Lyrics by Awolnation - Not Your Fault

"Pamela?"

Ten year old Sam stood still, hoping her father wouldn't notice her. He came into the kitchen and found her by the cabinets. "Samantha! Where's your mother?"

HI DAD.

"I don't know," Sam said looking at the ground.

"She didn't go out again, did she? Pamela!"

I'VE MISSED YOU.

"She might be at the Sanchez house."

"Sanchez? Of course!" Jeremy ran out the door.

Knowing it was hopeless, Sam ran into the bathroom and cried. She hated her dad, but she hated herself more.

HI DAD. I'VE MISSED YOU. PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME AGAIN.

~Baby, when I'm yellin' at you,

It's not your fault,

It's not your fault, yeah and

Baby cause I'm crazy for you,

It's not your fault

It's not your fault, yeah and,

Maybe I'm a little confused,

It's not your fault

It's not your fault, yeah and

Baby, it's a wonderful news.

It's not your fault,

It's not your fault~

"You're not trying to run away, are you?"

Sam looked up from her spot on the welcome mat to find a delinquent grinning at her. She was in the process of tying one of Maddie's shoes onto her foot. It was scary how similar Sam and Danny's mother were when it came to clothing sizes.

"Of course not." She secured the knot and stood up, meeting his eyes with a scowl.

"Then where are you going?"

"That's really none of your business," Sam stated, walking around Danny to the coat closet. She pulled out a simple white scarf, wrapping it around her neck.

Danny took a step forward, dangerously close to touching her back. "My house. My business."

Sam glared. She could feel his body pressed up against her. "I'm going out to look for the cat." She spun around quickly to avoid the proximity, keeping her eyes on the ground.

Danny blinked as Sam grabbed a jacket from the sofa. "You mean that dangerous thing that tried to scratch your face off? That doesn't seem very smart."

"Yeah, well, I've never really been known for my smart choices. Like this situation, for instance." She buttoned the jacket, reaching for the doorknob.

Danny pulled his own coat from the closet. "I'll go with you."

"I'd rather you not."

"Are you mad?" Danny accused, and Sam immediately froze. "I answered your questions, and invited you to my house. You're not in any position to be avoiding me."

Sam took a breath, allowing her fingers to slowly release the doorknob. "I'm sorry," she apologized, turning to him. "A lot has just happened in a short period of time."

Danny's eyes softened as her nervously touched the back of his neck. "Once they clear out the ghost, you're free to get your stuff. I'm sure everything's fine–"

"It's not that." Sam sighed, meeting his gaze for the first time. With disbelief, Danny realized Sam was blushing. "Are you coming or not?" She demanded with a forced glare.

Danny's confusion quickly melted into a knowing smirk. "Lead the way."

They walked along the pavement together in complete silence. It was unusually cold in Amity Park this season, and with any luck they might even get a bit of snow. Sam bit her lip when a gush of cold wind blew through her, but when she saw Danny staring she forced herself not to shiver.

Danny grinned at Sam's stubborn nature and glanced up at the cloudy sky. "So, did you talk to your parents yet?"

She let out a shaky breath. "About what?"

"Your house?" He raised an eyebrow. "They're eventually going to figure out it was destroyed."

"Right, that...I sent them a letter."

"That's it?" Danny demanded, forcing the goth to stop in her tracks. "You didn't have any direct contact with them whatsoever?"

Sam took a deep breath, trembling. "Look, I know I'm the mysterious girl and everything and you're just trying to figure me out, but you have no right to tell me what to do. My parents..." She struggled for words. "We never had a good relationship. So stop prying."

He glared at her response. "You seem to have no problem asking me questions."

"You're not exactly normal, Danny."

"Neither are you."

Sam watched Danny with serious eyes. She could feel her temperature rise for a completely different reason. His stupid teenage hormones were somehow finding Sam attractive, and it scared the hell out of her.

Danny's gaze fell from her piercing violet eyes to the scarf she had tied around her neck; the only thing hiding her scars. He had the sudden urge to rip it off.

A soft meow interrupted their staring contest.

Sam blinked. "Danny."

"What?" He prompted, slightly irritated.

Sam blushed, looking away. "Nothing. I, um...that's what I named the cat."

Danny smirked, turning Sam's embarrassment into anger. "You named a cat after me?"

"Since you guys are such assholes I found the name fitting."

The blue eyed delinquent stared up at the sky, content. "And yet you can't leave either of us alone." His ice blue eyes met hers once more. "I wonder why."

Sam sighed, bending over in search for the cat. "I have a knack for saving defenseless creatures."

Danny watched Sam as began digging through bushes and plants, ignoring when she extended her butt out. "Defenseless?" He repeated. "Where did that come from?"

"Well, you're both stupid, for one." She could feel his glare through her shoulder blades. "And you seem to think you can push people away by hurting them." She glanced up at his confused expression. "Don't play dumb. You said yourself you're not really a delinquent, and yet you beat people up every chance you get." She shook her head. "I don't get it."

