Danny hated the way everything was going. Ever since his release from the hospital, everyone has been treating him like a ticking time bomb. Like one wrong move and Danny was going to collapse to the ground again. He had wanted to keep the hospital visit as quiet as possible, except this was a small town. Before he was even discharged, everyone in town seemed to know he had a supposedly weak heart now. That so much as a little argument could send the teen to the ground.

It wasn't fair. None of it was fair. Everyone was either avoiding him like the plague, or doting on him like he was completely useless. Teachers at school didn't seem to want to even scold Danny. His bullies have taken to completely avoid him, no one wanting to risk being the reason poor weak Danny Fenton dies. It was ironic, and horrible. Danny couldn't help but feel completely pissed off at the state of things.

Sam and Tucker have been the closest to normal that Danny could hope for. At first, they had bombarded him with questions and concern. But just like the initial portal accident, it took a few minutes of Danny doubling down on being fine before they let it go a bit. Danny was certain they didn't believe him, not with the way the two shared a look. They stopped asking, and right now that's what Danny wanted everyone to do.

"What happened?"

Sam had been the first one to broach the topic, one that Danny really didn't want to relive, but these were his best friends. He felt like he hid so much from them as is, and with... with Maddie not being home right now, Danny had to tell them. He could only imagine how hurt the two would feel if they found out later. So that's how Danny ripped the bandage off. Seat on the floor of Sam's room, the trio sat around in a small circle.

Danny had an idea of what to expect from his friends. He knew Sam would be pissed, that she would be ready to march down to wherever Maddie is holed up and give her a piece of her mind. So when her face grew red with anger, and Danny could practically see the rage building, he expected it. This was Sam, his hotheaded goth friend that never liked standing by when her friends are hurt.

What Danny hadn't expected was for Tucker to be right next to Sam on it. He seemed just as angry, just as ready to tear Maddie a new one. Tucker, his usually levelheaded if not nervous techno geek of a friend, looked ready to join Sam on the hunt. That threw Danny off more than anything, had him feeling just a tad worried. Tucker didn't even seem this angry when Dash had broken his PDA once and got off without consequence.

Danny tried to backtrack before either of his friend could speak up. He wasn't mad at his mom, not truly... not really. It was his fault, Danny knew he had hit a raw nerve with what he had said. He shouldn't have stooped that low, he should have known better. His mother was trying her best, she just wanted what's best for him. It's not her fault she didn't know the full story behind Vlad.

"Danny, dude, stop! It doesn't matter what you said! Maddie hit you. Your own mother, and this isn't like... it's not like when she sees you as Phantom. She hit you, Danny. That's just not... she can't just..."

It was clear Tucker was getting heated, and flustered when he cut Danny off. Tucker had stood from the floor, starting to pace around Sam's bedroom as he seemed to struggle and stumble over his words. It made Danny feel worse, like maybe he shouldn't have told them. Things were already so tense and awkward in his own home, and Danny was already stressing about Jazz and Jack being angry, or even hating, Maddie. He couldn't add to that growing number.

"I think what Tuck is trying to say is... Maddie's your mom, Danny. It's her job to keep arguments and fights civil, but she didn't. That's not on you, it's on her. You didn't do anything wrong."

There it was, that same line that even Jazz and Jack had told Danny since the moment he was discharged. It's not his fault. But that wasn't true, was it? Danny could have stopped all of this from happening. If he had just kept his mouth shut, or just went with Vlad. Truly how bad could it have been anyways? It wasn't like he was going to a completely new country with the older halfa. It was just a few states away, if Danny had just stopped fight then things would still be normal.

"It's not like she tugged your ear, or gave you a spanking, which I don't condone either... but Danny, she hit you. In your face. She looked at you, and chose to do that, it's just not-"

Danny had enough, he couldn't handle this. Not right now, not when his own family was falling apart at the seams. When the whole town seemed to be watching the town weirdos just a bit more closely. Not when Danny had to now juggle being the ghost king, high school, and keeping his family together. He needed to figure out how to fix this, to change it back to how things used to be.

"Will you two just stay out of it!? This isn't your family, okay! You don't get to stand there and tell me what is and isn't okay!"

Danny hadn't planned to cut Sam off, or to yell at the two of them. But it felt like too much. Danny's chest felt tight, there was this strange deep pain somewhere inside him. One that had Danny feeling like he was struggling to breathe. Even just pulling himself up to his feet felt like a struggle. He knew he was breathing hard, and based on how warm he felt, his face had to have been flushed too.

But that didn't stop Danny. He grabbed his bag, barely tossing it onto his shoulder as he tried to get his shaking knees to listen to him. He could feel the familiar sting behind his eyes, the growing pressure of tears that wanted to come out. The sensation only made Danny feel angrier, crying seemed to be the only thing he was good at right now. The tightness and pain in his chest seemed to intensify, making it all the more harder to breathe. Danny felt like he was going to faint, but he couldn't. Not again, not so soon...

"Whoa, whoa, dude... I'm sorry, I didn't mean... Just stop, Danny. Hold on."

Tucker was the first one by his side, hands coming to grasp Danny's shoulders. It did nothing to calm Danny down. Danny instinctively tried to pull away, his hand pushing Tucker back. He was struggling to catch his breath, his lungs felt like they had no space to expand. Like his body suddenly didn't know how to function right. The strange feeling in his chest only seemed to grow more insistent, more aggressive as Danny tried to remove himself completely.

