AN: I've been working on this fanfiction for many moons now. I hope you enjoy my blood, sweat, and more blood. I tried to make my portrayal of NNY as close to the comic as much as possible. As a disclaimer, I don't own the rights to JtHM. I only own my original characters.
Trigger warnings apply.
For those who have read The Little Girl Next Door: these two fanfics are not related. Both stories exist independently.
A small bit of info: I have never been into shipping canon characters with OCs. Yet I just couldn't resist with Johnny. He's just perfect romance material.
1. Wants to be cold? Tick.
2. Refuses to get close to anyone because of past hurt? Tick.
3. Morally grey anti-hero with a penchant for violent outbursts of murder? Double tick!
Since he fucked things up with Devi, I thought I would give him a second chance at love. I hope you like Jenny. She's... troubled.
The first scene may be familiar to those who have read the Director's Cut of JtHM.
"For the one-hundredth time, we haven't got that band in stock! I didn't know anyone even listened to them anymore..."
Johnny paused to take a breath.
Think happy thoughts think happy thoughts...
The cashier was probably just having a bad day. The man was only hooman. So there was no need to take his reply personally.
Shit. Had Johnny just forgotten how to say human again? It had been a while since he'd cast off his own humanity.
Humans yearned and NNY—as he prefers to be called—had long stopped yearning. Now he was a cold, empty husk of a person, free from all those frivolous emotions such as happiness, loneliness, and anger.
Just why did the cashier have to be so goddamned rude? And why did NNY care? He was meant to have freed himself from those vices.
Oh, well, back to the drawing board: NNY had a few more bugs to remove from his programming.
He gritted his teeth, glaring at the cashier with the oily skin. "What the fuck is your problem? Why are you being such a dick?! Do you get some kind of kick out of making me miserable? Do you?! What happened to the customer is always right? Have they stopped teaching you that at retail school? Fuck! You... you people! You make me so sick!"
NNY's adrenaline spiked. His vision whitened, so he squeezed his eyes, taking several deep breaths.
Happy thoughts think happy thoughts!
The cashier didn't seem any wiser to the fact that he was about to be murdered. He just continued to regard NNY as if he were an insignificant stain on the bathroom floor of his dirty apartment.
"Uh... what?"
NNY's mind finally cracked. Then everything turned black as the darkness summoned him. It wrapped its smokey tendrils around his body, dragging him closer and closer, and NNY had no choice but to relent.
Now his vision was smeared with blood as a high-pitched laugh escaped his throat. He reached his fingers around for his knives, his heart beating faster and faster.
Maim, kill, slaughter.
Maim, kill, slaughter.
Maim, kill, slaughter!
"Um... excuse me? I'm... not interrupting, am I?"
The void shattered the moment he heard that soft, angelic voice.
He shook his head, trying to get his bearings. What the hell happened? Who just spoke?
NNY turned his head very slowly, wincing when he met a bright pink light. It was a knee-jerk reaction. He may as well be staring at the sun after where he'd just been.
It was dark inside the void after all.
His eyes adjusted, and now the person finally came into view.
It was a girl. No, a woman. Yet she was childlike. She had a babydoll face with a large pair of eyes that made her look perpetually surprised.
And she smelled of flowers.
NNY grimaced again. It was another knee-jerk reaction, but he couldn't help but be overwhelmed by the woman's sickly sweet scent.
She was just a little too sweet, and it made him want to vomit.
Yet she brought him back from the void. Nothing ever brought NNY back from the void. Once he was there, that was it. No going back.
It seemed his trip to murderville had been short this time, and he had the small, pink-haired woman to thank.
The woman caught him staring at her next. She gasped, peering away, and her cheeks turned as pink as her hair.
She was blushing, and who knew blood could look so fetching beneath the skin? It always looked better outside the skin.
NNY rushed back to his senses, tapping his forehead. He was hot to the touch, and seriously, what was wrong with him?
Had he come down with something?
Maybe he should keep his distance from the small, pink-haired woman with the rosy cheeks.
Everything continued normally around him, and people truly were ignorant little thorns. They had no idea of how close they were to dying just now.
It sickened NNY.
Honestly, if the woman hadn't shown her face, then NNY would have gone through with the murder.
NNY may as well have become invisible. The cashier gave his undivided attention to the pink-haired woman now, and the nerve of him...
The nerve of her.
NNY still wasn't finished yet. He came to this God-awful store for a reason, and that was to buy a CD from his favourite band!
"Hey... I was here first..." NNY growled.
