#The ER part isn't even a joke I was in the hospital after getting the shot. twice. | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

greatwyrmgold · 4 months

Text

Cluster Trigger: Family Edition

There aren't enough fucked-up families in the Parahumans multiverse; I'll make another.

Our family members:

May, the mother. Currently single and overworked.

Soren, the big brother. Autistic, to a serious degree.

Danielle, the little sister. Also autistic, but less so, and also undiagnosed.

The patriarch of the family is out of the picture, and has been since Soren was in kindergarten and Dani in diapers. Stress from work and children built up to the point that he assaulted May, who promptly filed divorce papers.

Since May went to divorce court in a cast, the court decided that the children wouldn't be safe with their father. May was worried about whether she'd be able to take care of both kids on her own, but decided it would be worse to split the siblings apart.

The trigger event happened a decade later, the summer before Soren entered high school.

May's Day

May has had a pretty stressful decade, trying to balance Soren's needs, Dani's needs, her own needs, and so on...and there just isn't enough time in the day.

May would love to be a full-time mom, but child support payments only go so far, so she needs to go to work. There are chores to do and errands to run; Soren and Dani are old enough to handle some of those, but not many, not without supervision, which still takes time. She needs to calm the kids down when something goes wrong. She needs to make sure as few things as possible will go wrong, which is tough, because the kids' needs are often in tension. (They're both picky eaters, for one thing, but they pick different foods.) She needs to check on her dad every week, because no one else will. She needs to find enough "me time" to avoid going insane.

And of course, she needs to stop the kids from killing each other. That one is a joke...or it's supposed to be.

It's a busy afternoon, and May's in a hurry. Today, Dani starts that beach summer camp she's been looking forward to. That means May only needs to worry about Soren for a week and a half; unfortunately, she needs to go to work right after, and she can not afford to miss a shift right now.

And then disaster strikes. Not half an hour before May needs to take Dani to the camp, Soren knocks over a glass. He knows they're in a hurry, so he quickly moves to throw away the shards of glass, and cuts his hand open. He's on the ground, clutching his hand to his chest and rocking back and forth, shouting "It's fine" over and over but there's so much blood.

May knows she needs to take Soren to the ER, and tries to guess how that'll impact her schedule. Her boss had better be fine with getting to work late to take her son to the hospital, but the summer camp...May quickly puts some towels on Soren's bloody hand and warns Dani that she might have to miss the first day of camp.

And apparently, that snaps something in her. Dani grabs one of Soren's model trains and starts hitting her brother in the head.

There's more of Soren's blood.

May's powers

This stress has been building a long time, with the trigger event being an unusually extreme coincidence of domestic issues that she'd experienced for years. Tinker. Looking at the TINKERS 2.0 doc, I think a Liberty/Controller methodology fits pretty well.

I bounced around a few ideas for her power around the same cluster of ideas, but I think "cloned cyborgs" works best. Basically, May makes android bodies that resemble herself and adds some cloned nervous/endocrine tissue to control them. She can incorporate her own memories, skills, etc into these cyber-clones; if she's willing to invest and risk it, she can even give them her powers.

Theoretically, having several copies of yourself would resolve May's issues. In practice, she needs to maintain the cyber-clones' robot parts, keep tabs on their psychology to make sure they're not depressed or overworked or going all Golem of Prague on her metaphorical wells; at best, it's two steps forward for one step back. At worst, the opposite.

The big perk is that, now that she and her kids have powers, she can collapse several duties into one. If she starts a superhero team with her family, she can take care of them and go to work at the same time! Just like those people in Brockton Bay did! It worked out for them, right?

May names the cyber-clones after months—June, July, etc.

Secondary Powers

May can sprout a semi-tangible tentacle from each elbow, which gives her telekinesis—though at a much smaller scale than Dani's. More in the "tool to broken android" range, and they only reach a few feet. They can also deflect (slow, physical) attacks.

Her arms and chest also have enhanced bones and muscles, hard and dense as metal. These let her punch harder, and are also unusually sensitive.

Danielle's Day

It was a crummy morning.

Mom sent her and Soren to the store to buy some groceries, which was fine, but on the way back a bunch of emergency vehicles drove by and sent Soren into one of his meltdown things. Dani hated the noise, hated how she had to deal with Soren and the groceries he dropped instead of getting away. And when they got back, Mom was annoyed that the bananas got squished. Dani knew Mom wasn't exactly mad at Dani for something Soren did, but it still felt that way.

And there were other things. A really bad episode of her favorite cartoon. Another meltdown at lunch, because Mom switched Soren and Dani's sandwiches on accident. Finding out that Freida couldn't go to marine camp with her after all. A thousand tiny stresses that she just bottled up, because unlike some people, she had self-control.

Then Soren cut his stupid hand, and Mom said that she'd have to miss marine camp because of him, and...it turns out her self-control isn't so good after all. She's not even sure why she's doing it.

She's just so wound-up that she broke.

Dani's Powers

Realizing she doesn't have as good of self-control as she assumed is part of the trigger, but that's not the core of it. I could argue that she wants to go to camp to escape, or that it's caused by an adverse social environment, but that doesn't feel quite right either. The Sense Thinker trigger sounds sort of relevant, but also like it exaggerates the "regression" while missing on all the stuff feeding into it.

So, messy Breaker. But what kind of breaker?

I think Dani's trigger boils down to control. Both the aforementioned self-control, and her inability to control her broader life. She's still in elementary school, but on top of that, there's her brother, who keeps throwing wrenches into things that she thought she could count on. Including marine camp.

Her Breaker form unravels her limbs into a bunch of semi-tangible jellyfish-like tentacles, trailing a dozen feet or more behind. (She can fly in this form, just not particularly high or quickly.) The Changer nod is letting her partially slip into her Breaker form; if she wants, she can just turn one arm into tentacles at a time, for instance.

The tentacles conduct her related clairvoyant and telekinetic powers. She can move things her tentacles touch (if it's lighter than a bus but bigger than a dog). The telekinesis doesn't affect living things (duh), and it can't move things quickly, so it's mostly useful for rearranging vehicles or furniture or whatever. The tentacles also sense things in their general area; think sonar, but with spatial waves instead of sonic waves. And they can go through most walls.

That sense is a bit of a problem. Whether due to shard ignorance or shard malice, her tentacle sense does not vibe with her brain. Dani finds the tentacle sense viscerally unpleasant. The longer she stays in the form, the less bearable it is, the more her mood impacts her telekinetic control, the longer it takes to "cool down".

Secondary Powers

Dani's full Breaker form comes with an armored carapace, a word which here means "back". (So, think of her Breaker form as a jellyfish/turtle/human hybrid.)

Dani can't make cyber-clones, but she can make little boxes of cloned Danielle tissue which can create their own tentacles. They don't have carapaces, but they can be designed to grow metallic bits, like hooks to grab stuff with or plates to block stuff with or blades to hurt stuff with.

Soren's Day

Soren feels like a burden to his family. He feels guilty for all the problems he causes. He feels shame for not being able to fix those problems, or even properly express his apologies. He feels like a failure of a big brother; he knows they're supposed to take care of little sisters, but Dani keeps having to take care of him.

But the feelings which are most immediately relevant are "Ow, my head" and "Ow, my hand".

Soren's Powers

So, like, Brute, obviously.

As per the BRUTE document, focused physical damage means a Muscle brute—"raw mass and offensive tools". But that's also associated with struggle, and Soren is not struggling, really. The Dynamic brute's despair is a more fitting emotion, or maybe Repression's emotional helplessness.

So raw physical offense, but indirect or "skill-based" defense. But pretty much physical, since the harm was all physical. Hm.

How about a partial transformation, which bulks out his arms and the front of his torso with metallic armor? (Or maybe his one arm, part of his torso, and his head, if we want to get armorfacey.) This gives him the strength you'd expect of a Brute, and in this form his waist can rotate 360 degrees, letting him spin his armored parts in whatever direction he needs to block or deflect attacks. But obviously, if he's attacked from multiple directions at once (or doesn't notice an attack), he's as fragile as anyone.

Giving this guilty kid in a power that lets him bleed to help his family more is probably twisting the knife enough.

Secondary Powers

Soren can grow three sensory tentacles from his back. This is separate from his Brute transformation, which is good since he has the same claristensory issues as Dani does.

Soren can't clone anything, but he can make basic androids with telekinetic whips.

The Cluster

"Cluster Game": Mother, May I? Not a great match to the children's game, but...how could I not?

May, as the parent of the cluster, has outsize influence on her children. Their powers ebb and flow with her attention. When she praises one child and ignores the other, the former's powers get stronger and the latter weaker. This is a pool shared between all three; if May ignored her children, her powers would get much stronger.

May doesn't realize just how much power she has over her kids. Soren and Dani have a sense of what's going on, but can't quite explain or express it.

Team Dynamics

Like I said, May turns the family cluster into a superhero team. They work with the local PRT, of course, but she keeps the team separate. She's heard a lot of Wards horror stories, and wants to keep her kids safe herself.

(This might be a good time to mention that absolutely none of May's professional skills or job experience are related to any aspect of running a superhero team.)

Surprisingly, the actual cape stuff isn't that much of a problem. First off, they live in a small town—a bit bigger than Stafford, but it's no Brockton Bay. Second, between Dani's Shaker power, Soren's armor, and the tinkertech, it's pretty easy for May to keep her family safe. No, the problem is the media.

May decided not to go full New Wave and reveal their identities, but she still has her team/family give interviews. Which is stressful for both of the kids, but especially Dani. May warns journalists that her son is autistic, so they know A. she'll get mad if they ask him too many questions and B. he probably won't give many good answers anyway. But this just means that whenever they want to ask a question to one of the kids, they ask Dani. And that's a lot of stress to put on any ten-year-old, on top of hero stress and (in the fall) school stress...

#worm oc #trigger events #parahumans

14 notes · View notes

helloalycia · 3 years

Text

my patient’s neighbour [five] // wanda maximoff

summary: Wanda decides to ruin your chance at moving on, which doesn't go down well with you.

warning/s: none

author's note: jealous!wanda is one of my favourite wanda’s 👀 also your comments/feedback always make my day so thank you so much! ♥️

Meeting Anna's granddaughter wasn't something I'd ever imagined, since Anna rarely mentioned her unless it was to recall a memory that eventually made her quiet for the rest of the day or to make a snide remark out of annoyance. So, to have her here in front of us was definitely... new.

"What are you doing here?" Anna asked with disbelief.

Sasha blinked awkwardly. "I, er, got a call from the nurse. She said you'd hurt your back, so I thought I'd check in." Her gaze fell to Wanda and I. "I see you've got company."

"Sorry, we'll give you a moment," Wanda blurted, before looking to Anna reassuringly.

I did the same before eyeing Sasha suspiciously then following after Wanda into the hall. When the door closed behind us, I wondered what exactly would happen in there. To say I was overprotective of Anna was an understatement.

Taking a seat on the chairs outside her room, I became acutely aware of how stupid I looked in my trainers, Mickey Mouse pyjamas and raincoat. Especially when Wanda sat beside me, knee brushing mine.

"Do you want a drink or anything?" she asked suddenly, earning my attention.

I shook my head, crossing my arms and leaning back into my seat. "No, thank you, I'm good."

She hummed in acknowledgement but said nothing else. The awkwardness that lingered between us was overpowering, but nowhere near as overpowering as the scent of Wanda's shampoo that was drifting up my nose from how close she was sat to me. I tightened my crossed arms, trying to think of something else. Then I remembered what had happened in Anna's room before Sasha interrupted.

"What were you and Anna arguing about?" I asked, glancing at the witch.

She winced, but didn't look my way. "Nothing. Just neighbour stuff."

I smiled bitterly. So, she didn't want to share. Fine. No big deal. Who was I but her neighbour's carer anyway?

After ten minutes of waiting, we decided to head back inside to make sure Anna was okay. What we saw was Anna and Sasha crying happy tears as the latter sat at her bedside, clutching her hand.

"Damn, sorry," I apologised for Wanda and I, realising we'd interrupted a special moment. "We can–"

"No, we're done," Sasha said, wiping away her tears with embarrassment. "Sorry about that."

"Devushki (girls), this is my granddaughter, Sasha," Anna introduced, and I'd never seen her look happier.

As Sasha stood up and rounded the bed to approach us, I realised she seemed familiar because of the photographs I'd seen around Anna's apartment.

"It's nice to finally meet the two people who have been taking care of my grandmother," Sasha said, before putting out her hand.

I bit back from retorting with something along the lines of 'we wouldn't have to if you had cared for her yourself', and instead shook her hand. Wanda glanced at me, probably sensing the negative thoughts in my mind with her powers, but she said nothing as she smiled politely at Sasha and shook her hand.

"It's nice to meet you, too," Wanda spoke, realising I wouldn't. "Anna talks a lot about you. I was hoping we would eventually meet."

Sasha sighed regretfully, smile fading. "Yes... well, I haven't been around as much as I should have been. I know that now."

"Took you long enough," I muttered under my breath, it slipping out without me realising.

