I'm so sorry for the wait, but here's the next part. I hope you enjoy and if for any reason you enjoyed it please say something.
And just so you all know The Real Ghostbusters and Avril Lavigne's song "My Happy Ending" do not belong to me. I only own the character Dani, but other than that everything is just borrowed.
Anyway, have fun reading...
The next morning Dr. Stantz still didn't know and everyone skirted around the issue. Winston, Egon and Janine, though, weren't sure how to react to the incident that had happened the night before. Peter had first told Egon and Winston who both seemed quite surprised. Telling Janine had nearly caused a small fight to break out. She was close to slapping the youngest Ghostbuster and would have if Egon hadn't stepped in.
"He deliberately hurt Dani," Janine argued.
"Raymond made the choice and now he has to deal with the consequences," Egon responded.
"Are you mad at him?" Melnitz asked. The physicist paused before answering. Part of him was upset over the fact one of his best friend's had hurt his cousin, but there was the other side. The situation had become rather unsure of how to respond to the event that had taken place. Ray wasn't often the one with relationship problems nor did he make decisions without realizing the full consequences. Though he had jumped to a conclusion quickly on occasion that was usually because he had to act that fast, especially during a bust. This was all new territory and Dr. Spengler was rather flustered about all of it.
"I'm not sure," the blonde haired scientist answered.
"That's not an answer," Janine said. "What he did with Elaine he did with full awareness of what he was doing. Ray betrayed Dani. I'm surprised about the whole thing, but that doesn't mean he should be let off the hook."
"But that also doesn't mean you should start fighting for Dani," Winston interjected as he walked into the lab. "I think we should leave them alone and hopefully Ray will be smart enough to figure out some way to fix this. Whether or not we like the outcome."
"Elaine is not good for him," the redhead stated. "She wants things to happen her way or it's the highway. I don't think that's right."
"Doesn't that seem familiar?" Zeddemore inquired. Janine shot him a look.
"I know when to lay off. I'm not about to ask Egon to leave all of this just because we're dating or about to get married." Dr. Spengler coughed loudly. "Not that we are getting married anytime soon. Someone believes it's too soon. But I understand the dynamics and I wouldn't want to see any of you guys dragged away from all of this. I don't think you'd survive."
"You're probably right," Winston replied. "It's just this isn't for us to solve. We can talk until we're blue in the face, but I don't think that anything we say will help any. You heard Peter. He said that Elaine gave Ray an ultimatum. The only person we can help now is Dani."
"Unfortunately, we don't know where she is," Dr. Spengler stated. "She evidently left last night and didn't return. She's not returning our calls to her cell phone. Dani may very well not be in New York."
"Did you call your mom?" Janine asked.
"Yes," Egon responded. "My mother says she has not heard from Dani since last week. She suggested we do get in touch with her as soon as possible because she may be rather distressed."
"That's an understatement," Winston muttered.
"We should get Dr. V. to tell us where she is," Janine said. "He can't keep it a secret forever."
"Perhaps she asked him to do so," Egon suggested. "Raymond had mentioned to me yesterday before the incident that Peter and Dani had gone out to run a few errands. I suspect the two did talk quite a bit."
"Are you saying she knew this was going to happen?" Zeddemore asked. Egon shook his head and took off his glasses.
"No, I don't believe so," Dr. Spengler replied. "Dani wasn't informed of the relationship Elaine and Raymond once had. I believe all of this could have been avoided if the facts had been known." Egon put his glasses back on. "Dani has made quite a few friends in the city. There's no telling where she might be." The phone in the lab rang, but the three ignored it.
"We shouldn't be worried than," Winston said. "If she was in real trouble than we would have heard something by now. Her friends know who we are." The phone rang again and they still didn't react to the noise.
"If she doesn't come back tonight than we should start calling a few of them," Janine recommended. Egon nodded. The shrill alarm signaling a job went off. Egon and Winston looked at each. "That means you have a bust."
"Than we should get going," Winston said. He looked at Janine. "Call us if you hear anything." The redhead nodded and the two Ghostbusters left the lab.
"Ray, throw the trap!" Peter shouted at the slightly distracted engineer. Egon and Winston continued to fight to keep the hold on the fighting Class 6 they had confined in their streams. Peter was temporarily out of commission because the entity had tossed him around and managed to dislocate the psychologist's left shoulder or so he thought. It was extremely sore and hurt to move it. His proton pack was useless as well when it started to spark after hitting a wall. He could only watch his friends finish dealing with the large creature.
They had silently agreed not to speak of the incident. At this point though, it was affecting the bust, particularly now. Ray wasn't performing as well as he usually did and at one point nearly shot Dr. Spengler with a stray beam. Luckily, Egon had gotten out of the way quickly only to end up with a slightly singed sleeve, but Peter guessed by the physicist's expression it might have also hit him a bit.
"Ray!" Winston yelled. The engineer shook himself out of his stupor and threw out the trap attached to his belt. He hit the pedal and the light came forth from the trap grabbing the entity than pulling it into the piece of equipment. Egon and Winston turned off their beams. Zeddemore moved over to Stantz and grabbed by the straps of his proton pack. "What the hell was that?"
