Danny didn't even try to sleep. He made it into his room and laid on the hardwood floor. In an old house, you can hear everything from laying atop it's bones like this.
He listened to Charlie and Lacey exchange a few more pleasantries before Charlie finally returned to the room next to his. He listened to Lacey and Jo talk for a little while although he could not hear what they were saying.
Charlie was quiet once he was in his room. Danny wondered if he was in there doing the same thing. He wondered what bullshit Kyle was going to have the three of them do together and about how the hell he was going to try to connect with Lacey now without her ex tagging along every time.
Why did he even care so much? Danny wasn't from here, he didn't have roots here, this wasn't his hometown. He was a city boy with barely any family. Charlie and Lacey had a whole history, this was where they were from.
Lacey.
Once the house was quiet he couldn't help but think about her. They had slept together within the first half hour of finally being alone. That had to mean something right? Lacey wouldn't have objectified him like that would she? She said she just wanted to have some fun for the summer, did he really not hear what she wanted?
That's what it was, he hadn't been listening to her.
Danny decided then that he should just let it all go, the beef with Charlie, the thought of something happening with Lacey, all of it.
With his mind racing, the hour before he was due to feed the animals seemed to blow by. He wanted to crash so hard but he also needed this job so badly and always took his commitments seriously.
At 4 am Danny peeled himself off the floor and dragged his ass back downstairs and out to begin the feeding routine. He ran back through the night over and over as he went from station to station and greeted the animals.
The animals had taught him so much in such a short amount of time. The goats were always happy at face value and if he didn't feed them fast enough they would get a bit violent. The chickens were the opposite, violent straight away, pecking at his boots until he fed them which was when they offered him appreciative clucks.
He found all of their different personalities quite amusing. Danny knew how different people were, but all of them needed to be fed regardless. He added on to the thought he had in his bedroom, he'd let it all go and maybe he would benefit from finding some sort of common ground with Charlie. Maybe they could all be friends. Danny wanted to find a way to feed them all.
Around 5:30 Danny was starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel, or maybe it was just the sun rising. He needed sleep so bad and was almost euphoric as he prepared to finally feed the pigs.
"Hey, cowboy."
"Lacey, hey. You should be asleep—"
"I'm okay, I'm going to head out now that I'm sobered up. That pullout couch just isn't it." Lacey smiled, god she was beautiful Danny thought, "I um, I just wanted to talk before I go."
Danny looked away from her and continued mixing the pig's food.
"Please?" Lacey pushed a little.
Danny shook his head no, "There's nothing to talk about. I get it."
"You get it?" Lacey squinted at him.
"Yeah. We're cool, don't worry about it."
"I'm not worried about anything—"
"Good."
This wasn't going the way Lacey had hoped. She walked over to Danny and into his personal space, taking the handle of the shovel he was using to mix the pig food from him. Danny didn't object, taking a step back as she pulled his focus to her.
"We need to talk, or I guess I need to talk."
Danny exhaled and wiped his forehead with the back of his wrist.
"Danny what I said about us being together—that's not the mistake I was talking about. I didn't mean it to sound like that."
"I know you were drinking, but you were clear and really, like I said, I get it."
"No, you don't."
"Lacey—"
"I was being selfish, that was the mistake."
"You had needs, we got it taken care of." Danny shrugged, "I was not disappointed so I would hardly classify your performance tonight as selfish."
"How would you classify it then?"
"Necessary?" Danny dumped the drum of pig slop into the trough.
Lacey stepped in closer, "Why are you being so cold?"
Danny closed his eyes, finding 'letting it all go' nearly impossible when she was standing so close. He opened them again to find her gorgeous brown eyes twinkling back at him.
"I don't want last night to be a regret for you." Danny admitted, "I'm just saying that I can rationalize a hook up if it's what you needed, I'm okay with that. I was there, you don't have to explain it."
"I don't regret it, not even a little bit." Lacey bit her lip briefly, "After, I just panicked. I felt so heavy."
"Why?"
"You told me that you wanted something longer than just the summer. I realized after that there really is so much more between us. So I wanted to undo it and just hang out, get to know you."
"Do you still feel that way?"
"I do."
"Yeah? How does Charlie fit into that?" Danny couldn't hold back his jealousy no matter how badly he wanted to.
Lacey's face fell a little, her regret from their evening now compounded by the fact that her first love was suddenly back in the picture. Danny knew when he watched her face change that the two men were definitely on Lacey's mind in the same way.
"You're right, okay? Let's just work on getting to know each other. I want to." Danny tried to sound positive, "I'm here, all summer."
"I need closure with him. That's how he fits into this."
