#rex splode x you

[digitald0rk]

rex thoughts i just had to get out of my head. gn! reader. kinda suggestive.

rex sloan who's awfully romantic.

rex sloan who can't keep his hands off of you — his hands are calloused yet his touch is gentle but firm, slipping underneath your shirt to feel the warmth of your skin, his lips against yours are insatiable.

biting down on your bottom lip, he breathes heavily at the small sound you let out at the action, his grip on your waist tightening as he lays you down on the bed, his hold on you not faltering in the slightest — his lip don't leave yours, as if the mere action of pulling away is going to hurt him.

and when he slips his tongue in your mouth, you're done for. you can taste the wine you two had shared earlier, that he had so proudly announced to you — he had stolen from immortal.

he presses his body against yours, his hands roaming up and down your body, not leaving a single inch untouched.

rex sloan who slowly trails kisses down your neck, he takes his time. each kiss leaving you burning up with a desire only he can fulfill.

your head is fuzzy and you barely register him tenderly brushing your hair away from your covered eye, tucking the strands behind your ear after pressing a kiss to them, the action almost reverent.

you send him a slightly surprised look, the difference between his earlier desperate, needy actions and this sweet tender gesture is definitely not good for your heart.

"what?" he tries to sound cocky and confident like his usual self but you don't miss the slight quiver in his voice.

rex sloan who gently cups your jaw in his warm hand, eyes sparkling with something you've never seen before, the intensity of his gaze burns your skin and leaves behind a flush, matching his own.

"wanna see both your eyes, pretty." he whispers, looking right into your eyes.

he flashes you his signature charming grin, although you can't help but notice how his eyes are filled with a certain fondness — a sincerity that makes your chest tighten.

rex sloan who, for the first time in his life, is ready to strip away all the walls he built to protect himself and is ready to bare his heart and soul to you.

rex sloan who's scared shitless, he's never been this open — he's never done this before, but he trusts you.

rex sloan who decides to give you his heart because you trust him — trust he's changed, that he's trying his best.

rex sloan who will never forgive himself if he disappoints you.

© digitald0rk 2025. do not steal any of my works. thank you for reading, interactions are always appreciated and welcome! want more? click here ★

[lanae111]

When he’s a red flag but you need him

[jks1uv]

𝑇ℎ𝑒 𝑂𝑛𝑙𝑦 𝐸𝑥𝑐𝑒𝑝𝑡𝑖𝑜𝑛 ; mark grayson / invincible

summary: in every universe, mark grayson turns into his father and seals his destiny as a true viltrumite. what if things are different this time?

pairing: fem!reader x mark grayson.

trope: childhood best friends to lovers + fate gives love a chance.

genre: fluff + angst + slow-burn romance.

warnings‼️: crude language + spoilers for s3 (mark’s variants) + amber & eve never get w mark but r goated wingwomen & friends for reader + william, rick & rex r goated wingmen for mark + 2 jealous!mark moments + the tiniest moment of tension + multiverse talk + a mention of the chicago incident feat. scott / powerplex + REX LIVES 🗣️‼️🔥🔥 + a short & sweet kiss scene.

word count: 9,973.

random disclaimerrr: when eve said “you don’t deserve this” 😞 like he always just out here suffering 💔 kate, immortal, cecil & scott pmo so bad like bruh can y’all just pls stfu pls 🙏🏽 I CANNOT BELIEVE MY GOAT REX IS DEAD LIKE BRUH HOW 😭😞💔 but the 2 ppl majority of the fandom hates get their happy ending… mkay… happy reading! ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ ♡ © 2025 @jks1uv

────♡♡♡────

Mark Grayson has always liked you.

It was the first day of school, 2nd grade homeroom. The first day of school was always nerve wracking but this time was different.

His desk was next to you per the seating chart and you were the last kid to come in.

You were wearing a black t-shirt with some white bows on it and sky blue jeans with pink flowers embroidered on the pockets. White twinkle toes with pink and purple rhinestones.

Your hair was styled in 2 ponytails with cute bows on the bands.

Your eyes bright and a shy smile on your lips.

“Hi.” You bashfully said to him.

“Hi.” He said back in a daze.

His seven year old heart was fluttering and he was as red as a tomato when he realized it was you! You were the girl whose empty desk he was seated next to!

You always shared homeroom, if not, recess with him in elementary school.

Then came middle school, where you had at least 2 classes with him.

High school was a bit easier as you saw him 3-4 times a day, and that’s not including clubs or other extracurricular activities.

He spent 11 years like that. Seeing you in class, in the hallways, at lunch or after school.

Your relationship with him never wavered. Your character was still the same even after new chapters and opportunities for development.

He’s endured some insane shit, but he’s so happy the one constant in his life remained consistent.

────♡♡♡────

“You still have a crush on her?!”

“Shut up, William. Or do you want the whole world to know.” Mark chides.

William snorts like it’s the most obvious thing in the world (it is). “The whole world already knows, it’s just your dumbass that’s somehow oblivious.”

“Give the lover boy a break.” Amber lightly teases.

Mark sighs and rubs his face with his hands, trying to hide the redness creeping up on him without his consent.

“Is that her?” Rick points towards Mark’s dream girl.

But what he forgot to mention was the living explosion (literally) walking alongside you.

“What’s he doing here?” Eve’s surprised Rex decided to step foot on college campus willingly.

William subtly side-eyes Mark and makes a desperate attempt to hold in his laughter by squeezing Rick’s hand.

Mark slowly stands, a confused look on his face.

“I’ll… go find out.” He says it like a question, like he’s unsure if that’s what he should do.

Amber and Eve share a knowing look.

“You’re funny.” You say as you catch your breath.

Rex shrugs nonchalantly and smirks. “Yeah, I get that a lot.”

You’re shaking your head and are about to say something when you see Mark in front of you.

“Mark.” Your eyes crinkle as you smile.

You go in for your usual hug and Mark accepts it.

Unbeknownst to you that he’s making wide eyes among other facial expressions in a desperate attempt to make contact with the other male.

The hug lasts for a second longer and you ignore the butterflies that swarm your belly, deducing that he probably just wanted to hug you a bit longer.

No big deal you think as you’re screaming inside the longer you feel Mark’s arms around your waist.

When you meet Mark’s face, he allows himself to give you a tight-lipped smile.

“Mark, this is-”

“Rex! Heyy, how’s it going?” He chuckles nervously and rubs the back of his neck.

Your eyebrows furrow and you tilt your head a bit. “Yeah… wait, you guys know each other?”

Rex is enthusiast with his reply. “Fuck yeah! This is my best bro.”

He slaps Mark’s back with a confident grin and the “bro” laughs awkwardly.

You know, one of those ‘ha ha ha’ type laughs.

“Okay. So, um, Mark?”

“Yeah?” Aaand his voice cracks.

You politely ignore it but Mark wants to die inside.

“I was wondering if you were still down to go to the mall?”

Mark knows you’re attentive and take your friendships seriously, which isn’t old news. But he can’t help feeling special that’s you remembered a thought from a couple days prior.

“Only if you’ll buy me boba.”

Mark never lets you buy him anything if he can help it, and that’s how it’s always been.

You insist, he’ll deny; but that doesn’t mean his sentiment isn’t nice.

You blink and softly smile at his bargain. “Deal.”

Rex hums thoughtfully, a hand at his chin and his gaze on the sky.

“Can I join? I don’t have anything going onnn~” He suggests in a sing-song manner.

“No, you can’t!” Mark suddenly yells.

You look at Mark with furrowed brows. “Mark, don’t be rude.”

“Yeah, Mark, don’t be rude.” Rex repeats with a sly expression.

Mark deeply exhales through his nose and puts on a fake smile. “Rex, can I talk to you? Alone.”

“Sure!”

He follows Mark about 15 steps away from you.

You decide to sit down on a bench nearby and watch some TikTok to pass the time.

“Hey, so, um- quick question: what the hell are you doing here?”

Rex scoffs. “What, I can’t come visit my bro?”

Mark quirks an eyebrow and crosses his arms, unimpressed.

Rex puts his hands up in surrender. “Fine, fine. I’ll be honest. I was here to talk to you about Cecil,” He looks over at you and sighs dramatically.

“But?” Mark presses when he sees Rex eyeing you.

“I see a hot girl and I can’t help myself, you know?” He smirks knowing he’ll rile Mark up and get the exact reaction he wants.

Mark immediately gets in his line of sight, making Rex back up a bit from the fast and unforgiving wind.

“Woah, man! A little warning next time before you almost blow me away?”

Mark ignores him. “Don’t call her that.”

The truth is, Rex came to campus with a purpose.

Mark never talks about you, but Eve may have let your name slip into conversation a few times.

Rex may be aloof and jerk-ish but he’ll be serious when it’s time.

He’s seen the way Mark’s face changed every time Eve mentioned you; his head would tilt slightly, he’d have a small, unnoticeable smile on his lips.

Rex suspected a crush and he was right! Of course he was, look at the way he’s being defensive of you.

There was just one problem, he didn’t know how you looked. He asked Eve and she was suspicious, but when he revealed his own suspicions, she indulged him.

So, the two of them made a plan with Amber, William and Rick; Operation: Get Mark To Man Up and Admit His Feelings Before You Slip Away.

- FLASHBACK -

“She’s wearing a PINK t-shirt with ripped blue jeans. Oh, and a black backpack.” William directs.

“Pink shirt, black backpack, ripped blue jeans. Got it.”

“PINK as in the brand, not the color.” Amber reminds.

“Wait, what? So what color is the shirt?”

“I’m pretty sure it’s dark green..? And the logo is an even darker shade. ” Eve remembers.

Rex is so unimpressed.

“So, let me get this straight; she’s wearing a shirt from the brand PINK, but it’s just dark green?”

“I’d say you’re on the right track.” Rick chimes.

“This shit is ridiculous. I mean, seriously. Why can’t you girls just wear stuff that warrant normal descriptions?”

“Shut up, Rex.” Amber and Eve say simultaneously.

- FLASH FORWARD -

“Alright, her unwanted, meddling knight in shining armor.”

Mark is about to defend himself against that true baseless allegation when William and Rick find him.

“What’re we gossiping about?”

There’s a glint in William’s eyes, the kind you don’t miss if you’re paying attention to the very specific lilt in his tone.

“Oh, I was just telling Marky boy here,”

Mark side-eyes Rex at the ridiculous nickname.

“How he’s Y/n’s unwanted, meddling knight in shining armor.”

William claps his hands together. “That’s actually an accurate assessment.”

Mark’s offended. “Whose side are you on, anyway?”

Rick clears his throat as a guise to hide the very subtle laugh itching his throat.

“Sassy.” William says impressed in his best friends comeback skills.

Rex gets a phone call and excuses himself, giving William a crisp high-five and Rick a chest bump.

“Go get your Juliet, Romeo!” He cheers.

William shakes his head as he guffaws at the man.

“Dude, he's hilarious. How come you've never introduced him to us before?”

“Do I really have to answer that?”

William rolls his eyes at him.

“Anyways. When are you gonna tell Y/n you love her, again?”

“William!” Mark whines.

Rick smiles and expands his thinking.

“He meant to say, you should tell her soon. Before she's with someone else and leaves you to collect the pieces of your broken heart.”

“Not gonna lie, that's exactly what he needs to hear right now.”

Mark can't lie, either.

“Yeah. You kinda ate with that.”

William cringes and Rick winces with embarrassment.

“Hey! So, uhh, never say that again. Hope this helps!” William makes a finger heart.

“Wha- but I used the phrase correctly! Oh, come on guys, really?”

- MEANWHILE, WITH AMBER & EVE -

Amber and Eve thought it’d be a good idea to have a quick chat with you while you were waiting on Mark.

They casually brought up relationships and basically implied that ‘men ain’t shit’, but you disagree with that attitude.

“I dunno... Mark’s a good guy.”

“Oh yeah, for sure! Mark’s one of the good ones.”

Eve nods along to Amber’s statement.

She reminisced on her fair share with toxic relationships. She deliberately left out how it was with Rex but that’s okay, you don’t need to know that…

“Are you and Mark..?”

You feel your cheeks warm at the thought but you’d be lying if you deny your feelings for him.

“No.” You state with your head down and hands in your lap, playing with a ripped thread on your jeans.

“Huh. That’s a shame.” Eve comments.

That gets your attention.

“What do you mean?”

“It’s just that you and Mark seem…”

“Ideal.” Amber completes smoothly.

Your wide eyes and mouth agape give you away.

“You've never thought about him like that?”

You have, but how do you admit this to Mark’s coworker and friend without it getting back to him?

You think Amber and Eve are cool, they’re nice to you; but they're more Mark’s friends.

To you, they're friends of a friend.

Amber senses your hesitation and sat down next to you.

“We won’t tell anyone, if that’s what you’re wondering.”

Eve locks her lips with an imaginary key and throws it away.

That elicits a small laugh out of you, making you feel a bit more confident to share your secret.

You look over and see Mark and Rex still talking, now joined by William and Rick.

You contemplate for a moment before admitting it.

“Yeah.” You breathe out.

Eve hums in thought. “Let me guess, you don’t want to say anything in case it’ll fuck up the friendship?”

You gasp lightly at her spot-on description. “How’d you know?!”

She just shrugs nonchalantly and Amber bites her tongue to point out how obvious the entire situation is.

“I do like him, a lot... but what if he doesn’t feel the same? I would've ruined something special for something selfish and it would stay with me forever.”

You rant to the 2 girls you’re closest with and somehow, it feels right. You dismiss the thought of them turning out like the average mean girls in a teenage rom-com.

“But what if he does like you back?” Eve proposes.

“Then he’ll have to make the first move.” You shrug obviously.

“I know that’s right.”

You feel giddy from Amber’s approval.

She’s always been the type to keep it short and sweet but once you get her talking? She’ll always keep it real.

“We gotta go but we’ll see you later?”

Eve's already planning on the next hangout because she likes you enough to wanna help. She doesn’t like a lot of people so consider yourself special!

“Oh! Uh- yeah! Sure, that works with me.”

“It’s settled then.”

“See ya, Y/n.”

Coincidentally, you see the boys leave, leaving Mark to come to you.

“Shall we?”