"Are you alright?" Egon inquired as he walked over to Peter and helped his friend to his feet.
"Yeah, fine," Peter muttered.
"I'm sorry," Ray apologized in a low voice. Winston released him and Dr. Stantz's shoulders sagged.
"Raymond, we do not work well when one of the team doesn't wish to cooperate," Egon said in an even tone as he and Peter joined the two. The physicist didn't want to yell at his friend, but the auburn haired man was being rather irresponsible. "If you weren't feeling up to it than we should have brought Janine."
"I'm sorry," Dr. Stantz repeated.
"Stop saying that," Peter told him in an angry voice.
"What am I supposed to say, Peter?" Ray shot back finding fury within him that he didn't realize existed. "I'm stupid? I made a horrible mistake? I wish I could erase everything that happened yesterday? Because it's true. All of it. I'm an idiot. Does that make you feel better, Peter? I know how you felt yesterday when you watched Dani leave. I never wanted to hurt her."
"Than why did you?" Ray stared at the psychologist. His friend was accusing him of purposefully hurting the young woman and that almost pained him as much as the horrible feeling he already had. "Well?"
"I have to leave," Dr. Stantz said quietly. He undid the straps of his proton pack and set it on the floor. The young man walked past his friends towards the entrance they had come in.
"That accomplished a lot, Pete," Winston commented sarcastically. "Now there's no telling what he'll go do."
"He's not going to hurt himself," Peter replied. "Ray can't do that. All I did was remind him that he has to fix this."
"Perhaps he won't take it that way," Egon suggested. "Raymond is capable of more than he lets on. It was quite difficult in the beginning to get him to divulge anything about himself or his abilities. Now though that's changed. He has held his own a few times."
"Don't take his side, Egon. This is different," Dr. Venkman responded. "If you think he looks bad you should have seen Dani." Peter sighed and shook his head. "Let's get to the hospital. I don't know how much longer I can pretend I'm not in excruciating pain."
"Yeah. Let's go," Zeddemore said. He picked up Ray's discarded pack and the full trap than followed the two men out of the warehouse.
A thirty-minute cab trip later Ray found himself standing outside Elaine's hotel room door. He wasn't exactly sure what compelled him to come here. Perhaps it was the fact she hadn't acted as if he betrayed her. Or maybe it was because he actually knew where she was compared to Dani who hadn't told anyone except for Peter. Ray raised his hand to knock on the door, but quickly pulled it away and stuck it back into his pocket.
"Elaine, I don't think this is going to work," Ray whispered. Was that what he wanted to say? Was he choosing to spend the rest of his life with Dani and never give another thought to Elaine? Was he going to finally decide to take that ring out of its box and give it to its new owner? Or was it time to give up on all of it? Maybe he should have thought about this more, but he didn't want to go back to the firehouse right now. There wasn't really any place else for him to go either. He didn't find going to a bar as relaxing as Peter did. His Aunt Lois may not ask why he was there, but he didn't want to bother her. The door to the room opened and Ray found himself looking at the back of a woman's head.
"I'm getting the ice, Elly," the woman said. "I'll be back in a few minutes. Don't start drinking without me." She turned around and took a sudden step backwards when she saw Dr. Stantz. "Oh. It's you."
"Yeah. It's me," Ray replied attempting to be casual with the woman. "I guess Elaine's here."
"Yeah," Penny replied giving Ray a look as if he was no better than a roach. "Why are you here? Going to try and use Elaine again to break up with another girlfriend?"
"Is that what she said?"
"No. That's just my interpretation. I thought you were a nice guy, but I guess that's just something Elaine made up." Ray didn't argue with her. Right now the Ghostbuster didn't think he deserved the nice guy status he was usually given.
"Penny, who are you talking to?" The door opened all the way and Elaine moved into the doorway. She looked at Ray with a similar surprised look that Penny had. "Ray, what are you doing here?"
"You asked me to come by," Dr. Stantz answered. "I was nearby and I figured I drop in."
"Uh, okay," Elaine replied. She glanced at Penny who rolled her eyes. "Penny, please. I really need to talk to Ray. Just give us an hour or so."
"Fine," the tall woman muttered. "I'll be back in exactly an hour." She gave Dr. Stantz a long hard look as if to warn him of what was to happen if he did anything stupid. Penny brushed past Ray as she headed down the hallway.
"Come on in," Elaine told Ray. He followed her inside and closed the door behind him. The curly haired woman took a seat on the couch that was located against a nearby wall as Ray lingered near the door. The engineer glanced at Furman hoping to see what she was thinking just by the expression on her face, but it was rather neutral. It was comparable to how Egon often looked during situations when he didn't wish for anyone to know what was on his mind.
"I'm not sure where to start," Ray admitted. He let out a deep breath as he ran a hand through his hair. "I guess maybe I should explain about Dani."
"That might be a good start," Elaine replied a bit coolly. "Maybe why it was never mentioned you and she were dating."
"I don't know," Dr. Stantz responded. "I guess I figured you knew since you said you had been talking with her and Janine for a while before I got to the firehouse the other day. I'm surprised it wasn't mentioned. I guess I should have said something when we were talking, but I just didn't think I had to." The woman didn't say anything and continued to watch him carefully. "She is my girlfriend, Elaine. And I do love her."
