Just Care

I just barely made it from my car out into the garage, let alone all the way to my doorstep. Tears were rushing down my cheeks and no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t stop them. I finally got to my porch and was somehow able to find the right keys. However, it took way too much effort to find them and I couldn’t get myself to actually put my key in the lock and open the door. So, in turn, I resorted to dropping to the porch steps and finally letting my emotions take full control of my body.

I was so distraught I didn’t notice the nice car that pulled up to the house next to mine. My porch was right next to his garage and as he was climbing out of his Bentley, an exceptionally loud sob rocked through my body. The man turned his head sharply in my direction and within seconds he was by my side. I had to give him credit for trying to figure out what was wrong with me, but through my tears, words were unable to be formed. Not knowing what else to do, this strange man easily lifted me from my place on my steps and carried me towards his house.

It made sense to him; he didn’t know if I actually lived next door to him or was waiting for the owner, and it would be rude to just force his way into someone else’s house. He carried me and carefully put me down on his couch. While I still didn’t know the name of my neighbor, it was comforting just having him near me. He pulled me onto his lap and held me close to his body with one arm and gently rubbed small circles into my back with his other. He didn’t say anything, just consoled me as my tears started to dry up.

As my tears turned into quiet sobs that shook my body, this strange new man ceased his rubbing. He instead pulled me closer to his body so that his body heat calmed me. Once I had finally calmed down enough to open my eyes, I realized that my tears had soaked through this poor man’s shirt. Embarrassment soon took over my immediate emotions as I gripped the soft fabric and buried my face into his chest. I felt his upper body shake with his silent laughter as he took to combing his fingers through my hair as another relaxation tool. Only when my body had ceased its shaking and my grip on his shirt had loosened did I feel his gentle fingertips lift my chin up so that his blue eyes could pierce into mine.

This man had short, slightly curly, light brown hair. His blue eyes were by far one of his best features, but his small dimples that showed as he sent me a reassuring smile gave them a run for their money. His smooth jaw bones were lined with a light scruff that showed that he was tough, but fairly gentle at the same time. He pressed a soft, barely-there kiss to my forehead and I curled my body in closer to his. If any other stranger were to kiss me like that I would be bothered, but for him to do it just seemed natural.

“I’m sorry for soaking your shirt,” I whispered in a soft voice; the first time I had ever spoken to this man.

>“Well how about this,” he proposed with a light chuckle to his voice. “I’ll disregard my soaked shirt so long as you tell me what upset such a gorgeous girl like you.”

I blushed at his comment, but buried myself back into his warm body to avoid answering his question. I still didn’t know this boy and didn’t feel like completely opening my breaking heart to him just yet.

“Come on beautiful,” he murmured into my ear. “Tell me what’s wrong. I’ve been told I’m a good listener and I can keep a secret.”

“But I, I don’t even know your name.”

“Dany. Dany Heatley. Now no more excuses.”

“Fine. I-I-I,” my voice started to stutter and Dany resumed his gentle rubbing of my back. I took a deep breath before continuing, “I just found out that my brother has cancer.” As soon as the words left my lips, I broke down. And once again, Dany pulled me close to him.

After about five more minutes of crying, I felt myself being lifted again. My tears turned to sniffles as my curiosity got the best of me. I peeked over Dany’s shoulder and noticed we were now in his fairly spacious kitchen. Dany placed me on one of the countertops, once he was sure that I was more or less emotionally sound, and began rummaging through his pantry. My sadness had been temporarily forgotten as I watched him move around.

“Dany?”

“Yes, love?” God I could listen to that man talk all day long.

“What are you doing?”

“I figured you could use some extreme cheering up so we’re making brownies and then watching a movie. As long as you can spare spending that much time with me, that is.”

I smiled as I watched Dany gather all of the necessary ingredients and place them on the counter next to me. He then came and lifted me off the counter and placing me between his body and the counter. As we added in ingredients, we made idle chit chat, just getting to know each other. I had just poured in the melted chocolate when Dany’s body went rigid.

“Are you ok,” I inquired, wondering if I had done something wrong.

“My nose itches and my hands are covered in egg yolk.” I had a hard time containing my laughter.

“Do you need me to scratch it for you?” His eyes narrowed in an un-amused slight glare.

“No, I got it.” The next thing I knew, Dany was rubbing his nose into my neck. The ticklish feeling was too much to bear and I burst out laughing as his body cornered me against the kitchen surface so I couldn’t get away.

