Someone Willing to Stay

You Wish You Were More

      "We're here! And we brought ice cream!" David screams as we enter Robert's house.
      It's dark, Rob says he only brought in enough money this month to pay the water bill, meaning electricity is down until his next paycheck.
      There are candles scattered through the kitchen, where a pile of dishes sits in the sink, untouched.
     I follow David out of the kitchen into the living room, where the coffee table is covered in pizza and take out boxes. The tv isn't working right now but I doubt it would with the giant crack running down the screen.
     We go into the the hallway where Rob is sitting against the wall across from a door which I assume leads to his sister's room. He looks up at us and sighs, "She won't talk."
     "Danny," David tells, pouncing in the door, "we brought ice cream!"
     "I'm lactose intolerant, dipshit!"
     David's smile drops and he lets the grocery bag he was holding fall to the ground.
     "Oh God, I'm so sorry, Danny, Rob. Don't worry we will get through this, as a team."
     I look at him dumbfounded, "Lactose intolerance isn't a disease. It just means she can't have most dairy products."
     David blushes, embarrassed.
     "Why didn't you tell me?" He whines at Rob.
     Rob rolls his eyes, "I did. Three times while we were on the phone."
      "I think I would remember-"
     "Shut up," I snicker, pushing him away from the door, "Danny, would it be better if we talked to you from out here?"
     There are a few moments of silence before Danny quietly chirps from behind the door, "Yes."
I gesture for David to sit down and he sits next to Rob, I stand next to the door, leaning against the wall.
"What happened, Danny?" Rob asks with a pleading tone.
There's some shuffling around the room before I hear something slide down the door, probably Danny coming closer.
"I was at school- and there are some girls who no one likes- and they just hate me. They tease me all the time about random stuff. And it doesn't bother me, it never used to bother me."
She stops talking. There are quiet snuggles and muffled sobs coming from her room.
"What's wrong?" Rob asks.
"It bothered me this time because they said something about me," she pauses, "something about me that was true."
I look at the other two boys confused.
"Come on, I'm on the edge of my seat." David says.
Rob smacks his shoulder and he pouts.
There's some more shuffling behind the door and I back away as the handle starts to turn.
Danny opens the door, her eyes are red and her nose is running. It's obvious she's been crying.
Robert stands up, looking at her expectantly.
"Talk to me."
"They called me- they called me- they were making fun of me because they think that I... like girls. And I do."
      No one speaks.
     Robert is dumbfounded, his mouth is halfway open and his eyebrows are raised.
David is scooping the ice cream he bough out of the tub with his fingers, I'm positive he didn't even hear any of the conversation.
     "W-what?" Rob whispers.
     Danny bites her lips nervously, "I like girls. I'm gay. And I have a girlfriend. Please don't hate me."
     Rob shakes his head incredulous, "Hate you? What?"
      He swoops her up in his arms and she lets out a loud relieved giggle.
     "You're my little sister, I could never hate you."
     "This is so sweet." David grins.
"Thanks, Dave." Danny says with a smile.
David looks up in confusion, "I was talking about the ice cream."
The three of us laugh. Everyone is so happy.
I wonder how different things would be now if Dylan had just told me he was gay. Or how it would be if I had reacted differently than I did. Dylan would be alive. Would I have even left Florida? Would we be surfing right now, while someone who loved him watched from the shore?
Danny was miserable keeping this secret from her brother. Is that how Dylan felt his whole life?
"Hello, Earth to Mason! Come on, we're gonna go get some lactose intolerant ice cream." David shakes my shoulder.
     I look at him, "Yeah, yeah, right behind you."
     I follow the three of them to David's car, he insists that he wants to drive us all, because we're a weird and dysfunctional family. And he has to be the father. No one argues or tries to tell him how childish he sounds, because after a day like today, I think we all just need a little distraction.
     "So, the party tomorrow, we're carpooling with Mel and her friends." I tell Rob and David as we sit down in the car.
      "Sweet, cool with me, we can take my dad's van." David shrugs.
      "Does that mean her blond friend is coming too?" Danny asks, trying to sound nonchalant.
Rob looks at her, "Claire? Yeah, those girls go everywhere together. Why do you ask?"
Danny shrugs, smiling, "We just hit it off at the party and she's really nice. We're dat-friends."
"Cool." Rob says.
I look at Danny's smile and the way she stares out the window and blushes at the mentions of Claire's name, something tells me they're a little more than friends.
I also know Rob talks about Claire all the time, and there's no doubt Danny picked up hints that he likes her.
"I think someone has a crush." David says.
     Danny's face pales.
     "What? Who?" Rob asks.
     David laughs, "It's painfully obvious."
     My eyes widen. Danny obviously isn't ready to tell her brother.
      "What?" Rob asks again.
     "Mason likes Ni-Ni." David clarifies and a collective sigh comes from Danny and I before I realize that I'm going to be the subject of the conversation for the next fifteen minutes.
     "He's got a point." Rob notes.
     I roll my eyes, "Mel and I are just friends."
     It hurts to say out loud doesn't it? Just friends.
     "But you wish you were more?" Danny says from the back, it comes out more like a question.
      I wish I was more.
      "We're just friends." I say again.
      We're just friends.

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Sorry if this chapter was boring guys!! But don't worry, there will be some action happening soon!!
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Love you bunches.