Wanda shoved me in the arm in response and I frowned, rubbing the sore spot.

"You're right," Sasha said, looking to me apologetically. "But I'm here now. And getting that call earlier... it made me realise that I've treated Anna horribly. That's why I've invited her to live with me. To make up for lost time."

Certainly not expecting that, my jaw dropped with surprise. "What?"

Sasha sat back down beside Anna's beside and I exchanged startled looks with Wanda before looking to the older woman in question.

"No offence," I started, glancing at Sasha, before focusing on Anna again, "but are you sure this is the right move? It's not too sudden?"

Anna shook her head and grabbed Sasha's hand. "She wants me to be around her family. And I want it too, Y/N. I miss them."

I nodded, but chewed on the inside of my mouth anxiously. It's not that I didn't trust Sasha (okay, maybe it was a little), but I was scared for Anna. I didn't want her to get heartbroken all over again.

Be supportive, Wanda's voice filled my mind, and I looked to her to see her eyes fading from red to green.

I clenched my jaw. Stay out of my head.

With a bright smile, she ignored me and looked between the grandmother and granddaughter duo.

"I think that's wonderful, Anna," she said kindly. "I mean, of course I'm going to miss having you as a neighbour, but this is all you've wanted. I'm thrilled for you. And so is Y/N."

When she looked to me for confirmation, I felt a familiar anger in the pit of my stomach, only reserved for Wanda Maximoff. But this wasn't about us, this was about Anna.

"I am," I agreed, eyes flickering to Anna. "It sounds great."

"You can both visit whenever you want," Sasha said, nodding enthusiastically. "Anna loves you both so dearly."

"You can't get rid of us even if you tried," Wanda joked, flashing Anna a teasing smile.

Anna chuckled. "I knew you would both understand."

I smiled halfheartedly, glad that everything was working out for Anna but knowing I would miss caring for her greatly.

"We should leave you to rest," I said with finality.

"Thank you," Anna replied, and by the way she looked at me, I knew she was thanking me for a lot more.

"Get well soon," I told her in my 'nurse' voice that she hated, a playful smile on my lips. "I'll check on you tomorrow."

Anna nodded. "Tomorrow."

After saying an awkward goodbye to Sasha, I left the room and headed for the lift down the hall, not bothering to wait for Wanda. Thankfully, she must have known I didn't want to speak to her, as she didn't speed after me.

—

Since Anna moved in with her granddaughter, the last time I saw Wanda was at the hospital. Two more months passed and I had no need to bump into her at Anna's apartment since Anna didn't live there anymore. And the one time I visited Anna since she moved in to Sasha's house, Wanda wasn't present.

I guess it made it a lot easier to attempt to get over her. Six months since she broke up with me was long enough to move on, I think. I'd been on a few dates, none really going anywhere until Natasha decided to set me up with someone a few weeks ago.

It was a family friend of her Avenger's teammate, Clint Barton, and though it was a blind date, it actually worked out well. The woman was called Elise and she was very sweet and charming on our first date, having a similar sense of humour to mine and a killer smile. It was actually the first time since Wanda left that things felt like they were falling into place. We went on a few more dates, deciding not to rush things, and I found myself looking forward to going out with her.

It was a few weeks into our dating relationship when Natasha gave me a call, inviting me as her plus-one to Clint and his wife's vow renewal. They were having a whole celebration at their homestead in Missouri and Natasha figured I'd enjoy it, able to take a weekend break and join her at the lavish hotel she'd be staying in. And also because Elise would be there.

"Oh?" I said with surprise. "Elise didn't mention anything."

"She wanted to," Natasha said with amusement, "but she didn't want to bring it up in case you didn't want to go."

I quirked a brow, despite her being unable to see me. "And why wouldn't I want to go?"

Natasha hesitated. "'Cause Wanda will be there...?"

A sigh escaped my lips as I massaged my forehead. Elise knew about Wanda because it came up when she asked how Natasha and I became friends. She was actually really chill about the whole thing, which I appreciated, but I could only imagine how she must have felt knowing that Wanda would be at the vow renewal.

"You should still come," Natasha encouraged when I didn't say anything. "I already spoke to Wanda and she said she won't cause a scene or anything."

"I doubt that she would," I mumbled.

"She just wants you to be happy," Natasha finished. "So, be happy as my plus-one and get a cute date in with your girlfriend whilst you're there."

I tried to stifle the smile on my lips. "Elise isn't my girlfriend."

"Yet," Natasha added knowingly.

Rolling my eyes, I said, "Look, send me the details and I'll be happy to be your plus-one."

"Yes!" she exclaimed, and I could just imagine her fist-pumping like an idiot. "I'll see you then, Y/N."

"Goodbye," I told her, though a smile of amusement was playing on my lips.

After that call with Natasha, I didn't hesitate to give Elise a call, hoping I wasn't bothering her whilst she was at work.

"Hello?"

"Hey," I greeted, smiling to myself. "Is this a bad time?"

"Well, luckily for you, I'm actually just starting my lunch break," she said in a joking manner. "What's up?"

I scratched my head uncertainly. "Well, Natasha just called and invited me as her plus-one to Clint's vow renewal. She said you would be there, too, obviously, but I just wanted to check in and see if it was okay that I went."

I left out the part about her not telling me about it, but she seemed to pick up on it anyway as she breathed out slowly.

"I just don't want to step on your toes," I quickly added, before chewing on my lip.

"You could never," she said reassuringly. "I actually wanted to ask you to be my date, but I thought it may be too soon. Y'know, a vow renewal when it's only what, the sixth date in?"

"It's not too soon," I said, before adding, "I can just come as Natasha's friend and we don't have to make it a date."

"There's also the fact that your ex will be there," Elise added, and I frowned at the mention of Wanda. "I don't want you to feel uncomfortable."

"It's been six months," I told her with certainty. "I'm as comfortable as can be."

She paused. "If you think you'll be okay, then I'd love to see you there, Y/N."

"I know I'll be okay," I said promisingly. "And I'd like to go and maybe see you, too."

She laughed quietly and it made me smile. "In that case, I guess I'll see you there."

"It'll be fun," I said knowingly.

"It will," she agreed. "And now I can't wait."

It was my turn laugh. "Me either."

And fun it was... along with many other words.

The day of the vow renewal came by quickly enough and as promised, I went with Natasha as her plus-one. She made it as enjoyable as she could for me which I appreciated, with the two of us getting first-class tickets which Natasha was happy to pay for, and checking in to a beautiful hotel for the weekend. And that was just the accommodation.

The actual vow renewal was a stunning affair, as Clint and his wife, Laura, had gone all out with decorating the homestead and it's fields in a traditional, romantic way. A flower arch stood front and centre, with rows of seats set out for guests. Bouquets lined the outside and lights were strung above and all around the trees which I could only imagine would look stunning once the sun set.

"They really went all out," Natasha said, impressed as she took in the scene before us.

I hummed in agreement. "It's beautiful." I glanced at her adding, "Bet you wish you brought an actual date now."

Natasha smirked knowingly. "What's to say this isn't one? This could all be a plan to steal you away from Elise."

"Because that makes sense," I played along with amusement. "The woman who set me up with her best friend's family friend is trying to steal me away from said family friend. Makes complete sense."

"True," she said with a shrug, walking forward. I followed her as she continued, "If I was trying to make a move, you wouldn't see it coming."

I tried not to laugh. "Sure, Natasha."

"Trained assassin, expert in espionage, master of lying and hiding in plain sight," she listed off her skills one by one on her fingers. Shooting me a knowing smile, she repeated, "You wouldn't see it coming."

I rolled my eyes playfully and the two of us made the rounds, myself reacquainting with the other Avengers whom I hadn't seen since, well, since Wanda and I were together. It was a little awkward, since I was never really close with them and vice versa, but they were polite and kind and made me feel comfortable (probably because of Natasha, which gave me yet another reason to be grateful to the redhead).

Eventually, it got to a point where Wanda was the next person to say hello to and I truly thought six months would be enough to get over her; oh, how sorely mistaken I was.

She was talking to Sam Wilson, the two talking about something or the other that was clearly entertaining enough to warrant a laugh from Wanda. As we approached them, the sound of her laugh taunted me, melodic and dancing around my ears like a terrible reminder of what I couldn't have.

They spotted Natasha and I soon enough, their conversation ceasing and Wanda's laughter silencing as her eyes met mine. I tried not to let her effect me, but it became increasingly different when I noticed how beautiful she looked today, wearing a maroon-coloured dress and wearing her brown-red hair down in curls. Of course, all of that didn't compliment the giant scar on her forehead.

"Y/N, it's so good to see you!" Sam exclaimed, trying to prevent an awkwardness from occurring. "How have you been?"

I smiled his way. "I'm good, Sam. You?"

We talked for a little while, catching up, before Natasha decided to drag Sam away for a stupid, fake reason that was clearly said on purpose. Knowing I couldn't exactly stop her, I let her get away with it, figuring I'd have to face Wanda at some point.

"You look good," she spoke first, making me push a stand of my hair behind my ear to give my hands something to do.

"Thanks," I mumbled, before clearing my throat and meeting her gaze. "So do you. That's, er, that's always been your colour."

She smiled in response and I cursed inwardly, wondering why the hell I said that.

"You sound like you've been doing well," she said, referring to the conversation I had with Sam.

I nodded. "Yeah, I have."

A silence filled the air that none of us knew how to fill. I stared at my shoes so hard that I'm surprised a hole didn't form. Wanda hugged herself, unsure whether to speak or not.

"What happened to your head?" I finally thought of something, nodding to the scar.

She subconsciously reached up to touch it, though she didn't seem affected by it. "Oh, nothing. Just happened in a recent mission."

I nodded uncomfortably, never responding well to when she got injured. But she knew that.

"So, Nat said you've got a date," Wanda said, and the way she said it made me think that maybe she'd been wanting to mention it for a while. "Elise, right?"

I swallowed. "Yeah. She's just helping the Bartons out with some stuff then I'll be seeing her after."

Wanda nodded, eyes flickering between me and the floor. "That's nice. So, is it new?"

God, this was awkward.

"Kind of, yeah," I answered, not even sure why. "It's not, like, exclusive, but it's nice to move on, y'know?"

She raised her eyebrows. "Oh, so you're moving on?"

I pressed my lips together firmly. She was watching me curiously, green eyes bright with intrigue.

"I'd hope so," I answered, cocking my head to the side and watching her. "It's been six months."

She nodded, looking down. "Yeah, okay... so you're not in love with her?"

I clenched my jaw. "Is that really any of your business, Wanda?" She didn't answer, so I straightened up and avoided her eyes. "I should go. Ceremony is going to start soon."

Walking away, I left with tense shoulders and more nerves than when I headed in. She had no right to be jealous. She left me.

I found Elise just before everybody was told to take their seats for the ceremony. She apologised for missing me before, mentioning how she was helping Laura with getting ready, then proceeded to shower me in compliments which sent me into a blushing mess. After catching up, we took our seats for the ceremony and waited for it to begin.

Feeling someone's eyes on me, I glanced to my left and saw Wanda sat on the other set of rows, but she was staring right at me, lips pressed together thoughtfully. I rolled my eyes and looked ahead, ignoring her stares. As if sensing my mood, Elise grabbed ahold of my hand gently, glancing at me with a small smile as if to check that was okay. I squeezed her hand in response, letting her know it was.

Are her hands sweaty? Because they look sweaty.

I clenched my jaw and shot Wanda a glare, seeing the amused smile on her lips as she watched me.

Stay out of my head, I told her mentally, knowing she was listening, before rolling my eyes. And her hands are soft, thank you very much. Yours are the sweaty ones.

Though it was a terrible comeback, Wanda lost her smile and rolled her eyes before looking away. I tried not to let her annoying self bother me as Elise and I sat together, watching the ceremony.

It was short and sweet and though I didn't know Clint and Laura too well, it was easy to see they loved each other very much. Their vows were beautiful and it was adorable when their kids ran up to them at the end to give them a giant hug. I didn't know much, but I knew that I'd love to have a love like theirs some day.

After the ceremony came the reception, and there were loads of tables and chairs set up for guests, including a stage and dance floor next to it, perfect for a nice celebration after the vow renewal. It was all wonderful and I was excited, until I learnt that I was sat on the same table as Wanda.

Me, Elise, Natasha, Sam, Wanda and Bucky Barnes were all sat at the same table, which definitely didn't help with the awkwardness as Wanda eyed me from across the food. I tried to ignore her presence and focus on having a great time with Elise. Natasha promised that Wanda wouldn't make a scene, so I just had to believe her.

"So, what can I get you all to drink?" a waiter said, stopping by our table.

Everybody told him what they wanted and when he looked to me, I shrugged.

"Literally anything is fine with me," I said, before quickly adding, "Well, anything except gin. Not a fan of gin at all."

The waiter nodded and smiled politely. "I'm sure I can get you something good without gin."

I returned his smile as he nodded to us all once more before walking away to get our drinks.

"So, what did you think of the ceremony?" Elise asked, giving me her attention.

