Corey: Of course that was Phantom of the Opera! I can't resist sliding a little in, but you're supposed to keep that secret! SH, you not-bold-enough-to-knock-someone-over-to-touch-Joel-
person! It's ok that you didn't mug his brother, that wasn't going to happen, but you should have TOUCHED! I mean, come on, he was crowd surfing!

Chocolate: Well, I know there are certain ways people want to go, if they have to is the whole thing. Kayla was a very active horseback rider, we both are, and to die by horse and doing what we love means more to people like us than to die in our sleep. No offense, I just wanted to tell you that.

AnImEfAnFoRlIfE: Glad to know you enjoy reading!

PhantomAL: Thanks! And I know I recommended "I Don't Wanna Stop" to you to try to make up for that. It's a good song, neh?

Unlikely-to-bear-it: I though the whole "alone in the dark" comment was pretty good myself, although I wasn't sure how that would go over with you guys. Apparently very well. Say hi to 'Der-bear' for me! And if one of the twins goes crowd-surfing, I want to hear that you TOUCHED them/him.

Je vous remercerie aussi:

Cyndi1, cakreut12, Phantomgirl515, spongebobphantom, Divagurl277, Katie Mae, allaloneinthedarkandstillhere

Taking You Out: Danny

"Daniel Fenton you get out of that bathroom NOW!"

Ok, yes, I know, that doesn't sound quite right, but, um, that's what it sounded like. Er, I prayed the lock would hold as Jazz pounded at the door. She was making me do this, making me go on a date. With my best friend. She wasn't letting me back out because my feet got cold, and believe me, they were freezing.

I had just locked myself in here, my shirt in hand seeing as Jazz had ambushed me with the comb and clean clothes not seconds before. I had been in the process of changing my shirt, but, well, this one would have to do. My sibling continued to rage at the door and then everything went silent. Meaning I had about thirty seconds before she got back here with the pen to pop the lock.

I slid my shirt back on, pausing as I did so to look at my stitches. All thirty of them in various places. I seemed to have gotten lucky in that way, the doctors said, not to have been slashed so badly in one place, but rather small cuts in multiple spots. I just said it was painful either way and it would have been a godsend if I didn't have to resort to sleeping half in my bed and half off to avoid laying on the damn stitches. I traced the black thread with an inquisitive finger, wincing slightly.

I heard Jazz on the stairs, whoop de do, and I was forced to exit through the bathroom wall. I turned back as soon I was through and opened the window to make it seem as if I crawled out. Invisible, I snuck back into the house to grab my Vans and a jacket; that March air is nippy! Then it was off to Sam's house to, well, pick her up for our date.

So yes, I have to admit I was nervous. I will say that I may or may not have come this close to peeing my pants when I rang the doorbell and I may or may not have seriously considered playing ding-dong ditch right at that moment. But one of Sam's family's servants opened up the door. I kicked myself mentally for saying servant in my head, Sam preferred staying away from that term and had yelled at me many a time for using the word for there was a lack of a better word. I could hear her stereo pounding away. I listened closely; Passive was the song, which meant Perfect Circle was playing.

I looked up as Sammie appeared at the stop of the stairs looking weary and sort of flustered. Not to mention her outfit; I didn't even know she owned a shirt that went that low...I looked back at her face, yes, keep your eyes on the face Danny boy. She looked so tired. "Get enough beauty sleep Sammie?" I poked fun at her.

She scowled and stuck her tongue out, replying, "None your business."

"Nice grammar." I commented playfully, still thinking a little but about that shirt, eyes on the face! She was descending the stairs, looking me over.

"At least I dressed up." Sam said cooly. I looked at my shirt and shoes, now feeling a little guilty that she was dressed up and I was not. After all, that tank top...face, face, face, face, face, face, look at the face. All the same, I shrugged and answered her, "I wanted to be comfortable."

I could see what Sam was thinking, it was right there on her face. It must have been something like, "I'm wearing a bloody tank top! Could you have at least put a different shirt on for me?" She's twisted her face back into a scowl, to which I simply grinned to see her try to come back at me. Sammie just stuck out her tongue, too easy, I simply mimicked her back. Then she spun on her heel and turned her back to me. I rolled my eyes and thought for a second before dropping to my knees. Oh, ow, those damn ribs of mine screamed in protest.

Another person who worked in the house was at the top of stairs and she laughed at me. I winked at her, grinning weakly. Sam's head tilted as she looked up at the woman in question. She pointed to me and Sam looked over her shoulder before turning to face me again.

