Hello Daria
Daria got home from her date early. She抎 had a good time but she figured this was the last date they would have. He was a nice guy but they definitely weren抰 right for each other. It wasn抰 the first time for this and likely wouldn抰 be the last. Going into the kitchen, she got a bottle of water. When she returned to the living room she sat down to watch a little news before calling it a night.
As she sat there the phone rang. Pressing the button, she answered. 揌ello??/p>
揗om??/p>
揥hat抯 wrong??/p>
揚(yáng)lease slow down. I can抰 understand you.?/p>
揘O!?/p>
揌ow??/p>
揥hy??/p>
揂re you sure it was them??/p>
揑s Quinn alright??/p>
揑抦 leaving right now. I抣l meet you there.?/p>
Daria pressed the button to shut off the phone. She couldn抰 move. The shock was too much. Neil and Quinn were dead. How could that happen? She sat there for a few seconds as the news sank in. Suddenly the truth hit her hard and she broke down in tears. She didn抰 know how long she cried but eventually she was calm enough find her keys and leave.
The drive to Neil and Quinn抯 took less than two hours but tonight it seemed like it took twice that long. All the way there she thought about everything they had gone through growing up and how close they had become. Now that was a memory. Finally she got to their house.
Pulling up, she ran from the car to the front door and knocked. She hoped it would be a mistake and her sister would answer with an angry look for Daria for waking her up so late. The reality was Jake opened the door with the saddest face she had ever seen.
When he saw his other daughter he broke down in a fit of tears. That was all it took to get Daria going again. For several minutes the pair embraced in the doorway sharing their grief. When they separated the pair went into the living room and sat down. Daria looked at her dad.
揝o it抯 true.?/p>
Jake nodded and said, 揧es.?/p>
揥hat happened??/p>
揂ccording to the police officer they were pulling out of the theater when another car ran the red light and struck them. He said it looked like they were killed instantly.?/p>
Daria bowed her head. 揑t can抰 be.?/p>
Jake leaned over and put his hand on her shoulder. 揑t is.?He paused. 揑t is.?/p>
Daria looked around. 揥here抯 Mom??/p>
揝he抯 upstairs with Quinn.?/p>
揙h Quinn.?Daria couldn抰 imagine what her niece was thinking right now. She was only six years old. This is something she should never have to experience. Sadly that wasn抰 an option. She wondered how she was taking the news. She looked at Jake.
揝o does she know??/p>
揥e talked to her but I don抰 think she really understands.?/p>
揥hat did you tell her??/p>
揥e said her parents were gone.?/p>
揑s that it??/p>
揥ell we tried to explain but she抯 so young. It抯 hard to tell her this in a way she can understand.?/p>
Daria shook her head.
揝he抯 going to figure it out before this is over. What are we going to do when that happens??/p>
Jake bowed his head. 揑 don抰 know.?Thinking about his granddaughter for a second, he repeated. 揑 just don抰 know.?/p>
Just then, Helen came down the stairs. Daria immediately got up and went to her. What followed was a replay of what she and Jake had experienced earlier. Eventually she and Helen went over to the couch and sat down. Daria turned to Helen.
揝o how is she??/p>
揝he finally went to sleep.?Helen said. 揑抦 glad. The next few days are going to be difficult. She needs her rest.?/p>
揥hat do we do now??Daria asked.
Helen looked at Daria. 揥e wait until morning. Then we make arrangements.?/p>
It was still a few hours until dawn but nobody slept. As the hours passed, they hardly spoke. Each was wrapped up in their thoughts trying to make sense of what had happened. Eventually the silence was broken by the sound of a soft voice.
揂.D.??/p>
Daria looked up to see Quinn standing at the foot of the stairs in her pajamas. She got up and went over to hug her niece.
揌ello Quinn.?/p>
As they separated Quinn looked at her aunt.
揧ou look sad.?/p>
揑 am Quinn.?/p>
揥hy??/p>
揃ecause of your Mom and Dad.?/p>
揥hat did they do? I抦 sure they didn抰 mean it.?/p>
This innocent comment made Daria smile for a second.
揑 know they didn抰.?/p>
Helen came over to where they were standing. She didn抰 want to interrupt but it was going to be a tough day. If she could delay some things a little she would.
