You guys are too good for me. Honestly. =]

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[Danny's P.O.V.]

I tripped clumsily over my feet as I stumbled over the threshold and into the Masquerade hall. My eyes immediately flashed around in embarrassment, hoping that no one had noticed or recognized my ability to be a right fool. I calmed down as the people near me glanced for a moment before looking away, seemingly uninterested in my awkward embarrassment. It was a foreign feeling; the public uninterested in my movements. This would certainly be interesting...

I decided to attribute everyone's casual behavior to the obtrusive, dark mask shielding the majority of my face. To everyone else... well, I must've looked like everyone else.

Awesome.

I walked casually down the large, split stair case and glanced in different directions all around the room, trying to locate any familiar... form. In the back there seemed to be a couple that resemble Tom and Gio, though it wasn't quite clear. I narrowed my gaze, trying to identify them from a good distance. It was too difficult to see through the deep crowd of masked faces...

I meandered forward, moving fluidly through the crowd of people with an occasional "excuse me," or "pardon." I managed to maintain a fixed gaze on what I still assumed to be the lovely couple even as I emerged from the crowd.

"Tom?" I asked, moving towards the table and looking between the couple.

"Dan? Jeez, I hardly recognized you!" Tom laughed, playing up his own corny joke. I could tell it would be the favorite pun for the evening.

"No kidding. I've been lost for a good five minutes," I chuckled, sliding into the booth next to my friends as they slid over to make room.

"The other's are all dancing, I expect," Gio piped up, a dazzling smile covering the visible part of her face. I smiled back, unable to deflect her good mood. She and Tom were like perfect team mates. They were always so happy and loving...

It could get kind of annoying, actually.

But not too annoying... Never too annoying.

"Have you guys gone yet?" I asked, nudging Tom's shoulder lightly.

"We've just got back a second ago. There's no breathing room out there!" Tom laughed, smiling over at his girlfriend. "We needed drinks, anyway,"

"Oh, let me in on that!" I laughed loudly, taking a tall glass of champagne off of the tray in the center of the table. Proper waiters were walking around in full facial masks, stopping from table to table to refresh the glasses.

That's what I call service...

I continued to sit with Tom and Gio, drinking happily and relishing the atmosphere of the party. It wasn't until several beverages later that I started to cultivate some sort of plan.

"You know, with this mask on I could get any girl I wanted to, here," I stated confidently, looking back and forth between the couple before me.

"Mate, you could get any girl here without the mask on. You've got it backwards," Tom corrected me, laughing loudly.

"No, no! I mean, now that I've got the mask... I can get a girl who doesn't know who I am! That's like.. never happened before!" My poorly thought out epiphany was making complete sense in my own mind.

"So how could you get any girl if they don't know who you are? They'll think you're a creeper!" Gio put in, laughing lightly.

"Creeper? Not me, no. Do I look like a creeper to you?" I asked, slightly offended. Tom and Gio both paused, looking up and down my body, critically.

"Well... right now you don't look like a creep..." Tom began, leaving Gio to finish his sentence.

Again, only slightly annoying.

"But if we saw you on the street with that mask... you'd be a major creeper." Gio clarified, nodding her head critically.

"I'm going to go get me a girl!" I stated, standing up and clapping my hands on the table as a finalization. Tom and Gio clapped their own hands, giving sounds of approval as I made my way towards the dance floor.

Dang, it felt good to have a small bit of alcohol in my system. Just enough to put on a slight buzz...

My eyes scanned the crowd, a new determination in my mind as I picked up on physical characteristics. The low glow from the hundreds of candles spread around the room gave everyone some kind of magical or mystical air. It was so alluring...

My surveillance of the room seemed to abruptly pause as my eyes fixed upon a girl standing alone on the dance floor. Her back was to me and her long, silver dress hugged her petite figure, cascading down passed her hips and trailing onto the floor. My eyes narrowed into slits, trying to see her better through the thick masses of bodies surrounding her small frame. I watched as she subconsciously swayed to the music, a look of patience showing on the small, visible part of her face.

I've found my girl.

