1
February 29
Daphne shivers as she steps into the cold winter air, leaving the warm office behind her. It's finally Friday.
She trudges through the snow to her car, thankful it hadn't snowed much so she can get in and quickly put the heater on.
She got a new car last year, much to Fred's relief. Her previous car made awful noises when she turned the key in the ignition, it took a long time for the heating to come on and eventually it stopped blowing out hot air as well as producing a bad smell and making crackling and popping noises. Fred begged her to have it looked at, refusing to allow her to drive the death trap. When she finally took it to a mechanic, they explained it was irreparable and they would be taking it to the scrapyard.
She sees her car is lightly dusted in snow, relieved that she doesn't have to scrape the snow and ice off her car, she can climb in and put the heating on. When she does, the heating comes on quickly and the radio plays Hanging on the Telephone, she turns the volume up.
Her new car is a Mazda 3, in a dark shiny red, and is far better than her previous car. It has heated seats and a heated steering wheel, it's a smooth drive compared to her old car, even on snowy ground.
She pulls out of the parking lot and begins her journey home.
She is relieved to see stores removing their Valentine's Day decorations. Daphne never celebrates Valentine's Day but she's glad it's finally over. Everyone at work had been discussing their Valentine's Day plans, while Daphne just wanted to sit in front of the TV with a tub of ice cream and a movie.
She and Fred did just that last week, but rather than some cheesy rom-com, Daphne put on a horror movie. She knows that the best way to get through a horror movie is to laugh but Fred hid behind a pillow. At the end of the night, she let him sleep on her couch, she didn't know why he agreed to watch The Exorcist when he barely made it through the Conjuring.
Fred had been away all week visiting his mother in Lorton. She's redecorating her house and wants Fred to help this week. He texted Daphne on Monday night explaining how he spent the day wallpapering the living room, a task his mother had been avoiding for months until Fred came home.
She quickly came to realize how lost she's been without him. Work is different without him but she has things to concentrate on. However, the are lonely when she has no one to talk to. He'll be home tomorrow and she is excited to see him.
Daphne pulls into her parking space outside her building. She turns the engine off and braces herself for the cold weather outside. She shivers when she steps outside and it begins to snow lightly.
She presses the button on her car keys and the amber lights on her car flash as it locks. Somehow her building is colder than outside. The floor is wet from snow that has been tracked in and there's a damp smell.
Her cold fingers fiddle with the key to her letterbox and she wiggles the key into the lock. The rusty metal door creaks open. She reaches inside for the mail in the box; the electricity bill, the water bill, and a flyer for Domino's Pizza. She locks her letter box and begins her climb up the stairs.
The elevator in the building stopped working before she moved in and has never been repaired, everyday she has to walk up and down the stairs. Her apartment is on the sixth floor but after almost seven years of living in the building, she's used to the stairs, which gives her an excuse not to go to the gym. She's lucky she doesn't live on the higher floors like others in her building.
She passes a few of her neighbors on the stairs, she doesn't know their names but they still smile at her and say "hello".
When she arrives on the sixth floor, her next-door neighbor is locking his apartment.
Mr Jacobs is an elderly man, he's lived in the building way before Daphne moved in. He is sweet and kind, and always tells Daphne stories about his grandchildren living in North Carolina.
Mr Jacobs greets her with a warm smile and a friendly wave when he sees her, eager to converse with someone. 'Hello, Miss Blake. Good to see you.' He tips his cap.
'Hello, Mr Jacobs. Are you ok?' Daphne asks. Mr. Jacobs rolls his eyes and chuckles lowly, 'As best as I can be with this weather. Robert is coming to pick me up, I'm spending the weekend with his family. He lives in North Carolina, did I tell you that?'
Daphne smiles, 'You did. Does he work for a car manufacturer? Is that right?'
Mr. Jacobs' smile spreads across his face, 'Yes he does indeed. I can never remember the name but he loves his car, my Robert.'
Mr. Jacobs reminds Daphne of her great-grandad who died some years ago. Her great-grandad used to dress similarly to Mr Jacobs; his cotton shirt is tucked into his pants secured by a leather belt and espadrilles on his feet.
'Do you want any help with your suitcase?' Daphne offers but Mr. Jacobs smiles, 'Oh no, dear, my Robert is here.'
Daphne hears footsteps behind her and she looks to her right where a tall man in a winter coat stands beside her, breathless from climbing the stairs.
'Are you ready, dad?' Robert asks, he takes the suitcase from Mr. Jacobs. 'Yes, I'm ready.' Mr Jacobs smiles and takes his son's arm, 'Have a good weekend.' He smiles to Daphne.
