Disclaimer: I Do Not Own Revenge, I Just Love It

Chapter 4: One Sip

Her favourite colour was blue, blue like the ocean, not like sky. She preferred dogs to cats, and boats over planes, and if she could have any superpower in the world then she'd choose invisibility, that way she could easily disappear from people or places she didn't want to be near.

Daniel hadn't learnt very much, but he'd learnt a little bit more about Amanda these past couple days even if they were only trivial things.

She didn't like to talk much, even about simple things like her favourite food for example. He'd ask her and she'd say she didn't have one, that she didn't care, or that she hadn't thought about it. But he caught the sense that it wasn't so much her not caring, but her forgetting that there were so many choices she could choose from, so he'd continually pry her till she answered.

To her though such questions about favourite things and such seemed pointless. She didn't have the luxury to pick and choose what she liked or what she wanted...and even when she did, such trivial things didn't matter when she had much heavier thoughts weighing on her mind.

She was interesting that's for sure, and when she did talk, Daniel found he'd intently listen, but mostly it was him doing the talking. They would sit there on the bench, Amanda with her sketchbook open drawing, and Daniel with his journal out as though he was ready to write.

Though he wouldn't be writing, he'd be talking. Initially, he'd try to draw her into conversation, but she never cared to hold it for long. So instead he'd find himself babbling; about the Hampton's, about his younger sister, about his football games and really about just trivial stuff in general. He'd talk for a little while, and she'd listen for a little while. At least it seemed she was listening, it was hard to tell for her eyes were always focused on the sketchbook she was drawing in, though sometimes she'd murmur quick words of response, or smile fleetingly at the funny parts in his stories, sometimes she'd even ask a question of her own.

The rain had given them two extra days to know each other further, subtly paving the way for friendship as though Mother Nature was secretly rooting for them.

Daniel and his team had come on the Monday for the week-long tournament, expecting the finals to be on Saturday, so that they could return home for Sunday. But due to unplayable weather conditions, both the Thursday and Friday game had been cancelled and rescheduled to the Saturday and Sunday, leaving Monday as the finals and Tuesday as their day of leaving. So while the coaches had angrily and indiscreetly cursed, the football guys grumbled before the happy realization that it meant more school to miss. Daniel had waited...waited for the late evening with the hope that the heavy rain and the lightning warning it had brought..would quell, so that he could meet with and spend more time trying to unravel his understanding of the enigma which was Emily Thorne.

Both days the weather had luckily provided him with that opportunity.

It was the Saturday now and just past eleven o'clock, they'd been on the bench for an hour or so before Daniel had somehow managed to convince Amanda into taking a walk with him. They were always staring at the lake in their view, and tonight he'd just figured, why not walk the path along it?

Naturally she'd been reluctant, but after much pleading on his count, she'd sighed heavily and grudgingly agreed following him down the path, her steps just always slightly behind his.

It was chillier than the other days, and a bit more windy too, something he quickly came to realize so close to the lake. Still it was kind of nice walking quietly along the little dirted trail; the lake to the left of them, the town to the right of them, and the moon up above. It was simple moments like these that inspired him to write, to pull out his pen, and let his fragmented thoughts flow down onto paper into something beautiful,.

"Don't you wish you could walk and easily write at the same time. That way, in moments like these I could write what I feel as I see it, instead of having to hold on to all those loose thoughts till I sit down and open my poetry journal." Daniel muttered absentmindedly.

"Not really" Amanda replied dismissively, not quite understanding his sentiment. She wasn't a writer...not like him. In fact she hated writing, she'd tried it before..not poetry but writing in a diary. She'd heard it was a good coping mechanism, a less destructive way to cope with the bitter, angry feelings she'd been plagued with. That was all bullshit though, writing hadn't helped, writing had just made her even angrier; having to think about it, having to pinpoint her emotions and recall bitter experiences, just to have what? Living physical proof of her hardships and pain, how useless.

Noticing his slight frown though, she sighed and muttered, "I mean we can sit down at that tree over there, if you really want to write". It's not as though she had a home to get back to...or a family anxiously waiting to hear her slip in safely through the door.

"It's fine, I'd probably just lose all those thoughts anyway and find myself filling the silence with my voice, which I'm sure you've heard too much of by now" he joked lightly.

