Michael Afton x Reader (The Return/Stay By My Side 2)

Y/n's POV:

I grabbed Michael's arm before he could leave the house, causing him to look over at me.

"Michael, you can't leave!"

"I'm leaving. And I'll come back in the morning, perfectly safe. Like always."

"Don't—"

"Bye, y/n."

Before either of us could say another word, he had closed the door and left the house.

"Ugh! Damn you, Michael!" I yelled out, slamming my fist on the table as if he could hear me.

He couldn't leave tonight. I wasn't sure why, but the thought of him leaving tonight terrified me. More than usual. I could tell something was off. Something bad was going to happen tonight; I just knew it.

I stood there, staring at the door for some time. I expected him to lock it, but it stayed unlocked. I didn't hear him walking away to his car either. I looked out the peephole to see that he was still standing in front of the door, appearing to be reaching for the doorknob.

I wondered if I should go outside and at least say goodbye to him. But before I could he locked the door and walked away.

Whatever. Why bother?

I didn't move away from the door. I wanted so badly to follow after him and stop him. Something felt wrong. I needed to change his mind.

But I knew he didn't want me going after him. So I figured I had no choice but to stay put.

I hoped that I was just overthinking everything. I had to be overthinking it. Nothing out of the blue was going to happen tonight.

I hoped not. My gosh, I hoped not so damn much.

Michael's POV:

Y/n's words kept on echoing in the back of my mind during my entire drive to work. I knew she was right. Something wasn't right about tonight. I mean, there had to be some reason why Henry told me not to come.

But him telling me not to come made me want to come even more. What if there was something going on that could lead me to Elizabeth?

And besides, what's the worst that could happen? It's not like I'd die again.

Once I pulled up to the pizzeria I noticed that Henry's car was there. Why was he here at this time of night? Was that the reason he told me not to come? Because he would be taking over?

But if that were the reason, why was he so persistent about it?

I pushed it aside. That didn't matter. I just needed to find some way to get inside without him spotting me.

So I did just that. I snuck inside the building, constantly looking over my shoulder to make sure that Henry wasn't nearby. There were a few times where he almost caught me, but thankfully, he never did.

And then, I made it to my office.

For the most part, everything was fine. I went through the same routine as always. Nothing was different. Henry's demand for me to stay home didn't make any sense.

And then my shift ended. It was time to go home.

Relief washed over me. Everything was fine. I didn't get hurt and nothing happened to me. Now I could go back home and apologize to y/n, and reassure her that I'm fine. Maybe give her a romantically exciting night to make up for being so harsh. But then...

"You played right into our hands."

I froze. That was Baby's voice.

"Did you really think that this job just fell out of the sky for you? No. This was a gift. For us."