”
“Yes, I think so. Maybe it’s for the best.”
“At least he spoke up for Daniel.”
Lisanne’s reply was bitter. “That was the least he could do.”
Rodney chewed slowly. “What will Daniel do now?”
“I don’t know. Find somewhere to live. Try and go to school. He’s got a job lined up at an auto repair shop. I hope he doesn’t drop out because of all this. He’s really smart. He helps me with my math and everything.”
Rodney choked on his chow mein. “What?! I tried to do that for years and didn’t get anywhere. He must be good.”
“He’s great,” she said, sadly.
“Hot, too,” added Rodney.
Lisanne laughed a little. “Yeah, hot, too.”
“You know, except for the windows, it wouldn’t be too hard to fix up his place enough to make it livable. Your dad isn’t too bad at all that stuff. Do you think he’d help? We’ve got ten days.”
Lisanne suddenly felt energized. “God, I could kiss you!” she said, leaping to her feet. “I’m sure mom and dad would want to help. Harry, too.” Then her face fell. “But the windows still a problem. There’s no way Daniel would be able to pay for that and I can’t ask my parents…”
“We’ll figure something out. Look, phone your folks – tell them Daniel’s okay and we’ll sleep on it. Well, you go sleep with your fabulous, hot, naked boyfriend and I’ll tuck myself into this lonely little single all by my lonesome, and dream of tight butts and lickable biceps.”
“Oh my God,” said Lisanne, “you sound just like Kirsty. It must be that bed.”
She phoned her parents and although they were shocked by what she told them, they promised to be there by lunchtime the following day.
For the first time in several days, Lisanne allowed herself to hope as she curled up next to Daniel.
He slept for 14 hours, solidly. He’d been so still, Lisanne had even prodded him to make sure he was breathing. He’d sighed softly, which reassured her.
“He probably didn’t sleep much in the cop shop,” said Rodney. “I know I wouldn’t want to.” He shuddered.
“No, I guess not.” She chewed her lip for a moment then stood up. “I’m going to put some laundry in for him – not that he has much left in the way of clothes.”
“What was he saying about his guitar? I didn’t get that.”
Lisanne sighed. “He was a musician. Like me. He started losing his hearing when he was 14. And he wrote the most amazing music. I sing four of his songs in the band. It’s horrible, what’s happened to him.”
“Thank God he found you,” said Rodney, too quietly for Lisanne to hear.
Lisanne went to load Daniel’s laundry while Rodney stayed in the room. He was surprised when she stomped back, her face furious.
“What’s up now?”
“I found this!” she said, tossing a piece of paper onto Kirsty’s bed.
Rodney picked it up. “Huh. A woman’s phone number. Lis, he must get given things like this all the time.”
“But why did he keep it?” she seethed.
“He has been rather preoccupied,” said Rodney, raising his eyebrows. “But if you’re that worried about it you can ask him when he wakes up.”
Lisanne huffed but didn’t argue. She stomped back out of the room and came back 40 minutes later with Daniel’s clean clothes.
“Still no sign of life,” said Rodney, affably. “But I think you’d better wake him up so we can meet your folks at his place.”
Lisanne stroked Daniel’s cheek and watched his eyelids flutter open.
“Hey, baby doll,” he said, his voice hoarse. “I was dreaming about you.”
Behind her, she heard Rodney’s theatrical sigh.
“Nice dream?”
“Fucking amazing,” he said with a smile. “If it had been anyone else but you who woke up me, I’d have been pissed.”
He sat up and rubbed his eyes. “Oh, hey, Rodney. Forgot you were there, man.”
“It happens a lot,” Rodney replied, waspishly.
Daniel grinned.
“Better put some clothes on,” Lisanne reminded him, and tossed him his clean jeans and t-shirt.
“Fuck, you are an amazing woman,” said Daniel, gratefully.
Rodney averted his eyes while Daniel swung out of bed and pulled on his jeans, tucking his semi inside.
“We’re really going to have to get you some underwear,” commented Lisanne.
“Spoilsport,” Rodney muttered to himself.
“Is there any of that Chinese left?” asked Daniel as he stretched, dragging on his t-shirt.
“Some. Or we could go out for breakfast.”
“I’ll take whatever’s left,” said Daniel, eyeing the food hungrily.
He started eating with a vengeance while Lisanne explained to him about her parents coming to help. He stopped with the chopsticks half way to his mouth.
“They’re coming here?”
“Of course,” said Lisanne. “They want to help.”
“Why?” Daniel was genuinely puzzled.
“Because they care about you, you dope!”
“Oh,” said Daniel, still unsure. “Okay, thanks.”
“Um, there’s something else,” said Lisanne, fingering the note she’d found in Daniel’s jeans. “What’s this?”
He frowned and then his face cleared. “Oh yeah. Some chick I met at the hearing clinic. She’d just had the CI. Wanted to swap notes.” He rolled his eyes.
Rodney winked at Lisanne, a relieved smile on his face.
Daniel carried on eating.
“You never said why they arrested you.”
