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If Scar had to touch another block of honey he might vomit.
Honey parkour had always been his least favourite, hating how sticky it was against his skin, pulling and tugging at hair when it was time to wash it off. So when he saw it in Cub's labyrinth, he wanted to cry.
He had been here for too long. His legs and arms were covered in honey, a bit on his face too. He regrets wearing his super cool zookeeper booty shorts, because even though he knows he looks awesome, there hadn't been any protection for his skin against the honey.
Scar felt gross and sticky, the thick layers of honey being added onto with every time he tries this. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he can hear Cub laughing at him, the man watching through blinking security cameras, somewhere safe from all this honey.
He finds himself glaring at the camera, biting his lips to avoid shouting insults at his laughing friend. He loves Cub, he loves his friends, but this is definitely testing all the love in his heart.
He wants out of this fucking labyrinth.
Around him, hundreds of little blue lights float around, watching him. He can hear them chatting, little words he does his best to ignore as he tries the parkour one more time.
He takes a minute for a deep breath, before he pushes off with his legs, jumping into the honey. His arms wave around, scrambling to grab onto anything on the honey wall, but there is nothing to grab. He slides down, and while he knows he should be focused and prepared for the next part, his body feels frozen. He feels sick as the wall of honey sloshes, leaving slick and sticky trails on his skin.
He wasn't focused on staying in the honey. One leg slips out, and the rest follows. He falls, hitting the ground with a painful thud.
Cub was laughing again, finding his friends attempts funny. Anger roars in Scar's chest like fire, but he bites his lip, staying shut up as he gets to his feet. His face feels wet, not sticky, like tears. He didn't even notice he had been crying. He solves the problem of anyone having to see the tears by pretending to scratch his face and getting honey all over his cheeks, the sticky and shiny look of the honey distracting from the wet shine of the tears.
The little light balls spin around him quickly. Their quiet chatter has gotten louder, giggling and encouraging Scar as they spin happily.
He doesn't hesitate to swat some of them away, walking back towards the start of this section. His legs feel wobbly from his fall, and his hands are tucked close to him, in what some would call dinosaur arms. He doesn't want them to touch any of the other stickiness on him, even if they too are covered in the honey.
He goes again.
And again.
And again.
He gets further every time, nearly there. He's getting excited, chatting along with Cub and the chat. The sticky feeling still sucks, but he's almost out of this section, he doesn't have to deal with it soon!
With every time he fails though, a bit of his ability to stay calm is getting scraped away. He's exhausted, legs and arms burning every time he moves. He just wants to go home, shower off the honey, nap, and do this another day.
He's almost there. He can do it.
He can't do it.
He hits the ground again, hard enough that a jolt travels up his legs. He collapses to the ground, and god he's so done.
Scar lets himself lay there, body shaking in silent sobs. He waves one of his hands, and the wisps all vanish, sent back to where they come from.
He can't get up. He can't keep going, he's done, he's so fucking done with this.
He can hear Cub still in the call. He sounds concerned, but god Scar is too tired to try and reassure him, to promise him he's okay. Scar just stays curled up on the ground, tucked into himself, the sticky honey on his arms covering his face and getting in his hair as he wraps one arm around his head to hide the waterfall of tears dripping down.
The call eventually goes quiet. It feels like hours before he hears anything again, but probably only a few seconds or minutes. By then the tears had dried and sobs had drifted into hiccups, but he still stayed curled up on the ground.
"C'mon Scar, up you get" The voice wasn't wrapped with the staticky sound of the call. There are hands touching him suddenly, gently sitting him up. They touch the sticky honey on his skin without any problem, it doesn't seem to bother them as they wrap his arm around their shoulders, helping him up to shaky feet.
Scar looks up at Cub, and another sob bubbles up behind his lips, crashing back into the exhausted crying. Cub shushes him quietly, guiding his stumbling form to where Cub had taken out a section of the wall. They go through these makeshift doors Cub had made until they're outside, where Cub guides Scar to sit down on a block.
The honey on Scar was dripping, sliding down his skin. He could feel it moving, it makes him feel sick.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm sorry" Scar responds, his teary words interrupted by his sobs.
"Why are you apologising?" The sun against Cub's glasses manages to hide the other's eyes perfectly, but Scar knows those eyes are looking at him with worry.
"You destroyed the walls of your maze to get me out because I sucked at it"
"I would destroy the entire labyrinth to make sure you were safe and happy." His words are genuine, but he quickly starts speaking. "Though please don't make me do that, this took too long to build.
And Scar laughs, a genuine laugh. He felt terrible still, with honey on his skin and clothes, hair tangled with it, and his face all red and puffy from his sobbing, but Cub was making everything just a bit better. God he's thankful for his friend.
