Bound to You

Chapter 4: Riker

Darcy felt a chill run throughout her entire body. She had no idea what she had done to deserve that glare. “It’s nice to meet you.” He said flatly before standing up and leaving the room. Ross stared after him with a puzzled expression before coming to stand next to Darcy. “Don’t worry about him; he can be a little cranky sometimes.” He said, smiling at her. She smiled back halfheartedly. Something about the way Riker had glared at her gave her a feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach that she just couldn’t seem to shake. Stormie stood up from the couch and walked over to her. “Did you get enough to eat dear?” she asked on her way to the kitchen. Darcy nodded. “Yes ma’am, plenty. It was delicious.” She followed her back into the kitchen; Ross stayed behind in the living room. “Is Riker ok? Cause he didn’t seem particularly happy to see me.” She noted as she sat back down at the table. Stormie shook her head as she began to wash the dishes. “I noticed that. I don’t know what his problem is. Just give him a little time; I’m sure he’ll warm up to you.” She gave Darcy a reassuring smile. Darcy smiled in return. Moments later, Rydel came walking into the room holding Ross’s phone. “Hey Darcy, Sean wants to talk to you.” She said, handing her the phone. “Hello?” Darcy answered. “Hey Darcy, I forgot to mention something earlier. Since I won’t be around you and Ross 24/7 I’m going to text you guys with…prompts, I guess you could call them. When to Instagram a cute picture, when to tweet, when to make a Starbucks run…you know. That sort of thing.” Darcy nodded. “Sounds good. Any instructions for today?” she asked. “Yes, I’ve already spoken to Ross about it. Rydel is going to set everything off. She’s going to tweet about a family friend coming to live with them in L.A. In a few days, both you and Ross are going to tweet about hanging out. And like I told you earlier today, we’ll go from there. I have to get going but I’ll see you in a few days. Goodbye Darcy.” “Bye.” She said in return. She clicked ‘end’ and handed the phone back to Rydel. “So when are you going to start us off?” she asked. Rydel already had her own phone out. “Riiiight now.” She said, typing something out. A few seconds later Darcy’s phone buzzed. She looked down at the screen. ‘So excited that @darcydavis is coming to live with us!! #childhoodbestie #excited’ Darcy laughed and looked up. “So are you nervous?” Rydel asked, slipping her phone back into her pocket. Darcy shrugged. “A little bit. It’s a lot of pressure. But Ross seems nice. And I seem to be getting along pretty well with most of you so far.” Rydel immediately noticed her use of ‘most of you’. “Yeah…sorry about Riker. He’s usually super friendly! He’s probably the nicest one out of all of us. I don’t know what his deal is today.” Darcy shrugged again. “It’s no big deal.” “Oh it’s a big deal!” Stormie said as she continued to rinse the dishes. “I won’t have him treating a guest like that in my house.” Rydel snickered quietly. “Uh oh…mom’s going to put the smack down on him!” she whispered. “Darn right I am.” Stormie commented. “Honey I’m back!” a deep voice called from the living room. “In here!” she yelled over her shoulder. Darcy turned towards the kitchen entrance. A tall man with graying hair & a strong resemblance to the rest of the family walked into the room. “Oh hello, you must be Darcy.” He said, extending his hand. “I’m Mark, the father. And please…call me Mark.” She nodded. “It’s nice to meet you Mark.” She said as she shook his hand. “Hey Darce, how about a quick Starbucks trip? I’m having a craving.” Rydel looked at her eagerly. Darcy nodded. “Sounds great!” She turned back to Mark & Stormie. “I’ll see you guys later.” She said, following Rydel out the door.

Around 7:00 that night, Mark called everyone into the living room for a family meeting. Darcy came into the room with Rydel and sat down on the couch in between Stormie & Ross. Rydel settled next to her mother, and Rocky & Ryland squeezed into the recliner. Riker leaned against the wall. “Ok everyone.” Mark said, standing in the middle of the room. “By now you all know why Darcy is here. I know we were all a little bit hesitant when Sean first suggested this idea, but I really think that this is what’s best for both Ross & the band. To bring peace to the…what’s the term they use? Fandom?” Darcy and Rydel giggled. Stormie nodded, trying to disguise her laughter. “Yes dear, that’s the word.” He cleared his throat awkwardly before continuing. “Darcy is going to be staying with us for quite some time so I want everyone to do their best to make her feel at home-” “Why?” Riker spoke up. “What?” Mark asked. “I said why.” Riker repeated. “Why should we have to rearrange our lives for her sake? I don’t know her. I don’t owe her anything.” “Riker!” Stormie scolded. He turned around, facing Darcy. “Let me just make something clear. I don’t want you here. Got it?” He turned and stormed out of the room, slamming the front door behind him. Darcy sat frozen in place; she felt tears welling up in her eyes. She quickly shook them away. She didn’t want everyone to see her crying. She didn’t understand why she was upset anyways. It wasn’t like she knew Riker. It wasn’t like his opinion of her was going to affect her in any way. She just couldn’t understand why he was being so hateful towards her when he had just met her. “I am so sorry Darcy, I don’t know what his problem is.” Stormie said, laying a hand on Darcy’s knee. She just shook her head. “It’s ok. I’m not here for him anyways.” Mark sighed and shook his head in disappointment. “Believe me, I’ll be having a talk with Riker tonight. But like I was saying…Darcy is going to be with us for quite some time so I want you guys to make her feel comfortable and at home. Darcy please, make this your home. You aren’t a guest; you’re now a part of our family.” He said, giving her a warm smile. She smiled in return. She was genuinely excited for this upcoming year; Riker’s bad attitude wasn’t going to spoil it for her.