The Quick Fix

“...fucking bitch.”

“DANIEL! LANGUAGE!” his mother shouted.

Fuming at the message on his smartphone, Daniel re-read the text that Tiffany had recently sent him. He quickly turned off the screen and immaturely plopped down on the couch as his obnoxious sigh aggravated his mother.

Hearing his son’s temper tantrum from across the house, Daniel’s father walked towards the living room as he was nearly finished buttoning up his green vest. He quickly noticed the agitated look on his wife’s face, glaring at their son who had crossed his arms and begun to complain about his predicament.

“It’s not fair!” Daniel pouted.

“What seems to be the matter, son?” his father calmly asked.

“Tiffany.”

“Is everything okay? What happened?” his father continued.

“She said she only wants to be friends with me,” Daniel answered.

“Friends? You are mad because Tiffany only wants to be friends with you?” his mother hissed.

“Mhmm….” Daniel grunted. “Looks like I will always be in the Friend-zone.”

“Oh…not this again,” she sighed, sliding her fingers through her hair.

“Hunny, let me handle this,” the father said calmly.

Pulling up a computer chair, Daniel’s father sat before his son. Interlocking his fingers together, he took a deep breath before leaning slightly towards him.

“Listen…Danny,” he quietly huffed. “I know you really liked Tiffany and all, but you shouldn’t behave like this. There’s no law saying she HAS to date you.”

“But…but I don’t want to be JUST friends!”

“I know son, but you can’t always get what you want. Plus, you can’t force anyone to like you either.”

“Yeah…probably because I’m not an asshole,” Daniel fumed.

“Asshole? What does that have to do with anything?” his father said with a curious look.

“Girls like her only date assholes. They never go for nice guys like me.” Daniel ranted. “I bet if I was tall and treated her like shit, she would be interested in me then.”

“DANIEL!” his mother fussed.

“Now dear…yelling is not going to help,” Daniel’s father said, raising his hand civilly.

Glaring back at his mother, Daniel pursed his lips and exhaled deeply out his nose. His mother shook her head and then got up to excuse herself from the conversation.

“I’m going to get ready,” she murmured.

Watching his wife leave the living room, Daniel’s father turned back over towards his son.

“Look, I know you are frustrated because Tiffany doesn’t want to be your girlfriend. I get that…but you shouldn’t say things like that.”

“Well, she shouldn’t have used me like that,” Daniel retorted.

“Used you? How did she use you?”

“We hung out after school at the diner. I was nice, I held the door open for her. I was a gentleman the entire time and I even paid for her meal,” Daniel complained.

“Did she ask?”

“Huh?”

“Did she ask you to do those things for her?” his father inquired.

“N…no,” Daniel whispered.

“Ahhh…” his father smiled. “Listen. Don’t get me wrong, those ARE nice things that you did, but you shouldn’t do them and expect her to owe you for it…especially if she didn’t ask for them.”

“But she doesn’t owe me,” Daniel defended. “I didn’t ask for money or sex or -.”

“Relationship?” his father interjected.

“Huh?”

“She doesn’t owe you a relationship…am I right?”

There was a moment of silence as Daniel didn’t know what to say. His mouth was agape as he didn’t like the fact that his father had a valid point. Shifting his eyes down at his feet, Daniel pouted his lips once more.

“It’s because I’m too nice, isn’t it?”

Feeling bad for his son, the father slowly leaned off of the computer chair and sat next to Daniel. Wrapping his arm around his son’s shoulders, Daniel’s dad took in a deep breath before consoling his only child.

“There’s nothing wrong with being nice, Daniel,” he calmly answered. “Just remember that. And as for your ‘asshole’ comment…a lot of women don’t actually like assholes. They like confident men who take care of themselves…like going to the gym for instance, instead of staying up real late playing video games and reading X-men comics.” his father continued with a wink.

“Whatever…” his son murmured.

“Listen…you are only 18 years old,” his father preached. “You have a whole life ahead of ya. Once you head off to college in the fall, you will meet many girls that would be a much better fit for you than Tiffany. You know…I hear there might be some cuties at the party later on today.”

“I doubt it.”

“Oh, don’t be a bum!” his father continued. “You are a handsome fella. Just try to be a nice person without expecting anything and the right girl will come.”

While Daniel remained silent, his father turned his wrist to check the time on his watch. It was almost 1 o’clock and he knew he and his wife needed to leave.

“Listen…we’ll talk later.” his father said. “Your mother and I are going to the gazebo down by the lake. We are going to have a few drinks with some of the other adults before the St. Patrick’s Day party starts later this afternoon. While we are gone, could you clean the yard before Traci arrives? She might be joining us for the party.”

“Traci?” Daniel asked. “I haven’t heard that name in years.” Isn’t she my aunt?

“Technically no,” his father laughed. “Traci is your godmother in a sense…even though she isn’t blood-related. She and your mother have been best friends since they were in elementary school together. She babysat you when you were young until she moved away to California.”

“Oh, so is she moving back or just visiting?”

“Possibly moving,” his father answered. “We might know more later on today when she gets here. Anyways, your mother and I are heading on out. I am looking forward to a nice tall frosted glass of Guinness.”

After his father leaned off of the couch, Daniel’s parents opened up the front door and made their way toward the lake. Leaving Daniel by himself, he huffed once more in the quiet house before eventually standing up and walking toward his bedroom.

Upon removing his Wolverine t-shirt, Daniel tossed his clothes into the corner of his room before pulling down his pants. Staring down at his naked body, Daniel slouched his head, feeling uncomfortable in his own skin.

He was a redhead standing at 5’3” and had an average body with just a little baby fat. Gently cupping his sac, Daniel pouted once more as he was not happy with his 3” dick. Other than his semi-cute freckled face, he really didn’t stand out much compared to other guys. Self-limiting beliefs flooded his mind, convincing him that these were the reasons Tiffany did not want to date him.

After grabbing a shirt, a slightly oversized jacket, and basketball shorts, Daniel got dressed and slipped on some flip-flops before exiting his room. Filling up a large bottle full of ice water, he then grabbed a trash bag before stepping outside to start doing yard work.