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Scaredy cat
Halloween wasn't the most exciting time of year for a certain vocalist. Having a few looks here and there, Ran caught glimpses of werewolves, devils, cats, vampires and the such murmuring and loitering around in the school hallway. Haneoka high had held a Halloween event for one day, thanks to the student council’s astonishing work. Per high demand of the students, it came to be but Mitake Ran wasn't the most eager. All the costumes looked so real, it made a shudder go down her spine.
Every class from year one to three had a different theme going on, from cafes to games and such. Ran's classroom did a hide and seek sort of game, where two ghosts hide and they had to follow hints to be able to find them. Ran is one of said ghosts, Tomoe being the other. It was fun in its own way, except for getting scared by the seekers who managed to find her -ironically- but she ultimately got bored and wanted to catch some air, so she was wandering around the school and looking around the classrooms. Every class was so unique, the creativity and designs were very Halloween-like.
Though she did start to worry a little since it was getting crowded where she was, it was the school auditorium. Being the curious person she was, Ran decided to see why it was catching people’s attention, even herself. Just as she came closer, a first year stormed out of the door, screaming her lungs out. That made Ran jump in place a little, a bad premonition filling her insides. Of course; it was Halloween, so a haunted house would be very predictable. She shouldn't have come here. The expressions on her face went a little sour, standing still like stone, very close to the door. She wasn't a fan of horror by any means, or jumpscares, or ghosts. It was definitely not her cup of tea, so she wanted to back off a little bit, but bumped into a student by accident as she did so. It made her yelp slightly.
“Oh, Mitake san.” Oh, god. She knew that voice anywhere, turning her body around to meet two drops of golden eyes looking at her. She could feel her heart beat for some reason. “Ahh, minato san? What are you doing here?” And why was she wearing an alluring cat outfit, Yukina of all people? She did look good in it though. Wait- no. Focus.
“Am I not allowed to walk around the school?”
Ran was at a loss for words. Yukina certainly did have a point, being on school grounds did give her the freedom to roam around as she pleased, but that didn't excuse the fact that she had scared Ran... Yes, her fast heartbeat could only be from Yukina appearing suddenly at a time like this.
Trying to move past their silence, the older girl's stare moved from Ran to the door, taking in the amount of people and the sign, dismissing how stiff the younger girl looked. "Were you going in?"
Ran gulped, nervously glancing towards where Yukina was looking. No way in hell was she entering a haunted house! Ran knew for a fact how much of a scaredy-cat she was, ever since she was a child. However, Yukina couldn't know about Ran's fears.Her pride would definitely shatter right then and there. "Ah, no. They're a bit childish...?" She didn’t mean to phrase it as a question, but Yukina noticed and lifted one eyebrow. Ran, looked over to the side; she knew she was in trouble.
Yukina blinked once, then twice, before calmly saying, "I didn't take you as someone who would be scared of haunted houses."
Oh no.
"B-because I'm not!" Ran quickly barked back. "I just don't like them."
"Then you wouldn't mind going in?" Her rival crossed her arms, a challenge clear in her fiery eyes. If Ran had been a little less stubborn in her goal to prove herself to Yukina, then she would have also been a little wiser by saying 'no'.
She opens her mouth to speak, but is interrupted by a hyper looking zombie. Seems like one of the first years in charge of this event, her makeup looked too real, Ran couldn't look away.
“It's Ran senpai and Yukina senpai! Are you planning on joining? Yay~!”
Wait what? She wants to say no, but it would make her look bad in front of her rival. Ultimately, she didn't have to say anything at all, because she and Yukina were already being pulled towards the door. Normally, she'd protest but it all happened too fast and the next thing she knew, the door slammed behind them. Without any explanation.
Oh, no no no no no no no no no no no no.
This can't be happening right now, looking around the dimly lit area. Does Russ mean she has to play the game right now, moreover with Yukina with her? This could be the worst day of her life.
“Let's just find the exit.”
“Y-yeah.”
