Chapter 3: Esoteric
Danny's alarm chimed at exactly 6:30 in the morning, approximately four hours before Danny's trial hearing in front of the school board. At the startling sound of his alarm he awoke gasping for air and clutching at his chest. He was relieved to know it was merely a dream. Which was odd because he hasn't had a nightmare in over six months. The last nightmare was about his father drowning in the ocean and eaten by sharks; and although this dream was utterly awful it did not compare to the one from which he had just awaken. Danny rolls over and stares at the ceiling trying to make sense of the nightmare. He dreamt of pleading his case in front of the school board. Just as he was finishing his statement he saw Lacey enter through the double doors in slow motion. She strode in as if she were on a mission completely focused on her target. Danny's heart lit up at the sight of her but he didn't like how she didn't smile back. He didn't like how she bypassed the vacant seats and increased her walking pace into a sprint. He didn't like the look of burning hate in her eyes nor her grimace of disgust as she leaped and plunged a knife right through his heart. Even in his dream Danny was lost for words. The anguish he felt wasn't from the knife in his heart, but from the one who so callously put it there. The only word he could utter before her face became a blur was why.
He closed his eyes tight to erase the image of the glinting blade arching in the air and tearing through his chest. It felt so real. Danny couldn't help but to touch again the same spot on his chest where the knife had pierced. Danny then rolled over on his other side and again tried to make since of it. Could it mean Lacey has the potential to hurt him physically, emotionally or mentally when he least expects? Could it mean she is untrustworthy? He figured it must have been something she did or said by which his subconscious stored it for later processing. The more Danny pondered over the meaning of the dream the more he needed to see Lacey. Sure he could call or text her, but that wouldn't resolve his uncertainty. He needed to see her face expressions because facial expressions revealed the inner thoughts. Danny has learned overtime to pay close attention to Lacey's facial expressions and body language; because Lacey has a tendency of saying one thing while thinking another. Danny needed to know if Lacey was willing to endure their relationship through good and bad especially if he loses at the hearing today. Although she has stuck with him this far, the dream of her stabbing him provoked his curiosity about her commitment. Danny knew that nothing good was to follow once the hearing was over. He was afraid that Lacey would end their secret affair if being with him became too risky or difficult. Danny sat up and realized he needed to see and talk to Lacey before he went to trial. After 45 minutes of showering, grooming, and clothing himself in one of his father's old black suits, he then walked briskly to Lacey's house.
Lacey was just getting out of the shower when she heard something crash against her bedroom wall. She immediately knew it was Danny but wondered why on earth would he come over at eight o'clock in the morning considering school starts in about an hour. Lacey gripped her towel tighter and walked over to the window. Danny's hand gripped the ledge and then he lifted his torso high to swing his right leg over onto Lacey's bedroom floor. Lacey stood back watching and giggling behind her hands. Danny notices, "Uh, I could have used some help. Glad to see I am your source of amusement today." Lacey tried very hard to stop giggling but the image of him struggling to get over the sill was hilarious. "I'm so sorry Danny, It's just comical to me." Danny understood why she was amused, but he honestly didn't think it was that funny. Danny pushes his hair back away from his face and counters, "So you find that to be funny huh? Well what if I told you I can make you stop laughing within the next 60 seconds?" Danny teasingly tugged on Lacey's towel. This caught Lacey off guard. She crouched and began to back away from Danny's wandering hands. Danny had a devilish grin on his face. Lacey could only imagine what was going through that sexy head of his. She also knew that when Danny locked his sight on her, it usually meant she didn't stand a chance against resisting his charm nor his amazing ability to pounce and pin. Lacey without thinking backed herself into a dark corner in her room. Danny loosened his tie and slowly approached her. He loved the look of naughty anticipation that graced her face. With each deliberate slow step Danny plotted his means of seduction. He thought first to taste the water glistening on her rich brown shoulder, second to slowly remove the towel, third allow his hands to explore all the places on her body that were normally hidden with clothing, fourth ravish her body with pain and pleasure. Lacey's heartbeat quickened with every step. And when Danny's body pressed against hers, a warm sensation of excitement tingled throughout her body. Furthermore when he grazed her shoulder with his teeth she couldn't fight the urge to close her eyes and release her clutch of the towel and lose all inhibitions in that moment of pleasure.
