Hiding
Chapter 3
A/N: So I'm going to attempt to incorporate elements of the show into this fic. Let me know whether or not this is a good thing! If you haven't seen the most recent episode, then you might not want to read this chapter.
*Danny's POV* - TWO WEEKS LATER
Lacey sat on my bed, staring at her phone.
"What's wrong?" I wondered, snuggling up next to her. She smiled slightly and then said,
"Archie's been pestering me since I broke up with him. Wanting to meet and talk about it more. I keep telling him that I need time and distance, and he listens for about two days, and then he goes back to his old habits." I sighed. There wasn't a whole lot I could do about that, at least not publicly. Lacey was still terrified to acknowledge our relationship. Jo was still in the hospital, locked into a coma since her incident. Her mother had cancelled all of her pottery classes and was spending all of her free time with Jo.
"I don't know what to tell you, Lacey. Is there anything I can do to help?"
"No, I'll take care of it. He's just persistent, that's all."
"Can you blame him? You're definitely something worth fighting for," I replied and Lacey flushed with happiness.
"I love how you managed to turn my crazy ex bothering me into something positive, Danny," Lacey said. I leaned in for a kiss when my phone rang.
"Ignore it," Lacey mumbled, leaning in. I recognized the ringtone, though.
"Wait," I said, pulling it out of my pocket frantically. On the screen it had Jo's picture and her name. What the hell is going on? I wondered. Lacey saw it and frowned.
"How is that possible? I though the doctor said her phone exploded when… in the accident," Lacey finished. I shrugged and answered the phone, putting it on speaker so that Lacey could hear it too.
"Hello?" I wondered.
Loud static crackled on the other end. Lacey and I stared at one another, frowning.
"Who is this?" I asked.
"Danny." Jo's voice came quietly through the static, as if she were very far away.
"Jo? Jo, are you awake?" I asked.
"Danny…" her voice was louder this time. Lacey opened her mouth to say something but I quickly covered her mouth with my hand, shaking my head frantically.
"Look, whoever this is, it's a disgusting joke and I don't appreciate it," I said angrily. The static started to fade and I thought whoever was on the other line would hang up until,
"Danny! It's me, Jo!" Her voice was loud and clear and it sounded exactly like her.
"You're in the hospital, how are you on the phone?" I demanded. The answer I got was static that got louder and louder until the call was dropped. I stared at my phone's blank screen.
"Someone must be playing a sick prank, Danny," Lacey said, shaking her head. I was about to agree with her when my phone rang again, this time, it was Karen Masterson. I answered it, putting it on speaker.
"Mrs. Masterson?"
"Danny, you told me to call you if anything changed with Jo. Well, something definitely changed," she said.
"What happened?"
"They're still doing tests, but her brain activity is being monitored by an EEG machine and it suddenly started doing crazy things. I just wanted to let you know," she said, sounding exhausted.
"Thank you, Mrs. Masterson," I said.
"No problem, come by and visit when you have a chance, I'm sure Jo knows that you're here," she said.
"Of course," I agreed. She hung up and I stared at my phone again.
"What are the chances that we get that phone call and then Mrs. Masterson calls us to say that Jo's brain activity changed?" I asked. Lacey was looking down at her hands.
"I don't know. Do you think that was Jo?"
"I don't know. I honestly don't know," I said.
**Jo's POV**
I walked along the white sand beach, the water glistening softly in golden light. Next to me was a creature that I could not describe. It had no gender; it barely had a form or body. It was made of light and crystal and reflection. The creature did not speak out loud, instead it communicated with pictures and thoughts. I was not scared of it; I knew what it was and what it intended.
"Guardian angel is a term used by humans for something much larger, much more complicated than that," it's thought appeared in my mind as if it were my own, except that I knew it came from it.
"What should I call you?" I wondered out loud.
"Call me Alexander."
"That's a masculine name," I replied.
"If it makes you more comfortable to think of me in human terms, I will have the gender of male," Alexander responded, taking on a slightly less ambiguous form. A pair of electric, vibrant green eyes appeared in the face made of light and crystal. The eyes turned to look at me.
"You know why you are here. We have kept you like this in order to make sure the transition is complete," Alexander explained. I nodded.
"This will forever change your life, but it was always meant to be this way. It has been this way before and will continue again," Alexander's voice took on a masculine tone in my head.
"What about my family, my friends?" I asked.
