Your POV
Before we knew it, the weekend events were coming to a close as school started up again the following weekday morning. Everything resumed back to normal standards after the prom was over, all except for the fact that Hanako and I were now considered more than friends.
No one knows about our relationship, but I feel like I have to eventually tell someone. Nene is one of the few that I plan on telling later about the romantic weekend events, but for now, I'll let it be.
I woke up just like every other day for school, except with a certain ghost boy trailing behind me trying to get my attention.
"Good morning, my love. Did you sleep alright?" Hanako asked pleasantly as he leaned in to hug me from behind.
"Yeah, I slept okay, but I'm doing much better now that the stress of prom is over." I answered him back honestly as I leaned into his touch for support.
Hanako took this as an opportunity to swiftly turn me around to catch me off guard and to look me in the eyes for any signs of distress fixated in my mind.
"Are you sure you're doing okay? Maybe this will help calm your worries." He replied with a smirk on his face that provoked what I could only assume was a mischievous act about to occur.
He rested his hands along my waist as he leaned in again, but this time to give me a light kiss on the lips. I couldn't resist his charming request as I gave into the feeling of wanting to continue our little make out session.
Eventually we separated after a few more seconds as I stared at him in awe over his incredible ability to calm me down in the worst of situations.
"Better?" He questioned, making sure that none of those thoughts would ever return to my mind.
"Definitely much better." I replied with a bright smile and a light blush coating my cheeks.
"Good, then we must hurry if you want to get to class on time." Hanako reminded me as I realized what he said and quickly rushed to get myself ready for the day.
Time Skip!
Ring! Ring! Ring!
Hanako teleported me to the girls bathroom using his Hakujoudai just as the bell rang inside the building. We quickly said our goodbyes as he then leaned forward to kiss my forehead while looking at me with a smile.
"I'll see ya later, my precious flower." He said teasingly as he whisked away before I even had a chance to respond.
I lightly blushed from his touch while snapping back to reality as I rushed towards my class to begin another normal day of school. My main plan for the day was to hopefully have a chance to explain everything to Nene regarding prom and finally get some clarity as to what happened with Teru once I blew him off that same night.
I approached the classroom as I spotted my desk and walked towards it. I saw Nene and waved at her to show that I hadn't forgotten about her presence as I took my seat next to her.
"Hi Y/N! How are you doing?" Nene asked me in a sweet and polite tone.
"Oh you know, just hanging in there. How are you?" I answered in a monotone voice as I replied to her question.
"Probably about the same. Hey, are you sure you're doing alright after the prom? You seemed preoccupied since the weekend and I can't help but ask. I don't want my best friend to not tell me what's on her mind." She asked in concern over my troubled expression I had when I left Teru behind on the night of prom.
I stared at her as an astonished look encapsulated my face. She must've read me like a book, it was almost as if she knew I was planning to tell her everything that happened. I better explain my situation to her before anyone else finds out that I was dating a ghost school wonder and that I happened to live with him.
"Well you see..." I started to say, except that was as far as I could go before our teacher stepped into the room to begin our lesson.
"Good morning class! We'll start by reading chapters seven and eight of your book. I hope everyone is ready to go." Our teacher spoke as I glanced at Nene in an apologetic way to tell her that I was meaning to explain something important to her.
She seemed to understand my notion as she wrote something down on a piece of paper and passed it to me.
'I know you were trying to tell me something, but that's okay. We'll talk about it during lunch break.' She wrote as I looked up to her and nodded in agreement as we resumed listening to the lesson.
Time Skip!
It was finally lunch time as I went with Nene to the cafeteria to grab some food and head towards the rooftop to chat. I'm not going to lie, I'm always glad to have a school period where we all sit down, eat, and have conversations with friends. It's one of the better parts of the day that allows me time to think and reflect on things outside of the normal classroom standards.
In this case, this was the perfect opportunity to tell Nene everything. Not only about prom, but things that went on with my parents, living situation, and even Hanako and I's relationship.
"The breeze sure feels nice out here! I'm so happy that we decided to come up here instead of being cramped in the cafeteria." Nene said as we both sat down on the ground placing our lunches on our laps while continuing to talk.
