[Ryan] Looking For Misery... She Found Me

[Dani Marie Cooper]

And that was the last straw for this fight… Had it even been a fight? She’d found out what Jake had done in regards to her father, and she had been left speechless. Utterly stunned. She had turned away from him, packing a bag as quickly as she could. Even his pleas seemed desperate. He wasn’t trying to fight with her, he was trying to get her to understand. But how could she? Right now all she knew is that when she was younger her father orchestrated, manipulated, and calculated every detail of the nightmarish hell that she lived in. And now she had chosen to fall in love with someone who saw the world as a similar chess board. Didn’t he? Who got to play God? Dani moved past Jake, and though he tried taking her bag away from her, not once did he touch her. “Let me go, Jake,” she said, pushing her glasses up on her head as she moved past him, picking up her car keys. He was asking her not to go, asking if they could talk about this. But where was that conversation before he decided what he had? She knew what he would tell her anyway. He did it because he loved her. He did it because he was worried for her. He did it because she wasn’t sleeping at night out of fear of her father being released. But it did not change the fact that she needed time to process what she had just found out, and she needed to do it away from him. Some time later she found herself at Ryans house, taking a moment to stare at the door before she slowly lifted her hand and knocked on his door.

[Ryan James O'Neil]

Ryan carefully removed the film paper from it's bath where it had been developing letting the excess drip off before hanging it to dry over the bathtub. Of course it was a photo of Madeline. Why he even did this to himself he didn't know, it was just making him more irritated she was off with someone else. He heard a knock on the door and he couldn't help but hope it was Madeline. He quickly pulled aside the dark curtain and out the door, trying to let in as little light as possible, before opening the front door and saw Dani standing there. Ryan smiled, "Oh hey, I didn't know you were coming over," and then frowned seeing her overnight bag. "uh oh," he mumbled, letting her in, "You and Jake get into a fight or something?" Ryan shut the door behind her and followed her into the living room. Jake was a cool guy, a little hot headed for Ryan's taste, but he liked him enough when he was in a good mood. Countless times, just out of concern for Dani, Ryan had wondered how they stuck it out for so long in such an explosive relationship. Ryan leaned against the doorway into the kitchen, crossing his arms, "You wanna talk about it or are we not there yet?" Ryan didn't know, sometimes he just didn't want to talk about things. He wasn't sure what stage she was at. Though to be fair, Dani was usually always in that talkative stage.

[Dani Marie Cooper]

Dani looked up at Ryan as he opened the door, thankful to finally see his face. Her expression softened slightly as she made her way inside, dropping the bag on the living room floor. She was already pacing the living room, when she looked up and stopped when he asked if she wanted to talk about it. Did she want to talk about it? Dani stood there still for a moment, before she started nodding to herself. She put her hand up slightly, gesturing for him to wait before she went to the kitchen. She quickly started grabbing things from all over his kitchen, moving quickly to make margaritas. Except they were like 80 percent tequila and 20 percent margarita mix. She came back to the living room, offering him one before she brought her own glass to her lips, finishing it in just a few gulps before setting the glass down. "Ryan," she said, placing her hands together before tapping them against her lips a few times. "My dad was up for potential release," she said, which was redundant because Ryan already knew about that. He knew the nightmares it was giving her. He knew that dread and fear that the idea of it placed inside of her. "Jake killed my father." she said, realizing how insane it sounded before she turned to look at Ryan. "I mean, he ordered him to be killed.. in jail. My dad is dead... because of Jake." she looked over at the margarita that he had not finished and reached out to take it, finishing it for him.

[Ryan James O'Neil]

Understandably, whatever they'd fought over was enough for he to pack a bag so he wasn't going to stop her from raiding his liquor cabinet. Ryan himself raided it quite often these days too. He watched her formulate in her mind how she wanted to start this conversation, handing him a margarita that would probably put her on the floor in about 30 minutes. Ryan held onto his, listening as she explained that even though her father was due to be released, Jake had somehow apparently put a hit on her father and he was killed before he even had a chance at being let out. Ryan stared at her and then stared at the carpet, shaking his head, "Whoa, that's heavy, man." Dani had reached over after finishing her drink clean off in a few long gulps, taking Ryan's too and he said, "Wait did I miss the memo where Jake has some sort of pull with the mafia to be putting hits on people?" he joked lightly. Because seriously, how did Jake pull that one off, where did one go to even find those people? Ryan wasn't sure that even mattered compared to the fact that her dad was dead and it was because Jake had wished it so.

