A Son Of Two Dad's

Running out of time

MK watched as Macaque left, the cold making goosebumps appear on his arms as he hugged himself, feeling much smaller all of a sudden. 

"Don't worry, I've got your back, MK," Mei told him, slinging an arm around his shoulder which he appreciated because it helped chase away some of the cold and kept him on his feet. 

"Ehem! Excuse me. Are you forgetting that I'm here too? Honestly you peasants are so ungrateful." Red Son complained, crossing his arms with a pout and normally MK would be questioning more about why Red Son was there, giddy and excited at the extra friend. As it was, he couldn't tear his eyes away from the fight happening a good while away from them, ears twitching and flinching at every sound they made.

He could only watch, his legs frozen to the spot as his dad slipped out of Baba's shadow, pulling him away from an attack and pulling out his signature weapon from nowhere. His dad said something, MK watching as he held the rope behind his back, out of sight of her and if MK wanted to he easily could have listened in if he'd tried. 

He didn't bother, though, content with letting static fill his ears as he watched, oddly numb while his parents fought the demon who terrified him. 

There was a lot of dust being stirred up from all the mixed-up ground and it was hard to see but MK caught the moment Macaque tried to trap her and catch her off guard with the rope, watching as she dodged it, skirting back with a frown. 

He shivered at the sight, able to see her face from where he was standing and then he watched as her eyes strayed from his dad and then the rope, landing on him. 

He choked as she made eye contact, unable to see anything but the look on her face and her blue eyes, unable to feel anything but the pure terror that froze him.

For a moment, he wasn't even sure where he was. For a moment, he was back in the void of nowhere, circled by the cold and her voice. For a moment, he couldn't breathe. 

Then, there was a hand grasping his tightly, and suddenly he'd been tugged back into the present, staring down abruptly at the hand in his before looking back up at his best friend, mind far away from the battle. 

"Mei?" He tilted his head, finding his grip tightening on her hand subconsciously as he looked into the determined, warm face of his best friend who stood tall beside him. 

"Come on, MK, let's go." She tugged him backward and his legs tripped with her, only keeping his balance because of her firm grip on his hand. She pulled him away from the battle and the moment he couldn't see her anymore, the moment his back was turned to his demon he panicked, dread suffocating him even as Mei pulled him along. 

He could see Red Son, could see the way his mouth was moving as he moved with them but all he could hear was a rushing in his ears and his heartbeat, thundering in his chest so loudly it hurt. 

He didn't look behind him though, even more afraid of what he would find if he did, the thought of her cold eyes sending shivers down his spine. 

He was fine. They were leaving. He was fine. His dads would protect him. They would. 

He just had to stop being so pathetic, so scared. 

Breaking through the static over his ears he heard her voice. She was yelling, screaming almost. MK had never heard her sound so- so- he couldn't find the word but it was jarring, and he turned his neck so he could see. 

It was hard to make out what was going on with Mei still tugging him along, eyes scanning around to find them. 

"No! NO!" The sound of her screeching voice made him whimper quietly, something that immediately made him flush with shame. It was quiet enough luckily that Mei didn't hear it the same way MK was sure she couldn't hear her either. 

"I won't let you! I'll kill you, all of you!" Her voice was deranged and wild and MK finally spotted her, seeing the rope wrapped around her, his dad holding on to the end. 

He squinted, seeing the moment she realized she couldn't get out, the second her rage turned into panic. It was almost satisfying seeing her so... afraid.

"No, no, no, I won't let you, not again. I won't let you trap me." He could only just bearly make out what she was mumbling, ears straining before she jerked towards Macaque.  

MK didn't see what happened next but he certainly heard it. As did the other two next to him. 

There was a crash so loud MK stumbled away from it in disorientation, ears ringing painfully. It was so loud that MK almost felt like his eardrums had burst and he hadn't even noticed that he'd squeezed his eyes shut, hands clamped tightly over all four of his aching ears.  

Eventually, he managed to open his eyes, his breathing coming out sharply as he stared at a cloud of dust a mile long, little flakes of broken ice in the air small enough to look like snow. For a second there was nothing but silence and MK held his breath at the juxtaposition, eyes scanning the misty area for any sight of his parents, for a clue on what had happened and if they were okay when he remembered his golden vision and cursed himself for his stupidity. 

He blinked and as easily as that he could see the golden outlines of her standing tall, her arms trembling and breathing heavily with exhaustion and effort. 

Forcing himself not to panic and praying that she couldn't see him he forced himself to tear his focus away from her, rolling his eyes around in search of- there.

The moment he stopped his baba relief welled up inside him, a sigh leaving him now that he finally felt like he could breathe, that knot around his heart loosening. 

Then, he looked harder, taking a second to actually take in what he was seeing. What was Wukong staring at? 

His back was to MK so he couldn't see what was in front of him until Wukong moved, staggering forwards slightly and then dropping to his knees like a stone. 

"Macaque?" MK's ears twitched at the sound of his baba's voice, quiet and confused like he couldn't understand something. He watched as Wukong's hands hovered over his dads still body, lying on the ground, unmoving.

(I'm a bad person. 

But also! Mei being so supportive is the best, everyone needs a friend like Mei. I hope you're all not too scarred for life after this. To be fair, you should never tell someone you'll be right back 'cause that's just asking for something to happen to you. Horror movie 101, come on Macaque, do better. 

I have no sympathy and yes I enjoy suffering. But I hope you all enjoyed (or at least are screaming at your screens) and I'll see you all next time!)