It was as though the people around me realized that my destiny was right in front of me. They seemed to separate just like the ocean parted for Moses. I felt in control. I felt some odd form of power.

It felt good.

And I deserved to feel good, didn't I? After all the stress of having to deal with... her.

I shivered, trying to force the problematic girl out of my mind so I could focus on the beauty dancing oh so shyly in front of me. So what if I'd spent hours out of my days just thinking about Ella? I deserved something nice for a change, no matter how much my brain tried to dictate me to do otherwise. I was way over due for some good karma.

My hand seemed to have a mind of it's own as it came to tap the mysterious girl's shoulder, a confident smile plastered on my face as I patiently wanted for her to turn around. Her gaze focused through her mask, noticing the hand that had brushed her shoulder lightly. My smile never faltered as her surprised gazed met mine, almost appraisingly.

Yeah. It was working.

"You seem much too pretty to be here all alone," I leaned down to speak clearly in her ear, hoping she could hear me above the music. She smiled shyly, a light blush rising in the visible part of her cheeks.

"I'm not. I'm waiting for my friend to come back with drinks," her voice sounded so familiar, yet it held the kind of tone that one could easily get used to. It was slightly comforting. I subconsciously moved closer to her, welcomed by her alluring body and her comforting voice. Her eyes continued to appraise me.

"Just a friend, then?" I asked, reaching down to clasp her small, soft hand in my own and spin her lightly in a circle, whirling her perfectly in time to the music.

She continued to blush lightly as she bit her lip, causing my stomach to flip and my heart to beat quickly. Different scenarios for the night ran through my head, each involving her biting her lip more and more. God it was perfect...

What a strange hold this mysterious girl held on me...

"Yeah, just a friend," She agreed after a moments hesitation. I quirked an eyebrow, making a mental note to investigate her reluctance further, but I put it out of my mind for the time being.

I, Danny Jones, admit that I've never been much of a dancer. I have limited to no rhythm and my moves make old grannies look like dance crew stars. Yet, even though my skills are horribly limited I couldn't deny the amazing connection I felt with this mysterious girl as our hips moved in synchronization and our hands stayed locked together. I'd never experienced something so... sensual about dancing. Normally I'd just did it to avoid small talk...

But this girl was completely different. Maybe she knew how to dance and was able to do it for both of us... I would never know... All I knew was that the open, flipping feeling in my abdomen never let up as her hips touched mine again and again. It was euphoric...

Part of my mind forgot that this girl had no idea who I was. She wasn't dancing with me because I was Danny Jones of McFly... no, we were dancing because it felt freaking amazing...

Our time on the dance floor came to a mutual stand still as we both made our way, buzzing, towards a deserted area of the room. I leaned against the wall, willing my breathing to slow down and take in the cool, fresh air. My nose caught a scent of strawberries...

She smelled so good...

"You are by far the most fun I've had on the dance floor in a serious amount of time," She laughed after I handed her a drink, her delicate lips sipping at the champagne.

"So no regrets about leaving your friend, then?" I asked, curiosity bubbling inside of me. Her hesitation when I'd first asked her about her long lost partner still held a small amount of interest in my mind.

"Definitely no regrets," her answer was much quicker this time as she continued to sip her drink. I smiled, somewhat pleased. How could I not be?

The mysterious girl continued to read me, her eyes scanning my every available feature as though she was reading an interesting book. I really wasn't that interesting to look at, was I?

Especially sat this close to her... The way the golden glow of the candles bounced off of her pale, smooth skin.. It was just... hard to resist.

I was curious to know who this girl was. Part of me wanted to demand a sudden answer from her... yet another part of me loved the crazy mysteriousness of it all. There were no attachments right now. We were both free to keep our lives to ourselves.

That, I thankfully appreciated.

"I like your necklace," I commented as my eyes moved along her collarbone and noted the shinning silver necklace hung across her chest. She glanced down at it quickly as my hand shot out to examine it more closely. I paused, completely forgetting everything my mother taught me about look, don't touch. I was such an idiot.

