sturniolo/nate imagines

meltdown-Matt

I don't know much about autism, but Google is my best friend.

I cried writing this, I don't know why. I've never cried writing anything else.

Matt POV

Y/N has been extra twitchy today. Whenever she touches something, she moves her wrist, which is a sign she's overwhelmed. Her autism is not very severe, but she still has meltdowns. Which I think is gonna happen today.
She mostly acts normal, but that's because she was diagnosed so late in her life. She's constantly masking. She doesn't realize she does it. It's just how she is, and she's perfect.
Me, her, Chris, and Nick are going to Walmart today. Yesterday, we agreed to go at 1, to get groceries. It's now 1:10, and Nick still isn't ready.
"Where's Nick?" Y/N asked again.
"He'll be ready soon." I said, grabbing her hands and squeezing them equally, trying to calm her down.
"But we were supposed to go at 1. This is gonna mess up the rest of the day." She said, shaking her head. She squeezed my hands in a pattern, humming along with the squeezes.
Nick then walked out of his room, finally  ready.
"Let's go," he said, walking to the car. We all followed and got in. Y/N sat in the passenger seat, next to me.
Walmart went well, and we even got a cake to bake.
We decided to bake the cake now, cause we wanted to.
"Ok, what's first?" Chris asked. Y/N grabbed the box and looked at it.
"¼ cup water." She said. She grabbed the measuring cup, filling it with water from the fridge. She handed it to Nick, and he poured it into the mix and stired it in. Chris grabbed the eggs and was about to crack one when she stopped him.
"The oil go's first." She said reading the box.
"But I want to do the eggs." He said, cracking it.
"No! The oil has to go first!" She said, her hand tensing and untensing, breathing a bit heavier.
"Well, too late." He said, cracking the other egg.
"Y/N," I said, facing her to me. Her face was red as she tried to control her frustration.
"It's ok," I said, squeezing her hands.
"No! It's not ok! It's all ruined!" She said, tears welling in her eyes. Chris realized what he did and frowned. Usually, she wouldn't be upset, but today she was over stimulated and couldn't keep it in anymore.
"No!" She yelled again, shaking her head.
"No! No! No!" She yelled over and over again, shaking her head sharply, punching her hands together.
"Please stop, you're gonna hurt yourself." I said, stopping her hands from hitting each other. She was still violently shaking her head, I knew her neck would be sore later.
"No! No! No!" She chanted. The tears escaped her eyes and were streaming down her face. All I could do I was wait, cause it makes her feel like a baby when I try to talk to her.
"Turn off the lights." I told my brothers, not taking my eyes off her. They did what I said and lowered the lights.
After a little bit, she stopped yelling, and slowed down shaking her head. I could hear the sniffles as she tried to calm down. I let go of her hands and she intertwined her fingers, squeezing her hands together. She stopped shaking her head and took deep breaths.
She looked up at me and wiped her eyes.
"Sorry," she said in a strained voice.
"It's ok, there's no reason to be sorry." I spoke softly. She always feels ridiculous after she has a meltdown cause as some of her family members put it.
"No grown adult should act like that." But she's not like every grown adult, and some people don't get that. She has a hard time understanding that to.
"You good now?" I asked, making sure it was ok to touch her. She nodded, and I pulled her into a hug.
"What now?" I asked.
"Nap," she replied. She gets tired quickly when she's over stimulated. I nodded and pulled away, bringing her to my room. It took a while for her to get comfortable, but once she did she was out like a light. Once I made sure she was asleep, I walked back to the kitchen.
"I'm sorry," chris said, souning guilty.
"It's not your fault. It was building up all day." I explained. He nodded.
"You should finish that cake. Don't waste it." I said, pointing to the abandon batter. Once we finished everything, I went back to my room, climbing in bed with Y/N. My perfect girl.