“Dany, stop,” I breathed through my laughs. My sides were starting to hurt, but Dany just wiggled his nose against my skin.

“Apologize for laughing at me.”

“I’m sorry,” I gasped out, but not being entirely serious. Dany pressed his nose harder into my skin and I near lost it.

“You’ve gotta mean it.”

“Dany, I’m sorry for laughing at you,” I yelled out, hoping that would cease his tickling.

Dany pulled away and sent me a smug little grin. “Itch is gone.” I sent him a small glare before turning my attention back to the brownie batter still in front of us.

From that moment on, the mood was a lot lighter. As we moved about his kitchen, Dany and I would occasionally nudge each other just because we could. I was forced to use the mixer because apparently it scared Dany after one particular incident. I had just finished mixing all the batter so it was creamy and perfectly smooth when Dany swiped his finger into it. I was about to open my mouth and scold him when he slowly licked the delicious looking batter off his finger.

I swallowed hard as he gave me a sexy, sly smile. “Want some?” Before I could form words, Dany’s finger was in front of my face, a fresh load of batter on his skin. He wagged his finger mockingly in front of my face before I finally gave in and tentatively opened my mouth. Dany seemed to have no problem with the fact that I was licking chocolate brownie batter off one of his limbs, but it turned me on like no other. As he pulled his finger from my lips he sent me a knowing wink; that sneaky bastard did it on purpose.

Dany put the brownies in the oven while I leaned against the opposite counter. He walked over to me and randomly pulled me into a tight hug, which I responded to almost immediately. “Are you ok?” I nodded, loving the feeling of his arms secured around me. “Do you want to talk about it?” I shook my head ‘no,’ not fully wanting to discuss my brother just yet. I just wanted this Dany guy, who I barely knew, to keep making me feel safe.

I felt Dany drop a kiss to the top of my head as he pulled me closer to his warm body. He snuggled my head under his chin. “Do you want to watch a movie while we wait for the brownies?” I nodded and let him pull me back towards his living room. He sat me down on his plush couch before bounding off to find the perfect movie.

“Ok,” he finally spoke. “We have 10 Things I Hate About You if you’re into a romantic comedy, The Notebook if you’re in a chick-flick mood and if you want something with more action we’ve got Star Wars, Borne Ultimatum and Narnia. And if you don’t like any of those I can try again, but I have a feeling one of these has got to be money.”

“Narnia?” I tried to keep the smile off my face.

“Shut up. It’s left over from when I was babysitting.”

I stood up and walked over to him, getting near uncomfortably close to his body, before plucking Borne Ultimatum out of his hands. “This one.”

“Hmm, I pegged you as a Borne girl. Now go sit,” he ordered.

I obeyed and within minutes the DVD was in, the lights were dimmed and Dany was next to me on the couch. He had one arm slung over the back so that his fingertips just barely grazed my shoulder. I looked up into his face, but Dany didn’t seem to notice. I curled into his body and he automatically wrapped his arm around me. Whenever I was in close proximity to him, I just felt safe.

Dany left me for a brief period of time to pull our brownies out of the oven. During the ten minutes he was gone, I felt unusually vulnerable. The second he came back, I wrapped myself around him once again. He looked down at me and I could tell that he was worried, but I silenced his questions by cuddling my body closer to his.

Once the movie ended, Dany and I were still curled together on the couch. However, our positions had changed. I was now curled up in Dany’s lap. His arms were resting tightly around my waist and my head lay tiredly on his shoulder. He had even taken the effort to grab a big warm blanket and drape it over the both of us.

“Dany,” I finally spoke. My voice sounded so soft, even to me.

“Yes, love?”

“Can we have brownies now?” I looked up into his eyes and they began sparkling.

“I can do you one better. Stay here and I’ll be right back.”

He lifted me and moved me to one of the other cushions, taking the blanket and wrapping it securely around my shoulders before disappearing to his kitchen. There was a small cutout in one of the walls so that if I leaned up slightly I could watch Dany’s movements in the kitchen. When I heard a stern “No peeking,” I was forced to slouch back down on the comfortable couch and pout to myself. “And stop pouting. I’m not depriving you of anything,” the comfortable man stated. But I was being deprived; I was being deprived of his presence.

No more than eight minutes later Dany came waltzing back into the room, two large bowls in his hands. I reached for the one in his right hand, but he pulled it out of my reach before I could get a good grasp on it. “Not so fast missy,” he smiled down at me. “This,” he nodded his head towards the bowl in his hand, “is going to get me in some serious trouble with Coach if he ever finds out. But because you need some cheering up, I’m willing to sacrifice my perfect hockey body.” I snorted at the last part, but gladly took my bowl as he handed it over.

