"I'm trying to understand what exactly you are planning to do and how it involves my mother." Daniel asked as he walked alongside Alan back to his house, crossing the street from the park.

"It's complicated, Daniel. Did Mika say when she was going to be coming to your place?" Alan asked as he walked quickly, glancing over to Daniel pensively.

"Let me check..." Daniel stated, grabbing his phone and looking it over. "She said she would show up around 4, since we're supposed to be at the school by 6, and that's when homecoming starts. But, I offered to take her to dinner as well..."

"That's a good incentive." Alan proclaimed. "Ok, so... 4 hours from now..." Alan stated, looking at his own phone to see that it was Noon. "That's plenty of time."

"Alan, tell me what's going on." Daniel spoke, reaching over and grabbing onto Alan's right hand to get his attention and slow his pace. "You were going to tell me something about Mika back at the hospital but you didn't... what's up with her?"

Alan stopped walking at the touch, turning to face Daniel completely as he spoke. "Mika... well... Mika wants you, Daniel. For more reasons than just going to homecoming together." Alan admitted, a worried expression appearing on his face.

"How so?" Daniel pressured, concerned.

"I'll explain everything, but I just want to get to your place. I honestly don't feel safe outside right now." Alan replied, squeezing Daniel's hand as he did so.

"Alright... let's continue then..." Daniel stated with a nod, their hands locked together as they continued their walk.

While Alan's mind ran through several different scenarios as to how everything could evolve regarding their encounter with Mika, he was also unbelievably giddy at the fact that Daniel was holding his hand as they walked.

OMG.... O.M.G. I never would've imagined this. NEVER. Daniel is HOLDING MY FUCKING HAND. Fuck that... HE LIKES ME! I'm dead, aren't I? No... his hand is warm and soft... I wonder what moisturizer he uses. Fuck... this is so... I can't describe how happy I am right now.

Not helping but to look over at Daniel from the corner of his eye as they walked, he could see that the other had looked over at him at the same time. When their eyes locked, they immediately looked away, a smile appearing on both of their lips.

I could die right now. I really could.

When they reached the front steps of Daniel's home, Alan quickly moved his hand from Daniel's and placed both in his pockets. Daniel was surprised, not expecting such a reaction.

"Your parents don't know about you... right?" Alan questioned, uncertain.

With that, Daniel gave a soft sigh, shaking his head to confirm. "You're right... they don't."

"It's ok, Daniel. You can tell them when you're ready. I just wanted to be precautious." Alan reassured him with a smile.

"I appreciate it, Moogle." Daniel replied with a smile of his own, before pressing the keyless entry code to their front door, pushing it open and stepping in once it was unlocked. He allowed Alan to follow in behind him, before closing and locking it shut. "We can head into the living room. My dad is at the university grabbing some documents, but he'll be back soon. My mom should be downstairs. Her office is there. I'll go get her."

Alan followed Daniel into their rather lavish living room, a sectional couch of white in the middle of the room, a rather large television mounted on the wall across from it. Pictures of different abstract pieces lined the walls, along with awards, degrees, and accolades from every member of the Lang household. There was a glass display case of trophies and plaques placed in the corner of the room, along with childhood photos of both Daniel and his brother, Brian and older sister. Alan took a seat on the couch, the lush cushions slowly beginning to surround him as he eased back comfortably. He watched Daniel leave the room and exit surrounded by several shelves of books down a flight of stairs leading to a basement.

Feeling his phone vibrate in his pocket, Alan reached in and pulled it out, looking at the screen.

Alan glared at his screen in annoyance, but slowly formed a smirk on his face as he replied back.

Alan closed the app on his phone, putting it back into his pocket as he did so.

I'm going to end both of you assholes tonight.

"Hey Alan, I found my mom..." Daniel stated as he walked up the steps, Mrs. Lang coming up behind him. Her ebony hair was loose and over her shoulders, straight and evenly trimmed as it shifted with her movement. She had on a long-sleeve, black and red floral print maxi dress, a gold pendant choker resting on her neck and oval gold-rimmed glasses on her eyes. When she reached the top of the staircase, her eyes locked onto Alan, a curious expression appearing.

As long as she doesn't tell me to piss off.

Immediately, Alan tensed, getting up onto his feet to greet her. "H-Hello, Mrs. Lang. Sorry if you were busy."

She eyed him carefully, watching him from where she was standing. "It's fine, Alan... how can I help you?"

"There is a bit of a problem, concerning Daniel." Alan glanced over at Daniel, only to see him watching as well.

Upon hearing that, Mrs. Lang's face shifted to worry. "What do you mean?"

"You see... it appears that the woman who started this entire curse on your family... has decided to show herself as one of our classmates. Her name is Mika Chen and she is trying to capture Daniel."

"What?" Mrs. Lang, as well as Daniel, proclaimed in shock.

"Mika, the girl that you're going to homecoming with, Daniel, wants to claim you forever." Alan repeated firmly, watching them as he did so.

"How... I don't understand how this came about? I thought Mika liked you, Alan." Daniel, confused.

"Well, that's obviously not the case." Alan spoke with a shrug, trying to get his point across without drawing attention from Mrs. Lang, who was watching them both quietly.

"Why did you tell me to go ahead and agree to be her homecoming date, if she's trying to claim me? That just puts me in danger, doesn't it?" Daniel asked, confused.

"He's being strategic." Mrs. Lang spoke calmly, her eyes locked on Alan as she did so. "Are you the person chosen to break Daniel from his cursed form?" she asked him, her expression becoming pensive.

Alan took a deep breath before answering. "Yes... I am."

She kept her gaze on Alan as a brief moment of silence lingered in the group, before she sighed. "Daniel... we will talk about the... arrangement you two have later. For now, I need you to go ahead and get changed and prepared for the event tonight. Your suit is in your room. Alan, I need you to please follow me into the basement." Mrs Lang proclaimed, turning to head back down the stairs.

"Māmā, nǐ zài zuò shénme?" (*Translation: Mother, what are you doing?) Daniel asked her in Mandarin, shocked.

"I will not let some bold and manipulative witch try and steal one of my children away." she answered firmly, looking over her shoulder as she did so. "That, and I need you to give me and Alan time to plan and discuss what to do next. When you are done, I want you to come back to the living room. We'll be waiting for you to return." she replied, before continuing down the steps.

Alan watched them from where he stood, seeing Daniel not object to his mother's final statement, and began heading towards the opposite staircase, giving Alan a quick glance as he passed by.

"Alan, please come downstairs."