I AM SOOOO SORRY! I know you're all waiting for the DOVE update, but it's in the last stages! PROMISE! As soon as I get it back from my editor it'll be up, so I'm giving you this in the meantime. Yeah, it's another one-shot songfic. I've been doing a lot of those lately…ah well. This one was really fun for me to write, I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom or the song "Traces"

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Danny Fenton sat on his bed in the small, 3 room apartment he was renting in downtown Amity Park, silently looking through an old computer monitor box he'd dug up from the back of his closet while his old orange cat David slept quietly next to him. He had tried not to think about his hidden stash for years, but the Casper High reunion that was taking place that night had brought back memories of a time that he'd rather forget. There were countless movie receipts, carnival tickets, brochures, programs, and huge stacks of old photographs. He shuffled through the stack from his freshman and sophomore years, stopping as he came to one particularly faded and well-worn picture. It was a picture of him and Sam standing in front of the old oak tree they used to sit under practically everyday in high school. It had been their release from the pressures of life; a safe haven where they could sit and talk about anything. That tree had been present for more moments of their lives than Danny cared to try and recall; conversations, games, but the most important thing the tree had witnessed was the day that he'd asked Sam to be his girlfriend.

Faded photograph,

covered now with lines and creases,

tickets torn in half,

memories in bits and pieces

But that hadn't lasted long. Danny had been crushed to see her constantly in danger from the continuing ghost attacks, and had pushed her away slowly until she had finally broken up with him, frustrated with his over-protectiveness and paranoia. It had almost killed him to see her go off to college on the other side of the country, but he knew it was for the best. Tucker hadn't ever said a word their split, but Danny knew that his best friend had known what was going through his mind. It was for her own good; if she'd stayed with me, she could have died and I couldn't let that happen. He'd stayed in touch with her, but the friendship they had once known was nothing compared to what it had once been. Tucker, on the other hand, had gone to college a few states away from Danny and visited often. They were still best friends, but the strain of the miles between them had weakened their friendship as well. He missed Tucker often, but he missed Sam a whole lot more. There were times that he still regretted pushing her away but he kept telling himself it had been the best choice for both of them.

Traces of love long ago

that didn't work out right;

traces of love

Turning his attention back to the contents of the box, his breath caught in his throat as he saw the class ring he'd given to her. His dad originally had it engraved with Sam's name, but Danny had been too clueless at the time to understand why his dad would have done that. Tenderly lifting it from its dusty grave, he looked it over carefully, savoring the memory that came back to him.

It was a bright day in mid-June, and Danny and Sam stood under the old oak tree in the park.

Nervously shifting his feet, Danny stuck a hand in his pocket.

"Sam, there's something I want you to have." He took out the ring and showed it to her, noticing the reluctant, but unbelieving look on her face.

"Have? Don't you mean hold until you find the right chance to give it to Valerie?" She averted her head, an angry blush creeping onto her face.

"No, have. Sam, will you be my girlfriend?"

Smiling softly, he carefully placed the ring back into the box, sighing as he surveyed the rest of thecontents. A lone hair tie was wrapped around a pile of old love notes, forgotten tokens of their times together. He'd found the hair tie in his room after she'd gone off to college, placing it in the box with his other memories of his happier years. The letters were just notes they'd passed back and forth during classes, random comments and sentiments all bunched into one. He had often enjoyed reading them over and over again back then, but once Sam had left, he hadn't been able to even bear looking at them. His heart still ached a bit seeing them sitting there; it had been so long since they had been able to share such fun and carefree comments as what the notes contained.

Ribbons from her hair,

souvenirs of days together,

the ring she used to wear,

pages from an old love letter

He sighed heavily, placing the lid back on the old, worn out dusty box and putting it next to him on the bed. Danny knew that he could never have the happiness he'd known before, but the thought that it hadn't had to happen still hurt. But it did have to happen; if she hadn't gone away, she could have been killed by Skulker or Vlad or someone even worse. Someone would have taken advantage of our relationship, and she could have gotten seriously hurt. A small voice nagged at him from the back of his mind, saying they could have worked around it, that she loved him enough that it wouldn't have mattered.

