Status: re-post :)
Beside You
Chapter 6
Dan’s POV
After Gretch and I left the arena, she couldn’t stop laughing at Kaner’s immaturity. I admit, I found it funny, but not that funny. However, I found myself laughing along with her. Her laugh was pretty infectious.
“So, you found my note, I see?”
She nodded and her face fell slightly.
“Yea, I did. I’m sorry I was so late. I went….um, out.”
I raised my eyebrow, looking sideways at her while trying to keep my eyes on the road.
“You went out?”
She looked out the window and sighed.
“Yes, Dan. I went out. To a bar with Charli.”
My jaw dropped slightly, but I hoped she didn’t see it.
“You, Gretchen, went to a bar? That’s ….new.”
She scoffed.
“Yea well, it didn’t go over well. I thought I could use the change. I left early, hence why I showed up to the game.”
I could see in her body language that there was something she wasn’t telling me, but I let it slide. I hoped she would tell me on her own time, but at this moment, I tried to cheer her up with some snide humour.
“Well, I don’t mean to be rude, but I’m kinda glad it didn’t go over well.”
Gretchen softly laughed, then we drove in a comfortable silence back to our building.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Gretchen’s POV
I didn’t want to sit in the car with Dan replaying all of the events from the night before I got to the arena. I figured he could probably tell that there was more to the story after I just said that Charli and I left early from the bar. I didn’t want to bring up Todd. I was happy for Dan, the way he played in the game, and for how happy he got after he saw me. I’ll never forget how much his facial expression changed when he noticed me in the crowd, wearing his jersey. He looked at me as if my appearance at the game made his night complete. My heart fluttered at the thought, which confused the hell outta me.
When Dan and I arrived back at the condo, we both changed into our pajamas and laid out a few movies to begin our post-game movie marathon that we used to have as kids. We began with my choice, The Proposal, which made Dan shudder.
“Do we really have to watch this? It’s a chick flick.”
I raised an eyebrow at him. “Uh, in case you haven’t noticed there, bucko. I just happen to be a ‘chick’ and I also happen to love this movie. Besides, it’s more of a comedy than anything.”
Dan cocked his head when he asked his next question.
“Will it make you cry?”
I looked to the floor, not wanting to succumb to the fact that I would have to change my selection.
“Maybe.”
“Well, then you know the rule. No waterworks during the post-game movie marathon.”
I rolled my eyes.
“Okay, fine.”
I had to give up my choice, so I sat down and let Dan put in The Green Mile, his favourite movie. I chuckled at the fact that this movie also made me cry, but I didn’t mention that to Dan. Besides, I was too tired to stay awake for the whole thing anyway. I snuggled into the couch and felt my eyes close about a quarter of the way through the movie.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Next Morning
I woke up with a smile on my face knowing that I had the day off. I had planned to just stay inside and watch TV and movies in my sweats all day.
I walked out of my room and could immediately smell the aroma of French toast. My smile grew a little bigger. I had missed French toast. It was my favourite, and I had hoped that Dan could make it the same way his mom did. I loved running over to the Carcillo house for breakfast in my teen years.
Reaching the kitchen, I couldn’t help but laugh out loud. Dan turned around and his jaw dropped when he saw me.
“Uh… Hey! I was going to bring you breakfast in bed. I know you like your sleep and this is your day off, so I was going to let you stay comfy until you felt like getting up. What’s so funny?” Dan looked at himself, and saw his “Kiss the Cook” apron. He looked up at me with a goofy smile. “So, what you say?”
I stuck my tongue out at him as I walked past him to flip the French toast that he neglected while talking to me.
“I got up on my own. I appreciate the fact that you wanted to bring me breakfast in bed, but I’d rather savour this right off the pan.”
Dan smirked at me. “Yes, before you ask, it’s the same way my mom makes it.”
I gave him a huge hug. “You’re the best. I’m gonna go see what’s on the tube. Dibs on the first batch!”
I was about to leave the kitchen when Dan called my name.
“Yeah?” I turned around.
“What do you say to me giving you a tour of Chicago? There’s still some places I haven’t seen yet, but I’ll show you my favourites along the way too.”
