Work Text:
Cold air whips around iTrapped, biting at his face and fingers. The forest surrounding him is dim, and glancing up, iTrapped can see the moon shining beneath him.
He takes a step, snow crunching beneath his boots. The old pair he used to own, the ones he threw out back when...
iTrapped pauses in his tracks, still staring down at his boots. How did he get here? Why is he here?
Is this... Real?
Nervously, he glances around, scratching at his arms and neck.
It's so cold.
iTrapped tries to keep walking, but for some reason, his feet refuse to move. Grumbling, he rocks back and forth, trying to get his stubborn feet out of the snow. His feet only sink deeper, snow seeping into the seam of his boots.
"It's... It's so cold..."
That voice. It's small, subtle, could've been easily missed along the rapidly intensifying wind, but iTrapped recognizes it instantly. How could he not?
He doesn't respond, simply trying to get his feet moving once again. Trying to block that voice out of his head.
"'Trap... I'm so cold..."
The voice grows louder, echoing in iTrapped's ears. No, no— he wasn't here again.
"Don't leave me here, 'Trap..."
Bloodied, grey hands tug at the coat iTrapped sworn he hadn't been wearing a few moments ago. He doesn't dare look at where they come from, just jerking away from the touch. His feet don't move with and it sends him stumbling into the snow. His hands shoot out to catch himself from plummeting face-first into it. He curls up, coughing as the wind is knocked out of him.
He needs to leave, needs to get out of here as fast as possible. As he attempts to shift to his knees, he makes the brutal mistake of glancing back behind him. The sight that meets him is one he's grown familiar to. The same sight he's been haunted by for months now, only slightly... Distorted.
Chance's face is sunken in, tear marks and mascara running down their dirt-smudged cheeks. Their eyes are empty, hollow, staring right through iTrapped's soul. Blood bubbles at their lips, and with a horrible, wet cough, it gurgles out onto the snowy floor beneath them.
iTrapped withholds the urge to vomit at the sight, scuffling further away from the figure, feeling the snow dampen his pants beneath him. They— it follows his movements, making horrible wheezing, gasping sounds every time it manages to pull itself forward. It sounds as if it's unable to breathe, choking on its own blood.
"I hope I was worth it." It chokes out between sobs and bloodied coughs, a hand clutching a oozing wound from it's torso.
iTrapped swallows, feeling a lump form in his throat. He tries to look away, staring at his lap. It's now also covered in blood, which causes him to jump and gasp.
This isn't real, this can't be real—
"Isaac..."
iTrapped clutches at his head, attempting to block out all the noise. It doesn't work. The voice, it's sobbing, hiccuping voice won't...
"Isaac!"
That's... That's not it— them. They never used that name before...
iTrapped suddenly jolts up in bed, panting heavily as he rapidly looks around. Ellernate's on one side of the bed, looking concerned, while Caleb is on the other side looking just as equally as concerned.
"Jesus— fuck, dude! You were thrashing around and scratching yourself to death!" Caleb swears, settling down slightly as iTrapped slowly comes to. He sits on his knees, hands hesitating above iTrapped, clearly not knowing if touch was acceptable. Ellernate stays silent, eyebrows furrowed as he zeros in on iTrapped's arms.
Although it takes a moment, iTrapped is able to remember where he is, and calms, realizing everything was a dream. Then, the concern on both of their faces hits, and iTrapped tenses up once more.
"You're fucking bleeding, Isaac! What kind of dream were you havin'??" Caleb asks with a note of disbelief edging his words. This draws a stern look from Ellernate, a quiet demand for him not to keep talking.
The mention of blood wakes iTrapped up real damn quick. Instantly, his eyes snap to his arm, where his worst fears are confirmed— blood, seeping through his white long sleeve. It's only a small amount, but it was clearly enough to catch both of his friend's attentions.
Dread curls in his stomach. Ellernate attempts to touch his arm, but iTrapped instantly flinches away. This, in turn, only makes Ellernate reach for his arm again, this time using much more force to ensure he stays still. If Ellernate and Caleb weren't intertwined at his sides, he would've tried to make a bolt to the bathroom.
"Don't..."
iTrapped's voice is weaker than how he imagined it in his head, and he collapses back onto the bed. "It's... It's nothing, don't worry about it..."
Ellernate's brow furrows, and Caleb pauses. They both look at each other and then back to iTrapped.
"... You suck at lying, Isaac." Caleb sighs, raising an eyebrow. Curious, he also touches iTrapped's sleeve. His fingers press into one of the red stains, which sends a jolt of pain down iTrapped's body. Ellernate swats Caleb's hand away.
Without saying anything, Ellernate unfurls iTrapped's sleeve, which sends iTrapped's heart into his throat.
"Wait—!"
He wasn't expecting that this early— he thought he still had time to make up excuses before they did anything. Ellernate only gets the sleeve about halfway up his forearm before stopping. The surprise on his face makes iTrapped wince, and when Ellernate hesitates, he takes advantage of it, tugging his arm out of his grasp.
Caleb's expression turns quizzical, as he looks between the two
"... What? What happened?" Caleb raises an eyebrow, glancing down at iTrapped's arm, unable to make out what's underneath the half unfurled sleeve while iTrapped cradles it against his chest.
"Go get a first aid kit, Caleb." Ellernate orders quietly. Caleb seems to want to interject, but hesitates. With a nod and a mumbled, incoherent agreement, he slumps out of the bed and into the bathroom.
iTrapped considers escape for a moment, seeing an opening. It falls through immediately however, as he knows there's nowhere to run to.
