"Alright, I gotta split," Danny said as he passed his father on his way out the door. He was planning on buying a couple of snacks and then meeting up with his friends at the passion pit to annoy other people and throw popcorn at them. It was the last day of summer before school and they wanted to get as much fun as possible.

His mother quickly stopped what she was doing and went over to him before he got a chance to leave. "Daniel wait!" She called out to him. "Just a warning now darling. Dorothy Rivers from down the street just told me about a new black family that's moving into the neighborhood," she said "black" with such distaste. "You be careful now, and avoid those people as much as you can, alright?"

Danny rolled his eyes but sighed and nodded. "Of course," he obliged, making her smile. "Me and the guys are heading over to the pass- I️ mean, drive-in for one last movie." He told her.

"Sounds lovely, be safe," she kissed his cheek before letting him go. He walked out the door and started his trek down the street and around the corner to the little convenience shop owned by Gary and Regina Matthews, who he went to church with.

Their little community was pretty tight knit, to the point where everyone knows each other's business. Danny didn't know how bad it was until see took Celia Cook, or C.C. as most people called her, to the sock hop and most people assumed they were going steady, when that wasn't the case at all. From then on Danny figured that he had to make sure to find a way to make his business, his only.

He walked into the store and was greeted by Gary Matthews himself with a smile. "Afternoon there Daniel, what can I help you with?" He asked politely.

"Just here for some snacks Mr. Matthews," Danny flashed a smile before roaming through the back aisles, looking through the shelves as he grabs a couple bags of Cheetos and Chex Mix before moving on to the candy section to grab some chocolates and Pez's. He heard the bell ring as the door opened, signaling that someone else had arrived. And Danny would've continued browsing and minding his business, if it wasn't for Mr. Matthews' shouting.

"Absolutely not. Get out!" He heard him raise his voice, which Daniel found quite out of character for him. He instantly looked up, startled by the yelling. He slowly walked around to the next aisle over to see who Mr. Matthews was yelling at. And to his surprise, it was just a girl.

A black girl.

"We don't serve your kind here," he spat at her as she stood there quiet, afraid and unsure what to do.

"P-please sir, I'll pay double whatever the amount is, I️ swear," she tried to plead with him, but Mr. Matthews wasn't hearing it. "I️ just really need a Coke right now. My grandmother, her blood sugar is low, she's crashing-"

"I️ don't give a damn! Better yet, the less there are of you, the better!" Mr. Mathews growled. Danny's never seen this side of him and it was sort of unsettling. "Now get out of my store before I️ call the police," he threatened, making her gasp. She quickly ran out of the store and then everything went silent.

Without thinking, he quickly went towards the drinks and grabbed a Coke bottle, along with all his other snacks and placed it in the counter. "Sorry you had to see that, Danny boy," Mr. Matthews chuckles off light heartedly, as he hung everything up. But Danny was barely paying attention to him as he watched the girl walked down the street, looking distressed. "Here's your change-" he grabbed his stuff and quickly booked it, running after her. He could hear her panicked sobs and it he would be lying if he said it didn't break his heart.

"Nearest store is 3 more miles, I'm not gonna make it in time. Oh god-"

"Hey!" He called out to her, scaring her and she turned around to face him.

Her eyes widened in slight fear as he got closer to her. She quickly wiped her tears and faced him. "Please, I️ have to go-" her words were cut off when Danny pulled the Coca-Cola bottle out of his bag and held it out to her, shocking her. She looked down between him and the bottle he was holding out to her, confused. "What-"

"Well? Take it," He shoved it into her hands. "Isn't your grandma dying or something?" It comes off as a bit rude but she barely notices it as she finally gets over her initial shock and takes ahold of the bottle.

"Th-thank you," She says softly, looking up at him. He simply shrugged, as if it wasn't that big of a deal. She then turned and hurried as fast as she could down the street from where he came from. Danny looked down before turning around and walking off to meet up with his friends at the Passion Pit. The only thing on his mind now, was wondering what her name was.
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Nighttime fell and he and three of his friends were heading down to the drive in movie theater, also known at the Passion Pit among the younger folks cause the kids tend to do a bit a little bit of backseat bingo while the movies are playing. And Danny and his friend's main source of entertainment is scaring these couples as much as they can, ruining their moment.

Danny and his friend Eddie were both under the windows of an unsuspecting blue car. They giggled as they heard the moans and whimpers coming through the windows as they readied themselves and prepared for their on coming attack. "Ready?" Eddie snickered as Danny slyly nodded. And just as they were about to bang on the glass and scare them, something caught his eye.

Or rather, someone.

"Goddamnit Danny!" He suddenly heard Eddie shout, making him snap out of it as he looked up to see Eddie beat feet. "Come on!" He waved him over. He looked up and heard the door open and shut on the other side and realized that the guy the interrupted was now angrily making their way towards them. He quickly ducked off nearby another car, cause if he stood up, he would've seen him and probably chase him all throughout the neighborhood. He did this for a couple of minutes as he used the maze of cars to his advantage. Finally hiding behind a black Chevy, he realized he was no longer being chased as the only feet he saw now were now only walking and not frantically running trying to find the guys who ruined his moment.

He let out a breath and was about to stand up and he saw a pair of dark skirt-clad legs in front of him, making him follow them up until he reached her face. They stared at each other in silence for a few seconds before she lowered herself to his level, now sitting across from him. She was less afraid then she was earlier that day.

The first thing he noticed were her eyes. Which were a dark brown and very common, but for some reason he found them very adorable on her. And then her hair was tied back in a long ponytail that he's never seen on a black girl before. Speaking of her skin tone, instead of finding it repulsive like most of his peers would, he actually appreciated it.

"Hello," she whispered to him, trying to draw attention to their hiding spot.

"Hi-ya," he greeted.

"I just wanted to say thank you, for earlier," she says in a soft tone, drawing him closer so that he could hear her better. "You saved my grandmother's life," she told him with a smile.

"No problem," he whispered back. "It was just the...right thing to do," he simply tells her.

"But not everyone does the right thing these days," she says sadly, making her lower her eyes. She then blinked a couple times before facing him again. "How can I️ repay you?" She asked him now, eager.

Danny smirked. "You can start by telling me your name," he said, making her smile slightly.

"Grace," she reveals with a slight grin.

"Beautiful name," he complimented, making her look away shyly. "I'm Daniel. But my friends call me Danny," he held his hand out for her to take. She looked at it warily before putting her hand into his, shaking firmly.

"Nice to meet you, Daniel," she says, grinning ear to ear now.

"Danny," he corrected.

"But I️ thought only your friends called you that?" She looked up at him.

"You are my friend," he stated determinedly, making Grace smile once more as she looked down at their hands and realize they haven't let go yet.

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