"Than why did you say you loved me?" Elaine inquired.
"Because I always have," Ray told her. "It wasn't a lie."
"I don't doubt that, but what you did by not telling me about Dani was hurtful, Ray. You can't do that to a person."
"I'm sorry, Elaine. I really am. Please don't be mad at me. I want to fix this, Elaine. I want to make the right decision. I never intended to hurt you or Dani. Everything just moved so fast. I wish I could explain what I was thinking." Once again the curly haired woman said nothing in response, but her expression seemed to understand.
"Ray, come here," Elaine said. She patted the area on the couch next to her. He hesitated a moment before joining her on the couch. The woman took his left hand and gently rubbed it. "I want you to listen to me. I'm not mad. I was just hurt and I still am, but I think I understand why you didn't tell me. Dani seems like a really nice person and if you want to be with her than I shouldn't force you to change your decision. I made that mistake before."
"No. That wasn't you. I think that was more me. I wanted to make you happy and it seemed the only way to do that was to go back to Morrisville."
"But you belong here," Elaine stated. "I know that now. I'm sure Dani knows that or she wouldn't be where she is. I would have liked another chance, Ray. I really would."
Ray couldn't think of what to say next. Elaine wasn't angry with him at all and seemed to be telling him that he really did have a choice to make. One that didn't have to made right at that moment, but if he did wait to long the opportunity would be gone. The two of them were both in their mid thirties and Ray knew he wanted kids at some point and he figured Elaine wanted the same. The only other variable was the young woman who had seemingly vanished off the face of the world for the time being that Ray still felt deeply about. Words and the ability to speak seemed to have vanished. The Ghostbuster wasn't quite sure exactly what he was to do next.
"Elaine, I don't know if I can do that," Dr. Stantz finally said after a while. His voice was quiet and hesitant. "I promised Dani I wouldn't hurt her and I did. There's just a lot of underlying issues there that are hard to explain. Dani means a lot to me."
"And what it comes down to though is that you do love her more," the woman guessed. "I missed my chance and now I'm just a footnote in your life."
"No!" Ray nearly shouted. He could see the confused look on her face and he quickly got up from the couch. The Ghostbuster paced as once again he was at a loss for words. He really wished there was a simple solution to this. Words that could make everything clear not only to her, but also to himself. Somebody just wasn't going to go home happy. Ray stopped in front of the woman and squatted down on the floor. He looked directly into her eyes and exhaled slowly before speaking. "Elaine, I can't explain this very. I want you to listen to me when I tell you this. You WILL always be important to me. I will never stop caring about you."
"You'll just never love me again." There was pain in her eyes that was so close to betrayal and Elaine wondered where all of this was coming from. All she had wanted to do was to come and see if there was anything left between her and Ray. John was waiting for her back in Morrisville to whisk her away, yet she wanted some reason to stay with Ray Stantz and be with him forever.
"I never stopped," Ray whispered. Elaine stroked his cheek as her eyes slowly filled with tears. "What's wrong?"
"I think you should go," she said in a very low voice that wavered. "I need to be alone."
"What? Why?" She narrowed her brows and opened her mouth as if to say something, but the woman was in conflict with herself. There was something she needed to tell the man, but now wasn't the time. It may never be the time after this.
"Please, Ray," Elaine said. "Please, go." Dr. Stantz stood up and tried to figure out why everything has just taken a drastic turn.
"You really want me to go?" The woman nodded, but didn't look at him. "Can I talk to you again?"
"I don't know," she answered. "I need some time, Ray."
"Okay," Dr. Stantz replied in understanding. "Elaine, I'm really sorry. I hope that one day I can make this all up to you. Even if it isn't what you want. I'll never forget you as long as I live." Elaine looked back up at the Ghostbuster and he could see the tears that were trickling down her face. His heart twinged with pain and he could only imagine how Dani felt. Ray turned and started for the door. He opened it than looked back at Elaine. She had her back to the man and he could hear her quiet sobs. "I'm sorry."
The Ghostbuster walked out of the room feeling as though he had just gone through one of the most excruciating events of his life. It was like he had peeled away a layer of skin just so he could move on, but Ray doubted he'd ever completely feel the same again. The engineer had make a mistake somewhere along the line that led up to this sad conclusion and where it had occurred was a blank to the auburn haired scientist. He wondered if Dani would give him another chance or turn him away as well. Ray reached the elevators and pushed the down button.
"You really did mess up, Stantz," he muttered to himself as he waited for the elevator. Ray sighed and rubbed his forehead. The engineer honestly wished he could find a way to solve his predicament and make everyone happy. The elevator pinged and the doors slid open. Ray was about to step on when he realized who stood inside.
"So, you really broke her heart?" Penny moved out of the elevator holding the ice bucket in one hand and an opened candy bar in the other.
"No."
"Sure you didn't," Penny muttered. "If you hadn't than you'd either still be in there talking to her or standing here with a happier look on your face. You might have that great title as a Ghostbuster, but you're just a jerk."
"I'm not a bad person," Ray told her.