I was hoping to stay in the condo all day, but a day out bonding with Dan sounded great.
“Sure! That sounds like fun.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dan’s POV
After breakfast, Gretch and I headed out. A part of me was hoping that sometime throughout the day, she would tell me more to the story of her going out with her boss.
The first place I took her to was the headquarters of WGN Radio. It was my favourite place in the city. I was waiting to hear back as to if I would get my own radio show. I hadn’t told Gretch about that until we were in front of the building. She turned to me and smiled.
“Oh my, Dan! That’s amazing! You’re going to let the people of Chicago know what real music is all about.”
I smiled at her reaction. I couldn’t wait to hear back from WGN.
Gretchen’s POV
After we left WGN Radio, Dan took me to some of the “highlights” of Chicago. We walked through Millennium Park. I was in awe of the statue of Marliyn Monroe. Dan insisted I took a picture standing under the skirt. I was trying to hold a straight face, but it didn’t work.
“Delete all of those. I mean it.” I knew Dan. If he liked a picture, he would print it, frame it, and have it out in the condo for everyone to see it. He smirked at me.
“Come on, they’re all great. They’re candid. I like them. They’re so…… ‘Gretch.’”
I stuck my tongue out at him and we continued to walk. I wasn’t sure where we were going, but I was having too much fun to care. We got into a taxi and I raised my eyebrow at Dan. I figured we would be walking the rest of the day. I didn’t know where else we would go by taxi. However, when we pulled up, I mentally face-palmed myself. The Navy Pier.
Getting out of the car, I was in awe. I grabbed Dan’s hand and dragged him along the pier. I wanted to see everything. I may have been coming here in my 20’s, but I wanted to see the Children’s Museum. I knew that Dan wasn’t feeling it, so I’d have to get someone else to come with me. We continued down the pier and sat down at the only table we could find. Even with all the people walking around us, both Dan and I found comfort just sitting down amongst the crowd.
I knew this was Dan’s subtle way in making me want to talk about what caused me to go out to a bar with Charli the night before, and more importantly, what made me leave early. I didn’t want to put a damper on the day, so I was hoping to keep his mind on something else.
“Hey, do they have a pretzel shop here?” My smile began to grow, just thinking of the treat.
Dan nodded his head. “Yea, they do. Let me guess…” he stood up from his chair. “Cinnamon sugar?”
I nodded. “You remembered. Oh! Can I get to drink there too?”
I pulled out my wallet, but Dan put his hand over mine, which made me look up at him.
“I got this. You just stay here. Odds are, if you get up, we’ll lose this table and we won’t find another one. I’ll be back soon.”
I smiled and nodded as Dan walked away from the table.
Dan’s POV
Walking away from Gretchen, I knew she caught me in my plan. She knew I wanted her to talk. The more she shrugged it off, the more I knew it wasn’t something I wanted to hear. I was hoping this pretzel would make her happy, though. I knew how much she loved them.
Turning my head, to try and see what her body language was like, I noticed I couldn’t see her. I did, however, see the body of a man blocking my view of her. For a second, I thought I recognized the man, but wasn’t quite sure. Even then, I wasn’t entirely sure if the man was talking to Gretchen, but it was making my blood boil nonetheless.
I really needed to tell her how I felt soon, this jealousy bullcrap was killing me.
Gretchen’s POV
After Dan walked away, I sat and looked around at the sights and sounds. I was thinking in my head of a way to get Dan on the ferris wheel after we were done our pretzels. I chuckled at the thought of Dan being afraid of heights. I was still chuckling to myself when someone tapped on my shoulder. Turning around, I saw the friendly face of Claude Giroux.
“Hi.”
His smile was infectious.
“Hi there.”
“You’re Carbomb’s girl, right?”
I laughed. “No, I’m just his best friend. Everyone makes the assumption we’re together, though. You’re not alone on that one.”
Claude chuckled. “Well, I’m sorry for the assumption. A bunch of us saw you in the hallways at the UC last night and after seeing you in his jersey, assumption was made.”
I smiled. “No need to explain yourself, I get it.”
He shuffled his feet on the floor and I began to feel the silence become awkward.
