This fic was started way back when...before Mindy and Danny became a couple and were still only a dream. I am not changing or updating any of the chapters, so I apologize if the characters or the plot seems confusing.

I felt bad having this fic unfinished, forgotten, and unloved. So, here it is..finally complete.

CHAPTER 1

Mindy took a look at herself in her full length mirror. "Not too bad, girl. Not too bad" she smiled as she shifted her body around trying to catch a glimpse of her butt. The green skirt she was wearing was a little snug but accentuated her curves just the way she liked. "Now let's just hope that this date is worth the minor fortune I spent on these heels." She bent down and peeled the leather pumps over her smooth and lotion lathered feet. "James, I hope you're ready for this!" she grinned as she waved her hands down her blouse and skirt and gave her best seductive pose.

It was 7:34 pm as she left her apartment. Late as usual, but once James took a look at her, he would appreciate that extra time it took her to get dressed. The bar they had mutually agreed on meeting at was a little less fancy than she had remembered. Of course, she was slightly buzzed the last time she was here. Okay, okay…drunk. Mindy was drunk. But that first hour she could clearly recall…and she thought it had been slightly more elegant. It looked like a simple karaoke bar. Great, she thought, I hope this evening is NOT another bust. She glanced at her outfit, feeling a bit overdressed.

As she found a seat at the bar, she couldn't help but think back to the last time she had seen James. They compromised on a romantic picnic lunch and met at the park near her apartment. She looked absolutely ravishing in her yellow sun dress and flats; he brought the sandwiches and she brought the wine. The lunch started nicely, her lecturing him the importance of owning a DVR, her idea of a good ice maker and the difference between heels and stilettos, in that order.

"Well, it really depends on the dress or skirt you're wearing. And don't get me started on wearing heels with jeans…Well, we have to differentiate regular jeans to skinny jeans. I don't do skinny jeans, although they totally are great for my ass, they just make me feel sausage-y. And while sausage itself is great, don't get me wrong… I prefer my curves be seen in a more natural jean…" before she could finish her thought, she threw her hand down to her ankle. Piercing pain followed by a series of similar shots of heat and pain. "Oh my God! Oh My God!" She frantically got up and started pounding her hands to her legs. "Killer Ants! Help me! Help me! Oh My God! I am too young to die, James! Help me, please! Killer Ants!" After several moments of confusion, James finally realized what was happening and in one effortless swoop, had his arms around her body and hoisted her up over his shoulder. It was a sight! Her beautiful sun dress flowing in the wind as she was carried away…she tried to forget the part where her butt was out in the open for everyone to see. It's a good thing that she had chosen nice panties. She didn't care where she was taken to, she just desperately wanted away from those horrid ants.

Turns out Mindy was allergic to the ant bites, all 30 of them. The anthills had been there all along. "So this place doubles as a baseball field, I guess" she casually said to James as she was setting up their blanket. Yeah, those pitcher's mounds were not pitcher's mounds... Her legs were swollen, she had small bumps all over her body from her reaction to the ant bites. Their romantic picnic lunch was postponed.

So here she is, at the bar, almost a full 2 weeks later, feeling as beautiful as ever. She glances down at her phone and sees the time. It is 7:54 and not a call, not a text, nothing from James. Maybe he stopped by to get me a nice gift. She thought, smiling to herself. I hope it's a candle. Ooh, I need a peppermint scented candle. I should call him and if he's getting me a candle, I will casually mention the scent that I want. She dialed his number. No answer. Hmm, that's strange. She orders another martini and passes the time by making small talk with the cute blonde bartender and eventually goes on stage to sing karaoke. After what seems like an eternity, she sits down again and Mindy casually glances at her phone and sees the digital numbers blaring back at her - 8:27 pm. What the hell?! Is he ok? Did he get mugged and is his beat up body sprawled on a dirty street down the block? Did he get me yellow roses only to realize that he wanted to get me red roses and had to go back and buy more? Did the weird dude at the corner hot dog stand finally come through on his threat to eliminate any other suitors so he'd be my only one? ..Well, that hot dog guy DOES give me a hell of a discount on my favorite dog and adding his special sauce to them…wait, NO. Something is definitely wrong. She dialed his number again. No answer. It slowly dawned on her, "This is not happening. Mindy Lahiri does not get stood up, looking THIS hot!" she said out loud, causing the man sitting next to her to give her a puzzled look. She ordered another martini, against her better judgment because she was already feeling the effects of the previous drinks, when her phone buzzes. A text from James simply reading "can't make it. you're a great girl but this would never have worked out. you're too high maintenance."

