Chapter Text
Jeff the Killer:
For the last week or so Jeff had seemed to tip toe around you, fidgeting in place all the time and he was still unable to hold eye contact with you for more than a few seconds.
It was weird, especially considering how cocky and loud the white hoody wearing man usually was.
You’d considered confronting him about it, but had reconsidered when he’d thrown a fit at your neighbour accidentally dropping something loud. No, you wouldn’t risk it when he seemed so unpredictable- you weren’t going to risk your life just because you were curious.
Jeff was your friend, but everyone had the right to keep their own secrets.
The nervous way he seemed to avoid your gaze would just have to be one of them.
“Y/N, why the fuck is there so much food in your fridge?! You have enough to feed an army in here!” Jeff announced upon noticing all the plastic wrapped meals, his unblinking eyes looking to you in confusion as you just laughed sheepishly.
“Well, I’m used to you coming over and eating my food all the time. You haven’t been over for dinner lately so…it’s just a habit to make extra now…”
He fell silent after that, for once not throwing a smartass remark back at you like you’d half expected. His eyes looked between you and all the stocked up food for a moment before he let out a soft, seemingly reluctant laugh.
“God damn it (y/n).” He shook his head slowly before looking up at the roof with a sigh, the air surrounding him seeming to relax as his shoulders slumped slightly, you only now noticing how tense he’d been beforehand. “What am I going to do with you?”
Do with you? More like what are you going to have to do with him! He’s the one acting so weird, and it was honestly starting to freak you out.
What was up with him?
Eyeless Jack:
Jack’s behaviour had changed drastically over the past few days, his visits taking a slightly strange turn.
He didn’t show up at your window anymore, and ever since that night of reading with him, he’d refused to set foot into your room. You’d questioned him at first, but had given up trying to reason with him after the fourth ‘It’s not proper for me to be in your room currently.’
So here you were, bored out of your mind in your living room, the man you’d come to call a friend sitting almost halfway across the room from you. And yes, he was as silent as ever, his blank blue mask seeming to look at both you and his book at the same time.
It was odd how he always seemed to see everything…especially when he didn’t have any eyes.
Letting out a small sigh you turned your head in his direction, your body laying comfortably across your sofa while your small heater did its best to warm the room.
“How are you Jack?” You questioned, frowning a little as the man seemed to shift uncomfortably.
“How am I?”
“Yeah, you’ve seemed a little, I don’t know…off maybe? Just not yourself. Is something bothering you?”
He didn’t answer you immediately, and with the way he rubbed the back of his hooded head, you would have sworn he was nervous.
You couldn’t be certain though.
“I …have?” His question was slowly asked, the words slipping from him at a snails pace. You rolled onto your side then, one of your arms cushioning your head as you used the other to motion to your door.
“We usually hang out in my room, and you haven’t shown up at my window at all lately. I know it’s a little…strange, but I’ve gotten used to falling asleep with you sitting on the floor next to me. It just feels a bit weird for you to suddenly start insisting on staying out here and actually using the front door.”
“Ah…I see.” He seemed to consider you for a moment before lowering his book and placing it gently to the side, his larger body slowly moving to crawl towards you.
He seemed hesitant to do so, but you felt a little better the closer he got.
He was…comforting, his large black hoodie and blue mask calming you just as much as your favourite hot drink did.
And he seemed to notice your reaction, because his movements became just a tad more confident. When he was finally before you, Jack sat back on the floor, an almost unnoticeable sigh sounding from behind his mask as he leant back against the cushion near your feet.
“I’m…sorry…if my behaviour has worried you.”
“It’s all fine, act how you want to act. Just give me a little heads up next time, okay?” Your eyes felt heavy and you quickly found yourself nodding off after that, only faintly registering the hand coming up to lightly rest over your own before you fell asleep.
Masky:
Your friend had been acting very…out of character over the past few days.
While he was still as friendly and fun as he always was, he now seemed a little…hesitant to do anything around you. Aside from using your lap as a pillow at every opportunity, he now seemed to awkwardly hover about, fidgeting and shifting from place to place as you went about doing things in your home.
Wherever you went, he wasn’t far behind, and you liked that, liked being able to talk and joke while doing your laundry or cleaning up. But it was just the way he held himself now that concerned you a little, the unsure way he went about hugging you, or even touching your arm to get your attention had you a little worried.
