Disclaimer-Nope, I don't own "Frasier." It, as well as its characters, belongs to NBC and the rest of their creators. The only thing that I do own is Brianna Ackland. But that's all. Really.
A/N-Many thanks go out to TVStoryGirl538, who gave me some suggestions for this chapter. And don't forget to review. Oh, and I forgot to mention at the beginning of the story that:
!!!No one knows about Niles's crush on Daphne!!!
Just wanted to be sure you all knew that . . . anyways . . .
Title: Blast from the Past
Rating: PG-13 . . . because I can!!!
Genre: General
Summary: When a woman from the past shows up, she unleashes an "interesting" havoc among the Crane family and friends.
Chapter Five-Awakened Love
"Niles," Brianna said, moving towards the kitchen. She nearly smiled at the way he snapped out of his trance when she said his name. "Could you show me where the . . . ice is?"
"Well, I could show you-" Frasier began, starting to get up.
"-And I need to ask you a question," Brianna added, causing Frasier to sit back down on the couch.
"Sure" Niles replied, getting up and following Brianna to the kitchen.
Frasier, Daphne, and Martin watched as Brianna and Niles entered the kitchen. "What do you think they're talking about?" Daphne asked, in a whisper.
"Oh, she's probably asking him about possible jobs, or something along that line," Frasier replied, but he felt that that was not the case. Brianna had been so excited when Frasier had mentioned that he could help her that he almost knew that she and Niles weren't talking about jobs.
"Well, it's not our business," Daphne said, when Martin cast another look towards the kitchen. "And if you'll excuse me, I need to use the restroom." She stood up and walked towards her room in the very back of Frasier's apartment.
"And I'm going to go and get a beer," Martin declared, standing up and heading towards the kitchen.
"You just want to eavesdrop, don't you?" Frasier asked, smiling slightly.
"No, no. I'm just . . . really thirsty; is that a problem?" Martin said, defensively and walking towards the kitchen. Now to see if I can catch any of what those kids are talkin' about, Martin thought as he paused slightly before the kitchen's entrance.
"I . . . worship you-" Martin froze at his youngest son's words.
Quickly, he continued into the kitchen. Maybe Niles would tell him about all of the things he had told Brianna. It was possible, wasn't it? "Hey kids," he declared upon entering the kitchen. He was trying to make his voice sound as collected as possible. "Just grabbing myself a beer."
"Dad!" Niles exclaimed, spinning around to look at him. "Hey Dad!"
Martin gave his son a confused look. Why couldn't Niles simply tell him about his feelings for Brianna? He had a right to know. He looked over at Brianna, who gave him a shrug. She looked remarkably calm for someone who had just been told that they're worshiped by someone who has not even seen them for over fifteen years.
Martin walked over to the refrigerator and took out a beer. He tried not to look at either Niles or Brianna on his way out.
"Frasier," Martin hissed as soon as he exited the kitchen. "Frasier, you wanna know what they were talking about in there?" he asked, sitting down in his chair.
"Dad . . ." Frasier began, about to protest about his father's gossiping, but thought better of it. "Yes, tell me." He leaned in closer to his father.
"Well, Niles just told Brianna that he, quote, unquote, 'Worships her.'" Martin paused, waiting for the shock on Frasier's face to pass over. "That's what he said, he worships her."
"But, but . . . they haven't seen each other since high school," Frasier replied.
"I know, I know . . . oh, shh; here they come." Martin straightened up in his chair and Frasier sat back down on the couch as Niles and Brianna entered the room. "Hi Niles, Brianna," Martin greeted. "What were you two talking about in there?" he asked, teasingly, still hoping that Niles would inform them about his feelings.
"Oh, we were just getting Brianna some ice," Niles replied, and Brianna held up a glass, which was full of ice and water.
"Oh, okay." Martin looked over at Frasier and gave him a perplexed look.
"I'm back," Daphne announced, coming down the stairs to the living room.
