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Casper awoke to his alarm going off, causing the ghost to startle awake and fumble for his phone to turn it off.
He groaned and rubbed his eyes wearily as he squinted at the brightness of his phone screen, sitting up to lean against his bed frame. It was 6:00am, and a notification from Ra had been sitting in his inbox since 12:00am, apparently.
Raminator: Thanks for covering for me Cas, promise ill make it up to u!
Raminator: Btw Mantha says hi :p
Casper sighed quietly to himself as he read the messages, looking over at Ra’s empty bed over on the other side of the room. It was messy, as per usual. The mummy’s bed hadn’t been made and clothes everywhere but their shared closet, but more specifically it was empty. Ra had stayed over at his girlfriend’s dormitory, being Mantha’s, that night, which was most definitely against school rules. The ghost was not very fond of the idea, but his friend’s had begged for just one night, and Casper had eventually given in.
The ghost then got out of his bed and went about with his usual morning routine. He took a shower, brushed his teeth and put on hoodie ready for breakfast. Casper then made his way over to Mantha’s dorm with his folder in hand. He knocked on the door a couple of times and was responded with;
“Coming!” He heard a muffled female voice from inside, the ghost chuckled to himself. Definitely Mantha.
Said zombie answered the door, tired eyes widening as soon as she saw it was Casper,
“Hey! morning Casper,” She greeted him, leaning against door frame.
“Morning Mantha,” He started, then raising an eyebrow as he studied her current state, a small smile played on his lips “You look even more dead than usual.”
Mantha sleepily rubbed her eyes as she chuckled, “Just shut up and get in here.”
Casper walked in and closed the door behind him, seating himself on Mantha’s bed without the need for permission.
“Did you guys remember too study for the werewolf biology test?” Casper questioned.
Mantha, who had been searching through her closet for something to wear, suddenly perked up with even wider eyes, “SHIT- I totally forgot about that!”
As if on cue, Ra’s head poked out of the bathroom,
“Can’t believe I’m not the one that didn’t study this time!” The mummy commented enthusiastically, fist pumping into the air
“Shut it, Ra!” Mantha called out, groaning dramatically and flopping down onto her bed next to Casper, “My head is such a mess lately.”
Upon the zombie’s whining, the ghost sighed, pulling his notebook out of his folder, “If you’re that desperate, you can borrow my notes until then.”
At that, she sat up at an instant.
“REALLY CAS?! Oh my gosh, you’re my saviour!” The zombie wrapped his arms around Casper’s neck, Casper couldn’t help a small smile as he side-hugged her back,
“God, the things I do for you guys…” He muttered as Mantha pulled away.
Ra then appeared out of the bathroom, having gotten ready, “Mantha, hurry up and get changed already, I’m starving!”
————————————————————
Thatch hadn’t slept for hours.
He was restless, pacing in his dorm like a caged animal. The vampire stopped briefly, glancing at the door for what felt like the hundredth time, he knew he couldn’t leave. The first monster he’d see, Thatch would loose control and suck them dry.
Strong vampires could last months, even years without blood, and yet he himself could barely last a measly couple of days. Pathetic.
Thatch froze as his stomach lurched with hunger, hissing in response. The vampire weakly fell to his knees, clutching his abdomen tight. His teeth gritted in discomfort. As much as Thatch hated to admit, he was horribly blood-deprived. But he wasn’t going to give in for a single drop. The vampire would have to stay in and skip school, at least until his bloodlust passed.
Thatch shifted his position so that he was hugging his knees against his chest, convincing himself over and over that he was fine.
If other vampire’s could last for long periods of time without the need for consuming blood, then he could too.
Like a normal vampire should.
————————————————————
“Has anybody seen Thatch at all this morning?”
Casper questioned with a raised eyebrow, eyes watching the vampire’s usual table in the dining hall. Slither and Dummy Girl were sitting there, talking on about something out of the ghost’s hearing range, but no Thatch was present along with them.
“Why does it even matter?” Ra spoke with a mouth full of food, chewing a bit more before swallowing, “it’s Thatch we’re talking about. And isn’t he sometimes late, anyways?”
