Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom. I doubt I ever will, but while I don't, all the credit goes to Butch Hartman.
Author's Note: Happy Valentine's Day! Even though I think of it as Single's Awareness Day, I'll still write romance for today. This is another challenge 5-senses (underscore, not dash, but since fanfiction seems to not recognize underscores, I have to make due) on LiveJournal. Instead of the traditional five senses, I chose the second list, which is comprised of: thought, movement, love, laughter, and memory. I'm actually going for a plot this time, so be afraid. Be very, very afraid.
Preface: Even though I had originally intended on using another plot-line for this challenge, a better (and more interesting) plot bunny bit me in the ass. I haven't accumulated anything with a real plot in ages, and I'm attempting to map this out in entirety. In order to fully understand what's going on, you need to understand that the first four chapters go in chronological order, going by holidays. The final, and most important, chapter to the five-chapter series, goes back in time to the night before what happened in the first chapter. It's all within the same year (as you'll be able to grasp soon), except for the last chapter, which skips back a day into the year previous.
So, the dates will be arranged like this: January 1st (New Year's Day), February 14th (Valentine's Day), April 1st (April Fool's Day), December 25th (Christmas), December 31st (New Year's Eve).
Somehow I managed to match the second date as well? Don't worry, you're not going to have to wait until April (I hope) for an update on this story. Please review and let me know what you think!
Trial and Error
02: Love
Theme: 02. Love
February 14, 2008
The feelings that bubbled inside of her disgusted her; well, they would've disgusted her if they weren't so overly happy–she felt like she was disowning her ways of being a Goth, but... she couldn't help it or push the feelings away.
For once, nothing was dark and dreary (except the way that her parents still were morning people--that never ceased to annoy her). Everything was going her way, and it just felt so weird to her.
What could be better?
What couldn't be better was her love life, that was for sure.
To put it simply, it was shocking how well her life was going. College classes were great, her spring semester had started without any problems. Her friends were always there for her, and she had no worries (besides the usual stress any teenager faced). Best of all, her boyfriend was absolutely amazing.
She felt entirely too optimistic in her own skin. She knew that lyric, "Something's gotta go wrong 'cause I'm feeling way too damn good," from that song that used to constantly play on the radio. She knew something could go wrong, but she felt like living in the 'now' and forgetting about the 'then' entirely.
In regards to her relationship with Danny, whether it be friendship or more, she always walked cautiously. She never knew what would happen next. So, in turn, she had been guilty of not entirely letting herself be free with him.
Ever since New Year's Eve... she found herself falling harder for him than she ever thought possible, and she didn't feel like she needed to be cautious anymore. The way her heart sped up whenever she saw him, heard his voice, or woke up to his face should've given her a heart attack by now, but she loved the excitement. It proved she could feel, and love–it was something she thought was impossible to do once upon a time, and she loved proving herself wrong. For now, at least.
Currently lying on her back in the middle of her queen-sized bed, she couldn't help but let her mind wander to him. With the amount of time they had spent in her bed, she was surprised her mind didn't approach the topic sooner. The way that he was so attentive to her, the way that they made love... with every look and glance, she could see the love in his eyes. It used to scare her to an extent, but she always loved things that could scare her. Something that strong, that bold that could move her–she wanted more of it like it was a drug and she needed her fix.
She smiled as she looked around her room, taking in the collective parts that made her whole. She felt different, and yet the same–she felt change, but couldn't pinpoint it no matter how hard she tried.
"I wonder what he planned for today," she mused, almost frowning at her excitement at the over-consumerist holiday, but not being able to bring her nerves down. "He said it was going to be a day I'll never forget, but..." her eyes darted to her calendar, and then rolled at the purple heart within the box for today's date. As she was just about to look away from the wall-hanging, she noticed a red circle around the first of the month; not paying much attention to it or its significance, she rolled back to a lying position on her bed. "I should've done more," she thought out loud, frowning, trying to think of something she could do for him for the holiday. "Maybe he would like..." A smile erupted on her face before he brought her hands up to rub her cheeks. "I'm a total nutcase," she chuckled, looking to the heavens for some balance. "I'm talking to myself."
