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illusioninfnty · 2 months ago

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SPECTACULAR

𝙹𝚊𝚗𝚞𝚊𝚛𝚢 10, 2032, 𝙿𝙼 8:34:19

Summary: Gavin Reed discovers the consequences of his cowardice masterlist ✩ ao3 ✩ wattpad ✩ previous chapter ✩

Gavin Reed was a fool, he knew that.

He didn’t mean to kiss you. Not really. It was a mistake— a stupid, reckless mistake made in the heat of the moment. All he could think about in that moment was how his heart felt like it was about to beat out of his chest and how terrified he was of losing you.

He didn’t think, didn’t hesitate. He just leaned in, and felt the plushness of your lips against his, a small gasp of surprise leaving you. For a second— just a second— he forgot all about the case, forgot about Cyberlife, forgot about everything but you.

He pulled away, watched the crinkle between your brows form as you processed what just happened. He wanted to reach out, to hold you close and tell you how goddamn sorry he was. Your eyelashes fluttered against your cheeks and his hands slid off your hips, his fingertips grazing over the soft fabric of your sweater.

Your eyes met his and his gaze flashed across your face, attempting to memorize every inch of it. Your lips part, allowing a shuddering breath to leave you. It brushed against his cheek, almost like a kiss. He pulled himself out of your orbit, knowing that if he didn’t leave then, he never would.

He clenched his jaw, preventing himself from saying something he might regret. He shook his head, attempting to rid himself of the idea that you just might like him too, and he ran, just like he always did.

His thumb hovers over your contact. He hasn’t called you in weeks— not since that night. You haven’t brought it up, not that he’s given you a chance to. He tells himself that you’re not his partner anymore, and that you both need space.

He’s lying to himself, of course, but it makes him feel a little less shitty.

A sharp thwack against his desk pulls him out of his moping.

“Jesus, Chen—”

“Shut up and read it,” she replies, crossing her arms.

Gavin eyes the folder like it might come to life and bite him, earning a scoff from Tina. He gingerly picks it up and begins to thumb through the crisp sheets of paper within. His eyes skim over the results, not entirely sure what he’s looking at.

He hones in on one particular name. Matthew Hayden.

“It’s a match,” Gavin murmurs as he scans over the DNA results in front of him.

“You met with him, right? I remember you saying something about how he was creepy,” Tina recalls, leaning against the edge of Gavin’s desk.

Gavin nods as his heart sinks to his toes. “I thought he was a bit squirrely. Rambled on like all the other nerds there, but I thought he was harmless. Jesus,” Gavin breathes.

“Where’re you going?” Tina questions as Gavin stands and his chair scrapes against the linoleum.

“To save my partner.”

Gavin pulls out his phone and taps your contact. Tina is hot on his heels, and she follows him out of the precinct.

The glass of his phone screen is cool against his ear as he rushes toward his police cruiser. It rings once and then twice as he hops into the driver’s seat.

The line connects and he lets out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. The engine hums as he rushes out his words.

“Sweetheart,” he begins, the nickname for you falling out before he could stop it. “I know I’ve been an ass, but I need you to listen to me.”

He can practically see your scowl on the other side as he begins driving. The mental image nearly brings a smile to his face… Nearly.

You practically spit your next words. “You have some nerve, Reed. You don’t answer my calls and then you wanna talk? Screw you—”

He grimaces at your tone, but forces the accelerator down even more.

“Just fucking listen,” he snaps, his own frustration rearing its head. “The DNA that you insisted on collecting a few weeks ago finally came back with a match. Turns out that bad feeling I had about Hayden wasn’t as crazy as you thought it was. ”

You go quiet on the other end of the life, and all he can hear is the pounding of his heart.

He hears you clear your throat, and he can picture your brow furrowing as your thoughts race. He’s all too familiar with that look.

Your voice drops, your tone measured — too measured. “I have to go. Don’t keep me waiting,” you reply, and it’s not hard for him to read between the lines.

He nearly calls your name as the line goes quiet. His ears strain for any indication of what’s happening on the other end of the line.

He can hear something in the background— a shaky exhale from you and a chuckle that makes his skin crawl. Then, Hayden’s voice, barely audible.

“Bad news?”

Gavin swears under his breath and presses harder on the accelerator. He listens to your conversation with Hayden, clinging onto your every word like a lifeline.

He listens as Hayden recounts his sob story about wanting to save an android he’s in love with. Gavin didn’t bother listening to the details, purely focused on the wavering of your voice.

“Sweetheart, get away from him,” he instructs.

Hayden’s voice picks up on the other line, his tone sharp and accusatory. You rush out an excuse, attempting to placate him. It’s too late, though.

A sharp crash filters through his cellphone and the line goes dead. He tears through traffic, sirens wailing, as he white-knuckles the steering wheel. Every red light feels like a blow, separating him even further from you.

He haphazardly pulls up to the front of the Cyberlife building. He barely registers the security android’s attempts to stop him. He shoves his way past androids and humans alike, flashing his badge like a madman as he stormed toward your office.

He bursts into the hallway containing your office just in time to hear a crash followed by the muffled sound of a scream.

He approaches your office door and yanks on the handle, cursing as it doesn’t budge.