揝o Quinn. Would you like some breakfast??/p>
揑 guess so.?/p>
揥ell come into the kitchen with me. I抣l show you how to make french toast.?/p>
揙kay.?/p>
With tha,t the pair went into the kitchen. Daria went back over to the living room and sat next to Jake. As they sat there Jake put his arm around her and pulled her close to his side. They stayed that way until Helen called them in to eat.
Breakfast looked good. Over the years Helen had really become a great cook but nobody was really in the mood to eat. They knew they should but it was hard to think about that when there was so much to be done. After a while they all just left the table and went back to the living room.
Eventually the time came for them to start their grim tasks. Somebody needed to stay with Quinn while the others went to make the arrangements. Daria volunteered to stay behind. She wasn抰 ready to see her sister yet and felt she would be better off taking care of Quinn.
After the pair left, Daria went back to the living room. Quinn was sitting in the floor watching a cartoon. She sat next to her niece and watched with her. After the show ended she turned the TV off and looked at her.
換uinn. Why don抰 you go upstairs and get changed? It抯 going to be a busy day so you need to get dressed.?/p>
揙kay.?/p>
As Daria watched Quinn go upstairs she realized she still didn抰 understand what had happened. Sometime over the next few days she would have to have it explained to her. The question was how.
In order to keep her mind occupied, Daria went into the kitchen to clean up. She wasn抰 very domestic but she hoped this would help her cope for at least a little while. It didn抰 work. As she searched for where to put everything she was constantly reminded of her sister. When she finished, she went back into the living room.
She had expected to see Quinn sitting on the floor watching cartoons again but she wasn抰 there. Guessing she must still be in her room she upstairs she went to Quinn抯 room and looked inside. Sure enough, Quinn was sitting at a small table working on a puzzle. As Daria entered, Quinn looked up.
揌i.?/p>
Daria walked over and knelt down next to her.
揝o what are you doing??/p>
揚(yáng)utting a puzzle together.?/p>
揥hat is it??/p>
揑t抯 supposed to be a hummingbird and a flower. See??/p>
Quinn held up the box lid to show her aunt.
揑t抯 pretty.?Daria said.
揧ea. Dad got it for me last week.?/p>
Daria fought not to break up again.
Looking at her aunt, Quinn noticed her expression had changed, 揂.D. you look sad again.?she said.
Quickly regaining her composure, Daria said, 揑抦 sorry.?/p>
揑t抯 okay. I get sad sometimes too.?/p>
Daria just looked at her. 揝he抯 so innocent.?She thought.
Quinn looked at Daria.
?/span>揂.D.??/p>
揧es??/p>
揅an I ask you a question??/p>
揧es.?/p>
揋randma and Grandpa said Mom and Dad were gone.?/p>
揧es.?/p>
揥hen are they coming back? I want to have this finished
before they do so Dad can see it.?/p>
Daria wasn抰 sure what to say. As she sat there trying to
decide the best way to answer, Quinn just looked at her. Finally she spoke up. 換uinn would you come with me.?/p>
Quinn got up and went to sit next to Daria on her bed. After
they got positioned, Daria looked down at her. 揑抦 sorry Quinn but they aren抰 coming back.?/p>
Quinn started crying. Daria pulled Quinn close to her. As
she held her she spoke up. 揋o ahead and cry. It抯 okay.?/p>
Quinn pulled back and looked at her. 揘o it抯 not. I didn抰 mean to do it. It was an accident. I
didn抰 want them to leave me.?/p>
揥hat do you mean??/p>
揧esterday. I spilled a bottle of orange juice in the
kitchen. They were really mad. I didn抰 think they would leave me because of
it.?/p>
Daria realized she really didn抰 understand what had
happened. She should try to clear things up a little. She hoped she wouldn抰
make things worse. 揘o Quinn. It has nothing to do with you. They were in an
accident last night. It抯 because of that they are gone now.?/p>
揥hat kind of accident??/p>
揟hey were driving home when another car hit theirs. They
got hurt so bad they didn抰??/p>
