Chapter Four

Sam Manson was certain Monday morning was going to suck, and not just because she had been hearing nonexistent laughter from the popular crowd for the past couple of hours, pretty much summing up what the rest of senior year would be like. Now she could sleep knowing Danny Fenton was plotting ways to ruin her life.

That morning Sam expected dirty looks from Danny, or laughter from the shallow witch whenever she passed. Sam even went as far as bringing extra clothing with her in case anyone did prank her, but what she got was even worse.

Danny stood at the end of the long hallway talking to Valerie. She was leaning against the lockers, while Danny had his hand pressed against the wall beside Valerie's head. The pose was much too casual, and from what Val told her last night Danny hardly ever acknowledged her existence. So what was this jerk doing now?

He must have felt her gaze because Danny looked up and their eyes met. Sam glared, silently threatening him if he even thought about hurting her.

He only smiled at Sam before saying something to Valerie, and heading to homeroom. Sam rushed over to her dazed friend. "Did he threaten you?"

"No." She seemed a little bewildered, but overall happy. "I can't believe it. I haven't had a real conversation with Danny since freshman year."

"Be careful. He might just be using you. I have a feeling he might be trying to embarrass us both."

Valerie didn't seen thrilled about the idea, but she nodded. "You're right. I'll be careful around him."

Days passed with only a few encounters from Danny. Sometimes she'd see him in the hallway, the cafeteria or even before school started, and he always seemed to smile at her. Sam had been on edge for days, expecting something to go on during class or some embarrassing photo to appear in her locker.

She guessed Danny wasn't into grade school pranks though. He was probably waiting for the opportunity to attack, and Sam was hoping he would get it over with soon. She didn't like the sense of unease that hovered over her every move. She wanted this Danny deal to be the same as ripping off a band-aid. Painful but quick.

Days turned into weeks though, and Sam was finally beginning to relax. Maybe he wasn't the type to hold grudges. She felt a lot better after admitting this to herself. Sam shut her locker closed, and was greeted by her excited friend.

"So what are we doing after school?" Valerie asked, holding a geometry textbook to her chest.

Sam raised an eyebrow. "We have plans?"

"Uh, you mean your birthday? Yeah, we have plans!" Valerie set her unusually teal eyes on Sam. "You're not stopping me from throwing you an eighteenth birthday party. As your best friend I have this right."

Sam made a face at the word party. Nothing good ever came out of them. "Don't bother. My parents probably have something planned for the weekend." She rolled her eyes.

"That's why we gotta celebrate today!" Valerie gushed. "I'm not letting you miss out on this. You're always out saving the world. Take a break."

"I volunteer. It's not like I'm doing the impossible."

"But this is you, Sam. You overdo everything you're passionate about." Valerie grabbed her arm. "It'll be fun."

"I don't even have any friends to invite," Sam claimed.

"Its a private party for us. And you know there's no getting out of this."

"Fine," she caved in. Valerie was just as stubborn as her anyways. "But I don't want to see a speck of pink."


Sam went to Valerie's house, and her entire basement was decorated surprisingly well. Ripped black, green, and purple streamers hanging from the ceiling, black and white balloons along the floor, a table of her favorite snacks, and a strobe light that gave off all kinds of colors.

"Wow, Val. You've really gone all out," Sam said, poking at one of the ripped streamers.

"Don't thank me yet. First," She picked up a present, handing it to her."Open."

Sam did as instructed, and laughed at the sight. "Oh, man. How did you did a hold of this?" She held up the new thriller movie Sam was dying to get a hold of.

"I have my connections." She grinned, taking a seat on the couch. "I ordered a veggie pizza for us, which should be here any minute."

"Val, this is perfect," Sam laughed, excited to watch her new DVD.

"We're not done yet!" Valerie stated, kicking her feet on the table. "I still have to sing you happy birthday."

"I'll pass on the song. Just give me the cake."

As if on command, the lights flicked off in the room and her cake was carried in. The person holding the lit dessert made the smile on her face stick.

Danny set the cake on the table, flashing Sam a friendly grin. "Happy birthday."

Sam glared. "What the fuck are you doing here?"

Valerie sat up. "Danny planned everything. He wanted to apologize for before."

Sam laughed. "You really think cake is going to change my mind about you?"

"No, but this might." Danny took a step aside and gestured to the door.

Sam gasped. "Tucker?"

The guy in the red beret grinned. "The one and only."


So the reason this story took forever and is extremely short is from being crazy busy this month. I have weddings to attend and presentations to prepare for, not to mention my wisdom tooth is coming out and killing me. I've also had another great fanfic idea going through my mind, but I feel starting it is unfair with all the incomplete fanfics I have. Mmm, life.