The invisible girl (tbhk fanfic)

8 | I'll give it a 3 out of 4

On the roof the toilet trio were all spread out enjoying the sun on their picnic blanket. It was peaceful, too peaceful. And there was too much room on the picnic blanket.

Usually someone would have to be at least kinda squished but now everyone could lie down and not be on top of anyone.

"Something's missing." Nene broke the long silence and sat up looked down at the boys

Kou sat up next "Yeah, what did you do Toilet-Germ?" He said pointing accusingly to Hanako.

Hanako sat up next "Why do you automatically blame me?" Hanako asked "It could have been  anyone." He said

"How do you know it was someone? It could have been nothing." Nene asked turning on Hanako too.

Hanako looked flabbergasted "Not you too! Nene, I thought you loved me!" Hanako said dramatically and gave her puppy dog eyes. The Hakujoudai shaped themselves into a cute little bunny and kitty and came closer to Hanako's side to emphasize the fact Hanako was pleading for her to drop this and blame Kou instead

Nene fell for it for about a second and then shook her head to snap herself out of that mindset. "No! No cutesy theatrics! Something's missing and you have something to do with it don't you, Hanako-Kun?" She shouted bringing up her fists to chest level and wearing the most serious face she could muster up.

Hanako backed down and the Hakujoudai returned to normal "Okay okay! I might have something to do with this." He admitted

Kou and Nene crossed their arms and gazed at him like two disappointed-disapproving parents.

"But I also might not have anything to do with this!" He said trying to catch himself. Nene and Kou gave him a questioning look.

"Look, the last I saw her we were in Tsuchigomori's room. I was with her and we were talking but then I told her I had to go take care of something. Which I did. Some apparition went berserk and was attacking a student. They've been appearing more and more recently, I was sure she'd understand." He confessed but when he looked up Nene and Kou were still looking at him disapprovingly

It seemed the nonexistent but still unbearably heavy weight of shame that pressed on Hanako from all angles was enough to squeeze the rest of the story out of him. "Aaaand I may or may not have-" his voice was hight pitched and breaking from him fighting the strong urge to just keep quiet and play it off from here. But somehow he just couldn't. He didn't know why, lying to Kou and Nene had never been this hard before. Stupid maternal and paternal stares!!

"-really empathized the fact that she was weak compared to me." He said fidgeting with his hands. "And called her cute-" he added in a mumble now picking at the edges of his seal. The Hakujoudai's white flames shrunk in shame just like Hanako. But in a more literal sense.

"Hanako-Kun that's rude!" Nene scolded

"But it was true!" Hanako retorted

"Well yeah- but you didn't need to point it out." Kou chimed in "Teru is clearly the better exorcist but he doesn't go around mentioning it every chance he gets!" Kou said and Nene nodded in approval. "You wanna know why? Because it would hurt my feelings."

Hanako cringed as he felt a stab of guilt in his chest. Dumb emotions- he was the seventh of the seven wonders- Hanako-San! Hanako-San of the girl's toilet! He struck such fear into kids that they didn't dare come knocking on his stall half the time. Even if they couldn't get his gender right half the time he was still a powerful apparition; A force to be reconned with! So why did he feel so bad about saying something something that was true to begin with??

He wasn't some heartless monster, that could be why.

Hanako remembered the most recent time he'd hurt one of his friends' feelings without meaning to. Nene under the former Confession Tree not too long ago, and Akai too long one other time about a year or so ago.

He remembered it like it was yesterday.

💭 🚽 🦋 💭

It was in the afternoon in the bathroom he haunted. He'd placed a protection charm on Akai to keep her out of harms way.

He thought he was doing something good but Akai took it the wrong way.

"What the hell is wrong with you?! How dare you put a spell on me without my knowledge!" Akai had yelled at him in pure anger. Angrier then he'd ever seen her.

Her nose was scrunched up, her eye brows were furrowed, her lips were pressed together like a person's normally would when angry. But there was more to her expression then that. Her eyes were all teary, her face was flushed, and her lips seemed to quiver a bit like someone who was about to cry.

She held the tears back then but she still gave him an earful.

"I'm so done with everyone tricking me, and lying to me, and casting spells on me!" She went on

"Akaibara, it was for your own good! You're kinda reckless when it comes to the supernatural! I was trying to protect you!" Hanako told her but Akai wasn't hearing it

"I. Don't. CARE! You could have at least said something!" She went on "I-I know-" her voice broke and one tear trailed down her face about a half inch before she'd wiped it away with her long uniform sleeve. "-I know I act kinda ditzy, a-and stupid, and-and naïve-" she was being forced to take in sharp breaths which forced her to break her sentences up more then she would have liked "-and I bet you thought I wouldn't have understood, but I'm not that dumb!"

She turned away from him and wiped her face some more "You know what?" She sniffed "Maybe being friends with a ghost was a dumb idea. I was an idiot to think you'd be any different then anyone else I know. You're a liar, fake, and underhanded. I guess I was just too naïve to understand that until now. What a waste of my wish." She then started walking away

"See ya, Hanako-San." She said grimly. Hanako reached out "Oh come on- please don't leave Akai! You know I never wanted to-" Hanako started but Akai cut him off

"If you touch me I'll tell the kid with the katana." She threatened and Hanako instinctively backed off and sadly watched her go. That shouldn't have been enough to deter him but that kid in her class was very terrifying.  Even now he wish he would have tried a little harder to stop her. He made a plan to make it up to her tomorrow. As for right now he'd brainstorm ways to do just that.

"Oh what have I done..?" Hanako asked himself both in the past and now on the picnic blanket as his mind was brought back to the present.

💭 🚽 💭

That was the last time he ever saw her, alive that is. Their next meeting was about a school year later when Nene brought her up to his bathroom, and by then she was a ghost.

"Fine, fine." He reluctantly agreed "I'll go apologize to Akai." He said

"Good." Kou said and uncrossed his arms

"Make sure it's genuine." Nene said and then turned off her angry parent mode too "Oh- and I was referring to the fact that our lunches were missing. I had no idea Akai missing was a problem." Nene admitted "It hasn't been too long since our last group get together. Not enough to raise alarm."

Hanako was once again, shocked "Wha- are you serious?!" He asked. The Hakujoudai flared up too to mimic his surprise.

"Yeah, we were messing with you." Kou admitted "Glad you're going to fix this thing with Akai-Chan though!" He said and slung an arm over Hanako's shoulder

Nene clapped her hands together "It'll be like couples therapy!" She said giggling afterward.

Hanako face palmed "We're not a couple. But at least it'll all get sorted out." He told himself trying to look on the bright side

(Writing this here because it needed to be said. Autocorrect tried to autocorrect "Hanako"to "Hankie")