UNITED IN BLOOD
CHAPTER TWENTY  !

IN THE MONTHS SINCE their return to Jackson, Danielle Linden had essentially become the main doctor of the community, once she was fully healed and not at risk of ripping open her stitches, of course.

   News of her heroics, how she had risked her life and almost bled out as she saved Tommy and Jesse, two beloved members of the community, had reached the residents within hours of their arrival. She could remember Jesse's parents visiting her, crying out their appreciation and gratitude for her.

His mother had hugged her.

   The aged woman had grasped the brunettes face tightly in her hands, whimpering out just how thankful she truly was. She exclaimed how they was 'nothing they could do to ever repay her.' which Danielle felt so shamefully burdened by. Here they were, expressing how grateful they were that she had saved their one and only son and she was being burdened by their words. She hated how distant she was back then and had tried her best to fix that ever since.

Once Jesse was healthy and able to move about freely, he and Dina had packed up their little life together and shipped off to a quaint, little farmhouse a few miles outside of Jackson. The now noticeably pregnant Dina had sat by Jesse's bedside as he recuperated, the sight of her ex-boyfriend laying near death for so long, believing he could have so easily passed away, really put things into perspective for her.

   The feelings for him that she once had for him, grew ten times the size they once were. Last Danielle had spoken to the pair, when she and Ellie had helped the pair move to the farmhouse, they had been arguing over baby names which was just so them. Arguments appeared to be how the two kept their relationship alive.

As the community's main doctor, the brunette had encountered almost every resident. From the few older people that were still alive and kicking, to the young toddlers who would constantly dawdle around the medical building, they had all appeared in her life for check ups that would result in every single person questioning her about what had happened in Seattle.

   Danielle was aware that only a select few knew the true details, Maria had told her exactly that, so when questioned about the events that had transpired over the three days they spent in Seattle always left her feeling so shitty. She'd lie to their faces, withhold the truth and make up some fabrication that had her believing that they could see right through her words.

If they ever did believe she was lying to them, no one ever said so.

A deep, heavy sigh broke through the silence of the medical centre as Danielle moved around, tidying up for the day. All of the patients had bid the young doctor a farewell before returning to their homes. Their exit allowed Danielle for her thoughts, thoughts that had been pushed to the back of her mind earlier that morning.

So completely lost in her mind, the Linden girl was unaware of the arrival of Maria, who stood by the now opened door to the building, just simply watching the young girl flitter about. Anyone with eyes could see that Danielle was struggling. Clear as day, she seemed so overwhelmed everyday no matter how much she tried to hide it.

   After a minute or so, of just observing the young girl, Maria decided to finally speak up and announce her arrival. The blonde stepped further into the room as she questioned, "Danielle, you doing okay, sweetie?"

   The sound of the community leaders voice pulled the Linden girl from her thoughts, Danielle spinning round on her heel to face the woman with the small tray of medical supplies that she had been carrying back to its rightful place, still held in her hands.

   "Maria, hi." Danielle was flustered by the sudden appearance of the woman, who was usually busy at that time of day, dealing with the reports from those who returned from patrol. "Yeah, I'm good."

Maria couldn't help but feel sceptical at the girls words. "Are you really? You know, you can tell me the truth. I'm not gonna judge."

Danielle contemplated for a brief moment, taking a pause to collect her thoughts as she deliberated on being completely truthful with the blonde. Finally, after a deep inhale and an even deeper exhale, her shoulders fell as she admitted, "I don't actually know."

"What do you mean?" The Miller woman wasn't sure of what to make of Danielle's word. She didn't know how she felt?

"Exactly what I said. I have no fucking clue how I feel." Her voice rose in volume with each word that passed her lips as her hands that sat in her lap began to shake. Danielle's eyes flitted back up to look at Maria, her gaze filled with a childlike regret. "Sorry for the language."

A gentle smile, a smile that says 'everything's gonna be okay,' pulled at the blonde woman's lips. "It's alright. You're allowed to be upset."

"Yeah, but I don't know if I really am. Like...am I upset because of Seattle or am I just not adjusted to a normal life yet?" Danielle was struggling to come to terms with everything and as her emotions ran rampant in her brain, emotions she wished to repress, confusion had set in. She was overwhelmed by why? "I have no idea and it's really starting to get to me."

There was a pause, a beat of silence, as Danielle determined whether continuing to speak was worth it. "Every night, I go to sleep thinking that by morning I'll be better and then it just doesn't happen. I wake up and feel even shittier than before and I hate it."

Maria wondered over to the far side of the room where a collection of chairs sat and took a seat, perching herself on the edge. "Have you talked to Ellie about it?"

Danielle's head quickly shook from side to side. "Ellie has her own problems. I don't need to burden her with mine."

"If she truly cares about you, then your problems are her problems." When Danielle didn't verbally reply, the brunette simply shrugging her shoulders in response, Maria quickly let out a small chuckle as she crossed her arms over her chest. "You two are one strange couple."

"W-what?" Danielle's head shot up, her eyes wild as she stared at the woman in such a way, you'd have assumed she'd had two heads. "Maria, you don't think—"

"What, that you and Ellie are together? Well, aren't you?" Maria seemed unaware of how her words had immediately flustered the young brunette. "You're always together in some way, I just assumed."

Nervous laughter escaped from Danielle as she looked around the room, staring at anything that wasn't the blonde. "Sorry, but you assumed wrong. We're just friends."

It didn't take a genius to pick up the tone of growing sadness that was interwoven with Danielle's words. The Miller woman's eyebrow raised. "But you'd like to be more?"