My eyes met her own as my fingers skimmed the necklace, wondering if she would pull away and slap me. Instead, she nodded and smiled, biting her lip nervously again.

I had to look away.

I focused all my attention on the pendant before me, trying to marvel in it's rarity. It was actually quite pretty, and fairly unique as well. The majority of girls that I knew were into diamonds and gold...

This was all silver.

The little shapes of a sun and a moon holding hands impacted me somehow, trying to scream something about familiarity. I couldn't recognize it.

"That's really cool," I finished lamely, gently dropping the pendant back to her smooth chest. God, I needed to look away...

I looked up to her eyes instead, noticing just how deep blue they were. It was an odd blue... Like they had to be contacts or something. Again, that familiarity sprung up inside me, shouting "you know this! You do!" but I couldn't place it.

I didn't really care, either.

"Thanks..." There she goes, biting that soft lip of hers again. Why does she do that? She has to know the affect that that simple movement has on people...

"Ladies and gentlemen! One more minute 'till midnight!" The DJ called my attention away from the mysterious girl as his words registered in my mind. I'd spent the entire night with this girl. How on earth was that possible? How had the hours gone by so quickly?

I let my hand fall onto her bare shoulder, my palm burning at the minimal contact. The warmth traveled up my arm as my hand continued to lay there, waiting for the mysterious girl to turn around and meet my gaze. Goosebumps started to rise on her skin as her eyes flickered shyly up to greet my own.

My stomach flipped.

"30... 29... 28..." The crowd chanted, excitement boiling throughout the room.

I wanted to kiss this girl. She was different. She was unique. There was something about her that just screamed at me, demanding that I consume her lips with my own. It was such a foreign feeling, needing her this way. I wanted to taste the strawberry scent that emulated from her skin. I wanted – no – needed it.

"15... 14... 13..."

I noted contently that as I bent my face down in her direction, hers tilted up to meet my own. Her strawberry scent became more pronounced as we slowly molded our individual personal spaces together, melding into our own private sphere.

"5... 4... 3..." I whispered as our eyes held, counting down to the moment our lips would connect. I was every synonym of the word 'excited.'

"2... 1!"

Our lips met. Finally.

It felt as though my entire body ceased to exist as my heart imploded in my chest. My lips tingles as they gently brushed her, sending shivers down my spine and unrecognizable words through my head. She sucked in a small gasp, pulling air out of my lungs and into her own as a small electric shock traveled between our two bodies.

I'd never been so turned on by such a simple act...

Her arms slowly wrapped around my shoulders, securing me to her small frame. I gently brought one of my own hands to her porcelain like face, cupping it tenderly in my palm as my other hand clasped at her waist, avoiding any space between us.

I moaned softly as her fingers danced through my hair, tugging and smoothing it out gently at her own rhythm. I knew she was heading for the tie to my mask as our noses bumped repeatedly through the plastic.

I couldn't deny that I wanted the masks out of the way too.

I pulled my face away from hers to allow space for my mask to fall. I kept the rest of our bodies in contact as the bow slowly loosen behind my head and her hands fell onto my shoulders. The black mask slid around our bodies, clamoring onto the ground at our feet. I glanced at it briefly before turning and smiling at the girl, ready for more.

But I was confused.

She was staring at me in horror, her mouth frozen in shock as her hands whipped away from my shoulders. My smile immediately vanished as her new emotions registered in my mind. What could I have done wrong? This was not the normal reaction I got from girls.

She began to pull slightly on my hold around her waist, trying to fight our very close position. I couldn't let her go – I needed an explanation. How could she look at me so terrified? Did she know who I was?

She must've. What other explanation was there?

"What? What's wrong?" I asked, hoping she'd grace me with some kind of answer. She just continued to pull on my hands, looking around for some kind of escape.

Was I keeping her here? Trapped between my arms?

My grip loosen, slightly horrified, and she automatically fled, darting away from me faster then I'd ever imagined. I tried to follow her, up the stairs and around the front entrance. People were exiting as the festivities began to pack up, the party no longer interesting. I called, looking wildly around, hoping she'd suddenly reappear and explain herself. Could it all be just a misunderstanding?

