CHAPTER SIX: NO CONNECTION

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You let out a gasp as you and Five appeared back in your dad's apartment "Easy" Five said as you itch the back of your neck. "That hurt" you said "Yeah, you might have gotten a whiplash" you looked at him "It will go away. I'm impress that you didn't threw up or almost passed out the first time" he said.

When you entered the living room you saw Diego was laying on the couch almost unconscious while Lila was sitting by him, cauterizing a stab wound on his side.

"So you just found him like that?" you asked Lila "Yeah" he said "What happened?" you asked "He was stabbed" Lila answered "By who?" you asked "Probably by this man, him and his brother are chasing" she said "How did you find him?" you asked "I followed him" she said "So you followed him and now you brought him back?" you asked "He would have been dead if I hadn't found him" she said before looking at you "I'm Lila by the way" she said "Y/n" you said.

"So what is your story?" she asked "I don't really have one. I'm just a normal girl, I guess. Going to school, the smartest one in my class, trying to figure out what to do with my life. And then...this" you gestured around the room "All of this happen" you said "Well, it's not so bad, having a little excitement in your life right? Otherwise it would be boring" she said "Yeah, right now I kinda miss my boring normal life" you said "Normal can be nice" she said. 

Diego was gasping and screaming as Lila was burning the wound.

"Shh! Don't move. This thing is very finicky" Lila said "What happened?" Diego asked "I saved your stupid life" Lila answered "Were you following me?" Diego asked "Uh, hey, how about a little gratitude knife boy. If it wasn't for me, you'd be dead. That's twice now, by the way" Lila said.

Diego's eyes widened as he lifted his head before he looked down at himself to noticed that his clothes was missing and he only had a bed sheet to cover himself.

"Where are my clothes? The hell happened to my clothes?" he asked "I said, don't move" Lila said but Diego began to move and Lila dug the tool into his wound making a sizzling sound causing Diego to scream and groaning in pain before he laid back down, moaning from the pain. "There. That's better" Lila said.

Five let out a sigh as he entered the room "Oh. He isn't dead" he said as he was looking at Diego while he had his hands in his pockets.

"Disappointed?" Lila asked as Five walked towards the coffee table in front of the couch "Oh, to see you? Always" he said with a fake smile as he grabbed a white rag before walking back to stand by the doorway, pressing the rag against the wound on the side of his neck.

"So much hostility in such a tiny package. Did you cut yourself shaving? I could teach you to shave like a big boy" Lila said and Five let out a sigh.

"No, I just ran into an old family friend" he said as he took the rag off his neck before looking at it.

You grab his hand before removing it from his face so you could look at the cut. 

Five sighed as he let you do it. 

But then he push you hand away and you scoff. 

"Is he always that rude?" Lila asked you "I don't know. I have just met him, and until now, he is rude, a pain in the ass, and so ungrateful and an asshole with a bad attitude and no manners" you said and Five rolled his eyes.  

Then there was a soft snoring sound causing Five to turn around to see Elliott still tied to the chair, sleeping.

"You didn't untie him?" he asked as he looked back at Lila "Was I supposed to?" Lila asked and you rolled your eyes before you walked over and untied your dad.

"I don't understand why you would even tie us up. For the first you invade our home, then tie us up and then threated me" you hissed at Five before you turned to your dad.

"I'm sorry dad" you said as you untied him "It's okay. Is not your fault. They didn't hurt you did they?" he asked "No" you shook your head and he hugged you "I'm glad that you're okay, I don't what I would do if something happen to you" he said before hugging you.

Five let out a sigh as he saw you hugging your dad. It actually made him wish that he had a dad like that. Maybe his personality would be different. 

But it also made him think that he have actually never gotten a hug, not once in his entire life. Not even when he was a kid and before he got stuck in an apocalypse. He have never gotten a hug, not even from his own siblings. He have hugged each other but never him. But maybe it had something to do with his attitude.

"If you keep looking at her like that, you might go soft for her" Lila said to Five and he glanced at her "Never going to happen" he said.

