Born A Soldier (Reader X Herobrine)

Chapter Twenty-Eight

     "Ac-...a~aaaa-hA!" Your mouth broke loose, a pathetic sob squeezing from your lungs. He was so cold, so heartless. You had nearly forgotten his terrifying ways after seeing his "other side." You couldn't possibly imagine yourself forgiving the bad for the sake of the few good traits he had shown. Though he did seem to care on some level for a select few...that didn't make him any less a monster to everyone else. ...And you had witnessed first hand the tragedy of this man's double life. It hurt more that you knew this was the same guy who had at least attempted to comfort you after your nightmares. It only hurt MORE knowing this was the same man who was now taking off so much of his time just to help you recover. ....It killed your insides to realize you had grown to at the very least respect him. You couldn't hold back your sobs. Loud and full of pain they were, you simply couldn't hold it all in anymore.

     "Woah.. WOAH. Hey there... Is it really that bad??" Herobrine wiggled closer to you, a hand resting on your shoulder to see if that would calm you. It did the OPPOSITE. You wailed, half screaming, so loudly that it fully woke the others in the house. Manfrid tore past the curtains with terror in his purple eyes.

     "What happened?!"

     "I- I don't know! I think- I think- I th-think she might be reacting to ME?!"

     "Well then what did you DO!?!"

     "I DON'T KNOW!?!" The man behind you sounded equally confused. Anna peered past the curtain slowly, only one of her eyes watching you with horror filling it. She had never heard anyone cry so loudly. So raw and painful. Herobrine became extra nervous seeing all of the prying eyes on him. None knowing what to do, they waited for him to fix the problem. "Uh-uhh.." Herobrine was sitting in bed behind you now as he ran his fingers through his messy hair. He had no idea what to do! Like a desperate parent trying to quiet their firstborn baby, Herobrine carefully pulled you to him, sitting up, and leaned your back against him. "Shh, shhhh, it's going to be okay, (Y/n)... I won't hurt you... No one will hurt you... You are going to be okay..." Though he tried to sound calming, it was obvious anxiety alone was driving him. You fought to hold yourself together, contain your tears, and believe s he has said, but since you had started it felt like your usually ticked away emotions were never going to quit!

     "LET ME GO!" You at last had the lung capacity to cry out. Herobrine did just that, releasing you instantly. You flung away from him and off of the bed. Manfrid quickly caught you before you could land, but you were already yelping in pain. You struggled out of the old Enderman's hold as well. Even Anna you avoided. But they were surrounding you. All three. All in a stretched triangle around you. This filled you to the bone with anxiety. You had no escape! There was nowhere you could run and hide! No place where no one could see your face!

     A hand landed on your shoulder. Instantly, the world around you had vanished.

     Dark forest lay all around. Insects sung out of sight among the darkness. The sky was overcast, making it even darker than it had been the night before. It was also quieter... There was no rain. No thunder. No frightening lightning. Your head hurt terribly after being teleported. You nearly fainted then, even. But then your loud cries continued as before, now feeling free-er.. More alone. The hand on your shoulder lifted from you only briefly as the glowing eyed, humanoid man spun around you so he was facing you. Anger broke through his worried expression at last as he stared you, clutching both of your shoulders tightly.

     "Stop this!. Stop crying! You aren't like this! You aren't weak!" He coached. Not helping. You sat up on your knees, rocking back and forth as your arms hugged yourself tightly. "Listen to me, (Y/n), you are not weak!"

     "SO WHAT IF I AM?!" Suddenly reacting to the man's trying words. Your eyes glared up into his. This was certainly going to be a painful confession. "So what if I am the weakest person on the face of the earth!? What if inside I am nothing but a broken little girl who just wants to see her Daddy again!? WHAT IF!?!" Herobrine's stern eyes softened quickly as he studied your now frustration mixed with sorrow filled face. Teared fell as your eyes fumed.

     "...You're n-ot, though... You're- you're the strongest person I know!" Herobrine argued weakly. "...So strong, in fact, that you make me feel weak, (Y/n)!.. I finally figured it out; the very reason we ended up in this mess in the first place! It started not long after I took you to help me. I-it was so faint at first, I barely even noticed! But in time it grew... (Y/n), it grew the more I could trust you..." He leaned in a little closer, voice quieting, calming down some as he continued. "And then, at that dinner...heh, when you were wearing that handsome suit... I felt it the strongest... I.. I thought it was something else at first, as you know, but then, I started to notice that feeling only occured when I was around you... That weakness, so you could call it!.." The man's own face tensed, you wondered if he was going to start crying, too. "...It took me much longer than it should have...but I found out that feeling of weakness..was because of you..." He breathed.

     A pause was given to you so you had some time to think... You certainly needed it! Wait... So, you were just terrified of this man not a minute ago...and now he was confessing some form of love to you?... In what universe did this make any sense!?!

     "(Y/n)..?" His hand gently touched the bottom of your chin. Your jaw flinched away from it, eyes darting to again peer into the man's glowing ones. "(Y/n), I....think I may have caught feelings for you..." He announced through a faint whisper. His voice trailed at the end as his eyes studied your face. "...And now that feeling is strong again...but...I'm not scared." His voice wisped your way. "...I don't want you to be scared of me...(Y/n)... Please, don't be scared of me..." His face hovered even closer, now only an inch or two in front of yours. Your heart pounded in your chest as quiet breathing from both of you followed. The man held his face there for a while in thought. You had no idea how to respond.

     He leaned in an inch closer as his eyes half closed. A faint tap against your lips.. before you pulled away. Frantically, you fell over your feet into the grass. You gasped and panted after realizing what Herobrine had nearly just done. Herobrine's face shifted to mild hurt.

     "I- I- I can't just force my emotions to change just like that!!! N-n-NO! I- I still fear you! I never stopped fearing you!" You quickly added, "I may be loyal to you, but that doesn't change the fact that I am a dog on a chain!.. I follow you out of fear and force alone!... A-and there is no love! Not an ounce!.. S-sorry if you thought otherwise, but I'm j-just not interested!"

     Herobrine yanked you back up and wrapped his arms around you, careful still of your largest wound. "I'm so-rry for scaring you!" More like a yelp, the man quickly apologized. "I promise I'll never hurt you again! Not you, or your family, or your friends! It pains me to imagine you fearing me so! Not when you weaken my soul like no one else! Is this feeling a positive? I don't know!!" Herobrine had to stop himself there. He simply lost the ability to speak his mind. All he could do was pull you a little closer and rest his chin on your shoulder. Yes...in time..you even felt a couple drops of warm liquid seep into your shirt. The realization that Herobrine was crying, being genuine with you...shook you. "No...(Y/n)... You are not weak..." A small sob cracked his speech. "...It is I...who am weak..." You heard him sniffle. His arms crawled up your back more until he was just gripping around your shoulders tightly. Your knees were both entwining around each other's as you sat on them. "...That's why I need you..." The man admitted through a mere whisper. You sat stiffly, none of your body knowing quite what to do. It was like you were stuck. You were stuck...

     What could you possibly say or do..?

     Quivering vocal cords formed a careful lie. "...I forgive you..."