Duskwood & Moonvale one-shots

The watcher (Jake x MC)

Jake couldn't take his eyes off the screen - again. He clenched his fists, clenched his teeth and watched. Now, for the first time, he decided to take this step and could not decide which of the conflicting feelings tormented him more.

The realization that doing so is not ethical. On the other hand, wanted hackers like he don't have to be ethical.

Understanding that feelings of this kind are wrong and can lead to failure. And the appeal of this wrongness.

A sense of guilt - after all, he promised himself and her not to go further than observing the chats - and a sweet feeling that for the first time in a long time he was not alone.

Jake squeezed his eyes shut, trying to distract himself from the excess thoughts for at least a second, but it didn't help. He remembered everything he saw on the laptop screen - and his throat dried up.

And he looked again. On the screen, where he can still see the dark room, the silhouette of the sofa and the fragile girlish figure on it.

Polly. This strange unique girl who captured all his thoughts. This special person whom he could trust and for whom he was willing to sacrifice his own safety. When it came only to saving Hannah, Jake acted more carefully, taking care of himself first, and here...

He buried his fingers in his hair, shook his head. It's crazy. Because of Polly, he's not himself these days, but the strangest thing is that he liked it. He liked to change next to her, because it made the teeth of the darkness that had been gnawing into his soul all these years seem a little less sharp.

Jake sat frozen, trying not to make a sound, watching and listening to what was happening there, at Polly's place, on the other side of the screen, as if in another world.

Perhaps he wouldn't mind...

The thought remained unfinished when he saw that Polly, who had been hugging her knees before, raised her head and was now looking at the laptop screen, as if she clearly saw his face, as if there was not all this distance between them.

"Jake."

She whispered just his name - he was ready to take off, to leave the familiar and almost cozy lonely shelter, just to be next to this girl for a moment, to take her hand, to look into her eyes... But Jake had the nerve to continue to sit motionless and silent in his chair.

"I wish you were here with me right now," she reached out and gently touched the laptop case next to the camera. Jake shuddered. "After all... Hannah's whereabouts is still unknown, it's getting harder for the guys to stick together. And you're not here. I know it's necessary for your safety, so in fact, probably, I'm not even trying to do something. I even try not to write. I don't know how it happened, but right now your safety is more important to me than anything else."

Jake gripped the arms of the chair tighter. Polly... really, stop it. It's not normal to blush at the words of the girl on the screen, but Jake blushed. He leaned back in his chair and blushed like a little boy, listening, catching every word.

"My God, I must look like an idiot right now. I'm talking to my laptop here."

And this phrase is the last straw. Jake moved closer, pressed the button. His skills and the meager equipment left after his escape are enough to establish a connection.

"It's scary to imagine who I look like in this case."

He saw Polly shudder and move a little away from the laptop.

"Jake?"

"I am. Don't worry, Polly, it's just me. I've been looking out for you."

"And you... how long have you been here?"