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Hello! Sorry that last chapter was so short. This one might or might not be better. In my head it is, but I guess I’ll have to see…
Thanks to my reviewers!
Melodey70, Black January, giggleaid, Slayer of Souls, Petitio Prinicipii, darkbunny92, Halfa-NariMaruko, Unlikely-to-bear-it, purpledog100, Geoff Welch, L'ange-Sans-Ailes, Fey Phantom
F—F—Falling
Don’t you tell me how I should be…
Chapter Two
“Daniel Fenton!”
Danny’s eyes flew open fast and he sat straight up immediately at the shout, accidentally dislodging Sam from on top of him onto the floor.
“Oh!” she said, waking up fast, but still managing to land very hard. “Ow…”
“Holy crap,” he said. He glanced at the digital clock on the bedside table only to read it was nearly two o’clock. P.M. “Oh my gosh.”
“What?” Sam asked, blinking several times.
“I am in so much trouble…” he exclaimed, gripping his hair.
“Danny, you are in so much trouble!” Jazz yelled.
His older sister was standing right outside the door, pounding on it. “Sam, hide…”
“What time is it?” she asked, yawning. “I swear I only closed my eyes for a second—oh my gosh,” she exclaimed, looking at the clock as well. “Oh, no…”
“Come here, quick!” he said. Before she could even move, the door suddenly opened. Thinking fast, Danny set a hand on her shoulder and she felt the familiar sensation as she turned invisible.
“Danny, what the heck? What are you doing here? You have school? Do you even remember that word anymore?” Jazz said, rushing into the room.
“Yeah, I’m sorry, I crashed,” he said, swallowing nervously. “I’ll…I promise I’ll go tomorrow.”
“What am I supposed to say to Mr. Lancer? Or better yet, what are you going to tell mom and dad?” she wondered. “You know, when he comes over here tonight for a talk?”
“He what?” Danny froze.
“Yeah, he called about ten minutes ago wondering where you were,” she said. “And Sam. Where is she?”
“I…have no idea,” he replied.
“Really now?” The look on his older sister’s face said she didn’t believe him and he cleared his throat.
“I haven’t seen her recently,” he said, clearing his throat.
“Uh huh. Move your hand then.”
“What?”
“Move your hand,” she repeated, raising one eyebrow.
He tried to look innocent. “What are you babbling about?”
“Move your hand Danny.”
Danny gave up and cringing, moved his hand off of Sam’s shoulder. She appeared, looking very guilty at his feet.
Even though Jazz had known, she still couldn’t resist holding in a gasp. “What were you two…do I even want to know?”
“No,” they both shouted together.
“It wasn’t like that,” Sam said. “I fell asleep. I must have been really tired and I had come in here to wake him up and I fell asleep.”
“That’s not what happened,” Danny added, nearly at the same time.
“I’m hoping not,” Jazz said, her blue-green eyes wide. “So, Sam…I think it would be best for you to go home so I can have a chat with my brother before he goes to work…Which he’s definitely going to.”
“Right,” Sam agreed. Usually she would have argued, considering she didn’t do what many people told her to, but this time felt different. She felt like she’d already done enough. “She’s right. I’d better go home before my parents flip. I—I’ll see you later Danny.” She rushed out of the room fast, hoping that Jazz wouldn’t be too hard on him.
“Danny,” Jazz sighed.
“I didn’t…I could have sworn I set my alarm,” he said.
“You turned it off, like you always do,” she pointed out, sitting down next to him on the bed.
“No, I swear I didn’t this time. I didn’t even want to move,” he told her.
“Okay, so maybe it didn’t work. But I tried to get you to wake up,” Jazz said.
“I know, I’m sorry,” he said, running a hand through his jet black hair.
“You know, I would have been a lot angrier had I known that you didn’t have anything to do. As it is, we both know that’s a pretty big lie.”
“Homework isn’t letting up either,” he said. “Before Skulker showed up I spent three hours getting that done.”
“At least you got it done,” Jazz offered.
“Barely,” Danny scoffed. He glanced at the clock. “I gotta get to work here soon. Avoid mom and dad until I’m done.”
She sighed heavily. “Do you want something to eat before you go?”
“Yeah,” he replied. “Let me get dressed and I’ll be down there. They’re…they’re not here, are they?”
“No; they went out for a few errands,” she told him.
“Great…at least I won’t have to see the disappointment on their faces for the billionth time,” he said, falling back across his bed.
“They’re not disappointed Danny. You know they’re not. They just…they wonder what goes on up there in that head of yours,” she said, poking his stomach. “And sometimes I do too.”
“I wish I knew,” he replied, laughing.
“Get dressed,” she said, shaking her head. “I’ll make you something to eat.” She stood up and walked towards the hall out of his room.
