#I swear I'm usually very angsty and brooding | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

yippee-boi09 · 11 days

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Quirky Quinn

“Thank you so much, missy. I'm so glad you took up the offer…” Mrs. Baker says through the phone that she was their neighbor across the street, and Quinn needed a job for the week.

“No pr-problem, ma'am… annnny time…” Quinn says dejectedly

“...just ma-make sure the payment c-can come through after you come back, I apologize if I thound demanding in any way, it's just-”

“Oh no, it's fine, deary! I know how tough it is in your situation and I promise I'll pay you a very hefty sum!” Mrs. Baker interrupts, true to her words as usual. After further conversation and scheduling, Quinn hung up only for their younger brother, Johnathan, to run into the room with some scrabble on a word search that Quinn printed for him while they were on a phone call.

“Sissy! Sissy! Look! I did the word search!” He chirped excitedly while proudly holding up the scribbled word search, no actual word searching having been actually done. “Wow bubba… that's really great! You found all the words…” Quinn says with a tired tone, like some exhausted parent would to a kid after a long day of work. Only for an angry 13 year old named Sarah to come down with half finished half assed emo makeup, “Can you guys quiet down? You're ruining my brooding time… I swear I'm gonna kill you all one day…” the angsty teen says with malice and agitation, not wanting ever to admit that she was a little adored by the fact that her siblings were having such a wholesome moment.

“But sissa… why? We you're family!” Johnathan pleaded with puppy eyes so that Sarah couldn't muster up anymore empty death threats and walked out while scoffing to hide her hesitation. “Don't worry, bubba, she’s just… 13… you know how they get…” Quinn says while putting their hand on his shoulder “Well… I promise to always love you no matter what! Even when I'm 13!” Johnathan says with a big smile on his face before he hugs Quinn tightly. They pat his back affectionately.

“Hehe, sure bu-bubba… hey how a-about we go-go get some dinner? Mac n cheese sounds good t-to you? Maybe some tater tots to go w-with such a fine cuisine?” Quinn asks tiredly with a hint of playfulness to try and keep the mood light for the little boy. “Mac n cheese n tater tots!? YEAH! I'D LOVE THAT SISSY!” Johnathan cheers, throwing his arms in the air as Quinn ruffles his hair affectionately before Johnathan runs off to the living room to wait for dinner. Quinn walks upstairs and knocks on Sarah's door, “Go away” is the first response before they can even speak. “Hey, S-Sarah… I'm go-gonna make thome dinner… Do you want anyth’ng…? I could heat you up some hot dogs in a dog with ketchup…” Quinn offers, a nostalgic and warm tone in her voice as she refers to the Hot Dog Slic'r Sarah used to looove eating out of as a kid.

“What? No! That's too stupid for me. Go away!” Sarah repeats her teen phase phrase once more through the door.

“Okay… just let me know if you wanna let me in…” Quinn says the last part quietly enough for Sarah not to hear before walking downstairs to prepare dinner for Johnathan… not before they catch a glimpse of what he's playing on the Xbox, of course. “Hey bu-bubba, turn that off…” They say, taking the controller and exiting out of the game, causing the young boy to protest. “HEY!! Daddy gave me that game…” Johnathan protested as Quinn took the game out of the disc tray to see he was playing Fallout… God damnit… Quinn's gonna need to talk to Dad later tonight.

“Thorry bubba, but this game isn't a very good g-game…” “Is it a naughty game like the Auto Theft game?” Johnathan questioned innocently, referring to the time Dad gave him a copy of GTA… he got an earful that day… “Yes, Bubba, it's a naughty game… it’th only for the adults.” Quinn says tiredly. It's obvious that they're pissed with the game selection that was given this time.

It was common for this cycle to happen, where Johnathan begins asking for attention from Dad, Dad get’s aggravated and hands him a random game or thing so he can leave. At first it started out with a doll that to this day, Johnathan still keeps and snuggles with, and now it’s stuff like Fallout and GTA and even fucking Borderlands… okay maybe Borderlands isn’t exactly bad but it’s not meant for toddlers. “Look, I'll geeet you a n-new game thometime thoon, okay? I promise it'll be-be a good game…”

“You say that every time, sissy… when am I gonna get the new Sonic game?” Johnathan peeped with a pouty lip and big eyes, melting Quinn's heart internally and making them feel a little bad for not getting enough money to do so because of college. “I-I know bubba, a-and I'm so-sorry… I-I promithe I'll get you the m-m-money… in the meantime… wanna make me a drawing?” Quinn offers, brightening the little boy's face very quickly. “Do I!? HECK YEAH!” He shouted as he got up and pulled out the art box and got right to work immediately. Leaving Quinn to go cook dinner peacefully without the worry of their little brother being exposed to virtual strip clubs, which boosted the flavor of dinner! The tater tots had Johnny seasoning with ketchup on the side, and the Mac n cheese had hotdogs in them. How elegant!

“Bubba! Dinner!” They called out to the living room, setting the dinner table for him as he ran in. “Woah, bubba, thlow down… wh-what’s got you excited?” Quinn asks, holding an excited and energetic Johnathan by the shoulders. “Look! Sissy! I made you a drawing! Do you like it?” He asks, holding up a cute drawing of the three together, Sarah wearing her emo clothes and a >:( face, Johnathan smiling widely with a big :D, Quinn has a soft smile and drawn bags under their eyes and their father lies in the far right without a face… “He-Hey bubba, why doethnnn’t Daddy h-have a fathe?” Quinn asks, a little concerned. “Because we don't see Daddy often, so I couldn't give him a face…” the little boy says with a sad look on his face. “Aww, bubba, don't worry…wh-why don't you go eat your dinner, and I-I'll tuck you into b-bed and read y-you a bedtime story…” Quinn says, folding the picture and tucking it into their pocket as Johnathan sits at the table and eats dinner happily.

Quinn is sitting in the kitchen… alone… they've tucked Johnathan into bed, and Sarah's already asleep, so now Quinn waits to… discuss matters with Dad. “Being alone is weird…” Quinn thought to themself silently, a pit in their stomach from the silence, and they drank their monster.

Not from the monster or the lack of food… but from… another feeling… a sense of power? Maybe. A time to think? No. The time for their mind to run with… thoughts? Yes. Absolutely. Their mind was running with questions… “Why are we here” “Why do we still care?” “What are you gonna do after you graduate?” “What purpose will you have after this?”

These thoughts buzzed through their mind, setting down their energy drink. They sit by the sink, arms spread and sitting by the side edges of the sink while staring out the window and out into the forest… their heart pounding but deathly still at the same time and a shaky, dizzy feeling taking over… the thoughts buzz louder. “Why won't he talk to you” “Why does he ignore you?” “How come he started ignoring you after it happened?” Quinn holds up a knife from the knife stand near the sink, looking into the reflection “What are you going to do about ⍓⌾⍓?” Their thoughts are cut off by the front door opening and closing, the shuffling of keys and a groan… Dad’s home… Quinn takes a deep breath, puts the knife away, takes a swig of their Monster and walks into the living room.

“Oh… hello Quinn…” Dad says, a little surprised but too tired to express it more than a slight eyelid lift.

“Hey Dad…” Quinn says awkwardly. Talking to Dad is like meeting with an office job boss because you need a raise. “Whatcha need, kiddo? You usually don't stay up this late…” he points out, breaking Quinn out of their racing thoughts. “Oh. Ahem… D-Dad… Di-Did you give Johnathan a-a-a copy of F-Fallout?” They question his choice of entertainment for the young boy. “Oh? Is that what I gave him? How was it? Did he have fun?” he pulls out of his lips like it were another breath of air, using the same excuse to avoid the issue at hand. “D-Dad…” Quinn takes a step closer to where Dad is sitting. “...Johnathan is 6 yearth old… 6 ye-yearth old. You gave hi-him a g-g-game about nuclear war!” Quinn had heard of Fallout and how good the game is, but they never bothered to do more research after hearing all the dark humor from it… it always bothered Quinn, laughing at a joke about death…

“Yeah…? And…?” Dad questions, breaking Quinn from thought once more before they speak up. “6 y-y-year olds aren't thuppothed t-to be playing ga-games about nuclear war… and that o-other time you g-gave him GTA-” “DON’T… get me started… I know GTA was the limit but don't use it as some iron fist over what I give to Jimmy…” Dad yells before stopping himself and lowering his tone. “It'th… Johnathan…” Quinn corrects him. This had been going on for a while now.

