To Dani's surprise it wasn't as boring as she had thought it might be. She climbed onto the roof of Ralph's shack and watched them in action. She could see a distorted view of the kids gleefully sending Felix from broken window to broken window. From that side they saw the pixilated antique game but from this side, the side Dani was on, she saw the pixels come to life.

On the outside the building was as flat looking as a piece of cardboard something that any idiot could smash up. On this side she saw the bricks, the metal, the glass she could see the intense concentration on Ralph's face and the way his hands smashed through the building as if it was made of cardboard. She watched the bricks crack, she saw the way his face flushed and the muscles on his arms shoulders and chest bulge. His knuckles made actual indents when he smashed a wall.

Compared to the power Ralph had Felix suddenly seemed more like a joke to her even though he had always been her and her father's favorite character. Her father had told her once that a good carpenter could build the world. Felix didn't build a world though. His hammer did. She suddenly seemed to gain an understanding that without the hammer Felix couldn't even replace a sink drain. She climbed down and began gathering debris.

She glanced at the pile of bricks in front of her. She had started building a fire pit for lack of anything to do. The magazines held little interest to her since she didn't know the lifestyles of the highest played games and she didn't care. solitaire had kept her occupied for all of an hour. She had been raised to be productive. When she had a home she had nurtured it and turned it into a beautiful peaceful place with a Japanese garden in the back and a Koi fish pond. Her Bonsai trees had been cherry blossoms and when they bloomed her back yard exploded with pinks, greens, and blues like something out of a fairy tale.

Damn her husband for managing to get his name on everything and take hers off all the while telling her it was so he could take care of her if something happened. She being an idiot had believed he had her best interest at heart. She hadn't cried when he divorced him. No her tears had come when she had gone home to get her things. Her Japanese garden was gone. Gutted. Roses with weeds every where tried valiantly to bloom. Obviously the floozy who had taken her husband hadn't the faintest idea how to care for a garden. Even her pond had been emptied and converted into a hot tube. It had been the dumbest thing she had ever seen barely big enough for two people.

She had managed to leave before bursting into tears on the bus heading for Jessie's house to stay until she got back on her feet.

She began stacking up the bricks that she had gathered. They were all the same size and roughly the same shape and if properly stacked they would connect together like a puzzle. Jessie had been a true friend and had let her stay until she got another job she could ride the bus too. She had thought things would work out smoothly but she was wrong. Jessie liked men...alot of men. She had no qualms about bringing home one guy telling him he was her teddy and then the net night bringing home another guy and telling HIM that he was her teddy. Dani wasn't sure how she did it. She loved Jessie and Jessie was beautiful in the face no doubt. However Jessie was heavy. Dani didn't think this was an issue because with beauty who cared if someone wasn't as svelte as a gazelle? But there had been alot of drama among other friends, well ok, people who called themselves friends about Jessie's weight and her ex's got downright nasty about the body they had availed themselves too and Dani had felt the need to defend her every time getting involved in cat fights online and off.

On top of that Jessie's men made clear they wanted her to themselves. Her nerdy white haired friend was not wanted unless she intended to join in the party. Dani hadn't been concerned sure that Jessie would never let a guy push her around. Then it had happened. Jessie had fallen in love with some big hunky biker. At first things had been fine and Dani had even liked the guy. Then he started hitting on her. She had ignored it for Jessie's sake. One night drunk he had cornered her and scared her pretty badly with his manhandling. That had been it. Dani had told Jessie and Jessie...had thrown her out.

Dani didn't know what hurt worse. The fact Jessie had turned her back on her like everyone had or that Jessie had thrown her out knowing she wasn't sure if she had anywhere to go.

The first row of bricks was done. Dani carefully ran her hands around the circle checking for loose bricks. They fit perfectly. She began adding the second row her mind still wondering.

Jessie's hunky biker had gone to jail the next year for sex with a minor. The minor in question had claimed raped event though the cops had found explicit love letters and nude photos she had sent the guy. Jessie had been devastated. For a long time she didn't contact Dani. Finally she had broken down and gone to the shitty little apartment that Dani had fixed up to live in and apologized and asked her to come back. Dani had refused. She had found she preferred the solitude.

Dani had been pegged everything under the sun in her life. A trouble maker. A liar. A slut. An unwanted brat who should have been aborted. A waste of space. A loser. To have the last person she loved and trusted turn their back on her had been the last straw. She had forgiven Jessie and they had become friends again but Dani never forgot.