“Jazz!” he called before she got too far.
“Yeah?” she replied, popping back into the door frame.
“Thanks.”
She smiled. “No problem Danny. Don’t fall back asleep.”
“I won’t, I won’t,” he grumbled, rolling his eyes. He turned over and curled his legs around in a circle, flipping around to the other side with a bounce and stood up, walking over to his dresser to get changed.
He pulled open the second drawer and pulled out his usual shirt and accidentally dropped it. Bending over to retrieve it, something collided with his head soon after hard.
“Ow!” he exclaimed, massaging his head as the rest of the drawer fell to the carpeting. He looked up from where he knelt, glaring at the open hole where it belonged. He didn’t know he’d pulled it out that far.
“Danny? Do you want leftover spaghetti or chow mein?” Jazz’s voice wandered from downstairs in the kitchen, completely unaware that he’d nearly knocked himself out.
“Chow mein,” he called, blinking several times as he stood up, sticking his drawer back in and giving it an evil glare before shoving his clothes back inside. “—is fine.”
He rubbed the back of his head again, feeling a bump already forming from where it had hit and made a face.
Today was not a good day.
FFFalling
Seven hours later, Danny swirled around in his chair, staring fixedly at the computer ahead of him. He trailed his pen down the screen, counting silently. “Dale, we should have a new box,” he said, pulling his microphone back up. “Says it came in…last Tuesday.”
“Are you sure we didn’t sell them?” Dale’s voice replied. Dale was eighteen years old and usually worked in the back room where all the shipments came in.
“Unless Kate did, no. Besides, there was about…it says there were fifty in the box. There’s no way we can sell fifty cds that no one really listens to in a week. It would take a miracle.”
“I have no idea where it is,” he said. “What’s the tag number?”
“04092015,” Danny told him, reading it off the computer scale. “Reeves is going to kill me…” He sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose.
“Dude, relax. You didn’t lose them. I just can’t find them,” Dale assured him. “I’ll keep looking.”
“’Kay, thanks,” he said. Danny glanced around the music store, watching as a few people shopped around, peering at the backs of cd cases.
He’d applied about three months ago. So far, he’d been the one to survive the longest under Kyle Reeves, the tough cookie manager. Unfortunately, he wondered how long his job would last now…
He could have sworn he’d ticketed that shipment of mixed music cds Reeves had asked him to order. And he was sure that they’d delivered it last Tuesday. But now, suddenly they couldn’t find it and if they didn’t find it—the store would lose money trying to get another shipment in and he might lose his job for losing it in the first place. But he was so sure he’d just seen it…
A woman walked over to him and he smiled, sitting up. “Hi,” she said before he’d said a word. “I’m looking for a cd for my daughter. She’s been into some really strange bands lately…have you ever heard of Lullacry?”
“Yeah, yeah, I know where that is,” he said, jumping down from his seat. “They’re right over here.”
“Oh, thank you so much,” she told him as he led her over towards the rock section and wriggled his nose as he scanned through the artists.
“Right…here…” Danny pointed to the selection.
“Thank you,” she said again.
“No problem,” he replied.
“Excuse me,” another voice said, approaching him fast. “Where are the soundtracks?” It was a guy in his late thirties.
“Most of them are over there, at the far end. But there’s also a few choice ones over by the movies over there,” he explained, pointing over at the wall where stacks of dvds were.
“Thanks,” the man said.
“Were you talking to me?” Dale asked in the phone.
“No,” Danny said, walking back over to his desk as the two customers seemed to browse through their choices. He laughed and then gasped as he looked at his computer. “No freaking way…” he groaned.
“What?” Dale asked, sounding alarmed.
“The computer lost power. I didn’t save any of that,” he said through gritted teeth. He’d been working on those shipments for at least an hour. Glancing back, his eyes burning, he saw that the plug had been knocked out.
He must have hit it when he’d helped the two shoppers out. He gripped his hair with his hands, sighing in frustration and let his eyes hopefully turn back to normal.
“Calm down,” Dale instructed. “Maybe it has that “recovery” thing on.”
Danny knew Dale was trying to help, but it wasn’t working and he bent over and stuck the extension back into the socket, muttering a few choice words under his breath.
The woman walked back over as it was loading and laid her cds down. “All set?” he asked, trying to sound as cheerful as possible.
“Not quite, but almost,” she said with a laugh. She held up two cds. “This one or this one?”
He looked between them. “I’d have to say Karmacode cause that one’s going fast…and Lullacry’s not very well known, so that one will still be there. But they’re good too.”
“I like your opinions. Very thoughtful,” she told him. “I’ll take this one then.” She handed him Lacuna Coil’s brand new release and smiled.
“Okidokie…just one second,” he said, opening up the program.
