I have dreamt of a place for you and I
No one knows who we are there
All I want is to give my life only to you
I've dreamt so long I cannot dream anymore
Let's run away, I'll take you there
We're leaving here tonight
There's no need to tell anyone
They'd only hold us down
So by the mornings light
We'll be half way to anywhere
Where no one needs a reason
Forget this life
Come with me
Don't look back you're safe now
Unlock your heart
Drop your guard
No one's left to stop you
-Evanescence; Anywhere
"So, how was work today? Did you see your boyfriend?" Velma teased, elbowing Daphne in the ribs while she was in the process of grabbing a soda from the fridge.
The red-haired woman scowled playfully. "B-Boyfriend? Of course not. I mean, yes, I saw him at work, but no, he's not my boyfriend," came her stuttered retort to the bespectacled woman's query.
"Aw, c'mon, Daph. I see that look in your eyes," Velma continued.
"Alright!" Daphne roared, making Velma take a few steps back, wide-eyed. In her stumbling, Velma bumped a spare can of unopened soda to the floor, where it clattered for a few seconds. Velma kept her eyes on Daphne, not seeming to notice the incident.
Daphne held her angered expression a moment, as if savoring the quiet revenge she was getting for Velma's prodding at the issue. The moment passed and Daphne slumped her shoulders and looked down. She pursed her lips and twiddled her thumbs thoughtfully.
"Daph?" Velma asked, still a smidge nervous.
"Alright, you got me, Velma. I think he's hot," Daphne said meekly, a hint of color seeping into her cheeks.
Velma's mouth hung open, then she slapped her knee as a hearty laugh escaped her vocal cords.
"I knew it!" Velma exclaimed. "You like him!"
Daphne's eyebrows arched dangerously as she bent down and picked up the temporarily forgotten soda can. She plucked at the tab a couple of times with a fingernail as she held it in Velma's direction.
The younger woman's pupils dilated as Daphne's index finger hooked under the tab. She grinned sheepishly.
"Make another smart-ass remark, Einstein," Daphne teased.
"Uh… Jinkies?" Velma said, her voice squeaking. She backed up, Daphne slowly tracing over her steps. Finding the threshold to the living room, Velma took off laughing.
"You can run, but you can't hide!" Daphne called after her playfully. Her only reply was high-pitched giggles echoing off the halls in the living room. Daphne set the unopened can onto the counter. As she did so, the phone rang, nearly startling the purple-clad woman. She gripped the receiver and placed it to her ear.
"Hello?" she chirped, pouring a bag of chips into a bowl.
"Is..Is this Daphne?" a familiar male voice replied. The distortion the phone receiver still made the voice somewhat unrecognizable.
"Well, yes, this is her."
"Oh! Daphne! This is Mike!"
Daphne felt her face getting red. "Oh! Hey, Mike. What's up?"
"Like, Daph, hurry with the chips!" Shaggy called from his spot on the couch.
"Yeah, the movie's starting!" Fred called, not allowing the risk of Velma taking his seat in the armchair.
The credits of the film started to roll over the screen, accompanied by ominous music. Scooby leaped into the pile of throw pillows on the couch, causing the tiny cushions to erupt in every direction. Several murmurs of irritancy and dismay came from his three human companions.
"Rorry," Scooby stated solemnly, then laid down t watch the movie.
"Anything going on?" Daphne asked Mike.
"No, not really. How about you?"
"We're having movie night over here. The gang's in the living room."
"What's playing?"
"I think it's called 28 Days Later. Fred picked it out. Guess it's about a virus that turns people into zombies. Say, would you like to join us?"
"Is that alright?"
"Of course it is!"
"Okay, then! Where do you live?"
"My house is on the corner of 58th and North Street."
"Okay, I'm a few blocks from North. I'll be able to follow it out there."
"Alright, Mike. See you in a few minutes."
"Okay. See you soon."
The two of them hung up. Daphne resumed her kitchen chores, including dishing various snacks like pretzels and potato chips into bowls, grabbing some plates for the take-out pizza, and even mixing a platter of candies to satisfy Velma's sweet tooth.
Daphne jumped slightly as several bright red images splashed across the menu screen of the DVD. It nearly caused her to drop some of her baggage, as the gory imagery was accompanied by split-second sound clips of shrieks and roars.
"Holy hell!" Fred laughed, "I can tell this is going to be good."
Velma scooted closer to him absentmindedly. "Looks like a white-knuckle picture," she observed as her blonde companion nodded in agreement.
Shaggy reached into one of the bowls before Daphne had set them on the coffee table. The red-haired woman gently slapped his hand.
"Now, now, save some for the last guest, Shaggy," she scolded.
Fred and Velma turned around. "Last guest?" they asked in at the same time.
