She Kissed Back!

By No1butjoe

A/N: It's been a while since I wrote a Danny Phantom fic, so I thought I'd get back into the swing of things.

Disclaimer - I don't own Danny Phantom or any related characters.

Note: Based on the episode "Double Cross My Heart". I do not own this episode, only the ideas I come up with for it. In this fic, Gregor is the real deal, not some kid named Elliot.

Summary - What was going through Danny's mind when he saw Gregor and Sam kissing? AU. Danny's P.O.V.

I couldn't blink. I couldn't speak. I couldn't do anything except stand there and watch the scene in front of me. So much had happened in the last few days, but the reality of what was happening now hit me harder than anything else.

"Sam," I whispered, half hoping she'd hear me and slap Gregor across the face.

I expected shouting, yelling, screaming, anything that would put Gregor in his place. I wanted to go over there myself and pull them apart, but my legs stayed rooted to the spot. I didn't want this to be happening. Not now, not ever! My hands clenched into fists and I wanted so badly to wake up from this nightmare. I could feel the energy throughout my body - adrenaline most likely - as I changed into Danny Phantom. In my mind, I thought about attacking Gregor as Phantom, but I couldn't. I saw the look in Sam's eyes whenever they talked to each other, the smile on her face when he said something that made her blush. How could I take that away from her just to fulfill my selfish needs?

I had spied on her, like someone who didn't trust their best friend and that was partially true. It wasn't Sam I didn't trust, it was Gregor, but that didn't matter anymore. Sam had made her decision - and it wasn't me.

I arrived home earlier than usual that night and it didn't go unnoticed by my parents or sister. As clueless as Mom and Dad can be at times, they always seem to know when something's wrong. They asked me about it that night at dinner as I was picking at my food with my fork, but I just gave them the same story. That I was bored.

"Why don't you invite Sam and Tucker over?" Mom suggested and I felt my chest constrict all over again.

Everyone in school seemed to know that I had been dumped by my friends, friends who I had known my whole life. No one talked to me. I was the outcast, the loner, the loser. The only way someone paid any attention to me was if Dash was giving me my daily beating by stuffing me in a locker or dunking my head in a garbage can. I snapped out of my thoughts and focused on answering Mom's suggestion.

"I already called them," I lied. "Tucker's too busy with homework and Sam-"

I broke off my sentence and sighed. Sam is off with Gregor on another date. Sam is studying with Gregor. Sam is showing Gregor more of the town.

"Sam's busy," I finished lamely.

It wasn't exactly a lie, but it wasn't exactly the truth. Sam was busy, too busy to spend anytime with me. And Tucker, well Tucker made it clear that he'd rather be around Sam and Gregor.

"May I be excused?" I asked, pushing myself and my chair away from the table.

I could see Mom hesitate, but she nodded. Immediately, I stood and headed upstairs to my room. Once in my room, I went over and sat in front of my computer, staring at the black screen for several minutes before I finally turned it on. As I waited for the computer to load, I stood to my feet and walked over to my bed. Pictures decorated the wall alongside of it. Pictures of me and Sam, me and Tucker, Tucker and Sam, and, of course, all three of us. I sighed deeply before starting to take them down, one by one, setting them on my nightstand to deal with them later. A ping sounded and I turned back to my computer only to see a message pop up.

GothGirl101 wants to chat.

Accept. Decline. Block.

Sam. The arrow from the mouse hovered over the decline button briefly. But seeing as I had nothing better to do, I hesitantly clicked on 'Accept'.

GothGirl101: I didn't think you'd want to talk to me, but I'm glad you are.

I snorted when I read that and immediately started typing a response.

HalfaGhost1: Have nothing better to do with my time. What do you want, Sam?

Almost immediately, a reply came.

GothGirl101: Just to talk, Danny. You know, like we used to?

HalfaGhost1: Why? Aren't you too busy hanging out with Gregor now?

I sat back in my chair and waited. It was five minutes later, after I had given up on an answer, that my computer pinged again.

GothGirl101: Danny, please, I'm just trying to make things right between us again. I know you don't trust Gregor and Tucker and I are really sorry that we ditched you. I just want things to go back to the way they were.

I actually laughed out loud when I read her little speech. Things could never be the same again, she should know that.

