Hello! I do every kind of writing BUT drabble…and I decided it's about time I did. This is a one-shot monologue sort of thing, inspired by chapter 6 of Motherly Love. I've always wondered about this, and I decided it's about time to make a story to make you guys cry!

Okay, now it's not drabble. Originally, it was just the ceremony, but I decided to extend to afterwards because it didn't seem heartbreaking enough…

SUMMARY: At his grandmother's funeral, Danny can't cry. He figures it out in a thinking session in his room one day and desperately tries to sort it out, getting a boost from the one who's always helped.

DISCLAIMER: no.

RATED: K+ for once.

I'll Cry For You If You Can't

Danny stared. It couldn't be. His grandmother had died. The sweetest woman on earth had just departed his life, and it shattered his whole sense of reality. He stared at the coffin that encased his dear relative. She's in there, he thought. She looked so peaceful when he went to look at her before they closed the coffin. She looked like she was asleep. But he knew the truth, and knots formed in his throat whenever he thought about it.

Maddie was crying. Jack was crying. Jazz was crying. But Danny didn't. He wanted to. He wanted to terribly, but no matter how hard he tried, his eyes would not squeeze out a single tear. Maddie turned to him, wiping her tears with a napkin, thinking the look that would meet her would be a teary fifteen-year-old boy.

But that's not what she saw. She saw Danny looking back at her plainly, missing the few traces of sadness and loss etched on his features. She was appalled; why wasn't he crying.

Poor Danny didn't know why; he just couldn't. It seemed like he forgot how to cry. He tried and tried but it wouldn't happen. He just had to hold it in, tearing himself to shreds inside.

But at that very moment, he realized why. He was a ghost. And ghosts can't cry. They haven't feelings, have they? No, they don't. Even if the Box Ghost says otherwise, he knew the truth, and he couldn't cry because he was a ghost.

So he had to hold in all his eternal pain like a soda can. The pressure would sustain itself forever until opened, and until he died, all of that pain would stay. He closed his eyes, looking down at his lap. Why couldn't he cry? He wanted to so badly!

Maddie looked away, shocked. Why couldn't he cry? What was wrong with him? Nothing, of course. But he looked so desperate to cry! Why wouldn't he?

After the funeral, Sam and Tucker walked up to him from their row. They looked at him empathetically, both of their faces tear-stained. But Danny's was clear.

"I'm sorry, Danny," said Sam as she choked on tears. Danny sighed.

"It's okay, Sam," he sounded a little upset, but nothing threatened to play with his voice.

"Why didn't you cry?" asked Sam.

"I can't. I've lost the ability to."

Sam looked at him sympathetically. Poor kid couldn't cry. That was a universal talent, and he was missing it. It was the only way someone could really let out emotions…and he had to keep his in for all eternity.

"Well, I'll tell you what," said Sam quietly. "I'll cry for you if you can't."

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Danny stared ahead at his wall, determined to squeeze a tear out of his eye. What kind of a human was he if he couldn't cry? But was it still proper for a man to cry?

It's alright for you to cry…

Some one had once told him that, but he wasn't so sure anymore. And if he could cry, would he? Who had told him that, anyway? Sam, wasn't it? Sam was also the one who had volunteered to cry for him.

Sam, such a generous girl. He didn't love her, but didn't consider her a best friend, either. She was somewhere in the middle, a land-bridge like the one back in B.C. times between North America and Asia, charming Danny but constantly reminding him of their status in her own beautiful, carefully hidden way. She always offered her life and help when she could, and her empathy was unmatched. No one was as good as her.

As Danny lay down on his bed, a small smile on his face, something fell on his cheek.

A tear.

Aw…look, it's more DxS! Grrr, I hate myself. I'm not a real shipper. I support Danny and Ember, Dan Phantom and ANYONE (especially Danny himself!), and Sam and Lancer. Yes, I'm sick.

And as you can see below, I came up with WAAAYY too many ideas recently. Heh.

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TODAY: I'll Cry for You if You Can't (NEW!), Corpse Groom (NEW!)