"You lied, Dr. Stantz," Penny said. "You tore out a couple of hearts and stomped all over them. If I was Elaine I wouldn't let you just walk without getting in some good shots. I'd probably make sure you never forget what you did to me."
"I never meant to do this," the Ghostbuster replied. "I would never willingly hurt Elaine. Or Dani. I just don't know what happened."
"Just like every other guy on this planet you didn't think," Penny responded in an irritated tone. "You never consider how we might feel about it. There's nothing you care about beyond your job, your buddies or your…" She looked at him up and down. "Other stuff."
"That's not me," Ray said. "I made a mistake and I feel horrible about it. I wish I could fix it." The woman scoffed.
"Go to Hell," Penny told him. "And when you get there don't even think about coming back." The dark haired woman walked around him and Ray pushed the down button on the elevator again. He winced as he heard the door slam and leaned against the wall feeling lower than he ever thought possible.
"Why do I get this sinking feeling we're being set up?" Winston asked to no one in particular as he, Egon and Peter stepped off the elevator. He had two pizza boxes in his hands as Dr. Spengler carried a case of beer for his friends and a case of Starbucks Frappacinos that Peter suggested he bring for Dani.
"It's not a set up," Peter replied. He glanced back at his friend over his uninjured right shoulder. "Dani told me about this yesterday. She just wasn't ready to tell you guys."
"Why not?" Egon inquired.
"You can ask her yourself," Peter told him. "That's half the reason we're here. She needs someone to talk to and I'm afraid to let Janine up here because she might convince Dani to do something drastic."
"I highly doubt Janine would do such a thing," Dr. Spengler responded. Peter gave his friend a look. "That was one time, Peter. And I believe Dani was more at fault."
"So maybe she was, but I think someone needs to talk to Dani and since we were out I figured why not us? We have pizza, beer and Starbucks," Dr. Venkman said. "A pretty good combination if you ask me."
"What happens if she doesn't want to talk with us?" Winston asked. "She may not want to talk to anyone right now."
"Peter Venkman doesn't take for no for an answer."
"Peter Venkman may not know the meaning of the word," Egon retorted. The psychologist gave his friend a look. "But you're quite right, Peter. Dani needs company even if she doesn't believe so." He looked at the hallway and a strange sense of déjà vu came upon the physicist. "I'm rather intrigued how she managed to get this apartment. I thought the building had made this area off limits."
"I can tell you that," Peter said. "She pretty much promised them that if anything was to happen she'd deal with it meaning us, but she'll basically be keeping an eye on things. Besides, didn't you and Ray say the gate was closed? We crossed the streams and that usually means something permanent."
"Theoretically," Dr. Spengler responded. "I believe the barrier is a bit weak enough to let some entities through. There always seem to be ghosts in New York and I surmise plenty of weakened gates are located throughout the city."
"So she'll be calling us a lot?" Winston guessed.
"Not necessarily," Egon told him. "Dani will be able to deal with most of it to an extent. And this will give me an opportunity to inspect the gate and the surrounding area easily."
"I'm sure she'll be happy about that," Winston muttered. The men reached the door and none of them reached to knock on the door. They looked at each other as if trying to tell the other to do the deed.
"This was your idea, Peter," Egon said.
"You're just afraid she might hit you," Peter teased him. The tall scientist glared at his friend.
"The girl is strong, Pete," Zeddemore commented. "She might look a little scrawny especially in those sweatshirts she keeps stealing from our closets." Peter laughed because he remembered giving the young woman permission to borrow the clothes without first checking with the other guys. They hadn't complained, but whenever she borrowed a sweatshirt from Winston's closet it seemed to engulf the blonde as the bottom of his shirts nearly touched her knees. Winston shook his head. "Of course, Dani's not the only one around here that looks stronger than he or she is. I kept thinking Egon would fall over every time he put that proton pack on when I first joined up with you guys. No offense though, man. You're still a pretty skinny guy even after all the junk food you eat."
"It happens to be my metabolism," Egon said. "Though I will admit lately I have been using Peter's hand weights. Janine seems to find it…" The physicist stopped and a bit of pink crossed his cheeks and shook his head. He looked at his friend. "None taken, Winston. The proton packs just took a bit of time to get used to. Peter can probably tell you stories of when I first did put the pack on."
"That was funny," Dr. Venkman admitted. "Spengs put the thing on for the first time and started falling backwards. We were lucky the couch was right behind him or he would have gotten hurt. Ray and I were clear across the room. Next time he nearly fell forward into traffic on 5th Street. Egon is not the most coordinated man on the planet."
"Perhaps you'll understand now why I don't always join you in a game of basketball," Egon told him. "I may have the height advantage, but the ability to shoot a ball has failed me. I was never raised as an athlete, but as a scientist."
"Excuses, excuses," the psychologist kidded. He turned back to the door and took a deep breath. "You guys, ready?"
"Sure," Winston answered. "Are you?"
"Sure," Peter said. "Spengs?"
"Try not. Do, or do not. There is no try." Peter and Winston glanced back at the blonde haired man. "I apologize. Should I try for something more obscure?" Dr. Venkman shook his head and knocked on the apartment door twice. Music began to waft into the hallway.
