The afternoon came sooner than expected and she was determined to slow time down. Their week together in the cabin had been whittled down to only a few more days. And so much had changed in just the course of one day.
At certain intervals, however, they found themselves leaning on each other. Time after time, she would drop whatever it was she was doing and come to rest against him with a shuddering sigh. It was a challenge of sorts to see if she could reach him before the tears began flowing once more, but he was always there, comforting her when she arrived in his arms. Always.
She couldn't bear to think about leaving him. Not now. She refused to think about what it would be like when she returned to Frasier's-her real home. The questions, the accusations, the prodding from her boss and his father-Niles' family. Her family. But it was the thought of the impending loneliness that shook her most of all. She would not start dating when she came back, despite the advice that she knew that Roz and Frasier would give. They would accept her break-up with Donny, but would say that choosing to stay single is unhealthy and unwise for a woman of her age. The fact remained that seeing other men was completely pointless when she was in love with someone else. She had made that mistake before, giving her heart completely to a man that she truly didn't love.
She wiped away a few tears, determined not to waste what had become the best week of her life. She and Niles still had time to be together, and she wanted to make the most of it.
Their lunch finished and the dishes put away, they resumed building the rooftops of London. It had become a ritual, a way to fill time between meals. They made no plans, did nothing special. They were just two friends, trying to spend as much time together as possible before reality found its way back to them.
As they worked on the puzzle together, she noticed that he was no longer counting the pieces. Dare she hope that he was also trying to make the minutes move more slowly? They had finished less than a tenth of the puzzle, not having even completed the sides. They worked without looking at the picture on the box; anything to slow time down as much as possible.
She had finished putting together another steeple; a blue one this time. Every so often while they worked, their arms would brush against one another as they reached across the table for another piece. The small but significant touch made her heart quiver. She couldn't look at him and instead kept her gaze on the scattered puzzle pieces.
Now she was trying to match a red piece to a nearly completed section of the same color. But the more she tried, the more impossible it seemed. The piece was almost miniscule in size and her sight, she was quickly learning, wasn't as sharp as it used to be. It was beginning to feel like she would never discover its proper place. But she worked persistently, feeling a bit like Niles and his brother in the way that they concentrated on tasks that Daphne often thought of as completely ridiculous. But now she finally understood.
She looked at the clock, startled to see that she'd spent nearly fifteen minutes trying to find a place for one silly puzzle piece. Fifteen minutes of her week with Niles, gone forever, never to return. Conceding defeat, she tossed the annoying puzzle piece back into the pile of unattached pieces and fell against him with a tired, frustrated sigh. It was a sigh that caused his breath to catch in his throat, as though she'd startled him with the unexpected movement.
"Love is so complicated, isn't it, Dr. Crane?" Her own voice surprised her, for it was the most she'd spoken in more than an hour. He seemed just as surprised, replying with a confused "Um…"
"Psychiatrists study this sort of thing, don't they?" she mused. "I mean, don't they have some sort of simple, pompous explanation?" She could feel his face against her hair and she smiled as he inhaled the combination of cucumber and peppermint from her shampoo. It was an odd combination to be sure, but now she was glad that the store was out of her favorite brand, thus forcing her to try something new.
"Well..." Niles began slowly. "This may not be the most popular theory among professional psychiatrists, but I for one believe that love is controlled by the heart and that it's actual circumstances and not the heart itself that make things complicated."
Daphne sighed deeply, disappointed in the expected answer. "Oh…"
"It's difficult to explain the theory of attraction." He continued unhurriedly. "Professionals have been trying for centuries but have never come as close to understanding love as, well… Shakespeare for one."
"The course of true love never did run smooth."
His eyebrows rose and he seemed taken aback by her knowledge. "A Midsummer Night's Dream."
She sat up and looked at him. "I did go to school you know!"
His smile faded. "Daphne I'm sorry, I didn't mean-."
They were gazing at one another now. His eyes held the same look as before, when she'd almost done the unthinkable and kissed a married man. Her heart increased its pace, but he did not kiss her, nor did he even try; a fact that was both a relief and a disappointment. But the disappointment waivered when he reached out and brushed wisps of hair from her cheek. The feel of his fingertips on her skin made her heart flutter and she silently wished for something more; something she knew would happen only in her dreams.
For he was a man she could not have.
He smiled at her and she ignored the disappointment that floated inside of her as they both returned to the safety of the rooftops of London.