“Yeah, I guess you’re right…” Casper finally shifted his eyes away from the back corner table, propping his elbow up and leaning his head against his hand.
Mantha kept her eyes glued to Casper’s open notebook, eyes frantically skimming the pages of words as she took in as much as she could.
“Babe, you gonna finish that?” Ra questioned his girlfriend, suggesting to her breakfast tray.
“All yours.” Mantha replied without looking up, shoving her tray lightly towards the mummy.
Suddenly, the bell went, getting everyone’s attention. The sound of chairs screeching back and trays clattering filled the room as monsters started making their way to class. The zombie slammed the notebook shut, handing the book back to Casper.
She sighed as she stood up, “Wish me luck guys..”
“Wish you luck?” Casper questioned, as both him and Ra stood up taking their trays with them, “Mantha, you’re a hard-working zombie, I know you’re gonna ace this.”
“Yeah, don’t sweat it!” Ra added with a smile.
Mantha’s expression softened at her friend and boyfriend’s reassurance. “You’re right. Thanks, you two.”
After stacking their trays, the monster trio headed for the exit of the dining hall to first period.
Now in class, Casper finished his test early, as usual. He handed his paper in at the front and sat at his desk, idly flicking a pen in his hand. The ghost glanced up at the clock hung up on the wall, only around 30 minutes until the test is over. He shifted his gaze around the room, then his eyes landing at Thatch’s empty desk a row in front. He still hadn’t arrived.
To Casper’s own surprise, he was starting to get worried. Thatch rarely skipped class, especially for a test. Although he didn’t seem like the type, the delinquent actually put effort in his schooling due to having strict parents. His grades weren’t exactly like Casper’s, but depending on the subject, he’d get reasonably high marks if he tried.
After a moment of thinking over this, curiosity got the best of him. Casper carefully ripped out a page from his notebook, took off the cap of his pen, and started to write. Just a simple, short message he planned to pass to one if his friends;
Do you know what happened to Thatch?
— Casper
He chose to discreetly pass the note over to Dummy Girl. Sure, he could’ve easily passed the note over to Slither since he was closer, but he was still writing his test. And plus, Dummy Girl hated the ghost a bit less than the rest of Thatch’s gang, so passing her the note would feel a lot less intimidating. Casper then passed over the note to a monster, muttered quietly who to give it too, and hoped for the best.
After a moment, the note was passed back to him. The ghost opened the folded piece of paper;
Do you know what happened to Thatch?
— Casper
No idea, we haven’t heard from him since yesterday.
That answer just made Casper’s initial worry grow stronger. Something was most definitely wrong. But the thing was, what could he do about it?
Thatch hated Casper to the fullest. Out of any other monster, the vampire purposefully picked on him the most. If he were to tell someone he wasn’t okay, it would never be the ghost. But even after all of this, Casper still cared about Thatch just like any of the other monsters in Scare School whether the vampire liked it or not.
Mantha and Ra always told the ghost that he helped other monsters too much, and that sometimes it was okay for him to say no. But who was he kidding? He couldn’t help it. It was in his nature. He’d help anybody in need, even if it was someone like Thatch. Casper had even saved him one halloween when they were younger. Thatch had stayed behind in Deedstown because he refused to give up trying to scare a human, ended up at a halloween party, and the ghost had flown back to find him. And once they had figured out that they were real monsters, Casper refused to leave without Thatch simply because of his kindness. Maybe the ghost seemed like a bit of a pushover, but he was doing the right thing.
Casper bounced his leg restlessly, he couldn’t bare wait until the period was over. With a sense of determination, he raised his hand,
“Professor Burns, may I be excused?”
Professor Burns perked up at this, glaring at the ghost before replying, “You better be quick, Casper.” The dragon huffed.
Casper got up from his seat and left the room. The classroom door clicked shut behind the ghost as he made his way over to the dormitories, now starting to realise he may have overhyped himself up for this. Thatch wasn’t as intimidating as other monster’s said he was, but the vampire could definitely do some damage when he wanted too.
He made his way up the flight of stairs and turned left down the hallway, fidgeting with his hands a little nervously as Casper’s footsteps started to slow at the front of the vampire’s dorm.