“We shall.”

────♡♡♡────

“Just let me try it.” Mark whines.

You shook your head and stood your ground. “It'll be gone in under ten seconds.”

He gasps dramatically, a hand to the heart like a lady of the opera. “You don't have faith in me?! I am a superhero-”

“I'm sure that's what they say.”

Your sarcasm isn’t foreign but he grows quiet at the remark.

It just slipped out so easily, without care or regard. You immediately try to make it right.

“I’m sorry, Mark.”

“No, no. It’s okay. You didn’t mean it like that.”

Ever the sweetheart but you refuse.

“No, it isn’t.” You stop walking. “I was careless with what I said and it’s not right.”

He looks at you with appreciation and gives you a smile. “Thank you, Y/n. It feels nice to be seen as I am.”

That both warms and saddens your heart.

You know how much he’s been through and even though you’ll never truly understand, you know he can still count on you. You’ll be there for him and that’s gotta mean something.

“Of course.”

You and Mark spend the next hour chatting and idly checking out things in the stores.

You wander into the dress and gown section and are completely in awe of the collection. Every color you can think of in every style: silky, thigh cut, halter top, strapless.

Your hands run through the material and you’re reminded of the spring formal coming up soon.

Not everyone gets the chance of going but you have a friend who extended the courtesy of inviting you and a plus one.

You recall the last time you went to a dance: your senior year of high school's prom. It was memorable. You were a part of a small group that went together; consisting of your friends.

You took photos with Mark and danced with him for a bit but not like anything you wished. There's nothing romantic about screaming club anthem lyrics while getting twerked on but since it was Mark's ass, you didn’t complain.

That was the first and last time he accepted drinks from William, by the way.

You chuckle quietly to yourself in memory of that glorious night when Mark comes up behind you.

"You ready to go or do you wanna try some of them on?"

You take another look at the gorgeous dresses and think.

Mark's hoping you say yes.

He won't admit it anytime soon and despite him already thinking you're the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen, prom night solidified that for him.

You had him starstruck.

His heartbeat sped up, adrenaline rushed through his veins and conjured up a swarm of butterflies in his stomach.

SImply put, every feeling and action that describes a man in awe of a pretty lady was an accurate depiction of him.

“Nah, maybe some other time.” You decide.

Mark nods, looking forward to the future dress tryouts. “Okay.”

────♡♡♡────

You have dinner with Mark, Oliver and Debbie.

Mark flew out and brought home some authentic pasta and garlic bread from Italy.

You rolled your eyes playfully and claimed he was being “extra” but reevaluated your statement when you thought about it.

If you could move that fast, you'd go to another country to have their finest food as well.

“It's so good to have you, honey.”

Debbie was always so nice to you, it made you feel happy and proud of yourself knowing someone's mom wholeheartedly accepts your presence in their kids life.

“It's good to be here.”

“Are you gonna stay the night?!” The purple little boy asked full of hope.

You didn't want to let him down but you had no choice.

“I'm sorry, Oliver, but not tonight.” You ruffle his hair and give him an apologetic smile.

You know he's bummed out when he doesn't sound that infectious laugh and tell you you're messing up his hair.

“Oh.”

You feel Mark's gaze on you and when you look up, he offers a sympathetic smile.

“I can stay until it's time for you to sleep.”

You know you've got him, it's an offer he can't refuse.

He's all smiles now and hugs you by the waist, his head laying on your chest.

You smile and hug him back, your head laying on his.

Mark cleans the table and Oliver takes out the trash while you help Debbie with the dishes.

“It doesn't matter how many times I say “no”, does it?”

You hum and shake your head. “Nope.”

You make small talk while you dry after she scrubs and rinses. About college, your plans after college, Mark.

“What about him?” You wonder.

“I mean, how has be been since...”

You see a look of helplessness on her face.

Debbie may be his mother but even she is not immune to the conflict of secrecy in her son's life.

You instantly feel bad.

Mark always tells you everything but to have his own mom ask you things about her son makes the situation complex.

You turn your head over your shoulder and see Mark playing a video game with his baby brother.

When Mark told you about Nolan, what happened to them on Thraxa and the events that unfolded afterwards, you didn't know how to respond.

As if hearing Nolan reveal his plans for Earth and call Debbie a “pet” wasn't heartbreaking enough, you were there with Debbie when Mark was brutally assaulted by his own father.

Then you hear of Nolan's second family he while the first one was still trying to keep it together and deal with the devastating aftermath of the biggest betrayal.

You almost cried when Mark broke down about Angstrom Levy hurting Debbie and Oliver.

You were out of the country on a field trip with your classmates when that happened. Devastated was an understatement for how you felt to hear both Mark and Debbie in the hospital from William.

Mark shamefully admitted to killing Angstrom, thinking that would sever the bond between you two. He expected you to be afraid of him, no matter how awful he’d feel about doing that to you.

It was the total opposite, you embraced him and let him cry on your shoulder. You let him feel everything but you also let him feel your hand in his.

You looked him in the eyes and told him that he did what he had to do and if killing Angstrom was the solution, then so be it.

“Mark told me everything. From seeing Mr. Grayson—”

You see a flash of hurt in Debbie's eyes at the mention of his name and almost forget that before he was known as Omni-Man, he was Mr. Grayson. He was Mark's dad.

“—again and about Oliver. Up until Angstrom and how the last thing he did was hurt you and Oliver.”

Debbie drys her hands and looks out of the window above the sink.

You can tell she’s disassociating. Her eyes seem so far away and crestfallen.

You don’t know if she’s getting much sleep but you also can’t imagine getting any if you were her.

You put a hand on her shoulder and she’s visibly shaken out of her thoughts.

“He’s gonna be okay, and so are you.”

She looks at you like you’ve lit up a candle at the end of a very dark tunnel.

Debbie leans in for a hug, eliciting a small sigh when you strengthen the embrace a little.

You figured she should feel taken care of for once.

“Thank you.”

You hear her sincerity and make a mental note to talk about this with Mark later on.

Oliver is tired out from having a “good playdate” with you and his older brother.

You tuck him in for the night per his request and can't help but feel the warmth from taking care of him touch your heart.

He's a growing boy but despite the many changes one goes through due to that constant stage of life, his feelings for you don't change.

Mark loves how much Oliver loves you. He loves seeing 2 of the most important people in his life get along so well, secretly admiring the way you've grown a soft spot in his mother's heart, too.

“They grow up so fast.” Mark attempts to humor.

You hum and try your best not to cry dwell on the bittersweetness of that phrase.

“Yeah.”

You're sitting on Mark's bed, looking fondly at the one of many drawings the kid made for you.

You softly exhale and bring up the conversation you had earlier with Debbie.

“Mark, I have something I want to talk to you about.”

He looks at you knowingly. “I know.”

Your eyes widen a bit at that revelation. “You do?”

He nods, a pursed smile on his face. “I have super hearing, remember?”

How did you forget that?

You close your eyes and exhale sharply, feeling silly for forgetting that power of his. “Right, duh.”

You don’t want to push the conversation if he’s not feeling it but you want to know if you did the right thing.

“I... didn’t overstep… right?”

“Oh, no. No, you didn’t.”

He rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. “I… haven’t had the best time talking to her about the things I say to you.”

You nod in understanding.

“I felt bad when she asked you how I’m doing. She should be able to ask me that.”

He’s guilt-stricken and it makes you feel dejected.

“Mark.” You put a comforting hand on his shoulder. “I know it’s hard talking to your mom about your inner turmoil but you’re all she has.”

Who does Debbie go to when she wants to discuss the matters of her heart? Who’ll listen when she wants someone to talk to?

“You give her the strength to carry on so let her give you some peace of mind, hm?”

Mark’s eyes shine with a strong fondness for you, his mind wiped clean of all things difficult and heart ten times lighter.

You’ve always understood him, whether he explains himself or not. You could always just know.

Your heart and emotional intelligence are perhaps his favorite things about you.

“You okay?” You ask, worried you’ve overstepped again.

“Never been better.” He promises.

A soft smile graces his lips as he leans in to hug you.

You accept it with an equal gentle expression and when you feel his arms wrap around your middle, you feel good.

Mark is invulnerable but not when it comes to the war between his mind and heart, that’s when you step in. And when you do, there’s always a resolution found in great clarity.

You feel his heartbeat above yours and unconsciously, they sync. His breathing evens out with yours.

It feels intimate, this hug.

You’ve hugged him a million times before but none of them have felt quite like this.

A heavy weight on his shoulders has evaporated and you can feel his gratitude.

“I don’t know how to thank you.” He murmurs.

You tilt your head back a bit so he can see you. “Then don’t.” You shrug, like it’s the most obvious answer.

He chuckles lightly and blinks at you, a tight-lipped smile on his face.

You’re suddenly hyper-aware of his arms loosening around you and replacing the warmth with his hands on your hips.

You subconsciously gulp and watch his eyes flicker towards your eyes, lips then back to your eyes.

You don’t know if it’s your mind playing tricks on you, but you swear he moves his head a little closer to you; just enough to barely touch noses.

Your stomach is in a frenzy and your hands feel clammy.

Is this really happening?

But then, like a switch being flipped off; he gingerly clears his throat and backs away.

You blink, catching yourself in a daze and he gets up to put on a movie.

He acts like he wasn’t just about to kiss you, as if that chemistry was just a figment of your imagination.

You don’t have the guts to say anything, to ask the obvious. So, you also pretend that you two weren’t just about to fulfill your biggest ‘what if?’ scenario.

────♡♡♡────

“Oh, wow… that’s crazy.”

“I’m sorry, Y/n.”

It was nice to hear sympathies from the only people who you could afford to talk about this with. They’re also the only people who wouldn’t go and spread the telltale truth of the most embarrassing moment of your life.

“I can’t believe he fumbled this badly.” Amber facepalms herself in disbelief.

She sighs in exasperation and plops down on your bed with an arm covering her eyes.

Eve doesn’t move from her position; leaning on your wall with her arms crossed and her face in thought.

“What if he doesn’t like me like that?” You wonder aloud.

Amber peeks an eye out from under her elbow and Eve shakes her head.

“No, no, no. Trust me, that’s not it.”

“Don’t seem so sure.” You grumble as you pick at your nails to distract yourself from the heartache.

Eve sits down beside you and thinks about her words carefully. “Mark… well, I won’t defend him; he is kinda stupid.”

“Kinda?” Amber argues.

That makes you grin a bit.

“But he’s also your best friend, and you’re his. Maybe he doesn’t know how he feels but he does know that you’re not worth the risk of something he’s unsure will ever happen.”

Somehow, she put things into a perspective you’ve never thought about before.

“I never thought about it like that.”

You feel Amber sit up.

“That’s because it’s a confusing situation. Seeing both sides of the story might help you make some sense of the situation.”

You nod, already having potential answers to your unanswered questions. If not real answers, you’ll settle for theories. It’s still something.

“Thank you, guys.”

Amber winks at you. “Anytime.”

“Of course. We're rooting for you both.”

You shyly smile when Eve nudges your shoulder.

“So," She claps her hands together. “what should we do to commence our very first sleepover? Omegle?”

Amber is concerned for the first time at Eve’s expense.

“Umm...” You pout your lips to the side.

“I don't find the idea of accidentally getting flashed the most... thrilling.” Ambers grimaces.

“Yeah.” You nod.

Eve has a sly look on her face, one that says her proposition comes with an entertaining twist.

“Trust me, I have an idea.”

────♡♡♡────

“Okay, that was pretty fun.” Amber concedes.

You laugh softly to yourself, remembering the events from the previous night.

The 3 of you decide to go out for lunch, finding the night an excellent moment for bonding.

“What was fun?”

Mark pulls a seat up at the table you're occupying.

“Mark? How'd you know we were here?” You query.

Mark looks just as confused as you but before he could answer, Eve does it for him.

“I invited him.”

“Oh. Okay.”

You don't have a problem, it's just that you thought this was gonna be “girl time” as you like to call these moments.

It would've been nice to know, at least.

Amber attempts to start up a conversation but little did you know; this conversation was a part of Eve's “idea” she mentioned the night prior.

“We went on Omegle last night.”

Mark's eyebrows raise in surprise. “Did anything happen?”

You understand the underlying message to be, “Were you victims to any unsolicited sexual advance?” and find it kind of sweet that Mark cares enough to have that be his first train of thought.

“Yeah, actually.” Eve notes as she takes a bite of her burger.

“Y/n's got herself a loverboy.”

You choke on your drink. Exploding into a fit of coughs, you hope it kills you.

Mark is quick to pat your back and try to aid in helping.

When you catch your breath, you look over at him awkwardly and thank him.

“Don't mention it.” He humbly said.

You make it a personal mission to never bring it up. Ever.

Amber continues to fuel the fire.

“Yeahhh.” She sighs. “He's Russian and was all, like, ‘Your eyes are like the ocean and I am a merman.’.” She puts on her best Russian accent and giggles when she nails it.

“Mm!” Eve makes a noise of enthusiasm, adding on to the punchline. “And then he said, ‘They are so deep, I can drown in them.’.”

“The fuck?” Mark grunts under his breath. “But mermen can swim.”

Honestly, he thought it was fucking stupid. Even if this guy was a “merman”, he'd be able to swim. Drowning is totally out of the question.

“Yeah, but it was the thought that counts.” Amber spoke before eating a fry.

“It was pretty corny.” Eve seemingly agrees with Mark.

“See?! I knew I wasn't the only one.” Mark nods to himself.

“But...”

His smile drops.

“I gotta admit, it was kind of romantic.”

Mark can't believe this.

Is romance really dead? Aren't punchlines supposed to make sense?

He knows it's only romantic because the guy's Russian. Okay, so he has an accent. So what? That should pardon his inadequacy of flirting?

“You guys only ate it up because he has an accent.”

Mark narrows his eyes as he takes a curly fry from your plate.

Amber and Eve side eye each other with mischief as they see you enter the ring.

“I thought it was kind of sweet, you know? At least he tried.” You counter.

Mark tilts his head, clearly bewildered. “You mean to say that you actually liked that?”

You don’t like his accusatory tone. “It wasn’t that bad, Mark.”

