SUNDAY NIGHT

There was a soothing silence in Dash's room, as the star quarterback was sleeping calmly with his boyfriend, Danny, curled up under him like he usually is every night. Unfortunately, something was causing Danny to not be able to find the same comfort as Dash. He felt his body twitch over and over, which soon escalated into violent jerks. The ghost boy tossed and turned against the athlete's body more and more furiously as his nightmare intensified.

ELEVEN MONTHS AGO

"Well well well. Look who we have here, guys." One football player remarked as Danny hit the ground, shifting back to normal.

"Fresh meat." Another one chimed in.

"What are you two talking about?" Danny questioned as he slowly stood back to his feet.

"Tough break, Fenton. You just got betrayed by your best friend. Which means…. it's time." A voice Danny knew all too well spoke. Kwan loomed over the stunned halfa menacingly. Delivering a swift punch, Danny collapsed to the ground groaning. "Get him, boys. And don't let him go." The other two football guys held Danny up, forcing him to look at the threatening boy in front of him. Kwan pulled something out from behind him and placed it onto Danny. It was the Specter Deflector. How Kwan got that, Danny had no idea. All he knew is that he was in trouble. "Now, guys… since our special guest has arrived, what do you say we have some fun?"

Danny looked at all three boys in defiance and spat in Kwan's face. Breaking free from the strong grip the other two who held on to him, he charged at Kwan and tackled him down in a fierce attack with what little strength he had. However, Danny soon found himself in a three-on-one situation. "H-Hey… let me go. Let me go!" Danny protested as the other two guys kept a strong grip on his arms while he struggled to get free.

Kwan brushed his nose and smirked. "You think that's how this is gonna go? Think again." He punched Danny right in the face, sending him crashing down onto the cold, hard floor. Danny was scared for his life. He didn't know what to do, especially with the Specter Deflector on him. He slid back to the door, trying to keep the football players from detaining him again.

"Don't touch me…" Danny shuddered in the cold room. He felt his back hit the door, and he could go nowhere else. "Don't touch me." He repeated. One of his arms was pressed on the door, so he used what little strength he had left to bang on it as hard as he could. Danny was shaking. He couldn't escape, he couldn't run, and he couldn't go ghost. This was a fight he was bound to lose.

PRESENT

"Get away from me… please, get away from me…" Danny muttered quietly, his voice dripping with terror and anxiety. He continued to jerk his body, eventually waking up the muscle man behind him.

Dash, sensing something was wrong, stirred awake slightly before noticing Danny aggressively tossing and turning in his sleep. He was having a nightmare, and from the sound of the ghost boy's panicked voice, it was really intense. He sat up and rested a hand on Danny's shoulder gently. However, Danny's mind was trapped in the repeat of the nightmare he was having: re-experiencing his hazing.

"Let me… let me go…" He groaned, his voice rising in desperation and fear. Dash shook him softly, trying to wake him up.

"Danny, wake up, baby. It's just a dream." He whispered calmly. He knew that by talking at a normal volume, he'd only irritate the ghost boy more.

Danny didn't wake up. He just remained stuck in the hellish memory of that traumatizing day, his body jerking harder and harder. "Don't fucking touch me…" His body remembers the feeling of the punches, kicks, and the stomps. "Get off of me… please…"

Dash was becoming more concerned, and before he had time to even react, he felt a sharp, stinging pain on his face… similar to what he felt when Danny slapped him. "Danny, it's me, Dash. Wake up, baby. Wake up."

For a moment, Danny stopped speaking. When he did, his body violently jerked again. Dash ignored the pain in his face and swung himself onto Danny, grabbing his wrists firmly, but gently, to restrain the ghost boy without injuring him. Tears formed in the corners of Danny's eyes, and as they leaked out, he said something that broke Dash's heart.

"Please… no more. Don't touch me! No more!"

Dash, now fully awake and nervous, increased his hold on Danny. He calmly spoke, piercing the heavy storm of his boyfriend's nightmare. "Danny, baby. It's okay. I'm right here, love. Wake up."

Danny struggled as hard as he could, his body fighting against the restraint, and his mind still trapped in the trauma that had never left him. Dash's voice began to slowly penetrate the fog of terror, a lifeline pulling him back to his senses. His movements slowed, the tension in his muscles easing as his eyes fluttered open, unfocused and glazed with pain.

"It's okay, my love. It was just a dream. I'm here."