Daria couldn抰 continue. She didn抰 want to break it to
Quinn alone. She needed someone else there. Quinn looked at her. 揟hey didn抰 what??/p>
There was no way of putting it off. She had to say
something. 揟hey were hurt too bad.?/p>
揥hat do you mean??/p>
Daria closed her eyes. It hurt to say it but there was no
other way. 揟hey didn抰 live.?/p>
Quinn抯 eyes got larger than Daria had ever seen them
before. 揧ou mean they died??/p>
Daria bowed her head. 揧es Quinn.?/p>
There was silence. After a second Daria looked over to see
what was going on. She wished she hadn抰. What she saw was her niece in so much
pain that Quinn couldn抰 do anything. Daria spoke up. 換uinn??/p>
That was all it took. Quinn wrapped her arms around her aunt
and cried tears that didn抰 stop. All Daria could do was hold her. As Daria
hugged and slowly rocked her niece, all she said was. 揑t抯 okay Quinn. Cry.?/p>
After a while Jake returned to the house. Helen was still at
the funeral home taking care of the details. The stress was getting to be more
than he could handle. He felt there had to be something he could do here. He
didn抰 know what it was but he would find something. When he didn抰 see
Daria or Quinn he called out their names. After he got no answer he wondered where they were. He knew
they hadn抰 left because Daria抯 car was still outside. Remembering she was
taking care of Quinn, he went up to her room. Opening the door, he peeked in.
What he saw almost broke him up. Daria was sitting there holding Quinn as tight
as possible. They weren抰 moving or saying anything. They were just holding
each other. He stuck his head in and in a soft voice said. 揇aria??/p>
Daria looked up. She lifted a finger to indicate he should
wait. She let go of Quinn so she could look at her. 換uinn. I need to get up now. Why don抰 you lie down for a
while? You need some rest.?/p>
Quinn looked at her. 揇on抰 leave me. Please??/p>
揑抦 not going far. I抣l be right here if you need me.
Okay.?/p>
揙kay.?/p>
揘ow you lay down.?/p>
As Quinn reclined on her bed she reached over and grabbed the
bear Daria had given her for her birthday last year. A.D. may have left but she
still needed something to hug. Daria stood up and went into the hallway. After
she closed the door Jake looked at her. 揝o what happened??/p>
揝he figured it out.?/p>
揌ow??/p>
揝he kept asking questions. Eventually the truth came out.?/p>
揙h Daria. What happened??/p>
揝he cried and I held her.?/p>
揊or how long??/p>
揥hat time is it??/p>
揂bout 11:45.?/p>
揂lmost three hours.?/p>
揧ou抳e been holding her that long??/p>
揑 didn抰 know what else to do. I just knew she was hurting
and I wanted to help her. Holding was all I could do. Why are you home??/p>
揌elen is still making arrangements. There was nothing I
could do there so I came home to do something.?/p>
揥hat??/p>
揑 don抰 know. What should I do??/p>
Daria thought for a second. 揥e should probably start contacting
people.?she said. 揑抦 sure very few people know yet.?/p>
Jake nodded and said, 揧ou抮e probably right.?/p>
Going downstairs, the pair went to the kitchen to start the
grim task of relaying the terrible news. Jake decided to call family and Daria
took their address book and started calling their friends. The calls seemed to go on forever. Daria knew Neil and Quinn
had lots of friends but the list was larger than they anticipated. The task was
made even worse by having to repeat what had happened to everyone they spoke
with. Daria broke the unpleasantness of the job by checking in on Quinn from
time to time. Eventually Helen returned. When she walked in, Daria was the
first to speak. 揇id you take care of everything??/p>
Helen sat in a chair. 揧es. The funeral will be at 2pm Monday.?/p>
Jake spoke up. 揥hen will they be ready??/p>
揟he director said everything should be ready by 5pm. I set
the viewing for 8 to 10pm and all day tomorrow.?/p>
Nobody said anything for a second. Finally Helen asked,
揥here抯 Quinn??/p>
揑n her room. She抯 finally sleeping.?Daria said. 揥hat do you mean??/p>
揝he figured it out.?/p>
揙h my. How did she react??/p>
