A/N: This is an expansion/extremely AU story of a'chapter' from my iPod challenge entitled "The Love of Niles and Daphne" that I wrote while listening to the song "Just My Imagination" by the Cranberries.
It takes place at the very beginning of the series when Niles and Daphne first met. I've added more detail to the first part of the story so it's a bit different than the original.
"Come on, Daphne! This way!" Niles called to her, holding tightly to her hand. She giggled as they ran down the sidewalk like children, and when they arrived at a city park, she looked around in confusion.
"Niles, where are we?"
Breathless from running, he kissed her anyway.
"Somewhere that we can be alone, my love. It's Wednesday and there's no one around but us."
Once again she looked around, smiling when she realized that in fact the park was completely deserted.
"But what about the rest of the week? Where will we go then?"
"On Friday night we can hit the town and then stay in bed all day on Sunday."
Daphne sighed at the romantic thought and melted into his arms...
"Oh, Niles... I love you so much!"
In response, he brought his lips to hers and kissed her deeply. And at that moment, she was happier than she ever thought she could be.
Her head resting against Niles' chest, she closed her eyes, wanting this beautiful moment to last forever. And she could hardly wait to open her eyes again so that she could see Niles' handsome face.
Slowly her eyes opened but instead of the handsome blonde man, she found Frasier glaring at her. And to her dismay, his expression told her that he was not happy at all.
"Daphne, have you finished the laundry yet?"
Knowing how particular he was and wanting so much to please her boss, she blinked, bringing herself back to the present.
"Right away, Dr. Crane."
Flustered, she resumed putting away the laundry. Once again she'd let her imagination get the best of her. And suddenly she found herself blinking back tears.
If only Niles loved her... the way she loved him.
It was a silly thought and she felt even sillier for crying. A man like Dr. Niles Crane couldn't possibly love someone like her.
He was handsome, sophisticated and highly intelligent. Respected by everyone and most likely had enough money to live comfortably for a long time.
And who was she, but a plain, simple woman from Manchester whose profession was helping Mr. Crane with his physical therapy.
A home health care worker was hardly as important as being a psychiatrist, who analyzed problems and cured patients. It must have been a wonderful feeling to have a patient walk into your office with a difficult problem and then leave weeks (or even months) later, completely cured.
The fact that he was so caring and intelligent was only a few of the many things that made her love him so.
He was always so kind to her and she couldn't imagine him ever uttering a harsh word. He never failed to greet her warmly, compliment her in some way, or manage to make her feel special just by her being in the same room with him.
Self consciously she pulled a t-shirt from the laundry basket that she'd never seen before. And she should know. She'd been doing Dr. Crane's laundry for quite some time now. Dr. Crane's shirts were ordinary white shirts with no writing on them, save for the occasional KACL Radio logo.
But the shirt that she held in her hand was different.
It was the most beautiful shade of blue that she'd ever seen, and the instant she saw it, she pictured his eyes.
The thought of how handsome Niles was made her melt and at that moment, she couldn't help noticing how incredibly soft the fabric felt beneath her fingers.
When she closed her eyes and brought the shirt to her nose to inhale the clean scent, she was rewarded with the faintest hint of musky cologne; the kind he always wore.
And once more her heart beat faster.
"Daphne, what are you doing?"
The shirt dropped from her hands and she raised her head to meet Frasier's frown.
"What?"
"That's Niles' shirt. He must have left it over here the last time he spent the night."
Her heart skipped a beat.
Spent the night? How had she missed that momentous occasion?
"Oh... I don't remember..."
"I wish I didn't. We got home late from the opera and he insisted that he was too tired to drive home. And yet he managed to keep me up all night with his ridiculous banter about some patient! I was going to throw him out, but I decided to be civil, so I sent him to sleep in your room. I hope you don't mind."
At that moment she almost fainted. The wonderful and gorgeous Dr. Niles Crane had been in her room? Slept in her bed where he'd been almost every night since they first met?
He hadn't been there physically of course, but the handsome psychiatrist had most definitely invaded her dreams.
"I-it's fine, but when..."
"When what?"
"When was Ni-um, Dr. Crane in me room?"
"Oh... You were in Manchester visiting your family, so I didn't think you'd mind. I guess I should have consulted you first."