Oh, hell no. Things like this should not happen to her. Within the following 10 seconds, she felt a range of emotions, from anger, to disappointment, to self-doubt and eventually going back to anger. Without realizing what she was doing, she once again pulled out her phone and dialed a number.

"Hello?" the deep male voice answered. " Mindy? Are you there? I can hear you breathing. Don't pretend that you can't hear me. I'm hanging up now…. I'm about to order Chinese from your favorite place…." He knew that she could not resist.

"Oooh, Danny! Could you order my favorite soup and an egg roll? I had pizza and a bagel for lunch, but what the hell…."

"No, Min. I am not ordering Chinese now! What's up? Aren't you on yet another one of your hot dates tonight?" he said, sounding more upset than he wanted to let on.

"For your information, I was stood up. I look absolutely gorgeous tonight so it's his loss. Get this, he said that I AM high maintenance! The nerve! I am not high maintenance, Danny." She felt her voice rising each second, "If anything, I would consider myself average maintenance. Sometimes less! For example, if it's a Friday night and I know that I don't have to go out of my apartment until Sunday, and there's a good chance that I can get some solo time with Tom Hanks or Meg Ryan during a ROM-com marathon I will put on NO makeup, Danny! Did you hear me, NO MAKEUP! How is that high maintenance?" She had begun to walk around the bar aimlessly at this point. "Anyways, I totally need your company. Please come, Danny, please! I don't want these people to think that I was stood up. I'm too beautiful and smart and witty to be left alone tonight. I just need to pretend you were my date. Please, please, please Danny. I need you." She was batting her eyes although he could not see her.

I need you. God, she knew how to get under his skin. Those words made his voice hitch and he let out an unintentional sigh. Quickly recovering, he was able to groan "Is there a point to this story? I am tired, Min. I had a C-section tonight and just got home" …How could this woman get him so worked up and yet make him feel so protective over… " Where are you?" he paused a moment once he heard what appeared to be a crowd chanting..."Are they chanting your name? God, Mindy, what are you doing? Body shots? Are you at another college frat party?! " He finished saying this but was already getting up and grabbing his car keys.

"I'm at Frankie's, you know, that karaoke Bar. The place where you picked a very drunk Gwen and I up after the finale of Sex and the City? Anyways, I was doing some karaoke just now and must say, I am the next best thing to Céline Dion. I would like to think it's because Jack and I would totally have been soul mates and we would have found a way to float on that door together. Rose was so selfish. She never deserved Jack…" her voice trailed off as she began chanting her own name, joining the crowd behind her.

"Min, stay right there. I will go pick you up. Stay there! Min…can you hear me?"

"Yeah, I'm here. Just come, please, Dan. I will make it worth your while. While you're here, I am totally making you sing Lady Gaga with me. I always wondered how a male rendition of 'Paparazzi' would sound…"

"Mindy, okay, if that is you trying to convince me to go, it's having the opposite effect" he said as he ended the call.

He huffed under his breath. This woman will be the death of me, he thought. His next thought was That bastard! How dare that jackass James stand Mindy up? Doesn't he know that she would be left alone, at a bar?!

Danny bailing Mindy out of very awkward situations or being there for her after failed dates seemed to happening very often, too often. He was not sure if he liked or hated being her "go-to" guy. Hey, being a friend was better than not being anything to her, right? he wondered as he went to his closet for something to change into before heading out towards the bar.

He should have imagined the sight that greeted him upon walking through the front door of the bar. Mindy, surrounded by a group of men, belting out the theme song of Cheers. She looked crazy, she looked drunk…but damn it, she looked beautiful. Danny grinned and huffed under his breath. "Show is over, guys!" he yelled as he walked up to Mindy and put his hand around her waist to escort her away from her seat.

