Hi,
I have returned again. Ha ha, just kidding, I never left! But, who really cares, you're just here to read the fic. I guess I should stop wasting your time and get on with it.
Disclaim: Danny is not mine, and probably never will be, but there is NO WAY I'm giving up.
-xxClueless1xx
-Line break-
Beep….beep.…beep.
I guess you could say that I've lived a good life. Done good things, met good people, done the right thing. But, I never thought that doing the right thing would have this much of a price. Trust me, I knew that the super hero gig came with a price, but I never thought that it would come to this.
Beep…..beep..…beep.
I'm here, in the hospital. I have an IV jabbed into my arm, in my human form. Everyone knows about who I am, they know what I've been doing. I'm glad that my parents accepted me softly and didn't try to reject the truth. I think we all knew somewhere deep in our hearts, my friends and I. We all knew that I'd be discovered, but we never thought it would happen like this…
Beep…beep…beep.
It had been a normal fight, you know, me and Skulker, one on one. I really hate it when he gives me that smug smile of his, and I guess that I went a little too far trying to wipe it off. I used the attack I shouldn't have when I was so weak – my Ghostly Wail.
I should have known better, but in the heat of the moment, I just didn't think. Right when I unleashed it, I became too weak and, transformed. Everyone was still watching, even after my cries of "Get out of here!" and "Cover your ears!" They had never really listened to me anyway, even though I was their savior, their protector.
Beep….beep….beep.
I guess that I am like any average person right about now, flashing back on my life, thinking about what I didn't do, but I should have done. I know that sometimes I didn't seem to appreciate my friends too much, but honestly, they mean the world to me. Without them, I would have been here, on my deathbed, ages ago.
I wish they were here, but the doctor said to leave me alone for a while, an hour at the least. I struggle to sit myself up and look at the clock. I frowned deeply, the hour was almost over, and they would be in here soon. But, I didn't want them to be here, not now, not like this. I don't want them to see me die here.
Beep…..beep…..beep.
It's not an assumption, that I'm going to die here, in just a short amount of time, I know that I'm going to. I knew that someday I would tip over the edge of insanity and lash out on him, but I hoped that I would last to be at least fifteen. But, I'm not. I'm just a fourteen year old, maybe one of the bravest in the world, but I'm still just fourteen.
Most kids my age would be vegetating in front of the TV or playing video games in their spare time, but I was fighting ghosts. But, not anymore; not any longer. I'm going to die today, as a fourteen year old. But, I'm not going to die weak, I'm going to die a hero.
Beep…beep…beep.
A lone silver droplet trickles down my cheek, and I can hear the heart monitor slowing down. The doctors said that there was nothing they could do, not for a hybrid. I don't blame them, I can't, not when they tried everything.
It is then that the door to my room opens slowly, and shushes can be heard on the opposite side of the wood. I smile a frail smile, knowing fair well who it is. I see a tuft of red hair peeking out from the doorframe, and then two beautiful turquoise eyes. Jazz.
Beep….beep….beep.
Black hair and three more figures follow my sister, and my small smile widens. I can see their hearts breaking and the pained looks on their faces make me feel guilty. They shouldn't be crying, not for me.
Jazz slowly walks over to the side of the hospital bed and kneels next to me. She takes my good hand in her own and begins to rub it softly. I can see that this is hard for her to see me go, but you can't stop the march of the timeline.
Beep…..beep…..beep.
"Danny." She whispers, still gently caressing my fragile hand. I look into her eyes and see that they are gleaming with fresh tears. She shouldn't be crying, not for me.
"Jazz, don't cry for me." I croak out, disappointed to see that my own eyes are dampening.
Wet droplets of salty water drip down my face and I try to stop it, but just can't. The rest of the room's occupants kneel around my white hospital bed, each laying a hand on my pale body. We all close our eyes, and pray silently in our heads, hoping for a painless departure.
Beep…beep…beep.
I open my eyes and, seeing that they are blurred with tears, slowly move my heavily bandaged arm up to my face and lightly rub my eyes, taking all wetness away. Echoes of sniffles can be heard around the room, making an endless cycle.
My eyes flutter around the room before meeting my Mother's violet orbs. Her mouth is stretched into a melancholy line reaching both ends of her face and, with much effort; she tugs the corners up when she sees my eyes on her.