'See you soon, Mr. Jacobs.' Daphne replies. She fiddles with the key to her apartment and unlocks the door.
She's thankful to escape into the warmth of her little apartment. The perk of having an open-plan apartment, the heat from the kitchen warms the living area. Her bedroom with its en-suite bathroom was the only secluded room in the apartment.
Daphne throws her letters onto the kitchen island and hangs her coat on the hook.
She strolls into her bedroom, takes some towels from the built-in wardrobe, and enters her en-suite bathroom. She turns on the shower and lets the water warm up as she strips off her clothes, and throws them into the laundry basket.
She stands under the shower and it's a relief. The water falls over her like a cocooning embrace. Her muscles relax under the warm water, and the cold from outside melts away. The water droplets spatter on the plastic shower floor, creating an oddly relaxing sound.
Her stresses from the day are washed down the drain along with the lavender-scented shampoo.
When she's showered, she reluctantly turns off the hot water and steps onto the cold tiled floor. She tries herself with the towel and dries her hair. She returns to her bedroom and pulls on her pajamas, a hoodie, and a pair of fluffy socks her sister got for Christmas.
She returns to the living area, puts the TV on, and flicks through the channels until the gnawing feeling in her stomach makes itself known. She wondered what she could have for dinner.
She had been thinking about mac and cheese all day. She moves into the kitchen and gathers what she needs for mac and cheese. She fills the saucepan with water, puts it on the stovetop, and turns the gas on. She sprinkles some salt into the pan and lets it boil.
There is a faint knock at the door. She steps to the door and is surprised to see her sister standing there.
She is wrapped in a black coat, pink scarf, and a woolly hat but is shivering. Daphne notices a large suitcase by her side. 'Thalia? What are you doing here?' She asks.
Thalia Blake breathlessly responds, 'How do you climb those stairs all the time?' Daphne feels a chill as Thalia flings her arms around her in a somewhat warm embrace.
'What are you doing here?' Daphne asks as she wheels Thalia's suitcase into the corner beside the kitchen island.
Thalia rolls her eyes, grinning, 'I came to see you. What do you think I flew all this way to build a snowman?'
'You flew here?' Daphne asks. 'Duh, I'm not driving all this way.' Thalia removes her winter wear and hangs it on the coat hook. She makes herself comfortable on the couch.
'It's only six hours.' Daphne replies, 'Anyway, why do you want to see me?'
'I want to see you before I go.' Thalia speaks with a mischievous smile. 'What?' Daphne asks from the kitchen. She pulls two glasses from the cupboard along with a bottle of whisky.
'Me, Charlotte, and, Jess finally saved enough money! We're going to Thailand for a few weeks!' Thalia cheers.
'That's great, I'm glad you're finally going.' Daphne smiles. 'Me too, anyway what's for dinner?' Thalia asks as she sways into the kitchen and sits on the island.
'Mac and cheese.' Daphne replies as she removes a bag of macaroni from the cupboard.
'I love mac and cheese.' Thalia gushes with an exaggerated eye roll. Daphne pours whisky into one of the glasses, but Thalia stops her before she pours any in the second, 'Not for me thank you, I'm cutting down. Can I have a coffee instead?'
'Sure.' Daphne returns the bottle to the cupboard with the empty glass. She turns on the coffee maker and checks the boiling water on the stove. She opens the macaroni and tips some into the saucepan. She begins to prepare the sauce.
'Do you have decaf coffee?' Thalia asks. 'No.' Daphne replies bluntly. She has never touched decaf coffee, it's pointless in her opinion.
'Ok. Caffeine is fine.' Thalia responds with a small smile.
Daphne raises her eyebrow but doesn't question her instead she takes a sip of her whisky, this feels better than the shower. Soon the coffee is ready. 'How many sugars?' Daphne asks.
'Just one.' Thalia replies. Daphne stirs in the sugar and passes the mug across the island.
'Anyway, how are you? How's the boyfriend?' Thalia asks curiously but her eyes sparkle with mischief.
'I'm fine. And Fred's not my boyfriend.' Daphne replies. 'If you say so.' Thalia mutters, disbelieving her sister's protests.
'Where is he anyway?' Thalia asks. 'At his mom's this week, helping her redecorate.' Daphne replies.
The two stand at the kitchen island chatting about everyone at home in Cooperstown, Thalia shows her photos of their youngest cousins Emily and Miles, and Jason's son Arthur.
'They're all so cute, they get on so well. Em's the boss of them.' Thalia laughs.
