Danielle | GXG |

5

DANIELLE H--5

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Danielle,

I really loved the couch we bought,

Admit it,

You Loved it too.

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"OKAY WE'RE BACK," I yelled as Marcus and I entered my new soon to be beautiful home, the yelling made an echo in the empty room. Marcus and I had ran back to his house to go and get the keys that the Landlord had given him before, I was surprised that the Landlord hadn't even came to visit us as we were checking out the house – we could've trashed the place! When I'd asked Marcus this he replied with "That's how it is here, Ha-ha."

That new Howard guy had also gone to give the sheet to the Landlord, confirming that we had chosen to move in, he's so thoughtful.

The room, though empty, was filled with a stock load of suitcases, probably about 5 large ones, which was a surprise for me - I never pegged Danielle as the type to carry this much load. As this thought crossed my mind Danielle opened a door to a room I had never discovered yet – I should've checked it out first!

"I-I want that room!" I pointed to the room where Danielle had just came out of and she chuckled, her husky voice song to my ears, "It's the bathroom, silly."

"I'm not silly, I just thought that..."

"Girls, there's no time for this." Marcus sighed, I noted that this was the first time he had actually talked to Danielle. "I have somewhere to be, I just came to drop you off, Danielle." Marcus grabbed my left arm and swooped down to give me a kiss, placing the keys in my hand.

"See you soon."

With that, Marcus just turned around, as he had barely made two steps into the house, opened the door and stalked off. "Love you, Marc." I shut the door, my heart ached a bit. I didn't want to see Marcus go so soon but I knew that whatever he had to do was for the benefit for both of us, so I didn't question him.

"Aren't you going to ask where he's running to?" Danielle asked me, her blue eyes studying me as if trying to figure out if it affected me or not. I mean, what I was supposed to do: since I love him, it means I trust him and trusting him meant that I didn't need to ask where he was going –- it was only the afternoon after all. "No, it doesn't matter, I trust him." I grunted in reply, "Why are you asking? As if you think he is not being loyal to me?" I continued, with slight annoyance, who was she to almost hint at him not being loyal? I've only been in London for a few days.

"I didn't hint at it, those are probably your insecurities eating away at you, love." Danielle replied with a smirk, though her eyes were still staring at mine intently, still studying my expressions. The way she was staring at me made me want to stay as still as ever, so she wouldn't be able to decipher what I was feeling. I felt so weird under her gaze, internally squirming, trying to block her from understanding how I was feeling. However, I also felt like I wanted to just fall into her arms and vent.

"Anyway, we need to buy furniture and s**t. Howard said he'd buy the necessities for us like the utensils, mattresses and all." As she said this my heart squeezed, how was someone so kind?

"He's so kind! He barely even knows me and is already buying things for me! Will they be expensive? What type of mattresses? What type of utensils? I'll definitely pay him back."

"You don't have to worry, that guy is rich as f**k – like seriously, he's got a lot of money from a will."

"That doesn't mean I can't pay him back." I retort, I can't just leave him like that. We were only in the same room for a maximum of two hours and we didn't necessarily have a friendly conversation – it was all business.

"He'll say no."

"We'll see...well what shop will we go to?"

"A charity shop."

***

"Why isn't there a handle?" I question Danielle. How on earth were we going to enter the shop without a handle? I can't handle having no furniture!

"Okay, you," She steps forward and points at me, "watch this." She steps forward again and—

Oh my goodness the doors are sliding to the sides!

I jump back, my heart about to escape out of my chest as my chest can't handle the fright. What in God's name is going on? How are doors sliding now? Are they even doors if there are no handles?

"Aww, look at that mouth – looking like a fish out of water."

"How did you know this?"

"Hm...I go places?" I roll my eyes at her words and straighten my back, looking up at the bright blue sky, the sun sitting calmly amongst the clouds. I'm so glad I came in the summer, Marcus tells me all the time that the weather is 'utter s**t' here. She walks past the doors and looks back at me, sighing, "so you've forgotten how to walk too?"

I nod, "Actually, I have. Hold on a sec." I excitedly whip my phone out of my phone to send a picture of the sliding doors to my Snap story, captioning it: "My favourite shop" though I hadn't even entered it yet.

***

Looks were extremely deceiving as I entered the shop: it had two floors –- the stairs of the second floor on the right corner of this huge first floor, both filled with used furniture and clothes but the ceiling had a dimly lit bulb that hung on a string and the walls were dull as it took in the shadows from the light, with the wooden floorboards looking rough like the bark on trees I'd see in Nasedo – I could clean this place! A person stood behind a till, resting on their palm. I didn't think this shop would be big.

But actually, if I think about it shouldn't be that deceiving as it does indeed have sliding doors; rich.

