Dec. 13

No amount of caffeine was going to help Danny this morning. After his late night texting session with Ana, he was only able to get a few hours of sleep. It was surprising that he even allowed himself to stay up that late since he had a strict rule about getting to bed early during school time. With his large coffee-filled travel mug in hand, sunken eyes, and untidy hair, Danny left his house right on time to catch his early morning bus to school. Puffs of steam made their way out of the small opening of his hot canister, reminding him that it was a wonderful thirty degrees that morning. The thought made him shiver more as the bitter cold winter wind began to blow into his face.

"I would gladly pay $1,000 to be back in bed right now" Danny told himself right before he taking a gulp of his coffee.

"Good morning!" Ron's voice exclaimed behind him.

Ron then snuck up and gave his friend a light shoulder bump before Danny could finish his sip and turn around. More dangerously hot coffee escaped from his cup and burnt his tongue to a point where he felt the need to place his head in a freezer.

"Ow! You made me burn my tongue damn it!" Danny cried out, now wiping extra coffee off of his mouth.

Ron however gave no sympathetic response and just smiled it off.

"Sorry, I guess I got excited when I saw you leaving your house at a normal time that I felt the need to creep up and surprise you" he explained

"Well it wasn't by choice. I slept in a little later than normal."

The two began to continue their journey to the bus stop while Danny let out another huge yawn. Ron noticed and rolled his eyes.

"Let me guess" he started "You were up all night chatting right?"

"What?!" Danny exclaimed "No way! I actually turned in before midnight."

"Then what were you up for? I know you weren't studying or anything"

"See that would make sense since I am currently failing at physics and have a test coming up"

"True. But I have known you since freshman year and know how you study one hour before exams"

"Ok, you got me! I was up all night watching porn!"

Ron burst into laughter at Danny's comment. Danny didn't understand why the idea was so hilarious but he couldn't help but smirk at his lie either.

"You do not watch porn!" Ron snickered "It doesn't do anything for you since you only pay attention to the bad acting"

"Damn. You know me to well" he smiled as he took a sip of coffee.

A quiet ring soon began to go off in Danny's pocket, telling him that he just received a text message. Without second thought, he quickly dove into his pockets to get out his cell. He glanced at it happily for a moment but soon gave a look of disappointment when he saw it was just a text from his father asking him to come home immediately after school. Ron noticed Danny's upset look as he put his phone away and raised an eyebrow.

"Who was that?" he asked

"My dad. Wants me to help him clear out his office after school"

"Oh. Having guests?"

"Yeah… my mom" he sighed

"Wow. Just wow. Let me know how that goes. But, who were you expecting to text you?"

"Ummm…No one."

"Yeah you were! You almost got excited when your phone went off just now. Oh! Were you up all night texting someone?!"

"No! I told you I went to bed before midnight!"

"Ok sure. Give me your phone if you have nothing to hide then"

Danny rolled his eyes and reached to get out his phone again and handed it to him. Ron immediately started to look through his texts and slowly began to smile from ear to ear.

"Says here, your last text was sent out at three this morning!" Ron exclaimed showing Danny his newly found evidence "You were up all night talking to a girl?!"

"You need to have your eyes checked" Danny laughed and stole his phone back to look "My last text that I got was… at 3:15 a.m…? Woah. I guess I stayed up later than I thought"

He stared at this phone with widen eyes just in disbelief that he could have carried on a conversation with Ana for almost four hours. So why couldn't he remember their conversation? Was he was sleep texting?

"Wow. You have a girl that makes you forget what time it is AND you look forward to talking to her? Who is this 'Ana' and why have we not met yet?"

Danny looked up at his friend, still in confusion of what just happened and finally put his phone away.

"You wouldn't know her" Danny explained "I just met her a few days ago"

"You didn't answer my question. Why haven't you told us about your new friend to us? You guys must be close"

"I wouldn't call it close" he said and began to rub the back of his neck in thought "We just randomly seem to bump into each other"

"Uh huh. Yeah, sure." Ron smirked while rolling his eyes.

Before long, the boys reached their bus stop and then had to guess when the next bus would come. Danny chugged the rest of his coffee and stuffed his silver travel mug into his bag. Ron however went over to read the bus schedule that was posted nearby.

"Ok, either we just missed it or it will be here any second" Ron told him and went to join his friend, who was now leaning against a fence.

A moment of silence began to pass, letting Danny know that Ron wanted to know more about Ana. He was just surprised that he wasn't being obnoxious and asking questions left and right.

"You know you are not off the hook yet, right?" Ron blurted out.

'So much for not asking questions' Danny thought

"You are a persistent ass" Danny snickered "You know that, right?"

