Sam yawned as she pulled up to Fenton Works, seeing she was right on time as she parked by the curb. She shook off the fact that she didn't get much sleep last night as she got out of her car, but that's what coffee was for. Since it was her third day of work, Sam expected the same old routine she had experienced on her first two days. However, when Maddie opened the door, Sam was surprised to see her in a red cocktail dress instead of her usual blue hazmat suit.

"Wow, you look really nice Mrs. Fenton," Sam told her.

"Thank you! Jack and I usually go to the club on Friday nights," Maddie said as she let Sam in. "If we aren't back by the time you're done you can just let yourself out."

"Sure thing," She said with a nod before Maddie smiled and turned around to go upstairs. Sam guessed that was her cue to get started and decided to clean the living room first. After ten minutes had gone by, Maddie came back downstairs with Jack behind her, wearing jeans and a nice button up shirt. He left through the front door first, but Maddie stayed behind.

"Hey, Sam," she started, getting her attention, "Danny's friend Tucker is coming over soon to see him, so you can just let him in." She informed her.

"No problem. Have a great night," Sam added with a smile.

"Bye now," Maddie responded before leaving and shutting the door behind her. Sam turned back to cleaning while she got lost in her thoughts. She assumed Tucker was the friend that Maddie had mentioned to her on her first day of work. It was possible that she could get some answers out of him. She really didn't want to push herself on people, but how was she supposed to help this kid when no one would let her in? The vacuum cleaner was blaring, as well as her thoughts, and she was halfway done with the living room when she barely heard a knock on the front door. She abandoned the vacuum cleaner and hurried over to the front door, opening it to reveal a young, African American man wearing a red beret and glasses. He looked at her with a look of confusion before he began to talk.

"Uhh, who are you?" He asked.

"Shouldn't I be the one asking you that?" She said back but only received a blank stare. "I'm the housekeeper." She clarified, causing his eyes to light up in realization.

"Oh! They told me about you. I just didn't expect you to be so... young," He finished, causing Sam to roll her eyes.

"There isn't an age requirement for housekeepers last time I checked," She said, crossing her arms over her chest as she eyed him up and down. Looking at him in front of her, she realized that she knew him from somewhere. "Hey, didn't we graduate Casper together?" She asked him.

"Yeah... Does that mean I can come in now?" He asked back. Sam didn't even realize that he was still standing outside the door and moved over quickly.

"Sorry. I wasn't paying attention," she told him, but he flashed her a smile.

"No worries," he said as he walked in. "So what college are you at?" He asked as she closed the door.

"None, actually. I'm not sure about what I want to do, so I'm just saving up money in the meantime. What about you?"

"Community college for now, then I'm transferring." He answered. "Why don't you do something animal related? I remember you being all about animal rights in school." She let out a small laugh, remembering how outspoken she was back then and even now.

"I'm not sure if I want a job in that field, though. I just need time to think about that stuff."

"Yeah, I understand. It'll all work out." He said. Instead of heading towards the stairs, he headed to the kitchen where he opened the fridge. "I'm just grabbing a water bottle for me and Danny. Do you want one?" He asked her, but she shook her head.

"No, I'm good." She said. The only thing she wanted was answers. For one, she wondered if Danny had told Tucker about what she had said to him if he really did hear her. "You know, if Danny ever needs anything, I'm here."

"I know that." He said, causing her to raise an eyebrow.

"What do you mean by that?" She asked. He paused for a moment, almost as if he were debating on saying more or not, but he went on.

"Danny told me about everything. Look, I understand where you're coming from, but his parents would probably freak out if they find out what you're doing."

"I don't understand why me trying to befriend him is a bad thing. Do you really agree with them keeping him locked up in this house?" She asked him, but he didn't respond right away. It was as if he too had mixed feelings on the subject.

"It's a complicated situation. Why do you care so much?"

"Because whatever Danny is going through, he doesn't have to do it alone." She said sternly, causing Tucker to stare at her. She seemed serious about the subject and he couldn't help but get the feeling that she had gone through something similar. On the other hand, maybe that's what Danny needed; someone to relate to. "Why didn't Danny ever answer back when I was trying to talk to him?" She continued. Tucker sighed and caved under her stare.