Beep….beep….beep.
I now notice that Jazz has moved to the back of the room soundlessly, trying to conceal her emotion, and my Mother rushes over to my side. Her sparkling eyes look into mine with so much emotion, it's almost overwhelming. It isn't right for a Mother to see her baby die.
"Danny, baby, don't cry. Everything's going to be alright." She whispers soothingly, seeming to understand that death is not a painless process. She reaches her hand up to my hair and runs her fingers through my raven locks, murmuring incoherently.
I lean to the side slightly, trying to push the sound of the monitor out of my head, laying on her shoulder. She pulls her hand from my hair and kisses me atop my head, leaving a feeling of warmth to spread through my body.
Beep…..beep...beep.
She stands up and, with one last comforting look, makes her way to the back of the room, next to my Father. She falls onto him and he hugs her closely and rubs her back, calming her down slowly but surely.
I drift my eyes over to my two best friends and see that they are working a little too hard to keep it together. Well, Tucker anyway. Sam has tear tracks down her face, and her mascara is smeared down her face. Tucker's lip is trembling and his eyes are just barely holding in the dam of tears.
I want to go over there to comfort them, but there is nothing that I can do. Everyone needs to mourn, and everyone does it their own way. Without any warning, Sam rushes over to me, eyes filled with fear. She doesn't want me to go, not yet.
She pulls me into a warm embrace and I return it to her without any hesitation. Then I remember one thing. The ring. It's still in my pocket. I don't know why I'm still wearing jeans or why I even kept the ring, but it's still there.
I pull back from the warmth of the gesture and fumble around under the sheets thrusting my hand into my worn pocket. I feel around until the cold golden ring touches my finger, and with much struggle, I pull it out.
Beep….beep…beep.
Hand still clenched around the small ring, I look up at her and see that her eyebrows are knitted together in confusion. I open my hand and she looks at the shiny object in the center of it. She slowly opens her own hand and reaches into mine, taking the object and examining it.
She is still holding it upside down, and I reach my hand up and flip it over. Her eyes widen in realization and tears begin to fall down her cheeks. But this time, they're tears of happiness. She slips the ring over her ring finger and pulls me close once again.
She pulls back and looks into my eyes intensely before she kisses me softly on the cheek. I'm sorry that that will be our only blissful moment and I can see that she is too, but, still crying silently, she walks back to Tucker again.
Beep…..beep….beep.
My eyes sweep over all my loved ones and I meet the huge figure of my Father. He, more than ever, looks like a huge teddy bear right now. His looming figure advances towards me, and he gets down on his knees next to me, still slightly blocking the rooms light because of his overwhelming height.
"Danny, son, you know that I love you. Ghost, boy, or something in between." He chokes out and pulls me close to his chest.
We keep hugging for a while, exchanging memories of our past together before he, almost in slow-motion, pushes back and smiles at me before returning to his safe haven of the back of the room. I look next to him, and see Tucker.
He still seems to be struggling, and I know that he isn't ready either. I just hope that nobody in this room does anything rash when I go. I don't want to cause grief for anyone, especially my friends.
"Tucker." I gasp out.
He raises his head and with a slight nudge from Sam, he comes over to my right side. I smile up at him tiredly and he looks down at me. I can see that he doesn't have any technology with him; that is his own silent indicator that something is wrong in Tucker World.
Beep…beep…beep.
"Tuck…make sure not…to do anything….rash while I'm…gone." I say in between labored breaths, and it means the world to me to see him crack a ghost of a smile.
"Who knows?...Maybe…I'll come back…as…a ghost." I say even though I know that it's not going to happen.
I force myself to smile and I feel my breaths getting more and more shallow. The heart monitor is slowing down. I can feel Tucker tense beside me.
Beep…..beep…beep…..beep.
I can hear cries of "Danny, stay with us!" and "Not yet!" and "We love you!" I could feel the breeze of bodies running around me in fear, knowing that I'm in transition. My heartbeat is almost not there, faint and uneven.
Beep….beep…beep…beep…beeeeeeeeeeppppp.
Flat line.
Well, I'll admit, that was pretty depressing and angsty if I do say so myself, I was in the mood, OK? Well, please hit that pretty little button down there, NO FLAMES please!
-xxClueless1xx