"Who Am I?"

Chapter 3

*Danny's POV*

As I left the cove that night, I couldn't believe what I had done. The thing I feared most, a human, was now in my care. Unlike what I had anticipated, she hadn't freaked out when she saw me. In fact, she seemed quite calm.

"Sam is different from the others," I whispered quietly to myself. "Perhaps I should learn more about her."

I quickly grabbed all the driftwood I could find scattered on the sandy beach. The sun was nearly set, and it was starting to get dark fast. Not too much later, I arrived back at the cove with the driftwood in my arms.

"Danny…?" I heard Sam whisper.

"Don't be alarmed, it's me," I reassured. "It's nearly nightfall, so visibility will be severely limited. As soon as I start a fire, you'll warm up and be able to see better."

"O-Okay…"

I carefully arranged the driftwood in a neat pile on the sand outside the cove. Using my ghost energy, I created a small spark. It took a second, but a bright fire soon appeared.

"Woah…" I heard Sam say in awe.

She got up with the blanket still wrapped around her body and sat down close to the fire.

"Feeling warmer?" I asked as I slowly backed away to the opposite side of the fire.

"Y-Yeah, I am," Sam replied with a nod. "But why did you back away from me?"

Sam had a hurt expression plastered all over her face. I felt terrible because it was the same expression I had when humans rejected me all those years ago. And now as I saw it on Sam's face, I felt awful. The guilt was like a knife slowly being shoved into the middle of my heart.

"S-Sorry," I stuttered. "I-I'm just scared…"

"Of me?"

I nodded and put my head down in shame. My bangs covered my eyes, so Sam couldn't see my face.

"I understand, Danny, but there's no need to be afraid. I won't hurt you. With the condition I'm in right now, I'm in no shape to cause you any harm."

I raised my head up slowly until her violet eyes met my green eyes, but I didn't reply.

"I'm grateful for all that you've done for me. You saved my life. If you hadn't rescued me, I wouldn't be alive right now. So Danny, thank you."

I blushed and smiled at her words. It was the first time anyone had said anything nice to me.

"Y-You're welcome," I responded quietly. "B-But if you don't mind me asking, what was the situation among you, Dash, and Kwan earlier?"

"So, you knew them, too?" Sam asked.

I shook my head.

"No, but I heard them call each other those names. I also heard them call you Sammy."

Suddenly, Sam became very tense and flustered.

"NO ONE CALLS ME SAMMY!"

I held up my hands in defense and backed up a little more.

"Okay Okay, I won't call you that." I said softly.

Sam took a deep breath and calmed down. Using her hand, she brushed the hair out of her face and wiped the sweat off of her forehead.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to blow up at you," Sam apologized. "Dash and Kwan are two idiots that unfortunately attend the same school as me. Both of them call me "Sammy" just to get on my nerves."

"I-It's okay, but if those two bother you so much, then why were you on their boat?" I asked.

Sam sighed.

"Dash thought it would be funny to forcefully drag me on his boat," She explained. "So he had Kwan hold me down on the deck while Dash drove the boat into the open sea. By the time Kwan let me go, we were already too far away from the shore."

"What jerks…" I commented.

Sam nodded her head in agreement.

"Yeah, and they kept me trapped on the boat until Dash made a stupid move, which caused me to fling off the boat."

"Well, you're safe now. Those too won't bother you anymore."

I internally grinned as I recalled what I did to their boat just a few hours ago. Sam looked at me and smiled.

"Thanks, Danny. You're the nicest, sweetest guy I've ever met." Sam replied.

"R-Really? W-Wow…"

"Wow what?"

"N-No one has ever said anything so kind to me before." I admitted sheepishly.

"No one accepts you, am I right?" asked Sam.

I nodded.

"I know that feeling," She said quietly. "At school, people treat me like an outcast because of my individuality. I don't know many people who actually like me."

"You don't?"

Sam shook her head.

"No, I don't have any friends at all. At home I'm alone all of the time. My parents died in a plane accident on their way back home from a business trip. For a while, I lived alone with my grandma, but eventually she died from old age. I had no other relatives or friends willing to take me in, so I was forced to stay at our old house by myself."

Sam had started crying as she finished explaining her tragic background. Hesitantly, I got up, walked over to her, and sat down. I put one hand on her shoulder consolingly. As soon as I touched her, Sam looked up at me with watery eyes.

"D-Danny?"

"I'm so sorry, Sam," I said. "And I understand the pain you must feel. I've been alone my entire life with no one but the ocean to talk to."

"You don't have anyone else out here with you?"

I shook my head.

"No. I stay away from all humans and their world. A few years ago, I had contact with a human child. I had thought that we could be friends, but then his mom came, called me a freak, and took the child with her."

Sam gave me a hug. Shocked at her action, my eyes widened, and my body became tense.

"You're not a freak, Danny. I'm sorry that someone would say that to you. That isn't right. No one should be spoken to like that."

I gradually loosened up to Sam's touch, and I put my arms around her as well. Sam's arms around me made me feel safe, secure, and for once in my life, accepted.

"Is that why you're out here by yourself?" she asked.

I nodded.

"All I want is to discover who I really am. I want to know why I'm here and where I belong."

Sam smiled.

"And I can help you. I have nothing better to do anyway."

"But what about school?" I asked.

"School just got out for summer break. We don't go back until September."

"That explains why I haven't seen anyone at the school." I replied.

Sam looked up at me in confusion.

"Wait, you've been to the school?" I thought you didn't go near humans at all."

"I only went to the school to learn. I thought maybe I could discover my purpose if I acquired some knowledge of the world." I explained.

"Is that how you learned English?"

I nodded.

"Wow, that's really impressive. How long have you been going there?" Sam asked.

"Only for a few years. I'm a fast learner."

"I can see that," Sam remarked with a smile. "If you don't mind me asking, how old are you?"

I pulled out the necklace with the locket attached. I flipped it over, which revealed the numbers: 6-10-94.

"June 10th, 1994?" Is that your birth date?"

"I think so," I replied. "I'm not entirely sure, but I've had this locket my entire life. I'm certain that the date carved here is important in some way."

Sam took one last glance at the numbers.

"Well, if that date corresponds to your birthday, then you would be seventeen years old right now. Judging from your appearance, I'd say that's about right. And if I'm not mistaken, June 10th is next week. That means you'll be eighteen soon."

Sam flipped the locket open and looked at the picture inside."

"I-Is this you?" She asked.

"The little baby? Yup, that's me."

"And these two other people…Hey, wait a minute, I think I've seen this guy before or at least someone similar…" Sam said as she looked at the older man in the photo.

"You're kidding. Are you sure?"

"I'm not entirely sure, but I can easily find out. I have this book back at home that has a similar picture inside of it. I'm feeling a little better, so I'm going to go get it real quick, then come back."

Sam let go of me and instantly, my security blanket was gone.

"Y-You're leaving?"

"Just for a little while. I just need to go home and grab the book. I'll get some warmer blankets for us, too."

I looked up at her sadly, and then nodded. Sam smiled at me and placed one hand on my shoulder.

'I promise I won't be long."

"All right…" I whispered.

Ahh the DxS fluff 3 I love it, don't you? X3 The story gets even more interesting in the next couple of chapters, which I will post very soon ^-^ Until then, please tell me what you think. =)