Shiri nervously stood in the parking lot of the studio waiting for Daniel
to pick her up that afternoon and take her to her parents’ house. She really
didn’t want to go, but if she didn’t show, there would be more than an
argument that would spring from it. He finally pulled up around five and she
hopped in.
“Dan, why are you dressed in a suit?” Shiri asked the moment she saw
him. She was scantly dressed in a pair of khakis and a royal blue sweater.
“Don’t you want me to make a good impression on your parents?” he
replied, looking himself over.
“Yeah, but you’re gonna make me look bad,” she said. “I’d
better change when I get there. I hope my mother hasn’t thrown out any of my
old dresses.”
“Don’t worry about it,” Daniel answered, his hand gently taking
hers as they drove off in the direction of the house.
“So, what do you think is gonna happen tonight?” Shiri questioned.
“I don’t know, but I’m hoping it goes well. It would really suck if
everything went wrong and your parents didn’t like me. Then again, I am your
husband, so I guess they’ll have to accept me somehow,” he said, trying to
keep her calm. Daniel knew Shiri was extremely nervous about tonight. So was he,
except he knew how to keep his cool. She kept on chewing her fingernails just
the way Chance did when she was nervous. They were so alike. How could they not
have figured out they were sisters?
“Could you please turn on some music?” Shiri replied. “I need to
think, and I can’t in dead silence.”
Daniel turned on the radio to find “Still On Your Side,” by BB Mak,
playing on one of the pop stations. He smiled thinking how perfect this song was
for him and Shiri. “I will stand up for you no matter what you are going
through. I'm still on your side. Any time day or night, don't care if it's wrong
or right. I'm still on your side,” he quietly sang along as Shiri appeared to
be thinking in some far off state of mind. He smiled again. She always looked so
cute when she was thinking. Her eyes would transfix on one point and she’d
stare at it for a long time until something finally hit her. That’s when
she’d jump slightly, adjust her position, and transfix her eyes on another
point just to have the cycle start again.
“We’re here,” Daniel said as he drove through the metal gate and
into the driveway. He parked a little ways away from the front door and got out.
He walked around to the other side of the car and opened Shiri’s door.
“Thanks,” she mumbled, walking towards the door and taking out her
keys. She let herself in and held the door open for Daniel. He followed her
inside and they quietly made their way down the foyer to the kitchen where
Shiri’s mother was beginning dinner.
“Hi, Mom,” Shiri almost whispered the second she walked in.
“Shiri! So nice to see you again!” her mother replied as she turned
away from the pot on the stove. Her eyes then fell upon Daniel. “So, this must
be him,” she added, scanning him over.
“Mom, this is Daniel Jones, Dan, this is my mom, Dena,” Shiri
introduced.
“Pleased to meet you,” he said, smiling politely and extending his
hand.
“The pleasure is mine,” Dena replied, also smiling. “I love your
accent. Aren’t you from Australia?”
“Yes, I am,” Daniel answered.
“Oh, and you’re so handsome. Shiri, you did a fine job picking him
out. I just hope you married him for better reasons than looks,” Dena shot to
her daughter.
“Mom!” Shiri almost shrieked. Daniel frowned. He sensed the tension
in the room the moment he walked in. It was now kicked up about ten notches.
Shiri took his hand and led him out of the kitchen. “This is what I was afraid
of,” she told him. “I knew my mother would say that. Why did I come
tonight?”
“Shh… It’s going to alright. Don’t worry. I promise I’ll do
everything to make them see that I’m a good person,” he replied, placing a
gentle kiss on her lips as they walked back into the foyer away from the
tension. Shiri smiled as she closed her eyes and leaned into Daniel for a tight
hug.
“Come on, this isn’t over yet. You still have to meet my father,”
she said, taking his hand and pulling him into the living room where her father
was sitting on one of the exquisite antique couches. “Dad, I’m home,”
Shiri added, stepping closer to him. He turned around and stood up.
“Hi, honey. How are you?” he asked. “Long time, no see.”
