boo! — l.cy
organically mini series ⭑.ᐟ synopsis ⭑.ᐟ ghosts are real, and so is your growing attraction to him. content warning ⭑.ᐟ fluff! fake ghost!anton x fem!reader. word count ⭑.ᐟ 4.1k+
✩🎧⭑.ᐟ [ thunder ]
ㅤyou were walking around everland with your friends, tired and exhausted. your little trio had tried out everything the theme park had to offer in celebration of your friend’s engagement.
it was a small celebration proposed by your engaged friend, stating that she wanted to try everything she couldn’t before getting tied down— although her definition of everything was only contained within everland’s property.
you understood her sentiment, and although theme park rides scared you, you had no other choice but to go along with her wishes. it was the one day you promised to let her have her way.
and she did. by the end of the day, your legs were about to give out from the intensity of the rides and from walking around the entire damn park.
ㅤit also didn’t help your mood when it started raining.
you always believed that the magic of summer was the memories you make with your friends, as well as the unexpected but intense storms that strike every now and then. tonight’s weather was leaning more towards a storm, with heavy rainfall and distant thunder.
the three of you ran around aimlessly until you came across an establishment. ”let’s go over here!” your friend exclaims, pointing at an ominous building that was glowing bright red. the name of the building didn’t escape your attention, written bold, red letters— ‘horror maze’.
you hesitated to follow them, stopping dead in your tracks, somewhat getting a strong premonition of what they’re going to say next. your clothes were starting to get soaked through and before you could even open your mouth, your engaged friend grabs your arm, grinning as she pulled you towards the building.
the two of them exchanged smiles, looking back at you mischievously. you were already shaking even before they said anything.
“you know, yn, we haven’t gone here yet, have we?”
you felt your blood run cold at the implication, your earlier gut feel immediately proven right. you shook your head as fast as you could, droplets of rain splashing everywhere as you did so.
”no! absolutely not!” you exclaimed, showing how serious you were with a small frown. “i already agreed to those extreme rides! this one is non-negotiable,” you crossed your arms. you were confident you’d be able to stand your ground this time.
your friends looked at each other, silently scheming a plan. there was a reason why your trio worked so well despite having one spoilsport.
”but i really want us to go, yn,” your engaged friend whines, looking at your with her big doe eyes. she knew your weakness and she knew when to exploit it, which only happens during these moments.
for a second, you felt yourself falter. you almost gave in, again.
”n-no! i said no!” you turned your head away, refusing to be swayed although a part of you felt bad about potentially ruining her day.
your friends knew you only needed one small push, “we can go in first to check if it’s bad.”
you stared at them, already second-guessing yourself. you knew they wouldn’t make you do something you didn’t want to, they were merely suggesting— and it always seemed to work every time.
when they saw you nod hesitantly, their faces lit up and you knew right then that this wouldn’t end well for you at all.
ㅤyour other friend suggested to go first to scout out the maze. “i’ll be right back! i’ll be reporting everything once i’m done!” she gave you a thumbs up, grinning as she headed inside with only a flashlight in her hand.
the inside was completely dark, you couldn’t even guess what was inside— and you didn’t even want to. the thought of getting jumped was enough to make your skin crawl.
”don’t worry,” your engaged friend whispers, wrapping an arm over your shoulder, “i’ll tell them not to scare you too much when it’s your turn.”
she gave you a playful wink, drawing out a small chuckle from you. it was only then that you started to relax. the trust you had in your friends outweighed the fear you had in your heart— though that didn’t mean that you were completely fine with going in now.
there were still a lot of things that can happen, and getting lost was one of them. worried, you kept glancing at one of the staff members. “u-um, getting lost inside is unlikely, right?” you asked meekly, hoping to hear one answer.
the staff smiled politely, “we can’t say it hasn’t happened before, but as long as you keep your eyes open, you should be fine!”
it was just a scare tactic. you wished it was just a scare tactic. salesmen do the same thing all the time to keep your interest, right?
you should’ve known better than to ask something that would just add to one of your many worries, because now you were terrified. you didn’t want to be trapped in there at your grown age! how horrifying!
a little over ten minutes had passed by and your friend’s maze run was surprisingly peaceful. you heard screams every now and then but they weren’t from her.