"He just doesn't let people in easily," he answered, causing Sam to sigh as well. "I should let you get back to work," Tucker said, causing her to nod. He started to walk out but turned around so he was facing her. "Hey, if you want to get him talking, mention anything space related. Then he won't shut up."

"Thanks," she said, giving him a warm smile. He smiled back before grabbing the waters and heading towards the stairs, leaving her alone. It might not have been what she was looking for, but this small bit of information was better than nothing. In fact, a smile spread across her lips as an idea formed in her head. "Anything space related, huh?" She said to herself as she turned back into the living room to finish her job. Maybe it was time for her to make a different approach.


That night, Sam found herself on the floor in her room surrounded by newspaper and paint bottles. She was painting on a large piece of cartridge paper, working on a painting of the moon. The background was a mix of purple and blues with white dots to imitate stars and the moon was white with yellow undertones. She didn't know when she'd be able to give it to Danny after it was finished, but she would keep it with her in case the opportunity presented itself. While she examined what she had done so far, a knock on the door made her look up momentarily from her art.

"Come in!" She called out. Her grandmother opened the door and rolled on into the bedroom on her scooter.

"Hello, bubelah," Ida greeted as she rolled over to Sam.

"Hey, Grandma," Sam said back. The entire third story of the house was where Ida resigned ever since Sam was in middle school. Usually, Sam would go to her, but there were times like these where Ida would come down to spend time with her.

"It's been a while since I've seen you paint. What's the occasion?" Ida asked her.

"It's not for me. It's for Danny."

"Ah, the Fenton boy. Do you like him?" Ida questioned, causing Sam to choke on a laugh.

"No, Grams. I've never even met him. His parents won't even let him leave his room while I'm there."

"I know the whole story," Ida said, causing Sam to look at her in confusion. "Your parents told me." She clarified, making Sam nod.

"So... do you think what they're doing is right?" Sam asked.

"They're his parents, Sam. Whatever they're doing, I'm sure it's because it's what they think is best." Sam sighed and laid back so she was staring at the ceiling.

"I don't even know what happened to him. No one will tell me anything. I tried talking to Danny, but he wouldn't even open his door." She looked over at the painting that was half finished. "I heard he really likes space. That's why I decided to make him something. To try to get him to open up to me."

"You have a big heart, honey. You get that from me." Ida joked, causing Sam to smile.

"I just wish everyone else could see that. Whatever Danny is going through, he shouldn't be forced into solitude. That just... makes things worse," Sam finished, placing an arm over her eyes. Ida was silent for a moment, knowing what Sam was talking about. All of her life, Sam was always alone. Her parents were constantly coming and going because of their job and she didn't make any permanent friends during her school career. She had many struggles throughout her life that she had to deal with alone, and unfortunately, Ida didn't realize how alone she felt until she was halfway done with high school. Since then, she's tried to be there for her as much as she can, so she understood why she cared about Danny so much.

"I think this will work," Ida said, causing Sam to sit back up.

"I hope so," she added with a forced smile.

"Well, I don't want to distract you from your masterpiece. I'm going back upstairs." Ida said as she turned around and headed towards the door.

"Okay. Goodnight, Grandma." Sam called as she picked up a brush.

"Goodnight, dear," she closed the door behind her and Sam focused her attention back on her painting. She would probably need a few hours to finish it, but she was already exhausted from not sleeping last night and the long day she had. She decided to stop for now and cleaned up the mess she had made on the floor. She turned off the lights in her room and hopped into bed, pulling the covers up to her chest. She was really thankful that Tucker was able to give her this small hint, and she really hoped she was on the right track of getting Danny to talk to her and trust her. Eventually, her thoughts were drowned out by drowsiness, and she fell asleep with Danny on her mind once again.


Thank you guys again so much for supporting this story. I'm glad that a lot of people like it :D I'm not sure how often I will update since I'm writing this story as I go along, but I'll try to get chapters out as soon as possible

Amyway, I'll see you guys for the next chapter :)