“Johnathan… right… sorry…”

“Don't apologize. I know you work hard to put food on the table but I'm the one preparing it… I put en-enough time in taking c-c-care of the two and I'd really prefer iiiiit if you didn't give him games m-meant for adult-th… or ignore him… then you wo-wo-wouldn't “accidentally” give him inappropriate games.” They explain intently, trying to explain why it's improper and a little aggravating to have to watch over the kid's shoulder every two seconds out of fear that he'll end up seeing porn or something.

“Okay. Fine… I won't give him any more inappropriate games… Plus, I have plans next Wednesday… go- “Get you a beer? Already on it…” Quinn says before he can finish, grabbing him a beer and cracking it open for it, knowing that when he wants a beer, he has plans… usually the good kind… it's a good sign!

“We have a dinner party planned for next Wednesday, I want smoked salmon, mashed potatoes, and boiled carrots…” He explains after taking a swig of the beer. “Sweet, next Wednesday… any thpecific occasion? Is anyone coming over?” Quinn asks while writing down the plans on the fridge, Dad takes another swig of beer before answering.

“҉A҉҉n҉҉d҉҉r҉҉e҉҉a҉ will be coming over…” The name froze Quinn in place as their blood ran cold at the name.

“...what… did… you say…?” Quinn forced out with a voice shaking from rage and fear. “...҉A҉҉n҉҉d҉҉r҉҉e҉҉a҉… Y'know… your-”

“I know who she is… why are you bringing her here?” They asked with malice in their tone, it’s increasingly obvious that Quinn is infuriated with Dad now… “Well… there’s some business and I thought, maybe it’s be nice to talk to her after she-”

“I KNOW WHAT SHE FUCKING DID! That’s why I don’t want her coming near Johnathan or Sarah. I don't care if it's business or family reasons, I don't want her in our fucking house or even knowing where we live.” They explain with a hint of anger but concern in their voice, trying desperately for this to be canceled.

“Look, kiddo, I know it's a lot to take in, but I think it might be healthy! Plus this business opportunity means I might be able to spend more time with the kids!” He groans out, the last part bringing surprise and a hint of… hope? In Quinn’s eyes. This meant they could finally focus on life… they could… live a better life… but in return… it would mean having to deal with ⍓⌾⍓… and… having to talk to her after so long… “....Fine. Next Wednesday, dinner party, smoked salmon, mashed potatoes, and boiled carrots. Don't expect me to be kind to her…” Quinn repeats the plans before walking upstairs angrily, going to bed and staring at the ceiling.

Why the fuck must he behave like this? He’s such a stuck up asshole… always thinking about himself… but this wasn't just for him… this was for them… this was for Johnathan and Sarah and them… maybe… this… won't be so bad…

Quinn always has dreams of memories… nothing changes… no fictional situations… they dream of memories…

“Happy birthday toooo youuuuuuuu~!” The party cheers to Sarah, who blows out her candles and is greeted with applause and smiles from her friends and two family members. Sarah is digging into her precious, sugar pumped cake while Quinn makes sure to wipe off the mess of the toddler Johnathan's face.

“Hey Quinn… when will Dad show up?” Sarah suddenly questions, realizing he hasn't come like be promised. “H-He'll be here soon, thweetie…”

“Huc-huc-huc-He'll be heyear Thoon Thweetie!” One of the kids walks up, mocking Quinn's stutter and lysp.

“Hey, I swear he's gonna come! You'll meet my dad, my sister and I will prove you wrong!” Sarah exclaimed, pointing at the three kids with a pouty lip, staring daggers at the leader of the group, Roy.

“Yeah? And what if he doesn't? Hmm? What happens then?” Roy points out, before there's a knock at the door.

“See? I told you! Dad's here!” Sarah shouts to the party as she bolts to the door, expecting her father to be at the front door with a party hat and gift like some cliche you'd see in a drama. When she opens the door, she only sees the mailman, who hands her a post card from the town a few hours away from here, signed her dad's name… it was just some cheap card for her, not even a $20 bill was attached to it!

“Aww, did Daddy not show up? What is that? He didn't even write to you? Just a signature? So lame!” Roy grabs the post card and dangles it in front of her face while teasing her. The other party members join and begin poking fun at her.

“So lame! I have my Mom and Dad come to my parties!”

“That's so pathetic! He didn't even address it to you! It just says something about safe travels! So stupid!”

“No wonder why her Dad didn't show up! I wouldn't have shown up to her birthday party either if I knew she was such a crybaby!”

The last statement sent Sarah running upstairs, sobbing as she shut her door.

“Everyone but Roy is now required to leave, I need to have a chat with him, and the party is over, and none of you are ever coming back.” Quinn stated, forcing everyone out the door except Roy.

“Is… something the matter, miss?” Roy trembled out of his nervous mouth, the same mouth that spoke words harsh enough to ruin Sarah's special day, and words harsh enough to make Quinn quiver with rage.

“You have… no-no idea. No idea how long it took for Tharah to p-p-plan this out, how hard it’th been having to re-reassure her that Dad would show only to be met with this thing!” Quinn snatched the post card from Roy's hands, holding it up to his face as they cracked their joints.

“I-It was just a joke, miss! It was harmless I swear-”

“HARMLESS!? WH-WHAT ABOUT MA-MA-MAKING FUN OF SARAH ON HER BIRTHDAY B-BECAUTHE HER FATHER DI-DIDN’T SHOW UP ITH ‘H-HARMLETH’ TO YOU!?” they snapped back, interrupting Roy and shoving him back a little.

“I want you to know…” They leaned down to Roy’s level, their arms dangling as they gave Roy a blank, cold, and life threatening stare, “...I want you… to know… to never… EVER… go near Sarah… again… or nobody will ever find you again.”

Quinn opened the door and threw him out as Roy scrambled away before they shut the door.

“yawn… what time is it…?” Quinn yawned out, waking up while getting up from bed, checking the time. “Oh shit we’re gonna be late!” They quickly got up and threw on their vintage 1990's Korn tour shirt from their album, “Follow the leader”, a gray, hoodless coat they always wore with this weird smiley face on it and some baggy cargo pants. They got everyone up and prepared them all for school.

“I'll be fine… Leave me alone, mom.” Sarah mocked Quinn for double checking everything, before they send her and Johnathan to their bus and Quinn quickly runs to their car, fumbling with their keys.

Quinn was able to arrive on campus, on time. Thank god… they managed to make it to their lecture before it began, pulling out their notebook and pen, sitting next to their friend, Rae.

“...took you long enough…” He mumbled, pulling out his snack bag and holding out a baggy of some warm bacon, Quinn took it and devoured it in the blink of an eye.

“Yeah? T-T-Try packing up for school for an angsty teen thithter who ha-hates you and a younger b-b-baby brother who loves you to death and balance th-that with taking care of yourthelf…” Quinn snapped back playfully at him, causing Rae to smirk.

“Typical Quinn… your Dad really needs to get his shit together, hell, convince him to hire a nanny or something…” He suggested, causing Quinn to sigh.

“I told you already, we can't afford it, I-I-I don't wanna leave my thiblings alone with thomeone I barely kn-kn-know, and I want Johnathan and Sarah t-to be able to be around their dad… mainly me… mo-more often.” Quinn grumbled out, they had discussed this with him on numerous occasions and the suggestion was a bit old at this point.

“Dude, if you ever need a break, just hit me up, I'm always down to help you out. You deserve a break every now and again, you stress yourself out over literally everything. College, jobs, family, hell I can barely balance two of those and I still manage to take care of myself…” Rae lists off all of Quinn's responsibilities, a smirk ever so present on his face as he pulls put a family sized bag of chips and eats them.

“...I swear you're gonna put yourself in a coma one of these days…” Quinn sighed, half joking and half aggravated… before they remember something. “Hey I ha-have a d-d-dinner party ne-next Wednthday, you're not invited-”

“Damn…” Rae chuckled, interrupting Quinn and making them giggle a little before continuing

“As I w-wath thaying… I-I have to ho-ho-housit for Mrs. Baker for a f-few days… A-And I was wondering… if y-you could ba-babysit Sarah and Johnathan fo-for tho’the few dayth…?” Quinn asked of Rae politely, this had been the first time in a while that they asked Rae of anything, which made him ecstatic!

“Of course! Anything for you man, you deserve it!” Rae exclaimed quietly, patting them on the back before their teacher walked in, beginning the lecture.

It was time for sculpting, or creative time as their teacher liked to call it… Quinn had been working on a mask, the glue and water drenched paper clinging to the frail wire base with ease. Wasn't the first mask they made and surely won't be the last, lost in memory as they worked peacefully… this was supposed to be their peaceful class. The others were so full of noise it would give them a headache.

