What would you think about a Reader that has precognition powers, like Garnet from Steven Universe or Bruno from Encanto? With the Mark variants finding and rescuing them from a highly secret and highly guarded GDA facility, because that kind of power Cecil would definitely want under his control.
Author's Note: I'm so sorry this took so long, I had to rewrite numerous times. I kept hating what I wrote. At first this was supposed to be several headcanons, then actual imagines, then it became a one-shot. Anyway, anon, you didn't give specific pronouns, but I hope you don't mind that Reader is AFAB here. It just naturally unfurled that way. Also, I'm unfamiliar with the Steven Universe lore so I just went with Bruno's and just foresight powers in general.
Working title: The Idea of You
Reader Character Settings: AFAB, she/her
Characters: Flaxan, Mohawk, Omni-Mark, Shiesty, Genderbent Mark, Full Mask, Target/Striped, Head Cap, Sinister, Prisoner, Viltrumite
Trigger Warnings: Swearing.
You were in the middle of painting. It was not a prophecy or vision, just a regular painting of some beach you’ve only seen from an encyclopedia.
As you brushed the finishing touches, the wall behind you exploded.
Strong, alien arms wrapped around your waist before you could turn.
Your panic was somewhat dulled when the person holding you spoke, “You’re safe...” The voice was masculine.
“Um,” you began, “I’m sorry but can you let go of me first?”
A low, amused chuckle was his reply. He didn’t let go but he did loosen his hold, allowing you to twist in his embrace and look at the man who just broke through your prison.
Locks of raven hair lazily fell over giant bug-like goggles. He wore a white and blue-green suit that reminded you of Buzz Lightyear, and of those insectoid wannabe invaders that showed up in your nightmares and on your various works of art.
A lot of things were different, but you have seen this man in many visions. You recognized that jawline anywhere.
Your fingers traced over the strong lines of his face. “You’re Markus Grayson.”
He stared at your hand and you pulled back. “I’m sorry, I’ve never–”
“–never talked to a real person before? I figured as much, you told me that.”
You understood immediately. “So that’s why your costume is different. You’re not from here, are you?”
He shook his head. “I’ll explain everything on the way out.”
“Out?” You bounced forward until your nose almost bumped into his mouth. “You’re really going to take me outside? Can you take me to Burger Mart? I always see it but I’ve never been.”
His face softened. “I’ll take you anywhere you want, sugar.”
Your stomach did flips at the pet name. “Okay.” You beamed.
He hooked his arm under your knees and secured you to his chest. “Cover your eyes.”
“Why?”
“I don’t want you to see.”
You had a feeling that’s all he was going to say, and you would rather not irritate your liberator, so you obediently covered your face.
You moved in the darkness, the odor of blood stung your nose. The halls were hot but Lightyear never let you go and soon, you could feel the cold air nip at your skin.
“You can look now,” he informed you.
Your pupils strained at the sudden brightness.
When your eyes finally adjusted, you wrung your arms around Markus’ neck. You must’ve been hundreds of feet off the ground.
He chuckled. “It’s all right, I won’t ever let you go.”
Once your pulse calmed down, you took another peek at the world below. Everything seemed so inconsequential, like the dollhouse someone left in your bedroom while you slept several birthdays ago.
“I’m finally free,” you muttered. You turned to the burning Pentagon. “That’s where they kept me, right?”
“Yes.”
“Did you do that? Is that why you asked me not to look?”
He didn’t answer.
You watched the growing flames lick the sky.
He opened his mouth and closed it again.
“It’s okay. It was bound to happen, if not you, something else. The only difference is that if it weren’t you, I probably would have burned alive with the rest of them.”
“You’re not sad?”
“A little. It was my home, after all. But it’s funny, I’ve seen so many things thanks to my power, but I’ve never seen a future where I got out.” You gave him a teary smile. “So thank you, Markus Grayson.”
His face was unreadable until he smiled back. “You can just call me Mark.”
“Okay–”
“Well, what do we have here?”
Mark tensed as a third person arrived. It was Mark, again, but this version didn’t wear a mask or a cowl and his hair was shaved into a rowdy mohawk.