“So, I don’t mean to be forward or anything, but would you like to go out with me tomorrow? I’m in town for the next 2 days and you seem like a down to earth girl.”
I smiled. His attempt to pick me up was feeble, but I agreed nonetheless.
“Sure! I’d love to.”
Claude smiled and we exchanged numbers. I was a little taken aback with the fact that he had his number already written out on a card. I put it in my phone with a small smile on my face. Just as I closed my phone, Dan came up behind Claude, his face looking tense and angry. It worried me a little bit. Claude turned around.
“Hey, Danny boy. How’s it going?”
Dan’s face softened a bit as he saw his former teammate. They shared a man hug as Claude’s face broke out into a small smile.
“It’s good, G. How are things back in Philly without me?”
Claude smirked. “Well, there’s much better music playing in the locker room, I’ll tell you that much.”
Laughter circled the three of us. Dan finally spoke up again.
“So I see you met my best friend, Gretchen.”
I was a bit worried with Dan’s tone to Claude, but I shrugged it off for the moment. I was trying to enjoy my day with my best friend. Claude nodded and smiled in my direction.
“Yes, I did. Why didn’t she ever come out when you were in Philly?”
Both Dan and I shrugged our shoulders. I could tell that Claude was waiting for an answer, so I locked eyes with Dan before answering.
“I was really busy back home, but Dan knew that I was always with him in spirit.”
I looked back and forth between Claude and Dan with a smile on my face, hoping that the answer was a good enough one for both of them. Claude looked down at me with that infectious smil, once again.
“Well, I’d better get going. I lost track of Hartsy and Danny B. See you later.”
Claude walked away and seconds later my phone went off.
You sure you’re okay with our date tomorrow?
I looked at my phone with a raised eyebrow. I quickly typed a reply.
Yes, I am. =) What makes you think I’m not?
I quickly finished up my pretzel and I could see that Dan was still tense about something. I was hoping it had nothing to do with Claude. Speaking of Claude, my phone buzzed again.
Maybe you should ask Dan.[/b
My mind had been completely blown by that simple text message. I wasn’t ready to open up another can of worms with Dan just yet. I let Claude know that it didn’t matter what Dan thought and that we were still on for the date.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
later that night
Dan and I went of the Ferris Wheel before making our way back home. I couldn’t help but giggle at his shrieks when we reached that top, but there was no way I’d look down. I was terrified of heights too, but not nearly as bad as Dan.
When we arrived home, I couldn’t stop laughing at Dan.
“You looked like you were going to piss yourself.” He turned to give me a stern look. “Oh, Danny, I’m sorry. But you did put yourself right smack dab in the position to get laughed at.”
He stuck his tongue out at me. “Well, at least I could look down once we reached the top.”
“Yea, but by me not looking down, I didn’t squeal like a little girl. A noise that you made on more than one occasion.”
I yawned and stretched my arms over my head. I had to work the early shift the next morning, so I figured I’d head to bed.
“Well, I’m gonna head to bed. Thank you for a fun day, Danny. See you in the morning.”
I walked over to him and gave him a big hug. We pulled away and he smiled at me.
“I’m glad you had fun, it was a nice bonding day.”
I smiled and nodded as I walked towards my bedroom.
Dan’s POV
After Gretchen left the living room, a part of me wanted to stomp after her and ask her what went on with her and Charli. That and the way she was sharing looks with Claude was racking my brain. I knew she had to go to work early, but I needed answers.
I decided to walk to her door. I didn’t want to keep her up all night trying to get answers, but I knew I couldn’t sleep without them. Walking down the hallway, I knocked over her purse. I sighed. I didn’t want her to wake up to the mess and clean it up after I made the mess, so I bent down to put everything back in. While picking everything up, I noticed a small business card. I didn’t mean to snoop, but I noticed it was Claude’s. What the hell? I knew something went on between the two of them, but I didn’t think it went that well.
I tried to shrug it off and went back into the living room. After seeing the card, I didn’t know what I would say to Gretch. I didn’t want to get upset at her, especially since she didn’t know how I felt.
So, like most nights have plagued me, I sat on the couch depicting in my head just exactly how I would tell Gretchen how I felt.
