I was on such a roll towards the end of chapter 8 that I immediately started on chapter 9, barely any pause. That felt good. I hope my roll continues for the rest of the summer for I have so many stories to write, half of them original.

Sorry for not answering your reviews, but thanks to all my WONDERFUL reviewers: Magma823, Dredoll, Extant, Skaties, sokker_rocks, DinoButtons, bloodmoon13, ShortSweetN'ToThePoint and RenesmeeScarlet. Wow, that's a lot! THANKS GUYS! Did I miss anyone?

Chapter 9: Strangers?

Disclaimer: I do not own Danny Phantom, do I have to repeat that every time?!

"What?" Sam asked in confusion. She began grasping for explanations, wondering what had made him change his mind. She had finally accepted him and now he was pushing her away. Both literally and figuratively. He took a few steps back and placed his hands behind his back. He looked at Sam, seriousness emanating from his posture, his eyes, the set of his mouth.

"I can't do it, Sam. All along I thought that you were miserable…"

"I am miserable! I hate Ben!"

"…and that you wished for me to kinda…save you. And so I kept on butting into your life. Forcing myself between you and Ben. Being selfish, just as you said," he continued as if she had not said anything. Sam's lost and confused expression changed immediately and her brows met in frustration. She had to keep under control. If she didn't, she would be screeching at him on the top of her voice to stop his nonsense and kiss her. Kiss her hard and love her.

"Shut up, Danny. Shut up!" She yelled in an agreeable volume of voice for the area they were in. He clamped his mouth shut and stared at her, sadly. What could she say to make him change his mind again?

"Sam, I know what you want and I am finally prepared to give it to you," he said.

"You do not know what I want Danny! If you had known, we wouldn't be here right now. We'd be somewhere private where we could really talk things through. Danny, I want you to love me! You hear me…LOVE ME DANIEL FENTON! Because I love you like no other and I want you to return my feelings so badly that I will do anything…anything for you to say that to me and mean it like you never meant anything in your life. These feelings are so intense, I've never felt them before, and they only get stronger as time goes on. I know I don't want to say it, but it's the damn truth! I can't live without you Danny. My life is utterly barren and wasted without you. I want you in my arms now and every moment after now. I want to smell your shirt and your delicious skin and snuggle into your chest for as long as I live. It's the truth that I was afraid of. And now…now you know…" she said. She had felt like a little boat being tossed around roughly by the violent waves of a vast ocean with no land in sight, no reassurances. Yet, as she continued, the rough seas smoothed and her boat rocked from side to gentle side. Danny sighed.

"We can't talk about this here. It's too much," he said, holding his head and looking away. Sam was as deflated as a vacuumed balloon. Did nothing she had said touched him. Why was it that when she had stopped fighting, he had started? What was wrong with them?

"We can talk at my house…or yours," she said. Danny slowly removed his hand and looked at Sam. She had calmed down now. What should he do?

"My house," he said. He wanted to slap himself. Wasn't he giving her up? He should have told her that there was nothing to discuss. That they were done. He would have ignored the pain that ran like blood through his veins after he had done it. It wouldn't be so bad, just something he would learn to deal with…again. Sam's phone ran and she took it out. It was a text message.

"Maybe we should go now. I have to pick up Zoey soon. Something went wrong in the cafeteria today and the students have to leave early," she said.

"You know what, go pick up Zoey and…and we'll talk later," he said. Sam didn't like this. It would be past uncomfortable to sit on this issue. Her curiosity needed quenching, her heart also needed to stop its terrible, life-threatening beating. She didn't want to be confused for long. Danny thought it was best. He would think things through. Analyze everything and see how to make his next move.

"Umm…ok. Tomorrow then," she agreed.

"Sure, I'll call you," he promised weakly. She didn't believe him. She felt terrible. How could she not trust him? Was their relationship deteriorating? Were they truly meant to be?

