D a w n :
I woke up next to Daryll, his arm was draped over my midriff and he was fast asleep, snoring louder than usual.
Slowly, I took his hand off of me, resting it on the bed as I got out.
It was extremely hot that night and he was sweating on the sheets and on me, I could tell that he was having nightmares. But things seemed to cool down after he got up in the middle of the night and had some water.
He was still extremely warm, but he seemed calmer.
I looked at him before leaving the room; there was that dreadful crease etched into his eyebrows and it made me feel sad, because it was only there when he was upset.
When he smiled, his whole face lit up, his skin stretching and barely succeeding in encompassing his large smile.
I gave him a kiss on the forehead and the crease in between his eyebrows went away as he rolled over. A small smile found its way to my face and I left the room, not wanting to wake him up.
I entered the master bedroom and it was empty, but I could hear the water running in the bathroom.
I went to the closet, picking out my clothes for the day and laying them out on the bed. I changed into a towel as I heard the water stop running, I definitely needed a shower before work or even seeing people.
It was just one of those times when all I wanted was to be alone because what I really wanted, which was to make things better for Daryll, was not possible.
I felt arms wrap around me from behind and Lane's smell consumed me as his lips pressed softly on my neck.
And I didn't want him to leave.
"Hey." He whispered, his breath tickling my neck as he did so.
I held his hands in mine, still wrapped around me. "Hey."
"Is Daryll awake?"
I shook my head.
"Understandable."
He took a deep breath, squeezing me tighter in a brief, but much needed hug.
"I missed you last night." I said, immediately feeling bad about it, but it was true. I did miss Lane, and I couldn't help that.
His presence is always somewhat comforting to me, and he knows the right things to say in almost every situation.
I'm glad that I was there for Daryll, but I also know that I can't provide him with everything he needs, eventually he'll have to go see a therapist, or find some way to cope, but I won't be enough.
As much as I want to be, I won't.
Lane is enough for me though.
He really is.
We stood there his arms around me, and I thought about how in two days, things may go back to the way they were before.
The two of us friends in passing, but never really talking to each other. All that time spent together being discarded once we don't live together anymore.
I wanted more than just to be friends in passing after the project was over, but I had other things to think about as well. I had things in my life that Lane couldn't possibly understand.
My life was much more complicated than a two-week project, and I'm not sure if Lane would be able to handle everything else that comes with Dawn Caparelli.
"This is weird." I said.
He chuckled, rocking me slowly to the side. "Why?"
I shrugged. "I don't know, it's just weird. We don't do this."
"Hold each other?"
I nodded.
He didn't say anything, he just kept rocking me to the side, his head resting on mine.
"I like it."
"Me too."
* - * - *
"Are you gonna come to work with us?" I asked Daryll, wiping the milk Lane spilled off of Emily's head.
He looked up at me. "I don't have a job."
"It's okay, Lane and I are the CEO's, we'll get you something good to do for the meantime, it's only two more days anyway."
"If it's only two days then why can't I just stay here for the time being?" He asked.
"Because I know you, and we both know that leaving you here isn't a smart idea."
He didn't say anything, but he nodded and got up from his seat, taking his plate to the sink before heading back to his room to change.
I watched him the whole way, the sadness was clear in his demeanor but I didn't know what more to do. Bringing him with us just opened the day up to more opportunities for me to not be helpful.
It was better than leaving him at the apartment where something stupid is bound to happen, but it still sucked not to know what to do with my best friend. Especially since I was all he had left at this point.
I sat Emily up on the counter, my eyes roaming down to his neck.
"Um, Lane?"
"Yeah?"
"Why is Emily at an eighty-eight percent?"
He stopped eating, setting his bowl down on the table, giving me a sheepish smile. "About that..."
"Lane!"
"It was an honest mistake, I promise, I didn't mean to drop him I was just playing catch with him and then-"
"You played catch with our baby?"
"No, not like with a ball, the kind where you throw your baby up and catch them. People do that with their babies all the time.
I narrowed my eyes at him. "How high up?"
He didn't say anything.
"Are you fucking kidding me, Lane?"
"He's made of plastic, he could handle it."
"Clearly not!" I motioned to the screen which read a clear 88% as oppose to our previous 90.
"You do know that he's a doll right?" Lane asked.
"Yes, and he's twenty percent of my grade!"
Lane sighed, coming closer to me and putting a hand on my arm. "Look, I'm sorry, okay? Wh-"
"Don't touch me." I said, brushing his hand off of me. "You're not even taking this seriously Lane, the one thing that's important to me is that I do well in school and you go play catch with twenty percent of my grade."
"Dawn, it's an eighty-eight, you're not going to fail." He said.
"I know it's an eighty-eight but it's still going to bring me down. I know it's not a failing grade, but you don't care about this and you know how important this is to me, you should care enough to not play catch with him."
"Dawn-"
"Just don't." I muttered, picking up Emily. "I'm gonna get Daryll, let's just go to work."
* - * - *
We were silent the whole drive to Warner's and the tension was thick in the air.