The cashier raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, so? What you gonna do about it?"
NNY's face spasmed. Then his eye twitched as he clenched his fists. The bastard was just asking to be murdered now.
And that stupid, tiny woman with the voice of an angel. She had robbed NNY of the simple joy of killing a man, and for that injustice, he would kill her too.
NNY would kill all who opposed him.
The woman backed away from him next and good. It appeared she was smart.
"I'm... I'm awfully sorry. I... didn't mean to cause any trouble. I'll... just go..."
NNY's eyes popped from his sockets. Then he looked at the girl as if she'd just sprouted tentacles.
Wait. She was apologizing for interrupting him? That was... new... and totally unexpected.
No one apologized ever to NNY. Nobody had ever given a damn that they offended him.
It seemed the woman was... nice.
A nice person. NNY may as well have just stumbled upon a unicorn.
The cashier flicked his hand at her. "Nah, you're good, lady. This freak was just finishing anyway, so make it quick. My lunch break is in five minutes."
Well, even though he just got called a freak, NNY was kind of relieved to see that it wasn't just him who got the shitty treatment. It seemed that everyone who entered the CD Cesspool was treated like a second-class citizen.
The woman glanced at NNY quickly. Then she bowed her head, gasping for air.
She spoke next, and the cashier leaned over the counter. "What?"
She repeated herself, but her voice was just too quiet to be heard by the average human.
Yet NNY could still hear everything she said because he was a deranged serial killer. He had an acute sense of hearing after all. It came in handy when he was stalking his prey at night.
"I... w-was j-just... w-wondering if... if you had any heavy m-metal music?"
NNY's eyes widened in genuine surprise. Did she just ask for heavy metal?
He stepped back to observe her attire. It wasn't that he cared for the act of judging others for the way they dressed, but NNY just couldn't help himself with this one.
She wore a puffy-sleeved blue dress, teamed with a pair of knee-high brown boots that she'd tied with ribbons. Plus, she had an oversized bow on the top of her head, and the sight of her made NNY grimace.
She was like a living doll, and quite frankly, he found her unnerving.
And people thought NNY was scary.
The cashier had a shit-eating grin on his face, and NNY thought he'd looked evil before.
"Sorry... I didn't quite catch that. You'll have to speak louder!"
The creepy doll started to panic next. Her eyes darted back and forth to NNY, and it was as if she was expecting him to stab her something.
Well, she wouldn't be entirely wrong. NNY had thought about doing just that a moment ago.
Maybe he should just kill her and put her out of her misery. Besides, NNY hated her poofy dress, and her big eyes creeped him out.
That was when he remembered the way she'd apologized to him earlier, and maybe NNY shouldn't be so harsh. She was nice after all, and nice people didn't deserve to die just because he didn't like their clothes.
The woman finally lost what little voice she had now, and it seemed she couldn't speak anymore.
NNY rolled his eyes. For the love of Dog, this was just ridiculous. He hadn't planned on making a day trip of this stupid outing. He just wanted to buy his CD so he could head back home, but the girl was taking too long!
He glared at that piece of shit behind the counter now. "She asked if you had any heavy metal in stock, you stain. Listen to your customers!"
Surprised, the girl braved a glance at him next, and then the tiniest of smiles played across her face.
Something thumped hard in NNY's chest once he caught the light in her blue eyes, and they didn't look so creepy and haunted anymore.
In fact, now they were full of life, and he couldn't take his gaze off her.
Those eyes, that smile...
The cashier widened his eyes, giving the woman a quick assessment. Then he snorted and the look of derision he gave her next almost made NNY reach for his knives again.
What the hell did he find so funny?
"Pfft, you like heavy metal?"
NNY was about to respond to that asinine remark, but then the woman found her voice again.
"Oh, no. The heavy metal isn't for me. It's for my flowers! You see, I've been playing them all kinds of music lately to help them grow, and so far I've played rock, rap, pop, opera, country..." she giggled, and NNY couldn't tear his eyes away.
What. The. Hell? Did someone just yank on her pull string? Now the creepy doll just wouldn't shut up about fucking flowers!
Flowers, flowers, flowers!
Ah!
Still, as annoying as she was, he couldn't help but be drawn to her. She was completely insane (NNY could always tell), and she intrigued him.
It was as if she believed those flowers were actually people, and the more she talked about them, then the crazier she became.
Her big, haunted eyes sucked him in, and now he wanted to be a part of her creepy little world of creepy little flowers.