"Like, who's that?" Shaggy quipped.
"I invited Mike over," Daphne replied. Scooby picked up a sense of dreaminess floating in her eyes, a look that she had managed to keep hidden from the rest of the humans, but the hulking canine could sense it without having to see it.
Fred's eyes narrowed. Velma glanced at him as he stated, "You two have become fast friends."
"Yes. Nothing wrong with that," Daphne replied, her eyes locking with his.
Fred opened his mouth to speak, the sighed. "Ah, okay Daphne. When'll he get here?" He tried to sound somewhat cheerful, but the others still tasted the aroma of disgust in his voice as he said it.
Scooby's ears pricked when he heard the sound of tires crunching gravel in the doorway outside. The flicker of headlights on the windows flashed out, and the Great Dane slid across the floor to the front door. He barked as the sound of knocking entered everyone's ears.
Daphne went to the door and grabbed Scooby's collar. She gradually pulled him away from the door as she pulled it open. Scooby's tail wagged, sensing an air of warmth about the woman holding his collar and the man who stood in the doorway.
"C-Come in, Mike," Daphne stammered, standing aside and letting go of the collar. Scooby trotted back to the living room.
"Like, okay, our guest is here! Let's eat!" Shaggy exclaimed, as he and Scooby leapt for the goodies on the coffee table. Fred and Velma instinctively backed away as the edible spray of confetti flew through the air.
"Oh, dear," Daphne mumbled, upon seeing the incident.
Mike only chuckled. "It's alright. I'll help you clean it up afterwards if you'd like." This only feigned a smile from Daphne as they walked into the living room. As Shaggy and Scooby gorged themselves full of snacks, Fred and Velma reclined side by side on the couch. They were joined by Daphne and Mike.
"Alright! Movie time!" Velma announced, hitting the PLAY button on the remote control. With that, 28 Days Later came to life on the television screen.
Throughout the picture, there were plenty of jumps and gasps from the gang. Velma clasped to Fred, who didn't seem to mind the attention and tried to keep calm during the film, although at times he got startled and would flinch. The glutton duo by the snack table had cleared the bowls of their contents, and was watching the screen with wide eyes, trembling in terror. Like Velma, Daphne was also slightly disturbed by some of the gorier images, and would find herself leaning close to Mike, who, like Fred, was trying to put on a mask of confidence to hide the inner fear that the horror flick was inducing.
Fred turned his head to see Mike patting Daphne's shoulder, chuckling at her disturbance to the film. He wanted to growl, but only clenched his teeth and turned away.
"Like, what a freaky flick!" Shaggy whimpered.
"R'is it r'over?" Scooby whimpered, lifting a paw from his eyes. He sighed with relief when he saw credits rolling.
"What a mess," Velma glowered, examining the particles of food all over the rug.
Shaggy and Scooby shrugged sheepishly.
"I'll clean it up tomorrow. No worries," Daphne stated, standing up.
"Okay, then," Fred replied, glancing a moment at Mike, who had also risen to his feet to stretch his legs.
"Whoa! It's pretty late. In fact, it's almost 1 in the morning!" Velma exclaimed, staring at the clock.
"Yikes. We should be going, Daphne," Fred added, grabbing his jacket.
"Like, yeah, us too. You know, still job hunting," Shaggy said as Scooby nodded.
Daphne walked them to the door. They all exchanged good nights and watched as they piled into the Mystery Machine and rumbled away. She turned to see Mike standing near the entrance to the living room.
"I had a good time, Daphne," the Irishman inquired, walking with Daphne to the pantry. She handed him a broom and dustpan.
"I'm glad. So did I," she told him, trying to hide the dreamy gaze. Little did she know, that Mike was trying to do the same.
Mike swept up the array of crumbs while Daphne gathered dishes and cleaned the table. Afterwards, they flopped back onto the couch.
"I don't want to get up. Too tired," Daphne giggled, leaning into him. Her eyelids drooped as she heard Mike's lulling brogue whisper, "Then sleep. I'll keep watch," in her ear. Many voices went off in the woman's mind, even a red flag or two. Maybe they were right. Or maybe they were just nervous – because that's exactly what she was feeling as she snuggled closer. She didn't know what was making her do it, but it just felt right to her – and to him. Mike draped an arm over her back. Daphne's eyes slid closed, and she drifted into a content slumber.
A warm smile passed over Mike's features. He stayed where he was, not wanting to awaken Daphne nestled in the crook of his arm. It just felt perfect.
He looked quietly over the silent structure of the house and Daphne nuzzled closer; as if it was the emptiness of the house that was making her cold. He subconsciously held her closer.
Mike sighed, and brushing a few strands of hair from her forehead with his fingers, leaned down and kissed her tenderly on the forehead before falling into dreams himself.