“You were supposed to destroy the GDA fuckers’ HQ, no one said anything about stealing.”
Mark Lightyear’s voice was taut and cold as he spoke, “Is that truly all you have to say? Because it seems to me like you’re angry that you didn’t get to play white knight.”
Mohawk’s arrogant smirk twisted into a scowl. “Hand her over.”
You flinched.
“You’re scaring her.”
“Fine, let’s set her down somewhere and talk things out, Mark to Mark, then we can decide who takes her home with them.”
“You’re way in over your head, kid.”
Mohawk snarled and charged forward but Mark dodged at the last minute. “Hold on,” he ordered before blasting through the clouds.
You couldn’t hear your own screams with the angry whipping of air around you.
He didn’t slow down until you two reached the middle of the Pacific.
“I’m sorry, I had to be fast.”
You waved his apology off, unable to reply with your breakfast threatening to leave the way it came.
“Don’t worry, we should be safe for now. They shouldn’t be here.”
You breathed steadily. “I’m all right but… you really shouldn’t say things like that.”
“Like what?”
“Things that tempt fate.”
He smiled. “You always said that.”
He reached to touch your cheek but you gently stopped him.
“I don’t know what you expect from me,” you said slowly, “but I can’t replace what you lost.”
“...I know.”
“You’re not angry?”
“I can never be angry with you.”
“So why did you help me?”
His smile turned sad. “Because it’s you.”
Your heart fluttered with envy and warmth. If you met the Mark Grayson of this timeline, then would someone love you like this too?
“I know you mentioned wanting to go to Burger Mart, but it’s too risky to bring you to places full of people.”
“Yeah, I guessed as much.”
“I can take you somewhere else though.”
***
“Hey, if it gets thick enough, can we try eating the snow?”
You were as giddy as a Siberian Husky at the sight of powdery snow pouring on Mount Fuji. Mark refused to land though, and you were still in pajamas, so you can only admire from afar.
“Do you have any idea how polluted the air is on this planet? You’re not eating the snow.”
You laughed. “I’m kidding, you grump. But you gotta admit it’s tempting, it’s so pure and white, like vanilla ice cream. Donald used to give me the same vanilla ice cream cake every birthday.”
“I thought you never talked to anyone before.”
“I haven’t. I didn’t even know it was Donald who sent me cake, when I woke up, it would always just be on the table. But I saw him once in my vision, he was carrying the box from the bakery to his car. I’m going to miss him.”
“...I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay, it’s not like we had an actual relationship.” This was the problem with precognition. You saw things others didn’t want you to see, and it deluded you into thinking you had a connection with them.
“We should go,” Mark said after a while.
“Can’t we stay for a little longer? Just a little?”
“You can admire the snow and more mountains when we get home, I promise.”
“So it’s true.”
Your skin prickled as you felt a hot, intense gaze behind you.
You reluctantly lifted your head and saw Mark with spikier hair and draped in red and white. Even you could tell that he was more dangerous than the mohawk guy.
“Why would you bring her here wearing just that? She could freeze to death.”
“I’m afraid that’s none of your concern, and don’t worry, we were about to leave.”
“You’re not going anywhere with my wife.”
The air buzzed.
Mark looked at you and whispered, “I’m sorry.”
“For–AAAAHHHHH!” He threw you into the air.
Lightyear intercepted Omni-Mark before he could even react.
You were still screaming and flying when someone else caught you.
“Holy crap, you’re real.” A blue veil flapped in the wind. “Fuck, I thought that lensless freak was shitting with me about what he saw but you’re real. And that bug fucker tried to steal you away.”
“Uuh…”
“Hey, don’t be scared. It’s cute but you got nuthin’ to be afraid of.” He grabbed the hem of his shiesty and pulled it back, revealing the face of, who else, Mark Grayson. “It’s me, babe.”
“I-I don’t–”
“You’re as luminous as ever. Am I using that right? You said I was luminous once, it was during our first dance together under the moon.”
“I’m not who you think I am.”
