After a disastrous day at school, Danny flew around town, trying to clear his mind after what he did to Dash. He knew he should feel terrible after brutalizing him but instead of regret, he felt satisfaction. He was able to unleash years of anger onto Dash and it felt good. And normally that would scare Danny, but in his emotionally volatile state, it didn't even phase him.
"Dash had it coming. He should've known not to talk about my sister like that." Danny thought to himself.
He continued to fly around for a while until he stopped and thought about what he should do next.
"Alright, what to do now? Can't go home unless I want Mom, Dad, or Jazz freaking out over me being possibly expelled. Can't go to Sam, Tucker, or Lancer either because I'm not in the mood for them to worry about me. What about…Valerie? Yeah, Valerie! I can talk to her about this. Maybe I can get rid of one of my problems by telling her the truth. Telling her I'm Phantom. Even if she hates my guts, I'll at least get it off my chest." Danny thought to himself.
Danny flew to the Nasty Burger and changed back to his human self behind a tree before entering the fast-food joint. But when he walked into the place, he happened to enter a bad situation, as a customer was yelling at his girlfriend.
"This is ridiculous! How could you run out of mustard?" asked the customer.
"Sir, I don't control how much inventory we have. I'm just a server. If you have a complaint, I can bring you the manager." said Valerie, trying to keep her cool and not strangle the guy.
"Please. Maybe I can talk to someone more competent." said the customer.
Usually, Danny would avoid conflict with strangers and use his aggression on ghosts and Vlad. But he was not about to stand there and watch his girlfriend get insulted by some douchebag customer.
He walked up to the customer and asked, "Hey, who do you think you're talking to?"
"Why does it matter to you?" replied the customer.
"That's my girlfriend and you're going to treat her with some respect." said Danny.
"That's your girlfriend? Ouch. I feel bad for you." said the customer.
Beyond pissed, Danny asked, "What the fuck is that supposed to mean?"
"You know exactly what I mean." said the customer.
"Listen, buddy, I'm only going to say this once. Unless you want to end up in the hospital, I suggest you SHUT THE FUCK UP and eat your goddamn burger." Danny said in the same tone he used for the Box Ghost and Skulker.
Now terrified, the customer did shut up and ate his burger quietly.
"Danny! Are you trying to get me fired?!" asked Valerie.
"Val, we need to talk. Can we do it outside?" said Danny.
"Fine, but it better be important." said Valerie.
"Trust me, it is." said Danny.
The couple then walked out of the Nasty Burger and Valerie said, "Alright Danny, this better be quick. I'm still on a schedule."
"Okay, but before I tell you what's going on, can you promise me something?" asked Danny.
"Okay. What?" asked Valerie.
"I need you to promise that you won't freak out or attack me after I say what I need to say." said Danny.
"Attack you? Danny, what could you possibly say that would provoke me into violence? Unless you and Vlad got some weird deal going on, considering he's more-or-less your unofficial uncle." said Valerie.
"What? No. I would never sell my soul to that fruit loop. It's something that I've been keeping a secret for…a long time. And it's been killing me because I want to feel free but with my secret being what it is, it's impossible." said Danny.
"Danny, what are you saying?" asked an increasingly worried Valerie.
"You know how Phantom and his Ghost Dog cost your dad his job and your wealth, forcing you two to live in a shitty apartment?" asked Danny.
"Yeah. What about it?" asked Valerie.
"Well, I think it's time I take responsibility for ruining your life." said Danny.
"What responsibility? You weren't there." said Valerie.
"Actually, I was." Danny said before transforming into Phantom in front of her.
Valerie didn't say anything. She was too shocked to say anything. Danny Fenton, the boy she initially hated until she got to know him and fell in love with him, was Danny Phantom, the ghost who ruined her life.
"Valerie, please listen to me. I'm sorry about what I did. I never intended on costing your dad his job. I never wanted your life to get worse. I never want anyone's life to get worse because of me. But I did and I'm so sorry." Danny said, hoping his words would get through to Valerie.
Unfortunately, his words were no good, as Valerie, who had angry tears in her eyes, gave him not one, but two violent slaps to the face.
"Fuck your apology." Valerie said bitterly.
"Valerie, please." said Danny.
"NO! I'm not listening to you anymore! We're through! Finished! I…I can't believe I fell for you in the first place. I should've known to stay away from you." Valerie said before storming back into the Nasty Burger.
"Wow, that couldn't have gone any worse. Maybe I should've kept her in the dark like everyone else." Danny thought to himself, as he processed the slaps he received from his now-former girlfriend.
Refusing to end the conversation like that, Danny tried to walk back into the Nasty Burger so he could truly explain everything to her.
That decision turned out to be a mistake, as he was sent flying thanks to a blast of ghost rays hitting him in the chest. When he looked to see who or what hit him, he saw Valerie wearing her new-and-improved battle suit, looking even more angry than she was before.
"I knew I should've destroyed you when I had the chance." said Valerie.
Knowing this would not get any better, Danny threw away his feelings and emotions and was now prepared to fight the girl he truly thought would be the one.
Hope you enjoyed the chapter. It's been over 7 months since the last chapter. Oof. I'm terribly sorry about that. I put this story on the back burner for a long time, while working on other stories (mostly Total Drama). But very recently, I had the urge to finish this chapter and I'm happy about the way it turned out. Now, the next chapter will be a direct follow-up to this one, as Danny and Valerie will have their fight. A fight that will be equal parts emotionally and physically brutal. I intended to put it in this chapter, but I thought it would be too long. Plus, I think it works as its own chapter. Also, I'm working on other stories right now, so stay tuned for more updates. Other than that, I hope you all have a wonderful day. Bye for now and stay safe.