Page 4 of When Midnight Strikes
3
Danny
Ifeel like this is the longest day of my life. Maybe because of all the anticipation from knowing the party is this Saturday. As much as I don’t want to admit it, I am kind of looking forward to it. I normally avoid parties or any type of gathering with lots of people like the plague. I’ll have to thank whoever came up with the whole “must wear masks to attend” idea. It would be great to pretend I’m the old me again. The Danny before the scars. The Danny before he lost all those friends who said they would always be there even after the accident. One by one, they slowly drifted away. They became too busy or just stopped dropping by to visit; their usual phone calls turned into text messages, which turned into an occasional email, until there was nothing.
I moved away in hopes of getting a new start. I still see my family on occasion. They are only six hours away. I normally go up that way for the holidays, but I will be skipping that trip this month. I saw them for Christmas, though, and I don’t think my parents care much for celebrating the New Year anyway. I normally don’t either and usually just dress down into my pj’s with a bottle of wine and sit in front of the TV watching the Hallmark Channel until it’s time to change it to see the ball drop. Then I yell out, “Happy New Year,” to absolutely no one. Sad, I know, but it’s the life I am accustomed to. This year will be different, though. This year I will be able to shout out, “Happy New Year,” alongside many other people, with one of those being my best friend. I’m pulled from my thoughts when Vivian turns down the radio and clears her throat. “Don’t forget I’m picking you up on Saturday. I need to make sure you don’t flake out on me. I’ll even drag your ass out in pajamas if I have to.”
I scoff, rolling my eyes at her. Vivian drops me off in front of my complex and I hurry inside to escape the cold. I’ve been missing my apartment since the moment I stepped out of it. I don’t like the cold, and it doesn’t matter how long I've lived here, I still hate being out in it. Sure, I love dressing up in warm sweaters and having the excuse to wear beanies and wrap long scarves around myself, but I hate being cold.
I strip down to my boxers the moment I walk into my apartment and replace my cold clothes covered in snow with the warm flannel pajamas I got for Christmas. I grab my remote off the dresser and crawl into my warm, comfy comforter right before a ball of fluff snuggles up right beside me, nuzzling his nose into my arm. With just one hand sticking out of my blankets, I navigate Netflix. I land on Charmed and hit play from where I last left off, sticking my hand back under the warm covers. I groan as my phone goes off and almost don’t want to see who it is because that would require me to get out of my warm comfy bed.
My curiosity gets the best of me, and I toss the blanket to the side and slide my body off my bed until my feet hit the floor. Felix meows in annoyance since the covers also slide off of him, and the warmth of my body is no longer there for him to snuggle up into. I grab my phone and run back to my bed, tucking most of my body back under the covers. I open up my text message inbox to see a message from Melanie. I wonder what she wants. I already said I was going to the party with a plus two. She was excited to hear about me finally going to a social event. She has invited me to several and I usually decline, so she was caught by surprise when I told her I would be attending this time.
Melanie:Hey, so guess who is also going to the party Saturday?
Me:Who? Is this someone I actually know?
Melanie:Yes, silly. You see the man every day. He lives right across the way.
My eyes practically freeze at the screen in front of me as I realize who she is talking about. I play dumb instead of telling her I know.
Me:And who would that be exactly?
Melanie:Oh, Danny, don’t play dumb. You would have to be blind not to notice a guy like him. Anyway, I saw the way you looked at him the other day when he passed by us to get to his apartment.
Oh god, please tell me I wasn’t really that obvious. I always try my best to look anywhere else but in his direction when he passes me.
Melanie:Relax, I’m kidding. But based on your silence, it looks like I was right on the money.
Me:Uh-huh, yeah. Look, Melanie, I was in the middle of turning in early. I’m pretty exhausted from work and shopping for my mask today with Vivian.
Melanie:Oh, you got your mask. You will have to show me. Quick, take a picture of you in it. That way I know who to look for at the party.
Me:Bye, Melanie. See you Saturday night at the party.
I hope mentioning Saturday night’s party keeps her from coming by my place before then. I’m kind of hoping to be under the radar at the party, and I prefer no one knows who I am other than Vivian. I don’t want to be linked to the real Danny tomorrow night; I can be him again in a couple days. Tomorrow is a night for me to remember what it’s like to go to a party and flirt with guys the way I used to before the scars. Tomorrow is the night I could bring back that old confident Danny who has disappeared these last few years. I’ve only got one night, and I’m going to make the best of it. And who knows—maybe I’ll even meet someone to share a midnight kiss with.