But of course, it couldn't have been, the peace interrupted by a unfamiliar voice. Now in front of Quinn was a damn dork, a smug grin on his face, as if he's found an easy target. “What are you l-looking at-t-t?” Quinn hissed, not wanting to have been bothered.

The boy grinned more, gods, could he have been any more stupid? “an idiot with a Thpeethimbediment” he mocked out, a snicker echoing behind his voice.

“Yeah? A-And wh-who would that be…?” Quinn questioned cluelessly, they'd never been able to deal with bullying aside from defending others and Quinn already struggled with taking care of themselves enough.

“You, idiot.” He retorted, but honestly it was pathetically whimpered out. His posture tensing in a defensive way.

“W-What? I-I might h-have a speech i-i-im-impediment but I-I'm no an idiot…” Quinn whispered, feeling self conscious and unintentionally boosting the dick in front of them's ego.

The random boy now supported himself like a cartoonist superhero, his smug smile returning to his face at the “win”.

Quinn goes back to working on their mask, unsure of how to handle this situation, references to heavy metal makeup pulled up on their stood up phone.

The boy looked a bit dejected now by how swiftly he was dismissed and attempted to recover but soon poked the wet mask right under the modeled lips. Purposefully making a semi-permanent mark now just for attention.

“Wha- Hey!! What was that for? You f-fucked up my m-mathk!” Quinn snapped at him, an agitated look on their face that just made the douchbag's day.

He let out a small laugh, “do what? I didn't do anything.”

“B-But… I just watched you! Y-Y-You jutht poked m-my mask!” Quinn countered, confused by the bully's behavior and tone. Thankfully, the teacher noticed after the shout, swiftly ushering the unknown boy out of the class and telling him to go back to his firmly.

“I’m so sorry about that, Quinn. If you want, you can have a restart and some extra time to finish your project since he vandalized it…” the teacher apologized, offering a free restart and extra time to complete the mask.

“Yes pleathe thir… I would ab-absolutely appreciate th-that.” Quinn accepted with a warm smile, still put off by the experience… even though it was minor… it reminded Quinn of something that they didn’t want to think of at all…

Quinn drives home, they’ll have time to finish the mask on Monday, it’s a holiday this Friday and they have babysitting duty on Saturday and Sunday… Monday and Tuesday will be the extra days to finish it. Quinn arrives at the elementary school, picking Johnathan up since Sarah’s school runs longer than both theirs and his.

“How was your day, bubba?” Quinn smiled at him through the rearview mirror as he got in the backseat, bouncy and bubbly as ever.

“Sissy! Sissy! I got an A on my math assignment!” He exclaimed with excitement and joy in his big bright eyes, handing them a math assignment. “Wow bubba, that’s great! Guess where th-this is going?” Quinn questioned teasingly, them and him knowing exactly where it’s going. “THE FRIDGE!” Johathan threw his arms up with a wide grin, giggling and clapping his hands.

Ringalingaling! Ringalingaling!

“Oh- Sorry bubba, one sec, it’s thitha’s school…” Quinn picked up the phone, Johnathan watched as their slight smile went from a reminder of the joy of today to a worrying frown. His little brother instincts kicked in and he questioned profusely as they hung up and began driving.

“Sissy? What’s wrong? Why are you sad?” Johnathan tilted his head, his smile now gone and replaced with concern and curiosity.

“It’s Sarah… s-sheeeee’s in t-trouble…”

They sat down in the principal’s office, next to Sarah, and don’t worry, Quinn left Johnathan in the car with water, snacks, air conditioning, a few fidget toys and their favorite music playing.

“Miss Devore, it has been brought to my attention that your sibling, Sarah Devore, has been causing a ruckus on school grounds.” The principal spoke firmly and mannered, staring daggers at Sarah while Quinn sat there confused, looking back down at Sarah before looking back at the principal.

“Wh-Whaddya mean? H-How i-i-is she cauthing a r-ruckuth?” Quinn asked with concern in her eyes, Sarah had her arms crossed, looking away and not making eye contact with either of them.

“...Today… she got into a very nasty fight… Two kids ended up in the ER and one kid managed to only get a broken wrist and nose.” The principal said calmly, almost with a smirk on her face as if she enjoyed putting down Sarah and giving her the light of the villain.

“S-Sarah? Wh-”

“THEY STARTED IT! IT'S NOT MY FAULT!” Sarah snapped, sitting up and pointing at the principal. “And? You didn't speak up to anyone about it, I assume…?” The principal accuses oder Sarah, her smirk a little more apparent now as Sarah fumes.

“Woah woah! C-Calm down! Thettle down…” Quinn tried to defuse the tension between Sarah and the principal. “Sarah… I understand that y-you might have been acting i-i-in self defense but that's n-no excuse for what you did!” Quinn tells off Sarah, causing the principle to make a smug remark. “That’s right Sarah… what you did was baaaad… tsk tsk tsk… you-”

“I underthtand that Sarah m-messed up but p-p-putting her down is NOT the way to go about things… m-maybe it’s your fault that s-she doesn’t feel safe enough to o-open up to you!” Quinn accuses, Sarah silently and unoticably celebrates her small victory while the principal’s demeanor falters.

“H-How dare you? Do you even know how hard I work on this school? Whipping these hellions into shape everyday…” The principal goes off, agitation apparent in her voice as she speaks.

“I’m not s-sure if I should take the whipping part theriouthly or not but you don’t seem t-to understand… Sarah doesn’t fight or break people’s boned un-unless she- she was either in imminent danger, or s-she reaches her GOD DAMN limit!” They slam their hand on the principal’s desk, almost as if they were slamming facts onto that same desk for the bitch in front of them to see and acknowledge.

“It'th YOUR fault for n-not creating a t-thafe environment for your students… And clearly Sarah didn’t feel safe e-enough twitch to talk to you about i-it!” Quinn shouted while pointing at the principal, looking down at their nameplate, “Karen Shnider” was plastered in bold, gold letters. God damnit, even her name is assholey…

“M-Miss Devore, please calm down-” The principal was cut off once more. “I don't wa-wanna hear it! The m-mere fact that y-you'd punish Sarah f-for something a-as basic as self defense, then do not speak to me “calming down” because I will now gladly take Sarah o-out of school e-early for the day now, thank y-you very much!” Quinn proclaimed, quickly filling out the forms and pulling Sarah out of the school by the wrist two hours early. They quickly load up in the car, Sarah is met in the backseat with a cheese dust covered Johnathan.

“Hi sissa!” He smiles at her, she slumps against the window while Quinn drives the two home.

They unload from the car, Quinn sets up SpongeBob on the TV, and sets down Minecraft by the Xbox in case Johnathan wants to do something else while Quinn and Sarah talk, he knew how to change discs and he loved Minecraft.

“...So you gonna do the “YoU'rE nOt AlOnE” talk or the “YoU aLwAyS hAvE mE tO tAlK tO” talk already?” Sarah asks, obviously bored and aggravated at the idea of having to talk to Quinn seriously.

“...No.” Quinn states bluntly, worry and concern quivering through their voice as they hold back tears. “The talk we're going to have is “you tell me what's going on” so I can understand what I need to do better…”

“...what?” Sarah was a little stunned, her soft side showing slightly through her expression as she relaxes her muscles, uncrossing her arms while standing straight.

“You heard me…” Quinn looked up, their face red from holding back worried sobs “...T-Tell me what's been go-going on. You've shut me out for a year and a h-half, and YOU D-DON'T EVER-EVEN TRY to talk to me anymore… I thought that… ma-maybe you were j-just growing away f-f-from me… that… you just w-wanted some space… but… in t-that I-I never knew what could've g-gotten you in s-such trouble… tell me…” they cry out, putting their hands on Sarah's shoulders and looking her in the eye. All while Sarah darts her eyes away repeatedly.

“...” Sarah stays silent before finally responding. “...They… They've been bullying me for a long time… I kept on getting back at them… the one kid… Roy… he… he was insecure… and… I was strong… so… I started bullying him…”

Sarah managed to choke out, holding back tears and sobs, wanting to just break down in Quinn's arms but too scared to do so. Quinn squeezed their fists until their knuckles were white. Quinn was angry, but they didn't know who.

“Look… I-I'm not mad at you… but… thinthe you got a FULL W-WEEK supension, you're g-grounded for the week, no outings, you're doing chores, AND no TV or devices U-UNTIL I thay otherwithe… d-do you understand?” Quinn stated firmly, getting a grumpy nod from the teenager in front of them before they walked downstairs and found Johnathan innocently building a house on Minecraft.