"We're not going to call the police are we?" you asked your dad "No" he shook his head "I'm going to help them" he said as he pulled away "What about you?" he asked "I don't know dad, I don't like them. That boy is an asshole, he threatens us, ties us up. He just be lucky I haven't called the cops. You can help them if you want, but I'm not going to help them" you said before you turned around and walked into your bedroom.

"Woah, you really pissed her off" Five snapped at Lila "I would too if I was in her shoes. You're lucky she hasn't puncheh your teeth out" Lila said "Shut up" Five hissed.

---      

The next morning you were standing in your bedroom singing a song.

"You sing amazing" a voice made you jump and you turn to see Five standing in the doorway.

"Jesus" you said "No, it's just me" he said "Don't scare me like that" you said "The door was open" he said. 

You could see on his face that he was stress, exhausted and desperate.   

"When was the last time you slept?" you asked "I'm fine okay" he hissed "Jesus, just trying to be friendly, no need to be a dick" you said and he let out a sigh.

"You know that this is my bedroom" you said "Yeah" he nodded before looking around your room.

Five knew he didn't belong here, in this room, in this life, this timeline. But for a brief second, he allowed himself to imagine what it might be like if things were different, if he wasn't caught up in a time-traveling catastrophe, if he didn't have the weight of the world on his shoulders.

But then reality quickly came crashing back in. This wasn't his life, and he had no right to linger any longer.

"Then what do you want?" you asked.

"I need your help with something?" he asked "With what?" you asked "Do you know how to use and connect a machine that track waves" he asked "Yeah" you nodded "Good, I need one" he said.

"Why?" you asked "I can't tell you" he said "Then I don't want to help you" you said "This is matter of life and death" he said "Then you tell me why those people were after you and what you mean with you only have ten days to save the world" you said "I can't tell you. It's too risky" he said "Then I will not help you" you said "Why?" he asked "You told me that we were not friends. And only do favors for friends. And since we are not friends. And you did tied both me and my dad. So therefore no" you said "I'm sorry that I tied you and your dad up, but you gave us no choice" he said "Still don't want to help you, beside that don't sound like a real apology" you said.

"That is not fair" he said "'Fair' You just appear out of the blue, almost got me shot, you said you need my dad's and my help but you don't want to tell you us about what, you say that you only have ten days to save the world and some crazy people shot at you. You don't even say thank you, you leave us out. You tied both me and my dad. I may only be sixteen. But you are not an adult yourself" you said "I'm older than I look" he said "Yeah right" you said "It's the truth" he said "How?" you asked "I can't tell you" he said "Then I wouldn't help you. You give something and get something in return" you said and he let out a scoff. 

He tried to be nice, then he just have to threating you. "Do it or else---" he said "Or else what?" you looked at him which caught him by surprise and his eyes widened "I'm not scared of you Short Pants, you just be lucky I'm not kicking you out or calling the cops" you hissed.

"You can't keep playing that card anymore, threating people gets you nowhere, if you want them to help you, drop that attitude Short Pants and try to be nice for once in your fucking life" you snapped as you pointed your finger at him. 

The way you raise your voice at him, the way you behave towards him right now, the way you talk and threated him. No one have ever talk to him like that, or even threated him, no one have ever behave like that towards him, except you. He actually like it. He have finally found his match. 

"You're right" he let out a sigh "Is just how I have made it this far" he said "Then I'm not surprise that you don't have any friends" you said and he scoff "Try to be nicer for once, it actually wouldn't hurt" you said before you tilted your head.

"Listen you can tell me why you need my help. Whatever it is, I can handle it" you said "Okay, I will tell you, but you gotta promise me not to say anything to anyone, and it can be dangerous, so do you accept the risk?" he asked "This is so stupid" you said "Do you accept the risk?" he asked "Yeah, sure fine. I accept the risk" you nodded "Then I will tell you the story, but first you need to tell me something" he said "And that is?" you asked.

"You're sixteen, but you are acting more like an adult than a teen. You're also really smart, so how?" Five asked "I don't know, I have being like since I was six" you said "I remember you mention something about being kidnapped when you were young" he said "Yeah when I was five years old, I was kidnapped from my home in the middle of the night. My parents were freaking out, the police had no idea how the person came into the apartment, there was no sign of break in and the window that lead to my room was lock, so was all the doors" you said "What do you remember?" he asked "Nothing. I remember nothing. I went to bed. I remember a bright blue light" Five's eyes widened when you said that last part.

