Chapter 19: A Place to Stay

"You have more of that here than you would have doing private medical work with no skill."

I stared at Charlie for a moment, trying to remain calm. He held eye contact, his jaw set. I took a deep breath and nodded, standing up from the couch.

"Thanks for being honest."

"Y/N, come on," he said and stood up to follow me. "You know I didn't mean it like that."

"I don't know what you mean anymore. Half the time you preach that I'm the best healer in the sanctuary and that I'm indispensable, and the other half, you tell me I have no skill," I said quietly, keeping my voice level. "I am extremely upset with you. I think that you're being harsh and inconsiderate."

I made my way into the bedroom and grabbed a bag, shoving some of my clothes into it.

"Y/N, don't be like that," he said. "Let's talk about this."

"No, because I'm doing all I can to keep from yelling and crying right now and that won't make the situation any better. I'm going to find somewhere to stay for a little bit so that I can calm down and figure this out on my own," I explained and went into the bathroom, Charlie on my heels.

"I'll give you space. Just stay here."

"No, you didn't get any sleep last night. Get some sleep and enjoy your day off," I said and packed my toothbrush. "I don't want this to ruin your day."

"You're making me seem like the bad guy here."

"That's because, in this instance, you are, Charles. You were out of line and you still are, acting like what I'm doing is unthinkable. I don't want to do this right now and I wish you'd respect that," I said.

"Alright," he said and took a step back. "I'm sorry."

"I'm going to go see if I can find someone to stay with for the night so that I can think this through."

"Is there anything I can do to make this better?"

"Think about what you said to me today and come up with an explanation for why you felt the need to say it," I said. "If that's what you really think, then fine. But if not, then I hope you'll explain yourself."

There was a part of me that wanted to stay. But I knew that it wouldn't be comfortable. It would be tense and we would likely get into a fight. I didn't like to fight with Charlie, especially since I knew myself. I knew that I said things in the moment. I didn't ever think before I spoke when I was feeling emotional, whether the emotions were positive or negative. When they were negative, however, I tended to say things that I didn't mean.

After all of my things were packed, I shouldered my bag and left the cabin. I didn't know where to go. Even when Charlie and I got mad at each other, we never had felt the need to separate ourselves so badly that one of us left for longer than the time it took to take a walk. Once I was outside, I let go of the emotion I was holding in. Charlie's words hurt.

They hurt because his opinion meant so much to me and because I respected and admired him so much. I wanted him to feel the same about me and it hurt to know that he didn't. I wanted to believe that he didn't mean the things that he had said about my lack of skill, but I was insecure about my skills because of my failure to save a patient just a little while before.

It always hurts to know that a person you admire doesn't feel the same way about you.

I sniffled and tried to hold back tears that threatened to fall as I remembered his words. Three years of work, and he believed I had no skill? Maybe I didn't. I had lost a patient.

I found myself at the hospital building, pushing through the doors as I brushed away tears.

"Hey," I said as I entered the staff room, finding Hana studying a potions book. "Is Dmitri here?"

"No, just me and Luke. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," I said and lingered in the doorway. "Sorry to bother you."

"Hey, uh, Y/N," she called as I turned to leave. "Dmitri usually goes to the cafeteria for breakfast around this time."

"Oh, thanks," I said.

"Of course. Feel better," she said with a small smile.

I returned her smile and left the hospital building, setting out for the cafeteria.

I was apprehensive on my walk to the cafeteria, making sure to watch around me at all times. The slush that had warned me of the last attack had melted in the past week, leaving only small patches dotting the walkways. I was thankful when I reached the building, instantly relaxing.

I went to the counter and rang the bell to alert the workers of my presence. Danny came out of the kitchen, his eyebrows immediately furrowing.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," I answered.

"Bullshit."

"I'm looking for Dmitri," I said.

"He's already been in this morning," Danny said. "Why? What happened?"

"Nothing happened," I said.

"Something obviously did because you're not being obnoxious."

"Don't flatter me," I said and played with the corner of my sleeve.