The ride seemed to last hours, even though in reality it was only a couple of minutes. I didn't look at Lane once, I kept my attention on the scenery flying by outside the window.
When we finally got to Warner's, we set off to find Lauren, hoping that she would have something for Daryll to do.
We found her on the top floor, talking to somebody just outside her office.
She saw us coming toward her and smiled, motioning for us to come over. She said something to the man she was talking to, before giving him a firm handshake, sending him on his way.
"Lane, Dawn, how nice to see you, and who is this?" She looked over at Daryll.
"Hi Mrs. Warner." I said, smiling at her. "This is our friend Daryll Smithson."
"Nice to meet you," She extended her arm out to him. "I'm Lauren Warner."
He shook her hand. "Thanks."
"Do you need something from me?" She asked.
He nodded. "Yeah...um, I was supposed to be a part of the project, but...complications arose and I wasn't able, but I was hoping you'd have some sort of job available. Something small for me to do during the remainder of the project?"
"And why should I hire you?" She asked.
He shrugged.
Lauren folded her arms over her chest. "Mr. Smithson you'd better pitch yourself to me if you want a damn job."
Daryll looked over at me and I mouthed a quick 'good luck', curious as to what he was going to do or say next.
"Well...the only reason Lane is standing before you as your CEO right now is because I was unable to apply for the job."
"Nice," She smiled at him. "I have just the thing for you, follow me."
She entered her office with Daryll following behind her, leaving me and Lane alone, outside her office.
Even though I could feel his eyes on me, he didn't say anything, and for that I was grateful. I wasn't really in the mood to talk to him.
I wasn't exactly mad, but I had no idea what I would say to him if we talked. The things I was thinking were not the kind of things that he would want to hear.
"I think Daryll was reaching a little bit with that pitch." Lane said, to my dismay, trying to start some sort of conversation.
I rolled my eyes. "Oh of course, because you're clearly amazing at everything."
He chuckled. "Does talking to me mean you're not as mad anymore?"
"No, it's just that if I ignore you, then who's going to keep your ego in check?"
"Touché."
We stood there for a minute, back to that uncomfortable silence. Even though there were people all around us, mulling about and talking, it felt like we were the only two in the building.
"Do you want me to take Emily down to daycare while you wait for Daryll?" He asked.
I shook my head, the irony of the situation almost making me laugh. "No thanks." I said curtly.
Lane sighed, clasping his hands together as he looked at me. I could tell he had something to say, but he didn't say it, he just stood, no more than eight feet away from me looking for what I didn't know.
Lauren walked out of her office with Daryll who was now holding a file in his hands.
"Ooh, what job did you get?" I asked.
He shrugged, looking to Lauren to explain the situation.
I reluctantly turned from him to Lauren, the dark cloud in his demeanor making me just want to reach out and give him a hug.
"Mr. Smithson is going to be my personal sales assistant." Lauren said. "I will be having a string of meetings over the next few days starting this afternoon, and Daryll will help me convince a board of rich and stingy businessmen to give us their money."
"Real businessmen?" I asked.
She nodded, turning to Daryll. "Go familiarize yourself with that files before the first meeting, which is in two hours. Do not lose that file, it is your friend and is the very thin ice you stand on right now until you prove yourself."
He gave her a small nod, before leaving to another room down the hall to read the file in hand.
"Thank you, for helping him." I said to Lauren.
She scoffed. "Please, if anything, he's the one helping me." She turned and disappeared into her office, closing the door behind her.
When she was gone I turned to go down to mine and Lane's floor, preparing myself for what I knew would be a very long day.
* - * - *
Daryll and I laid on the floor of the living room, the TV was playing quietly, but neither of us were really watching it.
We were both staring at the ceiling, my head at his feet and his head at my feet. Lane wasn't with us, he had gone out to do something right after we got back home, but he didn't tell me what it was.
"How was your job?" I asked.
His breath dragged as he exhaled and I knew something was wrong. "It was okay."
"Just okay?"
"Mhm."
"..."
"..."
"Daryll, what happened?" I asked.
He sighed. "Nothing important, it's just that she thought I could speak Chinese."
"Oh my God."
A lot of people assumed that Daryll could speak some sort of East Asian language, Mandarin being the most guessed, just because he was half Korean.
His mother was Korean, but she never got the chance to teach him her language, and now she never would.
"Yeah." He said.
"That's not even the right country."
"Well here we all look the same, so I shouldn't have been so surprised." He muttered.
"I'm sorry Daryll."
He sighed. "I think I'm overreacting."
"No, you're not. It's not okay that she just assumes you can speak Chinese, like what? With literally no backup checking and no knowledge whatsoever on the country you're from she just assumes you're Chinese? That's racist Daryll. And the whole situation is bringing back touchy subjects that I guess haven't really had the time to go away yet. You're reacting perfectly, better than I would be."
He reached out and grabbed my hand, squeezing it tight. He didn't say anything and he didn't really need to. I knew what he was feeling and what he wanted to say, even if he couldn't find the words for it, I understood.
