It's Been a Long Time Coming

Authors Note: Don't own anything from Stand By Me, only thing I own is Danni. I watched this amazing film and was inspired, not sure if I will continue unless all of you readers enjoy it. So here it is!

Chapter 1

Danni sullenly watched each one of her frosted flakes drown in the harrowing depths of her bowl as her father turned the morning paper to the next page. Danni sighed loudly watching the second hand on the clock tick by. This was what her summer had come to. Watching frosted flakes get soaked with milk and sighing loudly every morning hoping something exciting would happen, which of course, never did. It wasn't long until she heard the light tap tap of her mother's slippers hitting the floor walking in her usual hurried fashion.

"What's this?" Danni heard her mother say as she placed a notebook in front of her daughter's eyes. An alarm went off in Danni's mind and her forehead immediately creased with wrinkles as she realized what the notebook was.

"Did you read that?" Her mother stared at her quizzically with that look that most Asian mothers give their children when something was not up to par.

"It's stupid."

"What? Did you even read it?"

"No, I no need to read to know its stupid!" Danni's face crumpled with a pout forming at her lips.

"You're stupid." She quietly muttered under her breath as she grabbed the notebook and gripped it in her lap.

"What you say?" This of course was a normal event in Danni's everyday life. Hearing slightly hurtful and condescending remarks from mom was far from strange especially if it had anything to with Danni's writing and academics. And as usual, dad would just sit there in silence and act like he didn't hear a word. Danni sighed for what felt like the hundredth time in the last five minutes and rolled her eyes.

"Nothing mom." Her mother satisfied with the win turned her chin up and went to the sink to wash dishes. Her father finally put down the paper and sipped at his coffee.

"Have any plans today Danni?" Her father who was a now retired naval officer didn't have much to do with Danni's upbringing. He was never really around until recently and to Danni seemed like a distant stranger she barely knew and barely saw in herself. Her father was white. This of course in Danni's mind seemed to complicate her life more seeing as how she just looked so different from everyone else.

"Yes…in fact…I'm leaving right now." Clutching the notebook close to her heart she stood from her seat and walked to the front door.

"Okay then dear…be careful." She looked back in the kitchen to see both her parents not even looking to see her out, merely continuing with what they were doing. She shook her head lightly and clutched the doorknob.

"…I love you guys too." She said it under breath and slammed the door behind her.

She could already feel beads of sweat forming on her forehead as she stepped out into the sun walking the familiar path to the boy who lived just down the street. She slowly stopped in front of the dingy house contemplating whether or not to go or not when she heard the distant yet familiar shouting and screaming. That's when the front door suddenly swung open and Chris tumbled down the stairs.

"And where the hell do you think you're going!" The shape of Mr. Chambers screamed in the shadows of his house.

"Somewhere!" Chris shouted back angrily making his way to the front fence.

"Where the hell is that!"

"Anywhere but here!" Chris slammed the fence behind him and found Danni staring at him with her almond shaped eyes filled with fear. He tried to give her a convincing smile but knew that there was no point in trying with Danni.

"Get your ass back in here boy! I ain't done with you yet you stupid piece of shit!" Chris closed his eyes and ran his hands through his hair when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Want to get out of here?" Danni asked quietly.

"Please." She nodded her head and they both walked side by side farther and farther away from the furious Mr. Chambers. It wasn't long before they both found themselves in a nearby park on the swings. Chris picked away at his finger as he felt the intent stare of Danni's eyes. "What?"

"Are you all ri…"

"I'm fine Danni." He said a little too harshly. Chris looked to the side to find Danni now staring intently at her worn sneakers and he sighed. "Sorry, I didn't mean for it to come out like that."

"Hey…You want to go get some ice cream?" Chris smiled and shook his head.

"Is that your solution to everything? Have a bad day eat some ice cream." He watched her shrug her shoulders and put a piece of her wavy black hair behind her ear.

"I wouldn't suggest it if it didn't work. Let's go Chris…yeah? On me?"

"Well…since I'm never one to refuse free food I say yes." It wasn't long that Chris and Danni had been friends in fact; it had been at the end of freshman year when they first spoke to each other. Danni had transferred in after the first few months of school had started and it was not an easy transition. She was new and she was 'different' as kids would say around school. She had an exotic look to her with her wavy jet black hair and she popped out like a sore thumb mixed in with all the blondes and brunettes on campus. She had come to a small town where being open-minded wasn't the strongest quality in people. She looked like a normal white person yet when she was actually standing next to a white person she just looked so foreign. She was an immediate outsider and although Chris had seen her hang around alone in the corners of the campus he had never found a moment to have the bravery to actually go speak to her. It was hard enough having Chambers be his last name. That was until fate stepped in and decided get to them in the same room alone.

