Cirque Berserk

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9
Chipped Nail Polish

When Sam arrived the next day, she was not happy, this much was apparent to the African American girl as she eyed her friend with suspicion. Star continued to babble on about nothing, gesturing wildly to the Cirque Gothica poster hung up on the college wall when she caught sight of it.

"Oh, and he does look familiar, doesn't he?" Star rambled on, tapping her chin with her finger in thought. "I mean, I swear I've seen him somewhere before! Oh, my God! I saw someone famous before! Whoopee!!" She twirled around and beamed brightly at Valerie, who was still eying Sam suspiciously, and Sam, who was brooding and glaring holes at the poster.

"Whatever." Sam mumbled, adjusting her bag strap and blowing a strand of hair from her eyes. "Guys, we're gonna' be late for class if we don't hurry up."

"Oh, yeah! Come on, girls, come on!" Star chirped, pushing both girls through the college entrance, oblivious to the tension between them. "Gee, I wonder if I'll pass that chemistry exam I have today... uh oh, I think I was suppose to study for it!" she blinked owlishly at her own words. "Aw, man!"

Meanwhile, Valerie tried to casually initiate conversation...

"So, how are you today?"

"Since when do you care?"

"Sam, I always care about your well-being."

"It'd do you well to show it more often, then."

...only to be shot down harshly everytime she tried. Val eventually opted to observe her gloomy friend, noticing how she seemed torn between righteous anger and debilitating depression. She seemed less prepped up as usual as well – her hair tied up in a hasty pony tail and her shirt was askew. The laces of her boots missed a hole more than once and Val vaguely noticed the smudges of eyeliner that dotted Sam's fingers. These were minute details, however, for the most noticeable thing that stood out from the goth girl was her nail polish.

Her chipped nail polish.

To other people, they may have not even noticed she was evenwearing nail polish at all. However, to Valerie, this was bad. She had never seen Sam as messy as today – Sam was the most punctual, successful, clean, and down right, academical-wise, best person she had ever had the pleasure of meeting. It just wasn't normal for her to have one completely chipped out nail and another fully coated one. Sam always made sure to delicately reapply her special purple nail polish everytime her nails looked less-than-stellar.

"Sam, you alright? Seriously, don't smart me," Val added warningly, when she caught sight of the sneering curl of Sam's lips.

Eventually, the goth girl sighed, turning tired eyes to her friend. "I saw Danny last night."

Valerie froze but quickly recomposed herself. "O-Oh, really? Well, that's great, isn't it? You've liked him for a really long time now, right?"

Sam's expression darkened considerably, making Valerie believe that perhaps she should have watched her words. "Yeah, I did."

"Did?" Val asked hesitantly. "Don't you mean 'do'?"

"No," Sam said, far too casual as Valerie worriedly watched her friends eyes glitter dangerously. She pushed forward but Valerie persisted and did not let her get past. Sam rose an annoyed brow but strode forward nonetheless, bumping shoulders with Val as she caught up with Star. "I meant 'did'."

Danny squinted, his tongue sticking out of the side of his mouth as he stared at the colorful can of soda in front of him.

He could do this... he could do it—

"I smell something burning and it's not not your tent," came a voice from behind, breaking his concentration totally. Danny flicked mildly-annoyed eyes to his best friend, Tucker Foley, who only grinned innocently as he pulled out a chair and sat down himself.

"What'dya want, Tuck?" Danny grumbled, staring at the can once more, trying vainly to regain his focus.

"Oh, nothing," Tucker started flippantly. "Can't a guy come visit his best friend whenever he wants to?"

"Not if that guy happens to be one Tucker Foley," Danny shot back, averting his gaze from the can and to his friend, sighing. He was definitely not going to get anything done today, not with Tucker around.

"No luck with the telepathy thing?" Tucker asked sympathetically.

"Its not telepathy!" Danny scowled, crossing his arms. "How many times do I have to tell you before you get it!?"

Tucker shrugged. "Looks like telepathy to me."

"Well, it's not."

"Then enlighten me, oh ghostly one."

"Haha, very funny." Danny reached out and grabbed the soda can, popping it open and taking a large gulp of it. "It's a pretty useless power," he admitted, crunching the can in his palm and setting it neatly in front of him. "All I can do is see through objects."

