For The Love of Daphne by Patrick Councilor

Niles walked into Café Nervosa. The smell of espresso was still in the air, but everything was different. There was no one inside; not even the staff. The tables, walls and the countertop were white and everything else was black; the chairs, the rest of the counter, and the table legs. There was a cup of espresso to go on the counter with Niles' name on it. He dipped a hand into his jacket pocket to retrieve his wallet, but it was not there. He checked his other jacket pocket and found nothing. He reached around to his back pocket and came up short, yet there was a dagger sharp pain running through his leg that almost made him buckle. He reached for the coffee, but something was pinning him to the wall, yet no one was there. They weren't pinning him to the wall, they were pressing him to the floor. No, wait, they could have been pinning him to the ceiling for all he knew because his sense of balance was nowhere he could retrieve it from. Then the side wall of the café, the side on the left where the book shelves are, fell backwards leaving an area of an abyss of blackness. Then the darkness seeped into the café overtaking the light. Was he dreaming?

The tunnel vision widened and he could start to make out the shape of tree limbs in the night sky. He wasn't up against something, he was flat on his back and there was the sound of an electric can opener opening a can of cat food. It was a huge drum of a cat food can because the sound of the electric can opener was not ceasing. There was a sweet smell in the air that Niles could not recognize. He wiped the sweat from his forehead to then realize that it wasn't just sweat from his brow. It was blood.

He had been in a major accident; an accident that he could not recall. The pain in his leg was that of his BMW on top of it. The electric can opener sound was one of his imbalanced wheels still spinning. What had happened? What had taken place and how did he get here?

He was breathing heavy and his skin was getting cold. He could start to make out the stars in the sky more clearly. Were his pupils dilating? Was he going into shock? He had to stay awake and try to stay warm. If he fell asleep, he may go on sleeping forever.

Memories; he would fall back on his wonderful memories to keep his heart rate up and his adrenalin flowing. One of his greatest moments was the first kiss that he and Daphne shared. It was at the dance when they danced the tango where they shared at wonderfully tender kiss.

"How you feeling?" Daphne's beautiful face was leaned over his. He was in the hospital. He had made it. He was going to live!

"I'm a little woozy. Maybe I should lie down." Wait a minute. He wasn't saying that. This was the conversation they shared when he was in the hospital just before his heart surgery. "Oh, now Daphne, you know all the important papers are in my top left hand drawer..."

"Let's not talk about that right now. You just relax."

"Okay, Daphne. You know, Daphne, they do these procedures hundreds of times."

"I know."

"Okay. It's practically routine, Daphne."

"Why do you keep saying my name?"

"I just want to say it as many times as I can... Daphne."

The dark sky came back and the dark branches that hung over him. "Am I going to die?" he asked the heavens above, but there was no answer. "I don't mean to be blasphemous, but did you hear the line, 'Jesus is coming, so look busy'." Niles smiled. "I thought you might like that one."

He found his cell phone in his hands. He couldn't seem to open it. "That's okay, you see, I can only remember Frasier's old cell phone number; the one he used when he used to live here in Seattle. That must mean that I'm pretty messed up, eh? If I can't even remember my own home phone number. Frasier left us, you know. He left us here all alone."

"I haven't been far," Frasier's voice came from the left.

Niles turned to see Frasier glowing and transparent. He was wearing a cloaked robe. "Frasier, what brings you out this far? Searching for some droid, are you? You've never missed a moment to show me up. And here you are appearing to me as the master jedi Obi-Wan Kenobi."

"I'm a figment of your imagination. The one person you've always looked up to and valued their opinion, and good psychiatrist could pick up on that."

"There you go showing me up again. That's exactly what I'm talking about."

"Oh, you're just jealous that the force is not as strong with you."

"Oh, I can see right through you."

Niles' comment made him chuckle. "You know, the reason I came down here was to make sure you don't fall asleep."

"And there you go stating the obvious."

"Oh you're the one to talk, you're always stating…" Frasier caught himself. "Look at us. There we go bickering again."

Niles swallowed. "I'm sorry Frasier. I've got a lot on my mind lately."

"And a lot on your leg too." He chuckled.

"Laughter is the best medicine, isn't it?"

"Yes, you could say it is."

"Oh wait, that only applies WHEN YOU DON'T HAVE A CAR ON YOUR LEG."

"Sorry Niles. I was only trying to make light of the situation to help you through this."

"You're a good brother Frasier."

"And a good psychiatrist?"

"You're a good brother Frasier."

"Niles, that's avoidance."

"I tell you what I'd like to avoid…"

Suddenly Frasier wasn't so transparent. He wasn't in the robe anymore, but now in his suit and sitting on a leather chair next to Niles with a pen a pad of paper in his hand. "Now, when did you first know the wait of the car on your leg?"

"Frasier, this isn't an emotional weight on my mind, it's the weight of a car on my leg."

"I know Niles. I would like to take a moment to tell you what a pleasure it has been having you as my brother and my friend. I truly love you."

"Hey, what are you saying? It sounds like my eulogy."

"No Niles, you're not going to die. You have far too much to live for. You have a handsome son whom you have so much to teach and so much to share."

Niles nodded.

"Besides, who is going to tell him about all of the germs to beware of?"

"True."

"And Daphne loves you so."

Tears streaked his cheeks.

There was a wetness upon his face; his forehead. "Frasier, you know I'm trapped here, please tell me that's water."

"It's starting to rain Niles."

He looked up to see Frasier's figure above him. "Why does it look like you're pouring it on me?"

"Because I am going to make sure it keeps you awake. I'm not leaving you Niles and you're not leaving me."

Niles' tunnel vision started again. "Frasier where are you? I can't see you anymore. FRASIER!"