Warnings: Angst

Notes: -

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     For years, you'd been floating around this mansion, wandering aimlessly. You'd died almost a lifetime ago, but stuck at age (your age) after you had been murdered in this very house, you couldn't move on. You weren't sure what it was holding you back, you didn't know why you couldn't move on and push through to the next life, but you were becoming desperate to leave the house that had tortured you for years.

      You had never spoken to any of the boys in the house, nor the girl. They had no idea you existed, you were very careful of that. You would surely scare the vampires away, and watching them go day by day was the only thing that kept you sane. Though, they all reminded you of him. The father. The man who had killed you in this house, long before his sons moved here. 

        You really didn't want to have to break your cover, but you were so desperate, you left yourself no choice. But who to approach?

      "Ahhhh!" A shrill scream came from behind you, and if you had a stomach, it would have surely dropped when you realized the mistake you had made. Hovering above the ground, in your blood-soaked dress, your partially translucent form turned gently in the air, the blonde girl was frozen in shock, staring up at you. After all this time, you had finally been caught.

      But you were hopeful, this girl seemed sweet, and caring, and maybe, if you could get through to her, she would be able to help you. Maybe she could keep your cover. 

      "What the hell?!" A voice demanded in aggravation and you heard the footsteps approach from around the corner, and suddenly, he was there too. The white haired boy, with the ruby eyes. The girl raised a shaky hand and pointed up at you, and the boy's eyes widened a fraction.

     "G-G-Ghost!" The girl stuttered out, before letting out another shriek and dashing off down the hall. The boy remained, staring. Should you speak? Would you even be able to? You hand't spoken since you died...

     "So, it's really true..." He said after a moment of contemplation, and your eyes widened. Someone had told him that you were here? "Can you speak?"

     "I think..." You replied, and were shocked with how velvety and echoing your voice was, but it was unmistakably yours, and you cracked a small, sad smile. The girl soon returned with the other brothers in tow, and you just held your breath, as there were a few moments of 'holy shit' as they stared.

     "Do you have a name?" The white haired boy asked, and the others all leaned in to listen, and you were shocked they weren't appalled with you. You swallowed.

     "Y/N..." You said quietly, and there was a drawn out moment of silence.

     "How long have you been here?" Another brother asked, hitching up his glasses. 

     "Longer than any of you..." You murmured quietly, and the brother seemed to think, before a redhead spoke up.

     "Well, why didn't you show yourself sooner?" He demanded, placing his hands on his hips and your eyes widened slightly.

     "You're not afraid...?" You tilted your head to the side, could this be for real?

      "What's so scary about a pretty ghost girl?" Another brother said, tilting his fedora, and you felt heat radiate around your translucent cheeks. There was probably a pink glow hanging in the air.

     "Quite," Glasses boy said, with a pointed look towards hat-boy. "At any rate, despite the fact hat you've been here longer than even we have, welcome to the Sakamaki family, Y/N."

-

      You hovered just by a window, staring out at the rose garden with a soft sigh, contemplating how strange it was, living with the vampire boys, and human girl. It was strange not being alone anymore, not having to hide, it always made you jump whenever anyone would speak to you, it had been so long since anyone had used your name. 

     "Y/N," A voice spoke and you jumped, though all Subaru noticed was that the sight of your form blurred for a moment, before you became crystal clear again, and glanced over your shoulder at him. He offered a slight nod as he came next to you, and sat on the windowsill, glancing down at the red roses you were staring at. 

     "Subaru," You greeted back, politely, and rested against the wall, glad you didn't fall through. It was an outside wall, as you had explained to them, and you hadn't managed to get out to the rose garden while you were alive, so you couldn't get there as a ghost. 

     "Can I... Ask you a question?" He asked after a moment of watching how the light shimmered through your not-really-there body. 

    "Go ahead," You gave a polite nod, and he sucked on his teeth for a moment before asking the question he worried you'd find rude, but it had been burning in his mind, and he just couldn't help himself.

     "Why.... Why haven't you moved on? Don't you want to?"

    "Ah..." You gave a sad smile, one Subaru thought was tragically beautiful, just like everything about your ethereal existence. "I do want to... I want to more than anything, but... I can't... I don't know what it is, but something is holding me back... God, if only I knew what it was..."

    "You want to move on that badly?" He asked, his eyes flickering up towards yours, and a glint of hurt flashed in his eyes, and you raised a tragically sad smile once more.

     "I'm happy here with your brothers, and the girl, but... It's strange... I shouldn't be here... I should've moved on so long ago..." You gave a slight sigh, before your smiled widened at him considerably. "But trust me, if I do ever get to go, I'll miss you heaps. It's been a lifetime since I had a friend."

     "If... If you want to move on that much, then... I'll help you, if I can..." Subaru said, and his cheeks tinted a faint pink, like the tips of his hair, and rush of warm air came from somewhere within you, and you were sure that Subaru felt it. 

     "Thank you, Subaru-Kun," You smiled, and it wasn't sad, or tragic, or ghostly. It was bright, and real, and it made your face seem lit up, and so alive. You leaned over and brushed your lips on his forehead, before gliding away, an elegant apparition, disappearing through a wall and out of sight. 

      Despite feeling only a small warmth where your ghostly lips had been, Subaru's face erupted in a shocking red and his stomach did flips. 

-

     Most of your time in the house was now spent with Subaru. He felt less alone, and you made him forget about what he was, and just for a while, he could make you feel alive again. 

