Ripple:

With a cackle, the ghost slithers through the back of Tucker's skull, out of his body, toward the treeline, away. The crescent moon shines down on the dirty parking lot.

Slowly, Tucker pulls his mouth off of Danny's.

His eyes are wide. Danny's eyes are wide.

Danny turns to look at the forest, then back at Tucker. "Are you okay?" he whispers.

Tucker blinks. He runs his hands over his jacket until he feels a familiar bulk in the left pocket; his precious PDA is still there. His hands and sleeves and wrists are still there. His heart is still there. "I'm okay," he says.

Danny takes a single step back. "Okay," he says, after a moment.

Tucker nods. "Okay."

*

"What's the matter?" Sam asks, voice level, as she sets her tray next to Tucker's on the cafeteria table. Her purple mouth smirks. "You two look like you've seen a ghost."

"Just another day in Why Can't Bitches Stay Dead Ville," says Danny, expression bored. He pokes his salisbury steak with a straw.

"Yeah? What's up?"

Danny shrugs.

"Nice, Morrissey," says Sam. Her dark-ringed eyes narrow and she glances at Tucker. "What's up with him?" she asks, jutting her chin at Danny.

Tucker sighs and pokes at his PDA with a pinky. He shrugs.

*

When Tucker comes up to his room after dinner that evening, Danny is sitting on his bed. His skin is blue and transluscent. Tucker sighs and pulls off his red cap, tosses it onto the computer desk.

"About last night," Danny says, see-through hands clasped together. "I'm sorry."

"Man, no, it's fine." Tucker runs his hand over his scalp. "This stuff happens. If I had stayed in the car like you told me to--"

"No," Danny says. "Uh."

A light sizzles from Danny's waist, up to the crown of his head, and when human flesh replaces the ghostly afterimage, his face is flushed red. He stands-- and for a young man who spends nearly half his time weightless, his quick few steps across the room are surprisingly graceless, shaky, his hold on Tucker's shoulder too tight. He leans forward too fast and kisses Tucker hard on the mouth.

When he pulls back, Tucker's glasses are tilted awkwardly on his nose. Danny reaches up and straightens them.

"I'm sorry," he says again. "I, I never thought about that before. You. I didn't think... "

Tucker releases a long breath; his face is close enough that it makes Danny's eyes flutter. "I'm sorry," he says, after a moment. He pulls off his glasses and tosses them onto the computer desk, next to his hat. "That you didn't."

Danny looks from the desk to Tucker's face, confused. His hand squeezes Tucker's shoulder. "Oh," he says.

Tucker nods; but his mouth tilts up as it bends once more towards Danny's. He answers, "Oh."