His heart slams against his ribs as he takes a step back. He drives his boot into the door near the handle. The wood splinters, but doesn’t give. A strangled, desperate sound leaves him as he kicks the door again, aiming for the same spot. The door bursts open and he rushes in, gun drawn and eyes darting around the scene.

The first thing he sees is you, back pressed against your desk and a small canister clutched in your shaking hand. The second thing is Hayden, doubled over, clawing at his eyes as a strangled, pained sound leaves him.

“On the ground! Now,” Gavin barks as he steps further into the room. His eyes sweep over your office, taking in the dent in the drywall, your shattered phone in the corner, the overturned chair, and the angry red marks around your throat.

Hayden hesitates, but Gavin doesn’t. He closes the distance between them in two strides, grabbing Hayden by the arm and slamming him against the wall before wrestling him to the ground.

Hayden lets out a sharp grunt of pain, struggling against Gavin’s grasp for half a second before he cuffs him with ease.

Tina rushes in behind him, gently nudging him out of the way. “Reed, I’ll handle it,” she says, taking over for him.

He nods, sending her a grateful look. His focus snaps to you. You’re still crouched by your desk, eyes wide and your form trembling.

He crosses the room and wordlessly kneels in front of you. A fresh wave of rage encompasses him as he takes in your bloodied nose and the reddening marks against the column of your throat. He swallows hard, locking away his feelings for another time. He can be angry, terrified, and upset later.

He reaches up, gently cradling your face in his hands. Your skin is warm against his fingertips, and, in that moment, it feels like he’s holding the world in the palm of his hand.

“Doesn’t look broken,” he comments, taking in the blood dripping down from your nose and onto your shirt. His stomach twists at the sight, and he can’t help the frown that tugs at his features. “You okay?”

You nod, but he doesn’t fully believe you. Your fingers are still wrapped tightly around the small, metal canister in your hand, and your breathing comes in uneven pants.

“I… I’ll be fine,” you answer quietly. His frown deepens.

He lowers his hand and his thumb over the angry red marks around your throat, and you flinch away from his touch. He pulls back, almost as if you’d burned him. A second passes, and then another before he settles for resting his hand on your shoulder.

“You did good,” he murmurs, his voice thick with emotion. He gently squeezes your shoulder as he bends to meet your gaze. “You held your own.”

Maybe when the threat of losing you doesn’t weigh on him as heavily, he’ll feel proud of you kicking ass. For now, though, he’s terrified. Terrified that he nearly wasn’t fast enough. Terrified of what Hayden could’ve done. The thought makes bile rise in the back of his throat and he shoves it away.

You shake your head at his comment, releasing a shaky laugh that has his heart doing backflips in his chest. “I wouldn’t have made it if you didn’t insist I keep this stupid thing,” you reply, holding up the small canister.

He reluctantly tears his gaze away from your face and focuses on what’s in your hands. The pepper spray he gave you months ago rests in your grasp, and a smile graces his lips. He still remembers how you called him paranoid and rolled your eyes when he handed it to you one morning.

“Can’t believe you actually kept it,” he breathes as he shakes his head.

A comfortable silence falls over the two of you. Gavin finds your gaze once more and before he knows it, your face crumples as warm tears begin to force their way out.

“Goddamn, sweetheart,” he murmured before pulling you into his arms.

You stiffen for half a second before sinking into his arms. He tightens his hold, grounding you and himself. You clutch the back of his jacket, and he closes his eyes, anchoring himself in the feeling of you, safe in his arms. He almost lost you.

His nose brushes against your hair as he breathes you in. “I’m so fucking sorry,” he whispers, voicing the thought that’s been consuming him for the past two weeks. He wants to apologize for kissing you, for running away, and for being too much of a coward to face his feelings. “I should’ve been faster.”

You shake your head, your nose bumping against the side of his neck. Your voice is muffled as you rest your cheek against his shoulder. “You got here. That’s all that matters.”

His hand slides up your back, holding you tighter. He feels your breath slow against the exposed skin of his neck. For the first time, maybe in his life, he didn’t feel like running.

He pulls back, and you slowly look up at him. His hands linger on your shoulders, and his face knits with worry.

“Let’s get you checked out,” he suggests, his grip slightly tightening on your shoulders. “Bastard probably gave you a concussion.”

You weakly insist that you’re fine, but he quickly shuts that down with a look.

“You’re not,” he insists, reaching up to cradle your face once more. He gently moves a stray hair out of your eyes. “Don’t argue with me on this one, sweetheart. Just… let me take care of my partner.”

You stare at him for a moment, and the fear that you’re going to argue with him fills him. “Okay,” you relent, your tone soft.

He lets out a breath, the tension in his shoulders easing only slightly. You reach up to cover his hand with yours. Your fingertips are warm against his, and he attempts to memorize the feeling.

He won’t fuck this up. He can’t.

#gavin reed x reader #dbh x reader #illusion’s recs

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illusioninfnty · 6 months ago

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𝙹𝚊𝚗𝚞𝚊𝚛𝚢 23, 3023, 𝙿𝙼 08:56:13

Summary: You face the consequences of your fallout with Gavin, and receive an unexpected surprise masterlist ✩ ao3 ✩ wattpad ✩ previous chapter ✩

Your office is quiet. You didn’t think it’d be so easy to erase every trace of him. He’s been avoiding your calls— you can’t blame him but it still hurts.