He rolls his eyes and begs to differ. “Wasn’t that bad- it made no sense! He definitely pulled that shit out of Google’s top thirty best flirty lines.” He puts air quotes around best.

“Oh, would you look at that? I actually have to go do that... thing.” Eve slowly rises from her seat.

“Yeah, me too.” Amber flashes a sweet smile.

They’re gone before you can impose.

“They really just left.” You say to no one.

Mark is still somehow going. “I just… I dunno.” He says, defeated.

“Mark, it wasn’t that deep. He liked my eyes and said some line that made me feel nice. That’s all.”

He nods like he understands but he really doesn’t.

“He’s no Mr. Darcy.” You settle as you take a sip of your milkshake.

Mark smiles at that and you’re confused.

“Why’re you smiling?”

“I knew it! I knew you couldn’t possible swoon over that ridiculous, nonsensical one-liner.”

You laugh incredulously. “Seriously, what’s your problem?”

He raises his hands in surrender. “I just knew he couldn’t be your type after that. Sure, you like them romantic but with genuine thought.”

He says that so confidently, with such attention, it makes you feel nicer than the Russian’s compliment. He makes you feel seen with that keen observation.

You nod to yourself, lowkey impressed.

“Mkay.” You simply say.

His gaze flickers towards you at the seemingly confusing, neutral response.

“What.”

“What, what?”

“You said that like you’re not convinced.”

You deeply exhale, not wanting to argue anymore. “Mkay.”

His eyes widen a bit and he snaps at you like he’s just discovered the phrase: ‘eureka!’.

“That, right there. That’s what I mean.”

You rub at your head as if you’ve got a headache but you doubt you won’t get one soon.

“Elaborate.”

You’re sticking with as little words as possible if it means to get to the point.

“Are you mad at me?” He asks with worry coating his tone.

You shake your head, unsure of what’s happening. “I just don’t know what’s gotten into you today. You’re in this strange mood to argue.”

He blinks.

You’re right.

Arguments are a rare occurrence in this relationship.

“We never argue.” He realizes regretfully.

Your eyes trail up his form and you see the uncomfortableness etched onto his outline.

“I’m sorry-”

“Sorry-”

There’s a pause, one that melts the lingering awkwardness into friendliness.

You see the hints of a smile creep up on him and instinctually, there’s one in yours.

“You first.”

Ever the gentleman.

“Sorry for making it awkward.” Your fingers interlock with each other and you give him an apologetic look.

Mark immediately shakes his head. “No, you didn’t make anything awkward… It was me. I got-”

He doesn’t speak for a few seconds, trying to find another way out of this as two thirds of his sentence has already been put out.

“You got..?”

He puts on a tight-lipped smile but it looks pained. “I just wanna say that I’m sorry for getting defensive for no reason.”

He thinks that was a good excuse for his detour but you’re smart.

“Jealous.” You say firmly.

“Huh?” He squeaks and immediately clears his throat.

“You got jealous.” You shrug your shoulders and move the whip cream in your milkshake around with the straw.

He scoffs with the intention of obscurity. “That- I- What? Pfft, jealous. Who, me?! Yeah, right.”

His stuttering erupts a snort from you, an “I told you so” fresh on the tip of your tongue.

He wanted to spout declarations of how incorrect you are but he couldn’t. The cat had his tongue.

“Whatever.” He bites with little heat.

He crosses his arms over his chest and appears to look unaffected by your ability to see through him.

“Mkay.” You hum to tease him.

Your best friend groans and you giggle at him slouching down in his seat, his hands covering his face and in turn; a sheepish grin.

────♡♡♡────

You’re in your home when your TV bears awful news.

“Breaking news: intruders that look like multiple Invincibles are wreaking havoc across the globe.”

As soon as you hear that, a loud boom is heard from across the city and sends shockwaves to where you are.

“We urge you to stay in your homes and hide. Do not make contact, I repeat; don’t engage with them.”

You’re scared.

How the hell are you supposed to stay hidden in your home when there’s the start of destruction visible outside?

How can they tell you to stay inside when there’s a chance you can die in there?

It’s not like the variants aren’t gonna come inside. Who’d stop them from hurling your place of residence like a football?

Despite all of those thoughts, you stay inside.

You hide in your living room. You sigh to yourself as you hide inside a spare closet, leaving a sliver of space open to breathe.

You turn your phone’s ringer off but feel the vibrations in your pocket. You look to see who it could be and feel so much relief flood your stomach when it’s Mark.

“Mark?” You say shakily.

“Y/n? Oh, thank god. Where are you?”

Your eyes water but you keep them at bay. No point in crying over spilled milk.

“I’m in the spare closet of the living room, what’s going on?”

He starts to explain when the call abruptly cuts.

So fucking cliche you think as you the see the dead battery sign.

You hear a kitchen window open and you heave out a sigh of relief. You get out and are about to hug him but the first thing you notice when you open the door is his face. Er, the lack thereof.

“Is… this a new costume?” You ask wearily.

You didn’t know Mark had a black mask installed, it covered his whole head and the lens were turquoise blue instead of white.

He just stares at you, unflinching and scarily still.

You gulp as the realization sets in your stomach.

This isn’t the Mark of your world. This isn’t the Invincible you recognize.

The masked stranger can sense your irregular heartbeat and hear the small panicked breaths that well up in your chest.

He slowly stalks towards you; like a predator to their prey, except there’s nothing dangerous about his stance. He doesn’t radiate harm or anger and he puts his hands up, as if to show you he won’t harm you.

For your own sake, you can’t believe that. You can’t believe that’s what he wants.

You’re frozen, wide eyes filled to the brim with fear and shock.

You grip your phone tight in your hands, ready to turn it into a weapon if you must.

He’s interrupted when another one shows up.

This one has a black and yellow suit with a yellow cape.

Your eyes dart to his figure and you’re sure this one’s gonna do the honors.

“You’re alive.” He says to himself.

His eyes are covered with white lenses but you know he’s looking at you.

His hands ball up into fists and he walks to you with an urgency in his stride.

You instinctually back up and hit the wall when the masked variant gets in between you both.

“She’s scared.”

The tone in his voice almost makes you think he cares. Almost.

“Get out of my way.” The bright-caped intruder basically spat his face.

“And let youuu have all the fun? I don’t think so!”

What the fuck?

You see what looks like Mark… in a mohawk.

His lips spread into a smirk, a cocky tone in his words.

Your nails press into your arm to prevent you from sputtering out a giggle.

How are you supposed to take him seriously when he’s willingly sporting a mohawk? Right.

If you knew there was going to come a time where your home is used as some sort of Invincible convention, you would’ve moved out a long time ago.

“You’re here.”

This one scares you a little.

His demeanor may be softer but his eyes, they’re wild with a fire furling around his pupils. What makes the fear prick at your heart is the fact that he’s wearing the Viltrumite uniform.

Wherever he came from, he became his father.

That fact chills your bones and you think, how could that happen? Why did that happen?

His wild eyes are wide with surprise and there’s the ghost of a relieved smile on his face.

Very quickly have you gone from 0 to 100.

There are 2 seemingly decent Invincibles and 2 Invincibles that give off evil vibes.

What’s better news is that they all have some sort of fascination with you.

Awesome! Fantastic, even.

Your adrenaline has taken a back seat but you’re still unnerved by the destruction just outside your neighborhood.

You’ve never wished for a quicker death as this cat and mouse game is becoming all too much. The anticipation will kill you if they don’t.

“Alright,” Mohawk Mark yawns. “Enough dickin’ around.”

The 4 variants surround you, encasing you in an otherwise unbreakable square.

“You’re coming with us.” Decides the caped crusader.

He puts his hand out to grab you but is thrown through a wall by an unstoppable force.

It feels a bit blurry after that.

You feel yourself being lifted and moving at an alarming speed, your body lurching forward and side to side by the breeze taking you.

“I’m sorry. I’m so, so sorry.” He murmurs.

He hugs you close to his chest, a hand cradling the back of your head and the other clutching your back protectively.

“M-Mark?”

You find your voice amongst the dizziness clouding your head.

He holds your head and tilts it towards him, kissing the crown and meeting your eyes.

“Yeah, it’s me. You’re okay, you’ll be fine. Just stay here.”

You hold his wrists and blink, looking around you to find yourself with Debbie and her boyfriend, Paul.

“Please.”

Mark’s desperation appeals to you. His voice cracks with an urgency for your life. One that is begging you to listen, and you do.

“Okay.” You agree.

He nods and kisses you once against, a sweet promise pressed against your forehead.

You may have had the wind knocked out of you but that doesn’t mean you’re unaware.

Oh yeah, that kiss sobers you up real quick.

Your eyes are wide and cheeks are warm; you’re flushed and hope he doesn’t detect the jump in your heart rate because of his tenderness for you.

“Be careful.” You blurt out.

Mark looks back at you with a smirk on his face.

“I will.”

He kept his promise for the most part.

────♡♡♡────

“Ow.”

“Maybe don’t move around a lot?”

“…Sorry.”

He winces as you treat his facial wounds.

Mark got pretty banged up; his left eye is swollen and purple from Conquests fists. He has similar shades of bruises on his face and a cut on the bridge of his nose and one on the corner of his lip. His arms and leg are almost fully healed.

It’s been a grueling few weeks.

Oliver helps out as much as he can.

Eve and the rest of the heroes are helping piece the cities back together but no matter how much they help rebuild, the atrocities committed won’t be forgotten.

Conquest was here on a personal mission and almost leveled the state because of it and roughed up Oliver pretty badly.

“I don’t know what to do.”

You hear him, you hear the things he wants to say and the things he doesn’t say out loud.

You feel so bad, so awful for him. He’s still a kid trying his hardest, doing his best.

Why can’t that be enough?

“It isn’t fair.” You respond.

His gaze turns to you.

“You do your best and when you think it’s over, the worst is still yet to come.”

Your fingers lightly touch the one of many bruises on his cheek, his eyes close at the contact.

“I can’t imagine how many times you’ve had pieces of you broken for us but it’s a sacrifice that unfortunately comes with the job.”

It hurt your heart, saying the second part.

Hard truths are a pill you’ll always find difficult to give.

He sharply inhales and the tears he tried so hard holding come pouring down. Soft sobs and wails plague his throat. His head falls atop your chest and his hands wrap around your middle, clinging to your shirt.

Your arms wrap around his shoulders and you do your best to ground him, to be his anchor.

His mental state is unimaginable, the thought of him slipping away has been a reoccurring nightmare for you but you push through. You have to.

“So many people died.”

The death toll worldwide was into the hundreds of thousands. That was the doing of the variants but Mark was inadvertently responsible, too.

It breaks your heart at how unfair this all is.

A Viltrumite’s personal vendetta against Mark resulted in such catastrophe.

Scott -also known as Powerplex- fried his only family left and somehow thinks that is also Mark’s fault.

As if the Chicago Incident wasn’t enough, there was almost a Chicago Incident Part 2 had it not been for Eve.

“You can’t blame yourself Angstrom’s doing.” You try to reason.

Mark shakes his head and gets up.

“I thought I killed him, but I should’ve been sure. I should’ve finished the job.”

Mark palms at his wet eyes, sniffling lightly as he calms down.

You don’t know what to do, you don’t know what to say.

You don’t want him to wallow in this pain by himself but you also don’t want to say something wrong.

“You should leave.” His cold tone and neutral face really sells it.

You’re confused. “What? I’m sorry, was it something I said? Or did?”

You’ve never seen him like this and are worried the wretched day you’ve been imagining is finally here.

“No. I just want you to go.”

You watch his fists bunch up the material of his joggers on his knees and the veins protruding from his hands.

“I…”

You want to say something, you want to stay for him but you can’t. You know it’d only make things worse.

So you just nod and whisper a meek, “Okay.”.

Mark still isn’t looking at you when you make your way to the door. His face still expressionless, calculated, distant.

Your fingers reach for the handle when you hear him.

“Y/n?”

It’s embarrassing how quick hope flashes in your eyes at the sound of him saying your name.

You try to suppress the obvious reaction as much as possible.

“Yeah?”

It still seeps through your voice but you’re human.

Your emotions are a part of you, even if they end up being a helping hand to your disappointment.

You don’t see the pool of guilt swirl around in his almost annoyed eyes but maybe it’s for the better.

He stares at you and feels bad but after everything that’s happened, is it worth keeping you in his life?

He wants to tell you so badly what’s making him push you away.

Sure, William is his best friend but you’re so much more. You’re a part of him, you’re his soulmate.

Mark wants nothing more than to see you happy but he ultimately decides that it’s nothing compared to seeing you alive.

“Can you close my door all the way?” He begrudgingly says.

The average person would blame him for pushing you away, him getting your hopes up only to crush them so inadvertently cruelly.

But you only chastise yourself.

You want him to know that despite people like Scott or Angstrom; who put the blame on wrong people for their circumstantial demise, there's people like you and Debbie.

He has a support system ready to recharge him but maybe you were overcharging him?

You go to sleep in tears, crying silently to yourself over how fucked life is.

Mark doesn't sleep the whole night, knowing he can hear your heart break.

────♡♡♡────

It's been a slow week.

You don't talk to anyone or do things you used to; only getting up to go to class and eat, do some occasional grocery shopping.

You make an excuse for Amber and Eve when they text you to meet up and watch their caller ID's flash across your phone before it rings all the way through.

Mark hasn't spoken to you at all. No call, no text.

Despite him quitting school, you used to see him all the time on campus. Whether it be for you or William or Rick.

Now, you don't meet with anyone.

“She doesn't wanna talk to me or Amber anymore.” Eve voiced one day.

"Nor us." Rick pointed towards him and William.

“Something’s wrong. I'm worried about her.” Amber adds as she comes across the last message you sent in the group chat with her and Eve.

hey guys, just going through the flu rn. i’m fine tho! no worries :)

But of course they worried. They're your friends and that's what friends do.

Which is exactly what they said when they arrived at your doorstep, so you can't afford another excuse.

Your duo sits on your bed, trying to come up with a solution to best help you out.

“He’s closed off and maybe that was expected, but it's been a week.” Amber says.

“Yeah, you'd think he'd open up by now.”

You sigh pitifully and look out your window and down the street.