HalfaGhost1: How can they when you're dating Gregor?

The response was immediate.

GothGirl101: WHAT! Who told you that?

HalfaGhost1: No one told me anything. I saw you two kissing.

I waited a minute and smiled when my patience paid off. The phone was ringing.

"Hello?"

"You were spying on me?" Sam's angry voice came through from the other end.

I sighed. This was bound to be fun.

"What else was I supposed to do, Sam?" I asked, tiredly. "You know I don't trust Gregor as far as I could throw him and right now, I don't want to touch the creep."

"Danny, you had no right to do that!" she shouted, causing me to pull the phone away from my ear. "I thought you knew better! I thought I could trust you!"

Anger was rising inside of me and I was close to snapping.

"Sam, how do you know he doesn't work with the Guys In White?" I questioned. "He could be playing with your emotions! You've known me for years, but right now, you're acting like you've known Gregor longer! What's gotten into you?"

I paused and listened, half afraid of the answer.

"I thought I could trust you, Danny," her voice stated coldly. "But I guess I was wrong."

Before I could say anything, a click sounded in my ear and I realized Sam had hung up. I sighed and turned my gaze back to my computer screen.

GothGirl101 is currently offline.

Send message. Delete.

I stared at the screen a while longer before logging off and going over to lay down on my bed. A part of me wanted to call Sam and apologize, but the other part of me, the part that was still hurting, told me to not even bother. I curled up in bed and tried to allow sleep to overtake me, but it never came. Without a second thought, I got out of bed and changed. Not like it really mattered because I went ghost and, moments later, I was flying towards Amity Park. It had started raining a few hours ago, but I didn't bother going intangible. The rain was actually soothing.

I landed near the water fountain minutes later and dropped my ghost form. I shivered slightly, but ignored it, sitting on a nearby bench and watching the fountain spew water into the air before falling back down. The rain wet my hair until I could run my hand through it and it stayed pushed back. I had always loved the rain, even as a little kid. I remember becoming friends with Sam and, the first time it rained after we met, I excitedly showed her the rain as if she had never seen it before. She laughed, but when it would rain, we'd always sit near a window and watch it fall.

The rain had turned into a downpour, but I didn't care. I had a lot to think about without having to worry about getting wet. I closed my eyes and tilted my head up so the rain was hitting my face. It felt extremely good.

"D-Danny?"

My whole body froze at the sound of my name. I turned, opening my eyes to see a very nervous looking Tucker standing there, fidgeting nervously. My eyes widened.

"Tucker, what-what are you doing here?" I asked, my voice sounding cold, even to my ears.

I saw my former best friend flinch at my words, but he stayed rooted to the spot. I stood to my feet, waiting patiently for an answer.

"Danny, I-I just wanted to apologize."

Tucker sounded like he was going to cry. I studied him closely and I swallowed hard when I realized that tears were coming down his cheeks.

"Tuck, I-"

"She misses you, you know," he interrupted me. "She calls me every night. Hoping you called me or I talked to you. Gregor ditched us as soon as the popular kids asked him to hang out with them. Danny, we both feel horrible. Please, can't we just try again?"

I looked at the ground as Tucker spoke. How could we ever put this behind us? Sam didn't trust me anymore. Tucker and I could probably go back to the way things were, but there'd always be a barrier between me and Sam now. I lifted my gaze to meet Tucker's and a small smile crossed my lips.

"Come on, I think Mom and Dad were talking about watching a movie tonight," I invited him.

I saw Tucker smile, but it disappeared just as quick.

"S-Should I call Sam?" he asked and I sighed.

"Tucker, she'll never trust me again so there's really no point," I argued.

I felt a hand on my shoulder and it took a second for me to realize that Tucker was now standing in front of me and staring at me worriedly.

"You guys have been friends for years, man," he said, "It seems like a waste, watching you throw it all away because of a stupid fight."

I wanted to believe that I could call Sam and invite her over just like old times, but knowing she and I would probably be at blows by the time it'd be time for her to go home didn't really appeal to me so I made no move to grab my cell phone. I could see Tucker giving me a disappointed look, but I ignored it.

"The offer still stands, Tucker," I said, turning around and changing into my ghost half.

That said, I flew off, leaving him standing there to think it over.

