Sam eyed the couple across the table from her with a shuttered gaze. Around the small group of five, two couples and one single Goth. The raven haired female wanted to smack her head on the table in frustration. Not only was she the only single person at the table, but both males of her group were dating someone that the Goth didn't like. While it all worked for the halfa and his crush, the disasteroid the turning point for the Latina accepting Danny's affections. The Latina in question continued to bully her in the shadows and while it had started as a few words shared between the two to little things, like pushing her into the street. She had been lucky as the car had moved quickly enough, the driver on their toes, and she had been safe. When she did these things to the Goth, the popular girl said nothing, just smiled at her before walking away.
Sam didn't know why Paulina was doing these things, but she knew that Danny would never hear her if she did try and tell him. He was on cloud nine and for her that meant he never seemed to be aware of others around him. While he still fought ghosts, not that many bothered them anymore, save for Box Ghost or Skulker, but even they hardly came anymore. Thinking back to that day the halfa had told them about a ghost child, a spawn of the Box Ghost and the Lunch Lady, she shuddered. Even the ghost were having no trouble finding a partner in love.
On the other hand, while Valerie was more tolerable, her affection for the techno-geek proving that she wasn't the same person who had dated Danny while hunting to destroy his ghost half, Sam still didn't think of her as a friend. Neither women spoke, even when the men tried to get the girls to be friends. 'As if,' she spat coldly in her mind. There was no way she was going to be friends with either female, but definitely not with the Latina. She wasn't joining the halfa in the shallow end of the kiddie pool.
"You going to join us for movies, Sam?" Tucker inquired. Danny was too engrossed with the teen at his side to hear her answer in the negative, that she was busy that night. "Oh, well, maybe another time." She shrugged. That was the other thing that had changed in the dynamic of the group. Tucker had become more caring, his constant attempts to get her to hang out waved off. He was worried about her, knowing that it had to be killing the Goth to watch the pair act all lovey dovey. It made him sick, but as he had already tried to talk to the halfa about his girlfriend, he too had been blown off with the halfa only half listening to his worries. He knew that Sam was on the edge. They had all just turned eighteen within the last few months and with just another week left on the school year, the last year of school, he knew that Sam would distance herself, never coming over to hang out or even communicate with them. There was a possibility that she would just disappear and while they were not best friends, he couldn't help but feel bad for the Goth with her unspoken love. Neither had stepped forward, though all their interactions that started when they were 14 or 15, had been clear signals of how the pair felt.
Sam finished her last bite of salad and grabbing her trash headed to throw her trash away, the raven haired female disappearing from the lunchroom with only one couple noticing her exit. They locked gazes for a moment and nodding began to talk quietly between each other, comparing notes about the halfa and Goth's incomplete love.
Sam turned another corner on the street, the lamps above her lighting the way as she headed for her favorite bookstore, Those Disenchanted Masses. The small hole in the wall had replaced The Skulk and Lurk after it had burned down a few years ago. The place had the same feel and while the building was new that didn't change the air of comfortability that she felt in the darkened building. The night air was cool, her slime green hoodie keeping her warm, but not hot as she spotted the building in the distance. She entered the room just as the first person walked up to the stage to share their words. This person was new, the dark brown hair on the male spiked up while the bottom half of his hairstyle was buzzed. His blue eyes were more grey as the light reflected off of them. She found a seat near the back where she could listen to him without drawing attention to herself, all the while taking in the red shirt that clung to the male's body while still being loose. His jeans were black and he wore boots. She smiled. He was hot and not in the way that came off cocky.
"I am but another face of the mass, the same people who cause a cold chill to enter my heart and yet, I do not feel it beating in my chest. The pounding is absent," he says, his eyes downcast as he speaks. "Did it ever beat before now or is it because I am alone in this crowd that I can not hear it?" The male exited the stage, another person quick to take the spot on stage. As the male walked her way the Goth found that she wanted to meet this guy. As he got closer she could see that he was wearing a thin line of eyeliner under his eyes. He saw her, his eyes seeming to move over her face and downward. It wasn't a move she liked to see a guy do, save for one, but he never did such things, but for some reason when she saw just appreciation in those eyes and no sign of the lust that usually entered a male's gaze when they did that. "Hello," he said, his voice husky and she wondered how old he was, but at the same time she was pleased with his voice, the deep tone causing goosebumps to break out all over her body.