"Stop it already!" He shouted angrily and rapidly stood up, spooking the orange tabby that sat at the foot of his bed.

"Sorry 'bout that, old man. Didn't mean to scare you." The cat slowly yawned and gave him a reproachful glare, stalking off into the kitchen. He shook his head, trying to clear it of the confused fog that had descended over it. He'd tried to shake the memories off, but knowing he would see Sam for the first time in years tonight had his doubts flying.

Traces of love long ago

That didn't work out right;

traces of love with me tonight

Changing into the suit he'd borrowed from his dad for the reunion, he looked at himself in the mirror. It was slightly too big for him, being from his dad's high school days, but still fit fairly well. His dad had filled out while in college, so it wasn't too wide for his slender frame. But then again, he'd filled out some too. While his dad's bulk was accredited to genetics, Danny's was from years of ghost fighting. He would never be as large as his father, but that suited him just fine. Besides, his bulk was all muscle. Straightening his tie self consciously, he tugged on his black socks and shoes, fed David and locked the apartment behind him as he left. He climbed into his black Crown Victoria and headed towards the school, silently hoping that the confrontation wouldn't be as painful as he inwardly knew it would be.

I close my eyes and say a prayer

that in her heart she'll find

a trace of love still there somewhere

There were already a good number of people in the gym when he arrived, and he quickly spotted Tucker and Valerie off in the far corner. They'd been married for two years as of last month, and Danny had been the best man at the small wedding. Sam had been unable to attend, Tucker had said, because she had a huge crisis at home. Danny still didn't know whether or not to believe the excuse. He wanted to, but something inside of him told him she was just avoiding him. Ever since that day after graduation when she'd broken up with him, he'd silently hoped she would come back one day and tell him he was being silly. That had never happened, and ten years later he still hadn't seen her since that night.

Traces of hope in the night

"Hey, Danny, long time no see!" The two friends embraced warmly, happy to see each other after years of separation.

"Hey, Mr. and Mrs. Foley." He grinned as he said it, still not quite used to hearing that. "How are you guys? I haven't heard from you in a while." Tucker grinned mischievously.

"Oh, we're not too bad. The three of us are doing pretty well, considering the circumstances." Danny blinked in confusion.

"Three?" He asked. Valerie and Tucker glanced at each other as Tucker blurted out their news.

"We're going to have a baby!" Tucker yelled.

"Tucker, that's awesome! Congratulations, you guys! I can't believe it!" Valerie smiled at him.

"Thanks, Danny." They talked together for a while, people still streaming in from outside. After a half hour, Tucker looked behind Danny at the people coming in.

"Hey, Danny, look. Sam's here." Tucker looked up at him carefully, and Danny tried not to let any emotions show on his face.

"Oh, hey, that's great. I haven't seen her in a long time." He missed the worried glance that passed between the married couple as he turned around to greet his ex-girlfriend. Keep calm, Danny, she doesn't like you anymore. Don't ruin the friendship that's there by doing anything stupid.

He saw her in the crowd, carefully weaving her way towards them. All thoughts of keeping his cool were lost as he saw her again; her dark purple dress gracefully draped over her body, accentuating all of her curves. The thin-strapped dress shimmered slightly as she moved, its long flowing skirt swirling softly around her legs. She smiled shyly at him, a bright blush rising to her cheeks when she noticed his gaze lingering over her outfit.

"Hi, Danny."

Traces of hope in the night,

that she'll come back and dry

these traces of love from my eyes

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It's done! No more! You can make up your own ending, the song doesn't account for a definite answer and I think it's fine ending the way it does. Leaves a bit of openness for you guys. You decide—does she 'dry these traces of love from his eyes'? Or not? Your choice. Please review!

TSW