Work Text:
The Hargreeves siblings have saved the world about 10, 20, and a hundred times. And all of it had one thing in common. No matter how many times they saved the world, It would always end up in flames anyway. But even so, five had you.
No matter how many times he had to save the world. As long as he had you, he would never grow tired. Just to be with you.
But were you really his world? You thought otherwise, after overhearing his conversation with Diego and Lila. the world wasn’t ending and everything was okay but yours came crumbling down. You knew Diego felt his world crumbling down too as the love of his life and the mother of his kids had now broken a happy family.
All that privilege is gone, given to someone else.
You didn’t care where your feet took you. Just as long as it was far away from them. From him. For you it felt like hours, but for them, it was 7 whole damn years. All his vows and devoted promises to you down in the drain. Just like that. Your whole existence felt like it was aching.
In fact, if the world were to end right now, you had hoped it would end immediately. You couldn’t care any more anyway.
Your legs have grown weak and tired, each step of your feet turning into a lazy tired drag. Until your legs fully gave up. Falling helplessly in the middle of an empty road. Your eyes could only focus looking up at the bright blue sky.
And there that feeling was again. Utter pain and sorrow. Making its way up to your eyes. You just let it fall. All the tears. So much anger. So much pain.
How can the person who’s loved you wholeheartedly for years, waver for someone else in just 7 years?
This is the most drained you ever felt. Not realizing you dozed off in the middle of nowhere. But you were awoken with a familiar voice, by someone you were not expecting to see.
Your husband—ex husband.
But instead, he’s a lot different. He looks different.
“Y/N? Can you hear me?” your vision seemed to clear, you immediately back away from him. Taking in your surroundings. You had no idea if this was you completely losing it or you had been transferred to a different timeline. With a different five.
“Thank goodness,” he sighed in relief, sitting on the ground completely.
“What the hell is going on?” you yelled, now standing up in panic. He stands up with you, calmly.
“Don’t worry, you’ve been switched to a different timeline. This is timeline X-00. I’m assuming you’re not aware of your powers?”
Your head snaps at the word powers, you look at five confused.
“What powers? I don’t have any…”
“Well that’s where you’re wrong, love, you do have.”
Your nose scrunched at his endearment, even if he was a different five. It was still him. He still looked like him. You were still freshly wounded and all of this was too much to take in.
“Look, quit playing with me. I want to go home….” you trailed off, now realizing that your timeline isn’t the home you actually wanted to go home to. Not with Five, (your five) having an affair and no longer loving you the same.
“Only you can do that. You’re the one who got yourself here.” Five said, looking around. Trying to investigate the probabilities of how you got in his timeline.
“I don’t— I can't okay! I didn’t even know I had powers!” you yelled in frustration, you thought that seeing another Five would be a relief but instead, seeing him only hurts you.
He notices the change in the way you speak, the hurt in your voice. He approaches you, holding your hands to console you, like how your five would have.
“Clearly, how you are here seems like other me didn't treat you right, huh?”
You looked up at Five, tears welling up your eyes as your lip quivered. You looked down, slowly nodding. He sighed, visibly disappointed as he pulled you into a warm embrace.
“He’s a complete idiot for doing that” you chuckle in between sobs, nodding in agreement.
“He really is.”
“We’re all a little dumb next to you” he pulled away, wiping the tears from your cheek away with his thumb.
The last person you wanted to receive a hug from was Five. well at least, not your five. But here you were, in another Five’s apartment. Almost the same to your ex’s, just a lot more different. You weren’t sure, but maybe deep down, you wanted this. Your mind unconsciously brought you to a different timeline. Where he wouldn’t have done that to you.
“What happened to your Y/N?”
He slowly smiled at the mention of your name. Making your heart beat.
“She passed away 5 years ago.” he paused, looking at you as if recalling his wife’s features on you. “She was helping me save the world, but I lost her after”
“Oh… I’m so sorry”
“It’s alright, loving her was worth it until the end” for him, it was actually nice to talk about her again. He hadn’t brought his wife up to anyone, seemingly how quick everyone had moved on. the other you was one of the most looked up to as a hero in his timeline. the other you had the ability to switch timelines, meaning you knew multiple ways to get out of drastic tragedy. you were incredibly smart. one of the traits he admired about you.
You could feel yourself getting envious over your other self. It was funny that you were wishing you were her just to feel that even in death, he would love you.
“He fell in love with someone else” Five looked at you, he wasn’t expecting you would actually tell him. Knowing the other you, had the trait to bottle up things until she could no longer. but because he talked about other you, it made you feel at ease to tell him.
“He got stuck in different timelines with Lila,” Five grumbled at the mention of Lila’s name, but then turned to look at you again. Hearing you out. “And in those 7 years, they were trying to find their way back home. Five at the end of those few months… he..” You didn’t feel the need to finish that sentence, as he already caught the hint. Nodding with a heavy sigh.
And maybe five was right. Maybe, your powers did bring you here just so you could escape your timeline. It made him recall all the times his Y/N would switch timelines at times she needed more than just driving to different places. She wanted to get away sometimes to set her mind straight.
Five could feel himself getting angry at his other self. He had thought about how lucky that the other Five is to have you physically and not just in memory. He would give anything to be with his Y/N again. But your Five mindlessly wasted it.
“If he truly loved you, you would have never left his mind.” Five took a hold of your hand, holding it with care as if you’re fragile. “I want to let you know that despite your five had made a mistake, 127,945 other versions of us, including me, would give anything to love you again.”
In his mind, grasping all your features. The warmth of your hands that has managed to fill the absence of his wife’s touch that he had been longing for, and your beautiful smile that he remembers vividly. He thought, “What’s 7 years compared to a lifetime with you?”