Seeing Yukina so calm and collected made her grit her teeth in absolute annoyance; it was as if nothing phased her, or she had close to no weakness. She saw her already begin to walk, Ran being a few feet behind her. Of course she was slow, the only source of light was the dim flickering ones across the ceilings, spotting a few cobwebs here and there. The more she walked, the more aware she started to get of her surroundings. The skeleton staring at them from the corner of the room, the crawling spiders slithering on the tiles below them, the mysterious looking coffin just lying there in the middle of the road; It made her swallow, clutching her hood anxiously with a small gulp. She had a very bad feeling about all of this and unfortunately, her gut feeling was right.
Suddenly, the coffin bursts open and a filthy looking hand emerges from it, along with husky groaning sounds. Ran yelped, hiding herself in her ghost hoodie a little with a few whimpers, getting a little closer to Yukina now, but she never would've thought for that hand to grab onto her leg, emitting a scream from her in surprise. “WAH?!”
“Must...get..blood…”
Ran shuts her eyes tight, grabbing onto the closest thing she could find, without letting go. She didn't want to do this anymore even if it barely started. She was scared out of her mind, furrowing her eyebrows whilst she continued walking shakily.
“I thought ghosts don't get scared?” Ran flinched, opening her eyes only to find the thing she thought she was holding turned out to be Yukina, who was very, very close. The smile on the older girl’s face made her blush, instantly letting her go and tumbling a few steps back.
“Eh?! Ah-I-I'm not scared!” She pouted and crossed her arms, not wanting to face or interact with her like this. Her rival didn't say anything, and just continued, Ran having no choice but to do the same.
It was weirdly quiet in the next room, the decorations also kept to a minimum. What was the point of this? There was nothing to interact with here, it was kind of like a hallway. A long one at that. She was still keeping her guard, who knows what might lurk around at any time. For some reason, she found herself going closer and closer to Yukina; perhaps, she was seeking comfort or company to ease her fears. Hesitantly, she reaches out and clutches onto her senior’s clothes, not even regarding the fact how close she was or how her pride could be on the line. Regardless, her grip did start to get tighter, hearing a loud shriek behind them. It made both Ran and Yukina turn around unanimously, seeing the door slowly creaking open. What lies there was a tall girl dressed in white, however the beautiful dress had been dirtied with blood like liquid, having nothing but a knife in her hand.
Tip. Tap. Tip. Tap.
The echoing of her footsteps got louder and faster as she came close, the room filled with menacing laughter. Ran froze and trembled in place, unable to move. That's it, she was doomed!
This was a game of tag, Yukina and Ran sprinted as fast as they could from the monster. The chase led them through a door, which was slammed shut as soon as both of them entered a pitch black room, the monster banging loudly on the other side, demanding to be let in. Of course, Ran knew it was merely an act, as well as everything that had happened so far and that nothing could happen to them, but now she was more adrenaline than person and still took some steps back in case the door came down.
Whilst doing that, she failed to notice she'd kept backing off until she bumped against something. Ran stifled a scream with the back of her hand, but Yukina was quick to reassure it was just her. How many times was this girl going to scare her today? She was going to get a heart attack.
Ran resisted the impulse of clinging to Yukina for comfort, not only because it was... well, Yukina, but also because it would be embarrassing to do so when she had been the one bragging she wasn't scared despite already showing clear signs of her fear up till this point. Ran had more than one regret.
Without being able to see and relying solely on listening to their surroundings, they stood in place, expectant on what would happen next. The banging had stopped completely and the suffocating silence only made Ran aware of how hard her heart was pounding in her chest. She took a swallow to try and calm this feeling down, but it was futile, since it only got louder.
She decided to slowly sit down, Yukina doing the same, both of them silent with nothing to say, just waiting for something to happen but nothing did no matter how much they waited.
There wasn't any way to tell how long they had spent in that dark room, it could've been minutes, or hours for all they knew. Ran wasn’t counting, and even if she was, her panic would've messed up the calculation. The worst part was that nothing was happening; if the people running this could just give them one big scare and then let them out, Ran would greatly appreciate it. It would be marginally better than the psychological horror they were being put through, it was torture!
Ran was ready to scream again when she felt movement beside her thinking that something was finally happening, but held back when Yukina whispered a little wary, "do you think they forgot about this room?"
