The slip of paper with the number

He might had grown tired of waking up in some alleyway by a cop telling him he had to go to a shelter or move along. He had a bed and all waiting for him, but he was rather focused on just drinking his lonely nights away. Getting home at 4 am after passing out at 3, he was a mess. Still drunk off his mind he managed to find his way to his bathroom, turning on the shower though he barely got undressed before stepping under. He gasped at the cold water in his face but it sobered him up a little, standing a little longer under the cold that stung like shards of ice smacking his face so gently and yet so cold. He turned off the water after a while and decided to get out of his wet clothes, leaving them in the shower before he staggered and grabbed the sink to not fall and faceslam the toilet.
He lifted his head to look into the mirror, seeing his bloodshot eyes and the bags growing bigger. He moved to his bedroom and dressed in something new, though he would run out soon enough when he didnt reserve time to do his laundry. He threw himself on the bed, closing his eyes for a bit before he remembered. He opened his eyes to look at it, the little slip of paper that Buffy had kindly given him. He reached out for his spare phone, grabbing it and the paper before putting in the number.
It was 5 in the morning but what the hell. If she didnt pick up, she would have a message. “Helluuuu~. Ummm. Yeah... soooo. Buffy handed me this number. You probably know me as the asshole who killed your friend’s mother....” he paused as he stared into the ceiling, wondering how dumb he actually sounded right now. He sniffed shortly before shuffling in his bed, “... Frankly, I wouldnt see why you would even entertain the idea of seeing me... but... I’m in a pretty shitty mindspace right now and.... well.... I dont know. I dont wanna be there anymore,” he continued, rubbing his nosebridge as he felt so tired from laying down. He exhaled deeply. “I’ll just... umm.. yeah. Name’s Daniel. Been a pleasure ranting to your voicemail, ma’am... uh, goodnight bye.” He finished, hanging up before he clenched his fist and slammed it into his bed a few times, eventually calming down and succumbing to a deep slumber.

Nelinha heard her phone buzz, and she knew that it was only few people that would call this late. She was tired, sitting up, but she didn't manage to press the right button, groaning in her half sleepy state. Benjamin was sleeping in the corner of her room, poor guy having night terrors again, and she wanted him to be comfortable. She saw the voicemail pop in, pressing play and holding it to her ear. She had heard about this guy, mostly just the rough information through Buffy, and Nelinha knew there was a few rules her family went by to accept someone in. One of them was if they really needed it. She could hear his slurred speech, hear how tired and broken down he truly was. Wrapping her arms around her legs she sighed, running her thumb's nail across her lower lip as she heard him finish off. She tried calling back, multiple times, but she figured the guy had passed out. She eventually got some sleep as well. When the sun came in, she got up, waking up Benjamin as well, telling him to go help out with breakfast preparations. She looked at her phone, deciding to give Daniel a few more hours of sleep before she tried calling him again.

Some hours had passed, Nelinha was getting ready to go out to town, putting on some lipstick as she looked at her phone briefly. She sighed picking up her phone and calling him, hoping he would pick up. "Hi, this is Nelinha," she said, her accent thick, but understandable. "I heard ya message, but I ain't talkin' over no phone 'bout this," she said, nodding a bit to herself. "Meet me at the Alley in Central in about two hours, we can talk then," she said, checking herself in the mirror, making a small twirl. "I gotta go - looking forward to meeting ya," she said, hanging up or ending the voice mail, depending on if he had picked up.

