Chapter Text
"Inaho! Hey, Inaho, wake up!"
Inaho groaned and sat up, and quickly wondered if he was dreaming.
He was in class. In Shinawara High School.
Just like before the war.
"Calm?"
Calm smiled at him. "Hey buddy, class is over. It's time for lunch." He laughed. "Did you stay up all night playing that game?"
"What game?" He asked sleepily and rubbed his eye.
"The one you bought like 2 days ago?"
Inaho furrowed his brow.
Ah, a dream then.
"Yeah. I was." He lied for simplicity's sake. Inaho didn't like to lie, but it was only a dream. He had quickly learned that to try and reject the easy going dreams only invited nightmares to replace them with.
Nightmares about death and war and destruction. Nightmares of things that happened, and nightmares of things that didn't.
It was easier to roll with it, and accept the easy going lies. At least he would get some better sleep and wake up mildly refreshed in the morning.
"Calm!" Another boy called out. "My dad sent me Girl Scout cookies from America, do you want some?"
"Ohmygod, yes!"
Inaho looked over at the boy Calm rushed to. He sat diagonally from Inaho, and had near-white blond hair.
Inaho felt his blood run cold.
It was Slaine Troyard.
In his school.
In their uniform.
In an innocent place he had never belonged to.
It bothered Inaho deep in his heart and soul. He had never had an easy-going dream with Slaine in it before, and he wondered when the nightmare parts would begin... Perhaps Slaine would take a gun out of his desk and shoot Inaho's eye out.
His eye.
He quickly felt for it, but couldn't tell if it was there or not, before calmly reminding himself all he had to do was close one eye. He closed each one, forgetting in his panic which one he had lost in the first place.
But he could see with both of them.
So it was definitely a dream.
A shadow fell over his desk and Inaho's heart practically stopped.
When I look up, I will see Slaine Troyard with a gun...
He looked up, and saw Slaine Troyard standing in front of him.
"Kaizuka, did you hear me?" He asked, not pointing a gun at him.
"What?" He asked a little shakily.
He held up something in a quick blur that made Inaho flinch, before he saw it was just a brightly colored box. "I asked if you wanted some too?"
"What.... Is it?"
"Cookies. From America. My dad sent them." He said simply, looking like he was starting to get agitated talking to him. "I have mint ones and peanut butter ones. Do you want to try them or not?"
"Sure." He said, even though his mouth was immensely dry, and he didn't know how he was going to eat anything. But he still believed that to go along with a dream would prolong the nightmare aspect.
Slaine gave him a few of each, and went back to his desk without another word.
"Eat your lunch first!" Calm called out to him, moving to talk to someone else.
I want to go home... Was all Inaho could think, staring at Slaine, who was simply sitting in his chair, like he belonged there. Inaho couldn't breathe well, and desperately wanted some fresh air, so he stood up from his seat and left the classroom.
He barely made it a few steps through the hallway before he began feeling dizzy and had to place a hand on the wall to keep himself upright. Afraid he'd faint, he lowered himself to the floor to sit down so he could wait out the feeling.
Nobody talked to him or hardly noticed him, and he tried hard to regulate his breathing, like he had been taught when he had a panic attack once.
It would be bad if I hit my head, because of my injury... My brain could sustain further damage...
He sat with his knees to his chest and his arms wrapped around them. When he was just starting to feel calmer, he decided to stand back up, slowly, and make his way towards the window. Some fresh air always made him feel better. Less claustrophobic.
The window was open, and a nice breeze was blowing through it.
"Kaizuka, are you feeling okay? You look rather pale." Slaine asked, standing tall and casting a dark shadow over him. He was only a couple inches taller, but it felt like more somehow.
Inaho's vision blacked out, and he felt the dread in his stomach as he realized that must mean his dream had just flipped over to nightmare mode, before he completely lost consciousness.
.
.
.
When he awoke again, it was to a white room and a light breeze ruffling his hair. It was an infirmary of sorts.
He moved as if to sit up, but was stopped by a gentle hand on his shoulder.
"Don't get up just yet. The nurse said-"
The sight of Slaine Troyard, again, so soon, had him reeling, and he leaned over the side of the bed towards the trash can to throw up the absolutely nothing that was in his stomach.
"You fainted in the hall." Slaine explained, unperturbed. "Luckily I was there to catch you, or you could have gotten a nasty concussion. Or worse! There was an open window just beside you!"
