Archive of Our Own

“Sunny’s afraid of spiders too, you know.”

Hero took a pause from wiping the spilt Orange Joe off the dinner table to look over to his girlfriend, who had just finished sweeping confetti and used napkins off the floor. The two of them were cleaning up the aftermath of the 12th birthday party of a certain energetic younger brother. Every other party attendee had either fallen asleep or gone home; it was just Mari and Hero, finally alone together, so Hero had all the time in the world to get the chance to talk to Mari. “Hm? Did you say something, Mari?”

“Sunny’s afraid of spiders too,” Mari repeated. “You told me, before, that you were afraid of spiders, right?” At first, Hero was surprised to hear a topic so out of the blue.

“All bugs give me the creeps,” he replied. “But, yeah. Spiders are the worst of them, for me. Why?”

Mari smiled softly and shook her head. “Just wondering,” she said, while emptying the dust pan into the trash bag they had hooked onto a chair.

Hero didn’t exactly know what was on his girlfriend’s mind, but he allowed Mari to continue poking his brain. It wasn’t like she was prying for information, so he decided to play along. “Hey, to be fair, it was only bad when I was younger! It’s not like that anymore.”

Mari snickered, not believing him for a second. “Halloween says otherwise.”

Hero slightly tilted his head, oblivious as to what Mari could be referring to. “What do you mean?”

“When we went trick-or-treating with everyone, you held onto my hand extra tight every time we walked past the decorative spider webs!” Mari covered her mouth with her hand, in a poor attempt to hide her giggling. “Don’t act like I didn’t notice.” Hero nearly choked on his spit.

“That didn’t have anything to do with spiders, Mari,” he stammered in his retort. “We walked by plenty of scary-looking houses.”

“Maybe so,” Mari agreed, only partially. “However, I do recall you freezing in place, upon seeing the giant inflatable spider on the roof of Othermart.”

“Well, I never said my fear ever went away-”

“Oh, That reminds me! We were watching this movie at my place and-”

“Okay, I get it now!” Hero groaned, as he covered his face out of embarrassment. “Where is this even coming from?” He took a moment to think about where the conversation had started. “Why bring up Sunny?”

Mari calmed down and reset her focus to the initial topic. “I just find it interesting how the two of you are both very afraid of spiders,” she began. “Actually, believe it or not, I think Sunny’s more afraid of them than you are.”

Hero shook off the embarrassment from before. He didn’t say anything, waiting for there to be more said from Mari. The room seemed more quiet, with the now lack of playful giggling, as Mari’s demeanor shifted from mischievous to sincere. “I just wanted to let you know,” Mari continued. “So, don’t ever think you’re alone, okay?”

She gave Hero a reassuring smile. Hero smiled back. “Thanks, Mari,” he replied, making Mari beam back brighter.

A part of Hero knew that Mari was only smiling at him like that sort of as an apology for the teasing from earlier. He began to wonder if people secretly thought less of him because of his arachnophobia. Hero’s smile faded.

Mari was quick to notice Hero’s change in expression. The two of them could never get their eyes off of each other, no matter what, so they were always able to tell whenever something was wrong. “Hey, now, it’s nothing to be ashamed of,” Mari reassured. “Everyone’s got a fear or two.”

Hero finished wiping the table and gathered all of the orange-stained paper towels to throw away. “I know, I know,” he sighed. “It’s kind of stupid, really.”

Mari frowned. She made her way towards Hero, as he was putting the paper towels in the trash bag, and gently placed her arms around him from behind. “I don’t think it’s stupid,” she commented. “And, even if it’s stupid, we’re still kids. Shouldn’t we be allowed to be a bit stupid, just for a bit longer?”

Hero let out a chuckle and brushed his hand over Mari’s. He turned around to see her soft rosy-cheeked face, and he placed his hands around her, in return. Mari felt her cheeks flush. It wasn’t too often her boyfriend reciprocated her advances and got her all flustered. The couple continued to hold one another close, refusing to let go. Hero didn’t want this time to go to waste. He would feel as if all of his problems vanished, whenever he shared time with Mari. His fears didn’t matter, and he no longer minded the trivial banters about spiders with his girlfriend.

Mari felt relieved. The last thing she wanted to see was Hero feeling stressed. As she looked into Hero’s eyes, Mari made a vow to help clear away all of her boyfriend’s troubles. Until then, Mari took advantage of her situation to admire that pretty face of his. She should kiss him.

Right before Mari could act on her desires, Hero pulled away to tie up the trash bag. She had never felt a defeat like this, in her fourteen years of living. Next time, she thought to herself. However, having such an intimate moment be cut off abruptly allowed Mari to take more time to think. Maybe it could be possible for her to help.

“Maybe I could help,” Mari vocalized her thoughts.

Hero turned back to Mari, after finishing tying up the trash bag and lifting it with one hand. “Don’t worry about it,” he replied. “It’s not too heavy.”

“No, not that. I meant with your fears. Maybe I could help you get over them.”

Hero chuckled, entertained by the idea of Mari not moving on from their previous conversation. He gave her his Classic Hero Smile and a quick side-arm hug with his left arm, trash bag still in other hand. “There's nothing to worry about, Mari,” Hero insisted. “I’ll be fine.”

Hero pulled away and headed towards the front door. Unsatisfied with the answer, Mari turned to see Hero already making his way out with his shoes put on. She needed to catch up to him. Before continuing, Mari glanced over to the living room to see two young boys, Sunny and Kel, Mari and Hero’s little brothers, passed out on the couch. Mari took in the moment to grin at the adorable sight and followed Hero out the door.

“I’m being serious, Hero,” Mari insisted, hastily putting on her shoes. “I could try helping.”

Even with the sounds of a rustling trash bag and passing cars, Hero’s soft and amused laughter could still be heard. To anyone listening in from the outside, it sounded like the most riveting conversation had just left the house. Still, Hero decided to humor Mari’s idea. “What could you even do?” he asked, while carrying the trash down the driveway.

“I’ve heard there are many ways people can conquer their fears,” Mari suggested, with optimism. “We can spend the next few weeks trying a bunch of techniques together.” She caught up to Hero’s side and followed him to the curb. Hero proceeded to lift the lid of the trashcan to dispose of the bag. It almost seemed like the sounds of throwing away trash and shutting the lid echoed throughout the whole town, with how silent everything was in the nights.