He shook his head. “I know you’re a different version, but it’s still you, and that’s all that matters to me.”
That… is disturbing. Did the other versions of you have magic vaginas or something? How are these men so obsessed with the idea of you?
“Come on, let’s go–”
“I don’t think so,” it was a feminine voice this time.
Shiesty clicked his tongue as someone hovered closer.
This Mark was a girl. She was, naturally, gorgeous; she could pass for an idol, though her physique was more Amazonian than delicate. Her thick black hair was tied into a long braid and she didn’t wear any goggles or mask.
“Enough. We all need to talk about this properly.”
You squeaked when Shiesty nearly crushed you against his chest.
Girl Mark glowered at him. “You’re hurting her.”
He stopped and you could finally inhale.
“I agree.” Another one appeared, his head, face and neck were covered with a mask that seamlessly blended with the rest of his sleek onyx costume. You assumed he was also a Mark. “We’ll kill her if we keep passing her around like a football.”
“She’s no good to anyone splattered on the ground,” taunted one Mark dressed like a bee. When he saw you looking at him he smirked. “Don’t worry, honey. You know I would never let anyone hurt you, not even myself.”
Another Mark with stripes on the sides of his arms tried to float closer towards you but Shiesty pulled you away. Stripes sighed. “Fine, let’s call a truce. For now.”
“That sounds like a plan,” agreed a bald Mark. When he caught your lingering stare, he averted his own and rubbed the back of his neck.
Mohawk was here as well. You could see specks of blood on the philtrum of his nose. “Only if none of you fucktards try to steal her away while we ‘talk.’”
Beside him was a Mark whose head was covered by a blue cap.
Head Cap Mark waved at you, then he blew a kiss.
Mohawk elbowed him.
A Mark Grayson draped in metallic gray and pearl white floated towards the growing circle. “I am willing to cooperate, so long as she–” brown eyes, dark enough to be black, fell over you “–is not put in danger.”
Omni-Mark and Lightyear finally joined. They were both bleeding and panting, but punching each other’s brains out has calmed them down.
Without thinking, you reached inside your pocket and offered a handkerchief to Lightyear.
If looks could kill, he would have been reduced to meatballs with the number of jealous glares directed at him.
“Hey, no fair!” The cheeriest sounding Mark yet shot between you and Lightyear. This Mark’s mask had no goggles. He had cuts all over his pretty face. “What about me? I have way more injuries than him!” He pouted.
“Same here!”
“Me too!”
“Me three!”
Omni-Mark scoffed. “Children.”
Lightyear glared at him. “You’re one to talk.”
“You wanna go–”
“Achoo!”
Brown eyes and unreadable goggles turned to you.
You rubbed your nose and sniffed.
As though a switch had been flipped, the ragtag bunch fell into an organized rhythm.
They systematically split up in small groups, leaving you in the hands of Shiesty, who carried you away from the mountain. Omni-Mark and Lightyear followed you like guard dogs.
You four stopped at a nearby beach with a tolerable temperature.
“Whoa.” Your eyes sparkled at the sight of the sea.
“You smell that, doll?”
You nodded.
“There’s nothing quite like the smell of the beach.” Shiesty let you down, the soft sand tickled your toes.
Once he let you go, you started running towards the waves.
Lightyear and Omni-Mark tried to call you back, to be careful, but Shiesty raised his hand. “Let her be. She needs this.”
You slowed down before your feet could touch the water. You pulled at the legs of your pajama bottoms, took a big gulp of fresh air, and stepped into the sea. The sand beneath your feet was pulled back by the tides and it felt like the ocean itself was trying to grab you, too.
You giggled. If you died right now, it wouldn’t be good, but…
You looked at the horizon, where the sky kissed the sea. Endless. Beautiful. “It wouldn’t be too bad if this is the last thing I see.”
A heavy fur coat was draped over your shoulders. “As if I’d let that happen.” Girl Mark had found her way next to you. Slowly, she dropped her legs into the water. “You seem calm, all things considered.”