Inaho pulled himself up from the side of the bed to lay his head back down on the soft pillow. He reached a hand up to his cheek, feeling for an eye-patch that wasn't there, and reached up further to the eye that was.
He jumped when Slaine placed a hand over his forehead, but didn't otherwise move.
"You don't have a fever..."
Inaho said nothing. Slaine pulled his hand back and glanced at the clock on the wall.
"Tell you what-" He said, getting up from the chair he was sitting in. "Stay here, I'll get your stuff, and I'm going to walk you home. Sounds good, doesn't it?" He smiled more gently than Inaho had ever seen.
"I'll be right back. Don't move!"
And he left.
Which meant Inaho could relax for a few minutes, and try to figure out what kind of odd dream he was having.
Though he was starting to think it wasn't a dream. It felt too real. It felt too intense. It felt all too similar to his real-life panic attacks, when he had never before dreamt them so vividly.
He held a hand over his right eye and stared up at the ceiling.
Being able to see with only his left eye proved that it couldn't be reality though. It couldn't be.
With a gentle sigh, Inaho sat up slowly and swung his legs over the edge of the bed. His uniform jacket was hanging on a nearby coat rack, and the breeze was already making him chilled, so he stood up and grabbed it, putting it back on. He vaguely wondered if the nurse or Slaine himself had taken it off of him. A shiver ran up his spine.
"Ready to go?" Slaine asked, returning sooner than Inaho had hoped for.
Inaho felt calmer now at least. He still half-expected a nightmare to come, but was glad that so far none had.
.
.
.
Outside, walking in the warm Spring sun, it made him feel much better. There was just something about fresh air that Inaho enjoyed, and it made him feel more rejuvenated.
Slaine walked beside him, his own book-bag on his shoulder, and carrying Inaho's by its handle. Inaho had at first insisted he could carry it, but Slaine wouldn't let him.
"Does your eye bother you sometimes?" Slaine asked all of a sudden.
"What?" Inaho's head snapped up to look at Slaine.
"I heard you had cataracts as a kid or something. I don't really know anything about it. Can it come back?"
Inaho said nothing, only staring at him. He didn't know which statement to correct first.
Yes my eye bothers me all the time. No I never had cataracts as a kid. Who told you THAT? Yes, cataracts can make a return for those that had it however.
But before he could organize all of that into proper sentences, Slaine had given him a look and continued.
"I saw you with your hand over your eye in the nurse's office. Does it hurt or something?"
Inaho shook his head. Because that was true at least. It didn't hurt, not yet anyway.
"Why do you know where I live?" Inaho asked carefully when they turned down a narrow side street.
Slaine looked a little confused. "I've been there once. No, twice. Don't you remember?"
Inaho didn't answer that. "Why did you offer to walk me home? I thought you hated me."
It had tumbled out of his mouth before he thought much of it, but as soon as he said it, he worried it might the wrong thing to say. He remembered their fight in the moon-base that day. When Slaine mentioned a similar thing, and had angrily told him, if you were only my enemy, I wouldn't hate you!
He still didn't know what that meant.
The Slaine walking next to him laughed softly, doing so with a self-conscious hand in front of his mouth.
"I know we may not consider each other a friend, but I don't hate you! You say that as if I am your most bitter enemy!" He said, laughing again. "The things you say sometimes... A-ah, wait- do you... Do you hate me?"
Inaho opened his mouth but couldn't speak. What should he say?
"I know we argue a lot." Slaine continued. "And we really only know each other through mutual friends, but..." He sounded a little disappointed.
Inaho watched him hook a thumb in the chain of his necklace, the pendant of which was tucked under his shirt, and fidgeted with the chain.
"I don't hate you." Inaho blurted out.
Slaine smiled a little, looking relieved. "Like I said, I know we're not really friends, but... Is acquaintances okay? It's what we are anyway."
"....Class...mates...?" Inaho said slowly.
Inaho didn't expect his words to cause Slaine's smile to widen like it did.
"That's right! We're classmates! It sounds nicer somehow, even though it's actually more vague, isn't it? Like, Calm is your classmate, but he's your friend. But," He scrambled for a name. "Uh, Yamato is your classmate but I'm sure you two have never talked. Not since I transferred here anyway."
Which peaked Inaho's interest.
"Transferred from where?"
"Huh?" The abrupt change in topic startled him, but he quickly recovered. "Oh. Mumbai, India. Did I never mention that? I thought I did... Well, it's already been almost a year since I came here though. Time goes by so fast sometimes."
