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Chapter 16

    Daniel and I took no time at all to go to my father’s house and gather my things. We went on Daniel’s first off day to avoid the conflict altogether. I felt like he was eager to get my things into his apartment. When I continued to press for information in order to make sure that he really didn’t mind me moving in, he was quick to tell me that he wanted me there.

    I only packed the things that would fit into his sporty car. All my clothes fit into a single box that took up the majority of his backseat, and I managed to pick up a few family pictures just in case my father decided to rid the entire house of photos of my mother and me. I made sure that I brought all my art supplies; everything else in my room stayed.

    Surprisingly, it wasn’t too difficult to say goodbye to my old home. Despite it being my home since I can remember, every fond memory its walls contained were now tainted with an oozing darkness that sapped away any light the house once held. Even my mother’s kitchen seemed to have a darkness looming over it; however, I did sneak a quiet moment to myself to sit on my bed one last time.

    I took that moment to say my final goodbyes to Jerry. An open wound still existed where his presence once filled, but I was looking forward to the future. I would remember him for the rest of my life, not because I fell in love with my imaginary friend, but because he was my only friend.

    Daniel resided in my life now, and I loved him more than I could have ever loved Jerry, and I believed wholeheartedly that if Jerry were real, I still would have chosen Daniel. Daniel possessed something that pulled me in; it was impossible for me not to fall in love with him.

    As I walked out of my room for the last time, I could have sworn I felt a hand on my shoulder. The touch was ever so light and cool at the same time. A smile tugged at the corner of my lips. “Goodbye, Jerry.” I sighed and stepped through the doorway. “Thank you for everything.”

    It took no time to settle in at Daniel’s apartment. On the first night we spent actually living together, he surprised me with a present wrapped in shiny, colorful paper. When I opened it, I found the photo I drew of us together in a silver, lavish-looking frame. 

    “This is beautiful, Daniel,” I said, rubbing my thumb along the frame. Its surface held both our reflections. Daniel looked his usual scruffy, confident self, and it was hard to ignore how happy I seemed.

    Daniel smiled and kissed my cheek tenderly. “I want you to keep drawing, Tyler, and when you finish something, I’ll frame it for you. Maybe then, we’ll be able to decorate these bare walls,” he said while gesturing around his apartment.

    I grinned brightly up at him. My drawings spent their lives hidden away within the confounds of my sketchbook, but now, they had a chance to see some light. “You like them that much?”

    He shook his head in a silent no. “I love them that much.”

    Daniel hung the photo in his bedroom, right beside the bed, directly in front of the doorway; it was the first thing you saw when you walked into his, I mean, our room.

    A routine quickly formed within the first week of living together. Daniel spent most of the day and sometimes the night working for my father. He usually came home completely exhausted, but he always made an effort to talk to me and spend time with me. I did my best to have some sort of food made by the time he got home, even if it was something simple like a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

    We avoided talking about my father though. On the rare occasion where he did come up, we usually kept it short, sweet, and simple. If he gave Daniel a particularly hard time, Daniel would tell me about it, but only if I asked.

    Most nights after Daniel came back from work, we would sit down and watch one of his overly masculine movies. Most of the time, Daniel talked through the movie, pointing out its flaws and his favorite parts. I didn’t mind though; I actually enjoyed hearing him ramble on about a particular scene or the historical significance of it.

    At night, we slept together, which made it quite difficult to keep our hands off each other. I grew so used to the feel of his bare flesh against mine. I had everything I would ever need for the makings of a happy life.

   

    I finished making spaghetti just as Daniel stepped through the front door. Perfect timing, if I say so myself. I got a late start on dinner, but Daniel came home a little late, so everything panned out nicely.

     “What smells so good, babe?” Daniel called from the doorway. I never took myself for a guy who would like pet names, but I melted every time Daniel used one on me.

    Poking my head around the corner, I smiled at him. He looked perkier than usual. “It’s just spaghetti.” I met the emeralds of his eyes as he smiled back at me; he definitely looked different today.

