How Did You Get Here? - [RED!Engineer x F!Reader]

Chapter 2

[A/N]: Yup, another song that has nothing to do with the book, but is mentioned later on. I might just shove these in here for every chapter just to share them with y'all. Yes, this song is on my playlists. <3

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If I hadn't woken up on my mattress, I probably would've assumed the night before was just a dream. But here I was, laying starfish style on my mattress with my sheets off to the side. The night had been surprisingly warm, either that or I was flushed. Either way my sleep was okay at best. As I sat up on my mattress, I turned to look up at my bed. No one was there. The bed was neatly fixed up, and my little Woody bear now sat right in front of my pillow pile. As I scurried off of the makeshift bed, I picked up the bear. I felt like a creep, but I couldn't resist hugging it close to me. There was a definitive foreign smell on the bear, like metal and musk. It wasn't unpleasant, and it was easy to tell where it came from. I gently placed Woody back in his new spot and went to get changed.

While walking to my bathroom, I heard movement coming from my kitchen. It took me a moment to process, but then I realized that of course Dell would be making breakfast, he may be fictional, but he is still a human. The smells coming from down the hall were intoxicating. I wasn't a breakfast eater, so my usual meal consisted of a muffin or toast, but it smelled like he was making pancakes with the fruit I had. I didn't want to assume he was making enough for both of us, but I sure hoped so. I finished getting changed – putting on my normal attire and having my hair arranged in my usual casual style and made my way to the kitchen.

Now is probably a good time to explain my apartments layout – or lack thereof. It was a one-bedroom single floor apartment with a laundry room (duh), a kitchen, one bathroom, and a small living space. It wasn't much, but it wasn't terribly expensive either. My landlord, whom I have dubbed Mr. Nook (since I could never remember his real last name but I know it started with an N) is a chill guy and is very considerate of my needs. He charges me for everything up front – utilities are included in my rent, so I don't have to worry about fumbling with multiple bills, and he is flexible with payments. To say he's a landlord from heaven is an understatement. Now this space is by no means meant for two people, so we were definitely going to be squished together, but the more I thought about it, the less I wanted to complain – and now I've grown addicted to it.

Once I found myself in the kitchen, the smell hit me harder. It was ridiculous how good it smelt. I looked over at the chef who was wearing one of my BBQing aprons, while flipping a pancake. He wasn't wearing any of his work attire, his gunslinger was visible, his overalls weren't buttoned over his arms, and his muscle shirt was just out there, for the world to see. It was almost endearing, seeing how relaxed he was just based on how "exposed" he was. That is, until he saw me. He let out an awkward yelp and tried to hide his right arm.

"[F/N]! Good mornin'! Ah didn't expect to see ya up so early, ya looked so comfy." He let out an awkward chuckle, "Ah made us pancakes. Ah hope ya don't mind me usin' yer ingredients." He tried to flip the pancake with his left arm, which he was successful at, but it looked rather difficult. I went over to him and smiled, "You know I'm a fan of yours, so you should know I know about your right arm." I said with a little chuckle of my own. He let out a relaxed sigh and let it be exposed again. "Right, sorry Ah get a lil' embarrassed when strangers see it. It scares folks sometimes."

"It was one of my favourite features about you to be honest." I said with a shrug, "I think it's amazing how you were able to create a weapon and robotic arm for yourself."

Dell took a moment before he turned to me, his expression beaming, "Why Ah appreciate that Darl–" He hesitated, "[F/N]." I bite my lip, gosh darn it was he adorable. It was almost painful. I noticed he had already figured out how to use the instant coffee maker and had made two cups of coffee, I went to my fridge to prepare mine.