He was usually much more confident than that, and he’d never had any problems with physical contact before…it really made you ponder if you’d done something to unnerve him in any way recently.
Nothing came to mind though, and you were left sighing in exasperation as Masky seemed to hover a few feet behind you as you finished washing the dishes.
Frowning to yourself as he continued to talk about something you weren’t paying attention too, you made up your mind and slowly dried your hands. Turning to him you swiftly closed the distance between the two of you, your arms wrapping firmly around his waist as you pressed against him, your head resting against his chest as you closed your eyes and just…held him.
He fell silent immediately, his arms awkwardly hovering by his sides as his chest stopped moving, your ears catching the way he seemed to stop breathing for a moment as a shudder wracked his body harshly.
“(Y/n)? What are you…?”
You ignored his question and pressed yourself tighter against him, giving him no response other than a minute shake of your head.
“(Y/n)?” Slowly his arms came to rest around you, a content feeling washing over your body as he seemed to try and hold you closer, one of his hands resting on the back of your head as he tangled your hair around his gloved fingers.
It was nice, and it warmed your heart to feel him respond to you positively for the first time in days.
You both stood there in silence for a few minutes, neither of you saying anything as you just held each other. Eventually you began pulling away, looking up to his masked face as he tightened his hold on you, not letting you remove yourself entirely.
“I like your hugs Masky…”
“…” So he kept hugging you, and you could almost sense the conflict in his mind when he finally let you go.
“I’m sorry if I did anything to unnerve you or something, I just…” You trailed off slightly, your eyes finding his own as he shook his head with a light laugh.
“No, no it wasn’t anything you did, and if it’s hugs you want, it’s hugs you’ll get.” You didn’t even have time to react as he quickly picked you up, carrying you bridal style into your living room before dropping onto the sofa, your body falling into his lap as he did so. He seemed to wrap himself around you then, his arms holding you close, a hand tangling in your hair as he held your head to his chest.
There was something oddly comforting about hearing his heart beat, even if it was pounding awfully fast.
“Sorry for worrying you, I won’t do it again (y/n)…”
Hoodie:
As shy as you’d come to discover Hoodie was, this was taking things to the extreme.
Looking at him from the corner of your eye as he sat frozen in place, you gave a quiet laugh and shook your head, the same head that was currently resting on his shoulder.
Normally you would have lifted yourself up and given him space, but you were honestly exhausted today, a mixture of events wearing you down to the point where you just didn’t care anymore.
If he asked though, you’d move.
But only if he asked.
He was actually kind of comfortable, all bundled up in his soft hoody and whatever he had under it. With a content sigh you nuzzled your face a little, the soft fabric feeling nice against your skin as you shifted a little closer, your side pressing against his lightly.
The sofa was comfortable, but not as comfortable as him right now.
There was just something about feeling his body heat the settled you down, your day seeming to not even cross your mind when he was near.
“(Y-Y/n) W-What a-are you d-doing?!” He managed out, a shake going through his body as you moved, his hands clenching and unclenching nervously in his lap.
“I’m cuddling up to you.”
“W-w-why?” You shifted again, pulling one of his arms from his lap slightly so you could hug it to you, the man shuddering heavily again as your chest pressed against it. You didn’t notice though, too content to pay attention to what you were doing.
It’d been a long time since you’d just cuddled up with someone, and it was doing wonders for you.
“Because, you make me feel safe. I had a bad day, and you just being here is helping me feel better. Thank you for that…” You smiled lazily, turning your head a little so he could see your face properly.
He was silent after that, but you could feel his heart racing as you leant against him.
Hoodie didn’t question you again, and eventually, he began to relax, slumping slightly as his head slowly found its way to rest on the top of your own.
Laughing Jack:
He was crazy.
You were crazy.
That was all you could reason as you stood outside your locked bedroom door, still trying to convince yourself that he was a delusion- and not able to lock you out of your own bedroom.
“Jack?” You questioned hesitantly, your ear pressed against the wood as you listened to him pace around, his strained laughter occasionally sounding loudly.
“Jack, can you open the door please?” You tried again, pulling back abruptly as the door cracked open a little, the only things you could see being a sliver of his tall form, his visible eyes looking down at you as he seemed to pout.
“What do you want.”
“Ahhhh….Um Jack, are you okay?” You watched as he looked away, the door slowly opening a little more so you could see his entire face.
