Summary: After he is rejected by Lindsay yet again, Danny resolves to move on with his life.
Disclaimer: I wish I did, but I don't.
Spoilers: None
Rating: T to be on the safe side
Authors note: I loved the note that Lindsay wrote to Danny when she left for Montana but then I started wondering; what if they hadn't parted as friends? What if the shooting Lindsay survived, and the fear of the trial, had led to her pushing Danny away once too often? What would he do?
This story is a result of those musings and a lot of encouragement from SallyJetson, who did the beta as well. I can't thank her enough.
Leaving
The course of true love never did run smooth – William Shakespeare
'You were just going to go……..you weren't even going to call? Just a lousy card to say 'goodbye, see ya sometime.''
He reached out and grabbed the suitcase from her, throwing it across the room as his voice rose, the frustration and anger he was feeling seeping from his every pore. She flinched as it crashed against the front door of her apartment and Danny felt a brief moment of guilt for losing control but couldn't stop himself from reaching out and grabbing her by her shoulders.
'Why Lindsay?'
'Danny I told you; I have to go back to Montana for a while. I have to testify at this trial……'
'And I get that; what I don't get is why you're pushing me away. You feel it too, you feel this thing between us but you just keep pushing me away, you won't let me help you…..'
He let his voice trail away as he saw the blank expression in her eyes and how, instead of meeting the fierce expression in his, they slid over his shoulder to stare at where her suitcase lay.
The fight drained from him and his arms fell limply to his sides at the realisation that his pleas were falling on deaf ears. She stepped around him and walked to where her suitcase lay. She picked it up and reached for her jacket before turning back to look at him.
Something about the utter defeat he was feeling brought a flicker of some emotion to her eyes and she spoke again, her voice gentle but resolute,
'Danny, I do care about you….a lot….but I'm not the person you need. I can't be in a relationship, I just can't. If I could, it would be with you but it's never going to happen and you need to move on and find someone who can give you what you want.'
'I want you.'
The frustration in his voice caused a look of distress to cross her face and she dropped the case and moved to stand in front of him.
'Danny, I can't; you have to understand this and you have to accept that we can't be anything more than friends.'
The note of finality in her voice coincided with the sound of a car horn.
She moved back to the door and picked up her case.
'That's my cab.'
She held the door while Danny slowly walked past her and waited for her in the hall.
'I'll take you to the airport, we can talk………'
Her face gave him his answer.
He took the case from her and headed down the stairs to the street below. He placed it into the cab's trunk and held the door open for her. She hesitated before getting in and turned to look at him again but he wouldn't meet her eye. Her hand reached out and fleetingly caressed his cheek before she climbed quickly into the cab. He stood in the street, watching, until it turned the corner and was lost to his sight.