“Techniques, huh?“ Hero dusted off his hands as if carrying a plastic bag got his hand covered in dust or dirt. Keeping a smirk, he found his girlfriend’s persistence to be adorable. Mari didn’t, however. She began to frown.

"You don’t believe me,” Mari muttered, defeated. “You don’t think I can help.” Hero’s face dropped. Mari was genuinely upset, and he was quick to notice. 

“Please, Hero,” Mari continued. “Let me do this for you. At least consider it. Please?” Hero looked into her eyes. Others would pass it off as desperation, but what Hero saw was passion. He realized how important this was to her. Hero didn’t want that to be shut down and crushed right in front of her, so he allowed himself to let down a few walls.

“Okay, okay,” Hero opened, with a light chuckle. “You can help me face my fears.” He sent Mari a genuine smile, this time. His left arm wrapped around Mari, once again, and Mari felt herself loosen up. She leaned her head onto Hero’s shoulder.

“I promise, I’ll do my best!” Mari said, looking up to meet Hero’s eyes. “You won’t be afraid of spiders for too long!” She beamed with excitement, already filling out a neat schedule in her head.

Hero pulled Mari closer. “I know you will,” he responded. “But, I will warn you. My arachnophobia is a tough one to crack.”

“Yeah, but your arachnophobia has yet to meet me.”

Hero snickered. As long as the two of them could have fun like this, Hero felt as if nothing could bug him. He might as well add a bit more fun to the mix, then. “I have one proposition to make, though.”

Mari looked at Hero, with curiosity. “Oh?”

“Let’s say your methods don’t work and I’m still afraid,” Hero added. “You’re going to have to make me extra, the next time you bake cookies. But if I do end up overcoming my fears, I will bake you as much as you’d like.”

“Hey! That’s not fair,” Mari giggled. “I’ve only just started baking last month, and I’ve only made two batches, so far. What if I lose and mess up the next batch?”

“Then you better hope you win,” Hero sang. He reached to brush some hair away from Mari’s face. Mari was in perfect forehead-kissing range, so Hero took the chance. Mari fluttered at the feeling of Hero’s soft lips meeting her head, but she shook it off. Mari knew Hero was trying to throw her off guard, but she refused to be distracted from her goal; her perfect cookie streak was on the line.

“Alright then,” Mari exclaimed. “I hope you’re ready, Hero! I think we can make a lot of progress, if we take some time during Thanksgiving break.” Hero grinned. He liked seeing Mari get all excited over anything. Mari was very adamant on her mission. She looked forward to the coming weeks. Hero, on the other hand, had a feeling of uncertainty.

Hero knew something like phobias couldn’t just disappear in a short timeframe, but he didn’t want to be discouraging. He wanted to see his girlfriend set her mind to facing difficult challenges. It was almost inspiring, in a way. Still, the idea of trying to beat the arachnophobia out of the world’s most cowardly teenager seemed very farfetched to him. It wasn’t a problem, however. The challenge was presented in a particularly harmless and innocent manner, and an idea so ridiculous could only lead to such intrigue. Plus, Hero wanted an excuse to taste Mari’s cookies again.

***

Hero had almost forgotten, but he was reminded when he and Mari went home together, after school. The two of them were leaving the bus. Mari told Hero to go ahead, as she was in the middle of packing her notebook into her backpack. She wanted to finish her homework on the bus, so she can make more room in her busy schedule. Right as Mari put on her bag, something caught the corner of her eye from under one of the seats. She bent down to get a better view. Her hands gripped onto the leather of the seats, as the rest of her body blocked the path of the bus aisle.

Mari was finally able to make out what she saw under the seat, a tiny black spider. Well, that was underwhelming, she thought, expecting to see something more interesting. It was only another one of those spiders you don’t expect to see living for that long in a big world, the same type of spider that would make Sunny feel uncomfort- … A mischievous grin formed on Mari’s face.

Hero had wondered what was taking Mari so long. Did something happen? Did her books fall out of her backpack again? Hero wasn’t too worried, but he figured he’d go back in, just in case… Maybe he’ll wait ten more seconds, first. 1… 2… 3… 4… 5… 6… 7…

“Alright, I’m ready now!”

Before Hero had even finished counting, Mari stepped out of the bus, presenting an expression as if she wasn’t held up inside for an entire minute.

“Okay, let’s get going then.” Hero did notice quite an unusual grin on Mari’s face, but he didn’t question it any further; he just assumed something amusing had happened inside. Hero would still walk home with his girlfriend, no matter how suspicious she looked… Alright, maybe a little suspicion is okay. Why are her hands clasped together?

The couple made their way along the sidewalk, thus beginning their after school routine together. Every day, the two would walk all the way to Mari’s house first and give each other goodbye hugs. Then, after dropping Mari off, Hero would turn back to his house, despite his house being closer to the bus stop. Hero made sure he was able to spend as much time as he could with Mari; any chance he could get, he’d take it. However this time, after stopping in front of her house, Mari gave Hero a playful look.

“Oh, by the way, Hero,” she began. “I made a new friend today!” Hero looked at Mari inquisitively.

“That’s great, Mari!” he replied enthusiastically. “It’s nice to see you start high school off strong.”

“Yup! That’s why I took so long on the bus earlier. Sorry about that, hehe…”

“Don’t worry about it, Mari. It’s great that you’re making new friends. I wish I were as sociable as you.”

“Well… would you like to meet them right now?”

“Of course! I’d love to-” Hero’s face dropped. What? 

Hero’s eyes slowly averted from Mari’s face to her hands. They were still closed up in a ball shape, except now they were harder to ignore. Mari’s hands had slightly elevated after Hero accepted her invitation, as if they were ready to reveal themselves. Hero couldn’t get his attention away from her hands. Those soft hands which he would hold dearly, the ones he’d tangle his fingers up with just to admire them and feel how soft they were. What were they holding?

“Uh… Mari?” Hero gulped. “What do you have in your hands?” There wasn’t a chance anything relatively dangerous resided between the smooth palms of Mari’s, but Hero still remained on alert.

“My new friend, silly,” Mari giggled. Oh yeah, something was definitely up. “Here, let me introduce you two.”

