I didn't forget about this, if y'all were wondering where I've been. Lol. Things got insanely busy at work, family was coming and going, and my laptop graciously decided to crash right in the middle of it all. It was fantastic.
But I'm here again and I'm updating, so yay (:
For those of you who've sent me PMs that I haven't responded to yet, I'll probably get back with you guys in the morning. I'm exhausted right now.
Anyways, hope everyone had a wonderful holiday (: I know I did (:
Um...hm. I don't think I'm forgetting anything.
This is chapter six! I don't own Danny Phantom.
Enjoy (:
Wide Awake
Chapter Six
December 26, 2012
The walk back to the stadium was excruciatingly long. Danny was practically bursting at the seams with anticipation as he tripped and stumbled after Valerie. Valerie threw continuous glances over her shoulder at him, each look growing more and more annoyed. Danny did not care. He was beyond ecstatic at the chance to see Sam and Tucker again.
But mostly Sam.
"They're still probably cooling down from the game." Valerie muttered as they approached the stadium. The lights were still on, though the vast majority of the crowd was no where to be seen. Only a few stayed behind, cleaning the trash up and chatting quietly. "Hey, Marcy, Sam and Tuck still in there?"
"I haven't seen them." Marcy, a short, wiry-haired girl sighed as she straightened. She eyed Danny curiously, but did not say anything to him. "I'm pretty sure they're still in there."
"'Kay." Valerie waved and ushered Danny on. They passed through the gates of the stadium, turning to the right this time and heading down a long hallway with tall ceilings. "Locker rooms are down this way. And...listen," Valerie threw her arm out to stop Danny, turning to face him with a serious expression on her face. "Please, let me talk to them first, okay? They're...I mean, they're gonna freak out either way. But, seriously, I can cushion it a little bit if you let me go first. Okay?"
"Okay." Danny nodded firmly. He moved to take another step, but found that Valerie was still blocking his path.
"And when you go in there, please, let me do the talking. Don't say a word unless I give you the signal. Got it?"
"This is ridicu-"
"Got it?"
"What's the signal?"
"You'll know it when you see it. Got it?"
"Yes, okay, fine. Got it. Can we go now?" He tried desperately to keep the whine out of his voice, with no success.
Valerie eyed him suspiciously for a moment longer, before rolling her eyes and turning back in the direction they were heading before. Danny stayed close to her heels, glancing to either side nervously as if he believed Tucker and Sam would jump out and attack him at any moment. He could feel his heart thundering in his chest and for a moment he wrestled with the urge to scream.
"Here." Valerie pointed to a rather nondescript door, scuffed toward the bottom from shoes kicking at it repeatedly. He could easily picture Sam kicking the door open and releasing a familiar and deeply missed strangled growl of exhaustion. "Just...do me a favor?" She asked as she stepped toward the door.
"What?"
"Stay out here. Just for a minute. Please."
They stared at each other, Valerie's hand tight around the doorknob, Danny's eyes practically bulging out of his head in disbelief at her request. He could hear them, just beyond the door, their voices soft murmurs, tempting him and drawing him in. Valerie's face hardened in warning.
"Fine! Hurry up, though!" Danny muttered. Valerie smiled.
"Two minutes." She promised him. She knocked twice, light and delicate.
"Come in." Tucker called from inside. Danny bit his lip to hold in his groan.
Valerie opened the door a crack and slipped inside. Danny caught a glimpse of a room painted red, brightly lit, before the door snapped shut. He felt goosebumps racing down his skin, the hairs on his arm and neck standing straight at attention, and he began to pace. He could hear Valerie speaking, but her voice was far too faint for him to understand. Tucker murmured something, which prompted Valerie to began a speech that lasted precisely forty-seven seconds. It was quiet for a moment, and then Danny heard the most wonderful thing he had heard in over a year: the softest, faintest sound of Sam's voice.
He practically dove into the door. It was all he could do to redirect his landing point to the wall beside the door. He remained very still, flattened against the wall, willing himself not to phase through. He wanted to wait, he wanted to do this right, and he trusted Valerie to know what would be the right things to do and say in this situation. She knew the postapocalyptic Tucker and Sam better than he did, anyways.
