"Fucking Furries." || Michael Afton x Reader

Chapter Twenty Five || Panic Attack

My eyes flickered to the TV as a picture of Elizabeth appeared, the news lady giving basic information about her and asking if anyone knew the whereabouts of her. I sighed, turning off the television and rolling over. It's been a week since Elizabeth went missing, her face plastered on missing posters, the newspaper, and the local news channels. Unfortunately, nobody has seen her.

The longer she was gone for, the more I thought that something bad had happened to her. I mean, a kid doesn't just randomly disappear from a pizzeria and never be seen again. I covered my face, a few tears pricking at my eyes. Things have been so shitty ever since Elizabeth went missing. AJ was being more of a bitch than usual, Michael was still taking out his anger on C.C, Taylor was sick, my mother was being a deadbeat, my father hadn't contacted me in a while, my teachers decided to pile homework on me, and so on. These were all small inconveniences, but when put together, it didn't feel so small.

Suddenly, the phone rang and I perked up, peering over the couch into the kitchen. I hopped over the back of the couch and entered the kitchen, grabbing the phone off the wall. "Hello?" I question, grabbing onto the cord and twirling it in between my fingers. "(Y/N)?" Michael's voice said from the other side. I hummed in response and he sighed. "My father is wondering where you are since it's one-thirty," He informed me, causing my eyes to widen. I glanced over to the clock to confirm the time.

"Shit. I forgot about work. I'll be there in a minute! Bye, Mikey!" I quickly hung up the phone, rushing to my room to put on my uniform. I grabbed my things and quickly rushed down the hallway, almost bumped into my mother in the process. "Whoa! Where are you going in such a rush?" She questions, causing me to squeeze my eyes shut in annoyance. "Work. And I'm late, so I don't have time to talk to you. Sorry. Bye." I left the house and ran down the sidewalk, cursing myself for losing track of time.

When I finally made it to the small building, I shoved open the glass doors, panting from running all the way over here. Of course I had to be late. I walk past the main room and down the hallway to Mr. Afton's office. I knock on the door and a minute later, Michael opens it. "Hi," He says and I wave in response. "Michael, I told you not to open my door without permission." Mr. Afton scolded, causing his son to roll his eyes and turn to him. "Oh come on, it was obviously going to be (Y/N)." He defends, opening the door fully to let me in. The man groans in frustration, rubbing his face. He sucked in a deep breath before looking up at me, clearly annoyed with his son.

"Okay, can you explain to me why you were late?" The man questioned, causing me to get nervous. "Oh, well, I kinda just forgot about work. I'm sorry, sir. I just saw Elizabeth on the TV and got lost in thought, so-" Mr. Afton raised his hand, cutting me off. "I understand. Just don't forget next time, okay? Have a good day." I blink in surprise, a sigh of relief escaping my lips. "Okay, thank you, sir." I quickly exit the room, Michael close behind me. As soon as the door closes, I visibly relax, covering my face with my hands.

"Your father terrifies me..." I trail off, hearing Michael chuckle. A hand drops onto my head, causing me to peek through my fingers to see him, a large smile on his face. "You're just a wuss. If anything, my father is just annoying," He says, patting my head before dropping his hand. "That's because you're basically scared of nothing. Tell me one thing that you fear." I cross my arms, an expectant look on my face. He averts his gaze, rubbing the back of his neck. "I would, but it's depressing...."

My expression softens slightly, my arms dropping to the side of my body. "Try me." I say and he sighs. "Okay, man, but you asked for it." He pauses, seemingly collecting his thoughts before speaking. "Well, I guess this came from my mother leaving, but I have a fear of abandonment. You know, like everybody I love will just leave me one day..." I don't respond, slightly shocked at his words. He fiddles with his thumbs. "Yeah, I know it's a bit stupid, but-" I shake my head.

