𝗠𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗕𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘀 | 2-D x Reader

twenty six

"Could I borrow a sweater or somfin?" 2D whimpered meekly as you both entered your apartment. Within just a few minutes lacking heating, the temperature had dropped to that of the dairy aisle in a grocery store.

"Yeah." 2D followed you down to your bedroom where you found him an old hoodie of yours. It was quite baggy on you, but fit him quite well. He stuck his hands into the pocket as he plopped down onto your bed. Within just a few days of being treated as an actual human again,  2D had begun to feel his confidence return, albeit in small trickles. On Plastic Beach, he wouldn't have even dreamt of asking Murdoc for anything other than what was absolutely necessary. It wasn't the actual blows to the head that bothered him, it was their unpredictable certainty. The shock of a ruthless hand suddenly bashing into the back of his skull      was just as intense no matter how many times Murdoc hit him before. And the times when his captor decided to spare him were somehow even worse, drowning 2D in a miserable pool of unrequited dread.

But here with you, 2D was safe. Safe from Murdoc, safe from whales, and most importantly, safe from isolation.

He liked it very much.

"Thank you," he acknowledged after a moment. You just smiled and sat beside him, brushing your shoulder against his.

"I don't think I'll be able to work very much today, then."

"Yeah, I suppose so. Sorry about that."

"It's no problem. It's kind of nice, not having to think about it. It's even better with-" you trailed off.

"With what?"

"I don't know."

You both basked in the silence, feeling your fingertips grow colder by the minute.

"When do you reckon the power will come back on?"

"Hopefully soon."

"Yeah, but how soon is soon?"

"Sometimes it's only a few hours, but with all the snow and stuff, I'm not sure."

"You got a radio?"

"Yeah. Why?"

"I dunno. We could listen to the emergency broadcast or somefin'. Maybe put on some tunes."

You rose from your bed and checked underneath, eliciting a small snort from 2D.

"What?" you whined as you reached for the red handle of your radio.

"No, it's just I used to keep a bunch of my stuff under the bed too."

You sat up from the floor, putting the device in your lap. "Why "used to"?"

"Well one day this smell started coming from my room," 2D began, "I didn't think much of it. But it got worse and worse. And then I checked under my bed an-"

"Let me guess," you scoffed, "you left something under there and it started to rot."

"No, actually. I found my keyboard. I thought I had lost it forever!"

You giggled. "What about the smell?"

"Never did find out what it was coming from. But I was so busy fiddling with my keyboard it didn't really bother me anyway."

You laughed even more as you returned on the bed beside 2D. You switched on the radio and tuned it to the weather station. You tweaked the knob until the newscaster's voice sharpened from radio static to coherent sentences.

"- And the snow has actually taken down a major powerline in the Vancouver area. Officials    predict that it most likely won't be fixed until tomorrow."

"Fuck," you grunted. 2D empathized with your frustration. On Plastic Beach, he was denied the same necessities far too many times.

"Hey, don't worry 'bout it, luv," he comforted, "If eskimos can live in their igloos, I'm sure we'll  survive."

You looked up at him with an expression hopeful enough to warm him to the core. 2D felt blood rush to his cheeks as he returned the smile.

"Why don't we listen to some music?" he suggested after staring into your eyes for what was probably longer than he should have. You obliged and turned the knob on the radio until a faint humming crispened into a melody that was far to familiar.

"Up on melancholy hill, there's a plastic tree," began a slightly muffled voice. 2D's heart sank down into his stomach, giving him a bout of naseua. He took in a sharp breath as he shit his eyes tight, trying to shake the feeling.

"You good?" you asked, concerned. 2D managed a week smile and nodded. You seemed to be enjoying the song, and while it flooded him with despair, he clung on to the raft of your innocent smile and kept floating on.

"'Cause you are my medicine when you're close to me."

2D stole another glance at you, hoping to keep himself from sinking deeper down into his own melancholy. You had a wistful expression on your face, the one Murdoc intended to impart with the song. 2D scoffed silently to himself, irritated that the kidnapper had gotten everything he wanted, down to the exact reactions of his listeners. But there was at least something Murdoc couldn't have.

Your shoulder against his. A silence more meaningful than any conversation. Hands achingly close. Soft breaths in sync. Warm doe eyes.

No matter how much force and fury he used, Murdoc could never take that away from 2D.