#Chapter 13 | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

saffusthings · 4 months ago

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second chances

mob boss! lando norris x reader

part thirteen: passenger princess

word count: 1.6k

warnings: none

twelve | thirteen | fourteen

The next morning, Lando pulled up to the curb outside her apartment building in a car that, by his standards, was modest. A sleek, black Audi RS5 — not one of his usual hypercars, certainly nothing that screamed money the way some of his other rides did. But still, he caught the way her eyes widened just slightly when she stepped outside and spotted it.

Noted.

She hesitated for a second, adjusting the strap of her bag on her shoulder before walking toward the passenger side.

“This is… a nice car,” she said as she climbed in, running her fingers lightly over the smooth leather interior.

Lando smirked as he pulled away from the curb. “Yeah? You like it?”

“I mean, yeah. It’s pretty.”

He chuckled. “Pretty isn’t usually how people describe it.”

She shrugged, glancing out the window. “I, uh, really don’t really know cars. Obviously. I mean, I’m sure you can probably tell. This one looks cool though.” A pause. “Fast, I’m assuming?”

“Very.”

She made a thoughtful hum, then—almost absentmindedly—reached for the seatbelt and clicked it into place a second time, as if double-checking that it was secure.

Lando raised a brow but didn’t comment. Instead, he stole a quick glance at her as they hit a stoplight. She looked reserved, like she was still trying to figure him out.

Which, fair enough. He was trying to figure her out too.

“So...” he started awkwardly, drumming his fingers lightly against the steering wheel. “How’d you sleep?”

She made a face, lips pursing in mild contemplation. “Not terrible.”

“That’s not a good answer.”

“It’s not a bad one either.”

Lando huffed a quiet laugh, shaking his head. “Guess I’ll take it.”

For a few beats, there was only the sound of the city waking up around them—traffic, pedestrians, the occasional honk of a horn. Then, casually, she asked, “Do you do this often?”

“Do what?”

“Drive your friends to class.”

You idiot, she mentally facepalmed herself. What kind of a question even is that?

Lando smirked, eyes flicking toward her. “No. You’re the first.”

That seemed to throw her off. “Oh.”

He could practically see her debating how to respond to that, and for some reason, it amused him. He let the silence stretch a little longer, let her stew in it before adding, “You should feel special.”

That made her huff a quiet laugh, shaking her head. “I’ll be sure to brag about it to my classmates.”

Lando smirked. Yeah, he liked this. The slow push and pull of it. The way she wasn’t quite sure where to place him yet.

He shouldn’t be enjoying it as much as he was.

They fell into another brief silence, the kind that wasn’t entirely uncomfortable but still carried something clearly unfamiliar. She was still adjusting to him. He was still adjusting to whatever this was.

“So… you don’t drive or somethin’?” he asked, cutting through the quiet.

She shook her head. “Nope.”

“Why’s that?”

“Never got around to learning, I guess.”

Lando raised a brow, sparing a glance at her before switching lanes seamlessly. “Never?”

She gave a small, sheepish shrug. “I mean, I get the concept of driving, obviously. I just… never had the time. Or the skill, for that matter. Not my thing, I’ve learned.”

Lando clicked his tongue, amused. “You’re missin’ out, you know.”

“I think I’m surviving just fine without it.”

“Surviving,” he echoed. “But not thriving.”

That made her laugh. “Yeah, yeah. I’ll keep that in mind.”

Lando smirked, but there was something else in his expression—something bordering on curiosity. He didn’t know why, but the thought of her not driving was oddly... something. It made her seem a little more untouched by the world he lived in.

And for some reason, he liked that.

Before he could dwell on it too much, they pulled up near the university. He idled by the curb, glancing over at her.

She hesitated for a second before reaching for the door handle. “Thanks for the ride, Liam.”

He nodded. “Anytime.”

She lingered just a beat longer, like there was something else she wanted to say, but instead, she just gave him a small smile before stepping out.

Lando watched as she disappeared into the crowd of students, exhaling slowly.

He shouldn’t be doing this. She shouldn’t have let him.

But maybe she breathed a little easier with him around.

The first few drives were awkward in the way that new things always are. She didn’t quite know what to do with herself, and neither did he.

Lando had never been one for small talk, and she—well, she wasn’t exactly shy, but she was still guarded in that way people were when they weren’t sure what to make of someone yet.

So, at first, the car rides were quiet. Not uncomfortably so, but just enough to make the silence noticeable.

She’d fiddle with the strap of her bag or stare out the window, while he kept his eyes on the road, one hand resting lazily on the gear shift. He never pushed her to talk, and she never forced a conversation when there was nothing to say.

But then, gradually, things shifted.

It started small—little observations, little questions that didn’t seem to mean much on the surface. She learned that Lando wasn’t much of a morning person, but he hid it well. That he always had a coffee before heading anywhere, but he never really finished the whole cup.

One morning, she was fidgeting with the strap of her bag when she casually mentioned, “You drink a lot of coffee.”

Lando raised a brow, eyes still on the road. “You work at a coffee shop.”

“Yeah, but you don’t even get anything different. Always a spiced black coffee.”

He smirked. “And?”

She huffed. “And that’s… boring.”

He chuckled, shaking his head. “It’s simple. Gets the job done.”

“You could at least try a latte. Maybe an espresso macchiato. Something.”

Lando gave her a sidelong glance. “Didn’t take you for a coffee snob.”

“I’m not! I just think it’s a waste to keep drinking the same thing over and over when there’s so much out there that you could try.”

“Right,” he drawled, but the next time he stopped by Brews & Books, he ordered a macchiato just to see the way she lit up in satisfaction. He pretended not to notice when she gave him a subtle, knowing smile.

One evening, after her shift, Y/N climbed into the car and sighed, tilting her head back against the seat.

��Long day?” Lando asked, pulling away from the curb.

She made a noise somewhere between a groan and a laugh. “You have no idea.”

“Try me.”

She huffed but didn’t hesitate to launch into a story about a particularly difficult customer, waving her hands for emphasis as she spoke. Lando listened, offering the occasional smirk or amused hum, but mostly, he just let her talk.

“Some guy came in today and asked if we had any books on taxidermy.”

Lando glanced at her, amused. “And?”

She huffed, slumping slightly in her seat. “And I don’t know why we do, but we actually had two.”

He laughed, shaking his head. “You sound distressed.”

“I am distressed. Who’s coming into a cozy book café and thinking, ‘You know what I need? A book about stuffing dead animals.’”

