This is a sequel to my fic 'Will they have their happy ever after?' For anyone that hasn't read it basically Danielle and Ronnie were eventually reunited and Archie died in prison. But then a fire raged through R&R killing Stacey and leaving Danielle devastated. We then got introduced to James, Danielle's handsome yet mysterious boyfriend who had a very dark secret. It turned out this his father knew Archie in prison and before he died Archie paid him off and asked him to do 'a job' and James was involved in some way in the plan all along. James' father, James Snr then kidnapped Danielle and Roxy but Ronnie managed to reach them in time in Weymouth and James Snr was shot and killed by James. James was arrested and taken away and Danielle, Roxy and Ronnie headed back to Walford reunited (Oh I nearly forgot – Ronnie got back together with Jack before the fire but then he kissed Roxy so that all went wrong. Ronnie is still very bitter towards Jack but the latest tragedy has seemed to reunite Ronnie and Roxy). So the sequel is set a few weeks after Ronnie, Roxy and Danielle have returned to Walford, they are reunited but the tragic events of the last year may not be too easy to forget for anyone involved......
The day had seemed so long to Danielle, the hours slowly ticked away as she stared aimlessly at the glass clock perched on the wall. She could hear gentle voices bubbling away in the bedroom, their laughter and friendly conversation offering little interest to Danielle. She had been sat in the same position on the sofa for nearly an hour, her legs crossed tightly with her head resting against the back of the sofa.
Though she knew she had to move, she had to go get ready she still resisted as her lack of enthusiasm left her sitting alone on the sofa, once again trapped by her own thoughts. She had always hated how her mind raced, pulling her in and not letting her go. Ever since she was a child Danielle could remember her mind was never settled, every night she would go to bed with a million questions and worries still raging away. It had been the same since she moved to Walford; whether it was about Ronnie, Stacey or that night in Weymouth, Danielle just couldn't seem to switch her thoughts off.
"Danielle, get in here" A voice called from the bedroom, its sharp tone managing to snap Danielle out of her thoughts. She sighed, dropping her shoulders down as she grudgingly made her way into the bedroom, making no effort to quicken her pace as she heard the voices grow louder.
"What do you think?" Roxy asked as Danielle leaned against the doorframe. Danielle looked on as Roxy struggled to fit her legs into a pair of skin tight leather trousers. Roxy rolled around wildly on the bed, cursing as she finally managed to pull the trousers up to her waist. "So?" She asked again, standing up to face Danielle as she brushed her hair behind her ears.
"Yeah great" Danielle replied, her voice markedly distant. Roxy choose to ignore the lack of enthusiasm in Danielle's voice, choosing to instead stand in front of the mirror, running her hands through her blonde locks in an attempt to calm them.
But Danielle's behaviour didn't gone unnoticed by Ronnie as she gazed at her daughter slumped against the door frame. "You alright?" Ronnie asked gently, hobbling over to Danielle in her high heels and resting a hand against her shoulder.
"Yeah fine. Look mum, about tonight...." Danielle started to mutter, quietening her tone so Roxy couldn't hear. Though Danielle was sure that Roxy was unlikely to hear even if she shouted, she was so was too engrossed in her reflection as she debated how low she should wear her top, pulling the plunging neck line up and down as she stared at her reflection.
"Dan, this is yours" Roxy interrupted as she heard Danielle and Ronnie start up a conversation. Danielle bent down to pick up the pile of clothes that had just been flung across the room. Danielle was suitably unimpressed by the small amounts of cloth that lay before her, compromising of a blue skirt and white low cut top. "Do I have to wear this?" Danielle moaned, looking to her mother pleadingly as she heard Roxy mutter "yes" as she applied eyeliner.
Before Ronnie had a chance to speak Roxy continued. "C'mon Dan it will be fun. Take your mind off things. Its going to be a fun fancy dress party and I think Charlie's Angels is a good theme, we will all look fab!" Roxy beamed as she turned round to look at Danielle and Ronnie. Danielle was slightly taken aback by the image of Roxy standing before her. Danielle wanted to make a snide remark about her aunt's outfit but nerves overcame her. Thankfully Ronnie soon burst into laughter, leaning against Danielle as she struggled to compose herself.
"Oi" Roxy roared as Ronnie continued to laugh uncontrollably. The sight of her mother in such hysterics brought a cheeky smile to Danielle's face. "Have you had a look in the mirror then?" Roxy asked sarcastically, staring at Ronnie up and down jokingly. "Hey, I think I look rather good" Ronnie said, pouting her mouth and striking a pose as she leant against Danielle still.
Raptures of laughter broke out between all three of them, Danielle managing to relax and feel comfortable for the first time that day. "Your turn now Dan" Roxy stated boldly. As both Ronnie and Roxy turned to look at Danielle she felt her nerves resurface, their inpatient stare making her tense up again. "Can you give me a minute then?" Danielle asked, her eyes twitching between Ronnie, Roxy and the door.
"But....." Roxy began to argue, until Ronnie laid her hands of Roxy's back and pushed her sister out of the room, turning to Danielle and giving her a reassuring smile before she closed the door. Danielle sat on the bed and laid the clothes out next to her. She stared for a moment to look at the pieces of fabric that Roxy had claimed could make up a respectable outfit, as Danielle looked at them she tended to disagree.
As Danielle's eyes diverted away from the clothes her ears alerted her to the fact that the flat had fallen silent, an unlikely occurrence when you lived with a Mitchell. She cautiously stood up and walked to the door, hearing small mischievous whispers often interrupted by a spout of quiet giggling.
Danielle knew that they were only joking but she couldn't help but worry that they were joking about her, even if it was meant in a playful and loving way. "What are you two whispering about then?" Danielle called out, immediately she heard the voices cut off. "Nothing" Roxy bellowed back, before she started giggling again.
"Did we have to go as Charlie's Angels?" Danielle said, hoping to delay the event of actually putting on the costume. "Yes!" Ronnie and Roxy roared back firmly at the same time. "Who else could we have gone as Dan?" Ronnie asked.
"Well, I don't know, The Spice Girls" Danielle answered randomly, unsure about how she came to such a suggestion. "Sweetie, there were five in the Spice Girls. There are only three of us!" Ronnie said her tone both sarcastic and slightly patronising.
"Well we could have asked Peggy and....." Danielle's voice trailed off for only a second, her lips wanting to desperately utter the words Stacey. But Danielle managed to stop herself. "....and Mo!" Danielle finished, this time hearing both Ronnie and Roxy collapsing with laughter; even a small smile spread across Danielle's face as she started to get changed into her costume.