Before Hero even had the chance to protest, Mari’s hands began to open up and separate, revealing the prize inside. Hero felt his body begin to tense; a shivering sensation crawled from his legs and all the way up to his face. He was frozen. His stare was glued to the sight that rested in the hands of his lover, a wriggly spider presented in cupped hands as if it were a gift.

Mari couldn’t help but let out a suppressed laugh. “Oh my, are you okay, Hero?” she asked, trying to keep her composure. “You aren’t saying anything.”

She stepped a little closer to Hero, making sure he responded–he did, backing up each time Mari moved closer. 

“Okay, thank goodness. For a second, I thought you had a heart attack.” 

He might as well have…

Mari took another step closer.

Hero took another back.

“Come on, won’t you say hi to Georgie?” Mari giggled and held the spider up close to Hero’s face. She had even named the spider. Hero had to look away. He couldn’t step away any further, his back hugging the wall of Mari’s house. 

“Mari…” was all Hero could let out, doing his best to avoid looking at the spider.

“He’s not so bad, once you get to know him.” Mari insisted. “Georgie is very kind. See?”

But Hero didn’t want to know “Georgie.” He kept his eyes shut, his head turned to the side. “Please put the spider away, Mari,” he groaned.

Mari sighed. “Alright, I will… but could you at least look at him? Just for a few seconds? I promise nothing bad will happen.”

Hero could tell Mari was giving him a soft and reassuring smile; he just couldn’t see it. The only thing in the way of seeing Mari was a gross spider, so Hero reluctantly agreed to Mari’s request. It wouldn’t hurt, right? All he had to do was get through looking at a spider, if he wanted to reach the finish line that was Mari’s precious smile.

Hero slowly opened his eyes and met those of Georgie the Tiny Black Spider. A wave of uneasiness crashed over him. A creature so small and dark you could hardly tell if it was living; it was unnatural for him. How could something so creepy be held in the hands of someone so wonderful? None of that mattered though. Hero would stare down the spider for a few seconds longer, then he could look over to Mari and realize that everything would be okay as long as she was there…

That’s what Mari had hoped. She thought that gently holding Georgie would have helped Hero no longer associate scary things with spiders, but, out of nowhere, the spider crawled around her hands at a rapid and unexpected pace causing Hero to spiral.

“Ack!” Hero yelped, scrambling to move out of the way. “Get away! Get away-”

Hero’s shoes dug into the soil, tripping him to land on a bush.

“Oh my god, Hero!” Mari cried. “Are you okay?” She wanted to make sure Hero was okay, but at the same time she couldn’t help but find it all a little funny.

“Ow…” Hero muttered, face planted into the bush. “I think I swallowed a leaf.” He attempted to get back on his feet, but the initial shakiness still hadn’t left him, leaving him to drop back onto the bush.

“Oh dear, let me help!” Mari said, in between her uncontrollable giggling, offering a hand, completely forgetting there was still something crawling all over it.

“Put the spider away first!” Hero panicked, flailing his arms, snapping a few branches.

“Oh, right! Sorry, sorry!”

***

The end of Thanksgiving break only meant one thing; it was finals season, so Mari and Hero came over to each other’s houses frequently to study together. One particular day, Mari whispered to Kel, while Hero was preparing a snack in the kitchen downstairs. Mari filled Kel in on her plan and wanted him to take part, though it didn’t take Kel further convincing to join. He wasn’t particularly invested in Operation: Spider Trap, more so he was looking forward to pranking Hero.

“So… what do you want me to do again?” Kel asked, trying to get a rundown. 

“I need you to go get Hero from the kitchen,” Mari answered. “But you also have to get him to agree to put this over his eyes.” She handed Kel a bright turquoise headband.

“Ooh, blindfolding! I’m liking this plan already!”

Mari giggled, in amusement to Kel’s reaction. “Well, I wouldn’t say it’s as extreme as you make it sound, Kel. I need him to be unable to see only for a bit.”

“Mari, that’s exactly what blindfolding is!”

“Well, I know that! Just get him to wear the blindfold.”

Kel laughed, shoving the headband into his pocket. “Okay, okay, I got you.”

Mari’s face softened, giving Kel a smile. “Thanks, Kel,” she spoke and pinched Kel’s cheeks, much to his protests.

Kel then dashed out the door, a man on a mission. Mari chuckled at the energy of the younger boy. This should give her enough time to prepare. Mari took out her backpack and reached for some supplies. She layed out a couple pipe cleaners, that were bent all the way to form balls, and a single fake tarantula she took from an old animal kingdom toy set she and Sunny used to play with when they were younger.

“This one’s bound to work,” Mari affirmed herself. She had tried other attempts, during the break, all of them ending the same way as the one walk after school. “Hero won’t even know the difference.” Mari rubbed her finger along the crumpled pipe cleaners and then the toy tarantula, feeling the tickling sensation. She couldn’t wait to see how cutely Hero would react from brushing the fuzz.

“You want me to do what?”

Hero turned off the faucet of the kitchen sink. There was no way he had misheard, but he figured he’d stop the running water to hear his little brother better.

Kel took out Mari’s headband from his pocket and held it out to Hero. “I want you to put this over your eyes,” he reiterated.

Hero gave Kel an entertained yet concerned smirk. “You want me to… blindfold myself?”

“It’s not blindfolding. I just need you to be unable to see for a bit.”

“Kel, that’s exactly what blindfolding is!”

“Come on, Hero! Just put it on!”

“Why? What are you up to?”

“It’s completely ethical, if that’s what you’re wondering.” Kel was getting impatient.

“I don’t know. I can’t help but question something as suspicious as this.”

“What’s so suspicious about this?”

“Kel…”

“Enough dumb questions, Hero. Can’t a guy put on some blindfolds without raising any logical thinking?”

“Okay, okay!” Hero snagged the blindfold from his little brother. Kel’s weak noodle arm immediately gave out, dropping the moment the blindfold left his hand.

“Phew, finally,” Kel sighed, letting his arm rest after having it stretched out throughout the entire conversation.

“You really didn’t have to go the extra mile and wear yourself out like that.” Hero chuckled.

Kel crossed his arms. “This isn’t even my plan, Hero,” he pouted.