After Gretch and I left the arena, she couldn’t stop laughing at Kaner’s immaturity. I admit, I found it funny, but not that funny. However, I found myself laughing along with her. Her laugh was pretty infectious.
“So, you found my note, I see?”
She nodded and her face fell slightly.
“Yea, I did. I’m sorry I was so late. I went….um, out.”
I raised my eyebrow, looking sideways at her while trying to keep my eyes on the road.
“You went out?”
She looked out the window and sighed.
“Yes, Dan. I went out. To a bar with Charli.”
My jaw dropped slightly, but I hoped she didn’t see it.
“You, Gretchen, went to a bar? That’s ….new.”
She scoffed.
“Yea well, it didn’t go over well. I thought I could use the change. I left early, hence why I showed up to the game.”
I could see in her body language that there was something she wasn’t telling me, but I let it slide. I hoped she would tell me on her own time, but at this moment, I tried to cheer her up with some snide humour.
“Well, I don’t mean to be rude, but I’m kinda glad it didn’t go over well.”
Gretchen softly laughed, then we drove in a comfortable silence back to our building.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Gretchen’s POV
I didn’t want to sit in the car with Dan replaying all of the events from the night before I got to the arena. I figured he could probably tell that there was more to the story after I just said that Charli and I left early from the bar. I didn’t want to bring up Todd. I was happy for Dan, the way he played in the game, and for how happy he got after he saw me. I’ll never forget how much his facial expression changed when he noticed me in the crowd, wearing his jersey. He looked at me as if my appearance at the game made his night complete. My heart fluttered at the thought, which confused the hell outta me.
When Dan and I arrived back at the condo, we both changed into our pajamas and laid out a few movies to begin our post-game movie marathon that we used to have as kids. We began with my choice, The Proposal, which made Dan shudder.
“Do we really have to watch this? It’s a chick flick.”
I raised an eyebrow at him. “Uh, in case you haven’t noticed there, bucko. I just happen to be a ‘chick’ and I also happen to love this movie. Besides, it’s more of a comedy than anything.”
Dan cocked his head when he asked his next question.
“Will it make you cry?”
I looked to the floor, not wanting to succumb to the fact that I would have to change my selection.
“Maybe.”
“Well, then you know the rule. No waterworks during the post-game movie marathon.”
I rolled my eyes.
“Okay, fine.”
I had to give up my choice, so I sat down and let Dan put in The Green Mile, his favourite movie. I chuckled at the fact that this movie also made me cry, but I didn’t mention that to Dan. Besides, I was too tired to stay awake for the whole thing anyway. I snuggled into the couch and felt my eyes close about a quarter of the way through the movie.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Next Morning
I woke up with a smile on my face knowing that I had the day off. I had planned to just stay inside and watch TV and movies in my sweats all day.
I walked out of my room and could immediately smell the aroma of French toast. My smile grew a little bigger. I had missed French toast. It was my favourite, and I had hoped that Dan could make it the same way his mom did. I loved running over to the Carcillo house for breakfast in my teen years.
Reaching the kitchen, I couldn’t help but laugh out loud. Dan turned around and his jaw dropped when he saw me.
“Uh… Hey! I was going to bring you breakfast in bed. I know you like your sleep and this is your day off, so I was going to let you stay comfy until you felt like getting up. What’s so funny?” Dan looked at himself, and saw his “Kiss the Cook” apron. He looked up at me with a goofy smile. “So, what you say?”
I stuck my tongue out at him as I walked past him to flip the French toast that he neglected while talking to me.
“I got up on my own. I appreciate the fact that you wanted to bring me breakfast in bed, but I’d rather savour this right off the pan.”
Dan smirked at me. “Yes, before you ask, it’s the same way my mom makes it.”
I gave him a huge hug. “You’re the best. I’m gonna go see what’s on the tube. Dibs on the first batch!”
I was about to leave the kitchen when Dan called my name.
“Yeah?” I turned around.
“What do you say to me giving you a tour of Chicago? There’s still some places I haven’t seen yet, but I’ll show you my favourites along the way too.”
