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agentunwin · 5 years

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ROSES & CLOVER [FREAK WEEK: DAY 1]

In which the man in the corner with the hands full of sand promises Shawn everything he’s ever wanted, but he gets more than he bargained for.

— A/N: ok i actually kind of hate this bc its not how i really wanted it to turn out but ive been wanting to write this prompt for a long time so here you go happy first day of freak week. This is the first kinda supernatural story for the week :)

— WORDS: 4.5k

— WARNINGS: Angst, cursing, violence, evil!reader(?)

Hey, I can't come to the phone right now, but leave a message and I'll try to reach you as fast as I can!

That voicemail. That fucking voicemail.

Shawn was sure that if he had to hear Brian's voice like that one more time, he'd rip his own hair out.

The lonesome boy sighed deeply and rolled over in his bed, setting his phone on his nightstand after his many attempts of contacting his best friend. Pulling his covers further up on his body, he focused his eyes on the ceiling and bit his lip, thinking about nothing and everything all at once.

On nights like these, Shawn hated being alone.

On nights like these, he hated how the stairs of his cold home would creak every time a gust of wind blew by. He hated hearing the sounds of crickets outside, and he absolutely hated the voices inside of his head, screaming at him and clouding his thoughts.

On nights like these, sleep was impossible to get when his mind was moving at incredible speeds- So fast that he couldn't even keep up with his own thoughts.

On nights like these, when he had nobody or nothing to look forward to, he almost always found solace in the tall man in the corner of his room.

The first night he noticed the sand, he didn't think much of it. It was a mere sprinkle on his flooring that he effortlessly swept to the side, the specks settling between the cracks of the hardwood panels. The second night, the sprinkles of sand were more prominent- Spread across his floor once again, and even partially on his bed.

On the third night, footprints made of sand led him to the man.

His figure was giant, towering over Shawn by at least two feet. His long, crooked fingers dripped with the same substance that had trailed throughout the bedroom, which was then pooling around his dress-shoe clad feet. His face was practically impossible to make out, dripping with the sand as well. He said absolutely nothing; only kept staring forward.

The man introduced himself as the Sandman.

Yet for some reason, Shawn wasn't scared.

The two merely coexisted for a long time. Every time Shawn would come home from a hard day at his office, the man was there. He never left the bedroom and sometimes Shawn felt himself questioning whether or not the figure was real, but he knew that it was. He could feel the warmth radiating from the man, he could feel the sand between his toes with every careful step his bare feet took, and eventually, he could feel the grit on his eyes as they fluttered open each morning.

The sand in his eyes was new. It started when one night, the man spoke. His voice wasn't projected aloud, but was rather reverberated within Shawn's chest, low and raspy with every word. He told Shawn that if he trusted him, he could make all of his dreams come true within the night. He told Shawn that all he had to do was give in to him, and he would work his magic. He told Shawn that he could take him anywhere or give him anything he'd ever wanted, and it didn't take much to convince the boy.

The man watched that night as Shawn carried out his normal nightly routine. He'd check his phone which never had any messages to convey, he'd brush his teeth and curse at himself for the bags underneath his eyes, he'd strip down to his underwear, he'd turn off his bedside lamp, and finally, he'd settle underneath the covers. However, this time, he didn't fall asleep. No- He was merely lying in bed, body unmoving as he waited for something to happen.

It was a silent agreement between the two. Shawn didn't know why, but he trusted the man, and for the first time, he allowed the man in.

His eyelids squeezed tighter when he felt the sand sprinkling over his eyes but had no time to dwell on the icky feeling before he finally understood. This was what the man had been wanting to show Shawn for so long.

His body was at ease and his eyes moved rapidly behind his eyelids as he was transported to a beautiful world. One where Shawn was on stage, living his dream life instead of working at his boring office job. One where he could do anything he'd ever wanted to do. With this man, he could live out any dreams he wanted. All he had to do was say the word, and he was there.

Sometimes, he chose to be a millionaire. Other times he imagined himself throwing coffee into his boss' face as he so wanted to do in real life. He ate all of the wonderful foods he'd never gotten to try, and one time he stood on the very tip of Mount Everest, breathing in deeply and allowing the crisp, cold air to hit his lungs.