The soft tone soothed Ran, whose own voice was weaker than usual. "I don't know. I just... want to get out."
Silence returned, but was quickly broken when Yukina decided to shuffle closer to Ran who felt her rival’s hand awkwardly patting down her arm until it reached her hand. Yukina's fingers gently wrapped around it with a hum.
"... You're quite cold, Mitake san." Yukina muttered under her breath, rubbing small circles with her thumb on the back of Ran's hand to try and warm her up.
Not quite knowing what to do, Ran nodded slowly, then remembered Yukina couldn't see her and hummed curtly. She had been so focused on everything else that worrying about feeling cold from fear wasn’t a priority, but Yukina’s hand was so warm to the touch it was hard to ignore it now. Ran knew the heat spreading on her cheeks wasn't borrowed warmth from Yukina's hold though. The beating of her chest had only worsened, glad that the other couldn't see her flushed face in this dark room. She'd got to admit, Yukina's touch was somewhat comforting, not really wanting to let go of her now.
This wasn't all that bad. Leaving the fact that she embarrassed herself and showed her vulnerability to Yukina aside, being able to stay close to her had made her extremely happy. It was rare for them to be left alone and even though it was awkward when it did happen, they both enjoyed each other’s company so very much, wishing it could last a little longer. Although it wasn't the ideal place to happen, this haunted house had made them get closer than they had anticipated and that was a huge step for both of them.
A sudden remark from Yukina had cracked the silence. “I never knew you'd be the scaredy cat type, Mitake san. It is quite refreshing to see.”
“A-are you making fun of me?”
Great, they were going to start bickering again as always right now. Normally, Ran didn't mind them being like this, since she could get Yukina's full attention while doing so. However, now wasn't really the right timing for it.
“Not at all. It's cute, really.”
That made her heart skip a beat. She'd never seen, or well, heard Yukina sound so soft before or compliment her for something other than music. It did sound genuine as well, so she could only blush and tighten the grip on Yukina’s hands. For some reason, being close to her rival like this had calmed her down considerably.
Sure, she couldn't really see her face but knowing that she was with her made her feel at ease. It even made her come closer, leaning her head on her shoulder for more comfort. Normally, she'd be too embarrassed or try to keep her distance from Yukina, but she couldn't help it. She'd always loved her, admired her and being able to be at this level of closeness had her on cloud nine.
She was also taking in Yukina's scent; it almost smelled like a mix of lavender and vanilla, a fragrance she was beginning to love. But once she came to her senses, she realized what she was doing and moved her head off instantly. “U-Um..sorry-”
“It's okay, I don't mind. You're warm.”
It was Yukina's turn to lean onto Ran, making the latter slightly fidgety, internally screaming about this whole thing. Still, she enjoyed this very much, though she'd rather die than admit to such a shameless thing.
Another hour passed by, and they were still not let out. They've had their own fun though, talking about bands and music to pass time, even a little about the school Halloween event. To think Yukina’s class was holding a “maid cat café”! She'd have to go see it once they're finally let out. These conversations made Ran happy that she got to know more about Yukina, while being by her side. Though it didn't last long enough.
The door on the opposite side creaked open, light finally shining through them. They were saved. She thought she'd have to spend an eternity in here with Yukina although the thought didn't sound that bad.
“Oh, there you are~ where'd you disappear to, geez!” It was Moca, followed by Lisa san who seemed worried.
“We looked everywhere for you!”
There was a short silence after that.
Ran blinked and then it hit her: she was still holding hands and leaning onto Yukina, making her gasp sharply and moving away as fast as she could with a few stutters.
“I-it's not what it looks like-!!” Her cheeks were bright red. Damn it, now all the warmth she felt was gone and it did make a visible pout appear on her face.
“Oh~ well it looks like you had your fun~? Maybe we should leave you here!”
“No! I'm l-leaving!”
She didn't want to get teased any further so leaving the place was the best choice. Plus, this haunted house still gave her the creeps, so she was better off not staying in it for too long. Ran stood up and patted the dust off her outfit and headed towards the exit, before hearing her rival call out to her. “Mitake san.”
She turns around, a smiling Yukina looking at her with the softest expression.
“Let's do it again sometime.”