Although his guise these past few days, had been that he wanted the bench to write...in reality, he'd just wanted the bench because he'd found Amanda interesting and wanted to talk to her. There was just something different about her… she felt so strikingly real...so raw, even if there was such an unfortunate aura of sadness surrounding her. It was something he didn't see in the Hampton's. At home, everyone was so easy to figure out, they had two layers….who they pretended to be and who they really were….usually neither layer was of too much interest, or too hard to figure out. But her...Emily she was different somehow, she was multi-faceted and he found himself drawn to her, like he would be to an intricate puzzle in need of solving. He found himself liking her too...for all her sharp glares, and little jabs, her rolling of the eyes, and exasperated sighs...he found an unexplainable sense of friendship towards her...and even a little sense of comfort.

Around her he could be himself, not the wealthy Grayson plagued with unwanted expectations, nor the popular jock who was put on a pedestal with far more attention then he wanted. No with her he was simply Daniel, a 16-year-old guy, who held so much more essence and substance than he was ever really given credit for.

"You're a distraction, you know that" he teased, wanting to make her smile, if even just a little. She didn't smile very much and something told him that didn't really change when he wasn't around. So when he was, he felt a sense of accomplishment seeing her lips curl up into one. "I never get any writing done with you" he added.

That suited him fine though, writing was something he did best in solitude, just him and his thoughts alone anyway.

Amanda rolled her eyes, "And whose fault is that I agreed to let you share the bench with me, not tell me your whole life story". she muttered, recalling all the things he'd talked about.

Surprisingly though, she hadn't actually minded. He had such a warm, smooth-sounding voice, especially when he talked about things he liked, and as much as she denied it, it was kind of nice that she could just listen to his voice, and know she wasn't so alone as she drew. All without having to compromise her own sense of comfort by conversing back with him and holding conversation.

She liked when he talked about his little sister, Charlotte the most. It was sweet hearing the stories he told about her, and hearing just how much he seemed to care for her by the way he spoke of her. It almost made her wish she had a sister, someone she was bonded to...someone she could laugh with and take comfort in….someone she could trust. Thinking about it though, it was for the best that her father had only one child. If he'd had another and she'd had a sister or a brother, although they would have had each other to take comfort in, they still would have been exposed to the same pain and misfortune she was even now still struggling with….and that was just too cruel. She wouldn't wish that on anyone, except for the people that had put her through it themselves, let alone her very own flesh and blood…..she wasn't that selfish.

Daniel only chuckled, "Come on, I keep you well compensated with the treats, I've been sharing with you", he murmured, referring to the little candies and chocolates they'd been sharing on the bench.

Amanda shrugged, "I guess" she admitted tentatively, "but….", her voice faltering, she paused and Daniel observingly noticed the way her composure changed, as though she was further trying to pad her well-guarded walls.

On instinct...she probably was.

But...why? She wanted to ask, struggling in frustration with the thought in her head. She just didn't understand, why her? Why purposely choose to bother with her and show each night? She wasn't the girl that people wanted to interact with, she was the girl who people found conveniently easier to ignore. That's how she lived and that's how she liked it.

But he had to be different, he had to try and interact with her and she wanted to know why, why the hell he had to try and compromise her sense of isolation. She'd given him no reason to believe that she wanted his company, it's not as though she was friendly, or warm...or engaging.

Not like him...not like he was, not that she'd admit that aloud. If she did than it might sound like she actually liked him, which she couldn't. She was simply putting up with him, that's all. His caring disposition, his warm smiles, and chuckles, his easy-going chatter. It did nothing for her but pass the time.

Shaking her head, Amanda quickly muttered, "Nevermind", staring squarely back at him as she felt his scrutinizing gaze upon her. "What?" she quipped, daring him to question her further.

He didn't, Daniel just shook his head himself dismissing what he wanted to say, as he braced himself for the cool gust of wind he felt coming his way. She was probably cold too, especially being in only a thin sweater.

"Here" he murmured, his voice full of kindness and sincerity, as he shrugged off his jacket and handed it to Amanda, "You're probably freezing", and being the gentlemen he was, he just couldn't allow that.

Amanda looked at him her eyes widened in a mixture of both confusion and surprise, as she shook her head on impulse in her almost instinctive defiance. He was right she was cold, by now there were probably little goosebumps underneath the thin cheap fabric of her sweater. Still she couldn't just accept his jacket, like the girls he probably had fawning over him back home would happily do...and she didn't want to.