“Well, once I got over the multiple versions of you coming here to destroy Earth and take me away, I realized that this situation isn't that bad.”
Her laugh was sweet and light, nothing like the loud coarseness or restrained rumbling of her male counterparts. “What counts as ‘bad’ in your book?”
“Dying before I got to see the outside world would have sucked." You glanced at the azure sky. "I've seen countless futures, but in not one of them was I ever free.”
Her coffee eyes regarded you with a solemn longing and a hint of pity. She looked at the horizon. “You know what you called me? In my universe I mean.”
You shook your head.
“You called me Marcy.”
“Marcy as in–”
“–as in the Vampire Queen.”
You both laughed.
“So your name is Marceline?”
“Nah, but I used to be super pale, like paper-white pale. The other girls in our school called me all sorts of names, like White Lady or Sadako or Samara. But you said I was more like a badass vampire and that I shouldn’t listen to them, because they were jealous of me and how I ‘glow like the moon.’”
“You really do glow like the moon.”
She snickered. “Thanks.”
“In your world, I really went to school?”
“Yeah. All girls.”
“Was I smart?”
“Smarter than me.”
Your stomach boomed and you covered it shyly.
She giggled and offered her hand. “C’mon, we should go before those idiots start throwing a tantrum.”
You grabbed her hand but didn’t move. “What do you think’s going to happen to me?”
“You’re the one who can see the future here, bubblegum.”
“But…”
“It’s going to be okay,” she said, squeezing your hand.
“How can you be sure?”
“I’m not, but that’s the great thing about the future, right? Unlike the past, it’s not set in stone.”
You gawked.
She understood you.
There is no such thing as the future, only a future, and if a person is living life the right way then they have multiple futures.
You tried to explain that to the mirrors in your room that you knew were cameras.
Trying to find which one of those futures will likely happen is like fishing for a very specific type of fish in the middle of the ocean without knowing if it's even a saltwater species.
Now, your power wasn't totally useless, it has helped prepare for earthquakes and stop terrorist attacks in the past. Hell, you've helped prevent murders. But those were all luck-based more than they were actual prophecies; if a floor is wet, there is a chance of slipping, so to protect oneself they will tread carefully, hold onto something for support, or avoid that route entirely.
You gazed into Marcy’s eyes. “Right.”
Behind her, several Marks had started yelling at each other.
She sighed. “Let’s go and stop them before they destroy the beach.”
“You, I can understand, but how am I supposed to stop those guys?”
A perfectly shaped eyebrow arched at you. “Please. If there is one person on this entire planet that they’re going to listen to, it’s you.”
“If you say so.”
She smiled and tugged you forward–
You gasped, nearly dropping your palette and messing up the canvas in front of you.
You stared at the hand holding the paintbrush. You could still feel Marcy’s comforting touch.
You smiled and applied the finishing touches to your painting.
This author has several things to say:
I have a love/hate relationship with action scenes. When I know what I want, everything flows like water, but jksdfhhsdfl I just really do not like writing action scenes, they tend to feel repetitive.
I tried my best to give the Marks individual personalities, but I'm still unsure with what to do sometimes. (also, as I write this, I realize that I forgot to include Sinister and Target so after I write this note, I'm going to have to brainstorm again cheesus.)
I have never seen snow fall from the sky either.
I am very gay for Marcy.
Disclaimer: The image used in this post does not belong to writerclaire. It was lifted from: https://gamerant.com/invincible-all-alternate-dimension-invincibles-fates/
7 minutes in a tentacle void dimension? Well shit. | Lenseless Mark x Reader
🖊️ by Symmetry
🏷️ NSFW Choose-Your-Own-Adventure
CW: Horror elements, tentacle play, vomiting, alcohol use, dub-con/non-con (not from Mark)
A college party gets a bit too wild when you and your most hated classmate, Mark Grayson, are pulled into a closet portal, tortured and tormented for what feels like an eternity (really, it's 7 minutes). Can you survive!?
🔗 READ/PLAY HERE
📖 Episode 1 of 1
🪶 A Glimtember Week 1: Love Games submission! (˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶)
Hello and good morning/afternoon and evening wherever you are. I hope this isn’t too much of a bother, but can we have a water bender reader from the last air bender series?