It was taking longer than it should have to process this news. "No, it's quite all right. Dr. Crane is welcome in me room anytime."
And then the shock of what she'd just said, followed by a fierce flushing of her cheeks. What must Dr. Crane think of her, saying such a thing? Even if it wasn't what she'd intended to say.
"Oh, I mean..."
Frasier's eyes narrowed. "Yes, I know exactly what you mean!"
"What?"
"Um nothing. I'm sorry, Daphne. I just have something on my mind. Forget I said anything. And I'm sorry for snapping at you earlier. I appreciate everything you've done for Dad and me."
Her eyes filled with tears and she dropped the socks she was folding and crossed the room to hug him.
"Thank you, Dr. Crane. You have no idea how much this job means to me."
As he held her he laughed. "Actually I do. You mention it almost every day. But I'm glad I could make your life a little better. Niles should be here soon, and I'll be extremely glad to return his shirt! I can't understand for the life of me why anyone would wear a shirt that's so vibrant! What's wrong with wearing white? It's sophisticated and classy!"
And dull... Daphne thought as she pulled out of his arms.
And then she pictured how handsome Niles must look when wearing the shirt.
Suddenly it was hard to resist not inhaling the masculine scent that lingered on the soft fabric.
Returning her attention to the laundry, she barely noticed that she'd folded every item.
"Well, I guess I'll just put these away."
She carried the laundry basket into Frasier's bedroom, carefully placing his clothes into his dresser drawers, and then made her way to Martin's room, to put his clothes away as well.
The doorbell rang just as she returned to the living room and her heart skipped a beat, for she was sure that Niles was on the other side.
Her hand trembled as she opened the door and when she caught a glimpse of him, it was all she could do not to melt through the floor. Either her imagination was getting the best of her again or Niles looked even more handsome than usual.
Perhaps it was the blue tie he wore, which was almost the same shade as the t-shirt she had been folding just moments before.
Perhaps it was a sign...
She dismissed the thought at once. If it were any kind of sign at all, it would be the kind that signaled that the idea of a romantic relationship with this man was completely ridiculous.
Niles would never-.
"Hello, Daphne."
She blushed deeply, trying not to look into his crystal blue eyes; because if she did, she might become lost and never find her way out again.
"H-hello, Dr. Crane."
Her eyes looked him up and down, noticing how nicely he was dressed. His blonde hair shone like the sun and his smile made him even more handsome.
But when she met his gaze at last, she noticed something different. In fact, his entire expression was different, and he wasn't smiling at all. And the sadness in his eyes was almost unbearable.
Instinctively she reached for his hand.
"Are you all right?"
"What? Oh... I'm fine."
Mere moments after he'd said the words, the nosebleed started and she rushed into the bathroom to grab a washcloth.
"Here, let me help you."
As gently as possible she blotted his nose with the cloth, shivering as her fingers touched his face.
"Thank you, Daphne. I'm sorry I'm not the best company right now."
"Nonsense. I always love your company!"
He nodded sadly, but turned away from her. "That's a very sweet thing to say Daphne, but-."
"But nothing. Now what's bothering you?"
He sighed deeply. "I'd rather not say."
"All right. I understand. You're me friend and if you don't feel like talking about it then I won't pressure you. But I do want to give you something."
He blinked in surprise. "You do?"
Surprised at her boldness, she moved closer and took him into her arms. It was meant to be a quick comforting hug but she found that it was hard to let go.
Her head rested against his chest and she rubbed his back, expecting him to draw back any second. But he remained as he was.
"Are you feeling better now?"
She felt him nod.
"A bit. Thank you Daphne. It's been a really rough day. I got into a bit of an argument with a patient today and he told me that he no longer needed my services. I shouldn't have gotten so upset but I tried so hard to help this man and...well; now I feel like a failure. No wonder Frasier finds me annoying when I talk about my patients. I guess I'm just not that good of a psychiatrist."
She hugged him even tighter. "You're a wonderful person. So kind, sweet and caring and anyone who doesn't think so isn't worth it."
He drew back then, staring at her in astonishment. "Daphne..."
Slightly embarrassed for revealing too much, she pulled out of his arms.
"Well, I guess I should get back to me laundry. Excuse me, Dr. Crane."
"But Daphne-."