   "I don't really want to talk about this with you. You're like her family. It's weird." It felt odd to chat so openly about her feelings about the Williams girl, especially to Maria, who was practically a member of Ellie's family.

   Maria stared over at the brunette with a look of disbelief. After all this time and after everything she had been through, Maria couldn't believe that Danielle still didn't consider herself as part of Jackson. "Hey, everyone in Jackson is like one big family. That includes you."

   Maria's kind words had been such an amazing source of comfort for the Linden girl over the past few months. Not once had Maria made her feel as though she was unwanted, unwelcome, and Danielle greatly appreciated it. In some of her lowest moments, Maria had been there, offering a shoulder to cry on.

A soft smile graced Danielle's lips. "Appreciate it but I still can't talk about it with you."

With her hands now raised in the air in a mock surrender, Maria chuckled at how adamant Danielle was being. "Fine, keep your secrets. But listen, if I were you I'd tell her how I feel. She might surprise you."

With a wry laugh, Danielle uttered, "By cutting my throat in my sleep? I could see her doing that."

   "Ditto." Maria agreed with a smirk. Ellie was a force of nature, something that anyone with eyes could tell you. "If you like her, tell her. I guarantee you won't regret it."

   With little belief in Maria's words, Danielle simply nodded her head as she made a move to stand, Maria mirroring her. "If you say so. I'm gonna just lock up and head home."

"See you tomorrow, Dani." Maria bid the young brunette a goodbye with a wave of the hand before dipping out of the room, the door gently closing behind her.

Danielle was quick to call back a "good night." to the woman, watching as the figure of the blonde disappeared into the growing darkness of the evening sky.

"If you like her, tell her. What kind of advice is that? Is she tryna get me killed." She softly muttered to herself before a twinge of pain could be felt. With her head tilted down and her gaze now upon her hands still clutched in front of her, she could see small traces of blood that decorated her fingertips. The skin that she hadn't torn at in months was now open once more, putting all of her hard work to waste.

   She hadn't even noticed she had been doing it having been too distracted during her conversation with the Miller woman. Frustrated with herself, Danielle let out a deep sigh as she all but collapsed back into the chair. "Fuck."

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   AS THE DAYS PASSED by, Maria's words remained permanently etched into the Linden girls brain. Though they sounded so very simply, the instructions within them clear as day, Danielle still found it difficult. No matter how hard she tried, attempting to wrap her brain around them had become the biggest struggle she had faced in quite some time.

If you like her, tell her.

   So simple but also just not simple at all. If she told Ellie how she truly felt, divulged her deepest of romantic feelings and Ellie didn't feel the same, didn't reciprocate, then where would that leave them?

   Awkwardly avoiding each other, that's where. Ellie would probably end up resenting her for being honest, they'd tiptoe around one another unable to look the other in the eye. Ellie would probably leave their home and return to live in her garage even though she could barely handle being near that place anymore. Danielle was sure Ellie would just to avoid an awkward incident with her.

No, she couldn't tell her. She just couldn't. Telling her could ruin everything that she and Ellie had built from their return to Jackson. Even the thought caused her chest to tighten and her breathing to quicken.

As the brunette stared down at the book held in her hands, that she had barely even read past the first five pages, the sound of Ellie clattering about in the kitchen pulled her shaky attention away, causing her to lower the book down into her lap.

Ellie was odd to say the least. She would move about at the most random of times. Moments when Danielle believed the redhead to be asleep, she would hear the unmistakable creaking of Ellie's bedroom door hinges as it slowly creeped open. She seemed to just move about the house in the late hours of the night, just walking around, perhaps to tire herself out. The uneasiness that exuded from Ellie worried the brunette greatly.

   The booming sound of a pot colliding against the kitchen floor caught the brunette off guard as her eyes flashed over in the direction of the kitchen. Silence filled the space soon after which in turn confused Danielle. Why wasn't Ellie making any noise? Not even the sound of her shuffling about to grab the pot was made. The feeling of worry etched its way deep into her chest.

   "Ellie." Danielle called out, her voice cracking as she became increasingly more concerned. When no response followed, she immediately jumped to her feet, the book she once held long forgotten.

   "Oh my god." The Linden girl exclaimed once her eyes took into the scene before her. Pressed tightly up against on of the kitchen cabinets was Ellie, desperately grabbing at her chest as her breathing became caught in her throat. Danielle collapsed to the floor next to the redhead, reaching out her hands in an attempt to calm Ellie's haggard breathing. "Hey, Ellie. Look at me. You're okay."

   Danielle's hands slid up from the hold she had on the redheads shoulders to firmly grip onto Ellie's cheeks, lifting up her face which allowed their eyes to meet. Green met brown as Danielle desperately spoke, "You're safe. You're home."

   "Dani..." her voice was weak as she clung for dear life to the soft fabric of Danielle's sweater, seeking comfort from the girl she had once regarded as guilty beyond reasonable doubt, the girl whom she once scrutinised for the smallest thing.

   Beads of sweat formed on her forehead, stray tears gliding their way down her cheeks that Danielle was quick to wipe away as Ellie struggled to capture hold of her breathing once more.

"You're okay, I promise." Danielle promised the auburn-haired girl, holding her tightly in her arms, refusing to let her go. "I've got you."

   The two girls sat upon the kitchen floor for several minutes just holding one another, each girl more damaged than the other had previously known.

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jamielee's thoughts.
chapter twenty dudes. not proofread. a little chat between Danielle and Maria which is cute. Both Maria and Tommy welcomed her with open arms when they returned from Seattle. also sorry for the scene of Ellie's panic attack but it was necessary because that girl really isn't okay. Anyway hope you enjoyed :)