Gonna come back to this tomorrow cus I'm really drunk
summary: in the aftermath of the theater of terrors, there'd been a single, short moment of silence when everyone had been too stunned to speak. too frightened confused sick horrified to say a word. and then everything had descended into chaos.
pairing: Wally Clark x fem!reader
warnings: smutty smut smut. mad spoilers. and obvious Canon divergence. very involved, very dense plot.
bon reading, frens
___________________________💀
OCTOBER MOON prologue
There was a single, short moment of silence before the commotion began. A moment of confusion and sick loss that weaved its way between and through everyone until it thinned into a desperate need to understand what they'd all just been through.
"He was so alone," Charley whimpered, pitiful, arms curled around his middle as he tried to forget the little boy who'd needed someone to stay with him so badly, "I didn't want to leave him..."
Rhonda scowled, "How could she not know!?" Spitting her anger through gritted teeth, gesturing widely as if the air was too close and she had to push it away.
Wally was frantic, hands moving as fast as his mouth, "I saw Maddie's dad—"
"What?" Weakly, tortured, "Where? Why did you get to see him and I didn't?" And Maddie began to tremble because she'd always known her father had died but she and her mother had never been given more than a feeble, 'it was an accident'. An accident that had rendered her father unrecognizable and dead. An accident that had driven her mother to the bottom of too many bottles and away from her daughter. An accident Maddie had never believed because she'd known, she'd KNOWN, it was a lie. But she hadn't visited him, she'd been stuck in a hospital room with a twelve-year-old girl and her great aunt, forced to watch as Then Deputy Baxter held his hat to his chest and declared a little boy gone.
It wasn't fair and Wally held her even as he explained, "Janet was there," to Charley and Rhonda who stared at him in disbelief.
They all talked over each other, "What was she doing there?" - "Do you think Mr. Martin knows?" - "Maybe that's why he helped her move on; he knew she was dangerous!" - "He can't know, if he did, he wouldn't have let her near us."
Meanwhile, Ajay was urgently scouring the rows, under every seat, down every aisle, calling out Mina's name before disappearing at a run to the back of the stage, into the rafters, "Mina, Mina, Mina!" Over and over, heart in his throat, where was she, she never left the theater, where was she!?
But all of that faded into the background when you heard a weak, strained voice ask, "Why didn't you tell me?"
On your knees on the stage, staring blankly at the spot the farmhouse door had been, you tried to make your mouth work. Slowly, you panned to Xavier who stepped toward you, his face pained, his brow creased and eyes filled with so much sorrow it felt like a kick to the heart.
Meekly in return, you confessed, "I didn't remember," as if that solved the problem. A band-aid over a bullet wound, as true as it was. You'd been tested several times at your mother's stubborn hand for dissociative amnesia, unable to reconcile how you'd remembered Aiden's. A lethal fall down the farmhouse stairs. A farmhouse in town, abandoned, on your way home from the elementary school. You'd gone in to escape the rain and he'd wandered off on his own. Had hit his head so hard on the stone wall, he'd bled out at the bottom of the stairs. You'd watched his spirit rise and then vanish. It was in your statement to Xavier's father. It was how you'd remembered it, in vague flashes, for the six years it'd been since it'd happened.
"I didn't......it wasn't like that." You repeated, forcing the words out around the lump in your throat. "I didn't remember..."
Xavier collapsed to his knees in front of you, devastated, "How? How could you not remember that? How could you not tell me!?" It wasn't harsh or mean or loud though part of you wished it was. It was a quiet expression of betrayal. And then, a breathy whisper, "He was my brother, too."
Maybe not biologically, but emotionally, spiritually, it was true. Xavier had held Aiden as a baby; had held Aiden's hand on his first day of kindergarten; had taught him big words to impress his teachers, and how to kick a ball into the net, and how to skateboard like a big boy, and how to—you shook, eyes welling with tears as Xavier continued to look at you like you'd just shattered his whole world.
"Xavier," Maddie said softly, her own voice shaky with grief, "It's not her fault."
Xavier exhaled deeply as he turned his head to Maddie, pressed his lips together, suddenly appearing anxious beneath the pain, "When did you get back?"
Maddie shot you a helpless look and you took the responsibility from her, saying in a wet tone, "She didn't, Zav."
Xavier was confused for a long minute, staring at Maddie as if he could piece her together like a puzzle.
He blinked several times, looked—really looked—at the students he didn't recognize, noticing their outdated apparel, their pale complexions, their...not-really-thereness. All at once, it struck him, a knife-twisting epiphany while your voice in his mind, carefree and purposefully teasing, told him and Mathilda about your hot football player ghost. He gazed at Wally Clark, the number 57 on the sleeve of his varsity jacket, and then swallowed.