"Excuse me for being interested in my best friend's circle of acquaintances. I am just surprised that you spent all this time with this girl, and never mentioned her… ever. I mean, when did you guys meet?"

"I told you. A few days ago. We bumped into each other on the subway. She almost got knocked down during a fight outbreak"

"Never thought about taking that angle when trying to get a girls phone number" Ron smirked

"I didn't get her number that night" he said sternly

"Well you obviously got it eventually"

"Yeah." He sighed "I got it last night"

"Last night? Oh! She was the old friend you saw walking downtown! You little liar!"

"Hey, it wasn't really the time to explain since she was walking around looking like she was… dressed for the night and is new to the area. I didn't want her to run into trouble… which she did anyway."

"Wow. Talk about a knight in shining armor."

At that moment, the two could hear the loud engines of their bus getting closer. They peered down the road and saw their ride, about a block away, coming towards them.

"So are you planning to meet her in a more 'official way'?" Ron teased and elbowed Danny in the side.

"Not really" he smiled "We just seem to meet up… well randomly."

"Sounds like it. So just make a date already!"

Danny laughed at how forward Ron was being with the whole situation. He knew Danny hasn't dated since middle school. It was always hard for him to think about being with someone knowing what he did to Terra. The idea of being with someone else just never seemed to enter his mind.

'Maybe someday, I could meet up with Songbird though. That's really the only girl I can't wait to see' he thought to himself as the bus finally approached his bus stop.

Once it stopped in front of them, Danny stopped in his tracks while Ron continued to get on the bus. Once Ron noticed Danny wasn't behind him, he turned around to see Danny's face bright red and staring intensely at the bus.

"What happened to you?" Ron said and motioned for the driver to give them a minute "Did someone draw a giant penis on the side or something?"

He hopped off the bus and looked over at what was catching Danny's eye.

"Seriously? You act like you have never seen a Victoria's Secret advertisement before" Ron said as he looked over at the bus's advertisement of a girl, wearing nothing but Hanes underwear and a bra.

"She is cute but nothing to stop in your tracks about and make you turn beet red!" Ron continued to tease.

With that said, Ron pushed Danny, to knock him out of his trance, and onto the bus.

"I'm sorry" Danny said once they finally took their seats inside "I guess it took me by surprise"

"Well, at least I know your type is tanned girls with curly hair" Ron pointed out

O.O.O.O

The hospital was very quiet today and didn't unsettle Ana as much as it did other days. Like when doctors would bring patients bleeding profusely or people being carried on a bed while attached to three different machines. She was already in a depressed mood since her grandmother decided to get up and leave to Puerto Rico early that morning without telling anyone. It left Ana without a chance to say good-bye or pray for her to stay. It was just her, her mother and little brother as her father's support now.

Hector didn't seem as upset about his mother's leaving though. He knew his mother couldn't stand the idea of seeing her son walking past Death's door, then again, what mother could? Today seemed like the day when he would have to be the one comforting his daughter though.

Ana came to the hospital as soon as she woke up to a note, left by her grandmother about her leaving. Without a second thought, she grabbed her brother and made their way over to see their father, leaving Norma to sleep in back at the hotel. David was not keen to the idea of going to the hospital at ten in the morning, but Ana threatened to change their Wifi hotspot password if he refused to come. Since being there, David sat in a corner with his tablet playing numerous games, while Ana and her father settled to a game of gin rummy.

"I can't wait to see your ballet recital" Hector told Ana while examining his next move in their game "I know you are going to be the star of the show"

"Pffft!" Ana replied and grabbed another card to her hand "Hardly. All the girls in my class are like six feet tall and four feet of that is their legs. I am the shortest one in my class and Madame loves to point that out"

"Do you feel like you are getting treated differently?" he asked with a raised eyebrow "I can change that with one phone call"

"Oh no, Papi!" Ana immediately protested with fear "It's totally fine. I need to adjust is all."

'Plus, the girls would have a field day knowing that I asked my father to step in for my defense' she thought to herself.

"Well I know it is hard for you all to deal with everything that is going on right now. So we just want to make sure that you and David are at least enjoying your stay here"

"Yeah, right. By forcing me into doing ballet and David into piano?" Ana stated bitterly and drew another card.

Her comment put a bit of concern on Hector and he looked up at Ana before taking his next turn in the game.

"Are you guys really not happy?" he asked, now facing his cards down "You don't have to do those things if you don't want to. We thought it would be good for you both to just be productive and make friends"

Ana now felt a bit guilty for what she said and felt like giving herself a slap in the face.

"Oh man. I'm sorry Papi. I didn't mean that. I guess, well, it's just not home. We are both really homesick and just want to get back to our lives"

At that moment, she turned to her brother, hoping to get a sense of agreement, but only got to see him completely tuned into his game with headphones on.

