Trip to Childhood Memories || Nicole

Nicole looked at Danny when he said that. "Oh I will?" she asked. "I better bring my Aussie hat then." Nicole added while watching him. "Tell me more about these cowgirls." she said while looking Danny in the eye.

"Course you will." Danny said in a lighter tone. "At least to me you'll always be the most beautiful one."
Setting the dishes down in the sink, Danny looked at Nicole, thinking for a moment. What could he tell her?
"Not sure what to tell you right now... I haven't been there for a while." he replied honestly. "What do you want to know?"

Nicole smiled when Danny said that to her. "Thank you Danny....what are these cowgirls like?" she asked in reply. Nicole wondered if they were like the women she knew from the remote areas of Australia that she met while in the army.

Danny thought for a moment, washing the dishes in the meantime. He didn't exactly meet that many cowgirls, but those he did meet, were similar in some way. And he had heard a lot about others, too.
"Well..." he started. "They're pretty confident and certainly don't mind getting their hands dirty. And they can be very headstrong and stubborn. Sometimes it seems that they love their horse more than anything."

Nicole nodded a bit when Danny said that to her. "I see" she replied, smiling a little. "I might as well dress the part while we are on this trip." she added while watching him, a cheeky grin on her face as she said that to him.

Danny chuckled a little in reply. But trying to imagine Nicole would be like an over-confident and stubborn woman was something he did not actually want. Although, he probably wouldn't mind that much, he knew her well enough, he'd just grab and kiss her if he wanted to. Not that he ever did that to another girl before.
"Heh, as long as you don't love a horse more than me... I can handle it." he teased her. He was actually cheering up a little again.

Nicole giggled a bit when Danny said that to her. "Well, I don't know how to ride a horse, so you don't have to worry yourself." she replied. "Though I've always wanted to wear the same boots as those sheilas." she added off the cuff.

"We'll have to make sure to get you some." Danny said with a small grin on his face, picturing Nicole in a plaid blouse and jeans skirt with boots. Or just jeans, since the skirt wasn't really the right choice if you worked on a farm or rode a horse. Danny, on the other side, knew that he'd be very comfortable on a horse back, riding through the fields and woods. Maybe he could take Nicole along, if she was up to trying it out.

"I could teach you how to ride when we're there." he offered, hoping she would go for it.

Nicole nodded a bit when Danny said that to her. "Thanks Danny, I would love it if you could teach me." she replied, smiling a bit at the same time. She pictured herself on a horse after saying that to him. I can do it she said to herself.

Danny gave her the first real smile this morning. He was glad that she agreed to it. For him, riding had always been a way to clear his head, sadly he didn't ride anymore. He couldn't quite afford a horse at a stable, so that hobby kind of died on him. But he would take his old friend Diamond out for long rides, whenever he was visiting his grandparents. Sadly that didn't happen very often either.

"Well then you should pack some old jeans." Danny told her in a light tone.

Nicole nodded in reply when Danny said that to her. "I'll remember that" she replied. "Would it be wrong to say that cowgirls are the sweet and caring kind?" she asked.

Danny looked at Nicole, shaking his head in reply, while he finished the dishes.
"I wouldn't think so." he replied. "I mean they're usually sweet and caring underneath their tough face. Least the few I knew back then."

well, he may have had a little thing with a cowgirl when he was just a teenager, but it always had been fun, although this one he was with... he actually needed the whole summer to convince her that he was a good guy. That girl had been his first holiday romance, when he was 16, the last summer before he moved to Vegas.

Nicole smiled when Danny said that to her, then kissed him. "Sounds like the sheilas from the Australian outback." she replied. "Tough, yet gentle" Nicole added while watching Danny.

Danny nodded a little in reply, drying his hands. He would put the dishes away later, when they dried. "Most of them." he told Nicole. "But then again... living in the country, on a farm, is hard work."

He remembered that his grandparents used to have a lot of farmhands around to get all the work done that needed to be done. He helped, when he stayed there and he knew how hard it was, physically to take care of such a big piece of land and all the animals.

Nicole nodded a bit in reply when Danny told him that. "That it is" she said to him. "I better go shower" Nicole added. She kissed Danny's cheek, then headed back down to the bathroom.

Danny watched her leave with a small smile on his face. When she was in bathroom, Danny took the glass of Whiskey from yesterday and took it to the kitchen, then wiped the coffee table. He knew how to keep busy and there was always something to do.


A few days later...
Danny and Nicole were on the plane to Tennessee. It was the day before the wake and two days before the funeral. They would get to John C. Tune Airport in the afternoon. Danny actually rented a car at the airport, so they wouldn't have to take a taxi to the farm.
Danny was once again a little lost in thoughts, looking at the clouds through the small window, past Nicole, whom he let sit by the window.

Nicole held Danny's hand during the flight, she was looking forward to this trip despite the reason why they were going. At the moment, Nicole was looking out the window, taking in the clouds as she sat there. "Such an ace view" she said while sitting there.

A small smile came to Danny face, hearing her comment. He gently held onto her hand, still more than happy that she came along. He wasn't exactly happy to go on this trip and he knew that a lot of sadness and sorrow would be around during their stay. On the other hand it felt nice going back to the place where Danny spent so much time after his mother left. The farm his grandparents owned was like a second home for him. He always felt safe there.

Pulling himself out of his sad mood, he actually looked at the clouds outside. White, fluffy clouds on bright blue sky... it really was a nice view. "It is..." Danny said in a soft tone.

Nicole smiled when Danny said that to her, then looked back to him. "How are you feeling?" she asked while looking at him, still holding her hand as she asked that.

Danny leaned back in his seat, letting out a small sigh. How was he feeling? He didn't actually know. It was a mixture of sadness and nervousness, but on the outside he seemed to be okay.
"Don't really know." Danny said quietly. "A little sad... but at the same a little nervous about going back to Tennessee. And so happy about the fact that I will have to see my father..."

His father... that had been one of the thoughts he had pushed aside the whole time before he actually boarded the plane. He didn't want to think about meeting him, nor had he any idea how to react when that happened.

Nicole nodded a bit when Danny said that to her. "Understandable" she said to him in reply as the attendant walked up to them. Nicole looked up and smiled a bit at the woman as she walked over to them.

Danny only nodded a little in reply. He didn't really know what else to say. There were always so many memories coming to his mind when he was on a plane to Tennessee. Especially now that he knew he would never see his grandfather again. He was sad that he couldn't visit them sooner and didn't get the chance to say goodbye.
"We'll be there soon..." Danny said to Nicole. "I'm actually glad that they had snow."

Nicole looked at Danny when he said that to her. "Snow?" she asked while watching him as she sat there. "Well, I'm glad you talked me into getting this jacket." she added.

Danny nodded a little reply, giving Nicole a small chuckle to her comment. He knew why he talked her into it. He knew that there was a slight chance at snow in Nashville, even though it wasn't very much, but it was enough to turn the world around the farm into a winter wonderland.
"Certainly knew what I was doing." he said. "It's never much snow, but it looks beautiful."

"That you did" Nicole said to him in reply before kissing him and looking back out the window of the plane. It was clear that Nicole was happy to be going with him on this trip.