His sleep wasnt without it's struggle, but at least it was rest for once. He wouldnt have slept as long as he did, it must just have been pure luck, because by this time he would already have been out to wander around or even have another drink. He realized he was still sleeping when his phone rang and he felt the sun shining through his window and onto his face. He groaned loudly as he pushed himself to have his back to his window before he grabbed his phone. He placed it at his ear, yawning quietly to himself as he stretched a little while she introduced herself, "Goodmorning," he mumbled, trying to sound humorous as it wasnt exactly morning anymore.
He pushed himself up to sit as he nodded at her words, rubbing his face with his hand. He felt quite hungover and the sun shining through with it's ray of light felt like his eyes were getting poked with sharp thick needles. "I'll meet you there," he mumbled a little slurred, rubbing his eyes a little before he blinked a few times, hoping he could adjust his eyes to the light. She hung up and he threw himself back on the bed, burrowing his head into the pillow for just a moment before he finally decided to get up.
He had a proper shower and actually managed to make himself look less like a mess, despite the fact that he was feeling like utter crap. He arrived at the alley a little earlier than she had told him, sitting down by a table as he leaned back into the chair. He hadnt eaten, mostly because the thought of food made his stomach churn and yet he felt quite famished. He ordered a glass of juice, hoping that it would sort him out with the fruity taste, though he couldnt help but have the nice young lady pour in a little something to sort out his hangover.

Nelinha was happy that he answered her call, but she could still hear the grogginess in his voice, so maybe he had just woken up. She wasn't about to judge someone's hustle, so she just bid her goodbyes before heading out. She had a couple of errands before meeting him. And she had to make sure that Angelica and Mario got to work on their studies. It was about time and she managed to carry her handbag over her shoulder, balancing a bag in her other hand. Walking in she looked around shortly, having only gotten a brief description about Daniel's looks. However judging from the bags under the eyes and the ashy blonde hair, she spotted him quite quickly. Walking to the table, she held out her hand, sending him a rather charming smile. "Hi gorgeous," she said in a soft voice, sitting down, crossing one leg over the other. She looked around for a while, her lips slightly separated, giving her face a relaxed look. Then her eyes moved to him, tilting her head a little to the side. "Ya getting enough to eat? Ya look skinny," she said, reaching over to touch his cheek, a worried frown on her face. When she touched him she could immediately feel his sadness, feel the remorse, but she didn't move away from him.

He was just fiddling with a napkin on the table as she approached him, looking up to realize that she was Nelinha. He got up from his chair to grab her hand, "Goodday ma'am," he greeted her, sending her a polite nod before he sat back down, feeling a little surprised that she would call him gorgeous - He didnt think he could be looking that well lately. He exhaled deeply and seemed to relax a little more now that she was here, raising an eyebrow at her question, gritting his teeth a little embarrassed as he felt her touch his cheek. He could feel her worry and it made him feel horrible. He wasnt sure when he had last had like an actual meal. He shrugged, before he looked back at her with a sigh leaving his lips. "I dont think I could eat anything right now," he admitted right as his orange juice arrived. He thanked the girl, before he took a sip from it, feeling the slight burn from the alcohol.

Nelinha removed her hand, not liking the sound of him not having an appetite. As the juice came, she narrowed her eyes a little, especially as she saw him taking a sip. She reached over, taking a whiff of the glass before she snapped at the waitress. "S'cuse me, ya better not be telling me ya handing him alcohol at this hour," she said in a stern tone, pressing her lips together as she looked at the waitress for an explanation. She scoffed, handing her the glass back. "We'll have ya brunch plate," she said. "And two coffees," she added before turning her gaze back to Daniel. She didn't come here to see him drink and cure his hungover with more alcohol. "Now, I don't care what ya did, and frankly ya look filled with self pity already, so let's skip that entirely," she said, running one of her acrylic nails over her lower lip as she looked at him. It was clear she already had a plan, but the question was if he was willing to follow it. "I want ya to get sober, want ya to get yourself together; but ya can't seem to do that on your owns," she said with a thoughtful gaze to her eyes. She leaned forward on the table, placing her elbow on the table, her chin in her palm. She was wearing a rather furry coat, a light color of pink and under it a rather simple thin dress and long boots. It was clear she had her own style. "However I'm willing to help, that's what I do, but ya gotta put the work in," she said, a smile on her lips as the waitress came back with two plates with eggs, bread and some bacon. The coffee as well, and Nelinha smiled at the waitress, seemingly having flipped on a coin from stern to nice.