'Thanks for the support, jerk' she thought to herself with narrow eyes.

"Hey, I know it is not home" Hector agreed "But would you really want to be stuck at a hotel or in this hospital all day for almost two weeks?"

"Well, no… But we could find other things to do other than ballet and piano"

"If you can, then drop out. Do what makes you guys feel happy"

"Hmmm, I guess it's too late to drop out now." She smiled and laid down a straight "Alright, and that is a 2,3,4,5 of hearts!"

"Nicely done. Well, you don't plan on spending your whole day here right? You guys must have made friends by now"

"I don't know about David, but the two girls I met in class that are pretty cool. Like, REALLY cool. But they are still in school and I can only see them on the weekends and during class"

"What about that friend you had coffee with yesterday?"

"WHAT?!" Ana blushed and dropped her cards "How did you find out about Danny?!"

"Ah!" David cried out and removed his headphones. He stared at Ana and his father as if he was about to have a heart attack.

"What is going on?! Why were you screaming?! Is everything ok?!" he exclaimed

"Yes everything is ok!" Ana yelled back "And I was not screaming!"

"Yes you were! You are doing it now!"

"Um… excuse me?" whispered a soft female voice.

The three turned to the door to face one of the nurses who was holding up a finger to her lips.

"Sorry, but we need your children to keep their voices down while you're on this floor in respect to the other patients"

"Oh, I am terribly sorry" Hector apologized "They are very sorry. Right, guys?"

"Right" Ana said, now even redder with the embarrassment she placed on her dad "I got carried away. Sorry about that"

"Yeah well, I get my big mouth from her" David pointed out and put back on his headphones.

The nurse smiled at their understanding and then left the room.

"Wow. All that ruckus over a guy?" Hector smirked and turned back to his daughter "Do you like him or something?"

"Huh? No! How can I? I just met him a few days ago. He has a habit of turning up whenever I am lost or in trouble it seems"

"Do you think you can have him actually turn up, maybe, on purpose? Maybe he can show you guys around the city if your other friends can't"

"You mean, set up an actual time and place to meet?"

"Yeah! That would get you guys entertained for the time being, since your mother and I won't be able to enjoy the sights with you."

"I mean, I can ask, but I think he is still in school too. Plus, there might be finals coming up"

"Ana, I am telling you. If you ask a guy to meet up with you, or take you somewhere, he will do it." Hector explained to her with a smirk and raised eyebrow.

Ana thought about what her dad was saying and wondered if Danny would be up for showing her and David around for the next few days. It would definitely be a random/weird request, but it could be fun. Plus, she really didn't want to run into a situation where she would be in trouble again. And if she knew anything about Danny, he didn't want her getting into trouble.

"Well, I know the Bronx Zoo is free today" she finally replied "Maybe he could show us where that is"

"There you go! Just ask him"

"I can't believe you really want me to do this. I feel like you have other motives. I mean, he could be an ax murderer"

"Ah, there are more ax murderers in Miami than here. I already looked up the statistics." He shrugged off.

"Ok. I'll be right back. I'll give him a call"

With that, Ana got out her phone and went into the hallway to make her call. Once, Hector knew she was out of the room, he allowed himself to grin happily.

'My girl is finally showing an interest in boys!' he thought with excitement 'I might become a grandparent after all!'

O.O.O.O

In the hallway, Ana searched for Danny's number and stared at it for a while before pressing 'Send'

'Oh man. What if he thinks I am annoying?' she thought with fear 'I already kept him up so late last night. He might not what to hang out again.'

She gave out a big sigh and took a seat at the waiting area on the floor's lobby. With a final thought, she straightened up and decided to call his number.

O.O.O.O

The whole classroom was silent during their calculus pre-test. Danny was pretty confident about how he did and turned in his test within twenty minutes of starting. Although, science was not his best subject, math was a lot like computers and just clicked to him. While the rest of his class was still working, he was able to take the rest of class time to relax in his seat.

'Oh man. It's only noon?' he thought to himself as he checked his phone for the time 'I have been ready for this day to end since before I got here'

With his phone still in hand, he folded up his arms and put his head down on his desk to take in a few moments of resting his eyes. It would be at least another half an hour till the last person turned in their test.

'I could probably fall asleep right now if I didn't have to worry about…'

"Ah!" Danny yelled out and seat up as his phone began to vibrate violently.

He quickly ignored the incoming call before even checking to see who it was since he could sense his teacher was giving him a glare of death at that point.