[Dani Marie Cooper]

Dani put her hands on her hips, muttering to herself quietly in Spanish before she looked over and realized that Ryan had made a comment about Jake and the mafia. "....About that," she said, making a slight face at Ryan. " So I get that this is a lot of information all at once, and it is really heavy, so I am sorry that I came over and I am doing this,But yes.. Jake technically... is the mafia. I mean his family is the mafia. And apparently he is too, because he is ordering hits.. pero no sé qué más hacer y tú eres la única persona con la que puedo hablar sobre esto. Jake no se da cuenta de lo peligroso que es y no creo que sepa que me está asustando. Quiero decir, estoy asustado. No quiero tener miedo. ¿Qué cree que debo hacer? ¿Cómo se supone que debo reaccionar? ¿Qué es lo que quiere de mí?" she started to yell, while pacing across his living room. Dani looked up at Ryan, rolling her eyes slightly. "Lo siento, p-.. I... sorry. I don't know what he wants from me. Or how he thinks I am supposed to react. I mean, I get that he was trying to help in some really weird way. But what if.. I mean, does he think I wasn't strong enough for this? What the hell was he thinking Ryan? How does he get the right to play God?"

[Ryan James O'Neil]

Ryan paused, making a face at what she'd said about Jake's family. He'd obviously been joking about the whole mafia thing so to find out that Jake was indeed in he mafia was both shocking and also sort of kick ass. No, he shouldn't mention that, it was very uncool to be related to the mafia at this moment in time. Fuck the mafia. Fuck mafia Jake. It was truly uncool to have a hit placed on your girlfriend's dad though. Like damn, you didn't think she could overcome her own demons? Ryan didn't know, maybe there was a lot behind closed doors he didn't see; maybe it seemed much more hopeless than they let on. Dani was upset and had gone into full Mexican mode and Ryan reached over on the counter and picked up a joint and a lighter, placing it between his lips and lit up, breathing in deep before holding it there for a moment. Okay Ryan lived in Arizona for long enough to understand basic Spanish. He understood how she would feel scared right now, even of Jake, much as she claimed to love him. Ryan let out a breath finally, glancing at Dani after she'd paused, wanting to know what he thought she should do. "I don't know, I think given what you just old me, it would be bizarre to grow up in that environment and not have that mentality. To be honest, I'm surprised he hasn't done anything worse before now. Has he?" Ryan asked crossing his arms over his chest pensively, holding the joint lazily between his fingers. "He hasn't ever hit you... has he?" Ryan didn't want to believe Jake would ever do that, but he just had such a temper and knowing his family background now, Ryan wouldn't be too surprised.

[Dani Marie Cooper]

Dani was already on her way to making her third margarita, so she figured that would give Ryan time to process whatever he needed to process about Jake being in the mafia. She figured it took less time to process it when you weren't you know... sleeping with the person. She was taking a sip from her glass when he asked whether or not Jake had ever been violent with her. Dani made a face as though that idea were absurd. "We throw shit, but he would never be able to live with himself if he ever laid a hand on me. And besides, do you really think that I would let someone do that and walk away from it?" she asked, lifting her eyebrow at him pointedly. Dani set her glass down, sighing as she turned and walked to the kitchen. She figured that if she was going to the kitchen, he would follow her because it most likely meant that he was going to get something out of it. "I hope it's okay if I stay here for a while, though. I just.. you're the person I trust most in the world right now. You're kind of my rock. And I think Jake and I just need....time..Space..." she said, taking things out of his fridge so that she could start working on some fajitas. She set everything on the counter, planting her hands firmly against it as she looked over at him. "Maybe you need me just as much as I need you right now," she said, smiling at him almost sadly. Both of their little worlds had been ripped out from underneath him. Dani sighed, moving away from the counter and over to Ryan. "Come here, we've got each other," she said, wrapping her arms tightly around his torso since it was about the only thing she could really reach on him.