She knew she could come across rather stern, but she had only the good intentions at heart. As the food came, she grabbed the coffee, adding some sugar to the dark liquid as well as some milk, stirring it with a wooden stirrer. He spoke about her doing miracle work, making her scoff. He soon apologized but she waved her hand a bit, shaking her head. "Trust me, I've dealt with worse than a hungover lycan," she said, the corners of her mouth pulling up in a warm smile. Taking a careful sip of her coffee she sighed a little. It was still too hot for her to just chug, but it was a nice temperature. As she saw him trying to eat and took a fork herself, stabbing a few pieces of bacon and egg before popping it in between her lips. Her hair wasn't done up today, her curls just sitting as natural as they were, framing her face. Today she was wearing large golden hoops, only barely showing because of her hair covering her ears. He spoke again, this time asking the simple question of why. "Everyone has a past, some  proud of it, some not; that don't really matter to us," she said, looking down on her plate. "What matters is what ya do next, what choices ya make when ya don't have to fight for survival," she said, frowning as she breathed in. She had a past, everyone did, but there was no need for her to share much about herself. She was living her life, living it how she wanted to. "I have a past, I've done shit I ain't proud of, but given the opportunity, I've done loads for ma family, and ma community," she said, looking up at him. Her brown eyes having a faint shimmer to them. "It don't matter where ya come from, but it matter where ya going," she said. She took another sip of her coffee, eating a bit more from her plate. The café wasn't too busy today, but soon people would be all over the streets. The holidays were coming, so Kaleidoscope was always a bit of a tourist attraction. "But I'd like to know why ya called?" she said, turning her head a little to the side.

He chuckled at her words about dealing with worse, shaking his head a little, "I may not be the worse, but I can be one hell of annoyance," he remarked with a faint smirk - A genuine one he could feel. It felt weird to smile. He tried to eat some more, but he had to be very slow, making sure that it all wouldnt just come up again. He took a small sip from his coffee, liking the bitter taste it had. He looked up from his plate to look at her, watching her wild hair go everywhere. He wondered if she spent a long time tending to it if she wanted to contain it. For some reason he hoped she never spent time flattening it as it was pretty as it was.
He just sat and listened as she explained, eating a little more from his plate when he felt the nauseous feeling subside a little. He thought it sounded like a nice thing to do, but he wondered where the incentive was coming from. He didnt think about it for long, long thoughts made him feel dizzy. "I see. Well, I've never done something I wouldnt be proud of," he said quite determined as he made a few assuring nods to himself. He wasnt going to regret his actions now, if he was going to start regretting, he might as well have kept from doing it. The thought made him frown a little as he ate some of the bacon, feeling it was getting easier to eat.
He looked up at her question and swallowed some egg before he looked away for a bit. "You know that feeling when you just feel completely alone? well, I was feeling that way. Buffy had given me a slip of paper with your number, and I thought I might as well try. Hell, if it was a fake number, I thought it would have suited me well," he said as he exhaled deeply.
He made a small shrug, "I was just lucky it wasnt," he added, making a small faint smile. He took another sip from his coffee as he frowned before he closed his eyes to massage his temples a little. His headache wasnt really going away and he felt a little bummed that she had had his juice taken away. "On any other day, I would already be drunk by now," he admitted a little shamefully as he looked down at his plate.

