“God. You really are just so fucking blameless aren’t you?”
Whumpee blinked, stunned. They turned to teammate who leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed over his chest.
“You,” Teammate sneered. His eyes filled with hatred. “You just love to be so helpless. The perfect, innocent victim. Do you know how hard Caretaker has been working to make sure that you’re comfortable?”
“I— I do know, and I appreciate—”
“Oh sure,” Teammate cut in, smiling grotesquely. “You appreciate everything. You’re just so bloody thankful aren’t you? Filled with gratitude and yet you’re still leeching off of everyone here. Our time. Our patience. We come home from a mission and have to wake to you screaming in the middle of the night and not complain about it.”
Whumpee shrunk in on themselves, eyes darting around the room but Teammate blocked the only way out. They were trapped. They swallowed before speaking. “I… I’m sorry. I don’t mean to—”
“No. I know you don’t. How could you mean to do anything after what Whumper did to you?” Whumpee flinched but Teammate kept speaking. “You’re just a pathetic little ghost of a person. You’re a poor, helpless traumatised thing that everyone has to fall over themselves to make sure is perfect. It’s disgusting how you make them all fawn over you, like you’re something special. Making sure that you’re not too cold or too hot, or god fucking help you, upset at anything.”
Whumpee’s voice locked itself in their larynx, refusing to defend themselves because Teammate was right. They were pathetic. They didn’t deserve the kindness of Caretaker or their Team. They didn’t deserve to be rescued. They should still be with Whumper. They wouldn’t be a burden to anyone they loved if they had just stayed with Whumper.
“But you know what, Whumpee?” Teammate asked, pushing off the doorframe and stalking towards them. “I’m fucking upset. I’m tired. I’m tired of working my ass off and having to deal with your mopey face every time we come home. I’m tired of having to give you time, give you space, walk on bloody eggshells around you because you’re too fucking weak to cope by yourself.”
Whumpee flinched when Teammate raised his palms to Whumpee’s shoulders and shoved them back. Hard. Whumpee stumbled, eyes wide and terrified but their body was frozen, refusing to fight back. To talk back. To say anything against Teammate because deep down they knew Teammate was right.
They were weak. They deserved what Whumper did to them. They didn’t deserve to stay here where it was safe. Where they weren’t hurt. Where they were just hurting the people who saved them, who loved them. And they didn’t deserve their love either…
Another shove and Whumpee fell back again. And another and Whumpee almost lost their footing but caught it at the last second. Throwing wide eyes up at Teammate horrified at what they’d done to him… They pushed Teammate to this. It was their fault Teammate was so upset with them. Their fault. Their fault. Their fault.
Why were they so weak? So pathetic. Needing people to protect them, to save them? Why couldn’t they save themselves? They should be saving themselves, not making it other peoples’ problem to help them. One last shove and Whumpee’s back hit the wall. They let out a startled breath as Teammate loomed over them. A hand slammed out to the wall at the side of Whumpee’s head and they flinched as Teammate leaned down so his mouth was close to Whumpee’s ear.
“If I were you,” Teammate said, his voice dipping low, threatening. It reminded Whumpee of Whumper’s comforting rasp whenever they were about to punish Whumpee. “And I was really sorry for being such a fucking waste of space, I’d leave in the middle of the night, and never come back.”
Eventually, Whumpee didn’t remember when, Teammate drew back and placed a hand on the hollow of Whumpee’s cheek and tilted their head to Teammate, but Whumpee’s gaze was faraway.
“Maybe if you were like this forever, everyone here could actually tolerate you.” Teammate said, his voice darkening as he continued, a cruel smirk tugging his lips across his face. “You know what? When you’re like this I see what Whumper saw in you. You’re positively adorable when you’re petrified.”
At some point Teammate left.
At some point Whumpee’s shaking got so bad it was starting to hurt.
At some point Whumpee’s locked legs gave up on them and they collapsed to the floor.
At some point the silent tears poured over their cheeks, but Whumpee didn’t realise any of this. They stared blankly into the distance, and their trembling stopped. They sat there, motionless, loose and doll-like, waiting for the next monster who decided they wanted to play with them.
General Tag-list: @sunflower1000 @scoundrelwithboba (lmk if you wanna be added/removed🫶)
