"Hoodie."
If anyone told her that she'd feel safe with a tall, masked killer such as him... She wouldn't have believed them. Even so, she still felt some sort of security around him; not seeing him in quite a while didn't really matter to her, she trusted his capabilities.
She trusted him.
A hum vibrated through her mind, causing her to furrow her brows. She was about to open her eyes in wonder, but Slenderman squeezed her hand. Y/n didn't know if that meant to keep them shut or if it was just a coincidence, but she heeded his words from before and kept her eyes closed.
"He shall be there soon," Slender's voice echoed in her mind, fading in and out in her ears, causing her eyes to water behind her eyelids. Even in the darkness behind them, she could see a swirl of faint illumination, swirling lights until her entire surroundings dimmed considerably. The emptiness in her palm was also concerning, so, slowly, she opened her eyes.
Y/n blinked away the small tears that had formed and waited until she gathered herself in this dusty room. There was a faint light behind her, and upon turning, she saw a small window with heavy blinds covering the glass. To the left of the window was a bed, somewhat large. The blankets and sheets of the bed were slightly untouched, but it was clear that someone had used it before, just not recently. A bedside table sat next to it, collecting dust. The carpet floor also looked unwell, like it hadn't been vacuumed or stepped upon in a while.
Asides from a dresser being placed against the opposite wall, there was nothing else that stood out to her in this room. She turned back around and found herself face-to-face with a door with a small chair placed right next to the square arch. The door was slightly open, allowing in a little bit more light, but not a lot. Y/n's eyes narrowed and she snuck her left foot around the crevice to tug it open carefully.
No sound came from the cabin, no sounds of shuffling or intrusion, just the faint creak of the wooden door as it slowly came to a stop, halfway open. Y/n leaned forward and peered out.
Near the far left side of the small house was a kitchen, small and simple. To the right was a couch, facing a box-shaped TV that sat on a low, wooden table against the wall. Once she determined it was safe, Y/n stepped out of the bedroom and out in the open. She smoothed a hand along the back of the couch, finding it surprisingly plush, but pulling her hand back revealed it to have collected a thick layer of dust over her already dirty palm.
Y/n brushed her hand along the side of her jeans and walked into the center of the room. Ahead of her was clearly the exit to the cabin, two windows placed on either side of the door. Through the windows, she could see the green terrain of the deep wilderness.
Something in the back of her mind tingled, a feeling of deja vu. There was supposed to be someone else here, right? She...she's been here before.
Y/n thought back on Hoodie...no, Brian. He told her his name the moment she woke up in that bed and wanted her to call him that. Her heart thundered in her ears as her head turned slowly to look out through the window on the left, expecting to see the back of his head waiting for her. Watching the trees in blissful silence.
The female hurried towards the front door and felt a wave of relief wash over her entire being as it opened with ease. The fresh, dewy air felt refreshing. She hadn't realized how long she had been craving the freshness of a simple breath of air, surrounded by nature. That too was a surprise of its own.
Y/n surveyed the area first, something she had tried to lose the habit of but had gotten used to over time due to the experiences she had within the maze and out of it. The strange habits she had received from those places weren't at all harmful, but once Y/n noticed them she tried her best to get rid of said habit.
Lush and overgrown bushes and trees surrounded the area, pines being the majority of the wildlife surrounding the cabin. The birds' songs and the faint, cool breeze that swept itself past Y/n and into the home was a melancholic feeling.
Then, she heard something akin to the sound of harsh, rustling leaves. This sound wasn't far off, it was actually pretty close and that worried her the most. It would've been rational to say that the noise came from the same rush of wind that had just passed by or even a wild animal just passing through, but all those thoughts were doubtful due to the fact that the noise was drawing closer...and closer.
Her hands grasped for something, anything that she could've had on her. But this time, there was no machete clipped to the belt loop on her hip or a bloody axe borrowed from a friend; she was on her own.
Just as Y/n decided to fight tooth and nail if this person or creature were to attack, she saw the flash of a familiar color break through the foilage not far in front of her. They were quick enough to come running halfway toward the cabin but slowed enough when they no doubt spotted Y/n standing frozen in front of the doorway.
The tall, hooded man's shoulders fell slack, previously tensed before he finally spotted Y/n in front of him. His steps quickened once more, approaching the h/c-haired girl until he was standing right over her.
"Y/n," he breathed out her name in such a way that it caused her heart to flutter with an odd amount of embarrassment. His chest rose and fell quickly, slightly out of breath as he repeated, "Y/n...Y/n.."
Saying her name felt like the best thing in the world to him.
Hoodie, or Brian, as he would say, rolled up the underside of his mask and then hugged Y/n tightly. His hands held her like she'd disappear the moment he released her. She chuckled breathily, wrapping her arms around the taller one's torso to return his embrace. As soon as she did so, this just urged him on further and he squeezed her tighter, causing the girl to release a hard breath of air.
