To Love Is to Love Unconditionally

Lies can be harmless. Think about those tiny little lies your parents told you growing up: Santa Claus, The Easter Bunny, The Tooth Fairy. Lies.

Lies can be groundbreaking, too. A spouse cheating, committing a crime. They can be destructive. Destroying homes, families, relationships. Destroying lives.

But most of all lies tear people apart. Breaking bonds, ripping apart ties, feelings that used to exist.

~

“When truth is replaced by silence, the silence is a lie.”
― Yevgeny Yevtushenko

~

"Papa! Papa!" Little Cecelia came bouncing into the living room, a big smile upon her face.

Danny's relationship with his daughter had made some progress in the last few years. Now that she didn't need to be watched over and fussed about every single solitary second, Danny could actually look forward to spending time with his daughter. He could actually enjoy it.

Danny looked up from his phone to his 6 year old daughter. She was jumping up and down on her feet, nearly shaking from excitement. He raised his eyebrows and smiled. "What?"

"Daddy said we could go to the zoo tomorrow! I wanna see the tigers!"

"Oh did he?" Danny looked up at Ben who stood in the doorway wiping his hands on a towel. Ben smiled and threw the towel over his shoulder.

"Yes, and you," he pointed at Danny. " will be joining us. Now come on, dinner's ready."

Cecelia cheered and ran towards the kitchen.

Ben and Danny shared a look before Ben spoke.

"You'd better be there tomorrow, Daniel. I told her you would." He gave him a stern look. Danny had a tendency to forget, or simply avoid attending certain events, and Ben wouldn't let this be one of them. They needed family time together.

Danny rolled his eyes and sighed. "Jeez, Ben put more faith in me. She is my daughter too."

Ben crossed his arms, leaning on the doorframe. He gave his husband a hard look. "Danny. I know you. And I'm not saying you're going to forget. I'm just..."

"You're just what, Ben?! You don't trust me." Danny jumped up from the couch, raising his voice. Ben shushed him, trying to avoid an argument. He knew very well how that would end.

"Don't be ridiculous. Of course I trust you!" Ben put his arms on Danny's broad shoulders, looking him in the eye. "Your my husband."

Danny shrugged him off, scoffing. "Don't lie, Ben. It doesn't become you."

On the way out he picked up his keys from the front table.

"Goodnight, Benjamin."

That night Ben and Cecelia ate dinner alone, talking about all the amazing animals that they would see at the zoo the next day. Ben couldn't help but wonder whether or not Danny would show. He did, after all, know what Danny's plans were tonight.

That night Danny got smashed. So intoxicated he couldn't stand. He got a cab and slept in a hotel. Ben and Cecelia didn't even cross his mind.

"Daddy, Daddy, look at the pretty birdy!" Cecelia called out as a parakeet flew over their heads. It was 2:30 P.M. and Danny still hadn't shown. Cecelia kept asking where he was.

"Daddy?" Cecelia stopped walking on the stone path leading through the bird sanctuary. She looked away from Ben and scuffed her feet on the cement.

Ben stopped and looked down at her. "Yes?"

"Where's Papa? He promised he'd come." She sniffed a little bit, tugging at the end of her blue and white t-shirt.

"Papa's gonna come. He'll be here, baby girl." It hurt Ben to lie to her. He knew Danny wasn't going to come. He'd probably gotten so drunk last night that he wouldn't even remember their fight. Or the fact he had promised to come to the zoo.

"Okay." Cecelia seemed remotely satisfied with that answer. As long as Ben kept that up, she wouldn't find out Danny wasn't actually going to join them. She wouldn't feel so heartbroken. At least until they left the zoo.

A splitting headache. That's what Danny woke up to. At least one of the things he woke up to. He also woke up to a nasty hotel room, a horrible stench radiating off of his and the sun setting instead of rising.

Which meant a) he went to the bar last night, b) he'd slept all day and, c) he'd missed the zoo. He groaned miserably, running a hand down his face.

"Shit!" Danny pulled himself out of bed slowly and collected his stuff from around the room. Once he had everything he had to go back to the bar to get his car.

After he'd gotten his car he'd started driving home. He had no texts from Ben which meant Ben knew he went to the bar, knew he got wasted and Danny knew Ben was going to be furious. Extremely furious.

When he got home he saw the living room light was on. He could see his husband's shadow in the window and he didn't know if he was prepared, mentally or physically, to deal with an disagreement right now.

Ben was pacing in the living room waiting for Danny. He knew Danny would come home and he was prepared to let all hell break loose because he was beyond mad. Beyond mad, beyond upset, and beyond disappointed. He'd heard Cecelia crying when he passed her room. Sobbing silently in to her pillow because she was trying to hide it. Ben almost cried himself. Danny had made their daughter cry. That wasn't okay.

"She's crying." The first words out of Ben's mouth when Danny walked. in. "She's crying Danny."

Danny looked at his husband's angry face and looked away. "I'm sorry."

Ben growled in frustration. "Sorry doesn't fix broken hearts Danny. Sorry doesn't fix severed bonds."

Danny just looked away.

Ben sighed. "I set up the couch for you." He walked towards the stairs. "Goodnight, Daniel"

He was gone before Danny could say a word.

That night as Danny lay on the couch, the normally welcome silence that signals peace and calm was an unforgiving reminder of the pain he'd caused the family.