“Sissy! Look! I builded a house!” Johnathan exclaims while pointing to the screen, showing a quaint, little house.

“Aww… that's so ssssweet!” Quinn says, before a few villagers walk into it, causing Johnathan to pout at the sight

“No!! Bad villagers!” Johnathan shouts as he activates creative mode and lights the village on fire, causing Quinn to shut off the game.

“J-Johnathan… I-I think that'th enough video games for t-the day…” Quinn says, pulling out the toy box and finding a coloring book for Johnathan and some crayons. They walk off to prepare dinner, something a little more clean cut… “Hey Sarah, come downstairs to watch Johnathan while I make din-dinner!” They call down Sarah, for a moment there's no response but as if she suddenly remembered she was grounded she came downstairs and sat down in the living room couch, watching Johnathan begrudgingly.

Quinn couldn't stop thinking about the fire in Minecraft… it gave them… a strange feeling… maybe it was just the anxiety of Johnathan feeling a little inspired to do something irrational because if his video games. They'll limit his play time a little more now. But even still the idea of flames dancing up and down, side to side, was just… so…

“Hey sissy! Look!” Jonathan called over, breaking Quinn out of thought and causing them to run over, they thought that Sarah would either be neglecting her current duty or causing trouble. But instead they came across a very pleasant surprise…

Johnathan was sitting behind Sarah on the couch while she sat on the floor in front of him. Her hair was all braided up with bows and hair ties, almost comically bad and silly, sticking in every which way. “Sissa has pretty hair now!” Johnathan proclaimed, throwing his arms in the air with an expression of victory on his face while Sarah grumbled and pouted in protest.

“Aww, you t-two look tho thweet! Come here, I j-just made dinner for t-the two of y-y-you…” Quinn motioned for the two to follow them to the dining room, they both got up, and you can guess which one was jumping and chanting “Food! Food!” and which one was begrudgingly getting up and following with a pissed expression the way there.

Dinner had passed and it was about 8:55 PM, Quinn was out by the backyard, taking long drags of their cigarette. It was rare that they were able to smoke but when they did it was peaceful for them… usually… now instead it's filled with the soft, stomach emptying dread from being alone and a bored, sorta hopelessness feeling that coursed through their mind and soul. They looked into the forest that they used to play in when they were little. They felt as if they had some sort of missing memory… but they couldn't exactly price together this weird, missing feeling… they decided to stand closer to the forest, leaning against their fence while staring into the dark, moonlit forest… taking another drag and puffing smoke into the air, Quinn thought to themself, what was missing? God I just wanna know what was missing?

Their thoughts are interrupted by loud barking… the neighbor’s dog was being a shithead again. “Shoo! Go! Bad dog!” Quinn said loudly, hoping the damn neighbors weren't too stoned out of their mind to come and get their loud ass dog

They kept on shooing and waving off the dog, but to no avail… hell the neighbors didn't even come out to deal with it… damnit… they really are stoned out of their minds…

Quinn tried to go back to focusing on the woods, letting out another puff of smoke which only caused the damn pomeranian to bark even louder. Each little “Ark!” Louder and more ear piercing than the last…

Quinn finally snaps and kicks the dog, sending it flying across the yard, it whimpered and limped back in it's home while wincing. Quinn felt immense joy at the sight and sound but quickly ran inside, putting out their cigarette butt and running straight to bed…

“What the hell was that? Why did I…?” Quinn questions themself for a moment, exhaustion creeping up on them before they could finish their thought. Drifting into a deep slumber only half covered by their bedsheets.

It wasn't uncommon for Quinn to also NOT have any dreams… maybe faint shapes or sounds… it was practically normal for them to dream of little to nothing at all.

A tall, man. Not too tall… about 6 feet in height… with a grotesque smile permanently on his face… a faint childhood delusion for Quinn… the missing in the forest… “Quinn…” a raspy voice calls from the man, Quinn approaches and notices how burnt he looks, and his lack of eyelids… as he kneels down, they notice that he's holding his hand out, before he can speak again, Quinn is woken up by the sun peering through the window.

They sit Sarah and Johnathan down on the couch, it's Friday, holiday off for school and some jobs… and Quinn was gonna be housesitting for Mrs. Baker for the next few days, staying Friday and Saturday and coming back Saturday evening…

“Alright… Thara… Johnathan… I'm gonna be g-gone for the n-next few days, housesitting for Mrs. Baker. Now, someone I trust very much is going to be watching you…” Quinn explains to the two, causing Sarah to be a little offended…

“Wha- hey! Why can't I just be alone and watch Johnathan for you while you do your stupid job!? I'm 13! Hello??” Sarah demands, Quinn chuckles at her determination and aggravation.

“Because y-you can't twitch even make Mac n cheese without b-b-burning it…” Quinn retorted playfully, causing Sarah to stutter before she slumped back.

Knock knockity knock!

“Ah… that should be him!” Quinn walks over to the door and welcomes Rae inside, bringing him to the living room and introducing him to Johnathan and Sarah

“Everyone, this is R-Rae! Rae, that's Johnathan, and that'ssss Sarah…” Quinn introduces Rae, who's wearing his Invader Zim Gir jacket and holding a bag of things

“Huh… Johnathan and Sarah…” He says, pointing at the two and naming them incorrectly with a smug smile on his face.

“Hey! I'm not Sarah!” Johnathan proclaims, giggling and walking up to him and poking at him. “Oh? Then who are you?” Rae gasps, an obviously fake clueless tone in his voice as he kneels down

“I'm Johnathan, silly!” Johnathan giggles, causing Rae to let out an obviously fake confused noise. “Huh? But I thought she was Johnathan…?” Rae points to Sarah, causing the young boy he's kneeling down to to start giggling madly

“Alright… now Rae, I b-bought sommmme mac n cheese to make for some lunches, Sarah is grounded so she can't go out with her friends n-nor is thee to dithobey you. She'll help out with the chores around here and mak-k-ke sure Johnathan gets a good amount if entertainment.” Quinn explains like a mother worried about sending off their child to college. “Pfft. I'll be fine… we're gonna watch the Invader Zim DVD's I brought with me…” Rae snickers, Johnathan tilts his head.

“What's… Invader Zim…?” This, dear comment alone, causes Rae to let out an exasperated gasp of slightly fake shock.

“Y-YOU'VE NEVER HEARD OF INVADER ZIM? Oh boy! Are we gonna have fun!” Rae noogies Johnathan, Quinn let's out a soft chuckle, kneeling down to hug Johnathan tightly. “I'll see you in a few days, bubba…”

“I'll see you too soon… Sissy…”

“Now, deary, me and my hubby will be going on a delightful cruise… we should be back by Monday afternoon so feel free to leave after feeding the kitties, unless you don't receive a call from us that morning than stay. It means something either happened or we may be running late…” Mrs. Baker explains carefully, Quinn takes the information in while they're handed the keys to the house.

“Yes, Mrs. B-Baker, I promithe I'll take good care of Tiddiewinks and Sn-Snugglebums… they'll get their meds and I-I-I'll do the chores around the home… You'll come back perfectly fine after the t-trip and you won't have to worry about a thing.” Quinn reassures the worried elderly woman as her and her husband load up in the car. Now… they had the house… all to themselves as they explored the place. It was pretty big for two old people and their cats. Three bathrooms, four bedrooms, two whole living rooms on both floors, and, not to mention, the big ass TV and the feeling of being alone…

“Huh… hey bub-” Quinn was about to call out, only to remember that Johnathan is at home, watching some nickelodeon show about aliens and a robot dog with Rae.

Quinn wasn't used to being alone, they've always been with family or spending majority of their time doing something for family… and anytime they were alone there was this… pit that always just eating away from the inside in their stomach, working it’s way around like a parasite trying to make them sick. The feeling never stuck around for long since they’d go to sleep before it could finish itself or they’d end up being occupied by company.

“mroow…” the tabby cat called from behind, Quinn turned around and looked at it, expecting a warmth to bloom in their heart only to be met with a desire for something… they didn’t understand it but Quinn scratched behind the cat’s ears anyway, trying to push the gut eating feeling down as they fixed up the food bowls for the kitties. A white fluffy cat came down, both meowing in tune with the rattling bag of cat food.

As the cats ate happily, anyone but Quinn would awe at the sight… naturally at least… Quinn tried to seem adored by the sight of the cats eating and meowing happily. They couldn't help but stare at the sight, thinking back to that night when they kicked the poor pomeranian hard enough to cause a yelp of pain, the way they sickeningly and oddly enjoyed the sights and sounds of it… Quinn decided that they'd watch TV instead! Yeah!

