you can rent a space inside my mind (DISCONTINUED)

Chapter Three

CW: PTSD flashbacks, spicy content (three or four on the scale of spicy)

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Tyler woke up slowly, the sun just barely filtering in through the drawn curtains. Wednesday let out an exhausted noise beside him, rolling over further on top of him, tangling their legs together. She was not a morning person. He smiled softly down at her. Even now, Tyler couldn't believe he'd made it out of Nevermore alive. The second he'd woken up after he thought he'd died, Tyler had realized just how fucking screwed he was. Laurel had been grinning down at her, that disgusting manic look in her eye. Tyler would never forget the feeling of reaching for the bond and finding Laurel, instead of Wednesday. It made his stomach twist into knots.

"Finally up, are you?" Laurel's voice was mocking but excited, like she'd been waiting for this moment forever. Knowing that she was Laurel now, Tyler was sure she had. He reached for the bond, naively hoping that his bond with Wednesday was still there. Nothing; just Laurel. Just her and her disgusting emotions, twisted thoughts, and demented desires. He blinked, trying his best not to let the tears well up, trying not to give her any form of satisfaction. Fear was grasping at every part of him with cold fingers, weighing him down and paralyzing him in the wake of whatever came next.

"Fuck you," Tyler spat out, glaring up at her. Laurel laughed meanly before slapping him across the face with such force the cuts left by her fingernails previously opened back up, and his head snapped to the side. Angry tears sprung to Tyler's eyes. He reached out a hand, wrapped it around her lower leg, and clenched it down, shattering the bone. Laurel screamed, kicking him off. Tyler growled, staring her down. He'd have to move quickly before she ordered him not to hurt her. Only five feet between them. He hauled himself to his feet, while Laurel scrambled backward, coughing and trying to gather her breath. Four feet. Three.

"Stop!" Laurel's voice was shaky and laced with pain, but the order took hold anyway. Fuck. "Don't hurt me. Ever." The command curled around him like chains, anchoring him to his misery. Laurel looked up at him angrily, hauling herself to her feet. Tyler glared at her, but Laurel broke into a smile. Then, she pulled on the bond. Tyler collapsed as Laurel stole his strength, trying to heal the fracture in her leg. It felt nothing like Wednesday's borrowing. This felt like having his organs removed while he was still awake. He writhed on the floor, trying to stop her from taking parts of him he needed to live. Her grin grew bigger and bigger-

"Tyler!" Wednesday shook him, breaking him out of the flashback. Tyler came back to the present with a start, panting and trembling with fear. He flinched out of her hold, looking around quickly, trying to figure out where he was. Where was Laurel? Wednesday tugged gently on the bond, flooding it with concern and tranquility. The bond was with Wednesday again, Tyler reminded himself. Then, exhausted from the fear, he collapsed into Wednesday, still panting with exertion. "It's okay," Wednesday whispered platitudes into his ear, rocking them back and forth as she tucked his face into her neck, cradling him with gentle hands. Tears sprung to Tyler's eyes, and he burst into sobs.

They weren't quiet or subdued. He was full-on sobbing, loudly and shakily as he shook in Wednesday's hold. God, he was so scared that Laurel was going to get him again, or that this was all a dream or hallucination, and he'd come back, still under Laurel's hold with Wednesday still dead. Wednesday pulled him back down onto the bed, climbing partially on top of him so she could cover more of his skin with her own as she whispered in his ear, telling him over and over again that this was real, and that he was safe. Tyler trembled, his chest heaving as he tried to breathe normally again. His head ached and his new scars itched, pulling at his skin.

Wednesday pulled him further into her lap, moving his head down to her chest while gently swaying with him back and forth. He could feel her heartbeat beneath his ear, strong and steady as always. Tyler honed in on it, synchronizing his breaths with soft thumps as his girl petted and coddled him. The sobs began to slow as his breathing did, and Tyler started to regain control over himself. When the crying finally tapered off, he was exhausted. Was this how it was going to be? Would recovery always be this hard? Wednesday gently nudged him up so he was facing her. She wiped his tears away with the pads of her thumbs, her gaze soft and worried. God, Tyler despised worrying her. Lord knew Wednesday had been through enough anxiety recently.