Love in thirds

6.3 Daniel & Nell

You're on the plane with Daniel, on your way to LA, reminiscing about the last few days in Holland. After briefly flying home to Monaco to pack enough things for 3 weeks of summer break you flew to Amsterdam before driving towards your mom. You spend a few days with your family, catching up, playing games, and relaxing. Daniel and your brother got along really well, and he seemed to be in a brighter mindset by the time you were leaving. You heard your mom tell him that if he ever needed mom advice, but couldn't reach Grace, he was more than welcome to call her. It made you happy to see him so relaxed with your family. He had met them a few times, but that was while you were still "just friends." He also told them that he arranged paddock passes for Zandvoort, which made your brother let out the loudest "are you joking?!" you've ever heard.

You look at Daniel who's sitting next to you. He seems lost in his thoughts, furrowing his brows while looking outside. You place your hand over the frown, and he looks at you confused, "you might get a headache if you keep it like that" you say softly while caressing his cheek. "Do you want to talk about it?" he thinks for a moment before shaking his head. "I think I'm just really tired, so I'm going to take a nap if you don't mind." You shake your head before pressing a kiss on his lips. You watch how he makes himself comfortable on the plane bed and you sigh softly. You hope that the LA sunshine can brighten your own sunshine up again, because sad Daniel breaks your heart.

You eventually join Daniel, wrapping your arms around him while pressing a kiss on his hair. You sleep more than half of the flight before you have to be seated again. After going through security and making sure you both have your suitcases you walk towards Daniels car that was parked in the underground parking of LAX. He puts your suitcases in the back while you take a seat in the car, waiting for him to join you. You smile at him when he sits down, and squeeze his thigh, making him look at you. For the first time since you went on the plane he smiles a genuine smile, and your heart warms at the sight. "Are you excited to be back love?" you ask him, and he nods, "yeah, even better that you're here. I know I'm in a bit of a mood, but I'm genuinely happy to have you here. I just want to recharge and get excited for the second half of the season instead of mope around, but I might need some time." You lean towards him, placing your hands on his cheeks before kissing him. "You can take all the time you need, don't worry."

The sun has begun to set by the time you arrive at his home, covering the rooms in a golden sunlight. Daniel shows you around the impressive place, excitingly telling you about the interior choices he made and why he made those. This is the first time that you're staying at his LA house, and it blows your mind in a positive way. A light and calm feeling washes over you while you look at the ocean. You feel two arms around your waist before Daniels head leans on your shoulder. You stay like that for a while, looking at the view and enjoying each other's presence. You cook together that night, eating in the garden before going on a sunset walk. You tumble into bed slightly jetlagged, whispering I love you's before falling asleep.

The next few days it seems like Daniel is back to his cheery self. His friends come over and you enjoy the sun, drinks, and food. He jokes around, splashes around in the pool, and hosts some amazing, as he calls it, barbies. You set your worries aside, especially since he begged you to do so, and join in on the vacation vibes.

When you're halfway through the vacation, he decides that he doesn't feel like hosting dinner parties for a few days, telling you that he wants to spend his time with the two of you. You agree, you enjoyed the dinner parties, but sometimes people tire you out, and if you have the opportunity to just be on your own for a bit, you take it.

You knew the real reason behind his decision wasn't that he wanted to spend time with just you two, not only that at least. He was tired. Tired from keeping up the smile when he wasn't really that happy.