Quinn plopped themselves on the couch, flicking between channels… eventually they stopped on the local news, watching as the reporters… uh… report stuff… yeah this was kinda boring to be honest… what wasn't boring and had broken the boring feeling, however, was when they began to announce a recent crime. Arson was commuted along with murder just a neighborhood down from where Quinn lived. But that didn't matter, what mattered was the overview sight of the whole crime scene.

Quinn watched the video play on screen, the flames dancing up and down, side to side as they consume the victims home, and before they cut the feed they were able to catch a glimpse of the hacked up, charred corpses within the burning building. Anyone would've grown sick at the sight unless they either had a tough stomach that could handle the worst of sights or they were a twisted, sadistic nutcase…

“Mraaaooowww…” one of the cats called out, Quinn turned to them almost angrily, upset that their sick fantasies were interrupted by this cats need for… God what was it the spoiled bastard even needed? It was fat, plump, and knew nothing of the responsibilities that they had to face on a daily. It just sits around, pissing and shitting and eating and sleeping. Quinn pushed the cat off the couch aggressively, chuckling as it yelps in surprise.

“Aww, doeth the poow k-k-kitty need it meddy weddies? Fine. I'll g-g-get you your d-damn medic-cation…” Quinn said begrudgingly, getting the cats their meds and making sure they're fed the right amount.

Quinn turns the TV off and heads to the room with the biggest bed. Collapsing onto it. Why were they so angry? Why did they sound as if they were threatening a damn cat!? Why did… Quinn think about when they kicked a dog…? The racing thoughts only fueled Quinn's unknown and surprising exhaustion, making them fall into a deep slumber.

“Sissy! Sissy! Look! I found a dandy kitty!” Johnathan called out, holding up a fuzzy dandelion to their face. “Sissy, what did you say to do with dandy kitties?” Johnathan asks Quinn, to which they softly smile.

“You blow the f-fluffy fairies away from the d-d-dandy kittieth and make a wish… then your dreamth'll come t-t-true…” Quinn explains again, causing Johnathan to blow the dandelion’s “fairies” away from the “dandy kitties” and silently make his wish.

Quinn looked up at the sky, the clouds flying by, the warmth of the sun, it's almost distracting enough for Quinn to nearly not notice Johnathan running deep into the forest. They get up and following after him, expecting him to come running back.

Quinn walks through the forest for a few minutes, walking by stranded newspapers… “Woods family… murdered… eldest son… missing…” are the only words they caught from these papers. The newspapers must've flown from the town nearby, since they had been freaking out about this news for the past few days, missing flyers for the oldest son that had disappeared flying by as well from the all the wind that had been rustling the trees.

Quinn felt their head begin to spin, sleep deprivation due to nightmares and and fear from death threats received by… her… no, Quinn shook their head, they didn't wanna think about it… not in the slightest… seeing eyes on the trees, their eyes darting to look only to see them disappear. Hearing voices and turning to see them only for them to quiet down and appear in another direction. After spinning and searching desperately they stop as they stare at the towering man before them.

He smiled. Widely. Almost unnaturally, as he made long, exasperated steps towards them. Their spinning head wasn't able to tell them whether or not it was a figment of their imagination or it was a real threat. Whispers in every direction were the one thing keeping them entranced as the man approached. Suddenly, a chirpy, little voice squeaked behind them.

“Sissy! I missed you!” Johnathan declared while hugging them tightly, Quinn looked to see the man only to find he was gone… who… was he…?

Was he… even real…?

Quinn woke up in bed… an odd memory to dream of… the sun glared in their face as they checked the date, Saturday… they have today, Sunday and half a Monday to get through. They got up and stretched, they walked downstairs and prepared to make breakfast only to remember they don't have their little brother and sister to care for… they don't have their father to worry about… just… them.

They decided to make themselves breakfast for once, over-easy eggs and some crisp, juicy, delectable bacon. They didn't know how to describe it but bacon was probably the best thing ever in their existence (aside from their family), that plus waffles and syrup and a few eggs with a monster energy? God that's the closest to heaven they've felt in years, it feels great to be taking care of themselves for once.

They fed the cats, as usual, and sat down on the couch… now with nothing to do and much more energy than they knew what to do with. They went out to the backyard, seeing the tall fence that the Bakers put in only made Quinn feel even more free of judgment than they had ever felt before. Quinn happily lit a cigarette and took a long drag before sighing as the smoke floated through the crisp, morning air. Who knew housesitting away from your siblings would be so peaceful?

“Mroooww…” the same call echoed from behind, Quinn turned around and scowled at the sight of the tabby behind them. “Oh… thpoiled brat… w-whaddya wannnt…?”

“Mrrp…” it purred, rubbing against their leg repeatedly, only for Quinn to kick it away while giggling. “Hehe… aww… d-d-does kitty want a-a cuddle b-buddy? I d-don’t think tho…” Quinn mocked as they kicked the cat again, this time with the intention of just hearing it hiss and and cry in pain once more… it's only when their phone rings that they stop and put out their cigarette. Once they pick it up they hear a familiar, chirpy voice on the other end with a familiar and goofy chuckling.

“Oh hiiii b-bubba! How are youu…?” they responded, walking inside and almost feeling a bit scared and… sad about kicking the cat. Why now we're they feeling regret for hurting the cat…? Was it because they could've been caught? Was it that they were afraid of what Johnathan would think?

“I'm watching Invader Zim! I love Gir! He's just like me!” Johnathan giggles, Quinn smiles softly at his happy little voice, a warm feeling in their chest as they hear Johnathan ramble on about Invader Zim and waffles and Gir and how awesome he is and how much they relate. All while Quinn listens intently. Now they knew why they suddenly felt bad… they didn't want to hurt the people they loved… they couldn't imagine the idea of Johnathan, poor, sweet innocent Johnathan having to witness such things… not because they felt bad about being caught but… because they had someone they genuinely cared for.

“Hey… Johnathan, I-I-I know it's been a nice talk but I need t-to t-talk to Rae for a bit… just to see how you guyth are holding up without me…” Quinn requests, receiving “awws” and “I don't wanna stop talking yet's” until he begrudgingly says “bye” and hands Rae the phone.

“Heya, can you smell the excitement? I sure can… I hope you can see all the vibrant colors plastered on Johnathan's face…” Rae almost immediately stated, getting a weirded out response from Quinn.

“Rae what the hell d-d-does that even mean? We're on a phone call, not a fathetime… and whaddya m-mean “Vibrant colorth”? D-Did you paint his f-face?” Quinn questioned, almost demandingly as if a Mom just found out their teen son did something they weren't supposed to do.

“Well I gotta go now seeya!” Rae hung up, before calling again and Quinn to pick it up with a soft smile and an eye roll. “Tho… how are they? Is Sarah doing what she's told? Is J-Johnathan behaving? Is he e-eating well? Is-”

“Yeah, yes to all of those questions. Sarah is behaving very well, Johnathan is behaving and eating well, and we're all fine.” Rae retorts with a playfulness in his tone, easing Quinn's anxieties and fears.

“G-Good… I-I’m actually th-thurprithed that Sarah’s b-behaving at all… s-she usually listened t-t-to you…” Quinn explained, hints of skepticism and slight relief in their voice as they spoke.

“Oh Sarah's great! She's friendly, does what she's told, and she's quite talkative as well!” Rae exclaims, Quinn felt a shiver run down their spine and a slight dizziness in their head.

She… never talks to me… anymore… why…?

“What… wait she's being… social with you??” Quinn questioned, disbelief now more than apparent in their quivering voice. It was a slight shake that the optimistic Rae hadn't noticed one bit due to how excited he was to talk about what Sarah told him. It wasn't uncommon for Rae to talk to people and get to know them for only a few minutes and somehow accidentally manage to get said person to spiel about their lives…

“Yeah! She's been telling me all about you and stuff! She's also told me all about how she feels about you as well… I'm not gonna share any details but she's said quite a lot-”

“Wow, that's g-great, I'll t-t-try and call back, theeya.” Quinn cut him off before he could finish, texting to him a short “sorry” to excuse the behavior.

Sorry I hung up, I had stuff to do and I might not respond cuz I'll be busy the next few days

As Quinn hung up the phone, they looked down at the cat in front of them, it meowed as it begged for treats and food and attention. All they could feel was a sense of dread and regret as they remembered how they had kicked the poor animal earlier. “I'm… sorry…” They muttered, squatting down to pet the cat affectionately, why did they enjoy it earlier? Why were they feeling regret?

