16. Jess #3
The last day before the San Domingo Comic Con, Danny was busy shooting his segments for Minutes, and media interviews, but I never felt like he was absent.
Even if I went for hours or a full day without a text from him, I was always in contact with Paige and Faye.
Whether it was questions about a short story or making arrangements for the hotel for the con, I seemed to be fully integrated with the Finnegans.
Brayonna, on the other hand, wanted to ensure Danny was up to the task of vicariously dating her through me.
The night before the con kicked off, we found a quiet Italian place a few miles from the convention.
It was far enough away that Danny felt safe taking off his cap and sunglasses once we were inside.
It didn’t take long before Bray and Bennet launched into one of my favorite stories.
Danny laughed in disbelief. “Wait. You stabbed Brayonna on your first date?”
“First of all, she stabbed me first,” Bennet protested.
“It was a flesh wound, and you just needed a band-aid,” Bray said, waving a finger at him with one hand and sipping her cocktail with the other.
I had heard this story multiple times, and it never failed to amuse me. I could feel my inevitable laughing fit start to build.
“Fine. It was a minor flesh wound. But if I hadn’t had that allergic reaction, there probably wouldn’t have been a stabbing, as my vision was blurry and depth perception was an issue,” Bennet explained.
Bray scoffed. “Babe, blaming your bad hand-eye coordination on allergies is adorable, but completely ridiculous.”
“Okay,” Danny said, setting down his seltzer water. “I think I need to hear the entire story.”
“Well, first of all, it started off wrong as I was late, because she gave me the wrong address,” Bennet began.
Bray glared at her husband. “I did not give you the wrong address. You wrote down the wrong address. Then when I let you in, you let my cat escape.”
“Uh, we agreed that we’re squarely blaming Mr. Bicklesford on that one,” Bennet replied.
“I’ll concur,” Bray agreed. “My cat was a total a-hole. Which is why he bit you when you did catch him. Granted Mr. Bicklesford wasn’t used to being grabbed by his hind legs.”
“Again, that is on the cat. He was terribly uncooperative,” Bennet maintained. “We finally got out the door, but then the car broke down a mile and a half from the restaurant. So naturally, we decided to walk the rest of the way–”
“In high heels,” Bray added. “Along the highway. In ninety-degree weather.”
Bennet nodded to acknowledge the point. “Well, she was in high heels, I was not. We missed our reservation at the restaurant and had to settle for falafel from a food truck. That’s where I had the allergic reaction.
Now, I would like to point out that I never had a reaction to turmeric before that day.
That was weapons-grade turmeric. Which didn’t take effect until we got to the bar where they had axe throwing.
Before we got to the targets, Bray stabbed me–”
Brayonna held up her hand to pause the story. “I prefer the term lightly pierced. And for the record I tripped, and he was in the line of fire. And then he stabbed me.”
“Okay, okay, wait,” Bennet said, holding up his hand. “There’s more to it than that. She stabbed–”
“Lightly pierced,” Bray corrected him.
“–lightly pierced me,” Bennet agreed. “I couldn't see because my eyes were swelling up, and I reacted by spinning into her.”
“Stabbing her?” Danny was in complete disbelief.
“Yep. Totally stabbed her,” Bennet replied. “I got us both to the ER where I got a band aid and an antihistamine shot, while Bray got seven stitches. And the next day, I texted her and said, ‘Hey, I had a great time last night, let’s do it again.’”
By this time, I was laughing so hard I snorted loudly through my nose. I sounded like a laughing pig, and it sent Danny into a laughing fit.
“Oh, you like her snorting?” Bray asked in astonishment.
“I find it revolting, honestly,” Bennet teased.
“Okay, wait,” Danny asked as he recovered. “After all that, you still ended up with each other?”
Brayonna reached out and took Bennet’s hand, giving him a rare moment of affection.