Inaho was trying so hard to figure out this odd reality he had been transported to.
"But you said your dad is in America?"
"Yup! He has some business to do there so he's gonna be gone until next month. I'm home alone, but it's not like I'm one for reckless parties or anything."
Ah. Okay. There we go. This is my subconscious painting a likeness to Slaine living in that manor by the sea. He's alone there.
"I wonder how much longer we'll get to stay in Japan though..." Slaine continued. "I've never lived somewhere longer than a year before, and I kinda like it here... Well, after this year I'll be going to university, so I guess I wouldn't have to move with my dad anymore..."
"You're in 12th grade?"
Inaho didn't know why that surprised him, but it did. He knew Slaine was a year older than him... He just didn't expect his dream to keep up with their current ages.
Slaine nodded. "Did you forget just because we share a handful of classes? The school only has them up to certain levels after all... I remember when I first got here, and the teacher paired us up for an assignment just because we're both autistic, and then couldn't fathom why we kept getting into arguments!" He laughed about it now, but Inaho could hear how bitter he must have been about it.
"It's not like two neurotypical students will automatically get along just because they're both neurotypical!" He gave Inaho another soft smile.
"But I'm preaching to the choir, aren't I? Anyway, we're here."
They had reached Inaho's apartment building, so Slaine handed the book-bag over.
"You'll be okay on your own, right?"
Inaho nodded.
"Okay. I'm gotta head back now." He waved his hand. "Feel better!"
.
.
.
It was the next day, and Inaho was still trapped in this odd reality, so he finally deemed it 70% not a dream.
Though he still wasn't sure what it could be.
Going to school like nothing was wrong, like nothing happened, like he hadn't lived through a war, was hard for him to think about. But he did it anyway.
He took the bus like he always did, since it was more efficient, and he suddenly wondered why Slaine had walked with him the entire way yesterday. Did he not know which bus to take?
On the bus he saw Calm, and Inko, and Nina, and... Okisuke.
His heart stopped and felt like cement in his chest.
"Morning, Inaho!" Inko greeted.
"You look like you got hit by a truck, man, what's wrong?" Calm asked.
Inaho quickly made his way over to sit with his friends.
"Okojo-" He started, and the other boy glanced up at him from his handheld game.
"Morning, Inaho." He greeted, before going back to his game. "I heard you went home sick yesterday, you must have caught what I had!" He smiled bitterly. "Throwing up until your stomach hurts is not fun, am I right?"
Inaho couldn't respond, so he just dumbly nodded along.
Don't cry here, don't cry here, don't, not here, just not here.
When they made it to school, Inaho went straight to the bathroom to splash his face with cold water. He gripped the sides of the sink tight in his hands, staring at the water droplets that slid down the porcelain and towards the drain.
Calm down. You're a kid who fought in a war that never existed here. No one needs to know about those things, those thoughts, those pains. Everything's fine.
He looked up at his reflection. Two eyes stared back at him. He hated how unnatural it felt now.
.
.
.
Just as Slaine had said, they only shared a few classes, so he didn't see him in his first few classes. Not until lunch, when Slaine entered the room and went to his desk to eat.
Inaho, eating his own lunch, subtly observed him.
He brings his own lunch, it seems. It looks like it's made at home, and not bought from the store. Since he's home alone for so long, it's safe to say he knows how to cook at a basic level at the very least.
He wondered if the other Slaine knew how to cook too.
He wondered if the other Slaine was autistic too.
Even though Slaine was right, that just because they were both autistic didn't mean they would get along, Inaho couldn't help feeling just a bit more connected to him. Because that meant Slaine understood the world in a different way too, and even though it might be different to how Inaho views it, he was sure that meant they understood it in a more similar way than either of their peers did.
Calm nudged him playfully, and when Inaho looked at him, he waggled his eyebrows.
"Sooo?"
Inaho blinked at him, patiently waiting for him to continue, and took a bite of his lunch.
"Slaine walked you home yesterday." He said. "Did you make your move?"
"What?"
"Don't play coy with me! You know, did you tell him?"
"Tell him what?"
Calm put his head in his arms, in a look of disappointment.
"So you didn't."
"Didn't what?" Inaho pressed.
Calm looked left and right, before leaning closer to Inaho and talking quieter.
"Did you tell him you like him?"
Inaho blinked. "We agreed that while we're not friends, we're at the very least, classmates."