Still not enough room to get in and go to sleep though.
“Mmm fine.” It was a grumble more than an actual response, and one of his long arms came up to mess with his hair, his clawed fingers catching your eye for a moment before you looked back to his face.
You were used to his odd appearance by now, it didn’t bother you in the least.
“Are you sure? You’ve been a little off all day, and then there was the nightmare you had last night…I could hear you tossing about inside your box.” He froze at that, his face going slack before flushing a deep red, your door slamming shut in your face as he quickly went back to ignoring you.
“…But I wanna sleep…” You whined slightly, shaking your head as you recalled the noises that’d kept you up the night before.
Your door opened swiftly then and you had no time to react before a pillow smacked you in the face, By the time you were able to look back up, the door was locked again, the pacing resuming inside as more strained laughter sounded through your home.
“The couch it is then.”
At least you wouldn’t have to listen to him groaning and making noises in his sleep again.
Ticci Toby:
Toby’s twitching had gotten out of control lately, and it was hard to reassure him that you didn’t care about it. His twitches were a part of him and you accepted that, found them endearing even.
He didn’t seem to believe you.
Tic
Crack
Tic
“Toby…” You began as he flushed a deep red, his latest tic having made an odd noise that echoed throughout the quiet room.
“I-I’ll j-just leave. S-sorry (y-y/n).” He apologized, seeming to lose whatever confidence he’d gained over the past day or so.
“Toby, you know I don’t care that you twitch, or tic, or crack your neck. You’re you, and I like you just the way you are.”
“T-They’re w-weird though!”
“They’re adorable!”
He stilled as you said that, seemingly gaping at you as you pouted over at him, a small flush coming to your cheeks as you realized what you’d said.
“W-what?!”
“Shut up, I like you’re twitches, they’re cute. They’re as much a part of you as your personality is, so don’t even try to deny it. I like you, I like them, and I don’t care what you say about it so shh.” You scolded slightly, a little embarrassed at your outburst.
You hated it when he put himself down though, and you just wanted him to see himself the way you did.
“You’re my friend Toby, and I accept every part of you, every little quirk you have.”
He didn’t respond at all, still seeming to be in disbelief as you pouted up at him.
Tic
He looked you in the eye, your own only just seeing through his orange lenses, his mouth guard obscuring the rest of his face.
Pop
Tic
You just smiled, watching as he seemed to lose control of himself for a moment.
Tic
“Cute.”
“I-I-I-I, (y-y/n) w-wh-wh-”
Tic
“Toby, you’re adorable.”
Pop
“(Y-Y/n)…” He barely even finished before fleeing you home via the nearest window, his face flushed the deepest red you’d ever seen in your life.
“…why’d he run off?”
BEN Drowned:
It wasn’t like BEN to be this silent, especially after you’d been out for so long.
“BEN? You in here?” Walking around your home, you found him in your room, freshly done laundry in front of him as he stood bright red before it. “Oh hey, you’re putting the washing away? I thought you’d be playing that new game…”
He remained silent, eyes locked onto the basket before him.
Slowly he looked over at you, his flushed face and wide eyes worrying you as he ever so slowly edged out of the room, keeping as much space between the two of you as he could.
“BEN? BEN what’s wrong?” He didn’t answer, only turned his back to you before hurriedly crawling into your TV, avoiding eye contact as much as he could while doing so.
Worried now, you went back to your room and looked into the basket, a flush coming to your own face as you were met with a rather raunchy set of lace underwear.
Black lace, black ribbons, and a very fancy black garter belt.
Nope, definitely not yours.
That was the last time you’d ever use the laundromat down the street.
Homicidal Liu:
You were clueless as to why Liu was so withdrawn recently, always avoiding your gaze and leaving your home early in the day. He didn’t stay overnight anymore, he barely came over for dinner, and when you did see him- Sully would do most of the talking.
He’d been acting odd for a while now, as had Sully, and it was beginning to worry you a little.
Eyeing the man as he sat next to you on the sofa, you decided to just wing it, slumping down until your head rested in his lap, his suddenly wide eyes looking down at you in shock.
“You’re comfortable.” You mumbled, grinning a little as you lifted a hand and lightly touched his face, trailing your fingers along some of his stitches.