"Yeah, me too. Luckily, the teachers don't seem to care all that much. Otherwise, we would probably be in trouble." I added, as we chuckled at my remark towards the staff at the school.
We ate our lunch in a peaceful silence while enjoying each other's company as the wind silently blew through our hair. I was purposefully quiet considering that I had things I needed to address with Nene and felt the pressure rise inside me to finally say something.
"Hey, Nene?" I began to say, sparking the next set of conversation that would soon unfold.
"Yes, Y/N?" She responded back with a smile present on her face to my call for her attention.
"Did you ever find out what exactly happened during prom?" I asked her with uncertainty laced in my voice.
"What do you mean? Are you talking about between you and Teru?" She replied in confirming my suspicions regarding my conversation topic.
"Yeah..." I answered with a low sigh escaping my lips.
"Is there something bothering you? Did Teru do anything to you?" She asked in worry as she noticed my change in mood.
"Not exactly... I just feel like there are some things I need to tell you. You're my best friend and, after everything from prom, it made me realize that you deserve to know what's going on." I explained with a serious tone as I looked at her with sincerity.
She glanced at me with a confirming look as if she knew it was something that needed to be discussed.
"You can trust me in saying what's on your mind. I won't judge you for telling the truth if that makes you feel better." Nene said in understanding my situation while being as supportive as possible.
I hesitated for a second before I decided that enough was enough and that I would spill the beans on everything that happened.
"Okay, then I'll tell you. So, on the night of prom, when you and Kou went to hang out, Teru and I decided to stick together to avoid getting lost in the crowd of people. We went to get snacks and just talked about things to pass the time. We were having a great time until he had the idea of going to dance on the dance floor." I started as I continued with my story.
"At first I told him I wasn't comfortable with dancing, but he insisted that I try anyway. So that's what we did and things were going smooth until he started to lean closer to me. That's when I realized he was wanting to kiss me, but I pulled back before he could do it." I explained as I paused my tale to see Nene's reaction.
"What?! Teru almost kissed you! I didn't think he would have the guts to do something like that. However, what surprises me more is the fact that you pulled away." Nene responded as I could tell she was deep in thought.
Then it was as if a light bulb went off in her brain as she glanced at me with a questioning look in her eyes.
"Does this perhaps have something to do with Hanako?" She asked as things started to click for her.
"Maybe..." I replied sheepishly with a blush present on my face.
"You still like Hanako and I can tell by the way you're looking at me that something happened. Please tell me! I really want to know!" She shouted in excitement as her eyes were pleading for me to continue the story.
"Well, what happened was I felt lost and confused being around Teru. That's when I decided to leave the prom venue to step outside and have some time to think to myself. It just so happens that while I was doing this I found my way back to the old building and towards the girls bathroom. That's how I found Hanako as he tried to comfort me by taking me to his favorite spot and where we had a moment." I said in suspense to tease Nene's fangirling state.
She had sparkles in her eyes while I began again with my tale.
"He then told me something that I'll never forget. He confessed that he liked me and that he'd planned to tell me sooner until he overheard that Teru had done his confession first. I could tell he was angry by the way he looked at me, but that's when I calmed him down in explaining that I pulled away from him before anything happened. That's when I told Hanako that I liked him and we kissed." I concluded while blushing like an idiot from the events replaying in my mind.
"That's amazing! I'm glad you finally got a boyfriend! You definitely deserve one." Nene said, squealing with excitement as she congratulated me for finally landing a boyfriend.
"Thanks! I'm just happy we both feel the same way." I expressed confidence over the events leading up to this moment.
As we finished eating our lunches we sat in comfortable silence until I decided it was time to tell her something that's also been on my mind for a while.
"There's actually something else I need to tell you, but promise me you won't freak out." I warned her before spilling the other tea from my conscience.
She glanced at me with confusion before nodding in agreement to my request.
"I've been staying with Hanako for a while at his place, but, before you say anything, let me explain." I said as a pausing point for Nene to comprehend that she may disagree with my decisions that I'm going to reveal to her.
She replied again with a nod and calmed down as I pressed forward.