"Or, you could be talking to me," a disembodied voice rang out in her room, and she couldn't help but smile even more. "I'll just say that for the sake of both of our minds, yeah? And what would I like?" he asked as an afterthought, intrigued by her one-person conversation and where it was going. Changing back to being human from his alter-ego, his feet touched the carpet softly as he gracefully (after many failed attempts in the past, he was bound to get the hang of it) dropped from the air.
"Oh, you'll see," she smirked in response, her gaze reaching higher and higher as he stepped closer to the bed, towering over her. Leaning down, he placed a soft kiss on her lips, which she eagerly returned, pulling him down more to force him to sit on the bed with her.
He broke away with a smile after a few seconds. "I like, I like," he chuckled, then kissed her again. "Happy Valentine's Day," he said suddenly, a light blush tinting his cheeks as he held out a single rose, dark purple in color.
With a sharp intake of breath followed by a happy smile, she took the rose in her hands that he presented to her. "Oh, Danny, it's beautiful," she grinned, then kissed his cheek. "And definitely not over the top."
"Just like you wanted," he smiled. "And," he overemphasized the word for effect, "I'm taking you out for hot cocoa and ice skating, my treat." As an afterthought, he added, "You're not paying for any of it, no matter how much you argue."
Knowing he beat her to the punch, she rolled her eyes with a smile. "Fine, fine," she said, giving him a look. "How about I owe you one?"
"I owe you a million already, but... okay," the impish smirk grew as she rolled her eyes yet again. "Maybe in the form of–"
She knew what he was getting at immediately the second he started twiddling his thumbs. "Yes, I know that you were eyeing a certain something in the window of a certain lingerie shop," she said with an all-knowing eyebrow raise. "Don't worry, I'll take care of you."
"Now that's something every boyfriend loves to hear."
--
The air was brisk, and even though the need for winter to be over was heavy in the air, the snow on the ground fit well with the day–especially when they were ice skating. Bundled up in winter coats and various accessories for the cold weather, they bounded onto the ice, Sam much more confident in her skating abilities than Danny. Well, he didn't know how well he could skate since he hadn't been ever since he was a child, but... he didn't think it would be too hard, right?
Not as crowded as they anticipated originally, the outdoor ice skating rink had a fine smattering of people, including many couples, skating. The atmosphere was nice, calm with little disruption, as well as light music playing in the background over the speakers outlining the rink.
"I wish I thought this through," Danny said, a miserable smile on his face as he held onto the side of the rink, unable to stand up straight without falling. Even though he was most likely embarrassing himself in front of his girlfriend, he knew she wouldn't poke fun (too much).
"You're the strongest person I know, skilled in many different ways," she left that statement loaded, allowing it to be taken many different ways, "but you can't ice skate?"
He shook his head and heaved a melodramatic sigh, chuckling at his behavior before trying to move a foot or two down the ice. Couples whizzed by them, locked arm-in-arm with each other, and Danny wished nothing more that he could manage to get his skating under control so he and Sam could be like that–or even a little bit like that in their own way.
"I didn't go much as a child," he supplied as an excuse, shrugging. "Did you? You seem to know what you're doing."
"It was an outlet my mother approved of when I was younger," she replied. "She figured I would follow it through to compete, but I didn't want to."
"Wait, you're actually," he paused, "really good at this?"
She shrugged, then said, "Define good." She took his hand in hers and tugged, forcing him to stand upright instead of slouched over against the wall. "Put your arm around my waist," she instructed with a small smile. He complied without a word, and she did the same; they were supporting each other–much sturdier than before, Danny noted. They glided along the ice at a better pace, and he felt more confident in his ability than before.
"You are good," he mumbled in amazement. "Jazz tried to get me to learn how to skate about three times before giving up on me." He chuckled nervously, "Though I do understand why she would want to quit on me after my skate wound up in her face."
