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I laugh, "I'm not a teenager anymore. I barely play anymore. I mean, why would I? I sometimes am living in action."
"Well, except for the zombies."
"Yeah, you got me there." I pull into the parking lot of Shake Shack. It's an added bonus that I bought the house so close to this place. "What do you want?"
"Hm, a chicken shack and some fries."
"Drink?"
"Strawberry lemonade, please."
"Sounds good, little fox."
I pull up to the speaker and order; I got a cheeseburger for myself with a root beer. It's not too long of a wait, and soon I'm saying 'thank you' to the cashier and pulling out with excellent-smelling food. Daphne starts eating her fries. "You better not be eating my fries."
"I would never. Or I would just alternate between boxes so you couldn't even tell."
"Oh boy, I'm stuck with a woman who steals fries."
She puts her hair down, and I'm left awestruck at how naturally beautiful she is. I almost forgot I'm driving. She's starting to have her little freckles almost magnified by the summer sun. Her pink and black hair is in waves courtesy of it being wrapped up in a bun. She's stunning. I get back to looking at the road and continue to drive to the park.
"Are you going to tell me where we're going yet?"
"We're almost there."
Pulling into the park, I go straight for where the little pond that I know so well is. When I pull up, Daphne looks shocked.
"Why haven't I ever been here? It's beautiful."
The pond is hidden by Willow trees as tall as ever. Some branches almost touching the water. Some ducks are swimming, and hopefully, we don't disturb them too much. There's a little stone bench that's destroyed on the other side of the pond. I wonder how that happened. Maybe over the years, it just sunk and cracked. Maybe teenagers broke it. Either way, it makes the place look more ethereal.
"Archer, this is amazing."
"I come here when I want to keep my mind from wandering. It helps when I see a horrible case. Mainly the ones that involve women or children. It's appalling what people are capable of doing to the innocent."
"I'm so glad I'm not an agent that has to deal with the victims' families. I don't think I personally can handle telling someone a loved one passed on, let alone being brutally murdered. I don't know how you do it."
"It sucks, and I had a lot of therapy to get through from my first few years as an agent. One of my first cases was telling a mother that her daughter committed suicide because of her 'peers' at school. That was a long night staying up and looking at the wall."
"I'm sorry, Arch."
"Don't be sorry for me; I can handle my own. It's the families that I worry about. Especially when I leave after figuring out what happened. Well, technically, you're mainly the one who figures out what happens. Doesn't that take a toll?"
We get out of the car, and while she's looking at the pond, I pull the blanket out. I start to lay the blanket on the ground. She has the food in her hands and starts to sit down on it. She's still pondering the question; I can see her mind working through the look on her face.
She looks at me while taking a sip of her lemonade. "Yes, it does take a toll. I try to dissociate myself from every person that walks in, but that doesn't work. I memorized every person's name that had been on my table. Even the cold cases. I'm always trying to figure out more clues to help. Those victims never deserve to be forgotten."
I started to unpack the fast-food bag. Pulling out our sandwiches, I hand Daphne hers. The food is terrific, and it's so serene and quiet while we eat.
"Can I have a bite of yours?" Daphne asks me while looking at my burger.
"Of course, how could I ever deny you?"
She leans forward, her hair moving with her while she takes a bite right out of my hand. And man, does that do something primal to me. And what does she do to make it worse? Let out the softest moan imaginable. Now, I can't stop thinking about her moaning for me. Right here on this blanket.
"Keep doing those little noises, and I'm going to be making them come out much louder than that." She looks at me with a challenge in her eyes while licking her lips.
"Well, that would be rude since I am currently eating my lunch."
