Your morning alarm is what finally drags you from your catnap, the soft twinkling sound stopping when you hit the off switch.
"Gabe, you gotta get up." You whisper to him, he's splayed across you bed half of his body on yours.
"No, I don't. I'm on liberty, liberty means nap time all the time." He pulls his arms in dragging you closer.
"Gabe, " your laughing now, "I love spending time with you but I need to piss."
You wriggle out from under him and grab your sweatpants from the floor. He grumbles and snags your pillow.
You finish in the bathroom and flip off the light. You see Gabe laying in your shared bed, your grey sheets pulled over him.
He has more scars on his arms. His eyes wander more, sometimes staying in place for tens of minutes. He doesn't talk about it, he wasn't raised to share feelings and neither were you. You can't reach out and help him.
"Gabe, if you get up now we can go see the beach?" You walk over and sit on the edge of the bed.
He looks over at you, the smiling returning to his face.
"How about, " he grins and pulls you down next to him, "we stay in bed?"
You do. You two spend the day in bed, he traces his fingers on your shoulders just staring.
"I'm sorry I'm like this." He whispers, looking you in the eye. "I'm sorry I have to keep leaving you, and that I make you worry for me."
You kiss him, he smiles again, he looks younger.
"You keep fighting for me big guy, and I'll keep fighting for us. One day your war will be over, and then we can be together."
Gabe is silent for a beat, then he speaks in a hopefull voice.
"Do you think when I'm done, we could get married?" As small grin stretching across his face.
"Gabriel, are you proposing to me?"
"Do you want to be proposed to?" You're both laughing now, the idea filling you both with a happy flood of emotions. Slowly your happiness drains a little.
"Maybe one day we can really get married."
"Till then, I just need you to be with me."
-^-^-
Really quickly typed out. No beta reading. Wrote and ran.
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âGabriel fucks upâ The new horrible thing were a horrible oc of mine does horrible things! But this time I translated it! What a miracle!Â
There might be some typos but I hope they donât make this impossible to read
also im dying to know what you guys think and if you have questions i will definetely answer in an oc ramble
This is very long! Iâm so sorry mobile users I really hope the Read More works!đ
content warnings for violence, blood, self harm, and abuse
This family had always been propense to tragedy. From the fatherâs side, chronic illness in every generation. From the motherâs side, accidents and misfortune plagued them.
All that tragedy fell in the children of that union.
The youngest found himself paralyzed, surrounded by his family. Surviving a fire was a miracle, but it didnât matter. He was only able to stare at the roof, and once in a while, the horrified faces of his brothers and father. The mother could not enter the room, since she cried inconsolably every time she tried.
âWe heard he would come soon, only he can save him.â the boy heard the town doctor said one time he was awake.
He didnât know for how long he was like that, barely clinging to life and consciousness. Each day that passed, Gabriel Garza wished more and more that a miracle were to occur and that they would let him die.
One night, he heard it. He heard the townâs rejoice, their screams of celebration, their begging to get healed of any ill that soon turned into joy and thankfulness.
For a moment, Gabriel heard nothing in the room. No cry, sob, encouragement words, not even his own breathing. The world had stopped.
Did he die? He wasnât sure, but it felt nice.
âGabriel?â asked from the door a weak and trembling voice.
âPalmer?â He wanted to ask, but he hadnât been able to speak since the accident, so everything stayed in silence.
âGabriel...Iâm...Iâm sorry...I didnât-â From the tone and volume, it was clear Palmer was in the border of breaking down, but he was getting closer rather than running away. âIâm sorryâŚâ
Gabriel was annoyed. âWhy didnât you stop me?â He wanted to ask, but thinking about the accident only made things hurt more.
âI heard your dad calling...the...the horseman so you...you will be-â A sob stopped Palmer, but he managed to continue âYou will be fine soon, Gabriel.â
The world stopped again, with the difference that now only two friends existed in it. It was peaceful despite all the pain and cries, all of that didnât matter, Gabriel just wanted to leave and play with Palmer, do anything again. If things could stay this tranquil...
Then, it all broke when he heard his dad and brothers enter the house again, with a stranger following.
Palmer left the room and shyly greeted everyone that entered, staying with the brothers to stare from afar.
âPlease...my sonâŚ.my son...you have to save him, pleaseâ begged the father.
