Lifeline (Scomiche)

Ten

"-No no no no, don't come in here. There's a rat."

He snapped out of his little panic moment of being paralyzed with fear and walked out of the kitchen, quickly and stiffly making his way onto the couch next to Mitch and crossing his legs so his feet wouldn't touch the floor. "I fucking hate it. I hate this place. Can y-" Scott flinched, thinking he saw something scurry across the room. He closed his eyes and groaned, shaking his head to try to clear his mind.

He knew he was beginning to imagine things but he also knew he wouldn't stop doing it for the rest of the night, even once the rat was taken care of. This complex was so old and dingy but it was his home, and he tended to forget how awful it was until he got an unpleasant reminder like this one. He hated rats and mice and anything in that realm and didn't even want to think about them infesting the tiny apartment. This was supposed to be his happy space, not a place he dreaded living in. All he'd wanted was to come back from the store and relax, but the rat had ruined his peace and the fact that it was still here was getting on his nerves. He flinched when he felt something skim his lap, relived when he realized it was just Mitch's hand. Shit. He knew he was going to be jumpy like this for the rest of the night. Of course something had to come along and ruin his day. It had been going so well that he'd almost forgotten the universe never allowed him to be at ease for too long.

Mitch gripped Scott's hand, wondering if he should try to get the rat out without killing it. He'd never done it before since he was almost as afraid as Scott, but it wouldn't hurt to try. He'd dissected enough of them at school that he could probably get over it this time, right? He was a grown man, he'd have to learn how to deal with live rats eventually. He explained to Scott what he was going to do and went to their utility closet to grab a broom before slowly approaching the kitchenette. He hesitated for a moment before taking a deep breath and stepping into it, waiting patiently for the rat to come out.

A few minutes passed and nothing happened, so Mitch began poking the broom under the cabinets just to get it overwith. When he tentatively stuck the head of the broom under the oven, the rat became startled and scurried out to relocate. It was big and grey and obviously very confused, scampering across the floor before running to hide under the fridge for cover. Mitch shrieked, throwing the broom at it and running back to the living room to climb onto the couch. He pulled his knees up and hugged his legs, shivering a little from the trauma of the rat being so close to him.

"Nooo! I hateeee itttttt!" Scott wasn't sure if he wanted to be closer to him because he thought Mitch was going to cry or if he was going to himself, but he scooted next to him either way. He'd really hoped that Mitch would get rid of it but he was reduced to a shaking mess and Scott wasn't doing much better himself. Scott wanted to comfort him but was too stressed out himself to even try to help. He was getting more and more paranoid and he wanted the rat out now, and with Mitch shivering next to him he didn't know what to do. "I can't do it, Scott, I can't. I'm gonna go get Ms. Ahmed again."

"Don't. We can just...we can sleep in the car or something. We shouldn't bother her."

Mitch groaned impatiently. "Don't be stupid, we're not bothering her. She'll take care of it. I'm not sleeping in the car and I'm absolutely fucking not staying here while that thing's still in the kitchen. I hate it so much. I'm gonna go get her, I'll be right back." He gave Scott's knee a squeeze before quickly shuffling across the room to the door, fumbling to get it unlocked while nervously keeping an eye out for the rat. Scott immediately got off the couch and sprinted to join him, terrified at the thought of being in there alone.

"Hurry up! Let me-" he shoved Mitch aside and quickly unlocked the door, relief flooding through him when they made it to the other side and Mitch closed the door behind them. Scott whined, jittery and annoyed at he situation. He hadn't even finished putting everything away, it could be chewing up the dropped boxes of pasta right now. He whimpered at the thought, visibly upset, and Mitch snapped his fingers to try to pull him out of his thoughts.

"Hey! Stop that. Breathe. It's gonna be okay." He took a step closer to Scott, gently pressing him back into the door and wrapping his arms around him to try to comfort him. Scott pushed him away, cringing, and Mitch looked at him with a hurt expression. "Scott!"

"Don't touch me! I'm scared!"

"Shh! People can hear us, they're gonna start thinking things and call the fucking cops on me!" What was Scott thinking yelling 'don't touch me' in the hallway knowing damn well how thin the walls were? He tried not to get angry, knowing Scott didn't mean for them to get in trouble. He really did seem shaken and Mitch knew he couldn't help how strongly he was reacting. "I was just trying to help. I know you're scared, baby, but you need to relax. We're gonna go to Ms. Ahmed and she's gonna take care of the rat for us. Nothing to worry about, okay?"

Scott shook his head hesitantly, wanting to believe him. Mitch was making it sound way too simple. Of course it wouldn't be okay, the fact that there even was a rat in their apartment meant there was a chance that there were more. Not to mention the rat was big, and he had no idea how long it had been living in the kitchen. What had it been eating? They never left any food out. It didn't seem possible but they'd both seen it and it was very real. And very, very scary. There were too many thoughts running through his head so he mumbled a quiet "okay," waiting for Mitch to take control of the situation and make the next move. The brunette gave Scott a moment to calm down before offering Scott his hand and leading him down the hall, stopping a few doors away from the elevator. He gave it a few firm knocks and waited.

I know this chapter is kinda short and uneventful but the whole thing was so long I had to cut it off somewhere😬 The next chapter is gonna be quite long, so grab a snack, henny. I love writing this story and building up the characters so much, thank you guys for being so patient with me😭💕