Hero gave Kel an inquisitive look. Then it struck him. He reexamined the blindfold; a bright turquoise headband… Mari’s headband.

Mari was humming a Christmas tune, as she waited for the brothers to return. The end of Thanksgiving break also meant the start of preparations for winter’s big holiday. Mari’s holiday plans were already envisioned to end in success; helping Hero overcome his fear would be icing on the cake. Mari was excited to wrap her year up in a bow.

Before she could conclude her song and thoughts, Mari heard sounds from outside the door and prepared to begin her “fear exercise.”

“Ow.”

“Okay, now turn around.”

“Ow!”

“No, no, wrong way.”

“Kel…”

“You’re doing great, Hero. You’re almost there!”

The door opened, surprising Mari by the sight of Hero with his eyes concealed and his little brother behind him.

“Kel… did you make Hero climb the stairs while blindfolded?” Mari interrogated.

“You told me to get him to put them on!”

“I meant right before entering the room! Kel, that’s dangerous!”

“Well, I’m sorry! You should’ve specified!”

“Right, right. Sorry.”

Hero sat patiently in his bed, headband still over his eyes, still unsure of exactly what to expect. He can only piece together so much information from Kel’s poorly silenced snickers. They were up to something… if being blindfolded wasn’t enough of a dead giveaway.

“Alright, Hero,” Hero heard Mari call. “Keep the blinds on, but don’t worry. You’ll take them off sooner than you think.” Hero wasn’t too reassured by that. Mari approached Hero as he sat there like a helpless duck. Mari held the two stimuli over to Hero’s covered face: pipe cleaner clump in one hand, toy tarantula in the other.

“What is this even for, Mari?” Hero questioned. He felt a twist in his stomach. In his mind, nothing about being blindfolded in your own bedroom should feel life-threatening, but he still felt anxious.

“It’s for uh…” Mari answered. “It’s a project for class. Our teacher’s counting it for our final exam.” Despite her prankish nature, Mari wasn’t the best liar. Although, Hero wouldn’t be able to tell. He wasn’t gullible; he just wanted to be supportive to Mari.

Hero nodded. “So, what do you want me to do?” The plan was unfolding.

“Okay,” Mari started. “Here, I have two hands, both holding small but similar objects. I need you to place your hand on the one to your left for ten seconds and then describe to me the feeling. Then, do the same thing for the one to your right.”

“Uh, sure,” Hero hesitated at first. “Sounds easy enough.” He slowly lifts his hand, searching for something to feel. Due to him still not being able to see a thing, it became a display of Hero’s hand waving around cluelessly, so Mari decided to steer him into the right direction by nudging the back of her hand against Hero’s. 

With Mari’s guidance, Hero positions his hand over Mari’s right hand. He took a deep breath and his fingers landed onto the mysterious object. The initial sensation jolted throughout his nervous system. Uncomfortable. Hero’s fingers began brushing along the area, continuing to give him a fuzzy feeling. He could only imagine what possibly lied between him and his girlfriend’s hands. Hero clenched his teeth, uncertainty creeping back in.

“You’re doing great, Hero,” Mari encouraged. “You held on for ten seconds.”

Hero had never retracted his hands faster in his life. “Oh thank God,” Hero sighed in relief. He reached his hands for the blinds, until Mari stopped him from revealing his eyes.

“Wait!” Mari exclaimed. “There’s still my other hand, silly.”

Right. Hero had been so focused on getting through the first hand that he completely forgot about the second.

“Don’t worry,” Mari giggled. “This one isn’t as bad.” Mari spoke in her typical playful manner, but Hero couldn’t help but feel dread. At this point, he wanted to keep his blindfolds on to avoid exposing his eyes to anything unspeakable.

“Mari, I…” Hero muttered. “I don’t like this anymore.” Mari was weaponizing Hero’s fear; he knew it for a fact. This was definitely another one of Mari’s poor attempts to fight his arachnophobia.

“You’ll be okay, Hero,” Mari reassured. “Remember, only for ten seconds then no more.” Mari gave a soft smile to soothe Hero’s nerves, but he obviously wouldn’t be able to see it. Instead, she hoped her voice was enough to calm him down and guide him through his troubles. Hero swallowed the terror and positioned his hand over Mari’s,

Sliding his fingers along the hidden object gave him the same unnerving feeling as the last. It bothered Hero a lot, but at the same time it relieved him. If both objects felt the exact same and the first one didn’t cause him major harm, the second shouldn’t either. Maybe this was progress, but it could’ve been a trick. It was entirely possible that Mari used the same item and tricked Hero into thinking they were different.

“Great job, Hero,” Mari rewarded. “Now, tell me how both of them felt and then you can go ahead and take off the headband.” Hero paused. Is that all? There had to be a catch.

“Really… really weird,” Hero responded. “Like something was wriggling in my skin.” He shuddered at the thought of it. His hands were gripped to the sides of his jeans.

“But, after touching the first one, the feeling wasn’t all too bad anymore,” Hero continued. “Still hated it though.”

“Oh?” Mari pretended to write something on a notepad, leaving scribbles. “Interesting, interesting…” Mari did her best to continue the guise of a school project, despite Hero not being all too convinced. Hero heard a click of a pen, then the sounds of Mari shuffling around him.

“Okay,” Mari spoke. “You can take them off now.”

“Finally,” Hero sighed. His hands clawed at the fabric over his eyes and pulled them out over his head. Hero squinted. His eyes had to adjust to the sudden blast of light. The initial blindness faded, revealing Mari’s warm smile and a single hand displaying a tight cluster of colorful pipe cleaners.

“Ta-da!” Mari sang. “You did it!” Hero wasn’t expecting the sight. His gaze was fixated onto Mari’s hand. Pipe cleaners? 

“Wow… I feel so silly now,” Hero chuckled, making Mari giggle.

“So… how do you feel now?”

“I just told you. I feel ridiculous.”

“Well, yeah!” Mari laughed. “But how do you feel?~”

“I’m okay, I think,” Hero calmed. “I’m still a bit confused, though. Why do all this?” A part of him still expected a creepy critter to show itself, in the end.

“This was all part of my plan!” Mari snickered. “You just took part in my plan to fight your fear of spiders.”