"Come on, Dani," Peter muttered. He pounded on the door louder and the music rose in volume as well. He glanced at Egon who was wincing at the sound of music. Of course, that could have been because it wasn't the type he usually listened to. The physicist was more into classical and operatic compositions. Whatever the young woman was listening to had more guitars, drums and other loud instruments. "Dani, its Peter! I just want to talk!" The music slowly disappeared and moments later the apartment door opened.
The blonde stood in the doorway looking as if she had gone through different forms of natural disaster. Her normally straight blonde hair was matted and bits were sticking up straight. The mascara that went around her eyes and often invisible unless you looked directly at her was in streaks on her face. On her feet was a pair of Scooby slippers that didn't exactly seem out of place with the ratty jeans and the sweatshirt she wore, that looked years beyond its usefulness.
"It's just you?" Her voice was soft and there was vulnerability to it. Peter found himself looking at a small child rather than the blossoming twenty-four year old he remembered from the other night at the theatre. He wondered if she realized Winston and Egon were standing on both sides of him, but her eyes were just on him as if he could fix it all.
"Spengs and Zedd are here too," Peter said. She looked at her cousin than at her friend before focusing back on the psychologist. "Can we come in?" The blonde slowly nodded and turned around going into the apartment. Peter went right after followed by Winston than Egon who closed the door behind him.
The men were taken aback by the interior of the apartment. The walls were a light blue that almost looked white as the lights bounced off them. Most of the living room area was empty except for the large overstuffed couch sitting on the wall next to a door that was opened leading to the kitchen. Across from the couch on the other wall sat an entertainment system with a television sitting in the center area and a stereo on the top shelf playing some unidentifiable music. It sat next to another door that led into the bedroom. In the corner on diagonally from the couch was a desk with a flat screen monitor and on its screen were pictures quickly flashing by.
Dani plopped down on the couch and got under the large afghan that had been sitting like a lump on it. She grabbed a remote off the large coffee table sitting about a foot away from the couch made of wood with marble tiles on its top. Aiming it upward at the stereo the music they had heard before came out of the speakers. She grabbed a partially used tissue from under the afghan, blew her nose into it than tossed it on the floor with the other tissues and Starbucks glass bottles on the floor.
"So much for my happy ending," an unfamiliar girl sang followed by a few notes of music. "So much for my happy ending. Oh, oh. Oh, oh. Oh, oh. Let's talk this over. It's not like we're dead."
"The place looks different," Peter commented. "I also wasn't expecting to see all this stuff."
"I guess it's just the way they built it," Dani mumbled. "And I have Louis to thank for the good majority of the stuff being together. All I did was ask him to go buy some of this stuff and he sets it up."
"Louis Tully?" Egon said in surprise. His cousin nodded. "I'm afraid to ask this, but does he live down the hall?"
"No," she answered. "He's still got that townhouse with that model."
"How he ever ended up with her is beyond me," Winston commented as he set the pizza down the on the coffee table. "Of course, she also went out with Pete so maybe she has no taste."
"Thanks, Zedd," Dr. Venkman retorted. "I'll have you know she wasn't my type. I was the one who broke up with her."
"You've got your dumb friends. I know what they say. They tell you I'm difficult. But so are they."
"Did you all actually come to talk to me? Or is this place just going to become another hangout?" The young woman asked quietly.
"We came for you," Peter answered. He sat down on the edge of the coffee table and looked at the young woman. She glanced at him a moment than just stared down at the floor. "Of course, it only works if you talk to us first. How do you feel?"
"How do I feel?" The blonde repeated. She gave him an exasperated look. "How the heck do you think I feel?"
"But they don't know me. Do they even know you?"
"I might now, but maybe you should tell Egon and Winston. I was only able to tell them what I saw. I didn't know what you were thinking. They don't know what you're thinking. You might need to spell out a few things."
"What's there to say?" She asked removing the blanket and getting off the couch. The young woman started for the bedroom door. She stopped and turned around. Her eyes gleamed with tears. "He betrayed me. The man I trusted to keep me safe and to be honest with me at all times hurt me. Everything I thought I knew was thrown out the window in those few seconds. Everything up until now has been a lie. What I've become, the relationships that have been created…" Dani looked at each of the men. "Lies. All lies. I don't belong here. I never did."
"That's not true," Egon told her as he moved close to the young woman after setting down the drinks. "You have every right to be angry with Raymond, but it is no reason to put some of the blame on yourself. You asked for none of it, Dani. You deserve everything you have."
"No. I don't," she whispered. The blonde wiped away the tears that slowly slid down her cheeks. "They're gone."
"What's gone?" Winston asked as he joined Dr. Spengler.
"The visions. Or whatever you want to call them. I had the last one like nearly a month ago and that was for that one bust where you still got hurt, Egon," she told them. "After that there's been nothing."
"It was a possibility they were temporary," Egon said. "The ability was most likely in some form of ectoplasm that managed to fuse with your brain cells, but I'm only speculating. You did not allow me to run many tests."
"Would it have helped any?" Dani asked almost incredously.
"I don't know," Dr. Spengler answered. "It would have merely been for scientific purposes."
