The Art Of Friendship by Allison McDonnell

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Chapter Five: A Brand New Day

For Devon and Danziger, the following day was business as usual. And it was going to stay that way even if it ended up killing them (or Julia and Alonzo).

Both leaders spoke very little to one another or to their two traveling companions. Instead, John buried himself under the hood of the Dunerail to finalize some last minute repairs while Devon worked in solitude cleaning up and reorganizing the supplies which hadn't been destroyed by the storm.

In the late morning hours, the smaller group was rejoined by the rest of the members of Eden Advance. The children ran straight to their awaiting parents while the other Edenites went directly to Julia and Alonzo with the anxious hope that there was an update regarding Devon and Danziger's clandestine romance.

Though nearly a dozen voices spoke at once, Bess' was the most assertive. "So, were you able to catch them together?"

Solace grinned from ear to ear. "Oh, yeah. We caught 'em all right."

A loud cheer rose from the colonists causing Devon and John to briefly stop their separate conversations with Uly and True and look in the direction of the commotion. Unable to hear the specifics of what was being said, the two leaders could only shrug at each other before continuing their individual reunions with their kids.

"Tell us what happened!" Magus demanded in a hushed voice to keep from being overheard.

"And don't leave out anything," Baines added.

"I'll tell you every salacious detail," Alonzo pledged proudly, "tonight after we've camped."

There was an outburst of annoyed groans at the pilot's announcement.

"Aw, c'mon!" Walman exclaimed in a boisterous whisper. "We wanna know now!"

"You can't keep us in suspense like this!" Denner furthered.

Alonzo was determined to hold his ground. "Nope, you'll just have to wait," he stated firmly, folding his arms in front of him. "And I promise that this evening will be an enlightening experience for everyone." He broke into his best fly-boy smile. "Especially Devon and John when we confront them about their relationship in front of the whole group."

Julia stepped forward sporting a wicked grin not normally associated with someone whose chromosomes had been purposefully skewed to limit overt displays of emotion. "Tonight Devon and Danziger are going to face the music," she vowed with a resolute nod of her head.

_______________________________________________

Aside from a few stilted, very nonspecific conversations with their children, Devon and John walked by themselves in silence for most of their twenty click journey. Thanks to the roller-coaster chain of events of the prior evening, not only were both leaders more than slightly preoccupied, they were suffering the consequences of a lack of sleep. In Devon's case, her tried and true method of 'guided imagery' to battle her restlessness had proven to be more of a hindrance than a help. Every time she'd closed her eyes, her mind had immediately flashed to the very short-term memory of John and how incredibly good his bare skin had felt against her own. She recalled the almost desperate look in his eyes as he'd studied her face, waiting for her to make the final move to join them together into one. Even now, her flesh tingled with excitement at the prospect of the many things the two of them would have done had they been allowed to continue unfettered.

But as the sun languidly settled behind a distant mountain range, Devon's thoughts began to drift to the eye-opening discussion that had directly preceded their physical expressions of affection. She'd disclosed information to John which she'd never planned on sharing with anyone. More than that, she had actually cried. Even with her newer, more open attitude, impulsively letting out and acting on her feelings like that was still a bit foreign to Devon (although she'd been making great strides in that department in the four months since her release from cold-sleep).

She began to reflect back to her childhood, recalling how hard her parents had worked to instill within her the virtue that the expression of one's emotions was a sign of weakness; something which her adversaries could use against her. Spontaneous reactions could lead to carelessness. Furthermore, it could imply that Devon was no longer in control of her circumstances and, in many instances, that could be dangerous.

For the most part, the philosophy had served her well throughout the years, keeping her at the top of her game. Yet even with her parent's many warnings, Devon had been left unprepared for the vile deceptions perpetrated by Uly's biological father. He'd been as slick as they come, weaseling his way into her heart while he pulled the wool over her eyes as to his real intentions. Before she'd finally come to her senses, he'd nearly stolen her company right out from under her nose. Impregnating her had been his last ditch effort to remain in the luxurious lifestyle in which he'd grown accustomed to living.

And in its own twisted way, his strategy had succeeded. Devon was blackmailed into relinquishing control of several of her more lucrative holdings in exchange for him signing away his parental rights to Uly and agreeing to permanently stay out of their lives. Only later was she informed that he was a carrier of the gene that caused the Syndrome and had knowingly passed the condition on to her son.

