Friends With Time ⌛ (Tyler Galpin x Reader)

Day 50-54

Day 50:

Your recovery is slow. You stumble through your fitness reqs every morning, trying to prove that you're not the weakest in the group, and you spend your afternoon meetings trying to hold your mother's gaze when you can barely sit up. By the time you slog down the stairs to bring the monster his dinner, the bags under your eyes are thick, mind all but spaced out. You mumble something and slide the food onto the tray.

He doesn't ask for his jacket back. Actually, he doesn't mention it all, which you're grateful for, except for "stay inside" and "go get some sleep" reminders. He always asks what he can do to help. You don't have to convince him that you're okay.

It's a new feeling, being soft, you think as you curl up in your bed, his jacket wrapped around your shivering form. Part of you wonders if it's as dangerous as it feels.

Day 54:

"B12, a C complex, D, and the basic one," you rattle off, recounting the vitamins you've taken that day. "I'm doing everything I can."

Afua nods, although he frowns thoughtfully. "And the Hyde. You can control him?"

"Yes," you say blearily, rubbing at your red nose. "And being sick won't impact my fitness schedule, either. I can still show up to fitness reqs."

Afua nods, turning back to his clipboard, pencil scratching a few lines on it. A small thrill of boldness crackles through you, and you lean forward.

"Has anyone ever tried rehab for these monsters before?" you ask him tentatively. You're curled up on the couch, a blanket wrapped around you, a mug of steaming tea on the coffee table. "I mean, other than my father."

Afua looks up sharply. "Why?" he asks.

A part of you shifts uneasily. "No reason," you say.

"You know why these monsters are here, Y/N," Afua says, hand tightening on the mug he holds. "They're here because they hurt people, killed them, even."

You fumble the blanket under your fingers. "Yeah, but-"

"It's not summer camp, it's a punishment. That Hyde is going to suffer the way he made others suffer. I know he looks human, but you need to come to terms with the fact that he isn't."

"But who does just keeping them here benefit?" you ask, your voice echoing through the empty halls of the pure white Bubble. "If we can help them-"

"It doesn't matter if-" Afua starts, but you continue, not letting yourself be cut off.

"-then that helps them as people, and when they see what they've done, they can make amends to-"

"It's not about amends!" Afua cuts you off, shouting the last words. You flinch back, and he retreats back into his chair. He leans back, breathing heavily, his voice going softer. "Y/N, this has never been about amends, and it's not about helping murderers, either. This is about justice. This is about that Hyde getting what he deserves. That's the point. That's the whole point."

Your fingers shake, curling around the threads of the blanket around you. You are not bold enough yet to wear your monster's coat anywhere near USOAT, but your fingers ache for it, to smell it and breathe him in so he could protect you here.

Afua sighs. "I don't mean to yell, Y/N," he says.

You say nothing, but you can feel your heart beating in your chest, blood rising to your skin like black oil to the surface of the ocean.

"The Hyde you are guarding now deserves his sentence and more," Afua says, staring off into the distance, voice heavy. "He killed three of our agents trying to bring him here. Good people, Y/N. Innocent. How would they feel if he were ever to be released?"