Daria looked at her. 揌ow do you think she reacted? She cried for hours.?/p>
揑抦 sorry. That was silly question.?/p>
揑t抯 okay. None of us are thinking right at the moment.?Daria said. 揇o you think we should go up there??Helen asked. 揑t would probably be a good idea.?Daria said. 揝he needs
comforting and the two of you could use some as well.?/p>
揙kay. Do you want to go up with us??/p>
Daria looked at her mom and shook her head. 揘o, you two go. I抣l stay here and answer the phone. You
don抰 need to be disturbed.?/p>
揙kay but if you need us come on up.?/p>
揑 will.?/p>
Jake and Helen stood up and left the kitchen. As she heard
them climb the stairs she sat there alone with her thoughts. When they came
down a little while later, Daria looked up at them. 揝tacy called. She said she was flying out in the morning. I
couldn抰 get the rest of her fashion club friends. She said she didn抰 know if
she could find them but she would try.?/p>
Helen sat down. 揟hat抯 good.?she said. 揌ave you heard
from anyone else??/p>
揓ane called. She抯 leaving as soon as Roy can get
home to take care of Lane and Grace.?Daria said. Everyone sat there in silence for a moment. Finally Daria
spoke again. 揑 need to leave tonight. I抣l be back in the morning.?/p>
Jake looked at her. 揥hy are you leaving??he asked. 揑 left immediately after hearing the news.?Gesturing at
her dress, she continued. 揟his is all I have to wear. I need to go home and
get some more clothes.?/p>
揥hen are you going to go??/p>
揑n a little while.?/p>
Helen asked, 揇o you have to go??/p>
揥hat do you mean??/p>
揇oesn抰 Jane have to drive through your town to get here?
Couldn抰 she stop off and get what you need? We would really like you to stay
with us tonight.?/p>
Daria hadn抰 thought about that. Hoping she could catch Jane
before she left, she dialed the number. Luckily she was still there. Jane said
it was no problem so Daria gave her the code to get in through the garage along
with what to get. When she hung up, she looked at Helen. 揓ane will get the stuff. I can stay here.?/p>
揟hat抯 good Sweetie.?/p>
揝o how is Quinn doing??/p>
揝he抯 not crying right now but is still upset. I don抰 know
what we抮e going to do about the funeral.?/p>
Daria didn抰 understand. 揥hat do you mean??she asked. 揥ell I don抰 think she should attend.?Helen said. 揝he抯
so young. It might be too much for her.?/p>
揃ut she needs to say goodbye Mom.?/p>
揝he can still do that but it would probably be better if it
was a little later. When emotions were a little lower.?/p>
揃ut she抯 hurting now.?/p>
Jake looked at Daria. 揌elen抯 right Daria. She抯 too young to experience this
right now. We need to help her get through this very carefully.?/p>
揝o what are we going to do during the funeral home and the
funeral itself??Daria asked. Helen interrupted, 揥e抣l have a sitter stay with her when
we抮e not here. It will only be a few times.?/p>
Jake joined in the conversation again. 揂fter that we抣l figure out how to help Quinn.?/p>
Helen resumed, 揢ntil then we will have to be careful so we
don抰 upset her too much.?nbsp; Daria bowed her head. 揑 guess you抮e right. I just wish we could do more for her
right now. This does bring up another question.?/p>
揥hat??Helen asked. Daria looked at her parents. 揥hat抯 going to happen to her now??/p>
They sat there in silence looking at each other. Nobody had
an answer. The funeral home was difficult. Before the public was
allowed in, Jake, Helen and Daria were given some time alone with Neil and
Quinn. This was the first time Daria had seen them since the accident. Seeing
them in their coffins, the reality of their loss finally hit her and she broke
down completely. It turned out to be more than she could handle. Running out of
the room, she found the restroom and locked herself in a stall to cry. By the
time she returned, people had started showing up to pay their respects. Daria couldn抰 believe the sheer volume of people who were
there. As people came up to give their condolences she saw Jane. She
immediately went over. When she got to where Jane was, the two hugged.
