Links in the Chain
By Lacey52
.o.O.o.o.O.o.
A note: Here's more of Dash starting to mature a bit, and a bit of Valerie still pondering over things. Hope you guys enjoy it and give me feedback on what you think is going to happen. I would love to hear it! I only semi-looked over it, so don't shoot me for typos or such, lol...
Hope you guys like the chapter…I actually really like who most of it turned out. Love to you all!
.o.O.o.o.O.o.
Chapter Thirty Two: Unacceptable
.o.O.o.o.O.o.
"You know those two have been getting closer," Star commented as Danny and Sam walked towards their fourth period class together, "It's actually cute they way they're always together."
"Cute?" Paulina asked as she looked at the pair around her locker door, "Not really, I mean it's two losers in love after all."
"It's still cute," Star wrinkled her nose, "besides they're game makes it cuter. How they're always smiling at each other or figuring out where the other is."
"It's not a stupid game," Valerie frowned as she watched them walk by, "something's up with those two."
"What?" Paulina snorted as she closed her locker, "You think they're really psychic? That's so dumb, everyone knows it was just a big prank."
"Oh yeah?" Valerie's eyebrow rose with a condescending look, "Do you really think that two second graders could come up with that prank and keep it going for three years?"
"Whatever," Paulina started to walk away, slightly flustered by the girl's logic, "Why are you talking to us? You haven't exactly been around lately."
"I've had things to do," she said and turned to Star, "So how have things been going?"
"They're going if that's anything to say," Star smiled, "You know how school is and with all these big projects starting. Well, uh, we've gotta' get going. Talk to you some other time, Val."
"Yeah sure," she rolled her eyes and turned to go, "like you'll really try to talk to me aga…ow!"
Valerie had turned right into none other than Dash Baxter and been knocked back into the lockers, "Watch where you're going Baxter."
"God Gray, you'd think I did it on purpose," he frowned and looked at her in slight concern, "Your head okay?"
"Uh yeah," she rubbed mentioned body part, "Just a little sore."
"Yo, Baxter," a couple of his teammates called out to him, "stop talking to losers. You've gotten a real bad habit of hanging with geeks."
"Shut up," he growled back, "I knocked her into a locker, I can make sure she's not gonna' die if I want to."
"You're gettin' out of hand Dash," a tall boy walked up to him, "It's really not acceptable to the 'A-list' to hang out with people like you are."
"I even heard he was in the park with Manson this summer," another grinned at him, "You like dating freaks or something."
"I ain't dating Manson," he approached the group, "Just shut the hell up and lets go. We've got a lot of stuff to do…"
'What's their problem?' Valerie watched them go, 'It's like their teaming up against Dash…'
"Ms. Gray, what a pleasant surprise," Lancer said from his doorway, "It would appear that you wish to spend detention with me."
"No, I was just on my way to class," Valerie said as she turned more towards him, "I'm sorry sir, I won't be late again."
"Of course you won't," Mr. Lancer smiled, "Please go straight to class and don't forget to come to my room after your last class."
"Of course, Mr. Lancer," Valerie smiled before turning her back and pulling a face on her way to her next class, 'You good for nothing, evil, conniving, old vice-principal who wouldn't understand the life of a teenager if it hit him in the face…'
.o.O.o.o.O.o.
"So, you guys want to get something at the Nasty Burger?" Danny asked his two friends as they headed towards his house.
"But…" Sam began before she found a hand over her mouth, preventing her from making her protest known. Making it known, however, seemed to be a moot point with Danny, who already somewhat knew.
"Before we start the project, so we don't have to stop halfway through it," he tried appeasing her, rolling his eyes with Tucker before continuing, "That way, we can just get through it and done with the whole thing."
Sam glared as best she could, "Ge' yur han offa mah mouf."
"What was that Sam?" Tucker asked, laughing, "I don't think I quite understood you."
Sam's simple answer to both boys was to bite Danny's hand. Hard.
"Yowch!" Danny quickly withdrew his offended appendage, shaking it and blowing on the purpling teeth marks, "Geeze Sam, I've heard of love bites, but 'Get your hand off of my mouth' bites? Harsh."
Tucker shook his head as Sam flushed slightly and continued to glare at the two boys, "Let's just go to the Nasty Burger and then get the stupid project done. And no more sarcastic remarks from either one of you or you'll meet my boot instead of my teeth."
Tucker had stopped listening at the part about going to Nasty Burger, and it showed, "Yes! Score one for the meat team! Burgers and other delicious meats for all!"
"And people call me the freak," Danny just shook his head, before stopping with a concerned look on his face. Two large boys had decided to join their little group, and had rather questionable looks on their faces.
"Hey, it's the losers!" the taller of the two greeted with false cheer. Tucker recognized him as one of the starting linemen, John.
"Hey Fenton," the second boy, who was known as 'Weed' to many at school, moved smoothly between the two boys and Sam, effectively cutting them off from one another, "let's play a game, just like the good old days. What do ya' say?"
"You're backsides are repulsive, is what I say," Sam folded her arms, "Would you please move? There are much better views than you two."
"No way weirdo," Weed shot back turning slightly to keep his eye on both the boys and Sam, "we wanna' see you and your boyfriend be 'psychics'."
John moved his fingers to his temples and hummed, mocking a supposed psychic look. Weed sniggered and moved closer to Sam, who had been trying to edge her way back to Danny.
"One," Danny started, "we aren't going out, and two, we aren't 'psychic' so you can just leave."
Weed grabbed Sam then, hard enough to hurt her upper arms where he held her, "I think you're lying. Don't try to run away now, Goth. The fun's just starting."
"Let her go," Danny said calmly, his eyes shaded a tiny bit more green than normal.
