Sorry for the anon ask again but is request open?? If it is can I please request c00lk1dd x reader....perchance...I really love how you wrote him🫡🫡
This is up to your imagination, what reader is up to you, I would say fluff to angst because..angst🥳🥳
—from 🌻 anon<3
"The Afterglow of a Sun Long Extinguished"
--TRUD!C00lk1dd x Survivor!Reader Oneshot
notes: 🌻anon tysm for requesting this!! i have this storyline that's been on my mind for quite some time now
c00lk1dd will have his old personality since i assume that's what you prefer. one-shot format as well. survivor!reader too to maximize the angst 😈
this might be the last time u guys see nicek1dd tho lmao, unless someone specifically requests otherwise
WARNINGS: angst, 1 singular swear word, gory descriptions during angst part (keyword is: “failed to connect to server” if u want to skip), OOC characters
Rows of flower columns, beautifully arranged by nature herself, stay untouched by griefers and exploiters. Trees in sizes large enough to provide shade, but short enough to let sunlight pass through, are scattered across the meadow. The air carries a fresh, spring breeze that revitalizes those who breathe it in. Over the dozens of meadows C00lk1dd has shown you, the one in Prairie Blocks is his favorite.
When you aren’t participating in Underground War competitions, and he isn’t busy tending to his flowers; he takes you to this secluded spot under his favorite Eucalyptus tree. There, you two would chat for hours. The conversations are mostly led by you, but he doesn’t mind listening whilst he fiddles with an array of flowers.
Today was one of those days. You have taken your place beside him, back against the rough tree bark, as you start talking — rapidly shifting topics as you do. Meanwhile, he weaves you a crown made of fresh sunflowers, blue poppies, and dew-kissed leaves. His free hand comes into contact with yours, lingering for seconds that endure for a bit too long, to retrieve more flowers for his flower crown. There’s a keen focus in his eyes that stays unbroken as he does so. The melody of your voice pushes him on further.
“—while they were distracted, I took their flag and ran. My heart was pounding like crazy, you won’t believe how many of them were chasing after me.”
“Sounds intense.” He murmurs, linking the daisy with the rest of the flowers.
“It was! I would have almost made it back to base, had it not been for this Bloxxer fellow.” You huff, a sour expression on your face.
“Bloxxer, huh?” A rose falls out of place. C00lk1dd curses under his breath and works on reattaching it.
“He’s skilled — which I respect by the way — but you don’t hear me shoving my wins in people’s faces- Oof!” An apple falls on your head with a loud thump. Massaging the sore spot on your head that was hit, you whine.
The flower crown is set aside as C00lk1dd moves to check up on you, placing a gentle hand on your forearm.
“Are you okay? What happened?” He asks with a tinge of worry.
“Yeah, yeah I’m okay. Don’t worry.” You sigh.
“Stupid gravity…” The tree felt the weight of your anger condensed in one, heavy punch; only for it to return said anger to you tenfold.
“OOUCH!” Splinters and small fragments of wood bark get lodged into the side of your fist, accompanied by a large, red, dull ache. He flinches at the sight, the furrow between his brows deepening.
“Sorry, I know. I know that was stupid — Ughhh.” Lamenting your recklessness, you cradle your hand. Now the pain is in several places rather than one. As if your set of humiliating losses today wasn’t enough.
With a sigh, he places the affected hand in the palm of his red one. The splinters are long, having stuck themselves deep in your skin. Luckily, rivers are abundant in Prairie Blocks. He shouldn’t have a hard time finding one.
“There’s a nearby riverbank.” C00lk1dd takes the flower crown he had previously neglected, slipping it through his arm. Droplets of dew cling to his skin as the plants rustle against it.
“Let’s go wash up your wounds first, then we’ll pull the splinters out.” He pulls you up, then sets course for the river. You follow suit.
“Hoo boy…” Anxiously, you grip the hem of your shirt.
…
Following a painful extraction session, he plucks the last needle-like fragment out of your skin. It leaves a sharp stinging in its wake, but it is finally over. The splinter is tossed into the ground along with the others.
“Phew! Thanks. That took forever.” It had only dragged on much longer than it needed to because you kept flinching, but C00lk1dd’s willing to omit that detail. Hands outstretched, you collapse onto his lap, your hair spilling onto his legs in an unruly fashion. There’s a stiffness that overtakes his body, and he looks away.
“...Please don’t punch any more trees.”
You chuckle, “That was a one-time thing!” lightly jabbing him. Your joy is infectious. Against all odds, he joins you in your hysterics. In the midst of it all, his body relaxes against yours.
When the laughter dies down, all goes quiet. For once, you don’t fill the silence with words. You let it be. C00lk1dd cards his fingers through your hair.
His fingers suddenly retreat. The sound of shuffling is heard as you hear him mumble incoherent words under his breath, before a floral headdress obscures your vision. It rests in an asymmetric position on your head.
“Oh?” You push it slightly above your eyes and look at him with raised brows.
“S-sorry.” Your friend fixes it with shaky fingers, which brush past your own as you retrieve the flower crown.
“Is this for me?” A smile blooms on your face. It’s a harmony of yellows, blues, and greens; a lovely handiwork. You’re careful not to damage any of it.
“Mhm.”
