Comforting nance after she witnessed what happened to her family :(
⟢ requested, mentions of blood, angst, emotional hurt/comfort, nancy needs a hug, f!reader
Nancy wished she could erase the image from her mind. Her mother on the floor… covered in her own blood… barely even alive. It was something no one should ever have to see, an absolute horror to walk into. Her father was already gone, and now her little sister was missing.
El had gone off after Holly, and now, all of you were stuck waiting at the hospital. Nancy, Mike, Lucas, and you, sitting in that dim waiting room with nothing but silence.
You couldn’t stop glancing at Nancy. Your chest ached for her, no one deserved to go through this, at least her. She shouldn’t have to lose more people she cared about. Not again. Not after everything she had already survived. She’d been through enough.
Didn't help knowing that her mom was in surgery while Nancy still had her blood on her hands and clothes. She couldn’t stop staring at it. The iron smell clung to her skin, making her sick, and angry at herself, angry at the plan.
They should’ve done this earlier, a different day, any other day. Why today? why now? why, why, why?
It wasn't their fault. They couldn’t have known. But Nancy couldn’t stop those thoughts from flooding in. Nancy pushed herself up from her seat. "I'll be back,” she muttered, almost like there wasn't any emotion underneath her tone.
She walked straight into the ladies restroom, dark and quiet, staring back at her own reflection. Her eyes dropped immediately to the blood on her hands. She rushed to twist the handle of the faucet on the sink as fast as she could, the water hitting her skin, but the blood wouldn’t leave. Her breath started shaking.
The familiar wave of emotions hit her all over again, guilt, panic, anger crashing into her like a rollercoaster. This was her fault. It had to be. She blamed herself. She blamed the plan.
She scrubbed harder. Get off, get off, get off. Stupid soap wasn’t doing anything to wash off the blood.
Nancy’s eyes were glossy, her face still tinted with everything she was feeling. The sudden creek of the restroom door made her jump. She whipped her head toward the sound, eyes widening.
“Nance? you alright?” you asked, voice soft.
Nancy realized it was only you. She sniffed, looking back at the sink, her hands still covered in blood. Her mouth parted, exhaustion written all over her face. Your eyes flicked to the sink too, realizing what she’d been trying to do.
You stepped closer, slowly placing a hand on her shoulder. You weren’t even sure she’d want you to touch her in a moment like this, not with how distressed she was. But that one small gesture broke her. She couldn’t hold herself together anymore.
She turned toward you, her face falling apart. “I can’t–” her voice broke. “I can’t stop seeing it.”
You wrapped your arms around her without even thinking twice, holding her as she cried. “I know,” you murmured. “It’s okay. I got you.”
She wanted to hold you back, she really did. But with her hands still covered in blood, she couldn’t bring herself to. You pulled from the hug, your eyes dropping down to her stained hands. You carefully reached out for her wrists.
You guided her back to the sink, releasing one wrist to turn on the faucet. As soon as the water ran, you took her wrist again and brought both under the running water.
“It’s not gonna come off,” she muttered.
“It will,” you murmured. “Just let me help.”
She gave a weak nod and leaned a little closer, letting you wash the blood from her skin. Bit by bit, the red began to fade down the drain.
Nancy’s shoulders finally dropped, her body softening just slightly. “Thank you,” she whispered.
You dried her hands with a paper towel, and once her hands were finally clean, you offered her a faint smile. “Let’s go back whenever you’re ready,” you said softly.
Nancy took in a long breath, then lifted her eyes to yours. “I’m ready,” she whispered. You stayed right beside her as the two of you stepped out of the restroom together.