The two of us erupted into conversation, as did everyone else, and I was genuinely having a good time with her. The food was good, too, as were the drinks when they arrived. But the one problem was Wanda bloody Maximoff who couldn't keep her eyes away from me and was agitating me with her mere presence. I tried so hard to ignore her, but God forbid my eyes flickered over to her and she was already looking my way.

After a delicious meal and lovely conversation with the others, everybody began to get up and mingle with the other guests. I took this as my chance to steer away from Wanda and instead catch up with Natasha and hang out with Elise, who got on with everyone wonderfully. Sadly though, she had to keep nipping away to help the Bartons with some stuff for the party, but I didn't mind. I figured that was also part of the reason why she didn't invite me as her plus-one, so I didn't take it personally.

About an hour into the celebrations, I was mid-conversation with Natasha when we were interrupted by Wanda. I rolled my eyes as she looked to the redhead questioningly.

"Have you seen Clint around?" she asked. "Laura wants me to take everything from the gifts table inside and I need the key."

Natasha pursed her lips, shaking her head. As her eyes looked around for him, she said, "I'm not sure where he is..."

Before either of them could come to a conclusion, Elise appeared by my side with an apologetic smile and a drink in her hand.

"Hey," she greeted, squeezing my hand gently. "Sorry for ditching you before. I had to make sure the bar didn't run out of alcohol."

"It's all good," I told her with a small smile.

"I got you this gin cocktail to make up for it," she said sweetly, making me eye the drink like it was a bomb.

Wanda snorted suddenly, making me look to her with a glare. She tried to hide her laughter behind a smile as she looked the other way, though that didn't stop her from commenting in my mind with her obnoxious, intrusive powers.

Real good listener this one. Didn't you say you didn't like gin earlier?

I refrained from smacking her. Go away, Wanda.

"Thank you," I said to Elise gratefully, accepting the drink. "It looks great."

"Oh, I think I see Clint," Wanda said, before shooting us all a smile I'd love to punch. "Catch you later."

"See ya," Natasha said, as Elise waved and I rolled my eyes.

—

Dancing was fun and I liked to think I was good for an average person. So, when the DJ put on some fun music and encouraged guests to have a little dance, I immediately asked Elise to join me. Unfortunately, she wasn't exactly the most confident of dancers. She was adorably apologising as she held my hands, letting me take the lead.

"It's okay," I reassured her with a laugh. "You're doing fine."

But as she stepped on my foot for the millionth time, I could tell she thought she was doing anything but. I didn't mind though since it was amusing and cute all at the same time.

Be careful over there, Y/N. You may have been better off wearing some steel-toed shoes.

At the sound of Wanda's voice infiltrating my mind, I searched around me until I caught sight of the familiar green eyes over Elise's shoulder. She was stood to the side, entertained smile adorning her lips, as she watched Elise and I dance.

Why don't you piss off and mind your own business before I buy a pair of steel-toed shoes just to kick you with!

She didn't respond, so I focused my attention back on Elise and paused as something a little slower and more romantic played in the background. Offering an encouraging smile to Elise, I held out my hand which she accepted happily.

"Luckily, this one is pretty easy, so you might avoid bruising my feet," I joked to lighten the mood.

She flushed with embarrassment but let me pull her close as I took the lead. Subconsciously, my eyes wandered back to Wanda, who was now crossing her arms with annoyance and watching me with glowing red eyes. She had absolutely no right to be jealous. But I didn't care. It wasn't my business.

After sharing a lovely dance with Elise, the two of us took a seat at our empty table to have some water and talk. Of course, as we were chatting, our conversation was interrupted by none other than–

"Wanda," I got out through gritted teeth.

She grinned as she took a seat next to us, crossing her legs and resting her intertwined hands on her knees comfortably.

"I figured I'd introduce myself properly since we haven't really met before," Wanda explained, eyes dancing with mischief before she looked to Elise. "I'm Wanda Maximoff."

Elise smiled politely. "I'm Elise Fey. And I know who you are. A really impressive Avenger at that."

I narrowed my eyes as Wanda waved her hand dismissively. What was she playing at exactly?

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," she said bashfully. "But I guess, since you know who I am, it's only fair I return the favour. After all, you're here as Y/N's date, and as Y/N's friend, I thought it would be nice to get to know you."

"Friend," I repeated the word bitterly. "So, that's what we are now?"

Wanda chuckled, brushing off my words, before focusing on Elise. "So, what do you do, Elise?"

"I'm a veterinarian," she quipped proudly.

"How cute," Wanda said, tilting her head to the side and smiling. "How long have you been doing that?"

"Only a few years," Elise said, glancing at me with mild confusion. "It's a really rewarding job."

"I can imagine," Wanda said, before pulling a puzzled expression. "But wait, how does that work with you both? Since Y/N is allergic to pets an' all?"

Locking my jaw with agitation, I stared at Wanda's doe-eyed face. Elise looked to me with surprise.

"You are?" she asked. "Why didn't you tell me?"

I shook my head, smiling at her. "No, not really... I mean, well, rabbits. I'm allergic to rabbits. I didn't think it was a big deal."

"It kind of is," she said playfully. "What if I had treated a rabbit at work and then went on a date with you?"

I chuckled awkwardly. "Hmm, yeah, okay, maybe it's a little bit of a big deal."

She hummed disapprovingly before looking back to Wanda, who watched us both curiously.

"So, you work as a vet in New York?" she asked Elise, and I couldn't tell if she was actually interested or just trying to piss me off. When Elise nodded, she continued, "Are you from New York?"

"I'm originally from here actually," Elise said, motioning around us. "My family knew Laura's family before she married Clint. That's how I know the Bartons."

"Oh, so your parents still live here?" Wanda asked, leaning her head in the palm of her hand as she continued to question her.

"Yeah, not far from here actually," Elise answered with a smile.

Wanda nodded. "Cool... so how would that work, the whole visiting them thing? I mean, Y/N works a lot, right? And I assume you're close with your family. So, how does taking the time off to visit your parents work with you both when it's, like, 16 hours away?"

I squeezed my hands together to contain my frustration towards Wanda. Elise opened her mouth to respond, then closed it when she realised she didn't know how to answer. Her eyes darted to mine, asking for help, and I knew she was too polite to call Wanda out for her bullshit.

"We're still newly dating, Wanda," I answered through a fake smile. "We haven't even talked about meeting each other's parents, so it's not an issue right now."

"Right now," Wanda echoed my words, as if adding a double meaning. "But it will be in the future?"

I tried not to react harshly as I said, "That's not what I said."

Wanda nodded slowly, smirk tugging at her lips. Saying nothing more on the subject, she looked to Elise with dark eyes.

"It was lovely meeting you," she finished. "I'll see you around, I guess."

Elise nodded uncomfortably. "You, too, Wanda."

Shooting me a smile, she got up and left Elise and I sat there in mixed emotions. I was peeved at the Sokovian woman, not understanding why she had to try and ruin my one chance at moving on.

"I'm sorry about that," I said to Elise, a frown on my lips. "I don't know what the hell happened, but I definitely didn't expect it."

Elise chewed on her lower lip with thought. I waited patiently, wishing I knew what she was thinking. Finally, her blue eyes met mine apologetically.

"I don't think Wanda is quite over you," she said quietly. "And maybe you're not over her either, Y/N. At least not as much as you think you are."

I raised an eyebrow. "Seriously? Elise, she's just being a dick to piss me off. It's not like that."

Elise winced. "I think it is. And honestly, you're a lovely person, but I just don't want to get involved in something like that right now."

I knitted my brows together with confusion. "What do you mean?"

She rested her hand on mine atop the table. "It's probably better we stay friends. Easier."

"Elise... c'mon. We just– we only just got to know each other." I frowned, feeling bad that she didn't want to see where this would go.

"For what it's worth, today was really fun," she said with a smile, trying to make light of the situation. "And every date we've shared has been fun, too. But I can't compete with the history you share with Wanda. And I don't want to."

I didn't know what to say, speechless, unable to understand why she was doing this. Taking that as her chance to leave, she leaned forward and kissed me on the cheek before standing up and letting go of my hand.

"I'm gonna leave early," she explained. "I hope you work stuff out for yourself."

I looked up to her, watching as she smiled once more before leaving me be. We'd only been dating a few weeks, I knew that, but I still felt saddened to know she didn't want to keep things going. And with the realisation that it was because of Wanda, my sadness was quickly replaced with anger. It always came back to her.

Scowl on my face, I stood up and knew one thing: Wanda Maximoff was dead meat.

#wanda maximoff x you #wanda maximoff x reader #wanda maximoff imagine #elizabeth olsen #scarlet witch #marvel imagine #marvel #mcu #mcu imagine

412 notes · View notes

shelby-love · 3 years

Text

HANK VOIGHT

A Dark Day

Requested: yes

Prompts: none

Warning(s): none

Author's note: This is set during S02EP20 of Chicago Fire (A Dark Day), when Med is blown up. Hope you enjoy and happy reading!

"Ma'am I need you to stay where you are! Help is on the way."

When you scheduled your appointment at Med, you weren't expecting to schedule it on the day the hospital was blown up.

Sitting in the waiting room one moment, and then being crushed by the impact of a bomb was not, by any means, on your to-do list that day.

But it happened and there was nothing you could do about it, meaning you had to ignore the pain in your knee in order to push through and help the wounded.

Fresh new cuts and bruises decorated your body, elevating the pain level in your body as you moved around the debris that came crashing down on you from the blow.

"Dammit." You muttered, turning around to face a boy. He was filthy and hurt, with clothes torn to reveal scratches and blood. He took a hard blow, but his overall condition suggested that he will be alright.

You smiled when you crouched down next to him, "This country never ceases to amaze me."

"Yeah," He grunted. "I don't know how they thought blowing up the ER was a good idea."

"Tell me about it."

***

Outside, amidst the chaos, the Intelligence unit descended their cars along with their Sergeant behind them. Their boots clicked against the pavement as they seized the building.

The surrounding area was bustling with people even though it was blown apart not too long ago.

"I'll take triage," Voight said before any of them could muster a word.

There was a reason Hank wanted to tend to the wounded. Your appointment wasn’t supposed to take too long but with that knee pain of yours, Hank could bet you didn't even get off the perimeter in time. Your dramatically slow pace used to be the highlight of his day.

Not currently, no.

He was terrified.

"Excuse me," Hank neared a petite woman. She turned around and surprised him with the trauma in her eyes. Even though the nurse was now safe outside, her fingers still shook against the notepad she held close to her chest. "Do you mind telling me if there's anyone by the name of Y/N Y/LN here?"

She nodded, turning a few pages in order to get to your last name. After a moment of tense silence, the woman pulled away and looked at him apologetically. "If your wife isn't here then she's probably still inside. There are a lot of patients and personnel that are still trapped on the higher floors."

Hank didn't even bother to correct her. Instead, he thanked her and turned around keeping his cool intact for 10 seconds.

He brushed past Erin without a glance and left her wondering what's up with him.

"I bet he has someone special inside," Antonio took note and Erin, no matter how much she thought that was bizarre, couldn't argue with what he said.

"You know what? I think you're right."

***

"Took you long enough!"

Kelly's face lit up at your words, "We knew you could handle yourself, so why hurry."

The squad lieutenant had his arms wide to welcome the woman you've been treating and get her down. "They go first."

Nodding, the rest of the team 51 helped the civilians under your orders.

After what you thought to be hours, Kelly took his time strapping you to him with the ropes. "I bet you secretly wanted this to happen."

"If I wanted to work, I'd just push my boyfriend down the stairs," You responded smartly, but covertly knowing full well that surprise jumping Hank Voight wasn't going to work whatsoever. "Also, do not joke about this!"

It looked like the only thing that got to Kelly's ears was your usage of my boyfriend. "You have a boyfriend? Since when?" He asked excitedly.

"You're impossible," You sighed. "Unstrap me. Now."

He did. Eventually.

With a limping knee, you made your way to your very own chief. There was no doubt in your mind that Hank was somewhere here too, probably have already gone berserk.

Your chief didn't clear you off to work, because even after what you pulled upstairs with the civilians still, unfortunately didn't win over the fact that you were injured. Your knee was the reason as to why you weren't cleared for work in the first place, so you weren't really surprised that you weren't cleared for work here, of all places. You were merely just sad.

Sadness turned into relief when you heard Hank barking orders at his team.

They all looked puzzled at his even harsher tone than usual, and you couldn't help but smile.

You knew exactly why.

***

"Don't ever scare me like that again."

The burning gaze he sent your way had you frozen in your tracks; the severity of your situation hitting you in the gut. You were caught in an explosion.

You could have died.

All color drained in your face at that thought.

Hank seemed to have had the same thought invade his mind as he took a few long strides toward you, winding his arms around you and pulling you into him.

You found solace in his arms and fell quiet after a while. Both of you were breathing heavily, still quite grasping the reality in which Hank almost lost you.

"Y/N you're alright," He murmured against your hair and brushed his hand against your back. The kisses he pressed to your head were consolatory in ways words weren't. "You're alright."

