flowers (akashi seijuro)

Botan

Candles were lit as they gathered around. Rain poured down heavily as I chilled on the sofa.

"...And then she'll ask you, the red cape or the blue cape?" one of their classmates chanted

Others were terror-stricken even though this story is popular in Japan.

"If you pick the red cape, then she'll strip off your blood!"
Some of the students released a squeak but the two of them leaned onto each other.

"If you pick the blue cape..." their classmate prolonged, chuckling a bit

"She'll strangle you!" she said as a loud clanging sound emitted from the sky

Screams and shrieks were released as the story-teller laughed. However, [F/N] looked pretty terrified as she gulped.

"I-I'll go to the comfort room, S-S-Seijuro-kun." she said

Akashi nodded but he raised one of his eyebrows as she walked to her room.

"What if you tell her you want an orange cape?"

"She'll... chop you into pieces!"

"GAH!"

Akashi glanced at the time, standing up.

"Where are you going?" one of his classmates piped

"I'm going to check on, [F/N]-chan."

I sneaked behind him since I was curious.

He walked towards the hall, holding his flashlight up. There was a blackout because of the rain. Students thought it was cool to tell scary stories during this time.

The thunder made it dramatic.

He opened the door to her room, seeing how dark it was. He walked to the comfort room, knocking on the door.

"[F/N]?"

He opened it up, finding no one.

Another loud noise emitted from the sky as he immediately closed the door. A squeak was heard from the closet as a loud rustling emitted from it.

"[F/N]-chan?" he called out, opening the closet up

His mouth fell agape as he saw her crouching down. Her hands were covering her ears as some tears streamed down her face. She opened her tightly closed eyes, seeing light coming from the flashlight.

"S-S-Seijuro-kun..." she said as she immediately came out of the closet

She wrapped her arms around him as if she never wanted to let go. He hugged back as well, his hand holding the back of her head.

"Shh..." he whispered soothingly

Another sound went off, causing her to bury her head on his chest.

"I'm here... there's nothing to be afraid of." he whispered as he sat her down on the bed

He got the blanket, wrapping her tightly with it. He lit a candle up on her bedside table, dropping the flashlight. She placed her head on his shoulder as he kept her close.

"When I was a child, I would always hide in the closet whenever I hear thunder." she said softly

He stared down at her as he rubbed his hand on her shoulder soothingly.

"I was scared since it reminded me of the day when father left."

She closed her eyes as she took a deep breath.

"It was raining really hard when he rolled his luggage on the dirt."

"I shouted, cried and fell on the floor. She held me back though, drenching her own clothes."

"The last thing I saw was lightning."

"The last thing I heard was thunder."

He planted a soft kiss on her head, making her smile.

"Ever since, I'm scared of those two things. I'm scared because I hate being left alone."

Suddenly, a Peony (Botan) appeared in front of her. She looked up at him, smiling a bit. He smiled at her as well, placing the flower on her hand.

"Peony symbolizes bravery." he told her

She laughed slightly, taking in his scent.

"I love you." she whispered

"I love you too."

He let her rest on the bed, pulling the covers over her.

"Sleep with me?" she asked softly

"What?" he said as he took a double-take

She laughed as she tugged on his arm.

"Not like that, silly." she said softly

He glared at her as he positioned himself beside her. He pulled the covers over them, hugging her. She wrapped her arms around him, placing her head on his chest.

He planted a kiss on her forehead, hugging her even more. She smiled softly as she held dearly onto the

Botan