Brianna glanced over at Niles, who had a small smile plastered upon his face as he gazed at Daphne. "Say, Daphne," Brianna began, glad that she was no longer feeling uneasy about being around these people; her ability to talk to anyone had returned just in time, "how would you like to grab something for lunch? I mean, I know Niles, Frasier, and Martin pretty well, but I don't really know you. And if we're going to be around each other a lot, we might as well know each other, right?"
Daphne looked at her. Brianna could tell that Daphne did not completely understand why she had put out the offer, but she nodded her head nonetheless. "Yes, that'd be fun. Where do you want to go?"
"I don't know. Why don't you choose?"
"Okay, now it sounds even more fun. Let's go!" Daphne walked up the stairs to the coat closet and pulled out a jacket. She walked to the door and added, "Come on, then."
"Hold on, hold on," Brianna said, waving her hand at Daphne; she was searching through her suitcase, trying to find a jacket. "Okay, I'm ready," she said, after pulling out a denim jacket and pulling it on. "Let's go." Daphne opened the door and Brianna followed her out, pulling the door closed behind her.
Frasier and Martin exchanged a confused look. "So," Martin said, looking over at Niles, "how about the three of us go to lunch together?"
"Sounds great," Frasier replied, standing up from the couch. Niles did not respond, however; he was staring at the closed door, an anxious look upon his face. "Niles? How about it?"
Niles blinked a few times before realizing that his brother was talking to him. "What? Oh, yes. That sounds great."
"What sounds great?" Frasier asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Umm . . . l-lunch?" Niles said, unsurely, smiling a nervous smile.
"You got lucky, Niles," Frasier said.
"I know," Niles replied, exhaling loudly.
"Why were you staring after them so intently?" Frasier asked, wanting his brother to tell them about all of his "hidden feelings" for Brianna. And what Brianna had said after he had told her.
"I'm just wondering what women do when they have time alone. I've heard that they talk about us, but it still puzzles me."
Frasier nodded. "It does the same to me. Come on, let's go to lunch." He gestured for Niles and Martin to move towards the door and followed them out of the apartment and into the waiting elevator.
Meanwhile . . .
"So, how long have you been living with Frasier and his father?" Brianna asked after she and Daphne had been seated at their table.
"Almost a year now," Daphne replied, picking up her menu and inspecting it. "If you don't mind my asking, why are you here?"
"Oh, just the usual my-mother-wants-me-to-be-a-gold-digger-so-I-moved-out story. Nothing special. Anyways, what do you think about the Cranes?" Brianna asked, moving the subject back towards the Cranes and, more specifically, Niles.
"They're lovely people. Well, except for their obsessions with having everything beautiful and perfect and expensive-looking. I really must tell you, Frasier always wants his furniture to be spotless. You know, in case the mayor or the Pope drops in unexpectedly." Daphne rolled her eyes and took a sip of water.
"Ahh. And what about Niles? What do you think about him?" Brianna inquired, placing her elbow upon the table and resting her chin in her hand.
"He's a sweetheart, really. And how he got stuck with a woman like his Maris baffles me. She . . ." Daphne paused, as though uneasy about continuing.
"She what?" Brianna asked, encouraging Daphne to continue. "Don't worry, I won't tell her. I don't even know her."
". . . it's just that, she doesn't seem to love him the way he deserves," Daphne finished and Brianna saw her face flush slightly.
"You think he deserves better?" Brianna asked, drumming her fingers on her cheek.
"Well, even though he is a little high-maintenance, he's still very kind. And very generous. And complementary. Last week, I bought a new dress and when I wore it that night, he noticed almost instantly."
Brianna suppressed a grin and nodded. You wouldn't think it was so nice if you knew that he was practically stalking you, Brianna thought.
"And Mr. Crane, he's-" Daphne began, changing the subject.
"What do you like best about Niles?" Brianna interrupted, switching the subject back to Niles. "I mean, you seem to like him a lot; what is his best aspect?"
Daphne raised her eyebrows at Brianna's question. Brianna seems to be very interested in Dr. Crane. Too interested. He's a married man, she can't go after him. If that's even what she wants. But just to be safe, I'd better try and convince her that Dr. Crane isn't her type of man. "Oh, I don't know . . . aside from his obsessive cleaning with that hanky, his desire to be better than his brother, and his passion about wine, he's . . . okay."