Lando smirked. “Hey, at least they’re reading.”

She shot him a look, and he found himself biting back a grin.

She rolled her eyes at him before exhaling dramatically. “Anyway. That was my day.” Turning her face to see him better, she added, “How was yours?”

Lando arched a brow. “You want to hear about my day?”

She shrugged. “I mean, you always listen to mine. Fair’s fair, no?”

He could’ve given her a lie—could’ve made something up about a business meeting or a gym session.

Hmm, let me think: drug deals, a back alley brawl, and a private execution all in time for dinner with my gang of co-criminals.

Instead he settled on, “S’alright. Nothing special.”

She gave him a look. “Boo. That’s vague.”

“That’s the point. Obviously,” he deadpanned, the ghost of a smirk upturning the corner of his lips. Y/N rolled her eyes, but smiled anyway.

The rides kept happening. Sometimes he’d show up unannounced after her shift, sometimes he’d send a text a few minutes before her class let out. It wasn’t always planned, but it was consistent. And that was what mattered.

He learned that she liked the window down, just a crack, no matter how cold it was outside. That she was a little clumsy when she was tired—nothing dramatic, just small things like fumbling with her seatbelt or nearly dropping her phone when she got in the car.

One evening, after picking her up from a late shift, he noticed the way she rested her head against the seat, eyes slipping shut as soon as they hit the first stoplight.

“You can sleep, you know,” he said, keeping his voice casual. “I won’t let you wake up in a ditch.”

She smiled sleepily. “That’s reassuring.”

But the next time she was exhausted, she actually let herself drift off.

It was subtle, the way things softened between them.

She started greeting him with a tired but genuine smile in the mornings, a quiet, “Hey, Liam,” as she settled into the car.

He started recognizing when Y/N was in a mood—when she was stressed about school, or irritated about something that happened at the shop. He never asked directly, but he’d say things like Long day? or You wanna grab a coffee before I drop you off? and she’d answer without thinking, without that usual hesitation.

And Lando… Lando didn’t quite know what to make of it.

Because he didn’t do things like this. He didn’t let people take up space in his life if they weren’t necessary, and yet here she was.

And somehow, it didn’t feel like an inconvenience at all.

a/n: was this too boring?

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damn-stark · 1 month ago

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Chapter 13 I hope you’re happy

Chapter 13 of Tragedy at the Miller’s

A/N- surprise at the end ;)

Warning- fluff, ANGST, violence and death, swearing, spoilers for season 2, Remember this is a rewrite not an AU, so the major stuff that happens in the show will happen here :)

Pairing- Joel Miller x daughter!reader (platonic of course :), OC x Fem!reader

Episode- 2x05

(If you want to be tagged let me know!)

————

Like waking up from a nightmare, your eyes fly open and immediately your heartbeat begins to drum so hard that you feel sharp pains in your ribs whilst you start to heave as fear is installed in you after a clammy hand hits you across your face.

“I used to be a Firefly,” a stranger's voice suddenly greets you clearly and not muffled like the way it sounds in a dream.

“Now, considering the pendant says Apollo, I’m gonna assume you weren’t.”

This isn’t a dream and now that you can gather your thoughts, you remember being attacked in the middle of the street by a man in a mask. Is this him?

“Boston,” you deadpan hoarsely and slowly lift your head and trail your eyes up, seeing a twitchy, skinny man sitting across from you to the point your knees touch.

“I was a part of the Boston crew under Marlene,” you share in hopes that would spare your life or at least give Jesse time to find you because from the little you’ve seen, Jesse isn’t in the same room, and from what you can gather, you’re in an abandoned classroom lit by the cool natural light coming through the skylight in the ceiling. And since you’re at the end of the room, you can see quite a lot, but there’s not much to see besides a large curved desk and the stranger.

Outside the classroom, you see a hall and another class in the distance, but you don’t hear additional voices. However, you don’t doubt it’s just you and this stranger. You can’t be that delusional and they wouldn’t be so stupid. Would they?

“Marlene?” The man repeats with surprise and sits back. “There’s always a bigger fish, but she…she was pretty important.”

You bat your lashes and squint your eyes to probe. “You? Where were you stationed?”

The stranger slowly tilts his head and narrows his gaze, so you quickly correct yourself and lean more towards your fear. “It’s just been a long time since I came across another Firefly, and I can’t help but get…excited when I do,” you say and flash him a hopeful, innocent wide-eyed look that makes him narrow his gaze further before he answers dismissively.

“Salt Lake City.”

You blink in surprise but try not to let that feeling show on your face to avoid suspicion. Instead, you nod slowly and finally sit back, feeling the scratchy rope around your wrists press against your flesh, and feeling your mind race.

You don’t remember seeing this guy with Abby and her friends. He definitely would’ve appeared in the lodge house if he were there, but you don’t remember seeing him, and you can recall that day as if it happened yesterday so it’s not like you forgot him.

Maybe he’s not friends with Abby, but he most likely still knows her and if he knows where she is you’ll find Ellie.

How do you get that information out of him though?

No, how do you get out of your restraints to get that information?

You’ll need to get your hands dirty…

You don’t want to. It’s the last thing you want to do, and you know coming this far meant you’d have to get your hands dirty, but if you could avoid it, you would. Albeit now…there’s no other choice.

“You haven’t…hm,” you pause and drop your gaze to avoid looking at him as you know what you need to do. “You haven’t asked where I’m coming from.”

The stranger scoffs. “I don’t care. I’m only keeping you alive because I’m luring your friend here to kill him next to you.”

And just like that, you stop feeling guilty for what you have to do and slowly grow cold.

“Wyoming,” you deadpan and slowly drag your glare up. “I came from Wyoming.”

The stranger's narrowed gaze twitches at the mention as if you made him recall a memory.

“Manny. Owen. Nora. Mel. Abby,” you list their names quietly yet your voice still sounds completely threatening.

“You,” the stranger points his finger at you as his eyes go wide. “How,” he growls and leans close to grab your chin. “How did you find us?”

You scoff and smirk faintly. “Your friends are pretty stupid.”

The stranger tightens his hold around your chin, but you don’t falter, you challenge his gaze without blinking, settling an uneasiness within him that makes him break first and choose to stab a dagger on your chair's armrest to try and intimidate you. Albeit you don’t flinch, you know better. You’ve been taught better. And that seems to annoy him so he grabs his dagger again and points it at your throat.