"The rest of the class would appreciate it if you could keep your loud outbursts to yourself, Danny" Mr. Jones sternly told him "We still have another full hour of class to go"

"Sorry, Mr. Jones. I think I just got shocked from his chair is all. Took me by surprise"

"Well, that is expected from the dryness of the season, but that doesn't mean you can't have self-control"

"Right. Sorry sir"

Danny looked around his classroom and saw many of his classmates eyes now focused on him. Some were smiling in his embarrassment and others were rolling their eyes at his premature actions. Ron and Christy were one of the smiling ones. He eventually turned to his phone and saw that it began to vibrate again for another incoming call.

'Who the hell is calling me over and over during school?' he thought and finally looked at the screen to see it was Ana.

'Ana? Oh man. I hope she isn't lost again' he wondered

He looked up to see if his teacher was paying attention so he could have a clear sign to text.

Danny: Sorry. I can't talk right now. I'm in class. I'll be out in an hour though. So stop calling! It is making my phone vibrate and I am on pins and needles with my teacher now!

Ana: Oh man! I'm sorry! I seem to always cause you trouble XD

Danny: It's ok. I got out of it… for now. Is everything ok?

Ana: Yeah, can you just call me whenever you get a free moment then?

'Call her? Ugh. It probably is important. Better handle this now' he decided with himself.

He then put his phone back in his pocket and proceeded up to her teachers' desk.

"Is your chair still attacking you, Danny?" Mr. Jones asked him sarcastically

"Uh… no actually. And, again, I am sorry about that. But may I just be excused to use the bathroom for a minute? I'm not really feeling so good"

"Hmmm… well you do look a bit pale." Mr. Jones pointed out and began to write out a hall pass "Sure. Here is your hall pass. Take your bag in case you have to go to the nurse's office"

"Thanks so much. I'll try to be back soon" he told him and took the pass.

Once outside of the classroom, Danny went down the hallway to a nearby janitor's closet. He couldn't afford to get caught using his phone in the bathroom so sometimes he just took calls during school hours in either closets or supply rooms. This one happened to be locked so Danny had to retrieve his lock picking set that he kept in his bag.

'Gotta admit, this kit did come in handy even after my days of being a misfit were over' he told himself and unlocked the door.

As soon as he was inside safely, he got out his phone and called Ana back.

O.O.O.O

Ana started walking back to her father's room since she knew she wouldn't be getting a call from Danny anytime soon, so she got really surprised when she heard her phone begin to jiggle within three minutes of her last text with him.

"Danny?" she answered "I thought you were in class"

"I was but I got myself out. Where are you?" he asked anxiously

"Umm… I am at the hospital with…"

"Oh my God! You are at the hospital?! Do you know the name? I'll get there as soon as I…"

"Ah! No no! I am here visiting my father with my brother! I am totally fine. No need to worry"

"Oh. Well ok then. That was a nice ten second heart attack"

"Sorry about that. Didn't mean to frighten you. But I am calling to see if you could take my brother and me to the zoo. I know it is around where you live but I will be having my little brother with me and I really don't want to get into any trouble"

"Oh. Well that's easy. Just take the 5 train from Grand Central all the way to West Farms Square. Once you get off, just walk towards the zoo. It's pretty big so you can't miss it"

"Huh. That does sound easy. I am sure I can wing that"

"Yeah it is really fun… when it is open"

"Well, yeah. That's why I am going before 3:30. Before it closes"

"No, I mean it is closed for the season. Closed for winter time in November"

Ana smacked herself on the forehead and began to feel really stupid for not checking the zoos season closings at that moment.

"And that is why I need you in my life apparently" she laughed "Well, so much for going to the zoo"

"Well, the Central Park Zoo is still open. You can go there. It is only a bus ride away from your hotel"

"Hmmm… I guess we shall do that then. Thanks for the info. And for stopping me from coming all the way out to your neck of the woods for no reason"

"Well, maybe we would have bumped into each other again." He smiled

"Well maybe we can… bump into each other on purpose then" she told him sheepishly "Would… you like to come with us?"

"Huh? Really?"

'Gah! That was so dumb of me to ask!' she thought to herself 'He was just down here yesterday and had to deal with me and my problems last night so why would he even think about…'

"That actually sounds like fun" he finally said "I have been cramming for finals so I could use a nice break"

"Oh wow! Awesome! This will be fun then. You know, to see each other not in awkward situations where people can kill me in the subway or think you are my pimp"

"Wow. Those were really awkward situations when you say it like that" he laughed

"So we will just go there from the hospital then. When will you get there around?"

"Oh well, uh…" Danny said as he began to rub the back of his neck a bit nervous.

'Shit. School doesn't get out till three today and I won't make it there before it closes at four. So I would have to leave… probably now' he thought to himself.

"I can be there in an hour" he blurted out without even confirming a plan for himself.

"An hour? Really? What about school?"

"Well seniors get out a few hours earlier than the others during this time of the year. So I'll text you when I am at the entrance gates"

"Sounds great! I'll see you soon!"

