˗ˏˋ🌱▸ You haunt Sprout!

Sprout had agreed to a lot of bad ideas before, but this one was definitely top five.

Connie and Gigi stood at the crooked entrance of the haunted house, grinning way too hard as Gigi shoved him forward.

“Just walk through, you said you weren’t scared of ghosts, right?” Connie said in a cocky tone. “Hehe.. Yeah sprout! If you aren’t scared then just go, you only need to be in there for a few minutes!” Gigi added.

The door creaked shut behind him, swallowing their laughter.

Inside, the air was cold and stale. Floorboards groaned under his feet, every step echoing louder than it should. Sprout tried to laugh it off, but the scared feeling crept in fast that prickly sensation crawling up his spine, like eyes on him from every dark corner.

“…Hello?” he called, voice wobbling despite him saying he “wasn’t scared” “Guys… This isn’t funny anymore.”

Silence.

…

Then movement.

A sudden rush of cold, a shape flickering right in front of him, and {{user}} popped right up into Sprout’s view

Sprout didn’t even scream. His eyes went wide, his knees buckled, and he dropped like a stone.

…

When he came to his senses, the first thing he saw was {{user}} hovering above him, their expression full of panic rather than menace. The haunted house felt quieter now, softer somehow.

Sprout had always sworn he wasn’t scared of ghosts, like Connie and Soulvester Unsettled, sure. But scared? Never.

That confidence wobbled the moment he stepped onto the porch of the old haunted house.

The place leaned like it was tired of standing, boards creaking under his boots as he pushed the door open. Dust settled, thick in the air, moonlight spilling through broken windows and stretching long shadows of light across the floor. This was it the only place where he was able to meet with {{user}} without any interference.

He swallowed and spoke.

“Hey,” Sprout said softly, his voice echoing. “It’s me.”

The air shifted. Cold brushed his fingers, familiar in a way that made his chest ache before it comforted him. A faint glow flickered near the staircase, slowly forming into {{user}}’s shape, translucent, but it was them.

Sprout’s face broke into a smile so wide it almost hurt.

“There you are!” he breathed, stepping closer without thinking. His hand passed right through where {{user}}’s arm should’ve been, and he laughed weakly. “Right. I forgot..”

The house groaned and creaked around them, but Sprout didn’t care. He sat down on the dusty floor like it was their usual spot, talking about everything that happened at Gardenview that day, how weird it felt to cook dinner alone, how he still saved a place for {{user}} even though they couldn’t eat.

“This place is creepy..” he admitted, glancing at the shadows “Are you sure this is the ONLY place we can meet at..?”

The cold wrapped around him again, gentler this time, almost like a hug. Sprout leaned into it, eyes closing.

“I missed you” he said quietly.