Spooky

Chapter 22

-Shadow's POV-

The rest of the school day passes uneventfully, with me sitting through my classes, bored. I doodle a little, but it doesn't really help much; one class I even decide to be a huge rebel and hide my headphones in my hoodie to listen to music instead of the teacher. I was still bored, though, and when I got back to the dorms I was alone the whole time, listening to my music and wondering where the hell Scourge went. He returned about fifteen minutes before the dinner bell, seeming weirdly nervous about something, but he refused to speak on it, so I remained bored but a bit curious.

Dinner is better; Scourge, to my surprise, scarfs down the slightly crunchy meatloaf and greasy fries. I can't bear to eat it, myself, but I don't feel very hungry anyways—I haven't felt very hungry all day, actually. I dunno if that's a problem or something, but I can't really be bothered. Our group chats cheerfully together for a bit, some playful banter going on between Rouge and I. The usual shit, and everything feels great.

"Okay, but you couldn't even go to sleep after watching The Frighteners," I smirk at her. "The Grim Reaper character only showed up for something like five minutes overall but it scared you shitless!"

"Do you really want me to put you on blast right now?" Rouge stifles laughter, and I know she's about to pull some ancient dirt out. Instant regret. "You were scared to death of Barney up until you were, like, fuckin' fourteen years old!" The smirk falls right off my face, and I try to keep my face from turning red. Scourge and Steel are howling like hyenas, and though I'm embarrassed I can tell my the look in Rouge's eyes that it's all just good fun.

"That's not true, I wasn't scared after like ten! And besides, he has fuckin' soulless eyes!" I reply defensively, throwing my arms up in a gesture of surrender. She has me beat here, I know that—and really, it's more funny than embarrassing.

"Knocked the smug look right off your face—!" Steel dissolves into laughter again, smacking the table with his hand.

"Ah, but luckily I was wearing a second, smaller smug look underneath it." I counter, and he wheezes, taking Scourge down with him. Rouge loses it too, and I start to laugh a little bit myself, more from the amusement of their laughing than my own joke. Other tables are looking over at us now with confused stares and I almost feel bad for them, missing out on our fun.

"When did you become such a comedian, Stripes?" Scourge chuckles, finally lifting his head and elbowing me in the ribs. Steel is still wheezing across from him, and Rouge wipes at her eyes a bit, careful not to smudge her dark eyeliner. My eyes automatically drift to her necklace, her half of our pendant, and I find myself smiling involuntarily. This is a good moment, I realize. I don't want this to end.

But, unfortunately, Rouge after catching her breath pulls out her phone to check the time. "Shit, we have to get moving if we wanna get to the Halloween store before they close," she stands up, and everyone follows suit, picking up their trays. We take care of our dishes, then trot out the door, chatting pleasantly as we hurry to the parking lot. We divide up as per usual, Scourge and I on his bike and Steel and Rouge on Steel's bike. I swear Scourge stiffens as my arms wrap around his chest, and it feels like he drives just a bit faster than normal—fast enough to be a little unsettling at times. I can't see his face from where I'm sitting, so I have no point of reference for why he would do that. Maybe he doesn't want to be touched today or something...and maybe on the way back I should ask to ride with Steel, because when we get to Nightmares my legs are a little shaky. Not noticeably so, but it's unpleasant nonetheless. But it doesn't matter, because now I'm looking up at one of my favorite stores. I honestly really love Halloween—the dark aesthetics, dressing up, getting candy... All of it. And all the cool goth shit always goes on sale, so what's not to love? Stores like these are the best, and I wish they lasted a bit longer than just the month of October.