The figure observed the kid. Nobody knew how he looked at that charred body, if with mercy, disdain, or pity, the plague mask obstructed any resemblance of humanity from the horseman.
Gabriel opened his eyes to find himself face to face with that terrifying mask. He knew who was behind. Pestilence, horseman of the apocalypse, savior and protector of the town. The only person able to cure him.
Gabriel saw how the hand of the horseman slowly approached him. What was he going to do? The man abruptly lowered his hand to the boyâs forehead, this being as painful as the fire he had survived. Gabriel felt his life was leaving him, and painfully screamed at the top of his lungs. He was dying. He was dying.
Gabriel never felt in so much pain before.
Then he felt nothing.
Was he still in bed? There was no more pain, yes. But there was no hand petting his head, telling him everything will be okay. There was no delicate touch from a father who thought his son would never run or play around the house anymore. There was no hugs or kisses from a mother that saw how her son looked like a kid again and not a charred corpse. There were no light touches and teases from curious brothers that wondered if anything still hurt. There was no trembling hand from a friend who held and grasped with fear the hand of someone who he never thought he would see again.
There was nothing.
-----
Blessed to feel no pain, they told the kid. It really was not feeling anything at all, heal of anything that hurt him, and the sharp and pointy teeth all the marked in town had. It was difficult the first months. Nobody thought badly of the gift and everyone wanted Gabriel to find the benefits of his new abilities.
When he fell face first into a pot and horrified his family with his face covered in blood, he started to understand how most saw as a benefit his new gift.
But Gabriel could not fully take advantage of it.
Palmer was there.
Since the accident, Palmer dedicated himself as Gabrielâs new protector. Not even his parents cared so much for him as Palmer did. It was boring.
A kid needs to find a way to entertain himself.
It started with some scissors. An accident while doing homework, he defended himself with that excuse, but he really wanted to see how deep he could hurt himself with them. Palmer was horrified and ended up making the two's homework by his own.
A knife while he was eating. A burn while he tried to cook. A fall from the stairs for being careless. All these "accidents" put Palmer in an state of immense panic and worry. There were moments when he didn't know how to help his friend and he would cry from feeling so useless.
That was one of the biggest joys Gabriel found after receiving his gift. He couldnât quite explain it, but there was something about reaching that breaking point. Accidents increased and then they stopped being accidents.
Threats started next year. There were things as âIâll fall down the stairs unless you do my homeworkâ but then they turned into bigger and more impossible things to complete that would give to more terrible and painful consequences for anyone that wasnât Gabriel. There were time he had hurt Palmer, but it wasnât as fun. Gabriel had done almost anything that wouldâve kill any average person before becoming a teenager, from getting stabbed, shot several times, dismemberment, and even eating things like glass, blades, poison, and nails.
He had told other all of these, but besides some scolding from his parents calling him out in his cruelness towards his friend, nobody seemed to care. The world kept spinning as if nothing wrong was going on, as if all that was just how things were.
In many of those moments, Gabriel swore he could feel again.
------
Gabriel bandaged his wrist while his friend still recovered from the show. He didnât need them, but they would be good evidence for his finding.
âDid you finish?â Palmer asked, still recovering  from the nausea of seeing so much blood. It really hadnât been much, but some drops were too much for him.
That being said, it hadnât been some droplets.
âYeah, yeah, it was nothing.â Gabriel cut the gauze and moved his fingers. All were moving. All was fine.
âThat was a bear trap, Gabriel.â Palmer turned around to see his friend.
They were both using the townâs sentinel uniform, just with some variations. Their job was to watch out the townâs perimeter.
âWorse if any of us stepped on itâ He stood up from the log he was sitting in and watched the forest around him âNot me, but what if you stepped on it? Or Robin? Imagine if Carla stepped on one, what would the sheriff think if his daughter lost her leg?â he made a mocking face of anger and crossed his arms, taking the usual posture the sheriff would have âHe would say something like: And you call yourself a sentinel! My sweet angel is in the hospital now because of you! Which one of you didnât report the strangers who set up these traps?â
âItâs not funny. Carla has suffered enough because of our negligence.â
âIn my defense, she wanted to run away from here with that guy from the neighbor town. The one time I follow orders correctly and you all got mad.â
âYou shot her in the leg. She had to be marked to not lose it.â
âBut, didnât you see how she runs now?â Gabriel got closer to Palmer and put his arm around him âI still got the best gift in town but...running that fast is kind of cool.â
âStop. This isnât a game. We should head back and report this.â
âI know, I know.â Gabriel pushed Palmer aside, heading to the zone they havenât revised yet. âBut I doubt whoever that put these just left one trap.â
âGabriel, letâs...letâs head back to town. Nobody gets out anywaysâŚâ Palmer instead looked back at the town.
