Danny sat in the car, exhausted. Daniel had taken him out for the day to a theme park. They'd been on nearly every ride in the park, except a few that Danny was too short for. Eaten until they could eat no more and then gone shopping at a nearby mall. As the car neared the town, Danny looked over at his father.
"She gets lonely you know. She doesn't mean to be mad at you. She's just...having trouble dealing."
Daniel nearly choked at his son's choice of words. "I think...you're watching too much TV." He grinned over at him.
"Maybe. But I know that she's pleased you're here."
"Oh? How?"
"She told me."
"Really?"
"Yeah. She said she was glad I had this chance. That no child should be without his parents."
Daniel sighed. "Very true."
Danny turned in his seat so that he was facing his father. "Are you guys getting back together?"
Daniel raised his eyebrow as he turned into their street. "Um...no. Why do you ask?"
Danny shrugged. "Just wondered." He leaned over and kissed his father, and opened the door as Daniel pulled up outside the house. He stopped midway out of the door and looked back at Daniel smiling. "Every Wednesday she rents a film and settles down with a glass of wine....maybe you should come over." And with that, he was out the car and running up the path to the house.
Daniel watched as Rachel hugged her son and smiled as she rolled her eyes as he began pouring out the events of the day. She looked up and waved before leading him into the house. Daniel stared at the closed front door for a moment and then made his way back to his apartment.
He went inside and flicked the TV on low. Wandering into the kitchen he grabbed a beer and sank down onto the couch. His son was amazing. He was everything Daniel remembered being at his age, before he'd lost his parents. He was polite, interested in everything, he questioned everything, he could already read Egyptian hieroglyphs and speak Ancient Egyptian and Greek. He was a great kid. He'd listened to Daniel's explanation for his absence and had been upset at first, but had gradually understood.
He'd opened up to Daniel and had happily called him 'dad'. He was willing to accept Daniel into his family. Now all Daniel had to do was work on Rachel. He sighed and took another sip of his beer. That was going to be harder than he'd first thought. Her initial anger towards him had slowly decreased over the last week. Although she was always friendly and polite with him when Danny was around, she was distant with him when they were alone.
He didn't blame her. But the problem was, the more time he spent around her, the more he began to realize that he still held feelings for her. Feelings long ago forgotten surfaced when he looked at her. Feelings that seemed intensified with the knowledge that they had a child together. He watched her and realized that it could be so easy to fall back into a relationship with her. So easy to make this family whole.
Daniel frowned and made a decision. He needed to talk to someone about this. Not necessarily someone who made any sense...he just needed to talk. He picked up his keys and drove. Once there he knocked on the door and waited. He smiled as Jack opened his door.
"Hey Daniel...come in."
Daniel walked past Jack and sat down on the couch. He heard Jack moving around in the kitchen and gratefully took the beer that Jack offered. Taking a quick swig from it, he watched Jack sit down on the couch.
"So? I take it things went ok." Jack watched his friend as he placed his beer down on the table and leant back against the couch.
"Yeah. It went ok." Daniel grinned at him. "Danny...he's a great kid. He's been talking my ear off all night." Daniel chuckled. "He's very smart. He already speaks two languages, can read hieroglyphs..."
Jack rolled his eyes. "Just like his dad eh?"
Daniel nodded and laughed. "Yeah. And Rachel, she's done a great job raising him. Danny calls her his best friend. I watch the two of them together, and I feel proud. I know that doesn't make an awful lot of sense but...they love each other so much. They're comfortable around each other. I mean they have disagreements...but it's all good natured." Daniel leaned forward and grabbed his beer again.
Jack studied him carefully. "You still have feelings for her don't you?"
"Oh Jack...I look at her and it's like I'm stuck in the past. I remember every detail of our relationship. I remember the way she used to tickle me into submission when I wouldn't eat, the way in which she always brought me coffee before I knew I needed it, the way she used to hold me at night, the way I used to feel when she whispered my name. What I felt for her, it's all slowly coming back. And it's more than that now, because she's the mother of my child. I look at them and I see how easy it would be, to just walk into that family and stay. How easy it would be to fall back into a relationship with her."