"You know I thought I could so much good with them," his cousin said quietly. "I could save people. I was able to warn you guys about something that could happen. But I guess it wasn't supposed to be like that forever. Maybe some of the other stuff I saw was just my overactive imagination taking an open opportunity. Maybe everything I saw wasn't real." She bit her bottom lip and fiddled with the bottom of the sweatshirt she wore.
"Sometimes life throws you lemons and you have to make lemonade," Peter told her as he stood up. Dani looked at him as is if he just grew another head.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means that just because this happened doesn't mean you can give up on everything," Peter answered. "There's a possibility something good might come from it."
"Like what?" She inquired with shock.
"I think what Pete is trying to say is that it might look bad now, but give it time and everything will turn out alright," Winston said.
"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" Winston didn't answer. "Get out." Her voice was low and her face now wore an angry expression.
"What?" Peter replied in surprise.
"Just get out!" Dani repeated loudly. Tears quickly flowed down her face and she looked at each of them. "I don't need any of you! I don't need your stupid words. And I certainly don't need your pity!" The blonde turned back around, went into the bedroom and slammed the door.
"Thanks for acting like you cared. And making me feel like I was the only one. It's nice to know we had it all. Thanks for watching as I fall. And letting me know we were done." The music continued to play as the men stood in the silence that had consumed the room. Winston picked up the remote off the coffee table and turned off the music.
"Have we considered the possibility of possession?" Zeddemore asked.
"It's quite plausible, Winston," Dr. Spengler commented. He pulled out his PKE meter and turned it on. The antennae moved around a bit, but there was only a light beeping that could be heard. "I don't believe she is. I'm registering faint readings and I believe those are coming from the building itself."
"Egon, forget that," Dr. Venkman told the physicist as Peter stood up. "If it was a demon it would be gloating right now. This is just something that nobody saw coming. Ray did something stupid and we're seeing its results."
"So, what do we do?" Winston inquired.
"We try again," the psychologist answered.
"She just slammed the door in our faces," Zeddemore pointed out.
"I find that's usually a bad sign," Egon added. "And I highly doubt she'd be willing to talk with us anymore."
"She doesn't have to talk, Spengs," Peter replied. "She just has to listen."
"You go on ahead and get her to listen to you," Winston told him. "I'll bet you'll be back out here in five minutes."
"What exactly are betting here?" Dr. Venkman inquired with a sly grin. The older man groaned. "I just want to make this interesting."
"Fine," Winston muttered. "If you get her out than I'll do your chores for a week, but if you don't than you've got to give Ecto a complete overhaul. That means cleaning Ecto in and out as well as a tune-up."
"Sounds good, Zedd. You got yourself a bet." Dr. Venkman started for the bedroom door.
"What, per say, do you plan to tell to her?" Egon asked. The psychologist turned around than shrugged than regretted the decision as his left shoulder let him know that it didn't like the movement.
"I'll come up with something," Peter said than walked into the bedroom. Winston grabbed a box of pizza than looked at Egon.
"So, you hungry?"
"Dani?" Peter closed the door behind him and looked around. The bedroom was rather bare compared to the living room. The only thing was a bed that had been made and a bag with clothes spilling out of it sat on top of the comforter. A thin strip of light hit the bed and Dr. Venkman looked to his right to notice a door was slightly ajar. From the sounds he heard he guessed the young woman was in the shower.
The psychologist had once walked in on her taking a shower, but that had been an accident. She had been using the bunkroom's bathroom because there was a problem with hers, but his friends had forgotten to tell him so when he had walked in she was stepping out. He received nearly a full view and she made him swear not to tell anyone under the penalty of making his life a living hell. Now though she'd probably hit him than personally escort him, Egon and Winston right out the door. A woman scorned was not someone you should speak rationally to, but Peter knew he had to do it.
"Come on, Venkman," he muttered. "You do this kind of thing all the time." He pushed open the bathroom door and saw the young woman fully clothed in the shower through the clear curtain. Her head was fully immersed underneath the showerhead. "Feeling refreshed?"
"Just leave me alone," Dani replied over the sound of rushing water as she glanced in his direction. "I don't need any of your psycho-babble."
"I don't babble," Peter responded. "Can you step out of the shower so we can talk?"
"No," Dani answered.
"Fine. Than I'll join you." Dr. Venkman started for the shower when the young woman suddenly turned the water off and pushed aside the curtain. She flung back her wet hair and glared at him. "Thank you."
"I only did it because the hot water was running out," Dani told him as she stepped out. Her wet clothes dripped on to the tile floor. "Now, will you leave? I told you I didn't want to hear anything else from any of you."
"Do you really want us to go?" Peter asked. "What do you plan to do when we leave? Go back to crying and listening to your music? Does that really help? I know you feel miserable and the best thing you can do right now is talk to us. You don't have to tell me anything. You can talk to Spengs or Winston. Heck, I'm sure Janine will be willing to listen. The one thing you can't do is let it all fester inside of you just praying that it'll eventually go away. It doesn't work like that." She looked at the psychologist for a while before leaning against the closest wall and sliding down it to the floor.
"I don't know what to do, Peter," she said as she pulled her knees up to her chest. Her voice in a near sob. "I'm just so confused."