âWe all can get out.â
âYou know I canât.â He kept staring, with a more bleak expression. Palmer knew the rules. The marked could leave town as long as they brought new people in, the unmarked had to stay.
âI can change that.â
âGabriel, I canât-â
Palmer was interrupted by the sound of a gun cocking.
He quickly turned towards Gabriel âYou said you...you wouldnât bring...bring itâŚâ
âI knew you wouldnât go with me alone if I told you I was bringing it.â Still pointing, Gabriel approached Palmer slowly and grinning âOne shot in any of your organs and we could get out of this putrid town.â
âGabriel, I donât-â He wasnât sure of what to answer. He had always wanted to leave, but the town had been so nice towards his family since any of them could still be perfect hosts. This town was all he knew.
Gabriel changed his expression to a more serious one âWhatâs wrong? Afraid of death? Afraid that they wonât save you? That you will bleed to death in the woods?â He smiled mockingly âI thought you were scared of being chosen, do you not want to end up like me?â
And he was. Palmer was frozen with fear, he knew that choosing the right or wrong words didnât matter, that in any moment his childhood friend could end his life by shooting him with no mercy.
âPleaseâŚâ was the only thing that could get out of his mouth.
Gabriel shot.
The bullet grazed Palmerâs arm.
He sighed with relief, closing his eyes to enjoy living for a few moments again, being saved from all his fears by mere millimeters.
Then he fell a strong and precise punch to his gut, for a moment his breathing completely stopped. Palmer fell to the ground in pain, barely registering what had happened.
âCowardâ Gabriel didnât give time to Palmer to recover and kicked him in the stomach, hurting too the arm that was trying to protect him.
Palmer groaned in pain. He cowered into himself and feared that this was how he would die. The bullet wouldâve been a mercy.
âYou are a fucking cowardâ Gabriel was furious, he raised his leg, ready to stomp but hesitated for a moment âI give you a chance to do something for us for once and you just-â and stumped Palmerâs side.
He screamed in agony. It wasnât his full strength, and Palmer knew this because he was still breathing, with difficulty, but still breathing âStop! Stop! Please!â
He heard the gun cocking again.
âYou never changed.â
Strength was abandoning Palmer, his vision could make nothing more than a blur, he whimpered and broke into tears âPleaseâŚâ His voice was broken and trembling, almost sounding like the scared boy all those years ago.
âWhy didnât you stop me?â
He didnât know what to answer. He couldnât think, all the pain was unbearable. He whimpered and tried to speak.
âI donât know...I never...neverâŚâ he couldnât go on and kept crying, mumbling to get forgiven. Curled up, he closed his eyes and hoped the last thing he would hear to be a gunshot.
It never came.
When Palmer opened his eyes, it was dawn.
His walk towards the town was slow and painful. Nobody had to know what had happened. Nobody had to know he was injured. There were so many things in his mind and they were all reaching to a daunting conclusion, but Palmer only wanted to get home and be with his rats.
Gabriel watched Palmerâs arrival from afar. So many thoughts flooded his mind, but he wasnât sure how to feel about them. He thought of the routine that everything had become, his place in town as a trophy and shield, the lives he had ended with no problem, and the ones he let go to see if they could bring anything new to his life. New experiences, new reasons, something, anything.
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BARRY AND IRIS GO TO COUPLES THERAPY â Barry (Grant Gustin) has his hands full when he takes on a dangerous meta (guest star Dominic Burgess) who can control technology, while also confronting an obstacle in his personal life: the ramifications of abandoning Iris (Candice Patton) for six months to balance the Speed Force. Meanwhile, Gypsy (guest star Jessica Camacho) breaches in for a hot date with Cisco (Carlos Valdes), but she gets annoyed when his work keeps them apart. Alexandra La Roche directed the episode written by Jonathan Butler & Gabriel Garza (402). Original airdate 10/17/2017.