I realized it's been forever since I wrote something cute and fuzzy and Ghost Hunt related. XD I made all of the random characters up on the spot. No significance whatsoever. I just like saying 'Noll and Nell.'
My last fic that was even remotely like this was Ruffled Feathers, and this is much more developed, but ships cheesy/stupid NaruMai the same way. XD I love those two so much. We even got some LinMadoka here as well. Pairings FTW!
Disclaimer: Ghost Hunt belongs to Shiho Inada and Fuyumi Ono. If only I were that cool.
Please read, enjoy, and review.
~oOo~
Chapter 1
~Oct 4th, 1999: 3:51 pm~
Oliver Davis glanced up from his book, blue eyes boring into the closed library doors in a way that suggested that they wouldn't be closed for much longer. Lin set his computer aside, bracing for impact.
Sure enough, Eugene Davis bounded through less than five seconds later, pale face flushed, a huge grin on his face. His eyes skipped over his brother, who looked annoyed at being interrupted, and went straight for Lin. "She said yes!" he proclaimed joyously. "Lizzy said that she'd go to the fall festival with me!"
Lin swung his legs off of the window seat and held his hand out to high-five his younger friend. At fourteen years old, going to a dance with a girl was a pretty big deal, even for somebody as charismatic as Gene. "Well done," he chuckled, thinking that it hadn't been that long since he was fourteen years old. Time flew.
"Yeah, good job Genie," Oliver agreed, but his voice was distant, and he had already buried his nose in his book again.
"Oh come on, Olivia," Gene teased, ruffling his brother's hair and prying the book from his hands. "We'll find you a date before the festival."
Oliver flushed and made a grab for his book, but Eugene dangled it just out of reach.
"Stop worrying. We've got you covered," he said determinedly. "Don't we, Lin?"
Lin's dark eyes twinkled. "Of course we do. What about Nell Fisher? She likes you, you know."
Oliver let out a moan. "Not Nell the nerd…!"
"When you're as introverted as you are there isn't a whole lot to choose from," Lin commented sagely.
"I don't care; I'm not going with Nell Fisher."
"But it'd be so cute!" Gene laughed, leaping up to sit on the desk table and flick Oliver's forehead as he sang, "Noll and Nell, sittin' in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N—"
"Stop," Noll groaned. "I'll just go by myself."
"Aw, you can't do that," Gene pouted. "It's the neighborhood festival. Everybody's a couple!"
"Then I won't go."
"Don't be like that," Eugene said condescendingly. "Look, even Lin's got a date, and he's as quiet as you are."
Noll lifted his head at that. "Lin has a date?"
"But he won't tell me who it is," Gene beamed, leaning forward so he was shoulder-to-shoulder with his brother. He flashed Noll a conspiratorial smile and said in a stage whisper, "Do you think he finally asked Madoka—?"
Lin, in a moment of childishness not befitting of a college student, threw a pillow at Gene's head. "NO. It's not her."
"Then who is it?" Gene demanded, whipping the pillow right back.
"Wait," Noll blurted confusedly. "Lin has a crush on…Ms. Mori?"
"My God you're dense!" Gene cried. "He's only loved her since he first clapped eyes on her!"
Noll was looking at Lin disbelievingly. "Seriously? Our Lin?"
"Don't you think it's cute?" Gene giggled, interlacing his fingers as Lin fell back onto the window seat, clutching the pillow to his face to hide his blush. "Honestly Noll, I'm beginning to wonder what you'd do with a girl if you ever had a crush on one. I mean, it's not like you're plucky enough to kiss somebody…"
"I would too," Oliver argued. "If I really liked her."
Gene tilted his head back and laughed at the idea. "I bet you don't even know how to dance!"
"It can't be that hard if you can do it."
Eugene took the insult in stride. "My poor, socially-deprived bookworm of a brother," he said lightly, pulling Oliver from his chair. "If you ever want to become a functioning member of the dating society, you'll have to learn to dance."
"Maybe I don't want to function in society," Noll quipped, letting his brother swing him around the room playfully. "Maybe I'll just be an angsty adult living in the university dorm living off of instant ramen and asking Grace Potter to the festival instead of the woman he's apparently loved for four years…"
"HEY," Lin growled from the window seat.
"Wait," Gene paused. "You asked Grace Potter to the festival?"
