Warning: may contain traces of Horror, Angst & Romance.
Enjoy~
Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom and Nine Inch Nails.
Sam reached for the bag of chips as Tucker stared at the screen waiting for the video game to load. One minute remained.
"Man, I've been saving up to buy this game for months!"
"Yeah, you might have mentioned it once or twice…" retorted Sam wiping her hands in her skirt and taking a sip of diet coke.
"I know, it's so awesome! Can't wait till Danny's online"
"He's playing with us?"
"I promised him we'd play tonight, hope you don't mind"
It was a two-player game and Sam knew it. The boys had been rambling on about it incessantly for the past week. The goth checked her phone. 18:16 Her parents had to be home by now. Great. She stuffed one last handful of chips into her mouth, swung her bag over her shoulder and stomped out of Tucker's room.
"Have fun" Sam cried sarcastically slamming the door behind herself.
The bashful drizzle turned into a confident downpour. The black-clad girl groaned quickening her pace, but instantly slowed down again. She was in no rush to get home. In fact, she had relied on Tucker to distract her for several more hours until she could inconspicuously sneak into her room unseen.
"A friend in need is a friend indeed" Sam murmured pulling up her hoodie.
~ O ~
Upon arrival the goth dashed into her room, locked the door, located Nine Inch Nails in her playlist and turned up the volume of her headphones. She checked her phone. No new messages. Of course. Danny was busy playing with Tuck. Something in their group dynamics had changed. They no longer waited for her for lunch, they would sit at their table discussing comic books. Naturally, she was always welcome to join them, but they hardly included her in the conversation. The three of them used to hang out together at Fenton Works every day after school. One day she had just stopped coming. The boys didn't seem to mind, they never even asked her why.
Sam lay on her bed, eyes perusing the walls. They didn't care. A ghost could attack her right then and there and they wouldn't know until her photo appeared on milk cartons.
"I wonder if this is what it feels like to be a ghost!" She threw a pillow at the chair half expecting an answer. Silence. The goth sighed standing up to change out of her wet clothes. She turned off the lights and buried herself beneath the covers, strands of jet-black hair leaving damp patches on the fabric. Scenes involving Danny and Tucker played themselves on repeat in her head, shared high-fives when they forgot to turn to her, empty water bottles taking the spot of her lunch tray, inside jokes she wasn't privy to. Everything eventually sizzled down to darkness.
~ O ~
A pair of violet eyes blinked open. It was well past midnight. Sam rolled over reaching for her phone. One new messages.
"1 038 283 points! I totally kicked Tucker's ass! Lunch is on me tomorrow :)" – Danny
She let out a chuckle placing t back on the nightstand. However before she could settle back under the covers a pale garment in the corner caught her attention. The goth sat up confused. She didn't own any white clothes. It appeared to take a step in her direction. She shivered now completely focused. The fragile form of a little girl in a yellowish nightgown emerged. Her dark hair was pulled back in a ponytail revealing a calm alabaster countenance. Her bare feet paced noiselessly sending the garment above swinging gently with every movement.
"Hello?" Sam managed to say after a moment, struggling to keep the fear out of her voice. The little girl halted, grim inky eyeballs meeting wide violet orbs. Without warning the ghost bolted towards Sam with a chilling shriek. Only then did the goth notice the metal object in the girl's hand. Before she could react it pierced her abdomen.
~ O ~
Sam jumped gasping, fingers pressed over the wounded area. She hastily jerked up her T-shirt to examine the damage. Her skin was intact. Not a drop of blood in sight. Not even a scar. She closed her eyes relieved, falling back into her pillow. Bright rays were spilling across the room.
I should definitely cut back on horror movies.
After a couple of minutes her alarm went off. The goth pushed the button irritated.
"Time for another glorious day at school" she groaned standing up and heading towards the bathroom.
~ O ~
Adolescent banter filled the cafeteria. Popular girls showed off their new clothes to each other glancing diminutively at every person who came too close. Sam joined the lunch line with her tray listening to their vain giggles.
"One of these days…" she muttered to herself glaring at them. The goth made her way to her usual table. Today she was the first one there. She dug into her veggie burger reflecting on her nightmare. Her life wasn't exactly a fairytale, the least she deserved were decent dreams…
Danny and Tucker placed their trays on the table.
"Hey Sam" Danny croaked, bags visible beneath his eyes.
"Hey. What's up with you? I haven't seen you guys all day"
"Yeah, long night. Skulker decided to pop in and say hi" said Tucker with a yawn. "Good thing we were prepared"
"What? Skulker attacked and you didn't call me?" She stared in disbelief.
"Of course we called you. Right Tuck?"
"Weren't you supposed to do that?" asked the techno geek with his mouth full.
"No… Sorry Sam, we'll call you next time" The half-ghost ate his burger in three bites. "Hey Tuck, mom and dad have some new inventions. Wanna check them out?"
"Let me guess. An upgraded version of the Fenton thermos?" Tucker chuckled wiping his face with a napkin. "Count me in"
The two boys stood up with their trays.
"Bye Sam"
"Yeah, see ya"
The goth watched as they disappeared from view.
I'd like to see the inventions, too. Thanks for asking.
She sat there alone for a minute gazing down at the crumbs in her empty dish.
This was part 1. The question is… are you intrigued enough to read part 2?