”oh, there she is!” you turned around to look at your friend, finding a huge grin on her face. of course she enjoyed it, she lived for these things.
she walked towards you, taking one step at a time. suddenly, she screamed, jumping at you with her arms up. it was enough to make you screech in fear, hiding behind your engaged friend.
she lets out a laugh, satisfied by your reaction. “you better be on your toes, yn, because that’s all they ever do to you in this maze,” she pats your head.
you glared at her, unappreciative of the unnecessary scare she just put you through, even though the advice she just gave you actually helped calm you down as embarrassing as it was to admit.
in your trio, you’ve always been at the receiving end of their pranks and scares, although that also meant they made it up to you as an apology. you were lucky that they cared enough about you to not go overboard, and you eventually got used to it.
stray lightning struck down nearby and a sudden flash of white took you by surprise. you yelped, skin jumping from the loud sound that followed. the entire theme park’s lights went on and off, which turned the whole area dark for a few seconds.
you quickly held onto both your friends, clammy hands trembling in fear. adrenaline was pumping through you after the earlier incident, and you wanted nothing more than to just get this over with.
you were cold, soaked, tired, and scared— you just wanted to grab a taxi and leave right after, but you still held some hope that the maze wasn’t scary enough like your friend said.
it was a good challenge for you, and you knew you’d regret not pushing through with it later when you’re trying to sleep.
”can i go next?” you ask softly, surprising both your friends. they exchanged a few looks, suddenly hesitant to tease you.
”are you sure, yn?” your engaged friend asks, holding onto your shoulder. the red lights surrounding the area kept flickering, sending shivers down your spine.
you grabbed the flashlight your other friend used earlier, “y-yeah! the faster i get this over with, the less scared i would get. it’ll be just like the rollercoaster ride earlier, right?”
your friends looked at each other again. they didn’t have the heart to tell you that a horror maze was nothing like the short rollercoaster ride you steeled through earlier because in this one, you actually had to move on your own.
the staff gave you a small smile before she signaled the start of your session. you nod at them, taking a deep breath before taking the first step inside of the maze.
it was just as dark as you thought it would be, except it’s even darker inside because the lights were weaker than usual. you turned your flashlight on, hand trembling as you walked in a straight line.
ㅤyou could feel a slight shiver, the temperature suddenly dropping when you entered a new area. the room had a purple tint to it, though it was barely visible because of the dark.
the horrifying decorations completely slipped your attention; you were too focused on not getting scared that your brain couldn’t register anything else, or that you might be getting lost after one room.
it was eerily quiet— you would’ve preferred it if they just jumped at you and did their job but everyone was staying silent, which felt ominous.
with each step you took, you had to remind yourself that they were all just people and that ghosts aren’t real. you took deep breaths, eyes straight and fist clenched as you turned the corner.
you felt a hand grab your shoulder, making you scream out in fear. to your surprise, a deep, pathetic scream mirrored yours. you quickly let out another scream, grabbing onto the person (you hoped) that grabbed you earlier, pushing them down the ground.
”aah!” you screeched, hiding your face into the rough fabric that was right in front of you.
”ugh!”
you held onto their clothes, closing your eyes shut. for some reason, this ‘ghost’ smelled somewhat musky, even a bit expensive. the humane scent that filled your senses seemed to calm you down a little.
this ‘ghost’ had a warm body too, but that was besides the point.
you reach around for your flashlight, belatedly realizing that you accidentally threw it somewhere, perhaps across the room, or some other location in this maze that you were too scared to go to. the flickering lights didn’t help— and it was even more unhelpful when everything just shut down.
you froze in place when everything went dark and silent. you tried blinking repeatedly until your eyes got used to the darkness, recognizing your own hand that was on the floor. you could feel your chances of survival slowly increasing; you just had to figure out a way to leave.
