“ i'll love you 'til the day that i die! ”
a/n: this one is a mixture of dark content and light content so i really do recommend reading the warnings for this. the mh ones might be a little vague in canon bc it's been a little over two years since my last rewatch so!!
synopsis: realizations of love and what comes with.
includes: slenderman, jeff the killer, jane the killer, nina the killer, homicidal liu, sully, the bloody painter, nurse ann, eyeless jack, laughing jack, hobo heart, ticci toby, clockwork, jason the toymaker, the puppeteer, the doll maker, zalgo, x-virus, laughing jill, candy pop, dr smiley, kagekao, nathan the nobody, zero, judge angels, kate the chaser, rouge the proxy, tim wright, brian thomas, jay merrick, alex kralie, jessica locke.
warnings: gn!reader, varying lengths, multiple mentions of unhealthy relationships, mentions of murder, blood, cults (zalgo), harm against reader (jane, nathan), reader death (dr smiley, alex kralie), obsession (nina, zalgo, dr smiley, nathan, helen), possessive behavior (zalgo, dr smiley, jason, zero, candy), references to a work on my old blog in the puppeteer's part, jealousy (x-virus), jay's death, numerous mentions of unhealthy co-dependency.
SLENDERMAN — does not understand the concept of love. this isn't to say it can't feel it, it just... won't be able to immediately identify when it starts to develop such an emotion for you. it goes through many experiences where it has a moment of 'you are... an interesting being' towards you, and those are like mini realizations. it won't realize it loves you until someone explains to it what love is.
and once it does understand that the strange feeling you made it feel was love, well... it's a bit hesitant to indulge, to be honest. slender has never felt something like this before. it didn't even know it was capable of such an emotion. it's something it always viewed as a weakness. it'll take a while for slender to accept its feelings for you, to be honest.
JEFF THE KILLER — realizes he's in love with you when he shows up at your place one evening to find you struggling to stay awake while waiting for him. it hits him suddenly, seeing you drifting in and out of sleep while staring at your phone. you hadn't realized he was there yet, and honestly, he doesn't want you to know. because if you look over at him, you'll see the disgusting fondness in his gaze.
he won't tell you he loves you for a long time. it's something that makes him feel weak. he'd always believed he had nothing to lose, and now that he does... it's just not something he was ready to acknowledge. those three words will only slip past his lips when he thinks he's about to lose you, because that's the only way you'd probably get him to admit he loves you.
JANE THE KILLER — only realizes she's in love with you when jeff threatens your life. you two were friends, and she cared deeply for you, but it was nothing more than that, surely. but then that rat bastard dared to hurt you, and suddenly she's a teenager again, losing everything she's ever loved. your blood on her hands is something she never wants to experience again.
but you survive, and jane is telling you that she loves you the moment your eyes open. you don't have to love her back, but she needs to get these feelings off her chest because it felt like she'd drown in them if she didn't. whether you reciprocate them or not doesn't matter to her, because jane will make a vow to ensure that no harm comes to you ever again.
NINA THE KILLER — likes to say she knew she loved you from the start, but that was just infatuation. nina is a bit desperate for a relationship, truth be told, so she's deeply invested in anyone who shows her an ounce of kindness because she thinks it could lead to something more. it's led to her being disappointed far too many times, and everyone had assumed it would be the same with you.
but as the weeks went by, her infatuation never went away. you didn't try pushing her away when she was around, and you always included her in the conversation. you went out of your way to make sure she didn't feel neglected. at this point, she doesn't care if it's genuine love or not. all she knows is that you and her are meant to be together, and she will stop at nothing to make sure that happens.
HOMICIDAL LIU — has numerous reasons as to why he doesn't realize he's in love with you until it literally smacks him in the face. he's busy trying to kill jeff, he's never been in a relationship before, he thinks he doesn't deserve the happiness a relationship might give him. just about all of that, all wrapped up into one giant mess of a ball. the way he realizes he's in love with you is sully literally screaming at him in his head and giving him the world's worst migraine.
even with this realization, he hesitates to indulge. once he does, he'll be baring all his flaws to you. you'll see every nasty part of him that he doesn't want you to know about, and you'll realize that he's no good for you. but when those words of love quietly escape him, and you smile at him and tell him you feel the same, he can't stop himself from being selfish. just this once, he decides. and if you ever want to leave, he'll let you go. he hopes.