Jack sighed and looked at him. "Be careful Daniel. Don't walk back into her life because of your son. If you intend to get involved with her again. Make sure it's for the right reasons - or you'll end up hurting her."
Daniel nodded. "I know. And that's the last thing I want to do - believe me. She's accepted the fact that I'm alive and willingly given me the chance to get to know my son. When I tried to explain where I'd been, she told me she didn't want to know. Jack - I wouldn't be here, doing what I do, if it weren't for her continuous support and belief in me, at a time when no one else would even listen. I owe it to her, to be there for her and Danny. I owe them both, more than either of them can imagine."
Jack nodded an understanding. "I know. And I know you've always wanted a family. Just...take it as it comes ok?"
Daniel smiled. "Ok."
*-*
Rachel opened the door and looked at him. She raised a finger to her mouth and motioned for him to come in. He silently followed her into the lounge where Danny was curled up on the couch watching TV.
"Oh Danny..." He looked up and his gaze flitted between his mom and his dad. "Would you care to explain this to me?" She pointed at Daniel, who was standing, holding a bottle of wine and a DVD.
Danny shrugged. "It's Wednesday." He then made a big show of stretching and yawning. "Bedtime." He got off the couch and ran over to them. Rachel bent down as he kissed her on the cheek and Daniel did the same. They both watched as he ran up the stairs and into his room.
Rachel laughed softly as she heard his bedroom door close and looked back at Daniel. "Whatever he's told you...it's not true!" She walked into the kitchen to fetch some glasses and he followed her.
"Really? So...you're not a good mom, or a wonderful friend....or a good cook?" Daniel leaned against the counter and studied her.
She squinted at him. "You're evil...you know that?!"
"I've been told on the odd occasion." He handed her the bottle of wine and watched as she opened it. "So...you don't get lonely either?"
Rachel's hands landed on the counter with a soft thud as she leaned against it, her head bowed slightly. "He is so grounded."
Daniel chuckled. "Can't blame the kid for trying."
Rachel looked up at him. "I am burning his copy of The Parent Trap." She giggled softly. "So - he's been at you too has he." She handed him a glass of wine and they retreated back into the lounge.
"Kind of. He actually made a good point."
"Oh?"
"Yeah...he said we needed time to get to know each other again."
Rachel nodded as she sat down opposite him. "I guess. I'm not exactly the person you met 9 years ago...and I can place money on the fact that you aren't the same person either." She frowned. "But I don't want him getting any false hopes."
Daniel placed his glass down on the table and leant forward, resting his arms on his legs. "Rachel...I have to be honest with you about this. I think Danny is amazing and I'm determined to be a good father to him - no matter what. I want to be part of his life now...a big part. But I look at you...and in some ways, it's like I never left. I still have feelings for you. I could willingly walk back in here and...make this family whole."
Rachel looked at him sadly. "Daniel...you don't know me. Any feelings you have...are for someone who lived 8 years ago. I not really sure I'm ready to forgive you yet...never mind consider the possibility of anything other than friendship. I need to know that no matter what happens between us...you'll never walk away from your son."
"Our son Rachel." Daniel gently took one of her hands. "You believed in me before. You had a faith in me...that no one else had."
"...and you betrayed me. You walked away, with no explanation. You married the first woman you met. I'm not sure that faith could ever be there again."
"Rachel...it was..."
"...complicated?" Rachel took her hand out of his. "Yes I'm sure it was Daniel. And no...I don't want details, because it no longer matters."
Daniel looked down. "Is there...anyone in your life?"
"No...not many people want to take on a seven year old boy Daniel."
Daniel closed his eyes. "I'm sorry...that was incredibly stupid and insensitive of me."
"Not to mention none of your business." Rachel sighed softly. "This isn't helping. I think you should go."
She stood up and gasped as Daniel placed his hand on her arm. "Rachel...I'm sorry. It's just..."
"...it's just what Daniel?" Rachel saw what Daniel was going to do just as he thought it. Before he could kiss her she moved out of his grip and opened the front door. He looked over at her startled and then, collecting his jacket, walked out. She shut the door and lent her head against it. "Not that Daniel...anything but that."
