Lost Dad: Dan Smith

Thirty Six: Lost Highway

Chapters may be a bit slow for the next week. I'm in Berlin with my family until the 19th. My co-writer (@danistormer88) is back, but she'll be in the Caribbean until the 19th as well.

-

Laura POV: (On the way the the restaurant)

As we're walking through the bitter cold to the sushi place, nearly slipping on ice in the process, some people across the street are arguing loudly. One of them says to the other:

 "Caroline! I swear that's Dan Smith. He even has a kid with him, which he tweeted about today!"

"Zoey, we are going to be late! We have to go!"

"I'm getting a picture!'

"Zoey! We are not going to make it with all this screwing around- Zoey, get back here this instant! Zoey!"

The girl (Zoey) dashes across the sidewalk. "Excuse me?" She asks, getting a look at Dan's face. 

"Hello!" Dan says. 

"I'm Zoey, nice to meet you... again." She smiles. 

Dan's face lights up."Oh! I remember you! You're the one who gave us the nerf guns, aren't you?" Dan exclaims. 

"Yeah!" She replies

"Woody still has them! How've you been?" 

She smiles, knowing he actually remembers her. "I'm great! Could I have a picture real quick?" She asks. 

"Sure!" Dan says. Zoey takes out her phone and stands next to me, snapping a picture of the three of us. I see the image for a moment and notice that I'm in it. I don't look like I'm aware of anything that's happening, but whatever. 

"Thank you, I'm running a bit late for something, so I'll be on my way. As she sprints to her friend (Caroline), who's still screaming about being late. 

"And tell Will I said hello!" She calls. 

"I will!" He says. 

"Did you actually just make that pun?" I ask, annoyed. 

"Yes, and I'm proud of it." Dan says, burying his face in his yellow man-scarf. 

"What a shame." I reply. 

"Don't blame me for being overjoyed about these awesome puns!" He snaps back, doing finger guns, dropping his phone in the process. I pick it up off the concrete and hand it to him. "Thanks." He says. 

"No problem, it was just an..." I lean in. "Act of kindness... ayyyyyye!" Dan rolls his eyes and laughs. 

"That was awful." I laugh at his reaction. 

"You never really make jokes." I point out after a long period of silence.

Without skipping a beat, Dan replies "I made you."

"Damn! What did I do?" I say, throwing my hands in the air in n offended fashion.

"I'm sorry. I saw it on Twitter and have been waiting for about two weeks now." Dan replies, grinning at the ground.

Dan POV: (Later, at the restaurant) 

Once we're seated (in a poorly lit corner) I immediately notice someone taking a picture of us, attempting to be subtle. I want to look at the camera and stare, but I smile instead. The 'secret' photographer winks at me, and continues eating. 

"So, have you ever had sushi before?" I ask. Have I already asked that. Crap... If I have, I'll look like the most ignorant person on the planet. 

"No... but I'm exited to try it!" She replies. I like how enthusiastic she is to do things. "I'm personally a huge fan of a shrimp roll, and there's always the spider roll... There's not actual spiders..." I say, just kind of listing my favorites. 

"And there's also the California roll. It's pretty good."  I say. Laura is looking over the menu. 

"Do you like spicy food?" I ask. 

"Yeah. I also heard your merch store includes hot sauce." She says, looking up from her menu. 

"Wow, let me guess who told you?" I say sarcastically. We both laugh. 

"What's the weirdest thing you've ever eaten?" She asks. 

"Balut in the Phillipines." I reply, cringing at the thought. 

"And that is..?" She asks. 

"It's a boiled bird... fetus... thing." I explain. 

"Oh god!" She exclaims, brushing her slight fringe of hair out of her eyes. 

"And you?" I ask. 

"Once, my friends and I made a bunch of pasta and took turns adding one thing to it and eating that and going around adding more and more each round. It was an elimination game, and I won." She says, shuddering. Jesus christ, I can imagine how out of hand that got very quickly. 

"What?!?!?" I laugh. I bet I could beat most people I know if they would be out if they can't eat it. 

"It was my old friend Jenna's idea. She was the first to drop out." Laura says, twisting her ring around her finger. Just then, a waitress chewing gum loudly asks for our order. 

"We'll be a couple more minutes." I say, forgetting we haven't ordered. 

"What do you want?" I ask Laura when the waitress leaves. 

"I don't really care." She says, setting down her menu. 

"The closest thing to Asian food I've ever really had is 50 cent sweet n spicy ramen noodles." She claims. 

"So you don't care at all what we order?" I ask, just to verify. 

"Not one bit." She replies. "I'm sure whatever we get will be wonderful."

After a delicious dinner, still Dan POV: (I really need to stop obsessively and awkwardly skipping time)

Laura and I are on the couch in our pajamas watching Lost Highway, which is about a jazz musician who is accused of murdering his wife, who was having a separate affair. Laura is obviously tired and leaning her head against my chest. She seems to be enjoying the film because she hasn't said anything. I know she's still awake because her breathing pattern isn't that of a sleeping person. Luckily, I have the cut version, so a scene just skipped. It wasn't very vital to the plot, but it annoys me that it's not there. I find myself twirling a strand of her hair around my fingers as sort of a fidget. I notice her eyes are closed, so I turn down the volume of the telly. I look around me. Phone, check. Water, check. Remote, check. If she does fall asleep, I can stay on the couch comfortably without waking her. A few more minutes pass, and I notice she's asleep. I make up a mashup of Sleepsong and Oblivion based on the current event.

When you fall asleep with your head upon my chest.

I know you're scared of being alone, so give it a rest

I know that you'll wake the next day with your thoughts.

You're in my arms, but you've gone somewhere deeper

-

I know you're going to age with grace.

I know you're going to age without mistakes. 

As long as you have someone onto whom you can cling.

But my sleepsong is calling out your name.

You always take it further than I ever can.

=

Again, wrote this on a plane. It's crap.