Brianna narrowed her eyes. She had been doing so well, why were Daphne's answers changing. Maybe she's trying to deny having feelings for him, Brianna thought. Well, I'll just keep trying. "Okay, so he has weird obsessions, everyone's got those. What is his best aspect?"
"Why do you want to know so badly?" Daphne asked, in an attempt to trap Brianna in a corner. You shouldn't be with Dr. Crane, either, she thought. He should be with . . . someone different. Someone who's actually known him in the last week.
"Well, I haven't seen him in over fifteen years," she replied. "I just want to see if he's changed at all. And from the facts you've told me, he hasn't changed too much since high school."
Daphne forced a smile. "Well," she began, "he seems like he'd be a great father." Her smile relaxed into a more natural smile. "And he really is a sweetheart, like I said. Although he has a nasty habit of standing too close to you at times."
Brianna chuckled, and nodded her head. "I can agree with that," she said.
"And," Daphne continued, as though she hadn't heard Brianna's statement, "he seems like a devoted and caring husband, although his wife doesn't deserve that much." She shook her head in disgust. "It amazes me how much Maris takes him for granted."
"Wow," Brianna said, causing Daphne, who had been staring at the table while she had been talking, to look up at her. "It sounds like you really like him."
"Oh no. I don't like him like that," Daphne replied, defensively, shaking her head. "I like him as a friend, of course, but any more than would be . . ." Her voice trailed off.
Brianna nodded. "Uncomfortable because he's married.," she finished and Daphne nodded. "But would you?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.
Daphne gave her a confused look. "Would I what?"
"Would you go after him? If he wasn't married?"
Daphne stared into Brianna's green eyes. Why is she asking me this? Is she trying to make sure that there's no one else to steal Niles from her? Daphne shrugged. "I really don't know," she replied.
Brianna smiled slightly. "Excuse me, are you ready to order?" Brianna looked up at the young waiter who had asked the question.
"Yes, we're ready to order," Daphne replied.
Niles, Frasier, and Martin had just been seated at their table. As they read over their menus, Martin decided to "casually" bring up the subject of Brianna. "So," he began, lying his menu down in front of him, "Brianna's really pretty, don't you think?"
Frasier shot Martin an "are you kidding?" look. "Yes Dad," he replied, stiffly. "She is. What do you think, Niles?"
"What?" Niles asked, glancing up from his menu.
Frasier rolled his eyes; Niles had asked them to repeat what they had said all the way to the restaurant. Something was on his mind, Frasier was sure of this. And Frasier didn't blame him; telling someone that you worship them can cause your mind to wander. "He asked if you think that Brianna is attractive," he said.
"Oh." Martin and Frasier saw Niles turn slightly red. "I suppose that she is. She was in high school as well."
"So Niles, seriously, what were you two talking about in the kitchen earlier. When I walked in, you tried really hard to cover up something," Martin said.
"Oh, umm . . ." He cleared his throat. "She and I were . . . talking-" He placed the back of his hand against his mouth and let out a cough, "-talking about jobs. For her. And if there was anything I could do." Niles's fingers rose up and gently brushed his nose.
"But I thought she and I had decided that I was going to help her by giving her a job at the radio station, if possible," Frasier rejoined, stroking the bottom of his chin with his thumb, thoughtfully.
"Yes, but she said that she . . . uhh . . . needed a side-job. You know, for, umm, taxes and . . . whatnot." Niles gripped the bridge of his nose, feeling a nose bleed coming on. It happened every time he tried to lie. "Excuse me. I need to go to the bathroom." He stood up and, his head thrown back, walked swiftly to the bathroom.
"He's lying to us," Martin muttered to his eldest son as soon as Niles had gone out of view.
"Really, I couldn't tell, what with his nose bleed and all," Frasier replied, sarcastically, with a roll of his eyes.
"That was unneeded," Martin said, sternly. "Anyways, why would he lie to us about something like this?"