Xavier's eyes closed almost as soon as his gaze returned to rest on you; his lips pressed together so you wouldn't see how the bottom one wobbled. His shoulders tensed, and, when he opened his eyes again, he couldn't stomach to look at you. In that moment, he understood like common sense exactly where he stood with you and it hurt.
"Zav," You whimpered, reaching for him, but he shifted away, shaking his head. "Zav, please," You attempted, shuffling forward on your knees. He stood, stumbled back a step and then grabbed his head, breathing heavy.
"No." He said, then louder, "No, no way." You clambered to your feet as he jumped off the stage. "It's too much," He said and you could tell he was fighting tears, "I can't do this." He marched to the top of the center aisle as you called after him, pausing only for a second to glance back at you over his shoulder, his expression utterly destroyed, and then he opened the door and left.
You made to run after him, but Wally grabbed you, pulled you to his chest. "Let him go, baby," he said, calm and soft, and when you struggled, wailing, folding forward, and falling to the ground, he went with you and cradled you in his arms. Let you cry out everything that had happened; with Aiden, with the farmhouse cellar, with the cult, and Amelia and Anabelle. All of it. Wally held you through it, shushing you, holding your head to his chest, rocking you, kissing your hair between variations of, "I've got you, baby, I'm right here."
As you began to recover, thick sniffs and small whimpers, you burrowed into the safety and comfort of Wally's arms, not wanting the others to see you like that. Unfortunately, you didn't have a choice. Your phone vibrated in the back pocket of your skirt. Wally shamelessly retrieved it, handing it off to Maddie without a word.
"Simon's here." She said, as somber and morose as the rest of them.
‗‗‗‗•‗‗‗‗
Quinn Wu smiled as they greeted the next customer at the box office. It was Friday. They'd planned on checking out Horror Con with their friends. On finally letting loose and enjoying a weekend like a regular teenager. That was until their mom had stumbled in drunk right as they were about to leave, their mom clearly unable to work her shift at Jitterbug Theater. It wasn't busy. They could've called their mom in sick and the other staff could've easily made do.
But their family was hard up for money and the rent was overdue by several days, the threat of eviction already made clear like blood painted on the doorframe. So, there they were, giving their best customer service smile to the next in line.
The woman was old but pretty, her hair tucked under a hat that reminded Quinn of something one would see in the 20s. She wore large sunglasses accessorized with chunky rhinestones that glittered in the fluorescent light. Her cashmere sweater was a simple black, her mink shawl a bright Barbie pink. She hobbled in tall, spiky heels toward the counter, her weight balanced on a cane that matched her sunglasses.
She was fabulous, Quinn thought, certainly the most interesting person they'd ever seen. The woman joked with Quinn as she waited for her tickets to print.
And then...then the world seemed to go quiet. The woman leaned in, her hand grabbing Quinn's when they offered her the tickets. With a grey-toothed grin, she said, "I'm so sorry your mother doesn't love you enough to let you have your own life," truly sympathetic. She lowered her sunglasses on her nose, sparkling blue eyes gazing deep into Quinn's.
Strangely, Quinn wasn't alarmed. Or offended. Or disturbed. They were resigned. As if the woman's words expressed a universal truth they couldn't escape. Quinn nodded, their eyes casting to the countertop.
The woman leaned in further and assured, "Don't worry, pet, I can make it all better."
Quinn's eyes flashed up to hers, hopeful. "Really?"
The woman nodded, "Just be sure to go to school on time and don't skip any classes. Be a good student," the woman instructed, very serious, "and I'll make sure you get everything you want." Her smile remained sweet while her eyes turned sharp. "I promise. But do you?"
Quinn pondered the question, tilting their head and staring at the woman in front of them who could give them everything they wanted. After a few silent seconds, the beat of their heart getting louder in their ears, they answered:
"I promise."
💀___________________________
OCTOBER SUN PT.27 - PART ONE
note: for those who don't know, Quinn is a character who will be making her/their debut in S2. i'm using they/them pronouns to respect the actor as i don't know anything about Quinn yet. but anyway...*cracks knuckles* let the challenge BEGIN. i swear to all that i am that i WILL finish this nutjob of a fic before next Thursday if it's the last thing that i do ☠️✍️🔥🚒
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ABOUT THE TAGLIST: we're not about that life around here (•¯ ∀ ¯•) things got too outta hand and i'm still cleaning up the mess left behind by the demons i accidentally summoned trying to get the damn thing to work 🕳️👹......there's a dustpan over there if you feel like helping 🧹💨 or, if you just wanna stay up to date, please FOLLOW ME and TURN ON NOTIFICATIONS.