”h-hey, you’re still on top of me,” a deep, soft voice whispered at you, and you feel a huge pair of hands holding onto your arms.
your breath hitched in your throat. you didn’t expect them to sound so timid, maybe even more so than you were. you tried searching his face in the dark, his eyes reflecting the small amount of moonlight that somehow found its way inside this hellhole.
“what’s your name?” you asked confidently, but you couldn’t help the slight tremble in your voice.
he shifts around, his body generating even more heat. “a-anton?” he answers, a slight question in his tone as if he was unsure.
”anton? so you’re american?” you whispered back, still trying to make out his face in the dark. an american ghost, how fascinating.
you finally pushed yourself off of him, heart still racing from what happened earlier. “i’m yn,” you spoke softly. you wished you could see what face he was making, and seeing his reaction to all of this would’ve been comforting.
right now, anton was just a faceless entity to you. he could very well just be a ghost, but you owed a lot to his warmth and scent for keeping you sane during this entire thing.
this might even be god’s way of telling you that ghosts were real, and that your fear of them was actually justified.
”you were carrying a flashlight, right?” anton asks and you could feel his eyes on you.
you nodded in response, “y-yeah. i think i lost it though.” at your shy admission, anton lets out a small chuckle. you felt your body ease up a little, chuckling softly. the entire situation was absurd and anton seemed to think so as well.
”sorry, i wasn’t laughing at you,” he spoke softly. you could hear the smile on his face as he spoke, sounding a bit more relaxed than he did earlier.
you could feel his hand looking for yours in the dark, his warm hand wrapping over yours as he grabbed it gently. you tried to pull your hand back but he held it even tighter.
“s-sorry! i'm not trying to do anything!” anton quickly clarifies. “i just think it’s better to move around together— n-not because i'm scared or anything! but it'll be bad if we lose track of each other in the dark, y-you know,” he rambles, hoping the list of excuses he made up would work out.
a giggle escaped your lips. you were too focused on your own fears that you didn't realize anton might be feeling a bit scared too.
”i won’t leave you behind,” you reassured him, smiling even though you knew he wouldn’t be able to see. you squeezed his hand as you stood up carefully. “i think i know where i dropped it,” you whispered.
anton stands back up, following you blindly. despite your best efforts to see through the dark, you just couldn't make out any of the shapes since this place was unfamiliar to you— and it definitely didn't help that a lot of the weird looking shapes were horror props.
“oh, careful!” he exclaims, pulling you back before you hit a wall.
you were surprised to land right in his arms. anton’s build was surprisingly nice and he towered over you in a comforting way. you could hear his erratic heartbeat, pounding against your ear as he held you.
luckily for you, anton just might be a real person and not some hallucination.
“m-my bad,” you mumbled, scratching your cheek with your free hand. you'd forgotten that you were around a corner and the lack of light made everything look the same to you.
you blindly reached around this time, wanting to avoid another incident while you dragged your feet on the ground in hopes that you'd hear the flashlight rolling.
you take one step forward, arms up in the air when you suddenly felt hair. it was long, synthetic, and scratchy— the sensation against your fingertips made your skin crawl.
you quickly pulled your arms back, yelping in surprise. anton caught you quickly, reacting even though he had no idea what just happened. he blocked you from the threat, the hair also grazing his skin.
anton lets out a weak yell, pulling you back with him. he turns to another side, trying to keep his sanity. a part of him was glad that you shared his fears and reacted the same way he did, otherwise he’d feel very silly.
yes, he worked here; and yes, he was very scared of the place.
he just held you quietly despite the tremble in his arms. “a-are you okay?” anton asked quietly, as if he was hoping that your answer would be yes. because if you weren’t okay, then he’d be fucked too.
“no,” you mumbled, “i want to go home.”
“same here.”
you both sighed, exchanging a quiet understanding of your shared troubles.