While still in their embrace, Jane said, 揇aria. I抦 so sorry.?/p>
揟hank you.?/p>
They went to a more isolated part of the room, found a sofa
and sat down. Jane turned to Daria. 揜oy wishes he could come but he needed to stay with kids.?/p>
揟hat抯 fine. I understand.?/p>
揝o how are you holding up??Jane asked. 揙kay I guess.?she said. 揗om and Dad are holding up as
well as can be expected.?/p>
揝o how抯 their little girl??/p>
換uinn? She抯 not doing very well right now. She finally
figured out her parents were gone for good. It抯 been understandably rough for
her.?/p>
Jane shook her head slowly. 揑 can抰 even imagine.?/p>
揑抳e been with her all day and it抯 tough for me accept. I
can抰 even begin to guess how she抯 feeling.?/p>
揝o what抯 going to happen to her??/p>
Daria bowed her head. 揥e don抰 know.?Pausing for a moment,
she said, 揥e really don抰 know.?/p>
揑 hate to run but I need to get to the hotel and check in
before they give away my reservation. I know this isn抰 a good time to ask but
do you want to get your clothes now??/p>
Daria looked at Jane. 揇on抰 worry about the hotel.?she said.
揚(yáng)lease stay with us. It would be nice to have a friend near.?/p>
揂re you sure it抯 okay??Jane asked. 揑t抣l have to be. You just stay here and we抣l go there
later okay??/p>
Jane nodded. 揙kay.?/p>
After everyone had left. Jake, Helen and Daria got ready to go
back to the house. Daria went over to her parents. 揑 asked Jane to stay with us tonight. She can stay with me.
Do you mind??/p>
揙f course not. She抯 welcome.?Helen said. When they got back to the house, Jake took the sitter home.
Helen went up to stay with Quinn while Jane and Daria stayed downstairs. As
they were alone they reminisced about growing up and all the things they had
gone through with Quinn. After all those years the incidents seemed silly now.
Eventually Jake got back and they all decided it was time to try to get some
rest. Sleeping arrangements turned out to be difficult.
Nobody wanted to stay in Neil and Quinn抯 room and there was only one extra
room in the house. Eventually Daria realized the couch folded out into a bed so
she and Jane decided to sleep there. During the night, Jane thought she felt the mattress move
but she didn抰 really notice until she rolled over and realized she was on
Daria抯 side of the couch. She wondered where Daria had gone. Getting up, she
went into the kitchen. Not finding her there, she went upstairs. As she went
down the hall she noticed the door to Quinn抯 room was open. Peeking inside,
she saw Daria sitting next to the bed looking at her niece. There was nothing
she could do so she went downstairs. The next day was a little easier for Daria to handle. More
people showed up to give their respects. That afternoon, Stacy finally made it
in. She had really become a confident young woman. Even though she was stronger
and more confident she still had a hard time when she saw her childhood friend
lying in the coffin. When she saw Daria, she went over and explained she
couldn抰 find Sandi or Tiffany. It seemed that she would be the only one
to show. Once more, when the day was over, everyone resumed the
sleeping arrangements from the previous night. Just like the night before Jane
was eventually alone in the bed. She figured Daria was with Quinn again and
didn抰 go look for her. The next day was the funeral. As everyone sat in the chapel,
Daria finally noticed the lack of mourners from Neil抯 side of the family. His
mother had died when he was very young and his father had passed away a few
years ago but she figured someone would come to show their respects. Just
before the service started, one elderly man came in and sat down. Later, Daria
would learn it was his only surviving uncle. After the funeral Jane had to leave. She explained she had
responsibilities that she needed to finish and apologized. Daria said she
understood and thanked her for everything she had done. After Jane left it was
once again just the Morgendorffers in the house. Now that the funeral was done
came the unpleasant task of handling all the legal details. Nobody was ready to
start that so soon after the service so they decided to wait until the next
morning. The next day, as they were trying to get everything together,
the phone rang. Helen answered, 揌ello.?/p>
揑抦 Helen Morgendorffer.?/p>
揧es Quinn抯 mother.?/p>
揧ou are??/p>
揟hey did??/p>
揑 see.?/p>
揧es please.?/p>
揌ow about 1pm tomorrow??/p>
揤ery well. See you then.?/p>
揋oodbye.?/p>
As she hung up the phone, Jake looked at her and asked,
揥hat was that about??/p>
揟hat was a Mr. Richards.?Helen said. 揌e was Neil and
Quinn抯 attorney. It seems they had a will. He wants to come by here tomorrow
for the reading.?/p>
Daria spoke up. 揥hy here? I thought they would want to do
that at their office.?/p>
Helen looked at Daria. 揘eil and Quinn insisted it be read here. They wanted this
to be done in familiar surroundings.?/p>
揑 can抰 believe they had a will.?Jake said. Helen turned to him. 揑 can. Neil was always the kind to make sure things were
taken care of.?/p>
Both Jake and Daria nodded in agreement. He wasn抰 the kind
to leave things to chance. The next afternoon, Mr. Richards showed up at the house.