I just learned how to use HTML codes and imma make it everyones problem. Like I use dark mode on here so all the text is already white but I could use an HTML code that will make it to where users on light mode cant even see the words. I could do some evil with this.
I hate the way I look,
I hate my smile,
I hate the way I talk,
But you loved everything about me
You took all the hate and replaced it with love I never had before
Now I'm left with the essence of your love mixing with my hate not understanding how I could ever let you go
I hate myself more than ever
summary: prompt fill. Wally isn't clingy. he isn't. honest. but something about your aura makes him nervous, and suddenly he's all hands everywhere and babbling where he's normally calm, cool, collected, and he needs you to get his head back on right. (request)
pairing: Wally Clark x fem!reader
warnings: smut. flashfic. nothing Anxiety Disorder related. Wally Clark is a whiny lil' babe when he's nervous.
bon reading, frens
___________________________🍋🟩
Anxiety
At first, you don't even acknowledge him. Which, alright, fine, you don't have to, it's not a rule. But Wally's suddenly anxious, tracking in his head all the things he said to you yesterday when he left your house. Hopped out the window, dashed across the lawn, and strutted home with a skip in his step because you showed him how much you love his cock.
Thrice.
You kissed him goodbye, sleepy and sweet, after he tucked you in. Normal. Better than normal, actually. And you didn't text him this morning to suggest anything's wrong.
Oh God. Does that mean something's wrong?
You don't always text him before school since, as you said, you know you're going to catch him before class. He left you pretty late last night, so no wonder you showed up only minutes before the bell instead of your usual twenty, and shit, is that the problem?
He wasn't considerate of your time? He should've been. Fuck, he should. have. been. Not whining and begging you for, "Just one more time, baby, please. I can't stop, I'm still so hard for you, come on."
With a whine he doesn't realize he releases, he crosses the cafeteria and takes a seat beside you. Fiddles with his hands in his lap, knee bouncing, trying to smile at Simon and Ajay who smile back, though something in their eyes is mildly concerned.
You chat away to Claire and Nicole as if Wally isn't buzzing out of his skin beside you, pretty and awake, voice tinkling like a bell. Wally chews his lip the longer you go without indicating you notice him.
You're wrapped up in the conversation, he tells himself. You're not mad at him. Right? .... Right!?
Uncertain, but desperate for acknowledgement, Wally reaches out and places a hand on your knee. You don't shoo him away. Don't move it. In fact, you inch closer, pressing your hip against his and curling your hand around his. You don't look at him, but Wally considers it a win.
Or maybe it's not.
Maybe you just don't want to cause a scene, and you're giving him crumbs of affection to placate him before you take him somewhere private and blow his world to smithereens.
By the time the bell rings, Wally's worked himself into a frenzy. Palms sweaty, face pale, bottom lip worried red. He keeps his eyes down, offering you a nervous, tight smile when you gaze up at him as you stand and grab your bag.
You notice his nervous demeanor and tilt your head, studying him like last night's Bio homework.
You and he have English next, but you don't seem to care, dragging him by the wrist into an empty classroom where you instruct him to, "Sit."
Wally does as he's told, sitting in the teacher's chair, staring up at you with enormous, soulful eyes, as if pleading for you to forgive him for whatever he did wrong.
You scan his face through narrowed eyes, and then slide your bag off your shoulder and let it drop to the floor. Quite unexpectedly (though very much appreciated), you plant your legs on either side of his and plop down in his lap with your whole weight. Hips right against his, no air between you; your hands on his shoulders and his on your waist.
He gulps, blinking at you, waiting for you to say something.
Finally, "What's going on in that silly head of yours, pretty boy?"
Wally releases a breath he didn't realize he was holding, relaxing as your lips curl into a warm, sedate smile. His hands tighten on your waist.
"I...thought you were mad at me?" He poses like a question, feeling stupid now that he hears himself say it out loud. And then, babbling, "I thought I might've disrespected your time last night. I know I left later than we planned, and I'm so sorry. I'll make sure it doesn't happen again, babe, I promise. But you know how I am when I get you all to myself—" Which sounds like he's blaming you, crap "Not that it's your fault, I'm not saying that, I was just trying to say that I know I need to be more aware of the time—"
You shut him up with a hard, deep kiss. Your lips taste like candy, tongue sweet-sour as you sweep it over his, moaning in delight when he begins to respond.
His hands fall to your hips, then glide back to grab your ass cheeks, hitching you as close as he can get you. Wally spreads his legs wide, cock fattening up so quick he sees spots behind his eyes when you grind forward and gasp.
