Kaleidoscope

Chapter Ten

The New England weather had turned suddenly, the sky overcast with the threat of snow, as Kim caught a ride to the train station to go home for Thanksgiving vacation. The platform was awash with humanity, but through it all she caught a glimpse of Danny's head in the distance. He glanced up in time to see her and wove his way to the track. The train was packed and he squeezed into the seat next to her. Once again, she felt the warmth of his body against hers.

Once they were seated, the enclosed space became pregnant with silence. Kim tried to strike up a conversation. "I'm really glad you were able to meet my parents and my brother at Parents' Weekend." Her words hung in the air waiting to be grabbed before Danny finally responded.

"They're really nice," he said. "Your brother's really cool. I always wished I had a brother."

"Do you have any sisters?" Kim asked.

"Yeah, I have two." He explained nothing further; he just engaged in small talk. His reluctance to talk of his private life became a veiled wall between them. Kim, tiring of the stilted conversation, refrained from asking more questions.

Not much has changed, she thought. She caught a glimpse of him in the reflection of the train window and he was once again staring at her. He said nothing but his body language gave off mixed vibes. The ride home suddenly became endlessly long.

At Union Station, the whole O'Malley family was there to greet Kim. Danny had no one there to meet him. Kim thought it odd.

"Can we give you a ride home?" she offered.

"Thanks, but I have someone meeting me," he answered, hands in his pockets, nodding to the O'Malleys. "She should be here any minute now."

She, was all Kim heard, not realizing it was his sister, Jen, he was waiting for. I knew it had to be a girlfriend, she thought. Turning back to her exuberant family she said, "Let's go home." She left Danny waiting on the platform, his face expressionless.

Jen pulled up moments later and greeted Danny with a big hug.

"Hey, bud, you look a little tired. Everything alright?"

"Yeah, fine. Just a lot going on between school and soccer."

Jen suspected more was happening but didn't want to invade her brother's space too much.

"Just take care of yourself, Danny. This is only first semester. You have a long way to go. It's so good to see you. I've really missed you."

"I've missed you too, Jen."

Jen filled him in on the goings on around town during their ride home.

"Theresa's doing okay with her PT but her mental state is pretty bad. She's going to a therapist you know."

"No, I didn't know. I hope it helps. She was pretty down when I left. I know Mom really wanted me to hang around, but I had to get away, too."

"You're where you belong, little brother. That scholarship was a real bonus. And UMass is a great school. Don't worry about things around here. We've got it covered."  She glanced away as she spoke.

Danny leaned back and relaxed for the first time in a long time. The familiarity of the scenery brought with it a mix of comfort and anxiety as he braced for his welcome home. They pulled into the driveway, he grabbed his things and said good-bye to Jen.

"See you for Thanksgiving dinner, Danny. Try to get some sleep. You look like you need it."

Danny walked up the back steps, took out his keys and unlocked the door, being careful not to let the screen door bang. All was quiet and he was trying not to disturb anyone on the way in. He reached for the light switch and realized someone was sitting in the kitchen — in the dark. It was Theresa.

"What are you doing up so late? Where's Mom?" asked Danny.

"I told her to go to bed. I can take care of myself. But you know Mom. She's probably waiting to hear me roll in so she can come to my rescue." Resentment and frustration dripped out of her voice. Danny threw down his duffle bag and backpack and grabbed something from the refrigerator.

"How have you been?" he asked casually. The air was wooden.

"Suddenly you're interested? I'm doing just fine; thanks for asking," she said abruptly, spinning her chair around. She headed down the hall to bed, unresolved tension hanging in the air between them like a storm cloud. Danny just shrugged his shoulders and made his way up to his bedroom, glad to see that it hadn't been turned into a rehab facility. Nothing had changed.