𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐄𝐒

𝙗𝙖𝙗𝙮𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧

thank you Hearts4Cc for the recommendation in the dead middle of the night bc i refuse to sleep before 2am 🥺🥺
y/n babysitting the mischievous little siblings (aka edd and molly)
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Your room was flooded with moonlight and the faint light of your lightbulb, making them merge together in some type of bluish amber. You twisted as you tried to put on your leather jacket, woolly sleeves catching on the sewing in the leather.

The constant sound of pans and several other metal cooking tools rapped against your door, reminding you it was late. You were late.

You fixed the belt around your waist before picking up your bag and skidding out of your bedroom, running back to switch off the light and cloth the assortment of band posters in shadow. The alluring smell of boiling food wafted to you from the kitchen, but you ignored the temptation as you ran past the kitchen doorway and straight for the front door.

"Whoa, whoa lil sprout!" You heard your father's voice boom behind you. "Shouldn't you be at that babysitting gig by now?"

"Exactly." You grumbled in response, grounding your heels into the worn insides of your sneakers. "Can I borrow the car?"

"Will you crash it?"

You gave him an unamused look over your shoulder as you tied your laces. He simply laughed, placing down the sizzling pan he held on the kitchen counter to throw you something that flew through the air with a silver slash. "Have fun."

You caught the keys, rolling your eyes and adjusting your bag– currently swung over your shoulder –before rushing into the moonlit yard outside. The grass was dewy with the remains of rain, and you damn near slipped with how fast you were running for the garage.

Asphalt crunched under your feet as you nudged open the car door, throwing yourself into the driver's seat with a sigh and shifting at how uncomfortable the leather jacket had become with how sweaty you were. You should really exercise more. Starting up the car, you turned the dial of the radio until it coughed up the drone of a late night talk show.

You rolled down the window and began pulling out of the driveway, reciting the address under your breath like a prayer. It was a bad idea to take a nap after classes; you knew this, but you were a tired college student who got three hours of sleep at best.

The sky was starless unless you looked close enough, and you couldn't do that when you were desperately trying not to get lost in the tangling, hairball-like streets of Brighton. For a small town, they had horrible road integrity skills.

Moonlight pulsed under the wispy clouds that swirled over the moon like tendrils of latte in coffee, which actually, made you slightly want something hot to water down the dry taste in your mouth. No choice now. You were knee deep in an old forest that you knew was a shortcut to the street the house you were supposed to be at thirty minutes ago was.

Sweat dried in the roots of your hair, blown back by the wind rushing into your car. You bitterly spat out the taste of unearthed dust that had somehow ended up in your face.

Eventually, you pulled up beside a quaint house, clearly bustling with life judging by the shadows dodging past the amber lit windows. Small trees curled up to the porch and lined the entire front of the house in fleshy leaves. You stepped out of the car, turning off the radio just as the drawling man began to talk about stocks.

Yanking out your keys, you placed them in your leather pocket before kicking the car door shut behind you and preparing for the berating of your life. Blood roared through your ears as you crept up the stairs to the porch– swatting away a particularly defiant branch that reached over the railing and scratched your jeans –and slowly pressed your finger against the doorbell.