Drowning In Power (Book 2 of Danny Phantom Trilogy)

Putting Together the Pieces

The sun was shining brighter than usual when Danny woke up the next morning. Rolling over onto his back with a low moan, Danny smiled and opened his baby blue eyes to the world. Flashes of last night resurfaced in his mind and Danny couldn't hold back some soft chuckles. He still couldn't believe it...

Glancing over at his cell that rested on his bedside table, Danny reached for it and quickly checked it for any messages. He was only slightly disappointed to not see any texts from Kagome. Maybe she was still sleeping? But it was after nine. She was usually up as soon as the sun rose. Should he text her then? But what if he came off clingy???

Before Danny could start to pull out his own hair, his phone started chiming loudly and Tucker's name flashed on his screen. Sitting up quickly, Danny accepted the call. "Hey, Tuck. What's up?"

"Dude! Thank God you're up for once. I've been dying to call you all morning! How'd it go last night?"

Danny chuckled as he rubbed a hand along the back of his neck. "It... was nice."

"...Nice? Just nice? Dude! You have to give me details! How am I supposed to live vicariously through you if you don't!?"

Laughing with a shake of his head, Danny tried again. "I took her to the skating rink after it closed up. I was a little worried when she said that she'd never skated before, but she was pretty quick to pick up on it. I mean, she still had to hold onto me the whole time," Danny started.

"You sly dog. I've been thinking too small. I need to try that one."

"I was about to text her when you called."

"Danny! Have I taught you nothing!? You're supposed to wait a few days before calling so you don't seem too desperate."

"Because you're such an expert," Danny replied with a roll of his eyes. Getting up from his bed, Danny walked over to his window before looking out from it. Across the street, Kagome's windows were covered by her white curtains. A small smile crept onto his face.

"I don't like to brag, but I've had my fair share of dates. Just trust me on this one, dude. Take the day to give her time to reflect and process. You see, the way to keep a girl interested is to seem unattached and semi-uninterested. Chicks love the chase almost as much as we do. They just act like they don't," Tucker advised.

"I bow to your wisdom, sensei," Danny replied with a chuckle.

"Just come over to my place today. I got some new mods on GTA. We can play 'till our fingers fall off. I guarantee that Kagome'll be texting you by lunch," Tucker said in a confident tone.

Danny rolled his eyes. "I'll come over, but I'm still texting her."

"Your choice. But don't say I didn't warn you."

"I'll see you in a few, Tuck," Danny said and ended the call. With a good natured roll of his eyes, Danny pulled up his text log with Kagome before sending a quick message.

Morning. I had a great time last night. We should definitely do it again.

~:~

Kimiko blinked her eyes open slowly before eyeing the sheets around her in suspicion. Her sheets were definitely not silk nor this shade of deep purple. Sitting up slowly, Kimiko held the sheet to her naked chest while looking around the empty bedroom. Her cheeks colored slightly when last night's events came back to her. Idly, she glanced down at her left hand. Yep. It really happened. Vlad proposed. Not only did he propose, but he did it with the largest, princess cut diamond that Kimiko had ever seen! The added weight on her had was definitely a foreign feeling. How does one confront their partner with intentions to break up and end up engaged to said partner instead?