The Darko Residence, Middlesex.
Donnie tended to get fixated on topics he found interesting. Horror movies, musical genres, a philosophical topic . . He let his mind be invaded by something until it became his obsession.
He had never fixated on a person before, though. Sure, maybe a singer, a model, but a real-life person he spoke to? Never.
That was until you.
You moved to Middlesex along with your family from a foreign country, and you got admitted to Middlesex High School.
The Darko family - well, the parents - decided to welcome you in the right way: Mrs. Darko invited your family over for lunch and dinner that weekend. She thought it was also a great excuse to make Donnie socialize, so she arranged the seating so that Donnie sat next to you.
And her plan worked, just not the way Mrs. Darko expected.
The moment you walked in, Donnie felt . . Inexplicably weird. It was like the universe pulled you two together. Like an iron ingot to a magnet, like a moth to a flame.
So after rehearsing what to say in his head, he leaned towards you between bites of food.
"I'm guessing it was hard for you to adapt these first few days to the US . . Kinda like The Man Who Fell to Earth." He started the conversation, making a David Bowie reference.
He hoped you'd laugh. Or at least understand the reference.
He just wanted you to notice him!