Author's Note: It’s not a bother! Though since you didn’t give any specifics, I just went and chose a few Marks to write for as I feel like this is one of those requests where grouping the variants together wouldn’t feel right. Also anon, you’re very lucky because I identify as a water bender and yearn for a hydro vision, so it was relatively easy to think of scenarios.
Characters: No Goggles, Prisoner, Shiesty, Sinister
No Goggles Mark
It should come as no surprise that this boy is a freak. He would be the most down with letting you practice your abilities on him.
Water whips and tentacles, encasing him in ice, trapping him in a bubble, and of course, injuring himself so you can heal him. (The last one is something you never asked for but he always does.)
He loves when you puppeteer him with your bloodbending. He can break free whenever he wants, but he is obsessed with your touch, the way you grab his blood and make him do things.
Prisoner Mark
You tried to heal his injuries, but some wounds can’t be healed even with your advanced healing and bloodbending.
You never use your bending against him, not even for practice. Mark hates sparring with you. There is this looming fear in his heart that he’ll freak out and do some serious damage when you use a whip on him, and you just can’t stomach the idea of using your power to hurt him.
Shiesty Mark
He’ll never admit this in a million years, but he is a little jealous of your bending. He can fly, survive extreme temperatures, and bullets bounce off of him, but his main offensive ability is to…to hit things really, really hard.
You can summon waves, create whips, command ice, control the rain, turn living things into puppets, and heal yourself and others.
You once caught him imitating your movements in the shower, but you decided to spare his feelings and not comment.
Sinister Mark
He isn’t too keen on getting whipped or frozen, but he still enjoys sparring with you, not that you have an actual chance of winning. But it’s fun to pretend, he always tells you.
It’s always a treat seeing you move on the battlefield. The way you wash away opponents with a deluge of ice and rain will never not be breathtaking to him.
He also has a special place in his heart for when you’re healing “comrades” in the medical bay, for when your brows crease and your nose scrunches up as you bark at him “to be useful or get the Hell out of the way.” You’re so hot when you’re bossy.
a/n: are you happy, anon? you got me thinking of my favorite girl again, now i'm going to have to write about the mark variants and a hydro vision holder y/n.
honestly, this request has me thinking up a storm. mark variants as benders, mark variants as vision holders... okay, maybe "storm" is a bit generous HAHAHAHA
also, just a few more requests and I'm finally free (:3」∠)
Disclaimer: The image used in this post does not belong to writerclaire. It was lifted from: https://gamerant.com/invincible-all-alternate-dimension-invincibles-fates/
Author's Note:
this is taking longer than i expected lol
but if it wasn't obvious enough, no goggles/lensless is my favorite. he gives me strong "feral dog who becomes a puppy for the woman he loves" vibe.
Debbie Grayson was a stranger that haunted his father’s house, a fragment of the past. His dad burned all of her photos so all Mark had were his memories of her, but even those were unreliable. Sometimes she had hair as black as his, sometimes it was a touch lighter and almost brown. Sometimes her voice was high-pitched and bird-like, other times it was deeper.
Every now and then, he could vaguely remember the Grayson house being warm and welcoming, but those felt like the daydreams of a child, so distant from the reality he grew up with under his father’s reign.
Even before his powers appeared, he lived the life of a soldier. Wake up before dawn, training, and if he was good, he could eat more than the basic requirement. He still had to go to school. He didn’t like anyone and nobody liked him.
When he almost killed two other children when his powers first manifested, his dad pretended to be furious in front of the principal and other parents, then he rewarded him with a toy Mark had been begging for since he was eight years old. Mark’s powers came when he was eleven. Still, lame as it was, he cherished that toy, because it was one of the few reminders that his dad did care.
Mark worked hard to fit in as his dad ordered.
He observed everyone at school, learned what made each student and staff member tick. He learned to smile even when he felt nothing and he pretended to care when his “friends” were troubled. As Mark and as Invincible, he was the golden boy that people looked up to. He was the one where others approached when they needed help.