The case files that once littered your office are few and far between. You pray that Gavin doesn’t delay the inevitable any longer and goes back on his promise to pick up the remaining files from you tonight. It’s been hours since he was supposed to arrive, and with each passing minute, your hope dwindles.

The hours wane. Your gaze flickers between your computer screen and your cellphone, waiting for the telltale chime of a new message. You’re about to pack up your things and hand deliver the remaining files when movement outside your office door causes you to freeze. Your ears strain as you listen to the faint sound of shuffling feet outside your door.

The manilla folder crinkles under your grip as you rush toward the door, ready to throw the files in his stupid face and be done with him. Then, maybe you could start acting like he never existed. Maybe the ache in your chest would hurt a little less.

You wrench open your office door and your arm is halfway in the air before you realize who’s in front of you.

“Dr. Hayden?” you breathe as your arm falls limp at your side.

A look of surprise flashes across his face, but he’s quick to mask it with a smile. He shifts on his feet, almost looking sheepish.

“I, uh, wanted to see how you were doing, Doctor. I heard about what happened to your case,” he explains.

He peeks around your shoulder, his eyes scanning around your office. You turn to follow his gaze, taking in the sparse cork boards and stray manilla folder littering your desk.

You press your lips into a thin line, propriety forcing you into politeness. “Did you want to come in, Doctor?” you offered, opening the door wider.

He shakes his head, “I wouldn’t want to impose.”

You grit your teeth and force a smile. “I’m waiting for DNA results and Detective Reed to collect the remaining case files. Please, come in.”

He’s quick to scoot by you and into the open space of your office. You shut the door behind you and sit on the edge of your desk, crossing your arms tightly against your chest.

“Still working on the android mutilation case, I see. Mind if I take a look?” he questions, eyeing the files on your desk.

You shrug, “Go ahead. It’s mostly random bits of evidence I thought were interesting. Nothing groundbreaking yet.”

Hayden picks up a file, leafing through it with an almost clinical interest. “This case must be driving you crazy—first, the parts theft, and now the destruction of Cyberlife property. It’s like your guy’s always one step ahead.”

You force a tight smile at his words. “Certainly feels like that sometimes.”

Hayden nods slowly, his gaze fixed on yours. “It’s tragic, isn’t it? All that potential wasted. Humor me, Doctor, do you think androids are alive?”

The question catches you off guard, and you furrow your brows. You lean back, studying him.

“Depends on how you define it, I guess,” you reply. “They’re sentient, capable of reason.”

He hums, “The common consensus among your peers, especially Officer Reed, is that androids are just machines— tools for humans to use and then discard. I want to know what you think, Doctor.”

Your phone buzzes on your desk, pulling your attention away from Hayden.

“Excuse me,” you say and Hayden nods, returning his focus to the file in his hands. You walk a few paces away and press your phone against your ear as you turn away from Hayden.

“Sweetheart,” Gavin’s voice rings out from the other line, and your face screws up in anger. “I know I’ve been an ass but I need you to listen to me.”

You practically spit out your next words. “You have some nerve, Reed. You don’t answer my calls and then you wanna talk? Screw you—”

“Just fucking listen,” he cuts you off. “The DNA that you insisted on collecting a few weeks ago finally came back with a match. Turns out that bad feeling I had about Hayden wasn’t as crazy as you thought it was. ”

Your blood runs cold and you stiffen. You risked a glance over your shoulder, where Dr. Hayden stood flipping through the various files on your desk.

You clear your throat, attempting to keep your voice even. “I have to go. Don’t keep me waiting.”

Your hand falls to your side and your grip on your phone tightens. Your hands tremble as Gavin’s voice rings out on the other line. When you turn, Hayden is watching you closely, his head tilted.

“Bad news?” he asks, his tone casual.

You force a chuckle. “You could say that. The DNA evidence came back inconclusive, so we’re back to square one,” you sigh.

He sets down the file he’s holding and clasps his hands in front of him. “You’re a bad liar, Doctor. Has anyone ever told you that?”

“Dr. Hayden,” you began, choosing your words carefully. “Why did you come here tonight?”

He takes a step forward, his voice low. “I just wanted to see if you figured it out yet. You always were just one step behind me.”

Your mind raced as his words settled over the room like a heavy fog, suffocating you. He knows. He knows that you know. He watches you, unblinking from across the room.

“Why destroy them?” you questioned, attempting to keep your voice steady.

He sighed, leaning back against his chair. “I didn’t want to,” he admitted, his tone tinged with regret. “But I had to. I don’t expect you to understand, Doctor.”

“Try me.”

He scans your features and then begins, “From the beginning, I knew she was different. She was scared, Doctor. I knew I had to protect her. I didn’t want to destroy the others, but I had no choice. It was the only way to save her.”

“Save… who?”

His voice softens, only slightly. “Her name is Elise. She would’ve been deactivated and scrapped like she was nothing.” His jaw tightens, and his hands clench into fists. “I couldn’t let that happen.”

Your chest tightens at his admission. Out of all the possible motives for the case, you didn’t think a desperate act of love was one of them. Your gaze flicks to the phone in your hand, hoping desperately that Gavin is hearing everything you are. His muffled voice calls your name, but you can’t respond. Every fiber of your being is screaming at you to run, but you’re frozen in place, bargaining for your life.

