In a world where everyone has a soulmate, many people are eager to find their true love. It's not as hard of a task as it might seem when everything you write on your skin appears on your soulmate's as well. Jack and Maddie started to communicate during middle school. They were ecstatic to find that, not only did their soulmate not think they were crazy for their belief in ghost's, but in fact shared that belief! Jack happily encouraged Maddie to become a scientist and Maddie was more than willing to check Jack's calculations, seeing as math wasn't exactly his strong suit. They loved each other, but grew up in different states and were never able to meet.

That all changed when Jack suggested that they go to the same college. Maddie thought it was a great idea and soon, they both went to college together, majoring in supernatural studies. There, they were able to begin working on a portal to a dimension they called 'The Ghost Zone'. Along the way, they met a man named Vlad who joined them in their work and quickly became a close friend to the couple.

Unfortunately, an accident occurred with the portal that landed Vlad in the hospital. The couple was worried that this would harm their relationship with Vlad. However, Vlad held no hard feelings towards the couple. He actually thanked them. Had it not been for that accident, he wouldn't have met his soulmate, who happened to be the daughter of his doctor. They maintained a healthy friendship and soon, Jack asked Vlad to be the best man at his wedding.

Jack and Maddie had a wonderful wedding and an even better honeymoon. They soon got a house together in a town called Amity Park, hoping that the town's reputation as "the most haunted town in the U.S." would hold true so they could study the beings that lived there. They converted the basement of the house into a laboratory where they could conduct their research. Said research had to be put on pause, however, when Maddie got pregnant with their first child, a daughter they named Jasmine Amelia Fenton. Their research paused again, two years later, as Maddie was once again pregnant, this time with a son who they named Daniel Eric Fenton.

When Jasmine, who was given the nickname Jazz, was old enough to go to school, her parents decided to enroll her in the local private school instead of the public school many other kids went to. She immediately excelled and showed signs of genius. Seeing this and hoping for the same result, Daniel, who quickly made it known he preferred to go by Danny, was also enrolled in Amity Academy when he came of age.

Danny met his two best friends in kindergarten at AA, Tucker Foley and Samantha Manson. Tucker had shown an affinity for technology at a young age so his parents enrolled him at AA with the hopes that the academy would give him the education needed to make a living working with the tech. Samantha, who would kill you if you called her anything other than Sam, had wealthy parents who sent her to AA so that she would grow up prim and proper. Little did they know that she would grow up to adopt a goth aesthetic.

It was in fifth grade that they were taught about soulmates, as the schools had decided they would be mature enough to understand what exactly a soulmate was by then. Many kids were excited to grab a pen and write on their arm, day dreaming about what their soulmate would be like. At the end of the lesson, the students were allowed to get out a pen and write their first message to their soulmate. Some kids were disappointed at not receiving a response while others giggled as lines appeared, signaling a reply from their soulmate.

Danny reached in his backpack, pulled out a blue pen, and wrote a simple message.

Hello, I'm your soulmate.

He watched in anticipation of a response and gasped when black pen appeared below his blue.

Hi soulmate! My name's Dash.

I'm Danny!

Danny and Dash wrote to each other for the rest of the day, happily getting to know one another. Tucker and Sam had similar luck. Tucker's soulmate was a girl named Valerie and Sam's was a girl named Paulina.

So, where do you go to school?

Casper Elementary. What about you?

Amity Academy.

Both boys frowned at this. Dash would be in public school, going to Casper Middle School and then Casper High. Danny, however, would remain in private school seeing as Amity Academy was K-12. If they wanted to go to school together, they would have to wait until college like Danny's parents. It didn't help that AA was on the other side of town than the Casper schools, which means that they probably didn't live very close to each other, despite being in the same city.

What do you wanna be when you grow up?

Danny smiled at the change of topic, silently thanking his soulmate for lifting the sadness from the conversation.

I'm gonna be an astronaut at NASA!

Dash could help but chuckle at how excited the other boy seemed.

That's so cool! I'm gonna be a football player!