Everybody loved him, but nobody saw him.
Everybody got a piece of him, but nobody was ever his.
Life was a series of closed doors. The praises from his dad and adulation from the masses that he desperately chased stopped making him feel like he used to.
He was no different than a chunk of rock floating through the vacuum of space without a destination.
He didn’t think he would ever feel that again ever since he met you.
From the first time you patted his head, life was never the same again.
You were his sun, the center of gravity that he didn’t even know he was searching for.
When you asked for a three-month break, it nearly tore him apart to agree and get away from you. Everyday was hell. He felt like he could fall apart at any moment.
He stayed away from everyone else as much as he could, fearing that he’d end up doing something you’d disapprove of.
But today was the last day of his torture.
He woke up extra early, took a cold shower, dressed in your favorite outfit of his and styled his hair just the way you liked.
He had just exited the florist when his phone rang. Of course, you had a special ringtone and of course, he answered on the first ring.
“Good morning!” He could practically feel his imaginary tail wag behind him. “I’m so glad you called, I’m already on my way to your place. Do you want me to pick up breakfast? Do you want something salty or sweet? Wait, don’t answer, I’ll get you everything available to celebrate.”
His heart almost stopped when you laughed. God, he missed that laugh. He resorted to his secret stash of call recordings with you just for a restful night’s sleep, but nothing can compare to having an actual conversation.
“Actually,” you said quickly, “I cooked breakfast for the both of us.”
“My favorite?”
“What else? Take care. I’ll see you soon.”
He took care not to get caught when he sprinted and nearly shot up in the sky to get to you.
Arriving at your front door in record time, Mark took a moment to pull on his collar and tousle his hair.
He then pressed the doorbell, unable to control his smile when he heard your footsteps.
You opened the door. You wore an apron over your pajamas and held a flipper in one hand. You met his gaze with a small smile. He wanted to kiss the deep circles around your eyes. He wanted to wrap his arms around you and never let go.
“Hey, Mark.”
He swore he almost teared up hearing your voice, your real voice and not a digital recreation, but he shook his head and offered the bouquet. “Hi.”
You glanced at the flowers, frowning for the shortest moment before fixing your expression and pulling him inside. “They’re beautiful. You always get me the most perfect bouquets.”
Naturally. Mark took extensive notes when it came to your preferences and inclinations. Case in point–
You stopped walking and reached over to fix his collar. He lowered his head, expectant. Chuckling, you brushed back his bangs, combing his hair with your fingers. “Did you fall asleep without drying your hair again?” You teased. “What would you do without me?”
He had a taste of what that life was like. He wasn’t going back.
His hand found yours, softly pulling it from his head to his cheek. “Then from now on, just dry my hair every night.”
Your fingers twitched. Mark looked at you.
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m hungry.”
Lie.
But still, he grinned and reluctantly let go, following you into the kitchen. The smell of fresh pancakes and burnt bacon filled the air.
You motioned for him to sit down and served him a plate.
“Blueberry and banana pancakes, well-done bacon and sunny side up eggs with runny yolk. Just as you like ‘em.”
“Thank you.”
If a third party were here, they would look at the starry-eyed Mark and think that he was more interested in eating you than the food. It wouldn’t be an unfair judgment. After all, Mark hated sweet things, he preferred his bacon closer to raw, and he found runny egg yolk kind of gross. But you enjoyed them, so he enjoyed them too.
He wanted to be your soulmate.
He observed you as he had observed everyone in his life, he tailored every detail of his world to match yours. He would break himself over and over so he could mold himself to your preferences.
There were times where he would “disagree” with you, though those were for lesser things like pineapple on pizza, so you wouldn’t get bored.
You responded better when he was this sweet, harmless puppy that begged for attention instead of an arrogant alpha prick who played it hot and cold. Maybe it was because you spent so much time with hyper-aggressive, uber-competitive sharks at work. Maybe you were just a sweet person who could never ignore strays. Maybe it was both.
Regardless of the reason, you liked pathetic men, so Mark did his best.