"Just to keep this story brief, I came home one day from school after walking with you and found my mother's body dead on the floor in their bedroom. There were traces of blood everywhere of someone dragging her body in the room and my suspicions were answered as I heard footsteps around me. That's when I noticed that my dad was there with me and flat out told me he killed her out of his own sanity." I responded again but this time with pain circulating in my voice.
I felt teary eyed and choked up from retelling all the horrible events as Nene wrapped her arms around me in comfort. This prolonged me to continue as I still held back some of my emotions building up inside.
"My dad was a complete psycho at this point and reasoning with him was not an option. So, I did the only thing I knew I could do. I had to kill him and avenge my mother's death no matter the consequences. Of course, once the task was done, I ran for my life and went back to the old school building. I found Hanako as he helped out and allowed me to stay with him. That's how all this came to be." I finished again as Nene seemed somber with my explanation and felt bad for everything I went through.
She just hugged me temporarily and decided to speak up to respond to my contemplation.
"I never realized how much pain you must've gone through during that time. I'm sorry I wasn't there for you when you needed me, but I have to know one thing. Why didn't you tell me this till now?" Nene asked with hurt evident in her voice.
"I'll be honest, I was in such a panic that night that I wasn't thinking straight. I also didn't want to bother you with this since Hanako was already taking care of me and you would've been constantly worried about me." I wholesomely said to Nene, showing that I deeply care for her well-being.
"You knucklehead, I will always worry about my best friend regardless of the situation. Just know in the future that I'll always be here for you." Nene expressed while hugging me again, lasting only for a little while before letting go.
Ring! Ring! Ring!
We heard the bell ring as we quickly grabbed our lunches and started making our way back to the classroom. The door was just down the hall from where we were, until Nene stopped me to say one more remark.
"Hey Y/N, I just wanted to say thanks for telling me everything. I do hope things get better for you and if you ever need my help, then just ask." She said sweetly as I smiled with contentment evident on my face.
"Don't worry I will. Thanks for listening, Nene. I really do appreciate it." I commented as I dragged her with me back to class in a confident stride from a successful conversation that had been long overdue.
Time Skip!
School quickly ended as I walked out of the classroom with Nene. We were just talking as we tried planning out when to meet for our daily toilet duties with Hanako.
"So, you want to meet outside the girl's bathroom like we normally do?" Nene asked to confirm our agenda for the task we had to accomplish after school.
"Yeah, that's fine! I need to get some stuff from my locker anyway, so I'll see you there." I replied with glee, knowing that I'll get to her later and hang out with Hanako.
The thought of us dating still lingers in my mind from the memories we shared the night of prom. My blushing cheeks started to form from the wonderful thoughts as I glanced up to wave at Nene to tell her goodbye for the time being.
As I made my way towards my locker, I happened to see a familiar face waiting near the same spot. I knew who it was despite only seeing his back turned in my direction. However, I approached my locker regardless, but did it with caution.
I began entering my locker seemingly ignoring him for a second until he noticed my presence and decided to converse with me.
"Hi Y/N..." Teru said sweetly in a more unsure way as if he was nervous to talk to me.
I continued to search for my items as I decided to comment back to him.
"Hey, Teru..." I replied with the same tone as his to confirm his suspicions of my mood while talking to him.
He stayed silent before continuing his conversation using a different approach.
"Look, I'm sorry about what happened at prom. I feel like I should've known I was taking things too far, but wasn't thinking straight. I've been bothered about this for a while now and I needed to come clean about taking responsibility for my actions." He said seriously, knowing that he had to make things right and allow us to move on as friends.
I smiled contently at his remark as I could tell he meant every word he said. That's when I decided to reply in the only way I knew possible.
"Thank you for talking to me about this. It's really fine though, Teru. I understand the heat of the moment can get to people in some cases. Just don't worry about that for my sake. It happened, but we need to move on from this. I'm okay with staying as friends if you're fine with that?" I questioned his thoughts as he pondered for a second before replying with an answer.
"As long as you're okay with this, then I'll gladly continue to be your friend." Teru said with a brightened face with my response to his apology.
He then wrapped his arms around me, which took me by surprise, as I hesitantly hugged him back in response. I could feel a light blush escape my cheeks from the closeness, but I concluded that he did it to gain my sympathy in knowing we were on good terms once again.