Everything felt so real, and from that point on, Shawn took great advantage of the new ability he was given.

So much so, that others around him began to notice something peculiar. Though Shawn wasn't normally the most outgoing person to begin with, his friends quickly came to realize that he was closing himself off more than usual. He refused to go out to the local bar with them on multiple occasions, which was completely out of his character. On the contrary, however, he seemed happier than ever. He walked into work every day with a smile on his lips and a pep in his step, leaving out the exact same way.

At first, they let it go, figuring that he must have found a special someone who was occupying his time. In a way, that was true. He'd finally found someone that made him truly happy and that he never wanted to leave.

So he didn't.

Over the passing two months, Shawn's obsession with the man in the corner only deepened, and though he never spoke about the man to anyone, it was evident to everyone that something was truly wrong. He'd stopped coming to work, opting for sleep instead where he could be enveloped by his altered reality. When he wasn't sleeping, he was eating, with no in-between. His scruff had grown exponentially and his apartment was a wreck, but none of this mattered to him.

With a world of endless possibilities at his fingertips, he no longer needed to live in the real world.

But, eventually, Shawn began to grow bored. He'd done everything in his dream world that he'd wanted to do. He'd flown by the wings on his back, he'd walked on clouds, he'd performed his original songs in front of millions, and much, much more. He was running out of ideas, and that worried the man in the corner.

And even more to the man's dismay, an intervention was staged. It was 3:00 in the afternoon when he was awoken from his dream world by a pounding on his front door. A loud groan left his lips as he lifted his arms to wipe his eyes of the sand, making sure there was no residue for when he eventually opened his eyes completely. With a heavy sigh, he swung his legs over the edge of the bed, ignoring the man as he slammed his bedroom door shut and went to open the door.

When he opened it, he was surprised to see his friends and family standing around, disappointment written all over their faces. Shawn knew that there was no way out of this this time.

He led the group into his living room littered with grime, empty pizza boxes, and piles of unpaid bills, making sure nobody took a single step towards his bedroom.

After a few breakdowns, a few confessions, an agreement, and a few trips to the doctor, Shawn was diagnosed with delirium. But, even through all of this, he never once let the Sandman's name fall from his lips. He could never let anyone know.

No matter how much medication Shawn took, the man would always be there, and this bothered Shawn. He wanted to get better for his family, friends, and himself. He wanted to stop living in his fake world and get back to what really mattered. He wanted to live again, and this angered the man more than anything.

Shawn's heart was heavy as his eyes bore up at the ceiling one night. His breath was steady as his mind wracked with thoughts of what the next day would bring. He had a meeting at 9a.m., then lunch, then he had to pick up clothes from the cleaners, and much, much more. He was busier nowadays, but that didn't necessarily bother him.

It did bother the man, however.

For the first time in nearly two weeks, he felt the thundering of the man's voice in his chest again. Shawn rolled his eyes, flipping over in his bed and pulling the covers up over his head as if it would help block out the voice.

The man was spewing his usual bullshit. He continued to promise Shawn a life beyond, a land of wonderful things, but Shawn had heard it all before- Seen it all before, and there was nothing the man could say to convince him to go back.

Or so he thought, before the Sandman posed Shawn a question.

What is it you truly want in life? He asked, the inquiry resonating through Shawn's mind.

In that moment, he wasn't sure. Part of himself was ashamed for even entertaining the man's words, though he couldn't help but be intrigued. As he was getting his life back together, there wasn't much he could wish for except for the one thing he'd never really gotten to experience.

"I-" Shawn began, biting down on his lip as he contemplated answering at all, "I want love. I've never been in a steady relationship before. I want to experience it."

So the man promised him love. He promised that if Shawn came back for just one more visit, he could give him exactly what he wanted, and then, the Sandman would disappear forever.

And Shawn caved.

Mr.Sandman, bring me a dream, make her the cutest that I've ever seen.

Give her two lips like roses and clover, and tell her that her lonely nights are over.

Sandman, I'm so alone, don't have nobody to call my own.

Please turn on your magic beam, Mr.Sandman bring me a dream.

