#toby kebbell x reader

[winchesterbrotherstan]

Kong: Skull Island- Waffles

Pairing: Reg Slivko x Irene Brown (OC), James Conrad x sister!OC, Jack Chapman x sister!OC, sibling OC pair

Summary: Irene finds her long lost brother.

Warnings: mentions of child abuse, cursing, probably some crying

Word Count: 2807

The flight to Omaha, Nebraska took eleven hours without connecting flights. I now understood why Reles and Mills had kissed the ground. I tried to sleep, curling up against James and shutting my eyes, but it evaded me.

I felt sick to my stomach. Was I really about to see Stephen, after five years? Silvie, Cole’s widow, had said that Stephen still talked about me. The thought made me even more anxious. What if I was nothing like he remembered?

James and I were now in a taxicab, only ten minutes from our motel. The rest of the group would meet us there in two days. I was excited to see them again. I looked over at James, who had bags under his eyes. The jet lag was catching up to him, and I would surely be next.

“Hey.” James tugged on my shoulder, and I looked up. “Let’s go.”

I shuffled out of the car, helping James by grabbing my own bag from the trunk. He circled back around to the driver and paid him. I followed his lead as he walked into the motel, checking us in. He took the keys and gave me a soft smile, holding a hand out for me to grab.

We settled into our room in silence. It was decorated brightly, two beds, and a sunshine yellow on every surface I could see. I sat on the bed further away from the door and sighed. James looked my way.

“What’s wrong, Bitsy?”

“I’m nervous.”

“To see Stephen?”

I nodded. “So much has changed in the last five years. What if he doesn’t even recognize me?”

James chuckled. “Your face hasn’t changed that much.”

I sighed again. “That’s true.”

“It’ll be okay. I’ll be around. If anything goes wrong, I’ll come get you.” He shrugged.

“You think something’s gonna go wrong?”

He sat next to me on the bed and wrapped an arm around my shoulder. “No, Ire. Absolutely not, no. But I know that you like to think about worst case scenarios. So, if anything does happen to go wrong, I’ll just get you out.”

“Okay, but what about Cole’s funeral?”

“We won’t go.”

I snorted. “Like hell I’m gonna let Reg, or any of the boys for that matter, sit through that funeral alone.”

James grinned. “They won’t be alone, they’ve got each other.”

I deadpanned, and his teasing grin eased into a reassuring smile. “I promise things will go okay.”

“You’re making a lot of promises, Jay.”

He rolled his eyes. “Okay, moment’s over. Go get changed, we’re leaving in ten minutes.”

I gigged as he began to rummage through his own bag. I followed suit, and we kept our backs to each other as we changed.

“Don’t get me wrong, as excited as I am at the prospect of having Stephen back in my life, I sure as hell miss the others.”

James huffed. “I know. If I can be honest with you, I miss Mason.”

“Ohh, Jay has a crush!”

“Shove it!” He tossed a pillow toward my head.

**********************************************************************

I rang the doorbell, feeling like I was going to faint. Inside, I heard the bark of what was most likely a big dog. A small smile broke onto my face. Stephen had wanted a dog for as long as I could remember.

The white door opened, and an older woman with greying hair and a polite smile stood there. “Can I help you, dear?”

I swallowed, eyeing her through the screen door. “I uh… My name’s Irene. I was on the expedition with your husband, I-”

“Oh, you’re here to see Stephen!” She whispered. “Come in, come in.” She pushed the screen door open and ushered me inside.

“I’m really sorry for your loss.” I shuffled inside.

She shook her head. “Thank you. Here, you can get comfortable, I’ll call him.”

A St. Bernard came my way, tail wagging. I giggled as the dog licked my hand, then butted its head into my torso.

“Oh, Presley, leave her alone.” Silvie pulled on the dog’s collar. “Sorry about that, he just gets excited.”

“His name’s Presley?”

“Yeah,” Silvie nodded, “as in-”

“Elvis Presley. I named him myself, actually. Who is this, mom?”

I looked up, and it felt like looking into the mirror of an alternate universe. He was here, looking healthy and happy. If we would’ve had normal childhoods, this is what we would both look like right now.

Silvie spoke up, gesturing between us. “Stephen, this is-”

“Reen?”

“Hi, Stevie.” I gave the boy standing in front of me a soft smile.

I tried as hard as I could, but I couldn’t help the tears that began to brew in my eyes. Silvie excused herself, saying that we would be in the kitchen if either of us needed her. She pulled Presley along with her. Stephen looked at me, his eyes sad, but the smile on his face wide.

“What happened to your arm?” He pointed, voice weak.

I laughed through my own tears. “There was a tiger. No biggie.”

“What were you doing around a tiger?”

The smile dropped from my face and I looked down, sniffing. “I… I was on the expedition… with your dad.” I looked up at him. “I’m sorry, Stephen.”

He gave a soft shrug. “Thanks.”

There was silence, and then he pointed to my arm again. “You gonna be okay?”