If it wasn't for the loud knock at the door things could have became very intense very quickly. Lacey was slightly thankful and annoyed by the knock on the door. She whispered to Danny, "Okay you win" and Danny smirked, "I know." Lacey pecked Danny on the lips and then slid herself from in between his body and the wall. Danny's eyes seemed to plead for her to ignore the door and allow them to continue. The knocks became louder and harder, "Okay, okay I'm coming?" Lacey opened the door to her mother who appeared to be angry. "What's wrong mom?" Lacey's mother pointed to her watch and said, "You should be dressed by now. I yelled for you to come down and eat your breakfast ten minutes ago. Also what was that thump I heard?" Lacey looked back into the room for inspiration and saw the full-length body mirror against the wall. Lacey then looked at her mother and said the body mirror slipped from her hands and hit the wall. Apparently Lacey's mother accepted the lie and responded with a simple "Next time be more careful and hurry up your breakfast is getting cold. Lacey nodded. She then closed the door and locked it.
Danny came out of the closet "Phew that was a close one?" Lacey looked at her clock and then realized that she had in fact spent too much time in the shower, because normally she would be dressed around this time. Lacey looks at Danny and he looks at her. " I have to get dressed now." She then walks into her closet, shuts the door and begins to dress. Danny took a seat onto Lacey bed and remembered his initial purpose for coming over there in the first place. "When you're done dressing we need to talk." Lacey paused and wondered whether his news was good or bad. "Why can't you tell me now?" Danny cleared his throat and replied, "Well I prefer to tell you to your face." Lacey did not like the sound of this request. She wondered what was so important that it involved analyzing her face. Lacey finished dressing and then sat at her vanity. Danny walked over, placed his hands on her shoulders as he stood behind her and focused on the mirror's reflection of Lacey's beautiful face. "I had a dream that you came to the hearing. I was happy to see you but you didn't respond with a smile like you normally would; instead you kept walking in at a steady pace and then you sprinted, leaped and plunged a knife into my heart." Lacey stopped brushing her hair and caught sight of the expression of deep concern on his face. Lacey immediately grew ashamed of the Lacey present in Danny's dream. According to Danny's nightmare she was a heart-stabbing murderer. Even though it was a mere dream, she felt somewhat guilty. Guilty in the sense that she was the monster of his nightmare. He dreamt she was a monster that he apparently trusted and assumed improbable of ill will. Of all the monsters at school discriminating against him, she was the one he dreamt to be lethal. Lacey swallowed hard and turned to face Danny. "Danny you know I wouldn't ever do anything like that, right?" Danny was relieved to see that this nightmare bothered her as well. "I know this may sound crazy, but I don't take nightmares lightly Lace, especially when they involve you of all people stabbing me in the heart. I guess I'm just trying to make sense of the why. I know you wouldn't literally stab me in the heart but you do have the power to break it. I know this all sounds random and crazy but I honestly didn't want to stand before the board with the question of your intent in the back of my mind. Which is why I had to see your initial reaction before I went to the hearing. As crazy as this may sound, I find closure in the presence of shame in your eyes. It assures me that you are in my life for all the right reasons.
Lacey could understand why he would feel skeptical about the people around him. He was in Juvenile detention for five years spending his every waking moment steadily alert for any potential threat. Lacey wanted to confirm her intent. She wanted Danny to know that he didn't need to question her intent nor ponder over her loyalty. She wanted him as badly as he wanted her; and no amount of adversity would turn her against him. But Lacey couldn't openly express herself like Danny. She was a doer not a talker. To show him her inner thoughts and feelings, she stood up and wrapped her arms around his waist and laid her head on his chest so that she could hear loud and clear the sound of his heart beating. She then said, "Danny my intent is to protect your heart. So there is no need for you to doubt me because I am yours." Lacey then kissed Danny on the chin, smacked him on his hind and told him to go, because it was only a matter of time before her mother would demand she eat breakfast. "Meet me by my car in ten minutes and, I'll give you a ride to school." Danny's heart became heavy as he watched Lacey slip from his arms and walk out the room. That heavy feeling in his heart was one of the side effects of love known as separation anxiety. As Danny lowered himself from Lacey's bedroom windowsill, the words, "I'm yours", filled him with joy and brought a smile to his face because it was something he desperately needed to hear. In so few words she implied she loved him too.
To be continued…Chapter 4: Exposed