Uncertainty - Stanford Pines x Reader (female)

Chapter 32

The first thing I felt was the return of sensation—a slow, creeping warmth that began at the edges of my consciousness, seeping into the frozen void that had held me captive. It was subtle at first, like thawing ice, but then it grew, burning through my veins as if I were being lit from within. My mind screamed for movement, but my body remained a rigid shell of gold. I was still trapped, still held by that infernal magic that had stolen my freedom, but I could feel the world returning to me, one agonizing inch at a time.

My senses were sluggish, heavy, like wading through deep water. Slowly, my limbs began to yield, the stiffness giving way to a painful flexibility. The metallic sheen that had covered me began to crack and splinter, fine golden dust flaking off my skin. The numbness in my fingers faded, replaced by the biting sting of pins and needles as blood flowed once more. My chest heaved, lungs expanding with a desperate gasp of air, the simple act of breathing feeling both foreign and vital.

The world was hazy, a blur of colors and shapes as I blinked rapidly, my eyes adjusting to the sudden flood of light. I could hear voices—muffled, indistinct, yet familiar. They were talking, shouting, but the words were distant, as if spoken from the other side of a vast chasm.

I tried to focus, tried to make sense of my surroundings, but my thoughts were slow to catch up with reality. All I knew was that I was no longer gold, no longer trapped in that horrible, cold stillness.

I forced myself to sit up, every muscle protesting the movement. My hands shook as I braced myself against the cold, hard floor of the Fearamid. My skin felt wrong—tight, as if it had been stretched too thin, and there was a lingering ache deep in my bones, like I had been frozen solid and then shattered apart, only to be pieced back together.

It took a moment for the reality of the situation to fully sink in. I was free. I had been freed. And then, the voices became clear.

"Grunkle Ford, are you okay?!"
Dipper's voice broke through the fog, sharp with concern. I looked up, finally focusing on the faces surrounding me. Dipper, Mabel, Stan, Wendy, Soos—they were all here, staring down at me with a mixture of relief and worry. Their clothes were torn, faces smeared with grime and sweat, the exhaustion evident in their eyes. But they were alive. They had made it.

I forced myself to nod, swallowing the dryness in my throat. "I'm... I'm fine.", I croaked, though the word felt like a lie. I wasn't fine. Not really. The echoes of Bill's laughter still rang in my ears, mocking and cruel, and I could still feel the weight of his last words pressing down on me, suffocating my thoughts.

He knew about Y/N.
The realization hit me like a punch to the gut, and the world seemed to tilt precariously around me. Y/N. The one person I had wanted so hard to protect.

And now, Bill knew. Bill knew—he knew exactly how to twist the knife, how to break me. He knew how much she meant to me. How much I— ... How much I loved her.  And now, she wasn't here.

The faces around me blurred again as panic surged in my chest. I scanned the room, desperate to find her amidst the chaos, but she was nowhere to be seen. She wasn't with the others.

"Where is she?", I rasped, my voice trembling despite my efforts to keep it steady. I looked at Stan, at Dipper, at anyone who might have an answer. "Where's Y/N?"

Stanley looked at me, his eyes narrowing slightly, but there was a calmness to him that I couldn't quite understand. His expression was infuriatingly steady, too steady, as if he had already prepared himself for this moment.

"Listen—", he began, but I cut him off, my voice harsher than I intended.
"Where is she, Stanley?", I demanded, my tone sharp with desperation. My hands clenched into fists as I fought to keep my panic in check. "Where is Y/N? Why isn't she here?"