“I’m good. Um… Dad, I’d like you to meet Daniel Jones, Dan, this
is my father, Jerry,” Shiri introduced once more.
“Pleased to meet you,” Daniel politely said as he extended his hand.
They shook and sat down on couches opposite each other.
“Well, I’m going to leave you two alone to talk. I’m going into the
kitchen to help Mom. If you need me, just holler,” she said, heading out of
the room. Daniel shot her a pleading glance, but she already had her back turned
away from him.
‘Here we go,’ Daniel thought to himself waiting for the first probing
question. It came soon enough.
“How long were you going out with my daughter before you got
married?” Jerry asked almost immediately after Shiri left the room.
“We knew each other for about two and a half months before we got
married,” Daniel quickly answered.
“And how long have you been married?”
“Four months today.”
Just before Jerry could come up with another question, Dena walked into
the room and sat down beside him. “So, the grilling already started?” she
asked.
“Yeah,” Jerry bluntly replied.
“So, how did you meet Shiri?” she asked.
“Well, I had just come to America from Australia and I was living with
Chance and Darren because I had just been involved in an accident the night
before. Chance couldn’t make it home to check on me, so she sent Majandra and
Shiri. That’s when we met,” Daniel explained. He was expecting another
question, but the doorbell rang.
“I’ll get it!” Shiri yelled from the kitchen. She ran down to the
foyer and opened the door quickly.
“I’m seriously overdressed,” Chance said as she walked inside.
“No, you’re not,” Shiri replied. “I’m underdressed. Dan’s
wearing a suit. Besides, I like your long black skirt and the cute little
halter-top. It looks really nice on you. I don’t know how I’m gonna make it
through the night. Mom and Dad are in the living room interrogating poor Dan.
He’s trying so hard. You’ve got nothing to worry about. Compared to me, they
think you’re the better daughter even though they don’t even know you.”
“Oh, no! I’m so sorry! I shouldn’t have even come, then,” Chance
sympathized.
“You’re not getting out of this that easy,” Darren said as he
walked up to them. He put his arm around Chance’s waist and led her inside.
“I wasn’t trying to,” she retorted.
Shiri led them down the foyer and into the living room at the end of the
hall. They entered through a gaping arch and found a room full of antique
furniture and oriental rugs. Daniel sat on the chair farthest away from the
doorway. Shiri’s parents had their back towards them as they walked in, but
soon turned around when they saw a smile appear on Daniel’s face. This was the
first time Chance saw her real parents.
Daniel stood up and walked over to her, gave her a hug then a kiss on the
cheek, then whispered, “Thank God you’re here.”
The room fell dead silent as parents and daughter stared at each other
waiting for someone to break the uneasy silence. Chance looked as if she were
about to make a mad dash out the door, but Darren gently nudged her forward.
“Oh, my God! Jerry, it’s our daughter.”
“I know, Dena, I know.”
Chance plastered a fake smile on her face and extended her trembling
hand. She gently shook both of theirs and sat down across from them on the couch
that Dan had just occupied. Dena was wiping her eyes with a small tissue as she
sat down across from her newly found daughter.
“I just want to say one thing,” she told Chance before starting the
real conversation. “I know how awkward you feel, and I understand if you
really don’t want to be here. I’m sorry I abandoned you when you were a
child. I know there’s no way I can ever make it up to you, but I can try,
can’t I?”
Chance cracked a real smile this time. “Of course,” she replied. Dena
stood up and gave Chance a long, tight hug. Darren, Daniel, and Shiri stared at
them happily. They could see things were going to get so much better after this
moment.
“Well, I’m going back to the kitchen,” Shiri whispered to Daniel.
“Care to join me?” He nodded then they walked away from the room.
“Can you believe it? They’re actually talking!” he excitedly said
as they entered the kitchen.
“Yeah! This is definitely going to be a good night,” Shiri replied,
turning to a pot and stirring it.
“So, what’s for dinner?” Daniel seductively asked as he wrapped his
arms around her waist.