However, before he can hurt you, someone interjects from outside the classroom. “Hey! You’re supposed to keep her alive!” They exclaim, making you drift your eyes over the stranger's shoulders and catch another man with a bulletproof vest walking in.

Even so, the stranger doesn’t let go. He keeps glaring at you with his dagger pointed at your throat.

“Alive or dead, it doesn’t matter. If her friend cares they’ll still come.”

The guy scoffs. “Well, then do what the hell you want, just don’t keep her alive. Isaac wants all trespassers dead.”

The stranger shakes his head and stabs his dagger in your chair's armrest again before he gets up to approach the other guy. “No. I need to take her to Isaac.” he points at you again with his dirty fucking finger. “Do you remember that smuggler Abby and the rest of my friends went to go kill?”

The guy nods. “Yeah,” he says with confusion.

“Well, she was there,” the stranger shares. “Now she found them. This could be an ambush. I need to take her to Isaac to tell him exactly what’s going on.”

“No,” the other guy argues. “It doesn’t matter. We’ll kill them anyway. Just kill her and get it over with.”

The stranger ignores his friend and turns swiftly to stride towards you again. “You,” he spits, making you tilt your head away. “How many came with you?” He asks, but you don’t say anything.

“Oh,” he scoffs. “Now you’re fucking quiet. I said how many? Or is it just the two of you?”

You keep quiet again which only irritates him more, so he leans his face closer to the point his breath unfurls over your nose. “You,” he points at you, but he doesn’t get to finish because from one moment to another the sound of a gunshot echoes seconds before the glass breaks.

The stranger gets startled along with you, but just as he turns to watch the other guy drop dead on the floor, you lunge forward with your mouth open and bite down hard on the stranger's finger.

He yells out and tries to reach for his dagger, but you bite harder, paralyzing him where he is, and then with unimaginable strength, you pull back, ripping off his finger with your teeth, and ultimately causing him to fall back screaming.

“You crazy bitch!” He bellows, but you ignore him and spit his finger out of your mouth, catching Jesse looking at you slightly bewildered since he has not seen this side of you.

“Untie me before more people come,” you snap Jesse out of his surprise, causing him to quickly walk around you to cut off the rope.

Once you’re free you quickly push yourself from your seat and snatch the dagger off the chair before you storm toward the stranger.

“You can make this quick,” you sneer and slowly bring your foot down on his chest before you bend down toward him. “Or I can make this painfully slow. Where is Abby?” You probe with a growl in your question.

The stranger pants and presses his lips together so you bring the point of his dagger down to press the tip in a nerve that makes him start to squirm with pain.

“Tell me,” you press and pinch his nerve harder, causing him to shake his head.

“I don’t…I don’t know! I really don’t know!”

You sigh and pull the dagger away to think for a moment before you come back again with a different question. “Tell me you’ve heard about two female trespassers. Where are they?”

The stranger nods frantically and stammers. “Last I heard they were in the transit tunnels leaving the Channel 13 news TV station.”

You hum and press harder on his chest before you bring the dagger up and then stab it through his throat to make him bleed out.

“Let’s go. There’ll be more on their way,” you direct at Jesse as you step away from the stranger and wipe your mouth as you approach the desk with the assumption that your stuff is behind it, and thankfully, it is, so you take your backpack and your rifle without looking back at Jesse as you feel shame riddle you now.

“I know a way out,” Jesse interjects as he starts dragging something heavy.

“If you want to live as long as me you have to learn how to get your hands dirty,” you blurt as if he’s shaming you or silently doing so. He’s not, but you still say it out of guilt and shame.

“I know,” Jesse says without judgment clinging in his voice or expressed in his eyes.

You finish hanging your stuff over your shoulder and still don’t look at Jesse, instead, you search the desk for anything useful and find a half-empty bottle of some sort of yellow liquid in one of the drawers, so you snatch it out of the desk.

Once you hesitantly get the cap off, you force yourself to bring it to your nose.

“Oh, what the hell are you doing?” Jesse remarks.

You take a sniff from the bottle and thank the fucking stars it’s alcohol.

“Alcohol,” you show off to Jesse before you slide one backpack strap off your shoulder and shove the bottle in an empty drink holder on the side. You then finally look over at him and see that he put a box under the skylight.

“I’ll go up first and pull you up. If we try to find any other way out, we’ll most likely be surrounded so we’ll leave the same way I came,” Jesse explains, and honestly yes, it’s a smart plan because he’s right.

“Alright,” you agree without argument, so while he tries to get up, you pull the map out to look for the transit tunnel.

“Assuming that they’re out of the tunnel,” you say loudly so he can hear over his efforts. “The girls should have made it to the other side, so let’s avoid going in and just head directly to the other side,” you share as you walk over to the chair. “We should end up across…Pinnacle theater. We can search the areas around there, and if we don’t find them, well then we’ll go under.”

“Alright. How far is that?” He asks once he’s made it on top.

“Just a few miles away,” you let him know as you fold the map to put it away. “But we can make it. It isn’t hard,” you assure him and climb on the chair before you draw out a deep breath to try and let go of your shame before you look up and finally meet his gaze.

“Maybe we’ll find some bicycles to use,” he mutters as he lays on his stomach and then offers you his hand.

“Ha,” you snort. “Wouldn’t that be cool? Just a couple of tourists trying to take in the sights.”

He scoffs. “And trying not to get killed.”

You giggle and hop to get a hold of his hand and let him help you up.

Nevertheless, whilst he’s helping you to the top, suddenly the doors in the hall get thrown open and more Wolves come running in.

“They’re escaping! And they killed Mike and Jordan! Shoot!”

Without a second to waste, they all shoot, breaking all the windows in the room.

“Fuck, fuck,” Jesse pants.

Bullets whiz past you, so you try your best to move your legs to not get shot, but in doing so, you make it hard for Jesse to help you.

“Stop moving. Stop!”

“I’m sorry! I’m trying not to get shot!”

Finally, with a firm hold, Jesse manages to pull you onto the sky roof, so you quickly shove yourself up and then grab Jesse’s arm to help him and then pull him with you as you run across the sky roof.

The Wolves find their way into the classroom and start shooting at the sky roof, shattering the glass and making you hop over to Jesse's side to avoid falling in. Albeit you then proceed to crack the window under you, so Jesse grabs your arm and hurls you forward to get off the glass first before he joins you on the firm roof.

“The fire escape is over there!” Jesse points out to some faded red ladders on the side of the building directly across from where you are.

