It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

Sitting patiently in the waiting area of the emergency room, Danny picked up the last copy of Good Housekeeping and absently flipped through the glossy pages. He looked at his watch, feeling like hours had gone by but in reality it had only been minutes. He wanted to head up to the recovery ward, stop by as see his friends. They had been cooped up for days and were probably begging for real food and people with personality to talk to.

According to his watch, Danny had been sitting there a total of three hours. That seemed right. It just amazed him how a few x-rays could take so damn long. Every time brought one of the boys in after injuries during a game, the doctor only saw them for only thirty-seconds. But, he assumed the car accident victims which had come in only an hour after they arrived had most of the doctors, nurses and other technicians busy.

Around him sick babies cried, sick children slept and some older teenagers held bloody rags to their limbs waiting to be stitched up. The sight of some of the injured patrons made his stomach crawl and he hoped and prayed hers weren’t that had. The hand didn’t look too damaged when she arrived at his house late; crying her eyes out and holding a zip-loc bag full of ice to the black and swollen hand. Danny hadn’t asked any questions yet. He was afraid to. Bristol wasn’t in the best of moods as he tried to convince her to take a trip to the hospital. It had been Cameron who got her to go.

Tossing the magazine back on the small table beside his chair, Danny laced his fingers behind his head. Leaning back, he looked straight ahead. The clock of the wall was nearing 3 AM. He’d rather be sleeping but Bristol needed his help, and he could never turn her away.

He had only been recognized once, by—surprising enough—two teenage boys were waiting to have nasty cuts stitched up after a fight broke out during a late night game of street hockey. They congratulated Danny on making the playoffs but assured him next year was Philly’s year. He shrugged off the comment; still sour from the sweep just weeks ago. With cinder blocks weighing down his eyes, Danny rested his head on hands, which his elbows rested on his knees. He told himself it would only be a few minutes longer.

An hour later, Danny smiled as he noticed Bristol walking into the waiting area. It had become a little more crowded since they arrived around midnight, and Bristol had to glance around, looking for him. She smiled when she found him. Danny realized she looked much better now than the time he first saw her. She wasn’t crying any longer and her hair had been smoothed back into a simple tail.

“So,” Danny stood up.

Bristol held up her right hand. A hot pink cast covered her ring and pinky fingers and traveled up her wrist before finally stopping mid-forearm. “Turns out it was worse than we thought. I broke two fingers and there’s a hairline fracture in my wrist.”

He handed Bristol her hoodie and purse. The father instinct took over and Danny helped her put it on. Although the broken bones were protected by the colorful cast, he was still afraid of hurting her. Now he knew how his boys had felt after breaking his leg in the car accident a few years back. And, this was a lesson to never piss off Bristol. He just hoped the wall looked worse.

“How long?”

“Six to eight weeks.” Bristol followed his lead out of the ER and back to his car. She had been given a list of activities she could and couldn’t do. It was rather extensive and driving was at the top. “But the good news is Doc gave me a prescription for pain killers.”

Waving the small piece of paper in Danny’s face, he snatched it from her. Crumpling it up in a ball and stuffing it in his pocket, Danny slipped the key into the ignition, and ignored Bristol’s frustrated protest. He knew broken bones sucked and he would have loved to pop a few pills himself while injured, but Danny had seem too many of his friends become addicted. That wasn’t the fate he wanted for Bristol; especially after her brothers death.

“When we get back to the house, I’ll give you something for the pain and you can lie down in my bed. The boys are headed over to Sylvie’s tonight. They’ll want to see you before they leave so you can’t sleep all day.”

Bristol’s smile was genuinely warm. “Thanks, I really appreciate everything.”

“You know I’d do anything for you, Bristol.” Leaning over, Danny pressed his lips to her cheek. She was still heartbroken but the warm gesture was needed. Tomorrow she was looking forward to lounging around while bandaging her heart with ice cream. Lots and lots of chocolate ice cream.

