SATURN, Daniel LaRusso x reader

II | driving & consequences

AN UNEXPECTED BUMP awakes me from my slumber. Drool trickles down from the corner of my mouth whilst my eyes confusingly flutter open.

It seizes a second for my vision to adjust where and what's happening. My head lifts from resting on my bawled-up fists, glancing at how white my knuckles turned. "What's going on?" I croak before placing my hand on my sore throat.

Daniel takes his eyes off the road for a hasty second. He shoots me a smile. "Oh, hey, [y/n]. How was your sleep?"

I sit up, fully adjusting my physique into the seat. "Good..." I respond, feeling a bit skeptical about how the raven-haired boy didn't answer my question. "Where are you taking me?"

His fingers stay on the wheel as his sight is fixated on the road. I could sense he was nervous driving since he was drinking as well. His tongue brushed against his bottom lip before replying. "Oh, home. After you passed out I brung you inside and saw your brother. He gave me your address and asked if it was okay to drive you home."

"Hm," I hum, pondering his words for a few before continuing my interview of queries. "So he didn't even try to bring me home, huh?"

Daniel hesitates. "I mean—I guess."

A scoff escaped my lips. I'm barely in shock about my brother's actions. However, I can't help to be salty about it. Lifting my feet, I push my knees against my chest. "See, this is what I mean!" I argue. "He doesn't care about me, my mom, not even our dog! Just himself. I don't understand what goes through his head. I bet he wouldn't even notice if I disappeared."

"Don't say that," the boy shakes his head in disagreement with my words. He assured me, "I'm sure he cares about you." He pauses, taking a moment to consider his next sentence. "And about your mom... maybe he has a different way of grieving. Everyone's different, so he's probably handing this differently than you."

"Then he should talk to me about it. Plus, what if you're a crazy sick psychopath? He just let me ride home with a stranger."

"True... but I'm not a stranger. Your brother and I have science class together. I'm surprised he'd never mentioned you," Daniel says.

That was the last sentence said before the conversation died down. My body was facing toward the passenger window more than him as I tapped my foot out of boredom.

A few minutes pass, and we eventually arrive outside my house. He parks in front of the building and then turns to look at me. "I guess this is where we say goodbye." His warm voice perfectly coats my ear. I look at him and awkwardly nod, biting down on my bottom lip.

Separating my lips to speak, I suddenly stop. I had no clue what to say, so it results in my hand grabbing the knob and opening the car door. I leave the vehicle before shutting the door.

Step by step, my feet drag across the concrete. With every step I took—it felt as if time was driving slowly. I couldn't go home without saying anything, I'd be thinking about it all night. And with that, I find myself running back to the car.

The air was colder than before, causing goosebumps to become visible on my bare arm—the same arm I used to knock on Daniel's car window. He rolls down the window to meet me with a small smile on my complexion.

"I just wanted to say thank you for driving me home." He nods, assuming that I am done speaking yet I proceed. "And also being a good person. And also listening to me rant about my problems."

He sends me a smile back. Yet this one's soft, and it makes me want to savor the moment forever. "It was no problem. Plus I had fun, you're really fun to talk to."