Danny felt disoriented, the stranglehold of his nightmare fading away and reality soon coming back to him. His eyes looked around the room, and didn't stop until he saw two baby blue orbs looking at him worryingly. That's when it set in. "D-Dash?"

"It's okay, Danny." Dash sighed. "It's okay. I'm right here, and I'm not going anywhere or allowing anyone to hurt you."

Danny felt his tears build up again, and as he made eye contact with Dash, he let them break loose. "I'm sorry… I'm so sorry…"

Dash pulled the crying ghost boy up and held him closely and tightly, rocking him gently as he felt a tear stream down his face. "It wasn't your fault, love. I'm here. You're safe, Danny. You're safe."

Danny continued crying in Dash's arms, the trauma of the past mixing with the present's comfort. He felt like hiding, like he didn't want to be here. The nightmare had left its mark and threatened to bring back the memories of suicide attempts, heartbreak, and depression. However, in the embrace of his lover, he found a safe space. One that promised to stay with him throughout all the pain and darkness, and let him know that he wasn't on his own anymore.

"I'm here, baby. I'm here…" Dash repeated quietly as he felt his sadness transition into anger. "I'm gonna make them regret it… ALL of them…" He murmured to himself.

The morning sun rose, and Danny laid in Dash's arms. His body steadily rose and fell calmly. Meanwhile, Dash was wide awake. He refused to sleep until he knew Danny was calm and comforted. He also refused to sleep because of how angry he was at the fact that he played a role in one of the most traumatic experiences of Danny's life, and that Danny would possibly never recover from it. He was angry at the fact that his teammates chose to attack someone that has never done anything to them. He was angry at Tucker for orchestrating the entire thing, which was out of nothing but jealousy.

"Since they hurt my baby, they need to feel the pain."

Danny soon stirred awake, his teal eyes opening and going straight up to Dash. "Good morning."

"Hi, my love." Dash smiled, forcing himself to be happy. "Are you okay after last night?"

"Yeah. I'm sorry I scared the shit out of you. The memories came rushing back so fast while I was sleeping, though."

"It's okay. I understand." Dash replied, hugging Danny close to him. "I'm not gonna let anyone hurt you again, because if they do…"

"They got to see you." The ghost boy chuckled and kissed Dash.

"Got that right, baby. Hey, that reminds me. We're going to be late. Come on, let's get dressed."

"Okay, but don't take forever in the shower like you always do. I'm not coming in there to get you out." Danny laughed.

"Fine." Dash playfully whined before getting up and heading to the bathroom.

"Sheesh, only my boyfriend." Danny chuckled to himself. "I love him, though."

LATER THAT DAY

Danny sat in the back of the room, surrounded by Dash, Sam, and Tucker. As the lesson about the Civil War was going on, and he took notes, something felt off. His vision began to blur, his heart rate quickened, and he felt like he couldn't breathe.

"What the hell is going on right now?" He thought. "I'm wide awake, but… I feel myself slipping back to… last night."

Danny attempted to continue writing, but he couldn't shake the fear from last night. His hand started to tremble, his foot began tapping the ground excessively, and his breathing became shallow. The room sounded like the laughs and taunts from the football team when they were attacking him. He could feel the blows all over again, and he shut his eyes in an attempt to get the memory off of him that clung like a shadow that would not let go.

"Danny?" A voice that he knew very well, although quiet, cut through his mind like a knife. The ghost boy opened his eyes and they instantly shifted to the boy next to him, Dash. "Hey, you okay?"

"I-I can't breathe, Dash." He whispered quickly, feeling his chest tighten with anxiety. "I keep seeing… I keep hearing them…"

Dash took Danny's hand into his, stroked it with his thumb, and looked into the panicked teal eyes of his boyfriend. "Listen to me, Danny. They're not going to hurt you, love. I promise."

Reality slowly set back in for Danny, his eyes staying locked to Dash's. "What if they try again? I'm… I'm scared, Dash. I'm really scared."

"Not while I'm here, baby." Dash answered, a fierce protectiveness and slight anger in his expression. "They won't, and if anyone thinks about touching you, they'll have to deal with me."

Danny could feel his body relaxing, allowing him to take a deep breath, and get back to writing. "Thank you, Dash. I don't know what I would do without you."

"Anytime, my love." Dash smiled. The smile, yet again, was forced, in hopes that Danny wouldn't know its true meaning. Secretly, he was planning his revenge. And he was going to start with Tucker.