"Danny! Hey, nice of you to finally join us! Hey, everyone! This is Danny! See, I DID NOT GET STOOD UP!" she had to yell around the room but no one seemed to care. "He's my handsome hero! Whoa, seriously, Danny. What the hell? Did you get just cuter on the way over here? Sexy man…" .

Danny grinned at her but knew it was nothing more than the alcohol talking, she had a tendency of getting flirtatious she drank. Okay, he had to admit that he took an extra 5 minutes before heading out to change into some decent clothes. It was so that she wouldn't make fun of him and his "old guy" clothes, yeah, that's what it was. He wasn't convincing himself.

"Oh, no! We are not leaving until you sing!" she squealed as he tried to lead her away from her seat towards the exit. She stopped dead in her tracks.

"No. That is not happening. You've given everyone here a show already. I wouldn't want to steal your fame at this place..' He gave her a lopsided smile.

God, he looks like an Italian Stallion when he does that, she thought to herself. "Damn it, Danny. You came way out here for me. Now suck it. You can be an old man on your own time." She said harshly. He simply raised his eyebrows in return. "Please?" she puckered her lips and widened her eyes, trying her best to imitate a sad puppy dog.

"No. Not going to happen! And quit doing that, you look like weird. Put those eyes away!" he shook his head and waved his hands frantically across just to emphasize how much he hated the idea of singing.

"Fine, Mr. I Am Old and I Hate Life, but you will at least sit through a few songs of my choosing!"

"Fine. Whatever, but I need a drink before having to endure such torture. I don't like the sound of dignity being thrown on the floor…or the sound of dying cats."

She punched him playfully in the arm and ran up to the stage. The cheers coming from the crowd made Danny smile to himself. She has this effect on everyone. He was glad to be her go-to guy. Even if it means putting his life on hold at times, he was here with her and that made him happy. He didn't even notice that a huge smile had managed to creep across his face.

"This is for my good friend, Danny. No matter how sweaty and old you are, you are amazing!" she struck a pose as the music began. She began singing "Thank you for Being a Friend, travel down the road and back again…"

Where do I know this from? It was that show with the old ladies…the one that Mindy forced me to watch a marathon on a few months back. He looked around the room, everyone's eyes darting between Mindy, who was rocking it out on stage and him, looking absolutely embarrassed. She did love to make a scene.

One full hour later, they left the karaoke bar but not before she was able to get the entire room to re-enact the bar scene from 27 Dresses, singing Bennie and the Jets.

"Seriously, Danny, was this not the best night for karaoke or what?" she said as the car pulled away from the bar.

"If it weren't for the table of hot girls next to me, I don't know if I would have been able to take one more second of it" he said as he shot Mindy a quick wink.

"Whatever, old creeper. I had fun. I even forgot the disappointment and heartbreak of being stood up." her face went pensive for a moment. She turned to Danny, put her hand on his arm "Thank you, Danny, for coming tonight. I know you would have preferred being home, watching some fishing reality show and contemplating life and all of its miseries. So, thanks for doing this for me, really"

Danny barely heard anything coming from her. He focused on the warmth of her hand slightly resting on his arm. He worried that she would be able to feel his heartbeat through his arm, because to him it was beating so loud and he could feel his blood through every vein in his body.

His voice trembled but he was able to maintain control, "No problem, Min. For the record, your rendition of the Cheers theme song was questionable. I am pretty sure that it says 'Where everybody knows your name' and not 'Where everybody knows your meme' How do you even know that song to begin with?! It's not a new show and it definitely did not run on Lifetime or Hallmark. I doubt Lady Gaga or Britney Spears have done a cover of that."

"First off" she said pointing her finger in the air to prove a point "Lady Gaga and Britney Spears are above doing covers of ANY songs. They are true artists and do not need to prove themselves by parading songs …" her voice turned warmer as she continued "..and secondly, my father and I always watched that show together. It is one of my good memories of him" she smiled at Danny, who looked surprised.

