~"Dan for short"~

Keryn sprung up in the bed, fast enough for the insides of her head to bash from one side to the other. But, despite her headache, she had a feeling that she had to get to the door before Kayla. "Oh God" she said to herself. At this stage her headache was beyond aching, it was a head pound. The light in the room was very bright she looked around "Ahh.." she grabbed Taylor’s sunglasses from the dresser and deliriously made her way down to the front door.

"What the.....Keryn?" she heard the familiar sound of Taylor speaking at her when she found her way to the bottom of the stairs. He was on his way to the front door.

"Keep away....let me go" Keryn looked around to see if Kayla was in sight.

"I’ll get it. Go back to bed"

"No no." Keryn hushed him. "You don’t understand." Keryn said as they walked to the door together.

"The doorbell rang Keryn, nothing more. Now, go to bed."

"Don’t Taylor. Dan is on the other side of that door. And if it kills me I am not going to let him see Kayla. She has totally been through enough"

Taylor stared at Keryn in disbelief. "Are you sure?"

"Oh Tay, I am not that delirious. That is why Justin rang."

"Oh no. What are we going to do?" Taylor was genuinely concerned.

Both teenagers heard the doorbell ring again. He had been standing out there for about four minutes now. "Some one answer the door" Isaac echoed from the kitchen"

"Ike will kill him" Taylor whispered to Keryn.

"Shit."

Without another word Keryn opened the door and there before her stood a guy. Dark blond hair, tanned all over, reasonably tall that goes by the name of Daniel, Dan for short.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Keryn greeted him.

"Ahh..Keryn sunny inside is it?" Keryn realised she still had on the sunglasses to shield her head ache.

"I said what the hell are you doing here?" she was showing anger in her voice.

"I am here to see my girlfriend."

"Don’t you dare give me that Dan."

"I suppose she told you did she?"

"And why wouldn’t she?"

"I don’t bloody know. Doesn’t suprise me cause the whole of Los Angeles now knows. I suppose Tulsa too."

"Don’t go there Daniel. Kayla has not told anyone except the people she has been staying with, who wouldn’t achieve anything by telling anyone, about what happened between you too." Dan’s eyes moved to Taylor, who was fuming at this moment. "Dan, this is Taylor".

"Hi. I’ve heard of you"

Taylor didn’t say anything. He just turned to walk inside.

"Tay, where are you going?"

"I think Ike wants to meet someone" he didn’t turn around. He just kept walking. Keryn quickly followed.

"Stay there." she commanded Dan.

When they got to the kitchen Zac and Isaac were still searching through the medical books and Kayla was on the phone to the doctor. Isaac looked up "Keryn, go to bed."

"No Ike, I am okay." She looked at Taylor, who was edging closer to Isaac.

Keryn helped him by going to Kayla. "I am on hold" she mouthed. Keryn took the phone and hung it up.

"What are you doing Keryn?"

"Kayles, I am not sick. C’mon, can you please come and help me with something."

"Why are you wearing sunglasses?"

"Cause I have a mother headache. Come and get some aspirin with me" Kayla was a bit confused. But she went with Keryn. As they left the room Keryn’s eyes moved to Isaac, who was creating a look of anger on his face while Taylor was explaining the situation.

"What are you looking at?" Kayla said looking in the direction of Keryn’s eyes. "What’s wrong with Ike?"

"Oh, I think he is just tired" Keryn said saying the first thing that popped into her head. That was a bad excuse, she could tell by Kayla’s face.

"No Keryn. What’s the matter?" she was breaking away from Keryn and moving over to Isaac. "What are they talking about?"

"Nothing" Keryn said. No. this was not going to work. She could not keep it from her, it was simply not fair. After a long pause Keryn spoke. "Kayla"

"Yeah?"

"Dan’s here"



Kayla just stood there, the words were echoing through her head as Keryn had said them. ‘Dan’s here’, ‘Dan’s here’, ‘Dan’s here’.

She looked at Isaac who was moving toward her. She was on the verge of tears. No, I have to keep strong. Why the hell is he here? Why did he come after me?. Kayla sprung away and headed for the front door. This was the last thing that she needed at the moment, but she had to face him.

"Dan?" she called to the backward figure that stood before her. He turned around.

"Kayla" he didn’t look too happy.

"What on earth are you doing here? This is the absolute last thing that I need at the moment!"

"I don’t care Kayla. What you did to me was bad." he fumed.

Kayla was now confused. "What the hell did I do to you?" she looked him directly in the eyes. "I did nothing damn it!"

"Oh yes you did. I don’t call ringing Justin, who rang the whole of UCLA, which got to my parents who have now well and truly dis-owned me bloody nothing!"

Kayla thought for a moment. The look on his face was now coloring red with anger and this was the time for her to get scared. "I rang Justin to wish him ‘happy birthday’ nothing more."

"Bull shit Kayla. I suppose the whole of Tulsa also knows that I am bi."

"Geez. You say it like you are ashamed of yourself."

"Well, I fucking should be. Cause I went out with you!"

"Don’t go there. Uh uh" she was getting beyond mad now. "Don’t you dare diss me Daniel. Who is the one here that had to put up you you and your shit for two years? Who put up with the drinking, fighting, arguing, using! Me, Dan, ME!"

