Sorry
"Have a nice night Dylan, and stay out of trouble ok?"
Dylan eyes her mother playfully, "When have I ever gotten into trouble ma?"
Silence.
"Gees, it's a joke. I promise no drinking, no smoking. I just really need to talk to Ben."
"Alright honey. Bye, I love you." Her mother Cecilia smiles as Dylan gets out of the car.
Once she drives off Dylan's nerves began to kick in and she realizes, this is going to be the first time that she's seen Ben since everything that's happened between them. She inhales and exhales deeply and then she pats down her hair as she makes her way inside Geoff's.
To her surprise, Ben is already there. A waiter escorts Dylan to Ben's table and she thanks the woman with a smile.
"Can I start you guys off with anything?" The tall waiter asks. He has a tan complexion, with a black mustache and a head full of hair. He smiles at the two.
"Just water," the both answer.
The waiter laughs, "Just water for the lovely couple? Nothing else?"
Dylan and Ben glance at each other for a second, the tension already filling the air. She expects Ben to say something, but he just lets it go, "No, nothing else. Thank you."
And with that the waiter takes off, and the two are left alone in an awkward silent.
Dylan looks over at the menu and quietly decides what she wants to get while Ben does the same. He wonders why she's here, and why she wants to talk to him. And he wonders why Leo would agree to have her come down here. He never wanted Ben to be with Dylan in the first place, so why now? What's changed? He keeps thinking this stuff in his mind but he has no answer for it.
The waiter comes back with their water and then the two of them order. Dylan decides on steak with mashed potatoes and broccoli and Ben orders a burger and fries. As they wait for their order Ben talks to fill the silence.
"...How have you been Dylan?"
She doesn't understand why her heart begins to race when she hears the sound of her name from his lips, but she tries to play it off, "I've been good...To be honest private schools probably one of the best decisions that I could have made for myself."
Ben is surprised to hear this, "Why do you say that? Because your friends go there?"
She shakes her head as she takes a sip of her water, "No, definitely not because of that. My friends actually they...They kind of abandoned me."
Despite everything that's happened he still feels sorry for her. He knows what it's like to lose a friend, having lost Henry as a close friend after his decision to sleep with Adrian, "I'm sorry to hear that..."
She shrugs her shoulders, "Maybe it was for the best...They didn't really trust me after the whole Bunsen Burner incident. They told me I was...reckless, and irresponsible...I guess they were right."
"Dylan you're not-"
"You don't have to try to make me feel better Ben, it's the truth. It was a stupid thing that I did, but I feel even worse for dragging you into it."
For a moment he doesn't say anything as he recalls that night for the two of them. Everything went downhill after that night, he thinks. And then he almost chuckles at the thought because he realizes that everything was going downhill long before then.
Once the waiter hands them their meals, they both enjoy the food.
"Mmm, this is so good!"
Ben chuckles at Dylan's excitement upon tasting the steak, "You should definitely come by the butcher shop sometime, we have way better meat than this."
She smiles, "I bet."
As the meal continues the two of them begin talking mindlessly about school and colleges.
"...Wow, New York! That's fantastic."
"Yeah, I really just need to get out of here you know? I need a fresh start."
Dylan tosses him a sympathetic smile, "I don't blame you for that...Ugh, I'm not even sure what I'm going to do about colleges. I never really thought much of it you know? It was just something I figured my parents would get me into. I've always kind of just went with their plans. They told me to get high grades so I could attend this and that college, they told me to fill in applications for this and that school, or some program and I just did it because well...I didn't have much of a choice. How could I ever have an opinion on something when my parents set up my future since before I was born?"
Ben looks at her sadly. Of course he's met her parents, and he realizes just how overprotective they are, "You have to find something Dylan, find something you love to do and don't let anyone stop you."
"Yeah...I guess you're right."
For a while the conversation ends, and it's back to the awkward silence. Ben looks over at Dylan again, studying her face. She looks so innocent, and sweet. With her red hair and pretty blue eyes. And he wonders how she got into so much trouble in the first place.
"Dylan...Don't get me wrong it's really fun talking to you, but is that what you came here for? Just to talk about school and career plans?"
She sighs as she puts down her fork, "No, Ben I came to say...I came to say that I'm sorry."
"What?"
"I'm really sorry about everything that I've put you through...I guess after I quit smoking pot it made me realize all the things that I've done to you and to the people around me. When I first met you...I thought you were cute and nice, and really funny, and I'd never had a boyfriend so I thought you would be the perfect guy for me. But that wasn't the only reason...I used you. My parents were so overprotective. They didn't want me to go out and have fun, so I thought I would show them how mature I could be by having a boyfriend. Smoking just set me free for a little while. It's hard being in such a restricting home you know? I was smoking pot long before I met you, and I never really intended to stop until I started hanging out with you."
"That day that I lit the Bunsen Burner, my parents and I got into this really huge fight about my future and me having a boyfriend. I just wanted to be left alone, and you were my escape. You were always there for me so I knew that I could depend on you. I wanted to do something dangerous, to show that I wasn't this goody-two-shoes that most people thought I was...and I dragged you down with me. I'm really sorry Ben."
He looks at her and he can see the tears threatening to spill out of her eyes. He knows exactly how that feels, to be filled with shame and regret, "Dylan...it's ok."
She smiles again, "That's just like you Ben, everything's always ok with you and I'll always love you for that. And I really hope everything works out for you."
Ben smiles at this, "Dylan...I'm sorry too."
"Sorry for what? You've been nothing but kind to me," she laughs.
"I wasn't over Adrian when I went to talk to you, but she was with Omar and I...I wanted someone to be with too. So I guess I used you too."
"Oh...I understand. You and Adrian have been through a lot together."
The waiter comes with the check and Ben decides that he'll cover both of their meals. She thanks him for this.
When they're finally ready to leave Dylan turns to look at Ben and smiles, "Ben...from everything I've seen I think Adrian really cares about you. You should fight for her."
"I don't know if that will do any good."
"Maybe, maybe not. But it can't hurt to try. And if things don't work out for Adrian, or Amy, or whoever, just remember that I'm always a phone call away. I don't think there's going to be a lot of Ben's out there, so just call me when you're ready," she smiles and then timidly kisses him on the cheek.
Once she walks away he can't help but think what he first thought of her. She is sweet, and kind, and innocent. Just like the girl that he had met at the party, and in a lot of ways she reminds him of of himself. They were just two good people, who got caught up in a series of unfortunate events.
A/N: So I went to church today and it was a sermon that I definitely needed. I feel really good right now. Anyway, I wanted to write something for Dylan to bring some light to her character. I hope you guys enjoyed. Thanks for reading!