'If we're not meant to be, then why do I get this crazy, extra-terrestrial feeling when I think about him, after all this time?' Sam asked herself. Yet, she couldn't prevent second thought from creeping through her holes of doubt. Would she always be miserable? She backed away slowly, looking at him, trying to sort through the confusion that had started again. When she turned her back to him, her head began to hurt. Was it so hard to do? So hard to know if he was the right one?

Jazz was also confused. What was going on? Why weren't they happy and jumping around? She eyed the approaching Sam and saw the devastated look her friend carried.

"Sam…what happened?" She asked. Sam unconsciously licked her lips and turned wide eyes to Jazz.

"I don't know. I don't know if ' really Danny? I don't know what to do," she said and she headed to her car. Jazz was utterly lost. Hadn't Sam just been so sure of herself? Did it take just 2 minutes to get her off track? No. If Sam wanted something, she was going to get it. Something was immensely wrong. She looked at Danny and he looked back too. He wore Sam's expression. Jazz's mission was not yet accomplished.

AT ZOEY'S SCHOOL

Sam pulled up to the sidewalk sharply, exhaling roughly as the car stopped. Many of the middle-schoolers stared at her car. They all thought it was a drunk driver and if the driver wasn't drunk, he or she was probably insane. Sam was insanely mad. She tried to calm herself down as she rested her head on the steering wheel. She felt like she wanted to rip someone's throat out. Someone knocked on the glass and she jumped, heart racing. It was Zoey.

"You look pleasant today, Sam," she said, smiling dryly. Sam unbuckled herself and stepped out of the car. She almost slapped herself. How could she have missed the boy standing beside Zoey. He was exactly the same height as Zoey. He was a dark boy with low cut hair and snowy white teeth. He wore intelligent glasses and in his eyes, one could see his years ahead of his true years. He seemed so smart and intelligent that for a second Sam forgot how to talk.

"Umm…hi," she decided to start. She tried to look happy. It would not be fair to take out her anger on the boy.

"Oh, this is Nathaniel. He was the dude who brought me to the fair, Saturday," Zoey said.

"Oh," was all Sam could say. She mentally head slapped herself. Zoey gave her a look that said, "pull yourself together man! You look like shit!"

"Hello Mrs. Nichols," he said, extending his hand. Sam took it weakly and he shook it gently. He looked at Zoey and Zoey at him. Zoey's face was rather easy to read and at that moment she was telling him to watch what he thought about her mother. He swallowed past the lump in his throat. He had been dizzy all day with the thought of meeting Zoey's mother. It was only made worse when there was some serious gas leakage in the cafeteria and their day was cut short. Sam sighed and the two teens turned their eyes to her. She leaned against the car and relaxed.

"I'm sorry, Nathaniel. I'm not exactly in the best shape right now. It is nice to finally meet you though. I was wondering when it would happen. Anyway, you should come have dinner with us one day…if you're not afraid of the thought, that is," Sam said.

"Why, thank you Mrs. Nichols. I would love to have dinner with you and your family," he smiled, politely.

"Cool. Zoey'll tell you when, k?" She asked.

"Ah, yes, maam," he said. Sam opened the door and slid in.

"You ready, Zoe?"

"Yeah, Sam," Zoey said. She turned to Nathaniel.

"Are you sure she's your mom? I mean…she looks rather…" He began.

"Hot? I know," Zoey boasted, "but I seriously thing that you're over acting. Sam's cool. You don't have to treat her like an adult," Zoey said. Nathaniel let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. Zoey clapped him on the shoulder twice.

"See ya tomorrow Nate," she said as she ran around to the passenger side and slid in.

"Bye," he said as he waved to them. Sam and Zoey waved back before they drove off. Nathaniel shook his head to clear it. That was…original.

"I could see it from a mile, Sam. I knew when you almost crashed into our building that something was up. Now spill! And so you know, I know you spent the entire day with Danny," Zoey lost no time in jumping into talk, exaggerating where possible. Sam sighed and slowed the car down. She was still driving like an idiot. She wasn't the only one in the car now, she had to think logically.

"How did you know that? And it was not for the entire day," Sam asked as she let out a breath.

