A chill breezed filtered in through the open window, dosing the students in some much need fresh air was humid, causing many of the occupants to have a glean of sweat on their skin. Many sat barely staying awake as their teacher, also the vice principal, recited words from the assignment the teens were supposed to read for homework the night before.. All the students were awake, well all the students but one. Daniel Fenton. He had entered his first year of high school with strong grades and an approving attendance. He seemed to have been following his sister's footsteps, who happened to be top of the school, destined to go to any Ivy League school of her choose. Sadly, Daniel's motivation seemed to waiver. A few months into the school year and the teen shifted completely. His once great grades started to drop, he became a C average student at best and his attendance took a total plummet. The teen was known the arrive to class, ask to go to the restroom and be gone for the rest of the period. If it was a good day, he would be back before the bell. These sudden changes didn't come alone either. Daniel would appear at school many times with bruises, and scratches. When questioned the teen would clam up, coming up with a half-hearted excuse of being a clumsy kid.

The overweight, and bald teacher leaned against his desk. A hand loosened his tie as he continued to read from the book, held tightly in his left hand. His tone matched the book, he read the word with as much zest as he could. Trying to immerse the teens while bringing the amazing piece of literature to life. For the students who focused intently on the words that spilled from Lancer's lips, his tones and comments brought the whole piece together, making it difficult for those teens to tear their eyes away from the man. Others simply kept their attention on their electronic devices. Texting away, or surfing whichever social media site was the thing at the moment.

Except Daniel. Daniel laid in his head on his desk, head buried in his arms. The dreaming teen was unaware of the concern looks that were drifting his way ever so often. His friends, Sam and Tucker, were both concerned for their friend. The night before the teen had to spend the night fighting ghosts on his own because Sam and Tucker had been much too exhausted to even move. The two felt horrible seeing their exhausted friend now in class, but what worried the two teens the most was the fact that young Daniel was dressed differently. Daniel usually wore a white t-shirt with red trims and a red oval on the front, light blue baggy jeans, and red canvas shoes. However, this morning the teen wore a black long sleeved shirt that seemed four sizes too big, his light blue jeans were switched in favor of dark black jeans, but his red canvas shoes stayed.

It wasn't the sudden dark fashion choose that affected the teens per say. It was that said teens knew all too well that that was the exact outfit Daniel wore after a particularly nasty encounter with a ghost. It also didn't only simply catch their eyes either. It caught the eyes of a certain vice principal who noticed the attempted concealed winces, and flinches that followed on days with that outfit laid out on the scrawny teen. Lancer hadn't neglected to notice that the teen had seemed to lose a significant amount of weight along with dark bags growing underneath bright blue eyes. Lancer must say, he was grateful to see the brightness and flare of those eyes have not decreased.

Daniel suddenly awoke the feel of someone shoving him slightly. Holding back a wince, the teen looked to notice his friend Sam was motioning her head to the teacher who had paused his reading to give the drowsy teen an unamused glare. He bit his lip and blushed, quickly sitting up straight and wiping a hand across his lips in case he was so deep under he drooled. Daniel reigned in a sigh of relief, knowing he hadn't embarrassed himself to the full extent of his abilities. Lancer had lowered his book, resting the back of his left hand on the desk.

"Mr. Fenton." Lancer's voice cut through the silence, only causing the teen to blush a bit more, leaning in on himself. "This is a learning environment. Which means from the beginning of the school day, up until the end of the school day you are to be alert, and awake, ready to learn. Am I understood?"

"Yes, Mr. Lancer." Daniel piped out, shifting his gaze to the desk that laid in front of him. He felt relief when the older man moved to raise the book, but the man had a few more words.

"This is the fifth time I have caught you dozing off in my class Mr. Fenton. I have warned you time and time again, and yet it still occurs. I would like to see if you after class." Lancer spoke again, not waiting for a reply from the teen as he continued his reading.

A groaned escaped the teen as he ran a hand down his face, trying to ignore the sniggering that was taking place behind him. Sam and Tucker turned, eyes filled with concern, only to be met with a mouthed "Later". Daniel placed a hand under his chin, trying to focus on the words that tumbled out of his teacher's mouth but the exhaustion of last nights hunting and the attacks he had to deal with, which lead to him missing majority of his classes, had taken a toll on him. Half ghost or not, everyone has their limits, and Young Daniel has hit his. He didn't want anything more than to go home and sleep on his bed. Something he didn't get to do the night before.

Daniel winced slightly when he shifted in his seat, a gash that was taking some time to heal had pushed against the desk, causing a flare of pain to to ignite through the teen. His eyes began to unfocused and he shook his head in an attempt to waken up. If he failed this next exam, he's grade was going to drop. He already knew he wasn't going to be getting his homework done tonight, he also knew he had to skip ghost hunting for the night. He was no use if he looked like a dead man walking. When the bell rang Daniel jumped, banging his knee on the desk. With a soft curse, the teen started packing his things, not realizing he had doze off earlier.

"What happened last night?" Sam whispered, using the noise of teens filtering out of the classroom as a cover for the talk. "You look like hell! You are taking tonight off."