"So he turned you down?"
Inaho tilted his head in a questioning gesture.
"So you did chicken out, huh? You know, that would have been a good time!"
"A good time to what?"
Calm sighed dramatically. "To ask him out on a date, Inaho!"
Inaho felt his world slow down.
Why would he ask Slaine on a date?
Did you tell him you like him? Calm had asked him.
Did Inaho like him? Like-like him? Love him, even?
He was feeling a bit sick again, but this time it was more manageable and he could ignore it.
During the class after lunch, Inaho got to listen to Slaine answer questions the teacher posed. It was odd, but seeing him in an academic setting really suited him. It kind of made Inaho sad.
Slaine had to go to a different class after that one, due to having different language skills (Inaho had an advanced grammar and literature class, and Slaine, a transfer student from abroad, had a class with a small group of other transfer kids to improve their language and kanji skills).
During that class, Inaho had ended up dozing off, and was having a lovely time listening to the teacher's droning voice fade away slowly.
Until said teacher quietly walked to his desk, and suddenly slammed his hands on Inaho's desk to wake him. The loud sound, so close, was jarring and Inaho moved completely on instinct. He reached out and, as soon as he had a grip on the force in front of him, he shoved backwards, trying to get the threat away from him. His eyes focused enough to see that it was a person, and then he quickly realized he was in school. He had laid his hands on his teacher.
"Sorry." He said. "You startled me." Which was a simple excuse, but one that worked just fine in his original reality, where everyone else was just as hypersensitive to sounds and personal bubbles being invaded.
The teacher dusted off a sleeve and glared at him.
"Detention, Kaizuka-kun." He said simply, and went back to teaching.
After school, Inaho was one of only three students with detention. Slaine was one of them, and the other was a guy who promptly took a nap after settling into a seat towards the back of the class as soon as the attending teacher left the room.
If Slaine had noticed Inaho, he didn't say anything to show it. He had his head propped against his arm, a pen in his hand and notebook in front of him, as he stared out the window.
Inaho moved to sit next to him.
"What did you do?" He asked, curious what wrong the blond had committed.
"I don't want to talk about it." He said stubbornly, voice somewhat muffled against his arm.
"What'd you do?" He asked, like he didn't think Inaho would answer.
"Shoved a teacher."
Slaine stopped what he was doing and raised his head up to look at him. "Why?"
"He took me by surprise, and I didn't realize where I was."
Slaine took in his words, and then he sat up straight, staring at the desk in front of him.
"Me too."
Inaho blinked at him, surprised.
Wait a minute, is THIS Slaine actually THAT Slaine? Just like how I am not from this world, neither is he!?
"Tell me." Inaho requested.
Slaine didn't move nor look at him.
"I forgot I was here. In Japan. I... When I was a kid, something bad happened once. Since then, I'm not so good with very loud sounds. Sometimes it just startles me, sometimes I zone out when I hear it. The teacher thought I was ignoring him so I got detention."
Or not...
"Well that's dumb."
Slaine laughed quietly.
Inaho realized his wording could've been taken the wrong way ("It's dumb that you get that way") so he was relieved Slaine seemed to have taken it the way he actually meant it.
Inaho happened to glance down and saw Slaine's notebook, where the scenery from outside the window was sketched roughly in pencil. Slaine tried to hide it by flipping the page, but Inaho just leaned down and picked the page up, so Slaine relented and flipped it back with a sigh.
"It was just something to pass the time, so it's not actually accurate."
"No, it's just that I didn't know you could draw at all."
"I have to have some ability. I... I'd like to be an architect one day. Maybe. I don't know."
He started the sentence off strongly, but then his voice trailed off self-consciously.
Inaho stared at him, surprised.
This Slaine had dreams and aspirations for the future, because this Slaine was never forced to take over a war he didn't actually want to be part of. This Slaine had never been forced to become everyone's scapegoat. This Slaine never shot him in the head. This Slaine never had to kill anyone.
"Then do it." Inaho said.
Slaine looked over at him.
"Be an architect. I bet you'd be great at it."
Slaine smiled warmly, and Inaho's heart skipped a beat, though he wasn't entirely sure why.
Because the other Slaine would never make that expression?
"Thanks, Inaho. That really means a lot to hear someone say so." He flipped the notebook shut, a faint pink to his face.
"What about you?"
Inaho looked away from him, staring at the desk in front of him instead.
