"I can do this," Akira muttered, pacing behind the haunted house booth.
His reflection stared back at him from a cracked mirror. He had a round face smeared with fake blood and greasy hair sticking out from under a crooked vampire cape. When he spoke, the plastic fangs made him lisp.
'God, I look pathetic,' he said to himself.
The Halloween festival was in full swing. Orange lanterns swayed in the evening breeze, casting dancing shadows across the school courtyard.
Students in elaborate costumes laughed and shrieked, while the DJ's spooky remixes echoed through massive speakers. Carved pumpkins grinned from every corner.
Akira adjusted his cape for what felt like the hundredth time. His costume, bought from a dollar store, was tight and starting to tear at the seams. The cheap fabric was definitely not holding up well.
"You've got this," he whispered. "Just walk up and say it. What's the worst that could happen?"
He spotted her across the crowd.
Sakura Hanamura stood near the punch bowl like a dark goddess descended to earth. Her black lace dress hugged curves that made his mouth go dry, the fabric clinging in all the right places.
She wore fake bloodstained wings that spread from her shoulders, and her red lipstick shone like fresh blood. As she chatted with her friends, her laughter rose above the noise of the festival.
Now or never.
Akira pushed through the crowd, dodging witches and zombies, nearly tripping over a werewolf's tail. His heart hammered against his ribs.
"Sakura!" he called.
She turned, and her icy blue gaze landed on him. For a moment, the world seemed to stop.
"Yes?" she asked in a cool and detached tone.
The students nearby paused their conversations. Akira felt dozens of eyes turning toward them.
Say it. Just say it!
"I've been wanting to tell you something," he blurted out, his voice cracking. "You're pretty, and I... I really want you to be my girlfriend."
The music seemed to dip at that exact moment. More heads turned, and someone nearby gasped.
Sakura raised her perfectly shaped eyebrow and let out a sharp, cruel laugh that cut right to the bone. "You want me to be your girlfriend?" she repeated with mock surprise.
Akira nodded, his face burning as he realised the crowd was already gathering. Still, he stood his ground. "Yes, Sakura. It's been on my mind for a while now. I just felt like I should let you know."
Her friends were already pulling out their phones; bright screens lit up around them like hungry eyes.
Sakura stepped closer. Her expensive and intoxicating perfume washed over him. Up close, she was even more beautiful, and that made what came next so much worse.
"I didn't think you'd be delusional enough to even think about it, not to mention asking me," she said, her voice carrying across the courtyard. "What part of our conversations made you believe you had the right to ask me that question? Have we even had any conversations?"
"I... we talked in class last week…"
"You want me to be your girlfriend?" she continued, ignoring him. "Boy, please. You really are confident, and not in the 'wow' way but in the 'oh my God, does he not own a mirror?' way."
Laughter erupted from the growing crowd, and Akira felt his stomach twist.
"What makes you think I'd lower my standards and stoop to the level of someone like you? You want me to be your girlfriend when you can't even manage yourself?"
Each word hit harder than a brick would.
"It's such a pity that you mistook my niceness for a green flag," Sakura said, circling him now like a predator. "I'd rather set myself on fire and roast marshmallows off the flames than settle for you."
Someone in the crowd let out a low whistle. More phones appeared, all pointed at him.
"So to be very clear," Sakura continued, her red lips curling into a smile, "'no' is not just 'no'. It's 'hell no, never, not even in your dreams, and especially not in mine.' The day I should ever start having or developing emotional feelings—or even any sort of feeling for you—is the day God or any supreme being out there should stop my existence on this earth."
Laughter exploded, and phones flashed. Then, someone started a slow clap, which quickly spread.
Akira's vision blurred at first. He ripped the fake fangs from his mouth and threw them on the ground.
"Akira, wait…" someone called, but he was already running.
He pushed through the crowd, stumbling over decorations, nearly knocking over a skeleton display. Behind him, the laughter followed like a tidal wave, crushing everything in its path.
"Did you see his face?"
"Oh my God, someone already posted it!"
"#CreepKing is trending!"
Akira burst through a group of lingering students near the gates.
"Get out of my way!" he screamed, shoving past them.
His phone buzzed in his pocket… once, twice, then non-stop. As he ran, he pulled it out, his vision blurred by tears and anger.
The video was everywhere. Thirty shares already. Fifty. One hundred.
Creep King strikes out! :lol
Bruh imagine thinking you had a chance with the Student Council President, Sakura Hanamura
This is why mirrors exist lmaooo
Akira deleted the app, his hands trembling. In a burst of frustration, he threw his phone against the wall, and it shattered, pieces flying everywhere. He paused, breathing heavily as he looked down at his scraped knuckles.
"Why me?" he whispered. "What did I do to deserve this?"
His frustration and humiliation rose until it became pure rage. She'll pay. They'll all pay.
Akira started walking, his feet carrying him toward the only place he knew would be empty. The old shrine in the woods behind the school… the one the urban legends warned about, where no one went after dark.
The path was overgrown, branches clawing at his costume. The festival sounds faded behind him until only silence remained.
The shrine came into view through the trees, looking like a distant memory. A weathered stone torii gate marked the entrance, covered in moss and starting to crumble. Just beyond it, a small wooden building leaned to one side, worn down by years of neglect.
Akira collapsed against the gate, his sobs echoing in the darkness.
"Why?" he shouted at the sky. "Why does everything have to be so fucking unfair?"
He kicked at the dirt by the gate, looking for an outlet for his anger. His foot hit something hard. He dropped to his knees and started digging, his hands getting scraped and bloody.
Finally, in the moonlight, he spotted something shiny: metal sticking out of the ground. It was a dagger. It looked old and rusty, but the blade was still sharp, with strange symbols carved into it.
Akira pulled it free just as a sound echoed from the shadows, like a weak, pained groan.
He spun around, clutching the dagger.
Something moved near the shrine's entrance, something that definitely wasn't human.
A small, black-feathered creature, roughly the size of a large cat, hobbled into the moonlight. Its feathers were unsettlingly dark and glossy, and twisted horns protruded from its head. Its eyes glowed a hungry, deep red, and tattered wings trailed behind it.
"What the fuck?" Akira breathed.
The creature's head snapped toward him, those red eyes locking onto his. It opened its mouth, revealing rows of needle-like teeth.
Then it charged.