That night, he went back to the man he'd been avoiding. He indulged; allowed himself to travel back to that dream land where everything was perfect. And all through the night, he searched for the woman he'd longed for- That he was promised.

But he never found her, and when he woke up that morning to give the man a piece of his mind, he was gone, just as he said he would be. Not a single trace of sand could be found in the room and it almost felt empty without his constant presence in the corner. Shawn groaned and rubbed his hands over his face, annoyed by the false promise he'd been dealt, but happy all the same that the man was finally gone.

Now, it was really time to start his life again.

Shawn was finding it hard to keep his balance as he rushed up the empty stairwell of his office building, heart pounding in his chest with only a few minutes left. This meeting was more important than any one so far and if he missed it, he could consider himself a goner. Once he reached his desired floor, his vision was tunneled to the room he needed to get to, already seeing the last of the people flood in.

He grit his teeth and began moving faster down the hallway, eyebrows knitted deeply in concentration. Everyone seemed to notice his urgency and moved out of the way to avoid being hit, but unfortunately, the woman at the end of the hall didn't.

She was looking through her files for the days meeting and within a split second she was on the ground, Shawn sprawled out on the carpet next to her. He groaned and cursed at himself as she shoved himself up to his knees, beginning to pick up what the woman had dropped.

"I-I'm so sorry, I should've been looking where I was going, I was just in a rush." Shawn muttered, breath hitching in his throat at the sight of her.

She was stunning. Her plump lips curved into a tiny grin upon noticing his staring, shaking her head while picking up the last of her files.

"It's alright. Are you here for the campaign meeting with Phero Records?" The woman asked, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear and rising to her feet.

Shawn did the same, getting up and rubbing at the back of his neck, seemingly forgetting the panic he was in a mere few seconds ago. "Uh- Yeah! Are you?"

She hummed and nodded happily, holding her belongings closer to her chest. "Yes! I work for Phero."

Shawn was elated at this news, biting his lip to stifle his grin. He was never one to be so direct, but her beauty had completely captivated him, and he knew that if he didn't make some sort of move now, he never would.

"Well we should probably get going, but I have to pick up lunch after this," He began, a hopeful look on his face, "Would you like to come with me, maybe grab a bite to eat?"

She snorted at this cliche line, cocking her head to the side. "Maybe if I knew your name, stranger."

Shawn's eyes went wide in realization as he stuttered out, "O-Oh, right! My name is Shawn, Shawn Mendes, what's yours?"

Her eyes flickered down to the hand that he held out to her, taking it and gently shaking with a smirk. "Y/N. Sounds like a plan."

Things couldn't be going better for Shawn. A month after the two had first met they'd gone steady and spent nearly every waking moment together. He was sure she was the one for him and he told this to everyone around him, his family especially happy to see him doing well again.

But that got him thinking.

Y/N's back was against his chest, their steady breathing matching as Shawn's fingers went to fiddle with hers, television playing some silly romcom that they'd decided on an hour earlier.

"Hey, Y/N?" Shawn muttered, heart warming as he felt her shift to look up at him in curiosity. "I was just thinking, we've been dating for a while.. Don't you think it's time to meet my family?"

The flinch she had in response to his question certainly didn't go unnoticed. It seemed her entire demeanor had changed as her eyes went wide and she turned in his grip to face him, shock written over her features.

"W-We've only been dating for like, two months, Shawn." She stuttered out, shaking her head fervently. "Don't you think it's a little early for that?"

Shawn was obviously taken aback by her sudden outbreak, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion while he brought a hand up to her face. "I mean- Maybe? I dunno, I was just thinking." His thumb moved to swipe over her quivering lip, his heart beating faster in his chest at her sudden panic. "Baby, what's wrong?"

She took a deep breath and gulped, looking down at her lap. "I'm just not ready for that, that's a big step, you know?"

Shawn bit his lip and nodded in understanding, yet it was clear that he wasn't completely buying it. Still, he allowed the conversation to fizzle out, bringing her head down to his chest as they got situated on the couch again. The T.V. was turned off and the two found their rhythm of breath against one another as they always did, and as Shawn felt himself begin to drift off, an usual feeling of uncertainty settled in his chest.