"Danny," Tucker grabbed his friends shoulder to whisper in his ear, "You gotta' calm down, man. You're eyes…"
"What's the matter, Fenton?" John glared down at the boy who had just challenged them, "Somebody touchin' your girl make you mad?"
"Why don't you just bug off and do popular people things?" Tucker cut into the fight.
"Besides bothering people without a reason," Danny backed his friend up. They were going to let go of Sam one way or another, secrets and identities be damned. His eyes were rapidly fading from blue to bright green. He was getting angry, and both Sam and Tucker could tell this could possibly end badly.
Sam winced as Weed's grip on her tightened. She had to do something, lest Danny blow his cover, "Danny," she started softly, "let's just…"
But whatever she was about to say was lost to a very upset, and very well timed shout from none other than Dash Baxter, "What the hell are you two doing? Let her go."
Danny and Tucker stood in shock, as Sam became even more nervous. Dash Baxter, the bully of Casper High, had just told his cronies to leave her, one of their favorite targets, alone. Something bad could very well happen after all.
John frowned in confusion, "Aw, c'mon man. We're just having a little fun. Ya' know, trying to see about their being psychics and all…"
"Have 'fun' with Foley or Fenton," Dash glared, taking Sam from them, "They can handle gettin' beat on."
"What's you're problem?" Weed replied angrily, trying to grab Sam back. She was beginning to feel a bit like a chew toy, pulled on by two rather angry dogs, "You talk shit to her all the time. Where do you get off tellin' us to leave the losers alone? You've been actin' weird all year."
"You don't mess with girls, idiot. Freak or not, it ain't right. I didn't say to leave all of them alone, just her."
"Yeah, so what about you, getting all the fun with her?" John began to get angry. How dare Dash come in to take all their fun?
"I don't hurt girls," he said slowly. He was against ever physically harming the fairer sex. He knew girls could be strong, but it was just emphatically wrong. He had been raised that way, and it had been reinforced over the years. You just did not hit or hurt a girl. Plus the talk he had with Sam…it had changed things.
"I don't really believe that Dash," Danny finally cut in, "so let Sam go."
His voice was smooth and even, calm like he was just discussing the weather. Which was an odd way to look at it since the weather decided to suddenly drop in temperature. Tucker back slightly away from Danny, who eyes were almost completely green. Sam felt the temperature drop, and an intense anger clenched into a knot in her belly. Her anger or Danny's though, was another question.
"Shut up Fenton," Dash pulled his letterman closed with one hand while still hold Sam's wrist, albeit gently, "Like you could make me."
"Don't be so sure about that Dash," Danny shot back, "We may not be the same size anymore, but I could still take you if I had to."
"Whatever Fenton," John cut in, "This is getting stupid, let's just go to the Nasty Burger. I'm bored anyways since you won't let us have a little fun."
"I'll meet you guys there," Dash turned back towards his two teammates, "Fenton and Foley and I are gonna' make a date with the flagpole."
"If I didn't know any better, Baxter," Weed said, advancing on Dash and Sam, "I'd say you were defending the losers. You've got a lot of explaining to do when you get there."
Dash moved Sam behind him, glaring at his so called 'friends'. Why were they acting this way all of a sudden? They'd never challenged him like this before this morning, "I don't have to talk to nobody. I'll meet you there, Weed."
"Fine," John scoffed, turning and walking away. Weed finally caught up with him, before he called back over his shoulder, "We'll be waiting."
A tense moment of watching the two jocks leave, and Danny couldn't stand having Sam behind Dash anymore, "Sam."
Sam knew that tone of voice. It was the 'get over here where I can see you so I can beat the crap out of the ghost' tone, only it wasn't a ghost. It was Dash, the bully who never gave them a moment's peace at school, but was actually half-way decent in the park. She high-tailed it behind Danny where Tucker immediately began to check her over.
"You alright Sam?" Danny asked, hardly taking his eyes from Dash, who was standing just as tensely and with a frown on his face.
"I'm fine Danny," and when Tucker began poking her arms for a more thorough check, she batted him away with a, "I said I was fine, you guys."
"I know you're just gonna' say something, Dash," Danny started as he relaxed slightly, "but…thanks for getting Sam away from them."
"Yeah," Tucker added awkwardly, "We, uh, owe you a big one. Homework or whatever you want."
"Whatever," Dash replied with a slightly confused look on his face. He was still trying to puzzle out why the guys had been holding Sam tight enough to hurt her, why Fenton's eyes looked different, and why he had almost gotten into a fight with his teammates instead of the losers, "It wasn't about getting my homework done. Guys just shouldn't hurt girls, even if they are Goths. It isn't right."
"Thanks," Sam peered over Danny's shoulder, "You, um, sound amazingly chivalrous. I'm sorry you almost got in a fight with your, uh, friends."
"They're idiots," Dash replied, before turning his back on the trio to make his way to the Nasty Burger. They weren't his friends, they were his group like Sam had figured out. The people he hung out with, who listened to what he said. Friends wouldn't fight like they did. They would have the same values as he did.
Dash looked back over his shoulder at the two boys poking at Sam, who was trying to bat their hands away from her sides. She was obviously ticklish, and the boys were capitalizing on this knowledge to get her to smile.
Friends were supposed to be nice to each other. They acted like those three did. Concerned and caring, always there when the they were needed, always willing to talk or to listen.
He didn't have friends. He had the 'A-List' who were starting to question his changing attitude. Who couldn't see that maybe people who were popular and people who weren't had the same feelings at times.
No, Dash Baxter didn't have friends or even acquaintances really. He had looks. Popularity. Money. A football career. The 'A-list'.
'And now, I'm starting to lose that too,' and he squared his shoulders and entered the Nasty Burger to confront his…'friends'.