“Oh, really?” Hero said, sarcastically. “I would’ve never guessed.” The couple laughed amongst each other. Mari then straddled Hero over the edge of his bed. Hero’s face heated up and tried to lean away, but Mari’s arms swiftly wrapped around the back of his neck, drawing them closer. Hero’s mind felt like it would melt. Why does Mari like to tease him so much?

Hero’s scrambled thinking was quickly interrupted by a disgusted groan from across the room. Right. Kel had spectated the experiment, disappointed in the end result. The presence of his younger brother snapped Hero out of his embarrassment.

“What do you think, Hero?” Mari asked with optimism. “Do you think you’re slowly taking down your fear?”

“Sure,” Hero smiled. He continued to humor Mari. Hero was certain pipe cleaners wouldn’t really do the trick, but Mari was proud, and he didn’t want to take that away. Mari kept giggling and rested her chin on top of Hero’s head. She took this opportunity to relax herself. Hero couldn’t.

Instead, Hero tried to empty his mind. The strange experiment was over, so he could forget the anxiety and dread from only moments before and spend more of his free time with Mari. No fuzzy clump of arts and crafts was going to stop him. Though, in the midst of trying to avoid discomfort, something else had occurred to him.

“Hey… Mari?” Hero spoke up. “If the pipe cleaners were the first item… what was the other?”

Mari leaned away so she could get a good look at Hero’s face, with hands firmly held onto his shoulders. “Why don’t you see for yourself?” Mari answered. “Look behind you.”

Hero felt his heart sink. Oh God. Not again. He couldn’t dare to turn his head around; the way Mari held him made it especially difficult, in the first place. But, alas, Hero’s morbid curiosity led him to slowly rotate his view. Once he was able to see the rest of his bed, his eyes locked onto the odd one out, a big hairy tarantula…

An ear-piercing shriek rang throughout the entire house. If the frequency was higher, all of Kel and Hero’s parent’s wine glasses would’ve cartoonishly shattered. Eventually, the screaming had died down, allowing the childish laughter of a boy to be easily heard. This house will never know peace.

“Hero, I’m sorryyyy!” Mari called, face red from both embarrassment and entertainment. Hero was huddled up in the corner, his head poking out from under a blanket.

“No!” Hero whined. “That was messed up!” Mari and Hero’s back-and-forth overlapped with Kel’s annoying laughter. The younger boy skipped in place, waving the toy tarantula around like a flag. Kel had finally gotten the show that he hoped for.

“Hero… please?” Mari begged. “I didn’t mean for it to turn out like this.”  Hero’s face was pale, still shaken by the sight of the scariest spider that he knows of. 

“Come on, Hero!” Kel interjected. “It’s just a toy!” Kel briefly stopped his rapid movement to hold out his hand. “See?” That only made Hero cry out in terror again.

“Oh dear,” Mari whispered to herself. “This didn’t go as planned.”

Mari’s eyes studied the room. Kel certainly wasn’t helping the situation, as Hero was curled up with a dejected expression.

“That just means I’ll have to try even harder. This has to work.”

***

It hadn’t been a week since the “blindfold incident.” Mari took her time to find out the best way to approach her next attempt, while Hero spent his time dreading what surprise was next in store. Mari admitted to herself that her past attempts had been too extreme, so she figured she’d try something new. Her days of researching in the library had taught her that Hero needed to be eased into resolving his fear; diving headfirst with real and toy spiders wasn’t the most proper approach.

Mari didn’t want to risk Hero spiraling again and see him upset like that for a third time. Determined to succeed, she wanted this next plan to be the final, so that Hero would no longer be bothered by spiders. Most will call it unrealistic, but Mari was confident that this would be the exception. Her next attempt would only involve simple imagery, just pictures, a method that could even work for Hero. This was her final stretch. Little did she know, it was also Hero’s too.

Another day after school meant another day alone together in a house, where Mari and Hero could do what every couple would do when alone together, study. The dining room table seats in Mari’s house were comfortable enough for the two to sit for hours, preparing for exams together. The table was scattered with notes and study guides. After hours of studying, Mari craved for something warm so the study couple also shared a moment to drink hot chocolate together.

Mari closed her spiral notebook and set it aside; she had finished going over all of her notes for the third time and finally had enough. Three times would suffice, and, besides, Mari was a star student. She felt confident in passing alongside succeeding in her end-of-year plans, so she didn’t see a point in stressing by subjecting herself to torture. Instead, Mari would sit up straight in her chair and wait: legs kicking back and forth, humming a tune while repeatedly tapping her pencil against the table.

Mari snuck glances at her backpack, fixating on the lone binder resting inside, a binder unlike the rest of her school materials. She took the opportunity to pull it out of and onto the table, sliding piles of notes away. Mari quickly opened the small binder and quietly flipped through the pages and occasionally took a peek towards the kitchen, making sure everything was in place and that Hero wouldn’t walk in on her.

“Another hot cup of cocoa, coming in hot!” Hero stepped back into the dining room, with two steaming mugs in his hands. Mari immediately shut the binder and slid it next to the other piles. Perfectly inconspicuous. Hero set the mugs down onto the napkins they used as coasters and situated himself back into his seat.

“Thank you, Hero,” Mari smiled and delicately lifted her mug towards her lips. She softly blew into the cup; the tips of her fingers felt as if they were going to disintegrate, so she needed to take a sip fast. Therefore, the impatient girl planted the tip of her lips and took a sip, instantly backfiring with scalding pain. Mari winced at the extreme heat and whimpered.

“Careful, Mari,” Hero chuckled at his girlfriend’s antics. “Don’t rush into it. You’ll just burn yourself.” He gave Mari a warm smile, admiring her adorable face. Mari looked back at Hero, basking in his charming radiance.

“But I like it hot,” Mari pouted.

“I never said you had to drink it cold,” Hero laughed. “I know you’re just fooling around.”

“Ah, you caught me.” She took another sip much more carefully, this time. Mari allowed herself to take in the warmth and chocolatey goodness of her drink. Hero would continue to admire her, without end.

“Wait, hold on,” Hero’s hand reached over and cupped Mari’s face. “You got some on your face.” Hero’s thumb traced around Mari’s soft lips, wiping off the drops of hot chocolate, catching her off guard. Mari felt warm; she wasn’t sure if it was because of her drink, Hero’s warm hand, or her own face heating up.

