Vlad pulled Danny close, wrapping his fingers into the loop of the boy's jeans. "I want to know why it is that you haven't tried to contact your parents while you have been here. I know you told me before that they don't really pay attention to you, but you've been gone for a month Daniel, I think that any sane parent would worry about the safety of their child."
Danny sighed, looking up at Vlad with a smile on his face nonetheless. "It seems that out of all the questions you can pick, you picked the most challenging for me to answer." Danny started thinking about how much he could actually tell Vlad before the older man became too suspicious. Hopefully, Clockwork would make another appearance soon and Danny could actually ask a few questions on how to deal with the situation he is in right now. "I guess there's really no explanation as to why I haven't contacted my parents other than there is no way I can communicate with them right now." Danny explained.
The younger boy assumed that Clockwork had contacted one of his close friends or even his sister. His parents knew about his ghost powers and about how he would do work for a lot of the ghosts within the Ghostzone, Clockwork being only one example. His parents still hunt ghost for a living, but have learned to recognize that there is such a thing as a good ghost. Though his parents didn't try to hunt every ghost they saw, Danny was still cautious in introducing any of the ghosts allies to his parents, fearful one of their many experiments would go wrong, causing damage to the few friends he had in ghost realm. If Clockwork had told either Sam, Tucker, or even Jazz, any of them could relay the message to them that he had been sent back in time. Then again, Danny was not aware of how time moved while he was trapped in the past.
"I can assure you though, Vlad," Danny started, pulling away from the older man to sit on the counter so that he Vlad would continue making their dinner. "That my parents know I am safe and they believe that I will come back home safely."
Taking the hint, Vlad returned to the meal, placing the freshly cut vegetables into a skillet, allowing the food to heat up. He hummed as he cooked, thinking about what Danny had said. Vlad wanted to ask why Danny was unable to contact his parents, but at the same time he didn't know how much was too much. Deciding to leave that question there, Vlad moved onto his next question. "I know you told us that your parents sent you here on their own accord to learn about the different technology we are experimenting on, but why did they send you and how did you even get here? You seem to have just showed up out of nowhere, which is a bit odd, but nonetheless I'm thankful to have you in my life now."
"I didn't know you were interrogating me Vlad, I thought maybe I would get a turn to ask a question after I answered yours," Danny teased, lightly brushing his foot against the outside of Vlad's thigh.
"Very well, I guess it's only fair that I allow you to ask a question," Vlad agreed, allowing the boy the chance to ask whatever he wanted.
Danny thought for a moment, kicking his feet lightly as they dangled off the counter. He couldn't honestly think of much to ask Vlad, he already knew so much about him from his future self, but at the same time they seemed to be completely different people, so questions were constantly filling his head. "Why are you so interested in ghosts?"
Vlad sighed, pulling Danny closer as the vegetables continued cooking. "I was guessing that you would ask me sooner or later." Vlad walked over to the table, pulling a chair out for Danny to sit in as he told his story. "When I was younger, I didn't see my parents often as they were working constantly. I spent a lot of time with my grandfather from my mom's side, so I saw him more as a father than my grandpa. He became very ill while I was in middle school, his body was slowly dying and as the days passed, he would grow weaker. Whenever I went to visit him, my grandfather would be bed ridden and I would be the there at his bedside making sure he was as comfortable as possible. When I entered eighth grade, my parents had informed me that my grandfather didn't have much longer to live. He no longer was at his house, but instead was living in the hospital, under constant watch. I would go to visit him after school whenever I could, but every visit just made me more and more uneasy. I hated watching this strong man I love, slowly withering away to nothing. When I was on holiday vacation, he ended up passing peacefully in his sleep. When he was gone, I was just so devastated and lost, I didn't want to believe that my grandfather was no more, so i started looking into other possibilities as to what happens after someone passes on and that's what lead me to my interest in ghosts." Vlad explained, smiling sadly as he was reminded of the memories he had of his grandpa. Not many people knew about Vlad's grandfather and the relationship they shared together, he only told his two closest friends and even they didn't know the full story. "I guess, I became interested because I was scared to be alone, but I'm glad I continued studying it. Now I do it more for my own curiosity."
Smiling, Danny covered Vlad's hand with his own, squeezing the older man's limb lightly in hopes of comforting him. "I'm sorry that you lost someone so important to you, but I'm glad new doors were opened for you as well. You seem happy whenever you are working on your ghost gear, no matter how stressed out yoyou get. Its a bit endearing to see you scrunch your eyebrows together when you are focusing."
Vlad returned the younger boy's smile, not able to help himself as he leaned forward to kiss Danny's forehead, returning to the steaming meal after doing so. "Yes, well I'm sure my grandfather is happy wherever he is, he would always take any situation and look at it in a positive light." As Vlad deemed the food ready, he asked Danny to grab out the plates so that they could begin eating. Of course the younger man obliged and handed the porcelain dishes to the chef, allowing him to proportion the meal put evenly. "Now, I wanna know a bit more about you Danny. I don't mean to come off sounding rude, but you don't seem like the type to date other men. I'm just curious as to if I'm your first boyfriend."