I nodded. “Yeah, it’ll heal soon.”

“I really missed you, Reen.”

I nodded. “I’m sorry we couldn’t find you.”

He shook his head. “It’s not your fault. Dad just kinda dropped off the face of the earth, ya know.”

I felt sick to my stomach once more. “Stevie, I…” I sighed. “Dad… dad’s dead. He died a few months after he sent you away.”

A look of shock spread over his face, and he took a step forward. “Shit.”

“I’m sorry you didn’t get to say goodbye.”

He snorted. “I’m not.”

It was my turn to be shocked, and I felt my eyebrows furrow. “What?”

“God, Irene, after all he put us through? I’m glad he’s gone.”

A weight seemed to come off my chest, like a curse lifted. I looked at Stephen, crying again, and opened my arms wide. He grinned at me and pulled me in for a hug, resting his head on top of mine.

“I’m so glad you’re here, Reen.”

**********************************************************************

“Oh, it is pretty up here.” I huffed as I settled on the tree branch.

“Good for sunsets.” Stephen let out a burp from beside me, and I leaned away, laughing.

“You’re gross.”

He shrugged, a smile on his face. He had led me out to the backyard, where there was a huge tree that he loved. He had convinced me to climb up it, telling me that the view was one he knew I would appreciate.

“I used to spend a lotta time up here.” He sighed, leaning against the trunk of the tree.

“Why? You’ve always been scared of heights.”

He chuckled. “Yeah, I know. Still am. If I fall from here, I could break my neck. That’s scary.”

“You’re not gonna fall, don’t worry.”

“Promise?” He looked over at me with raised eyebrows.

I nodded. “Promise. So why did you spend so much time up here?”

“It was when they first adopted me. I felt so out of place, and so lonely.” There was a long pause, and I looked down at my feet, swinging in the air.

“How old were you? I mean, I know we had just turned thirteen when Dad sent you away, but…”

“Fifteen.”

I sucked in air through my teeth. That age was tough for me, but at least I had the comfort and security of James by my side. I couldn’t imagine what it was like for him.

“I just wanted to go home, man.” He shook his head, as if clearing his thoughts. “Fuck, not even home. I just missed you. I mean, our whole lives, we got shuffled around from place to place…” He sighed. “It was always you and me. I didn’t even miss Dad. I just didn’t wanna be alone.” He was looking down now, face sad and shoulders dropped.

“Stephen… how did you even end up here?”

He furrowed his eyebrows. “Um… I mean, I walked for a while. Jumped on some buses. I got on trains when I could afford it. I didn’t really know where I was going. Just away.”

I squinted. “Wait, what?”

“What?”

“How did you end up in the states?”

“Irene, Dad sent me here.” Stephen looked down at me, confused.

“No, he…” I trailed off.

“What’re you talking about, Reen?”

“He told us that he sent you to boarding school.”

“Us?” Stephen repeated, eyebrows still furrowed.

“James and I. He told us that you… that you were at a boarding school. But he wouldn’t tell us where.”

Stephen shook his head. “He lied to you.”

“Yeah, no shit.”

“He put me on a plane to Brooklyn, New York. Said that I was gonna go live with his cousin. Only, nobody showed up for me.”

“Wait, Brooklyn?”

“Yeah!” He grinned. “Apparently we’re from Brooklyn.”

Reality set in again and I rubbed my forehead. “This doesn’t make sense.”

“I did my best on the streets for as long as I could, but… I ended up in foster care within the year.”

My shoulders dropped even further. “He just wanted to split us up.”

Stephen frowned. “Why?”

“Cause he knew we would both hate him when we grew up. And since James and I were close, he just decided to get rid of you.” Tears came again.

“God, fuck him.” He spat, angry.

I sighed, watching as Stephen’s young adopted siblings ran around in the yard below us.

“I’m sorry, Stevie. I’m sorry I let him, I’m sorry I couldn’t find you.”

“Hey, no, it’s not your fault.” He inched closer, throwing an arm around my shoulders lazily. “It’s not your fault, Reen. We were kids. You couldn’t have done anything.”

“All of this time, I just, I thought that we couldn’t find you. I thought that… that we didn’t do enough.”

“No, Irene.” He shook his head. “I’m sure you did everything you could.”

I sighed. “I don’t get it…”

“Don’t get what?”

“Why he did any of it.” I shook my head. “Why did he do any of it? Who the fuck gives six years olds weapons? Who sets them loose in the wo-” I cut myself off mid-word, looking the other way. “I just don’t get it. I’ve spent the last eight years trying to figure it out. And I still can’t.”

His arm tightened around me. “I don’t think we’ll ever understand, Boo Boo.”

I chuckled, wiping my tears away. We had grown up on Yogi Bear, and at age three, still struggling to speak, Stephen could only call me Boo Boo until we were five.

“Hey, do you still like waffles?”

He looked up at me, making a face. “I fucking love waffles.”

“You have a dirty ass mouth, kid.”

He grinned. “Had to make up for you not being here.”