Thankfully the hospital wasn’t too far from Danny’s house. Bristol would have fallen asleep during the drive, but every time her eyes closed she saw Daniel’s face. It both amazed and killed her how open Daniel had been about admitting he had been with other women. She was a fairly confident person, comfortable with the person she was, but that put a fracture in her self-esteem. She thought she was everything Daniel wanted; that was what he had told her.

Pulling up on to the driveway, Danny lightly shook Bristol awake. He thought she had been sleeping; he didn’t know she was wide awake with her hood covering her eyes. Using her left hand to open the car door, Bristol realized the next month was going to be rough. As a right handed person, she hadn’t thought too much about using the other the hand. It would only take time and practice, Bristol knew, and the boys would be more than willing to help her out.

And when Daniel arrived home to find most of her things packed and the deep hole in the wall, he would try to call. When she didn’t answer he would surly try Danny, Claude and possibly even Kris. Her bedridden friend hadn’t been notified of the latest argument which ended her and Dan’s relationship. She just hoped it wouldn’t put a strain on any of their friendships or chance the way they played on the ice. But, if things went the way Bristol hoped they would, Daniel would be packing up and leaving Philly come mid-July to play with another team.

Subconsciously Bristol knew that there was also a chance Kris could be leaving Philly, too. She knew she was thinking too far ahead of herself, but if was signed to another team Bristol wasn’t sure what she would do. There was really no one else for her in Philadelphia—obviously oblivious to Danny—and she didn’t want to be chasing Kris around for the rest of her live. She guessed she could return home to Chicago.

Walking up the path to the front door, Bristol giggled to herself as Danny struggled to find the right key. She couldn’t blame him; it was after four in the morning. Finally able to unlock the bolt, Danny opened the door and let Bristol go in first. She was greeted by Danny’s 3 and ½ sons. Claude, Caelan, Carson and Cameron looked up at Bristol with obvious signs of worry. The fact they had been gone so long made them nervous.

“What are you guys still doing up?” Danny pocketed his keys while he toed off his shoes. His boys ignored him, immediately flocking Bristol.

“I tried to get them to go back to bed.” Claude defended himself. “But they refused. They insisted on staying up to see her when you guys got home. Speaking of which, what took so long?”

Danny and Claude glanced over to Bristol. She was showing off her hot pink cast to the boys as she told them of her injuries. Danny rubbed his tired eyes. “There was a car accident.”

Making an ‘O’ shape with his mouth, Claude slapped Danny on the shoulder and announced he was going to bed. After saying goodnight to Bristol and the boys, Claude headed to the peace and quiet of his bedroom, for some much needed shut eye.

“It’s time for you three to get to bed, too.” Danny pointed up the steps. “You’re mother would kill me if she found out you stayed up all night.”

They lined up at the stairs oldest to youngest, hugging their father goodnight. When Danny picked Cameron up, the sandy-blonde wrapped his arms around Danny’s neck. “I promise we won’t tell her. Besides, Bristol looks like she could use the company.”

Stepping beside Danny, Bristol ran a hand through the mop of Cameron’s hair. A yawn made its way out and his eyes began to droop. “I’m headed to bed myself. Tomorrow we’ll play some Wii before you leave.”

“How are you going to do that?”

Both Danny and Cameron seemed interested in the answer she was about to give. “I’m ambidextrous.” Bristol shrugged her shoulders.

Putting Cameron down, they waited until they heard his door close before heading themselves. Danny walked behind her as if afraid something could happen on their short trek up the stairs. At the top, they went their separate ways. Bristol headed into the loft where she would grab the suitcase she had packed. She didn’t plan on heading back to the house and she cleaned out her dresser and closet. The only that remained was her bed and few other miscellaneous objects. Those could be picked up on another day.

When she found no trace of it, Bristol headed back down the hall to Danny’s room. The door was open and she stood in the doorway, watching as he moved around. Pulling the duvet and sheets back, fluffing the pillows, placing two white pills on the nightstand beside a glass of water. Her presence scared him when it became noticed. Bristol saw him slightly jump.

“I can’t find my bags.”

Danny had a feeling where her clothes could be. After all, most of his were folded and stacked up against the wall adjacent to his dresser. “I have a feeling where they may be at.”