"Oh.." he started

"Don’t speak." she demanded. "I am the one that got you out of your little messes. You kept leaving me and whenever you realised that you simply could not live without me you rang up telling me that you loved me and you wanted me back. Why are you really here Dan? Why the hell?"

He was silent for a moment. "Sorry" he hesitated. "I do love you Kayla. It was different before."

"Oh?" she stared in his eyes with disbelief. She could not for one second believe what was going on in front of her. He wanted her back again. To use her, again.

"It was different before. I was younger."

"Six months does not account for being younger." she continued to look at him. "Give me the real reason why you are here. Now!"

"Kayla. I don’t know what I want at the moment."

"Well thats obvious. A second ago you were telling me that you are ashamed cause you went out with me. Two days ago you rang me because you had decided you were now bi and now you are all soft and don’t know what the fuck you are doing."

"I always loved that about you Kayles. Straight to the point."

"Oh God. I do not believe I am hearing this!"

"What?"

"You still have not told me. I want to know and I want to know now. Why are you hear Daniel?"

"Kayla, I am sorry that I was mad before. My temper has been a little crazy lately." Kayla rolled her eyes. "But, I think I know what I want."

"You told me that you didn’t know what you wanted a second ago."

"I know. But by seeing you again it has come to me. Kayla?"

"Dan?"

"I want you back. I want to have the friendship, love and fun that we shared. I want it all back." he softly murmured. He put is arms out to hug her, as if she was just going to run to him.

"Dan. Why are you doing this?"

"Because Kayla. I love you"

"What’s to say this whole thing won’t happen again"

"It won’t. We will get married. My parents will pay. We will have kids."

"Oh for Christ’s sake Dan. I am sixteen years old!" then it suddenly dawned on Kayla. She took herself back a couple of minutes and relived the words Daniel had said to her ‘my parents who have now well and truly dis-owned me’ she broke out of her thinking. "Oh shit Dan. You are a real case you know that!"

"No no. We will not have kids right....."

Kayla interupted him. "We will never have kids. I will ask you one more time why you are here and if I do not get an answer I will tell you why you are here!"

"Kayles. I am here to ask you to marry me."

"Oh no!" she laughed. "It just gets worse. You are here Daniel, because you want to get me back to use and cheat on me because if your parents see that you are in a so called loving relationship with me, Kayla, a girl, then the financial goodies you use to sit on your ass with for the rest of your life keep rolling on in!" Kayla started to turn around, but she was pulled back. "What now?"

"Kayla don’t do this to me. I love you." she looked him in the eyes. It was obvious that he was on the verge of tears. For that two years she had never seen anything like this. She had to feel sorry for him, he looked so innocent. At this point in his life it must be so hard for him. But Kayla had been through similar problems and she didn’t need him.

"No Dan. You don’t love me. You love the idea of me."

"No. Don’t say that." The tears had now started to pour down his face.

"Daniel. Don’t." she pulled out of his grip and started to walk into the house. "I don’t want or need you anymore Dan. That part of my life is well and truly over. I can’t take it anymore."

"No Kayla. Don’t you dare go in." he started to become aggressive. This is the point of which she should not be standing in front of him.

"Dan. I am going. We are getting out of each others lives now. Don’t call me. I won’t call you. Do not come and see me. I do not want to see you."

"We are together Kayla. It is far to late to change that. We will be together for the rest of our lives."

"NO DAN!"

"Kayla. Come with me, we are going to Los Angeles."

"Oh for God’s sake. Listen to me. I am here now. And nothing, I mean nothing you say is going to change that for me. For once in my life I am comfortable Dan and suprise suprise I am not with you!"

"No. No!" he was weeping uncontrollably.

"Don’t Dan. You will make yourself sick." she commanded.

"I need you. I need you now."

"Dan, you don’t."

Isaac emerged from the hallway he had been standing in for the entirety of the conversation. Kayla swung around to look at Ike and motioned him back in the house.

"No Kayla". This caught Dan’s attention. He looked up. His tear stained face turned to fury.

"Who are you?" there was a pause. Kayla was nervous and started to push Isaac inside. "Well?"

"I am Isaac." Dan looked at Kayla trying to shove Ike out of the way.

"This better not be what I think it is"

"What? Huh? You are such a bastard. You know that?" Ike spat out.

"Ike.....don’t"

"No." Isaac looked at Kayla. "You know what? Dan or whatever you are."

"What?" Dan growled at Isaac.

"You seriously do not know what you have done. I have barely known Kayla for a week and my life has changed because of her."

"What?" Kayla looked at Ike confused.

Isaac looked at Kayla. "Can’t you see it Kayla? I want to be more than a friend. I want to be there for you. Be there for you all the time. I need you."

"But...." Kayla was speechless and in shock her hands began to shake as she looked into Isaac’s eyes, for that moment Dan, or whoever he was was forgotten.

"No Kayla. Whenever I look at you I don’t know what to do. I say the stupidest things and I just freak out. I can’t believe I am saying this." Isaac watched for a reaction from Kayla. But she just stood there. She was scared to do anything.

"Ike?" she heard coming out of her mouth.

"Yes?" Nothing else was said. Kayla was confused. They didn’t know what to do so they just stared deeply into each others eyes. For how long, they didn’t know. They just stared.

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