ㅤin spite of all that, you were thankful to have anton’s company. you could tell he was just as scared as you were but he’s trying to keep his cool, although you weren’t sure if the brave front he was trying to put on was for you or it was solely for himself.
after a moment, you saw something move. you froze in his arms, eyes wide open. your trembling hand shook anton’s arm in a panic, “c-cockroach! i think i saw a cockroach!”
”what- what? what!? where!?” anton pulled you even closer, walking backwards with you in his arms. as if noticing your presence, the cockroach began flying around near you and anton.
you covered your face protectively while anton held onto you as if his life depended on it— both of you screaming. your combined screams began to fill the eerie space as you ran while holding onto each other tightly.
you and anton only stopped when his back hit one of the walls. you both collapsed on the ground, legs giving out from the pure nightmare of an insect.
two of your worst fears just showed up at once and you find yourself cursing the horror maze even more. although, your experience so far hasn’t been too bad. maybe it was because of anton’s presence?
”my bad,” anton cleared his throat, his cheeks feeling warm as the reality of what just happened sank in, “i just dragged you with me, didn’t i?”
you laughed tiredly, looking up at him, ”it’s fine, i would’ve blindly ran into a wall if you didn’t.”
lightning suddenly struck, light flashing through one of the few windows the maze had. in a split second, you could make out a little bit of his features. anton had a prominent nose, big eyes, and plump lips.
you were hypnotized for a moment, your heart skipping a beat when you got a quick peek at his face. anton was cute, and you felt foolish for getting sidetracked right now of all times.
”s-sorry, i should get off of your, um, lap,” you mumbled, suddenly flustered. anton kept a steady hand on yours as you sat beside him, somewhat missing the contact.
he kept glancing at you, also thinking about the quick flash he had of your face earlier. your eyes were smiling, a soft laugh leaving your lips when it happened.
anton couldn’t believe he was acting a fool in your presence.
the two of you sat in silence for a while, wallowing in shame for quite some time. at this point, his eyes were adjusting to the darkness, and with his knowledge of the maze’s interior, he could somewhat make out where their exact location was.
the two of you were still in the first room. the very same room you scared each other earlier.
he didn’t know if he should tell you, or if he should act clueless about it. neither of you seemed to be enjoying this situation anyway, and if he was right, the walk back to the entrance should be easy enough.
meanwhile, you were patting around the ground, still hopeful that the flashlight would be somewhere nearby. your hand bumps into something and although it scared you at first, you carefully reached for it.
it was cylindrical and heavy, with a notable switch in the middle of its body— you were almost positive it was the flashlight you dropped.
”i found it!” you exclaimed, smiling widely. anton’s ears perked up at your happy tone, chuckling as he squeezed your hand gently.
you quickly tried turning it on, the light flickering a little. the impact from when you dropped it must’ve ruined it somehow, but all it mattered was that you can see now.
”anton?” you whispered pointing the flashlight at him. your heart was pounding against your chest, cheeks already feeling warm although you weren’t quite sure why just yet.
he had a sweet smile on his face that you could finally see clearly, “yeah?”
you blushed, finding yourself speechless. thank god anton was a real person.
”i-i found the flashlight.”
anton chuckles, “yeah, i can see that.”
”u-um,” you stammered, shifting your flashlight somewhere else. you didn’t know why it was so embarrassing to see his face now of all times.
you stayed silent for quite some time, processing everything that you just went through. you were overwhelmed, but it was over now— you desperately hoped it was all over now.
anton’s body suddenly tensed up, his eyes pointed right behind you. shivers suddenly ran down your spine, the temperature of the room suddenly growing colder.
“a-anton?” your voice trembled, even the hand you were using to hold the flashlight was shaking.