"And the next I remember, I was laying in a dark and empty alley. A young couple found me. Brought me to the hospital where I was reunited with my parents. The police even the FBI questions me. I had being gone for a year, but I couldn't remember anything. Doctors check up on me, but I haven't being hurt or anything. There was no sign of assault or anything and since I couldn't remember anything, I was discharge and I went home with my parents and it was just forgotten, but I have a feeling that there was something behind my kidnapping, why kidnapped me and then deliver me back a year later, without any injuries, I still don't understand this today" you looked down at your fingers as you were sitting on the bed.

Five listen to your story, still confuse over when you mention that bright blue light. Was The Commission behind your kidnapping, but why would they kidnap you and then deliver you back? There was something that didn't fit.

"I have tried to find out the truth, but no matter how hard I try to remember, I just can't and I was so young so of course I would have trouble remember it" you said "Maybe it's good that you don't remember, maybe your brain don't want to remember because it was terrible, and maybe because you were so young" he said "Yeah, maybe you're right" you nodded before looking at him.

"My dad is not crazy. He is just a over paranoid person that went through a divorce and has no one else but me and his theories to push him through life...He only has me and his reality. So if you think that he---" "I don't" he shook his head "Okay, he is a little crazy and weird, but aren't we all?" he looked at you "True" you nodded.

Five could talk to you for hours, days even. He wished that you would just keep talking, so he could listen to your accent. It was like a sweet melody that played that he wanted only his ears to hear.   

"So how about you?" you asked "I don't know" he said "Come on. I shared mine. Share your story" you said "I'm nervous that you wouldn't like me afterwards" he said "There is nothing you can say that make me look at you different. Beside you did promised me" you said and he took a deep breath before he told you about his family, who was who and what their powers was.

"I was born together with 43 other kids with special abilities, we were all born on the same day, the first day of October 1989. None of these woman had been pregnant when the day first began. The eccentric billionaire Sir Reginald Hargreeves adopted as many of the children as possible. He ended up getting seven of them and called them The Umbrella Academy, I was one of those kids. We all had speciel powers except Vanya, I don't know why he kept her. She wasn't really in the picture. I never understood why, she wasn't gifted with powers like the rest of us...yet, I don't get why my family pushed her away" Five said "That must be hard, feeling like an outsider in your own family, nobody should be treated differently because of their capability...she must've felt so lonely all those years" you said "Yeah" Five nodded. 

"It must be cool. Having siblings who also had powers" you said "Well, it was nice not being alone. Some would say we're lucky, we have a gift that most people would kill for. But I didn't feel lucky and neither did my siblings, well except for a few of us. From the day we learned how to walk, we were trained to be crime stopping heroes. Saving the day like any other superhero, how much I hated those days and the ones that came after them" he let out a sigh. "So your life was not that great?" you asked and he shook his head "Had the worse dad in the world. Never got the chance to live a normal life. Got stuck in the apocalypse for years" he said before he took a deep breath.

"Well anyway. We were all born with powers, me, well as you know I have the ability to teleport both short and long distances. But my dad was the worst father ever. He never took care of me or mine siblings or loved us. We were taking care of by a robot woman who we called mom. He adopted us yeah, but instead of treating us as his children, he treated us like we were lab rats on his little eksperiment. My father emotionally abused me and my siblings. He only had us because of our abilities. Instead of giving us name, he called us by numbers. He let our robot mother name us. We were trained to save the world. We became the finest crime fighting forces in the city. We became quite famous. But no one knew what was really going on inside the Academy. My dad was a sadistic lunatic who's planning on gambling all of me and my siblings lives in another pointless mission. And that he saw us as nothing more than experimental material that could be tested, prodded, and abused in order to accomplish the tasks he set out for us. He emotionally abused me and my siblings. Which explains why all my siblings are emotionally stunted adult-children. My dad would make us train against each other from six a.m. to noon. At noon, we got a thirty minute lunch break. After that, it was training again until dinner time" he said before he let out a sigh.

