MoonKnight One Shots/Preferences

Stranger [Part Two]

[What was supposed to be a fun night out ends with a phone call to Marc. Now, the phone's dead, and a stranger beat Marc to the chase.]
[Word Count: 1384]

[🌙 This imagine contains swearing, violence, and depictions of a dangerous situation.🌙]
***
Although I felt like everything was slowing down, my heartbeat began to pick up.

The bartender who preyed on my kindness approached me, tantalizingly, predatory, and maliciously.

My uncoordinated feet attempted to take me backwards in between the brick buildings. I stumbled and held onto the bricks for stability, clawing so hard into them that my fingertips had become raw and bled.

"Pl-please..." I begged, realizing that there was no exit behind me. My condition was progressively worsening each second and I could help but wonder what exactly he slipped into my drink.

How was he working at the bar? Where did he get the paraphernalia and how did he get it into the drinks without anyone noticing?

How many victims were before me?

"Beg all you want, dove. No one lends an ear to the back alleys." He sneered, eyeing me as if I were injured prey.

The scattered clouds above finally revealed the moon, allowing its soft, reflective light to meet us where we were. It timidly illuminated the stranger's face, displaying the incarnate evil in his expression.

Suddenly, my back hit the wall behind me, preventing me from creating anymore distance away from him. "I'm begging...you to let me w-walk away..." I wheezed.

"And let you, what, tell on me? No one ever has. And no one ever will." He quickly paced the distanced that spread us apart and stroked my hair.

I turned from him in disgust, feeling bile rise in my throat. I could feel his heated breath fanning my face and I began to break down in wracking sobs. My mouth couldn't function anymore, and I had no ability to plead for him to stop.

With my remaining strength, I pushed my hands into his chest, but his gripping hands easily beat my speed. His fingers squeezed into my wrists, painfully crushing my flesh and adding immense pressure to the bones in my hands.

He used one hand to force mine above my head, and his other to torturously seize my throat. My sobs were muted, now replaced with the sounds of choking and struggling to breathe. "Right about now you should be finding it hard to talk, right? In a few more minutes, you won't have the strength to stand, which means no more resisting me."

He was right. My strength had depleted and there was no reserve to draw energy from.

Before I realized it, he was inching closer to my face, preparing to capture my lips. There was one option left.

As hard as I could, I thrust my forehead against his own, smashing into his nose. There was a sickening crack and he immediately shouted, followed by him clutching his face in pain.

My head spun wildly and my vision was severely altered.

No one wins with a headbutt.

Blood pooled from his nose and out of the spaces between his fingers that was attempting to collect the torrential pour. "You bitch! You broke my nose!" He slapped me across the face, which also happened to be my turning point. My knees collapsed, sending me to the ground in pain. But no cries came out. I laid on my side, internally screaming for help.

"I'm going to absolutely rip you apart-" The man, in the middle of his promise to utterly kill me, began to scream in pure horror. Shrieks of terror arose from his scratchy throat and I couldn't bear to close my eyes.

A few moments passed of a one-sided battle, which was abruptly ended by a nauseating and echoing sound of a fracture.

And then it was silent.

"Sweetheart!" A voice loudly called out and footsteps rapidly bounded for me. I was so disoriented that I kept my eyes closed in fear of another stranger, someone else determined to mutilate me.

I retracted my hands from ones that gently held them, silent cries leaving my mouth. A finger tenderly swept the disarrayed hair from my forehead, tucking it behind my ear.

"I'm so sorry, baby..." The new stranger said, "I didn't realize you were down this far." Strong arms slipped under my weak ones, raising me up, but I had no strength to sit up on my own. "Oh God," he muttered, "(Y/N)...I got you, you're safe."

This was no stranger.

I weakly opened my eyes to see the most beautiful face on the planet, in the entire cosmos. I tried to utter his name, but my lips refused to cooperate.

Marc shook his head. "Don't, it's okay, baby. Are you okay? Where did he hurt you?" He questioned, his eyes frantically searching mine. With rushing eyes, he surveyed my body, his gaze intermittently stopping at my cheek, neck, and my wrists.

His jaw clenched in rage, fighting every inclination to kill the man a second time.

Instead, he tenderly assisted me to stand, and placed his hand on the back of my head, softly laying it on his shoulder. With no struggle, he picked me up and held me against his chest, securing me within his grasp.

His determined stride began, taking long steps to hurriedly exit the alleyway and out of the hellish nightmare. Marc whispered sweet nothings into my ear as he picked up his pace, now briskly walking, but coddled me in a way that I felt like I was floating.

My closing eyes caught the final image of the alleyway as we departed. The stranger's limp legs were faintly outlined by the moon, the rest of his torso obscured the the shadows.

It might have been the hallucinogens in my bloodstream that almost convinced me that his severed head laid several feet away.
***
A warm caress. Soft whispers. Tender kisses. A sweet aroma.

These stirring sensations caused me to wake up, my eyes fluttering open to find myself in the comforts of my bed.

It was dim except for a lamp on the far side of the room. A candle was steadily burning on the nightstand, a familiar scent spreading thought the bedroom.

The door opened, and Marc's eyes met my own. "(Y/N)..." He uttered before dashing towards me, kneeling on the floor beside me, our faces on the same level. "How are you?" His large hand enveloped mine, and he peppered kisses into my palm.

"I'm okay..." I croaked, my throat scratchy and bruised from being mistreated.

Marc gently lifted my neck, offering me a glass of water that he had prepared before I had woken up. "Here, baby..." He encouraged, helping me to drink what I could manage.

I nodded, signaling that I was finished. He replaced the cup to its original position on the stand and looked back into my eyes. His hand guided my aching head back to the pillow. "What happened last night?" He questioned, his concerned eyes never leaving mine.

"I don't..." I shook my head, not wanting to remember the horrible events of the night previous. My lip trembled and tears gathered along my eyes, quickly dropping down my cheeks.

Marc leaned forward, his lips affectionately kissing the salty tears of painful remembrance away. "It's okay, you don't have to tell me now. I'm here for you, okay?"

"Okay..." I conceded, sniffing and trying to calm my rising fears. Marc's attention dropped to my free hand that was out from the blanket. It was horrendously bruised, blackened by the hands of another. He slid his larger hand beneath mine, and kissed the center of my wrist, his lips feathering lightly over the abused skin.

"I love you. (Y/N). I'll be here, waiting, as long as you want me to." He pledged, laying his head on my covered stomach. With the hand he had just lovingly caressed, I brought it to his face, running through his dark curls and tangling my fingers in his locks.

I never wanted to be separated from Marc, my only sense of familiarity in a world of strangers.
***
[A/N: I hope you enjoyed! As always, feel free to leave a request, or more than one! 🌙🖤]