Shawn sat back boredly in his seat, his friends' banter drowning out as he lazily waved his straw around in his glass. His eyes were glued to the amber liquid he had yet to touch, the loud club music pounding in his mind. Before, this used to be his favorite scene, but nowadays, he'd much rather be spending this time with Y/N in the quiet of his home.

"Dude, what's wrong with you?" Brian bumped Shawn's shoulder with his own, finally breaking the man from his trance. Shawn's eyes snapped up to meet his friends' gazes in the small booth, all waiting expectantly for his answer. All he granted them was a lousy shrug.

"He probably just misses his girl." Jon teased, bringing his own glass up to his lips.

"When are we gonna meet her, anyway?" Brian asked, a smirk plastered to his face. "What's it been, four months? Why don't you ever bring her around?"

Shawn sighed and shifted in his seat, propping his right hand underneath his chin. "I dunno man, she's weird about meeting other people in my life. I think she gets nervous and I don't want to push her."

His friends all around the table snickered, all thinking the same thing that nobody had the courage to say until, of course, Brian opened his mouth again.

"I dunno, Shawn." He chuckled, raising his eyebrows suggestively. "I'm starting to think you've been lying to us and there is no Y/N."

"What?" Shawn seethed, suddenly sitting straighter in his seat. "She's real, bro, she's just not the most social person ever."

Jon interjected with a query of his own, "Didn't you say she's like a higher-up at another company? And doesn't that mean she has to talk to people all the time?"

"Well-"

"Just show us a picture and we'll believe you." One of Shawn's other friends simply suggested, and it was then that Shawn realized the severity of his situation.

"I um-" Shawn nibbled on his bottom lip, gaze faltering down to his lap, "I don't have one."

His friends collectively groaned and rolled their eyes, needing Shawn to say no more. They'd all come to the conclusion that he was faking and let it go, leaving Shawn to sulk in the corner of the booth while their words settled in his mind.

In all of the times he was with her, they never took pictures together, nor had he seen any of her before. They were always too busy with one another; too absorbed to even bother. But tonight, he was going to prove to the others that what they had was real.

With that in mind, Shawn excused himself from the table, shimmying out and ignoring his friends' calls as he bolted out of the club and into the cold, crisp air.

Shawn felt the tension leave his body when he opened the front door and saw her laying on his couch, a blanket barely draped over her sleeping body. He allowed himself to smile a bit at this and noticed how she was face-down, legs wildly slung all over. It must have been a hard day at work, Shawn thought, taking it upon himself to readjust the blanket over her.

His heart leapt in his chest as it always did when he saw her. He knelt down and moved a piece of stray strand of hair behind her ear, taking another second to admire her. Then, with a sigh, he pulled his phone from his pocket and opened the camera app.

Situating himself even closer to the couch, he made sure the flash was on before holding up the phone and smiling, snapping a quick picture and bringing his phone back down.

Shawn opened his camera roll, excitedly looking for the picture, yet when he clicked it, he swore his heart stopped beating.

There was nothing there. Nothing.

Not so much as a stray hair or a silhouette. There was nothing there.

His breathing got heavier while his mind wracked in confusion and he went back to the camera app, stumbling backwards and holding up his phone again. He pointed the phone right at her and watched as the flash illuminated the room for a split second before all went dark again. He ignored the small groans from the woman as she slowly awoke from the bright light, his fingers working quickly again to open his camera roll.

And once again, there was nothing but an empty spot where she laid.

His head felt as if it were being crushed as he tried to figure out what was happening. This had to be a joke, or maybe he was going crazy. He thought that there was some logical explanation, but as he stumbled even further back, his hand landed in something peculiarly familiar.

Shawn looked down to his left and noticed the sand between his fingertips, the grittiness digging into his skin. And then, he understood.

The Sandman had granted his wish.

"Shawn?" He heard Y/N's voice call as she sat up and rubbed at her tired eyes, "What are you doing home so early?"

Shawn whipped his head towards the woman, expression grim and twisted. He couldn't believe that through all the moments they'd shared together, none of them were real. She wasn't real.

He stood and looked at his bedroom door, a chill shooting down his spine. The man was in there, and Shawn knew it. He could feel it. He hopped to his feet and the look of panic on Y/N's face confirmed everything he needed to know.

