⍟ Broken Strings {A Chaos Theory x Male Reader Story - Yasmina}

𝟹. 𝙵𝚊𝚖𝚒𝚕𝚒𝚊𝚛 𝙵𝚊𝚌𝚎𝚜

Sammy slams her hand on the keypad over and over, the error screen coming up continuously. Y/N quickly grabs Smoothie and zips him into the backpack as a Dilophosaur jump out from the bushes.

It spits its relatively expected black goo at them, Kenji pushing Y/N and Sammy out of the way instinctively. The three of them roll to the ground and the simmering poison splats onto the elevator door.

Sammy snatches up the tablet that's fallen from her hands, and they get to their feet as quickly as they can. Kenji takes the lead, sprinting forward blindly. Sammy and Y/N follow, only for all three of them to be cornered by the predatory dinosaurs.

The creatures shriek, backing them into a wall before suddenly pausing, distracted by a load roaring in the distance. Sammy takes this opportunity and grabs Y/N by the arm, dragging him and Kenji along. The dinosaurs move to chase after them but hesitate again at the sound of roaring.

The trio doesn't stop running until they find cover, ducking behind a fallen log with haste. They lean back, catching their breath. Sammy peeks over the wood, making sure they're really save, plopping the backpack on the ground in the process.

Y/N gasps, noticing the familiar black goo staining the outside of the bag, "Guys..." He reaches forward to unzip it.

Kenji and Sammy take a sharp inhale in tandem, but when the bag is opened, Smoothie is revealed safe and sound, blinking his sleepy eyes.

Kenji breathes out a sigh of relief, lifting the dino to his face, "Aww, my baby boy. You're okay. You're okay."

"The venom didn't even seep through." Sammy observes the backpack, "That's some heavy-duty bag-making. We should have all out stuff made out of this."

"Well, at least the 'dork purse' is good for something." Y/N let's out a small chuckle, still reeling from the chase and the rush of worrying about Smoothie's safety.

"Yeah..." Kenji mimics the laugh, though noticeably glummer.

"Kenji, he's alright." Y/N reassures, stroking Smoothie's head.

"I know. I know..." The other man nods, "I just-- I-- I really wanna do right by this little guy. Everyone should feel protected by their parents." He sets the baby down.

"Lemme see if I can find Bumpy's location on this thing." Sammy turns to the tablet. But when she flips it over, the screen is completely shattered. She taps on it, hoping it'll still work somehow, but the screen only flickers.

Y/N opens his mouth to say something, but Sammy shakes her head, motioning over to Kenji. Y/N follows her gaze and observes the way Kenji's brow furrows and the grip he has on Smoothie.

"You're okay, Smoothie. It's all... It's all gonna be okay." Kenji fusses over the dino, coddling him, "I promise."

She's right, Y/N decides. Kenji's already under enough stress, there's no point in upsetting him some more.

"All good?" Kenji suddenly looks up at them, snapping out of his own little world.

"Uhm..." Y/N looks over at Sammy, "Yeah." He gets to his feet, holding a hand out for Kenji, "Come on. There's another Hyper Loop station."

"Yup..." Sammy nods nervously, glancing around for a moment before deciding on a direction, "This way! We'll find Bumpy in no time."

𓆝 𓆟 𓆞 𓆝 𓆟

As they walk along the same river, over the same log, and down the same ditch for possibly the 5th time, Y/N starts to reconsider his stance on lying to Kenji about the tablet. Sammy grips onto the device in question, leading the way through the looping forest.