“Maaaaaooowww..!” The tabby cat meowed behind them, nuzzling up to them cautiously as Quinn teared up… thinking about how Johnathan would like these kitties…

That was it… Johnathan… Quinn realized at that moment that Johnathan was the only thing keeping them together. Sure, he was a little annoying at times and was a full responsibility for them, but the idea of the little boy having to watch Quinn laugh as the cats yelped in pain was enough to let the tears fall. After all these years, seeing Johnathan smile from anything, whether it be treating the kitties right or feeding him his favorite meal (Mac n cheese with tater tots and chopped hot dogs), or even giving him a new video game… his little smile and chirpy voice saying “Thank you sissy!” Was the only thing keeping Quinn together after it happened… after she hurt them…

Quinn stood up and gave the cats a few treats, trying to shover the anger down their own throat as the walked back inside the house. They didn't want to think about her in the slightest, especially since she’ll be coming next Wednesday…

Shit! She's coming next Wednesday! Just four days away! The dinner party, the food they had to prepare, having to let Johnathan and Sarah get near her… there was no other option than letting it happen. No matter the stress or anger they felt, they had to let it happen… even after the last time they saw her…

The white, fluffy cat nuzzled up against their leg from behind, breaking Quinn out of thought, they felt the anger shooting throughout their body. They clenched their fists and and stared at the cat with a death glare. They weren't angry at the cat, but they were angry at their Dad and her… but they held it in… just walking into the bathroom and shutting the door, locking it before keeling over and puking in the toilet.

They got up, vomit dripping from their chin before they stand up and rinse their mouth out, splashing water on their face.

They stood straight and stared into the mirror, seeing a pale reflection of their depressing self. Bags under their eyes, greasy and messy hair, a dead look in their hazel eyes…

“Shower…” Quinn thought aloud, leaving the bathroom and going over to their duffle bag, grabbing some fresh clothes and heading back to the bathroom, turning on the shower and undressing. After the fact, they feel the water.

Warm

They step in, shutting the curtain and grabbing some shampoo, lathering it into their hair before standing under the running water, watching as the soap runs down their body and drips off their legs… letting their mind drift as the bubbles do through the water.

They hated the situation they were stuck in… not just the dinner party next Wednesday, but everything about their life so… heavy. At the helm of every moment, they didn't even get a chance to grow up all because of each and every little thing that they had to look over and take care of. Their childhood ripped away from themselves, all to give to their siblings whatever they could get… all to spoil them with the little money they had. And yet now that she is coming over. She is seeing their siblings. She is prying back into their life once again... Even Quinn subconsciously knew (but refused to acknowledge or even think of) that sooner or later they would snap.

Ah… time to condition their hair…

They carefully brush in the conditioner… why did the old people always have the most soothing scents? They let it sit in for a bit before they scrubbed the product out of their hair, moving onto scrubbing their body.

They shut off the water, stepping out and drying off. They put on their clothes and walked out of the bathroom, heading to the kitchen and grabbing some marshmallows from the pantry and sitting on the couch. They shoveled a few shmallows into their mouth before a noise broke them out of their trance.

“Mroooowww…” the tabby cat meowed, nuzzling against their leg as Quinn mourned their nonexistent childhood. They didn't even notice it until the cat clawed at their leg…

“Mrrp… mrrowp…” it purred before being pulled into a tight, tear filled yet silent hug. It continued to purr while Quinn sat there in constant thought of what there life had come to. They were stuck housesitting for a job… Quinn cleaned and cooked and took care of everyone and everything around them all except themselves.

Sure… they went to college…

They majored in art of any kind…

…

“What am I gonna do once it'th over?” They thought aloud… letting go of the cat as it calmly walked away to munch on some leftover kibble.

“What's g-gonna happen to me once I gr-graduate?” Quinn had begun to speak their mind to nobody and nothing at all. “What am I-I-I even going to do? Huh? What- What job am I going to t-t-t-take? What life am I going to live? What happenth once I-I get a real job? What…” They stopped in place, they didn't even realize they were pacing and they didn't care.

“What do I even want to do for a living?” They spoke aloud… this being, surprisingly, the first time they've even questioned what they wanted… Career-wise that is. What did they even want to be? Sure, they were majoring in art for their degree, they'd been working efficiently on their time in art! They'd loved doing art their whole life, hell, going to college and seeing Rae in class with a family sized bag of snacks to devour in an instant while talking over Quinn happily doing whatever art related tasks they needed/wanted to do was their big escape in life…

But why did they choose that? They could've chosen better routes in life! Hell, if they tried enough, they could be the CEO of some big company later in life! They'd be filthy rich, able to afford proper care for their siblings without struggle, and they'd all be happy…

The same could be said for their art career. Sure, they probably won't become much, but if they do they could afford the same amount (if not more) of comfort in life!

Quinn realized that being a famous or rich or even moderately paid artist wasn't what they wanted in life! They truly didn't know what they wanted because they chose their hobby to major in college rather than thinking of what they wanted to actually do.

It was all because they spent more time worrying and caring for everyone else around them… they spent more time sacrificing for others and getting very little in return. Even when they used this to their advantage so they'd get hired and paid to do these things for others and yet it would all go to their siblings.

Before they knew it, it was dawn… they sat down, realizing how wobbly their legs were and soon after got back up, as if sitting was useless to them in that moment. They put away the bag of marshmallows and filled the cat food bowls, along with the water bowl as well. They stumbled into the master bedroom of the house, nearly tripping over their bag when something shiny caught their attention…

A hunter’s knife, a beautiful thing indeed. It had amazing handle design, along with a freshly sharpened blade and a bird beak to hold it up (if ever hung). Quinn took it and put it back in it's sheathe, hiding it under the pillow they slept on that night. It helped then sleep a little better…

Recent events with being the murders and fires going around is enough to excuse this feeling of safety and… power I guess…

The next few days passed in a flash, the memory almost blurry and nonexistent to Quinn as they awaited on Monday for a call or for the old couple to return… they flicked on the news and they were left with… shock and questions.

“A horrific and tragic car crash has taken the media by storm, the local Mr. and Mrs. Baker have passed along with several others who had been caught up in the crash…” a clip from a jam cam plays in correspondence to the reporter. “Local experts say they could’ve seen a deer or some wild animal or that, just maybe, they weren't the best drivers. But nobody really knows for sure as the camera cuts out for a split second and suddenly everyone is caught in a whirlwind of disaster and death-” Quinn shuts off the TV.

“Sigh… i-it'th a g-good thing they pa-pa-payed me in a-advanthe…” They twitched as they sat up, grabbing their duffel bag, their knife, and drove away from the home.

A quick look in the rear view mirror showed Quinn a few cop cars and (presumably) cars of investigators.

“Sissy! Sissy! Look! I made a drawing of Gir! Isn't he so cool?” Johnathan peeped, holding up a drawing of a green robotic zipper dog next to a green alien with wide pink eyes. Quinn chuckled as they pat his head. “My, th-that's a wonderful d-d-drawing! Di-Did you have fun with Rae?”

“I HAD LOT’S OF FUN! I watched Invader Zim with him and sissa was lot's of fun too! We all watched Invader Zim and played games and-” Johnathan went on and on about all the fun they had until eventually Rae walked over with his belongings in a bag.

“Ah! Rae! Don't forget your Invader Zim DVD set-”

“You can keep it for now…” Rae interrupted Johnathan, to which the little boy gasped in joy. “REALLY!?? You'll let me keep it!???” He exclaimed, causing Quinn and Rae to chuckle. “Yeah… for now… I'll come over some other time and take it back though, but I promise I'll find you another full Invader Zim DVD set to keep…” Rae ruffled Jonathan's hair, to which be ran around and jumped while squealing with joy.

Quinn chuckled once again. “Jeez… you're go-good with kids and m-m-making them all excited…” Rae laughed in response to this. “Yeah… like you aren't a charm to them. You wouldn't be able to count the times conversations were driven away from whatever topic and directed to you and how awesome you are.”

The two joked for a bit, catching up with each other before eventually Rae left and Quinn sat down on the couch, causing Johnathan to tug on their shirt sleeve. “Yeah, bubba? What is-is it?” They asked, looking down and opening their eyes to see a soft smile on the little boy's face. “You're tired… go sleep… Sarah can play with me…” He stated bluntly, they looked down at Johnathan and looked over at Sarah walking in with a bowl of cereal. “It's okay… I can handle the gremlin…” She said softly yet with a tinge of “I'm trying to sound like I don't care” in her voice.

