I apologize for taking so long to update, but here's the next chapter!
Danny froze immediately. The boy was horror-stricken. "Why did you – why did you say that?"
"You..." Paulina gasped and rose to her feet. She began rapidly walking away. It didn't make any sense. He was a human and a ghost?
No.
It couldn't be.
She was certain he had to be human. After all, he'd grown taller and aged in the last couple years.
Ghosts didn't grow. Ghosts didn't age.
But if it was true...
She had never seen anything like this, much less heard of it. She'd read practically everything there was to know about supernatural creatures but there was nothing about someone being a ghost and a human. It wasn't even possible for ghosts to reproduce with humans. Even if it were, she was absolutely certain that Danny's parents were both human.
"Paulina, let me explain. It's not what you think."
"You..." Paulina paused and spun around to face him. "I saw him! Or, is it you? Are you possessed by Phantom? Are you inside my boyfriend?"
"No! Of course not." Danny shouted. He paused. "Wait, what do you mean you saw Phantom?"
"I-" Paulina paused. "Don't turn this around on me. You have to be possessed! There's no other explanation! " She turned and continued walking. Somehow, her brain was having an immense difficulty wrapping its mind around the things she'd seen. He wasn't possessed, and logic told her he certainly hadn't been born like that.
So why did she see Phantom? Certainly, her mind was playing tricks on her.
But, she thought, her eyes would never deceive her.
"Please, Paulina. Hear me out." He seemed desperate, frantic. It was almost as if he was afraid she would leave him or worse. His anxiety and fear confirmed this wasn't a hallucination.
The Latina hesitated but reminded herself that he wasn't the only one keeping secrets in this relationship.
Paulina's eyes swiveled to look at him, silently encouraging him to continue.
"I was in a lab accident. Sam and Tucker and I went down to the basement where my parents keep all their equipment. They'd just finished the Ghost Portal but neither of them could get it to work. We wanted to check it out, didn't think too much about the risk or the consequences. I went inside the portal and accidentally turned it on from the inside. The electricity shot ectoplasm into my DNA, and I came out looking like..."
"A ghost." Paulina finished for him.
"Half-ghost," the teen explained. He swallowed and shakily passed a hand through his tangled mass of hair. "Ever since then, Sam and Tucker have been helping me out, fighting ghosts. I'm not evil, I swear! I use my powers to help people."
Paulina gazed into his eyes. Every word that fell out of his lips was true, honest. She inferred that he wasn't telling her everything he wanted to say, but it was everything she needed to know at the moment.
Even so, the girl was still uncertain. This new information frightened her. She knew what Phantom was capable of, and his track record wasn't cleanest.
She could only wonder what kind of danger approached them if she let him in on her secret.
And she recognized she had to tell him about her, now that she had accidentally forced him to drop all his cards on the table.
"Danny," she began softly. Then stopped.
A shudder passed through her. Goosebumps appeared across her arm.
Nausea rolled over her just as her stomach churned. She placed a hand on her chest and breathed, hunching over slightly.
"Are you okay?" Danny swallowed, shaken by her unexpected reaction. He hesitantly laid a hand on her shoulder. "Is this to much for you to handle?"
"No." She shook her head and straightened up, trying to ignore the abysmal sensation. "Something's not right."
"Is it me? Do I freak you out?"
Paulina's hand flew to her chest. "No. Something's bad is gonna happen. I can feel it."
"What? You what?" Danny blinked, confused and apprehensive about her response. He extended a hand towards her.
Before he could place a hand on her shoulder, a bright green blast came from their right and struck Danny, sending him flying into a street lamp. The loud clang that resonated from the impact caused the Latina to cry out in horror.
She was at his side in an instant, helping him rise to his feet. "Shit," Danny muttered, one hand on his injured back.
Paulina cast a fearful glance at their attacker. It was a ghost that very much resembled a human, excluding the glowing red orbs and sickly pale skin. "I want the girl!" He announced.
Danny glanced at Paulina, eyes widening in surprise. She cast him a bewildered gaze. "Don't look at me! I don't even know him."
Danny's gaze hardened and snapped back to their attacker. He sneered. "Too late, dude. She's already taken." There was a flash of light that encompassed Danny's waist. They separated and travelled in opposite directions, each of the hoops transforming him into the ghost she used to fawn over.
"Danny," she breathed again, completely astounded by the action.
The teenager ignored her and launched forward, applying supernatural speed to his movements. But the other guy was faster. In fact, the guy was nothing but an almost indiscernible blur that disappeared within a matter of seconds.
"Who are you?" Danny paused, eyes flickering around in search of their attacker.
"The name's Speed." The man's voice revealed his location. The ghost leaned against another streetlamp. Shaggy gray locks curled around his eyes, though he didn't look a day over twenty-one. "For obvious reasons," he commented.
"What do you want with Paulina?" Danny's hands curled into fists, just as his teeth clenched, and his jaw ticked. There was another blur, followed by a strong breeze. The man reappeared behind Danny. "I don't want her," he responded. "I was hired to get her. It's my job."
Danny shot out an ecto-ray, which their adversary dodged easily. The blast struck an innocent trash bin, sending it to the ground.
The teenager growled and spun around, scanning the area.
The ghost reappeared behind Danny and, before Paulina could finish shouting, "watch out," the ghost attacked.
Danny turned, only to catch Speed's ecto ray on the chest.
The teenager flipped a few times before tumbling onto the ground. The front of his suit was slightly charred. A thin trickle of smoke floated off the black fabric.
The teenager struggled to get on all fours, but Paulina noticed that he was struggling to catch his breath. The air had been knocked right out of him. Speed sauntered towards them, but Paulina stepped in front of her boyfriend.
"Lemme guess." He leered, eyes roaming over her voluptuous figure. "You'll come willingly if I let your boyfriend live?"
"Fuck you, pendejo." She smirked when the Speed's face contorted in confusion.
She extended her hands, fingers splayed, and palm facing forward and shouted, "Golpe!"
The specter's jaw dropped in surprise moments before he went sailing into the air having been hit by an invisible force. His body collided with a mailbox, which was crushed under the impact. Papers scattered around him.
The Latina stomped over to him.
She held out two fingers, pressing together the index and the middle ones while simultaneously crossing her arms, making an X shape over her chest.
"Relámpago," she shouted.
The man's blood red eyes widened as electricity surged through his body, a pain-filled shriek reverberated into the air.
The electricity dropped when she switched positions. Her right arm extended, palm facing the ghost's body.
And she hesitated.
One blink and the man's appearance abruptly changed. He was now a bronze-skinned red headed young man whose gray eyes were wide with fear. She blinked again and, replacing the former human, was the red-eyed ghost.
Her abilities forced her to see him as he was before he died.
The hesitation was enough for the ghost.
His face immediately morphed into a smirk.
There was another blur and he was gone.
The Latina blinked.
A sharp pain exploded somewhere in the back of her head. The sound of her name reached her ears, but she found herself unable to respond. Black dots danced across her vision, turning the whole world dark in a few moments.
A/N: Your guys' reviews are great, and I just wanted to let you all know that I appreciate the feedback!
You're awesome!
