Shinigami Haken High School (Black Butler)

Chapter Twenty Four: School Lock-in

As I got closer and closet to her, I noticed she was focused on something in her lap. As silently and inconspicuously as I could, I leaned my head over her shoulder slightly, watching whatever it was she was doing. She was playing a game on a violet 3DS, and I resisted the urge to release a fanboy scream. Ashlyn was a total gamer girl, not to mention cute. A girl like that is a rare catch. I watched her play for a little while before I got bored of waiting and tired of standing, then I decided to pipe up. "Hey there, beautiful."

Ashlyn dropped the game console in hand and flinched in her spot. She turned her head up and faced me with a petrified expression and wide eyes. She relaxed upon seeing me and turned back around, picking up her game and continuing to jab at the buttons and take down enemies. "Ronald, you dork."

I laughed and sat down next to her. Ashlyn refused to look at me, her eyes trained on the little screen. Becoming bored, I started to play with her hair, twirling one of the violet streaks between my fingers. Clearly irritated, she batted my hand away with hers. She slammed her device shut and glared at me. "Did I do something wrong?" I whimpered as I scooted away from her.

"You think you're real funny, Knoxinator," she stated seriously. I was starting to become afraid. Did I do something - besides dropping a skillet on her head two weeks ago - to make her mad at me? Then, alleviating my fears, she bursted out in smiles and laughter. She was back to the good old Ashlyn that I knew and loved. "I'm just messing with you, Ronnie!" she exclaimed, play punching me in the arm.

"So," Alan started, sitting down in front of us. Next to him, Eric flopped down on his back, staring up at the ceiling, "what's the plan of action?"

"Well," I trailed off. I looked at my bag, which sat by me side. I patted it where I had packed my Xbox. I unzipped the bag and looked around, making sure that none of the chaperones were watching me. I pulled out one of the Xbox controllers and waved in front of them, smirking as they watched the object in fascination. "I've got a few ideas," I laughed.

"No way, you didn't," Eric said, chuckling under his breath.

"Oh yes I did!" I replied, putting the controller back in the bag and zipping it up, keeping a close eye on the chaperones stationed along the walls.

"Ronald, I think you forgot one crucial detail," Ashlyn stated, holding up a finger in the air, "there aren't any TVs around."

"Exactly. But there are Smartboards in the classrooms and we have good ol' Alan, the computer genius, to hook us up," I smirked, rubbing my hands together. "Ashlyn will go and 'change into her pajamas', and Eric, Alan and I will 'use the restroom', and then we can sneak off to one of the open classrooms. It's simple, really," I explained, using air quotations and a hushed voice to explain my plan to them.

"Ronald Knox," Ashlyn said, shaking her head, "exactly how long have you been planning this?"

"Since about November," I answered happily, "but my initial plan was to get Grell and William alone since he's so in love with her and Grell's not-so-secretly gay boyfriend wouldn't be-"

"Ronald," Alan said, silencing me, "let's not talk about Sebastian like that. We don't even know it that's true or not." Alan was putting up a feeble attempt to protect Grell's boyfriend's sexuality. Even Alan had to admit that Sebastian and Claude had a thing for each other.

"Yes we do!" I fired back, "It's more than obvious-"

"Are we gonna go through with this plan or what?" Ashlyn snapped, causing Alan and I both to jump back and stop arguing. We both muttered half-hearted apologies to each other and dropped the conversation. Ashlyn sighed and ran a hand through her hair, tucking a few strands behind her ear. "Okay, I'm gonna go get 'changed out'," she mimicked my use of air quotations, which brought a smile to my face, "so it doesn't seem too obvious, you guys wait a couple minutes to do your thing, okay? See you then," she stood up and patted my head, taking her bag with her. She walked up the one of the female chaperones and spoke with her for a little bit before she granted her permission to head out into the hallway. One down and three to go.

I couldn't help but imagine Ashlyn in pajamas. Sure, she'd come over to my house in oversized sweaters and athletic shorts - which she made look adorable - but I hadn't ever seen his in nightclothes. I'll admit, I tried imagining what she would wear. Of course, Eric and Alan disrupted my fantasies. "It couldn't be more obvious," Eric chuckled.

"What?" I asked, snapping out of my imagination. I looked between Eric and Alan, both of whom were having trouble containing their laughter. "Guys, what's so funny?!"

Alan laughed, "Dude, you're totally in love with Ashlyn!"

"I am not!" I retorted, my cheeks heating up with blush.

"And now you're totally lying," Eric shook his head and smiled.

I shook my head and glared at them. "Let's just go to the bathroom, okay?"

"Why do I have the feeling that this plan no longer revolved around gaming but around you getting with Ashlyn?" Alan muttered as we stood up to leave. I had instructed him to carry my bag, since it would've been strange for someone already in pajamas to change into more pajamas. We went up to one of the parent chaperones - thankfully one we didn't know - and asked them if it was alright if we could go visit the restroom. They seemed suspicious at first, but allowed us to pass.

We exited into the dark hallways, finally away from the other students and one step closer to fulfilling my plan. "Okay guys, think we should go meet up with Ashlyn?" I asked. I walked a bit further down the hall, expecting an answer. I became concerned when there was no reply. I turned around and freaked out when I realized that Eric and Alan had left. They were right there a moment ago, it was like they had disappeared into midair! I wandered around the hallways, weakly mumbling "Guys?" every so often.

"Ronald?" someone asked further down the hall. I recognized the feminine voice as Ashlyn, and I broke out in a sprint down the hallway. The dark silhouette at the end waited for me, and as I got closer, I was able to make out Ashlyn's features in the dark. I threw myself into her arms and she accepted the hug with a smile on her face. "You'll never believe it, but my uncle's room was unlocked. He left his laptop on his desk and I got us logged in, we can used the board for games now," she whispered in my ear.

"Ashlyn, you're the best!" I yelped as I released from the hug. I took her hand as she led me down the hall, the two of us trying to keep our footsteps silent so nobody would find that we snuck out. My heavy bag hit against my leg as we ran, but I didn't care. Soon, we reach the science room that Mr. Landers taught in. I walked inside and sat my bag down on one of the desks, admiring Ashlyn's handiwork. The whole Smartboard system was almost completely booted up and ready. "Kudos to you, Ashlyn," I compliment, struck by awe.

"It was nothing, really," she said, walking into the room and closing the door behind her. With the faint light of the board, I could see her figure a bit more. Turns out, she actually did change into her pajamas. She wore an old purple tanktop with a faded band logo and white drawstring shorts. I couldn't help but stare at her for a little while. I was so distracted by her appearance, I didn't even notice that she had come closer to me.

Ashlyn was leaning into me, putting her body against mine. I leaned back onto the table, letting her rest on top of me. Before I knew what was going on, she craned her neck forward and her lips crashed against mine. It was a new sensation, her soft lips against mine. I'll admit, I had imagined kissing Ashlyn before, but this was nothing like how I thought it would be. I always envisioned it to be hard and passionate, but this was sweet, loving, soft, and slow, rolled all into one. As soon as Ashlyn release from the kiss, she smiled down at me. I smirked, cocking my head to the side. "Now what was that for?"

She leaned in closer, putting her lips next to my ears. "I think I'm in love you, Knoxinator," Ashlyn purred into my ear.

That's when everything clicked. Eric and Alan had manipulated my plan to set Ashlyn and I up. And man, were they the best wingmen a guy could ever ask for.

-Oli