The girl stopped to take a breath, tucking her hair behind her ear with a set of delicate fingers. NNY imagined chopping them off her hands and wearing them around his neck like a necklace.
Weird thought.
"So, I thought I would try out some heavy metal this—"
"Try the back," the cashier interrupted.
She flinched at the rude retort. Then she hid her face behind a veil of flowing pink hair again, and what a shame. She seemed to come alive for a moment there, but now she looked five feet shorter.
"O-okay..." she whispered, disappearing into the shop.
NNY watched her the whole time, keeping his eyes peeled on her back. Her hair went all the way to her waist, and that was a lot of hair for someone so short.
What a strange specimen. She was like some rare flower and she was definitely the most interesting thing NNY had stumbled upon in a long while.
"What a weirdo..." the cashier scoffed.
NNY's blood boiled as he gritted his teeth, reaching around for his knives. How dare he insult that shy little girl. Out of principle, NNY will cut him up.
He had to look out for a fellow crazy person, after all.
Twice he had stood up for her today, which was funny, considering NNY had long stopped caring about other humans.
But that girl wasn't like other humans.
The clerk grimaced when he spotted NNY glaring at him. "What are you still doing here? I told you, we don't have your lame band in stock."
NNY could barely hear him now over the sound of his own raging pulse. All he could think about was sticking his knife down the man's throat and watching as he choked on his own blood, but then he stopped to sniff.
The girl's floral scent lingered, and for some reason, it kept him grounded.
That was a first. Normally, he would have exsanguinated the cashier by now, yet he backed away, deciding to fight his battles elsewhere.
"Well... I guess I'll just find something else to listen to."
NNY turned his back on the cashier, and it took a lot of guts to just walk away. Instead of brutally murdering the man, he focused on the shop's music selection, yet nothing caught his interest.
He could always check out some classical music. His Beethoven disc was skipping lately, and it just took all the fun out of his killing sprees.
NNY found the classical music section, and one name caught his eye—Tchaikovsky. He didn't even like The Nutcracker, but his eyes were fixated on the song, "Waltz of the Flowers."
Heh, flowers. Maybe they will like listening to this song...
His gaze landed on a familiar, pink-haired figure. She was searching through a selection of heavy metal with a dissatisfied look on her face, and NNY watched her curiously.
She really was fascinating, like some rare flower that only bloomed at a certain time of year.
NNY didn't even know why he cared about her existence; she was just some other nameless stranger.
Yet he couldn't look away.
Was she truly as crazy as he thought?
Finally, she picked a band, and NNY almost laughed out loud when he saw it was Nine Inch Heels. The girl listened to a small sample through a pair of headphones, and her smile said it all...
It appeared she found what she was looking for. Hopefully, her flowers would agree with her choice.
She placed the headphones back, then walked down the middle aisle of the store. NNY hid behind his jacket once she passed, and it looked as if she was going to purchase that Nine Inch Heels album.
Without thinking, he snatched up the Tchaikovsky CD and followed her down, stopping behind her in line. The girl with the cotton candy hair was right in front of him now. So he folded his arms, keeping a safe distance.
However, he was tempted to lean across and sniff her hair. Would it smell just as sweet as cotton candy?
No, that would be inappropriate. Also, NNY had killed men for less.
He never did understand the motivations of those types of men. Seriously, why would you want to touch anyone?
People were unpleasant.
Well, most people. There was a certain pink-haired girl who he couldn't quite get off his mind.
She did seem rather nice, and she had smiled at him...
No one ever smiled at NNY.
Her floral scent was stronger up close, and NNY finally pinpointed the smell. Cherry blossom, right after a soft rain.
It was... lovely.
His heart thumped faster.
Should he strike up a conversation? The line was getting shorter. Not that he cared. Girls were gross!
He rolled his eyes. Now he was regressing back to kindergarten.
She had cooties...
NNY was a grown adult, and he could start a conversation with a fellow organism. Just why did his throat feel constricted? Even his heart pumped faster, and it seemed he was coming down with something.
His pulse may be faster, yet it still wasn't supplying enough oxygen to his brain.
What was happening to him?
In fact, the last time he felt like this, he was standing at a bookstore talking to Dev...
NNY's eyes bulged in horror.
Oh, dear, God, no.
Not again.
Without thinking, he leaned over her shoulder. "Was that true what you said?"
The girl squeaked and understandably so. NNY ought to remember that most people didn't like being snuck up from behind.
