EXTRA     The Ghost in the Old Building

“A ghost in the old school building?”

“Yeah. There’ve been tons of rumors about people seeing it lately…”

Cecilia and her friends were at a table in the library after class when Jade brought them news of a scary story. Imitating the ghost, he held his arms out in front of him with a menacing glower on his face.

In addition to Jade and Cecilia, the table also included Gilbert, Oscar, and Dante. They all had homework spread out in front of them.

Cecilia, seated across from Jade, turned green and hugged herself. “N-no way…”

“But there are people who swear they saw it,” he went on, his voice an octave lower than usual. “They say they heard a woman laughing night after night in a storeroom in the old school building. Word on the street is that it’s the spirit of a girl who committed suicide twenty years ago out of heartbreak.”

Tears welling in her eyes, Cecilia pressed her hands over her ears.

After casting her a sidelong glance, Oscar chimed in brightly, “Who would believe that? It’s probably just someone who broke in.”

“It’s not! Oh, Oscar, you have no sense of pathos, do you?”

“Specters have nothing to do with pathos,” he replied.

Neither Dante nor Gilbert looked particularly agitated by the ghost story, either. They likely didn’t believe in them in the first place.

Jade probably felt a little let down that his tale hadn’t spooked anyone, but he gave his usual smile as he pulled out his chair and sat down. “Well, whether it’s real or not, the rumor has the teachers all worked up anyway. Some students are so frightened that they won’t come out of their dorm rooms.”

“I feel like we should do something about this,” Oscar mused.

“But won’t this sort of thing just clear up on its own?” Jade wondered.

“Well, maybe—”

“Oh. I have a good idea!” interjected Dante with a clap of his hands. He looked all around the table, an expression of pure joy on his face. “Let’s play a game, and the loser has to go investigate the spirit. And then tomorrow, you have to report back to u—”

“No, no, no, no, no!” Cecilia immediately protested. “I—I don’t care what you guys do, but leave me out of this! No way! I don’t wanna see a ghost!”

“Aw, what? Cecil, you won’t play?” chimed in Jade, who seemed unexpectedly into the idea.

Cecilia shook her head again emphatically. “I—I refuse! There’s no way I’d play!”

“Aw. Cecil, that’s not very manly of you,” insisted Dante, a challenging glint in his eyes as he grinned at her.

“Not manly?” she repeated uncertainly, taken aback despite her fear.

“Mm-hmm. A real dude steps up at times like this, you know? Refusing like that comes off kinda unmasculine.”

“It does?”

“Although I think that makes you pretty girlie and cute myself—”

“I’ll play!” Cecilia declared, shooting a hand up in the air. She couldn’t take all of this talk of “not manly,” “unmasculine,” and “girlie” lying down.

“I’m going to play after all! I just need to win the game so I won’t have to go!”

“Yeah! That’s the spirit!” Dante cried, snapping his fingers happily.

Gilbert sighed, deeply unimpressed.

“I—I can’t believe I lost,” cried Cecilia mournfully, staring up at the old school building that night.

“I’m not. I knew this would happen,” said Gilbert, standing next to her with that same unimpressed look on his face.

When he sighed, she bobbed her head at him apologetically. “I’m really sorry, Gil. You ended up coming along, too…”

“I don’t mind. I know you don’t like this sort of thing… But anyway, are you going to stay like this the whole time?” he asked, pointing to his arm. Cecilia had wrapped both her arms around it, like she was cuddling right into his side.

Gilbert coughed, his face tinted pink. “I think anyone who sees you like this would say it’s unmasculine.”

“B-but we’re all alone now! And I’m really scared! Do…do I really have to let go?” she pleaded, gazing up at him.

Rubbing at his eyes, he averted his gaze. “I didn’t say you had to… Just…it makes it hard to walk…”

“I-I’ll try to match your pace!”

“Uh…”

“I want to stay like this! Please!” she entreated with tears in her eyes, and Gilbert stumbled a little for some reason.

Then, pinching the bridge of his nose, he heaved a deep sigh and acquiesced. “Well, I guess if you’re going to be like that, then—”

“Hey,” a voice suddenly called from behind them. Cecilia gave a start and shrieked at the top of her lungs. Then she plastered herself to Gilbert’s back. He stiffened up all over, for a very different reason than his sister.

“Why are you screaming? It’s just me, Cecil.”

“Who? Oh, Oscar?!” she yelped.

Oscar had come up on the other side of them. He narrowed his eyes at Cecilia as she cowered behind Gilbert. “Unbelievable. What do you think you’re doing?”

“Why are you here, Your Highness?” her brother asked in a crisp voice that made it perfectly clear the prince wasn’t welcome.

The inquiry made Oscar scratch the tip of his nose bashfully. “I just thought Cecil might be scared exploring the old school building alone at night, so I came to check on him.”

“Oscar! Thank you so much!” Cecilia cried, popping up from behind Gilbert with lingering tears of fright in her eyes. “I’m so glad you’re here! Gil just told me he doesn’t want me clinging on to him, so I was really—”

“I’m fine with it,” interrupted Gilbert.

“Huh?”

“If you’re going to grab on to him, you can grab on to me instead.”

“But…”

“I said it’s fine!”

“Okay…,” she muttered, not really getting it but looping her arms back around his arm anyway. For some reason, Oscar looked a little miffed by the sight.

Just then, a voice as clear as a bell rang out in the building. “Oh my. Why are all of you together?”

“What? Lean?”

Her friend emerged from the shadows of the building with a sewing bag hanging from her arm, blinking at everyone in astonishment. Oscar and Gilbert seemed just as surprised to see her.

“Don’t tell me the ghost in this building is actually…”

“Ghost?”

When Cecilia relayed what Jade had told them, Lean laughed and admitted she was the source of the rumors. Apparently, she’d been sewing in here night after night.

And obviously she was crafting clothes for Cecil to wear.

“I just happened to find a foot-operated sewing machine in the storeroom here,” she explained.

“I can’t believe it. Don’t scare me like that anymore, seriously…,” murmured Cecilia in relief as they walked back to the dorms. She was intentionally not asking about what type of clothes Lean had been making.

“Oh, but you know, it’s so strange,” Lean said, stopping in place as if something had just occurred to her.

“What is?”

“This was only my second night coming here. Would that be enough for rumors to start?”

A chill ran down Cecilia’s spine. Then she thought she heard someone laughing from the old school building behind them.