11. Dani
Dani
The clapping sounds snap me out of my trance, pulling my gaze from the television. I blink to refocus and realize everyone in the room has gathered around Alexa and me, cheering and applauding. I turn to her and can’t help but laugh as I pull my best friend into a hug.
“I can’t believe we pulled it off,” I say in disbelief.
“Hell yeah, we did!” She smiles as she pulls away.
Gavin holds up his arms to get the room to quiet down. “Can I have everyone’s attention please? I’ll be the first to admit that I didn’t think this story had legs when I started earlier this week.”
The room erupts in boos from everyone. I purse my lips to hold in my chuckle.
“I know, I know,” he continues. “However, I’m very glad to say I was wrong.
” He turns and looks our way. “Dani and Alexa, this piece of journalism right here shows why you two are the best at KSSD. And with any luck, the DA was watching too, and Tate will finally have charges brought against him any day now.”
“Fingers crossed Dani was able to convince our witness to take all that proof to the authorities,” Alexa says.
I shrug. “We can only hope.”
“Well, this is still a huge win. Everyone, go home and enjoy your weekend. I’ll see you all on Monday.”
The room starts to clear and as soon as the word Monday settles in my mind, the high of the night evaporates, replaced by the heavy reminder of everything it represents.
“Hey, Gavin.” I walk over to him. “Can I talk to you really fast?”
“What’s up?”
“I’m sorry this is so last minute, but I need Monday off. That’s the day Sam’s leaving.”
“Oh, right. Yes. Of course. I’ll have Rachel cover for you again. She did a good job while you were working on Tate this week.”
“Yeah, she’s great. She could take my job one day.”
Gavin leans down. He’s so close I can feel his breath against my ear. “No one could ever replace you.”
I look up at him, wondering if there’s double meaning behind his words. Before I can respond, he walks out.
The weekend passes in the blink of an eye. Sam and I cling to every moment, memorizing each touch, every word. It’s hard to believe this is our first deployment together. In the nine years we’ve been dating, you’d think he would’ve been sent overseas by now.
He got orders more than once over the years, only for them to be canceled. The same thing happened with station changes. Always delayed, always rerouted. I used to call him the lucky one.
I guess our luck finally ran out.
We pull up to the entrance gate at Camp Pendleton, and I give them my ID to get on base. As we make our way deeper onto the grounds, the nerves take over. Sam is driving my Jeep, and he must sense my worry.
He reaches over the center console, gripping my hands in my lap. “It’s gonna be fine,” he says calmly.
He looks so handsome in his military gear.
It’s the standard uniform Marines wear while training, with the brown and tan pixel camouflage look.
It really makes his brown eyes pop. Since it’s a big day, I made sure to look nice in a white sundress, with brown wedges, and kept my hair down. I know Sam appreciated the gesture.
“I know.” I smile.
We pull into the parking lot with the buses ready to take them to the airstrip. By the looks of it, the rest of Sam’s platoon is already here. Sam pulls his duffel from the back, taking my hand before leading us over to meet the rest of the crowd.
“Marines!” a booming voice yells over the crowd. “This is your two-minute warning for lineup. Now is the time to say your final goodbyes.”
My heart sinks. I turn to Sam and throw my arms around his neck, clinging to him as if that alone might keep him here. Tears spill down my cheeks despite my promise not to cry. I’m failing miserably. A broken sound slips from my throat before I can stop it.
“Hey,” he murmurs, rubbing slow circles into my back. “I told you. I’m going to be okay.”
“I know,” I whisper, my voice trembling. “I’m… I’m going to miss you.”
He pulls back just enough to cradle my face in his hands. His eyes steady—sure in a way mine aren’t. “I love you. You’re my everything. As long as I have you here,” he says softly, “I’m coming back.”
“I love you, too.” My words barely holding together.
“Can you promise me one thing while I’m gone?”
“Anything.”
“Just be careful with Gavin? I’m worried about leaving you alone with him.”
“Sam…” I pull away from him. “We talked about this. You have nothing to worry about. You can trust me.”
“It’s not you I’m worried about. Just—” He takes a breath. “Anything he might say to you… about me… about us… don’t trust him. Trust what we’ve had all these years.” He’s almost shaking as the words come out.
I try my best to hide my confusion, but what kind of warning is that? Before I can ask more, we’re interrupted.
“Thirty seconds to line up!”
