A/N: So I ended up writing Danny's side of this story because my heart aches for him. Enjoy! Please let me know what you think!
One more drink and then he'd go to bed.
At least, that's what Danny had been telling himself since he'd arrived home from the party. With each beer or glass of scotch he'd say "last one," but he certainly hadn't meant it.
He couldn't really pinpoint the emotions he was feeling. Was it anger? Sure there might be a little bit, none directed at the source of the emotions. It wasn't Mindy's fault he was falling in love with her. It wasn't Mindy's fault that he passed up on "step 3" because he was more concerned about his own feelings tonight than maybe getting to steal a kiss from her. He was a bit angry at himself for not being clear enough with her about his feelings. But maybe now was not the time.
Jealousy was a huge part of the emotional roller coaster he was experiencing. He sunk deeper into his couch as he replayed the image of Cliff and Mindy kissing in the courtyard. Why had he stuck around and watched them out there? Why did he think that maybe, just maybe, she'd turn Cliff down when he showed up? Why did he think that he had even had a shot with her that night? He remembered their conversation about the "man trap" from the day before:
"you'll see tomorrow night when I'm tonguing Cliff in the courtyard!"
Danny groaned as he took the last sip from his scotch. When Mindy's right, she really really is right. He set the glass down on his coffee table and leaned back into the couch. He stared at the ceiling, wishing that he could just go into a comatose-like sleep and not have to think about her anymore for a little while. Unfortunately, he was still wide awake, and his mind was still buzzing. He could already tell that he was doomed to think about the party every night for the coming weeks.
He started to feel a bit overheated and knew that he needed to get some air. He let out a painful little laugh at the irony of the situation as he crawled out onto his fire escape. Danny took a deep breath and prayed to God that it would clear his head.
However, he started to dwell on the another emotion he was feeling, and it made his cheeks burn even in the cold, New York City air.
Danny was a bit embarrassed about everything.
He was embarrassed that, weeks ago, he had immediately assumed that Mindy had feelings for him. He knew that the assumption had simply come from some deep desires that he hadn't quite realized he had for her yet. He was embarrassed by how much he was suddenly so head-over-heels in love with his little nut job of a coworker; how all of her antics made him smile in a way it never did before, how she has now become the first person he thinks of when he wakes up in the morning and the last when he falls asleep, how he was starting to put her feelings before his even if it was something as painful as helping her get another man to date her. And he was even a little bit embarrassed about his Secret Santa gift to her. He knew it had certainly gone over well and that he had done a good job, but he was never one for opening up to anyone, and in that moment, he had at his most vulnerable. Just as he was wondering what on earth Mindy really thought of his gift, he felt his phone buzz in his pocket.
Hey Danny I just wanted to say thanks again for the secret santa gift. It was amazing!
He couldn't help but laugh at the fact that Mindy seemed to always be able to read his mind, even when they weren't together. He took a seat on the fire escape and leaned against the cold brick wall of his apartment building. Then he started to become a little confused. Why on Earth was Mindy texting him so late at night? He figured she'd be off with Cliff somewhere (he involuntarily shuddered at the thought), not texting him about his dance.
He realized that his reaction time to her text was starting to get a little long, and he quickly tried came up with a response, knowing how much of an impatient texter Mindy can be.
No problem, Min. I'm really glad you liked it. I hope you had a great night tonight.
Danny pressed send and was glad that even though he was pretty drunk he could come up with a solid, polite text that wasn't too revealing. She responded almost immediately:
I had a blast!
He smiled softly at her over-use of exclamation points. He was grateful that she hadn't quite picked up on how much every little thing about her effected him so deeply. Unsure where she was going with this sudden conversation and with the effects of the alcohol starting to make him drowsy, he tried to give himself an out in his response:
Good! Have a good night, Min.
Danny shouldn't known better that Mindy wouldn't let him off the hook so easily, and he groaned a little when he received her next text.
Wait. You seemed a little weird when I left. Are you sure you're ok?
So she had noticed him sulking near the food at the end of the night. Danny had hoped that she hadn't picked up on his change in demeanor when she had come back in from the courtyard holding hands with Cliff, telling the rest of the party guests that she was off for the evening, and thanking them for coming. Danny had tried to hide out of the view of the new couple so that he could avoid eye contact.
He sighed a little as he tried to figure out how to respond and make sure that he didn't reveal any more of his feelings. He'd already done enough of that tonight, and look where it got him.
Yeah, Min, you know me. I'm always ok.
Danny briefly wondered if Mindy would remember the last time he'd told her this. He was a little confused that she didn't respond at all. Maybe she fell asleep, or was distracted by her new boyfriend or something, but it didn't matter. He climbed back into his apartment and started to get ready for bed.
As he slid under his sheets, he finally figured out the overall emotion he was feeling and he sighed again. The emotion was heartache, and he realized that he was feeling it a lot where Mindy was involved: when she had left for Haiti, when she told him she had a thing for Cliff when he had assumed she meant him the whole time, and of course when he had watched her kiss Cliff in the courtyard after she had almost kissed him in her office. But just because he was feeling a lot of heartache, he realized that he wasn't going to give up on her quite yet. He knew she wasn't on the same page as her, but if their almost-kiss was any clue into how she felt about him, she'd pick up on it soon enough. For now, he'd play the waiting game. He'd have to get a little better about hiding his heartache and be ready to be there as a friend whenever she needed him to. It was going to take a lot of work on his part, but when it came to Mindy, he was confident that he could rise to the occasion.
If there was one thing he was being totally and completely honest with Mindy about, though, is that he really would be okay.