unforgiven ➽ a Halilintar-centric fic

08 | fever dream in a waking land

Air's not sure whether to call them brave, suicidal, or plain stupid.

Morning had rolled around, and he knew for a fact that Api had been awake since 6am, waiting for the right moment to sneak out. Daun was right with him, jumping on the bandwagon that's on a one-way trip to plunge into a raging ocean infested with killer sharks.

Air would've tried to convince him otherwise, but after Daun burst into their room calling for Api he knew his words would be as effective as a cup of water in a forest fire. Once an idea was planted into their heads, Air could shake hell and heaven trying to convince them otherwise, and it'd still fall om deaf ears.

So, much to their chagrin, Daun and Api snuck out of the house, running for the hills as soon as they strapped on their boots, dressed in Taufan's and Gempa's old shirts and shorts. Air was never a religious person, but he prayed to whatever immortal deity there was that they would return safe and sound, or at least be subjected to a few banned dinners at worst.

Cahaya came into the room soon after they left, clutching his specialized holopad in his arms.

"I think I solved the problem we encountered the day before," he said, plopping down all his research on the bed. "So, here's the rundown..."

Api came to a dead stop in the middle of the empty street.

"We've been walking forever," he complained, slouching, "and I haven't seen a single 7-11. Not one! Can you believe it?"

"Maybe," Daun replied nonchalantly. "Because I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, right." Api often forgot that Daun wasn't human, after all the time they spent together. Like a Lieutenant they knew from Sunnova, Daun mostly resembled a regular human you'd see down the street, with the only hint of his alien ancestry being the green roots in his curly hair and his inability to taste bitterness or digest lactose.

Daun could easily pass off as a human. Some humans were naturally intolerant towards dairy products and dyed their hair all sorts of colors. In comparison, he may appear more human than a good number of them.

"It's basically a convenience store," Api explained. "Think of it as an overpriced armor-changing station; but instead of getting your gear changed and your weapons polished, they sell stuff from soda to magazines that aren't worth the price 99% of the time. I had one next to my old school, and I probably splurged hundreds of Ringgit on soda alone in one year."

Daun nodded along, but frowned after digesting his words. "School?"

"Yeah, school," Api confirmed. "You... don't know what that is?"

Even Cahaya's heard of what schools are, and he was locked in a lab for the entirety of his life. (Even if he scoffed at the idea of it.) Did the place where Daun come from not have schools?

To Api's surprise, Daun shook his head. "No," he admitted. "I don't know lots of things about Earth. You humans confuse me."

Api was pretty sure the concept of collective education wasn't limited to Earth, but he kept his mouth shut. The last thing he wanted to do was make his friend feel uncomfortable from his lack of knowledge.

"A school is where kids go to learn," he elaborated. "On Earth, there's a bunch of schools for different ages. You have kindergartens for toddlers, primary school for kids 7-12, high school for kids 13-18, and then college and university after."

"What do you do there?"

"You learn things. Adults—" Api paused when he noticed the sudden disgust surfacing in Daun's expression, promptly changing his wording. "Experts teach us stuff, like Math and Biology. It gets harder as you grow older, and after you finish school you go to work."