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"I dedicated this to MusicIs4ever because she has been amazingly awesome and commenting on all these last chapters even though no one else has <3 Thank you so much!"

Chapter 20

    Daniel pulled his car into the short driveway leading to a modest one-story, dark brick home. He pulled the key from the ignition and turned, locking his emerald eyes to mine. “Are you ready?” He asked warmly.

    I chewed on my bottom lip and took a deep breath. “I don’t really have much of a choice now, huh?” I managed a nervous laugh.

    Leaning over the middle console, Daniel wrapped his warm hand around the back of my neck as he placed a kiss on my forehead. “I already told you, babe. You don’t have anything to be nervous about.”

    I wrinkled my nose. “I know; I know, but what if they don’t like me.”

    Daniel lifted a brow as a smile gathered in the corners of his mouth. “Does it really matter if they like you that much?”

    “Yes!” I said a little too loudly.

    Amused, Daniel opened his door and stepped out, leaving me in the car. “I guess it’s a good thing that I know they’ll love you then, huh?”

    I squinted at him dangerously as I opened my own door and stepped into the snow. Running my fingers down the hideous sweater, I did my best to smooth out any wrinkles. As Daniel wrapped an arm around my waist and led me to the front door, I ran my fingers through my hair in order to tame my wild curls.

    “Stop worrying, Tyler,” Daniel said as he chuckled down at me. “You look wonderful.” With that, he took a hand and ruffled my hair.

    “Daniel!” I groaned, immediately trying to fix the damage he caused. “That’s not funny,” I wined.

    Just as Daniel lifted his hand to knock, the door flew open, revealing a shapely woman with dark hair pulled into a tight bun on the top of her head. She threw her arms around Daniel’s chest, pulling him into a tight embrace. “Daniel!” She exclaimed happily as he pulled away to get a good look at her son. “You look so handsome.”

    For a woman in her late fifties, she looked pretty dang good herself.

    “Hey, Mom.” Daniel kissed her cheek gently. “This is Tyler,” he said proudly as he tightened his arm around my waist.

    “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Saunders,” I managed through my nerves.

    She ran her green eyes over me and smiled so warmly that I near instantly felt at home. “Tyler, it’s so nice to finally meet you.” Without warning, Tyler’s mother wrapped her arms around me. Though she was considerably shorter than Daniel was, she still stood a good inch taller than I did. “You are just the cutest,” she added when she pulled away from me.

    “Um,” I found myself at a loss for words; thankfully, Daniel cut in.

    “Give him a little air, Mom; he’s already freaked out enough.”

    Mrs. Saunders ushered us into her beautifully furnished home. The interior of her home reminded me of an antique furniture shop. Everything looked beautifully aged but still continued to hold its natural beauty. The air carried with it the fragrant scent of delectable foods. I felt my stomach nearly jump in excitement. “Your home is lovely,” I said truthfully.

    The smile she shone touched her green eyes; Daniel definitely got his eyes from his mother. “Thank you very much.” She looked up at her son. “You found one that has manners.”   

    I couldn’t help but smile.

    So far so good.

    “Henry,” Mrs. Saunders called into the direction where the wonderful aroma wafted from, “come tell your son and his boyfriend hello.”

    I found myself eying a tall man who nearly mirrored his son’s good looks. He was tall and his body still hinted at muscles despite the layers of clothing he wore. His features held the same well-defined shape, and despite the wrinkles gathering around his eyes, he was a very attractive older man.

    It was evident where Daniel inherited his movie star looks.

    “Hey, Dad,” Daniel said warmly as he closed the distance with his father. They exchanged warm hugs, and I noticed that his father stood at least two inches taller than Daniel did. “You look really well.”

    Mr. Saunders smiled down at his son. “So do you, Daniel. You really do.”

    Daniel ran a hand through his hair and gestured over at me. “That would probably be because of Tyler.”

    I felt Mr. Saunders eyes on me, and I smiled, taking a step forward and extending my hand to him politely. “It’s nice to meet you, sir.”

    He raised his eyebrow as he stepped away from his son. “I don’t know what my son has told you, but in this family, we hug.” With that, he leaned down and hugged me tightly. “I’m so happy that my son has finally found someone he can love.”