Dani gritted her teeth briefly as her knuckles scraped the side of a brick. She had done two more rows. She stood back and eyed it. Then she began trudging back and forth filling the bottom with gravel. She carefully scraped it flat making sure it was even. She did every project as if her father himself were looking over her shoulder.

She glanced back at the game and winced as Ralph was thrown from the building. It seemed strange to wonder if it hurt him. Obviously they felt something or Felix wouldn't be married. She sighed and brushed the dust off her hands and then went to find some wood. That took a little digging but when she was done she had a very neat pile of wood in the middle of the fire pit.

" Hey that's pretty classy! "

Dani jumped slightly and turned around. " Ralph! Lord above don't sneak up on me I almost died of heart failure!"

Ralph gave a nervous sounding laugh looking from the fire pit to her and back.

" So...huh...fire pit right? It looks great!"

Dani smiled placing her hands on the small of her back " I was thinking, hot dogs, marshmallows, drinks, maybe have Q-Bert and gang join us for some songs and story telling..."

" Ohh well yea that would be great just not tonight I kinda gotta meet someone I promised her I'd help her build a go kart for her game." and he had no hot dogs or marshmallows and he wouldn't be able to sit through Q-Bert's singing. He'd have to hit Mary up to get some stuff. No way was he pulling anything out of the garbage in front of her to roast on an open fire. He couldn't seem to keep his eyes off her.

She was sweating for one thing. Her white sleeveless shirt stuck to her body out lining what looked like a sweet pair of blue lacy brassiers. Her pants were hanging low on her hips exposing a lacy bit of under ware that apparently matched. He began smacking his hands nervously trying to look anywhere but her.

The fire pit was great. He had never thought about one but now that he had one he found he was really really excited to have it. He could even envision some of the Nicelanders and Felix coming over to sit around a fire. Mary could sing and so could Felix. Mary had even whispered to him once that when Gene was drunk enough he sang like a sailor. She was wearing matching undergarments. He felt himself break into a sweat. Great.

Ralph rubbed her face roughly with one hand the other resting on his hip. Stop it. Stop it. Stop it. He looked at her again. Sweet mother Hubbard her hair had fallen down and it seemed to float like a cloud around her curling sweetly on her shoulders making it look like she was in a strapless itty bitty white shirt.

" Ralph? Helloooo? Earth to Ralph? " Dani held her hands out " Did you hear me? Can I go with you? I'd love to see you make a car that sounds like alot of fun!"

" Uhhhh...yea...sure...I mean I'm not that good at it but it can be fun..." one lacy blue strap of her bra slid down her arm and he coughed hard into his hand.

I am a bad guy. It sounded like Sateen on his shoulder.

I'm not THAT kind of a bad guy he retorted to himself. I'm a kids game.

True but you're NOT a kid! His inner demon/Sateen replied thoughtfully. Ralph gritted his teeth into a tight nervous smile.

" Yea uh why don't you get dressed and uh...we'll go to "Sugar Rush" we can't stay all night cause uh well we still gotta find your game..."

She slid her strap slowly back up her arm and rolled her shoulder to settle it in place. Then she began fanning herself by taking the front of her shirt and popping it away from her body and letting it fall back in place. At his height he had an excellent view.

" Do I really need the hoodie? I mean ...I'm just soooo hot."

Ralph felt slightly dazed " uhhhh right..yea I'll say you're real hot."

" Why thank you Ralph." She beamed at him holding her shirt away from her front and catching his eyes. Her own were glinting with laughter.

Ralph groaned and threw his hands up " Oh you little Minx! That was totally not nice! I'm a kids game! What are you trying to do anyway? Give me heart failure? "

" Ralph how old are you? " Dani asked seriously.

" Me? Well Game wise I'm 31, code wise I'm like 45."

She nodded up at him again her face suddenly unreadable " Ok let me go get my hoodie, then we can visit your girlfriend and make her car..."

" She not my girlfriend she's just my friend sides she really is a little kid."

Dani relaxed suddenly she was more perky than she had been . " Ok then be back in a jiffy! "

She bounced cheerfully back to his shack leaving him staring befuddled after her. He suddenly seemed to hear Sateen's voice again. He was going to have to talk to that guy in private at the next bad anon meeting.

' Ralph my man...she was totally jealous two thumbs way way up you big smashing hunk! '

Ralph shook his head covering his face with his hands. " No, no, and no. What would a woman like that want with a guy like me anyway?"

Just as fast as he said that he responded cutting off any all inner voices : "Don't you dare answer that!"