You must be pretty tough then! :)

You know I am! But what about you,  you're probably super smart if your gonna work at NASA!

I'm not that smart.

Well I say you are, so you are!

The boys had many conversations like that as they grew up. Dash would tell Danny about the football training camp he signed up for to prepare him for high school football. Danny, in return, would tell him everything he learned about space and about the scale model rockets he built. Their friends would always see them with dreamy looks on their faces  and know that they were writing each other.

Sometimes Dash would get a bruise from football training and the mark would appear on Danny's skin. Danny would immediately write to him, asking if he was okay. Dash would assure him that it was just a bruise and he would be okay. Danny, on the other hand, was kind of clumsy and would get various scratches and bruises from tripping or dropping something, and Dash would get even more protective than Danny.

Are you okay? I saw a mark. You aren't hurt are you?

I'm fine Dash, I just scratched myself on a bush as I was walking home. Sorry for worrying you. <3

It's alright, just try to be more careful. I don't like the idea of you getting hurt.

I promise.

It was at the beginning of highschool when it happened. Dash remembers being so happy before it happened. Just two weeks ago he had been made quarterback on Casper High's junior varsity football team, making him the youngest quarterback the team had seen in fifteen years. He had gone out to dinner with his family to celebrate and Danny had wrote him a thousand congratulations. He didn't think anything could bring him down from this cloud nine he was sitting on, but the world seemed to like proving people wrong.

On a Tuesday night, two weeks later, he had been lying in bed when he noticed a strange mark quickly make it's way across his body, starting from his left hand. It ran along where his veins would be up his arm and sprawling out over his back and chest. He looked at the marks, staring in a stupor until he realized what they were. Electrocution scars. He knew he had not been electrocuted so that meant-

His mind stopped as he was over come by fear. He was almost unable to move, his actions sluggish as terror numbed his brain. He quickly reached for a pen.

Danny! Are you okay? What happened?

He waited. No response.

DANNY! PLEASE ARE YOU OKAY?

Nothing. Now, now Dash was panicking. He didn't know what to do, for all he knew his soulmate could he dead.

"Mom! Dad!" He called, not knowing what else to do. His parents, hearing the panic in their son's voice, quickly rushed to his room. They burst in to see their son, who had stripped himself of his shirt to get a better look of the scars. Immediately his parents were at his side concerned and asking questions.

"Dash, baby, are you okay?" His mother asked worriedly.

"What happened to you son?" His father asked. Dash looked at them. He could feel tears starting to escape from his eyes.

"Not me," he managed to choke out, "my soulmate."

Both adults froze. They looked at their son with looks of pity on their face.

"Oh Dash..." His mother said. She and her husband were both at a loss for words. They pulled their son into a hug as he cried on their shoulders. He cried his heart out for his soulmate. He cried about how much pain he must be in, if he's even still alive.

Dash barely slept that night, all he could do was worry about Danny. His parents offered to let him stay home from school, but he knew all he would do is sit there and worry. He wanted to go to school to distracted himself from all the thoughts of what his soulmate might be going through.

When Dash got to school, his friends could tell that something was wrong. They asked him about it and were respectful when he said he didn't want to talk about it. By the time lunch rolled around, however, Dash needed to get it off his chest. He dragged his best friend, Kwan, with him to the locker rooms since he knew nobody would be in there.

"I need to talk to someone," Dash explained when they were in the locker room.

"Is this about why you've been acting so weird all day?" Kwan asked sincerely.

"Yeah..." Dash trailed off, unsure how to tell him.

"Whenever you're ready," Kwan said, sensing the hesitation. Dash flashed him an appreciative look.

Eventually, he took a deep breath and said, "Something happened to my soulmate". Kwan immediately understood why his friend had been so upset all day and moved to comfort him.

"I'm so sorry," Kwan said. Then, tentatively, he asked, "Do you want to talk about it?"

Dash nodded and stepped back. Then, he lifted the long sleeved shirt he wore to cover the marks over his head. Kwan gasped as he took in the scars covering his best friends torso. As Dash looked at the scars, he could tell that they'll be gone in a few weeks but his soulmate would not be so lucky.