Rodney groaned audibly as Daniel sighed, and dropped the chopsticks.
“I had nearly an ounce of dope in my room. They were trying to say it was possession with intent to distribute, but my lawyer bargained it down to personal use. That’s a misdemeanor – incarceration for up to a year.”
He looked at Lisanne and shrugged, which fired both her anxiety and irritation.
“Why did you have the drugs, Daniel? I mean, I’ve never seen you… not with me…”
He gave her a small smile. “Zef brought it to hospital – sort of a ‘get well soon and get your lazy ass out of here’ present. I shoved it under my bed and forgot about it.” He shrugged. “Zef told the cops the same thing, so my lawyer says I could get off.”
His casual tone pushed Lisanne over the edge of her carefully sewn together composure.
“What the hell, Daniel? We’re supposed to be together, and you keep all of this from me? Zef gave it to you while you were in hospital! That was two weeks ago! And you never mentioned it! What does that say about our relationship?”
She stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind her.
Rodney turned his gaze on Daniel, who looked equally furious.
“I’m protecting her from all this shit!” Daniel spat out.
“She doesn’t want to be protected – she wants to help you.”
“She can help if you share how you’re feeling. Jeez, Daniel!”
“All the shit she’s been through because of me. I don’t even know why she’s still here.”
Rodney sighed in exasperation. “Because she loves you, you asshole!”
Daniel’s eyes widened slightly and he sat back silently.
“And I think you love her.”
Daniel nodded slowly. “She’s everything.”
“Then tell her. Jeez, you two… I don’t know which one of you is worse. Damn it, I’ve been out for precisely two days and you’ve got me doing a Dr. Phil or Ricki Lake or something. Give me a break!” He twitched his shoulders in an impatient gesture.
Daniel grinned. “Ricki Lake?”
“So? My grandparents are from Baltimore – I like Hairspray. Just do something to make her feel special – so that she knows you care. It doesn’t have to be anything expensive…”
“Thank fuck for that because in case you hadn’t noticed, I’m broke,” Daniel said bitterly. But at the same time an idea came to him. Maybe.
“Look, we should go,” said Rodney, glancing at his watch. “I’ll meet you outside – give you and Lis a few minutes to yourselves.”
Rodney opened the door as Lisanne stamped back inside, nearly taking him out as she barreled past him.
“Good luck,” Rodney breathed, although neither Daniel or Lisanne could hear him.
Lisanne ricocheted around the room, collecting her jacket and purse, feeling like she wanted to whack Daniel around the head with it – on his good side, of course.
He sat patiently, waiting for her to look at him.
Finally, she whirled around. “I’m so mad at you!”
“Yeah, I got the memo,” he said, dryly.
“This isn’t a laughing matter!” she yelled.
“I’m not laughing, baby doll,” he said, holding back a smile. “I’m sorry, okay.”
“No! No it’s definitely not okay! You never tell me anything! I have to find out everything by accident. That’s not the basis for a relationship, Daniel.”
His chest squeezed unpleasantly.
“Lis, please. I’ll try, okay. I just… it… I haven’t had anyone to tell this shit to in a while.”
His hazel eyes begged her to understand and she didn’t have it in her heart to punish him anymore. He’d said he’d try. She couldn’t ask for more.
“Okay, but we’re in this together, Daniel. Just tell me. If it affects you, it affects me. Get that through your thick skull!” and she tapped him lightly on his head.
“Working on it, baby doll,” he said, seriously.
She sat on his knee and he nuzzled her neck. She was in his arms and there was nowhere else she wanted to be.
They were interrupted by her phone ringing and Rodney’s irate voice telling them to stop making out and to get out.
Throughout the whole drive Rodney complained grumpily about being the only person not currently getting any action. Lisanne ignored him and Daniel, sitting in the backseat, looked like he’d fallen asleep again.
They arrived just as the Maclaines’ car was turning into the road.
It was like an extreme version of shows on the DIY network.
That first day, Daniel was astonished by how much they got done. Ernie had called ahead to have a dumpster delivered, along with industrial amounts of white paint, brushes and rollers. He’d also arranged for a glazier to come and fit new glass in the seven broken windows. And then he handed out tasks to everyone.
Daniel worked harder and longer and took fewer breaks than anyone else, galvanized to see his childhood home re-emerge from the rubble. He even managed to retrieve some photographs of his parents that weren’t too badly damaged.
Halfway through the afternoon, two men had driven past in a beaten up VW van to buy coke, but Ernie saw them off by threatening to call the police.
“That’ll happen for a while,” he said thoughtfully, “but the message will soon get around… providing it stays that way.”
He gave Daniel a hard stare.
“It will,” snapped Daniel. “I don’t want that shit anywhere near me or… I don’t want it around.”
Ernie nodded and went back to work.
On the fourth day, after most of the clearing out had been done and small structural repairs completed, they started the painting. Harry turned out to have a good eye for staining woodwork without the lines bleeding, so he was put in charge of door frames and window sills. Everyone else was hands-on painting the walls and ceilings.