"Same, Howard said I should come here." Oh, she heard me. "He said things would be cheaper for us since it's a Charity shop." She started to walk around the shop and I happily followed, taking in the furniture as we walked around.

We had passed some brown chairs, some mahogany wardrobes and desks, yet we still didn't have anything in our 'basket'. The time on my phone had shown we had already been here for over 30 minutes –it's not good to waste time and it was mostly because we couldn't agree on what to get.

"But I want a pink couch! The colour is just fantastic! It's been my favourite colour since I was a child -- though my favourite hue is baby pink. I just have many memories with the colour! Why won't you accept that?" I yelled at Danielle in irritation at her meanness, like pink is an amazing colour – anyone who doesn't like it must be very troubled e.g.: Danielle Park.

"Oh shut the f**k up, just because you want something, doesn't mean we're gonna get it. Okay?" She takes starts digging in her leather Jacket for something.

"No, not okay. I only get pink stuff! Also, it's my house, I'm paying for it."

"Well, it's my house too. Actually, not even too – just go back to Marcus if you're so upset." She scoffs and I roll my eyes. "I said I'm paying."

"With what motherfucking money? You don't even have a job, Danielle."

"Hey, please can you girls calm down?" The person at the till pats my back, eyes wide, looking around franticly, "the manager may ask for you guys to leave."

"Sorry." Danielle sighs sympathetically then her eyebrows pull together, "hey, what about we come to a compromise?" She holds up a wait signal for the cashier, "purple couch maybe?" Oh! I guess that would be better, a smile engulfs my features. "Yes, but maybe a light purple? Like closer to..."

"Pink?" Danielle finishes off my sentence in annoyance, I mean, this is me compromising – it's the best she's going to get. She signs and turns to the cashier, "Please could we have a purplish – pinkish couch?"

***

"You're so lucky: this was dyed by a street artist!" The cashier pats the couch softly. I smile knowingly as the couch looks very much closer to pink than I think any of us anticipated.

But it's probably the best we'll ever get.

"Please Danielle, pretty please." I give her my best puppy dog eyes as her eyes rake the couch; she purses her lips, "Why don't we sit on it first?"

I excitedly place myself onto the couch, being hit with a wave of comfort: the softness, the wide seats, the colour itself! Immediately, I submerge into this couch, rocking in its comfort wave. "Danielle, you have to join me! It's so..." I drag the word so, "comfortable!" Danielle nods, a smirk crossing her features – probably at the excitement on my face. She calmly sits beside me, not even falling deep into the couch as I did, then she snorts! She actually snorts! I guess I was talking too soon with the 'God really has his favourites', sorry, not sorry.

"Excuse me, sir, are there pigs in this place?" I question the cashier; he looks flustered and shakes his head rapidly: "N-no, though we do--"

"Shut up, Danielle, It was just a snort. I was laughing at the way you fell into the couch, thought it would happen to me too, guess I'm not a midget like you." I scoff at Danielle's words and tilt my head, "So, are we buying it or not?"

"Okay, we are. Only because I'm the mature person – because we both know it looks pink." She rests her arm on her left side of the couch arm and sighs longingly, "and I could get used to this."

I definitely couldn't contain my excitement at this: like a firework being set off I jump up and wrap my arms around Danielle, "thank you so much, stranger Danielle!" Danielle tuts and rolls her eyes, "get off me," even though I see her lips rise a bit on the sides.

***

Danielle and I had wallpaper for her room, paint and extra decor in a basket and the couch was being scanned now. I quickly checked my purse and huffed at the few pennies I had, gosh! I had forgotten to put more money into it after buying the house! Ugh, why am I so stupid sometimes? I guess I just got too excited.

"Let me guess," Danielle peers over my shoulder and juts her head to my purse, "you don't have enough money?" I pout at her words and sigh, "I forgot to restock, I'm sorry."

"No need to apologise – and who the hell even says 'restock'? I'll pay, just get a card next time."

"A- a card?"

"Yes, a debit card."

"Oh, what do people use that for?" I've never heard of that in all my 21 years of living, what on earth was debit?

"Don't go all back to the future on me." She nods at the cashier before us and places a rectangular thing on a scanner.

"What's does that mean?"

"s**t, so a card is this," she raises the card up after it makes a beep sound, Oh. "And back to the future is an actual movie."

"Oh."

"Yes." She nods and then her eyebrows scrunch up again, "how do you use an iPhone and not know what a card is?"

"Uhm, I don't know." I say honestly and quickly change the conversation, "thank you so much for paying," I smile up at her and she nods, "No problem." I really will pay her back. I can't have so many people taking the money off me: first Marcus, that Howard guy and now her – no way.

"Okay, so how will this be sent to your house?" The cashier questions Danielle, "My friend will come and pick it up, I'll give him the receipt."

"Don't tell me it's Howard."

"It is Howard."

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