Body Heat (Linda Liddle x reader)
Just watched Send Help! and im OBSESSED!!!!!
Here's a short fic where the reader (Bradley’s assistant) survives the plane crash and finds herself stranded on the island with Linda.
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“Welcome back, y/n,” a female voice said as you coughed up seawater.
Your vision was still blurry, but you were certain you recognized that voice. As you blinked through the haze, shapes began to form and you realized the voice belonged to the woman kneeling over you.
Linda Liddle. From… accounting?
Reality hit you like a truck.
The company’s private jet had crashed.
Memories slammed into you all at once: your coworkers being ejected from the aircraft, bodies tumbling through the air, pieces of them flashing past your eyes. You screamed, your chest tightening as panic took over.
“Hey—hey, it’s okay! You’re okay, I promise!” Linda said quickly, trying to calm you. “Not even a scratch. Well—nothing serious, at least.”
“This can’t be happening…” you sobbed. “Oh my God. OH GOD.”
“Take a deep breath,” she said gently. “You’re fine.”
“Where’s—” You broke into another coughing fit. “Brad—Bradley?”
Linda helped you sit up. “He’s okay. Just a leg injury. He’ll recover.”
“And the rest?” you asked.
“Oh God.” You broke down completely, not because you cared deeply about your coworkers, but because of how horrific their deaths had been. The images wouldn’t leave your mind. Truthfully, you hadn’t even liked most of them. Not even Bradley, if you were honest.
You and Bradley had known each other since high school. He’d always had a thing for you, but nothing ever happened, you never felt that way about him. He used to be a decent friend, but as the years passed, he grew into more and more of a dick. You weren’t even sure why you kept him in your life. Still, when he offered you a job at his company, you couldn’t deny it was a great career opportunity.
“Oh, honey,” Linda murmured, pulling you into her arms. “It’s okay. Just breathe.”
You let yourself collapse into her embrace.
—------------------------------
Hours later, Linda had somehow managed to set up an entire survival camp. She built a makeshift funnel to collect rainwater and even got a fire going.
Bradley, meanwhile, barked orders nonstop, treating Linda like garbage, as usual. You hated the way he spoke to her and often wanted to tell him off, but he was still your boss. Even though you were supposedly “friends,” you were afraid he’d fire you if you pushed back too hard.
After Linda handed you some of the water she’d collected, exhaustion took over and you passed out on the sand.
You were jolted awake moments later by Bradley yelling.
“You know what?” Linda snapped. “You can manage this part of the island however you want. I’m DONE.”
She grabbed her walking stick and started walking away.
“GOOD!” Bradley shouted after her. “GET THE FUCK AWAY FROM ME, YOU FREAK!”
He turned to you with a smug grin. “About time I got rid of that thing.”
You said nothing. Slowly, you stood up.
“Y/n, where are you going?” he demanded.
“This isn’t the office anymore, Bradley,” you replied, and then you turned, following Linda’s footsteps into the sand.
“FINE!” he yelled after you. “I DON’T NEED YOU EITHER!”
—-------------------------------------
You found Linda halfway down the shoreline, holding back the tears like you saw her do multiple times back at the office.
When she heard footsteps behind her, she turned, eyes sharp, guarded.
“Oh,” she said softly when she saw you. “You… didn’t stay with Bradley.”
You shook your head. “I wasn’t going to.”
For a moment, she just stared at you, clearly surprised. Then something in her expression loosened. Relief, maybe. Or disbelief.
“You didn’t have to come,” she said. “I know he’s your friend. And our boss.”
“Not anymore” you replied without hesitation.
That seemed to settle it.
—--------------------------------------
You helped her gather driftwood and palm leaves, your hands working side by side without much talking at first. Together, you set up a small camp farther from the wreckage, tucked between rocks that blocked the wind. Linda showed you how to secure the shelter, how to reinforce the fire pit. She moved with confidence like someone who had spent her whole life waiting for a situation like this to happen….weird.
Once everything was set, you both sat on the sand, watching the fire crackle softly.
“I hate him,” you said suddenly.
Linda glanced at you, surprised. “Bradley?”
“And the whole office,” you added. “The fake smiles. The way everyone pretends he’s not awful just because he signs the paychecks.”
She listened without interrupting.
“I’ve known him forever,” you continued. “He used to be kind. Or maybe I just didn’t want to see who he really was. But working for him… it made everything worse. I stayed because it was safe. Because I thought I owed him something.”
“You don’t,” Linda said gently.
You swallowed. “I know. I just wish I’d realized it sooner.”
She nodded, eyes soft. “who’d say you only needed to survive a plane crash to realize that”
A small, tired smile tugged at her lips.
Night settled in slowly as the rain kept pouring down. The fire burned low, and exhaustion weighed heavily on your body. You lay down on the sand, close enough to feel Linda’s warmth but not quite touching, until she turned and pulled you into her arms, making your stomach flutter.
“Body heat,” she murmured. “We need to stay warm… if that’s okay.”
She immediately loosened her hold, realizing what she’d just done.
“Good thinking,” you said softly, snuggling closer as she wrapped her arms around you again.
You couldn’t help but smile, but you were far too exhausted to overthink it right now.
The sound of the ocean woke you up.
For a brief, disorienting moment, you expected to feel warmth beside you, but the sand next to you was empty, still cool from the night air.
Panic flickered in your chest until you noticed the fire pit. Fresh embers glowed faintly, smoke curling lazily upward. Someone had been here. Recently.
You pushed yourself up just as footsteps approached.
Linda emerged from between the rocks, carrying a piece of driftwood like a makeshift skewer. Two fish were speared along it, their skin browned and crackling from the fire.
“Oh,” you said, blinking. “Okay. So we’re just… thriving now?”
She startled slightly when she noticed you awake. “I didn’t want to wake you,” she said, a little sheepish. “You looked peaceful.”
“You caught those?” you asked, still staring.
“And cleaned them,” she added, like it was an afterthought. She set the skewer carefully over the fire. “They’re not poisonous. I checked.”
“Of course you did,” you muttered, deeply impressed.
She smiled, small, proud, but trying not to show it.
You watched her work for a moment, the way she adjusted the fire, the calm confidence in her movements.
“Okay,” you said finally. “Be honest. How are you this good at all of this?”
She hesitated, then laughed quietly. “Promise you won’t make fun of me?”
“Linda, you’re currently the most capable person I know. I wouldn’t dare.”
She sighed, shoulders relaxing. “I’m low-key obsessed with survival reality shows. Like… all of them. I binge them when I can’t sleep.”
You stared at her. “You’re telling me this is because of reality TV?”
“And books,” she added quickly. “A lot of books. Wilderness survival, disaster prep, all that stuff. I always thought it was just a weird hobby.”
“Well,” you said, gesturing to the fire, the food, the shelter, “it might be the reason we’re still alive.”
She handed you one of the fish once it was done, careful not to burn herself. “Here. Eat slowly.”
You took a bite and genuinely groaned.
She laughed. “Is that good or bad?”
She looked genuinely pleased, cheeks warming slightly as she sat beside you. Not too close. Just close enough.
“I guess all those nights of yelling at the TV paid off,” she said.
You glanced at her, smiling. “Remind me to never underestimate the quiet girl from accounting again.”
“Strategy and planning,” she said.
“I’m not from accounting,” she added with a chuckle, though there was a hint of annoyance in it.
“Right,” you said quickly. “Sorry about that.”
You ate together in comfortable silence, the fire crackling between you, the ocean stretching endlessly ahead.
Somehow, despite everything traumatic you’d just survived, your thoughts weren’t on rescue times or escape routes. They were on something else. Someone else.
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