"There's my good boy," You murmur, breathless, beautiful; cheeks pink and eyes glossy, and, oh fuck, Wally whimpers. You fist your hand into his hair and drag him into another heavy kiss, not letting him breathe until you've had your fill.
He pants, fingers kneading the flesh of your ass as you grind in slow, delirious rolls of your hips against his.
"I'm not mad at you, Wally," You assure him, "What did I tell you last time you thought I was?"
It takes everything in Wally to remember anything outside of this moment, but eventually he says, "That you'd tell me immediately."
"And I meant that." You pause, going still, and he whines in frustration. "Don't you trust me?"
He nods vigorously, "I trust you, I'm sorry," pinning you to him which in turn shifts you against his cock. He moans weakly, grinding his hips up, begging you to take pity on him.
Fuck, it's insane how easily he gets worked up for you, but he wouldn't change a thing. You and he are already skipping English, might as well use the time doing something...productive.
"Shh, you don't need to apologize," And you say it as you wedge a hand between your body and his, fingers deftly undoing his fly, hand sneaking under the denim to palm him through his boxer-briefs. "You didn't do anything wrong."
Wally's breathing too quick to respond, to thank you for being so understanding. His eyes roll back, head tipping backwards, hips bucking into your hand.
"Baby, please," God, he needs you, is already leaking a wet spot into the cotton.
Cruelly. Sultry. "Use your words, pretty boy," You purr, biting a trail down his neck. "Tell me what you want to do."
He swallows thickly, groans weakly, a pathetic little mewl. He hates having to ask, especially when he knows you know exactly what he's angling for.
But then your hand stops, your hips stop, you stop, and he forces out, "I wanna be inside you so bad..." Choked and desperate.
He opens his eyes and sees you smirking at him, cool as a cucumber. Or that's what he thinks until you grab his hand and bring it under your skirt, encourage his fingers to slip under the crotch of your panties. Fuck, you're so wet. Juicy and slick and hot just for him. Again, he swallows, throat dry, eyes heavy-lidded and blown, panting like a dog as you begin to ride his fingers.
"Is that good?" He asks, cock throbbing when you throw your head back, arch your chest forward, moan like a porn star because of something he's doing to you.
He can't take it anymore, needs to have you, needs to be inside you. He pulls his fingers out too soon. You pout, but don't complain, shifting to peel your panties off before resettling in his lap. Wally has enough brain power left to check that the door is locked, the little window still covered by that Drug Prevention poster plastered all over the school for the next month.
You bring him right the fuck back into the moment by dropping down on his cock, one slick-slide move that punches a grunt from Wally's chest. You start slow, always taking your time to build a rhythm, drive him batshit fucking crazy with lust before giving him what he needs to get to the edge.
"You're such a good boy, Wally," You praise, lifting and sinking down on him again and again and again, squeezing tight around him every time, "You're so sweet, so perfect."
And, shit, he needs to hear that, his blood pumping harder, weak sounds of pleasure and gratitude released from his core, his hands clutching you like worship. Then, you start to move faster. Sharper grinds, harder drops, wet squelches telling him how close you are.
How close he got you.
"Oh, God, baby, I'm gonna come," He sobs, feet planted, hips bucking in tempo with your movements, fingernails digging into your ass cheeks, "Don't stop, fuck, baby, I'm gonna—"
It hits him like a Mack truck to the hypothalamus. He explodes inside you, crying out like a fucking princess, pumping his hips as he spends everything he has in him.
It rips your climax from you, Wally can feel it, shit, fuck, it's so good, the way you go so tight around him, a vise holding him deep inside you. The way your thighs spasm and your mouth falls open and you look at Wally like he's the most important person in the world.
Moments later, cooled down and cuddling in the afterglow, you pet his hair sweetly and kiss him with fondness; soft, loving.
"What do we do the next time you think I'm mad at you?" You say like a kindergarten teacher talking about sharing crayons.
Wally pouts, mumbles, "Talk to you about it."
You grin. "And when do we talk about it?"
"Before I get anxiety..." Wally pinches his lips together and averts his gaze.
You don't let him avoid your eyes for long, drawing his face back so he has to look at you.
"If it makes you feel any better, Wally, I honestly don't think I could ever get mad at you." You kiss the tip of his nose. "But if I do, I promise, I'd tell you straight away, okay?"
Wally nods, as solemn as he is grateful and relieved, "Okay."
You lean in, nip his earlobe and whisper, "Good boy." And suddenly he's fucking hard all over again, flipping you onto your back on the teacher's desk and showing you with his body exactly how good he can be.
🍋🟩___________fin.____________
also on AO3!