SULLY — experiences something akin to love at first sight, actually. the moment he met you, he liked you. it was a strange fascination, one that had his heart racing when he was fronting. of course, he's not delusional enough to think it was actually love. still, it doesn't stop him from admiring you, and constantly telling you that he likes you whenever the chance presented itself. the moment it turns to genuine love, however, it's like this switch flips.
the playful glint in his eyes whenever he'd dramatically drape himself over you, the smug smile when he'd get you flustered, it was different. his touch lingered now, like he wanted to just be glued to your side. his smile was softer, like seeing you flustered was something more than a joke. his eyes held an emotion in them that was bordered on uncanny, like he wanted to devour you whole. his love for you could easily become twisted, if under the right circumstances.
THE BLOODY PAINTER — has absolutely no interest in romance whatsoever until you. helen's entire childhood revolved around being good enough for his parents, so he never had the opportunity to read romance novels or watch romance movies. now it's simply not something he cared about. the only thing that had his attention was his art. it was a part of his very being, after all. and the way you interact with his art is actually what made him fall for you.
he's used to people complimenting his work. empty words, things that meant nothing to him. but you criticized him. you pointed out certain things about his paintings that you didn't like, and highlighted the things you did. you were honest with him. and honesty is a quality he finds to be very attractive, apparently, because you end up stuck in his mind, the focal piece of all his work. his muse. something that bordered on obsession.
NURSE ANN — has a hard time feeling emotions to begin with, so she probably won't realize she loves you for a long time. her emotions are... dull, to put it simply. vague things that she struggles to identify. if it's not anger, then it'll take her a while to identify how she feels. it takes even longer for her to even articulate her emotions into something she can explain to you, considering she can't speak.
but ann realizes she's in love with you randomly one night, when you're not around. you're in her mind a lot more than she would like, but it's not something that upsets her. she spent a good chunk of the night wandering the halls of the abandoned hospital just... thinking about how she feels about you, and what the proper way to describe that feeling would be. she's not sure if she's ever been in love before, but she'd like to experience it with you.
EYELESS JACK — realizes he loves you in bits and pieces, over the course of your companionship. originally, he had wanted to eat you. but for one reason or another, he opted not to, and it led to a strange friendship blossoming instead. you took his demonic nature in stride, and never seemed repulsed by his less than human qualities. you appeared curious, more often than not. your curiosity is the first thing he finds himself falling in love with.
but the thing that solidified his feelings for you was when he paid you a visit one night, and you had excitedly guided him to this mini freezer you had bough a while ago. inside was just... numerous things of raw meat. animal meat, you had explained, because you weren't willing to dabble in illegal activities to get human meat. you just wanted him to be able to snack on something whenever he decided to spend the night, and he just... he ends up kissing you right then and there, yeah.
LAUGHING JACK — refuses to believe that he could ever fall in love with you. he's evil, he's cruel, he's never going to experience such stupid feelings like love. but it's like the universe is always out to make a fool out of him, because you come crashing into his life and suddenly colors start appearing again, and he hates it. he hates you, hates that you make him feel something after spending centuries feeling nothing.
and yet, he's somehow always finding excuses to be in the same room as you. he's stubborn enough to not admit that he's in love with you for a long time, but trust that his abandonment issues will make it known that he would kill you if you ever thought about leaving him. love him, hate him, he doesn't care as long as you're with him.
HOBO HEART — didn't think he could fall in love again after what happened with celina. he spent decades roaming the earth, taking the hearts of those who didn't deserve it, just to prolong his own existence before he met you. he could sense the purity in your heart, and it's what drew him to you to begin with. he was waiting for you to reveal your true colors, to give him a reason to kill you and take your heart but... it never came.
instead, you just proved to him that he could fall in love even without having a heart of his own. it's different from the first time he felt like this, and yet it was oh so familiar. the only possible downside to hobo being in love with you is the fact that he takes everything very literally, so anything you say is like the law of existence to him. he'll give you the hearts of hundreds of people to prove his devotion to you.
TICCI TOBY — realizes he's in love with you when he finds himself seeking out your presence. love is a scary thing to him, because he's not sure it's something he can handle. not anymore. he built up so many walls just to protect himself that it was... terrifying, really, how easily you were able to worm your way into his life. what confused him the most was the fact that he welcomed you.
it'll take him a while to actually come to terms with his feelings for you. he may even go as far as to avoid you entirely during the process, simply because you being around made it hard for him to focus. he never wanted a relationship, not that he can remember. being a proxy is all he knows, but now he's thinking about kissing you, and spending time with you, and wondering if you'll try talking to him today, and... it's all you.