It was good to see him eat. Nelinha felt like she had sat at this table a thousand times by now, speaking with someone to cheer them up or the possibility of her family helping them. Though he said that he was proud of all of his actions, she couldn't help but wonder what had made him do what he did to his body. She was not against drinking, as long as it was done with a good mindset, however his seemed more destructive or to distract himself from something. His explanation made sense, making her chuckle a bit as he said he had been lucky. "Sugar, if I know anything, then it's that Buffy is quite helpful; even if you hurt her she can be the one to apologize," she said with a sigh, moving a piece of bread around on her plate as she was a bit absent minded. She noticed how he seemed to massage his temples, and she knew it must've been the hangover taking a tighter grip. His confession made her shrug. "I ain't saying ya should give up alcohol forever, but I think ya need to distract ya-self with something else," she said in a thoughtful voice, picking up the bread, placing it in her mouth. She chewed for a while, licking her lips free from crumbs.
She leaned a little back in her seat, sitting with her cup of coffee, watching the steam rise from the dark liquid. "I've been at the other end of this conversation," she said, biting the inside of her cheek, frowning slightly. It was quite some time ago by now, but she still remembered. She giggled a little, shaking her head as she felt silly. "Hector, the father of our house is a clergy, but not the saintly kind," she chuckled. "Venus, the mother is a vampyre, so safe to say she and I got a few fights once in a while," she chuckled. "But they took me in, they gave me a new chance at life, and I guess that's what it's always been about. I dunno when it came about. It just happened," she said in a thoughtful voice. She took a deep breath, taking another sip of her coffee as she crossed her legs, letting one of her legs dangle a bit. She was quite tall and not to mention slender as well. Her free hand moved up, playing with one of her curls as she bit her lip, thinking of how to continue. "It don't matter where ya come from, ya race, nuffin' like that is important in the House of Summers, but we are the family we never got to have biologically," she said. She wasn't saying she was an orphan, but more that for whatever reason, the family that they did have had denied them, or perhaps left them behind. "We ain't some sicko cult tho, just making that clear," she chuckled, smiling at him.

Nelinha could see how he seemed to distance himself a little. She could tell he was still listening, but she wondered what he was trying to accomplish with not looking at her. Could he see through her? See that she was hiding something even though she was being herself? Frowning a little as he apologized to move towards the restroom. She noticed the waiter coming over to the table. "Everything tastes well?" she asked, Nelinha pulled a fake smile, nodding. "Excuse me," she said, moving to her feet she was towering over the waitress, her heels surely doing what they needed to do to make her legs look longer. She followed Daniel, stopping shortly at the door with the men's sign on it, swallowing as she knocked on the door softly. "You alright?" she said through the door, however there was no reply. She was starting to get a little worried, but she also feared the men's restroom a lot, however she ended up going inside, grabbing some tissues before she found the stall where Daniel was. She was quick nifty with finding her way around. She looked around shortly before going in to the stall, some men staring at her, making her look down. She closed the door, locking it, before squatting down next to Daniel. She could see the cold sweat on his forehead, the scent of urine hiding well what ever he had thrown up. Taking some of the paper, she dabbed some of the sweat off of his skin, placing a comforting hand on his back, rubbing him gently. She didn't feel the need to say anything, but she could almost hear the men outside holding their breaths to see if what they thought were real was happening. "If ya wanna hear sex, go on the internet!" she yelled at them, hearing a few feet scatter, the door outside opening and closing a few times. She sighed, looking down at Daniel. "We should get ya in to bed; I live not far from here," she said in a soft voice, rubbing his back a little.

He had thought he could handle a bit of food, it hadnt even been a grand meal or something that would have made him sick normally. But it was just the culmination of not getting a refuel on his body's need for intoxication, to now actually just eat? It couldnt stay in his stomach, he wasnt used to it anymore. He couldnt fool himself long enough to finish his plate and before his brain had registered his surroundings, his head was deep in the toilet bowl. The smell of piss wasnt pleasant but neither was this feeling of his innards clenching together to dispel the food he should have been able to eat. He heard her talk but he made a strained groan that made him feel like he would choke. He coughed and closed his eyes, spitting down into the toiletwater that had mixed with his vomit. He hadnt bothered to lock the stall, but it was probably for the best as he felt like he could pass out.
He leaned the side of his head against his arm that rested along the seat, holding onto the side of the toilet like holding onto something would make him feel better. He wasnt looking his best as he looked up at her, feeling a little drool escape the side of his mouth. He spat down into the toilet again, clenching his teeth as he felt another wave of contractions. Her yelling made him chuckle, but he ended up in a coughing fit before he threw up the rest of the food that had hidden somewhere in his stomach. He pressed his forehead to the seat as he groaned in pain from his stomach, feeling his shoulders shake from the stress his insides felt. "I dont think I could go, well, get that far" he admitted, clearing his throat to spit once more. He lifted his hand to run through his hair, feeling like his head was spinning. "I feel like I can see at least 6 of you in this stall with me and that doesnt seem right to me," he slurred, making a tired smile before he turned his head back to the toilet. He felt the contractions, and soon noise followed but nothing would come out.