"Closure." Danny repeated as if the words were foreign.
"Hey Lacey." Charlie appeared at the entrance to the barn.
"Morning, Charlie." Lacey gave him a lazy wave.
Of course, Danny thought. Perfect timing.
"I hope you find what you're looking for." Danny said quietly, his focus now back on cleaning up the supplies so he could finally crash.
Lacey turned and left him there, heading toward Charlie. Danny pretended like his whole heart wasn't just walking away from him. Like he had met his soulmate and half of his very existence was leaving his body and heading to parts unknown. Damn he needed to sleep.
"Good morning." Tess greeted cheerfully as Danny dragged himself through the kitchen door.
"Did Charlie tell you that breakfast is ready?" Kyle asked as he sipped his coffee.
"Oh, no, he's talking to Lacey. I'm not very hungry, animals are all set, do you mind if I get some sleep now?"
"Of course. I'll save some breakfast for you." Tess said as she worked on wrapping up some of the food she had made.
Danny shuffled up the stairs and paused in front of his door. Charlie was still outside. He wondered what he and Lacey were talking about. Would they reconcile? He wouldn't blame her if that's what she wanted.
Danny couldn't help it, he opened the tiny door to the roof and climbed out. It was well after 6 am now and the sun was up, masked in part by the stubborn morning fog.
Danny moved low and quietly toward the side of the house where he knew he'd be able to see them. He wasn't spying he tried to convince himself, it was research. How long would closure take exactly?
Lacey had her back leaning against her closed car door, arms crossed in front of her chest. Charlie was leaning forward, much too close, with one arm holding himself up, conveniently bracketing one side of her. She was smiling, they both were.
Why was he doing this to himself? This was stupid. He tried to rationalize that if this were him and he was getting out of prison early, he'd definitely want to see her too. Still, something about Lacey confessing she really did have new feelings for Danny ten minutes ago made watching her and Charlie interact hit different.
Danny watched as Charlie brought his free hand up to move Lacey's hair from her face, dragging a finger to her chin before lifting it up lovingly. Was he about to—?
Danny's eyes were laser focused on Lacey, watching her pull her face away from his attempt and hold her hands out in front of her. She rejected him. Danny's heart was racing but fluttered with excitement at the same time.
They only spoke for another minute before Lacey pulled her door open and stuck a leg inside her car. She didn't hug him, but rubbed the outside of his arm and held him there as she said goodbye. Charlie turned and jogged back toward the house, Lacey the only one to look up and spot him looking down.
They stared at each other for a few moments, Lacey smiling so big at him that he could see her dimples from all the way up there on the roof. She brought her right hand up over her heat and held it there. Danny reciprocated and the two just stood there like idiots silently manifesting some sort of love pledge of allegiance. Lacey eventually gave Danny a single wave and disappeared into her car.
Sunday afternoon, Kyle had the boys out changing the trashcans along Main Street. Everyone could feel the tension between Charlie and Danny so Archie and Kyle did their best to keep them separated and diffused. They didn't talk.
Monday didn't go much better. Kyle took the boys to work with him and set them up to sweep the parking lot of the police station and then sand and paint the fencing that camouflaged the commercial dumpster around back.
As they prepared to start sanding, Archie announced that he had to use the bathroom.
"You okay if I go take a piss?"
"I don't give a shit—" Danny cringed and ignored his friend.
"D."
"I don't need a fucking babysitter, okay?" Danny didn't do much to reassure him of anything.
Archie jogged inside and hoped for the best.
"Man I thought we'd never get to be alone." Charlie joked.
Danny didn't respond.
"You got a problem, Desai?" Charlie stopped sanding and turned to figure out why Danny was not saying anything.
"More than I can count, zero involving you at the moment. Thanks for checking." Danny sanded faster.
"Bullshit." Charlie pushed further, "She told me you two are into each other. I assume my name is on the list somewhere."
"Does 'she' have a name?"
"We're really playing this game?" Charlie stopped working and turned his full attention on Danny.
"I don't talk about my personal life with anyone, especially not with you."
"Jesus, it not like I'm asking to compare notes here—"
"You know what, just stop talking—"
"You're telling me to shut up?" Charlie took a step toward Danny.
"Don't fucking come near me." Danny growled.
Charlie smiled, "Or what? You'll attack me? I've been in big boy jail for a year, I know how to fight, I'll destroy you." Charlie took another step.
"Try me. I'm ready." Danny promised as their energies finally got close enough to start feeding off of each other.