CLOCKWORK — knows that she's in love with you when you don't distance yourself from her when you see her ugly side. her angry outbursts, her random breakdowns, things that she doesn't like people seeing. you've seen it all, and you've never let that change the way you viewed her. a part of her hates that you're so accepting, because it makes it so damn easy to get attached to you, and she's always wondering when the other shoe will drop.
natalie doesn't like feeling weak, but god... you make it so easy to just let loose, and it's a feeling she starts to crave when she's away from you for too long. i don't think she'll tell you she loves you, mostly because she's got this idea instilled in her head that if she does, you'll drop her immediately. if this relationship were to go anywhere, you'd have to take the first step.
JASON THE TOYMAKER — is telling you he loves you the moment he decides you're the one for him. he does this with all of his victims. but you won't be like the rest, surely. you'll stay, and never need anyone other than him. but he doesn't realize that he's truly, deeply, in love with you until it just hits him while he's in the middle of sewing up some random stuffed animal. jason loves you. it's a revelation that shouldn't shock him, but it does.
and the next time he sees you, the words are tumbling out of him mouth as he wraps his arms around you, squeezing you so tightly that you felt like you'd suffocate in his arms. you were the one for him. you had to be. nobody has ever made him feel like this before. the place where his heart should be burned whenever you were around, and it's such an odd feeling that he was becoming obsessed with. you can't leave him, and he won't let you even if you tried.
THE PUPPETEER — staunchly refuses to acknowledge his feelings for you for a very long time. he's always had a bit of a soft spot for you the moment he made you his proxy, but he ignored it. he'd even get angry if anyone brought it up, because no. he is not in love with you. you're merely a tool for him to use, nothing more. but as time went on, it was getting harder and harder to ignore the aching in his chest whenever you were around.
it all tips over when he catches you carefully tending to emra's injuries while he had been away. he's been known to be very possessive of his creations, not letting anyone touch them but him. but you hadn't known when he'd be back, and emra needed her hand fixed, and he just... you were being so careful with her, treating her like the masterpiece that she was. he'll never say the words, but you'll know in the way he's gentler with you. the way his touch lingers, and the way golden strings always seem to coil around you whenever he's near.
THE DOLL MAKER — seems like the type of person who will only truly fall in love with someone who is as passionate about his work as he is. the moment he catches you carefully moving one of his dolls around like it was something to be treasured, or if you decide to make little accessories to match the outfits he designs... well, the wedding is already planned out in his head and he's wondering when to pop the question.
in all seriousness, he'd take his time before he ever told you how he felt. vine isn't experienced in the world of romance, so he doesn't know when the right timing would be to confess his love. he just hopes that it's something that he's made obvious in his other actions. but when he does decide to tell you those three words, he hopes that you'll say them back.
ZALGO — similarly to slender, did not think he could feel such an emotion. he was a being that transcended human understanding, after all. he made people go insane with a single thought, so how could he ever possibly feel something such as love? the mere idea was enough to have him laughing. no. something such as that wasn't possible. but then you come into his life. a strange, curious human with far too much confidence around an eldritch horror.
zalgo will make you understand the horrors that come with having him love you. you became a deity in the eyes of his numerous cults, essentially. there's no telling how many people have been sacrificed in your honor. how many loved ones you've lost, simply because you had made a creature beyond your understanding love you. it's not pretty. it's cruel, and gruesome, and you will never be able to leave him.
X-VIRUS — is that slow burn sort of realization. honestly, he seems like he's the type to be oblivious to romance unless it's laid on thick. to him, for a long time, you're just a really close friend who sometimes helps him with his experiments. cody will only realize his feelings for you if you start spending time with someone other than him. your absence is something he becomes painfully aware of, to the point that it makes it impossible to focus on anything.
he's not the possessive type by any means, but there's this feeling of jealousy in his gut when he sees you with someone else. that's when it clicks in his mind, 'oh. i'm in love.'. i want you to picture a classic friends to lovers romance, with a side of medical experimentation and murder. cody would like to think his confession was super romantic and the greatest thing ever, but no. no, he stumbles over his words, he's nervous, and he's just hoping you'll reciprocate his feelings.
LAUGHING JILL — finds herself falling in love with you when she realizes she can feel when you're around. the usual bitterness and anger that she felt on a constant always seemed to die down around you, and that joy that she came into existence with bubbled to the surface. it was childish, almost, the way she got excited whenever you wanted to include her in something. no matter how small, she took any excuse she could just to spend time with you.
it's too the point where jill feels as if she cannot exist without you. you've become so intertwined with her existence that she feels as if she'll die without you. it's unhealthy, and she knows this, but she finds it hard to care when the happiness you bring with you was just too addicting for her to give up.