You’re a 10 minute drive and he’s a 1 minute flight away, yet nobody is willing to close that distance.

“It should be him, though.” Eve says.

“Hm?” You hum absentmindedly.

“Mark should be the one to come talk to you, not the other way around.”

Eve gauges for a reaction from you, one that will oppose her idea.

“Maybe you should go.” She switches up.

You look at Eve hesitantly, like it's a flop idea.

“You tried, Y/n. You did your part and he let you know but this isn’t the way things between you should end. Should he want it to end.”

It's like Amber knew what you were thinking and tried to dismiss the thought for you.

You weren't gonna lie and say that you haven't thought about blowing up his phone, driving to his house and banging on his door to open up to you.

But would he even want to? Would he even listen?

“It's not about what he wants, it's about what he needs.”

“And what he needs right now, is you.”

- MEANWHILE, WITH WILLIAM, RICK & REX -

“Come on, man. Don't be like this.” William tries.

Rick can see how much Mark is beating himself up over everything that’s happened.

With the fight against Liu’s dragon and Powerplex. And now recently, Conquest.

Mark never complained, it was the job. But you made getting back out on the field a bit easier.

“It's not worth losing her.” Rick gently reminds.

Mark's trio of lending hands have come to his service but it's unwanted, and Mark lets them know.

“Look, I don't need this. Especially not right now.”

This makes Rex mad.

“Oh you don’t need this? Well, excuseee me! We don’t need you to be so goddamn stupid, especially not right now.”

Mark narrows his eyes, visibly agitated. “Stupid? I’m being stupid?”

Rex widens his eyes, his pitch growing higher. “Yeah! That’s what I said.”

“Okay, I think we’re elevating the situation so let’s all just calm down.” William suggests nervously.

Mark has other thoughts as he rises from the bed. “And how exactly am I being stupid?”

Rex knows he shouldn’t be egging him on, he shouldn’t be encouraging his anger; but if this was the way to make his friend see his foolishness then so be it.

“By distancing yourself from the one woman who’s nice enough to let you, instead of manning up and telling her why.”

That stung.

“You don’t get to tell me how to handle my love life.”

Rex smirks lazily, a hardball on the tip of his tongue. “You don’t even have the balls to have one.”

“Rex.” William warns.

The cheeky bastard ignores him and continues on, a bit excited to see where this would all lead.

“I think she’d want a man who sees her, who doesn’t hurt her by ignoring her entire existence.”

Rick facepalms himself and wonders where the line between bravery and stupid was drawn.

Mark’s knuckles are white from how hard his fingers are curling in on themselves, his fists ready to pound into the explosive asshole.

Rex steps closer, now toe-to-toe with Mark and ignorantly unafraid. “I wouldn’t make her wait.”

Mark punches him right in the mouth, hard.

“Mark!” The yell of his friends fall on deaf ears.

Rex grunts as he stumbles back a bit, expecting this outcome.

“You don’t know her. You don’t know what’s good for her.” Mark spits bitterly.

Rex spits some blood out, sighing heavily. “You do.”

That makes Mark soften up.

He blinks like he’s snapped out of a trance. His fist wavers and is set down beside his thigh, a deep sigh exiting his nose. He looks at his friend and witnesses the ugly truth; his jealousy won.

“What am I doing?” He whispers.

Rex coughs lightly, the cut on his lip stinging.

“Talk to her, Mark. Don’t let her live with the regret of not knowing.”

Rick puts a sympathetic hand on his shoulder, hoping this will finally tip him over the edge.

Rex comes off the wall, slapping Mark’s back with a warm pat.

“I’m sorry, Rex. I shouldn’t have-”

He dismisses him with a wave. “Nah, I was being an asshole. An asshole on purpose, but still an asshole.”

────♡♡♡────

Deep breath in, deep breath out.

You’re gathering the courage to mull over the most impactful relationship in your life.

Is there even a correct way to do that?

You don’t know, but what you do know is that you have to try.

You look yourself in the mirror and feel the weight of your younger self.

She’d be devastated. you think. If she were here in the flesh to see this, you don’t think she could withstand it.

A sharp knock to your door pulls you out of your head.

You’re not expecting anyone, and you’re unsure about the one person you did want to hear from.

Regardless, you walk over and open the door and your heart drops out of your ass. Not in fear, but in surprise.

“Mark.” You breathe.

Here he is; in the flesh and without the scowl you picture. In fact, he looks guilty.

His once glee-filled eyes are now empty of it, making you reminisce the time before last week.

“Can I come in?”

His voice resounding of forlorn hope. He expects you to deny him, to make him walk away with his hands held in a helpless prayer.

Instead, you show him mercy and welcome him inside your place of refuge.

Tentatively, he makes his way inside and awkwardly stands beside your desk.

You’re quiet, still trying to process his presence after an entire week of radio silence.

You don’t know how to feel, if anything. Should you be happy? Ecstatic? Frustrated and hurt are also a couple of great options.

“Y/n?”

You look up at him and see his concerned face. “Hm?”

“I asked if we can talk.”

“Now you want to talk?” It came out before you could even think about it.

Your annoyance seeps through and he shuffles the weight on his feet a bit uncomfortably.

“I know-��

“No, you don’t.”

He looks at you like you just told him to kill himself.

“Y/n, please. Just hear me out.”

Your arms are crossed over your chest in a defensive position, he clocks that. He also notices the way you make eye contact with him throughout your sentences.

You were really hurt, he gathers.

He takes your silence as a sign to continue talking.

“After I left you at Paul’s, I went back out there and fought off the rest of those… variants. While I was fighting them, they told me about you.”

Your interest is fucking peaked now.

“What do you mean?”

“They... they said that you existed in their world but-“ He cuts himself off with a vexed sigh.

“But what, Mark.”

You want, need to know what was worth hurting you for days on end.

Mark looks at you and it's the most disheartened he's looked since that night he told you to leave.

“You died, Y/n.”

It all makes sense now. You grapple with the stomach-churning epiphany of the century.

The different Invincibles that wanted to take you was simply because you ceased to exist in their worlds.

“I... I died in every single universe.”

He takes some steps in your direction, not wanting to overwhelm you.

“You either died on accident by being murdered with civilians or you killed yourself.”

“Why would I commit suicide?”

He deeply inhales. “Because you'd rather die than join the other me.”

That sounds on brand.

“I couldn't live with myself knowing I'd lose you in this one, too.” He admits raspily.

That touches your heart.

You want to hug him, to comfort him but you're still kind of confused. You needed more answers.

“I was so scared, I had never felt fear like I did when I saw them with you.” He whispers.

“Why'd you tell me to leave?” You ask gently.

“Because I love you.”

His confession is so light, said with such helplessness, that you tear up.

Mark maintains eye contact with you, tired of hiding his true self. He wants you to see him.

“So many people have died because of me, it may not be directly my fault, but it still had to do with me.”

He comes a little closer, just a couple of steps away from touching you.

“What if I was too late that day? What if they managed to take you away?” He mutters in a hushed tone.

Mark shakes his head as if to get rid of those thoughts.

“If anything happens to you, it will be because of me.”

“So, you thought it was best to create such a large gap between us, that there's be a sinking hole inside of me. Is that it?”

Your eyes well up against your will but you can't bring yourself to care. Not when he can finally see just how much you've been suffering.

“You think I wanted to do that?” He asks defensively.

You scoff indignantly. “I think you could've told me from the jump. That's what I think.”

You know it's a little unfair given how vulnerable he's being right now but he was unfair when you were vulnerable, too.

He shakes his head, eyes closing in on themselves as his tears threaten to fall. “I can't risk your life, Y/n! Why don't you understand that?”

You messily wipe your tears, your lashes wet and nose tinged with the lightest of reds.

“All this time, you didn't have a problem with how close we were. Now that you saw how close I was to something dangerous, it got too real for you?!”

He's in your space now, his chin set down and eyes on yours.

Contrary to how mad he looks, he relays his message in an low tone. “Yeah. It did.”

Your eyes widen a bit at the length he's cut between your bodies and you're back in time. You go back to the moment he almost kissed you.

“Don't push me away, Mark.”

You beg him and you don't care if you look pathetic. You love him and don't want to lose him like this.

Mark just presses his forehead against yours and shuts his eyes, he concentrates on you. Your smell, your hushed breaths, your heartbeat.

You feel his hands slide up and down your arms, grounding you.

Even when he's opening up to you, Mark still chooses to comfort you. He still wants to calm you down, to make you feel better. He still chooses to have your best interests at heart.

“I came here to tell you the truth because you deserve better.”

You wordlessly deny his idea, shaking your head once.

He grabs ahold of your head, making you look at him.

You see it all, you see all of his pain, grief, anger.

“I love you but you're not safe with me.”

“You don't get to make my decision for me.” You stubbornly point out.

Y/n—”

“I love you.” A shaky whisper snuck into the air between your lips.

His wide eyes stare back at yours in surprise.

“I've loved you for a long time and I don't wanna be in love with another.” You wrap your hands around his, feeling the warmth bloom onto your cold ones.

“Please. Please don't ask me to stay away from you.” You cry.

He kisses your head and brings you close, your head on his shoulder and slotting between his bicep and forearm. He curls his other arm around your waist and lays his head on yours.

“Okay, fine.” He fondly agrees. “You win so stop crying.”

"Fuck you." You jab.

He airily laughs and brings your face close to his, pressing an equally feathery kiss to your lips.

You timidly kiss him, shying away a little to breathe but Mark wants you to take his breath if you must. He pulls you in, hands gripping your hips and pulling you flush against him, wanting to shape a new mold from your figures.

Your fingers nervously brush his hair and he groans at the contact.

You chuckle at the sound and he pulls away leaving a soft peck.

He's in a daze and has hearts in his eyes but he ultimately decides; he wouldn't want it any other way.

[markanddebbie-protectionprogram]

i have plans that i have no self control to keep to myself, and i don't care if the haters will sabotage me

[midnightshindig]

pssst thinking about rex splode x reader with powers similar to poison ivy... imagine them being the sweetest person alive and making him sweet flowery gifts 🙏 or gifting him any other plants since rex is into home decorating and "oh but this orchid would fit so well!"

Rex Splode x Poison Ivy! Reader

Gn reader!

(Also omg sorry if this is a little ooc, we hardly see Rex being soft and like… romantic… so I’m doing my best lol)

You’d been his most frequent visitor at the hospital, right up there next to Mark and Eve, often spending the day watching the two come and go about their business as you sat and chatted with them

Youve taken to leaving potted plants in his hospital room, making him whatever flowers or plant you think would liven up the dull, sterile space.

One time you take it a bit too far and Cecil chews you out for the full blackberry bush in a hospital

“but he waned blackberries, Cecil! The man doesn’t have a hand, can’t he at least have some blackberries?” gotta hit him with the puppy dog eyes

it works.

when Eve started bringing in home decor magazines, you were surprised by how quickly Rex took to them

like one minute he was all “these potted ferns are gay” and the next he’s describing his dream kitchen in AGONIZING detail

so it’s not surprise that when he gets out and gets home to Guardian hq, he’s all over fixing the vibes of that bitch

Your in the kitchen making some coffee and he comes up behind you, arms around your waist from behind and head on your shoulder like:

”Yknow I think some hanging ivy would look great as a trim in this room, don’t you think?”

Hes almost a little relentless

You’re out in public and he’s dragged you to a home goods and he’s looking at fake plants, googling what they are and asking you very politely(?) to make replicas

The immortal actually gets onto him a little about this

”Rex, we are superheroes among superheroes-Defenders of justice and the innocent, protectors of-“

He’ll be damned if he’s risking his life every day and the dining room table doesn’t have a vase of flowers god damnit

and there is no amount of menace that’s gonna change his mind

”Look me in the eyes and tell me my beautiful wife-“

oh yeah he thinks it’s hilarious to call you his wife as a bit, regardless of your gender

“- doesn’t make the whole place brighter with their plants! This is the first time this place has been decorated with anything other than blood, so can it!”

Everyone in Guardian HQ just like :0

he doesn’t care he loves you and your plants

He takes you on garden dates, like the fancy ones with butterflies and arches and shit

He takes you to home goods. A lot.

ik I mentioned it earlier but it really is a lot

Like you have to tell him to please stop picking home goods for his turn to plan a date

Rex please I can’t do this anymore omg

you go to ikea instead

this is kind of out there but he gets really into scrapbooking, too

like scrapbooking potential interior designs

by cutting up old magazines

He loves to show you his latest I’ll-perspective Frankenstein-esque room

at least he has a hobby that isn’t misogyny or murder or beer

You can’t really find it in you to be anything other than endeared

Being with Rex is a lot like being with your high schools star quarterback, in that he’s abrasive and cocky to a fault

but he never uses this against you, instead you become another thing for him to brag about

”Rexxxxx, whatre you doing?”

he’s taking selfies with you on your date and IMMEDIATELY posting it to his finsta

“Whaaat! I just want everyone to see how hot my partner is, we gotta bless their lives with our hotness, our combined hotness, Y/n, think of the combined hotness!”

you laugh and tuck a freshly-formed daisy behind his ear

Oh that’s another thing: he loves when you braid flowers into his hair

this goes with the hair braiding thing from last time, this man is having a Tangled moment and nobody is going to stop him

All the women on the team think you’re a good influence on Rex, as well as Mark and Eve

The Two of you had only started dating during season two, and everyone was lowkey thrilled it made Rex be slightly less of an asshole

I mean come on, how could he ever be mean in front of you? With your big eyes and soft smile

he just didn’t have the strength

UNLESS he was fighting

there have been a few times where you’ve been pinned in a fight, and Rex’s life flashes before his eyes

full on s2 lobotomy bullshit like villains WISH this man would die

but he can’t die because his like… one true love or wtv is in danger five feet away

he just can’t resist being your knight in shining armor

Unrelated but since meeting you he likes formal wear more

Because you make him custom, special uh. Fuck. Whatever the guy corsages are called. Those.

you make him those.