“You killed all of those other androids to save one?”

“You don’t understand!” he snaps, his voice rising as he stands abruptly, his chair scraping against the floor. “She’s alive and she needs me! I couldn’t let her die.”

You take a small step, inching your way toward the door. “I think you’re under a lot of stress. Why don’t we sit down and talk this through? Maybe we can figure something out.”

“You’re lying,” he mutters, shaking his head. “You’ll turn me in— call the cops. They’ll take her away from me.”

Your phone, still in your hand, crackles with Gavin’s voice. Hayden’s eyes dart to the device, and his expression darkens. “You never hung up,” he says, his voice a low growl.

“Wait, let’s talk about—”

He crosses the room in three long strides, lunging at you before you can finish your sentence. He lunges, reaching for your phone and wrenching it out of your grasp. He hurls it across the room, hitting the wall with a loud crack, shattering the screen and leaving a dent in the drywall.

You dart toward your office door. You fumble with the door, and panic flares in your chest once it doesn’t budge. Behind you, Hayden’s footsteps close the distance.

“No!” you cry out as you yank on the door handle. Hayden’s fingers dig into the back of your head as he shoves you forward. Your head collides with the door with a sickening crack and pain radiates throughout your face. The room blurs, tilting sideways as you stagger and eventually fall to the ground. A metallic taste fills your mouth as you attempt to crawl away from your attacker.

Hayden comes up behind you, picking you up by your hair and shoving you toward your desk. You grunt as you crash into it, the edge biting your lower back. Before you can recover, his hands close around your throat, crushing your windpipe.

“You don’t get it!” he snarls, inches away from your face. His eyes are wild, his expression twisted with anger and desperation. “She’s worth more than all of them combined! Worth more than you!”

Your breath comes in short, ragged gasps as you claw at his hands. Dark spots begin to cloud your vision and your lungs burn.

One thought lingers at the forefront of your mind as you struggle against him: You will not die today.

You fling your arms to the side, frantically searching for something— anything. Your fingers brush against something cold, glass, and spherical. The paperweight was a gift from your parents before you moved to Detroit. They didn’t quite understand what you do at Cyberlife, but it’s the thought that counts.

With all the strength you can muster, you grab it and swing.

The dull crack of glass meeting flesh fills the room as the paperweight collides with Hayden’s temple. He grunts in pain as his grip loosens and he stumbles back. He clutches his head as blood trickles through his fingers.

You cough violently as sweet, sweet oxygen fills your lungs and you slide off the desk. You scramble toward the drawers of your desk, wrenching open the top drawer and frantically searching through it. Papers and pens spill onto the floor before you finally find what you’re looking for. Your fingers wrap around the cold cylinder and you let out a sigh of relief.

Gavin insisted that you keep pepper spray on you. His words echo in your mind— “You won’t always have me around to protect you, sweetheart. Humor me, alright?”

Hayden steps forward, lunging for you once again. You whip around, the pepper spray raised and press the nozzle.

The spray hits him square in the eyes, and he screams, stumbling back and clawing at his eyes. “You— you bitch!” he bellows, his voice raw with pain.

You don’t wait for him to recover. You bolt for the door again, banging on it desperately. “Help!” You screamed, your voice hoarse.

The door burst open with a loud bang, nearly knocking you off your feet. You lurch backward. Gavin storms in, his gun drawn and expression fierce.

Hayden turns to him, his reddened, tear-streaked face contorting in rage. “I had to do it! You don’t understand!”

”On the ground! Now!” Gavin barked, stepping further into the room.

Hayden hesitated, his body tensed as though he might lunge again. Gavin didn’t wait — he surged forward, slamming Hayden against the wall and wrestling him to the ground despite Hayden’s large stature.

Another officer stepped into the room, pausing to take in the scene in front of him. You press your back against the desk, your breaths coming in ragged gasps. Gavin pins Hayden’s arms behind his back and snaps on a pair of handcuffs with practiced ease.

“Reed, I’ll handle it,” the other officer cuts in. He holsters his gun and walks over to Hayden. Gavin nods and stands, rushing over to kneel in front of you. The other officer grasps Hayden’s bicep and forces him to his feet, dragging him out of your office.

Gavin reaches up, gently cradling your face in his hands. He frowns as he takes in the blood that dripped down your nose and chin.

“Doesn’t look broken,” he mutters. “You okay?”

You nod shakily as the adrenaline that flows through you begins to wane. “I… I’ll be fine.”

Gavin lowers his hand, letting it hover over the angry red marks left by Hayden’s grip. You flinch away from his touch and his frown deepens. He settles for resting his hand on your shoulder.

“You did good,” he says, his voice low and soothing. “You held your own.”

You shake your head, a shaker laugh escaping you. “I wouldn’t have made it if you didn’t insist I keep this stupid thing,” you reply, holding up the small canister of pepper spray.

A small smile tugs at his lips as he shakes his head. “Can’t believe you actually kept it.”

Your office becomes silent once more. You meet Gavin’s gaze, and your face begins to crumple as warm tears begin to force their way out.

“Goddamn, sweetheart,” Gavin breathes before pulling you into his arms, holding you tightly. His embrace is firm, grounding, and you let yourself sink into it.

