▲ proximity || • [ bill x reader ] ▲

▲ 2 | Isolate ▲

You just stood there, absolutely surprised until you finally took notice that your brother was choking. When he finally calmed down, you blurted out, "B/N?"

He stood up and whispered quietly, "Excuse me," to the girl on the opposite side of the table and she just replied with a quick nod. You gave a glare to the girl, one she most definitely did not deserve since your bad mood was only attributed to an earlier incident, and had nothing to do with her. Your cold stare made her own eyes widen slightly before making her turn away. You shifted slightly, feeling guilty before a harsh grip on your body tugged you from your thoughts.

B/N grabbed you by the arm and dragged you outside of the diner, the same way a mother would pull their child by the ear to the naughty corner. You frowned, "Ow- sto-"

"Y/N," he began, his hands extended in front of him, palms facing you, "I don't have time to talk to you right now... because... well, I'm on a date, alright? I'll catch up with you later, I'll be at the Mystery Shack in an hour, just meet me there." His tone was alarmed, and rather hasty, and you managed to catch him before he made a full turn to walk back inside the diner.

"Hey-hey-hey, hold up. Mom said you were training and here you are! Why would she say that? Did she lie? Does she know your hours away from home?" You babbled quicker than your brain could think, but they were just the questions you were hoping would be answered.

But? Instead? Your brother shook his head, muttered a 'later' and walked back into Greasy's Diner.

You stood there, absolutely dumbfounded. Your mother said that he was training with your dad. You always knew when she's lying. Her voice would stutter slightly and her tone would be a higher pitch than usual. Then why did she say your brother was with dad? And how was he so far away from home and left undetected. 

Maybe he actually was but considering how far away from home you were there was no way he could get here before you. You put your hand under your chin and paced outside the doors, thinking of every possible variable. Yes, your brother had been distant, ever since he learned that you were moving out. If he had slipped out of your Dad's watchful eye, he STILL wouldn't have been able to get here until another 3 hours at least.

Ever since you left, you grew distant from him, but when you saw him in Greasy's Diner, he seemed to know something you didn't.

So you're either crazy, mum's crazy, or he's just crazy.

You ran a shaky hand through your hair and decided to look for the place he told you to meet. You needed an explanation.

The Mystery Shack, he said. You frowned and looked around for anyone to help you. A small plump cop and a taller, thinner one stood next to the other leaning against their police car. They seemed to be laughing at each other's jokes or something.

You ran over to them, "Hey, excuse me for interrupting, but can you please show me where the Mystery Shack is?"

The smaller one with glasses and a moustache stopped and glanced at you and pointed to the path you came from, "Uh, this is just a guess but I believe it's few metres over there."

That's very helpful, officer, thanks.

"Hm, ok, thank you." The thinner cop whispered something to the other and they both started giggling like idiots. You rolled your eyes as you walked back to the direction they pointed at, and once out of sight, you sprinted, anxious to sit somewhere much more relaxed and stable.

After a few minutes of following on and off the path, you somehow wandered into the forest alongside it. You internally groaned but decided to continue anyway, thinking you couldn't possibly get more lost than you already are.

As you continued, a small hint of light blinded your vision for only a mere second, but it was enough to spike your interest of the source. Something, metal, perhaps? That idea made excited you, convincing you that you had finally encountered a more urban area.

With a few glances to the left and right, the light shined in your eyes again, and you realised it was just diagonal to you. Nearing the origin, you were surprised to find yourself holding your hands over your face to shield away from the intensity. Your pace quicked, running towards the light.

Finally, you stopped when you saw a statue half stuck into the ground. It was glimmering from the sunlight, despite all the moss that was growing on it, and the stone exterior made a surprising reflection of light. It was all on its own, completely isolated from the rest of the world. It didn't come to that much of a surprise when you realised how long you had been walking around, deep into the forest to find something as bizarre as this.

A direct beam was glowing towards its hand, which was extended out, as if to expect someone to hold or shake it.

A crazy thought ran through your mind. You stepped closer to the statue to have a better look. It was quite odd, it's appearance.

It was a triangle, with an eye and top hat. You felt a sudden pull towards it, an urge. Its extended hand seemed to be calling your name in whispers, Y/N, let's make a deal.

Shivers ran down your back as you approached it, only a metre away now.

"What the hell is this?" you asked yourself audibly, wondering if maybe the strange voice you were hearing whispering into your ear would answer your question, but to no avail.

Tick tock, kid.

You hesitated, "How lonely do I have to be to be shaking hands with a statue? Am I really that far gone?" You muttered aloud, smiling a little. The stare you had on the statue brought your attention back, and your demeanour changed to be more serious. Your hand was only a few centimetres away before a strike of nostalgia shot through you like a bullet.

You faltered for a moment - like you snapped out of a trance - and your attention was stolen from something in your peripheral vision.

An axolotl?

You didn't know they lived in these parts, you've read that they're almost extinct. Sad, really, but that's not what made you suspicious. An axolotl out of water? It was rested nicely on a large rock, and it stuck its tongue out at you before moving away.

You shook your head and thought back to the matter at hand.

Meeting my brother in the Mystery Shack. Right.

-----
◬ Date Published: 19/01/2018◬
◬ Word Count: 2251◬
-----