Work Text:
“Dani, are you alright?”
Dani snapped out of her daydream and looked over at Hannah. She nodded and forced a smile in response. Hannah smiled at her and went back to talking with Owen. Dani enjoyed sitting out in the rare sunny days with Hannah and Owen. They would drink iced tea together and talk about anything but work. Somedays Jamie would join them other days, like today, she would be in the garden working. The garden was close enough that Dani could watch her work. Dani loved to watch Jamie take care of the plants. It was a rare moment of softness and Dani loved that side of her. Dani watched as Jamie watered the flowers and admired the twinkle in her eyes as she worked. It was obvious how passionate Jamie was about plants.
Dani loved that Jamie brought beauty to the earth. Most of the time everything felt dark and gloomy in Dani’s world but, when she would walk around Bly Manor’s grounds and see all the lovely flowers Jamie planted she was reminded of how beautiful things could be.
Jamie got on her knees to start pulling weeds out of the garden. Dani bit her lip as she watched Jamie roll up her sleeves. She loved how pulling weeds showed Jamie’s muscular arms. Dani often wondered what it would feel like if Jamie put those arms around her. She bet that it would feel so warm and comforting. She wanted to cry just thinking about it.
This is the daydream that Dani had constantly. Jamie would hold Dani and then would gently kiss her. Dani felt tingly just thinking about how it would feel to have Jamie’s lips pressed against hers. She wondered how Jamie’s soft curly hair would feel if she ran her fingers through it. Sometimes at night the fantasies went a little further. Dani would think about how it would feel to have Jamie touch her. Just the thought gave her chills. She imagined how it would feel to hear Jamie yell out her name.
Dani always stopped herself from acting out on these dreams. She knew she didn’t deserve Jamie. Dani was broken and all she could do was hurt Jamie. Even though it pained her to know that Jamie potentially felt the same way she knew she wasn’t enough and she would never be. She would watch Jamie from a far and continue to daydream. If she really cared about Jamie she would stay away from her.
Jamie looked over and smiled at Dani. Dani’s heart skipped a beat as she gave a small wave and then got up to go inside to check on the children. Dani held back tears as she walked in the house knowing that no matter what she did she would always be too broken to make someone happy. Someday Jamie would meet someone and fall in love and Dani will have to endure it. She will force herself to be happy for Jamie and know that it’s the best for them both.