The next morning (the storm was still raging outside), Sam went down to breakfast to see Danny, Johnny, Kitty, Youngblood, and Ember there along with the Fentons. She glared at Ember and sat down at an empty seat, pouring herself a glass of orange juice angrily. It was during the night, after her tears had dried and she actually thought about Ember, that her sadness was instantly replaced with a huge sense of jealously. She should have been married to Danny, she should have been pregnant, she should have been part of a cool team, she should have been the one Danny worried over and felt blessed with, not that witch! Those were some of the things Sam thought. Apparently, she believed she deserved a future with Danny, but Ember got it instead, and Sam hated her for it.

There she goes, strutting that pot belly, she would sometimes comment angrily in her mind. And she's just so tired, huh? Tough. She just a selfish, attention-grabbing witch who needs a serious reality check.

All these thoughts ran in a confused jumble through Sam's head, some satisfying, others unpleasant, making her agitated and unable to think properly. She growled silently as she clutched her glass of juice. Why did this have to happen? It wasn't supposed to be this way.

"So, the bikes will be ready in a week?" she barely heard Danny ask Jack. "Oh, yeah!" she distinctly recognized Jack's affirmative.

"It was very kind of you to take us in," Sam clearly heard Ember's voice say, and her brows knitted together. "Oh, it's no problem," Maddie insisted, but Sam could hardly make her out. It seemed the only voice she could hear clearly was Ember's, and that made her even angrier.

"Are you sure the bed was comfortable, Amy?" Danny pressed.

"Stop worrying, it was fine!" Ember assured him, sticking her tongue out at him playfully, "I fell asleep straight away. Those are some really nice smelling sheets you have, Mrs. Fenton."

"Why thank you," Maddie thanked her proudly, happy that someone had finally noticed the little comforts she would go the extra mile for to make everyone content. Ember really had changed...not that Sam would admit that, of course.

"Hey Danny, why do you call your wife Amy?" Jazz asked her brother curiously. Jazz was pretty much the only person Danny would speak comfortably with. He never forgot how she stood up for him, even when she was alone, and held a high respect for her because of it.

"Well, Emy didn't sound right, so we settled with Amy," Danny answered, putting his arm around Ember's shoulders. Sam's eye twitched. Unable to stand looking at them so happy together any longer, Sam's eyes wandered to the other team members seated at the table. Johnny's hair was still as greasy as ever, although he had grown it out and now held it back in a ponytail. He also had his left ear pierced, with a gold hoop earring as proof. Since his leather biker jacket was off, Sam could see the tattoo on his left arm. It was a black heart, with a white ribbon and the word Kitty inside tattooed as well.

Sam shifted her gaze to Kitty. Her hair was much shorter now, and was the springy type of curly. Sam guessed it wasn't naturally curly, since her hair had been straight yesterday, or maybe it was the other way around? Either way, she had to admit that she looked pretty anyways. She now had three sets of gold hoop earrings in her right ear, one in her left, an earring stud just next to her eye, and a bellybutton piercing. If Kitty had stuck her tongue out, Sam would have seen that her tongue was pierced too. Since Kitty's red leather jacket was also off, Sam could see that she had the exact same tattoo as Johnny in the exact same place, only her tattoo said 'Johnny' in the ribbon. Besides this, she had a rose tattooed on her hip, and a lizard tattooed on her right ankle. Yep, she had definetely turned into a biker chic.

Youngblood looked pretty much the same, as well as Danny, whose only difference was a taller and more muscular frame. His hair was cut the same way it had always been. But Ember had really changed. She was still slim but now had more curves, and her chest had really blossomed. Her skin was still as pale as ever, but she didn't wear anymore make-up. Now you could see that she had a faint yet attracting natural outline around her eyes, making her green eyes stand out even more. She continued to wear black, but it was now comfortable, not the tight clothes she used to dress up in. Her flaming blue hair was still the same length and held up in her signature ponytail.

After taking everyone in, Sam looked down at herself. She hadn't changed that much. Her clothes had gotten a lot more darker and gothic, and her hair was much longer, but she was sorry to say that her body pretty much stayed the same. Even though she had slimmed down and was taller, her chest remained undeveloped. She inwardly sighed. She didn't have anything to charm Danny with.