He discarded Mark Grayson, the golden boy, the star athlete and teacher’s pet, and became Mark Grayson, the cute, geeky and awkward guy next door.
If all went according to plan he would be Mark Grayson, your husband and the happiest man in the Milky Way.
“Here you go.” You placed his favorite mug next to his plate. This really was his favorite. Two years ago, you got home really late after canceling a date and gave him a ribbon-tied box. Inside was a ceramic mug covered in clumsy hand-painted sunflowers and Seance Dog as a puppy. He was neutral to the comic book and the character, only claiming to be a fanboy because it suited his persona. But seeing the sloppily drawn ears and your bright, proud smile? He actually fell in love for real.
You took your seat across from him. “Dig in.”
Mark had to pause from eating so he could watch you.
You were nervous. You had been even before today. Mark knew something was wrong for a while now, though he didn’t expect you to ask him for a three-month break.
Without looking at him, you asked, “How’s school so far?”
Boringly easy. “It’s okay. I’ve been struggling but my friends have been helping me study.”
“And the Team?”
Ugh. “They’re good.”
“Just good?”
Incompetent. Stupid. Kinda useless half the time. “They’ve been improving in hand to hand combat, but no one’s beaten me.” Praise me.
“It’s good to know you’re doing well with training, we’ll never know when someone strong will arrive wanting to take over Earth.”
He laughed with you, but the uncomfortable silence reared its ugly head.
He was already racking his brain on what to say before you cleared your throat.
“So… how’s Eve?”
Huh? “Huh?”
You softly stabbed the egg yolk with your knife.
Did he hear you right? Why would you ask about that woman? When they first met, Mark was neutral towards her, but he played nice with Samantha the way he did with everybody else. He knew she had a crush on him but she never approached him and he just didn’t like her. Then he met you and she, like everyone else, just faded into the background. He introduced you to her as civilians, though it didn’t take a genius to figure out her identity as Atom Eve. You two were friendly, but as far as Mark was concerned, you weren’t exactly girlfriends.
“Eve is okay, I guess.” He cut his pancakes into equal halves.
“She’s an architecture major, isn’t she?”
“I think so. She’s been having trouble with some courses but from what she’s told me, she likes it.” Eve liked to talk. Mark just soaked in the information and responded as expected from him, but he didn’t actually care.
“She called me a week ago, you know.”
He held his knife in the air. His lips twitched.
You continued, “She–the whole team was worried about you. The phrase she used was ‘acting out.’”
“I have no idea what she means by that.”
“You fractured Rex’s collarbone and broke Amanda’s femur.”
“...it was training.”
“You broke her Monster form’s femur.”
He said nothing.
“Eve said you ignored their messages unless it was a major mission.”
Tattling piece of– “I just needed time alone. College has been really difficult right now, especially for a senior, and I guess I overdid it during training. I already apologized to Rex and Monster Girl.”
“...Eve seems like a good friend.”
He did not agree, but he smiled nonetheless. “That’s Eve for you.”
You set down your fork and knife.
He did the same. “Is something wrong?”
You stayed quiet for a while, refusing to meet his eyes. He could tell a thousand thoughts were running through that pretty head of yours. He always adored the expression on your face when you used your brain, like when you were tackling a difficult case. But right now, there was obvious melancholy in your gaze.
“Honey?” He reached over the table, putting his fingers over yours.
You closed your eyes for a moment, and then turned to him. “Let’s break up.”
He could feel the air leave his system. You pulled away and he shot to his feet.
“Mark–”
“What happened? What did Eve tell you?”
“Nothing–”
“Did Cecil say something to you? I swear to God, I’m going to…” He brushed his hair back.
“I just... I… I’ve been thinking about us for a while now.”
“Yeah? Well, so have I.” He reached into his back pocket and revealed a small velvet box.
You didn’t look surprised, but heartbreak was evident on your face.
