RUN BOY RUN- reader x Five Hargreeves

Part Forty-Three

Five blinked us to an address, his grip tightening around my hand as he led me inside. His palm was slick with sweat, and I could feel the rapid thump of his pulse beneath my fingertips. Was he nervous or just extremely excited? I followed silently, my heart racing as we entered the lobby, the air thick with tension and anticipation. The lobby was bustling with activity. A woman with towering hair, styled largely and an even larger bosom. "Excuse me?" Five said, his voice cutting through the din like a knife. "Uff da! You snuck up on me there. If you're looking for the cookies, we don't put them out till 3." Five turned to me, a hint of mischief dancing in his eyes. "We can hardly wait," I replied, my voice steady despite the fluttering in my stomach."Do you know where the soybean convention is meeting?" Five asked her, his focus shifting from me to her, his demeanor exuding a strange mix of charm and urgency. "Sure do, Muskellunge banquet room. Are you looking for your mom?" she inquired, tilting her head in curiosity. I nodded, but then something else caught Five's attention. He pulled out a dollar bill, his face lighting up with a sudden idea.  "Hey, you got any change?" he asked, his tone casual yet expectant. The woman unzipped her fanny pack and began rummaging through it with a practiced hand. After a moment, she handed him a handful of coins. 

Five strolled over to the vending machine, a determined look on his face, while I stood back, nervously picking at my fingers. "You okay?" he asked, glancing over his shoulder as he fished through the coins. "Yes—no. I'm not sure," I admitted, my voice faltering as I tried to keep my composure. Five studied me for a moment, his gaze piercing through my façade. "You're nervous about the mission, aren't you?" he asked, his tone shifting from playful to serious. He didn't even look at me as he began shaking the vending machine, his frustration mounting with each futile jolt. The machine rattled violently, and I took a step back, feeling a surge of fear rise within me. "Why are you so afraid of killing?" he asked, panting slightly. I shrugged, unable to articulate the swirling emotions inside me, the fear of what we were about to do intertwined with an unexpected thrill. He cupped my chin gently, his gaze intense and searching. "What are you so nervous about? We used to do this all the time as kids," he huffed, dragging his fingers across a cake left out in the hall, its frosting smeared and unappetizing.

"Yeah, because we had no other choice! Either we had to kill or we didn't eat!" I shot back, my anger flaring up as the memories of our childhood flashed through my mind—dark, desperate days where survival meant crossing lines we never thought we would. In a sudden, surprising move, Five pressed his lips against mine, and I found myself melting into the kiss, my body responding instinctively. My heart raced, caught off guard by the raw intensity of the moment. But just as quickly, I pulled away, the confusion swirling within me surfacing. "What the hell, Five!" He smirked, leaning closer, his breath warm against my skin, igniting a fire I hadn't expected. "You feel that? That intense feeling in your heart? You feel that drive to keep going?" "I don't need you to tell me I'm turned on!" I raised my voice, a mix of frustration and confusion. Five clamped his hand over my mouth, silencing me with a look of fierce determination. "This is how I kept killing during the apocalypse. I thought of you and your lips," he confessed, a sly grin creeping back onto his face, a mixture of vulnerability and bravado. 

Suddenly, he reached up and took an emergency axe off the wall, his eyes glinting with mischief and danger. I turned to look behind me and spotted a croquet mallet leaning against the door, its wood smooth and inviting.  "You think you can handle this?" Five challenged, smirking as he brandished the axe, the weight of it seemingly invigorating him. My heart pounded, and a wave of adrenaline surged through me, pushing aside the lingering doubts. I nodded, feeling the thrill of the moment wash over me. With a swift motion, I kicked the door open, the ned we felt as kids swept in. "What is happ—" The woman's question was cut short as Five lunged forward, his movements fluid and decisive. I had to rush to catch up; this was my first time doing something like this in years. And it felt oddly comforting. 

Suddenly, the adrenaline blinded me to fear. I swung my mallet with reckless abandon, feeling the rush of power surge through me as I crushed their heads like sandcastles, the sound of splintering bone and the warm spray of blood igniting a primal instinct deep within me. A cloud of emotions enveloped me—thrill, release, power. I was soaked head to toe in the blood of the commission board, the metallic scent overwhelming my senses, but it was intoxicating in a way I never imagined. My heart raced wildly as I watched Five blink onto the table, pulling me up beside him. We stared down at AJ, our malicious smiles haunting his vision, a sense of triumph blooming in my chest. "She sent you, didn't she?" he gasped, horror etched across his face, his voice trembling as he realized the truth of our intentions. "Does it really matter now?" Five smirked, raising the wooden tool above his head, his posture radiating confidence. But before he could strike, a force knocked us both to the ground. The woman from earlier had Five in a chokehold, her strength surprising given her appearance.

"Go after AJ!" he sputtered, urgency in his voice as he struggled against her grip. I nodded, adrenaline surging through me as I sprinted down the hall after the retreating figure of AJ. With a burst of energy, I jumped up and swung from the chandelier, landing squarely on AJ's shoulders, my legs wrapping around him as I used all the power in my body to lean forward, causing us both to tumble to the ground in a chaotic heap. Five blinked in front of us, a calculating look in his eyes as he assessed the situation. "Surely we can come to some sort of agreement. A quid pro quo?" AJ laughed nervously, desperation creeping into his voice as he attempted to negotiate his way out of the confrontation. Five and I exchanged smirks, a silent understanding passing between us as the tension in the air crackled with unspoken promises. I summoned my strength and grabbed a croquet bat from the wall, its handle warm against my palm. "Sure, here's your quid." I slammed the wooden tool into his leg, the satisfying crack echoing in the room as I passed it off to Five. "And here's your pro," Five mirrored my actions, adjusting his hair as he prepared for the final strike, his demeanor shifting to cool confidence.

"And here's your quo!" he shouted, raising the bat and connecting it with AJ's tank, the impact sending him sprawling to the ground, gasping for air. I laughed, wrapping my arms around Five's neck as we stood victorious over our fallen foe. His eyes sparkled with mischief as he leaned down, connecting our lips once more, a whirlwind of chaos and bloodshed surrounding us. In that moment, amidst the chaos, a strange sense of triumph surged through me, binding us together in a way I had never imagined possible. Five would have gone farther but we had a timeline to fix. And then we have the rest of our lives to be together. To love each other. To kiss and touch each other. We just needed to get home first.