"She gets lonely you know. She doesn't mean to be mad at you. She's just...having trouble dealing."
Daniel nearly choked at his son's choice of words. "I think...you're watching too much TV." He grinned over at him.
"Maybe. But I know that she's pleased you're here."
"Oh? How?"
"She told me."
"Really?"
"Yeah. She said she was glad I had this chance. That no child should be without his parents."
Daniel sighed. "Very true."
Danny turned in his seat so that he was facing his father. "Are you guys getting back together?"
Daniel raised his eyebrow as he turned into their street. "Um...no. Why do you ask?"
Danny shrugged. "Just wondered." He leaned over and kissed his father, and opened the door as Daniel pulled up outside the house. He stopped midway out of the door and looked back at Daniel smiling. "Every Wednesday she rents a film and settles down with a glass of wine....maybe you should come over." And with that, he was out the car and running up the path to the house.
Daniel watched as Rachel hugged her son and smiled as she rolled her eyes as he began pouring out the events of the day. She looked up and waved before leading him into the house. Daniel stared at the closed front door for a moment and then made his way back to his apartment.
He went inside and flicked the TV on low. Wandering into the kitchen he grabbed a beer and sank down onto the couch. His son was amazing. He was everything Daniel remembered being at his age, before he'd lost his parents. He was polite, interested in everything, he questioned everything, he could already read Egyptian hieroglyphs and speak Ancient Egyptian and Greek. He was a great kid. He'd listened to Daniel's explanation for his absence and had been upset at first, but had gradually understood.
He'd opened up to Daniel and had happily called him 'dad'. He was willing to accept Daniel into his family. Now all Daniel had to do was work on Rachel. He sighed and took another sip of his beer. That was going to be harder than he'd first thought. Her initial anger towards him had slowly decreased over the last week. Although she was always friendly and polite with him when Danny was around, she was distant with him when they were alone.
He didn't blame her. But the problem was, the more time he spent around her, the more he began to realize that he still held feelings for her. Feelings long ago forgotten surfaced when he looked at her. Feelings that seemed intensified with the knowledge that they had a child together. He watched her and realized that it could be so easy to fall back into a relationship with her. So easy to make this family whole.
Daniel frowned and made a decision. He needed to talk to someone about this. Not necessarily someone who made any sense...he just needed to talk. He picked up his keys and drove. Once there he knocked on the door and waited. He smiled as Jack opened his door.
"Hey Daniel...come in."
Daniel walked past Jack and sat down on the couch. He heard Jack moving around in the kitchen and gratefully took the beer that Jack offered. Taking a quick swig from it, he watched Jack sit down on the couch.
"So? I take it things went ok." Jack watched his friend as he placed his beer down on the table and leant back against the couch.
"Yeah. It went ok." Daniel grinned at him. "Danny...he's a great kid. He's been talking my ear off all night." Daniel chuckled. "He's very smart. He already speaks two languages, can read hieroglyphs..."
Jack rolled his eyes. "Just like his dad eh?"
Daniel nodded and laughed. "Yeah. And Rachel, she's done a great job raising him. Danny calls her his best friend. I watch the two of them together, and I feel proud. I know that doesn't make an awful lot of sense but...they love each other so much. They're comfortable around each other. I mean they have disagreements...but it's all good natured." Daniel leaned forward and grabbed his beer again.
Jack studied him carefully. "You still have feelings for her don't you?"
"Oh Jack...I look at her and it's like I'm stuck in the past. I remember every detail of our relationship. I remember the way she used to tickle me into submission when I wouldn't eat, the way in which she always brought me coffee before I knew I needed it, the way she used to hold me at night, the way I used to feel when she whispered my name. What I felt for her, it's all slowly coming back. And it's more than that now, because she's the mother of my child. I look at them and I see how easy it would be, to just walk into that family and stay. How easy it would be to fall back into a relationship with her."