I rolled my eyes with a goofy smile on my face. “You wanna go get waffles? My treat.”

“I know a good diner, actually.” He perked up. “Are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure. It’s just gonna take me a minute to get down.”

“Hey, who’s Slivko?” He leaned closer, reading the name off of Reg’s army jacket.

I had been wearing it non-stop, like a security blanket. I hugged myself, and the smell of Reg hit me. I grinned.

“He’s my boyfriend.”

“Oh?” He raised an eyebrow.

“It’s been an eventful five years, Stevie.” I winked.

*********************************************************************

“This is my favorite place. Oh, and their pancakes are pretty good if you still like them.” Stephen grinned as we looked over the menus in front of us.

I smiled. “I do still love pancakes. British pancakes suck.”

“Yeah, wait, so you’re still with James?” Stephen cocked his head.

I nodded. “Yeah. Um, after Dad died, I just kinda stayed.” I shrugged. “There was no one to pick me up and move me to the next place.”

“So then how did you end up on the expedition that…” He trailed off, and I watched as his eyes glazed over.

It was like he kept forgetting, and then kept remembering. I knew the feeling all too well, and it was one that made my insides churn.

“Uh, James became a tracker. I-I mean, he fought in the war obviously, but… the people who hired your dad’s squadron, they hired James too. And we don’t leave without each other, so…”

He looked at me with a knowing look. “It wasn’t a tiger, was it? I know, you could take a tiger out from a hundred feet away. How did it get that close?”

I looked around, making sure that we hadn’t caught anyone’s attention. I leaned in and shook my head. “Not right now.”

He scowled. “Irene, how-”

“Not here.” I repeated, clearing my throat as the waitress came to our table.

“What can I get for y’all?” She was an older woman, and she seemed to recognize Stephen.

“Uh, can I just get my usual?” He smiled smoothly.

She nodded. “Of course you can, Stephen. And for you?” She turned my way with a smile.

“Could I please get an order of chocolate chip pancakes?”

“Of course! We’ll have everything right out for you two.” She gave Stephen a knowing smile, and his eyes went wide.

“Oh, uh. No, actually, uh, Miss Betty, this is my sister. Irene.”

Miss Betty’s eyes went wide, and a smile came onto her face. “The famous Irene?”

I chuckled awkwardly, looking back at Stephen. “I guess so?”

“He talks about you all the time, honey. I’ll have your things right out for you, alright. Very happy for you, dear.” She patted Stephen’s shoulder as she made her way to another table.

“You talk about me?”

“Yeah. All shit, though.” He broke into a huge smile.

“Good. I don’t talk about you at all.” I gave him a playful scowl.

“I know you don’t. As if you would tell anybody about your past.”

I scoffed. “Hey!”

The family at the booth next to us turned and shot us a look. I turned back to Stephen and lowered my voice.

“That was uncalled for.”

He stuck his tongue out at me, and I repeated the motion, taunting him as if we were both children.

“Put your tongue back in your mouth, Stephen.”

I looked up to see James sliding into the booth, next to Stephen. I grinned.

“What’re you doing here?”

“Brought you a surprise.”

I tilted my head. “What?”

“Close your eyes, Bitsy.”

I sighed and did as told, hearing Stephen and James whisper between the two of them. Someone sat down next to me, tossing their arm over my shoulder. I was hit with the smell of pine wood and oranges. My heart fluttered as I realized it was Reg. I melted into his side, my eyes still closed.

“Hi, doll.” He pressed a kiss to the top of my forehead.

“So, who are you?”

“Stephen.” I hissed, opening my eyes to shoot him a look.

“My name’s Reg.”

Stephen squinted, holding a hand out across the table. Reg shook it, and I looked back up at him with a goofy smile on my face.

“Hi.” I whispered.

“Hi, doll.” He repeated, grinning right back. “Nice to meet you.” He spoke to Stephen, who was still staring.

I kicked him under the table, and his facade broke. He choked, presumably on air, and began to laugh.

“I’m just messing with you, man. Nice to meet you too. James.” He turned. “Long time, no see.”

“You’ve grown.” James chuckled, and from there, the two seemed engulfed in their own conversation.

I was sure that James felt as much relief as I did, now knowing that Stephen did not, in fact, hate us. Reg’s arm tightened around me, and I looked back at him, the stupid smile on my face once more.

“What are you doing here?”

“I wanted to surprise you.” He smiled softly. “I missed you.”

I felt myself melt even more into his hold. “I missed you, too. You look weird in normal clothes.”

He chuckled. “You look beautiful in my jacket.”

A blush rose on my cheeks, and he winked. I snuggled up to him as close as I could, and he kissed the top of my head once more.

“I’ve got your pancakes and your waffles. Are you guys gonna need some more menus?” Miss Betty asked, putting our plates down in front of us.

Stephen and I looked at each other, and he broke into a snort. I looked back at her.

“Yes please, Miss Betty.”

Previous: Childhood Homes and Childhood Traumas

Next: ??