The ghost halted to a stop outside, sighing quietly as he raised his fist to knock on the entrance when suddenly-
“ARGGHHH, FUCK!-“
Casper jolted back at the sudden guttural yelp from inside the room, heart racing as panic started to well inside of him,
“Thatch! are you alright!?”
————————————————————
The vampire’s breathing was laboured, widened eyes locked onto the exit of the room as he heard Casper’s concerned remark from outside the door. Why the hell was he here?
Thatch could smell Casper’s scent from inside the dorm, the divine aroma causing his stomach to twist and turn again. The vampire hugged himself as an attempt to hold back,
“Go AWAY! …m-marshmallow!” He responded after a moment. He had attempted to sound confident, but the vampire’s statement had ended up coming out much more weak and raspy. Thatch hugged himself tighter and cringed as another wave of hunger washed over him
“Why? Thatch, please tell me whats wrong!” The ghost persisted pleadingly.
Thatch started to grow more nervous and even more hungrier. Casper wasn’t going to leave, the vampire knew what he was like. The stupid friendly vermin always had to make sure every monster was fine and dandy.
“Bitch! I said- LEAVE. IT.” Thatch growled louder in warning. He hated Casper, he really did. But bringing harm to him by sucking his blood was too far. Towards any monster, even.
It was crucial for a vampire to learn how to keep their fangs to themselves. Some had it easier to control their bloodlust, while others struggled and needed more training to be able to become stronger, more independent vampires. And upsettingly, Thatch was one of those said others.
His father had stated that Thatch was too young for training and that he needed to wait until he finished his schooling, but the vampire was to impatient. He stopped taking his blood alternatives a couple of days ago, causing him blood-deprived, and he had ended up in his current state now. Very much hungry, and more specifically, hungry for the blood of the ghost outside his dorm room.
Speaking of said ghost, it had gone quiet for a while. Thatch hoped that Casper had left, and that maybe his scent was still just lingering at his nose, but all hopes had vanished as he heard the ghost’s next words;
“Fine then, I’m coming in.”
Holy shit.
It had completely left Thatch’s mind that ghosts could phase through things. There was definitely no chance of warding him off now.
Casper phased through the door, revealing himself with crossed arms. His form glowed a faint white in the dimly lit room as he hovered above the ground.
The ghost had opened his mouth to speak, but suddenly came to a halt as he eyed Thatch’s demeanour. The vampire’s eyes were wide, chest heaving and hair rather ruffled as he kept curled up in the corner of the room.
The initial irritated expression etched on Casper’s face shifted to become rather shocked as the ghost realised exactly what had been going on;
“… you’re starving yourself.”
Thatch knew what Casper meant, Casper knew himself what he was talking about. As the ghost tried to hover closer, Thatch immediately stopped him,
“DON’T MOVE!” The vampire blurted out in panic, Casper jolting back in surprise. The back of Thatch’s hand hovered over his mouth as if it could shield his fangs from what they wanted, “I t-told you to buzz off!”
The ghost’s eyebrows furrowed in concern as he lowered himself down on his feet before replying,
“No! not until you tell me why you’re doing this to yourself!” He argued back, being careful to obey Thatch’s boundaries and kept put where he now stood.
With gritted teeth and an aching abdomen, he responded roughl, “Th-That is NONE of your business!”
Casper’s expression started growing angrier as the argument started to arise. He gently tested the waters by taking a small step towards the vampire. The ghost had to remember that Thatch was still blood-deprived, but he wanted to get his point across without being seeming so over-confident.
“That’s not important when it comes to stuff like this! You could die, Thatch!” Casper argued, pleading his case.
“I don’t give a fuck!” Thatch hissed, rising to stand and edging closer without realising as his quick temper started to get the best of him. The urge to just lunge at the ghost in front of him and take in his blood now started to sound like a great idea, “you don’t understand.”
Casper put a hand to his chest before responding with a little less steam and more so determination, “Because you won’t let me! I know we’ve never exactly gotten along, Thatch, but I won’t hurt you!”
“But I COULD, Casper!”
Casper flinched at the other’s words, not having expected such an answer from the monster in front of him.