But he would always know the pre-apocalyptic Tucker and Sam better than her. He would know the real versions of his best friends better than anyone in the entire world. This thought made him smile, if only just a little.
He pushed away from the wall hastily when he heard footsteps approaching the other side of the door. He stood in the center of the hallway, took a deep breath, squared his shoulders, and stared directly at the door. His heart was practically beating directly out of his chest.
"Now...what I'm about to show you guys...is gonna shock you," He heard Valerie say.
"Yeah, right. Enough with the drama, let's just do this." Tucker said.
The door swung open.
For a moment, Tucker was completely rigid in shock. He was practically unrecognizable now that Danny was close enough to see him. His face was much older, darker and far more lined beneath his horn-rimmed glasses. Danny spotted the smallest of cracks at the bottom of one of the lenses, small enough to be effectively ignored. He was still in his all-black zombie-hunting uniform, though it looked as if he was in what would be the undergarments. His long-sleeved shirt was wrinkled, the sleeves riding up enough to reveal several small scars on the skin of his forearms. His pants were tight against his legs, accentuating every toned muscle in the boy's body. For a wild moment, Danny wondered which was a better work out, ghost hunting or zombie hunting?
And then the moment passed and Tucker was reeling backwards, one hand flying over his mouth while the other trembled violently and pointed at Danny. Valerie appeared on the edge of the door frame, her eyes wide. She motioned for Danny to back up, which he did immediately. He flattened himself against the far wall, pressing his palms into the cool surface. He gulped.
"What? What is it?" Sam suddenly bounded into his view, and in that moment everything else disappeared. He forgot Tucker was there, practically going into cardiac arrest. He forgot Valerie was holding her hand up in caution. He forgot he was in Paulina's old soccer stadium, on her parents' ranch, in Texas, orphaned and alone. In that moment, he was Danny, and she was Sam, and they were being reunited after a year of agonizing separation.
She was radiant. Her hair, still done up in a loose braid from the game, draped over one shoulder and barely tickled the top of her left breast. Her violet eyes were wide, her lips parted as she froze at the sight of him. Her skin was tan, stretched tight over her bones in the areas he could see. She wore something similar to Tucker, though her shirt appeared to have been hacked off at her midriff. She was barefoot, he realized.
He took a single step forward, just one small, hesitant step, and suddenly the door slammed closed. He almost stumbled, his muscles jerking back as he recoiled from the unpleasant sound of the door crashing shut.
Though, once his ears cleared, he was wishing for that sound.
Tucker was screaming. He was shouting, cursing at Valerie, demanding to know what the hell her problem was, bringing some doppelgänger in to tease them. But it was the sounds he heard between Tucker's angry threats that made his heart ache.
Sam was crying. Not wailing, as she had done in the video, but she was sobbing. She was releasing choked sobs, her voice breaking as she attempted to calm herself. Tucker suddenly went silent, followed by a scuffling noise, and then Sam's sobs were substantially muffled.
"...not a doppelgänger, that's really him! I found him downtown, he saved my life!" Valerie swore.
"The hell would he be doing here? Huh? He had no idea Paulina's folks had a place out here, why the hell would he be here? Shhh, Sam," Tucker's voice suddenly softened considerably. Danny listened intently. "Shh, it's okay. It's okay. I'm here. It's all gonna be okay."
"It's him, I swear to God."
"Shut the hell up, Valerie." Tucker snarled. "It's not him." His voice was soft again, and Danny realized he was murmuring to Sam. "It's just our imagination. Valerie's been drinking again, we both know she has a problem." There was silence for a moment, and Danny wondered if they were exchanging dirty looks. "It's okay. Shhh." Tucker murmured, his voice slightly muffled. Danny wondered if his face was buried in Sam's hair.
There was silence again. Danny waited, holding his breath, before Valerie finally spoke again.
"Okay, you're right. It's not him. His name is...um...Seth. I found him downtown. He was scared and alone, so I brought him back here. He saw you guys playing in the Bowl and he really wanted to meet y'all. Okay? I'm sorry I tried to tell you it was...you know who. I just...I thought that if you guys thought it was...him...you guys would be...I dunno, happy, I guess. I'm sorry. It was stupid, I realize that now. I just wasn't thinking at the time, but don't take that out on him. Please, will you give Seth a chance?"