Mari had no time to be flustered; she needed to enact her plan soon, but… Hero’s hand felt so warm wrapped around her cheek… She didn’t want it to end just yet. It didn’t take long for Mari to snap out of her Hero-induced trance and notice that her hand had been placed over Hero’s. How long had she been keeping Hero’s hand for herself?

Not a single inch was moved in the long silence that followed. Mari was too stunned to let go of her boyfriend, while Hero, too, sat like a deer in headlights. Their breathing tensed, as the two young teens stared deeply into one another. Mari grip became tighter. Hero leaned in closer, little by little. Their faces got dangerously close enough to make Mari’s parents flip if they were home. Mari’s mind was going blank. All she could see was a delightful pair of lips gaining on her, about to lock in.

Hero felt his lips press onto something cold and solid. He opened his eyes to see a white binder blocking his path. His girlfriend had swiftly held the binder between the two. Mari lowered it to her chest, revealing her beet red face, but Hero didn’t notice.

“Come on, Mari…” The lover boy frowned. “Are you teasing me again?”

“H- huh?” the flustered girl stammered. “Oh- um… mhm! Got you, silly!” Her demeanor shifted back to playfulness.

“You can kiss me, once we finish studying,” Mari smirked.

“Okay, okay,” Hero resigned, scooting his chair back to a reasonable distance from his study partner. He took a sip of his hot chocolate, before picking up his pencil again.

“So, what part is it that you’re still not understanding?” Hero asked, sorting through the study guides that were casted aside.

“Actually,”  Mari looked down to the binder she held close to herself. “There’s something I want to show you, first.”

“Hm? What’s up?”

“I want us to go over this together,” Mari softly spoke, placing the binder back onto the table. “It isn’t anything for the exam.” Hero examined the mystery folder. He sighed.

“This better not be another one of your pranks, Mari,”

“It’s not. I just really want to review something with you.”

“Well… does it have anything to do with spiders, then?”

“It… might.”

“Mari…”

"It isn’t a prank, Hero! I swear! I want to be serious about it, this time.”

“Okay… I don’t get how this could be any different, but I guess you could give it a shot or something.” Hero didn't like where this was going one bit.

“Alright!” Mari’s face lit up, readying her hands to open the binder. “So, the plan here is to start small then slowly work yourself up.” She opened up the folder to the title page, reading “The Many Shapes of Spiders,” written with fancy handwriting and colorful pens. Hero was almost impressed by the amount of effort put into his torture, but he shook his head in confusion.

“Is this some kind of picture book?”

“Well, not entirely,” Mari laughed softly to herself, realizing how ridiculous this all looked. “But if imagining it like one makes it easier for you, then I guess you could say it kind of is. It’s just as simple as one.”

“Okay.”

“Let’s get started. Ready?” Mari leaned back in her chair and held up the picture book. She shifted the seat to face Hero, allowing for a direct view of her face and the binder. Hero felt like he was back in Kindergarten. 

“Flip away,” he said with little enthusiasm. He was more annoyed than scared of spiders, at this point. Maybe Mari’s plan finally worked… Hero amused himself with that thought.

Mari turned the first page. Hero flinched, but, upon second glance, he registered that all there was in front of him was a sheet of paper with a cartoonish drawing of a spider. The drawing wasn’t detailed; it was made up of circles and lines, with a cute smile in the middle. It looked like it came straight out of a children's coloring book.

That was underwhelming, Hero initially thought. He remembered he was told that the book would have stages, so he kept his guard up. He wasn’t intimidated by a drawing, but the negative association the imagery had still made him uncomfortable.

“Pretty scary, huh?” Mari took a mental note. She grabbed her pink pen from the table and drew extra features onto the spider.

“Would… making it look like a bunny make it any better?” Mari jokingly suggested. The cartoon spider now presented long rabbit ears, its smile also accompanied by whiskers. The cheerful girl wiggled the binder around, with pizzazz. Unamused, Hero shook his head.

“Right. I should focus,” Mari put down her pen and kept a firm grasp on the spider book. “Are you ready for the next page?”

Hero shrugged, then nodded. The page turned again, this time displaying a more detailed drawing of a spider. Instead of circles, lines, and drawn bunny ears, this next page depicted a much realer appearance: now colored, brush strokes allowing for more depth and texture, and eight empty eyes replacing the former’s friendlier smile.

Hero shuddered. His body felt a sudden jolt due to the big difference in content between the two images. The painting was a large step up from the cartoon; it didn’t look lifelike, but it still felt uncanny. It repelled Hero from looking any longer.

“Where did you even get these pictures from?” The trembling teenager steered his gaze over to the table, trying to distract himself with the amount of study material he needed to review.

“I printed them all out at the library,” Mari replied. “The printer was very slow, so I spent a lot of time putting this together.”

“I see… You’re really putting your heart and soul into this. Huh, Mari?” Hero said that last part under his breath.

“Anyway, let’s move on. Do you feel comfortable enough to proceed?”

Hero didn’t feel comfortable at all. He wanted this to be over, so he let out a small groan and nodded again. Mari readied her fingers along the edge of the page. With a gentle move of the hand, the page easily slid to the other side. The shifting of papers created a satisfying sound but gave Hero goosebumps.

The third page contained a photograph this time. In the photo, the spider was positioned farther away in the frame. However, it was still enough to put Hero on edge; it started to feel like sensory overload, with the back-to-back-to-back spiders. Hero squirmed in his chair, slowly inching back, as if the spider was really there. With the way the image was sized, it might as well have been.

“As you can see,” Mari hummed. “We’ve now moved on to real photos.”

“Yep, I can see that,” Hero’s voice strained. “You can close the book now…”

“What? But you’re halfway through now. Come on, Hero! I believe in you!”

Hero wanted to run. He felt overwhelmed. Mari wanted to get spiders off of his mind, but this only made Hero think about spiders even more. He thought about the possibility of spiders sneaking up on him behind corners, with how Mari’s been surprising him with spiders. Hero couldn’t tell her that, though.

“Hero?” Mari called. “Are you ready for the next image?”

Hero wanted to get it over with.