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if you enjoyed this, you may also enjoy Simp..
a silly little subby Wally drabble because our clingy boo is fun to write.
tagged by the greatest writer I know @whoopsyeahokay
What's the origin of your blog title?
I technically don't have a blog title. It's just Patrick which isn't my real name I just really love spongebob and think Patrick is the realest character out there.
My user name patrickispinky is also because of spongebob. I was originally gonna go with patrickstar but it was already taken and so was patrickispink so I just added a y at the end.
OTP(s) + shipname:
okay I'm ngl I had no clue what opt meant so I had to look it up and Google said it means 'one true paring' Honesty I'm not too big on ships but if I had to pick one I would go with Nick and Charlie from heartstopper. Idk there ship name so like niclie or charlick.
Favorite color:
Right now my favorite color is lilac but I also really love earthy greens.
Song stuck in your head:
A pearl - mitski
Weirdest habit/trait:
Okay this is gonna sound really weird but I have a jar full of sequins that I pulled off of different things. I had a pillow covered in them that I just ripped them off of and put in a jar, same with this stuffed animal I had. I can't explain why I just had the urge one day and did it. Now anytime I have anything with sequins on it I just rip them off.
Hobbies:
Reading, writing, crying for no reason, listening to true crime podcasts, and arts and crafts.
If you work, what's your profession?
Right now I work part time at a local coffee shop but I'm in college studying in the medical field to hopefully one day be a nurse.
If you could have any job you wish, what would it be?
If you asked me I would just say a nurse but on a deeper level I'd say an actress and a poet. I love the idea of just being able to play out a character with passion and I've always written poetry to help me in dark times.
Something you're good at:
I thought about this question for longer than i'd like to admit and the only answer I can come up with is working. I'm a hard worker and when I don't have school work or work work I don't feel right.
Something you collect:
Jewelry, books, candles, and sequins apparently.
Something you forget:
I have to have alarms on my phone to remind me to drink water or I'd just live off of coffee and red bull.
What's your love language:
Gift giving and physical affection but only physical affection from certain people. Sometimes when the wrong person touches me it makes my skin crawl for no reason I can't explain it.
Favorite movie/show:
Right now it's School spirits 100% but my comfort shows/movies are criminal minds, the umbrella academy, spongebob, heartstopper, and family guy.
Favorite food:
Boiling hot potato soup and buttery bread.
Favorite animal:
capybaras, they are adorable.
What were you like as a child:
I think I was pretty quiet and shy but when it came to the right people I was fucking weird as shit.
Favorite subject at school:
English literature and art.
Least favorite subject:
Anything math related.
What's your best character trait?
I think I'm pretty fast thinking.
What's your worst character trait?
I don't exactly like people which sounds odd because I'm literally studying to be someone who helps people but sometimes they repulse me.
If you could change any detail of your life right now, what would it be?
I'd choose to live somewhere with free healthcare. Them bitches cut me off 🥲
If you could travel in time, who would you like to meet?
Jeffrey Dahmer, before you say anything I'm just curious. I'd want to have a one on one conversation about why. I've always wondered what could go through a person's head to make them think they can just eat people.
no pressure tag: @gabbyygoo (Honestly that's it I don't have any more mutuals other than whoopsy who's already tagged at the top)
Wally Clark Headcanons - 3
(request)
Wally is obsessed with you. Probably to the extent he should seek help, but he doesn't care. He's happy. More than happy, in fact. He's in love.
He could spend every second of every minute of every day in your company and never get tired of it. Never need space or moments alone or time apart. Wally doesn't want that. Call him codependent, he doesn't give a fuck, he's so into you it borders on insane.
Which is why, when you and he do have to separate—aka: surgically fucking removing him from your presence—he's like a puppy left alone at home. Watching the door, pacing the house, counting down along with the clock until you come back. Chin on paws, soulful eyes begging the universe to bring you back now, please.
He watches TV, throws some hoops, showers, eats; manic and anxious and needy. And, yeah, Wally's totally capable of doing his own thing. He has the other ghosts to chill with; has pastimes Mr. Martin had encouraged over the decades Wally's been dead. He did stuff without you before you came along, and could do that stuff again.
But going back to anything after experiencing how vibrant his world is with you in it...nothing holds a candle. It's all boring and cheap and unappealing. So, he pouts, bounces his knee, annoys the crap out of Rhonda who's trying to read a book while Wally stares at the same word in his for the next forty-five minutes.
You and Maddie spent the day searching for clues in Maddie's murder case, a girls' day spent stalking Claire without Wally because Maddie was opening up to you more without anyone else around, and you wanted to help.
Wally's sweet, beautiful saint.
He makes a grumpy little noise that Rhonda rolls her eyes at.