Jack sighed and looked at him. "Be careful Daniel. Don't walk back into her life because of your son. If you intend to get involved with her again. Make sure it's for the right reasons - or you'll end up hurting her."
Daniel nodded. "I know. And that's the last thing I want to do - believe me. She's accepted the fact that I'm alive and willingly given me the chance to get to know my son. When I tried to explain where I'd been, she told me she didn't want to know. Jack - I wouldn't be here, doing what I do, if it weren't for her continuous support and belief in me, at a time when no one else would even listen. I owe it to her, to be there for her and Danny. I owe them both, more than either of them can imagine."
Jack nodded an understanding. "I know. And I know you've always wanted a family. Just...take it as it comes ok?"
Daniel smiled. "Ok."
*-*
Rachel opened the door and looked at him. She raised a finger to her mouth and motioned for him to come in. He silently followed her into the lounge where Danny was curled up on the couch watching TV.
"Oh Danny..." He looked up and his gaze flitted between his mom and his dad. "Would you care to explain this to me?" She pointed at Daniel, who was standing, holding a bottle of wine and a DVD.
Danny shrugged. "It's Wednesday." He then made a big show of stretching and yawning. "Bedtime." He got off the couch and ran over to them. Rachel bent down as he kissed her on the cheek and Daniel did the same. They both watched as he ran up the stairs and into his room.
Rachel laughed softly as she heard his bedroom door close and looked back at Daniel. "Whatever he's told you...it's not true!" She walked into the kitchen to fetch some glasses and he followed her.
"Really? So...you're not a good mom, or a wonderful friend....or a good cook?" Daniel leaned against the counter and studied her.
She squinted at him. "You're evil...you know that?!"
"I've been told on the odd occasion." He handed her the bottle of wine and watched as she opened it. "So...you don't get lonely either?"
Rachel's hands landed on the counter with a soft thud as she leaned against it, her head bowed slightly. "He is so grounded."
Daniel chuckled. "Can't blame the kid for trying."
Rachel looked up at him. "I am burning his copy of The Parent Trap." She giggled softly. "So - he's been at you too has he." She handed him a glass of wine and they retreated back into the lounge.
"Kind of. He actually made a good point."
"Oh?"
"Yeah...he said we needed time to get to know each other again."
Rachel nodded as she sat down opposite him. "I guess. I'm not exactly the person you met 9 years ago...and I can place money on the fact that you aren't the same person either." She frowned. "But I don't want him getting any false hopes."
Daniel placed his glass down on the table and leant forward, resting his arms on his legs. "Rachel...I have to be honest with you about this. I think Danny is amazing and I'm determined to be a good father to him - no matter what. I want to be part of his life now...a big part. But I look at you...and in some ways, it's like I never left. I still have feelings for you. I could willingly walk back in here and...make this family whole."
Rachel looked at him sadly. "Daniel...you don't know me. Any feelings you have...are for someone who lived 8 years ago. I not really sure I'm ready to forgive you yet...never mind consider the possibility of anything other than friendship. I need to know that no matter what happens between us...you'll never walk away from your son."
"Our son Rachel." Daniel gently took one of her hands. "You believed in me before. You had a faith in me...that no one else had."
"...and you betrayed me. You walked away, with no explanation. You married the first woman you met. I'm not sure that faith could ever be there again."
"Rachel...it was..."
"...complicated?" Rachel took her hand out of his. "Yes I'm sure it was Daniel. And no...I don't want details, because it no longer matters."
Daniel looked down. "Is there...anyone in your life?"
"No...not many people want to take on a seven year old boy Daniel."
Daniel closed his eyes. "I'm sorry...that was incredibly stupid and insensitive of me."
"Not to mention none of your business." Rachel sighed softly. "This isn't helping. I think you should go."
She stood up and gasped as Daniel placed his hand on her arm. "Rachel...I'm sorry. It's just..."
"...it's just what Daniel?" Rachel saw what Daniel was going to do just as he thought it. Before he could kiss her she moved out of his grip and opened the front door. He looked over at her startled and then, collecting his jacket, walked out. She shut the door and lent her head against it. "Not that Daniel...anything but that."