Because You're Ordinary

5.5K 123 38
                                    

"Five!" you gasped, struggling against him. "Five, what the hell?!"

"Shit, Eight... what are you doing here?" he said, flustered. You rubbed your neck, swallowing hard and breathing a sigh of relief when your fingers came away free of blood.

"Checking on you. And clearly I needed to," you added, gesturing to the blood-splattered windows.

"You shouldn't have come here," he said, shaking his head quickly. "They could have killed you... I could have killed you!"

"But nobody did," you said calmly.

"Get out of here," he said, glancing around nervously. "Before they find me."

"Who? Why won't you tell me anything, Five?!" you cried, pushing him away when he tried to cover your mouth. "No, I'm not going to be quiet. Because if they want to kill you, they're going to have to fight me, too."

He laughed quietly, shaking his head.

"Eight, these people are dangerous. They could kill you in a heartbeat."

"You don't know that," you said defiantly, crossing your arms. "Like you said, I've changed."

"Yeah, well, not enough. And believe it or not, I do care about you, and I don't want to have to see you dead again." His voice broke on the last words, and he shook his head quickly. "I mean, dead. But please just get out of here, now."

He held the knife over his arm, preparing to cut it.

"What are you doing?" you said, stepped forward and snatching it from him.

"Why are you still here?" he retorted.

"I'll leave if you let me do whatever you're trying to do," you said, and scoffed. "I'm not kidding. If you cut too deep you could actually lose a lot of blood - Grace taught me a bit about doctoring."

He sighed, rolling his eyes.

"As long as you leave right after. And make it quick."

You nodded, holding the knife over his arm and grimacing as the tip split his flesh. You bit your lip, wincing when he said to keep going.

"All right, I'm can't go on. I hate this," you finally said, handing him the knife.

He gave you a fake smile without looking up, finishing the cut.

"Hence why they would kill you faster than you could even pull out a weapon. Do you really think you could kill a person, Eight?"

"You don't have to call me that," you said with an exasperated sigh. "And yeah, I could - what are you doing?!" you shrieked, looking away as he dug a small, pill-shaped something out of his arm.

"Right," he said, nodding slowly. "Sure you could. Because you're so good at handling blood."

"A tracker," you whispered as you looked down at the flashing item.

"Exactly why you should stay away from me. I'm telling you, these people have got eyes everywhere. So shoo, now, and don't try to find me again, got it?"

You glared at him, blowing on the palms of your hands as you walked away, eager to run water over the burning scrape.

The taxi took you to Vanya's house, and she smiled when you arrived, opening the door and inviting you in.

"You can sleep on the couch, if you want. I would offer my bed, but my room is kind of a mess."

You waved her comment off, grinning and shaking your head.

"Don't worry. The only reason my room was never a pig pen was because we had Grace to clean up. But thanks, the couch is fine."

Vanya nodded.

"I have to grab something from my car. Make yourself comfortable, go to bed, whatever. See you later?" she asked, and you nodded, curling into a ball on the couch and pulling a blanket over yourself when she left. Only a few seconds passed before you heard the crackling of energy, and you froze in fear.

"What kind of person doesn't lock their windows?" you heard Five's voice hissing, and relaxed.

"Ah, Number Eight," he said as he approached, but you kept your eyes closed. "You can drop the act. I know you're awake." 

You didn't move, determined to convince him you were asleep.

"Hm. So why are you here? I know you don't own this place." You felt him settling into the couch at the end of your feet. "Who are you meeting with?"

If you could have rolled your eyes, you would have. How did he even find you?

Shit, you thought. The writing on my hands.

Still, after that whole speech he gave you about staying away from him, you didn't expect him to hunt you down.

"If you're trying to figure out what I'm doing," he added, "you won't. Just stay out of it, please."

A short pause passed.

"You really are asleep, aren't you?" You felt him stand, and then a gentle pressure fell over you - another blanket. "Don't want you getting cold. Ahem."

Your heart practically melted.

"Jesus!" Vanya's voice - she must have come back and been scared by Five.

You slit your eyes open slightly to see him backing away quickly.

"This is your house? You should have locks on your windows," he said, and Vanya sighed.

"I live on the second floor," she responded dubiously.

"Rapists can climb." You had to suppress a laugh.

"You are so weird. Wait - is that blood?"

"It's nothing." 

Liar, you thought.

"Why are you here?"

"Well, I - mainly because Eight was coming here, and I wanted to make sure she wasn't doing anything stupid. But also because you're the only one that I can trust."

"What? Why me?"

"Because you're ordinary." An awkward pause passed, and you cringed inwardly. "Because you'll listen," he amended.

Better.

"Okay... but what about Eight? You two always seemed close."

He sighed, beginning to pace.

"Vanya, she - she wants to know what I'm doing, and I can't let her. They'll find her and kill her in two seconds, you know?"

"Oh?" Vanya asked as she settled into a chair. Out of the corner of your eye you could see her smiling.

"You guys would kill me," he said quickly. "And I don't have time to be chasing her around, making sure she doesn't get herself hurt."

"Mm-hmm. Yeah, I'm sure that's why." You could hear the smile in your sister's voice, and your heart beat a little faster as you realized what she meant.

"No, I..." he sighed, surprisingly sounding flustered. "Listen. When I jumped forward and got stuck in the future, do you know what I found?"

"No."

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing. As far as I could tell, I was the last person left alive." You struggled to keep your face composed. That meant... the world was ending. Everything was ending. "I never found out what killed the human race, but... I did find something else. The date it happens." He paused, and you felt like smacking him.

Come on, spit it out!

"The world ends in eight days, and I have no idea how to stop it."

Another pause passed, and this time you were grateful for it. Eight. Days. You had just been asleep for 16 years, and now all you had left was eight days? You almost sat up, but then Vanya spoke.

"I'll put on a pot of coffee."

His Only Fear - Five Hargreeves x |Fem| ReaderWhere stories live. Discover now