Stories of Reformed Daniel

The Little Things He Does

If you were to ask Daniel what made him fall for his nature loving co-worker, he wouldn't be able to give you a very definitive answer. There were many little things that David would do that Daniel liked about him. For one, the man's concentration face was straight up adorable. When David concentrated on anything, his face would scrunch up a bit, his eyebrows would furrow and, on some occasions, he would stick his tongue out of the side of his mouth like a dog. It was cute, really cute. David always got this sparkle in his eyes whenever he spoke about something he loved, normally nature. The way his forest green eyes would light up when he talked extensively about flowers, animals or types of trees was strangely, endearing.

The way David handled the campers, despite how... troublesome they could be, was often a sweet sight. It was obvious that the man cared deeply for all the children at Camp Campbell. He especially cared about Max. Despite how much Max seemed to despise Daniel with a burning passion, he appeared to have grown a soft spot for the happy-go-lucky, nature loving counselor. Daniel didn't know where the turning point had started, but nonetheless, Max seemed to have grown nicer to David. He was still the cynical, troublemaking ten-year old that everyone at the camp had come to know, but he had noticeably softened his anger towards the enthusiastic brunette, albeit very subtly. Daniel only caught onto it due to him being around David so much and he had to admit, it was nice to see Max talk to David more. He'd even started calling him "Camp Man" instead of just calling him a bunch of insults.

David sang beautifully. Daniel would admit, he was a singer himself, as well as a bit of a musician, but David... there was something about his voice that put the blonde's own voice to shame. He wasn't complaining, quite the opposite, he loved to hear the brunette sing! He had this energetic, upbeat tone that really grabbed his attention when he sang. It was David's singing that kept him coming back to the campfires that were held every Friday, when he would normally want to stay alone in his room. Not to mention when David sang softer songs. It was astonishing how David could shift for singing an upbeat campfire song to a soft, calm tune without issue. His voice would turn so sweet, almost like a lullaby. His voice was enough to lull even a troubled sleeper like Daniel to a deep sleep. Along with his amazing guitar playing, David could really make it as a singer.

Daniel sometimes wondered why David didn't pursue a career in singing or at the very least, songwriting. He could make some major money if he did. Then again, with how much he loved Camp Campbell, Daniel highly doubted he would ever give up his current job. David would hum little tunes and songs throughout the day and, on many occasions, would begin singing out loud without a care in the world. While the campers, and Gwen, often found it annoying, Daniel found it lovely. On many occasions, he would find himself humming or singing softly along with the other male. David had this very childlike innocence to him. Things would fly over the man's head all the time, making him seem very oblivious. When something interesting would catch the brunette's eye, he would get this look of awe and amazement, like a child opening a present on Christmas day. It was so, darn, cute! It gave the man a kind of cute charm, one that Daniel couldn't really describe.

The thing that stuck out the most to him though, was his caring heart. This man had a heart of goddamn gold! Half the time Daniel didn't think that David had a mean bone in his body. The love and care he had for everyone at Camp Campbell was a truly admirable thing. He seemed to have a bond with each of the individual campers, heck, he could make a list of facts about each of them. His relationship with Max was truly sweet, especially after the young boy had put him through hell since day one. It was a testament to how persistent David could be when it came to helping someone that he deemed needing it. If Daniel hadn't known any better, he would say that David had become like a father figure to Max.

David and Gwen's relationship was also a good example of how kind of a person the counselor was. On off days the two would have movie nights, Daniel had been invited to join by David, but didn't come that often. He really didn't want to intrude, despite David always telling him that he wasn't. David didn't force him to come though, he allowed him to read quietly in his room. Daniel had walked in on the two a few times when they were in the middle of a movie. They always seemed to be enjoying themselves. Gwen would usually be making smart comments about how dumb the characters were being while David would be laughing or hugging a pillow if it was a scary movie. The two were really close, even if you have to look behind the scenes to see that. Best friends by definition.

Then... there was how David treated Daniel. This man treated Daniel so well that...it was jarring . The brunette held zero grudges against the him and even treated him like a friend! It made no sense! In the eyes of, well, anyone else, Daniel would be seen as evil and untrustworthy! But David saw the opposite in him. He trusted him, he saw the good in him and... he cared about him. When Daniel was about to be sentenced to jail or worse... the death penalty, David stood from where he was seated and begged for the judge to give him a second chance, to let him prove that he could change for the better. Daniel remembered meeting eyes with David during that speech. He looked determined to keep Daniel out of jail. How he managed to persuade the judge and jury in one speech, Daniel would probably never know, but one thing was clear, David would be leaving that courtroom with Daniel.

His kindness didn't stop there! When Daniel needed a shoulder to cry on, David was right there to provide him comfort. The man was gentle and never pressed the blonde to tell him what was wrong. He would just hold him, help him calm down and wait for when he was ready to talk with him. Growing up being denied any form of affection left Daniel feeling touch-starved, so all this comfort and kindness felt... so nice. If Daniel had gotten hurt, David would carefully and gently patch him up. Whenever David would ruffle his hair or put an arm around his shoulder, it never ceased to make Daniel's face flush. Whenever he praised him or did something cute, it turned his insides to mush and made him swoon. This man treated him with such kindness, such friendliness, such compassion! He... he was just so, so right . At the moment Daniel was at his worst, David gave him the one thing he needed, a friend. Now, Daniel wanted nothing more than to be held in the arms of that man, to be loved and cared for by him and to be told that everything is okay.

Daniel stood leaning up against a tree, watching David teach the campers about the proper way to tie knots when the brunette noticed him. The nature lover grinned at the blonde, showing off his adorable smile and wonderful forest green eyes. Then he waved at him, causing Daniel's face to burn a bright crimson as he waved back. Daniel had fallen for David. He had fallen for David, hard.