[DISCONTINUED] ❝Ante Mortem❞ 【Sally Face】

【vi ; masked friend】

"Larry! You're the tallest, help us out!"

"What's that? A pair of midgets asking for me help?" Larry teases, letting Todd tend the grill as he walks up to the two of you. You and Sal glare at him, having the same reaction to reel one leg back and kick him hard in the shins.

"OoF FUCK THAT HURT!" He shouts, immediately falling to the ground to hug his legs. "That hurt!"

"You deserved it." Sal says, crossing his arms, "Come on Y/N, we don't need a large jerk helping us."

"Alright, alright, I'll help!" Larry stands up, groaning at the pain in his legs. He smiles at the two of you, ruffling your hair, "Now come on, I'll connect the poles on top."

Sal glares at him, swatting Larry's hand off his head.

You turn to smile at Sal, then at Larry, before heading over to one side of the tent to push two of the tent poles towards the middle. It took ten seconds for the brunette to connect then, and smile at his handiwork.

"That does it. Now let's get to grilling!" He exclaims, heading over to the grill. Todd hands him the spatula.

"I invited Neil over too, he has a tent so we.. can.." Todd's voice trails off as his cheeks flush, and you all smirk at him.

"Ayy, things are getting steamy for ol' Todd here!" Ash exclaims, giving him a hearty pat on the back. "Mina did too, just for us girls to lie in."

"Oh yeah? Well Sally Face and I are together then!" Larry proclaims, flipping a patty over. He turns to Ash, "When's Mina coming?"

"I am here."

They all yelp, turning towards the forest to see a masked-girl holding a flashlight. By the way her eyes squint into crescents, she smiles at them, "Sorry for being late, I almost got lost. Good thing he helped me get here."

"Who helped you?"

"Sup guys!" Neil waves over at you, holding a ton of stuff. "I saw her camping bag and tent, so I knew she was coming here too."

"Hey Neil." Todd greets, coming over to help him with his items. You go ahead to introduce yourself to Mina.

"Hi! I'm Y/N L/N, nice to meet you! I just moved here." You say, smiling as you hold out your hand. She takes it, shaking you hand.

"Nice to meet you too, Y/N, I am Minako Katayanagi." She replies, eyes squinting again as she smiles. "You may call me Mina."

"Well, Mina, let me help you with your tent!" You offer as you help her with her things, "Can we.. fit in your tent?"

"You, me, and Ash? Surely we can." Mina sets her items on the grass, taking her tent before unravelling it onto the ground. You start putting the parts together, having the same problem with the tent poles- Mina was tall enough to reach the top and connect the poles together. She turns to the grill, asking you, "What are they grilling?"

"Burgers, hotdogs, barbecue, also patties and bread." You tell her, listing the items off the top of your head. "Oh, then we got s'mores for dessert too. I forgot what other food we have."

"I have not tasted that, luckily I will today." She smiles once more, and the both of you headed towards the eating area, which is really just the blanket on the floor.

"How are you?" Sal asks, waving once at Mina. You nearly squint, a weird feeling brimming up in your chest at how soft his voice went when he spoke to Mina. His harsh tone is gone, and his eyes lost their usual cold stare. It's.. nice, you hope that it could last long.

"I am doing fine, thank you for asking, Sal." Mina answers, chuckling a little. "I was going to bring Selene here too, but she said she did not want to leave her grandmother to tend to their cafe."

You look up at this, turning to Ash and asking, "Is Selene the girl working at that cafe we hung out at one time?"

"Hmm, what?" Ash looks at you as she had been putting the cooked patties on a separate plate. You continue to watch Sal and Mina converse, feeling a bit jealous that he was still rather rude to you and Ash than he is to Mina. She stares for a moment, "Y/N, what?"

You slowly turn back to her, remembering that you asked a question, "Oh right, um, I was asking if Selene is the girl in the cafe we hung out at one time."

She thinks for a moment, "White hair, coral eyes? That's who you're referring to, right? There's a other Selene girls at school, sorry."

"Yup, so that's Selene?" You turn back to Mina and Sal, who had been listening to you.

"Yes, she has different features but that makes her prettier." Mina chuckles lightly, and you could see Larry tense up by the grill. You smirk at this, turning back to Mina to listen to her, "She does not like being complimented too much or she will cry."

"I say she's got a weak heart, but that's just me." Sal shrugs, then staring off into space. You stare at Sal's mask, then at Mina's medical mask. Until today, you wonder what happened to Sal's face, and now you wonder what happened and Mina is wearing a medical mask.

Maybe she's sick? But if she's sick, she wouldn't be with them out in the open like this.

You find yourself thinking hard about the topic, different possibilities filling you mind at what could have happened to them.

"Y/N? Y/N."

"Do you think she's astral projecting right now?"

"What, that's stupid."

"She's just dozing off, guys, watch this,"

Silence.

"Y/N!"

You snap out of your reverie, accidentally landing backwards as you did so. You groan, hearing them laugh around you.

"Yo, come on, let's eat!"