All Night

It was dark by the time Danni reached the tiny all-hours diner she'd frequented since she could drive. It was almost an hour's drive from her house, off the highway between a truck stop and a roach motel. There was nothing else around for miles, the perfect place to be alone. Which was why she'd texted Tyler to meet her there. She hadn't seen him in months, and she didn't want their reunion to be an awkward handshake under the hawk eyes of his high-school teacher girlfriend Bree Evans. Danni shuddered. Bree was the sweetest woman she'd ever met, but lightening strike her down if those eyes didn't give her the heebie jeebies. It wasn't that there was anything wrong with her eyes. She had a very nice bright blue shade of eyes. The color Danni liked using best when she painted a sky scene. But when Bree locked you under those eyes with that teacher's look, and you just knew you were busted even though you hadn't done anything wrong at all... It made keeping things from her very difficult.

With a quick hair check - although she knew there was no use trying to tame her mess of chocolate brown curls - Danni jumped out of the car and headed inside. Before the hostess had time to notice she was there, she slipped in towards the back corner of the restaurant where she'd carved her name into all sorts of places on the old booth. She couldn't tell, but she was 99.9 percent sure she saw wisps of blueish black hair peeking over the top of the seats. Her heart jumped into her throat and stayed there, despite her efforts to shove it back down as she approached at a slower pace.  She swallowed past it, then whispered, straining to contain her excitement, "Tyler...?"

He looked up then, and dark eyes met soft hazel, and for a second things around them just disappeared.  He smiled, and she smiled back, then she slid into the seat next to him as he moved over to make room.  They hadn't sat across from each other in years.  Even when Bree was there... They found a way to sit next to each other.  He murmured a soft, "Hey." in response to her, then, like they both were waiting for, he slowly inclined his head and kissed her cheek, right at the corner of her mouth.

She smiled too and repeated back just as softly, "Hey."  Then they both smiled and laughed nervously.  It was like being in high school all over again when they were alone.  The fluttering hearts and the sweaty palms and the long awkward-but-not pauses.  Finally he reached under the table and traced his finger down her arm from her elbow, "The bus ride was okay?  No problems right?"

Danni smiled and looked down, opening her palm for his touch. "Smooth ride," she whispered, struggling to contain herself. The waitress came to their table, left water and menus in front of them, but neither noticed. When they were alone again, Danni's hand drifted to his leg and she whispered to him, "It's been months, Tyler. Aren't you going to give me a real kiss?" But before he could answer, she leaned over and kissed him first. As usual, there was never a moment's hesitation between them.  Their lips touched.  He smiled and she let out a soft sigh.  They turned towards each other more and his hand on her arm turned to touch her waist, and she leaned just a little so his other arm could slip around her back.  And just like that, they were caught up. The months of being separated seemed to disappear and they fell into each other's arms like they'd never left.

The only thing that separated them this time was the sharp, shrill tone of Tyler's phone.  He jumped a little and she looked up and blinked. He sighed and mumbled, "Sorry..." while tugging it from his pocket and looking down at it.  Danni was just wiping at her lips and waving away the waitress again when she felt (more than heard) him stiffen.  She looked over, he looked up, and his face gave away who it was.  He sighed and showed her the phone.

It was a text. From Bree. It was simple and to the point, and Danni could almost hear her voice in her ear asking what was written on the screen: "At the movies. Where are you?"

Before she could do more than swallow, Tyler pulled the phone back.  He pressed her name on the screen and the message thread cut to the phone. He set it to his ear. A second later they both heard Bree's voice going, "Tyler, where are you?  I've been here for like twenty minutes, and the 9:45 showing of Big League is almost sold out!"

He pinched the bridge of his nose, "Yeah, yeah, Bree, I know... I... Listen.  Something came up at work and I had to go back in."  Dannie sighed softly and rested her head on his shoulder as Bree answered sharply.

"Back in?  Why?  It can't wait until tomorrow?  I mean, we planned this night like three weeks ago, Tyler! You can't even take a break for the movie?"

At that he paused.  Danni looked up, her hair falling in her eyes, and after just a second he smiled softly and brushed the strands back behind her ear.  She couldn't help but smile back.  He stroked his thumb over her cheek gently, then finally answered Bree with an almost too-tender, "I think I'll be here all night."