In his reality, he was a semi-retired military guy. He got a bunch of money when the war was over, and once he was fully retired, he would get a monthly check that he would continue to receive until he died. He didn't have to do anything anymore. The only reason he wasn't fully retired was because there was still stuff to do in regards to rebuilding and re-stabilizing Earth.
And visiting Slaine, and taking care of his case, since he was one of very few that even knew he was alive.
But... In the event he was stuck here for the rest of his life... He'd have to actually do something.
"I... Don't know." He said finally.
Slaine didn't seem bothered by the answer. "Well, we're still young. You have time to figure it out still. You're good at just about everything, so it's really just a question of what do you like to do?"
Inaho really didn't know what he liked anymore.
Slaine didn't seem to mind his silence though.
"How'd you decide you wanted to be an architect?" Inaho asked eventually.
"I like buildings. I don't know how to explain it any better... At first I thought of being a teacher, but that's plan B now."
"For what age group?"
"Hm... Elementary school kids I guess. Maybe Middle school. High schoolers are mean." He joked.
But Inaho agreed. "All kids are mean."
"People are just mean." Slaine added somberly. "But, there are nice people too. I guess I always thought about how influential some teachers are in a kid's life. It can really help shape your worldview when you're young."
Slaine stood up from his seat.
Inaho nodded. "What would you teach?"
Slaine walked over to the chalkboard and picked up a piece. "If it's elementary, I'd have to teach a little bit of everything. But for older kids? Hm... Biology?"
"Art?"
"Art tends to be a friendly class. I want to teach something that kids struggle with, something important." He wrote up a formula from their earlier class on the board. "Maybe Chemistry." He said.
Inaho felt his heart lodge itself in his throat.
There was no way the other Slaine would ever be allowed around children anymore.
Unless we changed his identity I guess... Or he could maybe teach university.
Inaho stood up and walked to Slaine's side.
"You know a lot." Inaho said, looking at the math on the board.
"My dad has two doctorate degrees, one in biology and the other in chemistry. So I picked up a lot of it. I like sciences and math."
"And art?"
"And art. I guess..." He set the piece of chalk back down. "The world is full of beautiful things, and wonderful people. There's so many amazing things to see, to hear, to learn... I want to know it all, and I want to help others see the beauty in life and living."
Inaho stared at him. His face lit from the windows light behind him, his eyes sparkling, staring at the board. Inaho felt in awe of him, everything about him.
Slaine Troyard was a good soul with a good heart and a good mind.
"You're beautiful." Inaho blurted out. He had meant it like, you're a beautiful human being, but had neglected to keep the important parts of that sentence.
Slaine looked at him, and as recognition of what Inaho said dawned on him, he looked away, and then at the floor. His face had turned red and flushed, and he shyly tucked a lock of hair behind his ear before fidgeting with the chain of his necklace.
"Um... Thank you?" He breathed.
The teacher returned.
"You kids are still here? Go home already."
The guy in the very back, dead asleep and snoring, had to be woken up by the teacher. He groggily grabbed his bag and left.
Slaine and Inaho both grabbed their own stuff and left the classroom, but Slaine turned around, walking backwards through the empty halls, so he could face Inaho.
"Do you want to do something?"
Inaho blinked up at him. "Like what?"
Slaine shrugged and glanced behind him, just to make sure he didn't bump into anything. "We could grab a bite to eat, or go out for coffee or something."
"I can't drink coffee." He almost said, but quickly did not.
"Or... No?" Slaine asked, finally turning back around to walk forward like a normal person.
"We can go out for coffee."
The two went to a cafe that Slaine picked, since Inaho said he didn't really know where to go.
"You've lived here longer than I have." Slaine pointed out.
"I don't go out to cafes much."
"Ahh, but Japan has cool themed ones, huh?" Slaine said thoughtfully.
Inaho narrowed his eyes while he thought about it. "Like... Maid cafes?"
"And cat cafes, and zodiac cafes, and all kinds!" Slaine said excitedly. "I want to try one sometime, but I haven't yet."
"Why not? There's a cat cafe like three blocks that way... I think."
Slaine chuckled. "Well, not those ones. I'm a little bit allergic to cats actually. Dogs, though! I want to go to a dog cafe!"
Inaho was sure it existed, though he didn't know where one was.
The two got their drinks and headed to a table, with Slaine taking off his school tie and sweater and stuffing it in his bag.
