car – if, indeed, it had
been flirtatious at all. His demeanor was stiff – almost cold – something even
Kyle and Luc had picked up on, deciding between them that it was due to his
Englishness. They'd started calling him “English,” to his mild amusement, and
cracking jokes about tea and biscuits every opportunity they got. But I
couldn't help but wonder if his sudden coolness had something to do with how
close we'd gotten – or almost gotten – in the car the week before. I found
myself feeling flustered – unable to focus, getting painfully close to
distraction, wondering if Danny found me beautiful, found me attractive enough,
whether or not he had a girlfriend...questions I'd never asked myself before.
But
I didn't have too much time to worry. We had a show to do, and time was
running out. Thursday night we rehearsed until three in the morning, and we had
only just begun to catch a glimpse of the sunrise on the horizon to the east
when at last Danny began to yawn.
“Time
to pack up,” said Kyle, leaping to his feet. “I'm crashing with Luc and Steve
tonight so I don't have such a long commute to campus tomorrow. Neve, do you
mind driving yourself back?” This time I'd brought my own car.
“Go
on ahead!” I said, bidding farewell to the others and watching as they drove
off into the distance. I fumbled with my keys, packing up my equipment and
heading into the car.
Bam !
No sooner had I started up the car than I felt an unmistakable jolt, followed
by a sense of deflation. I'd run over something sharp – who knew what? - and my
tire had gone from full to flat in a matter of seconds.
Damn
it. I'd been meaning to change the spare tire for weeks, but somehow
between the excitement of college and the stress of the band I hadn't been able
to make it to the shop. “Guys!” I called out, but they'd already gone. I
instinctively picked up my cell phone, ready to dial, before sighing in
exasperation. The battery was flat. I'd have to ask Danny for the use of his
living room sofa – or else for his car keys – two requests that seemed awfully
intimate given our relative coldness. But there was nobody out here for miles –
there was no way I could walk back myself. I'd have to ask Danny...
Flushing
with embarrassment, I made my way back to Danny's house. I knocked softly, but
I heard no reply.
“Danny?”
I called out. I followed the lights into his bedroom, but stopped on the
threshold, embarrassed. Danny was sitting on the bed, entirely naked except for
a towel, his hair soaking wet, playing on his acoustic guitar, which had
drowned out my words.
I
turned bright pink and stepped back. It was awkward enough walking in on my TA
at 4 in the morning – did he have to be naked, too? My heart was fluttering
faster than one of Steve's beats – if Danny's muscle tees suggested chiseled,
ripped, abs, they certainly didn't do him proper justice; now that he was
shirtless, I could tell that Danny was easily the most toned guy I'd ever met. His
skin glistened and across his chest and one shoulder was some kind of medieval pattern
tattoo. Over his heart, there was a large lion’s head in blue. From this
distance I couldn’t see the entire pattern or make out the words scrawled
beneath it across his lower stomach leading down to the v hidden by his towel
slung loosely low on his hips. I gulped. As much as I tried, I couldn’t take
my eyes off of him. Danny Blue made wearing clothes to cover up that gorgeous
body a sin. Why does he have to be so hot?
He
was playing a haunting song on the guitar.
“Danny...”
I whispered – but as soon as I caught sight of his face I fell silent. His eyes
were red, and tears were streaming down his face. He was
been flirtatious at all. His demeanor was stiff – almost cold – something even
Kyle and Luc had picked up on, deciding between them that it was due to his
Englishness. They'd started calling him “English,” to his mild amusement, and
cracking jokes about tea and biscuits every opportunity they got. But I
couldn't help but wonder if his sudden coolness had something to do with how
close we'd gotten – or almost gotten – in the car the week before. I found
myself feeling flustered – unable to focus, getting painfully close to
distraction, wondering if Danny found me beautiful, found me attractive enough,
whether or not he had a girlfriend...questions I'd never asked myself before.
But
I didn't have too much time to worry. We had a show to do, and time was
running out. Thursday night we rehearsed until three in the morning, and we had
only just begun to catch a glimpse of the sunrise on the horizon to the east
when at last Danny began to yawn.
“Time
to pack up,” said Kyle, leaping to his feet. “I'm crashing with Luc and Steve
tonight so I don't have such a long commute to campus tomorrow. Neve, do you
mind driving yourself back?” This time I'd brought my own car.
“Go
on ahead!” I said, bidding farewell to the others and watching as they drove
off into the distance. I fumbled with my keys, packing up my equipment and
heading into the car.
Bam !
No sooner had I started up the car than I felt an unmistakable jolt, followed
by a sense of deflation. I'd run over something sharp – who knew what? - and my
tire had gone from full to flat in a matter of seconds.
Damn
it. I'd been meaning to change the spare tire for weeks, but somehow
between the excitement of college and the stress of the band I hadn't been able
to make it to the shop. “Guys!” I called out, but they'd already gone. I
instinctively picked up my cell phone, ready to dial, before sighing in
exasperation. The battery was flat. I'd have to ask Danny for the use of his
living room sofa – or else for his car keys – two requests that seemed awfully
intimate given our relative coldness. But there was nobody out here for miles –
there was no way I could walk back myself. I'd have to ask Danny...
Flushing
with embarrassment, I made my way back to Danny's house. I knocked softly, but
I heard no reply.
“Danny?”
I called out. I followed the lights into his bedroom, but stopped on the
threshold, embarrassed. Danny was sitting on the bed, entirely naked except for
a towel, his hair soaking wet, playing on his acoustic guitar, which had
drowned out my words.
I
turned bright pink and stepped back. It was awkward enough walking in on my TA
at 4 in the morning – did he have to be naked, too? My heart was fluttering
faster than one of Steve's beats – if Danny's muscle tees suggested chiseled,
ripped, abs, they certainly didn't do him proper justice; now that he was
shirtless, I could tell that Danny was easily the most toned guy I'd ever met. His
skin glistened and across his chest and one shoulder was some kind of medieval pattern
tattoo. Over his heart, there was a large lion’s head in blue. From this
distance I couldn’t see the entire pattern or make out the words scrawled
beneath it across his lower stomach leading down to the v hidden by his towel
slung loosely low on his hips. I gulped. As much as I tried, I couldn’t take
my eyes off of him. Danny Blue made wearing clothes to cover up that gorgeous
body a sin. Why does he have to be so hot?
He
was playing a haunting song on the guitar.
“Danny...”
I whispered – but as soon as I caught sight of his face I fell silent. His eyes
were red, and tears were streaming down his face. He was
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