Thatch’s hunger had started to settle in again. He hugged himself tightly, shifting his gaze towards the floor beneath them before continuing,
“…Now, g-go away, or-“
“You’ll what?” Casper interrupted purposefully, taking a step forward to close the gap between them, as if completely forgetting what danger lies of being too close to the other,
“You’ll bite me…?”
The vampire’s eyes widened at the sudden closeness. The other’s scent had grown more vivid now, he subconsciously swallowed and licked his lips as his heart began to pick up its pace.
“…What are you trying to getting at?” Thatch questioned a little breathlessly.
The atmosphere in the room seemed to have lifted from it’s initial heaviness. The vampire’s violet eyes gazed into Casper’s sapphire blue ones, and all the vampire could think about was how awfully good the other’s blood smelled, the scent drove him crazy. He wondered how it tasted, how amazing the sensation would feel after days without the liquid red.
Fuck it.
Self-control completely left from Thatch. He desperately closed the remaining space between him and the smaller ghost, grabbing a hold of him and pulling them both flush against each other. He heard a gasp of surprise, or maybe even fear, escape Casper’s lips, the ghost immediately tensing up at the vampire’s sudden grip on him. Thatch forcibly tilted the other’s head, his fangs just mere inches away from sinking into the sweet, supple skin beneath them. His mouth had begun to water, swallowing as he paused. Just for a moment.
————————————————————
Casper could feel Thatch’s hot breath against his exposed neck, heart racing as he squeezed his eyes shut, preparing himself the feeling of razor sharp fangs to pierce into his luminescent skin. But the vampire seemed hesitant, as if he had gained just the slightest bit of awareness to what he was doing.
“… W-Why the hell are you letting me do this..?”
Casper visibly swallowed, allowing himself to relax his body into Thatch’s hold of him. He knew the vampire wouldn’t hurt him now, but the overwhelming pit of anxiety that had formed within his stomach still put him on edge. Thatch had sounded hesitant, seemingly just as scared as the ghost himself. It was a rather unusual look on Thatch, seeing as he had always been an overconfident, sarcastic type of vampire. Both monsters seemed to be in the same boat.
“…Why are you willing to?” Casper pried, and what a mistake that was.
The ghost could practically physically feel Thatch quickly snap back into reality at his remark, the vampire’s grip on him tightening in frustration and the hunger for blood finally consuming him entirely.
“You’re a real pain in my ass, dipshit.” Thatch growled, frustration curdling in his voice. Casper had finally driven the vampire to his breaking point.
With that, Thatch’s fangs pierced deep into the skin of the ghost’s neck. Casper yelped in response to the sudden sharp pain as the vampire began to greedily take in large amounts of the other’s blood, fulfilling not only his hunger, but by taking out all the built up anger and hatred for the ghost onto him by doing so.
It looks so much better in the movies.
Casper’s knees buckled as he grabbed a hold of Thatch’s shoulders to support himself, hearing the satisfied grunts and groans from the vampire as he himself squirmed in Thatch’s grasp from the burning sensation of every mouthful he took in. The vampire guided Casper back up onto the end of his bed without pulling away, the ghost allowing himself to be laid back as he felt his breathing grow shallow and his heart racing from the overwhelming adrenaline of it all.
After what felt like hours, Thatch then removed his fangs from within the others’ neck. His mouth and teeth visibly battered with blood, his breath mingling with Casper’s as the weight of what had taken place a few moments ago started to weigh onto both monsters. Thatch had seemed to realise this, his breath hitched and it was like all of the initial rage within the vampire had vanished, replaced by the sudden realisation and reality of everything. He got up off of Casper in a panicked manner, having hurriedly backed away from him as if he’d been burned. The ghost sat up himself, studying the unfamiliar expression etched onto the other’s face. He wasn’t amused, he wasn’t even smiling. He was absolutely horrified.
The atmosphere had grown more tense as the silence went on, either monster unsure of what to say in a situation like this. Casper felt the cold air against his fresh bite wound, placing a hand over to find it had been continuously oozing with blood and only taking notice until now. He held his hand against the mark firmer. He couldn’t loose any more of his blood after how much Thatch took in.