Nelinha wasn't a fan of vomit, but quite frankly she could seem to care about the smell right now. She looked at him, rubbing his back as he seemed to get the rest out of his system. Detoxing was hard, but she had thought that his body could at least hold a little food down. As he admitted he probably couldn't she scoffed. She was by no means weak. "Do I at least look good in all six versions?" she teased lightly, frowning as he tried to vomit again, but nothing came out. She sighed, dabbing some of his drool off with a paper towel. She moved to her feet, flushing the toilet to get the half eaten mixture out of her field of vision. "I can carry you," she said in a calm voice, reaching down to grab his arm. She helped him to his feet, the scent of his sweat giving her a clear indication of what he had been drowning his sorrows in. At least it wasn't hard drugs, that would be harder to get out of his system. "Come on, a nice shower and a warm bed is exactly what you need," she said, hauling one of his arms over her shoulders. From the looks of it, she didn't look too buff, but her lycan strength had helped her more than once. She started walking, stopping shortly to pay for their meal before getting out to the streets. Whenever he needed it, she would stop, letting him vomit or have a break, but she was determined to get him to a safe place. "I hate the men's restrooms," she just said, as she unlocked the door to her apartment building. The next step was helping him up the stairs, and living on the top floor would be a challenge. Up they went, stopping when he needed a break, but Nelinha was very determined. She managed to get him all the way to the top, unlocking the door and helping him inside. She leaned him against one of the walls in the hallway, taking off her jacket and shoes, before helping Daniel off of his. Guiding him out to the bathroom she placed him on the edge of the tub. "Now, I need you to be honest with me; Are you capable of taking a shower yourself, or do you need my help?" she asked seriously.

He would have laughed at her tease and told her some witty offhand comment about how beautiful he actually found her, if it hadnt been that his stomach had been holding onto other plans, forcing his head back to the bowl to empty out what was already an empty stomach. He felt pathetic, sitting here and having to have someone else handle him, but in a sense he was also grateful that there was someone, after all the time he had spent alone. He was going to object and refuse her offer to carry him, but his body wasnt working at the same pace as his mind, so the words just came out in a slur and nowhere near to express what he was trying to say. Instead he felt her pull and soon he was on his feet.
With the body that didnt work with his mind, he tried to talk to her but he felt so sick from the alcohol - Or lack thereof, grunts and groans being his best form of communication in the men's bathroom. His vision was blurry and he thought she could be taking him anywhere, rob him even if she liked and leave him somewhere where he would have had to sleep out his hangover. The fresh cold air from the streets felt like a smack to the face, clearing his vision a little as the lack of piss smell and whatnot was suddenly switched out with something that felt pleasant. He sobered up a little as they walked, enough to hear her talk about the men's restroom. "Me too," he just said in a slurred tone, chuckling a little strained. He was happy he had gotten a bit control over himself, otherwise he wasnt sure she could have gotten him all the way up to her apartment. Every floor, he frowned while having his break, seeming surprised that they werent there yet and tired from the struggle of moving. Clearly he had no actual idea how many floors they had gone up, nor how many they had left.
He only realized they werent on stairs anymore when he felt the wall press on the side of his head, making him open his eyes as he looked around for a bit. He realized they werent at his place, but he would have been quite surprised if they had - Mostly because that would have meant she somehow had gotten him to tell or show her the address. He felt the edge of the tub, frowning a little with his eyes trying to focus on her face, her question making him look down for a moment in shame, "Lords be with me," he mumbled, lifting a hand to rub the side of his face, but the rubbing just seemed to make him feel as if he had just been dazed by something. "Uhhhhh.... I can try, but you'll have to help me get under the water" he then said, looking at her, clearly not to keen on having to have this shower, but he couldnt deny that he probably wasnt smelling his best lately.
He made a deep drawn out sigh with a pained expression, his eyes closed for a moment as he gathered courage to get up. He grabbed his shirt to pull it over his head, not minding if she were to see him naked, well as long as she didnt mention the lots of scars that he bore. Most of them looked like something that had come from rough fights but they looked old as well, something to remind him of his youth.