"Danny!" she scolded, giving him a look. "That's horrible," she chuckled, shaking her head. "What exactly happened?"
"Well, I fell and took her with me. That would definitely be the simple version minus the bickering, arguing, and threatening–oh, and the bloodshed. She had to get stitches from the infamous 'skate-to-the-face' incident. Don't mention it to her, though, or she'll come after me with something sharp," he grinned down at her and chuckled nervously again. "I apologize in advance if I take you down with me."
"Should I fear for my life right now?" she joked, knowing fully well that he would never intentionally hurt her.
"Ha ha," he laughed sarcastically, but then changed the direction of the conversation back to where it was before. "So, wait, can you do any tricks?" he asked, intrigued at her skill that she never mentioned before.
"I knew this was coming," she gave him a look, then rolled her eyes with a sigh. "Yes, I know a couple tricks."
"Can you do a–"
"I can do basic things like skating backwards, forward spins, and I can do a double axel, or at least I used to be able to, which was the extent of my training when I was younger. No, I can't do any back flips, nor can I do a triple salchow." As an afterthought, she added, "I stopped skating when I was nine."
Pulling out of their mutual hold, he leaned against the wall for support as he gave her a look that implored her to attempt a trick. "Please?"
"You've got to be kidding me, Danny," she said, her expression falling. "There are people around! I don't want to mess up and fall on my ass with spectators!" she hissed with a frown as she neared him.
"Please?" he asked again, pleading more with his eyes than before.
Swearing internally at her lack of strength when it came to those blue eyes, she took off on the ice, leaving Danny behind. As she skated away, he grinned triumphantly.
Gaining speed around the rink, she sized up how she would avoid people on the rink and still manage to perform the trick. She passed by Danny at least once, purposefully not meeting his eyes, as she gained speed before turning to skate backwards to set herself up for the move. Seeing an open area for the move, she headed straight for it; she spun forward, vaulting herself into the air, crossing her left leg through in front of her right before uncrossing them and landing on her right leg. Her arms spread for balance, which she maintained miraculously for not having performed that trick in a while. Slowing down the speed of her skating, she nonchalantly skated back up to Danny with a shy smile. "Happy?"
The expression on his face was priceless: his eyes were wide and his mouth was open. She smirked and tapped his chin lightly with her fingers to shut his mouth before placing a kiss upon it. "I take it that you liked it?"
Snapping out of his awe, he gathered her up into his arms and held her close. "I learn new things about you every day," he mumbled into her hair. "I am amazed by you."
She couldn't help but blush, "Oh, stop..."
"What?" he pulled away, looking down at her. "I couldn't do that even if I wanted to. Well, maybe I could," he grinned sheepishly, "but I'd have help from my ghost powers." As an afterthought, he added, "Where you don't even have that option." He kissed her tenderly on the forehead, "I love you, Sam."
Her blush reddened and she buried her face in his jacket, pressing her cheek up against his chest against the warm material of his hoodie underneath. "I love you, too," she mumbled as her arms snaked around his waist.
"You know," Danny said after a short period of silence, "I don't think life could get any better right now."
She sighed softly in contentment, snuggling against him for warmth. "I must be dreaming."
After they skated around the rink for a while longer, they both agreed that it was time for some hot cocoa to warm them up. They left the rink hand in hand, heading in the direction of a local coffee shop. As they were almost there, Danny's cell phone chirped in his pocket, blaring a ringtone Sam rolled her eyes at. Chuckling embarrassedly, he checked the caller I.D. to see who it was before flipping his phone open and answering.
"What's up, Dad?" he spoke into the receiver. "You what?" He paused, rolling his eyes, showing Sam the direction of the conversation. "How could you forget?" They continued to walk, but when Danny stopped with a sigh, so did she. "What do you want me to get her?" Pause. "All right, all right, I'll see what I can do." Pause. "How in the–how did you manage to get reservations there?" He chuckled, "Hey, at least you got something right." Pause. "Yeah, I'm with her." With a side-glance to Sam, he mouthed, 'Dad says "Hi,"' before smiling.