"Hi," she said, smiling at him, her brain ecstatic with the attention and while her heart was barely holding it together she found it was hesitant and yet overjoyed at the confidence it was getting by the simple appreciation that shown in his eyes. "My name is Sam." He reached out to grasp her hand, the large hand encompassing her own small one.
"My name is Alex and it is nice to meet you, Sam." He asked her if he could sit with her and the pair got to know each other as the night faded and midnight came.
As it had been Friday night when she met him so the pair hung out at the bookstore the rest of the weekend, both feeling an instant connection. They had exchanged numbers and while Alex was twenty, he was a gentleman in every way, almost like a friend that sat and listened to her as she talked to him about her troubles, her joys and other things. He seemed to have been in the same shoes she was in, and while he was the middle child with a brother older than him and a sister below him he still was pushed to behave, something that like Sam had been hard to do. He couldn't handle the stress and had left his home behind as soon as he had turned eighteen. His parents had been upset, but as he was an adult they could do nothing. He had his trust fund squirreled away, only touching it when he needed food or to pay a bill, but otherwise he was taking the time off to figure out who he was and not what his parents wanted him to be.
She could understand that issue with her own family. She wasn't made to be what they wanted her to be. She didn't want to marry a wealthy male from one of her parent's families and while she knew what she wanted to be now that she was free, she was just waiting for the chance to be free to do it. She would also be issued a trust when she completed school so she could be her own boss with something that was more a joy than a job to look forward to. She had thought to stay here in Amity and then with all that was going on she was ready to distance herself at the same time. Confessing what she wanted to do for a living the male had been surprised, but had asked to hear some of her stuff. She told him that she didn't have it anymore as she had sent it off to a friend to see if he could help her get it onto the air. She was surprised herself when he dropped it and they continued on with their last night together before she had to go to school.
Danny was standing out in front of the school with Paulina hanging all over him while Tucker turned the corner, when the sound of a motorcycle filled the air. Several students stopped talking as the deep blue toned cycle pulled up before the school. The Latina on his arm glanced over as the male pulled off his helmet, the older male drawing more curious stares. The small form on the back of his vehicle slid off, his arm out to keep her from sliding off as she giggled. Popping off the helmet the group of students gawked as Sam handed off the head gear, her hands going to flatten her sporadic locks.
"Is that Sam?" Valerie inquired, Paulina asking who the male was, but Danny didn't hear them, his eyes flashing green at the male talking with the Goth as she smiled. They spoke for a few more minutes before he stowed the extra helmet in his saddle bag before hugging the small raven haired teen. Waving him off she turned to look around and once she saw them she headed over, a smile still on her face with her amethyst orbs looking dazed. Tucker was the first to say something, knowing that if either woman voiced their questions that the Goth would react poorly.
"Who was that guy?" he asked. The Goth blinked, her smile never leaving her face.
"Oh, that's Alex," Sam said as if it wasn't such a big deal. "We met on Friday and just hit it off." Before anyone could say another word the bell rang and school began. They said nothing to her in class, both of them mulling over the new male with their friend and while Tucker was rather glad she was happy with the other male, he knew that Danny would blow a fuse, the red tint on the halfa's cheeks at that moment revealing how upset the male was about Sam's new friend. Paulina was wondering about the male too, though hers were more of a fantasy in the back of her mind while Valerie was watching Danny. She had told the Goth to make a move on the halfa a long time ago, dating him and not finding it the right time to date had broken up with him. She was surprised with the unresolved feelings between the pair that Sam had found someone who made her smile. It wasn't the same smile that came to the Goth's purple lips when she looked at the raven haired male that was fuming in his seats, but it was a smile.
The Goth in question was just working away on something in a notepad, her pen moving across the page as Lancer continued his rant for the day. It didn't take long for the hours to pass and the lunch bell to ring loudly in the building. Sam grabbed her bag, her phone pulled from its depths before she slung the bag on her shoulder. The group headed for the large space, the masses gathering to feed, and while Sam entered the room she continued to head for the table instead of heading for the line. Danny wanted to follow her, but Paulina appeared, her arms coming to cling on his arm as she led him toward the line, the other couple following behind them. They did head outside even if Paulina whined about it being too hot to be outside, the other couple rolling their eyes as her obnoxious noise.
