To Live without Fear [Jeff the KillerxReader]

23

"Three hundred ninety-seven bottles of beer on the wall.."

Jeff had started at 500 bottles.

How long had it been? What year was it??? Okay, he wasn't that confused, but Jeff had always had problems with staying still. This whole straight-jacket, ankle-cuffs and padded room deal was so not his style, but this was as far as he'd planned ahead. Now that he was here, and he'd even seen you...what would he do? He'd never been this restrained before. He also doubted they'd let any human being within his sight while he was unrestrained...so the stunt he pulled in the last place wasn't an option. That kind of thing would put you in too much danger, anyways. Man, he still wasn't used to worrying about someone else this much. Briefly, he wondered if you were worrying about him as much as he was worrying about you. Could you even feel worry? Or was it too similar to fear? Jeff shook off that thought. He'd heard the way you called out to him in the hallway. Of course you cared.

"...Take one down, pass it around, three hundred ninety-six bottles of beer on the wall."

Jeff's muffled singing had become background noise for the guards waiting outside. They were in an annex, attached to the main building by a single glass-walled walkway, and completely deaf to the alarm and noise going on at present. The two men had been working in the mental hospital for some time, and had seen some shit. Jeff may be a special patient, but this behavior so far was nothing special. 

"I'm a little underwhelmed, to be honest." One of them mumbled to the other, "The way he's been hyped up...I was expecting a little more."

"Don't underestimate him." He other warned sharply, "You know what he did to the last place. We can't let our guard down for a second. Besides, I checked his records..he's escaped from a dozen different prisons."

"That's impossible. No man could pull that off, there's no way." The first guard retorted in disbelief.

"I don't even think he's human." The second guard replied, casting a paranoid glance at the door to Jeff's cell, "...I think he's some kind of demon."

"You're joking." His co-worker scoffed, but the possibility made his heart skip a beat. What if...? "He's just a-"

"Shhh." The second guard hissed abruptly, then looked intently at the door. The two men listened together for a few moments.

"I'm not hearing anything." The first guard said, not thinking this was suspicious.

"Exactly." The second guard breathed, his heart thumping in his chest. "He stopped singing."

The silence got heavier as the guards let this realization sink in, hanging on every breath, wondering what would happen next. Their question was answered by a low, rythmic sound that quickly grew in volume and tempo until all that the men could hear was wicked cackling from within the cell. They each took a reflexive step back, flinching away from the laughter.

"Wh-what's g-going on??" The first guard stuttered. He bravely lifted his fist and banged on the door. "Be quiet in th-there!"

"I don't know! I don't..." The second guard trailed off. He felt a chill run down his spine and every vein in his body turned to ice. The guard felt his hand moving of its own accord, jerking over to his taser and pulling it out of his belt. "Wh-what...?"

"What are you d-" The first guard began to ask his coworker, but was stopped mid-sentence by the taser being fired and electricity burning through his body. He dropped to the ground, unconscious, as the second guard stared in horror at what he'd just done. But he hadn't done it, his hand had a will of its own. All the while, Jeff's laughter hadn't stopped.

"D-d-demon." The guard sputtered under his breath, horrified. He dropped his taser and fled down the hallway, crying out, "H-he's a demon!!"

Once he was gone, the apparition of a green-clad boy appeared, standing over the unconscious guard who had been left behind. BEN bent over and plucked the keys from the guard's belt. After trying out a few, he found the right one and unlocked Jeff's door. The killer had stood himself up against a wall and was leaning against it, waiting for BEN.

His grin widened when he saw the ghost standing in the doorway. "Nice work."

"As always." BEN drifted over and held up his hand. "High five?"

Jeff glanced down at his straight-jacket and gave BEN an unamused glare. "Ha ha, very funny. Now get me out of this thing."

"How was I supposed to pass up that opportunity?" BEN chuckled and started undoing the straps, "Lighten up, man. I'll get you to your girl, no worries."

"Oh, I think there's still plenty to worry about." Jeff said as he shrugged off the jacket. He took the keys from BEN and unlocked the cuffs around his ankles. "There'll be guards here any minute. Where's (y/n)?"

"I told her to go outside and find a place to hide. This place is surrounded by trees, so there's lots of cover. Getting away shouldn't be that hard." BEN peered out of the room, listening for guards.

"What about the cops?" Jeff asked, shaking the tingling feeling out of his limbs.

"On their way." BEN stepped out of the cell and glanced over his shoulder at Jeff. "You can make it into the woods before they get here if you hurry."

"Got it." Jeff grabbed the guard's billy-club and sprinted toward the glass hallway.

"Good luck, Romeo!!" BEN shouted after him, then vanished. He'd do his best to stall things inside the building, but once you and Jeff were out in the open, you were on your own.

Down in the glass hallway, Jeff took the billy-club and smashed a pane. He jumped out of the hole and onto the grass. A few pieces of glass cut the soles of his feet, but he didn't care. The cool, fresh air felt amazing. He was free again. Now he just had to find you.