He never got to go to high school or prom or any real fancy event

so when the GPA has a charity ball he EATS UP the opportunity to have you make him a fancy flower thing

Your outfit is gorgeous and he tells you this, spinning you around and stuff

he may not have super strength but I’ll be damned if he doesn’t throw you around

mr “I don’t work out to save the world, I work out to princess carry my partner”

and he does

Bro Probably Princess carries you to the ball, and in day to day life as well

people are like “Rex wtf” and he threatens to fight them right then and there

luckily almost everyone else thinks you two are cute

and how can Cecil disapprove of someone making Rex so happy and focused on being a better hero

BONUS

his favorite flower is the Firework Gomphrena

due to its resemblance to a pink firework

You surprised him with these one day after a firework display for you and he lost it/pos

God he’s down bad for you

[uracutieraka]

My dear Rex,

You never showed up, and now, after looking at the newspapers I understand why.

✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼ ✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼ ✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼ ✼　 ҉ 　✼　 ҉ 　✼

Angst no comfort. implied situationship. spoilers for S3.

Rex Sloan x F!reader

You and Rex had a falling out months ago, over something so severely stupid. In the moment it wasn't. But now that you're standing here looking down at the hole six feet deep into the ground? It was so stupid.

I don't imagine you will receive this letter but I nonetheless must send it.

Text after text, and still no response from him. It had been hours since he promised to be here.

'You only turn 20 once!' he had said before shutting your apartment door, heading off to fight some villain.

You had been sat on the curb of this super fancy restaurant that he swore by for at least two hours, in hopes that maybe, just maybe, he'd show.

Eventually the staff had to shoo you away like a dog. You cried the entire taxi ride back to your small studio.

Finally after hours of crying and drinking whatever leftover alcohol you had in your freezer you had knocked out on your bed.

You woke up to the feeling of your mattress sinking in, turning around, still drunk, you see Rex.

"What the fuck Rex?"

He winces and slowly opens one eye, looking over at you with a guilty smile.

"I know, I know..." He starts but you quickly throw the covers off of you and stand up, crossing your arms and glaring at him.

"You stood me up!"

He pouts and tries to reach out for you but you snatch your arm out of grip.

"No! Don't touch me!" Your words are slightly slurred and your vision begins to blur. How could he do this? On your birthday of all days?

"Hey, hey, I got caught up with Kate after work s'all..."

You now feel the tears spill down your face, Kate? The girl he used to have sex with?

"Kate?" Your voice is quiet when you ask, even though you only said one word he knows what the call of her name means.

"We just went out for a few drinks to catch up! She had a rough day and need a familiar shoulder to cry on."

He says it like it's just that simple! Like abandoning you on your special day was okay because his old fuck-buddy had a rough day.

"More like a familiar dick to hop on..."

Rex now quirks his brow up at you.

"Fuck did you just say?"

You look up from the floor and back at the man in front of you.

"I said," You make a point to sniffle and wipe your tears away before finishing. "More. Like. A. Fa-mil-iar dick. To. Hop. On."

Rex now scoffs and stands up, facing you from the other side of your bed.

"Are you serious right now Y/n?"

"Are you? You ghosted my on my birthday to get drinks with your old hookup!"

It's like realization sets in on his face when you say those words, and you feel your anger grow.

"You forgot it was my fucking birthday, didn't you?"

"Y/n I am so fucking so-"

"Forget it Rex. Forget all of it. Just get the fuck out."

You turn and sit on the edge of your mattress, facing away from him.

"You're kicking me out?" His voice is quiet, obviously hurt.

"I guess I am, yeah."

You don't look at him but you could practically see his face in your mind. The disappointed look he would have on it if you had turned around.

You just listen as he gathers his stuff and walks out your front door.

Rex, oh, Rex. I was just starting to dream the silliest and softest of dreams.

"Put me down!" Your laughter and shrieks fill the air of the quiet, secluded beach.

"Not happening sweetheart!" Rex lightly smacks the back of your thigh as he runs towards the ocean with you thrown over his shoulder, struggling to escape his strong grip.

Once his feet break through the surface of the salty water you know it's game over.

"Rex, don't!" You squeal as you're suddenly launched off his sturdy shoulder and flying down towards the coldness below you.

You pop back up a moment later, gasping and wiping water off your face. A laugh escapes your lips as you look over to Rex, who's clutching his sides in an attempt to calm down his own laughter.

"No, Rex, Don't throw me!" He mocks you.

"You're so annoying!" You say, though your words have no real malice behind them.

"Mmm, not too annoying if you kept me around this long though." He says, slowly making his way closer to you, wading through the water like a shark.

"Pretty annoying though..." Your voice is softer now as he closes the distance between you two, his large hands gripping your hips under the water and pulling you closer to him. You wrap your arms around his neck and your legs around his waist as he does this.

"Eh, debatable." He shrugs and gives you a dopey grin.

"Whatever..." You whisper before closing the distance, kissing him softly.

I miss you, and I will always miss you but I cannot live like that, and it seems you cannot live any other way.

"I can't just give this up Y/n!" Rex's voice booms through the small apartment.

"I did!" You look up at him from your spot on the couch. He's pacing around in front of you, running his hands through his hair, obviously frustrated.

"I'm not you! This is all I have!"

Silence fills the room and he stops pacing, looking back over to you.

"You have me..." Your voice is quiet and he quickly notices the way your voice cracks and falters.

"I know, I didn't mean it like that...," He now sits next to you, pulling you towards him. He kisses the top of your head before continuing. "This is just all I've ever known. I can't just quit."

"I know." You respond, because you did know. It was stupid to try and ask him to give up being a hero.

When I am with you, the world makes sense

Rex is sprawled out across your couch, lazily flipping through the channels on your television.

You're sat across from him, glasses low on your nose as you grumble to yourself about this pointless project you have due soon.

"You okay?"

You now look up and over to the sound of the voice. Rex is sitting up looking at you, eyes squinted to study your face.

"M'fine." You grumble and go back to stressing out over the assignment.

Rex sighs as he stands up and walks over to you. He stands behind you, one hand grabbing the back of your chair as the other lies flat against the cool surface of your table.

You lazily let your head lull back to look up at him.

"You gonna help me or something?" Your eyebrow pops up.

"Mmmm, maybe, or I'll just kiss you until you get annoyed and forget that I came over here to help you, because this shit looks complicated as fuck."

You just roll your eyes and pucker your lips expectantly.

He leans down and connects his with yours quickly. He repeats this action at least 15 more times before you shoo him back to the couch with a giggle and one more kiss 'for luck' you say.

but when we are apart, I see clearly that your world is not a world from which one can escape.

"Rex?" You call, your voice echoing off the barren walls of the hospital as you run, frantically looking around.

You run to the front desk, slamming your hands down against the linoleum.

"Rex? Where is Rex Splode- Sloan- fuck! What room is he in?" Your eyes are wide and your obviously frazzled. The lady behind the desk is quickly trying to figure out what room the man was in when a voice stops the both of you in your tracks.

"Y/n."

You turn around slowly, anger seeping off you.

"Cecil..." You begin stepping towards the old man.

"Y/n." Another hand grabs your shoulder and when you turn to smack whoever thought it was okay to touch you, you don't.

"Rex! Oh my god! You're okay!" You throw yourself into his arms.

"I'm okay. I'm okay..." He strokes the back of your head as you sob into his shirt. He shares a knowing look with Cecil before pulling you off of him.

"Let's go somewhere private to talk, yeah?"

You nod and follow him as he leads you through the sterile halls.

That's how you two ended up here.

"You're really giving us," you point between you and him a few times "up because Cecil told you to?"

He groans and grabs his face with his hands.

"No! I'm going away for a while because I need to focus on my work..."

You just grab your purse and shove past him. He calls after you but you turn around quickly.

"Just, call me whenever you're done 'working on yourself' or whatever it was you called it." With a flick of your hand to dismiss him, you walk off and he just watches as your figure disappears.

I am so sorry, for everything long ago and for starting up that business again. 

Rex's phone has been ringing for the past ten minutes. He groans when he realizes it probably wasn't going to stop until he answers it.

His heart drops when he sees your contact on the screen. He hadn't seen it in months.

"Hello?" He says quizzically into the speaker.

Music thumps in his ears loudly and suddenly your voice breaks through.

"Rex? Hello?"

His breath hitches, he hadn't heard your voice since the day in the hospital.

"Yeah, I'm here."

"Oh, thank god!," You let out what he assumes is a choked sob. "Can you come get me? I-I'm at some club and I'm drunk and this guy I came with just left me here because I told him I didn't want anything serious!"

That's all Rex needed to hear. He was there in 20 minutes.

He finds you sitting on the sidewalk next to the bouncer.

You look up at him as he approaches and his heart breaks at the sight.

Your hair is shorter than when he last saw you, and your makeup is smeared all over your face.

Your eyes light up as you see him and you struggle to get up.

"Rex!" You say as you throw yourself into his arms. He stumbles back a bit before grabbing your waist and pulling you off him.

"How much have you had to drink?"

You just frown at him and instead of answering his question your hands find their way to his hair, pushing it behind his ear and out of his face.

"Missed you." You say and he sighs, moving to wrap his arm around your waist. He leads you back to his car and helps you in.

On the drive he sneaks small glances at you. Your head is leaned against his window as you have your eyes closed, humming to the sound of music that's softly playing on the radio.

You were so beautiful, how could he ever give you up for work?

He's going to make it up to you and prove himself this time.

There's a good man within you Rex, but he is wrestling with a giant, and the giant wins. Time and again.

"Are you serious?" Your words slice through the air like knives and Rex jumps at the sudden noise.

"Y/n! It's not what you think!" Kate says.

Rex slides off her and rushes over to you.

"Not what I think? I think you and Rex were just fucking on my couch while I was at work!"

Kate looks down at her lap in shame as you scoff and push Rex away from you.

"You're both whores." You say, pushing your way towards your bedroom.

"Get the hell out of my apartment." You say before your bedroom door slams shut.

You've broken my heart, again and I fear I have broken yours.

"Rex, you should just leave..." Your voice is hoarse and raw, eyes swollen and face red from crying.

"Please, fuck- please don't make me." Rex sobs out, obviously drunk.

"You're drunk a-and I just can't deal with this right now."

"I'm sorry I forgot your birthday! And for the Kate shit! And all of it! Please, please, please."

You sigh at the desperate man at your door step.

"Rex, I don't even know what you're begging for."

"You." His answer is quick, and his eyes are bloodshot and wide.

"Go home Rex." You shut the door in his face, ignoring the way he keeps knocking and begging for you to open it.

Rex never came by again after that.

For that, I will never forgive myself but you must let me go now.

"Rex has been seeing Rae for a bit now, but I'm pretty sure they're trying to keep it a secret."

Your friend Rudy's voice seems to trail off as he continues talking about the rest of his team, filling you in on updates of their lives since you had been too busy between work and school to stop by yourself.

"Wait- Rex is with Rae?" You shake your head and put your hand out as a bewildered look is on your face.

"Y-yes...Y/n? Are you okay?" Rudy asks, looking at you closely.

"Yeah, I'm fine.," You say taking a sip of your coffee. "Good for them."

I enclose a ring you gave me many years ago, when we were both young, not because I don't like it, but because I care for it far too much and it reminds me too much of you. 

You look down at the giant hole in the ground where the coffin is now lowered in.

You run your fingers over the smooth material of the envelope in your hand.

With one last look you toss it in, it clinks against the hard wood and you watch as it slides off, wedging itself in the crack between the wood and dirt.

"What was that?" Rudy whispers to you once you finally look away from the coffin and make your way over to the group.

You softly smile at the memory that play though your mind.

"The mood ring's Rex had gotten for us during some mission, I thought they were dumb but he, uhm...," Your voice cracks as tears well up. "He said that it was only dumb if we thought about it too hard." You dryly chuckle, barely being able to get the words out.

Rudy just nods in understanding.

You look back one more time before making your way out of the cemetery.

I hope, one day you will find some people in love who can use this, for it kept me thinking of you all these years, and I hope by returning it to you I can finally be free.

goodbye,

Y/n

[reinersprozacbottle]

i know we need to respect the dead and all but……. Rex Plode

[cyanide-sippy-cup]

Been avoiding the show because FUCK Amazon but. I said I'd post it so I'm postin it.

[real-hot-grl-shi]

REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX REX

[fruitheart]

can I request a afab nb reader x rex angst fluff fic? maybe like one of his explosives go off and injures reader and they lose their memory of who he is 😖

                       ․ ․ ․⸝⸝ I KNOW YOU ꪆৎ

                         REX SPLODE/SLOAN x NB!READER

note ; this was such a cute idea to me HEHE, of course, here you go.. ( ᵔ ᗜ ᵔ ) fyi reader is a super

Everyone told him it wasn’t his fault. They told him it was an accident, that he hadn’t meant to. He’d have never meant to. Rex didn’t need people telling him he would have never meant to do it to know that was the truth. He was an asshole, but he wasn’t evil. Never would he have done what led up to this on purpose.

Words of reassurance and attempted comfort from everyone trying to help him feel better, trying to prevent him from blaming himself any more than he already was fell completely through. He was good at acting unbothered at first though, worried, but unbothered.

It didn’t work, how could it? When he closed his eyes, he could see you. The realization, the complete fear in your eyes, then the small flash of acceptance before the explosion went off. It was his fault the explosion happened to begin with.

When he closed his eyes, he could hear your voice call out to him before the explosion engulfed you, before it consumed you whole. He could see the look on your face right before it happened, you knew he was going to blame himself for it.

Every time he slept, he dreamt of it. Every time he laid in his bed at night and found himself finally drifting off to sleep, he was quickly met with the memory of how everything unfolded.

“Quit being such a hardass!” You scolded him. “Just follow the plan, Rex! Stop being so annoying.”

He should have listened.

He didn’t.

“Quit being such a hardass.” He mocked as you flew off, “What a bitch, they think I’m annoying?” He scoffed, rolling his eyes. “I mean, am I right?” Rex turned towards Kate, trying to get someone to agree with him.

“You should listen to them, Rex.” She glared, “Before you get one of us killed.” Running off before he could argue back with her.

He should have listened.

He didn’t.

Back-and-forth bickering between you two while in the middle of a battle. Maybe if he didn’t argue with you, he would have been paying attention to what he was doing. But that’s not how it happened.