"Useless!?" Tucker gaped dramatically, appalled by his friends lack of interest in the supernatural phenomena. "Do you know how many shirts I would be able to see through if I had your power!?" He nearly drooled as he thought of all the wonderful women—Valerie. He meant Valerie. Tucker subtly looked around him for any telltale sign of the vicious woman before turning his attention back at Danny.

Danny snorted. "You wouldn't be able to see anything," He slumped back on his chair. "It's all... blurry and solid. It's like placing a sheet of paper in front of a candle – all you see is a sharp outline of whatever is behind it. Like I said before, pretty useless power."

"... So you've tried it before, hmm?"

"What?! NO!" Danny blurted, eyes wide with panic. Tucker only grinned lecherously.

"Well, well, well," Tucker snickered slyly. "So you do possess hormones, huh?"

"Tucker, I'm a twenty year old guy," Danny scowled irritably. "Of course I have hormones." He went back to the topic and sighed. "Anyways, all I was able to see was a thick goo inside the can. I noticed all liquids look like thick blocks of playdoe," he popped open another soda.

"Huh, weird," Tucker conceded. "So, does that mean you can, like, see through walls and stuff?"

"Yeah, but for example if you were standing on the other side of that wall," he pointed to the tent wall across from him. "I'd only be able to see your outline. I don't know if I'm merely in my first stages or if this is really all I could do."

"Stop putting yourself down," Tucker grinned optimistically. "Just think, if you can train this new power of yours enough then you'd be able to see all the boobies you want, dude!!" Tucker seemed bent on this subject.

Danny sighed at his best friends mentality and smiled wryly. "But I'm not even sure if I can. I spent two years trying to improve my ecto-blast but it hasn't really changed aside from it's size. I think some powers just can't be changed..."

"What makes you think you won't be able to improve, though?" Tucker queried curiously.

"I don't know," Danny rubbed the back of his neck. "Instinct, I guess. I just get the feeling that's all it will do for right now..."

"Ahem, 'right now'," Tucker air-quoted with a raised brow.

Danny smiled. "Yeah, right now."

"... Doesn't matter, you're still a lucky bastard!"

Danny groaned. "Come on, Tuck, drop it! I can't see underneath a girls shirt!"

"Liar! You can see outlines," Tucker seethed.

"Well—so—alright, what about it!?"

"So you can see something!"

"No, I can't!" He countered heatedly.

"Aha! There you go again, lying to your best friend, huh?!" Tucker pointed an accusing finger at Danny, who looked more than exasperated at his friends theatrics. "Do you feel no shame!?"

"Tucker! For the last time, I can't see under a woman's shirt with my x-ray powers!!" Danny yelled, only to freeze when he heard the sharp clinking of glasses.

Lydia stood at the door holding two glasses of water and looking very displeased with the conversation. Tucker blinked and nearly jumped away when the female ghost slammed a glass of water in front of him. She smiled tightly at Danny, who was pink with embarrassment, and bowed to both of them before she left the room, not sparing a glance at the African American.

Tucker whistled lowly. "Vicious one, isn't she?" But as he thought about the female ghost more, something roused inside of him. For some reason, he felt as if he knew her from somewhere, he just couldn't think of where...

Danny caught the suspicion written all over his friends face. "She used to work for Freakshow. You know, that ghost with the weird, floating, tattoos?"

"Oh, so she was the one who tried to ink you all those years ago," Tucker cracked up, grinning widely. "Get it? Inked you—"

"Yeah, no," Danny deadpanned, rolling his eyes as Tucker only laughed harder.

Suddenly, he stopped, and reached into his front pocket to pull out his cellphone. He was quick to flip it open and speak into it, even quicker to end the conversation and stuff it back where it belonged after just a few rushed words and sounds of agreement. Tucker looked at Danny and said, bluntly, "You're coming with me to have lunch."

"Tuck, it's six in the evening, I doubt that can be considered lunch," he said dryly, earning a peeved look.

"Whatever, you're having dinner with me then."

"Aw, Tuck, that's sweet, but I don't really swing that way." Danny laughed when his friend's irritation only skyrocketed, taking a sip from the can before crushing that one as well and placing it beside the last one. He was reaching for the refreshment Lydia had brought in when a sharp, almost shadowy, object sprung up from the cracks along the tent. Danny narrowed his eyes when it was gone just as fast.