"I have my very dependable sources, and…you know what I mean when I say the entire day," Zoey said, rolling her eyes. She pushed her back against the seat and looked at Sam out of the corner of her eyes, trying to read her.

"So, Nathaniel, huh," Sam said.

"Nathaniel Kempt," Zoey smiled.

"Your boyfriend," Sam said. Zoey shrugged.

"If you wanna call him that," she said. Sam laughed.

"First love. Ahhh, refreshing," Sam said.

"I barely like him so I can't love him," Zoey frowned.

"Really? Then why date him?"

"Cuz he's smart. He knows his stuff and he also knows not to disrespect me. He has this weird sense of fun that I like."

"Elaborate please."

"Like when we went to the fair and we got on all the rides and stuff. I won myself a teddy bear, but then I ended up giving it to him cuz I wouldn't lug it around. Then he said it'd be cool if we could do a kinda Monday Night Raw thing with the bears. We could dress 'em up and give them names and all. At first I thought that was kids stuff, but then I thought how much fun that would be."

"To be a kid again. He doesn't look like the type to embrace the kid inside."

"Exactly…, people never see that about him. They only see smart. But I see the kid…the kid who enjoys bears ripping their stuffing and dying in the ring." They both laughed.

"I'd play."

"Of course you would, Sam. You're the super cool mom, don't forget that!"

"Ahh, I'm honoured."

"So, you got me talking bout my day. How about yours?" Zoey asked. She was all ears now, putting aside the teenager for the older, wiser woman of the future. Sam stopped laughing and stared straight ahead of her. It seemed as if she was not going to answer Zoey. Zoey was patient and waited.

"Today was not good. I'm all confused again," Sam said, furrowing her eyebrows.

"What do you mean by 'again'?" Zoey asked.

"I saw Jazz. I was absolutely shocked. I haven't seen her in ages. It was just so fantastic to see her again. And she looked amazing. And we spoke. Sure enough, I asked about Danny, immediately after sending him to buy something for me. And, being Jazz, she tortured me and made me tell my life story. I rushed through it and demanded that she tell me about Danny."

"Did she?"

"Yes, she did and it was really sad. She told me that a few years back, he was suicidal and depressed. Nothing could help except his willpower. He got over his depression and now he works at the observatory. Just by hearing her tell that story I realized that there was no choice. It was Danny all along. I mean, not everything has to do with money. That's the only thing Ben has."

"Money doesn't make the world go around. That saying is sad because it is so false."

"In this case, it's true. So, I decided to tell Danny what I had decided. I told him I loved him and wanted him badly back into my life."

"Ouch. That must have been embarrassing. Telling someone that and having them reject you. You can hide out in my room for as long as you like, Sam," Zoey said, wincing with her "ouch". Sam turned to smile at her.

"I'm not embarrassed that I said it and even if I could take it back, I wouldn't. I meant it and I know he feels the same, but..but…"

"But something is wrong and you don't know."

"Exactly! I told him and he told me that he couldn't do it. I was so confused because a second before I was so sure that it was him. That it was Danny Fenton. But I was easily confused…again. Then I began thinking about if I really trusted him and right now I'm thinking that there is no choice. A choice doesn't exist because there is no one to choose between or among," Sam explained.

"Oh boy, this is bad," Zoey groaned.

"I know. There is no choice because I despise Ben. I pushed him down the freakin' stairs for crying out loud! He'll never forgive me and I'll be surprised if he doesn't get the divorce papers going sooner than I can. And then Danny. I have been telling myself that even though I can't have Danny, he's the one. The one," Sam said, placing heavy emphasis on "the".

"So, you're saying that you're worried that you wasted your life grieving over him when he isn't the one?" Zoey asked.

"In a way. I'm worried that I can't have either Ben or Danny. I'm worried that I have been wrong since the very beginning and that my life is now a mess. And not only my life, but the life of my children. What if I really don't trust Danny? I can't live with him then!"

"You know what I think? I think it was just a momentary thing, this issue of distrust and him rejecting you…"

"Could you not say 'reject', it's a bit too harsh."