Unable to look at him, she carried the laundry basket into her room and resumed her folding. But when she saw the blue t-shirt at the bottom of the pile, she picked it up, unable to resist its softness... or its wonderful scent. And before she realized what was happening, she was rubbing the shirt against her cheek.
"Daphne?"
She jumped in surprise as the shirt fell from her hand and she turned to find Niles standing in her doorway.
"I'm sorry I frightened you but..."
He stopped mid-sentence and stared at her.
"What are you doing?"
"J-just folding the laundry."
"Is that..."
Her chest tightened as he moved toward her and picked up the shirt.
"How did this get here?"
"I'm sorry, Dr. Crane. I didn't know it was here; I promise. I didn't mean to make you angry. I just-."
"I'm not angry."
"Oh... Well...then, here's your shirt, all nice and clean."
With a trembling hand, she held it out feeling a strange sense of loss when he took it from her.
"I appreciate this, Daphne. I've been wondering what happened to it."
"Your brother said you left it here when you... spent the night in me room."
His face reddened. "Oh... That's right. I did. Daphne, I'm sorry for trespassing. I should have insisted on sleeping on the sofa."
"It's all right. The sofa isn't very comfortable, and it's nice that you found a comfortable place to...sleep."
"Can I ask you something?"
"Of course."
"What were you doing, just now... besides the laundry I mean?"
Now it was Daphne who blushed even deeper than Niles had.
"I don't know what you mean..." she lied.
"I don't mean to put you in an uncomfortable position, but I couldn't help noticing that you were caressing my shirt against your cheek."
Ashamed she looked out the window in an effort to avoid his gaze. "I know... and I'm sorry. I was only trying to-."
"To what?"
She sighed deeply. "Look, I know you're angry and I promise it won't happen again. It's just that when I hold your shirt, it..."
He moved even closer and when her eyes filled with tears, he lovingly put his hand on her arm.
"It's all right. I'm not angry. Just... concerned."
As the tears began to spill onto her cheeks she turned to him, making no effort to brush them away.
"I just feel so lonely sometimes and when I found your shirt... the blue reminded me of your eyes. It's so soft, which is probably my doing, since I used your brother's special fabric softener... and I couldn't help me self... because... Oh, you'll think I'm such a silly sod!"
"I would never think that."
The soft tone he used when he said the words made even more tears spill onto her cheeks.
"It makes me feel closer to you, and the truth is... I-I think I'm in love with you, Dr. Crane. I can't stop thinking about you, no matter how hard I try! And I know it's wrong because your brother's me boss but I can't help meself!"
He reached for her hand, and brought it to his lips for a kiss.
"I can't tell you how happy I am to hear you say those words."
She gasped in surprise. "Y-you are?"
"I know it's wrong... the way I come over almost every day, pretending to see Dad or Frasier, and don't get me wrong... I do like visiting them, but the truth is..."
"Yes?"
With a smile he brushed a tear from her cheek. "I find myself returning to see you, Daphne."
"You do?"
He nodded and she could tell that he was filled with relief at the admission.
"Does that mean..."
"Daphne, I'm in love with you, too. But it's not suspicion. There is no doubt in my mind."
"Oh Dr. Crane..."
He moved even closer, taking her into his arms... and then it happened. The kiss she'd been dreaming of for so long.
"I love you, Daphne."
"I love you too.."
They kissed again, and Daphne could barely believe that this moment was real. And when they drew back from one another, she stared into his eyes, caressing his soft cheek with her hand.
"Dr. Crane... Would you like to take a walk with me?"
"That sounds like a wonderful idea."
Grateful that Frasier was nowhere to be seen, she scribbled a quick note and with Niles' hand in hers walked out of the apartment.
They walked down the sidewalk and suddenly she had the strangest urge to run.
"Come on, Dr. Crane!"
"Wait... where are we going?"
She couldn't help but laugh when she noticed that he was struggling to keep up. But
she slowed her pace when they reached a very familiar place. And yet, she was certain that she'd never been there before.
"Where are we?"
Briefly she let go of his hand and looked around in amazement, when she found herself in the same park that she'd been daydreaming about just hours before.
And the answer to his question tumbled out of her mouth.
"Somewhere that we can be alone."
"I love you, Daphne..."
He took her into his arms and kissed her deeply. And it was a kiss that put all of her daydreams to shame. For she'd finally found true love that was better than her imagination.
THE END.