"It's gotten so much warmer lately. It's nice." He said, sitting down and unbuttoning the cuffs, rolling them up to his elbows.
Inaho didn't know why it was so mesmerizing to watch him do.
A little girl who was leaving with her family stared at Slaine when they walked by, so Slaine smiled and waved at her.
Inaho took a large sip of his drink, an iced coffee with whip cream and caramel drizzled on top.
Each table was patterned like a different game, and had a zippered bag for any game pieces needed to play. Inaho tapped on the table.
"Want to play?"
Slaine smirked and interlocked his fingers, popping his knuckles. It was a face that was much more familiar to Inaho.
"Hope you're ready to lose, Orange."
Inaho, who had begun pulling out the pieces, froze. He stared at Slaine, continuing his movements to set up the chess table. Slaine helped, setting up his side with the black pieces.
"You called me Orange..." He muttered softly.
"Yeah, I haven't said it in a long time, huh? You haven't called me Bat in a long time either though."
"....Why did you call me 'Orange'?"
Slaine hummed as he stared at the board, trying to plot his first move. "It was... Because of that hideous orange raincoat you wore last year. I didn't know your name for a bit, so I just called you that for the time being. You called me 'bat' because of my umbrella, I think? I don't remember it too well. It's kinda grown on me though, since I actually think bats are pretty cool."
Slaine played the first piece.
"Oh." Inaho breathed. Such a simple reason... Nothing to do with sleek black sky carriers, or big orange kataphrakts...
At the end of their game, Inaho stared dumbly at the board.
How did Slaine win?
It's because he kept distracting me. Inaho decided.
"How about a rematch?" Inaho asked.
"Why would I want a rematch? I won." Slaine teased. "Chess is a game of simulated war. Your king is dead now."
"Perhaps he was only captured."
Slaine shook his head, but began helping him reset the board anyway. "I would kill the king I captured. It prevents his escape, and lowers moral for the losing side, preventing a strong second wave of rebellion so soon after the initial battle."
For a boy who never fought in a war, Inaho was a little surprised just how ruthless he still was.
If Slaine had won the war... Would he have had me killed?
Duh. Of course he would. He already tried to kill me once.
It caused a knot in his stomach that he tried hard to ignore.
"You go first." Slaine said, leaning his elbows on the table.
"I thought my king was dead?"
"Have some imagination!" Slaine smiled. "Perhaps the late king had loved ones who have come to avenge his death."
They played silently for the most part, until Slaine worked up the courage to ask a question.
"Did you mean what you said?"
"Be more specific." Inaho said, taking a pawn.
Slaine took a breath. "In detention. You..." Slaine took a rook. "You said I was good-looking."
"I said you were beautiful."
Slaine said nothing.
Realizing how Slaine had interpreted it, Inaho corrected it. "I meant you're a good person. Beautiful. On the inside."
"O-oh." Slaine still seemed flustered by the compliment.
Calm's words echoed back in Inaho's mind.
"Did you tell him you like him?" and "To ask him out on a date, Inaho!"
He swallowed the lump in his throat with a swig of his drink. He had barely drank half of it, but Slaine's was nearly empty, save for some foam and residual chocolate syrup at the bottom.
"You're good-looking too though." Inaho said.
If this was going to be some strange but idyllic world, then he might as well roll with it, before it turned into another nightmare world, like the ones he was used to.
Slaine laughed, mostly out of nerves. He rested his cheek against his fist as he tried to concentrate on the chess board, since it was his turn now. He was smiling.
He made a reckless move, and Inaho took his piece straight away.
Slaine stood up abruptly from his seat. "I'm going to get a snack. Do you want anything?"
Inaho shook his head.
"Are you sure? I'm paying~" He sing-songed, waving his wallet enticingly.
Inaho looked over his shoulder at the display case.
"Anything from the second row looks good."
Slaine nodded and walked away.
Inaho leaned back in his seat and took a deep breath, exhaling slowly. He glanced over his shoulder again to see Slaine order something, as well as pointing at what he wanted.
Inaho stared at the chess game in front of him.
As much as he was enjoying the world as if Heaven's Fall and Earth Fall had never happened, he really wanted to go home. Go back to his usual routines. Go back to where everyone else had PTSD too. Go back to having one eye, and getting migraines, and wishing life had been simpler.
Complaining was easier than pretending nothing was bad in the first place.
Slaine returned, placing a plate of raspberry cake in front of Inaho. He himself had a bowl of ice cream, colored in pale green.