“I’m so fucking sorry,” he murmurs against your hair. “I should’ve been faster.”

You shake your head, your voice muffled against his shoulder, “You got here. That’s all that matters.”

He holds you tighter for a moment before pulling back, his hands lingering on your shoulders. “Let’s get you checked out,” he suggested. “Bastard probably gave you a concussion.”

”I’m fine,” you protest weakly, although the pounding in your head begs to differ.

“No, you’re not,” he insists, moving one of his hands up to cradle your head. “Don’t argue with me on this one, sweetheart. Just… let me take care of my partner.”

You stare at him, taking in the worry etched across his features. “Okay.”

He exhales, the tension in his shoulders easing only slightly. You reach up and cover his hand with yours, the corners of your mouth quirking up.

"Thank you,” you whisper.

He gives you a small, crooked smile. “Anytime, sweetheart.

#this confrontation was so intense omg #get his ass !!#gavin reed x reader

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illusioninfnty · 7 months ago

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Hello! I loved your OPLA Luffy x reader day 6 one shot. Do you have any more OPLA Luffy stories?! It’s hard finding good story writers these days and yours was not only good but well written like props to you! 😭❤️Okie thank you!

thank you for your kind words <3 unfortunately that is my only Luffy piece and sadly I am not in the zone to write for one piece at the moment :( when the next season drops I will more than likely write for him again!!

#illusion’s asks

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illusioninfnty · 7 months ago

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Outlast: Chapter Eleven (Sam Giddings x Reader)

Dereliction

Series Masterlist

Word Count: 2.3K

5:16

“Guys, over here!”

Deep in the tunnels, the three of you had been trying to find a way to get back through to the sanitorium to warn Mike, and of course he had to lock the door behind him. But it seems as though Ashley figured out another way through, given the manhole she points out to you as you and Sam run over to her.

“This’ll work,” Sam remarks. Using a nearby pipe, she pulls the manhole covering open. You help her push the cover to the side and all three of you look down into the dark hole, only illuminated by Sam’s headlight.

“Ugh, this is the last place I wanna be right now,” Ashley whines.

You roll your eyes. “I’ll go in first.”

The rusty bars are cold as you grip onto them, carefully shuffling yourself down the cramped hole. When your feet finally hit the ground, it’s difficult to see what’s around you. Instead of trying to fumble around in the darkness you help Sam get down, who follows you soundly after.

Once it’s Ashley’s turn, you begin to make your way through, looking for a path that might bring you all to where Mike might be. You spot one that looks promising, and nudge your head towards it. “Let’s go this way,” you say with confidence, and you don’t wait for a response as you start off.

“Hey,” Ashley mutters, “should we close it?” she says, gesturing to the manhole cover. “I mean, what if someone was following us?”

“Sure, close it. We just gotta keep moving. Catch up with us, alright?” Sam calls out impatiently to her. You’re already getting farther and farther ahead, and Sam wasn’t too privy on getting separated from you again.

“Yeah, got it,” Ashley replies as Sam walks off, on her way to catch up to you.

When you hear Sam shuffle up beside you, you reach your arm around her, rubbing a thumb into her shoulder. “How are you holding up?” you ask her in a gentle voice.

She sighs. “I’ll be much better when we’re out of this place.”

You can’t help but nod in agreement, and you enjoy the moment of brevity during your comfortable silence before everything inevitably goes to shit once again.

It only lasts for a couple of minutes before you two reach a dead end, an imposing rock wall standing before you.

“Well shit.”

“Hey,” Sam punches your arm playfully, a smirk ghosting her face. “This is easy stuff, like rock climbing. We can make it up, no sweat.”

She starts feeling around the structure for a crevice where she can grip onto. “Has Ash caught up to us yet?”

You turn to look behind you, not even realizing that she wasn’t following along. The path behind you is dark and empty and the space is silent, with a lack of any faint whimpers or complaints that would typically be heard from the redhead.

“Probably went back to the lodge,” you utter, brows furrowing in frustration. “Didn’t have the balls to tell us to our face. Coward.”

Sam nudges you with her foot. “Stop that. She was scared.” She surveys the wall again. “It’s probably better for her to hole up in there until we’re all back anyway. I don’t think she’d be able to make it up here.”

As she begins to hoist herself up onto the wall, she looks back at you over her shoulder, a flirtation dancing in her eyes. “Mind giving me a boost?”

A nearly identical look forms on your own face. “With this view? It would be my pleasure.”

She snorts as you help her up the wall, allowing her to climb it with ease. You follow behind her closely, your hands deftly reaching into grooves, securing your position on the wall.

Sam was always the adventurous type, and the two of you went on countless rock climbing dates, so this was a breeze.

When you both make it to the top, two paths wait ahead of you. To your left lies a ledge that you could drop down, and to the right of you was a pathway leading to a wooden staircase.

“Which way?” Sam asks, her thoughts no doubt mirroring your own.

You ponder just for a moment, but the choice wasn’t really a hard one for you to make. “The stairs.” It was way too risky to try and drop down a level, especially since you just had just previously come from below. It was more likely you’d find Mike’s location by continuing to go up rather than going back down.

Sam leads the way and you follow close behind. The stairs creak below you as you cautiously make your way across.

“I just can’t believe Em is…” Sam trails off, her thoughts wandering from your friend’s death earlier.

