Deep Like Water (Yandere!BEN Drowned X GN!Reader)

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cw: talk of child neglect/abandonment and suicide.

If you had been the protagonist in a carefully crafted TV show, there would have been some indication of the day's misfortune. You would have complained about a stomachache or a headache, or the weather forecast would have told you that it was going to rain (or at least be cloudy). But there was nothing. You woke up ache-free, and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. It was, by all accounts, a fine day.

The only thing out of the ordinary was a text from Frankie asking you to go to the shops to get something for dinner. He was usually organised when it came to keeping food in, but since he'd been working far more than usual, you didn't point this out and agreed to get the things he needed. It wasn't like you were busy; all your assignments were done and your notes were up to date.

You regretted going alone. BEN had been roped into a two-hour long phone call with a newbie at the agency who had accidentally deleted the most important database in the company, and you didn't feel like disturbing him while his face looked like thunder.

Since it was a weekend, the streets were reasonably busy, as was the shop that you needed. You took in a deep breath of the sharp air and stepped into the shop, clutching your phone in your hand.

All I need is some veg and some frozen Yorkshires. Easy. You knew where they all were, so all you needed to do was weave through the crowd, pick them up, pay, and leave. Easy.

Looking back on it, you wondered if the universe had laughed at you in that moment, yelling out, 'Sike!' like an annoying twelve year old brat would. Not to sound dramatic, but at this point you were pretty sure that the universe hated it when you were happy because it seemed to do everything in its power to make you fucking miserable.

The thing that originally caught your eye was a jacket. As you slipped through the crowd and down to the freezers in the far corner, a familiar jacket made your breath catch in your throat like you had just been punched. You knew that you had to be overreacting, but it was too...perfect. It was an exact replica of the jacket that you had memories of wearing as a child.

The man wearing it was familiar, as was the woman next to him. Little things about them weren't right (probably the results of the plastic surgery that Frankie had mentioned), but their faces looked pretty much the same.

Your parents were looking through the crowd like they were searching for someone, and you couldn't shake the feeling that they were looking for you. When you heard your mother speak ('I don't know why they would be here, it's a Saturday and they probably have better things to do.') you were forced to make a decision.

Did you want your parents back in your life?

The pros and cons list that you constructed in your head led you to conclude that no, you didn't want them back. They had abandoned you, so they didn't get to swan back into your life like nothing had happened. You still resented them, and you weren't ready to forgive for everything they had caused.

You took a breath, lowered your head, and followed the crowd around them. It was the only way to the freezers unless you wanted to fight the flow of people, which you didn't, but you had faith in your ability to blend into the crowd. You had changed since your parents had last laid eyes on you, so surely that would go in your favour, right?

Once again, the universe said, 'Haha, sike!'

Your parents followed you through checkout and out of the shop. They followed you through the shop's car park, down the busy high street, and through a park, always keeping a steady distance away from you. You weren't mad that they were following you—instead, you were a little bit miffed. Why couldn't your life be peaceful?