It was the last school day before spring break and Danni and Chris were in the same gym class. It was just a basketball game but some people just took it too seriously, Chris had seen the way the other girls had pushed Danni into the ground. He silently watched her limp in doors where the first aid supplies were kept when he heard his name.

"Chris!" It was too late, the ball had hit him square in the face and his nose was bleeding. He slowly opened his eyes and found Gordie looking down upon him. "Oh man, are you okay?" Chris could feel the blood make its way down his cheek and he cautiously wiped it away. "What were you thinking man? You can't go look in the opposite direction in the middle of the basketball game especially when Mike is playing. He hates you man." Gordie grasped Chris's hand and stood him up.

"God damn it Chambers! You're supposed to catch the damn ball with your hands not with your face. Look! You got blood all over the ball!" Chris stood silently holding his nose listening to the gym teacher once again yell at him.

"But Mr. Devitt it wasn't his fault. Mike passed it too high! He did it on purpose!" Gordie yelled for the sake of his friend.

"What?" Gordie turned to Mike and glared.

"You're not supposed to pass the ball towards someone's head you idiot!"

"Oh, don't blame this on me LeChance. It's not my fault your lame friend doesn't know how play." Chris held Gordie back before he could say anything else. It was a hopeless fight; it was always Chris's fault. Mr. Devitt shook his head.

"Chambers get the hell off my court and go clean yourself up in the first aid room. And make sure that Danni brings back the key to the room; don't do anything stupid neither Chambers, the door locks from the outside." Chris made his way into the locker room and noticed the first aid room slightly ajar. He slowly opened the door when he suddenly tripped; as soon as he landed he heard an intake of breath and the door slam behind him.

"You've got to be kidding me." Chris looked up to see Danni standing with a large band-aid on her knee and her mouth hanging open. He turned his head only to see the door closed. Chris wiped his nose and turned the knob but it didn't budge.

"Don't you have the key?"

"No."

"What?"

"Are you deaf? I said no."

"Where is it?"

"I put it down on the counter right outside this door when I came in." Chris turned to look at Danni who looked absolutely miserable.

"Then how were you planning to get out after you were done?"

"Hence the doorstopper." She pointed toward his feet. That's when he realized he had tripped over the doorstopper when coming in causing the door to close.

"Shit…Well maybe I can shake it loose or something."

"I wouldn't…" That was about the time the door knob came off. All Chris could do was look at the knob which was now in his hand and the socket in which the knob had been just a few moments ago.

"Shit…"

"You can say that again. Nice job retard."

"This day couldn't get any worse."

"Please don't say that. The roof may collapse on us." Chris turned to see Danni making herself comfortable in the corner of the room.

"What?"

"You never know man…things can always get worse no matter how bad things may seem."

"Well aren't you the optimistic one." She grinned.

"I try. Well…since we may be stuck here for a while you might as well clean up that bloody nose."

"Yeah…I'm Chris."

"Danni." And that was that. The rest is history. They were stuck in the room for a span of three hours before Gordie finally convinced the janitor that someone was in fact locked inside the first aid room. Within those three hours life stories were swapped and a friendship was formed.

"That's so sick Danni." Danni threw him a questioning look. "How can you put chocolate syrup on strawberry ice cream…I mean, how is that good?"

"Have you ever tried it?" Chris grimaced and turned away from the spoonful of strangely colored ice cream that Danni was now shoving in his face.

"Nope, and I don't plan to."

"Then shush my dear." Shoving the ice cream in her mouth. "Look at you, chocolate ice cream? Can you get anymore boring?"

"What? That's completely normal."

"Precisely, normal and b-o-r-i-n-g boring."

"I'm so glad you know how to spell."

"Shut up!" The ice cream parlor was crowded as it usually was during the summer and it was no strange coincidence that Gordie soon came bumbling in through the glass door as well.

"Hey Chris, Danni, I knew you missed me Danni but do you really have to gorge yourself in strangely discolored ice cream every time you don't see me?" Gordie grinned.

"Oh go find yourself a blow up doll LaChance. You wish I was fawning over you."

"Why are you friends with her again Chris?" Chris shrugged his shoulders and made room for Gordie to sit in the booth next to him.

"Tell me about it. She's a god damn leech. Couldn't get rid of her."

"Shame."

"Oh…should I leave you two little lovebirds to converse alone?" Danni chimed in before she could receive anymore teasing from the two boys that were now seated in front of her.

Authors Note: So? What do you thing? If you liked it please review and urge me to continue. I'll only go on if I get enough responses! So Please please please leave some feedback.