#parkershawheadcanons

[retvenkos]

“you knew me when i didn’t know myself”

requested

BEING CHILDHOOD FRIENDS??? WITH PARKER SHAW??? THAT HAS TO GO A LITTLE SOMETHING LIKE THIS...

okay, so we all know parker is, at his core, a massive nerd

so as a kid? parker was precious

you met in kindergarten (the two of you go wayyyy back) where, during choice time, he was, of course, playing with those heavy, wooden blocks that are not at all child-friendly

you, naturally, brought a toy helicopter to play with and you made a tall building that the helicopter could land on

but being children, you were too harsh in setting down the toy and the entire building collapsed, heavy blocks landing on you.

a few of them crushed your hand, and when you were upset, parker stayed with you, telling you it was going to be alright

to reassure you, of course, but also to reassure himself.

from that moment on, the two of you were inseparable

pine springs was a small town, which meant that it was easy for you and parker to always find each other in the mix

you had the same classes together up until junior high, where you still managed to share some core classes and have the same lunch

but, as expected, your teenage years was when the bullying started

parker was such an easy target, too

he was a scrawny goody-two-shoes back then, with terrible parents that the whole town heard screaming at night... and kids would tear him apart

with the school being so small, it was easy for word to get around. everyone knew that parker shaw was a push over.

parker  h a t e d  it

he was already pushed around at home. so for it to follow him to school?

his anger was turning dangerous, and your methods of distracting him was no longer cutting it.

you were worried for him.

then, he seemingly disappeared the next summer, no where to be found at your usual hanging spots.

you knew better than to check at his parent’s house. he stayed with you more often than not. but where else could he have gone?

he had been hanging out with a new crowd - those kids at school who would pick fights so that they wouldn’t be caught unawares.

when he came back, he was parker 2.0

strong, confident, angry... it was like you didn’t know him

he didn’t push you away, but he stopped reaching out (ohmygod, parker had an angsty, emo phase)

but you refused to give up on him.

you reached out to the only person you thought could help, the police chief with a heart of gold - abe kelley

if only you had known...

it took a while before parker came around to hanging out with you again

and he was different - somethings could never be the same - but the more you saw of him, the more you realized exactly who parker 2.0 was

strong, unsure and only able to process that through anger... but still an awkward dork at heart

“i think you haven’t changed that much, parker. you’re the same kid who cried when a pretty girl looked at him in the mall.”

“...i remember you tripping when she smiled.”

“you were there to help me up.”

and he nods, quiet for a minute

“i’ll always be there.”

he threw himself headlong into becoming a police officer after that

it was a goal. something he could work toward and fantasize about... something away from his present

you, of course, teased him

“switching sides so quickly? i thought you looked good in your black hoodies... and the cigarettes—”

“tasted terrible. no wonder they’re called cancer sticks.”

“so then you regret your choice?”

and he sighs

“no. if i hadn’t chosen that path, i wouldn’t be on this one, now.”

“yeah. you’d probably be an environmentalist or park ranger, you nerd.”

and when parker loves something, he loves it with every fibre of his being

he would spend literal hours talking to you about his future job. he would stay at your house and you would fall asleep or play video games to him rambling about how great abe was, and how one day he was going to be just like him

better, even.

you would roll your eyes and tell him he would do just fine being himself, but when he would come to you, excited, you couldn’t help but smile

you know that you are the first person he comes to when he starts to notice all the odd drownings

you want to do some sleuthing of your own, and parker totally goes with you, but they mostly end in dead ends.

in the earlier days, the cult was better at trying up loose ends and keeping things under the radar. it’s only when they got comfortable that they started to slip up

but honestly, you have such a special place in parkers heart

no one has ever stood by him the way you have. no one has ever really cared...

he’ll never forget that.

if you ever need anything, parker is your guy

and, in true parker fashion, he is very protective of you.

if someone so much as looks at you funny, it’s all going down.

you saved parker. he will  a l w a y s  be there to save you.

AND FLUFF ENSUES.