Danny was sleeping in his room when his phone rang. Baby… let me sleep for a little longer, he mumbled. It wasn't long before he was back on Dream Street until he heard a door open. Then, he felt a sudden cold wave of air cover him. Was it a ghost? No, it couldn't be.

"Hey. Danny." A voice spoke. The voice sounded familiar to the ghost boy, but he was still trying to sleep.

"Five more minutes, please…" He whispered sleepily.

"Danny, Dash is here to see you. He says he's taking you out somewhere." The voice replied. Then, it clicked for him who that belonged to: Jazz. "Come on, Danny. You've got to get up."

"Just a minute—"

"DASH!" She shouted out, forcing Danny to jump up and speed off to take a shower. "I knew it would work." She smiled as she went back downstairs to meet Dash.

"Is he up yet?"

"After I practically scared him."

The two laughed and were surprisingly getting along nicely. Jazz may have been a college girl, but she knew when she had to be a sister and, sometimes, the woman of the house.

"Best sister in the world. You know, I didn't think you'd be this open to Danny being with me." Dash remarked after the two had settled down.

"Why do you think that, Dash?"

"Well, because I used to be—"

Jazz knew what he was saying and immediately stopped him. "Dash, that was when you guys were still kids. You're both eighteen now. I know I sound like a mom—that's what I get for dealing with Danny my whole life—but you make him happy, and he makes you happy. Just don't—"

"Don't do anything to him that will result in me either in a hospital or six feet underground, I know."

Jazz laughed and rested her hand on Dash's shoulder. "Hey, you got a good thing going on with Danny. Don't overthink it."

"Even with everything going between him and his friends?"

She sighed and told Dash something serious. "They'll come around, Dash. It may take some time, but trust me when I say they'll come around."

Years ago, she didn't think this would happen. Any of this. However, she had come to terms with the harsh, cold reality that what she once thought would exist forever had shattered before her eyes. And truth be told…

It still stung like a bitch.

She laid in her bed, staring at the ceiling. That's all she's been doing since they stopped talking with each other. No, not all of this was her fault, but she no longer had her two closest friends. One didn't want to be around for a while, and the other was outright banned from the friendship until he stopped being jealous. Then, she received a phone call.

"Hello, you've reached the Department of Misery. How can I help you?" She said depressingly.

"We need to talk."

"What?"

"We. Need. To. Talk."

"I'm too depressed and angry to even turn on the lights, let alone talk to you, Tucker. But how can I be of assistance in the midst of my misery?"

"I'm just trying to check on you."

"You've got some nerve." She remarked as she hung up instantaneously. "I don't want to hear anything from him until we go back to school."

Sam could say with full confidence that she was in her depression era, and needed to get out of it soon.

"Danny, come on! You cannot keep him waiting like this!" Jazz shouted upstairs. Even though Dash had only been waiting for two minutes.

"Yep, definitely a mom." Dash said quietly as he saw Danny sprint down the stairs and into his arms. "That was quick."

"Hi, babe. Sorry I made you wait." Danny replied quickly, giving Dash a quick kiss before catching his breath.

"It's all good, love. I got something for you waiting for us at our reservation. Come on. See you, Jazz!"

"See you! And remember to stay safe." She called after the two. "Heh, those two were meant for each other."

On the car ride, Danny couldn't contain his excitement. Although there was one slight issue: he was blindfolded. He couldn't take it off either because it would ruin Dash's plan. Sometime after, he felt the car stop and he heard Dash get out. Then, he felt his door open and Dash called out to him.

"Hand."

One word was all it took for Danny to step out of the car and close the door. He still couldn't see, so he walked with Dash to wherever the date would be. He soon heard Dash utter the words, "Take it off." He reached up for the blindfold and untied it to reveal what the surprise was. Dash somehow managed to pull off a romantic dinner set up, in a secluded area of the park, where he could view the sunset and a waterfall. He was truly stunned.

"How did you– I– Dash, you… you remembered I like sunsets?"

"Of course, baby. Now, let's sit before our dinner gets cold."

They did just that, and after an hour of eating, the two sat and watched the sunset. The scene was set perfectly for Dash as he pulled something out of his pocket and held it in his hand. It was a red velvet box. He handed it to Danny.

"Baby boy, do me a favor and open this box."

Danny was even more shocked at the gift. He had never experienced such an incredible first date before, and this seemed to be the pièce de la résistance. He held it and hesitated for a moment.

"Dash… what is this?" He questioned skeptically.

"Open it and see, love."

The ghost boy opened the box, and was surprised to see a diamond ring with his initials engraved in it. The amount of shock on his face was priceless.

"Dash! You–you bought me… a promise ring?" Danny asked, looking at the beautiful jewel in his possession.

"I did. We've been dating for almost three months now, and you deserve something that is just as beautiful as you are." He replied with a smile.

The candlelit dinner, the sunset, and now a ring? Danny couldn't believe it. Soon, he and Dash would be nineteen and going to college after graduating. He and Dash could go to college together, graduate from there, and live together. He had a future with Dash.

"I love it… and it fits perfectly. Why did you do all of this?" Danny was still in shock. "I mean–"

Dash stopped him. "Hey, hey, hey. Don't say you don't deserve this. You've had a rough seven months, Danny. And if I'm being honest, a rough year. You deserve to be given the prince treatment, and I'm gonna give it to you."

"Dash, I… I don't know what to say." Danny smiled as he teared up and hugged Dash. "You've been there for me these past few months, and I've…" The tears started to flow, but Danny kept smiling. "I've never been so lucky to have someone like you."

Dash could feel his heart thundering like crazy in his heart. He grinned from ear to ear and held Danny close to him. "Babe, that's what that ring will forever symbolize. I'm yours, and you're mine. I will never hurt you, I will never leave you, and if anything happens to you, I will get violent. I promise to protect you with my life, no matter what."

Danny clung to Dash. For all of the hell he's endured in these past 12 months, he now had a reason to be happy again. He now had a reason to love himself again. That reason… was none other than Dash Baxter, his new favorite hero.

"We're locked in together." Danny sighed contently.

"And no one can break us up." Dash replied, holding Danny at his side as they took in this amazing night.

A/N: What a hectic summer thus far. I think I'll be doing these Author's Notes after eery chapter so I can gather my thoughts on everything. First things first: a date and a ring?! Damn. Dash is doing everything right (for someone who hasn't been in a relationship before), and Danny is honestly shocked by this because his trauma has forced him to think he doesn't deserve the love, but that all seems to be changing. Meanwhile, it appears that his former friends are going through a rough patch right now, especially Sam. I may end up dedicating an entire chapter to her thoughts from the end of her relationship with Danny to when they return for the first day of senior year. Of course, the end goal of this is to have everything reach the end at graduation. The question for now is: will Danny and Dash's relationship last forever, or is this dream going to turn into another nightmare for the ghost boy?