[Ryan James O'Neil]

She had a fair point; Jake might have a temper but even Ryan couldn't quite picture Jake ever hitting a woman. Another dude, sure. That guy would throw down over anything in a bar. And Dani wasn't the type to let someone walk all over her so to speak. Ryan shrugged in agreement, "Well good. I don't have to beat the snot of him then." Ryan did follow her into the kitchen, his curiosity peaked as she began to get to work and he he knew he was in for some sort of Mexican treat. He took another drag on the joint he was holding, wondering if she wanted a hit if he were to offer it to her. "Perhaps space would be good for the time being. You're welcome here for as long as you like." Ryan set the joint down in a nearby ashtray, watching her busy herself with cooking. Honestly, it was more than being welcome to stay, he was a little relieved to have someone around. He'd been in a dark place and being by himself a lot of the time at home didn't help lift his spirits. Maybe having Dani around would be a good thing. Ryan crossed his arms, looking at his feet in thought when she came over to him. She was speculating, but she was spot on. He needed someone right now too, though he wouldn't have come out and said it without some prodding. Not that he was hiding it; Ryan was just accustomed to handling his emotions on his own. He found it a little comical sometimes, how much smaller some people were next to him. Even as Dani wrapped her arms around him in a comforting gesture, he certainly felt like he was doing the comforting here, the way she disappeared beneath his arms. He nodded, though she couldn't see it, hugging her tightly was enough. He glanced over at the counter where she gotten things out, nodding to it, "So, what's on the menu tonight?" Ryan reached over and picked the joint back up, lightly dragging on it out of habit, out of routine, out of an almost dependency. He held it toward her, his eyes asking her, "Interested?"

[Dani Marie Cooper]

A friend soulmate was vastly different than what a relationship soulmate was. In no realm or dimension did she ever imagine that Ryan O'Neil would be her best friend. They were completely opposite. Every thing about them being friends didn't make sense. He was tall and calming. She was loud and yippy. But no matter what type of soulmate it was, being in their arms made things feel better. The problem was, she wouldn't let Jake wrap his arms around her. Was it wrong that she let Ryan do it? Because this was the first feeling of peace she'd had since she found out that Jake had done something like this. That was the part that made it the worst. He might not see it as a big deal, and he might even be willing to do it again. But in her mind, he'd darkened his soul for her without even hesitating. What sort of toxic love was she a part of that she letting him do it? Whatever had led them to this point, this was her life. Her dad raped her. She was in love with someone who had played her on screen brother. And she was afraid to truly figure out why she and Ryan clicked so well. She took a slight step back, wiping away some tears that had started to form. "Thank you.." she said, to him mentioning that she could stay there as long as she needed. "I actually have someone bring some boxes over of my stuff.." she said, wincing slightly since she knew how annoying that must be. But Ryan.... great as always.. had changed his focus to the menu. "I am going to make you some oven baked fajitas.. the ones where I put it in the pan, with that cheese sauce you like. And I am going to make a cilantro sauce, and a sriricha sour cream. So.. I need you good sir, to peel the cilantro the way I taught you," she said, giving him one last quick hug. When he asked if she was interested in the joint he had been dangling between his lips intermittently, Dani looked at it. Boy, did that ever seem tempting. But the thing about being close to someone is that you recognize when they are broken even when they don't realize how truly fragile they are. Dani softened her features, bringing her hand up to the side of his cheek. " I'll stick to tequila," she said, literally having to jump up so that she could kiss the side of his cheek. He needed the joint more than she did. Tequila was as much her crutch as some green was to Ryan. "Okay," she said, slightly to herself before she went over and picked up Ryan's phone, connecting it to the bluetooth speakers so that she could pick something for them to listen to. Except she hated actual music, because she knew they would find themselves critiquing it for various reasons, so instead she found a station that would play that elevator 70s style music, before putting it on quietly in the background. "I was actually planning on meeting with Logan. I think it's time to sex my image up. Step into adulthood.... Find out if I am a Britney or a Christina..." she said, looking at him pointedly since she knew he would have an opinion. "Te amo, Ryan," she said, nudging him slightly "Te amo tanto y no sé lo que haría sin ti. nunca te vayas.Sé mi casa"