"It happened last night," Dash began to explain, "I've wrote to him but he didn't respond...". The two stayed in somber silence until Kwan spoke up.

"Dude, what is that?" He asked, pointing towards something on Dash's right arm. Dash looked to see what Kwan was talking about and saw some black marks on his arm. At first he thought it was dirt but he soon realized they were words. He knew it couldn't be Danny, the handwriting was much smaller and neater than Danny's. It looked feminine. Plus, it wasn't in the telltale blue pen that Danny always used.

I have no idea if this is going to work since I'm not Danny, but I figured I have to try. You deserve to know what's going on. My name is Sam, I'm one of Danny's best friends. I'm sure Danny's told you that his parents are inventors. Well last night, Danny, myself, and our friend Tucker were in their lab looking at the inventions. An unfinished project went off when it wasn't supposed to and electrocuted Danny. He's in the hospital right now and is unconscious. The doctors say he'll wake up in about a week.

Dash nearly cried in relief. Danny was okay! Well, not okay but alive, and that's all that mattered.

"Quick! Give me a pen!" Dash told Kwan. Kwan complied and soon Dash was writing a response.

Thank you so much! You have no idea how worried I was when I saw the scars start to appear and then he didn't answer.

No problem. If anything happens I'll make sure Tucker, myself, or Danny's sister lets you know.

Dash only had time to scribble a quick thank you because the bell rang for him to get to class. His mood was significantly better for the rest of the day. When he got home, he told his parents what happened. They were happy their son hadn't lost his soulmate.

To Dash, that week was the longest week of his life. As the days past he got to know a bit more about Sam and was glad his soulmate had someone like her looking out for him, and a week later, just like Sam had said, Dash received his first message from Danny.

Hey...

Danny! You're awake! How are you feeling? Are you okay?

Yeah, I'm fine. Pretty sore though...

I'm not surprised. Electrocution is a pretty nasty thing. I'm just glad you're okay...

I had thought I lost you...

I'm sorry.

Don't be, it wasn't your fault. Like I said, I'm glad you're okay.

Okay... I'll talk to you later?

Definitely.

Dash was happy. Danny was awake and soon things would be back to normal... or so he thought.

While Dash was reveling in relief that his soulmate was okay, said soulmate was in a state of panic. Danny's friends didn't blame him. After all, what are you supposed to do when you accidentally get electrocuted because your parent's ghost portal turned on with you inside and get stuck in what was basically a mini coma for a week, only to wake up and discover that you apparently have ghost powers now that you have no idea how to control. Yeah, that probably warrants a little panic.

"What do I do?" Danny questioned them, "Do I just ignore it and hope it goes away?".

"I don't know, maybe you should learn to control it? After all, if it doesn't go away, at least you could make sure it doesn't happen randomly." Sam suggested.

"I agree with Sam, if you're gonna have it, even if it's temporary, it'd be better to know what exactly it is," Tucker added.

Danny sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "All right but we can't tell anyone. Especially not my parents," Danny relented.

"What about Dash?" Sam asked. Danny froze. He seemed to have a mental battle with himself before coming to a decision.

"Not yet. We don't even know if this is permanent after all. And, if it is permanent, I wanna have control over it before I tell him."

"That's understandable. I'd probably do the same if I was in your situation. No need to get him worried about something that might not even be a problem in a week," Tucker said.

The trio agreed and began to make plans for testing Danny's newfound powers. As the month rolled by, Danny came to a better understanding of his powers.

As the month passed by, Danny was able to gain a grip on his powers. He was hoping they would go away but they only seemed to get stronger. Soon, however, he was glad he had his powers because some ghosts were able to get out of his parents portal. He used his newfound abilities to stop them and send them back.

As the month passed by for Dash, the marks from Danny's scars faded just like he thought they would. He wished they could disappear for Danny as well. He was worried about his soulmate. Ever since the accident Danny seemed hesitant. He wouldn't talk to Dash as much and when he did, he didn't say much. He always gave short responses that didn't give much away. It was like he was pulling away from Dash and putting distance between them.