    I bit my lip as I blushed. “Me too,” I said truthfully.   

    Daniel’s father pulled away from me and darted back into the kitchen. “I have to pull the ham out,” he called to us.

    We all sat at the Saunders’ family table with mountains of steaming food in front of us. There were too many things to name, but clearly, the glazed ham, mashed potatoes, chicken and broccoli casserole, and the entire desert table were calling to me like sirens in the sea.

    As we all ate and the Saunders family exchanged family stories and recalled the best moments in their life, I couldn’t help but stare at how Mr. Saunders still looked at his wife. It was crystal clear that the two of them still loved each other even after all the time they spent together.

    I wanted to have that with Daniel.

    I could have already had that with Daniel.

    My family never shared moments like this where we all gathered around the table, laughed, and just talked to each other. I nearly felt a ping of jealousy for everything I missed out on.

    I didn’t have any stories to tell, no fond memories to share with them, but despite that, they kept me in their conversation and did their very best to make me feel welcome.

    I knew these people for a few hours, and I already loved them.

    From what I learned about the family, Mrs. Saunders was an elementary school teacher for nearly thirty years. She loved nothing more than having the opportunity to brighten a child’s day and give them a chance to learn something they never even knew existed.

    Daniel’s father owned his own screen printing company. Apparently, he could print anything from a t-shirt to a high school graduation invitation. He enjoyed spending his time with his wife going on long road trips.

    “What do you do?” Mrs. Saunders asked me after she swallowed her bit of pumpkin pie.

    I wiped the corners of my mouth with my napkin and took a deep breath. I figured this question would come up eventually. As I folded my hands in my lap, I felt Daniel’s warm hand grasp mind, offering me his strength. “I don’t do anything right now,” I answered honestly.

    Mrs. Saunders kept her eyes glued to mine as she waited for me to continue, and I felt Mr. Saunders’ gaze on me harden.

    I never had to explain my situation before, causing me to struggle for the right words. “When Daniel first met me, I was going through some things of my own, and your son helped me through them.” I paused to shift my gaze to Daniel’s father. “I don’t know where I would be right now if I would have never met Daniel.”

    I didn’t really want to go into the whole I-dated-my-imaginary-friend-and-locked-myself-away-in-my-room thing.

    “That’s so sweet,” Daniel’s mother said with a kind smile; however, Daniel’s father continued to stare at me as he placed his napkin on the table beside his spent plate.

    “You do plan on doing something though, right?”

    A boulder began to settle in my full stomach. I could see that Mr. Saunders thought that I was a complete waste of space and not worth his son’s time. I had to prove him wrong.

    I had to.

    I cleared my throat, and Daniel’s grip on my hand tightened, almost as if he were trying to remind me that he was still there for me.

    “Yes, sir, I do.” I began with a warm smile. “I don’t come from a family like this,” I said as I gestured to the happy family around me.  “My life has been complicated, and for most of my life I refused to deal with it. Instead, I locked myself away and let life walk past me.” I bit my lip as I tried to regain grip over my emotions. This wasn’t the time to cry.

    “Tyler has been through a lot in these last months with me,” Daniel said in my defense.

    I shifted my gaze between Daniel’s parents. “Daniel opened my eyes and made me want more. I still have a long way to go, but I feel like I’m on the right path for the first time in my entire life.” I felt my grip on my emotions falter. “I know that Daniel could find someone so much better than me, but I love him more than I could have ever imagined possible.” I felt tears well behind my eyes because I spoke the truth. Daniel could have whatever man he wanted.

    Despite that, he wanted me.

    Daniel kissed my cheek suddenly, making me close my eyes as a tear rolled down my cheek. “There is no one better than you, Tyler. I love you with my whole heart.”

    I turned and met his emerald gaze before touching my lips to his. Briefly, he and I were the only two people in the entire world. When I lifted my eyes to his family, I found that Mr. Saunders’ gaze softened and Mrs. Saunders was in near tears herself. She reached across the table, placing her hand over her husbands. For a brief second, they locked eyes and shared a silent moment between the two of them.

    “Welcome to the family,” Mr. Saunders said finally, causing me to grin like a total idiot.

    The amount of love at that exact moment at the Saunders’ table was the most love I had ever seen. Daniel’s parents looked at each other the exact same way Daniel and me looked at each other. Wiping away my tear, I placed a kiss once more on Daniel’s lips.