    Subaru knew it. He knew it would only be bad for himself, but he couldn't help himself. He couldn't help it that his stomach pulled into knots every time he saw you, or that his cheeks flushed constantly, or that he felt incredibly guilty about wanting to go back on his word on helping you move on, because he wanted to keep you here with him. 

      You wouldn't get older, you wouldn't die, and you'd be only his. He thought himself selfish for wanting to hold you back, but over the past weeks and months since you had made your presence felt, he became increasingly aware that he wasn't sure he'd be able to get by without you. 

      Damn, he hated to admit it, but he thought you were so gorgeous, despite the ghostly pallor and bloodstains. He had fallen in love with you. And he was going to tell you.

-

     He had gone out into the garden, and spent far too long looking for the most perfect (F/C) rose from the patch you would stare longingly at from your window on the second floor. As he located the perfect rose and snipped it carefully from the bush, he was sure that if he looked over his shoulder and up at the window, he would see you smiling down at him, and the thought of that made his cheeks light up with pink.

    Indeed, as he turned back around, he saw you give a small wave from up in your window, and he shyly waved back, before weaving back inside, and up the stairs, to the window where he knew you would be waiting. 

      "(Y/N)," Subaru called, and you finally did not jump at the sound of his voice, only turned and peered over your shoulder with a peaceful smile as he came up next to you, and shyly looked down at the rose he held carefully between his fingers. "I have something I wanted to tell you,"

     "Go right ahead," You gave him the serene smile he loved and carefully lowered yourself until your feet were just brushing through the floorboards, so you were at the height you should've been, had you been alive.

     "I... I don't want to help you move on," He said through gritted teeth, and you were slightly taken aback by the anger he seemed to be showing, and you let out a small 'oh' sound, wondering if you had done something to upset him. Suddenly, he looked up with such intensity burning in his red eyes it made you want to take a step back, but you just remained hovering in place. "I don't want to help you move on, because I can't live without you,"

     "Subaru," You murmured, and felt a strange rush come over you, your faint (E/C) eyes widening.

      "Since you've been here, I realized something... I don't know what the hell I'd do without you... You make me feel like no one else, and I... I just don't want you to leave me, (Y/N), dammit... I love you..."

      "You love me," You repeated, as if you weren't quite sure you heard right, but Subaru confirmed it with a bashful nod and small smile. You felt a giddy rush, and warmth shot through you as your face spread into a wide grin.

       "You're always staring at the roses, and I know you can't go out to them, so I thought I'd bring one to you..." Subaru said bashfully, and held out the pristine rose to you.

      You reached out, and your ghostly hands took the rose gently, and you cradled it between your hands, and you swear you felt the velvety petals on your numb fingertips, and something in your throat choked you up.

    "(Y/N)?!" Subaru suddenly called, and when you glanced back up at him, his gorgeous ruby eyes were wide and panicked. "Are you alright?! What's happening?!"

      You looked down at your own figure, and both you and Subaru saw how your form began to flicker and blur, and that's when the waves of faintness and the suffocating feeling came to you, and you knew what was going on. You had dreamed of this day for years and years, but now, you weren't so sure you wanted it. 

      "I think I... I'm moving on..." You murmured, almost breathlessly, and your fingers curled tightly around the thorned stem of the rose, but you felt nothing but numbness. You let out a bitter chuckle. "And I was so happy you said that, too... Ah... Thank you, Subaru, thank you so much...."

     "You're... leaving me...?" Subaru choked out, hardly able to believe this was happening just now. How cruel was this? Snatching you away just as he decided he wanted to keep you.

      "I'm sorry, Subaru... I love you too, so much... I don't know how you did it, but you've given me what I always wanted... I can move on... Thank you, thank you... I'm going to miss you, so much..." You choked out, as cool tears escaped your eyes, but you couldn't hold back your smile. Finally, you were free. 

     You floated towards Subaru, and wrapped your numb arms around him, the rose still clutched tightly in your hand, and he was surprised to find he could hold your form, feel you under his fingertips. He clung to you, held you as tight as possible while he still could. He knew he wouldn't be able to hold you for long.

      He quickly leaned down, and you looked as alive and real as you ever had, positively glowing, and he was astounded by your beauty all over again. He swiftly caught your lips in a kiss, savoring the feel of your real, soft, sweet lips against his own while he had the chance. When he pulled away, all he could manage was a whisper.

     "You're welcome, (Y/N)... I wish I could've kept you, but..." He swallowed down a lump in his throat and bit back the tears, trying to be strong, as he knew this was hurting you too, even if you had wanted it all along. "As long as you don't forget me, I'll be happy... I promise I'll keep you with me always... I love you..."

      "I won't forget you, you know," You said with a strained chuckle, and Subaru felt your form drifting away from under his fingers, and the image of you right before him began to fade and blur as your spirit began to move on, away from the pain of what you had faced here, somewhere far beyond his thoughts, but he knew he would never forget about you, the beautiful ghost girl. "I love you,"

       Your voice echoed around him one last time, and he squinted desperately for any last signs of you, that you weren't quite gone, but there were none. He was stood alone, and you were gone.

     He clenched his jaw tightly and his eyes squeezed shut, trying to force back the stinging tears. He wouldn't cry, he wouldn't. His fingertips reached up to where he had felt your lips, your real lips, once and only once. 

     He was terrified you would forget him, forget this had ever happened, forget that you had been in love, but as he glanced around himself, he felt a small spark of hope when something was missing.

     You had taken the rose with you. 

      Something told him that this wasn't the end. Beside, you still had a little piece of each other, you had his rose, and he had your kiss, and as long as he could remember the feel of your lips on his, he knew that he would be alright.

~

(End of part 1)

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