What did he expect? How stupid...she'd braced way more than the cold by herself before with no jacket...no protection at all. So she especially didn't need his help now, nor his kindness and sympathy "I'm fine" she scoffed, like his offer was silly.

"Sure" Daniel muttered disbelievingly, his face scrunching up into a frown, as he took her by surprise by very quickly grabbing onto her hand wanting to feel her temperature for himself. Her hand was soft and felt surprisingly small in his hands. It was also cold, freezing cold, just as he'd guessed.

Immediately snatching her hand away, her stomach twisting up uncomfortably from the confusion of his hand touching hers, Amanda glared at him icily, "What are you doing?" she snapped.

"Your hands, I knew you were cold" Daniel replied candidly, his voice slightly apologetic, for the impulsive action he'd used to prove his point. "You know it wouldn't kill you to accept my kindness" he promptly added, pushing his jacket towards her once more, in the hopes that she would accept it.

She didn't.

Amanda rolled her eyes, feeling infuriated by both his previous action of hand to hand contact and by his irritating choice of words. What the hell did he know?

She'd been pretty accepting of Daniel and his actions In a few days she'd let him into more of herself than she had let anyone else in the past few years. Not that anyone else had tried...but still, the fact remained.

It hadn't been her intention, she'd been careful from the start, at least she'd tried to be. Her only losing point, being his last name which had caught her off guard. Grayson…..Daniel Grayson, she'd been too curious, wanting to know what the offspring of the callous dark haired lady, and the cold grey-eyed man was like. So she had bargained a little bit of herself for her to know a little bit about himself. It was an action she was now wondering if she'd regret.

Opening her mouth ready to send a sharp remark back, she stopped when she felt a heavy, fat drop of rain, splash against her cheek. Great...just great it was about to start pouring.

"Would you like the jacket now" he quipped, his patience thinning at her stubbornness as he thrust the jacket at her only to have her thrust it back. Sighing frustratedly as five more drops of rain landed on him, he began to speedily walk in the direction of the small diner he saw up ahead. "Come on" he muttered, breaking into a run, when the rain began to start steadily pouring.

Swinging open the door, Amanda close on his heels, Daniel quickly stepped inside scanning the old fashioned 50's styled room, with it's vintage posters, famous Elvis Presley records plastered against the walls and black and white checkered floors, before heading straight towards one of the small booths in the back.

Patting down his sweater and pants to see how much rain had soaked them, he sighed heavily, and plopped down on the cheap red vinyl booth. He was damp, uncomfortably damp, which irritated him, almost as much as Amanda's attitude.

Reluctantly sitting down opposite him, Amanda sighed heavily herself, ignoring Daniel completely as she took off her small backpack, and opened it up, checking to that see her sketchbook hadn't caught any rain...luckily it hadn't.

"I was just trying to be kind" Daniel said tensely, a frown on his face as he filled the rather awkward silence.

"I never asked you to be" she muttered back indifferently.

"That's the point, you're not supposed to have to ask for kindness…". It frustrated him that she didn't understand that. That she refused to recognize that some people weren't all bad.

Amanda just shook her head opposedly, too tired to bother refuting in words. That might be his rule, but her rule was that you weren't suppose to easily accept kindness, especially too much from one person. That just led to false ideas, false hope, and ultimately more pain.

"I don't know why you have to be so difficult" Daniel snapped, his eyes flickering to hers as she glared dangerously back at him, warning him not to say anymore,"It's like you purposefully try and push people away before they can even get close to you. Do you honestly believe that's the way to live?"

"It's the only way to live" Amanda spat back angrily, trying not to expose the pain and sadness his words had harshly jolted her back into feeling. If she was kind, if she was trusting, then she never would have survived. She would have been trampled on over and over and over again, until she was simply reduced to dust. It wasn't as though she had asked for this...she hadn't decided at five that she was going to be difficult all her life.

No, but life...the circumstances she'd been hit with had forced her into that lonely pit. "I wouldn't expect you to understand though, Grayson" she jabbed, emphasizing his surname with the true animosity she felt surrounding it. "Having been pampered and sheltered and spoiled all your life, as if you know a damn thing about how the real world works".

