Test the Waters (Cracker x Reader)

For Better or Worse

"Don't!" You wiped the stray tears away and stood up. "Everything's fine, really."

If they talked to him, he'd get angry and take it out on you. You were sure of it.

"And that's why you haven't had the chance to talk to your family until now? Even then he supervised the entire call." Peros wasn't having it.

"I just haven't had the time. I've had a lot on my plate and it's been hard adjusting." No matter how much you bunched up your shirt sleeves and cleaned your face, you couldn't keep up with the crying and it wouldn't stop. It was making you even more frustrated.

"When I first met you, you had a bit more spunk to you. That's long gone, along with a few pounds. Are you even eating enough?"

"I'm busy a lot so I'm tired and I forget to eat sometimes, it's got nothing to do with Cracker." He was right though, you had lost some weight from putting your training before taking care of yourself.

"You're not a good liar miss (Y/n). I'll set him straight, don't worry about it." Peros got up and marched to the door.

"Don't Peros!" Your voice cracked as you panicked.

He turned, more confused as to why you were protecting him than angry about it. "Why shouldn't I if it'll make staying with us more tolerable?"

"Because it won't. He's a jerk on a regular basis and I can deal with that. But if you talk to him about this...things won't be any better."

"I can't help you if you don't tell me what you're talking about." He crossed his arms and waited for a response.

"He-Cracker gets... aggressive when he's angry. Any time it involves me I pay for it and I'd rather avoid that."

"Is it when he's angry or just hurt?" The sister spoke up, reminding you she was there still.

"I mean, I guess it's only whenever he's been hurt."

"He has a terribly low tolerance to pain. A few of our younger brothers and sisters learned that the hard way. I'm not justifying his actions, but he wouldn't be so cruel for any other reason." She continued, pulling you over to a couch to sit with her. "I can promise you he won't react so badly to this."

"It'll be quick and by the time I'm done he'll be more civil towards you." Peros left.

"(Y/n) is it? You can call me Brûlèe." The sister helped wipe away the last few tears as you calmed down. "I'm sorry about Cracker, I love him dearly but relationships with others outside the family are not easy for him."

"I can tell." You laughed bitterly. "He was nice on a rare occasion. But it wasn't for long, I don't know what made things change."

"Sometimes it's easier for people like him to default to a more confident and self centered attitude when they don't know how to deal with others. I think he feels something for you but isn't sure how to show it."

"There's no way he feels anything good for me."

She smiled at you confidently. "You've heard that when a boy likes a girl he picks on her, right?"

"...Yeah" You thought about all the times he wouldn't quit teasing you, the way he liked to poke and prod at you to get your attention.

Holy shit, maybe he did feel something for you. You groaned aloud as it started to come together. He realized he felt something and started acting out as a way to either hide it or cope with his own feelings. He didn't want you going off the island because that'd mean him not seeing you as much. As for the calls, maybe he was afraid of you getting homesick. You were missing home long before ever making a call but you'd been trying so hard to do your best you hadn't thought on it too much.