"I was just asking myself the same thing, Dad. And I believe that he's lying to us about his feelings for Brianna because he's still married to Maris, and doesn't want us to know until he's able to go after her. Brianna, I mean."
"You know, that actually makes sense," Martin stated, pointing his index finger at Frasier. "Because if he told us, we'd only want him to pursue her faster, and he wouldn't want to do that to Maris, although she probably wouldn't notice. I mean, she's hardly ever around."
Frasier nodded. "Exactly. Although, he and Brianna would make sort of an interesting couple, don't you think? I mean, she's about half a foot taller than he is." Frasier chuckled at the image.
Martin joined in on the laughter. "That's true." His laughter slowly faded and he cleared his throat. "We shouldn't laugh. If your brother really likes her, we should be supportive."
"Dad, you said that Niles worships her. I think that he doesn't simply 'like' her. I think that he must love her."
"Wow. It's amazing; you simply see someone you haven't seen in years, and all of a sudden, you're in love. That's not really 'love at first sight,' is it?"
"No, I guess not." Frasier paused, thinking about it. "What would you call it? 'Rekindled love,' maybe?"
"But he didn't love her in high school, did he?" Martin asked. "Or did I just not pay attention enough?"
Frasier shrugged. "I suppose he could have, it's possi-"
"Shh," Martin shushed him, looking towards the restrooms. "Here he comes," he added in a low whisper.
"I'm back," Niles declared as he sat down at the table.
"Feeling better?" Frasier asked, glancing slightly at the pieces of tissue that were protruding from his brother's nose.
"Yes," Niles replied. "I think that the . . . humidity got to me," he added, placing a hand on his nose.
"Of course," Frasier replied, taking a momentary look at his father, who was trying not to smile. "Niles," he began, as Niles took a sip of water, "Dad and I were just discussing the different forms of love."
Niles began to cough as the water he had been drinking went down the wrong way. "Oh . . . really?" he asked, in between coughs.
"Yes, and we all know about 'love at first sight,' right?" Niles nodded, his coughing dying down. "Well, what do you call it if someone falls in love with someone they haven't seen in a very, very long time?"
"Well, I'd call that 'Reawakened love,'" Niles said, feeling a sense of relief wash over him; they hadn't been talking about Daphne after all.
"But what if the man, or woman, was not in love with the other person prior to their reunion?" Frasier asked, cocking an eyebrow at his younger brother.
"Well . . ." Niles paused. "I suppose you'd call that . . . 'Awakened love,'" he decided, nodding his head for effect.
"Awakened love," Frasier repeated. "Yes, I suppose that that would work . . ." His voice trailed off. "Thank you, Niles. That would have bothered me all day."
Niles nodded, and then proceeded in reading over his menu. So, Niles has 'Awakened love' for Brianna. But if he would simply tell us about it, we would be able to help him, Frasier thought. Although, who says Niles needs to tell us about his feelings for us to help him?
Meanwhile . . .
Daphne and Brianna had just finished their lunch and receiving their bill. "Let me get that," Daphne said, taking the bill from the waiter. "It's your first day here, and, according to your story, you have no money to speak of."
Brianna nodded. "Yeah, and thanks so much for paying. I promise, as soon as I get my first paycheck, I'll take you out again, but I'll pay."
Yes, unless you somehow persuade Dr. Crane to cheat on his wife with you, Daphne thought. "Okay, that sounds nice."
As she received her change, Daphne was thinking, I am going to do everything in my power to make sure that you and Dr. Crane are not alone. Ever. Until this passes over. I'm not going to risk Dr. Crane's getting into trouble with his wife just because you have feelings for him. I am going to watch you two like a hawk.
To Be Continued . . .
A/N-Oh, confusion all over the place! Everyone's thinking different things! You know, I almost named this chapter "What Would Jack and Chrissy Do?" You know, "Three's Company," how there would always be some kind of misunderstanding. Anyways, that's my sad attempt at humor. Luckily, I chose a different title. Umm...sorry about talking . . . writing so much. Review!!!!