Inkblot [A Splatoon2 Fanfic]

Chapter Sixteen

The news reports said at least seven more people were rushed to the hospital for symptoms, although it wasn't confirmed wether or not it was Inkblot they were expressing.

Tres stared at the TV with a blank stare. Hachi sat between his legs laying his head against his chest, fast asleep. Every time the younger boy stirred, Tres kissed his forehead and rubbed his arms. He had to break the news to Hachi about Neli and Átta earlier. It was heartbreaking to see Hachi break down and start crying at the horrible truth. It was worse knowing he couldn't see Átta at the hospital...

    Tres just wanted this horrible disease to be contained so everything could get back to normal...

"...recent news, three children and a school nurse have been rushed to Hagfish Hospital after showing symptoms of Inkblot. Humuhumu Elementary School has been shut down until futher—"

"That's enough of that..." Tres turned the TV off with the remote.

    Now in the dark, the only light source was the soft glow from their hair, although Hachi's was a tad dim; his sickness was probably to blame.

Tres looked out the window by the bed at the now dark sky. The stars popped out in the darkness better than they did in the city, since there wasn't any flashy lights from billboards and signs, or the giant bloom of bioluminescent kids all in the streets. It was nice to see something that was natural instead of artificial...

If Tres didn't have his 'job' as an Agent, he would've loved to move out to the less urban area with Hachi and be able to have a simpler life together; maybe even start a family. But they couldn't, and Tres knew that. Saving the Great Zapfish 4 years ago put him under an unspoken oath to keep things in Inkopolis peaceful. And with Neli gone and Átta clinging to life, there was no way he could back out of that oath now...

"Nnn..." Hachi rubbed his eyes and sat up a little, snapping Tres out his thoughts.

"How long was I asleep...?"

"About an hour," Tres said.

Hachi hummed and nuzzles into Tres's neck.

    "I had that stupid dream again...." He muttered.

    "The one with the earthquake in the canal?" Tres asked.

    "No, the one where I'm in the middle of a dark ocean at night... and there's stars all over the place..."

    "It sounds nice in my opinion. I wouldn't mind just floating for a while, not a care in the world,"

    Hachi smiled at the older boy's remark and pushed at his chest a little.

    "It was different this time though," Hachi moved so he could see out the window. "I saw something in the distance... it was a... weird creature I've never seen before... it was glowing bright blue, and when I tried to go near the creature it ran away..."

    "Really? What did it look like?" Tres asked.

    "I can't remember too well... it had something like—" Hachi coughed. "like... tree branches coming out of its head..."

    "Sounds familiar... who knows, maybe you saw a creature that was around before the Great Flood," Tres said.

   "Before the flood...?"

   "I guess you wouldn't know too much about it. There used to be so many strange creatures that walked around Earth before the flood happened. We talked about in school but it wasn't really major,"

    Tres laughed a bit as memories came rushing back.

    "My friends and I, we used to talk about how we'd go on long car trips to find ruins from before the flood. But, I don't know, we were just kids. And with all that's going on I don't think it'll happen."

    Tres stared out the window at the stars, almost with a frown. Hachi already knew his lover pretty much had his hands tied, thanks to countless days spent home alone while Tres was away at work. He's never really seen Tres relax, not even since they first met in the subway.

    Then, Tres was just that silent, intimidating agent that flawlessly aced his missions. Now Hachi knew him as a sweet and goofy guy that'd do anything for him...

"Traci...?" Hachi turned and sat on his knees. "When I'm all better... can we go look for the flood ruins?"

"Huh? You'd wanna do that...?" Tres looked in his eyes.

"Mhmm. It could be just you and me. You wouldn't have to worry about patrolling or Conway or anything... we could just be together and be happy..."

Tres's eyes were going wide, he almost looked like he was crying; that was a rare sight. Then he smiled and cupped Hachi's face to kiss him then hug him tightly.

"Y-Yeah... that sounds so nice, sweetie, I'd love that so much..." He said. "I love you so much..."

    Hachi kissed Tres's cheek before laying against his shoulder.

    "I love you too..."

    Tres rubbed tears from his eyes. He couldn't remember the last time he felt this happy.

    "It's late, let's get to sleep ok...?"

    Hachi had already drifted off. Tres kissed his forehead and moved so they were both lying down. For a few minutes, Tres stared at the black that tainted the tips of Hachi's hair and ears; at how pale he was becoming. He brushed his fingers over Hachi's, frowning at the almost sticky feeling of the discolored skin.

    He fell asleep holding his lovers hand tight.