"Well, I must say I'm impressed. You sang your heart out tonight. If you get a call from The Voice, it was me who submitted the video" he laughed.

"Oh my god! That would be amazing! Did you really send in a video?" she responded eagerly.

"No. Of course not. I would have broken my phone's camcorder. The world is not ready for you, Min." he looked over to

"Well, that just crushed my hopes of becoming a household name. I would have thrown the best A-list parties. Hangin' with Jay-Z and Beyonce… and who says camcorder?! Seriously, you need to catch up with the times, dude. It would be less embarrassing when we hang" she shook her head at him in disapproval.

After several minutes of jokes and random topics, including geek technology and Beyoncé, they arrived at Mindy's apartment. They both got out of the car and stood on the sidewalk next to her building.

"Well, good night. Danny, again…I really am grateful for you. Other than being stood up, tonight was a good night…stupid James" her heart swelled and skipped a beat as she looked at him. She always seemed to have a good night with him. He was always there for her, always willing to 'hang' and watch her shows, drive her places. Somehow, without realizing it, Mindy had allowed Danny to become her dearest friend, beside Gwen of course. She glanced up at him. She could see his forehead glistening with sweat. Oh, dear sweet sweaty Danny. I love you, she thought. Wait, what? Where did that come from? What the hell am I thinking? This was Danny. Danny Castellano. She did NOT love him. She liked him a lot. She appreciated his loyalty to her, even though he would refuse to acknowledge it. She liked the fact that he always looked at her with friendly eyes, if not friendly words. She felt at home with him. She could do whatever antics she wanted to do and know that he would never leave her side. The ups and downs of her relationships, he was there to support, to check her back into reality, to console when things went awry. Danny. Awkward and solitary Danny. I love you. What? Again?!

"Umm…Min? I'm going to start charging you taxi fare for this you know, right? A doctor's time isn't cheap… Helllllloooo?" He waved his hand in front of her dazed face.

"Um, oh yeah! I should totally charge YOU for allowing you to be seen with me in public' his words woke her from her strange thoughts. She suddenly felt awkward with him. He was so close to her. She felt the urge to pull him into a tight hug but knew that he wouldn't go for that. Her heart began to race. Now SHE felt like the sweaty one.

"Soooo, well, I guess I will see you Monday" he said as he fidgeted his car keys in his sweaty hands. God, she is beautiful, he thought. Why is she acting so nervous? He could feel a change in her demeanor from just moments ago.

'Yeah, see you Monday…" she said slowly, her mind already wondering what to say next. "Hey, Danny?" she asked.

"Yeah?" turning back as he was already walking towards his car door.

"Do you want to come up? I think I can find my DVD collection of Cheers. Want to watch?" She said hesitantly but then her lips inched upwards forming a full smile.

"Are you sure? I know Legally Blonde is on tonight and I would hate for you to miss it just to hang out with an old creeper" he chuckled. It was all he could do to keep himself from running towards her apartment. There was something different about Mindy tonight. He could not get his head around it. The way she was acting slightly nervous, the way she was looking at him, it was different. He liked the change.

"Yes, I am sure." she responded with a quick eye roll. "Besides, Legally Blonde just isn't the same for me anymore, not after Reese Witherspoon's arrest. I know I'll be able to forgive her in time, but it's still too soon…wait! How do YOU know that Legally Blonde is on tonight?!" she jumped over to him and grabbed his shoulders, pseudo shaking him. "Danny Castellano, are you telling me that you know when a romantic comedy is on TV?! I never thought I could be this happy…" she wiped an imaginary tear from her cheek as she linked her arm in his and tried to direct him towards her apartment.

"No, god, no. I only remembered you mentioning it to me earlier this week. Remember? When you were explaining the supposed perfect length to a pencil skirt. You started rambling about Reese Whateverspoon and her perfect legs and eventually that meaningless conversation led you to it being on this weekend…" His attempt to cover up that he remembered EVERYTHING she ever said to him was hopeless. There was no winning with Mindy. She had him and he knew it. He accepted defeat and they both smiled to each other and headed towards her apartment, arms linked together.

TO BE CONTINUED