My eyes widened at Dany’s creation. He started out with a brownie the size of my hand resting on the bottom. On top of that were two generous scoops of vanilla ice cream that was topped with a combination of rainbow and chocolate sprinkles, M&M’s, gummy bears, Reese’s Pieces, chocolate sauce, whipped cream and a single delicate cherry on top. I looked over at him, eyes wide. Dany just returned my stare with a cheeky smile.

“I suppose this is left over from babysitting too?”

“No, I keep this stuff around for a rainy day.” He opened up one of his arms for me to crawl into. I moved closer to his body as he grabbed the remote. “Do you mind if we watch the Sharks game from the other night? I missed it.”

“No, I love hockey.” Dany turned and looked at me, a questioning look on his face.

“But, you didn’t know who I was.”

“Dany, I was kind of emotionally distraught and wasn’t thinking straight.”

“Touché.” Dany pulled me close into him as we re-watched his team’s incredible win while munching on our incredibly fattening snack. In that moment alone I was completely content.

Dany and I sat there, on his couch, completely relaxed. I was snuggled up to him and he had his arms wrapped tightly around me. Our bowls had long since been discarded and we were now lying on his large couch. Dany was flat on his back while I was perched on top of him. His hands rested gently on my lower back, absentmindedly rubbing small circles into my shirt every now and then. By the time the movie had ended the sky was completely dark outside.

Just when Dany was about to try to move me so he could turn off the TV, my stomach grumbled loudly. A knowing smile formed on his delicious looking lips and I blushed slightly. “Sounds like someone’s still hungry,” he breathed in my ear. I blushed slightly and nodded at him as he moved me so he could get up.

“How does pizza sound?”

“Won’t all this junk food make you fat?” I instantly regretted the words that left my lips as soon as they did.

“I figure they still let Rick Nash and Nick Backstrom on the ice, so I should be fine.” I nodded at him as he headed back into the kitchen, both of our bowls in his hands.

I followed closely behind Dany and when he wasn’t expecting it, swiftly swiped the dishes out of his hands. “You order, I’ll wash,” was my only explanation.

Once the pizza had been ordered, I felt Dany come up behind me. He gently snaked his arms around my waist and pulled himself flush against my back. I lost concentration and stiffened for only a moment before I relaxed and went back to scrubbing the brownie pan. His thumbs began moving in soft, hypnotic circles against my sides as he rested his chin on my shoulder. “Truth or dare?”

“What?” I whipped my head around to look him in the eyes.

“Pick one; truth or dare.” I don’t know what made me do it, but before I could think about what I was saying, the word ‘dare’ fell from my lips. “I dare you to tell me how you’re really feeling instead of boxing it in,” he whispered, pressing a soft kiss to my neck as he finished his request.

I wasn’t expecting something like this. I was expecting, and slightly hoping, that he would make me do something else; something else to him. I couldn’t open up yet, I just wasn’t ready. I shook my head ‘no’ and in reply I got a kiss to the jaw. Dany tightened his grip around my body, obviously not ready to give up.

“Please,” he all but begged. When I still refused to answer, he ran his lips from my neck up to my ear. “You have to; you chose dare. There’s no backing down.”

“Dany, I can’t. I’m not ready to open up.”

“Fine. I’m sorry for pushing you.” He moved himself away from me and I suddenly felt cold.

A shiver ran down my spine as I watched him leave the kitchen altogether and suddenly felt a pang of guilt. I finished cleaning and just sat at Dany’s kitchen table, wondering what was wrong with me. Why couldn’t I tell him? He had been there for me all day. He was a complete stranger who welcomed me into his home, who took care of me. As I heard the doorbell ring and Dany’s footsteps padded by the kitchen, realization hit me. Telling Dany what I was feeling meant admitting this was all real.

Moments later Dany entered the kitchen, pizza in hand. He barely glanced at me as he put it on the counter next to the stove and that’s when I knew that I needed to accept the fact that my brother was sick and I couldn’t handle it alone.