"You're probably right" Daniel replied slowly, hating how dirty and how ignorant she made him sound by the cynicism heard so evidently in her voice. "But being wealthy, and being surrounded by these people with such huge fortunes, who should be the happiest of all. I've come to realize more than anyone else...that nothing, not even millions of dollars can guarantee your happiness as well as having someone you can rely on, and trust...and you can't get that by isolating yourself from everyone that comes your way."

"Then I guess I'm just a lost cause" Amanda muttered bitterly, having lost the will to angrily raise her voice.

"You don't have to be" he murmured, swallowing the last of his lingering sense of frustration towards her in the pain he heard so clearly in her voice and saw exposed through her jaded brown eyes.

"Stop talking as though you know me" she snapped, shaking her head as she looked at him, "because you don't know a thing".

"Look I'm sorry" he began to utter, his voice both firm and gentle as he tried to find the right words to speak, "You're right, I don't know a thing, I haven't lived through your life but even someone as ignorant as me can see that it must have been painful...so I'm sorry, alright. I'm sorry that life gave you such a shitty hand."

Swallowing the lump in her throat, trying to keep her voice steady...hard sounding, harsh. Amanda shook her head slowly, her eyes focused down to avoid his gaze so that he couldn't see the moisture accumulating in the corner of her eyes. This was the first time anyone had ever apologized to her for her ill-fated life, and as much as she'd like to think his words meant nothing...the moisture in her eyes proved otherwise

"Just leave me alone Daniel" she muttered her words lacking much less bite than usual, as she stood up hastily from her seat on the booth needing to escape, before he unlocked more vulnerability within her. A thought which made her stomach twist up uncomfortably like it did when she thought about him and his actions. She couldn't trust him….she didn't want to, they'd only known each other for a few days. He shouldn't actually care...it only made her uneasy.

"Why, what are you so afraid of?" he challenged.

Shaking her head, still avoiding his eye contact, Amanda ignored him, her back facing him as she quickly walked away, finding a free spot, a good many booths away from him on the other side of the diner.

Afraid...she wasn't afraid.

Not anymore at least, she wasn't that weak little girl who had first entered the foster care system, at the loss of her father. The girl who had cried herself to sleep, choking on her own tears. The girl who had learnt to fear the darkness, she had never before batted an eye at. The girl who had feared peoples angry glares, and harmful whispers as though they could metamorphose into something physical and stab her skin to make her bleed.

No, she wasn't afraid anymore because she'd put up guards. She'd learnt to be cautious...cynical. She'd learnt that people couldn't be trusted, that everybody had ulterior motives and darkness in their hearts, that the world wasn't a safe place. She'd learnt that there was no hero of justice, no one to save her, and that if you wished upon a star, the wish would die out and disintegrate before ever reaching it.

But most of all she'd learnt that she was disgustingly helpless...and that she needed to harden herself, her mind, her soul. She needed to fortify the walls around her, and mirror a tough facade till her reflection showed true. She needed to compartmentalize her thoughts from her real emotions and keep people at a distance. She needed to be safe no matter the cost

Bond...friendship, such words were nice sentiments she supposed but unrealistic at best, at least for her. She couldn't be a friend to anybody, so it didn't matter, not one bit. She was alone and for the better too.

Shoving in her earphones, attached to the cracked ipod in her bag. Amanda rested her head tiredly against the table, her arms cocooning around her head to provide some sort of cushioning, as she closed her eyes, welcoming the darkness which she'd grown to find an eerie sense of comfort in. At least darkness and all the feelings it encircled was familiar to her.

He didn't understand, didn't know what to think, he'd never had to deal with someone like her before...someone so tough yet so caged. Maybe she was just a lost cause after all. If she'd dimmed out her hope, was there even any point of him holding some of his own, of trying? He didn't really know.

They had only talked, spent a couple hours in each other's presence each night for a few days now….but did that make them friends or just friendly strangers? What equated to friendship anyway? And if he felt even the tiniest bit like hers, should he get up and try to talk to her or just leave her alone? Like she'd so clearly stated.

He didn't know….and he didn't like it, not one bit.

On one hand, he understood personal space, and wanting to be alone, to hide your tears, but he also recognized how debilitating that could be…...and in Emily's case he just knew, it was only hurting her.

…

…

…

…

…

"Here" Daniel murmured, a small while later, placing a large white mug filled to the brim with steaming hot chocolate, bobbing with fluffy white marshmallows in front of her. He couldn't just leave her alone, not when she looked so pained.