"N-no... I need to go home... I'm fine, just, let me..."

Danny could barely even speak either, his eyes screwing closed in an attempt to keep the tears at bay. His knees only seemed to grow weaker, his body threatening to give out under his weight. This wasn't right. Nothing was right. Danny wasn't supposed to feel like this, he was supposed to fine. It wasn't a big deal, but everything felt so wrong. It was all wrong, so very wrong, and Danny didn't know how to fix it. How to get things back together, and...

Suddenly the tightness in his chest seemed to almost vanish completely. A sharp inhale of breath followed the sudden release of pain and pressure. Danny hadn't realized he started crying until once he stopped feeling like he was suffocating. It took another moment for him to notice the tight grip of arms around him. Sam and Tucker. They were hugging him, tight.

Danny found himself melting into it. His tense body relaxing into a tired tremble as he wrapped his own arms around them. Danny wouldn't have guessed that a hug would have fixed him, but it did. He felt like he could think again, like he could function. Like the weight of the world wasn't pressing down on his chest. And it wasn't just the hug that was doing it.

It was what Danny was feeling. His two friends had essentially wrapped their comforting weight around him, squeezing tight like any moment Danny would float away. And Danny could feel it. Feel the concern, fear, and care radiating from his friends. The emotions washing over Danny like a soothing balm, his body seeming to suddenly heal away his aches and pains.

Danny's core was thrumming happily in his chest. He could feel it, a familiar good feeling. Nothing like that deep aching pain he was feeling just a moment again, and Danny found himself clinging to it. He didn't even process it when suddenly the three of them were back on the ground. His friends holding him tight in the silence that had settling. It seemed like this was something they all needed, even if Danny felt like he was taking the most out of it.

"We're sorry, Danny."

The words weren't needed, but it didn't hurt either. Danny exhaled, pressing his face into whoever's shoulder he got to first. It just happened to be Sam's. He didn't bother trying to speak, or think of an actual response. The trio remained silent as they simply sat there. Letting the moment sit with no rush, until Danny's grip on the two finally started to relax. His body finally exiting that strange flight or fight mode it had been just moments ago. If there was one thing the trio knew how to do, was overcoming tense moments as best as they can once it ended. And Tucker was faster on the draw this time.

"Dude, are you purring?"

Danny felt bone tired when he finally made his way back home that night. Except, it wasn't the same level of exhaustion he usually felt. Danny felt good for once, tired but good. Despite that, he couldn't help the dread from seeping back into his mind. Since his discharge, things have been awkward. Both Jazz and Jack take to doting over him, while also walking on eggshells. Like they were worried that they might be the next person to send Danny to the hospital.

When Danny slipped through the front door, he was hoping everyone would be asleep. He didn't feel like sneaking into his own room, but he also wasn't sure if he could handle anymore emotional conversation. He knew they needed to truly talk about things. For now, both of them accepted Danny's "not now" response, but that would only get him so far.

Danny didn't like his mother being gone. Yes, he often fought with her. She was the source of some of his anger and struggles, but that didn't mean Danny wanted her gone. Not having her around the house felt wrong. Maddie shouldn't have been the one ostracized, Danny felt like it should be him. Jack should have had to kick her out, not when it was Danny's fault anyways. It didn't matter what anyone told him, he knew the truth.

When Danny walked further into the house, he caught the muffled goodbyes as Jack was hanging up the phone. His dad looking up like he had just been caught with his hands in the cookie jar. There was just a brief moment of silence between them, almost like they both were trying to come up with an excuse for what they were doing. Danny hadn't expected his dad to be right there, and he was certain Jack hadn't expected him to walk in.

"Fudge?"

Just like that the strange tense softened a bit around them. It was still there, and part of Danny wanted to just curl up in bed and sleep the day away. The idea of doing something relatively normal with his dad had Danny nodding. Before long, the two of them were sat at the kitchen table, a batch of Jack's homemade fudge between them. It was silent for longer than that, Danny kept his gaze down casted while munching away on the sweet treat.

It was far from normal, but it was still better than nothing at all. Yet Danny couldn't help feeling guilty for sitting here. Jack had sent away the woman he loves because of Danny. Danny had caused this rift between them all, and still he sat here like he deserved it. Danny was quickly getting lost in his own head, despite trying not to be. That's why when Jack spoke up, Danny actually jumped at the sudden break in silence.

"Danny, is there anything I should know? Anything going on with you?"

The question wasn't accusatory, Jack sounded genuinely concerned. Danny barely noticed the glance towards the phone Jack made before their gazes locked. It was such a simple question, yet Danny could think of a million and one things to say in response. So many thinks he knows he should tell his father about. Things that he really shouldn't be keeping between a group of kids.

But each thought that came to mind made his throat feel tight with anxiety, trapping the words inside. He couldn't imagine telling his parents about Phantom, about his position in the zone, or about Vlad and everything that comes with it. That whole side of his life felt wrong to even think about saying to his dad. And Danny couldn't think about what else to say. He couldn't tell Jack about how him and Maddie only made things harder. About how inferior he felt when it came to their family, or how invisible he sometimes felt.

Instead Danny swallowed down the last of the fudge in his mouth, meeting his father's gaze. Danny's voice tremble with the sear worry he felt as he spoke the one thing that felt normal enough to say. Something that might make things harder, but not nearly as harder as all the others. The only thing that felt remotely normal in all of Danny's daily fears and stressors.

"I... I want to drop out of school, dad. I've been thinking about just getting my GED."