Stand by Him

𝑳𝑿 - 𝑮𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝑷𝒉𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒐𝒎

「𝑶𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒂'𝒔 𝒑𝒐𝒗」

After being on call with Aether for a good hour, I went to see Phantom, wanting to know more about him if he was now going to be my bandmate.

I knocked on the door that used to be the door to Aether's room and got an answer a few seconds later.

« Hm? Hey, Neptune! It's nice to see you again! » He said, a smile appearing on his face as he saw me.

« Hi, Phantom! » I said, smiling back at him. « Were you doing anything before I knocked? » I asked, hoping I didn't bother him while he was doing something.

« No, don't worry. I was just decorating the room! » Phantom answered.

« That's nice. Can I see it? » I asked curiously, wanting to see what kind of 'aesthetic' our new friend had.

« Sure thing! Come in! » Phantom said, opening the door wider and letting me in.

The first thing I noticed was how many vampire/bat/skeleton stuff lied around his room as decorations. His room honestly looked very nice. It reminded me of Halloween.

« I like your room! It gives off a Halloween kinda vibe. It's amazing! » I spoke as I looked around his room.

« Really? Thank you! » Phantom said.

I then noticed a little bat plushie on his bed and smiled, finding it to be adorable. I picked it up and looked at it.

« That's adorable. » I muttered while chuckling.

« That's Lil guy. Isn't he so cute? » Phantom said, chuckling as well.

Lil guy... I mean, it matched the appearance somewhat. It was cute!

« Yeah, super cute! » I said, putting the plushie back where it was.

I then turned to look at Phantom while allowing myself to sit on a chair in his room. « So, do you like it here? » I asked, hoping to start a conversation so I could get to know more about him.

Phantom sat on the edge of his bed. « So far, so good! I haven't gotten the chance to get to know everyone, but so far, everyone's kind! » He said, grinning.

« Reallly? Who didn't you get to know yet? » I asked.

« Hmm... Sodo, Rain, and Cumulus. » He answered. « So far, I spoke the most with Swiss and Cirrus. » Phantom added.

I nodded as I listened to him talk. « And what do you think about everyone even if you don't know some of them that well? » I asked, wanting to know what he thought about his new bandmates.

« If I'm gonna be honest, Swiss is actually very funny even if his sense of humor is questionable... Mountain's easy to talk to! I haven't talked with him much, but the times I did, he was always fully listening to what I said and everything. » He started and paused before continuing. « Sodo honestly looks like he's annoyed every time I open my mouth, not gonna lie. » Phantom admitted.

« Ah, Sodo? There's a chance he's just angry that you replaced Aether in the band... they used to be best friends. » I said, speaking more quietly as I realized how hurt Sodo must've been when he realized that his best friend had just... left.

« Oh... do you think he'll like me eventually? » Phantom asked.

« Of course! Give him some time to get used to you being here, and I'm sure he'll eventually open up to you. He can be stubborn, but it'll work, don't worry. » I told him, giving him a reassuring smile.

He smiled back. « That's good to know... » He said, sounding relieved that Sodo didn't actually hate him.

I then thought about another question to change the subject at the same time. « So... Do you have a favorite song to play on guitar? » I asked.

He nodded with a toothy grin on his face. « Square Hammer is one of my favorites! » Phantom answered, way faster than I imagined. « What's yours? » He then asked curiously.

I didn't even take some time to think either. « Definitely Darkness at the heart of my love. » I answered, smiling.

« Really? So... do you have a darkness at the heart of your love for somebody? » Phantom asked with a teasing and playful smirk on his face.

I couldn't help but laugh. « What are you even implying by that? » I asked while laughing.

My laugh only caused Phantom to laugh as well... actually, he was laughing so much that he couldn't even catch his breath to answer my question. He ended up not answering it, which left me confused, but I didn't think much about it as he asked me a question.

« Is it your first tour with the band as well? » Phantom asked.

« Yeah. The fans are gonna get a hell of a surprise... seeing three new ghouls. » I said, chuckling a little.

He grinned. « I'm totally convinced they're gonna love me! » He said, sounding very sure of himself.

« I don't see why the fans couldn't love you. After all, your energy is pretty similar to Aether in a way. » I said, smiling at him.

Phantom suddenly sighed quietly. « Do you think I'm good enough of a replacement for Aether? » He asked, sounding a little worried all of a sudden.

« Of course... why are you so worried about this? » I asked, feeling bad to see him worried about such a small thing.

« I mean... he was good, and the fans loved him very much, but what if I'm not good enough for the band? I'm not as good as him. » Phantom asked.

I smiled at him, trying to reassure him. « It's normal that you think that. Everyone's got different ways of acting and playing. It's not because you're not exactly like him that you won't be good enough. Trust me, just be yourself. People will like you for being yourself, not someone else. » I said.

Phantom took the time to process what I had just told him before he smiled at me. We then changed the subject and talked about something else than the band, getting to know each other.

...