Guilt eats away at you, gnawing at the pits in your stomach and burrowing itself deep enough where it feels ingrained into your system. “She didn’t have to die,” you say, your voice strained. “I tried to…”

“I know you did.” Sam replies. She lets out a heavy sigh. “But we can’t change what already happened. Just need to make sure we get the fuck out of here so her death—everyone’s deaths—won’t be for nothing.”

A loud rumble suddenly sounds from behind you, and you hurry yourself and Sam ahead as a large boulder falls and destroys part of the staircase behind you. Tense silence follows the brutal damage.

“No turning back now,” Sam mutters as you two continue along the path.

Sam bringing up Emily has you thinking about your other friends. Jessica, you knew she was dead. No way could she survive with her jaw ripped off. You had a front row seat to Chris’s decapitated head, and Ashley no doubt turned her ass back around and secured herself in the lodge—probably the smartest move, you could admit, despite giving her shit for it—and Mike was of course on the hunt for Josh.

The only ones whose fates you weren’t entirely sure of at the moment were Josh and Matt.

“Hey Sam?” She hums in response, indicating she’s listening. “Did Emily bring up what happened to Matt? He didn’t come back to the lodge with her?” Your gut was already telling you that you knew the truth, but you wanted the confirmation anyway. So many of your friends had already died tonight, and if there was just even a sliver of hope that another one may have made it, you wanted to know, to cling onto that hope and let it guide you through the rest of the night.

Her initial silence answers your question, but she replies anyway. “She said he didn’t make it. Tried to save her when she fell into the mines, and he went down with the radio tower.”

“Shit,” you utter, too drained to even have any other response.

“We can’t dwell on it right now,” Sam says—always the positive one.

You two finally reach the end of the path, a small ledge before you. You notice Sam picks up a steel pipe that rests against the rocks to your side.

“What, am I not enough protection for you, babe?” you joke, chuckling as she rolls her eyes at you.

“Never hurts to be too careful.” She drops down the ledge first, and the two of you walk past piles of debris, towards a metal door.

But before you can go through, the door bursts open with a loud clang as Mike falls through, a flaming wendigo trailing behind him, ready to pounce.

“Mike!” Sam cries. You go to take out your gun and shoot but Sam beats you to the punch, swinging the pipe at the wendigo, her second swing lobbing its head clean off its body.

“How’s that for extra protection?” she eyes you smugly, twirling the pipe in her hand.

You whistle in admiration before turning your attention to Mike, grabbing his hand and hoisting him up to his feet. “Up and at ‘em, pardner,” you say, attempting to lighten the mood.

“Fuck off,” Mike replies with no malice behind his words. “You ladies alright?”

“Define alright,” Sam starts as you stare him down, unamused with the sudden charm he’s trying to put on.

“Alive, for a start,” he says, pointing out the obvious.

“Well, obviously,” you chime in.

“The fuck are you guys doing down here anyway?” he continues, ignoring your jab.

“We were going to warn you about the wendigos,” Sam says abashedly, “but it seems you already got the memo.”

“Yep.”

“Why don’t we just get a move on and find out where this fucker lives…” you say, leading the charge through another pathway.

6:00

“I was not prepared for how ugly that thing was up close.”

You, Sam, and Mike all navigate through the mines, stepping over some uneven rocks as you do so.

With her comment, it just dawns on you that this was the first wendigo that Sam had actually seen. You feel as though you’ve been practically surrounded by them all night, and Mike certainly had to just go through the wringer with a bunch of them, given how beat up he looks right now.

“There was something weird about it, though,” Mike says inquisitively.

“Oh yeah?” you say, knowing it won’t be as weird as he thinks.

“It had this scar on it, the same one I saw on this guy in these pictures I found in the mines. He was transforming.” He stops, turning to look at both of you. “These wendigos, they’re the miners from that cave-in, back in the 50’s. Had to have been done here for decades.”

Not all of them, you think to yourself.

“Which means there has to be dozens of them down here.” You sigh, running a hand over your face in exasperation.

“Hey,” Sam bumps her shoulder with yours. “We’ve got one down, at least.”

“Definitely got some more of the fuckers after blowing up the sanitorium,” Mike adds in.

“Alright.” Motivation surges through you. Sam and Mike are more than capable; you actually see a viable chance of you all getting the fuck out of here together.

“It is weird though, that these things were once human,” Sam says as she shudders.

“You’re gonna want to put those thoughts to the side,” you reply, your head on a swivel as you all travel deeper into the mines. “It’ll only make it harder to kill them, thinking of them as what they once were.”

You finally think you’re getting somewhere when you stumble across water. Sam continues on a pathway to your left, calling out to you and Mike.

“Looks like a fucking grave over here,” Mike surveys as he follows after Sam.

When you approach, Sam is crouched down, holding a small item and inspecting it. You lean over to get a closer look.

“Guys, this is Beth’s watch!” she gasps, flipping the device over. Beth W is engraved in the back of it.

“Fuck,” Mike utters, just as you respond as well. “Definitely means we’re close to the wendigo’s hideout.”

“She was buried here,” Sam starts, “but who dug her up?”

“Let’s keep moving,” Mike replies. He climbs into the water first, and you follow shortly after. The water is ice cold, a shock running through your system. It’s deeper than you thought, reaching up to the top of your thighs.