There’s no way for the Wolves to shoot through the roof now, but you don’t slow down. You keep running in a sprint to reach the fire escape faster. When you’re on it you step down a few stairs before you choose to slide down to land faster on the ground.

Wolves don’t come and corner you in the alleyway, but you don’t wait for something to happen. Once Jesse hits the ground, he leads you to the gap on the fence where he came through and you still don’t run into any trouble, which you’re starting to find suspicious, but what can you do but keep running? So you do, you take the lead around the school.

Once you're on the street that will lead you to your destination, just before you can put any distance between you and the school, a gun truck rolls around the corner full of the Wolves that were just shooting at you inside.

“Run and don’t look back!” You warn Jesse and even if he knew the protocol it’s still instinct to try and help by shouting orders.

When the Wolves ultimately start shooting, you proceed to grab Jesse and lead him to the sidewalk to try and use the abandoned cars as a shield.

The bullets come close to puncturing through the metal, but you manage to avoid getting scraped or shot. Albeit there’s not enough cars on the street for you to use so Jesse pulls you back just before you can risk yourself by making a run for it, and you wait.

The wolves inside the truck don’t risk their lives by getting out of the car. They have you cornered, but they don’t take the chance. Instead, they use the gun on the truck to try and shoot through the old car, but just as the first bullet burns a hole through the old metal, they stop to possibly reload.

“Go. Go!” Jesse takes the lead this time and grabs your hand to pull you with him to the other car to use it as cover. Moreover, just when you reach it, you see that the street around the corner is downhill, so you point it out.

“Let’s go down there and follow my lead!” You shout as you shift your backpack around to have it hanging over your torso. After that, you don’t grab Jesse, but he does as you said; he follows your lead around the corner and into the middle of the street.

The moment the wolves see you they proceed to follow you around the corner and actually manage to finish reloading their gun, so they begin to shoot at you but don’t manage to hit either of you.

Even so, you fall down as if they did.

Jesse is confused by your untold plan, but he still falls with you. When you roll yourself down the street, he does the same without caring that he’s getting hurt in the process because you're suffering through the same cuts and scrapes.

Once you land at the bottom of the downhill street, you lay still with your back to the truck, making Jesse do the same and realize that the moment you’re not moving, the wolves stop shooting and still don’t get out of their car.

Thus you discreetly swipe the alcohol bottle out of the cup holder from your backpack and then take your lighter from a small pouch in your backpack.

The car is slow to approach so you have time to rip off a piece of your shirt and stuff it in the bottle.

“What—”

“Shh,” you shush Jesse and shake the bottle so the fabric is wet.

Once the fabric is soaked, you wait. And wait until the truck comes to a stop to light the wet fabric, causing a quick eating fire but creating a Molotov at that moment.

Thus, before the Molotov can explode, you swiftly flip around and hurl the bottle toward the car.

The bottle doesn’t break the windshield, but the moment the Molotov does its job and explodes, it finally breaks the windshield and stabs the driver and the passenger, while also setting part of the shooter on fire, but not all the way. Neither of them actually caught on fire completely, but it worked to injure and distract them, so you then push yourself to your feet with your rifle in hand, and without any concentration, you aim the rifle directly at the people as if done a thousand times before when it’s far from the truth.

The truth is you’ve seen dirty tricks like this done by your dad and Uncle Tommy, and even if your dad didn’t let you be a part of their ambushes and kept you hidden, you still saw what they did to innocent people and those tricks got stuck in your head so now you’re using them to survive as they did.

And like them, after you stop pretending to be dead, you shoot the driver, passenger, and the shooter in the head with a wicked good shot like your uncle Tommy. All without needing Jesse to intervene. You did all the dirty work without blinking and going completely out of character.

“There,” you breathe out and lower your gun. “It’s over. Let’s move now. Leave the car there. We’ll be able to go on foot if we hurry and hide.”

Jesse doesn’t judge because he’s done pretty bad stuff in the name of survival, but to see you get so bloodthirsty is unlike you, so he can’t help but be surprised.

“Come on. We don’t need what they have,” you say without letting him explore the truck or search the dead. You just run to the shadows to try and run from the scene. Not because you’re running from it with some sort of guilt, but because you know better than to linger around, so you keep moving and Jesse has no choice but to follow so as to not lose you.

——

*LATER*

“Here,” you breathe out deeply as you turn into the street the girls should’ve ended on. As to exactly what building they’re in? You don’t know.

You’re hoping they didn’t go somewhere too obvious, like the big eyesore that the Pinnacle Theater is, but then again, when you’re trying to run for your life it’s hard to find somewhere to hide

“Now what?” You ask and glance over at Jesse. “Where do you want to start?”

Jesse examines every building on the street and lastly lands at the same place you can’t take your eyes off of.

“The theater,” he says exactly what you’re thinking.

You nod stiffly in agreement. “Yeah okay,” you sigh and take the first step to lead the way to the theater at the end of the street.

“And if they’re not there then you get to say you’ve stepped into a Seattle theater,” he quips, making you giggle and keep staring at the worn-down theater that once shone so brightly.

“First theater ever,” you mention. “I never got to go to one before and…my dad never stayed in big places like those. After that, I just never tried to find one,” you say with some amount of awe that you can’t hold back. You have to let yourself embrace your astonishment even if you hope Ellie and Dina aren’t staying in a big place like it in enemy territory.

“Well, then you'll get to say that you actually stepped foot in a real theater,” Jesse corrects himself, and this time you smile faintly.

Eventually, when you reach the theater, you and Jesse fall back into focus and he opens the first doors that aren’t rusted shut. You then slowly walk in with your revolver loaded and ready, but don’t find anything dangerous or any sign that they’re at the entrance.

Thus, you slowly open the next doors that keep you away from the theater and Jesse slowly walks in first with his gun loaded and ready. You follow him once he’s inside, but the moment you step foot inside, you find that there’s no threat either.

From the entrance, you can see pillows and blankets splayed on the ground, but that could’ve been left here before by other people, so you don’t get your hopes up.

“No sign of Shimmer,” Jesse whispers as you both creep inside, just in case this place is crawling with infected. However, you don’t think that's so because you would’ve heard something.

Either way, when you reach the pillows and the blankets on the floor, you come to a stop and crouch to pick up a pillow and bring it to your nose.