“Damn it, Rex! Now’s not the time!” You called out from afar, busy trying to keep back Komodo Dragon. “Just shut up!” Senses overwhelmed, trying to keep up with arguing back with him amongst all the chaos.

“I’m just saying, you’re always giving me shit! You’re not exactly any better!” He shouted. Hands grasping one of the metal bars attached to his hip, charging it quickly and throwing it past you, creating a small explosion to back off the rest of the Lizard League. The explosion causing your ears to ring.

It was too much, you couldn’t keep up. It wasn’t your fault, Rex should have taken notice. He should have taken the situation seriously. Instead he was too caught up in a game of who can win the argument.

Charging another metal bar strong enough to completely decimate anyone near it, he should have noticed how disoriented you were. He thought you would have seen the explosive being chucked towards you both. He thought you would have moved out of the way in time. You were always quick with it, you were always well coordinated and aware of everything going on, you were always ready.

He should have paid attention.

You noticed the metal bar rolling towards you too late, you didn’t see it until it was already at your feet. Head snapping up at Rex, his face morphed from smug at his earlier retort, to complete horror. His lips parted and his voice screamed out your name.

Your hand reached out towards him as you attempted to move away, mouth opening,

“Rex–!”

The flash of the explosion lit your face before he could see nothing at all but the aftermath. Hands quickly wafting away the smoke as panic had his nerves shot. Ears ringing and eyes wide, he ran as fast as he could, stumbling over chunks of rubble and debris. Throat tight and scratchy as he continued to shout your name, calling out to you.

His brain saved every little detail to torment him. It saved every millisecond of it. It saved the way you looked when he found you. Bloodied and bruised, a nasty gash to your head that oozed blood down your face, patches of your skin reddened and burned. Even your suit was barely intact as most of it had been torn and burned.

Rex felt sick. How could he not? It was enough to make anyone hate themselves, it was enough to make him hate himself.

He replayed it again and again in his head until the thought made him feel like puking. He dreamt it again and again until he’d wake up gasping for air, muscles cramping and body shaking. Rex wouldn’t ever have done anything like that on purpose.

He’d have never hurt you. It didn’t matter how many times the both of you argued. How many times he called you names and how many shouting matches you had.

Weeks went by, weeks of watching you lay still in a hospital bed. In a cold white room with monitors that beeped and showed how your body was holding up.

Cecil told him how it was no surprise you survived, advanced durability, you were always able to take a nasty hit. But the damage inflicted was painful, especially the blow to your head.

It was enough to send you into a coma. They didn’t know what your status would be when you woke up, if you were to ever wake up. It didn’t matter to him, he would have sat next to your bed for the rest of his life if it called for it.

He told himself it was his fault. He didn’t care what anyone else said, he didn’t care about the reassuring remarks and pleas to just give himself a break. It was his fault he had to watch you lay there hooked up to machines. He was good at playing it off like it was no big deal, like he knew you’d come back from it, hiding away the worry.

Rex was a prick, he was a stubborn asshole, but even he couldn’t stop himself from pressing his ear up to your chest and listening to your heartbeat. And when someone walked in, he pretended he wasn’t just holding your hand in his.

He’d wait until others left before fixing your hair, brushing it out from your face and making sure you looked like you were comfortable.

He’d never show that he cared, you’d have teased the absolute living hell out of him for it, but when you looked like this, when the overwhelming guilt made itself known again… Rex caught himself holding the side of your face in the palm of his hand.

If it took living out the rest of his life sleeping in a chair beside you, he’d do so.

─ ୨୧ ─

When he walked in this morning, he was surprised to see a couple of people already standing outside your room. He was usually the first and only one to visit you at the start of the day.

“What the hell is going on here? A party? Move people!” He scoffed, trying to push past Kate and Eve.

“Rex, wait–” Eve reached for him, putting a hand to his shoulder, keeping him from reaching the door as she pulled him away.

Growing annoyed he turned to her, “What the hell, Eve? What?”

“I don't think it's a good idea seeing them right now–”

“Yeah, Eve’s right, Rex.” Mark added in.

“Huh? What is this? Move out the way, Jesus.” Rex shouted, brushing Eve’s hand off as he reached for the door handle, ready to barge in without so much as listening to them. Expecting the worst given how everyone was acting.

Swinging the door open, he was met with… Well, you. You were finally awake. He felt more than relieved, his body almost going weak at the sight of you awake and looking around. To hear your voice as you spoke to Cecil before cutting yourself off at his intrusion, eyes slowly glancing at him up and down.

Cecil turned towards him, before he could spare Rex from what was to come, he was already opening his mouth,

“Holy shit! You're awake! Oh my God, finally!” He beamed, quickly stepping to the side of the bed, grabbing your arms.

“You were out for weeks!” He laughed, “We can finally get you out of here! You don’t know how fuckin’ boring it was staying in here waiting on your ass.” His hands reached to help you out from the bed.

“Rex, I don’t think–”

“Who are you?”

At first it didn’t register what you said, not fully. He looked at you funny, like you were making some kind of bad joke, eyebrow raising and lip twitching into a smirk. Until he realized nobody had the same reaction as him. Looking back at you to watch as genuine confusion stayed on your face. His hands falling to his sides.

“What?” He laughed once more, disbelief, hidden denial.

“It’s… It’s me. Rex, it’s… I’m Rex– I’m,” He stuttered over his words, looking around. From you, to Cecil, to everyone standing outside your room.

“What the fuck is happening?” He didn’t want to face it. Not even when you looked at him wide-eyed and confused. “You know who I am, stop shitting around. I get it! I get it, I should have listened but don’t–”

“Rex.” Cecil spoke, tone stern, warning him to stop speaking. Motioning his head towards the door as he walked out, Rex followed right behind him. He spared you one more glance before closing the door behind him.

“They don’t remember who you are–”

“Bullshit!” Rex shouted, defensive and unwilling to believe it. Unwilling to accept it. “You expect me to believe this? I’ve been putting up with their ass for years!” He shook his head, looking from one person to another, desperate for some sort of support in his words. No one backed him up.

Cecil pinched the bridge of his nose, sighing, “They suffered a concussion, they were put into a coma– Rex, they don’t remember a couple of things. Alright? I understand it’s not easy–”

“My ass they don’t remember! You know, this is fucked up, alright? Whatever this game is, it’s fucked! And I’m not playing along.” He huffed, turning and reaching for the handle once more. Eyes peering through the small window in the door, watching as you looked around the room.

You looked so lost; you really didn’t remember. His jaw clenched, trying to keep it together. The look on your face when you caught him staring. You really did have no clue who he was, you didn’t remember him.

“Rex. It was an accident, it’s not your fault.” Eve tried to reassure, pressing a hand to his back. He couldn’t even take his eyes off you to look at her. “I’m sure somewhere deep down, they know who you are, they just can’t remember right now.”

“They’re suffering from memory loss.” Cecil spoke, “Their condition doesn’t seem too bad. They don’t recall who certain people are or the incident but the best we’re hoping for is that it doesn’t get worse and eventually they’re able to recover their memory.”

─ ୨୧ ─

He tried to pretend like it didn’t bother him. Like he was okay with you not remembering him. Not that he was good at pretending the more time went on. Yet he didn’t let it stop him from being right by your side while you were recovering. Rex was insistent on staying right by you, even if he still was being an ass.

He woke up rather early, back aching from sleeping in a chair that was far from comfortable. Letting out a groan, he stretched before settling back down.

Looking over at you, he hadn’t realized he was watching you sleeping peacefully for a bit now until he noticed one of your eyes open and staring right back at him. Earning an embarrassed reaction out of him as he cleared his throat.

You snorted, rubbing your face before sitting up. “How many more times am I going to catch you watching me sleep.” You yawned.

Rex turned away, flustered and slightly annoyed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.” He rolled his eyes, “...When did you wake up?”

“As soon as you started staring at me.”

“I wasn’t staring.” He sneered.

“Uh huh, sure. You totally weren’t, stranger.”

“Shut up.” He groaned, slumping in his seat.

You rolled your eyes, laying back on your side as you pulled the thin sheet over your head and shielded your eyes from the light. The sound of Rex’s foot tapping against the tiled floor as he bounced his leg filling in the silence for a few minutes.

“I’m not a stranger.” His tone was almost upset. You were quiet for a bit,

“I know you’re not,” This was recurring between the two of you. He didn’t like it when you made those little comments, when you made it apparent you really didn’t remember who he was anymore. It made him feel bad. It made you feel bad. Even if you didn’t exactly remember him, you at least knew he meant something to you before.

From the way he talked about it, day after day in an attempt to help you recover what you lost, you knew you meant something to him too. He was arrogant, sure. Impulsive, full himself and a jerk, but something in you didn’t all too much mind. Like you knew he was capable of more than that.

“Sorry.”

He frowned, the last thing he wanted was to make you feel like anything was your fault. Especially when he was the reason you ended up here. If it were anybody else, he probably wouldn't have cared, but you weren't anyone else.

“It's whatever, It’s not like I’m upset or anything.”

You pulled the sheet down a bit, peering at him with an unamused look.

“You’re a horrible liar.”

“Not lying.”

“Are too.”

He leaned in, glaring at you with a pout of his lip. “How is it that you forgot me but you haven’t forgotten how to be so God damn annoying.”

You shrugged your shoulders, “If I’m so annoying then why are you still here.” Sitting up once more as you leaned into him as well, expression smug and teasing. Rex faltered, heat rising to his face before he sat back and looked away from you. Trying to play off the way his face reddened.

In truth, Rex always thought you were really attractive, now he wouldn’t say it to your face, never would he admit it to you or anyone for that matter. It’d just feed your ego, ironically coming from the guy with the biggest ego out of the two of you. But he also refused to admit to it out of embarrassment.

Embarrassed to admit that the sound of your voice and the sight of you were all very attractive to him, comforting even. Back then he was able to ignore it but since the accident, he realized just how much he thought about it. Nearly losing you was enough to shove those feelings in his face and force him to acknowledge it.

It made him sad however, you were still the same, no doubt. From the way you got on his nerves and how he felt towards you, but you no longer knew him like you used to. It felt cruel, like this was his punishment for not listening.

If this was his punishment, then he’d stick through it until the day you do remember him.

The feeling of you pinching his leg pulled him out of his thoughts,

“Ow! What the fuck?! Asshole.”

“You were staring off again, I thought you were having a stroke or something.”

He glared at you, you responded with a sheepish smile and a shrug of your shoulders. He sighed, sulking in his seat, you couldn’t help but feel bad. It felt horrible to not remember anything, but you figured it must have felt worse finding out someone you’ve known for years one day forgot all about you.

“Do you really not remember me?” It wasn’t the first time he’s asked this.

It wasn’t your first time responding, “I don’t.”

Rex looked at you, studying your face before averting his eyes as soon as you looked back at him.

“I really am sorry.”

“It’s not–”

“I am.” You tried not to tear up over it, you tried not to feel horrible for the way his eyes seemed glossy every time he remembered you didn’t know him anymore. Turning your face away, you took a deep breath before continuing,

“I know it’s not my fault or anything but it feels that way you know?” Looking down at your hands playing with the thin sheet of the bed. “I want to remember, I do– but I just, can’t. I’m trying… trying to remember.” Holding your breath to keep yourself from tearing up.

His hands gripped the arms of the chair, itching to reach out and hold you.

“Deep down I know you meant something to me before, everything you tell me feels right. I trust you, and I want to keep trying to remember–”

Rex stood from his seat, arms reaching up to wrap around your body as he held you close to him. Chin rested on your shoulder as one of his hands pressed itself into the back of your head. Tears threatening to spill from your eyes, you tried to ignore the burning sensation before eventually succumbing to it.

“Everything tells me I know you, it’s all I feel.” His hand buried itself in your hair, pressing his face into your neck.

Blinking away the tears in your eyes before he could see them when he pulled away.

He let out a dry laugh, “Talk about being fuckin’ sappy, jeez.”

You rolled your eyes. “You’re so annoying.”

─ ୨୧ ─

You’d spend a couple more days recovering, well, you had already recovered a bit ago but Cecil was insistent you stay just to make sure you’d be fine. Which you reluctantly agreed to.

Tonight was your final night here however, the thought made you relieved. Having been long tired of the stiff hospital bed and a sheet that made you itchy sometimes, you were happy to finally go back home.

Rex made sure you were comfortable, asking over and over if you needed anything, to which you responded with an exasperated ‘yes’ the more he kept asking, kicking his leg with your foot whenever you could tell he was about to ask again.

He was dead set on staying, even on your last night here. The thought made you giggle to yourself at his “hidden” worry.

You snuggled into the blanket, burying the side of your face into the pillow. Eyes just barely open to be able to still see him. Watching as he watched you. It made you feel warm, trying not to make it obvious you were grinning as you peeked at him. He would have never been like this before.

Oh yes, you remembered. Your memory had finally come back just yesterday, yet you held off on telling him as an ‘I told you so’ for not listening to you.

Watching as he squirmed in his seat, uncomfortable and tired. You rolled your eyes and sighed, sitting up and scooting over in the bed.

“Come here.”

“What?”

You patted the space next to you, “Come here you dumbass, lay down.” He hesitated at first before standing up and scooting next to you, laying on his side, facing you. “God, you’re dumb.”

“Shut up, man.”

Pinching him roughly as your arms slithered to wrap around his neck, face pressed comfortably into his collar. Rex freezed up for a moment, until he eventually found his arms wrapping around your back, pressing you into him as he rested his chin on the top of your head.

You giggled to yourself, “You never would have done this before.”

He rolled his eyes, “You don’t even know that! I could have been a total sweetheart back then.”

Bursting into laughter, you held onto him tighter, “Yeah I do, total sweetheart my ass.”

“How? You don’t remember anything–”

You stayed silent, grinning against him as your legs entwined with his.

“Right? You still… don’t remember, right?” He asked, heart thumping against his ribcage. The sound of it comforting, making you giddy. Pulling your face away from him to look up at him, giving him a teasing smirk.

“Oh, you are… such a fucking dick.” He groaned, unable to hide the way his face softened. His hand made its way into your hair as he pressed you back into him. Relief washing over him as he realized you were finally back, really back. As he realized you finally remembered him.

