AN: Ok, so I know it's been ABSOLUTELY AGES since I updated, and I'm really sorry about that! I've been away a lot, and I'm about to go to Reading so I thought I'd better update before I went! I hope this update is worth it… I don't know… Please REVIEW and let me know :D It may sound cliché but your reviews really do make me happy :) I'm also sorry for anyone reading my other fic, 'You chose to let me down'. It's been even longer since I updated that one, but I promise I will update it very soon! Ok, this chapter is a bit more intense, I hope it's ok… I'm not gonna be able to post again until next week, probably Tuesday as I'm at Reading til Monday… so see you soon :D Oh and PLEASE REMEMBER TO REVIEW!
Chapter 4:
Danny had almost had a heart attack when he'd seen his father's name flash up on his caller ID. He hadn't realised how late it had become, and he figured his dad was going to be angry. Boy was he right. He had to hold the phone away from his ear, his dad was shouting so loud. He sounded very angry, and a little bit drunk as well.
Danny felt sick with nerves as he ran down the road in the direction of his house. Luckily he only lived a few streets away, so it wasn't long before he was taking the last few shaky steps up his front path and putting his key in the lock.
He stepped inside and initially the house seemed quiet, empty. If only that were the case. He walked cautiously through into the living room and found his mum sitting on the sofa, a stern look on her face.
"Where the hell have you been?!" She shouted, her face contorted with rage.
"T-Tom's house. I did tell you-"
"You didn't tell me anything, so don't start acting like this is my fault. Your father is livid. He's waiting for you in the kitchen. DON'T make him any more angry." She spat, before turning to head upstairs. She always got out of the way when his father was angry.
Danny took a deep breath and gently pushed open the door to the kitchen. His dad was sat at the table facing the other direction, and from the back he looked surprisingly calm. Danny's breath caught in his throat as his father's chair scraped back across the floor-tiles and he stood up. He turned to face his son, face purple with rage. Danny's heart sunk when he saw the half-empty bottle of vodka beside his father on the table. This was not going to end well.
"Well?" His father shouted, the one word sending shivers down his son's spine. "Why weren't you home after school?" he bellowed.
"I w-went to Tom's, Dad. We've had it planned for ages. I told mum the other day..." Danny started, face to the ground. He looked up slightly to see his dad's reaction. His face had become, if possible, even more purple.
"Oh so you were pissing about with those stupid little friends of yours! Instead of being here, helping me and your mother make dinner for you and your sister! Who gave you the right?!" As he shouted, Danny couldn't help but back up slowly against the wall. He knew what was going to happen.
"I'm s-s-sorry, Dad. I d-didn't think. It won't happen again, I p-promise!" Danny stuttered.
"You're bloody right it won't happen again, you ungrateful child. You're grounded."
"But Dad, Dougie and I had plans tomorrow!" Danny said, though he instantly regretted it.
His Dad's fist swung towards him, colliding seconds later with the left side of his face. Danny felt the familiar sensation of blood trickling down his chin as his nose exploded with pain. His Dad continued to shout, voice filled with venom. "Well you can forget them! There's no way you're going out with those idiots anymore. You will cancel, and you'll stay here. And if you EVER talk back to me like that again, you little brat..." Then, each of the last three words, he emphasised with a punch to Danny's stomach, "You'll. Regret. It!"
Danny doubled over, clutching his stomach in pain. He tried to fight the tears that were threatening to fall. He couldn't bring himself to answer, or even look at his father.
"Got it? Good! Now get to bed you piece of shit!" his Dad finished, slurring from the alcohol, before roughly pulling him out of the room and towards the stairs. He continued to drag Danny by his t-shirt up the stairs until they got to his bedroom. He opened the door, pushed his son inside, then slammed the door shut again with such force that a picture fell off the wall in Danny's room.
Danny waited until he could hear his dad's footsteps reach the bottom of the stairs before sliding down the wall he was leaning against and breaking down in tears. He crawled over to the corner of the room, pulled his legs into his chest and buried his face in his knees, crying.
After what felt like hours, but in reality was probably only a few minutes, Danny's door opened slowly. He didn't look up from his spot on the floor to see who it was, he didn't even bother trying to hide his tears. His sister knelt down beside him and put her arm around his shoulders. She ran a comforting hand through his hair and whispered soothing things in his ear. He buried his face in her shoulder and cried. Eventually Danny's sobs subsided and he looked up at his sister with teary eyes. She was looking back at him with a sympathetic expression. He tried to smile at her.
"Thanks" he sniffed.
"What for?" she asked with a loving smile.
"For being here for me, I guess" Danny said with a sigh.
"Any time, bro" she said. "It will all be ok, you know. He will stop drinking" she reassured her brother, though Danny wasn't sure who she was trying to convince more.
She got up after that and, with one final loving look back at her brother, she left. Danny signed and got up off the floor. He took off his trousers, changed his t-shirt and climbed into his bed. He was just about to go to sleep, when his phone flashed with a new message from Dougie.
'Everything ok, mate? You seemed to leave in a bit of a hurry. You missed Harry's epic failure at FIFA ;) x'
Danny smiled and sent a reply quickly.
'Yeah everything's fine, mate. Damn, wish I could have seen it! :( Oh almost forgot, I'm gonna have to cancel on you for tomorrow, really sorry. Dad needs my help with some stuff. We can reschedule though, right? x'
He put his phone on his table and turned over, wincing at the pain in his stomach from his Dad's punches as he did so. He was going to have some nasty bruising tomorrow. Exhausted from the stressful day, he closed his eyes and let sleep take over him in seconds.
…