"My father was the worst, gave us a tattoo with the academy logo on our left wrist when we were 13" he said before he showed you the tattoo on her left wrist. It was a black umbrella inside a circle. "Why did he do that?" she asked "I don't know, maybe to show us that we were part of the Umbrella Academy" he explain "So it was like he branded you?" she asked and he nodded "Yeah" he said "So you all have one?" she asked "Except Vanya" he said "Why?" she asked "Because she was ordinary but it turns out she have powers just like us and she was the cause of the apocalypse. Anyway. my dad used to put these sticky things on our temples when we were sleeping. Put up small camera at our beds too, and he monitored us when we were asleep" he said before he let out a scoff "And he thought I had no idea" he said before he chuckled.

"There was this one time, it was horrible and I regret doing it all, I wanted to time travel. I asked him to practice time traveling. And my father told me I wasn't ready, and I guess he was right. But I got mad and ran out. I jumped forwards to spring, to summer, to winter and then-poof- the apocalypse" he said before he sigh "God. It has being years ago, but I can still hear his voice, saying 'I told you so'" he said before he let out a chuckled.

"So you never had a childhood or got the chance to be a kid?" you asked "Not like that. My dad took that away from us. Spend the first part of my childhood, the first 13 years of my life forced to be a hero and the remaining years to survive a barren Earth with nothing but cockroaches to live off on, all alone in a broken world" he said as he let out a sigh.

"Then I was found by my former employer name The Handler and I was recruited to a place called The Commission until I left to get back to my family" he said.

"Woah, I didn't knew that. I'm sorry" you said as you looked at him and he could see that you were actually sorry.

He then told you about his life in the apocalypse. Finding his siblings' dead bodies in the rubbles. How he was completely alone for years in a broken world. How he found an mannequin name Delores and used her to talk with so he wouldn't go insane.

"Every since that day I found my dead siblings, I couldn't get the image of their skeletons out of my head and it keeps me up at night" he said.

"So you lived there for so many years how...." "How am I still a teen?" he asked and you nodded "Well, that lead to the next part of the story" he said before he started explained how he came in contact with The Handler and his work at the Commission. How he became the best and most dangerous assassin. He told you how he had worked hard everyday to get back to his family and save them. How he ended up in his teen body when he used his powers to travel back.

"When I tried to project myself into a suspended quantum state version of myself that exist across every possible instance of time---" "But you couldn't bring your body through the wormhole in the fabric of space-time" you said and he nodded. He was actually impress in how smart you were.  

"It must have being hard for you, being in the apocalypse and being alone for all those years" you said and he nodded "It was" he said "I don't know if I would have handle that" you said "I was also close in giving up many times" he said.

"Why did they recruit you? What kind of job was it?" you asked "I was assigned to assassinate anyone who would screw up the timeline" he said and your eyes widened "So you are an assassin?" you asked "Yeah" he said, a little scared that you would be scared of him now.

"Well, you didn't had a choice, did you?" you asked and he shook his head "It was the only way to get back and save the world" he said "Then I understand" you and he looked at you "You do?" he asked "Yeah, it was either that or being stuck forever alone" you said and he nodded "Yeah" he said.

"Did you enjoy it?" you asked "It never gave me pleasure" he said and you raised a brow "No, Y/n, I never enjoy it" he said.

First he was experiment and emotionally abused by Reginald and then he was experimented on by a new place. Focus to do something he didn't wanted.

He started to tell you about him he time travelled and got stuck in an apocalypse future all alone for 24 years. How a woman name the Handler found him and offer him a job in a place called the commission. He told you that he worked out the calculations so that he could travel back to his family and save the world form the apocalypse, but that didn't work so he had to time travel along with his siblings so save them and save the world but he screw up causing them to get scattered across the timeline in the 60s'.

"I'm sorry Five" you couldn't imagine having to spend so much time alone and then fighting so hard to still fail.

"My siblings think that I hate them. You seem to know more about me than my siblings does. They knew me for thirteen years before I left, and you've only know me for a few days now" he said before he ran his fingers through his hair.