"You need to find him Hank," You pulled away and grasped his jacket's collar. "Whoever did this has to pay."

"I will. I promise Y/N," He said, taking your cold hands into his warm ones.

"Good." You whispered that word a few more times, quietly reassuring yourself what he will do right by his promise because the promise wasn't to you only, it was also a promise to everyone who were hurt by the bomb. "I love you Hank."

"I love you." Was his only reply.

All words died down when you kissed. The warmth of his lips filled your body through and through.

You felt like you could do anything.

"Take my car and go home," He told you once you pulled away. "I talked to your chief, and he told me you weren't cleared to work. There's nothing you can do here."

Nodding, you agreed. "It's out of my hands now."

"But not out of mine," Hank said. "We'll get him."

"I know you will Hank. I believe you."

You left the comfort of the lone hospital room with Hank's car key in your hand. The part of the hospital you were in looked normal, save for the bustling personnel that ran around the hall in an odd way. The usual strictness of a hospital, where people were calm and collected seemed like a far thought as you looked around and saw nothing but trauma.

The hope lied with the Intelligence Unit.

The same unit that was now waiting by the door for the Sergeant you just spent 15 minutes with.

They all had the same knowing glittering sparkle in their eyes as they watched you make your way to the door. Hank had no noticeable keychains on his car keys, but you still felt like you had to hide it from their curious eyes. They were quite obvious, you noted.

"That’s her 100%" Erin whispered to Jay.

"Don't be so obvious." Jay rolled his eyes at her lack of expertise.

"I'm not!"

"You kinda are," Adam joined the two, cringing at Erin. "Just… You know…"

"Know what?"

"Don't look at her like you want to poke out her eyeballs." Adam told her, shaking his head at her.

You even dared yourself to smile at the younger group, catching them off guard with their hearts stuck in their throats.

Announcement day was closer than Hank and you thought it was.

Tags: @fofisstilinski @short-potato @miranda0102 @httphiddlestan @caromichaela @xx-missunicorn-xx @jemmakates @lorenakaspersen @scarletsoldierrr @theravenclawmarauder @httphiddlestan @tclaerh @chefdoeuvre

Let me know if you want to be added to my tag list (pinned post on my blog or check navigation)!

MASTERLIST

#hank voight #hank voight fanfiction #hank voight imagine #hank voight imagines #hank voight masterlist #hank voight x reader #hank voight one shot #hank voight x you #sergeant voight #Chicago PD #chicago pd fanfiction #chicago pd imagine #chicago pd x reader

374 notes · View notes

leda-x · 3 years

Text

Ladybug has five minutes left with Chat Noir, and she isn't ready to give them up.

Ladybug woke in the cooking section of a library with the word “chance” tumbling from her lips. It was the ancient atrium of a newly modernized building. Like always, she was crouched down behind a bookshelf with Chat Noir at her side.

Far, far above her head, thin marble columns rose upwards, curving into graceful arches to meet in the middle. Early morning light shone through the enormous circular skylight positioned at the center of the atrium’s domed ceiling. It illuminated little specks of golden dust that had been disturbed by them seconds before. The room was empty, sound hushed.

Meeting her gaze, Chat tapped the screen on his baton and the numbers 04:58 began to flash. 04:57… 04:56... He reached down, flipping through a cookbook at his side, stopping at a random page. “Lobster tails meunière,” he read aloud to mark the attempt, green gaze flicking back up for her lead.

There were 2,000 recipes in The Escoffier Cookbook and Guide to the Fine Art of Cookery. That one was new. Ladybug took it as a good omen.

There was nothing but seriousness in Chat’s face right now. Seriousness and a rosy glow of determination and confidence.

Ladybug’s fingers drifted off her bracelet to cradle Chat’s cheek. Her gloved thumb followed the line along the bottom edge of his mask, right at the exposed part of his cheek. She watched the depth and vibrancy in his eyes. Could see a ring of eyelashes through the colored glass. Could feel the heat from his skin. He had a freckle on his upper lip. Not for the first time Ladybug realized her partner was beautiful. The first few times she had stopped to really notice she had cried. An ache started in her throat and grew until her entire chest was sore, until she was breathless with grief.

A blush colored his cheeks and his neck. She watched, with some fascination, the steady beat of his heart through the vein in his neck. It was throbbing quick. He was searching her face for answers now, lip pursing into worry. “Uh oh… It’s that bad?” Chat joked.

She wasn’t ready. It wasn’t the right time around. Ladybug got up from her crouch and held out her hand.

Chat took it without question and allowed her to lead them both out of the atrium into a modernized foyer, then into an elevator. She pressed floor four.

“What’s the plan?” he asked as the elevator doors shut. Ladybug could detect a thread of nervousness behind his grin. He was probably wondering why they were going up when the akuma was last spotted below.

Such faith. It cracked her heart a little further every time. Ladybug squeezed his hand, watching the elevator numbers tick so she didn’t have to look him in the eye as she admitted, “No plan.”

The doors opened to an art gallery absent of people.

She let go of Chat’s hand, even though she never really wanted to, and began walking through the exhibit. She could hear the soft sound of his footsteps following her. Extremely large images of sand flicked by in succession. Ladybug didn’t stop to marvel at them.

Chat always did. “Whoah,” he said and she glanced back, catching him craning his neck. “This isn’t a photo. Someone drew this.”

Ladybug used up a few of her seconds to watch her partner, feeling a wash of fondness as Chat placed his hands on his hips and tilted forward, nose scrunched, face inches from the canvas. “LB how long do you think this took to make?”

Years, Ladybug thought. Aloud, she said, “This way.”

Chat let out a low whistle as they passed by a total of ten drawings. Each one looked alike. There were slight variations, however, upon closer inspection. It was the variations in Chat Noir that Ladybug kept discovering that made it impossible for her to stop doing this. They had been here over a thousand times before. Each time was a little different, but always ended the same.

They wound a corner and ended up in a smaller room. Ladybug headed towards the back where a replica of the interior of an old-style french house had been built. There was a bed and a little TV where you could learn all about Château de Blois.

It was the best place she had found for this. She had tried a lot of places. She had already dragged Chat around the entire city of Paris looking for a solution. Not that this Chat Noir remembered any of that.

She gestured at the bed, ignoring the documentary that was playing softly behind her, “I have a lot to tell you and no time to do it. How are we, by the way?”

Chat Noir obeyed, sitting on the bed, cat ears perked straight up, eyes bright now and curious. His knee bounced with pent-up energy. He glanced at his baton. “Three minutes, forty-seven seconds. Why? What’s going to happen?”

“I need you to pretend that everything I’m about to say is true,” Ladybug began.

Chat Noir gave her a funny look like, ‘why wouldn't I?’

Ladybug couldn’t help but smile a bit at that. She crouched down in front of him, placing a palm atop each bouncing knee. “You are going to die in three minutes,” Ladybug said.

Chat froze.

“Your heart. It stops. An arrhythmia,” Ladybug continued, keeping her eyes locked with his, making sure he was following along. They never had time to go over it again. “We’ve been here a lot. Anything you are about to say I’ve tried.” She had tried every hospital, every ER, every doctor; had tried Lucky charm-ing a solution countless times.

Chat’s eyebrows drew together. His eyes were still present in the room with her, though. They hadn’t glazed off or flicked away in fear. “What?” he breathed. He searched her for a long moment for the joke.

Ladybug knew better than to so much as flinch or blink right now while he was looking for a way out. Chat’s denial came in different severities every time, but it was never helped by her saying or doing anything until he did first.

A stormy look passed across his face as he took that in. “So... I’m dead and there’s nothing anyone can do about it?” he summarized, grinning.

Ladybug nodded, relaxing a touch. In her experience him grinning was usually the best outcome, even though it did seem a bit deranged. She took her hands from his knees, giving him a bit of space despite every bone in her body aching to hold him close. Even though she had held him so many times, it was always new for him. Too much of her affection too fast could scare him off.

“Wait. What about the cure?” he asked.

“You know Ladybug can’t bring people back to life.”

Chat leaned back a touch. A clawed palm drew up to rest over his heart, expression a bit dazed. Ladybug watched as her partner’s brain spun, processing. Then he glanced back at her, eyes startled. “How… How many times have we done this?”

“Many,” Ladybug admitted. “Each time is a little different. Sometimes you don’t believe me. Sometimes you call your dad. Sometimes you call Nino. Sometimes we just sit together.”

“Nino?” Chat caught.

“I know you are Adrien Agreste,” Ladybug said and then waited to see how he would react.

Sometimes this revelation hit hardest. It was more real, more believable. Often the fact that she knew his name at all was taken as proof she was telling the truth about everything else. That realization typically followed with denial. Sometimes terror.

Ladybug watched closely as Chat’s chest heaved in panic.

A humming noise suddenly kicked off. It was only after it stopped that Ladybug realized the air conditioning had been on. The change shocked Chat back out of whatever place he had gone. “Do I know you?” he whispered.

“Do you want to?”

Suddenly he recoiled, gaze suspicious. “You’re not Ladybug,” he stated, as if the thought had just dawned on him. “This isn’t real.”

Ladybug’s heart sank.

He was standing now, stumbling backwards. His shoulder hit one of the wood beams of the replica, causing him to twist.

With a sigh she reached down and twisted the bracelet back into position.

. .

Ladybug woke again in the cooking section of the library.

Chat tapped the screen on his baton and flipped through the cookbook. “Eggs benedict,” he read aloud.

Ladybug was still reeling from last time. They had almost parted ways on terms she could (maybe) accept. But no— Chat had to get paranoid. Not for the first time she cursed all the replicas of herself that her partner had faced. Maybe if he hadn’t been tricked previously they would have a better chance at this.

“Ladybug?” Chat’s voice broke her out of her thoughts, worried. “What’s wrong?”

“Why do you wake up in the morning?” Ladybug asked, eyes locked down at the book in his hands. At the long pause she got out of her crouch and into a cross-legged position, chancing a look at his face. Sometimes his living face in all it’s animated glory really hurt to look at when seconds before it had been dead.

Chat was staring at her in uncertainty. After a beat he mirrored her, settling down at her side and putting down the book. “That’s a weird question. Why? Something to do with the akuma?”

“Yes,” Ladybug lied. “I need to know.” She needed a break. Even though she never grew physically tired, emotionally she was exhausted. She used up rounds getting to know him better, plucking up the courage to try again to say goodbye again.

He had a grin on his face now. “Usually because of my alarm clock.”

. .

She was back in the library.

“Grammont pullet,” said Chat Noir, to her right. He set down the cookbook and tapped his baton.

Ladybug laughed. She laughed and then she cried. She wasn’t sure when she stopped doing the first and started doing the second. They sort of happened together, just like all of these second chances and all of these subtle striations.

Chat’s hands hovered beside her arms like he wasn’t sure he was allowed to comfort her. His ears flattened, green eyes distraught. However, when Ladybug leaned in his arms looped around her in an easy embrace, chin resting atop her head.

Eventually emotions passed and Ladybug went quiet, listening to the sound of Chat’s heartbeat and the rumble of his voice as he asked, “What’s the joke?”

“You started the timer after you read the recipe this time,” Ladybug said.

Chat’s grip shifted. He fell silent, as if weighing something, before he admitted, “I don’t get it.”

Ladybug reached up and patted his back. She hadn’t expected him to.

. .

This time around was coq-au-vin.

They had made it to the elevator. This time, Ladybug pressed ‘Floor 4’ right as Chat pressed ‘Basement’. The elevator suddenly had a choice, and it chose to go down, and instead of twisting the bracelet to start over, Ladybug decided to take out some of her own anger on the akuma.

The fight was over before it barely begun.

The umbrella Ladybug tossed to Chat skidded across the floor. Chat stumbled. Ladybug reached down and spun the bracelet before she had a chance to watch him fall.

. .

The last recipe was profiteroles. And it was only the last one, because Chat— like always— surprised her. Ladybug supposed it was only a matter of when, not if. She could only do this so many times before Chat turned it back around on her.

He was glaring at her now, green eyes bright and vivid, unobstructed by goggles. Ladybug internally cursed whenever Chat decided to transform back because it meant there was no more baton— no more timer— and she always felt a bit lost within these three minutes without it.

“How many times have you put yourself through this?” he was asking her, again, since she couldn’t give him a straight answer. Suddenly, and swiftly, he got up from where he was sitting on the edge of the bed and took two steps forward into her personal space before Ladybug had a chance to stumble back. “How many?” he repeated.

“I-I don’t know!” Ladybug answered truthfully, suddenly flustered beyond belief. This was the first time Adrien Agreste had had the audacity to step this close to her, to get this mad at her.

“Marinette,” Adrien realized, sounding a bit punched in the gut. “You’re Marinette. This whole time...”

Not trusting herself to speak, Marinette nodded, eyes wide. The amount of times they had both come to know each other’s identities were slim. Rarely did it ever get this far. From this point on was uncharted territory for Ladybug. This Chat Noir suddenly became very real, no longer this strange version of himself that repeated the same phrases and did the same things over and over. No, all the sudden this profiteroles version of Chat was wholly unique.