Albeit, you can’t catch a whiff of either girl. You just pick up sweat and then notice that the blankets have no room between them. Which can mean nothing or everything. Either way, you don’t point it out and let Jesse come to his own conclusion. You just study the grand theater and take in all the spectacles that may feel like nothing to somebody, but to you, it’s almost like a dream come true.

You don’t even need the inside to be in its original form. It definitely would be better, but you can imagine the twinkling lights from the chandelier and all the different lights just perfectly. You can also picture how beautiful the marble staircase was before it got grey and dirty and all the wood started to rot. You can even hear and see all the different people with their different gowns and suits that mingled downstairs when you reach the deck on the second floor. It’s all so beautiful.

Every aspect of the theater is so beautiful, even the workers you imagined kept this place so magical and every little detail that made a theater what it was exists in your mind because you've seen it all in movies and visited it in your dreams many times before.

Alas, you’re not here to daydream, you’re here in search of Ellie and Dina, and when you’re on that deck on the second floor you find clear evidence in a map left on the table.

Smart.

“Let’s see,” you whisper and put your gun back in its holster to crouch by the table and check out all the perfect triangles that have pinpoints in different locations.

Not all of it really matters except for the hospital they circled with the name ‘Nora?’ written over it.

“This has to be them,” you think out loud as you notice a warehouse or something that’s right before the hospital.

“What a nerd, did Dina bring a projector?” You tease as you trace all the lines with your fingers. “The lines are so good.”

“Considering they’re not here. I’m assuming that’s where we have to go to find them,” Jesse points out as he stares hard at the map. “It’s not far, but not so close we can take our time here either. But let’s rest for a couple of minutes. Mark this on our map. I’m guessing we’ll probably catch them at the warehouse before they do something stupid.”

You hum and stand up to do as he said while also walking off to find some restrooms now that you can take a moment to breathe.

Of course, the bathrooms aren’t as spectacular as everything else. They’re old and smelly, so you don’t linger there to gawk. You just hurry out to be able to eat a piece of jerky while you’re not running for your lives and returning downstairs to head toward the auditorium.

Expecting the lights not to work, you flick on the light switch and then open the big doors. However, instead of walking into a dark and falling auditorium, you walk into all the warm lights bringing life to the auditorium still living in 2003.

Besides being old and abandoned, most of the hall is untouched by any kind of rot. Nothing is falling apart or collapsing. The paint is not chipped or cracked on any surface or wall, and no gaping holes welcome in the elements to destroy what was preserved. Everything is utterly…perfect.

The rows of dark wooden seats are still perfectly intact as if waiting for the next round of audiences to come in and sit on their raspy yet soft velvet cushions.

The red carpet lets out small clouds of dust when you step on its brightly red surface. The fake carved columns on the wall create perfect arches all around the room to make it seem like those ancient theaters in Ancient Greece where they were first invented.

When you walk under the chandelier, high up in the ceiling, a beautiful painting of gods and angels playing in the clouds still decorates the dome that holds the crystal chandelier that's still in perfect condition with no light snuffed, magnifying the beauty of the already perfect hall.

Yet nothing is more perfect than the stage decorated by the same fake marble columns and marble arches. Besides all the microphone stands, guitars, and equipment left on the stage by some forgotten band, it’s exactly like how you imagined it and how you see it in movies and pictures. Most importantly, it’s just like how you mocked it in Jackson.

And, If you close your eyes in the center of the stage, as you're absorbed by all the lights on the floor and on the walls that all point at you, you can see all your dreams come true. You can picture the beautiful costume tailored just for you to wear for the play you would have starred in. You can see the set made by the talented artists and crew. You can hear the clear echoes of the audience clapping, cheering, and praising the amazing performance, and you, the star of the show.

And when you open your eyes, it’s all still there. Your dream is alive and playing out before your very eyes. You can see the flashes of the sweet white and red roses that all fall around you, offering you more praise and pride. You can see your family on the front row: Maria, your Uncle, your husband Apollo, Ellie, Sarah, and…you also see him. Your dad is amongst the crowd too with tears of pride in his eyes, and palms red and stinging with how hard he’s clapping so he can be heard over the clamoring crowd.

If you want it hard enough, maybe it can and will come true. That perfect life.

Alas…no matter how long you stand there, or how hard you close your eyes to be transported back into that blissful dream, you stay where you are and he stays dead.

How crushing is that? Knowing that no matter how hard you want it to be true, your dad won’t come back.

It..it’s soul-crushing and makes dreaming something so grandeur and impossible, foolish. It was never going to happen before and you knew that, but you could accomplish some part of your dream in Jackson through the plays you’d produce, direct, and star in, but now, how can you when you know he won’t be in the crowd?

You draw out a deep breath and drop down to sit on the cold floor and pull your backpack off your shoulders to dig inside and take out your dad's old, broken watch you couldn’t part from the moment you saw it in that box of memories.

You remember the day Sarah gifted it to him after she said she fixed it for him and replay that moment again and again until the doors at the far end of the room open and Jesse walks in.

“What are you doing?” He asks once he’s close enough to the stage where he doesn’t have to yell his question.

“Having…dreams of grandeur,” you mutter and tuck the watch back in your backpack before you look back at him and watch him climb on stage to sit close to you.

“Is it everything you hoped for?” He asks and turns his head to meet your gaze.

You shrug. “I can’t complain.”

He chuckles breathlessly and nods along before he lies on the floor, taking advantage of the fact that you don’t have to keep your guard up at this instant.

You look away for a moment to admire the auditorium before you can’t help but look back at him as the shame you felt earlier circles back, making you wonder if he feels disgusted or scared. What you did was…unlike you and something you don’t like to do. It was necessary to find Ellie, but he should still feel disgusted like you do.

“Jesse,” you interrupt the moment's peace, making him hum—“about earlier,” you pause and sigh. “I’m sorry you had to see it. I’m sorry I had to do it. I didn’t like doing it,” you overexplain yourself. “I just—”

“It was necessary,” he cuts you off before you continue rambling about something he thinks is nonsense to apologize for, especially because it’s not like you did it randomly to some innocent person. You had to do it and he understands more than you know.

“I don’t feel any way about it,” he tries to assure you, and it helps, but you still feel at odds, like you still owe a better explanation.

“But…it wasn’t pretty or right.”

Jesse shakes his head. “Sometimes we have to bend our morals. It’s okay. I get it and I understand why you’d know the things you do and why you have to do them. You’ve made it this far in this messed-up world. It couldn’t have been because you were sheltered. Plus you were raised by Tommy and Joel.”

