Deadbeat (A Gorillaz 2D x Female Reader fanfic)

Chapter 2: The Winnebago

You'd been driving for nearly ten hours straight, now, and you and Syd were in desperate need of a place to stretch your legs, take a whizz, and most importantly, rest. ''There's a rest stop or something at the next exit." Sydney yawned as she traced her finger along the map. You drove for another minute before seeing the exit with the signs indicating hotels and restaurants. You turned down that road and was surprised that this rest stop didn't seem particularly... Restful.

There were bright, flashing lights running up and down the street filled with motels, restaurants, bars, gas stations, bars, and nightclubs. 'Perfect' you thought to yourself. 'Syd and I can stretch our legs by going dancing, grab something to eat afterwards, and then find a place to crash for tonight. You pulled into the parking lot of a nightclub and Sydney's eyes light up- neither of you had ever been inside a club before, but you figured it would make a good 18th bday treat for the both of you. "Let's go!" You exclaim as the two of you quickly fix up your hair and makeup before strutting into the nightclub.

Once you get inside, you notice that the club is fairly lively with a bar, pool table area, and dance floor. You begin to feel a bit shy but decide to keep looking dignified as more and more people start to stare at you and Sydney. You begin to head towards the dance floor as Phone Numbers by Dominic Fike begins playing, but you see Sydney head straight to the bar. " Two virgin Blue Lagoons!" she orders cheerily " My friend and I JUST turned 18 and we're celebrating!" she cheered, her contagious good mod causing everybody in the bar area to either raise a glass or cheer alongside her.

You walked up to the counter and squeezed in beside Sydney as the barkeep made the two cocktails. "Don't tell anyone, but there's some alcohol in this on me. Happy birthday, ladies." the barkeep said, winking knowingly at the two of you. You grabbed your drink and took a sip, swaying to the music before you noticed a thin male silhouette saunter up to the bar and take the only free space, which just so happened to be next to Syd.

" Ah, to be young, pretty, and new to the world- to be 18 is pretty great, ain't I right ladies?" the silhouette asked in a drawling but convivial rasp. He had a surprising British accent, which was pretty interesting to hear all the way put from any particularly large cities in the United States. You smiled and nodded at the dark silhouette, making sure to keep an eye on Sydney's drink. The man made no move toward you or Sydney's drinks, though, but you couldn't shake off the feeling that even though a part of you found his presence likeable, he was also kinda creepy. Conversation flowed between the man and Sydney before he ordered another round of drinks.

"Hey, 'keep, a scotch for me and two cranberry juices for these... Kiddies, here!" the man called out. The bartender nodded, pouring a glass of scotch and two glasses of normal cranberry juice for you and Syd. You weren't sure if he had referred to tge two of you as "kiddies" or "kitties", but you weren't going to refuse a free drink.  You take a sip of the delightfully tart juice and begin to feel like a third wheel as Syd and the shadowy man talk about Nirvana, Guided By Voices, and TV on The Radio.

"Hey, Syd, I'm gonna head on out to the dance floor, ok? Holler if you need me!" You say as you begin to shimmy away inch by inch to where all the other dancing bodies were. Sydney nodded to you in acknowledgment and waved you off to have fun before returning to the conversation she was having. You started dancing and having a great time while keeping an eye on your friend across the club. After two more songs' worth of dancing, though, you feel something hard rubbing against your back side.

"What the-" you spin around, feeling completely grossed out and confused. The person you see dancing so provocatively behind you was a man that could have easily been twice your height and five times your weight in sheer muscle alone from the looks of it. He had scars on his face, no doubt from being in fights, but even without the scars, you could tell he wasn't a particularly handsome or kind person. His arms were covered in "edgy" prison tattoos and he smelled like unchecked underarm odor. Needless to say you felt a little bit intimidated.