”y-yn, do me a favor and don’t turn around.”
your eyes went wide. that was the worst thing anton could’ve said at this moment.
he placed his hands on your shoulders as he looked around. the exit was just right behind him. anton swallowed audibly, holding your hand as tight as he could. “run!”
your legs moved before you could realize what was going on, screaming as you ran with him. all you could see in front of you was his broad back, and you were admittedly a bit distracted for a second.
before you knew it, you were back at the entrance. it was slightly disorienting to suddenly be able to see so much under the moonlight, squinting when anton stepped aside to look at you.
your friends quickly ran towards you, exclaiming out of worry. they held your cheeks, checking if you were still okay.
”i’m okay! i’m alright! a ghost helped me!”
your friends paused, exchanging worried glances with each other.
”what do we do? i think she’s lost it.”
”i knew we should’ve gone to pick her up.”
you were flustered, looking over at anton for some help. “n-no! no, that’s not what i meant!” you quickly exclaimed, shaking your hands in a panic.
”he’s real!” you pointed over at anton, who was wearing a shabby ghost costume. he gives your friends a small wave, chuckling shyly. your frustrations were quickly forgotten at the sight of his smile.
your friends eyed him up and down, one half amused and the other half cautious. “s-see?” you mumbled, eyes still on anton, “he’s a real person.”
your friends snickered amongst themselves, giving you a mischievous look. you could only keep your mouth shut, blushing profusely.
you already knew what was going through their heads— anton was just your type after all. “not a word,” you whispered in a threatening tone, though they don’t seem to be threatened at all.
anton walks towards you and your friends took it as a sign to give you some space. you couldn’t help but palm your face in embarrassment, looking up at him.
he kept glancing at the entrance, as if he was waiting for something to come out. you were just about to turn your head when he held your shoulders.
”don’t look,” anton mumbled, sounding almost desperate.
unfortunately for him, your curiosity got the best of you, quickly taking a peek at the entrance. you finally understood what anton wanted to protect you from— the staff that were inside the horror maze all stepped out one by one, looking horrifying.
you instinctively clung to anton out of surprise at the image of ‘ghosts’ coming out from the dark. you didn’t even have the time to process your fear as anton held you comfortingly. it was almost a hug, but not quite a hug just yet.
what a shame.
you pulled away, cheeks burning red at the thought that flashed through your mind. “thanks,” you whispered shyly, unable to meet his eyes out of shame.
anton nods, hesitantly pulling his arms back. he scratched his head, looking around awkwardly. he didn’t even need to protect you now that you were out of the building. you were perfectly capable of it (he thought), he just couldn’t help it.
perhaps a part of him wanted to make up for the lame image he showed you back inside that hellhole, or maybe he was just trying to impress you. it’s tough to say, but all he knew was that he wanted to see you smile again— an impossible task considering the horrors surrounding you right now.
you kept glancing at him. the words you wanted to say were on the tip of your tongue, but you didn’t know how to articulate them properly. it was frustrating.
”yn?”
at the sound of your name, your eyes were instantly on him. anton smiles slightly, “it was tough back there, but i think i had fun because it was with you.”
he had fun? throughout all of that?
”y-you did?” you mumbled, staring into his eyes.
he chuckles, “yeah. and, uh, if it’s possible, i’d love to hang out with you too.”
”not in a scary place this time,” he continues with a wink, eliciting a flustered reaction out of you.
you’ve only ever heard of it from your friends, but he’s flirting and he’s flirting hard.
you cleared your throat, tucking your hair behind your ear as you look at someplace far away, “t-then, how does saturday sound to you?”
anton smiles widely, a small laugh escaping his lips. he nods immediately, almost looking like a puppy wagging his tail, “i’ll be there. i’ll definitely be there.”
your face breaks into a smile, laughing at his insistence. anton stares at you, taking in your genuine smile, chuckling along with you. it was nice to see it clearly, and now anton was more sure than ever.
”it’s getting late,” he spoke softly, reaching his hand out for you to hold, “do you want to take a walk with me? i'll walk you to the taxi bay, if you want?”
you smiled, your cheeks turning red as you took his hand, “lead the way, mr. ghost.”