“I’m scared,” I spoke softly. Dany turned abruptly and stared at me, eyes scanning my face delicately. “I’m scared I’m going to lose my brother and I’m scared I won’t be able to handle it if I do lose him.” In three quick steps Dany was right in front of me and his arms were wrapped tightly around me as sobs shook my body once again. Before my tears could completely shut me down, I needed to get one more thing out. “I…couldn’t answer be…fore because…I didn’t want…to accept it.” While my words were chopped up via the tears cascading down my cheeks, I’m pretty sure Dany understood.

However, as soon as my last words were over, I cried harder than I had all day. When it got to the point where I could barely stand I was shaking so hard, Dany went into protector mode. He picked me up, bridal style, and carried me past the living, up a set of stairs and straight to what I presumed to be his bedroom. Under any other circumstances I would have loved him laying me on his bed and crawling up next to me, but I was in too much of a state of hysteria to appreciate the moment.

Dany’s fingers combed through my hair and his other hand lifted my shirt so he could rub soothing circles straight into my skin. But this time none of his previous tactics were working. Realization of what was happening in my family was finally dawning on me and my walls were crumbling with every passing second. Dany rolled onto his back, pulling me with him so I was flat on his chest, unable to see my tears were so thick. I know that I was causing him pain in my hysteric state, but there was nothing I could do. And then his voice cut through my tears; that sweet, soothing voice I could listen to for hours on end.

“Tell me what I can do to help you. I’ll do anything.” My heaving sobs ceased long enough for me to provide my answer.

“Just care.”

Dany’s body tensed under me and I could tell he was trying to think of how else to show me he cared. Tears cascaded down my cheeks and just when I thought I might burst I felt Dany’s soft lips push against my own. I was so caught off guard that I was able to choke down a sob. The salty liquid continued to poor from my eyes but that didn’t stop him. He kept kneading my lips as if he was trying to suck all of my problems right out of me.

When I started responding to his gentle kisses, Dany flipped me over onto my back. My arms wrapped around his neck as his magical lips actually started to take my pain away. He began running his fingers through my hair, pulling out all the stops to calm me down. Within minutes I was completely calmed down and it was just the two of us, on his bed, mouths attached and hands starting to roam.

My fingers were curled tightly around locks of his hair as Dany’s hands rubbed up and down my sides, making sure I was completely calm. Our kisses slowed down as my body stopped shaking and pretty soon we were just breathing heavily, our foreheads pressed together. Dany let out a sigh and raked his fingers through my hair lovingly as I looked up at him. He pressed his lips to mine once more before pulling away to analyze my face.

“How are you feeling,” he whispered, brushing his lips against my forehead.

“Better. Your bed is comfy,” I smiled weakly up at him and he unleashed a full out grin.

“Listen, I know this is probably really bad timing, but I’m starving. Do you want to eat now?”

“Mmm you read my mind,” I mumbled as I cuddled close to his body.

“I’ll go get the pizza and some drinks the-”

“Wait! I don’t want to be alone,” I pouted up at him.

Dany pulled me up into his arms and carried me down the stairs. Once in the kitchen he grabbed a couple of sodas and handed them to me as he grabbed the pizza box. He turned around so I could climb on his back and carried me back up the stairs. We spent the rest of the night curled up in each other and his warm blankets while watching an NCIS marathon and eating pizza.

At some point I must have fallen asleep because the next thing I knew sun was streaming through Dany’s window and his arms were wrapped tightly around me. My head was nuzzled comfortable on his chest and I didn’t want to move, too comfortable for words to describe. However, my comfort was cut short as Dany began stirring.

“Morning beautiful,” he whispered, lips grazing the top of my head.

“Morning,” I mumbled softly as Dany pressed his lips softly to mine.

I curled up tighter into Dany’s body as he resumed rubbing those familiar circles into my body. He almost had me lulled me back to sleep when his gentle voice brought me back to my senses.

“I know we just met, and it’s ok if you feel uncomfortable about this and don’t want to do it, but I have this lake house. It’s fairly secluded and peaceful and a great place to relax and get your mind off of things.” I looked up at his nervous face, waiting to see what he wanted to say. “So, um, I was just wondering if once my season’s over you would want to come up there with me?”

With his words I near launched myself on top of him. My arms were wrapped tightly around his neck and I placed random kisses all over his mouth and face. He began chuckling at my reaction and took matters into his own hands. He flipped me onto my back again and placed feather kisses down my neck. “I take that as a yes?”

“You bet your pretty hockey ass it’s a yes.” Dany placed one more heated kiss on my lips before sitting up, ready to take on the day, and I sat up right next to him.

“What can I say,” he replied cheekily and with a large, bright smile. “I care.”