Danny hung up the phone more happily than he thought but immediately got frustrated about how he was going to get out of school now. He let out a big sigh as he thought about the lie he just told Ana so he could have a mini getaway from school and his family issues. He was finally able to put his feelings of guilt away and began to get a little more determined with his problem at hand.

"Oh man. I didn't think I would be doing this any time soon" he told himself and got out the laptop from his bag.

He immediately logged on and went online to get his dad's email account up. Alberto never changed his email password so Danny used to use it to his advantage and email his school to give himself permission to leave early, or not come into school at all. It was a strategy he used a lot during middle school. In fact, middle school was the last time he actually did it.

"Alright, 'Please excuse my son… due to family matters… leaving school early… please call at my office number…' Ok that looks good. And send!" Danny read to himself and put his laptop away.

He stepped out of janitor's closet with the ease of a military officer on sniper duty, and rushed down the hallway to exit his school. He didn't really know why he was running so much. Maybe it was because he wanted nothing more than to just have another moment feeling rebellious, like he did all those years ago. Or maybe it was just to escape his school life and everyone he knew, just to be with someone who knew nothing about him but he could still tell everything too. Either way, he didn't stop running until he made it onto the train track that would take him straight to Central Park.

"Well" he said to himself while trying to catch his breath and boarding a train "At least I won't feel cold for a while"

O.O.O.O

Christy just finished her test and turned it in when she faced the window and saw Danny running for his life towards the subway station near their school. Her eyes widened as she watched him curiously and wondered why on Earth he was skipping the rest of the day without letting his friends know. Once at she was seated back at her desk, she carefully pulled out her phone and tried texting him.

Christy: I just saw you running out of school! Is everything ok?!

She didn't know why she cared for Danny so much sometimes. It was probably because she was scared about leaving for college and wondering if they would still remain friends, without ever having the opportunity to see if they could be something more.

She didn't get a text back from him, even after class ended. Once the bell rang to dismiss the class, she immediately rushed to Ron and grabbed his sleeve before he exited the classroom.

"Hold up you!" Christy exclaimed "Did Danny tell you he was planning to skip school today?"

"What?" Ron asked with a raised eyebrow "He hasn't done that since high school started. I doubt he would start now"

"Well I just saw him run out of school and towards the subway after I turned in my test. You don't think he is getting into any… trouble do you?"

"After what happened with him and drugs back in middle school? No way! Maybe it was a family issue. He told me his mom is apparently going to live him and his dad"

"Woah. That came out of nowhere. But even if that was the case, his house is in the other direction. And my phone is unable to connect with his. I think he went underground on the subway"

"That would mean he would be going into the city!" Ron laughed "He hates going there and doesn't even know any… oh wait."

Christy caught a sign that Ron knew something and immediately felt the urge to know more.

"Are you saying he is going to meet someone in the city?" she asked

"Hold your horses, Sherlock! I know he met someone in the city a few days ago. That's all I know. She is not going to be in town for long so maybe he went to meet up with her? But like hell if I know! Danny is definitely not doing anything shady if that's your biggest worry"

Christy then sighed and looked at the floor more nervous than other. She never thought Danny would ever have other female friends in his life besides her. No matter what she did, she could never seem to grasp his attention. What if this girl did?

Ron began to notice Christy's upset expressions and sighed as he tried to figure out how he was going to say what he wanted to next.

"But you are more worried about a girl" he slowly explained "You should just tell him how you feel already. You know he wants to go to Chicago for college and that time is right around the corner. What are you waiting for?"

With that being said, Ron turned to leave the classroom since the next bell for classes was about to sound soon. He left Christy there to think about what he said.

'He is right' she thought to herself 'What am I waiting for? Probably just a hint that Danny will feel the same way?'

O.O.O.O

"This looks boring, Ana" David told her with crossed arms, as they entered the Central Park Zoo's gates.

Ana rolled her eyes at his comment and tried not to let her little brother's attitude affect her good mood. She instead decided to give him a playful punch behind his head.

"Seriously? Next time I am just going to abandon you in the middle of Times Square" she threatened him.

A gust of wind suddenly came in and made the two Floridians shiver and wrap their arms around themselves. David unfortunately didn't have a hood or hat so he had to settle with covering his ears with his huge DJ headphones, while Ana was able to put on her fur hood that was attached to her coat.

"Maybe next time we can just go the movies." David suggested "You know? Inside? Not outside?"

"Hey, I don't know when we are going to be here again so let's make the best of it and explore a little. There are movie theaters all over Miami"

The two siblings then started their journey around the park to visit exhibits that were still open during the winter months. Every few minutes or so, Ana checked her phone to see if Danny texted, only to get disappointed when she saw her empty inbox. The zoo was pretty much empty so the two almost had the place to themselves. Ana figured that most other people were either on vacation or at work or school.

