D0NT H0LD IT AGAINST US - PROXIES x GN! READER

008

Waking up the next morning, you were very warm. You yawned and cuddled up more to the source of heat, brain still in the process of booting up as you basked in the warmth. Your brain didn't even fully process where you were or what was happening until an alarm clock went off, followed by two men groaning and one of them telling the other to, "Turn that fucking alarm off before I blow the brains out of the back of my head and all over our wall." Your brain then kicked into gear, partially because the alarm scared the everloving shit out of you, and you remembered where you were and just what was supplying the heat you were cuddling up against.

You must've fallen asleep while hanging out with Brian and Tim, still sandwiched between them. They obviously didn't mind much, seeing as neither moved you back to your room or onto their couch. You felt the heat source moving, and you opened your eyes to be met with the back of Brian, who had reached over to shut the annoying alarm off. You blinked dumbly and tried not to freak out. "What time is it?" You mumbled, rubbing your eyes as you turned to lay on your back.

"Seven in the morning." Brian replied back, voice thick with sleep.

"You can go back to sleep if you want." Tim suggested from where he was sitting besides you. "You probably won't have to be up for another hour or so." He added helpfully. You nodded sleepily and nuzzled into the warmth leftover from the two's body heat. It wasn't long before you fell back into another dreamless sleep.

You were shaken awake a few hours later, your body splayed out across the bed. "Wake up, [Name]." Tim patted your face a bit to get you awake. "Rise and shine, we brought breakfast." He stepped back once he realized you were awake. You sat up, groaning. You wanted to sleep some more, but you knew you had things to do today. You also remembered that you were taking up Tim and Brian's bed, not your own. You looked over towards Tim, who was holding a plate of eggs and bacon, assumedly for you.

"Oh, thanks." You swung your legs over the side of the bed, standing up. You took the plate from him, noting that the food was still warm. "I'll go back over to my room, now, sorry for crashing here." You apologized. Tim just shrugged.

"It's fine, don't worry about it." Tim smiled at you, patting your shoulder in a friendly manner. "Our room is always open for you. Plus, I know first hand that Skully records the room while he sleeps and how uncomfortable that can be." He chuckled. You chuckled along with him, nodding.

"Yeah, it is a bit weird, but I'll probably get used to it." You smiled. "Thank you again." You said, moving to leave the room, plate in hand. You exited it and went out into the small attic-like space again, quickly making your way back to Skully's room. He was sitting on the couch, watching some TV show. He perked up when you entered, waving at you. "Hey, Skully." You walked over to the couch, sitting besides him and began eating your breakfast.

He grabbed the small whiteboard and marker, and began writing. "Sorry if the camera disturbed your sleep last night." He apologized.

"It wasn't that, I just couldn't sleep in general. I didn't wanna bother you, and Tim and Brian were awake so I just hung out in their room. I didn't mean to fall asleep there, sorry if I worried you." You said between bites of your breakfast. He shot you a thumbs up.

"It's all good. Excited for today?" He asked, cocking their head to the side curiously. You groaned, deflating slightly. Excited was one way to put it, you guessed. Anxious was a better descriptor, though.

"What if people don't like me? You guys are a bunch of murderers! What if I make a bad impression and get attacked, or some crazy shit like that?" You huffed, taking a large bite of food. The food was actually really good, and you found yourself wondering if Tim had cooked it.

"Don't worry, [Name], being a proxy means no one's going to attack you." He made sure that you had read the entire thing before erasing and continuing their thought. "Proxies have protection from Slender itself, they'd get themselves killed." They mimicked a smile with their index fingers over their mask, signifying that they were smiling at you. Their words did make you feel a bit better, seeing as it meant you wouldn't be getting smothered in your sleep anytime soon. "There will be people who don't like you, it's inevitable, but you have to ignore them and realize that their opinions are ultimately meaningless."

"Thank you Skully, I feel a lot better." You were being honest, Skully really did help relieve some of your anxiety. "Are you gonna come with me when Tim brings me to pick out a mask to wear?" You asked him before scarfing down the last bite of your food. Skully nodded, giving another thumbs up. You stood, walking over to the desk and placing your empty dish on it before beginning to rummage through the grocery bag beside the desk with all of your new clothes. You picked out a new set of clothes to wear for the day. Skully went back to watching their show as you entered the bathroom to clean up.

You showered, thinking to yourself the entire time. You felt like you had already gone over everything that's happened the last few days a million times, but you still felt like you hadn't even begun processing it all yet. You found yourself thinking about how Callum was during your relationship with him; how he acted and treated you. Could you've seen this coming? Even now, you still couldn't understand why he turned on you, why he tried to kill you.

But that was in the past now, you decided to start thinking about your future instead of getting hung up on your past. What happened, happened. There was no way of changing it now. You just had to continue on with your life, making new friends, starting a new life, and so far you'd say you were going about it pretty well. You considered Skully, Tim, Brian, Kate and Toby friends. They treated you like one, so you assumed it was safe to say they thought of you as a friend, too. You had already replaced every friend that you lost, and were on your way to make more. Ben seemed like the next logical person to befriend. You wondered how he was doing.

As for partners, you refused to get hung up on someone who never loved you in the first place. You would also refuse to settle for less than you thought you deserved. After what Callum did, you knew you'd have a hard time trusting people entirely for a while, but you tried not to let that throw you off. You were becoming a new person, disconnected from your past life. Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, you'd rise from the problems of your past life breathing anew.

A bit cheesy, but whatever. What is life without a bit of cheese?

You exited the shower and dressed yourself. You brushed your teeth and hair, styling your hair to your liking with what was available to you. Now satisfied with how you looked, you exited the bathroom. Skully was still relaxing on the couch, Toby now sitting besides him. "Already, man?" Toby said in reply to something Skully signed that you didn't see. Skully rolled his eyes and nodded before covering his mask with his hands in an embarrassed gesture. Toby, noticing the sudden change in attitude, turned and saw you. "Oh, hey, [Name]!"

"Hey, Toby. How are you?" You asked him, walking over to the two.

"Same old, same old." He shrugged. "Are, are you excited for your... big d-day?" He asked with a large smile. You nodded.

"Yeah. I was a bit anxious, but Skully helped me with that." Skully, who still had his face covered by his hands, finally uncovered them and perked up a little.

"That's good." Toby nodded. "Speaking of, Tim wanted me to tell you to come over to his room when you're done showing and whatnot." He added helpfully.

"Oh, alright!" You turned to walk towards the door. You paused before leaving, turning to Toby and Skully again for one last question. "I have a quick question, do Brian and Tim always share a bed?" You asked out of pure curiosity more than anything.

"Yes, they do." Skully signed slowly, and you applauded yourself for being able to understand him. You nodded in understanding, and didn't ask any more questions about it.

"Alright. C'mon, Skully, aren't you coming with me to look for a mask?" You remembered suddenly that you had asked him before showering. He stood from the couch, Toby standing but not following after him as he walked over to you.

"Hey- Can I come?" He asked, tilting his head to the side slightly.

"Sure, I don't see why not."