•Lonely is more than an adjective• || A Number Five x Reader Story

Chapter 1 - 2002

The clang of metal meeting porcelain was the only noise that filled the space between the silence and the faint murmur of the record lecture drowning any semblance of amusement a meal might hold. It was too quiet, which meant the day was anything other than abnormal. I always hated the silence. It was so easy to draw everyone's attention; a slight slip of the foot knocking against the table; the crash of the spoon hitting the vegetable bowl after dropping it too quickly; the drag of my wings against the rough wooden flooring. I always hated the attention. Dad brought us a lot of attention. Not from him, of course, but a fair amount was supplied through publicity and superheroing. Another thing I hate. Putting ourselves in danger just because Dad says so. Not much one can do about that though, Dad's in-charge and will be for a long time. He likes the attention. I think the others do too. Maybe not Six. Six's like me; sane. I mean, as sane as one can be in this house.
A loud bang brought me out of my thoughts. Everyone's attention was cast down the table to the source, a knife now embedded in the table, curtesy of Five. He looked pissed, but then again, Five was usually pissed when talking to Dad, so it was yet to be apparent whether this was a normal day or not. His hand pulled away from the knife, leaving it stuck in the wood of the table.
"I want to time travel." This again. Since he found out there was even a slight possibility his abilities would allow him to, Five has been fixated on time travelling. I don't see the appeal of going somewhere you know no one and could destroy the space-time continuum with a single step, but each to their own I suppose. The argument was brewing, all attention now averted from the dreary voice of the man on the record. I can't even remember his name. Something German. The faint crack of Five moving through space filled the silence, and I found myself drawn to look at him as he stepped out of the blue void he created. He seemed more, insistent? than usual. Dad wasn't going to budge, but for some reason I felt like that wasn't going to affect Five this time. That was when he left. He just turned and stormed off. But he didn't head upstairs, and soon we all heard the click of the front door. Dad's shouts only stopped to mutter my name. I sighed and take off after Five. I made it to the door as he hit the gate. I could catch him easily as long as he didn't jump, which he was definitely going to do. I pushed myself forwards, reaching out to grab his shoulder, stop him leaving. The void opened as my hand grazed his blazer. My fingers ran through the thick air of the blue mist surrounding him and I shouted his name. But he was gone. And then my fingers wouldn't move. They crackled with blue light before it faded, leaving me frozen, reaching out into the street after nothing.

I was stranded mid-flight, frozen in place in the middle of the street, drawing all the attention I could ever hope to avoid. However, given all the attention I did get, no one came to rescue me for several hours. Can't say I was too happy at that point. It took Dad three weeks to allow me to move again. I was incredibly stiff once I could sit up, and Dad left the room as soon as he could see I was fine again. Glad to know he cares. Pogo helped me out of the medical room, walking by me as I waddled along, trying to regain the strength in my legs from not using them for so long. It took me a few hours, but I was ambling through the house again in no time. The others responses varied to Dad's.  Well, One's didn't. We'd never been close, but I was still fairly offended by his nonchalancy towards my recovery. Two was a different story. The best big brothers are always there for you, but I could sense something was amiss. Three hugged me tight, her hair wafting into my face. Four was missing, but he wasn't usually around this time of day, so I couldn't say I was surprised. Six greeted me softly, but cheerfully. And Seven seemed more than glad to see me, hugging me tightly. I never realised how close we were till then, but I suppose quiet kids got to stick together.

Where's Five? It took me longer than I wanted to admit to notice he wasn't around. No one had mentioned anything, so I could only presume he was practicing off in some quiet area of the house. But it was getting dark. Even Four had reappeared and joined the living. Better find out if anyone knows anything.

I only noticed how quiet the house was when I walked up the stairs, the loud creaking as I put my weight on a step echoing through the large house. Something was definitely wrong. It took me a while to find someone, since they seemed to have locked themselves in their rooms. I knocked on Three's door, hoping she'd be most likely to open it. I was right.
"Eight? Do you need something?" I shut the door behind me before I walked in, perching myself on the end of Three's bed.
"I was just wondering if you'd seen Five anywhere? I don't think I've seen him all day." I could feel the air go stale as I spoke. Something was wrong. I knew something was wrong but I couldn't tell what, but something told me I was about to find out. Three looked scared. She didn't reply straight away, taking in a breath and taking my hand in hers.
"Eight... Five's been gone since he ran from the house a month ago."

Huh?