You feel relief that he doesn’t feel the way you do about yourself, that’s the reason why you share the memories he triggered by saying what he did. “My dad probably would’ve wished I grew up sheltered,” you share as you grab the watch again and lose your gaze on it. “That’s why we never stayed in places like this. They were too “flashy”. We were always in the middle of some woods. In some basement or vault where he couldn’t put me at risk, but…obviously he couldn’t hide me from the world…” you trail off and draw out a deep breath before you continue.

“I was seven when I killed my first person…or group of them,” you mention, making Jesse sit up to listen closely. “We had been with some group my Uncle convinced my Dad to join. It turned out that they weren’t our friends, so one night, while a group of infected ran into us. The group attacked…I didn’t want my dad to die, so I made a Molotov and…hit them all. Infected and people.”

A moment of silence follows before Jesse tries to justify your actions. “You saved your Dad and Uncle.”

“I got my Dad mad,” you interject quickly, making him turn to face you with confusion, so you explain. “Back then…he was always…mad. My sister's death…changed him. He was no longer the Dad I knew. He was cold and distant, but still overly protective to the point I couldn’t touch weapons and he would…be rough with me. My uncle Tommy had to secretly teach me how to hold weapons and aim and shoot. I had to learn how to make Molotovs and stuff like that by spying on them. He wasn’t himself, and then he left,” you pause and look up at him with a softness in your eyes.

“I didn’t see him again until I ran into him in Kansas City with Ellie,” you continue to share with a faint smile of admiration. “I saw him, and with her, I saw glimpses of himself that I couldn’t get out, but she did. She healed him…she brought back the dad that had raised me. It’s…why I’m here. For her. Because she means somethin’ to me and she meant somethin’ to him. It’s why I did the things I did to those people…and I would do it again for her.” You finish confidently with no falter or break in your voice. You feel shame, but not regret. He knows that now and so much more.

“I admire your devotion,” he says back with no judgment or hint of it. He means it with his chest. “I try to be half of the person you are.”

You scoff with surprise and can’t help your eyes from watering. “Oh…shucks,” you mumble and scratch the back of your head before you face him again and offer him a sweet smile

“I hope Ellie sees the devotion,” he says, making your smile fall.

“It’s more complicated than that between her and me,” you retort and put the watch back in your backpack before you get up on your feet. “But I hope she can understand why I’m here. Not because I doubt her, but because I’m worried.”

Jesse gets up after you and then tries to assure you. “I’m sure she will. In her own…awkward way.”

You giggle. “Yeah. I’m sure. Are you ready to head out?” You ask as you drift the subject to the impending matter of needing to find them.

“Yep.” He nods.

And with that, you leave the theater and head down your path.

The sun quickly goes down whilst on your way to the warehouse or whatever that big black box was on the map, and besides, bloody scenes that taint this beautiful city with horror, you don’t run into any trouble. Thankfully.

Yet you’re plagued with the worry on your way forward because one, Ellie didn’t want to see you, so you’re nervous about how she’s going to react when she does, and two, you don’t want to think the worst, but you’re scared that she may be hurt or worse.

Jesse is riddled with the same fear so you travel at a quick pace; never faltering or stopping.

Eventually, when you reach the warehouse that is actually a factory, you have to come to a stop, feeling your worry heighten and tie your stomach into knots as you’re outside a quiet factory that could hold Ellie and Dina’s dead bodies, or hold nothing because they made it out.

You’re hoping for the latter. Either way, you wait behind an old security post standing in front of the gate, and wait patiently for the big light in the distance to make it past you before Jesse breaks into a sprint toward the gate to try and break it open.

“It’s already open. Come on!” Jesse whispers loudly before you wince as you hear the sound of the wire moving as he forces himself inside. After that, you break from your spot and break in after him, hearing at that moment, the sound of gunshots coming from inside the building, so you abandon all kinds of precautions and sprint to the entrance without waiting for the spotlight to make its next round to able to make your way inside and sprint after the sound of infected, and gunshots that then stop.

Albeit screams of distress continue to echo and as if hit with a shot of adrenaline you run ahead of Jesse down a haunting hallway, and barge into a bigger room that holds a chaotic scene of six Stalkers.

Three stalkers surround Dina in her locked caged-off area and seem to be searching for a way inside to try and get her, whilst three other Stalkers have Ellie pinned down and seem to want to rip her apart. They’re close to doing so too, but you snatch your rifle off your shoulder with quick speed and don’t even debate about who to help first.

It wasn’t a choice between either Dina or Ellie because Jesse is right behind you, but even if it was you would have chosen Ellie. That’s why you immediately shoot a stalker at her side before you continue to go toward her with no regard for Dina's life. You then shoot a different stalker at Ellie’s side, and lastly reload to shoot the third that failed at getting away.

After that, you proceed to scan the room for more with the little light you have and when you don’t see anymore lurking in the shadows, you run to Ellie.

“Ellie!” You call out before you reach her, noticing the tears in her shirt that the Stalkers left. “Ellie,” you call out again as she looks around panicked and trying to piece together what suddenly happened. When she seems to notice Jesse, she fixates on him so you think that she might be ignoring you.

Thus you follow her line of gaze and notice that he has killed the three stalkers that were after Dina and is now helping her out of the cage, so you call out to Ellie again as you offer her your hand.

“Ellie!”

This time said girl's eyes find you and she takes a moment to just look at you with the same kind of shock and panic.

“It’s okay,” you try to assure her. “You’re okay.”

You don’t know if Ellie processes your words, but she finally gives you her hand and lets you help her up.

“Are you okay? Can you walk?” You ask as you study her from head to toe to make sure she doesn’t have any life-threatening gashes.

“Ye-yes,” she stammers as she still looks at you dumbfounded.

“Ellie, are you okay? Are you bit?” Jesse interjects as he now approaches you with Dina behind him.

“What?” Ellie says between pants. “No.”

She starts to move but you quickly grab her by her jacket and pull her toward you to pretend to be looking at her closer, but really you’re just blocking the view of her bites from Jesse.

“She’s okay!” Dina interjects behind Jesse. “I was watching. They didn’t bite her.”

Either she was distracted by all the chaos that surrounded her or…she knows because there’s no way she didn't see Ellie get bit multiple times because you saw when you came in.

“Jesse, I swear,” Dina tries to press as Jesse is doubtful.

“She’s okay,” you also add, making him meet your gaze and trust you on the spot.