I was hoping to stay in the condo all day, but a day out bonding with Dan sounded great.
“Sure! That sounds like fun.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Dan’s POV
After breakfast, Gretch and I headed out. A part of me was hoping that sometime throughout the day, she would tell me more to the story of her going out with her boss.
The first place I took her to was the headquarters of WGN Radio. It was my favourite place in the city. I was waiting to hear back as to if I would get my own radio show. I hadn’t told Gretch about that until we were in front of the building. She turned to me and smiled.
“Oh my, Dan! That’s amazing! You’re going to let the people of Chicago know what real music is all about.”
I smiled at her reaction. I couldn’t wait to hear back from WGN.
Gretchen’s POV
After we left WGN Radio, Dan took me to some of the “highlights” of Chicago. We walked through Millennium Park. I was in awe of the statue of Marliyn Monroe. Dan insisted I took a picture standing under the skirt. I was trying to hold a straight face, but it didn’t work.
“Delete all of those. I mean it.” I knew Dan. If he liked a picture, he would print it, frame it, and have it out in the condo for everyone to see it. He smirked at me.
“Come on, they’re all great. They’re candid. I like them. They’re so…… ‘Gretch.’”
I stuck my tongue out at him and we continued to walk. I wasn’t sure where we were going, but I was having too much fun to care. We got into a taxi and I raised my eyebrow at Dan. I figured we would be walking the rest of the day. I didn’t know where else we would go by taxi. However, when we pulled up, I mentally face-palmed myself. The Navy Pier.
Getting out of the car, I was in awe. I grabbed Dan’s hand and dragged him along the pier. I wanted to see everything. I may have been coming here in my 20’s, but I wanted to see the Children’s Museum. I knew that Dan wasn’t feeling it, so I’d have to get someone else to come with me. We continued down the pier and sat down at the only table we could find. Even with all the people walking around us, both Dan and I found comfort just sitting down amongst the crowd.
I knew this was Dan’s subtle way in making me want to talk about what caused me to go out to a bar with Charli the night before, and more importantly, what made me leave early. I didn’t want to put a damper on the day, so I was hoping to keep his mind on something else.
“Hey, do they have a pretzel shop here?” My smile began to grow, just thinking of the treat.
Dan nodded his head. “Yea, they do. Let me guess…” he stood up from his chair. “Cinnamon sugar?”
I nodded. “You remembered. Oh! Can I get to drink there too?”
I pulled out my wallet, but Dan put his hand over mine, which made me look up at him.
“I got this. You just stay here. Odds are, if you get up, we’ll lose this table and we won’t find another one. I’ll be back soon.”
I smiled and nodded as Dan walked away from the table.
Dan’s POV
Walking away from Gretchen, I knew she caught me in my plan. She knew I wanted her to talk. The more she shrugged it off, the more I knew it wasn’t something I wanted to hear. I was hoping this pretzel would make her happy, though. I knew how much she loved them.
Turning my head, to try and see what her body language was like, I noticed I couldn’t see her. I did, however, see the body of a man blocking my view of her. For a second, I thought I recognized the man, but wasn’t quite sure. Even then, I wasn’t entirely sure if the man was talking to Gretchen, but it was making my blood boil nonetheless.
I really needed to tell her how I felt soon, this jealousy bullcrap was killing me.
Gretchen’s POV
After Dan walked away, I sat and looked around at the sights and sounds. I was thinking in my head of a way to get Dan on the ferris wheel after we were done our pretzels. I chuckled at the thought of Dan being afraid of heights. I was still chuckling to myself when someone tapped on my shoulder. Turning around, I saw the friendly face of Claude Giroux.
“Hi.”
His smile was infectious.
“Hi there.”
“You’re Carbomb’s girl, right?”
I laughed. “No, I’m just his best friend. Everyone makes the assumption we’re together, though. You’re not alone on that one.”
Claude chuckled. “Well, I’m sorry for the assumption. A bunch of us saw you in the hallways at the UC last night and after seeing you in his jersey, assumption was made.”
I smiled. “No need to explain yourself, I get it.”
He shuffled his feet on the floor and I began to feel the silence become awkward.