“Take your time dear, I’m in no hurry. In fact, I’ll go put this one back,” she said.
“Oh, I’ll take care of it, that’s fine,” he told her. She handed him a savers card and he ran it through and then rang up the cd. “Comes to fifteen thirty two.” She handed him a twenty and he got her change. She smiled at him. “Glad to know my husband’s got a fine worker on him.”
His eyes widened. “W—what?”
“I’m Cathryn. Reeve’s wife,” she said.
“Oh, oh man, I am so sorry,” he said sincerely.
“Don’t worry hon, you didn’t know,” she told him. “It was fine service. I’ll be sure to leave a word in.”
“T—thank you,” he replied, wondering if he could be a bigger idiot.
“Thank you,” she challenged, smiling and then waving as she left.
Danny sighed, leaning back in his chair and then spinning around a few times. It was almost closing time for the mall.
He sat up as a shadow crossed the light shining down on them and sighed in relief to see it was Sam.
“Hey,” he greeted.
“I’ll only stay five minutes, I promise,” she said. Reeves had a big issue with friends coming to visit because it took away from the “real work going on.” She smiled, pulling her black hair behind her ears. “Busy?”
“A little,” he said.
“Bad mood?” Sam asked.
“Just…a crappy day,” he said. “I mean, sales have been fine, it’s just…everything else is slowly going down the drain.”
“I hate Mondays too,” she grumbled.
“Oh, I got you that cd you wanted,” he said, bending down and handing her a bag.
She gasped. “Danny, you didn’t.”
“I did.”
“Why?” she asked, pulling it out to examine it.
“Cause you wanted it. And for the show, right?” he asked, grinning at her awe. Her cheeks went a fair shade of red.
“Well thank you,” she said. “I’ll love it forever.”
He laughed and she set her bag down on the counter, making sure the customer or Reeves wasn’t anywhere near. “The parentals were angry when I got home. I’m still on the road to troubled teenhood you know.”
Danny raised his eyebrows. “Yeah…I don’t even want to face my parents.”
“What are they going to do? Ground you?”
“Cheyah,” he replied.
“Danny, your parents’ view of grounding…is making sure you pretty much don’t use the internet or tv. But what they don’t know…is that you still continue to sneak out using super ghost powers…” she said, adding the last part in a whisper.
He shrugged. “I wouldn’t--”
“Warning, warning, Reeves alert,” Dale sounded in the microphone. He didn’t take anytime to lose.
“Reeves is coming, at least look preoccupied.”
“Actually I think I’ll just leave you alone. See you tonight,” she said, grabbing her bag quick and waving as she walked out of the store.
As soon as she stepped through the sensors, however, they went off. Danny started, his eyes widening. Sam froze in place, wondering what the heck set them off. Reeves—wasn’t far behind.
“What’s going on?” He had entered from the backroom, which was probably how Dale had known. Reeves was a slightly pudgy man with buzz cut blonde hair and large muscles. “Danny?”
“I…I…” he stammered.
“I didn’t take anything,” she said. “I swear.”
Reeves glanced between the two, already aware of their relationship. “Okay then, prove it to me and I’ll let you go.”
Sam sighed and walked back into the store, holding open her bag and handing it to him. “I swear I didn’t.”
He raised an eyebrow, looking through her things and looked at the cd that Danny had given her and put it back—but then brought out a cd that she hadn’t bought. The very same one that the woman customer had decided on not getting.
“That’s impossible,” Sam gasped as the gray album was shoved into her face. “I didn’t even want that one.”
“How do you explain why it’s in your bag?” Reeves looked over at Danny, who suddenly couldn’t find his voice.
“I don’t know, but I didn’t put it there. I wouldn’t steal,” she protested angrily.
“Danny, what happened here?”
“I don’t think she took it,” he said, cringing. “She wouldn’t.”
Reeves looked very furious. “Fine. You go—just go, got it? I catch you in here again, I will make sure I do something about it.”
She grabbed her bag back from him and forcing herself not to look at Danny, turned away and walked out of the store.
“And you,” Reeves said, rounding on him. Danny waited, not saying a word. “Danny, I told you no friends. They distract from the work that needs done—especially this. I don’t care how this happened, but it did. And if you’re protecting her, I think you’d be a fool. As it is, you’re one of my best and I’m going to let you go this time.”
“Thank you,” he muttered, feeling relieved and very frustrated all at once.
“Don’t…let it happen again,” Reeves said. “Closing time’s in five minutes. Got it?”
“I got it,” he replied.
As his boss walked away, Danny watched as the customer looking for soundtracks left, thinking the situation was pretty ugly enough without his involvement, without buying anything.
Today was definitely not a good day.
Yay! That was longer! I’m excited, sorry. Please R&R! No sneak peek. Can’t think of any.
Lateraina Wolf