NeonHorizon: Who's ready to get spooked?

The walk back to the inn was made in silence, even after Togata and Nejire reappeared on the path. She was glad, though. Shirayuki's pulse was fluttering and she could hear the rush of blood in her ears, feel the heat emanating off of her face every time she glanced at Amajiki.

He was close beside her; holding her hand and walking with his head down. Even with his head lowered, even with the dimness of the night, she could still see the smile that curved his lips. It made her feel like her heart was melting. She moved a bit closer, trying to be brave, and caught him glancing over. Just long enough for him to see her timid smile.

Her other upperclassmen offered no real explanation for why they suddenly disappeared on the path, but Togata flashed her a sheepish grin when he saw Amajiki's blush. He…has to have some kind of second quirk, she thought as she looked at the blond boy. Mindreading or…future sight…

Shirayuki started to get a little nervous when they got back to the inn. Remembering that all four of them were sharing a room. She let her hair down and fidgeted with the hairband, sitting on her futon as Nejire dragged hers closer. The only other time she had ever slept somewhere with a friend, it was just Ashido. She had napped with Shinsou, but that was different; it was brief and she had known him for years.

The other two futons were put across from hers and Nejire's. Putting around a foot of space between her pillow and the one across from hers. Shirayuki felt a rush of heat spread across her face and she started to wish she was wearing her mask again. No, I can't think like that! I have to be braver! I have to…face the world without my mask. At least for this trip.

"Okay! Who's ready for some ghost stories?" Togata claimed the futon across from Nejire's and beamed. "I should warn you, I've got some pretty good ones!"

"M-Mirio, maybe we shouldn't," the dark-haired boy protested. "Ghost stories…in a place like this."

Nejire tilted her head and smiled. "Awww! That's too bad; I really wanted to hear one. What do you think, Yuki? Don't you think ghost stories are perfect for summer? I'd say we should do a test of courage, but it wouldn't be very scary with just the four of us."

The girl nervously ran her fingers along a strand of violet hair hanging beside her face. "…I've never told ghost stories with friends before…b-but I don't want to do it if…"

"W-well, if you want to…I guess it's okay," Amajiki stammered. "I can handle it. I want you to have the perfect trip so…if you want to hear ghost stories…I-I know a few that I can tell." He was tensing up, hands shaking a little, but when he lifted his head he was wearing an intense, determined expression.

Togata beamed. "Alright! Let me just turn off the light to set the right mood for this!"

Shirayuki was unnerved by the dark, but she was excited to hear what stories everyone had. Sitting in a between Nejire and Amajiki, she felt like there were bubbles of excitement flowing through her veins. She had watched shows about ghost hunting and her grandmother liked a particular show about urban legends, but this was different.

Sitting across from her with a flashlight in hand, Togata's face was cast into shadow and what was normally a cheery and heroic smile suddenly looked nightmarish. "Okay! Who wants to go first? Tamaki?"

As brave as she wanted to act, she was a little scared until the dark-haired boy started his story. Amajiki's ghost story was pretty tame; it involved the ghost of a child's pet rabbit appearing in its hutch after it had passed away so it could be with the child one last time to say good bye. It actually sounded less like a ghost story and more like just a sweet bedtime story.

"That wasn't scary at all," Nejire pouted.

"…I…um…I liked it…" Shirayuki spoke up when she saw the dark-haired boy lower his head. She summoned up some courage and reached over to put a hand over his. When he glanced up, she half-smiled and felt warmth spreading across her face.

Nejire and Togata wanted her to go next. She had a few stories memorized and decided to go with the scarier one; a story about a boy who went missing in the forest and whose ghost could be heard shouting for help to lure others into the depths of the forest to go missing as well. Not scary enough to raise goose bumps, but she felt Amajiki's hand take hers.

The next storyteller was Nejire, who told a surprisingly terrifying story. By the end of it, Shirayuki was trembling and she kept her head bowed. Afraid to look up and see shadow people advancing on their group. She squeezed Amajiki's hand and he shuffled a little closer to her side.

"You okay, Yuki?" Togata's smile fell to a concerned frown and he leaned across the little circle. "We can stop telling ghost stories, if you're scared. It's okay."

"…n-no, I…I can handle it…I want to hear your ghost story…" she argued.

"H-here." Amajiki turned his head to the side, looking away from her and got closer. Wrapping a protective arm around her, he lowered his head again. "Better?"

Her heart skipped a beat and she managed to give him a timid nod. Feeling someone this close to her did make her feel a little bit braver. "…thank you…"

"Alright! It's finally my turn! I'm going to go all out so everyone brace yourselves!" He started telling his ghost story, tipping the flashlight a little to cast eerie shadows across his face. Keeping a serious expression as he described the most terrifying ghost encounter any of the others had ever heard.

By the end of his story, Shirayuki was trembling and gripping Amajiki's free hand. Nejire was huddled close to her other side, staring across at Togata with wide eyes. The dark-haired boy's arm tightened around Shirayuki to pull her closer, but Amajiki was shaking, too. When the flashlight suddenly went out, it took all of her control to not scream.

Togata turned the lights back on and greeted everyone with his usual cheerful smile. "So what'd you think? Pretty scary, right?" As soon as he saw his friends' expressions, he tilted his head. "Oh, gosh. Must've been scarier than I thought!" he said with a laugh.

"A-are you okay, Yuki?" Amajiki finally looked down at her, frowning.

"…I'll…be alright…" she answered, trying to sound braver than she felt.

