SHATTER ME || The Umbrella Academy [ Five Hargreeves]

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The Umbrella Academy is not mine.

________ o ☂️ o ________

We Only See Each Other at Weddings and Funerals

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"I knew you weren't dead!"

________ o ☂️ o ________

THE CAR RIDE TO THE UMBRELLA ACADEMY was as listless and dull as the day was grey.

Halyn sat beside a sullen Vanya in the back of a cab, the two not speaking a word as the driver soundlessly chauffeured them towards their childhood home. The air was thick with depression, and the Sioux girl found it almost suffocating- but she dared not break the silence.

What words could she say?

She had half a mind to reach over and take her friend's hand, but hesitance welled up within her and she pushed the thought away. Halyn could tell Vanya was in her own little world as she stared blankly out the cab window, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to be disturbed or not. A deep sorrow had settled within Vanya, and it twisted with her feelings of anxiety at coming home.

With a heavy sigh, Halyn tucked her hands into her jacket pockets and turned her own attention to the grey, rain-filled world that surrounded them. It seemed oh so fitting for the day to be dreary as they made their way to a funeral of sorts. Sir Hargreeves didn't deserve a bright and sunny day.

Her hands shifted in her pockets, fingers coming in contact with a small piece of cool metal. Intrigued, Halyn pulled out the small object and studied it in her hands. A melancholic smile quirked her lips upwards, an idea forming in her mind.

"Penny for your thoughts?"

Vanya blinked as the girl beside her broke the silence. She glanced over, a twinge of nostalgia pulling at her heart, as Halyn extended a penny towards the quiet brunette. She looked almost expectantly at Vanya with a soft smile.

"I haven't heard that in forever." Vanya admitted with a light frown. Regardless, she reached over and grabbed the penny from her friend. Halyn continued to smile gently at the girl, maintaining an air of openness, and Vanya toyed with the small copper piece in her hands before looking back at the teen beside her, "I'm just nervous to be back home, I guess. I haven't seen anyone since I, uh..." She cleared her throat with a light shake of her head, "since I published my book."

Halyn hummed in acknowledgement, her own heartrate picking up as the cab rounded a familiar corner, and the building that haunted her nightmares came into view. Vanya followed the girl's gaze, an aching feeling gnawing at her stomach as her eyes settled on the Umbrella Academy.

The cab came to a halt before the building, Halyn quickly paying the cab driver before turning back to her companion. She patted Vanya's knee, "Being nervous just means you care, Vanya."