Considering that running is all he seems to know how to do, he's frozen once that option is taken from him. He avoids Ellernate's gaze like the plague, wishing for the sweet release of sleep. He'd like to sleep through this entire interaction, perhaps all of the next ones for the following few days.
The bathroom door creaks closed. Ellernate sighs, running a hand through his hair. The silence that follows is suffocating, and iTrapped can feel those red eyes boring into his soul. It makes his skin crawl.
"... Isaac."
iTrapped stiffens.
"I'm not going to force you to talk... Just— just know that me and Caleb are here for you."
Ellernate reaches to hold iTrapped's clammy hand in his own. It makes iTrapped want to vomit.
The bathroom door creaks open, with a clearly hesitant Caleb walking out. His eyes flicker to iTrapped, before quickly averting to Ellernate.
"I, uh, found this." Caleb huffs, tossing a old medkit forward onto the bed. Ellernate takes the medkit, unzipping the opening and flipping it open to reveal a lackluster amount of supplies. "Barely anythin' left, but it's something at least."
Ellernate doesn't say anything, but gives a small nod, grabbing a few bandaids he deemed as long enough.
"... What's up with Isaac?" Caleb eventually caves, unable to hold his tongue and curiousity. Ellernate bites the inside of his cheek, debating exactly how to tell.
"Isaac, arms, please." Ellernate asks, although it's more of an order. iTrapped hesitates, but eventually spreads his arms towards Ellernate, forearms up. Ellernate carefully unfurls the sleeve upwards, this time not stopping until it reaches his elbows. "Caleb, the light."
Ellernate carefully thumbs over a light cut, giving iTrapped a shudder. Caleb walks to the nightstand, fiddling with the lamp until it flickers on, coating the room in a soft yellow light. When he walks back to his partners' sides, he's unable to hide the cringe he gives at the sight of iTrapped's arms.
"Shit—" He clears his throat, standing awkwardly in front of the two, clearly unsure of what to do with himself.
iTrapped is unable to stand the silence. His head tilts down, blonde hair falling over his face, curtaining him from view. His body occasionally shakes with hiccups and sniffles, but Ellernate doesn't pause. He places bandaids over the worst. With how limited their supplies are, not every wound can get a bandaid of their own. Luckily, most are scabbed over, with only a few still open and raw. The skin surrounding is red, irritated from the scratching.
Caleb, with stiff, unsure movements, settles down on the mattress beside iTrapped. He looks for Ellernate, wanting some sort of indicator of what to do. Ellernate meets his gaze. While he's been able to keep his calm this entire time, his gaze is just as confused, the two mutually stumped on how to move forward.
Slowly, Ellernate reaches forward, pushing iTrapped's bangs out of the way. He holds his cheek, tilting his head upwards.
"We're here for you." He reconfirms, glancing at Caleb, giving him the que. Caleb scrambles, hugging iTrapped from the side, the first action he could think of. He regrets it initially, wondering if it was too close, but iTrapped reluctantly leans into it.
"Yeah, we're here."
iTrapped pauses, before giving a sharp inhale.
"Y-you guys..." Tears attack at his eyes, and iTrapped has to rapidly blink them back. Ellernate's, thumb raises to wipe any that manage to fall.
"Isaac, listen." Ellernate breaths, his other hand cupping the other side of iTrapped's face, grabbing his undivided attention. "Come to us if you ever do this again. You don't have to explain yourself— just don't let these wounds sit like that."
iTrapped gives a small nod, even if he's unsure that he has the courage to do so. Caleb sighs, almost in relief, at this, head clunking against iTrapped's shoulder.
"Let's lay down, 'kay?" Ellernate carefully helps iTrapped lay down. He faces iTrapped's front, while Caleb snuggles himself up against his back, holding him in a spooning position.
"Jeez, you're cold..." Caleb murmurs into the back of Itrapped's neck, giving a light chuckle. Ellernate pulls the blanket up and over their bodies, giving a sigh once finally comfortable.
"You feeling better?" Ellernate asks, shifting closer to iTrapped. iTrapped gives a small nod, burying his face against Ellernate's chest.
"Good." Ellernate's hand snakes itself in iTrapped's hair. He rubs at his scalp, being mindful of his claws.
Sandwiched between the two, iTrapped finally, for the first time in what felt like ages, settles. He lets his body go heavy against the sheets, his breathing even out. The last thing he remembers is Ellernate's warm hands running through his hair and Caleb's lips against the nape of his neck.
Ellernate and Caleb silently listen to iTrapped's breathing as it evens out, as his body goes limp in their arms. They wait a few more moments, ensuring that he's asleep before glancing at each other.
"... What the fuck happened while we were gone?" Caleb asks, voice drawn to a harsh whisper. His arms tighten ever so slightly around iTrapped's torso.
"I... I don't know, Caleb." Ellernate sighs, glancing down at the top of iTrapped's head. His face curls into a sad smile, seeing him drool against his chest. A hint of that old iTrapped. "He'll tell us eventually. We just have to wait."
Caleb sighs alongside Ellernate, settling back against iTrapped's back. It's clear he's unsatisfied by that answer, but he doesn't press further. It's not like Ellernate has any answers, he's just as clueless as him.
"... Try to get some sleep, Caleb." Ellernate murmurs, resting his cheek against the top of iTrapped's head, ready to go back to bed. Caleb nods, eyes fluttering closed as he presses his forehead against iTrapped's back.
"... G'night, Nate."