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Piddling is a word your grandmother used to describe whenever Grandpa went out in the shed to fix something, or to work on something. It was also a word you used to describe what Evan did when he was angry about that Jake Park destroying his bear traps for the upteenth time and banged things together in hopes of making his traps more resilient to destructive fingers.
Whether Evan had just run out of ideas or the Entity said nope , he hadn’t been able to make any breakthroughs as of late. In fact, the most he had ever been able to do is make a few new coils, or this two stones he forged or the padded traps he used once via your request and now used once in a blue moon. Just to fuck with the survivors.
It was funny watching them fully expecting their ankles to be snapped only to get a couple of bruises at most. Shouldn’t be funny, but it was.
What also shouldn’t be funny was how long Evan had been in there, banging away at something metallic for what seemed like hours, and now that you were getting sleepy, it proved to be keeping you awake. You respected the time Evan had to himself given as the Entity often didn’t give neither of you a break often, but the lack of a nap was starting to irritate you and Evan’s piddling needed to stop.
Slipping your shoes back on from where you had been propping your feet up on the hundred plus year old footrest left as a relic of more human times, you gently padded your way into Evan’s personal little forgery, which was basically just a larger shack that was more well-constructed and looked more like an actual building than the slats of wood the Entity throws together and calls it a masterpiece of a building. The sounds of metal hitting metal, usually almost soothing, jarrs your eardrums in your head and brings tears to your eyes.
You try knocking once on the heavy wood of the doorframe, but Evan is deaf to the noise. You knock louder, and he still doesn’t pause in his beating of a heavy mallet against the glowing metal of a bear trap jaw. Steadying yourself, you prepare for the pain in your head to flare up when you call out. “Evan.”
He instantly stops with his piddling, and turns to look at you. He’s wearing his forgery helmet, the long thing that protects his face with a long strip with glass that lets him see, but you can feel the intensity of his stare at you when he notices your presence.
You can tell he’s very perturbed at first that you’ve disturbed him, but you feel his eyes look over your tired form and his demeanor changes. “Have I disturbed you?” He asks, voice a little hoarse, as it permanently is from the damage he sustained in the final mine explosion. It’s amazing he can still talk with all of his injuries.
You think abouting saying no , but it would be an evident lie, and you were never the best about lying. “I want to sleep, but your piddling is keeping me up.” Evan’s shoulders rear back.
“I am not piddling. I am-” He waves the mallet around, gesturing to all the iron work he has done and the bent bear trap on the anvil. Evan looks back at you, and you look at the bear trap, and then so does Evan.
He sighs. “I am trying to make them more resilient.” He lets the mallet drop to the table beside the anvil along with his shoulders. “Those maggots keep breaking them- it’s not just Jake Park now. It’s the lot of them.”
Taking a step forward, you feel as if you are wandering into the beast’s cave as you put your hand on Evan’s arm tenderly. “It’ll do you no good if you work yourself to a burnout trying to outsmart them.” Evan’s muscles are hard, but relax under your touch. You rub the skin above his elbow, taking care to avoid touching the metal spikes sticking out of him as you massage his tough skin. “Come sleep with me.”
Evan makes a humph noise. “I do not need to sleep- ”
“Then come rest with me.” You counter, already wrapping your fingers around his arm and leading him out of the building back towards the living area of the MacMillan Estate. “I know you like to watch me sleep.” He’s called you beautiful before when he thought you were asleep, but you were simply keeping your eyes closed as he stroked your hair and praised whatever God was out there that he was able to keep you with him in this hellish landscape.
Knowing that he was defeated, Evan took off the forgery faceguard he was wearing and left it at the small table by the door as you led him outside before resting his hand over yours on his arm in a comforting gesture. “I am sorry I kept you awake.” Evan apologized, and you hummed it off.
“It’s okay.” He opened the large doors for you, and let you step inside first. “A chivalrous gentleman such as you can more than make up for it.” You give him a teasing, beaming smile and it’s reflected on his bare, scarred face.
“If only.” He replies, and in one swift motion, lifts you off your feet and carries you bridal style up to your bedroom as you throw your head back and laugh at his actions. “ Keeping you awake is a crime I can never hope to atone for. I’ll forever be in your debt.”
Your gently placed on your side of the bed and it’s only after Evan slides off his boots that he joins you, wrapping his arms around your waist from behind and buries his face into your shoulder. His warm breath and body instantly relaxes you and your eyes close in the draw of sleep, his hand tracing idle patterns across your stomach as you drift off to sleep.
Maybe this time he won’t sneak off and nearly burn down the forest this time with his piddling .