    “Are you in the mood to go out?” He asked as he undid his tie, leaving it hanging loosely from his neck.

    Lifting an eyebrow, I asked, “You’re plotting something, aren’t you?”

    Daniel grinned. “I’ll take that as a yes. Let’s hurry up and eat.”

    I went back to stirring the sauce. Thankfully, I managed to persuade Daniel to buy some actual groceries for the apartment. Now, we had fresh veggies and the actual necessities to cook properly as opposed to eating out of boxes and cans.

    I mentally crossed my fingers as we made our plates that everything would taste decent. I never made sauce from scratch before, but I did watch my mother do it many times.

    “I totally see why you don’t eat out of a can, Tyler.” Daniel said after swallowing a bit of spaghetti. “This is wonderful.”

    I blushed slightly. Receiving compliments still made me shy; I wasn’t exactly sure why. “I’m glad you like it.” I let Daniel eat a bit more before prodding for more information. After all, he did just get back from work. “So,” I began as he swallowed, “are you going to tell me what you’re planning?”

    Daniel chuckled as he placed a finger on his chin as if he were in deep thought. “Probably not,” he said with a wide, childlike grin.

    I blew out a breath playfully. “What if I don’t want to go?”

    “Then, I’ll just have to pick you up and carry you to my car.” There was a wicked gleam in the greens of his eyes. “Plus, I know for a fact that you’re going to want to go.”

    Honestly, I wouldn’t have protested all that much at being carried; I absolutely loved being in his arms. “Fine. Fine,” I said as I waved my hand dismissively. “I’ll go along with you’re silly little game.” I couldn’t stop the smile that tugged at my lips. Daniel was the absolute best at anything cute and cheesy; I loved it.

    We finished eating and cleaned up. Daniel pulled his cell from his pocket and glanced at the time. “It’s a little after ten; I think that’s late enough,” he said more to himself than to me.

    I raised my eyebrow at him questioningly but decided not to ask; however, I did do a little snooping without actually having to snoop. “Will I need to change clothes?” I asked innocently. Fall was quickly changing into winter, and if we were going to be outside, a short-sleeved shirt and thin sweatpants were not going to work. At least this way, I would know if we were going to be outside.

    “You think you’re clever, don’t you?” Daniel asked as he walked over, placing a hand on my hip.

    I batted my eyelashes and farther feigned my innocence. “What ever are you talking about, Daniel?”

    Rolling his eyes, he leaned down, placed his lips to mine. When he pulled away he said, “It’s not absolutely necessary to change, but you can change into a sweater if you would like.”

    I darted into the bedroom and went through my half of the closet. The sweater I chose was a dark blue with a white intricate pattern that almost looked tribal. When I returned, Daniel waited patiently by the front door. “Almost ready,” I mumbled as I stepped into my shoes. “Ok. I’m ready.”

    Daniel grinned darkly. “I don’t think you are.”

    Well, that sent my nerves into overdrive. As we walked to Daniel’s car, my hands started to shake, but I crossed my arms tightly against my chest. It was time for me to be strong and stop acting like a frightened rabbit. Daniel kept quiet during the drive, but he kept glancing over at me and shooting me his lopsided grins. Soon, any worry that bubbled in my system faded to the back of my mind. Reaching out, I placed my hand on top of Daniel’s; instantly, he wove his fingers with mine.

    Finally, Daniel pulled off the road and followed a graveled path lined with thick trees that blocked out the moon. Eventually, the road changed into weathered asphalt and opened to a large warehouse looking building. “Where in the world are we?” I asked as I peered out the window. In the moonlight, I could see that the metal exterior of the building held years of red rust. There were rows and rows of small square windows, most of which were shattered.

    Daniel parked the car into one of the many empty parking places and turned the car off. “This is the old lumber yard,” Daniel said matter-of-factly.

    I turned and blinked at him. “And we’re here because…?” I prodded.