“Salad, roasted chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, string beans, and
bread,” Shiri answered.
“How about dessert?” he questioned in the same tone of voice.
Shiri turned in his arms and simply said, “You.” Daniel smiled as he
leaned in to kiss her. After a few minutes of hot, passionate kisses, they quit.
“Time to set the table,” she said. “We’ll continue this later.”
“Definitely,” he replied. She handed him the plates to set out in the
dining room. After everything was done and ready, it was time to eat.
“Dinner’s ready!” Shiri called from the kitchen. Chance, Darren,
Dena, and Jerry walked in a few minutes later and took their places. Six places
were set, and the food had been out filling the room with the aroma of many
wonderful dishes. Shiri had definitely outdone herself tonight. Chance nodded
her approval and sat down beside Darren on the far end of the table near Dan.
Shiri took her place at the end and seized Dan’s hand under the table.
“Now that we’re all here, I can finally get to the real point of this
family get together,” Jerry said. “Shiri, what possessed you to get married
without anyone’s consent?”
Shiri shot a worried glance at her friends, her eyes showing how confused
she was. Chance knew it was time to take a part in this. “Jerry, she’s 23
years old. She should be able to meet the man of her dreams and get married to
him if she wants to. And Dan really is a great guy. He saved her life when she
got into that accident. If it wasn’t for him, she wouldn’t be here today,”
Chance explained in earnest. “You have to believe me. I might have just walked
into your life tonight, but I know Dan very well, and Darren has been his best
friend for the last ten years. Right Darren?”
Darren could feel the intense stare Chance was giving him. He knew he had
to reply. “Yeah, he’s a great guy. He loves Shiri with all his heart, and
she loves him back. They’re the perfect couple,” he said. He glanced at
Chance for a moment, then turned to the food on his plate.
“But that still doesn’t mean anything,” Jerry replied. Before he
got carried away, Dena stopped him.
“Shiri, answer me something,” she said.
“Yes, Mama?” Shiri replied tenderly.
“How did he know where to find you?”
“I felt her,” Daniel interrupted, his head down and far from
anyone’s eye line.
Dena and Jerry stared at him for a long time trying to think of a
response. Shiri squeezed his hand, reassuring him that everything was going to
be just fine, especially now that he had confessed. “Explain that to me,”
Dena said.
“Well, we had just gotten into a fight and she left. I didn’t see
which way she went, but a few minutes later I got this feeling that something
was terribly wrong and that Shiri was hurt. I felt her pain in the pit of my
stomach. I ran out the door and blindly picked the direction the pain was coming
from and I found her,” Daniel told her. Shiri reached under the table again
and took his hand to comfort him. Silently she preyed that everything would be
okay.
After a long moment of silence, Dena finally smiled and said, “Welcome
to family.” Daniel let out a sigh of relief and glanced at Shiri with a small,
almost unnoticeable smile on his face. As soon as that was over, the
conversation switched back to Chance and Darren.
“So, how did you two find each other?” Dena asked.
“Long story,” Chance simply replied. “It took two near death
experiences and a really strange dream to finally figure out we were meant to
be.”
“Tell us what happened,” Jerry added. “We’ve got all night to
hear about you.”
“Darren, you explain what you can, then I’ll fill in whatever you
miss. I really don’t want to tell this story. It brings back too many painful
repressed memories,” Chance said as she leaned back in her chair.
“But your therapist said…” Darren began.
“Screw the shrink. He’s got no idea what he’s talking about. I
don’t feel like going through all that pain again. You know how hard it is for
me. Just tell the story,” she ordered.
“Fine, whatever. I just don’t want to fight with you over something
like this,” he replied.
“At least you know how to pick your fights,” Dena said.
“Okay, it started after Chance lost her parents in a plane crash a few
years ago…” Darren began. He explained everything from Scott’s death,
Chance’s suicide attempt, and Dan’s wild life to what happened in the last
few months, Daniel’s accident, the album, the engagement, the painful truth,
and Chance’s trip. To everyone’s surprise, Chance didn’t say a word.