CANDY POP — wasn't the type to grow attached to people easily. he had friends, sure, but it had taken him ages to actually refer to them as such. to him, everyone is a toy for him to play with however he pleases. you were meant to be just that, and yet you somehow turned the tables on him and he ended up falling in love with you like a pathetic fool. it's a realization that has him reeling, because he didn't think love was something he was capable of.
candy tries to be the picture perfect suitor you could only dream of having, he really does, but if you're not reciprocating his feelings within the first week of him confessing to you, he's dropping the act and just taking you for himself. you lost all choice in the matter the moment he entered your life, actually. and if you're really adamant on getting away from him, then trust that he will not hesitate to drag you into the abyss he's tethered to.
DR SMILEY — won't realize he's in love with you until you're already dead. you were just a victim of his that he kept around far longer than he normally did, but the silence that surrounded him when you were no longer around was... haunting. he tries to replace you, thinking another victim crying and begging for mercy would fill the silence but it just wasn't the same.
they didn't make his heart race the way you had. he didn't feel that excitement he had felt when he was with you. he won't call it love, but it was a strong enough feeling that it had him gathering the pieces of your body. he's a doctor. he'll stitch you back together, and bring you back to him. and when you wake from the dead to see the sharp smile of the man who killed you, you'll realize that there's truly no escaping him.
KAGEKAO — isn't a stranger to romance. he's had his fair share of relationships, what with sadie and then realizing he's gay and the awkward breakup that came with that, plus the numerous flings and situationships. you were meant to be nothing more than another situationship, and maybe even a victim if he got bored of you, but... that boredom never came. and neither did the end of your weird relationship.
kagekao somehow always ended up at your place whenever he wasn't off tormenting some poor soul. then he started to pop up whenever he was bored, and he'd somehow always end up staying the night. there were times when he'd even bring over some cheap takeout and wine. he knew he was gone when you rested your head on his lap while you two were watching some silent film, and the movie suddenly seemed irrelevant to the feeling of you. ah... you'll keep him entertained for a while, he's sure of it.
NATHAN THE NOBODY — is so obsessed with finding the people who kidnapped his sister that he never has the energy to focus on anything else. anyone he perceived to be part of the organization was an immediate target, and that's basically everyone he meets. so you have to be real special right off the bat for him to even not think about killing you. and lucky for you, you were his sister's best friend. you weren't part of the organization, you were safe. you could be trusted.
so when someone tries hurting you, it's like the entire world narrows down to that person. crystal would hate if anything happened to you, and nathan... seeing your face contort in pain had this sick feeling in his chest. you were terrified of him, the blood on his hands sticking to your skin as he pulls you into a suffocating hug, his heart pounding. the thought of losing you had never occurred to him, and while he doesn't label the feeling as love, he definitely doesn't plan on letting anything happen to you. no matter what, he'll keep you safe.
ZERO — cannot feel love the way other people feel it. love isn't even in her vocabulary. her only interest in this world is to kill anyone she comes across, to revel in their pain and agony because that's just how she is. yet somehow, she took an interest in you. you can kiss your normal life goodbye, because the moment she decides you're worth keeping around, she's not letting you go until she wants you dead. in her mind, you belong to her now.
so it's not love. not a healthy kind, at least. it's a desire to own, a need to claim. don't worry, though, she'll make sure to take good care of you. anyone who causes you trouble is nothing more than another story for the local news, and all she wants in return is a simple thank you and kiss on the cheek. she loves playing house with you! she'll be a great girlfriend as long as you play along.
JUDGE ANGELS — is wholly oblivious to romance as a whole. her entire life, she was sheltered. even years after becoming the murderer she is today, she never formed any bonds with people. none that were positive, at least. but then you came along. someone that dina found herself getting attached to the longer she spent time with you. she didn't understand why her heart raced whenever you got too close to her, and the feeling was overwhelming enough that she ended up pushing you away because she thought it was something bad.
with enough time, and exposure, she'll come to realize that the feelings she has for you aren't bad. she'll always be worrying about doing something wrong that'll make you hate her enough to leave her. you're the first person she's ever loved, the first person to love her. she can't lose that. just promise that you won't leave her, even if you stop loving her.