“If I die in three minutes—” he began.

“Any second now, actually,” Marinette corrected.

“—you’ll do what, exactly?” he finished.

Marinette knew how bad it sounded, but she said it anyway, “I’ll go back to when you’re not dead.”

Adrien’s eyes flicked to the Miraculous around her wrist for a second, brows scrunching. “And then what?”

Ladybug only had to meet his eyes for a brief second to answer that question.

Suddenly Chat had a strong grip on her arm, yanking it towards him.

It took Ladybug a full three seconds to realize what he was trying to do. “Chat. Stop. Chat, stop,” she hissed, veins icy, mouth dry. If he took the bracelet it was over. She twisted and ripped her arm out of his grip, stumbling back and away. A quick glance down confirmed the bracelet was still there and still activated. She kept it pressed tightly to her polka dotted chest, holding it with her other hand.

Adrien was shaking his head, bits of blond hair falling in and out of his eyes. “You can’t keep doing this,” he said, a little out of breath.

Marinette wondered if his heart had stopped and her fingers rested down upon the bracelet, but after a few seconds passed and he remained standing she let them drift away.

If Adrien noticed, he didn’t mention it. “Other people need you,” he accused. “Paris needs you.”

“Paris can figure it out,” she hissed.

Chat blinked, surprised. His face slowly morphed, surprise bleeding into understanding. “It’s ok, Bug. It will be ok.”

Her throat clenched and it felt like he had cleaved her entire body into two pieces straight down the middle. How? How would it ever be ok? When she thought of her future now she only saw darkness. There was nothing left.

“I know I can’t keep doing this,” she gasped, the words ripping out of her. “I know other people love me, need me. But you’re not the one that has to walk out of here alone." The word 'alone' made her own heart swell ten times too big until it felt like it would burst. She hoped it would. That would be a whole lot easier. She had wished a whole lot of things recently that would have appalled her younger self. “I’m not ready.”

“When will you be?” Adrien asked softly.

A hot surge of anger raced through her and she felt the insane urge to shove him or hurt him or do something because how dare he ask her that. How dare he! How dare he die in the first place! Ladybug was tempted to twist the bracelet just to get away from this Chat and go back to an earlier version who was still malleable and innocent. Just erase this attempt all together from his memory so she would never have to answer.

All she had to do was twist it. But then he’d be right. And if she didn’t twist it, he’d still be right. Because… he was right, regardless. And no matter how many times she could make him forget it, she would never forget it.

Adrien wobbled, taking a few quick steps back until he was slumping back on the bed, face pale. Time’s up.

Her anger evaporated and she was there, tugging him close into her chest, because this was the closest to Chat she had ever gotten in all her attempts. The crown of his head tucked underneath her chin, gloved fingers running through his hair, as she felt all the movement and life drain out of him. It was like this every time. Quick, quiet, sneaky. As quick as a switch. One minute the lights were on, the next they were off.

She had no idea how much time she had before her five minutes were up. If she had to guess it was down to seconds. Her fingers detangled out of blond hair and dragged along her side, along her arm, until they met her wrist and bumped against the bracelet.

Was she? When would she be? Ready, that is.

#Miraculous Ladybug #fanfic #angst #adrien agreste #time travel #Marinette Dupain-Cheng #Chat Noir #Ladybug #Sorry I'm not sorry #If anyone needed a good cry

30 notes · View notes

nightshadeshadow123 · 4 years

Text

Paw prints on the Agent's heart🐾part 7:

Hey guys back to gift ya'll with part 7, hope you guys enjoy this part.

Tag list:

@retro-aesthe @blackluthxr @samustar @aznblossom @ibe-anne @lezzzbehonesthere

🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾

"The two of you together is absolutely impossible." Alex groaned out, folding her arms over her chest.

Kara's head whipped around to her sister. "And why's that? We haven't done anything." The blonde Kryptonian questioned before going back to patching your shoulder up where she have removed the kryptonite bullet from.

Alex rolled her brown eyes for what seems to be the umpteenth time the whole time you were groaning as Kara removed the kryptonite bullet, surprised she haven't eye rolled herself into another dimension yet.

"You two know very well what I mean, and you did do something wrong. Don't try to pretend this was nothing. You two could've gotten hurted more that you already are or even worse...killed." Alex said icely, trying to keep the worry from her voice and trying not to pay too much attention to how pale and weak you looked from the kryptonite bullet.

You grimaced but huff out, (e/c) eyes flickering to the clearly worried agent. "Alex, we are both okay now. We had to stop those CADMUS agents before they could've caused more harm to the innocent people."

"I know that, but you two didn't pay attention to the agents sneaking up behind you and haven't waited for the signal. I swear the both of you are going to give me a heart attack if you guys keep that up." Alex explained and sat down on the medicine counter in the lab near you and Kara.

"Besides that, what have gotten you distracted anyways? You usually pay a lot more attention and don't get easily distracted." Alex questioned curiously as Kara finally finished up and sat down next to you on the hospital bed.

You looked back at Alex before looking to the wall behind her. "Eh, it was nothin' really. I just thought I saw somebody I know but yeah there were a lot of people so...it must have been a stranger anyways." You explained before looking back at Alex and making eye contact with her beautiful eyes.

Alex raised an eyebrow at you. "Who did it look like?" She questioned, not sure if it was good or bad to ask that when she noticed you tensing up.

"For a moment back there I could've swore I saw Lillian Luthor lurking but I couldn't be too sure because she disappeared back in the crowd before I could have a better look." You explained and rubbed at your shoulder, playfully glaring at Kara when she flicked at your hand when you got to near your bandaged wound.

Alex heaved out a breath and looked at you and Kara again. "If that was her that means she's probably plotting something again to show her face out in public after hiding for awhile."

Kara hummed in agreement while putting and arm around your shoulders and pulling you into her side for a comforting hug, one that you gladly returned.

"If that's the case we must try and sniff her out." Kara said, smiling at you after you pulled away while Alex kept her happiness inside at the hug you shared with her sister, she's just glad to see you getting closer again just as much as Kara is too.

"We'll talk about the CADMUS problem another time, I'll talk to J'onn first." Alex said and Kara agreed.

"Let's get going." Kara grabbed your arm and pulled you off of the bed and towards the door. "I'm hungry like a lion and we need our share of potstickers." Kara paused, causing you to collide into her back with a grunt and making a money motion with her hand at Alex.

Alex rolled her eyes and got out her card and stridded over to Kara and placing it in the blonde Kryptonian's hand.

"Ugh why did I made that deal with you anyways. At this rate you will make me as broke as a church mouse." Alex joked as Kara smiled innocently at her sister and pulling you away to the door again as you gave a tiny wave at the agent.

"Luckily it's just one month and two weeks left of that deal!" Alex yelled from behind but Kara simply waved her off with her other hand that isn't holding your arm as you both disappeared out of the door.

"And don't drag (Y/N) around too much, she needs rest and time to heal!" Alex shouted, knowing full well that you and Kara can hear her due to Kryptonian superhearing.

🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾

"These potstickers is yummy but pizza still stays the best." You said to the blonde Kryptonian that is sitting in front of you, two plates of potstickers in front you along with your drinks.

Kara fake pouted at you. "No! Potstickers are the best!"

You just laughed softly at her and took a sip of your drink before nearly jumping out of your skin when feeling nails slowly trace up your spine, goosebumps rising to your arms as a familiar feminine chuckle rang through your ears.

You whipped your head to look at the familiar woman standing next to your chair, a teasing smirk pulling at her luscious pink painted lips.

"Lena! Don't scare me like that. I nearly spitted out my drink and that tickled." You playfully swatted at her as she dodged and laughed softly.

"Hello to you too. I always manage to startle you. I wonder how because it's not easy for enemies to sneak up on you but it's easy peasy for me." Lena looked down at you with soft green eyes as she hugged your shoulders and you returning the hug after putting your drink down.

You patted the chair next to you, inviting Lena to sit down next to you as Kara clumsily waved at her when she sat down.

"Hi Kara." Lena greeted her back before turning her attention back to you.

"(Y/N), want to have another movie night at my place? I'm finishing up on my new project early tonight and I am in the mood for some good movies and also want to show you my project." Lena asked, toying with a piece of her dark hair.

You took a sip of your drink and looked at her. "That sounds like a good idea, I don't have any plans for tonight anyways and I wouldn't miss a movie night with my friend." You eagerly accepted her request.

"Wonderful. I'll order us pizza just before I get home and just pick it up on the way home." Lena beamed happily, a bright smile tugging at her lips and crossing her leg over the other causing her black higheels to clank against the white tiled floor.

"You can join us too if you want." Lena briefly looked at Kara.

Kara looked at the two of you before shaking her head. "I would've liked to but I already have plans with my sister and a friend." She said nervously.

Lena smiled and then looked back at you before getting up again.

"Well I must get going, I've just came to get myself a coffee and then get right back into that project." Lena said, squeezing your arm lightly. "See you tonight." Lena said over her shoulder before walking to go and grab her coffee.

"Bye Lena Boo! See you tonight and good luck." You called after the Luthor that shot you a closed eyed smile over her shoulder as she left.

"I also must get going, I want to go down to that new store that have opened a good few blocks away from here." You took the last sip of your drink before getting up.

"Okay. Have fun and hope to see you tommorow. I'll be helping out the new recruits, just glad it's my day off and away from Cat." Kara also got up and hugged you goodbye before going to pay for the food and drinks while you left.

🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾

It was almost past midnight when Kara's phone rang catching the attention of Kara, Alex and James away from the movie they are watching.

"Who can possibly be calling at such and hour?" Kara questioned and picked her phone up that is on the table next to her while Alex paused the movie.

Kara raised her eyebrow at the caller ID.

"Lena?"Kara said confusedly before pressing the answer button.

"Hello Lena." The blonde answered, paying no mind to Alex scooting closer to her.

"Kara!" A worried Lena said through the phone. "Sorry I'm disturbing at such an late hour but I want to know if (Y/N) is at your place. She haven't showed up here and I'm worried now."

"Wait, what? No she isn't here. And that's strange she didn't show up at your place, she wouldn't miss a movie night at your place." Kara said, trying not to get too worried just yet while Alex now looked even more interested in the conversation.

"That's true. I though she was just running late but the later it got I started to think she forgot or was at your place, and she's not answering her phone either." Lena started to sound even more worried. "I hope she's okay and just at home and maybe had fallen asleep."

"Lena calm down, I'll go check at her house, I've been there once a few days ago when I went there for a visit. You go sleep and I'll tell you if she's okay tomorrow, you sound tired." Kara assured her, trying not to have Lena more worried.

"Okay I will thanks but do be careful when you go out to check, you never know what kind of aliens and villains might be lurking around and Supergirl might not always be around the corner to save the day...er well night." Lena said while Kara chuckles to herself.

"Oh I'll be just fine don't worry Lena. Now go get some sleep, I'm very much certain that (Y/N) won't be too happy to hear you like this. Now goodnight Lena." Kara urged and listened as Lena grumbled in the background before saying her own goodnight before hanging up.

Kara sat her phone down on the table again before jumping up, getting a confused look from James and a concerned look from Alex.

"What's wrong?" James was the one that broke the silence.

"It's (Y/N). Lena said that she haven't showed up at her house and she isn't answering her phone. I must go check if she's okay." Kara explained while Alex looked even more concerned now.

James gave her a confused look. "Who is (Y/N)?"

Kara smiled akwardly. "She's a friend and perhaps later I'll introduce you two but I really must be going." The blonde rushed out, already halfway to the front door but James grabbed her arm.

"I'll come with you."

"No James. I'll go. It'll be faster." Kara pulled her arm away but James tried to reason with the Kryptonian until Alex cutted in.

"Olsen, it's okay. I'll go with Kara. You can go home and we'll tell you everything tommorow." Alex's voice was firm, leaving no room to argue.

James let out a defeated sigh but then nodded. "Okay but you two better be careful and tell me everything tommorow, I dislike these secrets between friends." He quickly got his phone and jacket from where he have sat at and spared one last look at the two sisters before leaving through the door.

"Let's go Alex!" Kara urged, slamming the door close behind them and pulling the agent down the stairway and hall before running to a nearby alleyway while Alex tried to stay on her feet as the Kryptonian ran, glaring at her sister when they finally came to a stop in the ally.

"Gosh, chill out, I don't have super running speed like you."

Kara rolled her blue eyes but smiled. "Sorry." She muttered and zoomed into her Supergirl suit and holding out her arm to Alex.

"Shall we go now slow poke?" Kara teased before holding onto Alex.

"Yes you goof, let's go."

🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾

When arriving at your apartment Kara set Alex down and Alex immediately went to knock at your door but Kara firmly grabbed her arm.

"Alex wait, something is wrong here. I detect kryptonite here and it's already weakening my senses and powers by the second." Kara warned her, eyes full of concern.

Alex gave her a worried look. "So you mean Lena was right to be worried about her?"

