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woods and sit in a tree stand rather than stay in the house with me. If I hadn't met Danny, I'd have been totally alone. He made the time I lived here worth something. Danny's the only friend I've ever had." |
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She tilted her head back, opening her eyes to stare into his face. Her pupils loomed large and black, almost obliterating the green of her irises. She looked as tipsy as she sounded. Chris smiled at her gently and pressed her head back onto his shoulder. |
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"Tell me about your mother," he prompted. |
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"She died because of me. My dad never forgave me for it. I never had the chance to know her. My father destroyed every picture, so I have no idea what she even looked like. He named me after her, and then refused to allow her name to be spoken. So he called me D.J., and then he didn't have to hear her name ever again. When I turned sixteen I demanded to change my name legally to D.J. Trying to get a rise out of him, I guess." She laughed, a barking sound without humor. "He agreed right away. Said he'd been thinking of changing my name for years but never got around to it. So even her name disappeared from our lives. He loved her so much, and then she died. I think I must have reminded him of herso much so, he couldn't stand to look at me. I decided very young that if that's what love did to a person, I wanted no part of it. The more I observed of people who believed themselves in love, the more I realized that love is just a word to excuse any type of behavior." |
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Chris's heart ached at the picture her words painted. No wonder D.J. pretended to be so emo- |
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