    I returned each of Daniel’s parents hugs on our way out of their home. “Marry Christmas,” Mrs. Saunders called out.

    “Marry Christmas,” Daniel and I said in unison as we climbed into his car.

    “I think that went really well,” I said happily as I buckled myself in. My own family was dysfunctional enough for six families, but now I had a new family to look forward to joining.

    Daniel grinned as he started his car. “I told you everything would be ok.”

    I grinned back at him. “I guess I should start believing you, huh?”

    Time is a funny thing. When you’re locked away in your room, time inches by. A single day can feel like it lasts absolutely forever; minutes feel like hours; however, when you’re out living your life, every single second is a precious piece that seems to fly by you without a second glance over its shoulder.    

    That was how the first year of my life with Daniel felt. It seemed as if I blinked my eyes or went to sleep and found myself working at a small grocery store, making my own money, and spending every second of my free time with the man I adored.

    I quickly adapted to my new life. Daniel helped me open a checking account and taught me how to manage money. I started helping him out with the bills and groceries; everything just seemed to fall into place.

    He and I never argued. If one of us didn’t like something, we talked about it. Communication came easy with Daniel. I even dared to think that things between us were perfect.

    It was almost as if the two of us grew into exactly what the other person needed. I needed a strong man to be my rock, my stabilizer; I needed a man who could love me despite my faults and not give up on me.

    Daniel needed someone to come home to; he needed someone who he could love unconditionally. Daniel needed someone who he could give his heart.

    Despite the beginning of my life and all the things that happened, my new life with Daniel was everything and more than I could have ever fathomed. I now had life aspirations.

    Instead of wanting to dwell in the darkness of my own mind, I wanted to save up money and pay my way through college. I wanted to become an art teacher and spread the gift of creation; I wanted to inspire children to think out of the box, reach deep inside themselves, and create their own masterpieces.

    All of those ideas would have seemed like an impossible feat not too long ago, but now, everything seemed like it could be a reality.

    It could be my reality.

    A single year, three hundred sixty-five days, was all it took to void out my old life. Truthfully, I never forgot where I came from. Sometimes when I was alone, I would catch myself thinking about my father and mother.

    I still didn’t know why she killed herself, and a part of me still blamed my father, but I was ready to let it all go. I accepted the fact that my father and I would never have a perfect relationship, but I couldn’t help but think that it was time to try to better things between us.

    I still missed my mother every single day. It was hard to believe that sometimes. She and I didn’t have a perfect relationship either, but when you lose your mother, or any parent, a wound remains open that no one can fill.

    I slid my key to the apartment into the lock and pushed the door open. I usually worked from eight in the morning to four in the afternoon at the grocery store; however, today I worked the closing shift from three in the afternoon to ten at night.

    Who would have ever thought that I would actually enjoy waking up early and working than staying out late and working?

    Kicking the door shut behind me, I tossed my keys on the coffee table and stretched tiredly.

    “Hey, babe,” Daniel called from the small kitchen area.

    I smiled and walked in to find my man in the kitchen working his little butt off. “Hey.”

    “How was work?” He asked as he opened the stove and retrieved what appeared to be a perfectly baked squash casserole. It appeared that my cooking classes were finally starting to pay off.

    I shrugged as I wrapped my arms around his chest, breathing in his crisp scent. “It was ok. I don’t like working so late though.”

    Daniel kissed the top of my head sweetly. “I left early so I could get here before you.”

    I pulled away and lifted my brow. “I see that. What’s the occasion?” I asked in faux confusion.

    Daniel wrinkled his brow and looked truly hurt.

    “I’m kidding; I’m kidding,” I said quickly as I jumped, wrapping my arms around his neck. “Happy anniversary, my knight,” I said as I wrapped my legs around his waist.

    His lips found mine in a heated embrace as he back up against the counter. “Happy anniversary, my prince,” he breathed when our lips finally parted.

    It was another perfect night with the love of my life. You know what they say though. All good things must come to an end.

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The climax of the story is in the next chapter :D Are you all excited?

Please take the time to comment down below and vote for this story(: I love you all so much for helping this story nearly reach 5000 reads!

- Mason

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