"Yes, something must have happened, let's go check if (Y/N) is in there and still alive." Kara ran to the door with Alex following right behind her, gun already pulled out before Alex stopped her.

"Kar, let me go inside, I don't want you even more closer to the kryptonite." Alex went in front of her.

Kara went to argue but Alex fixed het with a glare. "Please, I'll be okay and you'll be near incase anything happens. Give J'onn a call and let him send in people." Alex reasoned until Kara agreed reluctantly.

"Okay but yell if you need help. Be careful." Kara warned but walked a few steps back.

Alex took the last few steps towards the front door, noticing it's half open by a few inches. Taking a deep breath, Alex pushed it open and pointing her gun in front of her, scanning her surroundings carefully but found no threat and proceeded further into your apartment after going through a dimly lit hallway and into what appears to be your bedroom, eyes widening at the state it was in.

It was clear that a struggle and fight have broken out here by the cracked dent in the creamy white painted wall along with dried blood that is on the wall and the floor and kryptonite bullets lodged into the walls and the whole rooms furniture was knocked over and even a few were broken and smashed.

"This is very bad." Alex muttered under her breath worriedly, brown eyes scanning around the place until they landed on a lump on the floor against the other wall that also have a rather large cracks in it.

"(Y/N)!" Alex exclaimed in desperation and worry and rush over to the lump after figuring out it's a person instead, turning the figure around until they were on their back, a snarl escaping her lips when she realized it was just a young man that couldn't be older than twenty.

The young man coughed weakly, dark eyes opening into tiny slits and meeting with the angry eyes of the agent, a cruel smirk already starting to form on his lips.

"Well we'll, if it isn't the*cough*agent of*cough*DEO!" He weezed out, clearly in pain as he gripped his chest with his left arm that wasn't broken like his right one was, the bone that was punctured through his arms flesh making Alex cringe a bit at the thought of how painful that must be.

"Where is she?" Alex growled lowly through gritted teeth, grabbing him by the front of his black uniform he's wearing, earning a painful grunt from the man as his broken arm was knocked against the wall.

Alex's anger grew even more when seeying the all too familiar CADMUS logo badge on the front of his black uniform.

"You mean that bitch of a wolf? Boss have taken her but." He coughed more, a little blood dripping from his mouth. "The little bitch wouldn't have come willingly, the bitch was stronger than expected and managed to knock me against the wall but not before I got a good few shots in her." He grunted out, a wicked grin settling in his lips once again when he caught onto Alex's worry and anger, groaning internally at the familiar sirens of the police in the background.

"I hope the bitch die from all those kryptonite bullets." He decided to add cruelly to worry Alex even more.

Alex jabbed at his broken arm and pulled him up making him let out a pained yelp and bitting hard down on his teeth to keep from yelling out in pain when she angrily dragged him through the house and outside where they already found Kara, J'onn and a few more agents in DEO polices cars and vans waiting outside.

Kara and J'onn both looked up at Alex when she went outside the CADMUS agent still in arm.

"CADMUS have taken (Y/N) but they left this one behind." Alex hissed out, throwing the agent infront of J'onn's booted feet.

J'onn folded his arms over his chest, looking down at the young agent that is groaning and squirming in pain on the hard and cold unforgiving pavement.

"You are in a lot of trouble young man." J'onn said in his stern voice, before turning around and motioning to two other agents to pick him up and escort him into one of the cars.

"Alex." Kara rushed over to her sister after the man was in the car and out of earshot.

Alex let out a sigh and looked back at her sister while combing some strands of hair that fell into her face away with her nimble fingers.

"They've taken her Kar. From what I've seen in there and heard from the guy, they've injured and weakend her a lot and..." Alex paused and looked down at the floor with a frown plastered on her usually stern face.

Kara nudged her before pulling her into a comforting hug. "You worry about her I can see." The blonde Kryptonian confirmed.

Alex went to deny but Kara fixed her with a knowing look.

"Don't even try to deny it. I can see you like her and worry about her. But hey don't worry, we will get her back alive." Kara assured her, squeezing her shoulder a little tighter.

Alex blushed a little at what Kara said but gave her sister a warm smile and squeezing her arm back before frowning again.

"But what if we find her too late and she's d-" Alex began to voice her worry but Kara sternly cut her off.

"No! (Y/N) dying is not an option. If she dies I swear to Rao I'll hunt her soul into oblivion and back. I've just gotten her back a few weeks ago and I won't let either one of us loose her again." Kara's voice trembled a bit but it stayed firm as she comfortingly rub hers sisters back.

Alex nodded and quickly wiped a tear away that escaped her eye but Kar already saw and gave her a warm smile.

"If we get her back you better make a move on her before she's swooped away." Kara teased and pouted as Alex softly punched her arm.

"Get swooped away by whom?" Alex asked a bit tensely, trying to not show the jealousy in her tone and ignoring the way how her ears turned red in embarrassment.

Kara laughed softly before they slowly make their way back to the cars and vans.

"Oh you know all too well who." Kara said teasingly until J'onn walked over to them, putting a hand on each of their shoulders, giving the the slightest of smiles.

"We'll get her back, but for now let's get the agent back to the base. Maybe we can get answers out of him." J'onn removed his hands.

"Some agents will stay back here and remove the Kryptonite from this place but when we do find her she might need to stay away from here for awhile just to be safe." J'onn informed and walked next to them back to the cars and vans.

"That might be a good idea. She can stay at my place when we get her back." Kara agreed eagerly, already thinking back to the sleepovers you two had together back on Krypton along with her aunt.

"Thank you, I'll see you two back at the base." J'onn said and got into the back of a matt black van with the famous DEO logo.

As the cars and vans began to leave, the CADMUS agent looked through the window at Kara and Alex, glaring at them coldly and full of hatred.

Alex and Kara glared back, not faltering under his gaze even one bit until they were out off eyesight.

Kara let out a tired huff before facing her sister again. "We need to let Lena know what have happened but...I don't want to call her awake and just drop that bomb on her, she'd be worried and restless and we can't have a restless Luthor running the LCorp." Kara tilted her hand and frustratedly run her fingers through her blonde locks.

Alex let out a grunt in agreement. "That's true. We'll just have to tell her tommorow then." Alex said, taking a few steps towards her.

"Yeah, but she'll be angry that we've waited so long to tell her but I'll go to her work and tell her." Kara said calmly and picked her sister up easily, getting ready to take flight.

"I know but we can deal with her anger tomorrow. Now let's get back to base and try to get some answers from that thug."

"Let's do so. The sooner the better." Kara agreed and took off into the sky with Alex.

🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾

By the time they've gotten back to the base, the CADMUS agent was in the medic bay to get his arm fixed and in a cast before they could even begin to question him.

J'onn watched Alex pace around until he decided to stop her pacing by stepping in front of her.

"Alex, you need to calm down. Pacing around won't make his operation go faster. It will take a long time and he won't be able to talk properly until the medicine wore off. Go get some rest, Winn is already on the look out on the computers along with others to see if he can track down a location they might be keeping her." J'onn adviced her in concern, worried that the agent might collapse in worry if she kept this up.

Alex looked up at him and flinched slightly when Kara came from behind and putted a arm around her.

"J'onn is right Alex, let's go rest for awhile." Kara urged and led Alex to a chair and sat her down in it, asking one of the agents that passed them to get them both coffee.

"Will do ma'am." The agent said hurriedly before rushing off to the cafeteria of the base.

🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾🐺🐾

Hope ya guys ave' enjoyed this chapter. I'm going away on the vacation today but I wanted to leave you guys with a chapter before I go because I can't say for certain when I'll be back and when I'll be able to start on the next chapter. When I'm done with writing this whole paw prints on the agent's heart series I want to start on a Lena x reader story or even a Kara x villian reader or a Sanvers(Alex and Maggie)x depressed villian reader story where reader is villian by night and a typical depressed young woman by day that constantly gets in trouble with the cops and do drugs to cope with her homophobic family, but only if you guys would be interested in it.

#alex danvers imagines #alex danvers x reader #kara danvers x reader #kara danvers imagines #supergirl imagine

82 notes · View notes

hoopdiddies · 5 years

Text

I'm Not Over You //Ben Hardy x Reader (Part 9)

A/N: All the fact checking had me reeling to be honest and this is one long-ass chapter, longer than the one where I said 'it's the longest I've written' but actually this wins the competition. I've used some lyrics from the song Photograph cos I felt like it would go nicely with the flow plus I am weak with hospital scenes because of the distresses that occur within it but I tried ya know ¯_(ツ)_/¯ It's a little messy and dramatic on a side note because I had to deal with some outside disturbances as well and my mind was on other things 😔 But again, thank you guys for supporting this series! Your feedbacks mean a lot ♥ Tag list is always open!! (seriously, I need more people to tag xd)

Summary: You had always loved Ben ever since you the two of you met in university and became the best of friends. That feeling went out like a candle flame when you parted ways until he re-entered your life...but this time with someone who has already occupied his heart.

Warnings: That angst from 8? Yeah, it just upgraded, fluff if you, like, use a microscope, explicit description of blood and injuries, swearing but I kept it to a minimum, mentions of death but there's actually no death. Melodrama, ig? Sorry, I had a hard time writing consistently this week ^^'

WC: 6.5k (Someone got carried away.)

Tags: @haendel-me-with-care

@mrsdoradominguez-barnes

@mickmoon

@lakef

@mrsmazzello

@valeriecarolinaw

@queen-turtle-boiii

@loveandbeloved29

@hardzzellos

Parts: 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

"Someone please help! Help us! "

"Bloody bastard just drove off without even stopping! "

"Are you fu- you left your phone?! He's barely clinging on to life!! Ask a random person to dial 911!"

"Oh god, what- what do we do- his head, his freaking head! There is so much blood right now!"

"D-don't move his neck! He's critical!"

"Rosy. Rosy. Calm down...he has to be fine..he should be... "

"An ambulance is on its way!"

"His head is fucking bloody! Do you even want- fuck! Someone help here! Someone, please help! "

"Is he even breathing?! "

"Oh god, Y/N! He's not- he's not! "

"You better not be joking around!"

"Joe! He is bloody dying and you think I'm fucking joking?!"

"He has no pulse as well..."

"I got to- I have to make an attempt to resuscitate him. "

"Are you sure?"

"We're not waiting for that goddamn vehicle! If I don't do it, he's going to die!"

"Wake up, Ben! Please, wake up..."

Blur. That's what everything was. A huge, uncoordinated, focal blur. A sea of people had crowded the scene like a flock of sheep ready to graze on the pasture, except the only green they had for their eyes was the sight of six, dreadful friends taking it in their hands to keep the seventh one grounded while they wait for professional help.

The ones with flashing cameras hoisted up high to document the scene disgusted you down to the pits of your stomach and you had wished for them to scatter away. You all, especially you had to bear the agony of seeing him motionless on the asphalt ground– without breath, skin drained of color while the only color highlighted in the spectrum was the copious but graphic amount of blood that had tainted the spot he was lying in– his hair coated in the sticky, sanguinary puddle, creating a traumatizing mix of blond and deep red that you now couldn't forget. The tears pricking from your eyes when you had given him mouth to mouth mingling with his bleeding forehead.

He had lost all consciousness at a maximum.

You had ached to cradle his body right there and then but had you acted on impulse; it would've worsened the situation.

Medics had filled in the scene seconds after you had given Ben a well-thought out CPR undeterred by your raging adrenaline. He was then brought into the ambulance with Rosy tagging along to be there when they rush him into the ER. You had gone after with the others in Gwilym's car, your shaking hands coated with drying blood -his drying blood- as you made your way to the hospital in a blistering cruise.

You're still in your dress, only topped with Joe's designer blazer to shield you from the cold and a warm, half-empty cup of brew situated between your palms partially substituting the natural heat of your skin, waiting quietly in the lounging room. They had transferred Ben to a private room after performing an operation on his head and scanning him afterwards. One of the emergency doctors remarked that if it weren't for your initiative to follow first aid protocol and give him immediate resuscitation before help had arrived– he would have gone ten minutes early.

You've been waiting an hour and a half for the doctor to step out of the room and deliver the news about his condition. And while you do that, Joe and Lucy have gone off to collect a fresh pair of clothing from the hotel for you to change into. Rosy is stood at the entrance making some calls, Gwilym and Rami have gone back to their respective hotels to change clothes and come back for the news.

You felt light hearing that comment but it's nothing compared to the aftermath of the accident. It was a hit-and-run and the driver didn't even step on his breaks or bother to stop to take responsibility.

Rami's blazer that had been used to delay Ben's bleeding has been given back to him for dry cleaning. To complicate the situation, you're supposed to be boarded on a plane back to England eight hours from now yet that's something you have to cross out from the bucket list, entirely. You're not going anywhere unless Ben heaves out a single sigh of life.

Not a single step out the fucking institution unless he opens those eyes.

Unless he parts his lips.

Unless he says your name.

You owe it to him for saving your life, nearly costing his.

And it's just 2 in the morning.

You put down the cup on the space next to you, bringing your hands up to your lowered head, underneath your eyes watering from all of that's happened tonight.