"…denying your claim of love, is that better?

"Yeah, much."

"Good. I think it was just something temporary. I think you really trust him but you are thoroughly confused that you don't know what is up and what is down, down, down. These things need time and a little explanation. Get him to tell you what was going on in his head this evening, just the essence of it. And set him straight because there is no way in this galaxy or the next that that man is not dying in the ocean of love for you."

"Smart words for a girl your age. Are you sure you're 14?"

"Sometimes…no. There are many times when I feel younger." Zoey grinned and Sam turned to Zoey to grin too. When she looked at the road, her eyes widened. Standing in the middle of the road was a man with mean, blue eyes and golden hair, staring hatefully at her.

"Who the hell is that idiot?" Zoey exclaimed as Sam swerved to the left and lost control for a second. Only for a second. A second was all it took for fear to register in their minds that they might crash. That they might die. A second was all it took for them to realize that the car was bizarrely unbalanced. Zoey screamed and Sam gritted her teeth as she swung the steering wheel. The car landed on its 4 wheels and slid across the rest of the road doing a 180 before slamming into a pole. They jerked in their place at the front of the car as they realized that they had stopped. Zoey's face was pale and she wasn't breathing. Sam was shaken and shaking as she reached across to Zoey and pushed her.

"Zoe, Zoe! Breathe!" She demanded. For a few more seconds Zoey stared ahead of them, then she took a deep breath and turned to look at Sam. Her colour returned with that breath and so did her voice.

"Oh my goodness, Sam! I thought…I thought I was going to die!" She exclaimed. Sam let out a shaky sigh of relief as she realized that Zoey was ok.

"Maybe we should get out and walk," Sam said. Zoey nodded in agreement. She stopped in the middle of a nod. She was terrified again.

"Sam, are we moving?" Zoey asked quietly as her colour drained again. Sam's heart almost stopped as she realized that Zoey was right.

"What the hell is going on?" Sam exclaimed and she pushed her door open. She screamed and pulled it back close. They were so far from the ground that if she had fallen, she would have ended up as street pancake. Zoey began to cry and pray. Sam tried to relax while the questions rumbled in her mind. She had to accept her death.

"What is it? What is it?"Zoey exclaimed. With eyes shut, Sam answered her.

"It's a ghost." And with those three words, Sam heard the most agonizing blood curdling scream. It didn't sound human. Her eyes flew open and she realized that it was Zoey. She looked as if she was possessed. Tears ran down her cheeks and into her clothes. She was flinging her limbs all over the place and ripping her clothes. It was then that Sam remembered that she was terrified of ghosts, no, not just terrified, horribly petrified. Sam started crying too as the car rose even more. Then with a flick of the wrist, Sam was imagining, the car was sent flying in the air, spiraling actually, destination unknown.

Sam could not drown out Zoey's screams of horror, no matter how hard she closed her eyes. It wouldn't matter, in a few seconds they would collide with a house, or a tree or a road, or a person and they would all be dead. She stopped screaming, letting the tears wash her face, her mind half-way to the other side. Then suddenly, it stopped. Sam's eyes were wrenched open by the impact of its stop. In mid-air. Her heart was beating unnaturally, but what could someone who was dying do about that? She looked at Zoey. She had passed out. She began worrying about her. Someone could die of shock. She couldn't will her hands to move. She was scared stiff. She focused on outside and realized that slowly, very slowly, they were being lowered to the ground.

Which ghost had it been? Was he or she merely playing with their lives? And when since did ghosts live in Cambridge? She closed her eyes again, only to force them open. The car landed gently on the ground and before she could try and move to open the door, her door was yanked open and a familiar face pushed itself into her view.

"Phantom," she said. She passed out. Today was just too much.

Wow, I am definitely on a roll. I actually finished this the same day I put out chapter 8 and I was just writing and everything came to me. It's just amazing! But now, the mystery ghost introduces a problem. Who is he or she? What about the stranger in the road? Is he linked to it all? Who is he? I'm getting excited myself! Don't you just love my cliffies?!