"Ugh- I lost again!" I exclaimed, throwing my head back in defeat. Michael snickered at me. "I told you that you can't beat me at Space Duel. I'm just too good-" I quickly cut him off. "I beat you at Space Duel in the arcade you dumbass!" I exclaimed and his smirk dropped, a sheepish look replacing it. "Yeah, but that was because...it was an arcade." He stated and I rolled my eyes. 'Sure, whatever you-" Before I could finish my sentence, the living room door swing open, revealing two kids and a exhausted looking Mr. Afton.
The storm ragged on outside, causing the three to quickly rush inside, slamming the door behind them. Mr. Afton shrugged off his trench coat and hung it on the coat hanger by the door, ruffling his hair to rid it of any excess water. The man quickly exited the room, sparing me a small wave before locking himself in his workshop. Elizabeth was giggling as she spun in a circle, raindrops flying from her skirt, a large grin settled on her face. C.C was clutching his Fredbear plushie close to his chest, his wet hair draping over his eyes.
I peered over the couch at them, causing Elizabeth to notice me and brighten up. "(N/N)!" She exclaimed and C.C swept the hair from his face, looking up at me with a small smile. The two trotted over to me, Liz quickly swinging herself into my lap. "Ack- Lizzy, you're soaking! You're getting my clothing wet!" I whined as she wrapped her arms around my neck, giggling.
"You mean my clothing," Michael butted in, smirking at me. I rolled my eyes. "Yeah, yeah. Your clothing." I was currently wearing a pair of gray sweatpants and a plain black shirt, both of which were oversized on me. Michael said he didn't want to give me one of his band shirts because I would steal it, which was fair. The boy sent me a smile before switching off the TV, putting the console back in place as I dealt with the child sitting on my lap.
Elizabeth pouted and leaned back, accidentally putting pressure on my upper knee, causing me to wince in pain. "Ow, Eli don't sit there," I said, but before I could move her, Michael swooped her up, giving me a worried look. "Are you okay?" He questioned, settling the girl against his side as she apologized, both a confused and concerned look on her face. I nodded before feeling something plop into my lap, causing me to look down.
A golden bear plushie sat limply in my lap, piercing white pupils staring up at me. I looked to the side to see C.C who held out his hands, offering a small smile. "He can help you feel better. He always makes me feel better," The boy told me and I smiled, hugging the bear plushie. "Thanks, kid."
"Ugh- I'm drenched again." I frowned, looked down at the shirt I wore which was imprinted with a child sized water patch. Some water was dripping from my face, but I quickly wiped it away. "Oh, you can borrow some more of my clothes until yours are out of the dryer," Michael offered, but I shook my head with a smirk, standing up after setting down the bear plushie, wobbling a little from my injury. "Orrrr..." I trailed off, walking over to him with a mischievous look.
I quickly wrapped my arms around him and he squeaked, a small bit of water transferring to his clothing. "Ah! You a-" He cut himself off, but glared down at me, gently shoving me away from him. He set down the girl in his arms before turning to me, causing me to spin around and run away from him, which was really just quickly limping away, but it seemed to work. I heard him scoff before following after me. I shoved open his back door and stumbled down the stairs into the lawn, the rain pouring down on me. Michael soon burst through the door, lunging at me as I squeaked, reeling back before his arms wrapped around me.
The two of us fell into the wet grass, laughing together. Elizabeth and C.C soon joined us, the little girl ranting about how she was here to save me from Michael. Liz started to swat at her older brother who just groaned. "Yeah, yeah. I'm getting off her," He said, hovering over me for a brief moment before standing up, holding a hand out to me. I took it and he hoisted me up, stabilizing me as the rain beat down on the four of us.
He chuckled at me and I smiled, my eyebrows raised in confusion. "What?" I questioned. "You have mud on your face," He grinned, raising his hand to my cheek and wiping it off. "Pfft- now it's just a smear," Michael laughed and I rolled my eyes. I backed up and bent down, grabbing a fistful of mud and chucking it at the boy. He squeaked as it splattered across his chest, causing him to send me an evil grin. "Oh? You wanna fight, mate?" He challenged. I smirked in response.
"Maybe," I replied, cocking my head to the side as he took a step toward me. He crouched down and scooped up some mud, throwing it at me. I stumbled to the side and dodged the glob of mud, taunting the male in the process. I opened my mouth to make a snarky response, being cut off by a ball of mud splattering across my cheek. I blinked before slowly turning my head to the side, seeing Elizabeth giggling with her hands covering in dirt. C.C was at her side, nervously staring up at me. I smirked.
"Oh? That's how we're playing this?" Elizabeth smiled up at me while C.C shook his head. "Okay, then. You brought this upon yourself," I said, grabbing the remaining mud on my face and turning to them. I lifted my hands in a claw shape, still clutching the mud, making a roaring sound to scare the children. C.C squeaked while Elizabeth squealed, continuing to giggle. I took a few steps forward, attempting to catch them, but Elizabeth quickly backed up, evading me.
Before the girl could get very far, Michael scooped her up, startling her as he spun her around. I smiled at the two before flickered my eyes down to C.C, who sent me a nervous smile. "No one can save you now," I stated dramatically, swooping down and picking him up, the mud in my hands smearing across his clothing. He let out a small scream and I shifted his position, allowing him to wrap his arms around my neck.