"I think they forget that I'm a human being with feelings that can make mistakes" he said "You were born into a family that doesn't always appreciate you, but one day things are going to be very different" you said "You think so?" he asked "I don't think. I know. One day they will see and understand all you have done for them. I don't know if all of them will see it, but I have a feeling that one of them don't and wouldn't blame you for the things that have happen" you said and he let out a sigh.

"Listen a child of a narcissistic parent learns early that love is conditionel. They quickly understand that they'll only be loved for what they can do, not who thry are. They sense their parent cannot meet theit emotional needs, so they learn to perform excelling in sports, academics, or becoming their parents confindt and emotional support. The child abandons their true self, morphing into whatever version their highly critical and opinionated parent deems worthly. Without a genuine sense of self, they become addicted to external validation. This creates a lifetime pattern of people pleasing and self betrayed. The relationship turn transactional, always based on what they can provide for others. Deep within lies a profound sense of betrayal. They were loved, yes, but unconsciously used by the most significant person in their world. The anxiety, anger, and pain remain buried until they're finally ready to acknowledge these wounds" you said and he looked at you "You're maybe going through a hard time right now, you're feeling insecure and unimportant but please know that you are a beautiful human being inside and that your hard work will pay off someday, just keep trying! Don't let somebody tell you that you can't do something, remember that impossible is just a big word small minded people use. Sometimes we just need to hear that" you said as he looked at you while he listen to every word.

"Five. You have to let yourself be happy. Even someone like you deserve it. You are not alone anymore Five, you have a family, be happy about that, not all people have that" you said.

You reached out and placed a hand on top of his in a hopefully comforting manner. He smiled at you softly.

"I'm sorry for everything you've been through. And I understand why you are keeping it for yourself. But I don't care about that. I don't care that you're an adult man in his teen body. You have risked so much just to save your family. This actually change in what I think about you now, but in a good way, 'cause now I understand. You risked so much just to save your family. You're a good person, Five" you said and he looked at you.

"I'm an assassin. I assassinate target that interfere with the timeline" he said "Tell me these are bad people that you kill, Five. They're aren't good people going about their day, just living their lives. Right? They deserve to be killed?" you asked "Sometimes they're bad, but mostly they're not. It depends on the timeline" he said as he stared at you.

"Please Five. It's okay to let people in sometimes" you said "I---" he said before he took a deep breath.

"I'm sorry for my behavior towards you" he said "No, it's okay, now I understand why your behavior is like that. I'm glad you told me, I'm glad that you were able to share, then I know I shouldn't have judge you before I get to know your story" you said.   

"Listen. I'm not supposed to make friends. It makes it harder for me to leave them. I'm from the future and you are from what I will call the past. Therefore we can't make a connection. Therefore there can't be any connections between us" he looked at you "I won't force you to be my friend Five, but I will consider you as one anyway" you said.

You noticed how Five froze. Like he didn't knew what to say. He would regret making a connection with you but he'd be destroyed if he left you here. He'd have to convince himself he just wanted your help and that's all. 

"I want you help you Five. I want to be your friend. Is okay to let people in sometimes" you said.

Five didn't knew what to say. He have actually never had a real friend before in his entire life. 

"Thank you Y/n" his own eyes were now on the floor.

"So you want to help me?" he asked "Of course" you smiled as you tilted your head.

"But no connection right?" you asked "No connection. We will keep things stricly professional between us" you both nodded before you both let out a small smile as you looked at each other.

As you look at him, smiling at you, also got you to smile as well as you could feel your heart melt.

That handsome and cute smile. Who knew that Five Hargreeves had the most beautiful and cutest smile you have ever seen.

There was something about Five that you like, you didn't see an stubborn person, you saw a guy that have being through a lot and just wanted to feel loved.

But you knew that you couldn't get attracted to him, for the first he was an adult man and you were sixteen, it would just be wrong and the second he was from the future and you are from what he would call it the past, therefore you can't fall in love with him or get too attracted or attached to him.

You know that there was no way you could get feelings for him and fall in love and you knew he wouldn't get feelings or fall in love with you either.

You and Five promise each other no connection and not get attached to one another.

But both of you had a feeling in your guts tell you that you would both fail.

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