Arms tightening around his neck, you pressed a soft peck to his cheek, noting the way one hand grasped onto your waist and wrapped around you tighter.

“You deserved it. Don’t blow me up next time, jackass.”

“I get it! Trust me, I won’t be doing that again any time soon.” He grumbled, pouting his lip.

Shrugging your shoulders, “I forgive you… obviously.”

Letting out a soft exhale through your nose, you listened intently to the way his heart slowed into a relaxed beat. Closing your eyes and slowly falling asleep in his embrace.

“...I–”

“I love you too, Rex.”

[bunji-enthusiast]

sʟᴇᴇᴘɪɴɢ ᴏɴ ᴛʜᴇ ʙʟᴀᴄᴋᴛᴏᴘ

Summary || Change was always a weird process, and currently, that is what happened. Shit gets rough, sure. But atleast you have each other, right?

WC: 4k

A/N: snatched this absolute domestic fluff from this post. Also was starting to get way too long, so this is part 1. The idea will come to a head in a later part. Timeline is set during season 2 obviously. (Whaaat am I doing)

Part 1 (here) | Part 2

Surprised was not nearly enough of a word to describe the way you felt about Rex, it was, in every sense of the word —

Relieving?

Yeah, that. You weren’t sure what it was to have caused such a change, whatever it was that stirred. But if it was such a close brush with death that made him perceive things differently, then you rather wouldn’t try to understand that part, scary. Your own dance with death was terrifying enough, and you've been in these situations before! Yet the only difference that pertained to the truth was the fact you felt such an utter gut swirling incessantly in the pits of your stomach. Like it was telling you with everything it could muster to stay alive, stay out of the fight.

Don’t. Move.

You remembered the whole damn thing ever since you’ve gotten hospitalized.

Moreover, you were also a hero, and heroes unfortunately defend and fight. Which Rex managed to do a lot more of than you were able to, much to your self-chagrin.

Though it was more of adrenaline and a very pissed off Rex Splode that drove him to finally finish the fight with the Lizard League, which made you laugh. Because you couldn’t even manage to contribute much as you had been taken out of commission halfway through the fight, while later when you had awoken in your own room, the homely smell of sterilization and the wayward energies of death permeating the atmosphere made you come to a swift realization of what had happened.

[“Fuckin’ asshole..” You muttered, clutching the side of your abdomen. Suddenly in the midst of your own struggle, you got blasted sideways, slamming your body against another wall. You let out a pained groan, your eyes immediately settling on seeing the bodies of the multiple copies of Dupli-Kate laying astray, innards out for bacteria to invade.

You could hear both Rex and Rae shouting in disbelief, Rae more vocal as to Rex more evenly. Though you swore you could hear the hurt in their tones, which was exactly fair.

You swore with everything in you to not throw up, the smell was far too familiar. Yet coming from a fellow guardian, it just made you sick to your stomach. A problem you really didn’t need right now. None of the Lizard League members were currently paying attention to you, fortunately enough.

That sudden inability of gratitude made you uncomfortable, so you stood up, despite every muscle and bone in your body screaming at you to stay down. You moved, and you attacked the female member of the league; she struck back in retaliation, tearing her attention away from Rex. He gasped in pain as he held his side, stepping back twice, eyes weary with worry and precipitation.

Despite the worry — Rex figured you could handle her on your own, you always had a way with these things, so he turned his gaze to Rae to see how she was doing. Seeing that she had already killed the man dressed in black and scaled orange spots, he had a slight brief moment of relief. Then turned to the largest man in the room.

You on the other hand weren’t paying attention to the main part of the fight, keeping your focus on killing the woman in front of you. Your vision thrummed with blood, adrenaline coursing in your veins as you narrowly avoided her attacks, you didn’t prove to be lucky with every single dodge however. Wincing, you clamped down on your jaw, trying to despell the evidential reality of your condition.

“Just stay down already,” The lizard woman sneers, her confidence palpable as you two wrestle for control, arms interlocked in a vice grip. “And your death will be a quick one.”

You didn’t respond, you wanted to. But didn’t, you truly couldn’t muster the energy necessary. She also really was starting to make your blood boil. You shook your head, surging forward with energy, thrusting a punch to her face. Watching the way her expression shifted as she fell backwards within her surprise. “Looks like I'm not the only one.” You snorted with a half-smirk, heaving a heavy breath as you continued forward. Granted, you could’ve used your ability, but you needed a certain level of concentration for it to work.

And your concentration was beginning to falter in the midst of it all, that you were really hating on right now. You did not need your body giving out on you right now.

You staggered as you threw another punch, then another, not letting the woman have time to react to your attacks. She threw up right as you threw a gut-punch, good process you noticed. Anything for you at this point went, and anything would be good right now. “You bitch!--” The lizard woman gasped as she grabbed the neck fabric of your costume, yanking you back, trying to garner distance. But you struggled, straining against the force as you bashed any part of her body possible. Anything to turn her into mush, make her stop moving.

Your body began slowing down, your vision catching dots of blood spattering everywhere. For good organization red was a stylish color, but in the transparent eye of a human, not so much. The alive and the dead, it didn’t bode too well.

God everything hurts.

Then your vision swam in black dotted spots, feeling the way your awareness slipped away from you. Fatally unconscious.]

You winced as you grabbed the side of your head, the memories of it all rushing back to you as you regained your awareness. “Shit…” You hissed out.

The room was small to say the least, but not suffocating fortunately.

You tore your gaze away from your bed, shifting around as you looked for somebody. You were worried about the states of your teammates, though, now you had thought of it. It was likely that they were hospitalized as well.

Though you weren’t sure if you could say the same about Kate, her fate was spelled out loud and clear to all three of you back in that situation.

Suddenly someone came into the room, a nurse, maybe. She called out, alerting other staff to your now very awake status. Now apparently, from what you’ve heard coming from the few staff attending to you, checking your vital signs and health, is that you had been in this case — relatively well off compared to the others. Abdominal tearing to your muscle, multiple trauma fractures to your skeleton. You couldn’t retain all of it, but the explanation made enough sense. Soon enough, the clamor of the small group died down, seeing as that your vitals were satisfactory levels. Able to be monitored once in every little while without predominant worry.

Then, in the depths of your self-suffocating silence, a familiar voice of a very insufferable (but annoyingly reliable) old man cuts into your hearing.

It’s Cecil Stedman, the Director of the Global Defense Agency — the man who’s seen and done more than most could imagine. His grizzled, yet composed presence is unmistakable, a sharp contrast to the machine-like efficiency of the GDA’s medical team working behind him. His white hair, long and wispy, catches the dim light as he steps forward, his usual air of authority tempered with something else... maybe even a hint of concern.

"You're awake," he says, his voice surprisingly gentle, though with that characteristic coldness that’s always present in his tone. "I thought we might need to call in the whole damn hospital for you, but it seems you’ve got more fight left in you than I thought."

Was it really that bad?

You feel the sharp sting of movement as you try to adjust yourself, gritting your teeth at the pain coursing through your body. A sigh escapes you, a strange mix of frustration and relief. You’re alive. But at what cost? You glance over at Cecil, whose eyes, though steely, are focused on you with a keen awareness.

"Where… where are the others?" You rasp out, your throat dry.

Cecil offers a half-smile — an expression that somehow carries both reassurance and a sense of grim determination. "Rex Splode and Rae are both in stable condition. They were near death, but they’ll make it. A bit of a mess, but that’s nothing we can’t handle. As for the others..." His face darkens briefly, the air growing heavier. "One of us didn’t make it. Not sure what happened to her yet, but it doesn’t look good."

You nod solemnly. A lump forms in your throat as the weight of the situation settles in. Another fallen comrade. Another loss in a long string of them, you knew, hoped otherwise – but no. You clench your fists under the blanket, angry at the helplessness of it all.

Cecil watches you for a moment, his posture relaxed but ever observant. "I know you’re pissed off," he mutters, "And you have every right to be. But you did your part. You and the others did your best, and that’s all anyone could ask for."

You lock eyes with him, the words hanging in the air. Cecil always had a way of saying things that didn’t necessarily comfort, but at least they didn’t sugarcoat reality. "Thanks for the update," you reply, though your voice betrays the exhaustion that weighs on you.

There’s a moment of silence, but it’s not uncomfortable. It’s just the kind of quiet that only seems to exist between people who’ve seen too much — and have lived through it all anyway.

"You always seem to pull through," Cecil finally speaks, his tone almost reflective. "You’re a lot tougher than you give yourself credit for."

A small, self-deprecating laugh escapes you. "If it wasn’t for this damn hospital, I wouldn’t be here." You glance around, your eyes trailing over the sterile white walls again. "Why here though? The Pentagon?"

Cecil looks at you with a wry smirk, as though this is a question he’s been asked a thousand times before. "Where else would you want to wake up after almost dying? Besides, we’ve got the best medical team this side of the planet. It’s not just about the injuries. It’s about making sure you’re fit enough to get back out there when duty calls."

He pauses, letting the weight of his words settle in. "You’re part of something bigger now. Whether you want to be or not."

The truth in those words hits hard, and you feel that familiar twinge of uncertainty that always accompanies Cecil's philosophy.

"We can be the good guys, or the guys that save the world. We can’t be both," you repeat, almost by reflex, as if it’s something you’ve heard a thousand times before.

Cecil’s expression doesn’t change, but there’s a quiet acknowledgment in his gaze. "Exactly," he says softly. "It’s a harsh truth, but it’s the truth. We do what we have to do for the greater good, even if it means making sacrifices."

You want to say something — argue, maybe. But the words don’t come. Instead, you let out a breath, staring at the ceiling. "I didn’t ask for this… any of it," you murmur, more to yourself than to him.

Cecil’s response is calm, as it always is when it matters most. "None of us did. But it’s our responsibility now." He pauses again, his eyes narrowing with a subtle intensity. "You can rest now. We’ve got things covered. But when you’re back on your feet, I’m sure there’ll be more to do. There always is."

You nod, your thoughts clouding as you try to process the gravity of what he’s saying. There’s no rest for the weary in this line of work. Still, you have to admit that part of you feels a bit of relief that at least the people around you — your team — are going to make it through this. Even if it means facing the next battle head-on.

the days will stretch on, and you know you’ll get back in the fight. Because that’s what heroes do. They keep going, even when the world seems to be falling apart.

During the duration of your recovery, you were able to move around without the worry of pain stopping you. Initially you had been unable to, your legs limp as noodles. You had a quiet laugh about that part, but you hated not having the freedom of movement, however, you had to take it easy and listen to the staff. A familiar routine to be sure, but this was a much more devastating case.

God, you could actually remember right before the fight ensued, what Rex had said about pizza. You wondered, if the situation had gone different, that you all would’ve been sitting back at HQ — munching on that damn pizza, along with whatever else had been ordered.

Though today, before visiting Rex; you decided to visit your other friend.

Rachel.

You can’t imagine whatever the ordeal for her in that fight was, no doubt terrifying. Knowing her obvious ability to shrink in size, you could only imagine the details when you strode up to the window, clutching your stomach. There was a viewing window, easy enough for people to peer through if they wanted too, check up on their loved ones. One for every room obviously.

She was lying in a hospitable coffin, soundly asleep. The damn thing may as well have been one, considering her very prudent state. Earning your scars, willingly or unwillingly; was one aspect that any hero could be excitable for. But through the wisdom of the pain, it makes you very wise otherwise. Leaving you with some festering pit of depression, but unfortunately, it's something nobody is prepared for regardless.

You sighed, trudging forward despite your soreness, making your rounds – greeting some familiar staff here and there on the way to Rex’s room.

The room was quieter than it had been for days. Even the hum of the building’s usual bustle seemed to have taken a break, leaving only the sound of footsteps as you made your way to Rex’s room. He was supposed to be recovering, but you weren’t entirely convinced. After all, Rex was stubborn, and if anyone could push their limits just to prove they were fine, it was him. You knocked gently, not wanting to surprise him too much, but you knew that wouldn't stop him from blowing up in some sarcastic, Rex Splode fashion.

The door creaked open, revealing the sight of him sprawled out on his bed. His usual sharp demeanor was nowhere to be found—just exhaustion, but still, a faint, familiar smirk tugged at the corners of his mouth when he saw you.

"Great, here to tell me how much of an idiot I am for almost getting myself killed?" Rex said, his voice hoarse but laced with humor, his usual sarcasm evident even through the tiredness.

You leaned against the doorframe, watching him for a moment before shaking your head. "I was more concerned about you, actually. You seemed like you were barely hanging in there after the fight." You shot back, noting the one of the few other times you’ve managed to visit him.

Rex waved a hand dismissively, propping himself up on his elbow. "I'm fine. You know me, never been better." He flashed a cocky grin, but you caught the way his eyes flickered to the bandages wrapped around his torso. Though the bandages were barely present despite the hospital dress, you could see it. A slight shift in the air told you that he was just trying to hide it behind bravado.

"You nearly died, Rex," you said softly, stepping further into the room, moving towards his bed. The tension between you both was always there, thick and suffocating, but lately... things felt different. You weren’t sure what it was, but something had shifted between you two after everything with the Lizard League. Maybe it was the close calls, the way you both kept ending up on the same team even after all the chaos. Maybe it was how, despite all of his flaws, Rex had found a way to matter in your life, in ways that were harder to ignore with each passing day.

Rex shrugged, not meeting your gaze, and rubbed a hand through his hair (whatever was there despite the headdress), his eyes glancing anywhere but at you. "Guess I’m not invincible. Wouldn’t be the first time I messed up."

The memory hit you like a sudden wave, and you couldn’t help but lean back against the wall as it flooded your thoughts. The mission—the mission. It felt like ages ago, but it still burned with a clarity that felt so vivid you almost imagined you could still feel the heat of it, the adrenaline, the uncertainty.

Not that he had entirely messed up though, this was something different. What it reminded you of.

[The two of you had been briefed about the mission at the Guardians' headquarters. A villain by the name of Kael the Tyrant had been wreaking havoc in the city, but it was more than just typical bad guy stuff. He had an entire crew of hired muscle—bounty hunters, mercenaries, the usual scum—and Kael had a plan that involved unleashing an ancient device that could cripple the city in ways no one could fully anticipate.