What Danny didn't know, however, was that whenever he would use his powers, the scars would lightly reappear on Dash's body. Dash didn't notice until the scars fully faded. When he first saw it, he immediately messaged Danny.

Danny? Are you okay?

Yeah, why?

Nothing's happening to you right now?

Danny hesitated. There's no way for Dash to know he's in his ghost form, right?

No? Seriously, why? What's wrong?

Dash frowned. Danny seemed genuinely confused. If something was happening, he didn't know about it. Dash decided not to tell him about the scars reappearing. He didn't want to worry Danny.

I don't know, I just had a strange feeling. I guess it was nothing.

Okay.

Dash couldn't stop the worry he felt whenever the scars would fade back onto his skin but he never said anything. If it wasn't bothering Danny, it wasn't a problem. But then the injuries started happening.

They started small. Just a bruise or a cut here and there. But soon they started to get worse and would happen more often. Soon burn marks were added into the mix. Whenever Dash would ask about it, Danny would have some explanation or excuse. Eventually, it became painfully obvious to Dash that Danny was lying.

Hey, are you okay? That's a lot of bruises...

I'm fine. I just fell down some stairs, you know how clumsy I can be sometimes.

If you say so. Just be careful, okay?

I'll try.

Dash was hurt. He was hurt that Danny was hiding something. He was hurt that Danny would lie to him. He was hurt that Danny didn't trust him with whatever was happening. He was hurt that his soulmate was getting hurt and he couldn't do anything to help.

This went on for two years and Dash had noticed his soulmate's significant decrease in mood and lack of energy. He wasn't sure what was going on with Danny but he was concerned.

Danny went through a lot in those two years. Between the near-constant ghost attacks and trying to keep up his normal life, he was put under a lot of stress. He barely got any sleep and his grades had been declining. In one form his parents were chastising him about his school work and in the other they were shooting at him. His sister had graduated early and wasn't around to help cover for him anymore. He was thankful for his friends, he really was, but try as they might they could never truly understand what he's going through.

And then there was the topic if Dash. He loved Dash, he really did, but he didn't want to get him involved in his lifestyle. He wanted Dash to have better. He felt really guilty about lying to him but he didn't know what else to do.

"I think you should tell him," Sam said one day, while they were talking about that very subject.

"I don't know... I don't know how he'll take it and I don't want him to overreact or worry about me more than he already does," Danny replied tiredly.

"He's your soulmate, he'll understand," Sam reassured him.

"How do you know?" Danny questioned helplessly.

"I don't know, intuition I guess."

Despite the love and support he got from Dash and his friends, Danny found himself slipping into a depression. Danny realized that he was depressed but didn't know what to do about it, so he tried his best to hide it.

One night he was feeling particularly bad. Some comments from a ghost he had fought earlier that day had him questioning his existence and to top it off, his parents had chased him shouting insults at him for six blocks. He knew his parents loved him but he wondered if that would still be true if they found out what he really was.

(Seriously TRIGGER WARNING! CUTTING! PROCEED WITH CAUTION)

Danny walked into the bathroom connected to his room. He turned on his faucet and splashed some water in his face in an attempt to rid these feelings from his mind. When he looked up at himself in the mirror however, he only felt more disgust towards himself. Overwhelmed by his emotions, he pulled his fist back and punched the mirror, shattering it. Good thing his family wasn't home to hear that...

Dash, on the other hand, was alerted to the issue through their soulmate bond. It was a Saturday night and he had just gotten home from taking, and passing, his driver's test. Now being licenced to drive, he planned to drive to Amity Academy on Monday after school so he could surprise Danny. He saw the slight cuts on the knuckles of his right hand and figured Danny had punched a wall or something. He was about to ask Danny about it when he stopped cold.

