Rorschach X Reader Oneshots | Watchmen

2. Overprotection

You mentally cursed yourself. You knew you didn't have enough time tonight to finish that last report, but no, you just had to get it done. Now, here you were at some unearthly hour of the night, trying to walk home as quickly as you could without attracting unwanted attention.

You really wished you could kick yourself.

  Hugging your coat tighter around yourself, you cut through an alley that you knew would lead straight to your home street. You had taken the shortcut dozens of times, so you were fairly confident you'd make it home in no time.

You just had to jinx it.

Just as you were about to make your exit right onto your street, a man rounded the corner. You knew instantly from the chill that ran down your spine that he wasn't just walking home like you.

You averted your eyes to the pavement below your feet and focused on putting one foot in front of the other, hoping you could avoid incident. You felt a hand hit your shoulder, roughly pushing you back. You stumbled, but remained upright.

"Hey!"

You began to protest, but the man rushed forward, a switchblade dangerously close to your throat. You swallowed thickly, slowing raising your hands in defence.

"Wallet," he growled. "Now".

"Sure," you said, trying your best to remain calm. "It's in my pocket. I'm just going to grab it, okay?"

The man grunted and you took that as an approval. Careful not to make any sudden moves, you lowered one hand and fished your wallet out of your pocket. You held it up for him to see before tossing it a short distance away.

The pressure of the knife left your throat as the man all but scrambled to get your wallet. You turned and started sprinting towards the other end of the alley, hoping to put precious distance between you and the mugger.

Before you even reached the sidewalk, however, you heard a thud, followed shortly by a yell. You spun around and saw the man pinned against the wall with his arm wrenched painfully behind his back.

And who else was holding him but Rorschach himself.

You couldn't help but stand there like a deer in headlights as you watched the scene before you. Rorschach was obviously threatening him – why else would he be talking to him? – but you couldn't make out the words. You could make out the brutal crack as Rorschach probably broke his arm. You grimaced as the man screamed, but was soon silenced as Rorschach used the brick wall he was up against to knock him out.

  You watched as Rorschach collected your wallet from the ground, then approached you. He silently held it out to you, which you tentatively accepted.

  "Thanks," you started out quietly, "but you didn't have to do that."

  "He attacked you," Rorschach said simply.

  "He didn't hurt me," you countered. "You didn't have to break his arm."

  "Dislocated his shoulder," Rorschach corrected.

  You waved a hand. "Whatever. What I'm trying to say is the crime didn't deserve the punishment."

"Crime always deserves punishment," Rorschach said.

You sighed, running a hand down your face. You knew arguing with Rorschach was going to get you no where, yet you couldn't help yourself.

"You don't have to tail me from the shadows every time I leave my house, you know," you said. "I'll be fine."

"You weren't tonight," Rorschach stated flatly.

"It was under control," you reasoned.

Rorschach pointed at the unconscious body of your assailant. "Tried to hurt you."

"Oh, is that what this is?" You huffed. "Just personal revenge because we have a thing together?"

Rorschach jabbed a finger at your chest. "I will protect you whether you like it or not," he growled.

"Well, I wish you wouldn't!" You snapped.

A deathly silence fell over the alley. Rorschach crossed his arms tensely over his chest, looking away from you. Almost instantly, you felt the shame pooling in your gut. It wasn't that you disliked having Rorschach look out for you. It was just that he was so overprotective, sometimes you felt like you couldn't breathe. You could handle yourself just fine and you didn't appreciate being treated like some fragile thing that might break. You supposed that's where your anger was stemming from.

You let out a heavy sigh. "Look... I'm sorry, Rorschach, I just..." Another sigh. "I don't know. I'm sorry for yelling. I didn't really mean it."

Rorschach let out a huff, still not meeting your eyes. The silence dragged on, making the air in the alley feel thick and heavy. You knew Rorschach was probably still mad, but you hoped he wasn't mad enough to break off the timid bond the two of you had formed.

  Another moment or two passed. Rorschach turned away from you, still fuming, and hopefully processing. You idly tapped your fingers together as you waited for any kind of reaction.

  "Sorry," he finally mumbled, so quietly you would have missed it were you not paying attention.

  You nodded, even though Rorschach wasn't looking at you. It was more to yourself than anything, a confirmation that the two of you had successfully worked through this little spat. That eventually, things would be okay again.

  "Well," you started, your tone conversational. "It's pretty late. I should probably get home before anything else happens to me."

  Rorschach let out a terse hum. "Walk you home?"

  You bit your lip to keep from smiling. You knew this was his way of apologizing, even more so than actually saying sorry. You knew there was no way you could say no, even if you were still a teensy bit angry.

  "I'd like that," you answered.

  Rorschach didn't respond, didn't turn to face, but simply motioned you forward with a hand. You began walking with him, knowing he wouldn't be particularly chatty on the walk to your house. Rorschach had a tendency to stew over things, even after they were resolved. You knew he just needed time and you were more than happy to give it to him.

  No matter how long it took, things were going to be okay, and that was enough. That was enough.

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ahhhh another one done!

i feel like this one turned out really good! i'm proud of it x3

i hope y'all enjoyed it! i'm having a lot of fun writing these oneshots☺️