Daphne was eternally grateful when, after what felt like a very long, very quiet ride home, she and Frasier reached the Elliott Bay Towers. He parked in his coveted parking space and got out of the car. While she made a beeline for the door that led to the lobby, Frasier stood by his beloved BMW, checking each and every inch for the telltale scratch that no one else on earth would be able to notice. The sight made her roll her eyes.
But it wasn't his aggravating ritual that annoyed her. It was the fact that he took so long to decide to take her home and because he treated Roz with such disrespect. There were times when Daphne thought that Frasier and Roz might have made a nice couple but not anymore. She only hoped that the man who had fathered Roz's child would be more of a gentleman… like Niles.
Once again her heart warmed and her eyes filled with tears. "Dr. Crane would you please hurry up? I really want to get out of this bloody costume!"
"In a minute, Daphne. I want to make sure there's no… Dear God, look at this!"
Annoyed even further she walked over to where he stood; gaping at his car as though it had just been hit by an eighteen wheeler.
"What am I looking at?"
"This! This… scratch!"
She leaned closer. "I don't see anything."
"It's right there, Daphne, in plain sight, can't you-Oh never mind."
She almost laughed. "Well it serves you right for the way you treated Roz. Can't you understand that she's scared?"
His anger seemed to melt away. "Did she… say that?"
"She didn't have to. I mean wouldn't you be scared if you were… well, you know what I mean. She has no one. I doubt Bulldog will be of any help to her. But now that I think about it, he might be more help than you've been so far. Blurting out that she's pregnant for the whole bloody place to hear! I mean, even Dr. Crane-." Her chest held a familiar ache. "Um, look, let's just go inside, all right? You can call Roz in the morning and straighten this whole thing out. I'm sure she'd appreciate it. I mean, it's the least you can do."
He sighed deeply. "You're right. And I am sorry, Daphne."
"Don't apologize to me." She said. Turning on her heels, she walked into the Elliott Bay Towers and didn't bother waiting for him as she called the elevator that would whisk her up to the ninth floor.
The doors opened and she hurried across the hallway. Her fingers were trembling, making it difficult to open the door.
"Well, so Frasier decided to be a gentleman after all." Martin said from his chair.
She didn't bother asking how he'd gotten home so quickly. At least he was home safe, most likely thanks to Gil or someone from the station. She made a note to thank them.
"No such luck. Goodnight, Mr. Crane. Happy Halloween."
"You too, Daphne."
She walked through the living room and down the hallway that led to her bedroom, still fuming at Frasier's behavior.
But as she showered and got ready for bed, making sure to scrub each and every bit of makeup from her face, including the glue from those horrid eyelashes, she found that her anger toward Frasier had been replaced with thoughts of someone else.
"You're scared and you feel as though you're all alone. But you're not alone. I don't want you to ever feel that way. So I'm asking you, Daphne Moon. Will you marry me?"
Again and again like a record on repeat, Niles' sweet, wonderful words echoed through her head. Even though they were essentially meant for Roz, she couldn't get over how they made her feel. Suddenly she missed him terribly; so much in fact that it physically hurt. When she crawled into bed and turned off the light, her tears began to fall. Tears that came from pain and loneliness, not from silly false eyelashes.
Like a young girl she clutched her pillow, praying that the sounds of her quiet sobs wouldn't be heard past her door. Frasier and Martin would never understand the way she felt for Niles. Sometimes even she didn't understand.
She tossed and turned all night, wishing that she was with him. What, she wondered, was he doing that very moment? Was he cleaning up the mess from the party? She imagined him sitting on his fainting couch dressed in one of his suave dressing gowns, sipping on a glass of sherry or champagne. Or perhaps he was asleep. She wouldn't doubt it, for he must have gone to a lot of trouble planning such an elaborate party.
Despite the troubles she had encountered with her false eyelashes and the fact that Roz (and the rest of the guests) discovered that she was pregnant, it had been a wonderful evening. Niles had been a complete gentleman all evening and when it came down to it, that's all that mattered.
Eventually, the thoughts of Niles calmed her, carrying her into a deep sleep.