He fell to his knees, hands on your lap. “I love you. I’ve always loved you, did I not make that clear enough? Did you think I stayed with you for three years just because? You’re not just some… experiment or casual thing to me. Three years, I’ve done nothing but love you, how could you not expect this? I love you, [Name]. I love you . I’m not breaking up with you. I won’t. I’m going to marry you, maybe not this year or even next year, but you’re the only one for me.”
You grabbed his hands and stared at them. His knuckles were calloused but otherwise pristine as you thumbed them like they were made of crystal. His hands have prevented catastrophe after catastrophe, saved more people than you ever could. You met his eyes and cupped one cheek.
“It’s funny,” you chuckled humorlessly. “Who knew this was what it would take to get you angry with me. Maybe I should’ve broken up with you sooner.”
“That’s not funny,” he said, leaning into your touch.
He was still a college senior.
You didn’t doubt him for a moment, but he was young. Sure, he was mature in many ways, but he was young. A normal college student shouldn’t be thinking about marriage this early in his life. More importantly, a normal, healthy human shouldn’t be as obsessed with you as Mark was.
It took a while but you noticed that Mark’s smile when he was with other people didn’t look as sincere as the smile he showed you. It was cute. At first, you were flattered, to be honest. What woman wouldn’t enjoy the attention of a tall and handsome young man?
But as the months passed, he barely tried to hide his dislike for anyone who wasn’t you. He probably thought his acting would be enough but he practically lived with you for three years.
You knew he recorded your voice calls. You knew he stole your laundry every now and then. You knew how aversed he was to upsetting you.
You loved him. But you were also afraid… The sheer amount of his affection and the darkness that came with it terrified you just as much as it enticed you. You didn’t deserve his devotion, not because you hated his unhealthy fascination, but because you didn’t know how to return it. Also…
You put a hand over your belly.
It was better this way, you told yourself, you break both your hearts now and hurt for a while. This was preferable than having him devote everything to you so early in his life and then regret it later.
“I love you, too, Mark.” You pulled back your arm. “But this is over.”
“No, please don’t do this…” He quickly recaptured your wrist.
“We’re at different points of our lives, Mark.”
His grip was firm. “I don’t care about that.”
“Well, I do.”
“No!”
You screamed, loud enough to cover the crunch of your bones.
Mark jerked back, falling backward on the floor and knocking the table down. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to–”
“Just…” you breathed through the pain, assessing your injuries “...help me stabilize my wrist.”
He dashed through the flat for your med kit. He could only obediently do everything you asked.
“I’ll fly you to the ER,” he said, putting away the bandages.
“It’s okay, it’s not that serious,” you lied.
“Then I’ll clean up here.”
“That won’t be necessary.”
You both fell quiet.
Mark bowed his head and gently tugged on your shirt. “I’m sorry. I really didn’t mean to hurt you.”
“I know.”
“I love you.”
You didn’t say it back.
He let go. “Keep the place, okay? It’s always been meant to be yours, nobody else’s.” And with that, he left your life just as quietly as he first appeared.
With the soft click of the door, you let yourself fall apart.
the next chapter would either be the penultimate or the final one for no goggles. thanks for reading, comments are always appreciated <3
Part 4
Masterlist
Other Invincible Variant Origin (x Reader):
Sinister
Mohawk
Your orders are simple—distract the hostile Invincible variant long enough for the GDA to evacuate nearby civilians to safety. But when the variant decides he doesn't want to kill you, things get... interesting.
Lenseless Mark x Fem!Reader
Choose-Your-Own-Adventure
CW: NSFW, Graphic violence, Impact violence, Improvised BDSM, Pain kink
🔗 READ/PLAY HERE
🎮 interactive fanfic "Vines and Thorns" by @sinfiction
📖 Episode 1 of ?
🖊️ by @sinfiction
🏷️NSFW Choose-Your-Own-Adventure
CW: Lenseless swaps sex everytime he orgasms
Lenseless Mark chugged a mystery potion that changes his body immensely -- and now he's at your window asking you to give him a female orgasm. Will you entertain his strange request?
🔗 READ/PLAY HERE
📖 Episode 1 of 1
❄️ A Winter Tales submission! (˶ᵔ ᵕ ᵔ˶)
