For those of you who are not familiar with my stories, most of them differ from the movie plot for the exception of Aftermath and Trespasses. In my alternate universe Pearl Harbor stories Danny and Evelyn do not get involved. Evelyn does get pregnant but the baby is Rafe's and Danny does not die in China.

This alternate storyline is a companion piece to my Rafe and Evelyn stories and in it, Danny and Sandra become involved after meeting at the nightclub.

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Danny didn't know what to do.

The other pilots, who were pursuing the nurses, had deserted him and Rafe and Evelyn were in their own little world as they danced together.

It wasn't fair. Rafe had always gotten any girl he'd ever gone after and Evelyn Johnson was no exception. But even Danny had to admit that Evelyn was different from any other girl Rafe had pursued because this time his best friend was deeply in love.

He sat alone sipping his bourbon and soda when Sandra came back to the table and sat down. She looked absolutely flustered but she did greet him with, "Hello."

"Hi." Was all he could manage. He glanced over at Rafe and Evelyn and sighed.

"They're really in love aren't they?" Sandra commented.

Danny took another sip of his drink. "Looks that way."

She adjusted her glasses. "Does that bother you?"

He was surprised by the question. "Course not. I've never seen him like this with any other girl."

"And I've never seen Ev like this with any other man."

"Does that bother you?" Danny couldn't help but smile.

Sandra flushed. "No. I just wish more men were like him."

Danny didn't know what to say until it occurred to him that someone had probably hit on her and botched it. "Do I have to go straighten someone out?" He joked.

Her face turned beet red. "What is it about Italian boys that make them think they're irresistible?"

Anthony. "He comes on a little strong, I know."

"A little strong. He wouldn't know subtlety if it smacked him in the face." And she suddenly clammed up because she knew they were friends. "I'm sorry."

"For what? You ain't tellin' me anything we don't already know." And he sighed. "Anthony is Anthony, but he's a hell of a good pilot."

"He may be a good pilot, but his social skills could use some work."

Danny laughed. "I can't argue with that."

When he looked back toward the dance floor, Rafe and Evelyn were gone. He'd told Danny he had a surprise for her, but wouldn't give him any details.

The band had started to play again and Danny stood up, offering his hand to Sandra. "If you don't mind dancin' with a guy who has two left feet, would you care to give it a try?"

She smiled and stood up, taking his hand as he led her out. Sandra suddenly thought that there were men like Evelyn's pilot because she was dancing with one.

There was a moment of some awkwardness when Danny put his hand on Sandra's waist. That seemed to make her a little skittish and he told her, "I'm harmless, really." She put her hand in his as he pulled her a little closer to him and they began to make a slow circle.

"Moonlight Serenade" was a favorite of Martha's, Sandra knew. And as far as Danny having two left feet, she couldn't tell because as they became more comfortable in the dance, he drew her closer and they moved together cheek to cheek. She could feel his heart start to beat a little harder and that made her nervous. But before she had the chance to pull away from him, the song was over and Danny let her go.

They stood there looking at each other until the band began to play "Jersey Bounce". Danny shook his head. "I ain't any good at that jitterbug stuff, so would you mind if we sit it out?"

"I don't mind." And they headed back to the table where Anthony sat with Barbara, Martha, Betty, Billy and Red. The other pilots and nurses were still dancing.

Anthony was well on his way to a terrific hangover in the morning and didn't look at Sandra. Barbara and Red on the other hand, were grinning from ear to ear. "You two looked pretty cozy out there." Barbara said.

Sandra flushed at the remark. "Honestly Barbara. It was just a dance." And she sat down.

Barbara grinned at her friend and was going to say something else until Martha elbowed her in the ribs. "Hey!" She frowned at Martha, who shook her head.

Danny sat down next to Red who looked like he wanted to say something, but after seeing Barbara get elbowed, didn't.

"Now that we're all here, maybe it's time to head over to the hotel." Martha suggested.

"Shouldn't we wait for Ev and Rafe?" Sandra asked her.

"Sweetie, they know where we're staying so they'll know where to go." Barbara said.

Sandra did not appreciate the sarcasm, but decided not to comment. The pilots split the bill between them before they left the table and went to the coatroom. They weren't too far from the hotel, so they decided to walk. Red was hoping the cold January air would clear Anthony's head because he'd been in a sour mood since he'd seen Danny and Sandra talking and had started knocking back martinis. Red was sure it was nothing more than his male pride that had been bruised. Anthony was hopelessly thickskulled sometimes in getting the message that a girl was not interested.

As the rest of the group walked together and talked, Danny and Sandra hung back. They didn't say much but they had found that they were more comfortable with each other because there was not a need to talk if they didn't want to. Danny had always felt a little awkward in situations where he was expected to constantly talk. Rafe was better at that than he was because Rafe was more comfortable around people than he was.

If Sandra could have read Danny's thoughts, she would know he was feeling just as she was. Sandra had never been much of a talker, leaving that to her more gregarious roommates and choosing to keep to herself. Of course the girls would never let her do that and made sure she wasn't left home alone very often. They didn't seem to understand that she enjoyed the peace and quiet when they were all out of the house.

When they finally reached the hotel, they walked into the lobby as Martha picked up the key to the room. Sandra noticed there was only one room for all of them and she balked before Martha took her aside. "It's a suite with two rooms. The boys will take one room and we'll take the other."

"I don't know Martha."

"It'll be all right Sandra."

"Everything okay?" Barbara came over to them. "We're waiting on you."

"Come on Sandra, let's go." Anthony said. "You're holding up the elevator."

That got her mad because he was really being a jerk, so she followed Martha and Barbara into the elevator to go upstairs.