danny imagines (Danny Phantom x Reader)

his slip-up with you

"Do I even want to know?"

Crossing paths with the most popular girl in school wasn't exactly what he was expecting today. Sure, Danny has come across Paulina a lot of times but none were as awkward as that encounter. He was also not expecting for [Name] to act like that. He half-expected her to leave with Paulina because the Hispanic did have one thing right; she was so out of his league. She handled the popular girl really well, though; better than Sam even. The goth would at best leave after dropping a few altercations, but the girl currently next to him didn't even bat an eye and left.

"That was Paulina," he laughed nervously.

"One of the populars," she asked.

"The most popular," he corrected.

"Figures," she mumbled.

They finally reached the end of the hall where they stopped and continued their conversation. Danny could tell the girl's mood flipped since the episode. He just hopes nothing has changed since her finding out about his status on the food chain of high school. From the way she reacted, Danny could tell the girl was kind at heart. But he could understand why she was upset. He was also always disturbed by Dash and Paulina but in a different standing.

"Before we were interrupted," he said trying to distract her and it was working as her head snapped up to him and her demeanor soften, "what were you going to say about where you wanted to go?"

"I was thinking where we first met," she suggested.

Danny was confused as he asked, "Your house?"

She furrowed her eyebrows as Danny mentally kicked himself when he realized she meant meeting the human Danny. She looked at him strangely, "What?"

He stuttered as he tried to think of something to cover up his mistake, "I said your safe house! The library!"

"Oh," she hesitated, "I guess you could call it that." Danny didn't know whether it worked or she didn't question it any further, and honestly, he couldn't care less as long as she bought into it. He can't believe he almost just exposed himself or made it creepy by saying he knows where she lives. He's gonna have to be more careful if she's going to be around for a while.

"But the library is a good idea," he smiled trying to shrug off the awkward tension, "It will keep Dash and Paulina away. I'll message Sam and Tucker."

She smiled back, "Sounds good."

A few minutes later, they settled at a table in the library with a few textbooks out and opened, but Danny was becoming more nervous by the minute. Sam and Tucker messaged him back saying that they would be staying in the cafeteria, or at least Sam keeping the techno friend at bay while the two of them had some time to themselves. He didn't want to be left alone with her; he wanted to make sure she was comfortable.

It didn't take long for her to whip out a bowl of cut fruit. She saw that he didn't have anything to eat and offered him a spare fork she had. Danny tried turning her down politely but she insisted she wouldn't be able to eat it all by herself anyways. He thanked her kindly and started eating the fruit with her. He watched her bit into a few slices of strawberries  as she focused on reading a chapter in her math book before biting some slices of banana himself. The fruit was fresh, and it reminded him of Sam's garden and how she allowed him to take some fruit every once in a while. He wasn't as aware as Sam can be about her vegetarian diet, but he wasn't a meat lover like Tucker was. Danny liked his meals balanced. He found it easier to eat lighter as the conserve energy would help when fighting ghosts. That way he didn't feel sluggish, but energized enough to fight in battles as his alter ego.

He didn't realized he was staring until she looked and ask kindly, "Are you having trouble with something?"

"Huh, uh, no, I just—" he stuttered startled. He looked to the book in front of her. He noticed the chapter she was on wasn't the same as his, actually, it looked like a different level than his. "Are you in Calculus?" he blurted our.

"Oh," she giggled sheepishly, "yeah, I have it with Tucker. He was just as surprised when he found out. Kinda weird, huh?"

"What? No!" he answered immediately. She stared blankly as he continued from his outburst, "It's not everyday that you see a girl like you that's smart—I mean!—not that there is anything wrong with you. You're just pretty and pretty girls aren't usually smart; not that they can't—"

He was startled once more when she laid a hand gently on his shoulder. He flinched to stiff shoulders when she spoke, "Thank you, Danny. I'll take it as a compliment." She took her hand away, understanding she snapped him out of his blunder. Her lips rose to a small smirk, "Now, what were you having trouble with?"

Word Count: 861

Status: UNEDITED