"We're back." Two figures stand before you minutes after your eyelids have fluttered shut in despair. You lift your head to be met with Joe and Lucy in their casual clothes, smiling sadly at you with paperbags in hand.

You return that smile with a much weaker one. They settle the bags down and Joe sinks down on one knee in front of you, taking your face in his hands gently while he peeks up at you. "I see the news isn't out yet. You can change, we'll take care of it."

"You sure?" You mumble quietly. He nods and you prolong a sigh as you sit up, getting tenderly lulled into a hug by Lucy. "He's gonna be okay." She expresses definitely as she rubs your back. You thank her for the reassurance before taking one of the bags that contains your clothes.

Pulling the hem of your sweatshirt in place, you couldn't wait to escape the lavatory. It smells of newly applied bleach and the pungent odor is plain nauseating. You close the door with the bag in hand on your way out but freeze in your spot as a certain, exclusive news breaks out in the TV screen above you.

"Just 10pm tonight, Bohemian Rhapsody and EastEnders star, Ben Hardy, has reportedly been gravely involved and injured in a hit-and-run just outside of Wallis Annenberg Center during the ongoing Vanity Fair after party. Sources said that he had dashed headlong down the traffic-jammed streets to what they said was an attempt to save co-star's, Joe Mazzello, date from an incoming vehicle– which he had succeeded in as he failed to save himself–" The rest of the news anchor's words go unprocessed in your head as you hurriedly trace your way back to the lounging area, unwilling to hear recurring reports at yours or anyone's expense.

It already hurts enough that you think it's partly your fault for acting so careless.

By now, the attending physician should be out and conveying the news to Lucy and Joe and as you arrive– he is, hands in his lab coat pockets, informing them in the most serious of tones.

They see you approaching and you ask immediately, words stumbling out of your mouth like perceivable beats. "Doc, how is he? How's Ben?"

With Lucy and Joe already informed about it, the doctor decides to tell you himself to save them the hassle. "He should be fine soon. However I must be frank with you, miss," your heart loses a beat for a fraction of a second at the suspense rising, "he flat lined twice in the ER. It took three sets of defibs to get his heart beating again." Hearing him break to you that Ben was a simple step away from death as they tried to treat him drains the warm color palette in your face, even with the affirmation that he's going to be alright; knowing there were two moments in which he had slipped in and out of life at the same time just upsets your stomach.

The doctor continues with his report, telling you that he's suffered from a mild to severe head trauma caused by the blunt force when he had his scalp dragged along the asphalt. Apparently he fissured the the near front of his skull and underwent neurosurgery for it. You quickly get the idea, having studied a series of medical topics of course, but it doesn't invalidate the fact that it still sounds like a bad thing.

The doctor sighs and adds. "Although he bled internally at a minimum, he's lucky to have bled externally for the most part."

Forming a steeple of your fingers and stealing a quick glimpse of Lucy and Joe, you gulp hard. "How long 'til he wakes up?"

"I'd say in about 48 hours. His scan results after the surgery showed promise for a stable recovery though he might wake up a little dazed at first due to the moderate concussion," at least you're getting the assurance that he's waking up, "your friend has a thick skull. He'll recover in time, but with short-term effects."

48 hours. Not enough time for you to stay or leave.

"Can we see him? Right now?" Setting your expectations to the highest, you ask with a glimmer of hope and the doctor approves, minding you to turn down the lights in the room as Ben would likely be sensitive to it by the time he wakes. "A nurse will come by and check on him every once in a while as well."

You nod weakly, thanking him professionally as you gradually hang your head in disappointment. He wishes Ben a speedy recovery before turning on his heels, leaving you to it.

Lucy brings her short hair up in a pigtail, asking as she lifts up her share of the paper bags. "Are we going in now? I mean, the doc said we're able to." She vaguely points at the door of the room and you and Joe swap looks before deciding on it. You collect your items from the seats and draw in breaths as you follow suit, stepping into the room and being welcomed by the almost odorless whiff of paint and medicine; along with the light to moderate blow of the air conditioner.

As the door clicks close, you stand motionless yet internally trembling at the heartbreaking sight of Ben lying unresponsive, surrounded by various machines working to keep him alive. Flanking his bed are the heart monitor -fully functional- and a medical ventilator from which he is breathing from. He's hooked up to an IV bag with a breathing tube put into his mouth, his left arm is propped upon his abdomen but protected around a plaster and supported within a blue arm sling and lastly, his head is wrapped in a layer of roller bandage– the giveaway of his major injury.

"Y/N..." Joe cooing breaks you off from your vacant gaze but you hand him a forlorn eye as bring yourself to Ben's side, glancing over his limp body. He's taken quite a hit to have fractured his arm like this. His complexion didn't appear as livid as it is now and marking his bottom lip -which has lost that luscious red tint as well- is a small bruise, parted from his upper lip as he involuntarily breathes through the tube in his mouth. You don't hear his slow exhales but the normal rise and fall of his chest consoles a small part of you; the stable beeping of the heart monitor being the only occuring noise in the room. Concerned with how awfully quiet you've gone, Lucy and Joe give each other fitting looks as they share the same thought on the situation. As one of them begins to step close to ensure you're taking it well, you pipe up before them, your once honey-laced voice diminished to a monotone. "It's...not my fault."

"Of course, it's not," Lucy, being the one who has taken that step close, tenderly agrees but you add.

"It's not but it feels like it is."

Now Joe steps up next but stop as you add once more.

"And I told him I wanted to forget him and for him to do the same." Now some tears are inevitable.

"Y/N-"

"As impractical as it is to think about it now, but what if he does?" your hand has now hovered over him, the nerves of the pads of your fingers itching to skim themselves over his free hand, "I don't want to go. But I have to and he's still not gonna wake up by the time I leave."

His condition just yearns for your touch but you don't want to lay a hand on him just yet, out of the fear that you might hurt a small part of him.

Joe sighs softly as he puts his hands on your shoulders, rubbing them with ease. "Why don't you just email the institution about it? Tell them you're gonna have to delay because of an urgent matter."

"I can do that, but only a day after. I can't take long."

"Rami and Gwilym are on their way," Lucy reminds as she gets off her phone from messaging them, "with some food and water."

"None of us are burning the midnight oil then," Joe stretches his limbs and returns to the couch to take a moment to relax, eyes snapping wide as he remembers something. "By the way, Y/N. If you spilled your heart out to him earlier, did you include the bit where our relationship was all but pretend?"

Surely the stare you and Lucy are sharing towards him could render the atmosphere painful but you answer regardless of the topic, shaking your head as you turn your attention to Ben once more. "No. But he's bound to question it. That is if he remembers what happened."

Lucy rests her hand on her hip as she glances at the heart monitor, the waves tempting her eyes to follow them. "Doctor never implied anything about amnesia."

The three of you fall silent again with you locking your gaze at the man who didn't want to let you go. Who chased you down a busy highway knowing he'd bite the dust if he did and ended up saving you at the expense of his own well-being.

And life.

And his own soul.

He'll recover in a short period, yes. But when you had gently grazed your trembling hand over his bloodied head in the middle of the street, it was as if he was bound to never wake up. A visual you want to shake off for the sake of composure.

Joe and Lucy take notice of your stilled silence again, their expressions low-spirited. Taking small steps towards you, Lucy wraps her arms around your shoulders from behind and pulls out a certain object from her back pocket, slipping it to you. "Found this in the inner pocket of Ben's tainted blazer when the doctors gave his clothes to us."

You cast your gaze to what she's holding and hear your heart shatter at what it is. You slowly take it from her and sweep your thumb over it.

Ben's share of your Homecoming picture.

And behind it, the same date and continuation of what was written on your half.

You piece it in your mind and feel your eyes cloud with tears, a droplet making a small patter as it lands on the polaroid.

He kept it. In his blazer. He brought it along with him.

_I'm not going... anywhere at all. _

"But I am." You mutter as opposed to the words in your head. For as long as you love him and he doesn't in the way you do, distancing yourself is something that needs to be done to make sure you finally let go. You'd stick around but it would further fragment your soul.

Just in time to tear you from reaching your breakfing point, the door creaks open to two men and a red-haired woman, two of whom are grasping paper bags containing some food and water and one with an overwrought look, respectively.

Lucy leaves your side and walks over to Rami's, kissing his cheek and helping them unload their items on the coffee table. Gwilym gives the three of you, and Rosy who had followed in behind them, an individual hug– asking you about Ben's condition as he lays eyes on him.

You assure him of a smooth recovery and it unknots the lump of worry he's under.

"Oh, Ben, baby... " Breaks down Rosy, who whizzes past you to tear up over her injured fiance. She gazes down painfully at the man before her and delicately fondles his blanch cheek, eyes narrowed to the point where her face has contorted to a scowl which she throws directly at you. "This is all your fault. "

Your brows crease at her in absolute confusion. "What are you talking about?" Sensing that an altercation is about to take place, the rest stumble quiet in preparation for the worst. Joe readies himself to butt in in case it escalates further.

"What did you say to him?" She asks you in a form of a hiss.

"Nothing! I-"

"He chased you down! You must have said something that set him off!" Her demanding voice echoes off the walls, overlaying the beeping and whizzing of both the heart monitor and ventilator. You begin swearing to her that you didn't say anything of the sort but trail off as you realize that what you had actually said, was something that indeed hurt him.

You draw your lips between your teeth and clench your fist, unable to respond with the truth, fearing it might just fuel the fire.

"That's- that's not important now." You shake your head dismissively and turn around.

"It is. You led Ben out into the street, agitated."

"Rosy, please. Can we not talk about this now? We're squabbling in front of an unconscious man-"

"Okay girls. Our boy is out cold but that doesn't mean he can't hear, right?" Eager to quench the growing conflict, Gwilym slides in between the dangerous proximity you've put yourselves in and you huff an apology.

On the other hand, Rosy does the complete opposite. "No, Gwilym. He has been acting strange for weeks and to think tomorrow's supposed to be our wedding! And this is all because of her."

Gwilym turns to her firmly and tries calming - or rather shutting her up for the sake of the peace Ben needs to heal- her down. "We're not throwing fingers here. I know tomorrow's the day and you don't want to put him under pressure, right? I don't think he's going to succumb to waking up if this goes on."

Rami, Lucy and Joe have remained unbelievably quiet but are as keen as Gwilym to prevent something unnecessary as this. It's barely 3 am in the morning for the love of God and you're all in a hospital room. Sleeping patients could bang their fists on the walls from the other side any time.

You, on the other hand, have already made four steps towards the door, ready to leave the room to be alone with your thoughts for the night but you're unable to twist the knob as Rosy snaps once more with the hint, distressing with a clenched jaw.

She's unrelenting.

"Please Y/N, you're overstepping and frankly it's getting in the way of my relationship with Ben."

"You have no idea what I'm trying to do," You mumble in the most bitter of intonations for Rosy to get the message, your fingers clenching around the knob and producing a faint chink. "But he's my best friend. Let me be the person I've always been to him, " you whip your head at her -a stare you're certain could equal to a pelted javelin- and draw your brows together, pleading on account of choosing to be present in a crisis such as this, " he's all yours anyway."

With a strong swing of the door, you march angrily out of the room, making your way outside the building to blow off steam – the smooth rub of the polaroid between your fingers surrendering you to tears.

You give yourself exactly 48 hours to stay before heading back to England to board your flight for Spain.

10 hours

Ben's accident was a clean hit-and-run. Apparently some bystanders had snapped a shot of the license plate the moment the car slowed down and accelerated afterwards. It was then delivered to the police to be given further investigation. His parents have flown in from England to visit him and you badly wish you could greet them but some things are just too heavy to do right now. Back at the hospital, Ben's been given hourly checks and assessments, with each desired result constant. He's not responsive to any physical contact but the doctor is certain that he can perceive sound and sound only. His body is asleep but his mind isn't.

The rest will be visiting him at dusk while you're going in late with Joe.

After sending an email to the university about your 24-hour delay, you spend the entire day just waiting to go down there and be by his side. Regarding your solitude in the hotel room, Rami had Lucy stay in with him for the meantime and being initially worried about leaving you, she had asked for your permission to which you said yes to.

Sometimes in the day, you can't hold back a few tears at the flashing memory.

17 hours

Loving can hurt

Standing in front of the private room, you clutch the collar of your shirt anxiously, hearing incoherent but distinct murmurs on the other side of the door. Joe looks down at you and squeezes your hand lightly to relieve you of pressure. He knows how much this is affecting you, and though not visually shown, he's taking it hard too.

Loving can hurt sometimes

The door opens to a couple you've familiarized yourself with for so long. Ben's parents.

"Y-Y/N?" Says his mum, unable to believe that it's you standing before her. Your breath hitches as you grin sadly, being pulled into her embrace. "It's been so long."

"It has, Mrs. Jones."

Joe shakes hands with his father as he introduces himself politely. Mr. Jones greets you in with a light hug as well and you can't help but spill a few tears.