“… I-I…” Said vampire stuttered out, causing Casper to shift his attention towards him, “I didn’t mean too-…”
The ghost was surprised. Thatch’s voice had sounded so vulnerable, a tone of which he’d never heard come from the other. Casper watched as the vampire aggressively wipe his mouth with his sleeve as if an attempt to erase the evidence of the events that had occurred previously.
As Thatch looked down at his blood-stained sleeve, his eyes then slowly darkened as he shook his head in disbelief.
“I told you to fuck off, didn’t I Casper?” The vampire barked, letting out an annoyed scoff before continuing “why can’t you just do what you’re told for once?!”
Casper flinched back at this, the absolute nerve of the guy. He furrowed his eyebrows,
“Do you really think I’d just leave you here to starve yourself to death?!” The ghost retorted, his eyes not leaving Thatch’s as he pressed his hand against his neck a little firmer, “If it weren’t for me, you would’ve been passed out by now. So will you stop being a total bitch about this and just CALM DOWN?!”
Casper blinked. That came out a lot more fiery than intended.
Thatch visibly swallowed, pausing for a moment before letting his arms relax on either side of him,
“…Ok.”
He surrendered surprisingly calmly, quietly and hesitantly approaching the end of the bed again and seating himself on the edge next to Casper.
The ghost then glanced down at his lap for a moment, taking a breath before he spoke his next few words carefully,
“So…” He started, “was I your-…?”
“Yes.” Thatch replied, gaze fixed in front of him and anxiety starting to fill his expression yet again, “…you’re my first bite.”
Casper paused to think for a moment. He was now not only Thatch’s nemesis, but now the vampire’s first proper feeding off of a living being. Although in his case, non-living being…?
He really ought to take Mantha’s advice to heart from now on and think before he does anything.
…idiot.
————————————————————
Having your first bite, or first feeding, is an especially significant event for a vampire. Think of it like a first kiss, except although romance is typically involved with a kiss, a feeding does not have to require such.
A first bite, in short, is a sign of trust. It shows to represent a special bond with a vampire and their donor.
Thatch did not have any of the sorts with Casper. In fact, he didn’t even like him at all.
So when the vampire had said it out loud, it sounded so unrealistic, but it had been the truth.
His first bite had been ruined by a measly marshmallow named Casper McFadden.
Thatch then finally glanced over said ghost after hearing a quiet, yet audible, grunt from the other. Casper’s expression suggested he was in pain, wincing as he pressed his now bloodied hand over the bite mark as an attempt to reduce the pain.
He sighed before shifting his position so he was facing the ghost,
“Move your hand, let me see.”
After a moment, Casper reluctantly removed his hand from the wound. Thatch visibly cringed at the site of the bite mark having bitten deeper than he was aware of. Perhaps to blinded by his fit of rage to understand Casper’s perspective of it all.
“Yikes… I did that?” He muttered, though loud enough for the other to hear as he studied the wound for a moment longer before stating finally, “wait here.”
With that, Thatch left Casper sat on his bed as he got up and searched through one of the drawers in the room.
“What are you doing?” The ghost inquired as he watched the vampire with his search in the compartment.
“What do you think, genius? you’ll need to clean that up or it’ll get infected.” Thatch scoffed.
Upon finding what he needed to properly treat Casper’s injury, he returned to his spot on the bed and opened the cap of the antiseptic cream.
“Hold out your finger.”
The ghost complied to the vampire’s order, Thatch then squeezing out a dollop of the cream onto it. Casper started to gently apply the antiseptic to the fresh bite mark, — of which the bleeding seemed to have stopped thankfully — suddenly hissing in response at the sharp sting of the cream reacting with his wound.
“Ah!- that burns like hell!”
“Good. Means its working.” Thatch responded rather apathetically, taking hold of a large band-aid and taking it out of its wrapper, “now stop squirming and hold still.”
Casper sighed as the vampire then held up the band-aid to his neck carefully, “Why are you even helping me anyways..? its not you actually care.”
Thatch paused briefly to aim the bandage correctly before placing it over the mark, “You’re right, I really don’t. But if any-monster sees that, they’ll know exactly which vampire to blame.” He huffed, “Do you even know how big of a deal this is?”
Something in Casper seemed to have faltered just slightly as Thatch spoke, the ghost shamefully shifted his gaze to the floor,
“… I do.”