Once the plates were filled with the vegetable stir fry Vlad had prepared, Danny hoped off the counter and went to sit at the table, his partner joining right beside him. "Well if I'm being completely honest, I haven't ever thought of being with another man. When I first met you I was intrigued by you, it also doesn't hurt that you are a fairly good looking man, but your personality pulled me in as well. I didn't expect to fall for you, at least not at first, I just wanted to know more about you." Danny grabbed a fork and took a bit of the food, lightly groaning at the wonderful taste. "I actually haven't dated many people, only two, both of which were females and close friends of mine. I was always just really busy and it just seemed that anyone I dated would feel neglected and would fade away. I don't like confronting others, so I just let them fade away, heart broken they didn't want to talk about it, but I also wasn't going to initiate the conversation."
"Well we both know that I'm not the type to run away from my problems, it's the only good thing my stubbornness is good for," Vlad chimed in, a sense of pride filling him as he watched Danny eat the food he had prepared. He felt bad for making Danny miss out on eating the food they prepared for their picnic, eating three solid meals a day was something he strongly believed in. He knew he would have to make sure Danny ate regularly. "Just know I won't just fade away. If we encounter a problem in our relationship then I hope we both can be grown ups about the situation and actually talk it out. I want to make things work with you, Danny."
"Thank you Vlad and I will do the same. To finish my answer to your question though, yes you are my first boyfriend," Danny answered, his eyes looking up to meet Vlad's gaze.
Danny and Vlad finished the meal, chatting throughout the entire gathering about the most mundane stuff. The conversation flowed easily between the two of them, each taking turns to talk as the other was eating. Danny carried most of the conversation, Vlad happy to hear the boy open up about his family, but couldn't help but think that the boy was thinking too carefully about what he wanted to say. Vlad was aware everyone had their secrets, he having some that he his from others, but had hoped in time he could share them with somebody close to him. Danny had reminded Vlad of someone walking on a frozen pond, one wrong move and the whole thing could crack and cause them to be engulfed in below freezing water.
After the meal, Danny and Vlad had returned to the living room, both of them sitting on the couch that was currently also Danny's make-shift bed. "I feel like I should go back to Johnathan's place," Danny mumbled quietly as he leaned against Vlad's shoulder, playing with a small thread that was sticking out of his shirt. "I told him I would be coming back with some supplies so that I could stay with him for the time being, but seeing as that's not happening, I should probably go explain why I'm not staying."
"Do you really have to go?" Vlad asked, wrapping his arm around the boy's smaller frame. Though Danny seemed relatively fit, Vlad still had a larger build and moving around all of the different science equipment he used did help to build his strength.
"Vlad, he's my friend, it's only right that I tell him we made up. He could be worrying that I got hurt on the way back to your dorm."
Vlad was silent for a moment, "Daniel, do you plan on telling your friend about our relationship?"
The question made Danny shift a bit, uncomfortable with the tension that suddenly filled the air. How could he possibly explain his newly developed relationship to Johnathan? He wasn't technically dating Vlad, but at the same time they were more than friends? They had kissed only moments ago on the very couch they were sitting on and they both had romantic feelings towards the other, but Vlad had made it clear that he had no intention of labeling them as dating. Danny understood why Vlad was so careful, the older man didn't want Danny to feel like he was a replacement for Maddie. Danny sighed quietly before looking at Vlad with a small smile, "Maybe someday, but for now I don't think I'm ready to tell him. I want to keep the relationship between the two of us, just for the time being."
Nodding in agreement, Vlad stood from his spot beside Danny, his arm leaving the boy's shoulder. "Thank you, Daniel. You don't seem to be the type to hide important things from your friends, but I appreciate that you are keeping the secret for me. Now, hurry and go so that you can be home in time for us to go out shopping, I think it's about time we go you some clothing of your own. As much as I enjoy seeing you in my clothing, I can assume you don't like how baggy the pants are on you."
"Alright Vlad, I'll be back soon."
Danny put on one of Vlad's jackets and his own shoes, waving softly to Vlad as he stepped out of the warm comfort of their dorm room and out into the chilly autumn air.
"Clockwork!" A deep voice called.
The ghost, now in his elderly form turned from his screen to see someone approaching. With a flick of his wrist the screen faded away, the image of Danny leaving Vlad's apartment disappearing. "Ahh, what a pleasant surprise. Care to tell me why you came after I specifically told you not to enter my realm?" The ghost asked, his form shifting to that of a child.
"How much longer?" The voice asked, the unwanted guest was trying to sound menacing, but Clockwork knew that they were getting desperate, of course he knew.
"As I have explained before you need to have patience. Let time take it's course," he softly answered, keeping his calm demeanor. "Coming to me doesn't quicken the process, you yourself should know how much longer, isn't the anniversary coming up?"
A sad sigh was heard as the guest turned to leave, "two months," he mumbled under his breath. The man pulled his cloak around his body, before he turned intangible and floated out of Clockwork's tower.
*Author's Note* Well hey guys... how ya been.. that's good. So yeah, another short part, super sorry about that. Just a heads up, the Dom/Sub stuff will be happening about two chapter from now? Maybe three? Yes, I do plan on actually writing more. Sorry for the long wait, I was actually motivated by the comments, I honestly didn't know people were enjoying it. Anyways, let me guys know what you think of this chapter, tell me what you want to see, or tell me what you hate! See you guys next time!
