The Affair

Chapter Two

The open window in Zack and Danielle's shared bedroom allowed the entrance of the calm evening breeze into the room, bringing the fresh smell of earth with it.

Danielle sat on their king sized bed enjoying what might be her last minutes of relaxation until Zack came home.

Clutched in between her hands was a picture that held many emotions and memories for her.

A sad smile graced her face and a single tear made a path down her cheek. She rubbed her thumb gingerly over the man in the picture. Not a day over forty the man could have been mistaken for thirty, with his slightly speckled hair and contagious smile. His arm was draped around the shoulders of a girl still in her teens, the goofiest grin on her face.

The picture was of her and her father the day the Braves had come to play in a nearby stadium. Her father, being a die hard Braves fan, had been so excited about going and had not thought twice about who he would take.

With Danielle's mom not around, her father and her had only grown that much more closer.

Though the picture was one of the fondest memories she had of her father it would also be one of the last.

Not even two months after the Braves game her father found out he had cancer. Though most doctors had hope they could get rid of it after a few times of treatment they could not have been more wrong.

The first round of chemo he had underwent had slowed the spreading of the cancer but in the end nothing could have stopped it.

Danielle had lost her father only a week before her birthday.

Danielle was now in tears, feeling them glide effortlessly down her face and onto her jeans.

Knowing that the picture was only causing her pain she decided to put it up.

Taking a box from the top shelf of her closet, she stuck the picture between some old newspapers and put the box back in place.

She knew if Zack found out about the picture he would hold it for ransom and she was not willing to risk that.

She wiped a hand across her face but it was in vain as still more tears wet her cheeks. The breeze from the open window reached her and blew a few wisps of hair into her face, tickling her nose. Looking up through her hair now blowing freely in the wind, she saw the serenity of the outdoors and she knew then that that was where she wanted to be.

She quickly made her way from her bedroom to the porch. Standing only a few inches from the doorway she could already feel herself calming. She closed her eyes and breathed in the warm air, listening to the life all around her.

The porch swing then creaked in the breeze, bringing Danielle's attention to it. She walked to the old swing and grabbed ahold of the chain holding it up. Though rusted slightly, it was still sturdy.

She sat down on the swing and began to rock back and forth. Looking out over the large expanse of land that belonged to her and Zack she was suddenly overcome with just how beautiful it was.

Though beautiful, she could not honestly say that the land that was under hers and Zack's name had much sentimental value to her. It had always been their dream to live there. Even since the beginning of their relationship it was a goal of theirs to settle down there. But the land ended up being just another thing for them to fight about and Danielle almost resented it.

Looking down at her finger nails, she noticed her nail polish starting to chip off. Having the bad habit of picking at her nails she regretted ever looking at them. Picking the worst off nail she began peeling the paint off, letting the nail polish pieces fall into her lap.