Chapter 34: Daphne
Daphne was mostly done moving the rest of Niles' things to her car when Martin and Frasier woke up. They were sitting at the table when Daphne returned to grab the last couple of boxes.
"Morning, Daph. Is Niles still around?" Frasier looked around the room.
Daphne shook her head.
"He's left already; decided to get an early start today. I'm giving him a hand with the move." Daphne picked up another box. "I'm just about to take the last of his things over."
Frasier looked at her curiously.
"Did Niles ask you for help?"
Daphne realised what Frasier was thinking. Possibly that Niles asked her, in an attempt to be alone with her. That irritated her for some reason.
I can see his suspicions about Niles' motivations, now that I know that he knows that Niles has feelings for me. But he still doesn't know that I know, or that I know that he knows. And he doesn't know anything about what has happened between Niles and me. Which is probably for the best.
She shook her head, confused by her own train of thought.
"No, I offered to help. I thought he could use a little bit of extra support today."
Frasier seemed mollified by her response.
"I think I'll book a table at Le Cigare Volant for tonight. Take Niles out, help rally his spirits."
"That might be a good idea." Daphne agreed.
Martin huffed.
"Ah geez, you don't have to baby him. Niles is tougher than he looks. He'll be fine."
Daphne wasn't so sure.
Daphne arrived in front of the building, and had to double check to make sure she got the right address. The Shangri-La looked like it was in need of a good coat of paint from the outside, the walls dark from city smog. She parked, and grabbed a box out of the car, before looking for the apartment.
The inside didn't look too bad, all things considered. The lobby was a little dim, as one of the lights had blown, but it was clean for the most part - although there was a light musty smell, most likely due to the older furniture and carpet. The carpet looked like it hadn't been replaced since the 70s, and there was obvious wear and tear on the walls and furniture.
Daphne walked up the stairs (the lift was out of order) to the third floor, and walked down the corridor. She found Niles' place; the front door already open.
She stuck her head through the door, knocking lightly.
It was a sparsely furnished studio. Several boxes and other belongings were stacked around the room, still unopened. The walls had some stains from previous water damage, and there was a slight musty odour, typical of any place that had been vacant and locked up tight for a while. The curtains hung haphazardly from the window. Like downstairs, the carpet looked like it was at least 20 years old and had seen better days. The same could be said for the rest of the furniture as well, but at least there wasn't anything that looked broken or unusable.
There didn't seem to be a bed at first glance, before Daphne noticed what might have been a pull down Murphy bed. It was impossible to tell the condition of it while it was folded away, but she assumed it would be similar to the rest of the apartment. At the centre of it all was a recliner of an indeterminate colour - it looked brown but a thorough clean might show it was a cream colour originally.
Niles was sitting on that chair, staring out the window, looking completely out of place in his suit.
He glanced over when he heard Daphne knock, and looked embarrassed. Niles dusted his pants down as he stood, as if trying to remove layers of unseen grime that had potentially accumulated from just being in the room.
"So, this is the place. It's a bit of a downgrade, but I might be able to make it work."
He flashed Daphne a smile that did not reassure her in the slightest.
"Oh, Niles. I'm sorry." She set the box down. "Did you want a hand at trying to clean before you unpack?"
"This is after a clean."
He looked despondent for a moment, before losing his composure completely.
"Oh, I don't know if I can do this!" Niles threw himself back down onto the chair, and looked up at the ceiling pitifully. He fixated on something he saw up there. "How do you get food stuck to a ceiling like that?"
Daphne glanced up at the stain before returning her attention to Niles. He was throwing himself a pity party, as despair for his situation set in. She felt bad for him, but felt he was overreacting a little.
"Oh, Niles, I know it's not what you're used to, but it's really not that bad."
Niles looked at her and whined, completely unconvinced by her statement.
"It's small, it's cramped, it's dirty. The neighbours are loud, there's a weird smell, it's-"
"It's not as bad as some places I've had to live." Daphne interrupted him there, slightly annoyed.
Niles stopped and looked at her, surprised. As if he never considered where Daphne might have lived previously in her life. She continued.
"I mean, what do you expect? I lived with my father – who was always drinking away our money; my mother – who never held a job down for more than a few months; and eight brothers – who never gave me a moment of privacy. My father and brothers worked on the docks, so our homes always smelt like fish, as well as old cigarettes and whiskey.
"We moved a lot; because my parents couldn't pay rent, or my brothers terrorised the neighbourhood with their antics, or the place had been condemned. Most of the places we did live were dirty, barely fit to be called a home. Especially the ones we could afford.
"At one point in my childhood, the 12 of us – that's including my Grammy Moon, too – were crammed into a council flat that wasn't much bigger than this. Can you imagine that? 12 people and only two bedrooms?
"I left home as soon as I could. For years I was couch surfing or living with multiple people. Some of those places were just as bad as this, if not worse. Even after becoming a physical therapist and moving halfway around the world, I still live with other people. At least I get my own room now."
Daphne paused, slightly out of breath from her rant. Niles hung his head, ashamed.
"I'm sorry, Daphne. I guess I should be glad to just have a roof over my head. It's just... such a huge adjustment. My whole life has seemingly changed overnight..."
Daphne sighed. She did feel for Niles. It wasn't an easy thing to go through.
"I know it's hard. But your family is here to help you – to support you. I'm here to support you. You're not alone in this."
Niles nodded, and stood up.
"Let's go grab those boxes out of your car. I don't want to hold you up too long."
After a few trips, they had completely unpacked the car. Daphne looked around the unit. With the stuff Niles brought as well as the things from her car, it was now quite cramped. They stood in the apartment, shoulder to shoulder. Daphne suddenly felt very aware of how close they were to each other, and of her own heartbeat. She walked across the small room and sat down.
"Did you want a hand with unpacking? Cleaning?"
Niles shook his head. He still looked despondent, like all hope had been drained from him.
"It's only temporary, Niles."
He looked at her, a little fearful.
"What if it isn't? With the pre-nup, Maris can take so much from me. I won't have much left after she's done - I barely have anything now. And I... I don't know how long this whole thing will be dragged out for."
Niles shook his head, trying to break himself out of his mood.
"Sorry. I really should stop complaining." He smiled sheepishly at her. "Thank you for your help today, Daphne. I really do appreciate everything you do for me."
Daphne stood up again and walked over to Niles.
"Well, regardless of what happens, you'll have me. I'm here for you, no matter what."
She hesitated for a second, but then kissed Niles lightly on the lips. He looked slightly startled at her, clearly not expecting it. Niles smiled at her, his mood lifted after that small gesture. Daphne smiled back, pleased to see him look a bit more positive.
"Your brother wanted to take you out to dinner tonight. So I'll see you then."
"I'm looking forward to it."