"You know what I love about Japan?" Slaine said casually. "All the matcha stuff! It's hard to find in Western countries, but I love it! It's so refreshing."
Inaho dug into the cake, and it was delicious, but he knew he would hardly remember it later. He was in a bad state of mind right now, and his mind was just going in circles.
I would say it's because I haven't taken any medication in 2 days, but I'm also not sure how this all works with brain chemistry, since I have my eye... So am I in an entirely different body? Surely that has to be it, in which case, I shouldn't even have my own memories, because the brain should belong to this body too, but...
The brain and consciousness were topics that no one knew about for sure, so Inaho could theorize about it all day...
...But right now, he was getting impatient, and huffy, and annoyed at playing so much pretend. He knew how the other Slaine was, more or less, so this Slaine was much more vexing for him, because he was just too normal.
He was going to school.
He was planning for the future.
He was thinking about what job he would do.
It bugged him. He wanted to understand Slaine better, and decided to just ask point-blank, tired of it all now.
"Slaine." He said, interrupting whatever the blond had been talking about now. Inaho had no idea, because he stopped listening. "Do you have a crush on me?"
It felt bizarre to ask, and if this were the Slaine he knew, he would be getting laughed at. Slaine would probably laugh himself to tears, clutching hard at his stomach, and then he would make fun of him for asking such a thing.
But this Slaine?
The Slaine that didn't hate him, that never harmed him, that asked him out to coffee and bought him a cake?
His voice died in his throat, and his face looked a little pink, and he wouldn't look at Inaho at all.
He twirled the spoon in his hand in a fidget-y gesture.
"W-well... What about you?"
"I asked you first."
Slaine scoffed, and that too was at least a little more familiar. "What a childish thing to say..." He muttered. "What are you, 8?"
Slaine was deflecting the question. He didn't want to answer definitively. He was protecting himself.
Is he really acting as if he's so fragile?
He was irritated. He didn't want to play these games anymore. He didn't want to entertain these frivolous boring teenage situations anymore. He had more important things to worry about, and the thought that he might be stuck here forever was making him feel like a caged animal who wanted nothing more than to break out and return to where he belonged.
Inaho finished his cake, only having two small bites left, and stood up, grabbing his bag.
"Ina-?" Slaine choked out, quickly finishing his ice cream and following after him, barely remembering to grab his own bag.
Outside, the cool breeze hit them both, but both acted as if they didn't notice how chilly it had gotten as the sun dipped low in the sky.
"What's with you?" Slaine called after him as he caught up.
"I asked a simple yes or no question." Inaho said. "And I'm not interested in playing a game of wits with you right now." He meant their usual, trying to decode what the other said because the way they spoke was too different, but he didn't know if Slaine would realize that's what he meant, or if he would think he meant the chess game.
Slaine walked faster and got in front of Inaho, making him stop walking.
"What, are you mad?"
"A little bit." He answered honestly, shoving past him.
"Because I didn't say yes, or because I didn't say no?"
"Because you didn't answer me at all!"
It came out a bit stronger than Inaho would've liked, too angry, too emotional, too much. He didn't like when that happened. It was rare, but it had happened before.
Slaine grabbed the back strap of Inaho book-bag, yanking him to a halt.
"Stop walking away!" Slaine demanded. "I'm trying to talk to you!"
Inaho spun around. "I don't want to talk, I just want an answer, Bat!"
Slaine clenched his jaw, but said nothing.
Inaho turned around and started walking away again.
He was forced to a halt by Slaine once again grabbing onto the strap of his bag.
"Let go of me." Inaho demanded, but in better control of his voice.
He felt Slaine's forehead lean down to rest against his back.
"Yes." He said softly.
Inaho didn't move. He didn't know what to say.
"Sorry." Slaine said, moving back and letting go of his strap. He pat the strap against Inaho's back, pushing him forward half a step. "I'll see you at school tomorrow."
.
.
.
Inaho woke up in bed, a wet rag on his forehead that slid to his lap when he sat up.
"Yuki?" He called out, and just as he expected, his sister appeared in the room in a flash.
"Nao! Are you feeling better?"
He blinked up at her. "What happened?"
She smiled at him. "Your cold turned into a horrible fever. You've been asleep for 12 hours! I told you that was too much medicine to take."
Inaho did seem to recall taking more than the recommended dose of medicine now that she mentioned it.
Well.... That explains the odd dream I had.