I felt like forgiving him knowing that he's been there for me on many different occasions. However, it was easy for me to move on, since I'm now with Hanako, but I never really stopped to consider how he felt. I untangled my arms from his hold as I continued our conversation.
"I'm just glad we can move on with no grudges. Right?" I said reaffirming that we still were on the same page as friends and nothing more than that.
"Of course, silly. Hey, now that I'm thinking about it... there's something I've been wanting to show you." Teru said with his enthusiasm shining from his brightened face.
I wasn't sure what he was referring to, but it seemed important to him that I knew about this place. I knew I had other plans to go meet up with Nene, so I felt like I had to do this some other time.
"I'm sorry Teru, but I was planning to go hangout with Nene after school today. Maybe we could do this at a different time?" I asked with as much of a polite tone as I could muster, trying to convince him that I had a commitment and not that I wasn't purposefully ignoring him.
"Oh, really? It'll only take a second and you can then go join Nene afterwards. I promise it won't take long." Teru reassured me as I contemplated what to do in my mind.
I didn't want to seem like a jerk by making up more excuses, so I think it'll be fine if I go with him for only a little while.
"Okay, but only for a few minutes." I agreed as I had hoped I made the right choice in trusting him.
He seemed to understand as I grabbed my items from my locker and followed Teru to have our short chat.
We walked down the hallway towards a flight of stairs that led us to a place I hadn't been before. I was curious where we were going, but I felt like I could put my faith in Teru so I didn't pay any mind to the location.
Before I knew it, we were in front of a peculiar door. It was red with rope around the outside of the frame that sharpened a sense of mystery I couldn't quite shake from my thoughts. Although I felt slightly uncomfortable, I continued to follow Teru's lead inside the room without caution.
"I've never seen this place before... where are we exactly, Teru?" I questioned as I glanced around to get a better look of my surroundings.
There were things floating in the air with separate tables staying constant to the ground. It was a weird sight to behold as I felt an explanation was required after noticing the strange atmosphere.
"Well, let's just say this room has a lot to offer in terms of our little chat." Teru replied as I now realized that something was definitely off about our conversation starter.
"What does that mean exactly?" I asked again with a bit more emphasis on figuring out my ideal situation that I was now under.
Teru saw my confused gesture as he decided to come closer to me in the center of the room towards a chair that happened to be placed at the same time I was near that location. I kept taking steps back until I tumbled and sat in the seat behind me.
My thoughts were racing as I heard his footsteps lessen towards my placement as he spoke up with a bit more confidence.
"Y/N, I just wanted to say that I'm sorry and that I hope you can forgive me." Teru said with a smirk and kindly placed his hand on my shoulder.
Before I could reply to his comment, I felt another presence in the room that contained a darker aura. It danced around the room like it was in its own domain or where it belonged. I took one more glance at the new atmospheric change to see a pair of eyes staring at me.
The second it noticed my gaze, my head felt dizzy as I blacked out from the distorted figures' power.
Time Skip!
I aroused myself from my slumber still feeling a little dizzy from the previous encounter. My instincts instantly kicked in once I realized that I woke up in the same place I started a while ago, but with the only exception being that it was darker.
I scanned around wondering what was going on as I felt a tight grip on my wrists. Whoever it was decided it was best to tie me up to the chair with ropes so that I couldn't escape this now darkened room. Unfortunately for me, I knew in these situations that I would have to fend for myself.
This unfamiliar location was still new to me as I remembered the last thing I did was talk with Teru. That's when a light bulb came on as I tried collecting my thoughts as to what happened before I blacked out.
Time seemed to tick by as I pondered my position I was in, until it seemed my suspicions would soon be answered when I heard sounds spark around me.
Multiple lights suddenly turned on as it flickered just enough for me to figure out that I wasn't alone anymore. I could distinctly see two figures looming in front of me as light began to reveal the culprits' true identities.
The brightness dimmed just enough to know that these individuals had to have been someone I've met before. The light shined around the two people as fear began to rise in me. My stomach felt like it had dropped from realizing who the main culprits were, and who I assumed decided to tie me to this uncomfortable chair.
