Reprise had noticed the other sitting atop of Shibuya’s many buildings, and considering their indirect relationship, Reprise wanted to at least try to talk to Davey more. Hugging their arms, they shuffled up to Davey’s side.
“I-it’s… really free up here. Really open.”
{ Ω }
DAVEY LIKES HEIGHTS. While some may not be FANS of
the dizzying vertigo that comes from being up so high, he
THRIVES on it. The freedom that comes from scaling a too-
tall building, the burning muscles, the ADRENALINE as you
look down and realize that death is MOMENTS AWAY ––
the freedom that comes at the top, when you are infinite and
it feels like the sky is inches away... He LIVES for it.
And, of course, rooftops make a good place to hang out
when you need some peace and quiet. Currently, a sketch-
book sits open on his lap, pencil twirling between calloused
fingers as he looks up at the sound of Reprise’s voice.
❝ Right? ❞ he says, leaning back on his hands and shooting a
smile in the other’s direction. ❝ ‘t’s pretty FUCKIN’ GREAT,
honestly. Y’can see FOREVER, up here. ❞
❝ SHIT––! Sorry, were ya talkin’ to me? ❞
Gloved hands tug the fabric of his hood closer
about his face, head turning slightly away.
Oops. He wasn’t PLANNING on talking to anyone
today, and hadn’t covered up enough. People
generally aren’t FANS of the dead, after all.
i have no concept of what is too much affection or too little affection like it constantly feels like i’m somehow simultaneously doing both too much and not enough with every single person i come into contact with and that’s a real party
❝ So, JOSH! Or, y’know, God–– God-Josh? ❞
A pause, a beat, and: ❝ ...Holy shit, it’s GOSH.
Your name? Gosh. Aubrey’s been callin’ ya
that, and it’s actually, like, PERFECT. ANYWAY!
I had, like, A MILLION questions for ya, and now
we’re not about to, like, DIE, I’m gonna ask ‘em
ALL. Hope yer ready, dude. First off, do you know
HOW MUCH your fuckin’ NAME haunted me? I
didn’t know peace for, like, a FUCKIN’ WEEK! ❞
write a meta abt his relationship with marianne both before and after she started testing on him
when davey is was taken in by the institute, blood-covered boy picked up by some guards, many researchers attempt to study him. he is new. he is different: monster, but human. killer, but boy. trapped in a white room with white walls and buzzing white lights, he is a cornered animal. he snarls and snaps, bares his teeth (too-sharp teeth), rips and tears and tries to kill.
(sometimes, he does kill, fresh blood on his shaking form, clouded eyes wild. thick protective vests are nothing for sharp claws.)
no-one can get close. no-one can get to the scared boy behind the blood-covered monster.
before sam, before her kindness that helps him so much, there is marianne.
dr sutton enters the room, simply dressed: a business lady’s outfit, hair pinned back, white blouse buttoned neatly. she smells of a delicate floral perfume, something that is too strong for davey’s hypersensitive senses now. he pushes himself into the corner, he bares his teeth, eyeing her.
she remains calm. you don’t want to kill me, she says, and i don’t want to hurt you.
he trusts her. lonely boy, desperate, scared boy, he trusts her.
he talks to her: she who listens sympathetically, offers a kind smile. she gives him company; she offers him someone who understands, or is at least willing to try.
he warms up to her, cornered animal becoming scared boy.
he tells her things, confesses his fears and struggles. he tells her about the hunger, the aching need to tear and kill, the newfound senses that are too much, too much to handle – and she listens.
you can trust me, dear. i want to help you!
yes, she writes it down, and that bothers him at first, but she listens. that is more than he had been given in a long time.
(somewhere along the line, sam comes in. he trusts sam, too.)
davey trusts marianne until he doesn’t. until she abuses his trust, breaks his trust: she takes what he had given her and uses it against him.
(cold metal table, cold metal scalpels, cold green eyes, cold straps holding him down, cold cold C O L D––)
davey feels her hands inside him for weeks afterwards.
(he has nightmares, even a year and a half later.)
he does not trust her again.
the next time she comes to his holding cell, he growls at her, shoving himself as far away from her as possible: she acts like nothing has changed. she acts like she isn’t going to cut him open, isn’t going to use him as an experiment.
hello, jeremiah, dear! how are you doing today?
davey does not speak to her. he is quiet, snarling when she gets too close, but he is scared. he is scared of her, shutting down when she takes him out of the holding cell.
after the first few times, the fight is gone from him. he simply stares, closing himself off from the world.
this won’t take too long, sweetheart. it’ll be over before you know it!
he shuts himself off from the institute people, withdrawing into himself. he will not look at them, will not speak to them, remaining still and silent inside the holding cell, almost catatonic.
(sam does not give up on him. she starts over, slowly earning his trust.)
months later, when marianne has been fired, he turns that fear into a fury. she took something from him, and he will never get it back. anger is a shield, anger is a weapon. he won’t let it happen again, not to himself, not to anyone else. he will kill her before he lets her touch him again.
s-u-f-j-a-n-s-t-e-v-e-n-s
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