Sam crashes our mouths together. His tongue swirls over mine, and a small moan escapes his lips. The kiss is possessive and commanding. He breaks away and leaves me with a final “I love you” before running to line up with his fellow Marines.
I’m trying to stay focused on the fact I just said my last goodbyes to Sam for the next eight months, but all I can think about is the heated warning he left me about Gavin. Why would he use our final moments for that? And why does it kind of piss me off?
It’s been a month since Sam left. He called a few days after our goodbye at the base to let me know he’d made it there safely, but I’ve only heard from him once since. I’ve been doing a good job keeping myself busy.
Since the special, our ratings have been better than ever.
The District Attorney’s Office called Alexa, asking her to reveal her anonymous source, so they can finally press charges against him.
Of course, she refused. I think her exact words were, “It’s not my job to do yours for you.
” That really pissed them off. Alexa says she loves having a nemesis.
Everyone at work knows Sam’s gone and keeps asking how I’m doing. Every time I say, “I’m fine,” they tell me how strong I’m being.
The truth is, I really am fine. I love Sam.
Besides Alexa, he’s my best friend. But I’m not dependent on him.
He’s not my entire life. Do I worry about his safety, of course.
Do I miss him when I roll over and realize he’s not next to me, yeah.
But Sam and I have always had the kind of relationship that works well because we can be together and still do our own things.
We don’t need each other to breathe or function.
I’m working on my computer when I see Gavin walk by, nose buried in his phone.
“You meeting Alexa and me after work?” I ask as he passes me.
“Huh?” He doesn’t look up.
“You alright over there?” I giggle.
He stops right next to me, still staring at his phone. After a few more moments of scrolling, he finally lifts his head and looks my way. “Sorry. Important email. What did you ask?”
“Doolies after work?”
“Yeah. My turn to buy, right?”
“I think so. Okay. Go back to your important thing.” I wave him off. “See you later.”
He nods as he walks towards his office, nose back in his phone.
I never thought I would see the day, but Gavin and I have actually become legit friends over the last month.
He goes out with Alexa and me, and the three of us have a great time.
Sometimes I think Gavin has a thing for Alexa.
The thought sends a ping of jealousy through me.
Not because I want him or anything, but because if they get together, then we lose this great dynamic we’ve created.
At least… that’s what I keep telling myself.
I go back to what I was working on when I hear Gavin’s office door open.
“Can I have everyone’s attention please,” he yells.
I poke my head over my computer monitor to see what’s going on, as does everyone else in the newsroom.
“Dani, Alexa, do you two mind coming over here for a minute?” His face is flat, and I hate that I can’t read him.
I swivel my head around the room to look for Alexa, who’s over with a group of other reporters. Her eyes find mine, and her face drops, like we’re two kids who are about to get punished in front of the class. We reluctantly get up and make our way to Gavin, all eyes on us.
I lean in towards Gavin. “What the hell is going on?” I whisper.
He ignores me.
“I just got a very exciting email to share with you all.” He places his hands in his suit jacket pocket. “The day the Tate special aired, I realized there was only one day left to submit entries for the Regional Emmy Awards. So, I put it in for consideration.”
“You what?” Alexa and I gasp at the same time.
“The email just came in. I’m beyond delighted to announce that Alexa and Dani have officially been nominated for an Emmy Award. Congratulations!”
I hear the words, but they don’t fully register. Everything seems to be computing a second too late.
The spell finally breaks with a thunder of applause and the sudden weight of Alexa launching herself into me.
“Oh my God,” she screams at me.
I shake my head and finally come back to reality. “Oh my God!”
“Please don’t be too mad at me for not telling you I did this,” Gavin laughs. “I didn’t want you to be disappointed if the nomination didn’t come through.”
“Best boss ever!” Alexa cheers.
Gavin stands between Alexa and me, wrapping one arm over each of our shoulders. “We are going to Doolies to celebrate when the afternoon shows are over. Anyone who is off shift is welcome to join, and first round is on me!”
The entire newsroom explodes in more cheers.
The Emmy Awards. They’re not the big ones you see on television every year, but still not any less important.
Each region of the country has an awards ceremony for local broadcasts, and if you’re lucky, you go home with a shiny gold statue.
After nearly ten years, this is the first time I’ve been nominated.
“I am very proud of both of you,” Gavin says, swiveling his head to give us each a smile, lingering just slightly longer on me. His blue eyes burn holes in to my soul, and it causes a weight in my chest to start to lift.