#traumatic response

Whumpees who laugh instead of cry.

They're so broken down from being abused. tortured, and exploited that their emotions don't work right. When they're rescued, they're strangely fine. No begging, no crying, nothing. They feel nothing during sad moments and laugh when they're triggered. They make self-deprecating jokes to cope with that feeling inside. They're cynical and feel like nothing matters, so why take anything seriously?

They struggle to feel any emotion that isn't nothingness, fear, or the occasional burst of anger or humor.

This is pretty much a sitcom plot, but whumpier and angstier.

A is the notorious prankster of the group, much to their friends’ dismay. Collectively, the group decides A needs a taste of their own medicine and work on an elaborate practical joke. Go big or go home right?

They fake a robbery or a hostage situation at the bank / the workplace / wherever. Something huge and drastic and maybe they even fake B’s death.

The end result is they scare the tar out of A, needless to say, but A is a good sport about it when all is said and done. Their point made, a No Prank rule is put into place.

Life goes on, the incident is mostly forgotten.

Only A is jumpier these days. Their undereyes darken with each passing day. They call B at odd times or text them just to “check in” on them. They absolutely do not go into the room where the prank took place.