He’d gotten the story straight.
“You’ve experienced more than I ever will,” Dena said. “I’m
sorry all this had to happen. If only I hadn’t given up on you, none of this
would have taken place.”
“Don’t blame yourself,” Chance replied. “If you hadn’t given up
on me, I wouldn’t have had such a wonderful life. I mean, I had my low points,
but I also had my high points. If I died today, I would die happy.”
Darren smiled and pulled her in for a short, sweet kiss. The rest of the
time was spent quietly eating dinner.
Shiri had been quietly sitting at her end of the table ever since the
conversation fell away from her. She was beginning to hate the fact that she
wasn’t getting any attention. She quietly excused herself from the table and
walked out of the room, Daniel following.
“Hey, what’s wrong?” he asked once they reached the patio outside
the kitchen.
“This is not fair!” Shiri almost screamed. “I’ve been sitting
there for half an hour waiting for a compliment on the food, but no, Chance and
Darren get all the attention.”
Daniel pulled her into a tight embrace. “I thought it was wonderful,”
he whispered to her.
“Thank you,” she replied. His hand softly stroked her cheek as they
stood outside in the cool fall air. Shiri stared into his deep emerald eyes and
slowly pulled herself closer to his lips. Daniel placed a gentle kiss upon them.
She returned the favor by kissing him again, except this time with a little more
strength. About twenty minutes later, they were still kissing on the patio when
Dena walked outside to see what was taking dessert so long.
“Aw!” she said. “You two are so sweet. Come back inside now and
have dessert with us. It’s about time. Shiri, you’re going to catch a cold
out here if you stay any longer without a jacket.”
Daniel pulled his off and wrapped it around her shoulders as Dena walked
back into the house. “Come on, we’ll continue this when we get home,” he
whispered, taking her hand and leading her back into the house. They walked into
the living room and sat down on one of the couches that weren’t occupied.
“So, when’s the wedding?” Jerry asked as he put down his coffee
cup.
“Christmas Day. It’s going to be in Brisbane, Australia. You guys are
invited. I think Shiri already gave you the invitations unless she forgot,”
Chance replied as she shot Shiri a hard glance.
“I was saving them for today, you know? Just in case you guys didn’t
get along well,” Shiri nervously answered. She reached for her pocket and
pulled out the card. “Here you go,” she said as she handed the closed
envelope to her parents.
“Who’s giving you away at the wedding?” Jerry kept interrogating.
Chance and Darren glanced at each other for a long moment. They didn’t
know how to answer. No one had thought about that until now. Chance already had
a frown creeping onto her face when Darren replied, “Well, we haven’t really
thought about that yet.”
“Just in case you don’t find anyone, I’m always right here,’’
Jerry said.
“Oh, look at the time. We must be going. We have so much to do
tomorrow,” Daniel cut in when he realized Chance was ready to burst into
tears.
“Yeah, I got work, and Dan has to start planning some stuff for his new
band. Chance and Darren have their own things to do, so we’ll see you again
soon,” Shiri added as she took Chance’s arm and led her outside.
“It was nice seeing you,” Dena called from the house as she watched
the four of them climb into the limo.
At the moment the door shut, Chance exploded into tears. “Who’s going
to give me away!” she sobbed.
Darren held her close to his chest and didn’t bother to answer. No one
did. They sat in silence as the driver pulled up to the condo.
“How about your grandfather?” Shiri suggested.
“He can’t even stand up. How do you expect him to walk me down the
aisle?” Chance sneered.
“What about Dan?” Darren replied. The car fell silent once again as
everyone pondered the suggestion. “You know him well enough. He’s been one
of the very few people who have been keeping you sane in the last few months.
Why not?”
“Yeah, why not?” Daniel added. “Come on, Chance. You know we’re
like bother and sister. We act that like it. Who else is more qualified that me
to give you away? Besides, it would be my pleasure.”
Chance looked up at him with puffy red eyes and smiled. “Okay,” she
weakly replied.