After more than two hours since talking with Danny, Ana got a get a little worried about him coming at all. She knew it was probably far for him to get here but he said he would be there in an hour and it was already past two o'clock. Her and David practically saw all the animals in the first hour, since the zoo was so small and were just wondering around now. Luckily for her, David was finally beginning to have fun and didn't mind going back to look at the penguin's exhibit once again. At that point, Ana decided to take a seat nearby and watched David happily take pictures of the animals.

"Wow Ana!" he exclaimed pressing against the railing "Just look at how fast they swim for those fish!"

"Yeah, that's great David." She replied unenthusiastically and looked at her phone again.

"Geez, where are you Danny? If you couldn't make it, you could have called"

After staring at her phone for another few minutes, she finally put it back in her pocket and got up a little depressed.

"Hey, David? How about we go get some hot chocolate? I think we have seen everything here"

"Huh?" he questioned and turned to her "I guess so. But I thought we were waiting for your friend"

"Yeah well, he is not coming" she explained sadly

The two then turned to leave the exhibit. They continued on and as soon they approached the exit, Ana's heart jumped when she saw Danny turn the corner and almost bump right into them.

"Danny!" she exclaimed beaming a smile "You made it!"

"Yeah…" he replied panting and breathing heavily "I was running all over to try and find you."

"Well, why didn't you text me? I could have met you somewhere"

"My phone sometimes takes a while to realize it is not underground anymore. I will probably be getting a million texts and missed calls in another few minutes or so. I am so sorry. I hope you weren't waiting long"

"Not at all" David finally said "Just wasted another hour or so of Ana's time is all. And we saw the whole zoo like three times over"

At that moment Ana wrapped her arm around David's neck, still beaming a smile, and began to slowly choke him.

"Please forgive my brother" she asked him "He just doesn't know when to shut up sometimes"

"Gah!" David screamed out while trying to get Ana off of him "I can't breathe!"

"No no it's ok" Danny laughed "I really wish I had a younger sibling who cared about me that much too. Nothing wrong with him showing concern. Cut the guy some slack, Ana"

Ana finally decided to give in and released David from her grasp. He took in a few exaggerated breaths of air and looked to Danny.

"Thanks for that. She only stops whenever one of my parents tell her too" he explained

"Oh stopping making me seem like I am a wicked step-sister!"

"The first thing you did to me today was threaten me! And I was still half asleep!"

"You guys are a riot!" Danny continued to laugh "You must be really close. I am Danny by the way" he said with an outreached hand to David.

"I am David." He replied and accepted Danny's handshake "The better half of the Ortiz siblings"
"You really want to die today, don't you?" Ana shot back at him

"Oh, you know he loves getting kicks out of you." Danny explained "So, since I failed at getting here, where to now? We can just tour the park if you want"

"That sounds like fun" Ana said and turned to David for his answer.

"Woo hoo. Real fun walking around an empty park." He replied sarcastically "If you need me, I will be having my headphones on" he said now turning his iPod on.

The three then left the zoo and preceded on one of the parks many paths for a light stroll. David walked ahead of them, with headphones blasting, as Danny and Ana just enjoyed each other's company and conversation.

"So what do you think of New York in the winter time?" Danny asked her

"In all seriousness? I hate it. It is cold, gloomy, dirty and people are very rude"

"Should have figured that would be your answer" he laughed "We will have to go to the Times Square ToysRUs then. That is one of the only places that is still fun and bright during this time of year. You won't find a lot of color around here unless you stay out after dark. That's when Rockefeller Center is blasting with lights."

"Wow! That does sound cool. You know, I have always wanted to have a New York Christmas, but with my dad in the hospital and my family just, falling apart, it is hard for me to enjoy it. But I would like to see the city at night. You will have to take me around"

"Why do I feel like I just became your personal tour guide?" he smiled

"Uh, because it is free! Duh!"

"Your family has tons of money. Why not buy some tourist sightseeing tickets?"

"Hey, I am still under allowance and my parents won't let me work till I am done with school. They worked hard for the life they have, and want to have David and I understand that too. Plus, I deal with tourists ALL the time in Miami. I don't want to become one"

"I guess I can understand that. So what are…"

Then Danny got suddenly interrupted by his phone ringing. His first instinct was to turn it off, but then he read it was his school calling and immediately felt his stomach drop and stopped walking.

'Shit!' he thought 'They are calling to confirm with my dad that the email is sent is legit! They never did this before!'

"Something wrong?" Ana asked and stood next to him, as the phone continued to ring "Who is it?"

'Oh my goodness, I can't believe I am doing this' he thought and gave the phone to Ana.