Finally, finally, the library door opens. No time to say hello, already hoisted into Wally's arms after he torpedoes straight for you the instant you step inside. He cradles you close, kisses your face, hair, neck, giddy that you're back.
"How was it? Did you find anything? Did you miss me? I missed you."
Babbling and eager and wanting to hear your voice. You giggle (which he likes more), and he smiles back at you, big and excited, though his eyes are soft.
"It's been, like, an hour, Wally." You remind him, and he huffs.
"Longest hour of my life." He complains, to which Rhonda seconds under her breath.
He sneers at her, but his expression melts into complete adoration when you pull his attention back to you.
"How about we go relax for a bit, huh? The faculty lounge is empty..." You suggest and he's already moving, not letting you down, just carrying you like a toddler down the hall and through the door to the faculty lounge.
Wally loves cuddling with you. Doesn't even need things to go further to feel satisfied. You sit with your back against the armrest. Wally fits himself between your legs and rests his head on your chest, nuzzling into you and humming contentedly.
This is what he was made for, he believes wholeheartedly. To be yours. Built by the universe just for you because he can't imagine being anything else. He's been his own person for enough years; he's fine. Been there. Done that.
Now and well into beyond—for the rest of fucking time—all Wally wants is to be a piece of you.
And you absolutely let him soak you in whenever he wants because he's been through hell and needs unconditional love like fish need water.
Look at that face. I dare you to say no.
This is my comfort cus some bitch decided to spoil the end of the umbrella academy this came in clutch at the perfect time
summary: you'd never told Xavier. not because he hadn't been a good friend, but because you'd kept a secret no one but you had known. only then, in the eye of the storm, you'd been forced to tell him: i can't remember.
pairing: Wally Clark x fem!reader
warnings: eventual smutty smut smut. and mad spoilers. and obvious Canon divergence. very involved, very dense plot.
sorry for the delay, loves, work was overwhelming (it's busy season) and i'm sick and it was a lot 😩⚰️ ilyg 🫶
bon reading, frens
___________________________💀
OCTOBER SUN pt.25
In 1987, during the period Wally had still been reluctant to join the Afterlife Support Group, Mr. Martin had asked Bernie to ask Wally to help Mina Volkov transition from life to death. You're from the same decade—Mr. Martin's words from Bernie's mouth—she probably remembers you. Although, looking back, Wally wondered if it hadn't been a strategic play to get Wally to see the benefits of togetherness.
For the first time since his death, Wally had felt useful, but it'd backfired almost immediately and had sent him into a tailspin of doubt and frustration that'd lasted another five or so years. Mina had simply yelled at Wally about a safety course and how she hadn't been responsible for who got what part, barking at Wally until he'd descended from the rafters with his tail between his legs. He'd tried a few more times after their first encounter to cajole Mina out of her roost, and he'd been chased away every time.
So, color him surprised when Mina quietly accepted the bouquet Maddie handed her, tempered, receptive, and willing to offer what she knew by lifting and dropping the stage's trapdoor.
"How did she do that?" Wally asked of Maddie, who'd done in a minute what he'd tried to do over the span of years.
"Maybe it has something to do with what your girlfriend mentioned," Rhonda said in long, bored strokes, "Maddie might have ghost powers that she can use to tame even the most stubborn dead stagehands."
Wally warmed at Rhonda's use of the word 'girlfriend', cheeks flushing and heart picking up speed. He hadn't given much thought to titles, but something inside him did somersaults at the idea that you and he were that kind of official.
"Stop that." Rhonda smacked him lightly in the chest with the back of her hand.
Wide-eyed and totally confused, "Stop what?"
"Your face," Charley explained, "It's gone all soft and pining." Then, to himself, "It's actually adorable."
Wally rearranged his expression into something less smitten as he, Rhonda, and Charley stood and followed Maddie through the trapdoor and down into the cellarage.
‗‗‗‗•‗‗‗‗
Time stammered to a stop, the walls closed in; lights dimmed, noise ceased, and all you could see was Xavier. His ice-wild eyes filled with fear and confusion, already positioned on the defensive, more disturbed than you'd ever seen him before.
"Zav?" You croaked as your heart thundered in your chest. "Are you—?"
"No." Xavier snapped, pacing a few steps forward and then back, "Don't. Just. Stop..." He deflated instantly, rubbed his eyes, and raked his fingers through his hair, and then he demanded, "Who was that guy?"
You couldn't deflect; couldn't say no idea what you're talking about, couldn't fake it 'til you made it or wait for him to think up some plausible excuse on his own that you'd glom on to and ride into the sunset. It was Xavier and you'd promised yourself years ago that he'd be the one person in the world you'd never, ever lie to. Dance around the truth for self-preservation? Sure. But outright lie to him? Your instincts screeched and cried against it, fight-flight-frozen in place as you watched his eyes dart around, the flurry of his thoughts practically spilling out of him for you to hear.
