Some bullshit principle he learned at a bullshit time in his life that yielded bullshit results.
Daniel oftentimes ponders on this, wondering what his life would have been if he never would've seen her walking through the courtyard that day. If he'd never taken his twin up on his bet to meet his crush, and, later, ended up accepting her child. A child that wasn't even his.
He's often wondered what if Jimmy had never happened altogether? Of course for her sake, but would he had even gone as far as he did with her if she'd never been exposed to the horrors that she had? Was it merely an act of disguised sympathy, his love for her?
But, of course, it is moot to continuously ask questions that he'd, still, yet to find answers to, Daniel surmised. All of that, and more, did occur, and, as it stands, it's been over three years since Eleanor Boudreaux walked out of his life. Three years that he hasn't seen his daughter. And nearly all of that time, he'd taken just to regain some semblance of his normal self. The self that loves without cause and doesn't unjustly treat women like shitnamely, his girlfriend, Belle.
He'd stayed away. No, he'd, quite literally, given up his search years ago; however, even with him finally having made progress on his inner-self, Daniel is still missing one important piece of the puzzle. It is the one part, even with the heavy bitterness in his heart against Ellie, that he refuses to let go. The vital adhesive that, at one point, served to hold everything together that wouldn't have otherwise been. Hope.
She is the keythe answer to every last one of the irrational questions that have haunted him throughout the years. And if he can just find her, he will, once more, have life.