#mouse--trap

[voiddesigns-wc]

Could you do the Daisy kits?

I only did Daisy’s first litter if that’s okay!

[jumpsparrow]

328. Mouse ear

[voiddesigns-wc]

Pretty sassy old lady

[b0yfoe]

i luv ur analysis on the passenger i think its absolutely mindblowing stuff & ur so sosmart with it every time x u_u anywayy wanted 2 ask for any thoughts on why benson decided to kill the rest of the staff before taking randy hostage instead of just. like pulling a gun on him in the parking lot before work ?sorry ive worded this like a highschool english teacherx

hi mouse!!!! omggg aw shucks what the hell.....!!!! 🖤☺️ i love your takes too many very good posts

i don't really know that pulling a gun on randy alone and kidnapping him would've been as effective narratively... doesn't do as much to establish benson as randy's "protector", or as dangerous a threat...which ensures randy's compliance. it'd lose a lot of gravity and feel even more senseless or random. most notably like, the homicides were an impulsive decision spurred on by chris' bullying specifically. because

1) randy took a stand for once and then immediately backed down again. one thrilling step forward—a deviation from routine—and then five steps back. fucking miserable to observe if you've been keeping tabs on it for a while. even moreso, given all the shit benson's projecting onto randy. which,

2) the bullying took on a sexual tone that i imagine triggered benson pretty bad. given his own trauma with sheppard, the fact he himself is queer and similarly lonely, etc.... i don't think he himself is a stranger to that kind of treatment. or at the very least, it bears enough similarity to his own experiences that it flips a switch in his brain, whether he's consciously aware of it at the time or not.

so, yknow... enraged by this, goes out to his car to get some air and thinks, fuck it. decision made then and there. hardy and jess had to follow, because they were witnesses. (he's clearly more hesitant about jess, and i wonder if she could've have been another hostage if not for all the screaming, but i digress)

not to say he hadn't THOUGHT about doing any of that at all

(or at least threatening them) before that moment, buuuuuuuut i think prior to that it was probably just a fantasy more than anything actually premeditated..... "haha, what if...?" "what if i got rid of my obnoxious coworker/shitty boss".... "what if i showed them what im really capable of" .....

"what if i give everyone a fucking wake up call and finally finally do something that Matters"....

because suffering is easy to ignore sure but murder? that's pretty loud. that's kind of as bad as it gets. it matters. it has to matter

benson could say any number of things to randy. he could try to be nice. he could offer a shoulder to cry on or a simple pep talk. he could guide him into the car and interrogate him about his life. but would it work? would any of it stick? if he didn't expect what he said to marsha to "affect her life in any way", then we can infer he feels helpless enough that resorting to violent extremes is the only way to get anything done.

[ side tangent: as for why the gun's in the car... benson doesn't really strike me as a seasoned hunter teeee beee aaayych, but i don't have enough evidence to prove/dispute that either way. just a vibe. my theory on it is sort of just like.... the gun belonged to a relative, and was at one point intended for hunting or "self defense" but has since been sitting in benson's trunk for shooting empty beer cans out in the sticks orrrrrrr for when he finally gets around to killing himself :'^)

honestly, i think that could've easily been another fantasy he had. like ending it in front of randy, or asking randy to do it.... i think benson probably imagined all sorts of ways he might "fix" randy in passing, but i don't think he had any kind of concrete plan.

i don't think he woke up that day thinking, "today's the day i help my twinky coworker bradley get his head on straight" ]

the thing we know about benson is he stagnates. he's been stagnating his whole life. he doesn't believe his words or actions have consequences—probably because any attempts at clawing his way out of the pit he's in or asking for help have failed miserably. everything feels futile..... with a mindset like that, he's unlikely to just approach randy out of the blue for no reason.

he's stuck, and therefor needs a catalyst to spur him into action, or something to push him to the brink until something finally gives. chris just happened to be that catalyst.

[stere0-system]

@mouse--trap

It's one of the rare shifts where Randy and Benson are the closers. Hardy took off early, because of course he did. Randy's in the front, counting down the register and wiping down the counters. Benson's restocking, walking heavily back and forth to the stockroom. It's quiet, but the nice kind. Comfortable. Until...

"FUCK!" and Randy can't describe it as anything other than a shriek. It's shrill, loud, piercing through the silence and punctuated by the clatter of an entire sleeve of jumbo styrofoam cups that comes loose and scatters across the kitchen. Benson scrambles after them, holding the plastic sleeve limp, weighed down only with the few cups that weren't launched into the air. He meets Randy's eyes and goes bright red, something Randy didn't know he could do.

"Um," Randy says. He'd frozen at the sudden commotion, and his shoulders creak with the effort it takes to force them to relax. "What's -"

"Nothing," Benson spits, his posture defensive. "Not a fuckin' thing."

He stomps away before Randy can reply. There's a beat of silence, then an odd strangled noise. Benson stomps back out, looking for all the world like a dog with its tail between its legs. He looks over Randy's shoulder, pointedly avoiding eye contact, and clears his throat. Twice.

"There's a spider," he mumbles, so quick and quiet Randy almost doesn't catch it.

"Oh," Randy says. It comes out like a question.

"Can you..." Benson trails off. He looks like he's in pain. "You know. Get it."

"Can I...? Oh. Oh! Uh. Yeah! I mean...yes. Yeah. I can...get it."

When Benson doesn't move, Randy eases around him and crosses the kitchen. The stockroom is dimly lit at the best of times, but it's worse after the sun goes down. He peers along the shelves but doesn't see anything.

He starts to turn around to ask Benson where he saw it, but Benson beats him to the punch with an arm extended over Randy's shoulder. He points to the wall beside the walk-in and pushes Randywith a hand between his shoulders. He hovers in the doorway while Randy creeps forward, squinting at the yellowing wall. He's about to say something, because he doesn't see anything, but then he catches movement.

...It's tiny.

Randy turns to look at Benson, and something must show on his face, because Benson scowls.

"Open your mouth and I'll knock your fuckin' teeth in, Bradley."

The threat might carry more weight if Benson's fingers weren't tapping a nervous rhythm against his forearm. Randy turns back to the wall before his face can give anything else away; Benson might actually follow through if he sees the tiny, amused smile Randy can't quite swallow. He searches for something to coax the spider onto and settles on a small, plastic sauce lid. Once his little passenger is secure, he walks to the drive-thru window. Benson flattens himself against the wall as Randy passes, which Randy finds a little dramatic.

He slides the window open, frisbees the lid out into the parking lot, and that's that.

Benson grumbles something that might be considered a thanks, if Randy really stretches his imagination. They finish closing down the restaurant and walk out together. Benson doesn't look at him for a week, and Randy doesn't bring it up again, but Benson does seek him out every so often after that with a quiet, "Can you get something for me?" And yeah, of course he can.

[visceravalentines]

hey i read ur mechanic benson fic ! it was so so beautiful loved it very very much eagerly awaiting seeing wherever ur taking it next 2 million kisses

THANK YOU SO MUCH!! I'm so so glad you liked it!! accepting your 2 million kisses and giving you 2 million back soon our lips will be. gone <3