“Don’t give me that shit, you knew exactly what you were doing. And now thanks to you, out of every-monster in the whole underworld, you’re my first bite. Congratu-fucking-lations, marshmallow! You’ve managed ruin my life even more.”
At this, the ghost then glanced up to meet Thatch’s intense gaze. Perhaps he had made a mistake, but then again, did he really have a choice? Thatch was as stubborn as Cappy’s flying ship at anchor, there was no way the vampire would take his blood alternatives on his own account.
“Thatch…” Casper started delicately, “… Are you okay?”
The vampire raised a confused yet skeptical eyebrow upon hearing the other’s response, “Do I LOOK okay to you?!-“
“No, No. I mean, seriously… are you doing well?”
Thatch opened his mouth to retort, but came to a halt as he realised exactly what Casper had been asking.
“It’s just that… you haven’t exactly been yourself as of lately. I hadn’t really thought much of it before all this, but now…”
Casper sighed, having watched as Thatch’s expression grew more and more aghast as he went on.
“Why would you do that to yourself?”
Because I’m not good enough were the words Thatch had so desperately wanted to express out loud. Except the words refused leave his mouth, having been stunned by the amount of sincerity laced within Casper’s tone of voice.
For years of having known the ghost, he had made it awfully clear that he hated Casper and had wished absolutely nothing good for him. So why was it that he was the one to take notice? To be the one who actually seemed to care?
No. Too much had already happened in such a short period of time.
Thatch need to get out of here, to get Casper out of here. The vermin was purposely doing this, trying to worm his way into the vampire’s life as an attempt to ‘fix’ him like the others he had trusted and shown vulnerability to in the past.
But as he continued to gaze into those sapphire blue eyes, as much as Thatch searched with his violet ones, the vampire could only find what he had hated about Casper the most. His patience, careful consideration, and worst of all, his generous compassion.
Casper was a living-dead example of everything that a monster shouldn’t be, and yet Thatch yearned for the comfort he had so willingly offered. The ghost had been clear that his intentions weren’t at all cruel or unjust, but the vampire refused to allow himself to be consoled.
But perhaps, just for a moment…
Thatch’s eyes lowered as his bottom lip began to quiver, starting to feel tears prick at the corner of his eyes. The vampire attempted to blink them away, but the tears of acid kept on coming back, streaking down his cheeks and burning onto the sheets beneath him.
He glanced up at Casper to find his eyes still having not left off of Thatch, arms opened towards him like a silent offer for an embrace.
A sob. “I hate you.” he trembled. Thatch then accepted the other’s invitation and leaned into the ghost’s embrace, instantly feeling the warmth of Casper’s arms carefully wrapped around him in a comforting manner.
“I know.” The other then responded into Thatch’s shoulder, his hold tightening slightly in reassurance.
That had been all it took for the vampire’s emotional walls that he had built up overtime to finally all come crumbling down at once. Thatch’s breathing grew raggedy as he began sobbing heavily into Casper’s shoulder, allowing himself to then return the embrace as he did so. The vampire’s tears of acid would most definitely ruin the ghost’s hoodie, but it seemed it hadn’t rather been the main issue for Casper. Neither had the duo separated at the sound of the school bell ring through the PA system.
It was like all the voices in Thatch’s head suddenly went silent, as if the whole underworld had come to a halt just for him and Casper, right then and there in the dormitory.
He hated the fact that he melted further into the other’s hold of him, that Thatch never wanted this rare moment of tranquility with Casper of all monsters to end. But the vampire, for once being able to even somewhat pour his heart out to someone who’d actually listen, couldn’t help but finally feel accepted and valid for feeling how he felt.
It was only when Thatch’s sobbing had slowed down, his breathing now steady with occasional sniffling did Casper pull away from the vampire just enough so he could see his face.
“…do you feel better now?” The ghost spoke awfully softly, as if he was afraid of breaking the moment of peace and quiet.
Thatch huffed at this, sheepishly glancing off to the side and averting eye contact, “I guess…” the vampire grumbled in response.
Casper seemed he couldn’t help a small smile, it was to be expected for Thatch to react in such a way. After all he wasn’t the type to let himself be this vulnerable with just any-monster.