"W-What are you doing?" She asked, stumbling up to her feet and reaching out to grab Shawn's arm to keep him from moving. This proved to be fruitless when he roughly shoved her backwards, forcing the girl back to the ground.

"Get the fuck away from me," He growled out, taking a few more steps towards the bedroom when he felt her nimble hands grab onto him once more.

"Shawn, stop!" She shrieked, blunt nails now digging into his skin. "What the fuck is wrong with you?!"

Once again, he refused to let her stop him. Shawn grabbed onto her arm and twisted it back, watching as she cried out and clawed at him in attempts to get him to let go. Eventually, he did, shoving her to the side once more. And once she was out of the way, there was only Shawn, the man, and the door that separated them.

His breathing stilled as his calloused hand went to grasp the doorknob, and when he pushed forward, he came face to face with none other than the Sandman.

He looked no different than he had the last time Shawn saw him, save for the now piles of sand that covered the bedroom. The man stood tall and said nothing as Shawn's jaw clenched and he tried to find the words to say.

"You fucking asshole!" He resorted to screaming, hands coming up to pound at the man's chest, tears welling in his eyes. "How could you do this to me?!"

I only gave you what you wished for, The Sandman replied, his gravelly voice sending vibrations through Shawn's chest as it used to.

"I didn't want this!" Shawn insisted, shaking his head rapidly. "I only wanted to dream of a girl, not for you to fuck with my mind and make me think that I had something real!"

He felt the familiar tug on his arm from Y/N who was now climbing back up to her feet, a look of defeat woven onto her face. She looked wrecked from Shawn's tossing and as much as he tried not to care, that love was still there, deep down inside.

"Who are you talking to?" She cried, biting down on her lip. "Baby, there's nobody there-"

"I know you're fake!" Shawn screamed, teeth gritting so hard he was sure they could crack. "Don't even try to-"

"SHAWN!" She interrupted, bringing a hand up to his cheek with furrowed eyebrows, "You haven't been taking your medication, please, you're seeing things! Please, come back to me.."

The way her voice fell off at the end of her sentence shattered his heart, along with the look of complete agony on her face. He'd never seen her so distraught and as if he hadn't just been screaming at the man a mere second ago, his anger suddenly fizzled, all of these emotions too much to handle.

He hadn't been taking his medication, that much was true, but right now, he couldn't tell reality from fantasy. Had he hallucinated the Sandman this entire time? Was she actually real? Was his mind playing tricks on him this whole time?

Shawn seemed to space out as he tried to make sense of everything and come to some kind of conclusion. Nothing made sense anymore, but when Y/N wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his neck, her hot tears hitting his skin, he knew that this was real. She was real.

He bit down on his bottom lip and sniffed a few times before nodding and giving into her and her comforting embrace. His own hands went to wrap around her waist, holding her even closer as he allowed his own tears to spill. He felt safe in her arms and he never wanted to let go.

"Thank you for coming back to me." She whispered, gently playing with the hair at the back of his neck. "I love you so much."

Shawn allowed himself to grin a bit and opened his mouth to speak, but something caught his attention. The man who once stood in the corner was now gone, taking any semblance of his presence with him.

Except for one thing.

Shawn's grin turned into a frown when he felt a sprinkle of something on his left arm, and when he shuffled backwards to look down at what had tickled his skin, his heart stopped for the final time that night.

Y/N was crumbling. Her face was stagnant as her hair fell to sand first, then her head, and the rest of her body followed. She blew away as if she was nothing, and that's exactly what she was; Nothing.

He couldn't move as he watched everything around him begin to crumble. The walls fell with the grit, revealing a barren desert. The floors beneath him turned to dust as he fell to his knees and witnessed what he had once called home be destroyed by none other than the Sandman's hand.

The destruction didn't cease until all that was left was Shawn and the desert before him.

This was just what the Sandman does. He preys on the weak-minded and vulnerable, filling their heads with promises and wonderful imaginations. He blurs the line between real and fake just to take it all back in the end, trapping his victims in an endless cycle of confusion and despair. There was no escape, and Shawn knew that much.

He was the Sandman's property, and he'd be doomed to that realm for eternity until eventually, he himself would fall to sand.

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