Pulling open all the drawers to the left side of his dresser, all of Danny’s suspicions had been confirmed. All of her clothes were neatly folded and placed inside the six drawers; even her lace panties were stacked according to color and style. Thongs were at the top of the pile.

“My underwear drawer has never been so organized before.” Bristol laughed.

“Yeah,” Danny scratched the top of his head. “You may want to go through that and make sure all pairs are accounted for. A pair or two could have gone missing during the move.

“I’m sorry, the boys don’t usually do things like this. I have no idea what has gotten into them over the past few months. And, you’re toothbrush and stuff is in my bathroom. You’re more than welcome to use it, by the way.”

Bristol found herself smiling at a time where she didn’t think it was even possible. It made her feel her guilty, made her think of Daniel. Wondering what—rather who—he was doing. No doubt to her she was merely a distant memory to him. By now another girl had already filled her shoes and was probably packing her things to move in. Bristol wished she was like him, didn’t get attached so easily to another person.

“They’re happy.” She said quietly. “Because you’re happy.”

Danny’s eyes suddenly found themselves focusing on anything other than Bristol. He couldn’t look at her, especially when she stood in front of him looking the way she did. She was a broken child, her heart bruise and broken by someone who had promised to give her the word. The same feelings had nearly collapsed his heart when Sylvie surprised him with divorce papers. From the day he signed the papers, Danny promised himself he would never love again. But, since mid-February when Bristol first crash landed into his life, Danny realized that the word “never” shouldn’t be in ones vocabulary. After all, it had been Bristol’s own words which made him rethink his own feelings for the beautiful, young woman.

People always say they’re never going to do things, but end up doing them anyway

“Would you be offended if I kissed you?”

Bristol wanted to laugh aloud, but she kept the giggles inside. Danny was asking permission to kiss her, but question never came from his mouth the night they slept together. She shook her head. “No,”

The way Danny was acting, Bristol would have guessed it was his first time he kissed a girl. He placed his hand on her cheek, using the calloused pad of his thumb to stroke at the soft skin of her cheek. Goose-bumps spread up and down her arms, leaving the light hairs standing. Slowly, they closed the distance; both pairs of eyes began to flutter close just as their lips collided.

The feeling of his lips on hers nearly sucked the breath straight from Bristol’s lungs. She felt like she was drowning. Her left hand slid its way up Danny’s chest as she felt him snake his tongue past her lips. The feeling was intoxicating; Bristol could feel her heart begin to jump, blood rushing through her veins warming her core.

Wrapping her fingers around Danny’s locks of dark hair, Bristol tugged them. She could hear the groan bubble from deep within Danny’s throat. His hands gripped her hips forcefully, as he began walking her backwards towards the bed. When she hit, her knees buckled and her back sank into the memory foam mattress. Her mind was elsewhere and had no intention of stopping, but when Bristol felt Danny’s fingers begin to slide past the waistband of her panties, she placed a hand on his chest. Pulling their lips apart, Bristol blushed. It was obvious Danny didn’t want to stop.

“I’m really tired, Danny. Not tonight.”

When the words left Bristol’s mouth, Danny could only envision his ex-wife. She used that same lame excuse day in and day out. After everything that had gone down within the past twelve hours, Danny understood. He was surprised at how well she was keeping it all together. Danny nodded and helped Bristol stand back up. There was no doubting the eruption of feeling which exploded inside both of them. If it hadn’t been for the fact she had a cast on her hand and a broken heart, Bristol would have jumped on him in a heartbeat.

“G’night, Bristol.” Danny ran a hand through his hair; he figured he’d just crash on the couch. When he grabbed a pillow from the bed, Bristol stopped him.

“You can sleep in the bed with me. I don’t mind sharing.” She could see the light on in his head and she knew she’d have to set some ground rules. “It’s not an invitation. I just feel bad making you sleep on the couch.”

The images that flashed within Danny’s mind as he watched Bristol slid into his bed were so sinful that they would make even Jeff Carter blush. Pulling off his sweatshirt and stripping down to his boxers, Danny joined Bristol in bed.