The Daniels Home

[Mark Daniels]

[Mark Daniels]

It was this time of the day. Dark, quiet and when all those terrible images flashed before Mark's eyes. Some slower than others, some took hours to erase but they weren't gone, they were there forever. Attending that party had not made Mark feel great, it made him feel worse. He wasn't in the a state where he could get a good feeling out of partying. It just didn't feel right. It almost felt as if he was disrespecting the memory of everyone that had lost their lives.

He was sitting outside of his house, on the stairs and getting some air. The crisp November wind felt good on his face when he closed his eyes. Times like this, Mark thought about his life. About the people in it, about what he was missing on, about his mistakes and what he was doing wrong. He was far from perfect. Mark had no intention of being perfect but of having his life put together.

He hardly understood why people looked up to him. It was mainly because they didn't really know him. They didn't know him as much as... As much as... Elaine knew him. The only person who would ever love him despite that he was a screw up in so many things.

Mark glanced down to his phone that was in his hand. Elaine was special to him, someone that not only he enjoyed spending time with but she was an amazing individual. He started to text her without thinking twice, "Hey Elaine, can you come over?"

He hoped he wasn't giving off the wrong idea because of how late it was. Still, his parents were inside of the house and Mark wouldn't think of anything fishy with them around. He just wanted to talk to her.

[Elaine Escalona]

The kissing party was a total bust. Well, it was fun while it lasted, but the reason Elaine even showed up was to see how Mark was doing and there was probably no other worse way to check up on him than an awkward spit swapping fest. It was a quiet evening and the Escalonas had an early family dinner together. Everyone had retreated to their own rooms, including Elaine who was doodling on her sketch pad in bed. When she received Mark's text message, she bounced out of bed and put a sweater on.

"Dad, I'm gonna go see Mark. Mom, can you explain to him why it's important, thanks. Bye, guys, I'll call before I leave!" she yelled throughout the house as she gathered her things and put on her shoes.
"Wait, it's getting dark, take my gun!"
"Desmond! She's 15!"
"Oh, right. Then take me with you!" her father said with a chuckle, earning a "wth" face from his youngest daughter.

'On my way.' Elaine sent the text and put the phone into her bag as she began walking. She didn't live too far from Mark and on top of that, she knew her shortcuts. Even at her height, Elaine was a fast walker and she arrived at the Daniels' in no time, spotting her friend on the steps alone.

"Hiya," she greeted in a cheery tone, smoothing down the back of her skirt before taking a seat next to him. Wasn't it a safety hazard to block any kind of stairs? Oh well, they would obviously move if a fire were to break out or something. "What's up, bud-E?" she asked, making a reference to the movie Wall-E.

[Mark Daniels]

When Elaine approached Mark, he put on a smile for her. Although, it wasn't very genuine as he had expect it to be. It was mainly because he wasn't feeling his greatest. Like a rainy cloud followed him and he did his best to keep the rain away from others.

"Hey." he answered, not the most upbeat. Mark had to erase that fake smile and be real. It just bugged him that Elaine could be so happy. He was jealous, to say the least. "Aren't you cold in that?" It probably sounded as if he was critiquing her choice of wardrobe. He wasn't, he just couldn't say things nicely these days.

Mark resembled an old person who would probably start sobbing if someone ever started yelling at 'em. He took off his old Harvard sweatshirt, he was wearing his football jersey underneath it. Mark offered it to her because he didn't want her to get sick just for having to come all the way from her house to talk to him.

[Elaine Escalona]

In response to his question, Elaine blinked a few times before looking down at her skirt. It was knee-length and she had stockings on, but Mark was right. She was beginning to feel a bit chilly. Well, in her defense, she thought that 'coming over' meant that they would be inside.

"Thank you," she said with a smile and took his sweatshirt, pulling it over her head and pushing her arms through the sleeves. "Are you gonna be cold though?" she asked in a concerned tone. It was a sweet gesture to offer his sweatshirt, but it wasn't worth getting sick. Mark had already not been feeling well lately. Elaine knew he wouldn't take the sweatshirt back now, so she decided to scoot closer to him to share the warmth.

"So what did you wanna talk about? I'm all ears," she was smiling again. Despite what it may have looked like, Elaine wasn't trying to be inconsiderate to his situation. Even though she never experienced the loss of someone so close, she could imagine the pain that he felt and tried to relate it to the fear of her father or brother going to war but not coming back.

[Mark Daniels]

When Elaine asked him what he wanted to talk about, Mark tilted his head to the side. He turned his head to her before looking forward and shrugged. What could he tell her? That he couldn't sleep at night, that he was scared of closing his eyes or what? He sighed and pursed his lips tightly together, "I don't know..." he mumbled.