Mari flipped the page: another photograph. This time, the spider was even closer, like it was creeping up towards Hero. All Hero could force out were weak cries and groans.

“Mari…” The more Hero looked at the book, the more panicked his breathing became.

Mari frowned. Was this not working? She flipped the binder back towards her, trying to see if there was something she had missed. She swore she had taken the right steps.

“Mari,” Hero mumbled, frustrated. He felt like a lab rat, and Mari was too in her head to realize that she was conducting the experiments.

“Hang on,” Mari dismissed. “There’s gotta be something I’ve missed. Maybe we can try again later…”

“Mari.”

“Maybe I needed more images in between…”

“Mari!”

The house fell silent. Mari was startled by how loud Hero got; if they were outside, it would’ve echoed throughout the whole town. Hero hardly ever raised his voice. Whenever he did, it’d usually be when he’d scold Kel. Mari was taken aback. 

“Hero… I-”

“Stop. Just stop.” Hero seemed almost out of breath, with how shaky his breathing got. Mari closed the binder, held it to her chest, and looked down. If she looked up, she’d see how disappointed Hero probably looked.

“I should’ve held off on using the photos,” Mari said, defeated. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean-”

“No, that’s not it,” Hero groaned. “It's not the spiders that’s the problem. It’s y- it’s…”

Hero sighed. His head dropped down to his hands. Mari felt pathetic. In what she thought would be helpful, she had made things worse. Hero sighed, once more, and walked out. He needed to clear his mind, leaving Mari alone in the dining room. Mari’s lips quivered, as she threw the binder onto the floor.

Half an hour had passed, and Mari found Hero sitting under the lone tree in her backyard. Hero idly sat, in a peaceful state, with his eyes closed, listening to the rustling leaves. Mari stood there, watching his meditation, and joined his side after a bit. Hero opened his eyes to see her sitting next to him; he didn’t notice her approach. The two share a moment of silence under the tree.

“Hey…”

“Hey…” Mari parroted. She stumbled with her words. “Hero, I- I’m sorry for…”

“Don’t apologize,” Hero's arms wrapped around his knees. “I shouldn’t have yelled at you like that. Sorry.”

“Hero…”

Hero was being dismissive. Mari knew for sure. 

“You’re not at fault, Hero,” Mari continued. “I’m the one who shouldn’t have pushed something you weren’t ready for onto you. Even if you said you were, I should have noticed. I wanted to help, but I…”

"I know, Mari, and I love you for wanting to help," Hero affirmed. "But, sometimes I wonder if you look down on me for my fear of spiders."

In an instant, Mari turned to Hero's sullen face. "What? No, Hero, I love you for the way you are… Is that how you felt, this whole time?"

Hero quietly nodded. "I felt like I was just something for you to fix…"

He wasn't wrong. Mari was guilty as charged.

"I guess you’re right," she sunk her head into her knees. "I really did want to help you get over your fear, but also… I thought that doing so could help me prepare for more in the future… like with Sunny's fears." 

Hearing it out loud made Mari feel worse. Hero wasn't some personal project; he was her boyfriend. Mari sniffled. She leaned her head back against the bark of the tree and sighed, frustrated with herself.

“I treated you like a test run,” Mari laughed to cover her tears. “Isn’t that messed up?”

“You’re being too mean to yourself, Mari,” Hero comforted, putting a hand on Mari’s shoulder. “Your heart was in the right place.”

“I still tried to mess with things out of my control,” Mari confided.

Hero listened.

“I always do this, whenever I feel I’m losing control. Every time I get caught off guard, put on the spot, or-” Mari paused to look deep into Hero’s dark hazel eyes. “-flustered, I would just… panic and fall back to my plans, my routines, anything to feel in control. I guess it brings me comfort, being able to hold everything together, but I shouldn’t have let that hurt you.”

The two remained silent. They took the time to take in the relaxing winter breeze and the vibrant sky of the sunset, and they took the time to look at each other, understanding one another.

“At first, I thought that maybe I could be the guiding hand to help Sunny overcome his fears,” Mari confessed. “But, maybe I shouldn’t be the one making these decisions for him.” Hero nodded.

“He’s still going to need help, though,” he added. “He’s young. He’s going to need his big sister.” Hero let out a little chuckle, as he pulled Mari a bit closer.

“I’ll always be by his side,” Mari accepted Hero’s invitation and scooted closer. “And I wouldn’t change a single thing about him.”

Mari rested her head on Hero’s shoulder. “I don’t want to change a single thing about you too, Hero. No amount of spiders will ever change how much I love you.”

As strange as it sounded, Hero found comfort in those words. 

“And hey!” Mari chirped. “You and Sunny can be fear buddies! What do you think?” Hero burst into laughter, entertained by that idea. His arm reached over to pull Mari into a side hug and reciprocated Mari’s advances by leaning his head over hers. Another silence. Hero closed his eyes again, feeling the moment, and looked forward to spending more time with Mari that didn’t involve spiders, but then he began to think. Spiders didn’t have to leave the picture entirely.

“You know…” Hero spoke up. “I think you were onto something, with the whole ‘starting small then slowly working up’ thing.”

Mari looked up. “Oh?”

“Yeah, I think something like that could actually work.”

“You think I could’ve actually stopped your fear?”

“Well, if you didn’t rush everything, maybe.” Hero chuckled, leaning closer.

“Oh.”

“I think a lot of progress can be made, as long as you do it over the course of a longer period of time.”

“You really think so?”

“Of course, Mari.”

“Then, I’ll be happy to help!” Mari beamed. “We’ll take it slow, next time. I promise! Next year’s going to be the year.”

Hero was happy to see her enthusiasm again. “I have full faith that you can do it.”

“ We can do it,” Mari corrected. “We’re in this together, okay? We’ll take our time, we’ll only do it when we’re ready, and I’ll always be there to support you.” Mari reached over to fully embrace her partner. Hero smiled and hugged her tightly.

“I’ll always be there for you too, Mari,” he returned.

“I have one condition, however,” Mari said, her voice vibrating throughout Hero’s chest. “Promise me this, Hero.”

“Anything,” Hero responded. Mari angled her head up to maintain eye contact.