I smiled down at him before spreading some mud on his nose, causing him to wrinkle his nose bridge. I suddenly shivered, the cold rain beating down against my skin. "C'mon, (Y/N). We should probably go inside and clean up," Michael said and I nodded, setting C.C down. Michael did the same with Elizabeth who rushed over to the door, running into the house. "Ugh- Lizzy don't track mud through the house!" He shouted after her, but she didn't listen and continued on her way. C.C ran after her, wiping his feet before entering.
Michael let out a huff. "Those two are going to be the death of me," He muttered. "Hey, Mikey." I called out and he hummed, turning his head to me. I quickly swiped my finger across his forehead, leaving a smear of mud as I rushed to the door, leaving him behind. He followed, snickering as he caught up to me. I couldn't really run with my injury, so he grabbed my shoulder, pulling me back slightly. The backdoor closed behind us, leaving us in the kitchen.
"Heh, okay now we're both covered in mud. We should clean up the two brats first though. They're bound to make a mess," He stated, sighing. Suddenly, there was a small crash from the living room. "Speaking of," Michael started, walking out into the living room. "Elizabeth!" He scolded and I chuckled, watching as he picked up the little girl and carried her off to the bathroom. He beckoned for his little brother to follow, who did so quickly.
I followed them down the hall, giggling as the little girl struggled in her brother's arms, flailing around. Michael almost dropped her, but managed to hold onto her leg. My attention shifted away from them, focused on the pictures lining the wall. There were many photographs of their family, some baby pictures of the kids, and other fun memories of them, but one particular photo stood out to me. I stopped beside it, tilting my head in confusion.
It was a photograph of a beautiful woman, her back facing the camera but her face turned towards it. She had a surprised look on her face, almost like she had been caught off guard by whoever took it. Her long orange hair cascaded around her, big green eyes wide as stared in curiosity. The woman wore a long blue dress that covered her crossed legs as she sat on a red blanket, the sun setting in the background, beaming orange light across her face.
There were a few other pictures of her. One of her holding a small brown haired child, one of her and William kissing at a wedding, and another one of her with the whole family except the kids were much younger. I furrowed my brows in confusion. I had never seen her before. "(Y/N)?" Michael questioned, leaning out from the bathroom, a hand pressed against Elizabeth's forehand to hold her back as she attempted to escape.
He seemed to notice my curious look and shifted his eyes to the photo, a grim expression replacing his confused one. "Oh." He simply said. I rubbed the back of my neck. "Um, who exactly is she? I've never seen her around here before," I said and he let out a sigh. "Yeah, that's because she isn't here anymore." He explained. C.C shifted uncomfortably next to his brother, clutching the edges of his shirt.
"That's our mother. Real bitch if you ask me. Just up and left when I was ten. Well, that's what my father told me, but I don't really remember much. She just kinda disappeared after Eli was born," Michael said through gritted teeth, pissed. I shrunk back slightly, rubbing my arm. "Oh, sorry." He just shrugged in response. "Don't be. It's not your fault."
Elizabeth had stopped flailing, a sad and confused look on her face as she stared up at her brother. "Mommy left because of me?" She questioned and Michael whirled around, crouching beside her. "No, no, no. She didn't leave because of you, Elizabeth. She just...didn't like it here anymore, I guess." He reassured her, cupping her cheeks.
I smiled sadly at the pair before noticing C.C standing beside them with a saddened look. I placed my hand on his head and he looked up at me, causing me to send him a small smile. He smiled back. "Anyways! You guys are still covered in mud and need a bath!" Michael exclaimed, causing Elizabeth to tense up. "No!"
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The sound of the rain flooded in through the open door, the darkened sky lighting up with purple flashes. A hoodie was chucked at me, hitting me in the face before sliding to the ground. I stared at it before glancing up at the boy who threw it at me. "Rude." He chuckled in response, causing the edges of my lips to twitch upwards. "You're lucky I'm allowing you to wear one of my hoodies. And I do need that back tomorrow," He said as I bent over and picked it up. "Yeah, okay, sure."
The hoodie was black with an Iron Maiden logo on it, causing me to smirk. "Ah, you've made a mistake. I love Iron Maiden, so there is no way you're getting this back!" I said, pulling it over my head. Michael groaned. "Okay, no. Give it back to me," He replied, holding out his hand expectantly. "Nope! I've already put it on!" I exclaimed, stepping out the open door.
"Okay, fine. Let me get the umbrella," He mumbled, digging through the closet as I pulled the hood of the hoodie over my head. He came out of the closet with a pastel yellow umbrella, stepping out of the house and shutting the door behind him. Michael popped open the umbrella and held it over our heads as we walked down the street. We talked about random things until we made it to my house where Michael placed a hand on my shoulder, causing me to look up at him in confusion.
"See you later, loser. Oh, and..." He paused, moving his hand from my shoulder to my chin, smiling softly. "Try not to hurt yourself." His eyes flickered to my leg before shifting back to my eyes, letting go of me and backing up. "Welp, see you at school tomorrow!" He exclaimed. "Yeah, see you later..." I called back, my voice soft. I placed my hand on my chin where his fingers rested a few seconds before, letting out a sigh, face reddened.