His hand still poised to grab the glass, he slowly brought it down and continued to ponder on what he just saw. Danny no longer believed in the phrase 'trick of the light', not when so many ghostly phenomena tended to gravitate towards him for some strange reason.

That's strange, he thought, ignoring Tucker as he ranted on the wrongness of his retort and how he was fully straight. What was that? He gazed intently at the crack, his keen eyes catching something black sliding almost disgustingly alongside the cracks; worming its way lower and lower until it reached the floor, where it mysteriously disappeared altogether. He was about to stand up and check the phenomena out when Tucker grabbed his wrist and tugged him out of his chair, half-dragging him out the door with his free hand pointing ahead in faux-triumph.

"Come on, Dan! We're gonna' be late and Valerie'll have my head if we don't make it on time!" Tucker urged, raising a brow when Danny merely stayed silent and continued to gaze at the crack on the adjacent wall. "What're you looking at, buddy?" Tucker stopped his pulling to sidle up next to Danny, squinting at the wall Danny seemed to be perusing with much interest.

"Nothing..." His reply was delayed by ten seconds, Tucker counted. Now he definitely knew something was wrong. "Nothing. Come on, Tuck, before Val decides you aren't worthy enough to live."

Tucker gave the wall one last look but nodded. "Hurry, man!" He shouted, when his eyes scanned the watch on his wrist, "We're really late now! Ugh, great! This all your fault, you know? If you'd only been honest about the shirt-looking thing we'd have long since left!"

"My fault?" Danny scoffed. "I'm not a pervert! I'm not going to agree with you on this!"

Tucker huffed. "I never said you were perverted, just said you should appreciate the female anatomy."

"Female anatomy, huh?" Danny shook his head, smiling wryly. He would never win this conversation, would he? "Lydia!" Danny called, voice never going higher than how he usually spoke. Tucker was eerily aware how it'd all gotten silent, almost deafening, and was even more creeped out when Lydia emerged from the shadows and looked expectantly at Danny. "Take care of everyone while I'm away, alright? I'll be back somewhere around nine – don't let anyone slack off while I'm away, okay?"

"Yes, master," she smiled, plainly ignoring Tuckers presence. "Is there anything else you require?"

"Uh, no," Danny responded, elbowing Tucker in the ribs as he struggled to withhold his laughter. "And, for the millionth time, call me Danny!"

"Yes... master Danny."

This seemed to be the final straw for Tucker, he burst out laughing. Lydia looked at him and coldly stared until he his laughter slowly subsided to nervous chuckles. The woman continued her icy gaze, eventually averting her eyes and nodding stiffly at Danny, who was rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassed amusement.

As she glided out of the room, Tucker pipped: "I can't fathom why you would befriend someone who tried to kill you when you were 14."

"She's alright once she warms up to you," was Danny's cheerful reply. "Besides, she makes a great manager!"

"Uh huh," Tucker said suspiciously, blinking when Lydia merely faded from sight. "Anyways, lets go before Valerie really does decide I'm not worthy of living."

"Guys, I really, really don't want to go," Sam complained, digging her heel into the pavement when Star grabbed her wrist and pulled. The blond was thrown back by Sam's resistance, not understanding why she would refuse the invitation. Usually Sam was in for anything they were up to.

"Why not?" Star frowned. "We're just going out to dinner! It's nothing big – just a little get-together with Val and Tucker and his friend."

"His friend?" Sam asked suspiciously, not liking the thoughts – or rather thought – that ran through her head. Tucker didn't really hang out with anyone except she and Val and Star and, before the incident, Danny. Sam didn't want to think that, since Danny was back in town apparently, he had begun to spend time with him and had now invited him along to dinner.

She didn't think she would be able to take seeing him face-to-face without either making a fool of herself, spit out insults, or begin to cry.

Perhaps not the crying one, though. Sam was known for her nerves of steel and she wasn't about to let one supernatural guy ruin that streak she worked so hard to maintain.

"Sam, stop being difficult," Valerie snapped, sending her a sharp look. "We're going and that's final."

"Yes, mother," she muttered back.

Valerie ignored the jab as they reached her car.

"I'll take my own car," Sam arranged, waltzing towards her own vehicle easily while Star bounced to the passenger door on Val's car. "Where are we going to again?"