After breakfast, everyone went down to the lab to check things out. Sam tried to stay close to Danny, but he noticed and angrily pulled Ember inbetween them. Sam blinked innocently, but was inwardly cursing. She'd have to try another tactic. Maybe flirt with another guy, make Danny jealous? Where was Gregor when you needed him!

Team Independence looked around the basement/lab, inspecting every weapon with immense interest. Sam wondered if they were planning to steal any of them. Standing at a slight distance away, Sam scanned the area with bored eyes, but in reality she was carefully watching the gang's every move. Jack and Maddie were talking enthusiastically to the group, about who knows what, but no one seemed to be paying them any attention. Youngblood, being still a mere child, wanted to touch everything, but Kitty slapped his hands away. Johnny tried to touch an ecto-gun, but she slapped his hands away too.

The lab had been rearranged, but Danny still smiled, if only slightly, at the memories some old weapons brought back. Ember squeezed his hand in understanding, and he smiled warmly at her, making Sam's heart clench. Was she sure about this? Did she really want to break them apart just to get Danny for herself? They looked so happy and content together...and even if she did manage to tear them apart, Danny would probably hate her for that, and never want to be with her. Sam pondered over these second thoughts, but no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't stand the sight of them together.

"Cool place you got here," a voice suddenly sounded behind her, and Sam jumped. She spun around and realized that the voice belonged to Kitty. She had been so busy watching Danny and Ember that she hadn't noticed Kitty walk up behind her.

"Uh, thanks, but it's not mine."

"Oh, it isn't? I though you lived here," Kitty said. Sam's blood heated up again. She would live here if Danny would've married her, but no, that witch just had to come and steal him away.

"No, I live on the other block," Sam replied between clenched teeth.

"Oh."

They were silent for a few awkward moments, the atmosphere heavy and uncomfortable, until Kitty managed to strike up a conversation.

"I like your style. The goth look is so you."

"Really?" Sam inquired, surprised. Nobody had ever really said or even hinted that they liked her style, or at least liked that she wasn't afraid to be herself. Her parents hated the goth look, and mostly everyone else thought it was creepy. Not wanting to be rude, she complimented the ghost girl too. "I like your biker chic look. How many piercings do you have?"

Pretty soon they were talking about all sorts of things relating to the darker side of fashion: piercings, tattoos, leather--all things that appealed to Sam. They hadn't even noticed that the Fentons were done giving their little tour until they started up the steps. The two girls followed suit.

"And so, that's the basement," Jack said, closing the door and patting it lovingly. "Anything else you want to see?"

Danny looked up the stairs. "Is...is my room still like I left it?"

"Just like you left it sweetie," Maddie assured him. "We haven't touched anything."

Danny nodded, and slowly climbed up the stairs, Ember following him. Realizing that they should give Danny some privacy, Maddie went to kitchen to start lunch while Jack and Johnny went to work on the bikes, and Kitty went back to her guest room to see a movie Youngblood was begging her to watch with him. That left Sam standing there in the middle of the carpeted floor, staring up at the stairs Danny and Ember had just climbed. She was silently contemplating things in her mind. Should she follow them up there? She knew Danny would want to see his old room alone, in case the memories it provided overwhelmed him, but she was very curious to know what his reaction would be. Would he be sad? Happy? Angry? All of them? Sam, hating to be left out of things, decided that she needed to find out, and she reluctantly climbed upstairs. She reached the hallway, and a wave of memories rushed over her. She remembered how she, Danny, and Tucker would race up the stairs, usually with a rack of soda or a bag of chips or bowl of popcorn they snuck from the kitchen (much to Maddie's disapproval), and they would sit in a circle on the floor and just talk about nothing and everything.

Sam snapped out of her little flashback, and slowly continued her walk down the hallway. Her hand grabbed Danny's door handle, but didn't turn it. She could hear Danny and Ember's voices inside, but couldn't make out anything they were saying. The urge to know what they were talking about overtook her again, but she was still hesitant. Danny definetely would not want her there. So why was she here again? Because you need to make sure that greedy witch doesn't keep Danny for herself, her mind reminded her confidently. She nodded. She still couldn't quite grasp that Danny and Ember were actually married; she viewed them more as boyfriend and girlfriend rather than husband and wife. That partly kept Sam thinking she still had a chance with Danny; that, and she still couldn't believe he would marry a ghost, much less Ember, that he knew for only seven years, over Sam, whom he had known for twice that long. Before she could stop herself, she turned the handle and pushed the door open.