“Hell yeah we are! You should lay on us all the time- (Y-Y/n) what-shut up moron, don’t ruin it. Sully, don’t call me a moron, I’m just worr-SHUT UP BEFORE YOU-YOU SHUT UP-NO-”
Watching in silence as they yelled at each other, you continued to softly touch Liu’s face, your grin falling to a content smile as you just listened to them.
It was nice to actually hear them talk, even if it was to yell at each other.
At least they were acting like themselves.
“You’ve been acting strange Liu, so have you Sully. Is something going on?” They snapped out of their little argument at your question, the mans eyes falling slightly closed as he focused on your touch.
“Nothing’s wrong (y/n), it’s just…personal stuff. Something I-we have to sort out. I’m sorry if we worried you at all.”
“Okay, just let me know if you need to talk or anything, I’m always here.” With that you both fell silent, your eyes falling closed as you focussed on lightly tracing his stitches.
You completely missed the way his face flushed as you did so, or how he seemed to squirm a little as you got closer to his lips, your fingers grazing them lightly as his hot breath lapped at them.
“(Y-y/n)…” Your name fell from his lips lightly in a tone you’d never heard him use before, and you found yourself on the floor little more than a moment later.
“I’m sorry! LIU YOU IDIOT! I need to go! This is not the time to get a hard-SHUT UP SULLY!”
He was gone by the time you pulled yourself off the floor, confusion blanketing your form as you watched him run off.
“What the hell was that about?
The Observer:
The Observer had been acting weird for the last few weeks, his demeanour having shifted to something a little more…open? Friendly? Deceiving? You had no idea.
All you knew was that he wasn’t acting like himself, and you didn’t like it.
Yes, as strange as it was to admit, you missed the normal, irritating, pain-in-your-ass Observer who never let you off the hook, who never sat there silently, just watching you.
“Quit it.” You whined, kicking him lightly with your foot as he ignored you, continuing to sit there and direct those gleaming lenses in your direction. “I’m serious, if you don’t I’ll make you stop!”
“Oh really now? And how do you suppose you’ll do that?” the amusement in his voice was tangible, and it did nothing more than irritate you as he continued to stare, a grin coming to his lips as he watched you work yourself up.
“Like this!” Moving towards him suddenly, you wrapped your arms around him, pretty much tackling him backwards onto the sofa as you perched on top of him victoriously, straddling his middle as you did so.
It’s not like he put up a fight anyway, so of course you’d won.
“Ah-huh! Now, quit acting weird and tell me what’s on your mind damn it.”
“On my mind?” Within an instant your positions reversed, his form seeming to loom above your own as his shadowed body pinned you down. Blushing vividly, you wriggled about, protesting as he grinned down at you, his tone smug as he gave a loud laugh. “(Y/n) dear, I don’t believe you’d want me to answer that question just yet. Human minds are so…fragile.”
Damn that distorted voice of his, it always made him sound so menacing…
“Oh, shut up and get off me.”
“Why would I do that, you had no problem sitting on top of me…” You continued to struggle underneath him for a moment before stilling with a pout, a sigh pulling itself from your lips as you shook your head in exasperation.
“Observer,” you decided to take a different approach, knowing he’d stay there all day if he felt it’d prove a point. Damn monster and his dramatic tendencies. “Please?”
You looked him in the eye then, wondering if asking nicely would actually work like everyone always said.
Eyes pleading, a blush still painting your face, and your chest heaving a little due to the sudden surprise, you had no idea how you looked underneath him in that moment.
How…willing you seemed in that moment.
Like you could actually accept something like him, like you could see him as a partner…a-
He froze above you, the static in your ears picking up slightly, your skin tingling as his shadows seemed to fluctuate around him, faint tendrils almost coming from his body as he just watched you lay underneath him.
You didn’t know it, but this was the moment his love actually hit home, when it finally dawned on him that he cared about a human.
He wanted…
Wanted you to love him, crave for him like he did you.
His entire body jerked back as he moved off you, his form erratic and unstable as his shadows–his true form- fluctuated and snapped about, static loudly ringing throughout the room as your TV screen and computer flashed with his symbol-his face-his eyes.
Watching in confusion as this happened, you were startled out of it when suddenly- it was gone.
He was gone.
And he’d ripped up the side of your sofa in the process, the stuffing clearly visible through claw like scratches and rips.
“What the hell was that all about?!”
Up next: When you give him a gift