The only one to talk to ~ Daul

Chapter 1

Paul Nicholson's Point of View

21st September 2023

For once I had agreed to share hotel rooms with Dan. We hadn't done that all year, since I needed a break from his constant talking. Not that I don't like it, I actually really enjoy it his talking. But it can be pretty overwhelming listening all the time. We weren't talking right now, he was just staring up onto the ceiling. He was debating something with himself, I could see that on his face. I recognize that expression. The 12th European Tour starts tomorrow, so we were in Budapest. All of a sudden Dan looked over at me, I noticed instantly and we locked eyes. "Have you ever thought about if there was a tournament, like World Cup, but you can play together with whoever you want no matter the nationalities?" Dan asked. "Err-- no?" I said with a laugh. I smiled, I love when he comes up with these random ideas. And the best thing about it was that he always asks if I've ever thought of it, it's only his brain that thinks of those kind of things. He nodded quickly and looked back up on the ceiling. He sighed quietly. Around 10 minutes later I felt his head on my shoulder. I smiled at how fast he fell asleep. It was fair enough, it was around 9-10 pm. I moved him down a bit and put his head on the pillow. I pulled the covers over him and smiled more. I went to sleep as well.

22nd September 2023

"Good afternoon and welcome to Budapest. We're currently missing a commentator, I'm sure he'll be here any second." I said as the players started warming up. I looked around a bit confused as to why Dan wasn't here yet. Just then Dan entered the commentator box. I had expected to see a huge smile on his face and him saying something funny, but instead he was completely quiet and avoided eye contact. I could sense something was wrong. I put my microphone down and tried to make eye contact. He did his best to look away from me. "Dan..." I said quietly while placing a hand on his shoulder. He flinched, but still looked in the other direction. "Dan look at me." I said sternly. He shook his head, without saying a word. "Dan I don't want to force you to, just look at me." I said with a worried expression on my face. I removed my hand from his shoulder. He turned slowly and looked at me, and then I saw it. His eyes were puffy, it looked like he had been crying, and a lot. He had a red mark on his face, just big enough to be someone's hand. Who did this to him... WHO SLAPPED HIM?? "Who did this to you?" I asked looking worried, but feeling nothing but pure rage. "Matt..." he whispered. I clutched my fist and bit my lip. Mr. Matthew Porter? The chief executive of PDC? He hit Dan? Why? Then suddenly everything came clear to my mind. Dan told him an idea, Matt hated it didn't he? "I'll talk to him later." I said. He looked like he wanted to argue and cry at the same time, but he knew it was best if he didn't.