    Daniel opened his door, walking around the car while ignoring my question. He opened my door and waited patiently for me to unbuckle my seatbelt as he extended his hand. I took it and stepped into the near bitter night air. “Welcome to your private driving grounds,” Daniel said brightly with a huge grin lighting up his face.

    Blinking a few times, I smiled, jumped, and threw my arms around Daniel’s neck. Because of everything that happened so quickly, I forgot all about the agreement we made on our first date; I forgot that I told him I wanted to learn how to drive, but Daniel remembered. “You remembered?” I asked into his neck.

    Daniel wrapped his arms around me, kissing the top of my head. “Of course I did, Tyler. We had a deal.” He sat me down and offered me a smile. “Now, get your ass into the driver’s seat.”

    I tipped my head at him lightly while grinning. “Yes, sir.”

    Once buckled safely into the driver’s seat, I took a deep breath and waited for Daniel’s directions. I kept my hands folded in my lap nervously. “So, what do you know about driving?” He asked as he buckled himself in beside me.

    I cocked my head to the side and smiled shyly at him. “Well,” I began with a light laugh, “I know how to start it, but that’s about it.”

    Daniel laughed at me. “Ok, well, start the car.”

    “Right now?”

    Daniel chuckled once more. “Yes. Right now, Tyler.”

    Taking a deep breath, I lifted a hand to the key in the ignition and turned it; the car roared into life. My nerves picked up, settling like a coiled snake at the pit of my stomach. “So far so good,” I mumbled.

    “Ok, the headlights are controlled by the stick to your left.” When I sat there like a bump on a log, he went on. “Go ahead. Turn the headlights on.”

    I turned the knob and the lights came to life.

    “Now, if you want the lights on their brightest setting, all you have to do is push that same level back.”

    I did as Daniel instructed and the lights clicked to a brighter section, illuminating the area. I alternated a few times between the bright and low setting to get a good feel for it.

    “Now, look down at your feet.” I did, and Daniel went on. “The bigger of the two paddle-looking things is the breaks, and the smaller one is the gas. It’s very important to use one foot to alternate between the both of them and keep your left foot on the footrest. You don’t want to end up resting your foot on your breaks; it’ll wear them down very quickly.”

    I blinked at the bundle of information, but smiled at Daniel‘s dumb-downed driving instructions. “Um, I think I can remember that.”

    Daniel placed his hand on mine gently. “Relax, Tyler. You’re going to do fine; I trust you.”

    Lifting my head, I smiled as I met the greens of his eyes. My nerves were on end, and my palms sweated, but if Daniel could believe in me, then I owed it to myself to do my best to believe in me. “I’m ready,” I said with a grin.

    “I can see that.” Daniel pulled his hand from mine. “Keep your foot on the break as you shift from park into drive.”

    I pressed down on the break with my right foot and shifted into drive.

    “Good. Now, ease your foot from the break, and the car will move a little on its own.”

    Easing from the breaks, the car began to inch forward. My heart climbed into my throat, but there was something incredibly powerful about sitting behind the wheel of a death machine. “This isn’t so bad,” I said to myself.

    “Well then, why don’t you ease down on the gas a little, but be-” his words were cut off as I applied too much pressure to the gas, causing the car to lurch forward. When I stomped on the break, Daniel finished his sentence, “gentle.”

    An overly nervous laugh escaped my lips. “Sorry.”

    Driving ending up being easier than I thought it would be. Granted, I was moving incredibly slowly in a vacant parking lot, but still, I enjoyed driving. Daniel had me use the turn signals every time I came to the end of the lane. Essentially, he made me pretend that I was on an actual road actually driving through traffic instead of letting me think I was in an empty parking lot.

    I went over the extremely faded white line and Daniel said so nonchalantly that I ran over an infant. Let’s just say that it didn’t help my nerves too much, but overall, it was a fun experience; though, I learned very quickly that parking in between two very small white lines was not in my list of skills. While I was thinking about it, I couldn’t reverse worth a crap either.

