Rex in his timeline fic :)
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He was sitting on the edge of a cliff, a large field behind him. The cool night breeze ruffling through his hair as he stared into the inky darkness below his feet.
His brain was...really fucking hazy right now. He didn't fully remember what he was doing here, just that he wandered off, needing to get out of the sickeningly bright and cheerful environment the residents of Syspocalypstar surrounded themselves with.
The fireworks were so loud, too loud
He picked up one of the lone rocks lying on the ground near him, tossing it into the icy depths of outer space, watching as it got swallowed up by the unforgiving darkness. Just a meaningless speck in the grand scheme of things. Easily forgotten... just like he was.
He didn't get why Lucy and the others were making such an effort now to comfort him. Ever since they had such a 'happy' reunion, they've all been somewhere around him. Sure Emmet might've appreciated it but he didn't, all of the attention was suffocating, and he usually liked attention so that was saying something.
It just... didn't make sense. They all forgot about him so easily, moving on like he never existed, like he was meaningless to them. They left him to suffer in the depths of space for years as his mentality slowly crumbled, unforgiving rage taking root in his once sunny demeanor.
He spent so long believing they never cared about him, so long that he didn't know what to think anymore.
The sound of fireworks exploding in the distance overtook his hearing again. The loud booming only serving to make his breath quicken with anxiety.
He was crashing, burning, it hurt-
Lucy... came back for him in the other timeline. Rex still didn't know what to think about that, and it's already been months since that happened.
Something just tightened in his chest whenever he thought about how Emmet never had to go through Undar. That Lucy loved him enough to do whatever it took to find him again. His... gave up on him so quickly.
She and his past self had such a lovey-dovey happy reunion, they were so... happy to see each other. Her speech before Emmet destroyed the cake only adding to his inner turmoil.
Was it just... him? Was he the problem?
Lucy said she never wanted Emmet to change, but that's what happened to Rex. The isolation broke him beyond repair, he could never be the man that Lucy loves-loved-he didn't know.
Looking back down, all he could see was the darkness threatening to swallow him alive. The rock he threw was gone, swallowed by the shadowy abyss, left to be forgotten, just like he was.
Another loud boom erupted in the air as another firework was set off, but all he could hear was the sound of his ship crashing, blowing up into a burst of flames, burning his side as he was launched into Undar. Forgotten by the world around him, rotting in the dusty, lonely wasteland.
It was getting hard to breathe, it was like he was back there, trapped, suffocating while his lungs filled up with dust.
Everything hurt.
None of them were coming to save him.
He was trapped inside an unforgiving cycle of suffering
shedidn'tlovehimshehatedhimwhy-
"-ex, REX!"
He suddenly felt two hands make contact with his shoulders, the touch so sudden it had him leaping away from it like it was burning him. Maybe it was, all he could feel on his entire left side was a searing pain.
His whole body was shaking with his panicked breaths, eyes darting everywhere. Another boom echoed through the air, eyes snapping to watch the firey red and orange explosion erupting midair, just like-
"Hey, no, look at me okay?" A soft voice broke through the thoughts racing through his head. His toxic green eyes locked with Lucy's blue and pink ones. He didn't feel her grabbing hold of his gloved hands.
"Good, alright, take a deep breath, okay?" He could only manage a shaky nod at her question. Everything was still so blurry, reality slipping away like sand.
He distantly heard her counting, trying to encourage him to breathe every 5 seconds or so.
".....in.....hold.....and out....." Rinse and repeat. He didn't know how long they were sitting there in the grassy field as she slowly coaxed him out of that panic attack, the fireworks long gone.
"You okay?" She asked once his breathing evened out, tone drenched in worry he didn't deserve it. He tilted his head in thought. God, she was so beautiful, he never deserved her. Not then, not now.
"...What? You want the truth, or would you prefer me to lie about feeling great to make you feel better?" He answered, voice still hoarse from the frantic puffs of air escaping him beforehand. Maybe he was being a bit harsh, but panic attacks always sucked the life out of him.
She just gave him a sad look, letting go of his hands while he turned away from her, tucking his knees up against his chest and resting his chin on his forearms.
"...Do you..." She began, before thinking over what she was about to say. He just watched her from the corner of his vision, focusing his gaze on the night sky, finally seeing the stars instead of just darkness.
"Do you want to talk about it?" She decided to say.
He let out a sound that was a mix between a laugh and a scoff, dragging one of his hands down his face.
"Talk about what? The weather? The way you all keep dragging me to those mind-numbingly bright celebrations? The ones that have fireworks that remind me of-" He caught himself before he could say more, immediately looking away from her, though he could still feel her gaze burning into him.
"Remind you of what? Rex, what do fireworks remind you of?" She asked. Her tone was so soft and understanding. It made him want to punch something.
But he still hesitated, did he really want to trust her? "I...it's just too... loud. Reminds me of... crashing." He muttered at the end, subconsciously rubbing at his burn scar. He didn't see the way Lucy tensed up at the mention of his crash into Undar, the guilty look that overtook her face.
They both sat in silence, neither willing to break the tense atmosphere that came from his words.