"Hey, it's okay," Peter whispered as he sat down next to her. He put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Wanna know what I think?"
"What?" Dani mumbled.
"I think you're going to get through this and be stronger person because of it," Peter told her. "You shouldn't define yourself by the relationships you have, but who you are and what you do with your life. It's good to have friends and it might be fun to be part of something big, but if it doesn't make you happy than you should find something that does. You can do whatever you want, Dani. There's nothing written in stone. We just want you to come out and tell us. We're concerned about you." The room was silent a moment and the only sound was the drip coming from the faucet in the tub.
"I want to go home, Peter," the young woman whispered.
"That can be arranged. Ecto is right outside. It might be twenty floors down, but it's outside."
"No. Not the firehouse." Dr. Venkman gave her a quizzical look.
"Are you talking about Ohio? Do you want to go spend some time with Ma Spengler? I think she and Egon would like that idea. Spengs is always trying to get you to spend some time over there. You could get away from the city and Egon would know what you were up to. You could go bug Uncle Cyrus while you're at it. I bet you'd have a great time."
"No."
"No?" Peter scratched his head. "I give up, Dani. Where exactly are you talking about?"
"Texas."
"Texas," Dr. Venkman repeated. He quickly jumped to his feet and looked down at her. "Texas? What's in Texas? I mean besides horses, cowboys and a sweltering heat." Dani glanced up at him.
"That's where my home is, Peter," she said as she stood up. "I was born there. Some of the earliest memories I have are from there. It might seem like I'm just trying to ignore everything that's going on here, but I remember what you said yesterday. There's no easy way out in life, but I think by going back I might be able to move on. I think I need to." She hugged herself as a shiver went down her spine. Peter reached out with his good arm and rubbed her left arm. Dani gave him a half smile. "Thanks."
"Hey, no problem," Dr. Venkman replied. "You know what you want better than anyone else. And if going back to that rodeo-driven state is what you want than go for it." He let out a breath. "I gotta tell you. I thought this was gonna be a lot harder."
"What do you mean?" The psychologist looked at her and adjusted his sling after pulling his arm back.
"I thought I'd have to tell you a personal story or something. Of course, there's nothing I can say that matched what happened to you. Well, I did steal Egon's girlfriend once, but that was just a big misunderstanding. Nothing that could ever match the pain you feel," Peter told her. She looked at him sympathetically and touched his sling.
"You've got some pain of your own right now," Dani pointed out quietly. "How'd this happen? I don't remember it being there yesterday."
"Rough bust," Dr. Venkman answered. The blonde gave him an understanding nod. There was a silence again.
"You wanna tell me the story about you and Egon?" The young woman inquired softly. "How'd you manage to steal his girlfriend?"
"Well, they weren't exactly hot and heavy, but it was as close as it got for old Spengs at that time," Peter said. "Her name was Amy and she was working on her degree in biochemical engineering or something close to that. She was just as smart as Egon. Anyway, I ended up talking with her one night while she was waiting for him to get back from some lecture and somehow we ended up on the couch in the dark. Some stuff happened, but long story short Egon wasn't happy and the whole thing didn't even last that long. Amy liked the touchy feely stuff, but she didn't enjoy that I wasn't into her stuff. So we ended up going our separate ways and it took Spengs at least two weeks to forgive me." The blonde stared at him a while with a look that was a cross between consideration and exhaustion.
"Yeah. You're right. That doesn't even match what happened," Dani responded. The psychologist gave her an exasperated look. "But I do appreciate you sharing it."
"That's the last time I share something personal with you, missy," Peter replied. "Anyway, get some dry clothes on and we'll go talk Egon into making us some hot chocolate."
"Sounds good," the young woman commented with a small grin. "You wanna grab my bag for me? It's out there on the bed."
"Yeah, sure." Dr. Venkman started heading out of the bathroom.
"Peter, wait…" The Ghostbuster turned around and the blonde looked at him. She bit her bottom lip and messed with the bottom of the sweatshirt. "I, uh, have something to tell you."
"What's that?" Egon's cousin walked up to the brown-haired man than took his head in her hands and planted her lips on his. Peter was completely caught off-guard and his first thought was to put a stop to the action, but something else told him to let it happen and see where it led. After what seemed like ages Dani finally released him and walked back a few steps.
"Thank you." The psychologist blinked a couple of times and stared at her in half shock.
"You're thanking me? For what?"
"For just being you," Dani answered with all sincerity. Peter thought about that a moment. He'd have to ask her later what she meant by that exactly. Maybe there was something to it she didn't want to say out loud. "Now go get my clothes. I'd really rather not catch pneumonia right now."
"Yeah. No problem." He gave her one last look than walked out of the bathroom.
"I can't believe she's leaving," Egon said as he dumped out the remains of the hot chocolate out of the pan and into the sink. He rinsed it and looked at Peter. "And you had nothing to do with this?"
"I didn't tell her to go to Texas," Peter replied grabbing a towel to clean up a nearby counter. "I told her to do what she thought was right. Besides it's not like she'll be gone forever. You heard her, Spengs. It's just to clear her head. Think about what she's gonna do next."