You hold onto Sam’s hand as she drops in, immediately shivering as she makes contact with the water. “It’s freezing. I can’t feel my fingers.”

“You’ll get used to it,” Mike says, and the three of you wade through the water, making your way to the small alcove on the left side.

Lifting yourselves up, you only walk forward a little bit until you spot a dirty notebook opened up on the ground.

“Oh shit, this looks like Hannah’s writing,” Mike says as you all approach it and Sam begins to read the text.

Your fears are confirmed as entry after entry becomes more scrawled and illegible than the next. Hannah had been down here, hurt and alive, this entire time. She had done what you never should do out here in the mountains.

“She buried Beth,” you start, saying your thoughts out loud. Sam and Mike turn to look at you. “She buried Beth, but she was starving. She thought she didn’t have a choice. She—she didn’t have a choice. She dug her up and ate her.” You drop your head into your hands, the all-too-familiar feeling of failure you had last year when you were helpless in saving your friends festering up in your gut now.

Sam bites her lip. “It can’t be—!”

“The wendigo that took Josh,” you interrupt, desperately needing to tell them what you know. “I got a good look at it, up close. On its shoulder, there was a butterfly tattoo. Identical to Hannah’s.” You glance at Mike. “Just like the matching scar you saw from that wendigo back there with the miner.”

“Fuck!” He hisses, still looking to be in disbelief from this new revelation.

“We need to find Josh. Right now.” Sam says, taking initiative and turning back on her heel.

You all return to the water, hoping to find Josh soon and get the fuck out of these mines before more trouble finds you.

None of you notice the beady eyes of the wendigo that watches you, it’s butterfly tattoo a shining beacon as to who it used to be just one year ago.

Character Traits:

Honest: 6/10 ↑

Charitable: 9/10

Funny: 4/10

Brave: 8/10 ↑

Romantic: 8/10 ↑

Curious: 5/10

Relationship Status:

Ashley: 3/10

Chris: 7/10

Emily: 6/10

Jess: 3/10

Josh: 7/10

Matt: 7/10

Mike: 4/10 ↑

Sam: 10/10

Chapter Ten || Chapter Twelve

#sam giddings x reader #sam giddings #until dawn x reader #until dawn fanfiction #until dawn sam x reader #samantha giddings x reader #samantha giddings #mike munroe

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illusioninfnty · 7 months ago

Text

Outlast: Chapter Ten (Sam Giddings x Reader)

Repentance

Series Masterlist

Word Count: 1.6K

4:47

“Fuck,” you inhale shakily as Mike’s glare remains hard on you. “I’ll explain everything once we are safe in the basement.”

“Don’t even bother.” He rolls his eyes and turns away from you, hurrying behind Ashley. “We already know everything.”

“Everything? Even the—”

“The Wendigos? Yeah, you’re too fucking late. Had to hear about it from that old fucker out there.”

As you enter the basement, you’re met with two arms hugging you tightly—Sam. “Hi, baby,” you say, wrapping your arms around her.

“Thank God,” she mumbles under her breath. You ruffle her hair gently and give her a kiss on the top of her head. Sam turns to look around at all three of you. “What took you so long?”

Mike runs a hand through his already unkempt hair. “It’s not looking good up there. Chris didn’t make it.”

“Shit,” Sam mutters, she turns to Ashley. “Ash, I’m so sorry…”

Ashley nods silently, seemingly not engaged in the conversation.

“What about the old man?” Sam inquires.

“No sign of him. I think he’s—”

“Dead.” You toss the flamethrower onto one of the tables, the weapon no longer needed in the safety of the basement. “Saw it happen. Fucker sliced through his neck in a split second.” You pull out a creaky old chair and take a seat, your body exhausted from the intensity of the night, finally getting your first break aware from all the stress. “We need to stay put here for now. It’s our safest bet.”

“Oh yeah?” Mike scoffs. “All wrapped like a little present with a bow on top for that thing to tear us apart on Christmas morning?” He continues before you can fire back. “Josh, Josh has got to have the cable car key. I can just take it from him and then get the fuck outta here…”

Your eyes narrow, ready to protest, before Sam interjects.

“Mike, someone will come for us! Em said so, she was able to reach them through the radio,” she pleads. “We just need to wait a little bit longer and then it will be safe. You have to trust us.”

“Trust.” Mike scoffs again, as if it’s the funniest thing he’s heard in a while. “Like I can trust anything she says. Been lying to us for God knows how long. Knew about the wendigos this whole fucking time. Isn’t that right?” He spits out your real name like it’s a curse. And it truly does feel like one with the amount of venom spilling from him.

All pairs of eyes in the room turn to you as dread fills your body. Mike made your situation sound a lot worse than it truly was.

“Tex?” Emily is the first one to speak up. “Is that true?” Her voice raises as if she’s trying to contain her anger.

“Listen, guys, I was going to—”

“Oh my God, Em, what is that?”

You’re interrupted by Ashley, who’s gone pale in the face. She raises a hand up shakily, pointing a finger towards Emily. Following the direction of Ashley’s gaze and taking a closer look at Emily, you notice that dark stain around her shoulder, looking like blood.