Whatever conversation they were having ceased immediately, and Danny glared at the intruder.

"What are you doing here?" he demanded. Sam chose not to answer, and instead picked up an old framed picture of Danny, Tucker, and herself, when they were still friends.

"Look how young we were," she commented, holding up the picture for Danny to see. He frowned but said nothing, wondering what she was trying to do.

"I've really missed you Danny," she continued, moving towards him and completely ignoring Ember. He stepped back when she got too close, and she stopped. "Did you miss me?"

"Not at all," he answered dryly. "Why would I miss you, when I have her?" he said, referring to Ember and reminding Sam of the ghost's presence. Sam gave her a dirty look.

"Don't look at her that way!" Danny snapped, and Sam turned her attention back to him.

"Oh, but Danny, can't you see? We're perfect for each other," Sam said, batting her eyelashes at him and feeling a lot like Paulina at the moment, much to her disgust.

"No, Ember and I are perfect for each other," he corrected her stubbornly, crossing his arms. "I'd never betray her, and I know she would never betray me either, unlike you!"

"How do you know? How can you be so sure she won't leave you?" Sam asked boldly.

"Because I love him," Ember said suddenly, deciding that now was a good time to enter the argument. "And I wouldn't leave him for all the men in the world."

Danny gave her a thankful and loving glance, while Sam began to radiate angry heat.

"You're just saying that because you want to keep him away from me, you greedy witch!" Sam said sharply, beginning to yell.

"Don't you dare talk to her like that!" Danny warned her, beginning to yell too, "And what's this about her keeping me away from you? I do not love you Sam, at all! You're just jealous because there's someone out there that's way better for me than you'll ever be!"

Sam's fists clenched, and she grit her teeth so hard she though they would crack. She swung her fist at Ember, but Danny caught it reflexively and twisted it behind her back.

"Get out of my room!" he ordered, shoving her out the door.

"Oh, for God's sake Danny, stop acting like a little kid!" Sam shouted.

"Get out!"

Before Sam could do anything, he slammed the door in her face. Sam almost screamed. She kicked and pounded against the door in frustration, nearly knocking it off its hinges, but Danny had locked the door.

"What's all the fuss about?" asked Maddie, just coming up the stairs. She looked at Sam expectantly, but the goth girl brushed past her angrily. She stomped down the stairs and ran out of the house. She didn't bring an umbrella, and the rain soaked her instantly. Lighting flashed across the sky, thunder quickly following suit. The streets of Amity Park were pretty much deserted, as no one wanted to be out in the storm.

"Only an idiot would be outside in this weather," Sam commented sadly. "An idiot like me." She walked aimlessly around the streets, until she came to a statue of Danny Phantom that the town had made in his honor after he left. She sighed and sat down, staring up at it. Her skirt was getting muddy, but she could care less. Why did Danny love Ember and not her? Because she's hypnotizing him, the evil side of her conscience said, but her good side disagreed.

Sam, Danny doesn't love you anymore, her good conscience said. You have to accept that and move on. Look at yourself. Twenty one years old and you still don't have a boyfriend. Why? Because you still want Danny. But you need to understand that we can't always have what we want. It's hard, but sometimes you have to let go of the past, so you can have a future.

Sam nodded at herself (she's been doing that a lot lately, huh?), tears pricking her eyes. She still loved Danny, but he loved someone else now. There were millions of other men out there in the world, who said she had to be with Danny? Especially when someone already had him. Sure she wanted to be part of a cool team, sure she wanted to be pregnant, sure she wanted to be loved and cared for, but she could have that. It didn't have to be with Danny, she could find another man. A better man for herself.

She sighed and nodded at herself again, her maturity pointing her in the right direction, and walked back to the house. Ignoring Maddie's inquiries as to where she had gone, she walked back up to the room she was staying in, grabbing some dry clothes from her drawer. Just as she was about to go to the bathroom to change and dry off, however, Danny and Ember walked past her. She tried to catch Danny's eye, but he didn't even glare at her, he just ignored her. They walked briskly down the stairs. Sam growled and clenched her fists.

No matter how many times she told herself not to let it bother her, she simply could not stand the sight of them together.