Before everything got started, Quinn went upstairs with the sitter. This wasn抰
for her to hear. After Quinn left, everyone went into the dining room and sat
down. The first order of business was to designate Helen as the executor of the
estate. After that came the official reading. Some of their possessions were
distributed to various people but most of the estate was to be placed in a
trust to be sure that all of Quinn抯 needs would be met. The last part of the
will involved Daria. When she heard what they wanted her to have she didn抰
know what to do. She had never assumed this would happen. She had to think
about this. Apparently Neil and Quinn had figured this might be the
case. Mr. Richards produced a letter that they requested be read by Daria in
private. As he handed her the letter, everyone got up and went into the living
room. After the door was closed, she was alone. Sitting there, she looked at the envelope in front of her.
She was afraid to open it. Whatever it contained it would be the last time her
sister spoke to her and she wasn抰 sure if she could handle that. She figured she had no choice. Taking a deep breath, she
picked up the envelope and opened it. Inside was one piece of paper. As she
unfolded it she immediately recognized Quinn抯 handwriting. After another deep
breath, she started reading. Hello Daria, If you are
reading this it means Neil and I never got around to discussing this with you.
For that we apologize. We meant to but never seemed to find the time. In spite
of that we hope you will honor our request. You 憆e
probably wondering why we want you to take Quinn. The answer is very simple.
You two belong together. Ever since the first time you two met there was a
connection. Over time it became clear to Neil and me if something happened to
us you should be the one to take care of our little girl. That isn抰
the only reason though. When I was pregnant with Quinn, you were so wonderful.
Whenever I needed something you were always there. I know how much you didn抰
like doing many of the things we did then but you never complained. I treasured
the time we spent together. However, after every visit, I cried for you. You
were trying to be so strong but I could see the hurt in your eyes. I knew if
there was any way I could help you become a mother I would. Now is your
opportunity. Take our child and raise her. You抮e her aunt but she needs a
mother so become one. You will be a wonderful parent but be prepared. It won抰
be easy. Raising a child has its frustrations but those are far outweighed by
the joys you will experience. I know this
is a lot to ask of you right now but please do this. We know we made the right
decision. Don抰 question it. We didn抰. I love you Sis.
I always did. Goodbye. Daria didn抰 cry. Tears had flown freely over the past few
days but this letter filled her with so many different emotions she couldn抰
react in any way. What her sister and Neil had done was amazing. She didn抰
know what to do. Daria didn抰 know how long she sat there but she had to think
about this. After some time she read the letter again. This second reading gave
her the answer she needed. Carefully she folded the letter and returned it to
the envelope. Standing up she went to the door. Pausing for a second to compose
herself, she went into the living room. Everyone just looked at her. Finally
Jake spoke up. 揝o what did the letter say??/p>
Daria turned to look at him. 揑 can抰 talk about it.?/p>
Before he could say something else, Helen interrupted, 揇id
it help you decide??/p>
揧es.?/p>
揥hat are you going to do??/p>
揜espect their wishes.?Daria said. Jake and Helen looked at each other, then back at Daria. 揂re you sure you抮e ready for this??/p>
揘o, but this is what they wanted. I need to try to honor
their request.?/p>
Helen nodded. 揥e understand.?she said. 揘ow if you抣l excuse me I need to talk to Quinn.?/p>
揙f course. Could you tell the sitter to come down? Jake
will drive her home.?/p>
揙kay.?/p>
Daria went upstairs to Quinn抯 room. The End As always, Daria belongs to MTV. This was written for my own
amusement. Quinn