Chapter 27: Niles
Niles was disappointed that Daphne didn't join the three of them for dinner.
He wasn't feeling great in general, and hoped to see Daphne before or at dinner, but she was already out when he arrived at Frasier's. Niles tried to keep his spirits up as much as he could while with his father and brother, only half listening while they talked, and contributing little to the conversation. Frasier and Martin had already made plans to move him in by tomorrow evening.
Once, what felt like eons ago now, living under the same roof as Daphne would have been a dream come true. Now, Niles was worried about making her uncomfortable in her own home. But, his situation meant he needed to get out of the Montana as soon as possible.
Niles felt he needed to speak with Daphne before he moved in. Some sort of quick discussion to let her know that she didn't need to feel obligated to make a decision, or act a certain way with him just because they were in the same home. He wanted to give her as much distance as possible emotionally, even if he couldn't physically.
He hoped again that he would see Daphne after dinner, but she didn't seem to be home. And if she was, she was avoiding him. That made Niles feel worse in general.
I wish Daphne would hurry up and talk to me. I miss her. I miss seeing her, talking to her. I want that back more than anything. I'm sure that she hates me now. I would hate me...
Niles didn't linger too long at Frasier's after dinner - he still had to finish packing. He sighed as he stepped off the elevator at the Montana. Niles saw someone waiting outside his door - a woman. His heart leapt for a moment, before he realised it was just Roz.
"Oh, Roz." Niles didn't even try to hide the disappointment in his voice. Roz scowled at him.
"Well, don't pretend you're happy to see me or anything."
Niles waved his hands placatingly.
"I'm sorry. My mind was elsewhere, and I thought you were someone else for a moment."
"Daphne, huh?"
He glared at her. It infuriated Niles that Roz knew, and probably knew more than he did at the moment. She seemed to take great pleasure in that fact as well.
"Why are you here, Roz?"
"I've got something you'll be interested in, as a matter of fact." Roz smiled at Niles, clearly enjoying herself. "Daphne wanted me to pass on a message."
Niles perked up, interested, though he was slightly chagrined that they were at a point of having Roz act as messenger.
"Here, let me unlock the door. Come in. Uh, please excuse the mess."
They entered. Roz stopped in the doorway, noticing the disarray from Niles' packing.
"Wow. You really are moving out, huh?"
"Only temporarily. I'm just moving out personal items, confidential documents and the like. The majority of the furniture is to stay as part of the sublease." Niles shuddered, not liking the idea of a stranger staying in his home. "Can I get you something to drink?"
"Oh, no thanks. I'm not staying long, I've got a date."
Niles looked at Roz, a playful smile on his lips.
"Who's the man of the week this time?"
Roz scowled again.
"Very funny. Think it's wise to joke around with someone who has a message you want to hear?"
"Sorry, Roz. Couldn't help it, you know."
He shrugged apologetically. Roz waved it off - she wasn't really offended. Barbed retorts were their thing. Niles moved the conversation back on track.
"So. What did Daphne want you to tell me?"
"Basically that she's okay with you staying at Frasier's. Daphne understands your situation can't be helped and she wants to support you. But, she's not ready yet to discuss your whole 'feelings' thing yet, and doesn't want you to talk about it while you're there."
Niles nodded. He was disappointed, not wanting to keep having to tiptoe around, but he created this mess. The least he could do was be patient, even though it was eating him up inside.
"I thought as much. I was trying to work out how I was going to communicate to her that I didn't want her to feel pressured by my presence."
He sighed, annoyed that he had to relay messages through Roz.
"Can you let her know I understand and will make sure it doesn't come up?"
"Sure thing."
Roz stood there awkwardly for a moment, as if unsure what to say. Niles noticed.
"Was there something else?"
"Well, there is... Daphne might be mad if I told you, but I think you should know."
Niles looked at her sadly.
"If Daphne would be upset, it's probably best not to tell me. I'm sure she'll tell me herself when she's ready."
"I know. But I'm going to tell you anyway. Daphne's confused - your confession stirred up a lot of feelings for her, but I think she does care for you - quite a lot. Beyond that... she's still working it out."
Niles looked at his feet, trying to get his composure. He responded, not looking up, hoping that his voice didn't give his emotions away.
"Thank you, Roz. That means more than I could have hoped."
Roz left. Niles stood in his living room, taking in the mess. Multiple things were still left to be packed away and labelled. His life felt like it had seemingly collapsed in on itself in a short space of time. He sighed, and collapsed on his fainting couch. He was feeling emotionally drained and struggling to keep up with everything. He had felt like he had been just surviving, not letting himself focus on anything for too long, otherwise he might sink. But with the upcoming move, the situation with Daphne, and what Roz just told him; it all hit Niles like a ton of bricks.
Feeling overwhelmed by everything, Niles decided to go to bed and continue in the morning.
Frasier and Martin were over around mid morning. A moving truck was hired to help shift the things Niles was putting into storage. The things Niles would need during his stay at Frasier's were going by car, and had been packed into Niles and Frasier's cars earlier. Martin had taken charge of bossing the movers around, as Niles hovered around nervously. Frasier stood on the phone with the person he had found to sublet the apartment. He called over to Niles as he finished the call.
"Good news, Niles; Dr Maclowery says he can take over the lease for at least six months."
"Oh, thank you, Frasier. That's a relief." Niles looked around the apartment sadly. "I am going to miss my home though..."
"Yes, well hopefully in six months you'll be back here, where you belong." Frasier added reassuringly.
Niles was about to reply, when he noticed how one of the mover's was handling one of his boxes. He yelled out, and went to correct him. Martin approached Frasier.
"Six months seems a bit hopeful for Maris to be done with torturing Niles with this divorce."
"Yes, but I wanted to give him a little hope - today seems to be hard enough already." Frasier agreed.
Everything finally packed, Martin and Frasier drove home, while Niles followed the movers to the storage unit. He then went and met with Dr Maclowery to hand over the keys and finalize the sublease. A few hours later, Niles finally pulled his hatchback into the carpark of Elliott Bay Towers. He sat in the car for a while, nervous and depressed. He tried to give himself a pep talk.
Come on Niles, you can do this. Daphne doesn't hate you, she cares for you. Roz said so...
Niles wished that things were a bit easier, but he had to push through for the moment. He couldn't stay in his car forever, though, and finally made his way up to Frasier's apartment - his temporary home for the next week or two.