The years you'd spent curating an occult personality, touched by the same incandescent, bewitched spirit as every other boho-goth girly with a penchant for Halloween and horror films; the admissions you'd made of having a crush on a ghost at the school; the easy way you talked about what lay beyond the spiritual veil. The many breadcrumbs you'd dropped in the form of red herrings rose like a bloated corpse from the depths of a lake as he viscerally pieced together the truth.
"I know what I saw." He grunted, falling back against the wall and sliding to the floor, head in his hands, wide eyes staring at his feet. "You were making out with some rando and then he just...vanished into thin air." Xavier made a poof-gone burst with his hands, head panning in a crescent to scan the hall for signs of what he'd witnessed.
"Xavier, I..." Didn't know what to say and your inability to explain everything away seemed to strengthen Xavier's resolve.
He sniffed, dropping his arms to hang on his knees, face creased in a pain you didn't know the source of. "I know I can be a shit friend," He began, tone thin as wet paper, but before you could voice a denial, he continued, "I know that everything with Maddie has...has been hard and it's obviously triggered something for you, but..." And his voice scratched, "I thought I was your best friend."
"You are," You insisted, trying so hard to convey how true the sentiment was.
"Yeah? Then why don't you ever talk to me about Aidan?" A blade to the heart. "Why won't you tell me what the fuck actually happened to him? I loved him, too." The blade twisted, sinking deeper. "I know it wasn't an accident, May; I know you saw something; I know you were there." The nickname hurt for more reasons than one, and it took everything in you not to call Xavier out. "Why don't you ever share anything with me? And now you're buddy-buddy with Simon and handsy with a guy you can't. tell. me. wasn't Walker Clark—fucking Number 57 right on his jacket, DEAD high school legend." Xavier paused his tirade to note, "Jesus Christ, I sound fucking crazy," knocking his head against the wall and squeezing his eyes shut.
Your surprise bubbled out of you before you could reel it back in, "How do you even know any of that?"
Xavier slumped in defeat, shook his head, and confessed, "You always talked about him. How your mom fangirled after him worse than a K-pop stan." He snorted, "In sophomore year, when Eli asked you out? You wouldn't stop joking about how you thought a stupid ghost was more your type." He looked up at you then, gaze misty, brows pinched in anguish. "I wanted to see what the hype was about...so I checked out the '84 yearbook in the library. There's a whole spread dedicated to his memory, did you know that?"
You did. You'd been shown a printout of it along with the rest of Wally's dossier. "Yeah."
"I mean, I thought you'd just looked it up, too." Xavier laughed without humor, "Thought you were just bullshitting for the sake of some manic pixie dream girl vibe you wanted to try out because being a teenager's fucking stupid like that, but..." Again, his gaze met yours, held it briefly as he stared into your soul, and then skirted away, up and down the hallway before returning to fixate on the theater door. "Where'd he go, May?"
"Please stop calling me that." You said, hoarse, strangled, breath shortening as your lungs struggled to expand.
Xavier stood and strode forward until you and he were nose to nose, "Who was that?" He pressed, "Who just had their hands all over you and then disappeared just like that." The last word emphasized with a loud snap of his fingers.
"Zav, please, just hold on—"
He abruptly whirled around, stormed toward the theater door, and violently threw it open. You scurried after him, pleading with him to listen as he charged down the center aisle toward the stage, calling out for whoever you were to show himself as if to prove Xavier wasn't losing his mind. And he wasn't, you knew that, but how were you supposed to tell him without doing more damage than had already been done when you'd revealed yourself to Rhonda and Charley?
"Xavier, wait!" You yelled, panicked, divulging the only thing you thought might redirect his manic assault around the theater. "I didn't tell you about Aiden because I can't remember!"
Xavier stopped his search, still as an eerie pond in winter, and slowly turned to face you. "What?"
"I can't..." Fuck. You scraped your fingers over your scalp then shot your arms wide, "I can't remember." You revealed, voice cracking, "It comes back in bits and pieces that don't make...they don't make sense without the context and you're right, okay? I was there, but I can't remember. Not everything." The door, the farmhouse, blood, blood everywhere, a crowbar, and Aiden screaming for you, his Sissy May because your mother always called you her May child—her little baby girl a symbol of new hope and abundance that had nothing to do with Beltane or spring blessings or the month of May itself.
"What do you mean you 'can't remember'?" Xavier questioned, face scrunched up as if that was somehow crazier than the fact that he'd seen you and a literal ghost make out.
