You Make It Easy

Chapter Seventeen (Daniel's POV)

I was going through the laundry pile on my bed when my phone ranged. Picking it up without checking the Caller ID I heard a scream.

"Oh my god, Dani! Thank you! I love my gift!" Ari excitedly expressed on the other end. Smiling to myself I took a sit on the edge of my bed.

"You're welcome, glad you like it"

"I love it. Did you open yours yet? Do you like it" she kept going as I had just realized I had forgotten to. Digging through my bag I pulled out the heavy box before tearing it into the paper. Unveiling a series of colors, I kept at it until all the paper was off. Gasping I turned the item in my hands. It was the Percy Jackson box set.

"Dani? You there?" Ariel asked, bringing me back.

"Yeah. Ari...thank you. Seriously, I love this, I love---this gift. I love this gift. How did you even..."

"I might've seen your original copy from before. Looked like you could've used a new one"

"Again, thank you"

"How did you know I liked the little mermaid?"

"Lucky guess, or it could be how you mentioned it all the time as your top Disney movie"

She giggled. I leaned back in my chair as the call grew silent. It was a comfortable pause.

"Say, Dani?"

"Yes Ari"

"I-"

"Danny let's go! We're going to pick up grandma!" my mom yelled down the hall.

"I got to go but Merry Christmas Ari"

"Merry Christmas Dani"

My cousin Mandy made a scene when she came back from the store. She was bickering with her mother. Something about her doing the most again, whatever that meant. Mandy rolled her eyes the second my aunt was out of sight. She smirked at me, giving me a hug and ruffling my head. Thankfully I had gotten another buzzcut or else it'd be a mess. She showed me her newest piercing, a tongue ring, and whispered about how she had her nipples pierced too. Chuckling I nudged her side.

"Did aunt Kelly flip?"

"You know she did dude" Mandy exchanged a look with me.

"Of course."

"How have you been? Anything new?" she questioned me as we excused ourselves to step outside. Tugging on my hoodie strings I shrugged. Nothing was really exciting in my life, not like my cousin's wild stories.

"Not much, just school and video games"

"Oh yeah?"

"Then who is that girl you posted a photo of?" she brought up.

Loss at her statement she pulled her phone out, tapping onto Instagram. Showing a photo of Ariel, she was smiling at me holding a giant pizza slice. She had on her cheerleading uniform under a white cardigan. Hiding my face, I pushed her hand down as Mandy laughed.

"So the rumors are true, you have a girlfriend Cuzzo?"

"Ariel is not my girlfriend"

"Oh yeah? Well you two seem cozy in those pictures"

"Stop" I got stern

"Seriously, she's mad pretty. Surprised you haven't bagged her yet"

"Okay enough Mandy" I got serious as she shrugged her shoulder with a sly smile.

"We're just friends"

"Yeah for now." she teased me as she took out her pack of cigarettes. Offering me one, I declined as she sat by a fire hydrant blowing smoke into the air. She flicked some of the ashes onto the street as she watched me.

"Do you think she would like me though, for real?"

"What do you mean?"

"She knows I'm transgender, what if she's not into me because of that" my nerves began to creep in

"Well if she knows, what's the issue," Mandy assured me

"I just--I guess I'm just a little blindsided from the last time"

"But you aren't thirteen anymore D, you're sixteen. Besides if I know one thing from dating girls, they love a mysterious type"

"Of course, you would, you're such a player"

"Hey, I get by how I do" she babbled. Chuckling I rubbed the back of my head. It was nice to see her again.