Charlie had no idea what kind of blind rage was bubbling under Danny's skin. A lifetime of abuse and neglect from his own parents, being isolated and lonely since he was a little boy. Whitney and Archie had kept him safe and warm for the last couple of years but after being the scapegoat for just having a party, Danny was more than willing to release some of this pent up pain and darkness.
Danny took his own step closer and threw the sandpaper down into their pile of supplies.
"You know what'll happen. You'll go to jail and I'll be back in between her legs. C'mon, do it—" Charlie kept poking.
"Don't talk about her." Danny warned.
"Oh now you know who I'm talking about?" Charlie smiled again and Danny just wanted to punch his face in.
"Why does it look like two kittens sizing each other up out here? Where's Archie?" Kyle appeared out of nowhere, Danny and Charlie deflating their chests real quick.
"I had to use the bathroom Uncle Kyle." Archie returned and answered for the now silent young men, "What'd I miss?"
"Charlie? Danny?" Kyle probed, "Guys, you're here to complete community service. That's it."
Kyle watched them resume sanding for a few solid minutes before heading back inside.
"This isn't a competition." Danny said out loud.
"Agreed, no competition." Charlie said, cocky as ever.
"If Lacey told you we're into each other, why are you so confident she'll ultimately pick you?" Danny wondered.
"Guys—" Archie knew this wasn't over.
"You'll be gone at the end of the summer, maybe sooner if I can get you to violate your probation." Charlie shrugged.
"Charlie, don't start shit. I can make your life a living hell." Archie promised, being the Chief's nephew was not something that was lost on Charlie.
Charlie glared between the two of them, "Stay in your lane and we won't have problems."
Danny walked around Charlie slowly and took up a new spot right next to him so he could own this douche bag further. He dropped his voice down low.
"Lacey is not property. If she wants to see me, I'm here for all of that. I care about her, what she thinks, how she feels—the birthmark on her hip, all of it." It was Danny's turn to smile, shamelessly making it known that he knew what she looked like naked.
That was it. Charlie sacked Danny low and took him to the ground. The move disoriented Danny just long enough for Charlie to punch him in the face. Danny returned the favor almost immediately, the disgusting sound of meat punching meat made Archie wince.
"Hey! Stop it!" Archie yelled, "You fucking assholes—"
Archie did his best to pull Charlie away from Danny but not before both of them connected with each other's faces for a second time.
"Aww, what the hell?!" Kyle bellowed and ran out to help Archie pull them apart, "What is wrong with you two?! Are you kidding me with this right now?!"
Charlie's lip was bleeding, both of them had en eye rapidly swelling.
"What happened here? Who started this?!" Kyle demanded, neither young man saying a word, "You will start talking or I'm sending you both back right now."
"Nothing happened, Chief." Danny went first.
When Charlie realized that Danny wasn't about to snitch on him he quickly followed suit.
"We were just playing around."
"No, I want to know right now. Archie?" Kyle stared at his nephew and fully expected him to tell the truth.
"I didn't see anything. They were just messing around." Archie tried.
"Well which was it?" Kyle was obviously frustrated.
"I didn't see anything."
"Perfect. Fine, you don't want to tell me? You'll work for this." Kyle nodded, "You're about to become best friends."
Chief Masterson sat and watched the three of them finish painting the fencing. Once completed he brought them home and got them to work stacking hundreds of cords of firewood.
Kyle brought them dinner and had them eat together and go right back to stacking wood. Around 7 pm he instructed them to go inside.
"Whoa, what happened to you guys?!" Jo asked, her face horrified as they marched past Jo and Tess in the kitchen.
"Looks worse than it is." Danny tried to smooth this over further.
Tess hopped up and got two ice packs out of the freezer and handed them to Danny and Charlie.
"Thank you." Danny said politely as always.
"Your work today is not counting." Kyle said with finality.
"Uncle Kyle that's bullshit! I wasn't fighting!" Archie objected.
"Oh, they were fighting?!" Kyle pointed to the young men with black eyes standing in his kitchen.
"No—" Archie tried to backtrack.
"YOU were the one who chose not to tell me the truth, Archie. You got your buddy's back, right? This is the consequence for today's circus. Do not push me further than this point, I will not hesitate to call your PO and send you all back. I'm serious."
"Yes, sir." Danny responded.
"I'm trying to help you here. You're losing this opportunity real quick. Get upstairs and I don't want to hear a single sound for the rest of the night.
Archie, Charlie and Danny were the only children in their families. Having these sudden pseudo-brothers would take some time to get used to.
"Watch your back." Charlie muttered behind Danny as the headed for their rooms.
"We agree on something. Cheers." Danny winked and disappeared into his room, doing his best hide his fear.