Falling for You (Stefanielle)

Chapter 4

Danielle stood at her kitchen island as she angrily chopped some vegetables. The blonde was talking and mumbling to herself when Jaina walked downstairs and gave her a concerned look.

"Danielle?" Jaina said with furrowed brows.

"Hi Jai," Danielle said without looking up.

"What's up with all the angry chopping?"

"I'm no longer going to Italy."

"What?! Why?"

"I don't really want to talk about it right now," Danielle said as she began to chop harder.

"Okay, I'm so sorry to hear that."

"The more I talk about it," the blonde paused her chopping and took a breath. She finally looked her friend in the eyes. "The more upset I get."

Jaina watched as the blonde's eyes started filling up with tears. "Danielle-"

"Stop, I swear it's just the onions," Danielle said as her face turned red.

Jaina walked over to Danielle and wrapped her arms tightly around her friend, who suddenly had tears streaming down her face. "It'll be okay, I promise."

Danielle rested her chin on Jaina's shoulder, and they remained in that position for a moment. Jaina rubbed her hand along Danielle's back to try and make her feel better. They both suddenly jumped when Barrett barged in through the front door. She danced her way into the kitchen with her air pods in, clearly unaware of the current situation. She shut the door and froze when she saw her two roommates standing in the kitchen with sad eyes.

"What?" Barrett paused to remove her air pods with a concerned look. "Did I... Miss something?"

Danielle loosened her grip from Jaina and cleared her throat. "Um... I'm no longer going to Italy."

"Wait... What?" Barrett's brow furrowed. "No more Italy trip?"

"No more Italy trip" Danielle confirmed. "According to Patrick, it was because of my behavior towards Stefania. So, Grey is going now instead of me."

"Wow," Danielle watched as Barrett's jaw dropped. "I was not expecting that. I'm so sorry Danielle."

Barrett wrapped her arms around Danielle, and Danielle felt her throat begin to close again. The pressure continued to build until she started crying again. They held each other tight, and Jaina wrapped her arms around them both.

"I'm sure there will be more opportunities," Jaina stated, trying to stay positive.

"That's not the point," Danielle said as she disengaged from the hug.

"Do you want to talk about it at all?" Barrett questioned as she tilted her head.

"Not really. I think I'm going to finish cooking then head upstairs," said Danielle who was looking hopelessly at the ground. She started walling over to her vegetables, but Jaina gently grabbed her wrist to prevent her from leaving.

"Do you want to..." Jaina quickly glanced at Barrett and then back to Danielle as a smile grew on her face. "Drink about it?"

"I shouldn't," Danielle shook her head at her roommates.

"Well, there's a lot of things we... Shouldn't do."

Danielle hesitated for a moment then looked up with a little smile. "I would love to drink about it."

"That's the spirit!" Shouted Barrett as she grinned and threw her arms in the air. "I'll get the tequila!"

......