    “You did really well, Tyler,” Daniel chimed as I finally gave up on my parking venture. I was way too far over on the left side, but it was as good as it was going to get.

    “You’re just saying that,” I began as I shifted into park and cut the engine.

    Daniel placed his hand on my knee and smiled brightly. “I’m not kidding, babe. I honestly expected you to do much worse, but you caught on quickly. All it’s going to take is a little more practice, and you’ll have your license in no time.”

    A feeling of pride bloomed within me and felt so alien. I couldn’t think of a time, besides when I drew, where I actually proud of myself, but here I was, sitting next to Daniel while I grinned like a total idiot. “Really?”

    He nodded and leaned close, touching his lips to mine gently. “Really. Really.” He traced his thumb along the curve of my jaw. “Are you ready for the rest of your surprise?”

    I lifted my eyebrow. “There’s more?”

    “I figured that since we’re already here, we might as well go on a little ghost adventure.”

    I gulped as I nervously glanced forward at the rusted metal building before me. Even through the windshield, the building looked like something out of a hack and slash horror movie. “Ghost hunting?” I didn’t necessarily believe in ghosts, but that didn’t mean I wanted to go out banging around begging them to haunt me.

    “You don’t like ghosts?” Daniel asked as he turned around and began rustling in the back seat. He retrieved two large flashlights.

    He totally planned this out. “Well,” I began trying not to sound like a frightened rat, “I don’t usually go out looking for them.”

    “Then you’re in for quite an experience, Tyler.” He opened his door, allowing entry to the cool air. “You ready?”

    I eyed him and furrowed my brow. “Um, sure.”

    Daniel walked over and opened my door, extending his hand to me. I took it hesitantly. He handed me a flashlight as he pulled his keys from the ignition and locked his doors.

    We walked hand-in-hand to the looming building. Up close, it looked even more daunting and scary. I found myself attached to Daniel’s hip. He didn’t seem to mind though; he wrapped an arm around my shoulder and laughed to himself.

    “Stop laughing at me,” I whined as he pulled open the huge metal door. As it slid open, it sent a grinding, metallic screech through the air, causing my stomach to drop and the hairs on the back of my neck to stand on their ends.

    “I can’t help it,” he snickered as he led me into the darkness.

    Inside, I immediately clicked on my flashlight, darting it around nervously. The air felt warmer in here and it still smelled like sawdust and damp wood. The main room looked too empty, but it still held large, ancient machinery.  “Are there any ghosts in here?” Daniel asked the air in a taunting voice.

    I moved closer to him, burning my face into his side. “I don’t think you’re supposed to taunt them.” My words came out muffled as I spoke into his shirt.

    He laughed and ran a hand through my hair, but his body stilled suddenly. “Did you see that?”

    My head darted up as my heart raced. “What? See what?”

    “Something just ran upstairs. Whoa.” He started pulling me towards a set of stairs that led to a second level. “Come on, Tyler. Let’s go see what it is.”

    I drug my heels into the sawdust-covered ground. “I don’t want to,” I whined. “Let’s just go back to the car.” I felt like I was suddenly in a cheesy horror movie, and I knew that going after something you saw or heard was a bad idea. That was a definite way to get yourself killed.

    Or possessed.

    “Tyler, come on. Wouldn’t it be awesome to see a ghost?” He pulled me as we began climbing up the stairs. I stayed glued to his hip. If I wouldn’t have been so terrified, I would have ran away, but  the thought of being alone while running like a mad man through a haunted, abandoned lumber yard sounded like a bad idea.

    “I think I would be fine without ever seeing one,” I mumbled through chattering teeth. My knees were shaking as we reached the top of the stairs.

    “Shh,” Daniel whispered, coming to a halt, “did you hear that?”

    I shined my light everywhere. The top floor was a small landing with a single iron door. “I don’t hear anything.” I strained my ears to hear any sort of nose, but if there had been a noise, I wouldn’t have been able to hear it over the loud thudding of my own heart.