After Danny punched the mirror, the only thing he could focus on was the pain dancing through his hand and, for a few seconds, the war raging in his mind was silenced. When the thoughts started spinning in his head again, he panicked. He wanted the silence again and the only thing he could think was that pain brought it. He desperately grabbed a mirror shard and gripped it tightly, letting it breach his delicate skin. He sighed in relief at the quiet and looked at the shard like it was a gift from God himself. He slowly relaxed his grip and brought the shard down to his arm and made a slash. Then another. Neat and shallow at first but they soon became messy and deep as he was flooded with desperate thoughts of escape from his mind. Only the familiar feeling of writing on his wrist broke him from his trance.

(CUTTING ENDS HERE)

Danny! What's happening?! Are you okay?!

Suddenly aware of his actions, Danny stared at his arm in horror. He shakily reached into his pocket and pulled out a blue pen.

No

That's it, what's your address?!

Mind flooded with panic, fear, and self hate, Danny hazily scribbled his address, wondering why Dash needed it. His silent question was answered when he heard the front door open and close.

"DANNY?!" An unfamiliar, masculine voice echoed through the house.

"U-Up here!" Danny stuttered out pathetically.

He heard foot steps coming up the stairs and down the hall towards his room. Then the sound of his bedroom door opening. Suddenly, a blond, well-built teen appeared in the bathroom doorway.

Both teens stared a each other for a minute, lost for words. The same thought running through both their heads; He's beautiful.

"Danny?" The same voice from earlier came from the mystery teens mouth.

"Dash?" Danny found the response coming from his lips without thinking.

Dash rushed forwards and wrapped Danny in his embrace, not caring about the blood staining his shirt. Danny slid his arms around Dash's neck and cried into his soulmate's shoulder. Dash didn't hesitate in scooping up Danny and carrying him to his bed, concerned by how light the pale boy was. He set his soulmate down, having to convince his soulmate to let him go so he could grab some bandages for his arms.

After returning with a first aid kit, Dash slid Danny's shirt off so he could fully access his wounds. Worry flashed on his face at the amount of scars and bruises littering Danny's skin but he pushed it away, there would be time to deal with that later. He disinfected the cuts, apologizing when Danny winced from the stinging sensation, before he carefully wrapped the cuts in gauze.

After the cuts were delt with, Dash asked Danny when the last time he ate was, increasingly concerned when he got a shrug in response.

"I'm gonna go fix you something to eat and then we need to talk about this, alright?" Dash asked. Danny gave a sluggish nod in response. Dash headed down the stairs, slightly hesitant to leave Danny alone again but deciding that he wouldn't be too far away if anything were to happen.

After he finished, Dash brought a simple bowl of Mac N Cheese and a glass of milk up to Danny. He handed Danny the food and took a seat at the edge of the bed.

"What happened?" Dash asked gently.

Something in Danny broke hearing that question. He couldn't hold himself back anymore. He told Dash everything. How his parents are ghost hunters. How he got into the accident with the portal. How he discovered his powers. How he started fighting the ghosts. How he wanted to tell him so badly but was scared of what the reaction would be. How he started distancing himself because he thought it would protect him. How he lost sleep. How his grades started slipping. How the stress built up until it was too much. How his parents hunted him. How he ended up falling into a depression. All leading up to when Dash walked in his front door.

Dash was shocked. He realized Danny was waiting. Waiting for Dash to accept or reject him. Dash wasted no time pulling Danny into a hug, which Danny happily returned. The two spent the rest of the night together and fell asleep in each other's arms.

They woke up in the morning to the smell of breakfast. Dragging themselves out of bed, they slowly got dressed so they could go downstairs.

"Crap!" Danny exclaimed.

"What's wrong?" Dash asked worriedly.

"How am I supposed to hide the bandages?" Danny asked.

Dash thought about it for a moment before sliding off his letterman jacket and giving it to Danny. He was glad that he had had a red hoodie tied around his waist when he came in that he could used to hide his own bloodstained shirt. With the matter resolved, the two boys headed downstairs.

"Oh! Danny, you didn't tell me you were having a friend over," A woman with Auburn hair and a teal jumpsuit exclaimed light-heartedly as the boys entered the kitchen.