Returning to my room, I barely had time to change before Mom came into my room to announce that there was someone waiting downstairs for me. My face paled, because I knew it couldn't be Tucker. I had left him at the park. I slowly went downstairs and entered the kitchen where Jazz was sitting at the table talking to someone with a huge smile on her face. I knew who the person was without them having to turn around.

Sam.

She had been smiling when she was taking to my sister, but as soon as she spotted me, the smile disappeared and she looked down at the floor. I looked at Jazz and she quickly made an excuse that she had to call one of her friends back. The kitchen was silent as I took the seat across from Sam. Neither of us looked up.

"I'm sorry."

The apology was so soft, at first, I thought I had imagined it. But the fact that Sam was looking right at me quickly deflated that thought.

"Why did you come here, Sam?"

My voice was soft, not at all like I thought it'd be, but I ignored that and waited. Sam was still looking at me as she got up from her seat and walked over to me.

"Gregor's gone."

I hadn't expected her to say anything, but I remained quiet. Tucker had already told me that, but I wasn't about to tell her.

"And?" I asked, folding my arms across my chest. I wasn't about to make this easy for her.

Sam looked at me, her eyes traveling up and down the length of my body, then back up to meet my eyes, fire burning in them. A fire I recognized all too well.

"And what, Danny?" she shouted, throwing her hands up in the air. "Do you want me to say I'm sorry? That I wish I'd never met him? Fine! I'm sorry and I wish I'd never met anyone named Gregor! Are you happy now?"

I had expected the outburst and wasn't disappointed.

"Actually, yeah I am," I replied, smiling a little.

If at all possible, I would've seen steam coming out of Sam's ears with how red her face turned. She growled a little before she turned on her heels and started to walk towards the front door to leave. I'm still not sure what prompted me to go after her, but I grabbed her arm before she got too far. She turned back towards me in a huff, glancing down at my hand holding her arm before struggling out of my grasp.

"What?" she demanded, angrily. "That wasn't a good enough apology for you, Daniel?"

I let my arm drop to my side, the smile slowly disappearing off of my face.

"No, i-it was fine," I replied, softly. "I-It's just . . . . I-I have to know. W-When you kissed Gregor, d-did you like it?"

The silence between us lasted longer than I thought it would. So much so that, if I hadn't looked up at her face, I would've thought she had left.

"S-Sam?" I whispered.

My voice seemed to snap her out of her daze and she blinked a few times until her eyes finally focused fully on me.

I lowered my head, already knowing her answer would be -

"No."

I jerked my head up in surprise.

"N-No?" I repeated, my heart hammering in my chest.

I saw her nod her head, signaling that I had heard her right. Then why did she allow him to kiss her? Why did she get so defensive when I told her I'd seen them?

"It wasn't how I thought it'd be," Sam continued, oblivious to my inner thoughts. "I mean yeah, Gregor's a great guy and all, but he's not-"

I waited, expecting her to continue, but she stopped and looked at me. I swallowed, hard.

"-he's not you," she finished, whispering so softly that, at first, I thought I hadn't heard her correctly.

But the look in her eyes told me otherwise. She moved closer towards me until we were standing within inches of each other. A small smile appeared on my face and it was in that moment that I knew. I had forgiven her. There, in front of the door, I pressed my lips to hers in a kiss. It wasn't passionate or heated, but the sparks that flowed through me reminded me a lot of my transformation to Danny Phantom. Seconds seemed to pass like minutes and it was in those few seconds that I came to a startling realization. Sam hadn't pulled away in disgust. She wasn't pushing my chest or screaming in horror.

In fact, she kissed back!

It wasn't anything like our Fake-Out Make-Outs, but it also wasn't strong like a girlfriend or boyfriend kissing either. Finally, I pulled away, eyes widening at what had just happened, but having no regrets. Both of us blushed, staring at the floor. After a minute or two of silence, I gathered the courage to look up at her.

"S-So, when you k-kissed me, did you l-like it?"

Sam looked up at me then, her eyes shocked and her mouth slightly open at the same question I had asked about Gregor merely minutes earlier. A smile slowly spread across her face and she took both of my hands in hers.

"It was everything I ever dreamed it would be," she answered.

Right then and there, I knew. She'd always kiss me back.