This is an alternate universe that takes place after the events of season two. In this Carmen's mental health takes a turn for the worst. When she gets captured by ACME, will she finally get the help she needs?
(A/N Imagine this, but with two seats next to each other.)
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We were sitting in our gold-class seats on the plane. Zack and Ivy were looking around, excited, while Carmen was fidgeting, clearly uncomfortable.
"Are you ok Carmen? You seem to be uncomfortable." I looked at her, worried. We had decided to bring Oreo with us on the trip, but he had to go down to the bottom of the plane. I wished that we had documentation proving that he was licenced, but he was still a puppy, and technically had a month or so left of training. Now she clung on to a small soft animal, a black sheep. It seemed counterproductive, if VILE island was so traumatizing why would she want something to remind her of her pain? I never questioned it though, always scared to bring up anything that may trigger another attack.
"I'm fine, just used to red-eyes, that's all" I could tell she was lying. She always lied, assuring me everything was fine, that shewas fine. I knew better, this was the same act she pulled at ACME.
"Carmen, I know you're lying, please talk to me." I pleaded with her, hoping that she would finally give in, talk to us, do something to let us help her. She looked away, clearly wanting to end the conversation. I sighed and went back to my book, keeping an eye on her from my peripherals. She just watched the clouds go by, clutching on to the sheep ever tighter. Zack and Ivy never noticed anything was wrong, ogling over the movie selection.
"Can I get you two anything?" I looked over at the flight attendant. He was holding out two menus, one of which I took. Carmen never moved from her spot, staring sullenly out the window. After looking through my options, I ordered two chocolate milkshakes, knowing Carmen had a fondness for them. She didn't way anything, but she perked up a bit at the thought. After we had received them, I shut the dividers, separating us from everyone else. Player had booked us a double room, and even if I knew what he was implying, I was glad for it.
"Carmen we need to talk. You can't keep avoiding talking about yourself forever."
She gave a small grunt and turned around, hand reaching for the milkshake. I took it and set it aside, placing it just out of reach.
"You have to talk first. Besides, it'll make you feel better once you're done."
Carmen looked at me shocked. After a few seconds, she let out a hollow laugh, so different from her normal, carefree attitude.
"Blackmail milkshakes huh? Never thought you had it in you."
She tried to get the milkshake again, but I held it out of reach.
"I'll talk once I get it." I raised an eyebrow, sceptical.
"I promise. Here, take my laptop as proof. I haven't had chocolate in a while, I've been craving it." She held out a hand with the laptop, which I took. I handed her the milkshake, and she sighed.
"I'm terrified. Terrified about the mission, terrified about everything I've missed, and..." She trailed off, taking a long drink of milkshake. It was clear this was hard for her, so I waited patiently. After hugging the soft toy harder, she continued.
"Terrified of myself. I don't know what's wrong with me. I don't know how to fix myself. I don't know how I'm supposed to lead, when everything around me sets me off. I can't control my emotions, and I'm terrified of lashing out. I don't know how I'm supposed to live when I always feel like I'm going to die!"
Carmen was sobbing at this point, hugging her knees and trying to make herself as small as possible. I had begun to recognise the signs of a panic attack, and tried to prevent it. I carefully pushed her knees down, wishing Oreo were here. I moved the milkshake out of the way and gave Carmen a hug. I squeezed her, not wanting to let go. She relaxed slightly, but the sobbing got worse. She squeezed back, hugging me like there was no tomorrow. She cried for half an hour before wearing herself out. We finally let go of each other, and she fell back, exhausted. I pushed a button and her seat folded into a bed. I gently placed her down, with her being too tired to protest. She fell asleep quickly, tired from the emotional strain that her sobbing had placed on her. I pulled out the laptop and was putting it back in place, when I heard a ringing. I opened the laptop and noticed how it wasn't closed properly, meaning it was on the whole time.
"Merde." I cursed under my breath, hoping Player hadn't been on-call this whole time. I breathed a sigh of relief when I saw he was trying to call now. I hesitated before answering, turning the volume low.
"Hey Red, what's..." He trailed off as he saw me, instantly concerned.
"Where's Carmen? Did something happen?"
I made a signal for him to be quiet, and turned the camera to show Carmen, sleeping soundly. I frowned, she was rolling a lot, but I didn't want to wake her, just in case it was nothing. I turned the camera back around to face me.
"Is anything wrong Player?"
He shook his head, turning to type furiously on his keyboard.
"No, nothings wrong, I was just checking to make sure everything is ok. We normally do a mission debrief on the flight, but if Carmen is asleep..." I blushed, being reminded once again of how little I knew about Team Red.
"Well Zack and Ivy are still up; we can go over it with them if you want." After getting confirmation, I opened up the divider to see the redheads watching a movie. Ivy looked over and smirked.
"So, you two finally decided to do it. Good for you."
I went bright red at this, only made worse by Players laughter in the background.
"You're 13, you shouldn't know what she's talking about!"
He immediately sat up straight, feigning a look of anger.
"Hey, I'm 16! Besides, I poke around on the dark web all day, what'd you expect?" My face still red, I decided to get back to the point.
"So, the debriefing?"
We all sat down, focused on the mission. By the time the plane landed, we knew exactly what we were going to do. Now we just had to hope it all went smoothly.
Sorry I haven't been updating, my sleep schedule is shit right now and I get distracted pretty easy when I'm writing. Anyway, enjoy the fic!
