A Little Laughter Left In Me... (Laughing Jack x Reader)

~Liu~

"But... wow... just look at you! You're so beautiful..." Liu sighed in amazement, letting go of your chin and caressing your face.

You found yourself smiling and managing to reply with: "Thank you... You look great, too!"

Liu raised a brow and scoffed.

"Nah, I look like some Frankenstein wannabe." He pointed to the stiches on his face, tracing a line that went across the bridge of his nose and beneath his right eye, then went to a diagonal line on his neck. You tried not to laugh when you started to wonder if Frankie knew anything about that story.

"Well, anything's better than being a corpse." You argued.

Liu snickered, nodding a bit. 

"Yeah, true."

His eyes went downcast after that, seeming saddened. He used his sleeve to wipe away the tears he'd previously shed, clearing his throat before he began talking with seriousness in his voice.

"So, tell me, do you know what happened to Jeff?"

You gave him a sorry expression, but nodded while saying: "He told me the whole story."

At hearing that Liu jumped as if he were in a car that sped over a bump in the road, looking at you in disbelief.

"Wait, what?! What do you mean he 'told you'?!" He sounded both petrified and baffled.

You snorted at his reaction, deciding now would be the best time to explain things to him. 

It took about twenty minutes to fill him in on everything Jeff related, and by the end of it he was speechless due to his astonishment. He'd appeared to be so stunned at some points that he looked like he'd faint from shock, but he managed to recollect himself.

"But... but he's never hurt you once? Not even when he revealed who he was?" He clarified.

You shook your head.

"He's had moments where he freaked out from stress and such, but nothing too dangerous. I can tell you without a doubt in my mind that while he does still kill from time to time, he has much better self-control." You added.

Liu looked down, thinking to himself for a moment, but then he started crying again, burying his face in his hands. You put your hands on his shoulders in concern, wondering what was wrong, but after a few minutes he looked back at you with another joyful smile.

"Jeff's not gone after all, huh? We've still got our brother in there?"

You smiled, nodding confidently.

"Great..." He sighed in immense relief, and he wiped his eyes again.

Afterwards he pulled you into a much-needed hug, and you nuzzled into his surprisingly warm chest, most likely because he was all bundled up.

"I've been wishing I could do this again for so long..." Liu whispered into your hair, and you held onto him tighter in response.

You stayed like that for a short while before you decided to inform him of the others you'd encountered.

"I've also got a dog, his name is Miles. He's a loyal, well-trained, and above all amazing companion. He's been there for me ever since I adopted him. He's not like any other dog though, like Jeff, he, too, was hurt by people. Only... in even more painful and torturous ways than fire."

If Liu was in a chair, he'd be on the edge of it. He looked like a child listening to the most dramatic and suspenseful story in the world. He was determined to listen to everything you were telling him until the end.

"What happened?" He questioned.

"Well... when Miles was a puppy, he was a regular dog, and was adopted by a regular little girl. But after a few years there was a dangerous criminal spotted in their area, and the parents decided to make extreme and terrible decisions. They sent Miles to trainers, which was fine, but the real problem was that there were scientists as well. Those people did things to Miles that no dog should ever live through, and when it was all over, he was just a shell of his former self. He hardly ever behaved like a regular dog after that, he was just hurt so badly..."

Liu's jaw dropped, his green eyes having a sympathetic gaze to them.

"How did he come to be your dog, though?" Liu tilted his head.

You sighed a little, noticing the nervousness in Liu's expression when he saw this.

"One night, while everyone was asleep, he was stuck in the basement because he'd gotten in trouble, but locking him in there was the worst and last mistake of the parents' lives. The criminal broke into their house and killed them, and the girl was stabbed not too long after because she tried to help. Miles managed to escape, but by the time he finally found his owner, she... she was already too far gone. She died while Miles was curled up in her arms. He spent the next few years in my neighborhood's Pet Shelter until I came along."

Liu looked heartbroken, his mouth agape and his eyes staring at you like he'd learned of something devastating in numerous ways... and he probably just had.

"That's... unreal..." Liu's gaze fell to the floor, he was most likely trying to wrap his head around everything you'd told him.

"Mhm... But, hey, he's doing a lot better now!" You tried to brighten the mood.

Liu took a second to take in your words before he snorted, his smile faintly returning.

"I'm sure he is. He's got you taking care of him, after all." Liu ruffled your hair, making you laugh and shoo his hand away.

"Any other company you're keeping besides him and Jeff?" He inquired.

You decided to list them all off in the order you'd met them, but you spared him the story about Jane, fearing that he'd become scared for your well being.

The first after Jeff was Will, second was the Smile Dog(Which took at least another twenty minutes to help him understand), third was Jason and the whole situation with his workshop(Liu almost didn't believe you on this one, but since you were his sister he gave in and took mental notes on everything you said.), and then Frankie, whom Liu seemed to be intrigued by due to the reference he'd made earlier.

"You've got a whole team hiding out!" Liu laughed, seeming astounded again.

You laughed with him, shrugging your shoulders.

"I wouldn't change what I've got with them for anything, they're all such great friends, even though Frankie can be a little grouchy." You snickered the last part, and Liu did the same.

"They sound really interesting, wish I could meet them..." Liu sounded a little disappointed, and his eyes wandered around the room once more.

That was when an idea sparked in your head. It was crazy, possibly stupid, but despite that you had confidence that it could work.

"Maybe you can! I can sneak you into my dad's van and you can come home with us!"

Liu went wide-eyed, leaning in closer as if he thought he'd misheard you.

"R-Really...? You'd... you'd actually try to pull that off for me..?" Liu's voice wavered.

You gave him an excited grin, nodding profusely to express your confidence.

Liu pulled you into another hug, letting out a choked sob as he held you with no intentions of letting go, and you hugged back with just as much love.

"This... this is incredible, this... It's a miracle on its own that I actually get to hold my sister again after all this time, with the chance that you didn't even remember me, and now... now you actually want me to live with you... even after you've seen all this terrifying stuff?" Liu motioned to the bloodstained room, looking down at you with a happy but hesitant smile, fresh tears slowly dripping down his face.

You gave him a sly, still confident smile, replying with: "No family left behind." Causing him to laugh and squeeze you again.