- Doomsday - Volume One: Gods and Monsters

Chapter 47: Comfort

(AN: Imagine posting a story with a regular schedule)

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"You don't have to run anymore, I'm here, I understand."

"I'm here, I understand."

"I understand."

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"I understand."

"But you don't really understand, do you, Paul?"

[Y/N] stomped back leaving the embrace between himself and Paul, he didn't necessarily want it to end, but wanted to get a good luck at the older man when he answered.

The familiar tired cadence of the young scientist followed with a slow chuckle, "No, I suppose not [Y/N]... But that doesn't necessarily mean that I can't empathise with you, it's one of our great abilities as humans, it's a part of our humanity to identify with one another."

The young child looked back at the older man with a scrunched expression, showing his suspicion towards his conclusions candidly, before looking towards the ground. "If that's true, then why are all of us here right now? If humanity really empathised with us then this would have never happened." A dejected look quickly overtook the boy's nonplussed face.

The older man let out a small sigh, removing one hand from his long lab jacket, before placing it upon the young boy's head, messing it up slightly. "That's the problem [Y/N], we live in a time where people don't want to identify with their humanity. Rather, they would only identify with themselves."

Moving his soft hand down towards the boy's chin, Paul gently lifted [Y/N]'s gaze upwards to look directly into his own face. "You can't let the experiences of others muddy how you yourself would act, because then you really have failed. Everything you have been through is incredibly difficult, especially for someone your age, but you mustn't use that as an excuse to isolate yourself from the world."

Paul removed his hand, allowing [Y/N]'s small head to move, turning himself inwards towards his desk, Paul put a hand to his mouth as his eyes scanned over the computer screen before exhaling a final sigh. "[Y/N], allow yourself to be vulnerable and open to the world. I know that sounds crazy but you have to accept it, otherwise you are going to end up as a self-loathing bundle of hatred, and that does no good for anyone, understand?"

[Y/N] held a conflicted face, messing with his hands as he mulled over the ideas in his head, concepts that the young boy couldn't yet fully grasp. Paul, noticing this, quickly resumed his paternal figure, placing a hand onto the boy's shoulder and once again providing a comfortable smile for the young boy.

"But you don't have to worry about any of that right now, I'm here."

"I'm here."

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As the rain cascaded down upon the small and poorly lit alley-way, the darkness of the night obscuring much from view, two figures maintained a close embrace for minutes, the idea of comfort a rarity in this cruel world. In this moment, two incredibly scarred people had some sense of solace, a breath contrasting the cut-throat nature of their own lives, and both loathed to return to the wickedness of the present.

While [Y/N] had accepted the younger girl's request of protection, the logistics of this specific request had been overruled by the baseline emotional response. While attempting to choose the best moment to end the embrace, Rose took the initiative, pushing herself away from the much larger man, taking in his full figure. Running a balled fist across her face, rubbing any trace of tears from her face, she poorly attempted to regain any sort of stoicism to her face.