Prompt: Jealousy
Rating: K+

First chapters are always a pain to write, so I write this in the meantime. Besides I felt like writing something with a touch of angst.

Danny didn't own a lot of formal wear, but he was having trouble sifting through what he did have. Phantom tried to keep the scowl off his face as he watched the human cross between the inside of his closet to the nearby mirror to hold the clothes up in front of him, trying to find a good combination. This had been going on for a solid fifteen minutes now and as much as Phantom liked watching all of Danny's movements and facial expressions, he was starting to get more annoyed as the time passed on.

"Would you just pick something already?" he grumbled, resting his head against his gloved hand. He was sitting on the swivel chair by Danny's desk with his elbow resting against the surface. It wasn't good posture, but right now he could hardly bring himself to care.

"This is my first date in like, ever. I don't want to look like a total screw up." Danny frowned in disapproval at the clothes he was holding up and turned to make another trip to the closet.

"Danny, its Sam. She isn't the type of girl who will judge you based on your choice of clothing." Phantom resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "Besides, she has been your best friend for as long as you've known her. You don't need to start acting awkward around her just because the two of you have decided to start dating."

The sound of clothes tossing and wrinkling inside the closet stopped abruptly, followed by a slow and audible intake of breath. "You're right. I need to stop overreacting about all of this. It'll be just like hanging out as friends, 'cept with a fancy setting." The sound of clothes moving and the occasional slide of a coat hanger resumed, but it was less haphazard now. Danny must have finally decided on something.

Phantom let out a reflexive sigh. Ever since Danny had told him that he'd finally worked up the guts to ask Sam out, the ghost had been in a bad mood. He knew he shouldn't be, since the news had come a few days ago, but he had secretly been hoping that Danny would chicken out and cancel since then. That way the human would spend more time with him instead. It wasn't like he disapproved of Sam, but he wasn't sure he approved of her position being stepped up to "girlfriend" either. Phantom knew what happened to friends after one started dating: they hung out less and less until they were left back down to awkward silences and the occasional "hello" of passing each other on the sidewalk. Worse, he knew that he would never be able to bear it if whatever friendship he had with Danny were to dwindle to something as low as that. Danny had wormed his way far too much into Phantom's afterlife for that.

"You okay?"

The familiar voice drew him out of his thinking and he looked up to see Danny standing in front of him. The human teenager had changed out of his casual clothing to a simple formal suit completed with a violet-colored tie. The same color as Sam's eyes, Phantom noted with a grimace.

"I'm fine," he answered as convincingly as he possibly could.

"You sure? You haven't been looking great all week." So Danny had noticed. Perhaps he wasn't as clueless as many people made him out to be. Still, that didn't mean he was free to talk about what was really bothering him.

"Yes. Just a bit miffed about some recent ghost appearances, is all." It was a pathetic excuse, but it was the best one he could come up with at the moment. "What time are you expected to meet Sam?"

"Seven. Aw crap!" Danny's attention flicked briefly to the alarm clock on his nightstand. "I'm gonna be late if I don't leave now!" He'd spent so much time trying to decide what to wear and not enough paying attention to the clock.

He turned to head out the door, but paused to look back at Phantom. He bit his lip, as he usually did when debating something difficult in his mind.

"Go," Phantom said a bit more firmly. "It's bad manners to keep a lady waiting."

"I'll be back before ten," Danny said with a small smile before leaving to the hallway. It was well after his footsteps faded down the stairs and the front door slammed shut before Phantom moved from his spot.

It was too late for regrets now. Still, he couldn't help but feel lousy. He flopped onto his stomach onto Danny's bed, splaying out against the neatly made blanket and resting his head against the pillow. Here, he could smell Danny's scent a lot more clearly and this had become a habit of his whenever he got bored and lonely without him. It was strange, but right now he couldn't help himself. Worse, he didn't know how to handle these new turn of events. He wanted Danny, that much he knew. But it wasn't until the human came back with the prospect of a girlfriend that he realized how much. He wanted to be the one to stare into those wondrous sky blue eyes and make him smile. He wanted to be the one Danny came to first for advice or to vent his worries and frustrations. He wanted to be the one to hold that warm body close for comfort.

But it was futile. Phantom was a ghost and Danny was a human. A ghost couldn't satisfy the warmth and cravings of a human. And Phantom had very little doubt that a date between Danny and Sam wouldn't go well, since the two had been best friends for a long time. It was no surprise that the two harbored hidden feelings for each other and it had only been inevitable to the admittance of them. Eventually they would want to take things "to the next level" and leave behind everything else to continue their happy lives.

Phantom rolled onto his side and closed his eyes. As for him the only thing he could do was wish he was anything but himself.