It was supposed to be a standard mission, you’d thought. You and Rex—just the two of you, no big team, no backup. They didn’t pair you up often, not for missions this high-stakes. But this time, the Guardians thought it was best if you and Rex could handle it yourselves. A test, they’d said.

At least, that’s how it felt when Rex shrugged, a cocky grin on his face. “Guess we’re gonna have to do this the old-fashioned way. Don’t get too used to it.” He flashed you that mischievous glint in his eyes, like this was just another run-of-the-mill mission, like the stakes weren’t as high as they actually were.

You hadn’t thought much of it then, but looking back, you realized how wrong you’d been

It started out as typical, with you both taking down the smaller henchmen in the streets. The crowd was thick, Kael’s mercenaries everywhere—civilians scattered, too terrified to help themselves. Rex’s usual boisterous banter kept things light, though he definitely looked like he was in his element, picking off bad guys left and right with those explosive blasts of his. You were doing what you always did—darting in and out of spaces they couldn’t track you, making sure no one got the drop on either of you.

But as always with these missions, things escalated.

Kael wasn’t just hiding behind his hired goons. He had something bigger planned, a huge contraption built into the side of a building—a machine capable of releasing toxic gas into the air, capable of scrambling the city’s tech for hours. When the mercs realized you were onto them, they launched a full-out counterattack—something brutal, and definitely not part of the original plan.

That’s when everything took a turn.

You were behind a stack of crates, your heart racing, trying to catch your breath. You had a few cuts—nothing serious. Rex wasn’t in much better shape, though his typical cocky smirk had disappeared, replaced with a fire that could’ve lit the entire city.

Then, without warning, one of the mercenaries caught you—his fist slamming into your ribs before you had time to dodge.

The pain was sharp, immediate, and for a split second, you thought you might not recover from it in time. The villain’s grip tightened on you, and everything around you blurred, except for the rush of panic building in your chest.

That was when Rex exploded into the scene, literally.

“Get your filthy hands off her!” His voice was a low growl as he tore through the mercenary like a hurricane. With a snap of his fingers, Rex launched one of his explosive bursts, sending the villain flying backward. You could see the fury in his eyes, that rage and protectiveness you rarely saw.

You’d never seen Rex quite like that before.

But just as quickly, another mercenary, this one larger and more armored than the rest, charged at him from behind, knocking Rex to the ground with a heavy hit. The force of the strike caused a crack in the pavement beneath him. You gasped, trying to make your way to him, but the pain in your side from the mercenary’s earlier blow had slowed you down.

And then it happened.

A massive explosion.

You felt it before you saw it—a blast so forceful, it knocked you off your feet. The impact rattled your bones, and the world spun. You barely had time to recover before Rex was back on his feet, his body tense with anger as he shouted at you, “Stay down! I’m not losing you!”

But it was too late. That explosion—one from Kael’s hired gun, one that had hit too close to you—had shredded the side of your armor. You could feel blood welling under your clothes as you staggered to your feet, barely able to hold yourself up.

Rex turned then, his eyes locked on you, full of concern—and it was there, in that fleeting moment, that something between you snapped. You didn’t have time to analyze it, though. The villain had already turned, heading straight for the machine.

“Rex—go!” you managed to gasp out, pain lancing through your side. “We’ve got to stop him! The machine!”

But Rex wasn’t listening. Not now. Not when you were hurt. Not when he was pissed.

“No,” he said, his voice low and dangerous. “I’m not leaving you.”

You couldn’t stop him, though, and at that point, neither could you really move to stop him. Rex charged forward with reckless abandon, the fury in his gaze blinding as he launched everything he had into the mercenary. It was explosive—not just in power, but in the sheer frustration that made every hit feel like it was landing for all the wrong reasons. Rex wasn’t just fighting to stop the guy. He was fighting to make them pay for what they’d done to you.

He didn’t stop until the mercenary was out of commission, and even then, Rex only paused long enough to check on you—his hand on your shoulder, his breath shallow from exhaustion, eyes filled with a protective fire you hadn’t seen before.

“You’re not dying on my watch,” he muttered, voice rough.

It wasn’t just the injury. It was the way he looked at you, like something inside him had cracked wide open, something neither of you had dared to acknowledge before.

“I’m fine,” you tried to assure him, but even you could hear the lie in your voice.

Rex wasn’t fooled. “No, you’re not. And I’m going to make sure it stays that way.”

He helped you up, half-carrying you to the machine after dispatching the rest of Kael’s men. The battle wasn’t over yet, but it was clear that something between the two of you had shifted. That recklessness, that protective instinct… It was like a door had opened.

And you couldn’t say you hadn’t felt it too.

The mission ended in victory—Kael’s device was shut down, the city was safe, but the cost had been more than just the injuries. It had been the moment you realized Rex cared more than he let on. Maybe even more than he was ready to admit.]

You blinked, the memory fading back into the quiet of the present, but it stayed with you—a constant reminder of how things had shifted, the beginning of everything. Rex, the way he had cared then, was still the same Rex that stood beside you now, even if he had trouble saying it aloud.

You could still feel the weight of it—the lingering tension between you, the unspoken words hanging in the air between your words, and just how much you were starting to care.

You sat on the edge of his bed, the space between you a quiet reminder of the unspoken things. There was always something there, lingering in the back of your mind. He had this ability to make you feel like you were too much and not enough at the same time, but right now, you weren’t going to let that stop you.

"Everybody fucks up, Rex," you said, leaning closer. "But you're allowed to care about your life. You don’t have to be so reckless all the time. You’ve got people who care about you."

A slow breath left his lips, the sharp edge of his usual attitude softened by exhaustion. "Yeah, well, you’re one of them, huh?" His voice was quieter now, less teasing and more... real. For a split second, you could have sworn you saw the barest trace of something more in his gaze—something uncertain, but earnest.

Your heart skipped a beat. You fought the urge to push it away, to say something witty and deflect. Instead, you simply nodded, your voice barely a whisper. "Yeah. I care about you, Rex."

There was a long pause, and for a moment, the room was still. The usual sarcastic comebacks, the way Rex would usually brush off anything sincere, wasn’t there. He didn’t try to mask the vulnerability that was creeping into the space between you.

"You know, I’m not great with... this stuff," he muttered, his voice almost vulnerable in a way you rarely saw. "The caring, the emotions, the... whatever this is." He looked at you, his gaze intense and searching, like he was waiting for you to confirm something, anything.

You reached out, gently placing your hand on his, a simple touch that carried more weight than either of you could probably express in words.

"I get it," you said, your thumb brushing over his knuckles. "I’m not exactly good with this stuff either."

Rex's lips quirked into that familiar grin, though it felt more tired than usual. "Yeah, well, maybe that’s why we're both a mess."

You smiled softly, feeling the warmth of his hand against yours. "Maybe," you agreed.

There was no grand confession, no dramatic moment, just the quiet understanding that hung between you both. But somehow, that felt like enough.

Rex stared at you for a moment longer before his grin returned, though this time it was laced with something deeper. "So, you planning on sticking around and making sure I don’t blow myself up again?"

Your smile softened as you leaned back, looking up at him. "Yeah, I think I’ll stay for a while."

The space between you two wasn’t quite so distant anymore, and as you sat there with him, the tension felt... different. More real. You weren’t sure where things would go, but right now, this—just this moment—felt like the beginning of something neither of you had been brave enough to face before.

[icanmeltanigloo]

salutations mark grayson lovers this is lowk a cry for help cuz im tryna write a fic for him but im lowk stuck on whether to make reader a character from a comic series mark really likes or make reader an invincible (the comic series) fan PLEASE HELP ME 😭😭

igloo on march 4th - gulp. prologue + chapter one out FR THIS TIME this weekend (prolly sunday again)

[stoneexo]

so yea guys, currently experincing the curse of all fic writers when their whole life goes to shit before they can wrap up a fic. the vi fic is STILL ON THE WAY, i've just recently been in a serious car accident and have been struggling in my college classes/falling behind as a result. and as that is always my priority, i can't really focus on this fic. i hope y'all are doing okay, and i will have this out for all of y'all as soon as possible, but tbh i can only do so much rn :')

( my next fic, if it's any soilice, will likely be relating to mark grayson or rex sloan ;3 )

[markanddebbie-protectionprogram]

i couldn't for the life of me find it again but i saw this really great post about how rex seems like he has BPD or a cluster b personality and i totally agree and i feel like it fits into markrex quite well for a few reasons. when rex first sees mark and eve arriving together, he has a really dramatically negative reaction even after eve tells him they go to the same high school. i feel like this scene highlights how rex is really insecure about himself and the relationship, and that eve merely being around an attractive guy like mark makes him feel really threatened. he also later makes fun of mark, which isn't abnormal for him but i feel like was to try and make himself feel better about the situation and the perceived rejection he's probably feeling from eve. and when they contain to hang out it made rex feel even worse, so he decides to self sabotage by cheating with kate. and the line kate says to eve is also really telling IMO, because we know he wasn't telling the truth but the fact that he would say she's dating invincible now means he could feel as if that might as well be true, because of a perceived abandonment of him by eve for mark. and for markrex, i think this could also show that rex is insecure about his attraction to mark as well, and probably feels inferior to him.

anon i saw that post too!! although i'm sorry it took me days to get back to you 😭 i tried to search it up so i can link it but it seems like it's goneeee 😭😭😭

i did a lil more reading and digging about it the clusters in BPD and i totally see what you mean.

ik it's not canon that rex has BPD but it would be so interesting to have that type of rep in the show.

also, thank you for listing out the moments those are really still fresh in my mind cause i've started to ship markrex even then.

all of rex's appearances and moments are memorable tbh. and it is highlighted with how he reacts with the things around him (as you listed this includes his dramatic moments, his jealousy, possible feelings of inferiority, and his self-sabotaging ways).

these things does add a certain interesting aspects about markrex's dynamic. and the s2 ep1 is such a blessing tbh.

because in s1 we see markrex in a not-so positive light considering there were moments rex was mean to mark. but mark never really took any of it to heart. which, btw, bless. it speaks how mature mark is and i think it'll be a really good balance with rex's immaturity.

now with their moment on s2ep1, it's such a good change to see them interact this way. you wouldn't think that rex would comfort him — if anything, i genuinely thought the writers would have black samson comforting invincible — but rex was genuine about it. sure it wasn't the most comforting or eloquent reassurance, but it was a genuine attempt coming from rex.

i do have a lil fic in the works for it btw hehe, but that's for another time.

personally i'm looking forward for more markrex interactions. i think they can balance each other really well, the blue-red aesthetic is there too, and the one-sided rivalry to allies to friends to lovers arc is my jammmm 🫶

[harmooniaa]

guys I think I should’ve done this earlier but in case you haven’t read my description thingy my main blog is @raine-blxssxm 😭 Before Invincible, I was hyperfixtated on South Park and I made that blog so I could show off my sp oc and stuff :) (and since that was the first blog I made, it’s obviously the primary one that tumblr makes you like and comment and send asks with)

with that being said, I’m not asking that you guys follow that blog but just know that if you see that blog liking or comment on your posts just know that it’s me lol

[sludgewolf]

How they nap with you - Invincible cast

Characters: Mark Grayson, Samanta Eve, Rex Splode, Shrinking Rae, William Clockwell, Powerplex, Mohawk Mark, Sinister Mark x reader (separately)

Masterlist

Disclaimer: do not copy, repost, take or feed to AI or NFTs anything I post

Mark Grayson / Invincible

Mark mostly sleeps on his back with arm holding you close

Recently he started having more restless sleep, moving around a lot, doing small jerky movements with his arms, kicking in his sleep

and even having nightmares that wake him up in the middle of the night searching for you

Can't seem to sleep well unless you're by his side

you feel guilty for even getting up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night just to come back to a sad Mark sitting on your bed waiting for you to return

Samanta Eve / Atom Eve

Due to her powers Eve isn't one that likes to have loads of blankets or pillows as she sleeps

her body is like a mini star from how hot she usually runs

so her preferred sleep position is far from romantic, which is butt to butt

just enough contact to assure each other that you're there but no grabbing unless you want to wake up as if you just ran a marathon

and you also run the risk of her snoring from sleeping in a weird angle

nothing really bad, but if you're awake you might hear it

Rex Splode

Now Rex may've had gone through some major personal growth since his very close brush with death,

but sleeping Rex didn't

sleeps like a starfish smack in the middle of the bed no matter what you do

if you do choose to share a bed tho he will sleep on top of you, arms spread and snoring loud

in the off chance you can wake him back up Rex will practically jump off you apologizing profusely, promising to not do that again

but no matter what, in the morning you still wake up in the same position

and no matter how big the bed is, Rex will still seek you out in his sleep to crush you with his body

Rachel / Shrinking Rae

Rae enjoys sleeping on her side, blankets only over her waist holding you close

She doesn't snore nor move much from that position, once she's asleep she's out

one of the best napping partners tbh

though you do need to get used to her shoving her face in your chest as she sleeps

William Clockwell

William is a true sweetheart, always considerate but brutally honest when needed

that's not him when sleeping

When asleep will is so selfish and he doesn't even realize

he has the horrible habit of hogging all the blankets, leaving you to freeze in your cold dorm room

just to later on kick them all off the bed

once he gets cold again he smushes you against the wall, spooning you like a koala

he just isn't the worst bed mate because his hugs are the best there are

Scott Duvall / Powerplex

Scott used to be an angel in his sleep, didn't move much, no snoring, knew how to share blankets

but since his sister and niece tragic passing it all changed

now Scott is restless, he moves a lot during his sleep, sometimes even waking you up with it

he also sleep talks, which is kinda funny when you can hold a whole conversation with him but not so much when you absolutely need to sleep

Not to mention his frequent nightmares that wake him up in tears, always repeating that day as if torturing him in his sleep

For both of you to have a proper night of sleep you need to hold him still with a death grip to help him calm down

and also to prevent him from accidentally slapping or zapping you

Mohawk Mark

Pushes you off the bed as soon as your guard is down and laughs at your surprised yelp of pain

if anyone even thinks of doing anything similar to you he'll rip their arms off and torture them until they die the slowest most agonizing death he can think of

Sinister Mark

don't