Devon had learned a painful lesson, one that she'd sworn to herself that she would never allow to be repeated. In time, she'd successfully repaired her damaged ego and her shattered confidence. She'd also rebuilt her company, making it even more profitable than before Uly's father had entered the picture. And apart from Yale and Uly, she'd kept her social and business acquaintances at arms length to protect herself from being hurt. No matter what Devon showed on the outside, deep down, she'd never really bought into the idea that any of them were ever truly her friends. And without exception, she'd been right on the money.

Then came G889 and the members of Eden Advance and the world as she knew it was turned upside down.

Sometimes it was overwhelming for her. She had friends-- loyal, trustworthy, bona fide friends. People who cared for her just as much as she cared for them. For the first time in years, Devon could be herself without secretly harboring the worry of being stabbed in the back when she'd least expected it.

However, she was still a work in progress and some walls were taking longer to dismantle than others. Even after ten months of traveling together, it was often difficult for Devon to convey certain feelings or personal information to her newfound companions. Many of the more private details of her life also remained concealed. But as time passed, she was surprised to find that she was beginning to share her deepest thoughts and fears with one person in particular.

In a way, it made perfect sense to Devon that John Danziger possessed the ability to elicit such brutally candid responses from her. From the beginning, he'd reveled in his innate talent for knowing exactly which buttons to push to draw out her anger. It was only logical that, if he put his mind to it, it wouldn't be too difficult for him to extract other feelings as well.

"I would do anything for you, Devon. I think you know that."

The words made her heart beat faster every time she replayed them in her mind. John was different from any of her previous suitors. He had no interest in her pedigree or the size of her credit account. In fact, if anything, her upper class background and wealth were considered to be obstacles in their relationship. John probably would have preferred that Devon had been raised in the Quadrant as he had.

Was Danziger sometimes abrasive? Definitely. Antagonistic? You bet. Stubborn as a mule? Guilty as charged. Was he just as reluctant as Devon was to admit to certain emotions or to relay the particulars of his life before Eden Project? Without a doubt.

But were John's motives for wanting to be with her sincere? After their talk the prior evening, Devon was now fully convinced that the answer was a resounding yes.

She'd known for a while that she cared for John and enjoyed spending time with him. She was certainly attracted to him physically. But it was one thing to invite him into her bed; it was quite another to welcome him into her heart. Old habits die hard and, almost involuntarily, a part of her had kept Danziger at a safe distance, afraid that if she'd let her guard down completely, she would be left defenseless. For the first time, she wondered if her insistence on delaying their relationship until they'd reached New Pacifica had been chosen with the purpose of buying her some time; perhaps to postpone the inevitable hurt or betrayal that she'd subconsciously assumed awaited her down the road. She realized with a shock that, until yesterday, she was continuing to withhold her feelings from him out of her fear of history repeating itself.

But now the rules had changed yet again and Devon no longer wanted to hold back. She wanted John to see her in her most unprotected form-- emotional, fallible, human. And she understood that he would accept all of her qualities, good and bad, and never take advantage of her. She was sure that it would be safe to trust him. It would be safe to allow herself to love him.

As the vehicles ground to a halt in front of her, Devon found herself staring at Danziger's rough features and posturing as he began barking out various instructions to the crew. At that moment, there was barely a trace of the sensitive man whom she'd poured out her soul to the prior evening. Instead, he displayed the usual gruff facade that he wore like a shroud.

She was pleased to have been given the opportunity to view the caring, vulnerable person that John really was, but rarely permitted anyone else but the children to see. He was slowly beginning to allow Devon into his world, although it was obvious that he was also coming to terms with demons from his own past. Maybe Danziger's reluctance to start a relationship until New Pacifica had been a delay tactic on his part, too, Devon supposed to herself.

While still inwardly pondering her new theory, she made her way over to the Transrover where John was busy doling out their supplies for the night. As he placed a rolled up tent into her awaiting arms, his eyes quickly scanned the immediate area to ensure that they were out of earshot from the other colonists.

He leaned in slightly and met her gaze, his demeanor now much softer and more approachable than before. "I guess we need to talk," he offered with a slight shrug of his shoulders.

She nodded. "How about we meet tonight after the others fall asleep?"

"I'm scheduled for guard duty. We can talk then, if you want," he suggested, his tone a bit awkward.

Devon picked up on his uneasiness and gave him a small smile of encouragement. She didn't want him to think that she was angry with anything that had happened between them the previous night.

"That works for me," she warmly agreed. "See you later."

Reassured by Devon's words and disposition, Danziger returned her grin and whispered, "Yeah. See ya'."

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