"Hoo-" she stopped herself before she finished that title, "Brian," she quickly tapped her palm on his shoulder, which eased him up a bit as, behind the mask, he stared down at her with a worried crease between his eyes.
"You..." He swallowed, slowly unwrapping his arms around her body, "you look.."
A half-laugh, half-scoff escaped from Y/n's lips as she did the same, "like a mess? I know," she glanced down at the hoodie she was wearing, now becoming slowly self-aware about how messy it looked, "sorry about...your hoodie."
He shook his head quickly, to both statements, "no, no!"
Brian stiffened at his own tone, his shoulders slouching. His lips thinned into a straight line, "don't be sorry," he murmured, "you can take another."
Y/n smiled at the mention of having another one of his hoodies. She...liked that idea. Besides, the first time she had been given this hoodie was in the maze, and back then, it was quite comfortable when not bloodied and torn in various places.
Stepping back a tad, Y/n turned her head over to the bench to her left, Brian's right. She then turned her attention back to him and her smile grew, "wanna sit?"
Brian nodded once after her simple question. The two of them stepped across the wooden porch, the boards squeaking under their weight due to time and rot. Green could be seen growing between each board, a sign that it had been uncared for in a while. She and Brian were probably the last two to use this cabin in a while. Y/n wondered if any of the others knew about this place, asides from Slenderman, of course. It was the one who teleported her here after all.
They sat on the small bench that was kept on the porch throughout the entirety of their journey. It was faded, the wood presumably old, but if it didn't break under the weight of the two of them, then it was still usable.
This moment brought back a faint memory, months ago, right after her escape from that facility; right after the day she killed her father. The two of them sat outside, just like this, their shoulders brushing each other in a form of faint affection.
Movement from Brian's side caused Y/n to peer over out of the corner of her eyes. She saw one of his gloved hands move up towards his face and his thumb hooked underneath the fabric of his mask. He pulled it up and over his head, causing the hood of his hoodie to fall back as well. The male shook his face, tossing his wild, hair around before finally relaxing.
Y/n pulled her eyes away from him, suddenly afraid of being caught staring. Her heart pounded, memories rushing further into the forefront of her mind.
"Y/n?" Brian's voice echoed in her mind, and the look she gave him urged him to continue, "can I kiss you?"
This was that exact situation, wasn't it?
She sucked in a quick, cold breath, and finally turned her body toward Brian. Surprisingly, he had already been turned toward her when she finally turned her full attention to him. The two of them blinked in surprise, and Y/n's head turned upwards to be able to meet his gaze.
Then, without the need to explain, they leaned into each other. The kiss wasn't soft as before, it was more relieving and breathless. Though it only lasted for a few seconds, the moment Y/n had pulled away, Brian leaned back in again, quicker than before. Her eyes fluttered shut and her hands came up to grip on his arms as his hands slipped behind her lower back, pulling her body closer to his.
Y/n could feel her ears growing hot and the way her lungs had begun to burn, she quickly pressed firmly against his shoulders, pushing him slightly away so she could finally take in a few gulps of air. Brian was also flushed in the face, perhaps even surprised by his own boldness. His hands though stayed where they were, squeezing her waist once before retrieving them before he went any further.
"Sorry," he murmured, but the twinkle in his eyes showed that he wasn't sorry in the slightest. His lips were curled up in the faintest of smiles, which caused Y/n to breathlessly chuckle, shaking her head.
"No need to apologize," her eyes flickered to his eyes, to his lips, then to one of his gloved hands. She slipped one of her hands underneath his and held it, giving it a soft squeeze, "I enjoyed it."
His hand came to enclose on her own and then tugged her up to her feet, Brian doing the same in the first place. He moved towards the door with long strides and pulled it open, doing his best to not be forceful in his actions as he pulled her inside.
"Y/n," he shut the door behind him, the once stuffy cabin now feeling much homier with just the two of them inside, "if I ever do something and...you hate it, please tell me."
"If I don't listen, kick, and fight, I don't care, I don't want you to go through anything like that again."
Like that. He, of course, meant the maze. Y/n could feel a swirl of emotions rise within her chest, some good, a few bad, but those all drowned out quickly once Y/n saw the expression written across Brian's face. She stepped closer to him again and wrapped her arms around him in a soft hug. He wasn't opposed to it and wrapped his arms around her like before.
"There's nothing you can do that I'd hate, Brian," she said softly, her head leaning against his shoulder so she could just about see his eyes staring down at her, "I feel...safest when I'm with you."
Then, a genuine smile came up on Brian's lips and he held her tighter, his chin resting on the top of her head.
"And I, you."
~
Route completed
[Up next; Liu/Sully]