“So, I don’t mean to be forward or anything, but would you like to go out with me tomorrow? I’m in town for the next 2 days and you seem like a down to earth girl.”
I smiled. His attempt to pick me up was feeble, but I agreed nonetheless.
“Sure! I’d love to.”
Claude smiled and we exchanged numbers. I was a little taken aback with the fact that he had his number already written out on a card. I put it in my phone with a small smile on my face. Just as I closed my phone, Dan came up behind Claude, his face looking tense and angry. It worried me a little bit. Claude turned around.
“Hey, Danny boy. How’s it going?”
Dan’s face softened a bit as he saw his former teammate. They shared a man hug as Claude’s face broke out into a small smile.
“It’s good, G. How are things back in Philly without me?”
Claude smirked. “Well, there’s much better music playing in the locker room, I’ll tell you that much.”
Laughter circled the three of us. Dan finally spoke up again.
“So I see you met my best friend, Gretchen.”
I was a bit worried with Dan’s tone to Claude, but I shrugged it off for the moment. I was trying to enjoy my day with my best friend. Claude nodded and smiled in my direction.
“Yes, I did. Why didn’t she ever come out when you were in Philly?”
Both Dan and I shrugged our shoulders. I could tell that Claude was waiting for an answer, so I locked eyes with Dan before answering.
“I was really busy back home, but Dan knew that I was always with him in spirit.”
I looked back and forth between Claude and Dan with a smile on my face, hoping that the answer was a good enough one for both of them. Claude looked down at me with that infectious smil, once again.
“Well, I’d better get going. I lost track of Hartsy and Danny B. See you later.”
Claude walked away and seconds later my phone went off.
You sure you’re okay with our date tomorrow?
I looked at my phone with a raised eyebrow. I quickly typed a reply.
Yes, I am. =) What makes you think I’m not?
I quickly finished up my pretzel and I could see that Dan was still tense about something. I was hoping it had nothing to do with Claude. Speaking of Claude, my phone buzzed again.
Maybe you should ask Dan.[/b
My mind had been completely blown by that simple text message. I wasn’t ready to open up another can of worms with Dan just yet. I let Claude know that it didn’t matter what Dan thought and that we were still on for the date.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
later that night
Dan and I went of the Ferris Wheel before making our way back home. I couldn’t help but giggle at his shrieks when we reached that top, but there was no way I’d look down. I was terrified of heights too, but not nearly as bad as Dan.
When we arrived home, I couldn’t stop laughing at Dan.
“You looked like you were going to piss yourself.” He turned to give me a stern look. “Oh, Danny, I’m sorry. But you did put yourself right smack dab in the position to get laughed at.”
He stuck his tongue out at me. “Well, at least I could look down once we reached the top.”
“Yea, but by me not looking down, I didn’t squeal like a little girl. A noise that you made on more than one occasion.”
I yawned and stretched my arms over my head. I had to work the early shift the next morning, so I figured I’d head to bed.
“Well, I’m gonna head to bed. Thank you for a fun day, Danny. See you in the morning.”
I walked over to him and gave him a big hug. We pulled away and he smiled at me.
“I’m glad you had fun, it was a nice bonding day.”
I smiled and nodded as I walked towards my bedroom.
Dan’s POV
After Gretchen left the living room, a part of me wanted to stomp after her and ask her what went on with her and Charli. That and the way she was sharing looks with Claude was racking my brain. I knew she had to go to work early, but I needed answers.
I decided to walk to her door. I didn’t want to keep her up all night trying to get answers, but I knew I couldn’t sleep without them. Walking down the hallway, I knocked over her purse. I sighed. I didn’t want her to wake up to the mess and clean it up after I made the mess, so I bent down to put everything back in. While picking everything up, I noticed a small business card. I didn’t mean to snoop, but I noticed it was Claude’s. What the hell? I knew something went on between the two of them, but I didn’t think it went that well.
I tried to shrug it off and went back into the living room. After seeing the card, I didn’t know what I would say to Gretch. I didn’t want to get upset at her, especially since she didn’t know how I felt.
So, like most nights have plagued me, I sat on the couch depicting in my head just exactly how I would tell Gretchen how I felt.
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