Valerie smiled, almost wistfully. "The Nasty Burger."

Sam froze for a moment, felt the cold hand of nostalgia grip her heart. The restaurant no longer offered Sam a nice place to simply relieve the stress of school and let her relax – now, it held bittersweet memories, memories which never ceased to tear her apart when she was idiotic enough to let herself get wrapped up in them. Sure, she had gone to the fast food restaurant before, but with Danny back in town, most of her thoughts strayed to the green eyed, white haired, ghost boy more often than not, with it bringing back unpleasant memories as well as pleasant ones.

As she drove out of the colleges parking lot, frowning deeply as they made it to the Nasty Burger in no time at all, Sam wondered if she could somehow make up an excuse in order to get herself out of going. But she figured, as Valerie and Star got out of the car, that if she even tried, Valerie would never let her live down this little moment of weakness.

The two girls had a habit of picking on each others faults.

"Come on, Sam!" came Star's voice, "Hurry up before we leave you behind!"

"Oh, I wouldn't mind," Sam muttered under her breath, getting out of the car. "Coming!" She said in a louder voice, shooting Val a glare when the woman only smiled cockily and sashayed into the fast food restaurant. Sam stared at the doors of the Nasty Burger and forced herself in, wrinkling her nose at the sickening smell of meat that wafted into her nostrils.

"Disgusting," Sam frowned, and walked over to the table Valerie and Star had sat down in. "Do we really have to eat here?"

"Yeah, it brings back good memories!" Star beamed, then let her face fall slightly. "Only...Val and I sat over there," she pointed to the middle of the room, to the place which was currently occupied by a couple. "and you, Tucker, and Danny sat over there!" She pointed to the corner, which was empty save for the drink someone had left behind.

Sam didn't say anything, merely nodded as Val stood up and announced she'd order for everyone. "Bring me something vegan!" Sam reminded, earning a half-hearted wave in return. She drummed her fingers nervously on the table but stopped once she noticed the nervous tick.

Star had taken out her compact mirror and was applying mascara swiftly.

Sam glanced at the clock overhead the entrance as Valerie walked back holding a receipt and some change, which she stuck into her front pocket before she sat down.

"Nervous?"

"No, why would I be nervous?" Sam shot back as Valerie quirked her lips upward. Her eyes rested on the fingers that were once again drumming a silent beat against the table.

Sam stopped and glowered.

Valerie sighed through her nose and rested her chin upon twined hands. "Sam, it's alright. Calm down, I doubt Tucker will even bring him along. He told me that he was hanging out with some college friend of his and he'd bring him along for all of us to meet." Valerie dropped her voice so Star wouldn't catch on, as the girl hummed a tuned and continued to apply her make up obliviously. "He's not coming – I'm sure of it."

Despite the relief that washed through Sam's body, she couldn't brush off the terrible notion that Tucker had lied and he was actually bringing Danny.

It was one of those gut-instinct moments she had too often.

However, when the door of the Nasty Burger opened again, Sam was thoroughly relieved to see Tucker alone. Every time for the last twenty minutes, whenever the door opened, Sam nearly gave herself a whiplash from turning to it. She was just glad Danny wasn't with him.

That emotion was short lived, though, when a man dressed in all black sauntered into the restaurant right after Tucker. He was tall and lean, hair black and eyes a chilling oceanic blue, wearing a partially opened trench coat matched with an equally dark tank top and some purposely torn jeans. On his feet were combat boots, which made Sam green with envy when she noticed that he owned the exact boots she had been dying to order for the past few days.

What made it worse was she recognized him after a few moments of horrified, dazed, staring.

It was Danny.

And he looked just as horrified.

A/N: Sorry the late update, I try to update monthly at least but it seems that I can't hold that promise. Well, it wasn't my fault, anyways; not really. Perhaps it was my fault for leaving my laptop AC adapter out and the cat happened to find it and chew the living out of it... so my computer was uncharged and therefore unusable.

I nearly made my cat homeless when I found out XD

I'll probably update again soon since I want to make up for lost time. This fiction is reaching the end, believe it or not, because I don't really have much planned for it except emotional encounters, those strange shadow ghosts, and some more dry humor.

Please review!!

Scarlett.