Chapter Fourteen: Some Things Never Change
Daria spent the next day ignoring texts from Monique, Nathan and an unknown number, while trying in vain to contact Trent. It was a futile situation that amounted to her focusing on work. She pressed the palm of her hand to her face, eyes closed and lips pursed. There was so much excess in her life, she felt as though she was in high school. The kind of high school she watched others suffer through while she quietly read. It didn't seem fair to her. It annoyed her, truthfully. There were too many things she wanted to say, and no one to say them to. Even with the Harpies, Spiral and her family, she felt so alone in this town. And, in avoiding key people, she begun to realize this ten-fold.
Thursday afternoon, Helen approached her about her situation. Situation, referring to her going 'stag' to her cousin's wedding. There were words spoken to her, but they amounted to little more than a nuance. It never mattered before to her mother whether or not she was dating someone. It was all to prove some inane point to her sisters, and her mother, and whoever else Helen was striving to outdo. It grew later and later, till she decided one last try. It felt stupid to be striving so hard for one man's attention. Especially when she considered him a friend. Daria felt guilty about the encounter with Nathan and Trent. She hadn't known their situation, and she still didn't. It wouldn't have made sense to intervene, but it still made her cringe to think about.
Finally, she caved. Armed with a set of guitar strings - which the store clerk was able to pick out for her, thanks to Spiral's consistent purchases - Daria went to visit Casa Lane. After a few knocks, Jane answered the door. Of all the damn, rotten luck...
"Ms. Morgendorffer?" Jane sounded concerned, surprised and amused all at once. Her eyes fell onto the bag, then darted back to her face. "Um - did you need something?" Even though Daria had been over once or twice, and given the girl a lift several times, there was a palpable tension. Not negative, but illplaced.
Daria grit her teeth, sighing through her teeth. "Trent's passed out upstairs, right?"
"Oooh. Yeah. He's in the basement Something about being inspired by Dega street." The young girl's face seemed stony, as though she knew something Daria didn't about the man. What more could be revealed about him?
"That's - sort of what I'm here for." Daria shifted her weight, keeping her words to a minimum.
Jane stepped aside, scratching the back of her neck. "Thank God, I thought you were here about my English essay being late. I mean. Head on up." Jane coughed, darting off for the kitchen. It was almost Trent-like, save for the speed at which she ran. Daria almost smiled, rolling her eyes. She turned her focus to the stairs. The open door and the permission were enough to encourage her in. Part of her wondered if there was a reason beyond needing a date for the wedding - that thought was quickly kicked aside for business. Baby steps. Making sure he didn't want to throw anything at her, for sticking around with Nathan.
As she reached the bottom of the stairs, the broken, nasty twang of a guitar sung through the air. She cringed openly, teeth snapping together. She wondered if her hearing would ever recover from that. The music had stopped when she'd knocked, but being so close to the source? How did Jane stand it... "Um. Hello?"
"Shoot me in the head, I'm better off dead."
Daria cringed anew, hand settled on her face. She felt awful, even indirectly. While she and Trent were not the best of friends, they'd gotten along. There were a few sloppy, drunken lapses in memory where she ended up with pancakes in her purse, but otherwise... Friends. Perhaps better friends, with this attempt at an olive branch. It felt theatrical to Daria, offering something in order to sate someone's feelings, but it helped. Apparently. Hopefully.
"Dolled down girl with dead doe eyes, rich boy spreading wealth and lies."
Daria pushed the door open properly. It had been ajar, so she assumed it was okay to open it. And, with all the noise? No way he'd hear her. She was met with Trent and Jesse, slamming out music on their guitars. Both seemed pensive, though they didn't register her arrival. She sighed, waving her hand. "Guys?"
"Pressure of society, drawing blood from the stone."
"Pressure of - society? That doesn't even make sense. Not for this song." Jesse frowned, his hands falling away from his guitar.
There it was. The Mystik Spiral lilt, the lapse in artistic agreement. The pair stopped, turning to each other. "Man, I thought we agreed on - "
Trent didn't get the chance to finish his sentence, as both noticed Daria standing there. Quietly, patiently, though her eyes suggested otherwise. Her hands were folded in front of her, set on the strap of her bag. Trent eyed her, his mouth opening to ask what she wanted.
"I wanted to apologize."
Jesse mumbled something about needing to feed his lawn. With that, he set off for upstairs, guitar still plugged in. After a moment, a fumble and an apology, he was gone. Daria and Trent stood quietly, neither making eye contact. It was Trent who broke the silence first, a sigh sounding like an avalanche in the dank, dark basement of Casa Lane.
"I don't need an apology."
"I don't even know what I'd be apologizing for, but I - the other day..." Daria took a breath, keeping her monotone even in the moment. She felt there was some tension in her choice. That, and the image of Trent so locked up, angry, afraid. It made her more irritable than she liked to admit, and as she met his eye, she forced herself to look back at the ground. "Monique kept encouraging me to go on a blind date with this guy. The guy being Nathan."
Trent scratched at his tattoo on his left arm, not sure what to reply with. "Like I said, I didn't mean to interrupt. Or cause a scene or whatever." The same red hue rose in Trent's collarbone, though Daria got the distinct feeling it wasn't from anger this time. She didn't like this, this fear of speaking freely. It felt force and unnatural.
"After you left, he tried to psychoanalyse me for defending you. I called him an asshole, told him to not contact me again and left. Can we just pretend he doesn't exist?" Daria bit out that least phrase rather clearly, her hands fidgeting with the strap of the bag. "I didn't appreciate his elitist attitude, or his disregard for the arts. That said, I didn't really speak further to him. If he's Monique's friend -"
"Fuck buddy."