I silently prayed it was.

I continued calling and searching, though I had no idea what her name was or where she was from. People began to stare at me oddly as I shouted things that probably made no sense. I groaned in frustration, completely appalled.

Was there a first time for everything? Was I, Danny Jones, stood up because of who I was?

Impossible.

Yet it had just happened.

How could I tell the guys about this? That I'd had one of the best nights of my life with a completely and utter stranger, who stood me up the moment she saw my face.

I wasn't ugly, was I? Maybe the mask messed up my face...

I went into the mens' bathroom, staring at my reflection in the mirror. I looked exactly like I always did. Brown hair. Blue eyes. Freckles.

So why was I suddenly the monster in one of her nightmares? Her terrified face reappeared in my mind, even as I stared at my own depressed reflection. What had I done wrong?

What on earth was I supposed to do?

************

Younggriffyndor – Believe me, girl, this relationship is going SERIOUS places lol. It'll be fun! Lmao i can't believe you thought it was Tom... Oh goodness that made me laugh. Not that it was a bad guess... i just found it slightly comical =] I love Tom lmao

CrushedCoppelia – You own in the ability to post massively long reviews/PMs/emails. Seriously, you deserve a crown WITH your ice cream factory. Hm... that sounds like Burger Kings next big hit... And seriously? Please tell your Grandmother that she doesn't need to kill me. Um... Ella had faith that the mysterious man wouldn't date rape her? Um... yeah... that's it. I'm sorry that your DVD jipped you out of a second CD! That's bologna! I had to netflix Just My Luck because my family thought it was too chick-flick like to buy lmao. Oh yeah. They're that serious.

And I agree with your option D: running while pretending to be drunk will get you out of many awkward situations, though, inevitably, it will also create more.

Perla29 – Hello lovely silent reader! I know exactly what you mean! For the majority of my first year on FF i only had an account for... well nothing basically lol. I'm still a horrible reviewer! So thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! For your lovely compliment about my writing. It actually made my day like... 10 times better! Thanks!!!

alysmiley – STAR TREK WAS AWESOME! Go go go go go!!!! lol. I hope all of your questions about Danny were answered in this chapter. No, he didn't know he kissed her. She's mysteriouuuussss to him lol. It will lead somewhere, I promise =] and i do have a twitter, but I will shamefully admit right now that I only use it to awkwardly stalk McFly. It's highly embarrassing! lo

zabster95 – Thank you! And your name is... well... very difficult to pronounce! Where are you from? (Totally NOT to sound freaky stalkerish or anything lol.) I think I'll just stick to calling you Zabster in my head lol.

"Emma the McFannnn" - Haha, I love your name! And yes, classic love triangles are basically the epitome of my existence lol. Thanks for deciding to review! I loveeee hearing from my readers. I'm just as bad though lmao. I'll promise reviews and then I'll actually do it like... a month later. It's a birth defect lmao.

McFlYiNgHiGh – it is not odd in any way, shape, or form that you are happy! I'M HAPPY! Lmao. I've been like "come on! Get the chapter up! It'll be awesome!" and believe me, I have even awesomer (How ridiculous is my grammar?) chapters for the future!

TigerLily1221 – Star Trek was like... awesome. Go see it! You don't have to actually know it that much to understand it, either. I highly recommend it! Now about the actual story lol... I've been planning that chapter from the veryyy beginning! This chapter was more or less a sudden whim where I was like "oh, lets just pretend to be Danny Jones again!" lmao.

ArtemisPhantom – Can i honestly tell you just how awesome it is to hear that you were randomly thinking about this story? Idk why, but it makes me smile! Haha, so I'm glad that the timing worked out well for you. I remember when I got your review I was like "but the story hasn't even been up for ten minutes!" and BAM. There was my answer lmao. So thank you!!!!!!!

Whew! So you guys really don't mind that I answer the reviews like this? No one really made a comment except for I think... one person? Idk lol. Just let me know if it gets annoying after a while, mkay? Tah tahh!!!!