Quinn silently agreed and walked over to their room, stumbling away in exhaustion and sadness. They shut the door, shove their stained knife under their pillow and slept once more. Waking up two hours later and stumbling back downstairs.

They sat down on the couch, almost dosing off once again before realizing what Johnathan was watching.

“Local reports say that local law enforcement when first coming to the house found that the house was in a shriveled and unkempt state. Investigators say that their were more than enough signs that there were pets there. But no such animals were found upon arrival or further investigation-” Quinn shut off the TV, causing Johnathan to protest.

“Why did you turn it off. The lady was talking about the home you were at!” Quinn looked away guiltily, answering briefly. “Yeah… Mr. and M-Mrs. Baker… t-they came back and took t-their kitties t-to the cruise!” Quinn lied to his face, causing him to smile and agree.

“Wow! They must be having lots of fun now!” He giggled as he turned the TV back on and put on Invader Zim. Quinn stood up and walked away, guilt rummaging through the back of their mind as they entered the kitchen. They were prepared to make dinner but we're surprised to find Sarah making pimento cheese chicken bake for dinner.

“Oh hey! Rae taught me a buncha dinner recipes, so I can handle dinner for tonight and the next few nights! I heard there's gonna be a dinner party this Wednesday and-”

“Who told you that?”

Quinn looked up with slightly lifted eyes, almost scared and demanding tone in their voice. To which Sarah looked back with a raised brow. “The… family group chat…?” She stated, to which Quinn facepalmed. “Of course… I forgot there's a group chat…” Quinn thought to themselves, remembering the fact that the family had a group chat between them, Dad and Sarah.

“Who's coming over again?” Johnathan asked, walking into the kitchen to join Quinn and Sarah's conversation. To which Sarah answered that before Quinn could speak up.

“Someone named A҉҉n҉҉d҉҉r҉҉e҉҉a҉ or something… I think she's our-”

“She's nobody important. It's just business.” Quinn stated bluntly, the answer enough to convince Johnathan to go back to minding his own business. They breathed a sigh if relief when Johnathan left the room. And Sarah only seemed confused at Quinn's eagerness to ignore the upcoming event.

“Don't. Even… thpeak about it… ju-just… i-if you c-c-can go to the grothery th’tore on T-Tuesday for me, I-I'll drive you there bu-but… if you do it f-for me I-I'll let you ask me a f-few things about… her.” Quinn stopped Sarah before she could speak up, offering a deal that Sarah accepted gratefully.

Before Quinn could make it up the stairs, Sarah walks over. “Y-You don't wanna join dinner? I've been practicing cooking!” She called out to her sibling, only receiving a shake of the head, Quinn stops again when they hear Johnathan giggling and walking up to Quinn with his usual chirpy and squeaky voice.

“Sissy! Are you coming down? The food’s super yummy!” He declared with a smile on his face. Quinn felt their heart warm and changed their mind, turning around and coming downstairs with a smile on their face. “Sure… I'll join…” they chuckle as they sat at the dinner table.

They watched the two giggle and laugh and talk about whatever… a smile on Quinn's face as they occasionally threw in a laugh or a comment… things felt like they were back to normal… things felt like the old times, back when things were a little less tense and they were able to enjoy being together without a care in the world…

Monday came and went… going to college, going home, and with barely anything to care for (since Sarah had started becoming more productive around the house) Quinn simply went to bed a bit early… Tuesday came and was definitely slower than the last day…

They finally finished the mask they were working on, it was molded perfectly for their face and had a ravishing design. Imagine a frown, with droopy makeup resembling bands like KISS and Twiztid (that are just a little more drippy)...

They brought the mask home and hung it on their wall in front of their bed. They later took Sarah to the grocery store and got all of the supplies for the dinner party that would come the next day. They managed to avoid the topic of her on the way home with Quinn putting it off for tomorrow.

They went to bed… shaking in nervousness of what’s to come of tomorrow… she’s gonna be here… and little did Quinn know that this would be the last coherent and real dream that they would ever have again, this would be their last day of normalcy…

“GET BACK HERE YOU LITTLE HEATHEN!!” She shouted angrily at a young, 6 year old Quinn, chasing them up the stairs with a glowing hot iron rod from the tools by the fireplace. Their father followed behind her, trying to convince her to stop only to relieve a slap to the face that nearly pushed him down the stairs…

Quinn was hiding on the other side of the bed, fearfully hoping that this would all end so they don't have to be stuck here… crying and helpless… all of this had started because Sarah was born… and she wanted to keep her, them, and their father here. But the divorce papers that needed to be signed said otherwise… Quinn was always under the blame for this for whatever reason that… Mother decided was best…

She finally makes her way to the room, looking down at the shivering Quinn in the corner with dagger eyes and the still burning rod clutched in her hand… “Little heathen… you really think you could hide behind your pwetty wittwe bed?” She taunted, walking around the bed, preparing to do the worst.

She swung the rod, missing and only cutting Quinn's right cheek as their father began to struggle with her… Quinn ran out of the room, running to Sarah's crib and pulling her out of their, they ran out of the house and to the police…

Of course… she was only held in jail for about 30 days because they barely even believed that a woman would even hurt their husband and children…

Years had passed, their father worked effortlessly to afford them all they could after they managed to get a restraining order against her after Johnathan was born… to which they had to move away again… Sarah lost most of her friends and began to shut herself away… their father could barely even look at Johnathan considering how he was even conceived…

Quinn woke up from the dream, sitting up and staring up at their hung mask. As if they were looking for answers for how to avoid all of this happening again…

They got out of bed, got dressed in their usual fit, and left to drop off the kids at school. After the fact, they made their way to the campus. Heading to class as per usual. Sitting next to Rae without even greeting him back…

“...You nervous?” He asked, causing Quinn to snap their head up. Looking at Rae with a dead look in their eyes.

“...what?”

“...you heard me… you good…? You don't seem… well.” Rae stated once more, a concerned and sympathetic look in his eyes. Quinn’s eye twitched in response, a scowl spreading across their face, bringing a much darker shade to their eye bags.

“N-N-No. I'm no-not fine, Rae. I-I feel like shit.” They hissed at him, he looked at them with a soft look in his eyes. Like a parent would with a child crying because they broke a glass of milk on the floor on accident.

“H-Hey calm down, I know things have been stressful now-” “Oh y-you care now, d-dontcha? Huh!?” They snapped, not yelling but indeed raising their voice.

“I've been handling my s-s-siblings for God knows how long, stressing over a d-dinner party with her and f-fucking worrying over my life’s future! H-How have you not n-noticed that I'm not o-okay!? I-”

“Hey, calm down. I know it's been rough recently, but please, not right now, you don't need anymore stress.” Rae quiets them down, managing to at least get pure silence for the rest of the day… Rae tried to talk to them after the fact but got a sour response.

“Quiet. Leave me alone. I d-don't wanna talk.”

Quinn made it home. Thinking about how badly they wanted to call Rae and apologize to him… but for some reason they couldn't bring themselves to pick up their phone and make the call.

Sarah and Johnathan were waiting in the living room after Quinn went to grab ahold (and conceal) their knife, they plopped down next to the two on the couch. Their Dad was gonna come home earlier than usual to prepare for the dinner party.

The silence was maddening, Johnathan bounced in his seat, excited to even spend time with them all while Sarah tried to think of ways to start conversations and possibly reconcile with everyone and Quinn desperately hopes some magical minimal kills her off so they don't have to worry about talking or dealing with her.

Why do I want… that to happen to her?

Their thoughts are cut short by a certain Dad walking into the home. “Alrighty, Quinn, get to preparing the salmon!” He tried to say in a cheesy, upbeat tone with finger guns and a shit eating grin on his face. Quinn nods and gets up, hoping to ask Sarah to help before Dad decides otherwise. “Sarah! Could you set up the table and do some decorations? Imma be upstairs preparing my outfit and looks for dinner! And Johnny! Little little Johnny!” He leaned over and booped his little nose, “Why don't you go help Quinn with din din?”

Johnathan happily accepts, Quinn stands there, dumbfounded and a little upset but not vocally protesting (the only protest being their facial expression). They all get up and head to handle their tasks, Sarah eager in decorating the dining room and table, and Johnathan having more fun than anyone in the house helping out with dinner.