Ernie even rented a sander, and showed Daniel how to use it on hardwood floors. Some of Pop’s skills with tools had rubbed off on Ernie.
Daniel was worried about how much it was all costing, but Ernie simply said he hoped someone would do the same it if was his kids who needed a helping hand. That was the end of the discussion – at least as far as Ernie was concerned.
The biggest problem was furniture. Monica and Lisanne were given the job of haunting the thrift shops to see what they could find.
“Nothing girly, please, baby doll,” begged Daniel.
Lisanne snickered quietly. “You’ll love whatever I get,” and kissed him quickly so he couldn’t reply.
They were pretty successful, securing sofas, chairs, a kitchen table and two double beds with decent mattresses.
Each night Rodney and Daniel stayed at the house, camping out and washing in cold water, until the oil tank could be refilled. Both of them were wearing five day old stubble.
Lisanne had wanted to stay, too, but had been outvoted by her parents and even by Daniel, who was worried in case any of Zef’s customers came back.
But Ernie seemed to have been right about the word getting around, and no one bothered them again.
On New Year’s Eve, there was one more piece of good news.
Daniel was scrubbing out the downstairs shower room that hadn’t been used for anything except for storing liquor for two years, when his cell vibrated in his pocket.
As he read the message his face lit up, and his shout of happiness could be heard all over the house.
Lisanne came running over. “What is it?”
“They’ve found Sirona! Some asshat tried to sell her to Sal, the guy from the auto shop who’s given me a job. He recognized her and called the bastard on it. I can pick her up today.”
Monica drove him over to collect his beloved Harley and he rode her home, grinning from ear to ear, wearing a helmet that Sal had given him, with another stashed in the saddlebags as a spare for his girl.
Rodney leaned over to whisper. “Your boyfriend looks hot in leather.”
“I know,” Lisanne said, smugly.
That evening, they celebrated the house’s rebirth, Sirona’s return, and New Year’s Eve with Mexican takeout, beer and large quantities of ice cream. Daniel and Rodney celebrated by taking turns in a shower that pumped out hot water.
The house still looked a bit empty and the furniture was shabby if functional, but it was a home again. Or trying to be.
Harry and Lisanne were fighting over the last of the Rocky Road when Daniel stood up, shifting awkwardly from foot to foot.
“Yeah, so it’s New Year’s Eve and tomorrow, shit, well, it’s a new year. So, um, I just wanted to, you know, thank you all for everything you’ve done. It’s been like having family, that’s how it feels, to me, I mean. And Rodney, man, you came through and I know you’ve been going through your own shit, so if you need a place to stay… this is home, okay. Monica, Ernie, you guys have been fucking awesome. Um, sorry. But you have. You, too, Harry. You’ve worked hard, man.” His eyes turned to Lisanne, who was holding her hand to her mouth, her eyes bright with tears. “Baby doll, you… I… just… thank you. I mean, thank you for everything. Fuck, I…”
She stood up and walked over to him, looking into his eyes. “I know.”
There was a silence, so full of emotion that it had to be broken.
“
Here’s to new beginnings,” said Rodney, holding up his beer.
“Hear! Hear!” agreed Monica, softly.
Lisanne pulled Daniel down onto the sofa with her and held him, until his embarrassment had faded.
“I loved what you said,” she whispered.
“I sounded like a fucking moron,” he groaned. “I had it all planned out what I wanted to say and then, ah, fuck.”
“No, it was perfect.”
He raised an eyebrow at her. “Perfect, huh?”
Lisanne kissed him on the nose. “Except for all the cursing.”
He grinned at her.
At midnight, they sang Auld Lang Syne, and Daniel wrapped his arms around Lisanne’s waist, pulling her against his chest, feeling the vibrations of the song echo through her small rib cage.
Rodney’s words came back to him, Just do something to make her feel special, so that she knows you care. He suddenly knew what he wanted to do.
Several things changed that New Year. After a long night of talking it over with Daniel, Rodney had decided to transfer to the same college, and he was hopeful his parents would support that decision. Daniel had offered him a place to live as a thank you for everything he’d done. Rodney accepted gratefully, but insisted on paying rent money – which Daniel refused, until Lisanne took him to one side and told him that she wasn’t going to appreciate him working 20 hours a week on top of studying, when Rodney’s contribution meant he’d only have to work eight. With Rodney and Lisanne ganging up on him, Daniel had lost that argument.
The following day, the Maclaines went home, full of promises to visit again soon. Harry reminded Daniel that they still had to plan an arcade date.
Rodney was leaving, too, but only to collect his things before moving in, ready for the new semester.
Daniel and Lisanne were alone together for the first time in well over a week. Before Rodney and the Maclaines were at the end of the road, they were pulling off each other’s clothes and wouldn’t even have made it to the bedroom, if Daniel hadn’t picked her up and carried her in bodily.
Lisanne was a hot and sweaty puddle, her flesh still quivering from soft aftershocks following a very much needed orgasm, when Daniel rolled onto his side and ran a finger down her cheek.
“Better?”
“Yes,” she sighed. “Much better.”