Sometimes he just didn't realize how deadly he was. A true master of stealth. She probably didn't even know he'd been standing there, and a strange sensation came over him next.
It was reminiscent of guilt.
Her form wilted next, and it appeared she was still scared of him. However, her shyness deeply intrigued NNY.
It only made her all the more captivating.
Slowly, she angled her head, giving him the profile of her face. He spied a small button nose and rosebud lips, and the blood rushed through his head again.
"Were... were you speaking to me, s-sir?"
Her soft baby voice bled through his ears, putting him at ease. It was a nice, gentle voice, and the total opposite of his.
NNY's voice was dark and raspy.
He came back to his senses, replying to her question. "Yes... about the flowers. Do they really like it when you play music?"
She blinked, surprised. "You... really want to know about my flowers?"
NNY shifted his eyes. He guessed he did.
"Sure... why not?"
The girl's mouth parted, and then the strangest of expressions crossed her face.
Finally, she found her voice, and NNY didn't look away from her eyes the whole time.
They were the colour of sapphires...
"Of course! And they just don't like music. They also like movies, books, telenovelas, and puppet shows!"
NNY's mouth curved at the corners, and what was happening to his face?
Was he... smiling?
Still. It was a momentous occasion. A female of his species was actually talking to him, and for once, he didn't entertain ideas about killing her.
It was nice.
"How interesting... What kinds of movies?"
She giggled. "All kinds! Flowers aren't picky."
NNY did something that he hardly ever did anymore. He laughed, and it didn't rupture his throat.
"Hahaha! That's a good one!"
She didn't seem to understand at first. But then she gasped, turning as pink as her bright hair. "S-sorry. That wasn't supposed to be a joke. I'm so embarrassed..."
He stopped to wipe his eye. "It's... okay. You don't have to be embarrassed. Besides, I thought you were pretty funny. You should consider standup comedy sometime."
The girl blushed even harder, and now she finally looked him in the eyes.
NNY forgot how to breathe. Holy fuck.
Now that was a smile worth killing for...
"Next!"
NNY jumped as the cashier called out the next person in line, and something died inside of him when his new little friend of sorts walked away from him.
Any moment, she would leave through the door, and NNY would never see her again.
But then to his extreme joy, she turned back, and his heart skipped a beat.
"It... was nice talking with you."
NNY stammered, and it looked as if he was tongue-tied. "Yeah, you... you too... um...?"
Wow. He didn't even know her name. That was rather rude of him.
She gazed down at her boots. "J-Jenny."
The ground dissolved beneath his feet when he heard her beautiful name.
It was almost identical to his.
"J-Johnny. Heh... we're both NNY..."
Jenny blinked in confusion. Then she giggled, and he could listen to that laugh on repeat.
"That's a good one."
Finally, she left through the door. NNY rushed to the counter to make his purchase, staring at the spot where Jenny just vanished a moment ago.
Hopefully, he could catch up with her.
The cashier took his sweet ass time. NNY bounced on the balls of his feet, losing his patience at last.
"Come on!"
The man scoffed. "Worried you'll lose your girlfriend? Not that I give a shit where you stick your shrimp dick, but she works at that new florist across the street. The one with all that... colour..." he shivered.
His heart soared. Joy!
He snatched the CD from the cashier's hand once the transaction was complete, and there was no missing the florist once he rushed outside.
It was blue with pink vine-like flowers, and how had he missed that before?
NNY read the sign out front. "Jenny's Enchanted Garden..."
Jenny didn't just work at the shop. She owned it.
How very entrepreneurial of her.
Memories rushed up out of nowhere next. He remembered all the other times he got close to someone, and then a heavy sigh escaped him.
It was best he just went home. NNY was spiralling down a dark path again, and he would not succumb to the darkness a second time.
Instead, he would pretend that he never met Jenny. As far as he was concerned, he'd killed her at the CD Cesspool.
Jenny was currently bleeding out on the floor right next to the cashier.
Such a shame he had to kill her in the end, though. He never did get to see what she looked like in full bloom.
How would her beautiful laugh sound then?
Finally, he turned up the street, leaving the florist behind forever.
It seemed a new bout of self-torture was on the agenda. That would put NNY back on the straight and narrow again.
AN: Thanks for reading. If you need help picturing Jenny's voice, here's a clip of Fluttershy from My Little Pony (she's the yellow-winged horse with the pink mane). watch?v=YY43-JQSTr4
Fluttershy was the main inspiration for this character. If you want to picture Johnny's voice, just envision Fluttershy from Shed. MOV 😂😭