Danny mumbled a "Sorry Mom" and took a seat.

"Sorry Mrs. Fenton. I kinda dropped by without warning last night, Danny didn't know I was coming. I'm Dash by the way, it's nice to meet you," Dash introduced himself.

Upon hearing his name, Mrs. Fenton turned and made eye contact with her son, silently asking, 'That Dash?'. Danny gave a small nod in response. Mrs. Fenton then rush across the room and pulled Dash into a hug.

"Oh, it's so nice to finally meet you!" Mrs. Fenton said happily, "Come, sit sit! I want to hear all about you!". She led Dash to the table and sat down eagerly. Dash blinked in surprise as she prompted him to talk.

"Oh, well um... My name is Dash Baxter. I'm an only child. I'm sixteen, I'll be turning 17 in a few months. I'm a junior at Casper High. I'm quarterback on the varsity football team. And uhhh... I got my driver's license last night and drove here which is why I'm here now," Dash told her, hoping he had given enough information to satisfy the woman.

Mrs. Fenton beamed. "Oh, aren't you just lovely! Danny, you got lucky with this one," she joked, "Now why don't I get you boys some breakfast". Two plates of eggs, hash browns, bacon, and toast were set down before the boys.

"Thanks Mom," Danny said.

"Thank you Mrs. Fenton," Dash followed suit.

"Oh, none of that 'Mrs. Fenton' now, you can call me Maddie," Mrs. Fe- Maddie corrected him, "Now Danny, if you need me I'll be in the back helping your father upgrade the GAV".After Maddie had left, Dash turned to Danny.

"Danny, about last night... I don't ever want you to feel like that again. I know depression isn't something that goes away just like that, but I'm going to help you get through it. What kind of soulmate would I be if I didn't?" Dash said. Danny smiled and teared up a little. He couldn't believe how lucky he was to have such a caring soulmate.

"Next time you feel the urge to hurt yourself, use your pen instead of a blade. When I see the marks, I'll know you not feeling good and come over as quick as I can." Dash instructed.

"Okay." Danny agreed with a nod.

"I love you Danny."

"I love you too."

Things got much better for Danny after that. Dash encouraged him to get therapy for his depression. Danny's Aunt Emily Masters became his personal therapist. Through her, they learned that Danny's Uncle Vlad had the same situation as Danny. Having someone who delt with the same things you did and get through them had a big effect on Danny.

When Danny was finally ready to tell his parents his secret, Dash was right by his side. He was ready to drive Danny to his Uncle's house if things went South. Fortunately, Danny's parents accepted him. Danny was able to teach his parents how to properly handle ghosts so that they could take some weight off his shoulders. With their help and his uncle's, Danny, Sam, and Tucker were able to train a Ghost Task Force to handle ghosts when Danny or his parents weren't available. After a few years, some of the ghosts actually became good friends of theirs.

With the pressure of ghost fights removed, Danny was able to focus on his school work and graduated with a 3.85 GPA. Danny was able to fulfill his dream of working at NASA. Dash became a pro football player, and (with a few strings pulled from Vlad) was signed as the quarterback for the Packers.

They got married at 26. It was a beautiful ceremony. Jazz, Sam, and Paulina were the bridesmaids and Tucker and Kwan were the best men. All of their family and Friends were there and even the ghosts called a truce to celebrate the occasion with the ghost boy.

Three years later, Jazz was their surrogate for a beautiful baby boy whom they named Evan Mitchell Baxter-Fenton. Another two years later, Rose Madison Baxter-Fenton was born. They had their last child, Veronica Ashley Baxter-Fenton, one year later. The family of five couldn't have been happier, even if it was a little shocking when the kids showed signs of inheriting Danny's powers.

Together, Dash and Danny had a love story deserving of a novel, their journey documented by ink on skin.

Word Count: 5083

Thank you for reading! If I were to make special edition updates what would you want to see? First date? Danny's therapy? Their first time? Wedding?

~Angel