Stories of Reformed Daniel

A Mirror Image

Daniel slammed the door to the restroom as he ran inside. His breathing was fast and his fists were clenched tight. Today was not a good day. It was a horrible day. Ever since Daniel had befriended Harrison, Max had made it his goal to make Daniel's life a living hell. From putting bugs in his bed while he was sleeping to outright making fun of him when David wasn't around, the boy had become obsessed with the blonde male. David had scolded the young man whenever he caught on to Max's schemes, but he never listened. Today, Max crossed a line. During one of the activities, Daniel had stood off to the side, leaning against a tree, watching the children while David talked with the campers. Then Max came and stood by him. The next few minutes consisted of him pushing Daniel's buttons. Daniel ignored him with a roll of his eyes, he'd grown used to the remarks from the campers, Max's were no different. However, one thing that Max brought up sent him over the edge. "I still find it fucking hilarious that David forgave you so easily. You called him a nobody, tried to fucking kill us and drank your own poison, then again David's a fucking idiot so I shouldn't be surprised."

Max took notice of how Daniel tensed up when he mentioned the 'Kool-aid incident' and a mischievous grin spread across his face. "I mean, how the fuck do you screw up that bad? Drinking your own poison! Only a dumbass would do that!" Daniel's hands balled into tight fists in his pants pockets, his breath sped up a bit, but he didn't respond. "You know, I actually thought you were smart when I first met you. You had David wrapped around your finger, but then you made the stupidest mistake of poisoning yourself, how do you do something so fucking stupid?" That.That's what sent Daniel over the edge. Without a word, the blonde walked away from the tree he was leaning against and once he was out of sight from Max, he broke out into a spirit towards the counselor's quarters. That's what lead him to where he was now, standing in the small bathroom provided by the Camp and shaking slightly. He made his way over to the slightly rusted sink and leaned forward, gripping the sides of the dull silver appliance.

Daniel lifted his head to look up at his reflection in the mirror hanging above the sink. The person looking back at him...was a broken man. His face was pale and slightly sweaty. He sighed shakily and hung his head. He needed to calm down and not let Max's words get to him. " Why did you leave? " Daniel's body tensed and he slowly looked back up at the mirror. A familiar face stared back at him. A very familiar face. A very familiar face that he did not want to see. Daniel's own face hardened and he let out a growl. "Well, when you accidentally drink poisoned kool-aid, have to get your stomach pumped and get stuck in a hospital full of people who hate you, you begin to rethink your life." Daniel had to force himself to mention the 'kool-aid incident'. He hated to think about almost dying, the pain, the lack of air, it was terrifying . The person in the mirror grinned, tilting his head. "You survived it though! Do you remember how much rat poison was in that kool-aid? Anyone else would have been dead in under a minute, before the ambulance would have even got there!"

Daniel glared at the face in the mirror. " Still." The blonde spat. "It was pure luck that I survived. Almost dying makes you think some things over, question the choices you've made in life and I decided that I don't want to be a psychopathic killer." The reflection frowned at him, giving him his equivalent of a puppy-dog look. " But Danny, they were your friends. They depended on you and trusted you. You were the most loyal follower of Zeemoog ." His voice was very condescending. "Friendships die, like I almost did and you think I didn't trust them? Hell, I put my life on the line on multiple occasions, almost got arrested several times and not to mention, I killed people. " Daniel growled, gripping the sides of the sink so hard that his knuckles began to turn white. " But you lived, you escaped, and you enjoyed... " The reflection muttered, purple drippy eyes burning into Daniel's bright blue ones. "Yes, back when I barely thought for myself. I felt less like a person when I was in that cult than I ever have since I left. I feel... sick ...about the fact that I actually liked killing...a normal person doesn't like that sort of thing."