"What's there to get?" Danny questioned, receiving silence from the goth. "What about you?" He countered, angry for being ignored.

Her body stiffened at his words. "I told you about my family."

"There's more than that, Sam."

Sam stood up again, turning to him with a new anger. "You know what I can't understand?" She unwrapped the scarf around her neck so the bruises appeared. "You were the only person to know about these marks, and yet you didn't once accuse my parents. Aren't you wondering where they came from? Or do you just assume I'm doing it to myself?"

Danny's ring tone went off, filling the tense silence with a cheery tune. He dug his phone out of his pocket, quickly checking the screen. "Mom?"

"Danny? Thank God, are you okay?"

"Yeah?" His eyes flickered to Sam. "What's wrong?"

"Listen, is Sam with you? I need you both to come home immediately. And also…"

"Mom?"

"Vlad's home," she whispered, just before hanging up.

Danny stuffed the phone in his pocket, thinking quickly.

"Danny?" Sam asked.

"My mom wants us home right now." He began walking back the way they'd came.

"Why, what's wrong?" Sam said, struggling to catch up. "Did something happen?"

"I don't know. She didn't tell me."

Sam followed quickly behind, unsure of what to say. Danny's face had gone pale and his body was in that tense position she remembered from the first time she encountered him. Something else must have happened to provoke such a reaction.

"Hey, Danny…" She reached out a gloved hand to grab Danny's arm. Danny turned and before she knew what was happening he had her back to him, holding her outstretched hand in-between her shoulder blades the way a cop might suppress a criminal.

She gasped, unable to expression the pain. Danny immediately released her at the sound.

"I…I'm sorry, Sam," Danny admitted in horror. "Are you okay?" He extended his hand again. Sam jumped back as if he were approaching her with fire.

His face froze. They stood in the bitter cold, and yet neither of them moved a muscle. "I'm so sorry, Sam. Please, don't…" She flinched as he took a step forward. "Say something. Anything."

Sam felt small at the moment, like her right to speak had been taken away from her. She refused to meet his eyes, both fear and embarrassment winning over her. "It's…It's not your fault," she murmured.

"What do you–"

"Your mom's looking for us, right?" She forced herself to meet his gaze. "We better go."

"Thank God you two are alright," Maddie said, hugging her son at the door. "But you're freezing. Are you sure you wore enough layers?" She patted him down, attempting to warm his muscles.

Danny sighed. "I'm fine, Mom."

"Is something wrong?" Sam asked, taking off the extra layers.

Maddie turned to the goth now, her usually warm expression frozen. "Your parents have been trying to get a hold of you all day, Sam. They thought you were in your house when the ghost attacked."

She ignored the news about her parents, hoping Danny would too. "My house? How do you know about that?"

"It's all over the news. The ghost has been causing so much havoc that the entire town has been affected. That's one of the reasons why it's freezing outside. And school's been canceled, so I don't want anyone stepping foot outside this house until we're safe, understand?"

"Yes."

Maddie went for her jacket, pulling it on. "Vlad and I need to head over to headquarters. We might have something that will help. And Sam." Maddie walked over to the goth, staring her straight in the eyes. "If anything shall happen while I'm gone, you know what to do."

Sam nodded as Maddie made her way out the door. The sound of it closing behind her was like the end of an argument. They were both trapped in a house that suddenly felt too small.

"I didn't mean to hurt you."

Sam glanced back at Danny, who stood motionless against the wall. He raked a hand through his hair nervously, staring down at the hard wood floor.

Sam couldn't bring herself to comfort him. She crossed her arms, looking away. "Maybe now isn't the best time–"

"You're scared of me now, aren't you?" His tone had gone from soft to threatening. "You really thought I was going to do something."

Sam's eyes burned with unshed tears. "You're right. I was scared, but you haven't exactly made this easy for me. You've hurt several people before without purpose. So what's stopping you from hitting me?"

"I thought you weren't afraid of a little pain. That cat scratched you up and you still came back for him."

"That was completely different, Danny."

"How?" He demanded, taking a step toward her. "Is it because he's defenseless? Because he keeps pushing you away? You said we were alike. So why can't you forgive me?"

"Why does it matter what I think? We're not even friends."

Danny stopped. The entire atmosphere had gone still between them. "You're right," the boy said, staring at her. "We aren't friends."

Without notice, Danny took Sam's face and crushed her lips to his. She froze, trying to make sense of the moment, as his tongue glided along her unyielding lips. His sudden aggression scared her to death as Sam began shoving him away with her hands. She pushed him off with great strength, her hands shaking.

Danny let out gulps of air. "Do you really hate me, Sam?" He asked, looking hurt for some reason.

Sam's cheeks burned, her heart racing, her breathing heavy. He was a bad guy. Only someone truly terrible would force her into something she didn't want, so why did his face look desperate, like he was longing for her approval?

She held her hands up in an attempt to shield her blushing face. "I don't know what to think," Sam mumbled just as Danny blacked out.