It happened to be none other than Tsukasa and Teru that stared directly at my now frozen position, as I tried to process everything going on in the moment.
"W-What's going on?" I stammered with confusion as I looked at the two boys in astonishment.
"Well hello, Y/N darling! It's been a while hasn't it?" Tsukasa began to speak with his childish grin plastered to his face.
"Teru... what's the meaning of this?" I spoke up, but this time desperately trying to gain answers while being held against my will.
Teru held his head down in shame as he seemed to ignore my question and turned his position towards Tsukasa.
"I did what you asked, Tsukasa. Now you can have Hanako and I'll have Y/N to myself." Teru said in contemplation as if he was debating whether or not he was doing the right thing.
In all honesty I had no idea what was going on, but I instinctively listened to hopefully get more insight on the situation at hand.
"I told you all would go well didn't I? I'm glad you had faith in me to give you your deepest desire. However, there still is one more thing that needs to happen." Tsukasa replied with a malicious undertone escaping his pierced lips.
Before Teru could speak, I felt my arms and legs tighten sharply with my restrains pressing down leaving tiny bruises around my body. I practically screamed out all the sudden pain now holding me in a certain position. I could see Teru look at me with concern until he glared at Tsukasa with ill intent.
"What are you doing?! I thought you said you would let her go in peace if I helped you lure Hanako here. I know he will come for her, so why are you doing this?" Teru exasperated in a plea to the ghost child as Tsukasa started chuckling darkly.
"Actually, I am keeping our deal fair. I said I would let her go in peace. Which I was hoping would mean to heaven. That doesn't mean I'm going to release her right away, until I get what I want. My brother is the only thing I love in the whole universe and she will always be in the way of our precious time together. Now we can't have that, right?" Tsukasa explained as I felt my blood boil with anger from him even mentioning Hanako under his breath.
Teru looked like he was about to strangle Tsukasa for twisting his words. He seemed a little distraught over everything that happened as regret started to sink in his features.
Without thinking twice, Teru launched out his spiritual weapon that I only assumed was meant for evil spirits. I've only read about them in books back from the library, but I've never realized just how powerful they are to supernaturals till now.
"Let Y/N go! We had a deal! Unless you want to get permanently banished from the school grounds this instant." Teru said confidently with pride seeping into his stance.
Tsukasa only batted his eyes at the blonde haired boy unfazed by the situation. He once again smirked and smiled as he lifted his hands to summon his Koku-joudai's to his side.
The next part shocked me as I assumed Teru would have the upperhand, but there was one thing that I had forgotten about. Tsukasa was in his own domain, meaning he had a few tricks up his sleeves.
In a flash, the Kokujoudai's flew around Teru seemingly holding him down while his weapon fumbled to the floor from the sudden change of actions. Teru struggled to get back up, until Tsukasa leaned over to say something.
"Tsk tsk... you shouldn't have done that. You're in my domain you see. Nothing can get past me in my little humble abode. Now here's what's going to happen. You will go find Hanako and bring him here to me. Otherwise... your precious girlfriend and staff will be gone forever. Do I make myself clear?" Tsukasa said sternly to get his point across in the bluntest way possible.
Teru only looked disgusted at the young ghost boy as he simply nodded in compliance with his wishes.
That left Tsukasa happily immersed with joy as he replied one more thing to Teru.
"Oh, and by the way... you only have a few hours to make this happen or our deal is off. Bring Hanako to me and all will be resolved." He clearly stated again before dark clouds formed around Teru to teleport him outside the main doors domain.
At this point, I was left alone with no one left to protect me. My back was against the wall and all I could do was sit wondering what to do now.
My mind kept racing as I kept thinking about being in Hanako's arms once again. I was secretly hoping he would arrive on time like he always does to rescue me from this terrible situation. However, I had to accept the fact that this may be my demise.
"Well Y/N, looks like you've been spared for now. However, let's just say I have some fun ideas in mind for us to pass the time." Tsukasa said teasingly as I knew at this point I had no choice, but to play along.
That's when my thoughts started racing as I kept wishing to see Hanako again, but I knew that now wasn't the time to wallow away in agony. I had to stay strong and hope that Hanako would be okay.
At this point, I am completely helpless.