Nelinha sighed, she didn't mean to make him embarrassed, but she needed him to be honest with her. She wasn't risking him drowning in the shower, that would be too much for her to handle. "It ain't nuffin' I ain't seen before," she said, placing a hand on her hip as he rubbed his face. She was smiling softly, mostly because she thought her words would've been funnier if in another situation. As he said he wanted to try, she nodded, walking over to help him with his shirt. She was careful not to touch his skin too much, mostly because she was just helping him get undressed. Looking at the scars made her wonder what he had been through. Everyone had their stories, but she had always found everyone but her own so fascinating. As he was undressed she took his hands, guiding him to the shower where she turned on the water. "You can sit down if you need to, but try and wash yourself - Use some of Benji's shampoo if you're not in to girly smells," she said gently, making sure the water was a nice temperature for him. She kept looking at his face, not wanting him to feel like she was gawking at him.

He scoffed at her words but kept his focus on keeping his balance on the edge of the tub. He got undressed rather fast and with her guidance he was placed under the shower, gritting his teeth a little when it was a little too hot for his liking. He was thankful that she helped him find the right temperature, exhaling deeply while the water splashed down on his face, his eyes closed. There was just something about the feeling of water hitting one's face, he thought he had read it somewhere, but it didnt come to mind at the moment. "I'll yell if something happens," he told her, turning his head to open his eye a little to look at her through the water fall from above. "You can go relax," he assured her, holding a hand against the wall to keep himself stable. He didnt feel like he would fall but if she didnt trust him, he wouldnt blame her.
He took whatever shampoo he got a hold of, not bothered if he would end up smelling like roses - It was far better than smelling like some homeless alcoholic. He washed his hair carefully, not moving his hand from the wall. He washed himself for as long as his balance allowed him, which turned out to be pretty stable. He turned off the water when he was done, looking around for a towel before he took whatever he could get.

Nelinha nodded, wanting to respect his privacy she left him to it. This part of town was not nice, and the apartment was rather run down, but she tried to keep it nice. Hector was a busy man and Venus was trying to work double shifts just to afford keeping a roof over everyone's head. Nelinha of course helped out as well, she was trying to work where she could, even managing to get a relatively stable job at one of the bars in the Western District. She went in to her parents' room, picking out some clean clothes as Hector and Daniel shared roughly the same build, grabbing a nice t-shirt and a pair of sweatpants. It would just be good for him to get out of his other clothes that probably still stank of the men's restroom. Walking to her room she laid out the clothes, running her fingers over the fabric. She had always felt at home here in this apartment, and bringing someone directly here was not something she did often. The only other exception had been Benjamin, but he had been so badly beaten that she had no where else to turn.

Hearing the water turn off she sighed to herself, walking to the kitchen to grab a glass of water for herself, and then one for Daniel. "Clothe's on the bed," she told him through the door, biting her lower lip as she stood for a while with the two glasses of water. Then she decided to move in to the small living room. The couch at least was rather nice, one that they had bargained for and gotten at a good price. She placed the glasses on the table, running a hand up to her curls and fluffing them up a bit.

Nelinha sat on the couch, her feet pulled up under her as she flipped through an old magazine. She had read it so many times, but it was better than turning on the TV. He stepped in and she looked up at him, not being able to hide a small giggle as he said he used to be quite charming. For some reason she didn't have a hard time believing him. He had that look about him that she knew could make all the ladies swoon if he just said the right thing. "I can see it," she replied, a faint smile on her lips as she looked back at her magazine. Not that she was reading anything on the page, but she didn't want to be the one staring at him. He was in a vulnerable position, and she wanted to just give him space to breathe and be himself. Then he spoke again, even though she thought he might've fallen asleep. "Tell me what you did and why you did it," she said in a relaxed voice, putting the magazine away to have her focus on him. If he didn't want to talk about it, it was fine, but perhaps it was good for him to get it off his chest. Reaching over to the table she grabbed a glass, offering him it with a raised eyebrow.