“Well, despite all the bad things that happened, he was committed to the date. And I mean like, completely dedicated. I stuck around, because I wanted to see exactly how bad this date could be. When we ended up in the ER, he refused to get treated until I got my stitches and held my hand the entire time because of my fear of needles.”
Bennet gave her hand a little squeeze. “Yes, and I figured there was no way our second date could be worse. The odds were totally in our favor.”
“He’s right. Our second date was almost boring,” Bray agreed with a nod.
“I mean the snake that bit me wasn’t even poisonous,” Bennet added.
“The sex was great though,” Bray said, finishing her drink and signaling for another.
Danny stood there flabbergasted. “Please tell me you got additional life insurance before the third date.”
And I began to laugh-snort again.
I originally planned to commute to the San Domingo Comic Con since it was about an hour’s drive, even in the worst traffic.
However, Paige somehow managed to either finagle or threaten her way into securing two hotel suites.
The first day of a con always brought absolute chaos, with everyone in cosplay racing around.
Since my poor Fiona cosplay had fallen apart, I decided to stick with a basic outfit: jeans and a nerdy T-shirt from my closet.
Danny was stuck in his room for most of the day with a rotating group of entertainment reporters interviewing him for the show. Paige stuck with him doing her assistant job, but gave Faye a temporary reprieve of her life imprisonment to enjoy some of the con with me.
The contrast between Mission Verde and San Domingo Comic Con felt like night and day.
SDCx2 easily outshined Mission Verde as the bigger and more popular stop on the con circuit, making Mission Verde seem puny by comparison.
Then again, SDCx2 didn’t stick to one specific genre.
Over the next few days, multiple movie trailers would premiere, covering everything from comedies to blockbuster science fiction films. Of course, the only event I cared about was on Saturday, when Danny would officially take the stage as the new Tyrst’an for Valley of the Red Tyrant.
By the time Faye and I were done with con activities, I returned to the suite to find Danny collapsed on the bed, face down in the comforter.
I kicked off my shoes and leaned over to kiss the top of his head. “Long day?”
He let out a groan and rolled over, propping himself up with his arm. “A repetitive day. The same questions over and over again. Juilliard. Kismet. Soap Opera. Meh. How do I feel? By the end of the interviews, I wanted to rip out my spleen.”
“I like your spleen where it is.” I crawled onto the bed and snuggled up to him. “Though right now I’m so hungry I could eat one and wouldn’t feel guilty about it.”
His arms wrapped around me and his lips pressed against my forehead. “I know we said we’d go out to eat, but–”
“We’ll get takeout or room service,” I said, shaking my head. “I don’t care.”
“You sure?”
“Your girlfriend is a book nerd. I’m more than content to be an introvert and stay here instead of going out.”
He let out a happy sigh. “You’re the best. By the way, they have The Scotsman on pay per view.”
I laughed. “Sounds like the perfect evening.”
“Not a ‘meh’ evening?” he teased.
I chuckled. “Definitely not a ‘meh’ evening. Not at all. Are you excited about going up on stage Saturday?”
He shrugged, and his smile went flat.
“Seriously?” I asked. “You’re not excited?”
“I feel like everything after the trailer is almost anti-climactic,” he admitted.
“Everything?” I teased, cocking an eyebrow.
He gave me a warm smile. “Everything about the job. This right here? This is more exciting to me.”
“Nice save,” I said, giving him a peck on the cheek. “Good job picking me over work. Though I expect I’ll barely see you when you start shooting.”
Danny chuckled. “Shooting starts in about four weeks, and it’s being filmed on the Warner Brothers lot. That might take up most of my day, but any time I’m free from the set, I’ll make sure we spend it together.”
I shifted, so I could look into his eyes. “Promise?”
“Promise,” he replied and leaned over to give me a kiss.
I melted into it. Feeling greedy, I rolled on top of him.
“I thought you were hungry,” he mumbled against my lips.
“Food can wait,” I said, moving my lips to his neck. “I’d rather not miss this moment.”