"What's the matter, little thing? Don't mond me; keep dancing!" the humongous man leered. You weren't really having much fun, anymore, but you took another swig of your cranberry juice and started dancing towards a different area of the floor. The man grabbed you by your arm and held you in place. "Where are you going, little thing?" he asked, his voice sounding as though he were getting annoyed. " I told you to keep dancing! I didn't tell you to go anywhere!" He said before letting out a thunderous chuckle at how uncomfortable you clearly looked.

You began to look around the club with a panicked expression on your face. "S-SYDNEY?!" you called out, but the music was so loud you were sure that she probably couldn't hear you. Your eyes darted towards the bar, but you couldn't find your best friend OR the silhouetted man anywhere near there. You felt your heart beat began to quicken. Had Sydney been kidnapped and were you about to be next?! You felt bile try to rise up in your stomach as you noticed several people uncomfortably watch the humongous man gyrate on you as you tried to escape.

'Why aren't any of these people helping me?' you thought to yourself as felt waves of helplessness and anger flow through your body each time another person avoided eye contact with you. "Hey, big fella" a raspy British voice taunted from behind you. You whipped your head around at the familiar sound and saw the shadowy figure from the bar standing beside you and the perverted giant. A hopeful feeling lights up your mood a bit; had he come to save you?

" The fuck do you want, man?" pervy giant asked. The silhouetted man said nothing, but quickly raised his leg and axe kicked the giant man's forearm that was holding you hostage. You winced as you heard a loud snap of bone breaking and your own arm was immediately released. Suddenly you felt someone grab your hand and looked to see Syd coming to your rescue as well. ''C'mon, y/n! We have to get out of here!" she said with a panicked voice.

Before you could hug or answer your friend, the pervy giant bum-rushed the man that saved you into the bar and began to repeatedly punch him in the face. You felt a drop of blood squirt onto your face, which left a cold feeling on the pit of your stomach; that disgusting freak was going to kill the guy that helped you if you didn't do something about it quickly. Everyone in the nightclub began freaking out at the sight of the fighting as the barkeep began to yell out for the bouncers. Before you could stop yourself, you grabbed the biggest bottle that you could reach from the shelf and smashed it as hard as you could into the back of the pervert's head.

The gigantic man slumped over in pain, his own head cut and bleeding now with alcohol seeping through the cuts. "Shoot! The bouncers are coming!" Sydney exclaims, and you see two muscly men wearing uniformed t-shirts making their way towards the bar. You and Syd pushed the large man off of your new acquaintance, who was holding his mouth and nose area to keep the blood from gushing everywhere, and the three of you quickly escaped from the club.

"Are you ok, sir? Do you need me and my friend to call you a ride?" you asked the bleeding man in front of you, helping him wipe the blood from his face. He shook his head and in a gravelly voice replied "No... I've got a Winnebago... Just take me there." You and Syd looked around the parking lot before your eyes landed on a cream colored camper. Following his instructions, the two of you helped the injured British man to the Winnebago before he rummaged through the pocket of his leather jacket and pulled out a set of keys.

Once he unlocked the door, you swung it open and helped him inside as She rummaged through the darkness to find the light. It was hard to describe exactly what it was, but the enclosed area smelled... Sleazy. It had a scent to it that reminded you of what you always imagined an adult bookstore in the 70s would have probably smelled like, mixed with the scent of leather, cheap alcohol, and cigarette smoke. You decided that it wasn't altogether unpleasant, but just not your style.

Finally, Sydney found the light switch and proper lighting flooded the entire vehicle, illuminating the face of the man before you. You and Syd both gasped as you recognized the tousled 60s mod bowlcut, leather jacket, inverted cross necklace, Cuban heeled boots, green skin, and generally mangled face in front of you. Speechless, the two of you looked at each other in excitement before glancing back at the poor blood-soaked British man that stood before you.

"YOU'RE MURDOC NICCALS!" the two of you shriek out, causing the celebrity bassist to slightly straighten up with pride before receiving a jolt of pain throughout his entire face. "That I am, girls- the one and ONLY bassist of the most famous band in the world; Gorillaz!" You and Sydney both glance back at each other in shock and then the next thing you knew, Syd passed out on the floor of Murdoc Niccal's Winnebago.