"I know, Sam." Daniel sighed, running a hand through his mess black hair. "I ran into Spectra, and then Technus, then Walker, and then Skulker came at me with upgrades. Ones that have delayed my healing. That's not counting the amount of times the box ghost and ectopusses popped up. God, then my parents showed up."

"Damn dude." Tucker winced. "You should have called us."

"You guys needed your rest." Daniel smirked. "Besides, now you get stuck on Ghost duties." That elicited a groan from the other two teens, even if they smiled slightly. When his two teens paused at the door and looked at Daniel concerned, he gave them a reassuring smile. Even though the trio knew it was fake, they went their separate ways. Two of the trio waiting anxiously for tomorrow to find out what happens during this talk.

There was silence. Daniel stood there, trying to ease the pressure and digging the bag added to his already bruised shoulder, while Lancer moved to take a seat at his desk. Reaching into the right bottom draw of his desk and placed a decent sized folder onto the desk in front of him. Lancer flipped through the pages a few times, before he released a sigh, and closed the folder. Folding his hands on top of the closed folder, he turned his gaze to the nervous teen before him. The hard look in his eyes softened.

"Daniel, if this was a simple rare occasion, then your teachers and I can ignore it. However, this is the fifth time this week and we cannot ignore it." Lancer started, his tone a lot softer and concerned than the one he used in front of the class. " As your teachers, we do care about your well-being. I don't want you to feel like you can't come and talk to me about anything."

"Uh, thank you Mr. Lancer." Daniel's voice had a slight waver in it, and Lancer caught the tiredness in the teen's voice. "But I'm okay, I've just been having trouble sleeping. Nothing this weekend can't fix."

"Listen Danny." The use of his nicknamed shocked Daniel, Lancer didn't call him that often. "I have been teaching you for a while. I have noticed the drastic changes you've gone through in a short time. For one, you completely changed your usual outfit, and for a long sleeve on a hot day like this. My job involves character analysis every day, I notice things. I know a lot of students view me as the boring, lame English teacher, but I do catch more than one would thing. Answer me this, truthfully. Do be scared or frightened. Are you being abused at home?"

Immediately the tension in the room enhanced, Daniel's hands began to sweat and his mouth became as dry as the Sahara Desert. Fear and panic increased his pulse, he could feel his heart thumping against his rib cage, and the blood rushing through him.

"It isn't hard to notice that you are currently malnourished, Daniel." Lancer continued when the teen didn't speak. "You haven't been sleeping well and I have noticed the bruises, the limps, the flinches, and winces. I also know you Danny, and I know you're lying to me. I'm not mad or upset with you for lying. But can you tell me the truth?"

The silence that followed was just as tense, if not more. Lancer couldn't miss the way that Daniel's hand tightened on the bag strapped that he held tightly in his hands. The one by his leg gripped the pants material. When Lancer focused his concern gaze on the teen he noticed the slight tremble that ran through the boy. Getting up Lancer stood before his student, placing a light and comforting hand on the shoulder voided of a bag strap. The teen gave a small, barely noticeable flinch. A flinch no one would have noticed if they weren't searching him, like Lancer was. Lancer could practically feel the fear and panic rolling of the teen in waves. Leaning down to try and make some sort of eye contact with the teen, Lancer tried to figure out what to do.

Yes, he didn't think Maddie or Jack could hurt Daniel like he is thinking, however abusers could be anyone. Even if it isn't his parents, it is obvious that someone is hurting the teen. Lancer was set on finding out who it was. If the teen didn't help him then he would go to the authorities. Regardless of how, he couldn't see such a bright kid go through something that no one should go through.

Unbeknownst to the teacher, Daniel's mind was having a war of his own. Daniel knew the tears that were forming in his eyes weren't because his parents were hurting him but because he was getting tired. Unbelievably tired of holding in his secrets, of having to go hunting for ghosts every night. Biting his lip, Daniel screwed his eyes shut. He knew this looked bad, but he couldn't help it. For once someone was worried about him and wanted to know if he was okay and it hit him more than he expected. Yes, Sam and Tucker do worry, but that's different. They are his best friends, but Lancer is his teacher. He could turn a blind eye if he wanted to, but he didn't and that made Daniel realize that people outside of his friends and family notices and cares. That cause a choked sob to escape his throat, and a tear to run down his cheek.

"Danny, is everything okay?"

Four words. Four simple words that Daniel has heard from his friends time and time again but this time. This time it had a different effect on him. Before he could indulge the feeling that was bubbling under the layers of depression, anxiety, and exhaustion , everything hit him. Daniel was crying in front of Lancer who had just asked him if his parents were hurting him. This couldn't look good. So, Daniel did the only logically idea his brain could come up with that the moment.

He ran.

Daniel has never been more glad of it being the weekend then he did at that exact moment.

AN: AHHHHHHH I'm so happy I finally wrote this. I don't know if this will actually become a story or just an open ended oneshot, but this idea has been plaguing my thoughts, this plot bunny would not go away and I kept dreaming about it and then I thought fuck it. Who cares if I currently have a work in progress going on right now.

But seriously, let me know what you guys think in the comments/reviews. Let me know if you guys want a full story, or if this is fine. Ends in a cliffhanger but hey, you never know what people like. Some people like being left wondering.

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