"It's not stupid, Michael. I feel like that sometimes too. Like, my father already left me, who's next?" The boy gives me a slightly surprised look before nodding grimly. "Yeah. My mother and....Liz.." His sad expression suddenly changed into a snarl and he rubbed his face. "Let's not talk about this." Michael says, digging his nails into his skin. I purse my lips, reaching my hands up to his. I pause before they can touch, suddenly nervous, causing me to drop them back to my sides. "Yeah, sorry, Michael." I say and he uncovers his face, giving me a smile. "It's fine. It's not your fault I have...abandonment issues or whatever it is."

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I felt so overwhelmed. I had to constantly take orders, prepare food, put on a smile and hand customers their order. Children screamed and caused a scene in the background while rude customers made me go through extra effort just to please them. More social interaction was the last thing I needed, so I ignored Alana, Taylor, and Sev. They seemed to get the message and left me alone, but only made me feel worse, like I shouldn't be upsetting them because of my emotions. Michael hung around in the arcade room and would wave to me anytime I passed by. I waved back, but there was no emotion on my face as I did.

It was around four o' clock and I was dragging the trash to the back door. My thoughts were spiraling in my head and my heart began to beat faster, sweat building up on my forehead. I didn't know why, but I felt uncomfortable and scared. My vision began to blur, my body swaying slightly as the hallway seemed to stretch and warp. I collapsed, hitting the floor with a loud thud. I didn't know what was happening to me. I felt suffocated. My body tingled and felt numb. Everything around me was distorted and blurry.

I heard a distant voice shout in my direction, but I couldn't understand their words. I felt something warm gently grasp my face, steadying me. In front of me, a blur of colors mashed together to become a figure. A calming voice whispered words to me until I was able to clearly hear them. My vision cleared to reveal Michael, his warm hands holding my face. I blinked rapidly, my eyes focused on him. His thumb began to brush underneath my eyes, wiping something wet from my cheeks. I quickly realized that I was crying.

I placed my hands on his as my body began to steady. "What happened?" I asked, my voice hoarse. He looked as confused as I was. "I don't know. I heard a loud thud and checked the hallway to see you on the floor. I thought you got hurt or something, but when I got to you, you were panting and crying and staring at the ground with wide eyes. Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Michael ranted, his eyes filled with concern as they flickered over my body. "I don't know. I feel a bit faint," I responded. The boy suddenly wrapped his arms around me, dropping his head into the crook of my neck. "Don't scare me like that." He whispered, causing a small smile to spread across my face.

My eyes fluttered closed and I went limp in his arms, taking in his scent. He smelled like cheap cologne and an old car. It was nice. "(Y/N)? What happened!?" A voice cut in from the end of the hall, causing us to pull away and look over. Sev stood there with a concerned expression, beginning to make his way over to us. "Um...I'm not sure. I just collapsed and felt really dizzy and scared, I guess." I said and he sighed, sitting beside us. He patted my head. "I think you might have had a panic attack. Have you felt stressed lately? I know that Mr. Afton's daughter...you know."

I rubbed my arm. "Uh, yeah, I guess I have. I don't know, things have just been piling up on me and I guess today was my breaking point," I admitted awkwardly, pulling my knees to my chest. "Okay, do you want me to ask Mr. Afton if you can leave early?" Sev questioned, offering me a small smile, causing me to smile as well. "Yeah, thanks."

The boy got up and went to our boss' office, leaving Michael and I on the floor together. He cupped my face again, staring at me with a soft expression. "You know you tell me if you're stressed or feel bad, right?" He confirmed and I smiled, nodding. "Yeah, I know. It's just...you've been dealing with a lot and I didn't want to add more to your list of problems..." My eyes shifted away from him until his hands squeezed my cheeks, causing me to flicker my eyes back to him.

"You could never be a problem to me." That simple sentence made my heart jump, heat spreading across my cheeks. It replayed in my head until a smile spread across my face. "Thanks, Michael." He tilted his head. "For what?"

"Existing."