"It will warm you up" he added gently, sliding in casually on the opposite side of the booth with his own mug of hot chocolate in front of himself.

Her eyes flickering tiredly between Daniel, the hot drink and the rainy atmosphere outside the window. Amanda swallowed down the small lump in her throat, not daring to look back at him for fear his genuineness might entrap her. What made him think she wanted more of his kindness anyway, had she not just spat on all his other attempts. "I told you to leave me alone" she muttered.

"I know" Daniel replied steadily, "I'm just wanting to know for what reason, that's all. I won't bother you again if I can accept the reason."

"There's no good reason" she responded harshly, frowning at him, no good reason he would understand at least, not when he so foolishly believed love could make the world go round, or some stupid, naive nonsense like that. "I just don't particularly like you".

"Ouch" Daniel murmured, half-believing her, half-not, when her eyes were like that...so vacant looking he didn't know what to think. Still, she seemed like the type of girl who could cut you off at a second if she really really wanted to. Someone who could make you want to run if you got on her bad side...and yet she hadn't caused him to run. She'd maybe tried, but not with the full extent of her cutting tendencies or surely he would have felt a much more malicious vibe from her.

She hadn't been particularly warm or friendly towards him either, but that didn't really seem like her nature. So surely if she'd truly disliked him, she would have made sure he'd found no reason to want to turn up to that bench again...and yet she hadn't. "Somehow I just don't quite believe that though" he replied, much to her frustration. Instead, he believed that she was afraid...afraid to get close to anyone

Scoffing at his response, Amanda shook her head, feeling agitated by his words. He was right she didn't dislike him, not really, she just didn't want to deal with him any longer, he frustrated her; his warmth, his kindness, his naive attitude, they grated on her mind...and she was beginning to really feel it now, and it was beginning to hurt.

"What the hell do you want from me Daniel?" she muttered bitterly, breaking her jaded gaze from him, as she looked down at her mug of hot chocolate, the one he'd kindly bought for her, the one she was letting get cold.

"Nothing...I just…"

"Just what?" she bit back

"One sip" he said firmly, finding his voice, as he gestured towards the hot chocolate in front of her, "One sip and I'll leave you alone"... for tonight at least he thought in his head.

Looking at him suspiciously unsure of what he was trying to get at, Amanda shook her head in confusion, before begrudgingly agreeing. "Whatever" she muttered, slowly picking up the mug in her hands. It was still hot, the steam had dissipated, but she could feel the warmth of the liquid, through the mug as she brought it up to her lips and took a sip.

The hot chocolate tasted good, really good, sweet on her tongue and warm in her stomach, it left an almost nostalgic feeling even. Hot chocolate had been her favourite hot drink for the wintertime as a child. Snuggled up on the couch, with Sammy in her arms, and a mug of hot chocolate in her hands, as with sleepy eyes she watched the luminous flames in the fireplace flickering playfully, twisting and turning into shapes and images she imagined. It was kind of like cloud watching, you saw the indistinct shapes as what you wanted them to be; a dancing lady, a roaring lion, a kite in the sky.

She'd always loved that, mesmerized by the deep orange flames in their fireplace, working so hard to heat the house from the cold outside. As well as the steady flow of snowflakes falling from the sky, blanketing down softly over the Hampton's, providing her with a new environment to gleefully play in the next day.

She hadn't thought about it as a child, those two extremes; the scorching, furious heat of fire, and the numbing, freezing chill of ice. As a child, she'd just found a way to amuse herself with both of them, but as she was now, she felt them more than anything, both the burn and the chill of those two very dangerous elements.

"Happy?" she muttered sarcastically.

Daniel slowly nodded his head, standing up from the booth as promised, "Did it warm you up?" he questioned, just before walking away, his deep brown eyes having stared observantly at her, waiting for her answer.

She hadn't replied though, hadn't said a thing, just pursed her lips and watched him as he walked away, waiting till he was clearly out of sight, before bringing the damned hot chocolate up to her lips once more.

This was why she didn't like him, he got underneath her damn skin.

A/N I know it's been a while, but I'm finally back with a new chapter, hope you all enjoyed it =D. I'm glad some interest has been taken in this story, and thanks so much for the lovely comments I've been seeing.