"What about the whole kiss?" Winston asked looking at the psychologist. "I'm sure you had something to do with that. It sounds like you. Taking advantage of her in a delicate situation."
"I'm hurt that you would ever say such a thing, Zedd," Dr. Venkman responded. "That wasn't me either. She said it was some kind of thank you, but I'm guessing it might have been something else. I was going to ask, but I didn't think it would be something she wanted to talk about at the moment. There's more going on in her head than she's willing to let us know about." He sighed and set down the towel before turning back to Dr. Spengler. "You even asked her point blank, Egon, what she was going to tell Ray because you didn't think it was right for her just to leave without possibly clearing the air. And what did she say?" The physicist adjusted his glasses.
"She said that she wanted another mug of hot cocoa and that anything dealing with Raymond at the moment was insignificant," Egon answered. "It's as if she wishes to erase all the time she and he spent together."
"Yeah. I really don't think she wants to talk about it," Peter said.
"Is that the best solution?" Dr. Spengler inquired. "You've always forced us to discuss what's bothering us. We can't get away with anything around you."
'Well, I probably shouldn't have, but that whole kiss thing kinda distracted me," Peter replied. He looked at Winston. "And I wasn't taking advantage. I'm not that type of person."
"Okay," Winston responded. "But Egon's got a point. Even though she leaves she won't be able to avoid this forever. It's easy to pretend it never happened, but it'll come back up somehow. Besides what are we going to tell Ray? It's not like we can cover for her the entire time she's gone." He shook his head with a sigh. "She doesn't even know how long she'll be gone. I just don't think that's right."
"If you want to tell Dani what she can and can not do than by all means be my guest. I don't think she'll enjoy that very much," Peter told him. "As for Ray, well, we'll deal with that when it comes to it."
"Perhaps we should get Janine to talk with her," Egon suggested. "They seem to do that quite a bit when we aren't here. I can only imagine what they do discuss."
"It's all about you, big guy," Peter retorted. "It's all about you." The physicist gave his friend a look. "Oh, come on. You're one thing they really have in common and you spend your fair share of time with both of them. I'm willing to be there are things you tell Janine that you don't tell Dani or us and vice versa. Are you really willing to bet that they know more about you than you actually realize?" Egon raised an eyebrow and gave his friend a narrowed look before sighing and leaning against the counter.
"You're quite right, Peter. It doesn't help that my mother jumps in on their discussions as well."
"Yeah, mothers just love to sell you out," Winston added. "They'll pull out the photos from when you were a kid and tell all those embarrassing stories they wish they had on tape. And when you ask them not to that's when they do it the most." The men shared a laugh.
"Oh, I didn't realize you guys were still up." Egon, Winston and Peter all turned to doorway of the kitchen. Ray stood just outside the kitchen wearing his leather jacket and jumpsuit. He looked both tired and surprised. "I figured you guys would have been in bed right now."
"Well, we would have, but we had to deal with a few things," Peter replied giving his friend a slight glare.
"Did you have another bust?" Ray asked.
"No," Egon answered. "It would have been a bit difficult when we only had two people to do so."
"Yeah," Dr. Stantz agreed in a low tone. "I guess you guys didn't see Dani than."
"Actually she's here," Winston told him. "She's in her bedroom. Asleep." Dr. Stantz glanced behind and thought a moment about going down to the room, but decided against. He wasn't sure what he'd say and was afraid of what she might say back. Ray wondered when he'd ever be able to talk with her or even look at her without feeling horrible about himself.
"She's alright than?" Ray responded.
"Depends on your definition," Peter replied. "Physical, yeah, she's fine. Emotionally and psychologically, it's kinda iffy." Egon gave the psychologist a stern look and Peter pretended to become interested in a cereal box.
"Raymond, do you have a moment?" Egon inquired.
"I guess," Ray said with a shrug. He really hoped his friends wouldn't bring up what happened. It wasn't something he could easily avoid, but the engineer knew what happened was wrong and almost unforgivable. One day he hoped to be able to put this behind him and move on.
"Can we discuss what happened?" Dr. Spengler asked.
"No, Egon," the auburn-haired man quickly replied. The answer not only surprised his friend, but himself as well. "I just can't, Egon. I know what I did and there's not really any way to fix it. I can ask for forgiveness until I'm blue in the face, but I don't think I'll get it. I know I've hurt Dani because I wasn't thinking. I just did the same thing to Elaine. And I'm pretty sure I pissed off either one or all of you so I'm definitely not going to win." He stared at his friends who all had slightly shocked and unsure looks on their faces. "Have I covered everything? Or do we want to dive into the past and talk about the times I screwed up than?"
"Ray, man, this isn't about your past," Winston finally said. "It's about now. I'm sorry about Elaine, but you should have thought all of this through a bit more before you did what you did."
"Thanks for that bit of wisdom, Winston," Dr. Stantz replied in an angry voice. "Look. We're done here. I'll see you all tomorrow." He walked out of the kitchen light and a moment later they could hear a door slam.
"That went well," Peter commented setting down the cereal box. "Anybody else have any bright ideas?"
TO BE CONTINUED...
(Hopefully it won't take as long for the next part.)