Danny squeezed his eyes shut, praying that Tucker would agree. The silence stretched on in one endless moment, before someone finally spoke again.
"Can I see him again?" Sam's voice was small, almost timid. Danny got the feeling that it was incredibly out of character for zombie-slaying Sam to sound so frail. It was the exact opposite from the pre-Event Sam. He was snapped out of these thoughts, however, when the door eased open.
They were both there, just beyond the door. Sam's face was red and puffy with tears, looking as if she had it buried in Tucker's shoulder just moments before. She was eyeing curiously, chewing her bottom lip. He stayed perfectly still, except for brushing his hair out of his face when it fell down and blocked his vision. Her eyes were bright with curiosity, caution brewing just beneath the surface. He swallowed. Tucker was glowering at him over Sam's head, arms wound tightly and protectively around Sam's thin figure, though Danny got the feeling the vast majority of that anger was directed at Valerie.
"Seth?" He asked, his voice hard and unyielding. Danny tried to remind himself that Tucker was only trying to protect Sam. He tried to tell himself that Tucker was protecting her for him, keeping her safe because he knew Danny would want him to.
It did not help.
"Y-yeah?" He squeaked.
"Where are you from?"
"Um...uh...Wisconsin." He said dumbly. Something flickered in his forest green eyes. He exchanged a look with Sam.
"Did you know a Vlad Masters?"
"N-no...?"
"Oh. Well, good. 'Cause he's dead as a friggin' doornail. I was just wondering." He smirked. The door suddenly opened a bit wider, revealing an incredibly wary Valerie eyeing the two. "Where in Wisconsin?"
"North." He mumbled, glancing nervously at Valerie. She shot him an almost imperceptible look of approval.
"Any particular city?" Tucker asked, his voice bordering on annoyance.
"Um...um...I...uh..."
"Thought so. Okay, Seth, nice to meet you. Bye."
He was given one last chance to see their faces, Sam's completely unreadable, Tuckers alive with malice, before the door snapped shut and he was left alone in the shadows of the hallway, staring in disbelief at the door.
"Tucker!" Valerie's voice rang in disapproval.
"I don't know who the hell you think you are, bringing that dipshit in and saying that he's you-know-who. You've got some nerve, woman. I swear to God, I could kill you right now! What the hell?"
"He's scared and alone and he needed shelter and I thought he looked so much like you-know-who that I...I dunno..."
They were very quiet for a moment. Danny tensed, wondering if he should try knocking and offering some explanation, until the door suddenly opened a fraction of an inch. He immediately threw his body weight back against the wall, his eyes wide and wary.
The door eased open a bit more, revealing Sam's face in the crack. Her eyes were on the ground, and her breathing was shallow. She glanced up at him. He gave her a small, tentative smile.
She pulled the door open and slipped out into the hall. The door closed behind her without another word from Tucker or Valerie. Distantly, he could hear them talking again once the door was shut, but he was far too focused on Sam to process what the other two were talking about.
He kept his back against the far wall, and Sam kept hers flush against the door to their dressing room. They were staring at each other, Danny's mouth gaping stupidly as he tried to think of something to say.
She spoke first. She stepped toward him, extended her hand shyly, and murmured "Sam."
He stared at her outstretched hand, his brain refusing to cooperate with his limbs. Finally, after a painfully long pause, he hastily reached forward. She jumped a little at the sudden movement, but did not recoil from him.
"Seth." He said with as much confidence as he could muster.
Their fingers brushed as they connected in a handshake.
And in that moment, every nerve in his body came to life. He suddenly felt more alive and more aware than he ever had before, even before The Event. He gasped in spite of his efforts to stay calm, which did not go unnoticed by Sam.
She was staring at him, watching him closely, examining his face. Their handshake lasted far longer than the average handshake, and Danny felt the sudden sensation of being examined under a microscope.
And just when he thought she might hit him, the most incredible thing he had experienced in a while happened.
Her eyes clouded over, her mouth curled up on one side in a small half-smile, and she whispered, "It's really nice to meet you, Seth."
OH NO.
Thanks for reading! (:
- Tori