KATE THE CHASER — shouldn't have fallen in love to begin with. her sole reason of existence was slenderman, so she shouldn't care for anything else. she kept herself distant from the other proxies for that reason, because she didn't feel the need to connect with anyone. she was fine in her solitude. she wasn't meant to fall in love, so why does she feel so alive when you spend time with her?
you were always accommodating to her, visiting her when it was dark out and making sure you never shined your flashlight at her whenever you two went on walks through the forest. it's a relationship that will never work out, because proxies aren't meant to be anything but a vessel for slender. and yet, as time goes on, her feelings only get stronger and stronger, and she wonders... maybe it's okay to be selfish and indulge in you.
ROUGE THE PROXY — certainly didn't think she would fall in love after everything she's been through, and yet here she is, hovering around you like a guard dog as you dealt with the target you were meant to kill. she knew you could handle yourself, you're a proxy after all, yet she stood there, waiting. even after the mission was over, she would linger for a bit just to make sure you were safe.
her feelings for you are no secret. every proxy, including you, were aware of the special place you had in her heart. yet your relationship with her was so vague. she hasn't asked you out, but you two already act as if you're dating. it's this really strange 'will they, won't they' situation that all the proxies have made bets on. she's content with how things are now, though, so it might take time for her to actually verbalize her feelings for you.
TIM WRIGHT — is a little more confident before the events of marble hornets, so if he realizes he's in love with you during that time period, he won't have too much trouble telling you. maybe he'll need brian to hype him up a bit, and maybe he'll be a bit awkward when he does tell you that he's head over heels in love with you, but he still manages to tell you.
but tim during and after the events of marble hornets? total opposite. everyone he knew and loved died, and it's all his fault. how could he ever allow himself the privilege of your love when it's something he knows he doesn't deserve? even if you were to try and take the initiative, he'd turn you down. you can do so much better than him. getting close to him is basically signing your death certificate, and he's already lost so much. he's not sure if he can bear the pain of losing you, too.
BRIAN THOMAS — out of the entire marble hornets cast, save for maybe jessica, is the most in tune with his emotions. the moment he developed a romantic interest in you, he was asking you out. when he wasn't helping alex with marble hornets or hanging out with tim, he was taking you out on dates and solidifying his interest in you. he had actually planned on dropping the love bomb after the filming wrapped up, but...
even though he can't remember, he knows you. the man in the hoodie feels something for you. it's different from the protectiveness he feels for tim. for some reason, he doesn't want you involved in this mess. the moment jay reaches out to you and drags you in, he's doing everything he can to get you out. there were cryptic warnings directed towards you specifically, and when jay or tim weren't around, you'd sometimes catch him watching. you were scared, but you had made a vow that you wouldn't back out until you find brain.
JAY MERRICK — didn't think he'd really fall in love with someone while investigating the tapes, but he did. hard. he had met you early on since you were the first person part of the marble hornets crew he was able to get into contact with. it's almost scary how easily you guys hit it off. before things went to shit, jay really thought you two would become good friends. and unfortunately, jay doesn't realize he's in love with you until he's dying.
his entire life flashed before his eyes the moment alex shot that gun, and all he could think about was you. you, who stood by his side throughout this whole experience. you, who desperately tried to keep him from getting in too deep. you, who he had carelessly shrugged off because the operator's influence was far too strong. he can only hope you make it out of this hell alive.
ALEX KRALIE — will never realize he's in love with you post-operator. the feelings will be there, but he's already too far gone to go deep into what they might mean. all he knows is that he's desperate to kill you first, to get you out of this mess early on. it's because you two are close friends, that's all. and the hollow feeling left afterwards if he's successful is a price he's willing to pay.
but pre-operator alex will find himself falling in love with you when you support his passions. the moment he talks about marble hornets with you, you're passionate about supporting him, and it had him getting all nervous. he'll even offer you a role in the project, either as an actor or just crew if you're not comfortable with being filmed. anything to be able to spend more time with you. he had planned on asking you out on an official date when filming wrapped up.
JESSICA LOCKE — is stuttering over her own words the moment she locks eyes with you for the first time, because she is just that captivated by you. it's not love at first sight, but she definitely wants to take you out on a date. it's only with amy's encouragement that she actually does, and you two just... naturally hit it off that it sorta became a casual thing.
but she realizes she's in love with you when all this shit with marble hornets has blown over, and you're the first person she thinks of. she'd been missing for months, and you probably thought she had ghosted you. it's a little mortifying, honestly. she can't explain what happened, but she hopes you'll be willing to let her back into your life. because she really really really wants to be your girlfriend.