“Dina, are you okay?” You now direct at her as you now take your time to study her too.

“Yeah, yeah I’m fine!” She assures you just before the sound of more infected crying out interrupts the moment.

“We gotta go!” Jesse shouts, overwhelming you all with panic that makes you all move out of the room through the back door.

Rather than coming out to silence though, you’re greeted by the sound of barking dogs and Wolves in the distance that keep you sprinting away from the building without caring for the spotlight discovering your position.

“Don't stop!” You yell at the others as they follow behind you. “Keep going!”

Gunshots proceed to go off and try to bring you all down.

“I'll shoot ‘em! Go!” Jesse exclaims as he lets you lead the way out of the property as he tries to do what he said.

“Over there! Over there!” You hear the Wolves shout.

You leave the factory and run into a tunnel that leads you toward a dark infested park.

“The park!” You point out whilst Jesse catches up to you. “We can lose ‘em in there! Come on!”

You lead everyone in the park as the Wolves continue to chase after you, shooting their guns and thankfully missing.

However, when you’re inside the park, carving a way through the tall greenery to escape them, you don’t hear them come after you anymore.

“Looks like five…” you hear them say in the distance. “Four unknowns chased into the park. Heavily armed. Not scars.”

You slow down to a walk now that you’re hidden in the shrubbery and have the Wolves waiting past the park gates.

“What are they doing?” Ellie asks what you’re all thinking as you all come to a stop behind cover without keeping your eyes off the Wolves.

“If they try and come out,” you hear a W.L.F soldier say. “Shoot ‘em.”

You squint your gaze and feel more nervous now that they’re choosing not to come after you.

“Not coming in the park,” Jesse points out.

“Oh,” Ellie groans. “You gotta be kidding me.”

“Great,” Dina cuts in. “More infected.”

You lower your gun but still keep your eyes on the Wolves ahead.

“Maybe,” Jesse says. “But we can’t go back that way.”

You search the park for a different exit, but you can’t immediately spot any, so you just have to lead the group blindly.

“Come on, but let’s be careful. They could surprise us,” you keep the group moving away.

“Hey, guys,” Ellie doesn’t let a silence settle but is not too loud either. She speaks in a whisper and surprisingly addresses you. “Guys.”

“Hm?” You hum, making her let out a small breath before she continues to probe.

“How did you find us?”

Without looking back at her so you won’t miss anything, you offer her a short but honest response. “The map you left in the theater.”

“Impressive triangulation, but the way,” Jesse chimes in.

“Thanks, that was all Dina.”

You scoff in amusement because you knew he wasn’t directing it at Ellie.

“Trust me, I didn’t think it was you,” Jesse quips.

“How did you find the theater?” Ellie continues to ask.

“Do I look like I wanna fucking talk to you right now?” Jesse snaps as you hear them come to a stop that brings you to a stop too.

“Did you guys come alone?” Dina gets to ask as Ellie keeps quiet, not letting you offer Ellie a nicer response.

“No,” you respond to Dina as you keep moving. “We came with my Uncle Tommy too. We split up when we got to the city though. Cover more ground.”

“I can’t believe they sent you after us,” Ellie retorts to which Jesse now talks back to.

“They didn’t, but you two were gonna die out here, so we snuck out the next night. And it’s a good thing we did.”

“You know what,” Ellie interjects sharply. “We were doing pretty fucking good up until—”

“Up until what?” Jesse cuts her off, making you glance back without the same frustration Jesse has.

“Until we weren’t,” Ellie mutters in defeat so you interject.

“It doesn’t matter. We all found each other and now we need to find a way out without gettin’ killed. That’s what matters. Let’s argue later.”

Ellie meets your gaze and she swallows thickly and blinks, changing the look in her eyes from annoyed and defeated to puzzled.

Neither of you get to say anything even if you want to because of your circumstances, so you keep moving.

“Is Tommy okay?” Dina asks now and breaks the tension.

“Hopefully,” you tell her. “We’re supposed to rendezvous in the mornin’.”

“So, what now?” Dina continues to ask.

“Find a way out,” Jesse interjects. “Get back to the theater, shelter for the night. Meet up with Tommy, and then we all go home.”

You nod in agreement, but Ellie argues against the plan.

“No.”

“Ellie,” Dina argues, but no one gets to ask anything because whistling then breaks through the park, making you all stop and crouch lower.

“What the fuck is that?” Dina asks as the whistle seems to sound like some sort of message or sign, you don't know. It sounded all of a sudden and then a short whistle sounds after it, but this one sounds closer than the one before. Moreover, in the darkness firelight then erupts on a torch, letting you see that there's people in the park with you.

Not just one and the others from before, but more because behind you another assortment of whistles goes off.

“Hey,” Jesse whispers softly. “Go.”

You look over at him and see him point further down your path so you now follow after him as he leads the group away as carefully as possible until the sound of desperate pleading, and the sight of more firelight brings you to a stop.

“No wait, please. Please, please, please!”

You all look over where the sound comes from and manage to catch a glimpse of a group of those people who wear the same thing and sport a strange sign on their backs. They appear to be bringing forth a man wearing different yet normal clothes.

“I’m not—I’m not like the others. Please. No, no, no, wait. Wait, wait, I’ll join! I-I’ll join you. I’ll join.”

“Too late, wolf,” a bald man says as he watches the group of his people hang a rope around the W.L.F’s neck.

“No, no. No, no, no, wait!” The man continues to plead. “I know things. I know what Isaac is planning. I can help you. I can—” he says but doesn’t get to finish because he begins to gasp for air as the people pull him up with the rope, threatening to end his life.

“We have no interest in your words,” the bald man says back. “For the corrupted soul knows only lies. So taught the Prophet.”

“May she guide us,” they all now chant.

“What the fuck,” you mouth as horror slowly rises within you.

“No. No. No. No. No,” the W.L.F. tries to protest as the bald man grabs a curved sword and gets closer to him.

“No, no, no, no. Please, please, please. No. No. No. No! No! No!”

With the bald man now before the W.L.F., he raises his sword and brings it to the W.L.F’s throat, making the man sob and whimper with more fear for his life.

“No.” The W.L.F pleads but it doesn’t stop the bald man from slowly unbuttoning his shirt and proceeding to talk oddly.

“He is nested in sin.”

“Free him that he may know Her love,” all the others say the same thing in response.