Tears streamed down your face, vision blurry, voice pitched and broken as the last thread of control you had on the situation split. "I don't know." Xavier shook his head in disbelief, compelling you to blurt out whatever you could to keep him calm, "I really don't know. Ms. Chung kept saying my brain was 'repressing the trauma' but I wanted to remember. We tried everything: Art therapy, guided imagery, fucking hypnosis, Xavier, and nothing worked. I can't...I can't remember anything after I picked Aiden up from school."
Panels of that drizzly afternoon read like a heavily redacted picture document. The short walk in the rain from the elementary schoolyard to the end of the block. The friendly smile on a face you knew you'd recognized but that now had a thick, black bar over the nose and eyes. The apple juice. The farmhouse cellar. The crowbar. The door. And then everything sped up from images to a movie reel when then-Deputy-Baxter had to wrestle you to the ground at the side of the dirt road while EMTs tried to resuscitate Aiden.
"I didn't tell you because there wasn't anything in here," You aggressively jammed your fingers into the side of your head as if attempting to unblock the memories, "to tell you. And it's fucked up and I'm sorry I didn't let you in, but I didn't know how. Half the time I didn't believe anything even happened because my fucking brain kept skipping over it."
Except you could remember one crucial detail: "Trust me, it takes four minutes before a person goes from attached to their earthen vessel to haunting the science lab." However, despite the awareness you possessed of having witnessed Aiden's death, your brain refused to evoke the visual memory.
You trembled, tortured by the fact that you hadn't been able to save your little brother, and you had no idea if you'd even tried. Ajay appeared at your side, his hand on your shoulder while his narrowed eyes were pinned on Xavier. As he prepared to say something, the trapdoor at the middle of the stage banged open and Wally climbed out, looking furious and ready for war.
💀___________________________
PART TWENTY-FOUR
note: Waiting for Godot is so stripped down that I disliked it immensely. also, please remember that time moves differently between the worlds of the living and the dead. so the 2 seconds it takes Xavier to lose his shit is, like, enough minutes in the metaphysical world for our ghost friends to find the forged receipt. like Narnia...it's been a thousand years O.o (iykyk)
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ABOUT THE TAGLIST: i'm afraid i am no longer updating or using the taglist. moving forward, if you'd like to keep up to date, please FOLLOW ME and TURN ON NOTIFICATIONS. that thing took me to Hell and back, and we're no longer on speaking terms...😒
Reader: I'm seeing someone.
Simon: As in dating or as in dead people?
Reader: Yes
(October Moon by @whoopsyeahokay incorrect quote because I thought it fit too well)
Guys this is not a drill I've been dragged back into my Rory Culkin obsession SEND HELP!!! 😭
Alive!Wally Clark x Alive!Reader (Modern AU)
Warings: Not much just basic period stuff and a lot of fluff.
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This sweet sweet boy would probably be confused on what to do. He's not completely lost, he knows the basics like pads, tampons, mood swings, cramps, and cravings but that's where his knowledge ends.
I feel like he's the type to freak out. Like genuine visible terrier when you tell him. Would cry if you told him how a period actually works. “Your fucking uterine lining sheds?!” Said as tears build in his eyes.
For the love of everything do NOT send this man to the store to get you menstrual products. He will call you 50 million times to make sure he gets the right thing and will still come home with the complete opposite of what you asked for. It’s not his fault he's not used to this stuff.
He’d also call his mom for help. She’d be the one to tell him about pain killers and heating pads. She’d make you boiling hot soup or hot cocoa to help with the pain.
Snack galore. Will 100% go out at 3 in the morning to buy you a McFlurry. He hates seeing you in pain so if he can do anything to help he will and if that means sacrificing his sleep he doesn't care.
Cuddles cuddles CUDDLES. This man is a living (just pretend) breathing furnace. Forget a heating pad, just have him lay on top of you. He’d keep his hand on your abdomen at all times.
He’d make you a little basket filled with snacks and products. (Once he finally learns what you use) He’d even write you a little card that says ‘I’m sorry your body’s torturing you.’
Would wear matching pjs and do skin care with you while you two watch a movie. He’d do this regardless of if you're on your period or not but especially when you're on your period.
I know for a fact this man doesn't know how to cook but he’d try for you. When he inevitably burns the food he just buys take out. It’s the thought that counts.
All in all he's trying and once he figures it out he's amazing. Just be patient with him because he’d feel so bad for you.
(Okay thats all, sorry if it's shit. I was gonna do valentine day headcanons but according to my app i start my period tomorrow and need to cope 🥲)
bi, I like horror and art, I write sometimes when I feel like it, she/her, 18
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