Mark had hoped for Elaine's presence to sooth him but it only tensed him up. As if she was the main source of his problems when she wasn't. It was probably his anger. Why could he have someone that cared for him like Ingrid had Leonardo who thought that Chase had a reason to die but despite that he still was there for her. It just wasn't fair and it was because he didn't want to give up his freedom. What was the point of being free if you were miserable.

He scooted away slightly when Elaine came close to him. If he kept this going, he knew he was going to lose her forever. He was testing himself on how much he really needed Elaine in his life. It was difficult to get Mark begging on his knees. And above all, he was probably testing Elaine's patience.

[Elaine Escalona]

Frowning, Elaine took a moment to rethink her strategy. Mark was being a bit difficult right now, but she continued to remind herself that it was because he was going through a difficult time. "It's okay, we don't have to talk," she assured him with another smile. She wanted him to know that she would listen attentively with an open mind with no judgement nor criticism. Elaine wasn't going to even offer advice because this was something that Mark had to get through on his own.

For a second, it confused Elaine when Mark scooted away and for another second, it offended her. What, did she suddenly get cooties or something? Then why offer the sweatshirt? His behavior was truly frustrating her, although she tried her best to keep it all inside. "Well, if it gets too cold, we should go inside," she suggested. Elaine knew that Mark would most likely ignore it, but maybe if she was genuinely shivering, he would listen. "Have you eaten dinner yet? We can grab something to eat," she was probably asking too many questions for his liking, but it was the only way she could think of to get him to start talking.

[Mark Daniels]

Miranda and Tyrone were most likely, no definitely snooping through the window. Mark wasn't aware of this but he didn't want to go inside, he got irritated. "There's a reason why I'm outside..." he said muttering once again. Had he forgotten how to socialize with people or was this just a temporary thing. Mark sighed and a bit of smoke escaped his lips.

"I already ate, it's like, eleven or something." he answered dryly before looking to her. Was it simply stubbornness? Mark had Elaine before him, one word and perhaps he had her forever. He didn't want anyone else and if he did, he was probably not going to want them for a very long time. Not like Elaine. It was a strange feeling. However, he was almost an adult.

Adults had priorities. He already had everything in school put together but he was afraid. That was probably why he was being such a bitch to Elaine at the moment. What was going to happen once he returned to school was simply a mystery. Mark sometimes wanted to beg his parents to move back to Hawaii, where everything was easier. Just ocean, warm weather and none of this that he had become.

Even the rent was cheaper.

Mark didn't really say anything after that. He was trembling but he was trying to hide it by crossing his arms over his chest and looking away from Elaine.

[Elaine Escalona]

"I'm sure your parents would give us privacy if we asked," Elaine tried to reason. "Besides, it's not like we're doing anything bad," she added. Briefly, a montage of all the things they did that were bad played through her mind. She cleared her throat as well as her thoughts before reaching out to touch his arm. "We could even sit in the hallway, Mark," she suggested thoughtfully. That way, they would be in the warmth of the entire building, yet still be outside of his parents' hearing range.

When he rejected her offer to grab a bite, she had to hold her tongue to avoid her instinct to act appalled that he would pass up an opportunity to eat. Elaine figured that it wasn't a good time for her jokes right now, even though eating at this time was quite a normal thing for her.

"Hey," she said, feeling a shiver run through his body from where her hand rested on his arm. She wasn't' getting anything near the response she wanted, but Elaine was never the one to give up so easily. Mark acted as though he wanted to be left alone, but the text he'd sent earlier was clearly a cry for help. Now all she had to do was to get him to realize it, but it was much easier said than done.

[Mark Daniels]

Elaine's persistence really amazed Mark. He felt that if it had been someone else, they would have already left him alone. He blinked hard before knitting his eyebrows, "I just like being outside, okay?" he retorted before glancing down at the wound on his arm. It was still banded and it was definitely going to scar.

Someone as great as Elaine shouldn't be tied down to something as insignificant as Mark, so he thought. He didn't want her to be in a relationship like this — or if it even was anything for that matter. A girl like her deserved to be in a relationship with someone who didn't wait last minute to express their feelings for her. Someone just not like him.

"I think we should stop whatever we have going on." Mark said softly, he thought it was for the best. "I don't think you deserve this. Let's face it, I justified my infidelities and they had no justification... They hurt you and please don't try to tell me they didn't." Mark wasn't boasting himself or anything, he just wanted to prove a point to her.

Mark wanted to understand how he got here. How dreams of having a girlfriend and a stable relationship his whole life brought him to a point where he felt that he didn't deserve the girl of his dreams.

It was probably because back then he didn't have any of this. He wasn't skinny, he wasn't a Vice President nor was he a football player. Mark was just an average guy who wore Hawaiian shirts and played the ukulele with a smile on his face always.

The only thing good about him today aside from his family, was Elaine. But even then he knew that it was selfish of him to keep her to himself when she could be with someone who wouldn't do all those things to her. If you love something, you have to set it free. She had a whole life to live and she didn't need him, or that's what Mark thought.