Left on the Sidelines // Nash Overstreet

Chapter 21: Does This Deafening Silence Mean Nothing to No One but Me?

-Nash-

Danielle looked at me wide-eyed before looking toward the door, which immediately sent me into panic mode. She doesn't look at anyone that way unless she's scared out of her mind.

"Mom... Dad..." she stuttered.

As soon as the words left her mouth, everything that could possibly go wrong ran though my head. I mean, her parents – the people who told her she couldn't date anyone until she graduated college – had just seen us kiss and I knew things were about to end badly. They could make her move back with them to Indiana – which isn't as far from Nashville as it could be, but it was no where near me. They could make her and I stop dating. They could ban her from ever even looking at me again. They could-

Stop, I told myself, You're overreacting. Nothing is going to happen.

I took a deep breath and came back to the conversation – well, it was more of an argument – between Danielle and her parents as everyone else was nearly pushing each other to get into the room.

"What's going on here?" her mom asked, just about as shocked as everyone else was.

"It's not what it looks like!" Danielle rushed.

"Really? Because it kinda looked like you were kissing him," her dad commented.

She looked at them and mumbled, "Okay, it's exactly what it looks like..."

Her mother was about to say something else when Keith stepped in, "Food's ready!"

Danielle immediately jumped up, rushing past her parents and into the dining room, sitting down. I stood up and took the seat on her left while Jamie had the one on her right. Unfortunately, her parents sat directly across from us. They stared at Danielle and I for what seemed like ages, causing her to start playing with her ring under the table. I reached for her hand, holding it firmly in my own. She looked at me and I gave her a small smile. She took a breath, calming herself down. I went to let go of her hand, but as soon as my grip loosened, hers tightened. I smiled again, but not enough for anyone to really catch it, and we just continued holding hands under the table.

"So... How about that weather?" Ian said, trying to lighten the mood.

"What do you do exactly?" Danielle's father asked me, not paying any attention to anyone in the room but his daughter and I. I looked at Danielle and she gave me a small shrug without looking over at me.

"I, um, I'm in a band," I answered slowly.

"What band?"

"Our band," Ryan said carefully. Her parents looked at Ryan and Jamie like they were disappointed in them or something as Ryan and Jamie just sank down in their chairs.

"How long have you been dating?" Danielle's father asked her. She took a small breath, becoming a bit more confident.

"About five months," she answered. I looked at her, but she didn't look back – she simply squeezed my hand.

"Five months?!" they yelled, making everyone jump a bit.

"Why didn't you tell us at Thanksgiving?" her mother asked in a slightly angered tone.

Danielle looked at her with a mixture of shock and anger on her face before shouting, "Because I knew you would react like this!" I gripped her hand tightly and she sighed loudly, leaning back in her chair.

"Maybe you should move back home with us," her father said bluntly. Danielle, as well as the rest of us, looked at him in complete shock.

"If you want to talk about this in private, that's fine – but we are not going to talk about it in front of everyone else," she answered as calmly as she could, but I could tell she was fighting back tears. She looked at everyone and let go of my hand. "Excuse me," she said quietly, getting up and running up the stairs. We heard her bedroom door slam shut a couple seconds later.

"I'll be right back," Jamie said, standing up before I could do anything and running up the stairs after Danielle.

"Honestly, Elizabeth," Keith said.

"I didn't like it when you called me that as a kid, I don't like it now, Keith," she said, rolling her eyes.

He sighed, "Danielle is 17-years-old, Liz. You and Jason need to give her more control of her life. You're not going to be around forever and the second you're gone, she's not going to know what to do on her own."

"I don't need a lecture from my brother on Christmas," Liz said.

"You clearly do. All a kid ever wants out of their mom and dad is for them to be proud, but still be able to do what they love."

"She loves math though," Jason said.

"Have you ever asked if she wanted a career in it?" Adrienne jumped in. Liz and Jason looked at each other, but never answered.

"Exactly," Keith said, "Being a parent isn't about keeping your kids away from everything that could hurt them, it's about making sure they know what to do if they're ever put in that situation."

"We know you mean well for her," Adrienne added, "But you just have to let her do her own thing and I guarantee she'll be much happier."

Seconds later, we heard a door open and Jamie came down the stairs with Danielle on his back. She slid off and Jamie motioned toward everyone to her.

She sighed, "I'm sorry I yelled even though I did absolutely nothing wrong." Jamie elbowed her side and she glared at him. He raised his eyebrows at her and she sighed again, mumbling, "And I'm sorry I went back on my word and started dating Nash without telling you about him."

"No," Liz said, "We're sorry."

A look of shock began to show on Danielle's face as she said, "...What?"

Jason and Liz stood up and he chuckled lightly, looking back at everyone at the table, "Excuse us for a moment."

I know it's bad to eavesdrop, but we couldn't help it. All they did was go to the living room, which was still within hearing range of the kitchen.

"We said we're sorry," Jason said.

"Why?" Danielle asked, obviously still confused.

"We've been pretty strict with you your whole life. We didn't realize it was just pushing you away from us."

"We want you to be happy, and if that means changing your major in college and being with Nash, then we're okay with it," Liz smiled.

"Really?" she asked excitedly.

"Really," Jason chuckled.

Danielle screamed lightly and we all rushed in as she hugged them. She turned around and saw us now standing in the same room, running over to me and jumping up, wrapping her arms tightly around my neck.

I wrapped my arms around her waist to hold her up and laughed, "What's this about?"

"Shut up," she giggled, "I know you guys were listening."

I hugged her as close to me as I could and buried my face in her neck, mumbling against her skin, "I love you."

"I love you too," she whispered back.

"Not to break up this little love fest or anything," Jenna said.

"But we're hungry," Katia finished.

"Way to kill a moment, guys," Danielle laughed, putting her feet back on the ground. She trotted back over to the table and we all followed, finally enjoying our Christmas dinner without the drama from before.

~

Title: "You Be the Anchor That Keeps My Feet On the Ground, I'll Be the Wings That Keep Your Heart in the Clouds" by Mayday Parade