    “Look!” Daniel said too loudly, causing me to jump and yelp.

    “What?” I asked in panic, darting my head around.

    “There is light coming from under the door.” He turned his flashlight off, and sure enough, there was light seeping from the crack of the door.

    Panic bubbled through my system, and my feet ached to take flight. “Let’s go, Daniel,” I said, tugging on his arm. “Let’s just go home.”

    “No way,” he said firmly as he reached out and placed his hand on the doorknob. “Let’s go in.”

    I shook my head, burying my face in his hip. Tears threatened to fall from my eyes; I was so scared.

    He threw the door open and ran his fingers through my hair. “Look, Tyler,” he said gently.

    I pressed my eyes closed and dug my fingers into his shirt.

    “Tyler, look,” he pressed calmly.

    I cracked an eye open and peeked into the room. I expected to see an ethereal being with a shroud of white light enveloping its body; however, I found myself looking into a room made golden by the light of dozens half melted candles. In the middle of the room a large quilt sat, the same quilt Daniel used on our first date.

    A mix of emotions filled my system; I was angry with Daniel for playing a cruel joke on me, but at the same time, I was overjoyed at how much planning he must have put into organizing this. “This is why you were late, isn’t it?” I asked when my mind finally permitted me to speak.

    Daniel laughed as he ran his fingers through my hair once more. “Yeah.”

    I looked up to find him smiling down at me. All the fear ebbed from my bones as I stood on the tips of my toes and placed a kiss on his lips. “You know, you could have just said you had this planned; you didn’t have to scare me half to death.”

    Daniel grinned at me. “I’m sorry, but I couldn’t resist.”

    “Why did you do this?” I asked as we stepped into the warmly lit room. The candles heated the air, chasing away the bitter chill in the air.

    He pulled my hand to his lips and placed a kiss gently on its top. “Our first date got cut a little short, so I figured that a little redo couldn’t hurt.”

    I blushed. “A redo wasn’t in the deal, Daniel.”

    “That is correct, but it’s my deal, and I can change it at will.” His green eyes held a twinkle that shone brightly.

    “That doesn’t sound very fair.” I said with a cheeky grin as I sat on the quilt. Daniel sat beside me.

    He wrapped an arm around my shoulders, pulling me against his chest. “I know, but I really just wanted this to be perfect for you, Tyler. You deserve it.”

    I closed my eyes against him and sighed contently. “You make me feel like I deserve it.”

    Daniel pressed his lips against my cheek, but I turned my head bringing my lips to his. “You deserve everything you could ever want, Tyler.”

    His lips were feverish against mine; sending warm shivers up my spine. “I love you, Daniel.”

    “I love you too, Tyler,” he breathed against my lips.

    When our lips finally parted, I couldn’t help but giggle. “I have to wonder what you have up your sleeves for when you actually get to pick what we do.”

    Daniel grinned as he traced a finger down my cheek. “I have an idea, but what I’m really concerned about is perhaps getting you out of your clothes.”

    I blushed, but felt a surge or boldness flood through my veins. I pushed Daniel to his back and began unbuttoning his shirt. “I think I’m going to get you out of your clothes, Daniel.”

    Daniel blushed for once as I brushed his over shirt over his shoulders. I pulled his white undershirt over his head, brushing my fingers down his bare chest. When my fingers made their way down to his belt, I felt his body stiffen and his breathing quicken.

    I couldn’t help but grin as I undid his belt. Tonight, Daniel was mine. I wanted to taste him, to feel him.

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As always, please feel free to vote and leave me a comment below what you think about the story so far.

As a special thank you to everyone being so lovely, I am also uploading the first chapter to Soul's Entwined, so please check that out as well!

Chapter 17 is nearly finished and may be up as early as tomorrow :D:D

Things are wrapping up, everyone. Are you all ready for it to end? Just a few chapters left!

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