“Sissy! Sissy!” Johnathan chirped up, Quinn took a deep breath, not wanting to lose face. They looked down at Johnathan with a strained and haphazard smile. “What's up…?” they croaked out, an exhausted tone in their dry voice. Johnathan smiled and yapped on and on, asking some miscellaneous question… Quinn could barely hear his yapping, as it was all a blur, each word passing by as a fuzzy reminder that they existed in this moment. When the question was finally asked and Johnathan noticed Quinn’s subconscious absence, he repeated their name over and over until the snapped back to realty.

“Hmm? Huh? What was it b-b-bubba?” They requested the repetition of the questions. Johnathan giggled before he asked once more, “How come I haven't ever seen mommy until now?”

…

shit… He found out…

They thought to themself, almost gasping aloud to the question… “U-Um… w-whaddya m-mean…?” They avoided answering, their voice quivering with a slight fear of what could happen… he could turn against them, he could get taken by her, he could-

“I mean like… I've never seen mommy until now… how come…?” He asked innocently, his eyes wide with curiosity and innocence, Quinn can’t help but answer this innocent question… “Sigh… well… there wath a lot of b-bad things that happened… and sh-she-she had to stay away… but I gu-guess she's coming for d-dinner now.” They stated, hoping he'll be sufficed with all these answers. “Now… Can you g-go g-get me the baby carrots, b-b-bubba?” They asked, done getting all the pots and pans out. Johnathan nodded and smiled, grabbing the baby carrots from the fridge. Quinn sighed in relief for a moment, believing that he was done with questions… but he was far from done, his curious little mind wanted to know everything about her.

“What's she like? Is she cool? What did she do?” he shit question after question, a smile still prominent on his face as Quinn was overloaded with information. “I-I-I- uh- uhm-” They put the carrots in the pot with hot water as the stuttered, turning in the stove. “Watch t-the stove for me b-b-bubba… S-S-Sissy needs a b-break…” they muttered as the ran up to their room, collapsing on the ground as they shut the door. They got up and sat down in their bed, pulling out their knife to clean it off… staring into the reflection of the blade as they put away their cloth… once again, they were met with the same thoughts and feelings that disgusted them. The same ones that they felt when they saw the fire from last week on the news, the same one that made them hate themselves because they didn’t want any harm caused to little Johnathan…

They walked downstairs, finding Johnathan watching the carrots intently. “Hey sissy! You were up for a while… I think they're done!” He chirped, Quinn smiled at his eagerness and innocence… ruffling his hair as they go back to fixing up dinner.

It was a long silence before Johnathan nearly forgot Quinn's evasion of the questions he asked earlier. He perked up and began to shoot questions at then again, they couldn't keep up at all… it was all building up into a horrible feeling… a horrible thought…

“Quinn! Hurry up! I'm gonna go get A҉҉n҉҉d҉҉r҉҉e҉҉a҉! Her car's broken down and I expect to come home with a fully prepared dinner…” Their father announced as the front door shut, the sounds of his car pulling away only fueled this anxiety and feeling to the max.

“She's coming! She's coming! Are you excited, sissy!?”

Quinn couldn't hold back anymore. Those words threw them into there very first angry fit… and probably the worst one ever…

Screams, flashes of red and adrenaline ran through the moment, the only thing stopping them is the horrified voice behind them.

“...Jonathan?”

Sarah asked, her eyes wide with surprise, horror, and grief as she stared at the bloody mess before them both. Quinn swung at her from behind, only snapping back to reality as Sarah fell back, lifeless…

Quinn stared at the mess they created in their fit, the horror and agony they just caused… they stared back at… him… and felt tears run down their face…

“You're… dead… It's… my fault…”

They thought aloud, their voice shaky with grief, loss, and pure terror. Tears continued to fall as they stumbled upstairs… they sat in their room, they had lost the two things keeping them going in this world. The only two reasons why they kept themselves alive.

What do I do? What- what's even going to happen now? I'm gonna get caught. I-I can't let that happen… I…

Their thoughts stopped as they looked up, their mask hanging on the wall in front of them… they have nothing to lose now… they have nobody to care for…

…I'll take matters into my own hands… might as well finish the job…

They though as the grabbed the mask and stapped it on their face. It fit like a glove.

Their parents stood no chance of survival against Quinn. Their deaths were quick and meaningless. They lit a cigarette and lifted their mask slightly to soothe their nerves. Before anxiety hit them like a truck.

Shit. What’ll the cops think?

They quickly made their way out back, grabbing a canister of gasoline and trailing it all over the house, out of the house, down the street…

They saw the home that lived next door, a family. A very happy family… they were eating dinner together and laughing it all up… for some twisted reason, it sickened Quinn. “How disgusting…” they muttered as they trailed gasoline around the home as well. Just barely enough made it far away enough to light it up from afar.

They finished their cigarette, staring at the still lit butt before pulling their mask back and throwing the but onto the line of gasloline… both homes broke into flames, and Quinn couldn't help but smile at the beautiful sight… and they couldn't help the maniacal laughter escaping their body. They ran into the forest, tears streaming down their face and laughter filling the silence of this blood curling night.

They managed to find a cabin after so long… it was a cabin the family used to camp at occasionally before Johnathan came along… they found their bunk and passed out for the night.

The next day, they got up and turned on the radio, expecting music to play but only finding news reporters talking about the events that transpired that night.

“-Massive house fire that burned down two homes and killed one family. Experts say the source can be traced back to the Devore's home and no trace of the eldest child can be found. Autopsies will be done to figure out how the Devore family was killed, as their charred bodies were found more mutilated than any old house fire could cause-”

That alone was enough to make them smash the radio to bits. Their paranoia began to show and it was daunting…

That's it… I'm gonna get found… I'm going to jail…

The only thoughts they had were concerned for themselves and themselves alone… for once, not having anyone to care for was dreadful but also relieving…?

What- no!! Hell no!! I just killed my family, for crying out loud! Why… why don't I feel guilty???

What…

Their thoughts transpired as a realization hit them.

…Why did I care…?

It's been a while… a week, at least… since the incident… it's really fuzzy in their head, and the lack of sleep isn't helping with the delusions and voices and dizzyness… what had happened a week prior was barely memorable…

I… killed people… who were my important… but my important… what…? Where's Johnathan? Where's Sarah?

Two weeks… the slept last week but didn't sleep again, their nightmares haunting enough with Johnathan and Sarah appearing as the mutilated corpses they became… chasing them through the forest until they came upon a tall, faceless figure and woke up right after…

Who… was that…? Why… were Johnathan and Sarah… dead…? It was my fault but…

What… did they mean to me…?

Three weeks. They slept again last week but the dream was so cryptic and horrific they could barely remember it…

I hate this… who's the faceless man…? Why is he here? Why is he familiar? Why are the two kids familiar to me?

Oh yeah… they're my siblings…

It had been a full month, they were losing their mind and had barely slept… they don't understand why they're here… they don’t understand why they ended up this way…

I killed someone… lot’s of people, actually… I took their lives but…

Who were they? I know the names “Johnathan” and “Sarah” but… why?

Their thoughts were broken up by the sound of their stomach grumbling… they need to eat again…

They got up and headed to the cooler, only to find no more food… guess it was hunting season…

They stared at the door with anticipation. It had been a whole month since they left and they had no idea what to do… they didn’t understand why they hadn’t been caught yet… they didn’t understand why they hadn’t ran farther yet… but nonetheless, hunger had struck hard enough to push then out the door.

The darkness engulfed Quinn in the night… they walk through the forest quietly, occasionally looking up at the stars through the shadows of the forest trees. And then going back to looking for at least a rabbit…

Snap…

They drew their blade and turned quickly… only finding a boy… he looked to be a few years younger than Quinn at the least, brown messy hair, pale white skin, a muzzle or mask of sorts, orange goggles, and two hatchets in their holsters… one looked a lot older than the other…

“...Y-You’re *neck snap* new… mmhh…” the boy stuttered, approaching Quinn with wide eyes. Quinn took a few steps back and the boy laughed loudly at the action. Before regaining composure…

“Heh… re-relaaax… ch-chiill… *whistle* b-b-birdy!” He twitched and ticked, Quinn tilted their head but felt a strange sense of… connection between them…

“I-I-I should sh-show ya t-to the boss! H-He's g-g-gonna be SUPER excited!” He exclaimed, nodding Quinn to follow along, but they didn't budge…

“What's wr-wrong? Sc-Sc-Scaaaaared?” He teased, only for Quinn to stay still and silent for a few moments before speaking.

“...Name?”

Toby looked up, dumbfounded as he realized he never introduced himself. “Haha! Si-Silly me… N-Name's Toby! Y-You?” He returned, Quinn taking a moment before responding…

“Quinn. Na-Name's Quinn…”

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