"Yes I did," Lin said triumphantly, daring Eugene to say something.
Gene limited himself to an appreciative wolf-whistle and gave his twin a once-over. "How'd you know about this?"
"It's the only other girl besides Mum and Ms. Mori that he talks to on a regular basis," Noll said smugly.
Gene rolled his eyes. "You could just call her Madoka. She doesn't mind."
"When I'm done learning from her, maybe."
Gene's eyes lit up. "Does that mean you'll call me 'Mr. Davis' while I teach you to dance?"
"No, don't be stupid."
"Worth a shot," Gene smirked and dragged Noll's hand down to his waist. "You'll have to be a bit more confident about things if you want to appeal to the ladies."
"Yeah, but when I'm trying to appeal to the ladies I won't be dancing with my brother who's just as tall as me," Noll fumbled helplessly, trying to take a step back.
"It's fine, you're just awkward," Gene chided, moving Oliver's hand back to where it was supposed to be. "You'll be completely fine once you get going. Lin, do you have any classical music on your computer?"
Lin pulled up some piano piece and went back to typing his essay, giving the brothers some privacy.
"It's just a series of steps," Eugene was explaining brightly, obviously taking great joy from Noll's discomfort. "You're good at memorizing, so this should be easy for you."
The other boy mimicked the footsteps in silence, committing them to memory.
"And as for the girls," Gene went on conversationally. "You have options besides Nell the nerd. There's Catherine, from the flat down the street? Or Robin, from our chemistry class at school?"
"Robin's nice," Noll said in a small voice.
"And drop-dead gorgeous," Gene was quick to say. "She's actually a friend of Lizzy's—I could put in a word for her about you, if you like?"
"Sure, Gene," Noll said tiredly, letting his brother guide him in large circles around the library floor.
~March 7th, 2001: 4:40 pm~
"I don't know why I bothered asking," Mai was saying. Oliver Davis jerked in his seat, pretending that he hadn't zoned out for the majority of her rant, lost in memories of a sunny library and a book that he had never gotten the chance to finish.
"Sorry, what?" he asked dazedly, realizing that she was waiting for an answer to a question he hadn't heard.
"Jeez, you could at least pretend to listen!" she snapped, tossing her bangs out of her face. "I just asked if you could stand coming with me to my school's spring formal."
"What, a cute girl like you and nobody's asked you out?" he couldn't resist teasing.
Her face flushed. "I wouldn't be here if I had another option, Naru," she said sharply. "But all of my friends are going and I haven't been asked yet. And because it's a formal you need a partner to get in…But you know what, forget it. I'll just find somebody else and…"
"I didn't say I wouldn't go," he said quickly, fumbling in the desk drawer for his calendar. "When is it?"
"The fourteenth," she said, suddenly extremely shy as she fidgeted in front of his desk. "At eight."
"Okay," he said crisply, scrawling a note on the correct date. "I'll pick you up, alright?"
She fidgeted even more. "Is that really okay? I mean…" Her voice resumed its normal, chiding tones as she continued, "I don't want to go with you if you're going to be a jerk."
"No, I'll be nice," he promised. "You said it's a formal, right?"
"I—erm—yeah," she stammered. "Well—great. Thanks."
"Not a problem, Mai. Do I need any paperwork? I don't go to your school."
"Uh, yeah…I'll get that to you…" She stumbled for the door, pausing in the opening to shoot him a final incredulous look. "Can you even dance, Naru?"
"Your confidence in my ability to exist in a social function is astounding, Mai."
"So…yes?"
"Of course I can dance."
She flushed again. "Okay then," she said awkwardly. "I'll see you on the fourteenth then."
"Yeah," he agreed. "Looking forward to it."
She hovered in the doorway for another beat, looking like she wanted to ask him something else.
He glanced up. "If you've got nothing else to do besides stare at me, could you make some tea?"
"Sure." Whatever moment existed between them was lost, and she left his office quietly, closing the door behind her.
He tapped his pen impatiently on the calendar—on the date of his first dance since he was fourteen years old—and stared calmly at the door, waiting for it to open again.
~oOo~
There are two more chapters dealing with the dance itself and documenting what actually went down at the festival. I've got the second one written already, so your reviews will determine how speedily I'll post and whether or not I need to tweak it at all. ^_^
If you enjoyed, please review this fluffiness. XD