“Huh… so that’s what you were so focused on all this time.” You wear the gift with pride.
“Thank you.” You utter, the usual crescendo in your voice mitigated by a rare solemnity.
He doesn’t reply further, and his hands return to the place on your head. Birds fly home to their nests, owls come out of hiding. A gentle breeze, nature’s hand, lightly touches your cheek. It’s late. You soften into his touch, before your breathing steadies. Within minutes, your eyelids flutter shut — your hands lethargic.
After you stop moving, he gently pokes your cheek to confirm you’re asleep. You are, and you’re out cold. The serene scene on his lap makes the butterflies come back. They flit in his stomach, urging him to say something. In your slumber, C00lk1dd whispers words he would never have the courage to say while you were conscious.
“I love you.”
The sun sinks deeper below the horizon; its orange hue bleeding into the sky. The moon runs after it in an impossible chase. Day and night cannot co-exist, such is the will of fate.
…
FAILED TO CONNECT TO SERVER. PLEASE TRY AGAIN LATER.
-91 SECONDS LEFT-
“Uhh, is the timer broken or?”
“C00lk1dd…”
“Get your head in the game! We have to hold that little shit off.”
Voices blend into the background. Figures contort into blurry shapes. Crimson hue envelops his vision. Every vein in his body boils with an anger that cannot be quelled, like a dormant volcano that has waited years to erupt. Today, it does. And it overflows.
Butcher.
Adrenaline fuels C00lk1dd’s movements, with it he lunges at the first person he sees. At a speed quicker than he can perceive, a resounding swish pierces through the air; and a sword is jabbed in his right arm. New flesh twists and writhes, growing in place of the wound seconds later.
The sword wielder is quick and agile, but so is C00lk1dd. When his prey can no longer run, he tears him apart limb by limb. Bones crack, ligaments tear, skin detaches from tendons. Raw red muscle is exposed. The screaming dies down quickly.
Pierce.
A rocket explosion rings in his ear, but it misses him by just an inch. The projectile reveals the location of his next victim, who hides behind a wall. In a panic, the man fiddles with his launcher in a desperate attempt to reload it. By the time he is able to get another missile in, it is far too late.
Black tentacles burst out of the survivor’s back. He fights against it, grabbing tightly onto the appendage that pierced his chest. It is of no avail — the survivor falls limp. Blood stains the ground red as his corpse lands on the ground with a harsh thud.
Mourn.
One survivor left. His Patience is soon to run out — he has no time to waste. On a bridge littered with shattered glass, he eyes you down. For a reason he can’t quite name, an inexplicable feeling washes over him. A distant ache in his chest, a pounding in his head, and the slight tremble in his hands. As if his body is trying to remind him of memories he can’t recall. He thinks it’s fear: fear of your composure, fear of the way you seem to predict every move of his, fear of the sad, nostalgic look in your eyes that mirrors his own.
So isn’t fear supposed to push him away from you?
Lost in his own thoughts, C00lk1dd fails to block the imminent attack of your swuvle. The longing he once felt is quickly snuffed out, replaced by the insatiable rage and bloodlust that had overtaken him before. Whoever you may be, it doesn’t change the fact that you’re a survivor.
…
Moonlight, barely enough, faintly guides your path. Your pulse hammers against your ribs; powered by the clash of longing and dread. Millions of panicked thoughts run through your mind like a stampede of wild animals.
The footsteps behind you intensify. A large shadow looms over you, and you grip your swuvle in anticipation.
CLANG!
You block the attack in time, delivering one of your own as your swuvle makes contact with his skull. His agony is your own, but you can’t afford to let him win. Not this time.
Razor-sharp silver punctures through several layers of your skin in the process. You clench your jaw tightly and retreat, hoping to find some coverage while C00lk1dd is stunned. He recovers faster than you do — dashing after you at an inhumane pace.
In the midst of running, a burning sensation blooms on your back. You ignore it and keep running.
Until the pain hits.
And it hits hard, bringing you to your knees. It robs you of all your strength; the swuvle on your side falling with a clink. The sting multiplies tenfold when the knife leaves your body, and you’re kicked to the ground. Petals descend as your flower crown falls in front of you.
Most of the flowers had wilted, if not fallen out. The stems no longer hold it in place. Still, you reach out to it in your dying breath.
Steel glistens with the shine of moonlight, preparing to pierce your flesh and finish you off.
But it never descends.
C00lk1dd's hand shakes, before he places down his knife with a sigh. He'll let you bleed out. It's easier.
After all, he still has one more question for you.
"Who are you?"
"...Y-your friend." You choke out, bringing the flower crown closer to your chest. Crimson droplets varnish the faded colors of sunflowers, roses, and poppies.
"I've never had friends." C00lk1dd corrects.
Silence. You pinch the petals of a pale poppy.
“Why do you still hold onto that dead thing?”
In uneven breaths, you answer, “...Someone I love gave it to me.”
When your hand falls slack, the man walks over to the flower crown and frees it from your unnaturally tight grip. Upon closer inspection, he realizes that the choice of flora felt familiar.
You feel familiar.
It's when C00lk1dd takes the time to inspect his surroundings, does he realize a very important detail. The structure of the tree, its arch, the leaves.
A Eucalyptus tree.
He would always visit the same Eucalpytus tree with you.