They headed for a table near to where the Goth stood, her back to them as her voice filtered over to them. "Yeah, that sounds like fun." A few moments of silence and then a chuckle from the Goth as she walked away from the table when they grew closer. Danny watched her, his blue eyes following her as she sat down under a tree, her ear to her phone. He had never known the raven haired girl to be so talkative, though he had only seen her with one boy at her side and that relationship had ended on a sour note when it was revealed that he was a fake. This male was different though. He was older than the Gothic female, and yet he looked like he was Goth too, his clothing similar to Sam's own dark colors. "I have all summer to hang out." A few more words were spoken by the older male and while the halfa couldn't hear his words her words were shocking to say the least. "I know that I said I was planning on leaving, but I thought you would want to hang. If you c-" She smiled, the frown that had started to form gone in the blink of an eye.
When she was done with her conversation she joined them, though a message drew her attention, her salad forgotten for a moment as she answered the text. Soon she was eating, the texting continuing as Paulina pouted at his side. "Danny," she muttered, pulling on his arm to gain his attention. "Did you want to grab a bite to eat at the Nasty Burger after school?" He nodded after a moment's hesitation, his gaze falling back on the Goth for a moment as she finished her food quickly so she could continue her conversation that he assumed was with Alex.
"Sure, Tucker, are you two coming?" the halfa inquired. The pair nodded, though they didn't want to hang out with the halfa, his attention never on what was going on around him when he was with the ice queen, but seeing how his attention was now drawn to their single friend they knew something big was about to happen. They both knew that the Latina hated to lose the attention of a male, this male being her boyfriend, and to Sam... That didn't bode well. "Sam?" She looked over at him, confusion in her amethyst orbs. "The Nasty Burger?" A brow raised. "After school?" he asked. Her purple lips formed an 'o' as she realized what he was asking.
"Yeah, I'll meet you guys later." His eyes narrowed at her response as she turned her attention back to her phone. She usually walked with them to the joint, though as of this last year with Tucker having a car the group had found a way to get around faster, Danny's parents loaning him the RV to drive around in. Was she not going to hitch a ride with him or Tucker? She typed into the phone, the bell signaling the end of lunch, the teens in the courtyard heading indoors, their group falling behind as Sam brought up the rear as she typed one more message before stuffing her phone into the purple spider bag.
Danny watched as the Goth looked at the clock just as the bell rang, her smile bright as she rushed from the room, the sound of the cycle from that morning filling the halls as students held the doors open to exit the learning space. The crowd parted as the pair followed the raven haired female, their own girlfriends close on their heels, though only one looked curious while the other once looked rather peeved. The halfa watched as his friend rushed off to meet the male from earlier, the two talking as fellow peers to the Goth looked on curiously. Some of them shot the halfa a glance. They could see his mind working, his eyes narrowed. They looked back at the other male, his oblivious reaction to the halfa's look meant either he hadn't noticed it or he was unaware of who was giving him a death glare. Since he wasn't familiar to any student there, it meant he was new to the town and was unaware of who the raven haired ghost fighter was and the fact that everyone knew how the pair felt about each other.
The halfa approached them, their voices mingling with the others that passed. "Yeah, I got a call from him earlier and it's all in place!" the Goth said excited with her news.
"Congrats," Alex stated as he handed her the helmet from earlier. "I'm buying when we get to the Nasty." Before Danny could call out to her, Sam was on the back of the bike and they were off. Standing there for a moment in shock he rushed off, sprinting toward his ride where Paulina stood, her foot tapping. He paid her no heed, unlocking the door and quickly hopping into the driver seat as the ice queen quickly hopped in as soon as the engine roared. She had wanted to throw a fit, the urge to scream at her boyfriend boiling to the surface, but she had seen all the looks and knew that if she did that then she would lose her new popularity. She wanted that since school would be ending and she would no longer be the most popular girl. No, being Danny's girlfriend would keep that title going! There was no one that would be more popular than her with a hero as her love interest.
Tucker looked at Valerie and with a shrug the pair headed for his car, curious as to what they would find when they got to the Nasty Burger.