"Ana, I need you to answer the phone and say 'Alberto Greco's office. Please hold while I transfer your call'"

"What?! Since when did we decide to role play office characters?"

"I know it is weird but I really need you do this. I promise to explain later"

Ana let out a sigh of confusion but eventually took the ringing phone and answered it.

"Alberto Greco's office." She answered in her most adult like voice "How may I transfer your call? Uh, huh. Sure thing. Mr. Greco just returned from lunch. Please hold while I transfer you over"

As she handed the phone back to Danny, he mouthed the words 'thank you' and answered the phone to pretend to be his father. Ana overheard the quick conversation and immediately was able to put two and two together as she heard Danny confirm "his son's" leave of absence from school today. Once Danny got off the phone, he stared over to Ana, who he was surprised to find looking more bewildered than upset at the moment. Before he could say anything, he saw her turn back towards the path to catch up with her brother.

"Ana, I…" he started as he reached up to meet her

"Why did you lie to me?" she interrupted "You said you got out of school early."

"I did… But only because I forged a note from my dad to let me out early"

"Hmmm… you know that is really not getting out early then. Why did you do it?"

"Honestly? I have no idea. I told you I would be here and didn't think about what I was saying till I hung up the phone. My instincts kinda kicked in and took control of everything else."

Ana continued walking, unsure of how to respond to his reply. She didn't know if she wanted to smack him for doing something carelessly, or kiss him for being sweet enough to rearrange his day for her.

"Ana?" he asked

"Huh? Oh sorry. I am trying to debate whether this is a good or bad thing"

"Well, do you want me to do it again?"

"No! I don't want you to get into trouble!"

"Ok then!" He smiled "I won't ever do it again. Since you care that much"

"But" she mentioned looking over at him "That was really sweet of you to do. Stupid. But sweet"

"Well you know me. GQ Magazines Top 100 Sweetest Guy award winner!"

"Yeah right!" she laughed out and playfully nudged him "More like Top 100 Failed Attempts award winner!"

"Oh no!" David cried out and began to shield his eyes.

"David? What's wrong?" Ana asked with a bit of concern

"My eyes! It burns!" he cried out dramatically and pretended to be blind.

"What in the hell are you looking…"

Then she saw it. One of her Hanes advertisements on the side of a bus that was passing by the park. But not just any of her photos. The one where she was wearing nothing but briefs and a bra while laying down on a bunch of white pillows and staring seductively at the camera.

"Oh. My. God" she whined as she slowly watched the bus pass by.

"Yeah I saw that ad earlier today by the way" Danny came in "I didn't know you modeled"

"You will erase that image from your head or so help me I will dissect your brain myself!" she threatened to Danny and went to her brother.

"And you! Stop embarrassing me in public or you can say good-bye to hot chocolate later"

"But I can't see anymore." He pretended still covering his eyes "The horror… the horr…"

"I said quit embarrassing me!" she yelled out and then smacked the back of his head again

"Ow! Hey I am still tender headed!"

"You are ten! You haven't had a soft spot since you were a baby!"

"Oh my goodness, I really need to start recording you guys!" Danny continued to laugh in the background "But that hot chocolate does sound good. There is a Dunkin around here. My treat?"

"And I am saved by hot chocolate!" David exclaimed and began to walk beside Danny again.

Ana smiled seeing her brother finally settle down and enjoying his time with her and Danny. It was moments like this that really made her want to forget the fact that Danny would be later that day and that she would be leaving him in about a weeks' time.

O.O.O.O

When Danny came home, it was only about seven o'clock, which was not late, but still unacceptable to his father who was expecting him home straight after school. Danny dreaded his moments walking up the stairs knowing he was going to run into his dad and have to face his lecture about not replying to his texts or calling him about when he would be home.

"Well, look who decided to come home" Alberto said as he saw Danny crossing the room he was in "Thanks for helping me out with getting the room ready"

"See, I don't think you understand how I feel about the whole situation, so I figured ignoring you might settle it"

"Believe it or not Danny, this is my house and if I say that we are renting out a room to a hobo on the street, that is my decision and not yours. But, you know what? You are right. I can't make you help me with this transition because you absolutely refuse to listen to reason."

"There is no reason. Mom left. Without notice. My whole childhood was kinda motherless. So how can you seriously expect me to just rekindle a fire that burnt out when I was six?"

"Because she is coming back into our lives" he explained and tossed him a hammer "And she is staying in our lives this time around. Now quite moping around and help me put together this dresser"

Danny narrowed his eyes at his dad but decided to give up on ignoring him and put his bag down so he could help. The office didn't have piles of books stacked on top of each other, nor papers spread around the floor as usual. The desk with his father's computer was gone and in its place was a full sized bed. Danny and Alberto worked the next few hours putting together a nightstand, dresser and cleaning up the Ikea cardboard boxes and plastic. Once the room was vacuumed and dusted, Danny could hardly tell it used to ever be a messy office.