Daria narrowed her eyes, not wanting to address that interjection. "That's fine for her. But personally, I prefer people who can be comfortable with themselves, and don't thrive on being narcissistic jerks for a living." Daria let out a small breath, not sure she had spoken this honestly since her time with Troy. She tucked some hair behind her ear, finally meeting Trent's eye. He seemed guilty somehow, his lips as drawn together as hers. "So - I don't know. I don't have friends here."
"Hey, you have Monique, and the guys - "
Daria shook her head. "Not looking for a pep talk. I'm trying to be honest. I go to gigs with you guys, I listen to you play, and Nathan decided it was a good thing to point out. I don't - "
"Are you trying to break up with me, when we're not even dating?"
Daria almost laughed, eyebrows snapping up. "What? No."
"'Cause I think of you as my friend." Trent crossed his arms, shrugging as he examined her. "I didn't mean to screw up your thing with Nathan, but the guy's an ass anyway. I guess I'm glad you think so too. Monique never shuts up about how amazing he is when we're broken up."
Daria squinted, unsure what his point was. "You think of me as your friend?"
"Uh, yeah." Trent drew that out longer than Daria cared for. "Sort of."
"Sort of?"
Trent chewed at his inner cheek, eyes averted. Daria couldn't read him, though it was only fair. The pair kept quiet. Daria didn't know how to respond to that. She thought of the weekend, and her promise to her mother. She thought of Monique, and her constant hawk-like attitude when it came to Daria and Trent hanging out. And then she thought of the stupid, fuzzy feeling she got when he winked at her. The kind of thing that would have sent her to hospital in high school with some crazy rash or heart attack, and yet... Now? Daria blushed unwittingly, hand raking through her hair to cover her face. As quick as it rose, her face returned to normal.
"I need a favour."
Trent instantly turned his attention back to Daria, an unfamiliar edge to his focus. She kept her composure, sighing through her nose.
"It's gonna sound really strange but..." Daria realized that the more she prefaced it, the worse the potential miscommunication would be. "I need someone to come with me to a family wedding, and I know you never have plans, and it's a free meal, and I bought you some guitar strings?" All this came out rather quickly, under her breath. She met his eye, annoyed at her shyness. This would have been so much simpler, had they not talked before she asked. Quick in, quick out, and none of this tension.
"Are you asking me out on a date?" The slyness to his tone made her want to slap the smirk off his face.
No. Not really. Not at all. No way. "Sort of?" Daria realized of all the words she could have thrown in there, she chose not to deny it. It felt strange, and unanticipated. She hadn't prepared for this. This hadn't been part of her master plan. She wasn't ready to introduce a boyfriend to her family. Especially not Trent. Why not? Oh God.
"Cool. Okay. I'm in." Trent grinned, leaning on his amp. "I don't do suits though."
"I don't do dresses, but here we are." Daria frowned, arms crossed. The reality of her situation hadn't sunk in yet, not with how he'd suddenly relaxed, nor the way her heart felt as though it was beating a little faster. This was supposed to be a friendly date. It still was a friendly date, wasn't it? Daria realized they had kept across the room from one another, and really, it wasn't like either of them had asked the other out. A favour, friendly and polite.
Trent approached her, and she took a moment to realize. Even in her slight heeled boots, she was nearly a foot shorter. She stared at him, her arms snapping out. He stopped, accepting the bag. The pair stood, Daria managing consistent eye contact despite her inner monologue of doubts. Trent, on the other hand, appeared as calm and collected as usual, inspecting the guitar strings. He smiled, nodding, and kissed her on the cheek.
A thank-you. Lingering heat spread across her skin, her toes curling and uncurling. This wasn't the appropriate reaction for a twenty-two year old woman. She'd done more than kiss, and she'd been kissed more than once, but it was unanticipated. Daria smiled, genuinely, head dropping to cover the smile.
"Thanks." Trent paused, head tilted. "And uh - really sorry about ruining your thing with Nathan."
Daria shook her head, quickly looking up at Trent. "Honestly? I only did it to make Monique happy. She kept trying to set me up with her friends."
"Maybe because she thinks you're gonna steal me away?"
Daria was struck by that comment far more than anything else they'd said. She kept her attention on his face, eyes vacant and face expressionless. The obvious had been stated and she'd been too stupid to admit it to herself. The constant bickering about Trent, dragging her all over town, all over the Zon even, and her perpetual need to pair the spares? Daria had suspected her motives had been questionable. But then what chance did she stand in comparison to Monique? As musically challenged as she was antisocial, she and Trent were oil and water.
"I doubt that."
Trent shook his head, scratching at his chin. He didn't offer anything else on that specific topic. Daria felt left in the dark, a little worried. What had Monique and Trent been saying about her? "So when's the wedding?"
"Tomorrow."
Trent blinked. "And you asked me today?"
"Like you're one to talk about punctuality." Daria smirked, trying to let her mind run over things, and not labour on his words too much. "You can borrow one of my dad's suits. I will pick you up tomorrow morning. I won't hesitate to turn a hose on you."
Trent groaned, a grin showing through his agitation. "I always knew you'd be bossy."
After a moment, they said their goodbyes. Jesse was in the lounge as Daria left. He had been chatting with Jane, though Daria couldn't guess what they were speaking about. Jane avoided looking at Daria, though there was a smirk on her lips. She pressed on, heading to her car without much going through her mind. Until, of course, she remembered the date she'd acquired for the wedding. Was it stupid of her to find excitement in the day ahead of her? She could spend it getting to know Trent better. Part of her wondered if he even needed the bribe. Maybe he'd have been willing if she'd just asked.
AN: This was a beast. It was supposed to cover the wedding as well as the invitation to said wedding but... Um. Writing awkward, dating-but-not-dating-but-dating sections makes me happy. Review, please!