Her reply made him chuckle a little, a heartfelt chuckle actually, one he hadnt thought he would have in him after all he had done to ruin it for himself. He was thankful that she wasnt just staring at him as he tried to get out of the feeling like he was in motion. He had expected her to want to know what he had done, which was why he was admitting it now when the chance was there. It was easier to just rip off the band-aid and get it over with. He inhaled deeply, opening his eyes as he rolled his head to the side to look at her. "You'd think I'm crazy," he said with a small snicker as he grabbed the water he was offered, thanking her in a mime. He took a small sip and held the glass in his lap, shaking his head at himself before he looked up at the ceiling again. "In reality... What I did wasnt supposed to happen. I killed Buffy's mother so her boyfriend wouldnt have to, because he and I were like family," he said to shortly sum up the thing. He frowned a little, moving his head down to have another sip of water. "When he told me what he had done, I knew I had to change it. So I found a way to go back... And I changed it," he said, staring into the room as his eyes turned absent and sad as he thought about it. He was quiet just staring for a while before he sighed. "I know I did the right thing for them and that things were going to get rough. But not like this..... not like this," he said, lifting the corner of his mouth to a displeased expression while he stared at the cover of the magazine on the coffee table.

"Try me," she said in a relaxed voice, smiling as he took the glass of water. She reached over, taking her own glass before leaning back on the couch in a comfortable position. Taking a sip of the water she kept her eyes on him, listening carefully as he spoke. She didn't want to miss anything that he said, listening as he explained. Her eyes widened a little as he spoke of changing what had happened, frowning as she didn't know if she could truly understand. Reaching over she placed a hand on his thigh, keeping her eyes on his as she took a deep breath. "If what you say is true ... Then there should be no reason for you to be in such pain," she said in a gentle voice. Nelinha had always been known as very empathetic, always seeing things from other's perspective, but hearing what Daniel had done meant she would have to ignore logic. Ignore what the world had thought her her whole life. She looked down at her hand on his thigh, frowning as she moved her hand away. Was she being patronizing, she asked herself. Was she being too forward and intruding on this pain he felt?

He felt her hand on his thigh and maybe it was the fact that he needed the comfort that kept him from pulling away, though he wouldnt normally had let someone touch him like that. Daniel hadnt ever felt the need for someone's comfort so the situation was odd for him. He nodded at her words before he made a shrug with his shoulders, sighing deeply as he looked at her, "No, probably not. But I hadnt measured the aptitude of the shitstorm that hit me. How hard it would be to lose someone that was like a brother to me," he replied, pinching his lips as he moved his eyes down to the glass in his hand. Was it bad to wish it had been vodka or something else remotely close to what he had been using to ease up his mind? He noticed how she looked at her hand before removing it, shaking his head as he looked at her, though he wasnt going to comment on it. "I know how it looks. I mean, hell, I dont blame 'em for thinking I just did it out of evil intentions, if they do" he said, frowning a little to himself.

Maybe she had overstepped, going so far as to touch him, but she was just a naturally nurturing person. She wanted those around her to be their best selves, and right now she felt like she needed to be there for him. It might've been her imagining things, but she felt him calm down when she touched him, however removing her hand was the decent thing to do. He was vulnerable, of course he might seek comfort in her touch if she just gave it out so freely. His words stung her a bit, not because it hurt her, but because she could relate. She sighed leaning back, looking at her hand that had just held on to his thigh. "I believe you," she said in a soothing tone, looking back at his face. "I know of losing ones family, and I guess that's why I do this," she said, contemplating her choices that had let her to this moment. "I was kicked out for who I am when I was rather young, spent some years in the Camps before Hector found me," she said, a faint yet sad smile on her lips. "He took me in, washed me and fed me; Gods know how dirty and skinny I was," she chuckled, looking at the magazine on the table. "He gave me clothes and security, and for once I actually felt like I had a family," she said, closing her eyes. She rarely spoke of her past, preferring to look to the future instead, but maybe Daniel would understand her better if she opened up about herself.