“We should to class now, we’ll have to leave now if we wanna make it there in time,” The ghost came to a realisation, shifting his gaze back to the vampire sympathetically, “that is, of course, if you’re alright to join me…”
Thatch perked up at this. Right, school. He cleared his throat, trying to seem as though he made quick recovery from the previous events.
“Yeah, sure. Lets end this pity party.” The vampire sighed, standing up from where he was sat and making his way towards the door.
“Hey, hold on,” Casper called out, Thatch pausing briefly at this.
“What now?” The vampire responded rather sharply, yet there was no actual bite to what he said, Thatch then turning to face the ghost now hovering in front of him.
Casper then shoved a hand in the pocket of his hoodie and pulled out a handkerchief, “You still got a bit of blood around your mouth,”
“Seriously? a hankie?” The vampire rolled his eyes as he stifled a laugh, “who even carries those around any- HEY!-“
Thatch was then abruptly cut off due to Casper, rather forcefully, taking the vampire’s chin in hand.
“Make fun of me all you want, just let me do this.” The ghost sighed, then beginning to clean off the remaining smudges of blood on his face with the handkerchief. Thatch folded his arms against his chest in response, expression irritated as he reluctantly allowed Casper to do so.
“This is embarrassing. I’m capable completely of doing this by myself.” The vampire exclaimed, though he didn’t make any attempt to pull away.
“I know,” Casper started, wiping away one last smear before folding the small cloth and putting it back into his hoodie pocket, “but you cant do everything alone, Thatch. Y’know, sometimes its okay to ask for help.”
The vampire’s eyes widened ever so slightly at this, a bemused expression on his face before he broke into a fangy grin.
“You’re so cheesy.” Thatch snickered.
Casper huffed in response as his eyebrows furrowed, “I’m being serious!”
“Yeah, I heard you.” The vampire pulled the other’s hood over his head, then swivelling around to then open the door, “make sure your loser friends don’t find about this. Or anyone, as a matter of fact.”
“Of course, it’s a promise.” Casper agreed, the duo making their way down the hallway.
————————————————————
“Where the hell have you been?! we’ve been searching for you everywhere!- are those burn marks on your hoodie?”
Mantha blurted, having a hold of the ghost’s shoulders with a grip so firm it could’ve shattered bones. Thankfully Casper was already dead.
“Sorry I left without word.” He apologised, “It was just that-… uh...” Who was he kidding? the ghost was horrible at lying, especially to his own friends.
“Good grief, Mantha, give him some room maybe?” Ra sighed next to the zombie, “but you do owe us an explanation, Cas. I’m not a smart mummy, but you’ve never been the type to skip.”
As the zombie then let go of Casper, he sighed as he decided his next words carefully. The ghost made a promise to Thatch, and he didn’t intend to break it anytime soon. That itself meant Casper had to come up with a reasonable excuse, and preferably fast.
“You see, I was on my way back to class when… Fly-boy got stuck up in the tower window again.” He scratched his neck, watching his friends’ reactions as he added, “you remember how long it took to get him unstuck last time?”
Ra hummed in thought, “Fair enough, Flyboy’s always getting stuck somewhere.” Mantha nodded in agreement, although she didn’t seem as easily convinced, her eyes carrying a hint of skepticism.
“Now lets get to class or Miss Hopper’ll get crabby!” the mummy added, Casper letting out a silent sigh of relief as he was finally let off the hook.
As the trio walked away to history class, Ra starting to ramble on about a money-eating vending machine near the cafeteria, the ghost’s eyes landed onto Thatch and his gang coming around the corner, his eyes following them as they passed by. More specifically, eyes following Thatch.
The vampire had laughed at something Dummy Girl had said, as if nothing had changed. As if the events that played out in Thatch’s dormitory just moments earlier hadn’t ever happened. But it was once Thatch’s eyes met with Casper’s that his laughter slowly subsided. And for a split second, everything froze.
And then, unexpectedly, he smiled. It wasn’t menacing, nor had it been some sort of threat. It was a fond, soft at the edges, genuine smile.
Casper then found himself smiling back,
Perhaps a few things had changed after all.