Daphne begins to put the mac and cheese together and puts it under the grill, Thalia watches hungrily as she smell fills the kitchen.
Daphne stands with her arms crossed over her chest watching the cheese melting, Thalia chuckles, 'You look like dad.'
Daphne drops her arms, 'I do not.' She removes two bowls from the cupboard and dishes the mac and cheese when its ready.
They sit on the couch together, Daphne doesn't forget her whisky before she leaves the kitchen.
'How long are you planning on staying?' Daphne asks. Thalia shrugs, 'Not long I don't think. Do you remember when we were kids, when we couldn't agree on a movie to watch we would each pick one and watch two movies?'
'I remember, you always pick some crappy romantic movie.' Daphne replies. The mac and cheese is everything she needs after today.
'And you always pick the scary ones.' Thalia adds to which Daphne laughs, 'They're not that scary. Anyway, Halloween is on the movie channel tonight.'
'No thanks.' Thalia replies taking in a large fork full of macaroni, 'Why don't we talk instead?' Thalia suggests.
'Uh, sure ok.' Daphne turns the TV off, 'What do you want to talk about? And please don't start asking questions about me and Fred.'
Thalia rolls her eyes, 'Alright fine. What about work?'
'Work is ok, I guess. What about you?' Daphne asks. 'Well you know I left the daycare some months ago to work at Daddy's company?' Thalia asks.
Daphne nods, 'How's that going?'
'Pretty good. I got there in time I think, Daddy wanted the new scent for the bubble bath to be raspberry. I told him marshmallow is popular these days.' Thalia speaks matter-of-factly and continues with her mac and cheese.
'How are they anyway? Mom and Dad?' Daphne asks. Thalia shrugs, 'They're fine I guess. Same as usual.' Her voice becomes small as she speaks about their parents.
'Are you ok?' Daphne asks, sensing something off with her usually bubbly sister. For someone who loves mac and cheese, she has hardly eaten any.
Thalia's face suddenly turns pale, she puts the bowl on the coffee table and she says, 'I need help.' The statement comes out of nowhere, leaving Daphne stumped, 'Help? With what?' She asks.
'Daphne, please don't hate me.' Thalia's bottom lip quivers. 'Why would I hate you?' Daphne asks. 'Because I did something stupid, and I'm paying the price for it.' Thalia buries her face into her hands and sobs.
'Tell me what happened.' Daphne pleads. She puts her bowl on the coffee table and moves close to her sister. Thalia's hands tremble as she peels hair off her wet face.
'A few weeks ago, I went to Zinc with Charlotte and the other girls.' Thalia begins. Daphne remembers the nightclub Thalia used to go to regularly, she used to dropped her and her friends there a few times.
'We had a few drinks, and I saw Jamie there.' Thalia sniffles. Daphne rolls her eyes, the mention of her sister's ex-boyfriend makes her blood boil.
He's possessive, overreactive, and arrogant. He always had to know where Thalia was and who she was with. If she was shopping with her friends he would track her on FindMy. He would accuse her of cheating when she was late responding to a message or if she missed a phone call.
Daphne and her parents hate him. Her father refused to allow him into the house and her mother disconnected herself when he was the topic of conversation. Her father had even gone as far as asking Jason to "get rid of him".
'What happened?' Daphne asks. Thalia removes a tissue from her pocket to wipe her eyes and blow her nose, 'I was so drunk, I wasn't even thinking about how he treated me. We went outside, around the corner of the nightclub, and we…we…did it.' Thalia croaks.
'Did it? Did you agree to it?' Daphne asks sharply. When Thalia doesn't respond, Daphne pulls her hand away from her face and asks again, 'Did you consent?'
'I can't remember.' Thalia sobs. Daphne feels a burning in her chest and she grinds her teeth.
'Jamie texted me the day after but I didn't reply and he won't stop messaging me. I haven't spoken to anyone about it. Charlotte doesn't know I went off with him, she thought it was in the bathroom with some girls from the bar.'
Thalia is hysterical again and she throws her arms around Daphne, sobbing on her shoulder. Daphne listens to the strangled words, 'I'm pregnant.'
Daphne couldn't process it. She repeats the words in her head. 'Are you sure? One hundred percent sure?'
Thalia nods and pulls back from her sister, eyes red and cheeks wet, 'You're the only person I can trust to help me. I don't want anything to do with Jamie. Please help me!' Thalia cries.
'It's ok, we'll sort it out.' Daphne soothes. Thalia stops sobbing and lays her head on Daphne's shoulder.