Disclaimer: Still not mine...

Leaving - Chapter two

“DNA came back. It matches the victim.”

Danny nodded, not looking up from his paperwork.

“So we don’t really have anything against the husband,” Lindsay continued, all the while not looking at him, too.

Danny just nodded again.

“Did you find anything else?”

He shrugged and she sighed. It had been two weeks now since they had broken up, and they weren’t really making progress. In the beginning Danny had still tried to talk to her, but she wasn’t cooperating. ‘I had told you I needed some time, Danny. If I’m ready you’ll be the first to know,’ had been her answer. Now he had just stopped talking to her at all. Sitting down in her chair, Lindsay let her mind wander to the conversation in which Danny had told her he’d cheated on her.

“Honey, I’m home!” Lindsay called playfully, walking into Danny’s apartment. Most of the time Danny would walk to her and kiss her, but today he stood at a distance and.

“Linds, we need to talk.”

She had known that something was wrong almost immediately. Danny couldn’t meet her eyes, but kept them locked on the floor.

“What’s up?” she said softly.

“Come sit. I have something to tell you.”

“Bad news?”

He nodded and they both sat down, Lindsay on the couch, Danny on a chair, facing her.

“Lindsay, before I begin, I want to ask you something. Please don’t interrupt my story, okay? I need to tell you the whole story before you say anything.”

Lindsay nodded. “Yeah, sure.”

“Okay.” Danny took a deep breath. “Here I go. Remember when we had a fight, a week ago? Well, I didn’t go home after I left your apartment, as I said I had done. I went to a bar, got drunk, really drunk.”

He paused, trying to find the words to explain what had happened seven nights ago.

“Suddenly I see this girl. I knew her from when I was young, when we were fourteen we had dated for a while, nothing serious, we stayed friends after we broke up. She saw me sitting at the bar, and she immediately saw I was drunk, so she told the bartender he shouldn’t give me the beer I’d ordered. Told him she was taking me home. I didn’t agree. Said she would have to drag me home. She just laughed and pulled me on my feet. Everything was spinning.
I lay down on the floor, told her to go home and let me sleep. She laughed again and crouched down next to me. So here it kind of begins,” he said.

Lindsay said nothing, as promised, and wondered what Danny was going to say. Was he going to leave her? Was that what he was trying to tell her? Tears were threatening to fall, but she quickly blinked them away. Don’t jump to conclusions, Lindsay, she mentally scolded herself.

“Well, she pulled me on my feet again, and I, well, I… Lindsay, you have to understand, please, I was really drunk, I don’t know what I was thinking, I just… Please don’t hate me. I kissed her. And, ah, she kissed me back. We were kind of making out in that bar, but that was when she broke away and told me she’d take me home, we could finish there.”

Danny’s voice was getting softer and softer.

“That’s when I realized what I had done, and I told her we shouldn’t, I was already in a relationship and I didn’t want to screw that up. Though I have screwed it up, I know, Lindsay, but please… Please don’t hate me…”

Lindsay got up, still not saying anything, and walked to the back of the couch. She sat on the floor there, her hands for her face.

“Lindsay…”

“I’m sorry Danny.”

“What? What are you sorry for?”

She didn’t answer, but he heard her crying softly. He didn’t know whether he should go to her and comfort her, or leave her alone for a bit. In the end he did the former.

“Lindsay… I’m so sorry.”

He put his arm around her and pulled her into an embrace. She cried into his shoulder. Then realization hit her fully and she quickly pulled away. She was now not only sad, but angry also. She walked into the bedroom to gather her stuff.

“Lindsay, honey…”

“Lindsay?”

She snapped out of her thoughts, looking at Danny who had finally decided they had to talk.

“Sorry, I wasn’t really paying attention. What were you saying?”

“Look, Lindsay, I know you said you needed some time alone, to think. And I know I told you I’d give you that. I still want to give you time, if you need it. But…” he took a deep breath. “Do you think you could give me another chance?”

Lindsay thought for a while. She really wanted to forgive him, and move on together. But on the other hand… what if he’d do it again? How far would he go next time? Would she be able to forgive him again, then? Probably not. But should she not forgive him for what he’d done out of fear for what he would maybe do? That wasn’t fair. She sighed. Actually, she had already forgiven him. The point was now if there were a chance he’d do it again.

“Danny…”

“Yeah?”

“Look, you’ve been honest with me, so I’ll be honest with you now, too.”

He nodded.

“I forgive you. But I don’t know if I can continue… us. See, in my mind there’ll always be the fear that you’ll hurt me again. So, I hope you understand my problem here. I want to trust you, I just don’t know if I can.”

“You can, Lindsay,” Danny whispered, tears in his eyes. He stood up What if she decided they were over, forever? “I promise. I don’t care if we have to start all over again, but I need you in my life. Please forgive me.”

Lindsay, seeing the pain in his eyes, stood up too and walked towards him. She pressed a light kiss to his lips.

“Okay,” she whispered, and let her tears fall.

Danny laughed through his tears and enveloped her in a hug. Holding onto each other, they cried, both from sadness of what had been and happiness of what would be. It would take some time for them to reach the point they had gotten to again, but they would. Both of them were determined not to let anything break them up again. This time, they would be together to the very end.

A/N: So you might think I let Lindsay forgive him too easily. I think it fits, though. But you're welcome to say so if you think otherwise
So now I'm going back to 'The colors of the rainbow'. I really need to finish that chapter Please review!