"I got this sheet set for her" Alberto said and went to the closet to pull out a sunflower themed comforter set. "Her favorite flower were sunflowers so I thought she would like it"

"Ugh. This is so weird. Having my parents in the same house but in different beds" Danny pointed out "You said she is going to be here to stay but she is basically going to be a tenant. How do you expect her to become your wife… my mom again?"

"She needs to settle some things with herself" his father sighed "She doesn't think she can handle a new baby along with her husband and son. Besides, we are technically divorced so I am not even her husband. Right now, you have more connections to her than I do"

"Yeah, well, I wouldn't mind trading connections if I could. Are we done here?"

"Sure" Alberto said "Thanks for your help. She will be here this Friday. Please, try to come straight home after school."

"Yeah, I think I can do that"

With everything settled, Danny wanted nothing more than to get online and chat with Songbird about his mother living with him and his father still having a crush on her. But, it wasn't their night to chat so he would have to wait till tomorrow. After taking a long hot shower, Danny came into bed ready to call it a night but knew he had one last errand to take care of.

'She is going to scream my ear off' Danny thought as he dialed Christy's phone number and laid on his bed.

Within a few rings she answered.

"What the fuck, Danny!" Christy yelled at him "You skip school, ditch Ron and me and ignore all our texts for the whole day! Are you in the Secret Service or something?!"

"I'm sorry, Christy! I just needed a mini vacation and had to get a way for a bit. I should have totally let you and Ron know but I wanted to escape with no one knowing"

"That's bullshit. What if something happened to you? What could we tell the police? Oh, sorry officer. I just saw him run to the subway station, so we have all of NYC to search! You scared the hell out of me!"

"Again I am so SO sorry. I promise not to do that to you and Ron again. I made a lot of mistakes today with people close to me so it would only make sense that I would make a mistake with you too"

"Well, damn straight we are close to you. Did you tell Ron about this?"

"I will tell him tomorrow. He doesn't worry like you do, so I had to call you first."

"Well, that was the best decision you made all day. So, who else did you screw with today?"

"Ugh, just my dad and… someone else"

"Someone else? You mean the person you met up with today?"

"What?! How did you figure that out?"

"There is no other reason for you to go to the city. I doubt you went to Coney Island or something. Ron said you met a girl in the city a few days ago. Is that her?"

"Wow. There is no holding secrets from you"

"Well, that's what best friends are for. Along with telling them where you run off to…"

"I said I was sorry already! How many more times do you need me to say it?"

"Hmmm… how about one more time?" she smiled

"Ugh, I am sorry"

"Ok. I guess I can forgive you. But just this one time! We can't have Ron thinking I am going soft on you guys"

"Yeah well, we are your friends, not boyfriends. You are supposed to be a hard ass on us"

"Well, maybe I need to be a hard ass on my boyfriends too…" she began to blush.

"I could have told you that. All of them were total pushovers. But you haven't been with anyone for a while so I have to withhold my judgment."

"Well, I think I have an idea of who I want to spend my life with and are just ok with waiting for right now"

"Hey, nothing wrong with that"

'I plan on very much waiting for Songbird' he thought to himself

"Yeah, well, I need to get to bed" Christy concluded "Thanks for calling me. I plan on knowing all the details of your day off though, Ferris Bueller"

"Right right. I'll make it a powerpoint presentation"

"You're such a nerd. Just an essay would suffice. Not everything can be solved with computers"

"Geez! Good night Christy!"

"Ha ha! Good night Danny"

Once Christy ended her call, she leaned over in her bed and tossed her phone back on her nightstand. She continued to think about Danny and this random girl that he was sneaking off to meet. As much as Danny and Ron were blinded to it, it was romantic. Danny just dropped everything to go be with someone just so they could practically disappear. Even if it was only for a few hours. Danny has done many things for her during her times of distress but he would always see her as a friend. It could have been seen as her fault since she was constantly dating someone, but, during all those times, she was praying that she would begin to fall for them the way she did for Danny. But her feelings never changed. Even after sleeping with a few.

'Damn it' she thought 'I would gladly pay $1,000 to have my love for him taken away'

O.O.O.O

Author's Note:

Sorry for the delay everyone! I have edited these scenes over a dozen times and it just never seemed good enough to post. In reality, I feel like I don't even know what I am doing when writing. I am not sure if I am creating good character development or if my plot is getting dragged out or is just confusing. Feedback from anyone would be SOOOOO appreciated. I need to basically know: Does my story make sense? I just don't want it to seem dull or as if there is too much stuff going on. Plus, let me know if any grammar mistakes were made. Thank you all so much!