The W.L.F. continues to plead, but no amount of sobs can spare him. The bald man hooks the curved blade in the W.L.F, and the others proceed to pull him further up, causing the blade to make a long slash down his torso that makes him bleed out and makes you slap your hand on your mouth and look away in horror.

Now instead of seeing the horror, you hear the obscene sound of his guts falling on the ground before he stops struggling.

“Now, he is free,” you hear the old man announce.

Rather than hearing a response from all the others, another whistle breaks through the park seconds before an arrow comes flying by and hits Dina right on the leg, causing the girl to grunt and gasp with surprise and pain.

“Oh, fuck!” Jesse exclaims and you look at her leg with shock before you look up at her and try to take her mind off it.

“Don't pull it out. Let’s keep movin’ okay? That’s all you need to focus on. You’ll be okay.”

She nods frantically as she can’t help but reach for the arrow.

“Dina, honey, don’t touch that arrow. Try to find a way out!” You try to keep her distracted.

“I’ll lead them away,” Ellie interjects. “Get her out!”

You snap your head toward her and part your lips but Jesse cuts in as if knows what you want to say. “I need someone to watch my back then. Dina can’t walk, and I can’t shoot while I’m carrying her.”

You look at him and then at Ellie so she presses her decision with her eyes before she shouts. “Go. Help him out. I’ll meet you back at the theater.”

Jesse picks up Dina bridal style and you continue to hesitate.

“I need you to trust me,” Ellie directs at you as Jesse starts to run away without waiting for you—“I need you to do that! For me!”

Knowing how capable she is, you give her the benefit of the doubt.

“Okay, fine, but just lead them away, Ellie. I will come after you if you don’t come back by a certain time.” You tell her, making her nod in comprehension and making you offer her some sweet last words. “Be careful.”

She hums without saying it back and turns to run off, making you watch her until her figure is hidden behind more shrubbery. After that, as she shoots her gun to lead them away, you run after Jesse and stay at his side so you have a better look at your surroundings while he’s limited due to Dina being in his arms.

Now you may have made it out of that park without getting spotted. Ellie managed to lead those people away, but you aren't out of the woods with Dina writhing in pain in Jesse’s arms, and the theater being a long ways away.

You have to run so many miles while Dina is invalid, Jesse is slower and vulnerable, and you have to dart your eyes everywhere to not miss a thing while also being bombarded by a memory that tugs at your heart as you hear Dina’s sounds of pain.

——

*A YEAR AGO. JACKSON*

“It hurts…Daddy it hurts,” you whimper as another wave of sharp unbearable pain comes crashing into you, making you think that this will bring your end.

“I know. I know it hurts, baby…just,” he pauses and caresses your sweat-covered forehead as he watches you, causing Apollo to try and assure you as your dad thinks of what to say to make you feel better as you suffer through the pains of labor.

He’s no stranger to women in labor. He was at your mother's side when she was in labor, and he was there when Sarah was born, but it’s different now. He lost your mother to complications in childbirth, and he lost his eldest daughter to unrelated matters, but he could lose you too just like he lost Sarah, and just like how he lost your mother, so what can he say to make you and him feel better?

What is there to say? What can he do?

Watch you suffer and fear the worst every time you cry because of a contraction?

Watch you die?

He can’t—he doesn’t know what to say or do anymore.

“I…I’m goin’ to get Maria,” he says mindlessly and leaves your side to go do as he said without waiting to hear if you’ll protest. He just leaves, and when he walks out to the waiting room, everyone who is waiting for the baby to be born gets up expecting good news, but Joel looks at Maria pale and out of sorts.

“She is askin’ for you,” he tells her mindlessly as he points back in your direction, and without question, Maria marches down to you with Joel and Tommy at her tail.

Instead of going in after her, Joel stays outside the room and lets the door close after Maria.

“I’m here babygirl,” he catches Maria telling you before the door closes and leaves him out of the room.

Another wave of pain seems to hit you because you cry out louder, crushing him to the point his chest tightens so much that he doesn’t know if he’s breathing.

“Joel,” Tommy calls out for his brother with concern but said man waves him off and starts to trudge away with his hand on his chest.

He tries to collect himself for you, but it’s because you remind him of your mother the day he lost her that he can’t go back.

He remembers holding Sarah until her dying breath and he can’t watch that happen again with his youngest daughter… the only child he has left and cherishes more than life for that reason.

Thus, he stays away, but close enough to be at your side quickly. He just can’t stand to hear you in pain or stand being in the room.

It’s not until hours later after you’ve given birth to your son, Theo, that you see your dad again trailing after Ellie.

“Hello?” Ellie says cautiously as she looks around the room for your little bundle of joy.

“Come in,” Apollo waves them both in. “He’s here.”

“A boy.” Ellie smiles. “I knew it. Jesse owes me twenty dollars.”

Your Uncle Tommy and Maria laugh and tease her for the fact that she doesn’t have said money, but alas, she comes up to you to meet little Theo and is so fascinated by him, but scared to hurt him at the same time, so she just admires him and doesn’t dare hold him out of fear she’d drop him.

It’s a silly fear. You assure her that she won’t drop the baby, but she doesn’t budge.

You’ll have her hold him when you’re back home then.

Thus, nevertheless, after Ellie moves to the side you focus on your dad in the back of the room and wave him over. “Do you want to meet him? I swear you won’t drop him.”

Your dad gulps and hesitates for a moment before he makes his way to your side. At first, he looks at the baby and takes note of his little swollen face and his father’s brown hair. He makes sure he’s breathing as he lays perfectly still on your chest before he drags his eyes to you and makes sure he doesn’t notice anything wrong.

When your mother died he only saw her exhaustion so what should he look for?

“They’re both okay,” Apollo interjects as he notices how quiet your dad is. “They’ll both be okay. She just needs to rest.”

You smile at Apollo and then look over at your dad with the same tender smile.

“He’s sleepin’ but he has your eyes,” you let him know, making a faint smile break on your dad’s lips before he finally meets your gaze with his eyes slowly brimming with tears.

“Are you feelin’ okay? Nothin’ hurts? You’ll let someone if something hurts, right?” He breaks his silence and makes you scoff softly.

“Well I’m in pain, but it’s manageable now. I’m okay,” you assure your dad as he starts to look panicked. “I’ll be okay.”

He draws out a deep breath and lets his tears break out of his eyes before he sits at your side to be able to lean down and press a kiss on your head before he presses his forehead against yours and comforts himself over the fact that you’re here. He did not lose you.

A/N- 😩🥺

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