We Will and That's Okay (Elder Mark x Reader)

Shadows

You scramble your way out of the convenience store, so caught up in your escape that you nearly forget if it's a push or pull. The bell chirps behind you, and with no previously planned course of action, your eyes dart around the parking lot in search. Landing on the closest corner, you sprint over and hide yourself against the side of the building.  Your lungs burn with a humiliated fire, along with your face, eyes, ears... Now that you think about it, a hasty get away from a perfectly air conditioned store wasn't the best move in this weather. You contemplate going back inside, but a playback of what'd just happened smacks you across the face, killing off any desire to return.

"Really? Hormones?" you groan, head falling into your hands.

Your phone buzzes once again, and this time you fish it out of your pocket with irritation. As the screen meets your eyes, you open up to your notifications: the only ones of which have been a couple WeTube channel updates, nothing more.

"Guess clicking the notification bell was good for something..."

Of all the things you could do reuniting with the closest people you've ever known, you lied to them. Sure, nerves and feelings kicked in—namely panic—but you think back to the innocent beam on David and Barry's faces. You think back to the hold deja vu had on your heart, standing in the DuckMart aisle with them like you would all those years ago.

You think back to Mark.

When did he stop wearing glasses?

A familiar grumbling emerges from the entrance, and you feel goosebumps strain at your skin. You try your best to merge with the wall pressing at your back, but curiosity gets the best of you. After all, only one pair of footsteps echoes throughout the lot, much less than the three you'd expected.

A lone Mark comes into view, and you observe him silently. That is, until he walks straight into a handicap parking sign. You jump at the dull clang, witnessing him curse out and strangle the pole with vitriolic fists.

Guess he still needs them...

Mark walks past you with a hand bracing his head, and you suck in a breath. Amazingly, you go completely unnoticed. Probably due to his poor eyesight and one track mind. He walks off, and once there's a sizable distance between you both, you begin the trek home. You remember much more than you figured, traversing the route without a map or hesitant step. Guided by pure muscle memory and rhythmic heels scraping pavement, you check off a list buried in the recesses of your mind.

The storm drain by Kate Chapman's old house.

A phallic wad of gum, blackened by dirt and age.

The legendary "mozafari wuz here '94" scrawled into cement.

A smile graces your features, recalling this walk and the numerous adventures you'd had along it, but it doesn't last long once you remember who you'd have them with. You look up. Mark strides a good thirty feet past you, but your conscience is concerned you've been stalking him. A left he takes is yours to take too. A road you watch him cross is one you would soon after.

You realize that he's going home too.

He must still live at that house, just two blocks away from yours. It's one you've had quite a few memories in. You're reminded of the day you found out he lived so close, but it only comes to you in bits and pieces. You, Mark, David, Barry, and Kenneth were browsing snacks at the DuckMart for anime night. Usually, you'd have it over at Kenneth's, but something came up. Before you knew it, you were all headed to Mark's place and roleplaying the entire way. An amused breath escapes your nose, something about David wounding his character so he'd be carried for the rest of the walk.