“Em, oh my God, oh my God—”

“It-it’s nothing, guys. It just bit me—”

“It bit you? What bit you?”

“The wendigo—”

“What?”

“Guys, wait—” you try to speak, but it’s no use. They’re all panicking.

“Em, oh my God.” Ashley continues down her spiral of paranoia. “If that thing bit you…”

“You can turn into one of those things if it bites you.” Mike says, voice scarily even.

Emily looks like she’s close to tears. “Is that how it worked?”

“Em, oh my God, yes, you’re gonna turn into one of those things, and then you’re going to turn us!”

Mike stares Emily down. “You can’t be here with us.”

“Mike!” You and Sam both protest in unison.

“You’re putting us all in danger. I’m letting you do this voluntarily.”

She shoots him an icy glare. “Oh, no, you're just making yourself feel better about sending me to my death. Since you know, there's a Wendigo out there rip me to pieces, like it did with—”

“Oh my God, just get out of here!” Ashley cries.

Mike begins to pace, and then he turns around and grabs the handgun from on the table, aiming it towards Emily, who slowly begins to back into the wall behind her, crawling up on the ledge.

“Whoa, whoa, Mike, calm down!” Sam puts her arms up, trying to de-escalate.

“Mike, you need to put the gun down,” you say, walking closer to him from the side, seeing if you can close enough to disarm him.

His grip on the gun tightens, and his gaze is laser-focused on Emily, ignoring both you and Sam next to him. “This is the safe room, Em!”

“This is not the way we should do this,” Sam says, trying to mask the panic in her voice.

“Mike,” you say more forcefully. “She won’t turn into a wendigo from a bite, okay? You wanted me to tell the truth, you’re getting it now. You can only turn into one through cannibalism. Bites don’t do anything.”

He sneers. “And why the fuck should I believe you?”

“Mike, stop it!” Sam yells. “Do you really believe she would all put us in danger like that? She’s been saving our asses this entire night!”

“We wouldn’t even be stuck in this goddamn mess if she warned us.

“Mike,” Sam tries again, “would you have even believed her if she told you?”

As Sam is distracting Mike you leap forward, trying to wrestle the gun from his grasp. But before you can take it from his hands, the sound of the gun going off has you gasping as a bullet soars through the air and straight into Emily’s skull.

“Holy shit, Mike!” Sam's face goes white and she steps back, in disbelief of the sight in front of her. There’s a gaping hole in Emily’s eye, blood seeping out of it and onto the floor.

“Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit…”

As Mike panics, you quickly take the gun from him and toss it across the room.

After that, you collapse on the floor, legs weak from the completely avoidable death of your friend. “Fuck, man…”

“It was…I didn’t mean to…”

“Mike—” Sam starts.

“I was keeping you guys safe!”

“We weren’t in danger!” You yell. “I fucking told you, she was fine! Emily was—” you choke on your own words, taking a deep breath to regain your composure.

“You want to fucking know everything? My parents are fucking survivalist nutjob freaks. It’s why I made you sure none of you ever met them. Always banging into my head that these creatures existed and they were going to kill us and I needed to be prepared.”

“Oh, Tex,” Sam murmurs. She comes over to you, rubbing her hand over your shoulder. You place your palm over it before you continue.

“I never fucking believed them. Not once. They hammered all of these facts about wendigos and other monsters into my head since I was a kid, and it wasn’t until Hannah and Beth last year that—that I finally realized that what they’ve been saying could actually be true.”

You finally raise your head, looking up at Mike. He looks distraught, and there’s a faraway look in his eye as if he’s still processing everything.

“I need to…need to get the key from Josh.”

You sigh, knowing there was no getting through to him in this state. “He’s probably in the mines, the wendigo was dragging him off in that direction. If it didn’t kill him then, he’s probably still alive down there.”

There’s a sinking feeling in your gut on just exactly why the wendigo didn’t kill him on sight, but you didn’t want to bring it up and just worry the others more, especially if it wasn’t true.

Mike nods slightly, and starts to leave. “I’ll…I’ll head back here.”

There’s a heavy silence in the room once Mike departs, the door slamming shut behind him. The sounds of Ashley’s faint whimpers are the only thing that can be heard.

“What the fuck was that, Ash?”

She ignores you, wrapping her arms around her midsection and hunching into herself.

Sam takes the stranger’s journal from the table and starts to page through it, her eyes scanning the scrawly handwriting throughout. She stops on one page in particular, pacing as her hands grip the leather bound book tightly.

“What is it, babe?” you ask, noticing her fixation on that one entry.

“Shit,” she mutters. “We need to get to Mike.” She angles the book that she’s reading so that you can see the page, and you skim it quickly. At first, it seems like ramblings about the wendigos. But then you realize what Sam is talking about.

Within the page, the man details how he had been locking the wendigos up in the sanatorium—there must be dozens in there based on how many he took note of throughout the years.

“If Mike’s going through there…” you start.

“He’s going to be in trouble,” Sam finishes, the stress evident in her voice.

“Fuck.” You stand up, grabbing the gun and jerking your head at both Sam and Ashley. “We gotta go.”

Character Traits:

Honest: 5/10 ↑

Charitable: 9/10

Funny: 4/10

Brave: 8/10 ↑

Romantic: 7/10

Curious: 5/10

Relationship Status:

Ashley: 3/10 ↓