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Au: Regular
Requested
Tags/Warnings: F!Reader, mentions of death, depression, survivors guilt, poor coping mechanisms, hopefully shouldn't be too triggering though?
Word Count: 2.3k+
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At the end of the neighbourhood street sat a dimly lit house. In the front yard, falling leaves had gathered, and the garden plants had started to wilt and shrivel. No sounds came from inside. The only clue to the neighbours that someone still resided there was the occasional light turning on and the cycle of teenagers that visited in the evening.
They took turns. On Mondays, a tall man came in carrying large bags of groceries, popping the front door open with his shoulder and leaving within an hour. On Tuesdays, a girl with long shining hair would enter with a clipboard and papers with empty spaces for a signature. Once the sun began to set, she'd leave, forms signed. Wednesdays saw a stocky-looking teen, peeking his head through the door before entering. Thursdays and Fridays you would enter, voices audible from a few houses down until they left late at night. On Saturday morning, a boy with prematurely grey hair would enter, followed by a black-haired one with a car, around lunch. The two would stay the weekend before leaving Sunday evening, both getting in the car.
If they didn't show on those days, none would show in groups greater than two, and someone else was there to take their place.
The neighbours, watching quietly from their windows or porches, only learnt why three weeks later.
"Kuroo, can you get the door?"
"Sure thing!"
Sugawara leaned against the bedroom door in the furthest corner of the house, eyes closed as he listened to any sounds that crawled out.
"It was Ms. Tachibana again. She brought fresh cookies!" Kuroo's voice echoed through the silent house.
"What kind?" Sugawara asked, opening his eyes as the black-haired teen approached the corner with a large container in his arms.
"Uh, matcha butter cookies?"
Sugawara got to his feet and opened the container, grabbing a handful in one of the napkins tucked into the side and sliding them underneath the crack in the door before knocking. "Good, let's go to the kitchen and make something to eat."
"Are you sure it's a good idea to leave her like that?" Kuroo asked, sitting down at the kitchen counter, taking a cookie himself.
Sugawara sighed, "I honestly don't know. It's the only thing she'll consistently eat, though. It's not ideal. I want to be in there and help directly. But, it's hard. Hard to help but also be strong enough too. I can't go in there and start crying; that'll just worsen things."
