Chapter Text
Your favorite thing about working at OsCorp was your coworker, Otto Octavius. He was a sweet man, but too timid. You thought it was adorable when he didn't know how to get out of a conversation. He was the most precious man ever & you loved him to bits. What you found extra cute was when his face got very red when he talked to you, even though you were close friends. Unfortunately, you found out the hard way that he took words a bit too personal.
During your lunch break, you sat beside him & started small talk. He seemed extra tense today & actually couldn't meet your gaze. His stuttering seemed to prevent him from speaking as he hesitantly moved a little closer to you. You gave him a look of confusion that was strong enough to make him slightly snuggle up to you.
"Aww, stop it." you giggled. Otto quickly backed off & looked upset before profusely apologizing. You tried calming him down & told him you were teasing. People teased each other using those words for years, you didn't understand how he didn't know about that.
"A tease? W-why would you tease me like that? You know I-I-I'm sensitive, you're being a bully. Maybe I shouldn't have talked to you today." Otto quickly got up & left after saying that, leaving you stunned & heartbroken. You didn't finish your lunch & didn't speak for the rest of the day.
When you got home, you cried yourself to sleep. Overnight, you woke up twice, crying so much that you got slightly choked. Getting a cold glass of water barely helped with making you sleepy, so you laid in bed & drifted off on your own accord. The next day, you ate breakfast & got ready for work, but didn't even say hello to your neighbor who was doing lawn work.
Once you arrived at OsCorp, you remained completely silent. Even after Norman asked to speak with you, you didn't say anything. Norman knew something was wrong & offered to give you a few days off. You shook your head, declining the offer. When you got back to work, you saw Otto & momentarily locked eyes with him. He shyly waved & smiled at you, but you just walked away.
"(Y/n)?" Otto called out. You kept walking despite the fact that ignoring him was really hurting you. You knew he'd try to remain on good terms with you, he was a peacekeeper, but you felt too guilty to give anything another chance.
Unbeknownst to you, Otto got very worried & thought something bad happened to you at home. He tried checking on you throughout the day, but you'd always move away from him without a word being said. His sensitive heart turned protective, wanting to constantly make sure you were ok.
After a few days, Otto realized that you were deliberately avoiding him. He didn't know why you were doing this, but he was incredibly upset about it. He was driven by desperation to find out why you were so miserable, but it would be extra difficult since you insisted on keeping a distance.
You got sadder every day, completely convinced that Otto was trying to keep the peace so no one would question your interactions. You felt like he didn't want you to know how much he hated you now. This started leading you to buy red wine & drink it at home so you could safely blackout.
"Cheers! Tomorrow, we all die!" you'd say before binge drinking. You were losing your mind, but you didn't care. When your friends convinced you to stop drinking, you asked Norman for a month off. He was quite confused until you explained everything.
"Well, I really need you here, but these circumstances do seem to be tearing you apart. I'll give you a maximum of half a month." Norman stated over the phone. You thanked him before going to your room & passing out.