“If I ever step too far again, if I start pushing you too hard, or if I make you extremely uncomfortable again… Please let me know. Promise?” Hero looked into Mari’s and read her sincerity; he saw desperation. This was important to her.

“I promise,” Hero vowed, thus marking progress, not only in overcoming arachnophobia, but also in his relationship. Mari returned to hugging him, planting her face into his chest. It was very cold outside, and the couple’s hug was enough to melt a glacier. The two stayed like this for minutes. In a moment, they’d have to get up from their spot, head to the bus stop, and walk their younger brothers home. But, for now, the lovebirds chose to indulge in some extra time together. They were still kids. They were allowed to be a bit stupid, just for a bit longer. 

***

The house was bathing in lights of red and green. It was Christmastime, and everything was beginning to wrap up like a bow. Mari and Hero aced their exams and finished the semester with no issues. Now, they were soon to open all of their presents with the rest of their friends in a Christmas sleepover, after spending Christmas Day with family.

Everyone stayed on the first floor, the children avoiding the mistletoe like the plague. The younger siblings, Sunny and Kel, were sitting by the fireplace, drinking hot chocolate together. Basil and Aubrey, the honorary siblings of the group, were building and decorating gingerbread houses in the dining room. Mari and Hero, in their cheesy matching sweaters, were at work in the kitchen.

“Hm…” Mari worrily looked inside the oven. “Maybe I didn’t put in enough milk.”

“You put in just right. Don’t worry,” Hero put his hand on her shoulder. “They’ll come out perfect.”

“Okay… I just hope they’ll taste good. I tried to be conservative with the amount of milk I used because I needed some left for the extra batch.”

“Hm? Extra batch? What do you mean?”

“I lost the bet, remember?” Mari leaned on Hero’s shoulder, hugging his arm.

“The bet?” Hero took a second. “The Cookie Wager?”

“The Cookie Wager!” Mari giggled.

Hero laughed. He had forgotten about their little deal from the night of Kel’s birthday party. “I didn’t think you’d actually follow through, Mari,” he chuckled. “You didn’t have to.”

“Well, I lost. It’s only fair, right?”

“The stakes were unbalanced,” Hero teased. “Plus, you were fighting a losing battle.”

“Hey!” Mari pouted. “That’s true.” The couple laughed together, holding each other close. Mari climbed up and sat on the kitchen counter, dragging Hero to join next to her. With hands held, the two shared their peace together. Their alone time’s ambience was provided by the sound of air conditioning, the humming of the oven, and the occasional cries of children playing in the other rooms.

“We can share the extra batch, instead, you know,” Hero softly spoke to Mari’s ear, making her flutter. “You worked really hard, lately. You deserve some too.”

“That…” Mari sighed. “That’d be nice.” She was enamored of Hero. How could someone be so gentle, considerate, caring… attractive…

“Also, that reminds me,” Hero added. “Do you still have any milk left for us to have with the cookies?”

“Oh!” Mari hopped off the counter. “That totally slipped my mind! We’re out of milk! Oh no!” Hero followed her off the counter to reassure her.

“It’s okay,” Hero grasped her hand. “I can go grab some milk from my place. It’s practically full.” Wow…

“Really?”

“Of course! Don’t worry about it.”

“Thank you, Hero!” Mari giggled. “Christmas is saved!” Hero smiled and gave Mari a quick hug.

“I’ll be back before you know it,” Hero began making his way out, but, before he could even leave the kitchen, something tugged at the back of his sweater and pulled him back. He turned to see Mari with a sheepish grin.

“Huh? What is it, Mari?”

“You should um… look up,” Mari said shyly. Her cheeks were flushed. Hero was confused, until he followed her instructions. His eyes were led up to meet the mistletoe hanging from the doorframe. Hero’s face immediately turned red. He looked down, and Mari was able to see his panicked expression.

Mari nervously laughed. The two teens were blushing like mad, unsure what to do.

“I- uh… do you- um… should I-” Hero stammered.

“No, I- um… you can, uh-” Mari’s hand covered her mouth, embarrassed by her stuttering. The two became an awkward giggling mess. If they kept it up, they’d be there for the rest of the night, and there would be no milk to drink. Mari shook her head and leaned forward. The heels of her feet lifted a few inches, as she stood tiptoed.

Hero’s mind filled with steam. He felt Mari’s soft lips make contact with his. Hero fell into the zone and kissed back, eyes closed. Even with their lips locked, he still felt Mari giggle under their kiss, as if a signal was being sent.

Mari’s arms hung around the back of Hero’s neck. Her feet began to stumble, as she tried reaching closer. Hero understood her body language and held Mari’s face steadily with his hands, deepening their kiss. They maintained their stance as they continued to passionately kiss in the middle of the house.

Without a single clue, The display of PDA invaded the rest of the sleepover. Aubrey covered Kel’s mouth, preventing him from groaning at the sight. Sunny and Basil intently watched everything unfold, a little embarrassed.

“It’s a good thing neither of us walked under there,” Aubrey timidly whispered, hand still over Kel’s mouth.

“Yeah,” Basil squeaked. “I don’t think I’m ready for that.”

“How do mistletoes do that?” Sunny quietly asked. “How do they make people want to kiss?”

He turned to Basil.

“You know plants, Basil,” Sunny continued. “What do mistletoes symbolize? Are they magic?”

“Sunny, what?” Basil was at a loss for words.

“Shh! You guys,” Aubrey interrupted. “They’ll hear us!”

“Mmyu ghh eugh vngh mnphn mmph!” Kel complained, with a muffled mouth.

“Kel, what the heck are you even saying?”

After what seemed like an eternity, Mari’s lips parted from Hero’s. Their eyes opened and were met with their cherry red faces. The silence was interrupted by their soft snickers. Mari kept her gaze at Hero for a little longer, as if there was a newfound adoration between the two.

“I should go get the milk now,” Hero awkwardly laughed. Mari nodded, still smiling like a fool, and let go of him. Hero made his way to the front door, put on his shoes, and then headed out, closing the door behind him.

Mari stood still, staring at the door and in her thoughts. Her surroundings returned to their sleepover activities, as she swam in her own mind. She began mapping out her plan to gradually help Hero overcome his phobia over the course of next year.

She’d have to find a way to fit the plan in her schedule, in between her plans to prepare for a recital.