Shift P.O.V

It was too difficult to fall asleep. He had too many thoughts keeping him from being able to doze off. The new term starting as soon as summer break ended, getting back to his work study, Togata's disturbing ghost story, and then Shirayuki. Every time he replayed that moment in his head, it made him smile. He never imagined that his love confession would go so perfectly. He had even managed to summon up enough courage to kiss her.

He opened his eyes and turned onto his side. Staring at the wall and trying to push away the fear that a shadow figure might be standing in the corner of the room. Amajiki could hear his best friend mumble something in his sleep and looked over his shoulder at Togata, who had managed to get tangled in his blankets.

Mirio…how did you do that? He glanced toward Nejire briefly and then his eyes settled on Shirayuki. His breath seemed to catch in his throat when he realized how close she was. Her pillow was just a foot away from his.

She was sleeping on her side with her long violet hair spread out over the pillow behind her. One hand clutching the blanket's edge against her chest and her other hand on her pillow. Amajiki felt heat rising to his face and spreading to the tips of his ears and he looked away. His attention was drawn back to her when he heard a soft whimper.

Her face contorted and it looked like she was in pain. The girl's grip on the blanket tightened and the fingers on her other hand twitched. She curled into a ball on her side and it sounded almost like she was crying. Her hand clawed at the pillow and, finally, Amajiki was unable to hold himself back anymore.

He reached over and took her hand in his; loosely lacing their fingers. "It's okay," he murmured quietly. His thumb gently rubbed over the back of her hand until he saw her relax under the blanket. Did I…stop her nightmare? I didn't wake her up, did I? I just wanted to make her feel safe. Amajiki held his breath, waiting, and then it was clear that she was still asleep.

Settling into his futon, he kept his fingers laced with hers. It made him stretch his arm above his head on the pillow, but the slight discomfort was worth knowing that she felt safe. It took a while for him to calm his racing heart and try to get himself to stop blushing, but he managed to finally fall asleep.

Shift P.O.V

She wished that their time at the ocean could last longer. Shirayuki's heart fluttered every time she thought about looking out at the water under the stars, holding Amajiki's hand. When she remembered the kiss, she immediately started blushing and she tried to hide it by pretending to check her phone. Truthfully, it died shortly after they checked into the inn and she had been so distracted she forgot to charge it.

"Everything okay?"

The girl frowned behind her mask, but nodded. "…it's nothing..."

"You sure? You're frowning, right?" Togata rested a hand on her shoulder and gave her a look of concern. "What's going on, Yuki? Are you nervous? Is it your mom again?"

She winced at the mention of her mother and shook her head. "…it…really isn't anything like that…my phone died so..."

"Oh! Well, we're getting pretty close to your house, right?" The blond upperclassman had insisted on himself and Amajiki walking her home. The dark-haired boy was standing on her other side and holding her hand. Giving Togata a curious frown. "Hey, Tamaki. You want to go ahead of us?"

"I-I guess so." He reluctantly let go of her hand and walked ahead of them. Casting a glance back at them over his shoulder.

When Amajiki was out of earshot, Togata smiled again. "You know, he's never asked a girl out before," he started. "Tamaki's gotten love letters from secret admirers and girls give him chocolate on Valentine's Day, but you're the first girl he's ever confessed to. I'm proud of him, you know?"

The first…? Shirayuki, even from this distance, could see that the tips of Amajiki's long, pointed ears were red. "…Togata-senpai, I…I really like him…and I wish…we had more time…I-I wish I was braver…so I could make him feel the way he makes me feel…"

"Are you kidding? Yuki, I haven't seen him this happy in a while!" He met her curious glance with a reassuring smile and a thumbs-up. "I told you before, didn't I? Well, maybe not clearly enough? Having you around makes him feel more secure. You two support each other without even realizing it sometimes. Even if it's just little things, you're both trying to make each other happy. It's pretty cute."

"…c-cute…?!" She saw him nod and she bit the inside of her cheek behind her mask. Looking toward Amajiki again, she felt butterflies in her stomach when he looked back at her. "…then, I…I'm going to try even harder…so we can be even happier…" she determined.

Togata slowed his steps as they got closer to her house. "You know, you're his first real girlfriend. I know I said it before, but I totally support you two as a couple; I think you're a perfect match! Just…you know. Tamaki's still pretty shy so..." He rubbed the back of his head, his smile settling into a smaller curve.

Shirayuki tilted her head a little, confused. As they reached Amajiki at the front gate, Togata patted her on the back to subtly nudge her toward his friend before excusing himself to check his phone. The girl watched him walk a short distance down the sidewalk.

"Um…s-sorry. I don't know what to say, I just…" Amajiki was blushing red when he looked down at her. He struggled for a moment; trying to find the right words for how he was feeling and trying to gain the courage to speak. Instead of talking, he stepped closer and wrapped his arms around her to pull her into a hug.

Her arms lifted and she hugged him back. Biting her lip as she tried to push herself to be brave. "I really enjoyed going to the ocean with you," she started, trembling as her blush deepened. "And what you said before. I…want to make you feel happy. I want you to feel…as happy as you make me feel, Tamaki. I-"

He moved back a little and lifted a hand to tug down her mask. Leaning down, his face flushing bright red, he brought his lips to hers. When the kiss broke, he leaned his forehead against hers and he smiled. "You…you don't know how happy that makes me…just hearing that, it's…it's hard for me to describe it."

Plans were made for them to meet at the school gate when classes started again. She reluctantly said good bye to Amajiki and Togata. After she greeted her grandmother and Sayuri's daughter, she found her charger and plugged in her phone. A minute later, missed message after missed message popped up on the screen and they were all from the same contact. Bakugou.