"Sugar, what's going on?" he asked seriously, leaning on the counter. "You're visibly upset and you're all packed like you're leaving the place." He gestured to my bag, which was still slung over my shoulder.

"I'm looking for Dmitri. I'm trying to find a place to stay for the night," I said.

"Dmitri's already been in today. He'll be spending the rest of the night with his sidepiece or doing his private medical work in town. If you need somewhere to stay, I have an extra bed."

"I don't want to overstep-"

"Listen," he said, looking at me sternly. "If you need somewhere to sleep, I've got an extra bed. I know I play around with you but you're a sweetheart, and I want to help you."

"Thanks, Danny," I said and sniffled.

"Now are you going to tell me what's wrong?" he asked.

"A fight with Charlie," I said and frowned.

"Did the ass kick you out?" he asked, standing up straight.

"No, I decided that I didn't want to fight the day away," I said. "We're both upset and I thought it'd be better if we both had some time to mull everything over."

"Well, come on," he said. "I'm here until one-thirty and then I'm blowing this popsicle stand."

"Are you letting me in the kitchen?"

"Yes, sugar, I'm letting you into the kitchen."

***

"This is your place?" I asked as I walked into Danny's house, noting that it was larger than most of the cabins on the sanctuary.

"Yeah," he said as he led me through the cabin, which had an extremely nice kitchen.

"Merlin, this place is really nice," I said and spun around to get a good look at the kitchen.

"I work in here too," Danny began to explain. "It's like how you have to go in for medical emergencies after hours, except the direst emergency I ever have to deal with is a shortage of diced onions."

"That's cool," I said. "Do you have to work in here a lot?"

"Most nights," he said.

"Do all of the cafeteria workers?"

"No, just me. I'm the head of the kitchen," he said and looked around, following the path of my eyes.

I nodded and looked around.

"So," he began and leaned against the countertop, "are you going to tell me what happened with Charles?"

"I think I might cry if I try to talk about it right now," I said and busied myself reading over a page in a cookbook that was open on the counter.

"Fair enough," Danny said. "Come on, I'll show you to your room."

I followed Danny as he led me through the cabin, which was very different from the usual cabins on the sanctuary. As well as being larger altogether, the layout was different.

"This," he said, "is the spare room. You can put your shit anywhere. The bathroom's across the hall and my bedroom is all the way at the end of the hallway. Capisce?"

"Capisce," I echoed and threw my bag down on the bed with a sigh. "I guess I should make sure that Dmitri knows where I am in case there's an emergency."

"I'll send him a patronus. Relax. You've obviously had a long day," Danny said and waved his hand through the air dismissively. I'll check on you in a bit. If you need me before that, you'll find me somewhere in the near vicinity."

"Okay. Thanks, Danny. Maybe you aren't so bad after all, no matter what Merry Gary says about you," I said and sat down on the edge of the spare bed, sending my most innocent smile in Danny's direction.

Danny fixed me with a playful glare before he slipped out of the doorway, closing the door behind him. I sighed and laid back on the bed, staring at the ceiling. My eyes were growing heavier with each passing second. After a few minutes, I surrendered and allowed my eyes to slide shut.

When I woke up, it was dark. Disoriented, I stood up, remembering where I was. I had a headache and I felt dizzy, most likely dehydrated. As quietly as possible, I opened the door and crept through the dark hallway of Danny's cabin, my hands tracing along the walls to guide me. In the dark, I didn't notice that I had gone in the wrong direction until I found another bedroom.

"Danny?" I said quietly, looking into the room. There was a dusky light that streamed through the windows, barely illuminating the room.

Yet in that light, I noticed two things.

There was no Danny.

And in the corner of the room, lying on a bundle of clothes strewn on the floor was a mask carved into a skull.

:o

I am so sorry you guys had to wait so long for this. The website was acting up and I couldn't see my drafts to post them.

How is everyone? How did the chapter make us feel? Betrayed?? Also, to the person who asked for a Danny fanfic, how are you specifically feeling?