"Your family will be able to handle this, in time. The people you consider your friends will continue to surprise you, both in negative and positive ways. I will visit you, to check on your progress. You will not be alone in this," he said. I felt the warmth of Alexander's gaze upon me and I smiled. He felt like a father or an older brother, protective and loving.
"Are you ready to return?" He asked.
"I suppose I have to be, whether I want to or not," I replied.
"I will see you, in time, Jo Masterson," Alexander responded. Light began to grow between the two of us and I felt it surround me, push into my stomach and lift me up. I looked down and the last thing I saw was Alexander's bright green eyes and a pair of massive, white wings.
*Danny's POV*
School was painful. Although I could interact with Lacey at my house and in other secret places, she avoided my gaze and acted like I didn't exist at school. I agreed to this, so despite the fact that I didn't like it at all, I had to admit that I'd told Lacey I was okay with what we were doing. I hung around Rico, but he seemed very quiet and didn't talk much. Whenever I tried to hold a conversation with him, he would nod and listen and then bury his face into whatever textbook he was focused on at the time.
I sat alone at lunch, since Rico and I didn't share a lunch period. Lacey sat with Sarita and Phoebe. I knew she wanted to sit with me, she'd said as much in private. However, she also said she was afraid that Archie would suspect something if she sat with me.
"I don't want him to make your life more difficult than it has to be, Danny. If he thinks that I left him for you, he would make your life a living hell," Lacey said. Having Jo in the hospital made me realize how much I relied on her for social interaction at school and even in other areas of my life. I had no other friends since I was forced off the soccer team. Archie had convinced Collin that I was the one behind his food poisoning, and now Collin refused to talk to me.
I went back to pretty much being a social pariah, and the only other person who didn't seem to mind talking to me in public was Tyler Daly, Phoebe's brother. Two days after the strange phone call from Jo or someone pretending to be Jo, Tyler sat with me at lunch, quite randomly.
I looked up and he smiled. I didn't trust him at all. Why was he all of the sudden taking an interest in me or Jo?
"Jo being in the hospital has pretty much ruined your social life, hasn't it?" He immediately pointed out upon sitting next to me. I stared at him. It was obvious; did I really need to respond to this guy?
"Anyway, I was planning on stopping by and visiting Jo after school. Would you happen to know her favorite flowers?" I blinked and stared at him.
"When we were kids she liked lilies, but I don't know if those are still her favorites," I said finally. Tyler nodded.
"Cool, thank you. I suppose I'll leave you alone, then," he said cheerfully, getting up and going back to his table. I ate lunch alone and left the cafeteria.
*After School – Same Day*
I went to visit Jo in the hospital with Lacey, and Tyler was there.
"What's he doing here?" Lacey wondered.
"He's been asking about Jo a lot lately. I was never invited to his birthday party, he invited Jo and I sort of forced myself along," I replied. We walked into the room, Jo's eyes closed and her blonde hair fanned out behind her head in an odd sort of halo. Tyler had brought a huge bouquet of lilies and various other flowers. Mrs. Masterson was smiling and had put them near Jo's bed.
"That's so sweet of you, Tyler!" She said brightly, looking up at seeing Lacey and I.
"I hope Jo gets well soon," Tyler said, backing up toward the door. He smiled at the two of us.
"I shall see the two of you at school tomorrow, then," Tyler said, bowing slightly and disappearing through the door.
"What a strange boy…." Mrs. Masterson muttered. She smiled at Lacey and I.
"I'm so glad you two came to visit, come, and sit here!" She gave us a seat near Jo's bed. We sat there, silently.
"Has she made any progress?" Lacey wondered.
"She seems to be the same," she said with a sigh. Dark circles sat under her eyes and her eyes looked slightly puffy. I reached out and took Jo's hand, squeezing it.
"Jo, I'm here," I said. We were all silent, when I felt something. I sat up abruptly, watching Jo's face. Mrs. Masterson looked stunned at my sudden movement and Lacey looked perplexed.
"What? What are you doing?" Lacey wondered.
"Jo just squeezed my hand," I said frantically. Mrs. Masterson's eyes widened.
"But… her brain activity hasn't changed," Jo's mother said, looking at the machine that measured that. Lacey sat up.
"Are you sure, Danny? Maybe you squeezed her hand and…" Lacey trailed off, seeing the look of hope in Mrs. Masterson's eyes die away slowly.
"Danny?" I turned frantically back and Jo's blue eyes were staring back at mine.