It’s Phic Phight time baby~!
Title: Perseverance Word Count: 1344 For: @zombiemerlin Read on AO3 or below the cut!
Summery: While Maddie is helping Danny with his homework a notification from his phone becomes a major distraction.
Edit: I didn’t check the formatting before but now it’s fixed! Edit: I added a summery!
Maddie made sure to be waiting in the living room when Danny came home after school. Not because he was in trouble, far from it. She was there waiting to keep him out of trouble.
The previous semester had been particularly hard for Danny. She still wasn’t sure what it was that was causing it though.
Was the transition from middle to high school that jarring for him?
Was the ghost activity upsetting him so much that he couldn’t concentrate?
Had his accident done something more to him than she realized? Should she have gotten a second opinion?
Was it something else entirely?
She sighed and tried to push those questions aside. Now was not the time for that. Now was a time for action.
During the last parent-teacher conference, they had come up with a plan. Mr. Lancer noted that Danny had done remarkably well if he simply studied and worked while under supervision. He seemed to benefit from having someone nearby to ask questions or bounce ideas off of.
It made sense to Maddie. It was hard not to notice that he tended to think out loud.
Another part of the plan was to make sure Danny couldn’t use the excuse of “I forgot” when it came to his schoolwork; he got a planner. He had to write down all his assignments in it and have them verified by his teachers and then signed by his parents when he got home. The signatures would then be checked the following day by his homeroom teacher, Mr. Lancer.
That man deserved a raise.
Danny came home later than usual, “I’m home!” he announced, slightly winded.
“Hi honey,” She turned off the evening news that she hadn’t really been watching and stood with him by the door.
Without being prompted he answered her first question, “Sorry I’m late. I almost forgot some stuff and my locker got stuck and then I missed the bus and I was running to try and catch it but then I just ran all the way here.” when he was done with his rush of words he deflated into a slouch.
“You ran from the school?” they didn’t exactly live within walking distance, it was why there was a bus.
“Yup.” he agreed, popping the ‘p’ as he slipped off his shoes.
“You hate running.”
“Yeah, I know. Flying is way better.” he said casually then froze, his shoe falling to the floor with a thud, “Not that I would know what that is like? Because I’m just a regular human person.”
That was odd. He was talking with strange inflections and avoiding eye contact. Was he lying to her right now? About what?
She took his chin in her hand to make him look at her. He didn’t appear to be overshadowed, just nervous. “Sweetheart, you know I love you right?”
He looked away with a slight blush dusting his cheeks, “Yeah,” but then he wrinkled his nose and scrunched his eyebrows together in frustration as he locked eyes with her again, “But? I’m sensing a ‘but’.”
She rolled her eyes and tried her best not to laugh at how cute that face was. He was right though, “But,” she started and made sure he saw her smile, “you aren’t making any sense right now. Did you get enough to eat at lunch?”
“Why are you asking about lunch?” he asked suddenly very suspicious of her for some reason.
That must be it then.
“You tend to get,” how should she say this? Definitely didn’t want to say ‘agitated’, “grumpy,” she decided, “when you’re hungry.”
“I’m not grumpy!” he snapped.
There was a beat for Danny to realize what he just did before he let out a defeated sigh, “Okay fine, maybe I am a little hungry.”
Maddie ruffled his hair and led him into the kitchen, “Well how about you get yourself something while I look over your planner and figure out a game plan?”
He nodded and fished out his unfortunately roughed-up planner from his bag before going to the cupboards. How he had managed to get this thing so ratty in such a short time she had no idea.
It didn’t appear to be much of a workload today, but there was a tear on the page and one of the assignments listed was now illegible. “You need to be more careful with this planner Danny, I can’t even read what this assignment is.”
He slid into his normal spot at the table, a bowl of cereal in tow, and leaned over to see what assignment she meant, “Oh right, I was going to text Sam about that.” he reached into his pocket but then stopped and looked back at her, “That’s okay, right?”
She smiled at him, glad that he was taking the no phones during homework time rule seriously, “Of course dear, but make sure you still put it in the phone zone when you’re done with your snack.”
He muttered his agreement through mouthfuls as he texted his friend, “I kinda know what the assignment is.” he admitted once he sent the message, “I just don’t know if I have to read to chapter five or through chapter five. Which, of course, are two very different things.”
Maddie nodded along as he spoke just enjoying spending time with him.
This was much better than that lame science symposium would have been. This was actual quality time.
“So what happened at lunch?”
He looked up, mouth full of cereal and even the spoon. He held up a finger before slipping the spoon out and powered through the overly large mouthful. He swallowed, took a breath, and simply said, “Box Ghost.”
“Box Ghost?” she repeated. That was probably the blue one in the overalls. It did tend to have a fixation with cardboard.
“Yeah, he swooped in midway through. Lunchables. Everywhere. Like an alarming amount of Lunchables. There was no way that many were in the school before he showed up.” he tapped his spoon on the side of his bowl in thought, “Maybe he hit the grocery store on the way over.” He quickly brushed the thought aside, “Don’t know. Don’t care. Either way, it ended with my food getting trashed and then the bell rang.”
He sighed and slumped in his seat, apparently too irritated to finish now.
She wanted to apologize, or empathize, or maybe ask why he was naming the ghosts? He really shouldn’t do that. Names formed attachments and attachments lowered your guard. And your guard should never be lowered around something as dangerous as a ghost.
Instead of any of that, Danny’s phone chimed with a notification.
He instantly perked up and opened the message in one fluid motion.
Then he just stared at the screen.
His eyes slowly getting wider.
His mouth falling open in shock.
Then he screamed?
He jumped out of his chair so fast he knocked it to the floor and just would not stand still. An endless string of repeated ‘oh my god’s spilled from his lips.
He was clearly freaking out over whatever he saw on his phone, but it wasn’t panic. No, he was excited.
Really, really, excited.
She hadn’t seen him like this since the day they had surprised him with a trip to Space Camp. That felt like ages ago now.
“Sweetie?” her call was ignored as his eyes were still glued to his phone.
She got up and grabbed his shoulders, “Danny!”
“Can you believe it!?” he asked grinning from ear to ear.
“Believe what?”
“They did it! It just happened!”
“What just happened?” her arms slid down off his shoulders as she tried to figure out what he could be so excited about.
“They just landed!”
“Who’s they?”
“Perseverance!”
That sounded familiar but she wasn’t sure why, “And where did they land?”
“Mars!”
That’s right, the NASA mission. It must have been on the news earlier.
She looked back at her boy. It had been far too long since she had seen such pure joy on his face.