"Hi back," she mumbled, smirking.
"She says 'hi' back, Dad," he spoke, now shifting from one foot to the other, waiting for his dad to wrap up the conversation. "No, not yet, I'm giving it to her later."
She was now intrigued where this conversation was going. "Give me what?"
"All right, I'll swing by the mall now. You owe me one!" He laughed. "All right, a million. I'll be home soon. Bye," he said finally, snapping his cell phone shut and turning back to Sam. "Change of plans, sadly. We're going to have to swing by the mall since my Dad forget yet again to buy my mother something that he couldn't eat himself first. He bought her chocolates, but then forgot what they were for and ate them before remembering that it's Valentine's Day today."
She smiled, knowing that was typical Jack, before asking him, "What are you going to give me later? I told you–"
"I know what you said and I listened, don't worry," he replied, cutting her off. "I just... decided to not listen a teeny bit and get you something I know you've had your eye on."
Her heart swelled at those words, though she chose not to show it directly. "You know you didn't have to do that."
"I know," he agreed. "I wanted to, though. I can't wait to see the look on your face when you see what it is that I got you."
--
"I wonder how many times I've done that in my life," Danny said from his position on the couch, just having said goodbye to his parents who left for their Valentine's Day dinner. "I think Jazz did it last year, and me the year before. He never manages to remember."
"Here's hoping your children won't have to do that with you," Sam joked good-naturedly, nudging his side. She sat next to him on the couch, leaning against him.
"Hey, I remembered without any prodding from an outside source," he smiled at her, then wiggled his eyebrows. "Plus, I helped my Dad out, so I should get bonus points. And a cookie."
She chuckled, "Uh huh. I could go for just about anything right now."
"Anything?" he asked, once again wiggling his eyebrows at her. She could practically see the gears in his head work as his eyes lit up. "Hey, I have a fun bit of trivia for you."
"Oh?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
Putting a finger over her lips to quiet her, he remained silent as well, every so often glancing at her with a smirk. "Silence. Do you know what that means?"
Sitting up completely, thoroughly confused, she furrowed her eyebrows at him, "No?"
"We have the house to ourselves," he supplied, smiling deviously.
"You, sir, are a horny bastard," she grinned.
"I have to give you your present, don't I?" he asked innocently. He got up from the couch and reached a hand down to help her up, which she took to stand.
Just as she stood, a wave of dizziness passed over her, and she had to steady herself by holding onto his arm. "Whoa," she mumbled, blinking a few times. "Remind me not to eat for extended periods of time."
"You haven't eaten today?" he asked, changing his route from the bedroom to the kitchen. "Come on, we'll grab something before we head upstairs."
"Sounds great," she followed him into the kitchen before sitting down at the table. Rummaging through his fridge, he pulled out things he knew she would like and started putting together a meal for her. She watched him with a curious expression, "Do I even have to tell you what I want anymore or do you just have that covered?"
"I have everything covered," he responded without looking back at her. "Including you when you finish eating," he added cheekily as he continued to make her dinner. "And then round two."
Getting up from the table, she walked over to him and hugged him from behind, slipping her arms around his waist. Reaching up on tip-toe, she kissed his cheek. Finishing what he was making, he turned in her arms and grinned down at her before kissing her sweetly on the lips.
"Round two of what?" she asked, smirking. "Eating or..."
"The big 'or' you speak of would be great," he said, kissing her again. "At the same time as food would be even better. And in my own bed? It's a dream come true for me."
"Men," she chuckled before kissing him. Reaching behind him for the sandwich he made, she took a bite the second the broke away from the kiss, smiling audaciously at him.
He growled playfully, grabbing her and hoisting her over his shoulder, sandwich still in hand; as he led her up the stairs and to his bedroom, her muffled protests trailing his every step.
