i need you - an inanimate insanity au

5 • _ _ _ _

a nervous chuckle under the layers of fear.

a boy.
a boy who got suffocated in his fear. months of fear. weeks of fear. days of fear.
one year.
a year of that fear.
then another.
and another.

a boy.
a boy who tortured him day and night.

a girl.
a girl he befriended then lost due to his own sacrifice.

a boy.
a boy who was a bystander to all his torture.

now he has nobody.
almost everyone hates him.
no, everyone.
everyone.

Wake up, Balloon.

.
•
warning:
this chapter contains...
blood
mental disorders
characters having hallucinations
sharp objects
violence
death
you have been warned...
•
.

"YO! BALLOON! YOU'RE SLEEPWALKING!" Knife nudges you hard in the elbow, causing you to whimper and wake. How had you fallen asleep while walking? Are you really that tired from those restless, bullied nights?

"Oh, sorry.." You reply, now deciding to walk more cautiously across the grass. You are also finding it hard to trust the broken legged Test Tube you're following. After all, she judged you plenty.

Test Tube is determined and perseverant, she didn't let a broken leg stop her, nor did she let Paper's injury stop her either. When Paper pushed Test Tube and ran away, Test Tube had fallen and seriously injured her leg.

It's a miracle she didn't get anything fatal from that fall.

You find it unnatural how Test Tube recovered in the span of an hour — well, not fully, but her consciousness has returned quite quickly. She barely spent any time in Soap's care in the hospital room of the hotel.

Test Tube still had to wear a cast and crutches. One of the frames of her glasses is cracked too. And now, you see her rushing ahead of you and Knife just to get to her lab in time for... What, exactly?

Her experiment for her to get into collage, sure, that'll need to happen soon. But you wonder why she's in such a rush right now...

You try to catch up with Test Tube's pace to ask her, but before you can, you bump into Knife. "Hey, unforgivable scum! Watch it!" Knife jeers, rubbing his forearm where you bumped into him, "What the hell?!"

You nervously fidget as you walk, your voice shaking, "Um... Wh- Why do we need to hurry...?!"

Knife grumbles, "You idiot, Taco is there - I brought her to 'Tube - And she shouldn't stay alone."

You nod slowly, now understanding. And before you know it, you have made it to a vending machine on the outskirts of the Perilous Forest. Test Tube enters a code into the machine, via the buttons in its side... and as if by magic, a suction tube emerges from the side of the machine and-

"AW COME ON!" You yell, getting easily sucked down that tube and- thump!- into Test Tube's lab. You landed very slowly, but the impact still hurt your foot a little, but nothing major.

You walk to the side just in time for Knife to slide down after you. Then, within the span of only a few seconds, Test Tube slides down the tube and then falls and then - somehow - swiftly picks herself back up with the crutches she is using. She perfected them! It's almost like she used them before!

She sighs, "Follow me - gee, I sure hope Taco didn't get into anything while I was gone..." Test Tube takes a step forward and winces. You feel bad for her and her broken leg, but also for Paper - who likely had another period of time when he switched alters. Maybe he really didn't get rid of that violent alter from season one.