The (After) Life of the Party by @metamatronic
Chapter 16: 2 Birds
the winner of my fanfic contest, where I asked for folksâ fic recs and their fave scenes and picked one at random to draw
All credit to @metamatronic head over to their blog to check out their fics and wonderful art! Theyâve got a bunch of extra ghost au interactions, as well as just tons of great stuff in general!
â Donât ,â Mondo said. His voice sounded weak, and for once he didnât care. âPlease, Kyoudai, please. Just donât go in.âÂ
For a moment, Taka hesitated. Mondo held his breath, watching as the prefectâs hand hovered over the doorknob. Then, mechanically, Taka leaned back and checked his watch.
âRight on time,â he said with a twinge of relief, before grabbing the knob and pushing his way into the room. Mondoâs feet felt like bricks, but he followed.
For a moment, it looked like Taka was alone. Taka huffed, checking his watch and straightening up. No amount of white hair or fake curse words could change his thoughts on punctuality, it seemed. Mondo let out a choked laugh.Â
Maybe Hifumi chickened out , Mondo thought. Maybe the plan fell apart, or Chihiro got through to him. Maybe, maybe, maybe. Â
But the hairs on the back of his neck were standing up, and that unease in his stomach hadnât settled. His eyes darted around the room, before catching the glint of glasses as a figure stepped out from behind the open door.Â
Hifumi was wielding a large hammer as he shuffled over to Taka. As he lifted the mallet over his head, Mondo let out a snarl and went in for a tackle.Â
As he phased through Hifumi, he heard the nasty crack behind him and felt his blood run cold.Â
Mondo fell to his knees at Takaâs body. He paid no attention as Hifumi let out a small noise of disbelief before shuffling out of the room. He watch Takaâs eyes flutterâ he was still alive, he realized, bile rising in his throat.Â
âCâmon, somebody, anybody ,â he whispered, trying to will a witness to come through the door and help the man bleeding out on the floor.Â
Taka groaned, trying to push himself up before collapsing. Mondo watched as his hair slowly darkened back to its natural color. Mondo reached out, before recoiling. He was terrified that he would actually make contact, that heâd somehow drag Taka into this ethereal hell he and his other classmates were living in.
âDonât die, just hang on. Someoneâll come, someoneâs gotta come,â Mondo said. There was so much blood. It was just like Chihiro, just like Daiâ
Mondo shook his head, trying to violently shake the thoughts out. He couldnât do this, not again, not now.
Taka murmured something and Mondo snapped to attention.
âItâs okay, Taka, youâll be okay. Just hold on,â Mondo said.
âMonâŚdoâŚâ Takaâs voice was quiet as his eyes slowly fell shut. Mondo stomach twisted.Â
âNo, no, no,â Mondo whispered frantically. Just as Mondo leaned in, something flew up with such force that it smacked his chin and sent him reeling backwards.Â
Sitting up and rubbing his chin, he looked over. He froze.
Taka was sitting up, rubbing his head and frowning deeply. His eyes opened before locking with Mondoâs. He stared for a quiet moment before the tears started.Â
âMondo!â Taka shouted, tripping over his feet as he practically launched himself into Mondoâs arms. Taka buried his face in his shoulder, and he could feel his hands clutching onto the back of his jacket so tightly he thought it might rip. He was sobbing.Â
Mondo, for a brief moment, let himself be selfish. He wrapped his arms around Taka and squeezed. Heâd never wanted this to happen, not to Taka, but there was a small, terrible part of him that was so thankful to at least get one more conversation with him. God, heâd missed him.
âWhat happened?â Taka asked, finally pulling away. âH-How are you here? I saw youâŚdie.â He choked on that last word. Mondo stared at him, mouth agape.Â
âYou, uhâŚYouâre notâŚUm.â Mondo stuttered. Taka seemed to have noticed Mondoâs eyes flick briefly over his shoulder, and slowly turned.Â