"Get up." She told me curtly as I simply smiled back up at her. I found my feet, touching my battered body in the process. I had skipped my painkillers for the night so I wouldn't fall asleep during the movie. I knew by then Sam was trying to think of excuses not to go, my injury being one of them. She still grabbed her own coat through and yelled to the house that she'd be back by ten.

We then set out down the street for the theater seeing as neither of could drive. But one of the great things about living in suburbia is that most everything is within walking distance, things like the mall, the restaurants and the movies. So it wasn't too bad, but it was cold outside, it was only March after all. Sammie started shivering, her coat apparently not enough over her tank top. As nice as she looked in the thing (the tank top, that is) it wasn't her brightest idea. I looked over at her and she nodded.

I slipped one of my arms out of my jacket and pulled her in. Sam curled her arm comfortably around my waist the way she did when we went flying to close the space and I made sure my jacket was covering us both. "Idiot." I murmured to her and Sam just gave me a small smile back, moving a little to get the heat going. Good thing it was dark out because I was sure I was as red as a Christmas light.

As we walked into the theater, other kids from our school started whispering animatedly and pointing to us when they thought we weren't looking. Sam sidled away from me, chewing her lip, brow creased in thought. I stepped into the line to pay for our Ring 2 tickets. I brought out a wad of hard saved cash from my birthday, Sam stopped my hand, drawing out her own money. I can't pretend I didn't know this was coming. I ignored her, saying to the theater employee, "Don't let her pay for a thing." She fumed, but I was able to placate her with a basic, "My treat."

We were waiting in the line for snacks, laughing and playing, actually forgetting where we were or who might be watching. Did we want soda, or iced tea with Swedish Fish or popcorn or should I just tickle Sammie again so she tried to be mad at me but was laughing hysterically. It was just so cute and all that stuff that I began to wonder if we were ever going to be able to deny being a couple ever again, but, eh, well, I wasn't thinking about it that much, I was having too much fun making her laugh then.

But Sam, I noticed, was beginning to take the people around us gossiping to heart, and it showed. Her fist clenched and her eyes began to dart around the lobby, picking out just who was looking at her. They came to quickly rest on me as I observed this; she averted her gaze and I became suddenly nervous myself, but I saw her fist uncurl.

"Hey kids, you want anything or not?" the guy working at the counter wound up yelling at us as we drifted off into our own little worlds. "Yeah..." I glanced back at my date. "What do you want anything Sammie."

"Ugh-" she was cut off mid thought.

"Hurry up!" "Popcorn, diet Coke." Sam shot at the man, glowering impressively in her gothic style.

"Thank god. And next time, remember it quick!" he said, shoving our order at us as I threw money at him. Sam and I ran for our theater, sitting in the highest seats we could find as far back as you could go, trying to hide from our peers, who were turning a whispering more. I got comfortable in my seat as Sammie groaned and tugged at the collar of her coat ask me, "Don't they ever start?"

I, who had been stuffing my face with the popcorn, had to reply, "Irg ha ner clur, percrn?"

I heard her sigh. "Danny, swallow."

I already had. "I have no clue, popcorn?" Sam grabbed the box from my hands and began to occupy herself with something other than worry. It became apparent that our normal ritual of sharing the straw of the giant soda was going to be a little awkward, but I just tried to ignore the sensation. The lights dimmed and, though I was sure Sam was going to knock me hard around my head, I just had to say, "Hey, Sammie, it's me and you...alone...in the dark."

o-o-o

It was halfway through the movie and Sam was going. She was shifting and sighing and sipping at the Coke. She finally yawned, stretched and was out like a light. I finished the movie and watched her sleep halfway through the credits. Before she'd knocked out, she'd been watching a couple in the lower levels make out rather shamelessly. I pondered at what she's been thinking. I finally shook her by her shoulders. A little roughly, granted, but she was up.

"I'm sorry." Sam apologized. "But - ah - I wasn't much into the movie." she looked up at me sleepily, trying to make her body obey the commands she was giving it. "Sorry I ruined your big night."

She tried again to get to her feet from her seat by grabbing hod of the arm rets of her seat and pushing herself up. I took one of her arms and casually slid it over my shoulder because she was still half asleep. Sam mumbled some form of thanks to me as I dragged her along.

"Nothing to it kid, but you do have to move your feet."

She looked down and blushed, finally hopping to and moving her feet. We exited into the dark and she tugged at my coat. I slid my arm out again and we moved off to her house,

TA DA! Chapterage for y'all and I'm off to soak in the tub. And I dyed my hair purple, well, the tips at least. Which is pretty cool. And I've been listening to some new music one of my friends gave me (Tool, Disturbed, A Perfect Circle, Papa Roach, The Cruxshadows, Bella Morte) and it's pretty good. - Dru