But it's the only thing that I know

They give you full access to the room

as they themselves have to leave for a while, thereby trusting their son to his closest circle. Knowing how tight you and Ben are, they give you much of their trust on this one and you'd want nothing more than to make sure he'll wake up without any further complications. They obviously know about Rosy but witnessing how long you and Ben have grown on one another, they trust you the most.

They bid you and Joe goodbye, leaving access to the room exclusive.

When it gets hard

As you begin closing the door behind Joe, he insists that you have some alone time with him. Though it may feel weird but he feels as if you need this the most with time going against you now. Touched by his thoughtfulness, you give him a quick embrace before he leaves you to it.

You know it can get hard sometimes

The sight before you hasn't changed that much.

The same monitors and the same person.

Same feeling.

However you'd rather take everything

in a different light and situation.

You fiddle with your fingers as you accumulate the strength to swallow the lump in your throat, drawing yourself to his side. The mild, incessant whirring of both the air conditioner and ventilator occupies the silent atmosphere along with the steady beeps of the heart monitor, blocking the huge gulp you've taken.

It is the only thing that makes us feel alive

Slowly taking a seat on the stool positioned beside the guard rails of the bed, you let out a quavery sigh– the byproduct of all the tearing up you've done today. You take his free hand in yours and stroke his pale knuckles with your thumb, leaning in to plant a kiss on it.

We keep this love in a photograph

"Ben? It's me. Can you hear me?"

One-sided conversations are helpful according to experts and this is the perfect opportunity to tell him everything without having to bear the flits in his expression.

But you beg to differ.

We made these memories for ourselves. Where our eyes are never closing.

You continue, allowing every crack and quiver to manifest in your voice no matter how relatively pathetic it will make you sound.

"Ben, please, you gotta wake up. You're leaving us in a hot mess here, bud. Hell, you gave your parents the scare of their lives. I know I'm starting off rough with this, but it's all cause you had to leap in like that. But then again, it was- it was not your fault. This- all of this is not your doing. I should've been more careful on that road. Would've been better if I had cut back on the melodrama, huh? Haha..."

You lick your lips and resume, owning the patters your tears have soiled on the tiled floor.

Hearts are never broken

"I'm sorry if I had to hide it all from you, " you build it up slowly, tears tenacious to leave your eyes, "it's just that I was afraid you'd soon forget me once you've married and I wouldn't be part of your life anymore. To make matters worse, I have always loved you, Ben. On every level and aspect, I still do. Sticking around to see you spend the rest of your life with someone else when that feeling is still present is just toxic. And to think you're supposed to be wedded tomorrow, "you sniffle, taking a few seconds to form your following words, "that's why it would be easier if we- if we...oh god, I'm actually much more of an actor than you are..." You want to chuckle for it, but nothing resembling a chuckle mopes out of your mouth. Just...short breaths.

Time is forever frozen-

"But I truly am happy for you. I really am. But I can't be happy myself when you've taken a huge portion of my heart and I'm just...I just want to make sure nothing will ever ruin your happiness," You close the distance between you and the bed, your hot tears dripping on his arm sling, the cloth absorbing it. You're really taking advantage of his inability to respond.

"I'm s-sorry, Ben. I don't know how long I can stay by your side like this. Literally like this. But as long as I am able, " you lower your head onto his chest, now shamelessly sobbing like you haven't broken down in centuries, squeezing his free but chilly hand like it's the only thing that'll give you warmth tonight, "I'm sorry if I'm going somewhere."

And still

Despite promising to give you a moment alone with him, Joe -having recurring, inquisitive tendencies- has acted as opposed to his promise and eavesdropped on your unrequited talk due to having to wait too long, not realizing that after hearing all your words exit in sobs, you've fallen asleep with your head on Ben's chest.

Joe glances around the hall before budging the door open, careful not to disturb you as he sees you out cold next to him. He presses his lips into a hard line and chuckles quietly, amused as he grabs an available sheet from the couch and drapes it over you. The moment he notices a tear droplet stuck in the corner of your eye, he wipes it away with his thumb, sighing profoundly.

"Rosy's gonna flip when she gets back and sees this. So, " Joe, mumbling on his own, tumbles back down onto the couch and kicks back, "I'll be here just in case."

20 hours

So you can keep me

A nurse opens the door with a tray and clipboard in hand to conduct an hourly assessment of his condition, not minding your head placement on his chest. He's still unresponsive to anything external.

I**nside the pocket of your ripped jeans **

As the test ends and the nurse closes the door on her way out, his finger twitches.

30 hours

Holding me closer til our eyes meet

Joe wakes you up softly with a bowl of soup in hand– something he bought from the cafeteria upstairs. You lift your heavy head from its recent spot and blink your bleary eyes at him, giving away a wry smile and telling him you'll eat later on.

You won't ever be alone

"By they way, this slipped from your pocket." He slips something off the table and hands it to you with a knowing look, that something being the dual polaroids you've taped together the other night. You take it from him deliberately and turn your head to Ben, before staring down at the joint pictures, nostalgia ever so sudden like a whiplash.

Wait for me to come home

35 hours

Loving can heal

Rami and Lucy have stopped by to visit and take your 'shifts' considering Rosy is still absent and you and Joe had to return to the hotel to change. The attending physician and a nurse come in to replace his breathing tube with a nasal cannula, since the assessment done hours prior has shown that he's already capable of breathing on his own.

39 hours

Loving can mend your soul

"Funny how today is supposed to be his wedding but we're getting a funeral instead. " Morbidly comments one of Ben's visitors and closest friends. Every single person in the room who has come by to visit Ben shoots a death glare at him for making that joke within a two feet radius of Ben who is sure to give him a bop on the head the minute he gets up.

41 hours

And it's the only thing that I know

Meanwhile Rosy had spent the entire day rescheduling the wedding and the once volatile reactions she's had do a 360 and is brought down to one, constant look as she bumps into you on your way to Ben's room.

42 hours

I swear it will get easier, remember that with every piece of you

You both don't say a word until you've settled down on the couch as she strays to Ben's side and wipes the glistening speckle of sweat on his cheek with her thumb, the silence coming to a close as you pry the words out of your mouth.

"Rosy, believe me. I have never harboured the thought of coming between you both. I'm only ever there for him as a friend."

And it's the only thing we take with us when we die

Giving you an impassive eye, she ignores your words entirely and turns her attention back to her fiance.

45 hours

We keep this love in a photograph

You don't leave the room with the hours progressing to the moment he's timed to wake up. A lot of people have paid him a visit, cracking jokes and talking to him notwithstanding the fact that he's utterly unresponsive. They've done all they can to lighten the mood in the room, hoping all their antics and bliss would lure Ben out of his induced insensibility. But he's nowhere near the edge.

We made these memories for ourselves

47 hours

With Rosy snuggled up against his side, Ben retains immobility and it's a sight you're not used to since he's one of the most fidgety arseholes who's ever graced your life. You know you'd be bombed by her if you do this with her close by, but you had given yourself exactly 48 hours to stay before heading back.

Where our eyes are never closing, hearts are never broken

And so you wander to the opposite side of the bed and peer at down your wristwatch for the time.

Time's forever frozen and still.

48 hours

"Ben?" You whimper close to his ear. He's not responding. You know he wouldn't wake up that quickly at the strike of the exact hour but you're impatient to say goodbye to him with his forest, green eyes on full display and wandering around your (Y/E/C) ones to bolster you up.

"Hey." You coax into his ear again, still no response. The racing beat of your heart has matched the beeps of the heart monitor. His heart beats. The similarity is sketchy but nearly symbolic. You're leaving in the morning and he's not up and lively for you to fervently crush in a parting embrace.

"Bud, please. I can't force you to wake up but I'm leaving tomorrow. You have to help me...here." At this point, though how eager you are to, you can't let some tears stream down from your eyes since the possibility of Rosy waking up to you catching sobs is feasible, but Ben's involuntary stillness is not helping you with that ordeal. Losing all hope for a night, you straighten up and collect your things from the couch, deciding to come back one last time tomorrow prior to your departure.

You quickly open the door to the attending physician who's about to step in to take physical tests but you whisk past him without taking a second look.

Easy to say you didn't have a good night sleep with all the stresses weighing down on you that night. Either you hyperventilated in your slumber or remained asleep but with tears seeping from your half-closed eyes.

You've sent Lucy a text in the early hours of the morning notifying her about your departure today. She hasn't responded yet.

"Just a 24-hour delay? Are they that heartless?" Leaning on the door frame of your hotel room with a bitten donut in his hand, Joe questions as he watches you prop your luggage against the open door. "I had to reschedule the flight thrice last month, this one being the latest. It's only reasonable," You huff as a matter of fact, fixing the scarf that has dangled loose around your neck and staring into oblivion barely a second after going tight-lipped.

Finishing his donut, Joe pokes you out of your momentary trance. "You alright?"

You shake your head.

"I don't even know if he's awake now. It's past 48 hours and what if he-"

"There's only one way to find out," appeasing your elevating worry, he grabs you by the shoulders and looks you square in the eye, silently guaranteeing you of his recovery.

Since he'll be driving you to the airport, your things are neatly stored in the confines of the backseat but of course, you have to see Ben one last time, setting aside all the excruciating anticipation.

You scurry into the entrance with Joe by your side, out of breaths by the time you arrive at the door of Ben's room. Taking precautionary measures, you knock firmly on the surface expecting someone or Rosy to answer. But nada. You swap some looks with Joe and twist the knob gently, finding the room free of visitors and medical staff. Perhaps they've assessed him an hour prior.

"No one's around."

As you begin slipping a foot through the ajar door, Joe puts a hand on your shoulder, stopping you mid-step.

"Lucy's on her way."

His update on her reply makes you smile and you continue into the room, seeing the curtains that had blocked the sunlight for two days cast aside, spilling some sunlight into the room.

You take small, wobbly steps along the floor, unable to accept that until now he hasn't fluttered open those orbs you loved staring into so much. You suddenly fear that a complication has risen and is causing his extended unconsciousness but that must be the least of your worries.

So you can keep me, inside the pocket of your ripped jeans

He has to hear you. He has to. He has to.

He's gone really pasty. Dark circles under his eyes despite being asleep for two days. He has grown a scruff and looks painfully unruly, but still a face of an angel. You crouch and take his free hand in yours– careful not to disconnect the IV tube from his wrist, caressing it and drawing in a sharp inhale to free yourself of any doubt to speak up. "Ben. It's Y/N. You're scaring us, you know. The doctor said you'd wake up earlier but why? Why haven't you? What are you doing in there?"

This being the end of the long haul for you, you're not forcing anything at bay anymore– not your tears, not your peeves and certainly not your feelings. You interlace your fingers around his and kiss the back of his hand, your cheeks growing scarlet and wet with tears.

Holding me closer til our eyes meet, you won't ever be alone.

You get up from crouching and throw your arm around him in defiance of the possibility of applying a lot of pressure on his chest. It feels so different holding him that way. For the time you have left, an overly emotional, one-sided conversation should make up for the lost times that would've been great for those.

And if you hurt me, that's okay baby only words bleed

"You really kept that Homecoming picture, didn't you? Coincidentally I did too, just forgot it was there as well. But I pieced it back, by the way. Ironic that we both made a promise on those polaroids the night before graduation. I-I have it with me here, just so you know. Just thought I'd bring it out since...I'll be going soon." You pull the pictures out from the pocket of your coat with trembling hands, eager to wave them in front of him. Once out, you place it on the bedside table for him to keep once more but with your share of the picture.

Inside these pages you just hold me, and I won't ever let you go

You lay your forehead on his, your tears dripping onto his closed lids as you sob his name to get him to wake, at the same time feeling his soft exhales brush against your chin. " I told you I'd be strong and I'm trying to be. I know it sounds like a selfish thing to do but you have to trust me on this one. I want to move on, Ben. You're bound to be wedded soon and have a family of your own. I want to be there for that. I want to be that aunt who'll spoil your kids and make them fight you for the craziest demands. Those things I'd gladly do...if I wasn't this hopeless for you," Little by little, your voice comes out as broken whisper– losing your strength to add any more things to say in the process. On the other side of the door, Joe is finally joined by Lucy who has arrived not a minute late and they can't help but tear up a little at how uncontrolled your crying is slowly turning out, it's become audible enough to be heard from outside.

"Ben, buddy. Come on." He huffs against the hardwood as he and Lucy are tempted to barge in.

Burying your face into the exposed column of his neck with your arm slackening from being draped across his chest, you utter a voiceless but heartfelt statement.

Wait for me to come home

"I love you, Benjamin Jones. Be happy for me."

Your words hang thinly in the fragile air as you pull away from that proximity and leave a long kiss on his forehead, walking back sadly to the door with your hand outstretched ready to grab ahold of the knob.

"H-how could I be..."

The words released sound like a mere memory resonating in your head but you are proved wrong once you turn around.

#borhap #queen #ben hardy #ben hardy imagine #ben hardy x reader #borhap cast #borhap cast x reader #borhap imagine #ben hardy fanfic #imagine #fanfic

123 notes · View notes