Sam decided to wait on Danny outside of class to talk to him. She knew they weren't on the best of terms right now, but she wanted some one-on-one time with him. "Hey, Danny." She said as he walked up to her.

"Hi. You wanted to talk to me?" Danny replied, feeling calm again after what happened earlier. He didn't think he was upset at Sam anymore, and kind of felt bad for distancing himself from her for so long.

"Yeah. Let's walk." Sam nodded and began walking to the main doors with Danny. "First, where's Dash? He's usually right next to you."

"Oh, he left early. Told me that he had some stuff to take care of."

"Okay. Second, what happened to you earlier? You looked like you were having a panic attack or something." Sam asked hesitantly as the two stepped out into the warm outside air.

"Yeah… I kind of was. I had a nightmare last night where I was pretty much reliving the whole… you know… thing."

"Oh…"

"And for a moment, I felt like I was slipping back to those days, but thankfully, Dash calmed me down."

"He's really not that bad of a guy, Danny." Sam chuckled, trying to lighten the mood.

"I told you that." Danny laughed as they continued walking to Nasty Burger. "Where's your little lapdog? He's not following you around anymore?"

"No, and I don't know. After homecoming, I stopped talking to him. It didn't feel right because of, well, everything that has happened. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if Dash did something to him."

Danny wasn't shocked at how cold Sam was being towards Tucker. He deserved nothing but the worst, nothing but how he felt when he was attacked. However, he and Sam didn't know that that was actually about to happen.

"You thought I was going to just forget what you did?" Dash growled, holding Tucker by the collar. Tucker was seemingly unfazed.

"Woah, Dash. Chill out, man. The guys just wanted to have a little fun with him. No harm done." He smirked confidently.

"No harm done?" Dash's grip tightened, shattering Tucker's 'unbreakable' arrogance and causing the nerd to wince. "No harm done? Danny had bruised ribs, a concussion, and several scars and wounds left on his body. He looked like he was about to die in my damn arms had I not rushed him to the hospital, and you're talking about there was no harm done?! He hasn't been able to cope with what happened to the point where he had a nightmare and wouldn't relax until I RESTRAINED HIM so he could relax. He's been messed up ever since, and you talk about no harm DONE?!"

"Now, come on, Dash. I-I didn't know it was that bad, but look. Danny's not made of glass. He can handle a few hits, okay?"

"He can handle a few hits." The star athlete chuckled before a fire lit in his eyes and he stared daggers into Tucker's head. "You don't get to talk about him like that. You don't get to even talk to him at ALL. YOU ended your friendship with him because of fucking jealousy, and you hurt him more than anyone."

Tucker was genuinely terrified for the first time and attempted to speak, but the irate quarterback refused to let him.

"And now, you're going to pay for it."

Dash released Tucker only to give him a swift and hard punch to the stomach. Tucker went down in seconds, wincing and struggling to breathe. Dash picked him up and made the tech nerd look him in the eyes.

"D-Dash, come on, man. You don't have to do this." Tucker pleaded. "Please, Dash, don't. Please."

"Oh, but I do, my guy. I do." Dash smirked devilishly before delivering another punch to the stomach, along with a punch to the face that caused Tucker to crumble back to the ground, crying out in pain. In Dash's mind, the pleas from Tucker registered as nothing but background noise, just like Danny's from almost a year ago. He kneeled next to the boy and whispered in his ear. "Trust me when I tell you, I was NOT as brutal as I could've been. This was nothing compared to what you let them put Danny through. Consider yourself very VERY lucky, Foley. Because when I'm done, everyone is going to know just how much of a mistake it was messing with him."

Tucker was clutching his stomach and his face, coughing up blood and trying to catch his breath. Dash walked away before taking one final look at his wounded prey. He got back on one knee and pulled Tucker up on a knee to look at him.

"Oh, and if I see you say anything to Danny, I won't hold any anger back next time. Take this warning very seriously. Don't let me catch you ever talking to or looking at him again, or I'll have to break your damn face."

He released Tucker, letting him crumble back down like a badly beaten animal, before turning on his heel and walking off of the field. He made a promise to Danny, and he was going to keep it if it was the last thing he did. Everyone involved would suffer dire consequences at his hands, and next was the three guys Tucker enlisted to help him: Kwan, Dale, and Jake. They would soon regret laying a finger on Danny… and he'd make sure of that.

Dash would certainly make sure of that real soon.