We laid there for a little longer, until finally Daryll got up. "I'm gonna go shower." He said, heading off to his room.
I stayed in the living room for a bit longer before following suit, going to my room.
I fell onto the bed, ready to fall asleep before I'd even hit it.
The door opened, but I almost missed it with my face stuffed into a pillow. I sat up, expecting to see Daryll, but Lane stood at the door, in the same suit he wore to work.
He looked handsome and nervous, but I didn't break my resolve.
"I got you something." He said. "It took a while to find, but I think this is pretty good."
I stood up, curious as to what he was hiding behind his back.
He pulled the thing from behind his back and I still couldn't completely tell until he held it up properly.
It was a doll.
"It's the same kind as Emily, except this one's at a one hundred percent."
I couldn't help the smile that overtook my lips. "Oh my God."
He smiled as well, handing the doll to me. "Do you like it?"
I took the doll, rolling my eyes as I laughed. "You know that the school's dolls are coded, right?"
"What?"
"Come on, look." I walked over to the bed, picking up Emily and taking off his pants so that Lane could see the little barcode on his butt.
"Shit..."
I shook my head, hugging him. "It's okay, it's the thought that counts."
He wrapped his arms around me, holding me close to himself. "I wish I could do something more though, this isn't enough for what I did. I wasn't taking this seriously and I should have been, your grades are more important to you than most people and I didn't give that the respect it deserves. I'm sorry Dawn."
I sat on the bed, patting his spot next to me.
He sat down, still looking at me.
I smiled at him. "I forgive you."
He smiled back at me, his demeanor changing when he realized that I was truly not upset with him.
I put Emily down, looking at the new doll. "Do you think we could get extra points if we took care of two babies?"
He shrugged. "It's possible, Mr. Jameson is always full of surprises."
I chuckled, taking off the dolls pants to see if it had some kind of barcode.
"Uh, Lane?"
"Yeah?"
"Even if we didn't need barcodes, we couldn't use this doll."
"What? Why?"
I held up the doll so he could see it clearly. "Honey, I think it's time for you to take Dawn's Anatomy 101. You see this right here? This is what we like to call a vagina. Say it with me now, vuh-jai-nuh."
"Trust me," Lane said. "I'm already very familiar."
I smacked his arm lightly. "Oh my God, shut up."
He laughed. "I'm sorry, I must've forgotten to take off the doll's pants and look at it genitals before buying it. I'll make sure to next time though."
I laughed along with him, handing him the doll. "Good idea, you think ahead, I like it."
He looked at me, his laughter subsiding as his eyes roamed my face. "Oh my God, you really do scare me."
"You don't have to keep saying that." I said.
"What?"
I placed a hand on his cheek, and gave him a small smile.
"I love you."
I said it, not thinking about reality that was slowly creeping in on us with only one day left together. I said it, ignoring everything in my body that hated that word and wanted to never say it again. I said it, despite the events of the day, because it was true and he needed to hear it.
I loved him, and not in a 'brother' kind of way.
"I love you too."
Mine and Lane's eyes both got wide as we looked around, wondering what machine just said what sounded like a robotic 'I love you.'
"What the fuck?" He asked. "Was that Emily?"
I picked him up, looking at him, trying to figure out if it was the doll or not, and then my eyes landed on something both scary and excited.
"Lane! Our score's at eighty-nine!"
"Wait, what?" He took the doll from me, looking at the back of its neck, his eyes widening. "How the hell..."
"I love you." I said again.
He looked up at me, a confused look on his face, but nonetheless he smiled. "You just-"
"Shhh!"
I held the doll up.
"I love you too." The doll said, right before its score went from an 89 to a 90.
"Holy shit." He said.
I nodded, a grin spreading across my face. "I know right?"
"Does it go up every time you say 'I love you'?" He asked.
"I love you too." Emily said.
By now we both had huge grins covering our faces.
"It's about to get so romantic up in here." I said, fake-fanning myself.
He laughed. "Please, when is it ever not?"
I looked at him and he stared back at me with his beautiful green orbs that made me feel so exposed. Whenever he looked at me the way he was looking now, I felt like he could see the exact thoughts I had running through my mind.
It was both exhilarating and a relief.
God must've been watching me from day one, or else how did I get a pairing so perfect?
He took my hand in his, intertwining our fingers and drawing lines on the back of my palm.
"I love you." He said.
"I love you too." Emily said, his score going up.
His hands went from my hands to my cheeks, pushing locks of my brown hair behind my ear.
"I love you." He said, "I fucking love you."
"I love you." I said, alongside Emily, running a hand through his hair making a small shudder go through his body.
My hands in his hair seemed to turn on a switch in him, because right then he picked me up, turning me over as he laid me on the bed again more forcibly, on my back this time.
He was on top of me, his weight, causing the bed to dip on either side of me as he held himself up.
"I love you, so, so much." He said.
"We can get the points later." I said, "Just kiss me."
* - * - *
this chapter was actual trash i apologize and if you'd be interested in a one-shot competition let me know in the comments
Zee xx