Author's Note (Monster): Hi guys. Oh look an update 1 week later. Guess I'll disappear for another year again, right? I'm kidding. I'm trying to get this story going but I've been dealing with personal issues a lot and I might not make it right now. We'll see. Enjoy!


Previously on Untouched;

It's been a week since anything went awry. Danny goes to bed annoyed after the guys make jokes about drunk kisses.

"Really? Are we back to that?" Dylan whispered in a hiss. The others had fallen asleep even before their faces hit the pillow so most of the bunks part was filled with drunk snoring. Dylan was still awake and tried to join Danny but Danny shoved him out of his bunk as soon as he noticed. "Back to locking me out of the bunk because you're mad at me for no good reason?"

Danny made a disgruntled noise. "Just go. One night."

Dylan sighed and crawled back into his own space. Danny rolled himself up into a ball, back against the wall and face turned to the opening of the bunk. It didn't take long for Dylan to fall asleep, steady breath joining the drunk snores. Danny could feel his heart rate increase and was distracted by the twitching muscle in his calf. He wrapped himself further into a ball.

You were gone for only a second to the bathroom and they were already trying to pair Dylan up with someone else.

Danny pressed his eyes shut tightly. He couldn't tell if the voice sounded like himself or his ex. Did it even matter?

He took a deep breath, remembered the few amounts of time he tried to meditate to deal with the intrusive thoughts. What was it again? Oh yes, acknowledge the thought without allowing it to fully formulate and then lightly push it on its way away from your brain.

Don't let your mind fool you.

Awe, you think I'm the one fooling you? No no, sweetheart, your so-called friends are the ones fooling you. You think you can trust them but can you really? What evidence do you have that the Dylan and Jay comment was new? Maybe they've been discussing this behind your back.

Remember how Jay was the reason you shoved Dylan in the first place? He sure caused a rift between you two.

Danny shrugged it off more violently than he intended, feeling the anger rise in his gut. He was getting upset with himself again for thinking of this type of crap. He took another deep breath, trying to focus on his breathing over his thoughts. Don't let them formulate.

You remember how it ended, right?

How what ended?

How it ended when you got too cosy with Justin.

Danny shuddered, feeling the crawling beneath his skin. The twitch in his calf was distracting. He swallowed but his throat felt dry. He wanted to just fall asleep and forget the random trip down memory lane his head was trying to offer him.

They mentioned you were close with Justin and what happened next?

Danny pressed his back against the wall, almost trying to crawl inside it.

He or I, whoever's voice you hear, didn't like it very much, huh?

Danny covered his ears with both hands, curled up in himself and tried to ban the thoughts out.

Maybe you need a reminder.

Dylan wasn't getting too cosy with Jay and it wasn't the same as Danny with Justin back in the days. What happened with Justin was uncalled for. The bastard got jealous of Danny spending time with Justin and decided Danny needed to remember who he belonged to. Danny wouldn't even dream of doing anything of the sorts to Dylan.

I am not going to reclaim him the way you did to me.

But it was effective, wasn't it?

Danny's heart was beating out of his chest. He felt the ghastly touch of featherlight fingers wrap around his ankle and jerked his leg in response. Next he felt the same fingers press their marks onto his inner thigh. He felt a tightness in his chest, like a flower blooming and branching out to his limbs, depriving them all of oxygen. He couldn't breathe. He squirmed against it but no matter how violently he inhaled, it felt like he couldn't get enough air.

The space around him was spinning and black dots begun to spread through his vision. Danny wanted to cry out but no noise came through. He could still feel the hand on his thigh and now another close around his throat. He saw flashes of dark eyes and a toothy grin. The sensation of a whisper by his ear.

It was effective, wasn't it? You never touched another man or woman.

And yet it wasn't enough for you to stop hurting me.

A sense of helplessness came over Danny, forcing him into submission and filling his gut with a sensation of dread. He knew this feeling too well. He'd always had it before-… He closed his hands over his mouth and nose trying to create a confined space for him to breathe in and force some oxygen into his system. The dizziness dissipated. It seemed to work.

Calm down. He can't hurt you anymore.

I never wanted to hurt you.

Shut up.

Danny forced himself to take slow and deep breaths rather than the rapid shallow ones. He closed his eyes and it seemed to lower his heart rate quickly. He felt so exhausted from being scared that he could cry. His head hurt trying to hold back on it.

Luckily the ghost hands had disappeared.

He didn't dare say the same for the voice in his head.

"Danny?"

Danny didn't trust himself enough to sit up or even use his voice so he said nothing. The curtain of his bunk was yanked to the side and it was Charlie's bedhead appearing before him. His hair stuck out to all directions and the way he kept one eye closed for the illusion of remaining asleep, made him look deranged. "Are you alright? It didn't sound very good."

Danny removed his hands from his face and scratched his hair. He cleared his throat. "I was… I was hyperventilating for a second but I think I got it under control now. You were pretty drunk. You should sleep."

Charlie blinked slowly and nodded in agreement. He reached out to feel Danny's forehead. "You're warm."

Danny was vaguely aware of how sweaty he'd become from the whole ordeal. He smiled sympathetically. "Go. I'll be fine."

Charlie fought a yawn and stepped on the edge of the bunk to gain height. "Just one hug."

Danny chuckled lightly and wrapped his arms around Charlie, holding on for just a few seconds as the gesture calmed him down further. Charlie let go and smiled. "I've noticed you've been having a bad time at night sometimes. I don't know why and it's none of my business but I'm here for you, buddy. I don't have to date you to give you a hug or a pat on the back for comfort."

"Thanks, Charlie", Danny whispered.


Please leave a review, they're my fuel!