Inkblot [A Splatoon2 Fanfic]

Chapter Thirty-Two

"Spyke still isn't back yet..." Tres talked to himself as he looked through the cabinets. "Hope the blockades aren't already up... maybe he'll show up soon... damn, I'm gonna have to run to that market down the road..."

   Hachi sat in the living room watching TV and humming to himself as he messed with his hair—he liquified and stretched two of the front tentacles to make them long enough to braid. Hachi stopped with his dark suicide rant after he woke up and acted as if it didn't even happen before. The moment scared Tres, more than everything else that's happened. Hachi had never talked like that before, or even threw around swears like he did. Tres didn't want to see the younger boy like that again... he wanted to see his sweetie happy...

   Tres leaned on the counter a little to watch Hachi as he braided his hair with his legs against his chest. Tres always found it cute that Octolings had a tendency to sit balled up like that. He smiled a little.

   "Hey cutie, I like what you did with your hair." The Inkling called. "Wanna go out sometime?"

   Hachi started smiling and laughing, shyly twirling his braid as he blushed.

   "I don't know, you don't seem like my type~" He giggled.

   "Oh yeah, what's your type?"

   "I like bad boys~"

   "You're in luck! I'm bad at everything!"

   Hachi began to laugh again—that sound Tres loved so much. He went and sat beside the Octoling to put an arm around him and kiss his cheek.

"You're adorable..."

"Noo you are!" Hachi beamed.

   The older boy smiled and held Hachi's hand.

   "So, we don't have a lot for dinner tonight. Do you want to go with me to the store? I'll let you pick what we get."

   "Hmm... It's kinda scary outside when it's dark..." Hachi poked his bottom lip out.

   "You don't wanna be here alone though, do you?"

   "Nuh-uh!"

   "Go get some clothes on then, ok? Don't forget your gloves and mask."

"I don't like them. They're uncomfortable and scratchy!"

"Well you don't want people seeing the scars and thinking you're still sick, now do we?" Tres poked Hachi's tummy.

The younger boy whined, but went to do as he was told anyway. Tres went and got his shoes on, then wrote a note in case Spyke got back before them.

"Traci? May I bring Ebi and Sashimi?"

    In Hachi's hands was a handmade stuffie of a sea snail sent to them by Iso Padre. The other one was of a cat meant for Átta.

"Just one, ok?"

   Hachi poked his bottom lip out and set the cat on the couch.

   "Maybe when Átta gets out the hospital... we can give her Sashimi... then we can play together like we used to..."

   "I bet she'd like that." Tres smiled at him.

Then, hand in hand, they left the house. It was already fairly dark out by now and because this neighborhood seriously lacked streetlights, Tres had to depend on his vision and glow to see.

   "Spyke said he'd be back before it got all dark," Hachi said. "Is he ok?"

   "I'm sure he's fine. Who knows what that guy is up to."

————

   Hagfish Hospital was in pure chaos.

   Spyke wanted to wait outside for Maury to bring the acid, but as soon as he heard screaming he ran in to see what was happening.

   Doctors and nurses were running all around in panic—he spotted a few hurriedly getting patients that were Inklings or Octolings into rooms and locking the doors. Spyke quickly stopped one nurse as she ran by.

"Ma'am, ma'am! What's going on, what happened?!"

"A patient escaped." She sounded terrified. "She's past terminal stage in Inkblot, all of the infected are going insane!"

Spyke swore to himself and took off toward Maury's office, having to avoid bumping into distressed people that were mindlessly running around. When he got to the hall full of little offices for little problems, Spyke practically kicked the door in. Maury was sitting on the small patient bed with his legs against his chest and head down.

"Maury?" Spyke knelt down at his side. "Are you ok? Are you hurt?"

   "I-I... I didn't mean for this to...!" Maury stuttered and tears fell down his face.

   "Calm down, shhhh... slow down and tell me what happened..."

   "The... that young boy you're looking after, his sister... Átta... she was supposed to get the antibiotics this morning... but they were going to submerge her in acid... I thought... I could talk to her...! Then she... oh my fucking god..."

   Maury hid his face in his hands. Spyke bit his lip as he pieced it all together—Átta had reached terminal stage was now rampaging somewhere in the hospital. The urchin didn't know how he'd explain this to Hachi...

   "Where's the acid? Did you get it?"

Maury pointed to the cabinets under his desk.

"There's two vats under there..."

"My car's out back, we have to go now."

"But Spyke...!"

"Love, listen to me, it won't be long until the city is blockaded, we need to leave while we still can!" Spyke said sternly. "Do you understand me?"

   Maury held onto Spyke's hand tightly. He was panicking, but nodded. They got the acid then hurried out the office and to a backdoor. As Spyke loaded the acid in his car, Maury spoke quietly.

   "I wanted to help her, Spyke... I remember when my little sister swallowed black ink... I remember how scared I was... knowing she'd die... even after all you did to try and save her... I just... I wanted to make sure the boy you're looking after could see his sister again..."

Spyke looked toward the anemone, and watched as he began to cry. He could still remember that day—Maury running into the hospital holding the hand of his small sister, who had eaten black ink on a dare, desperately begging someone to treat her. But were turned away because they had no money. Out of kindness, Spyke offered to try and help Maury's sister. 

   "You did all you could." He shut the car trunk. "Hachi will be happy to know that Átta was in good hands, at the least."

   "She told me about how her and her brother were living in that subway... wh-what's he like? How old us he...?"

   "Just turned sixteen a few months ago. He's a sweetheart, he's always smiling and playing, and being happy..." Spyke brushed his fingers over Maury's cheek. "He reminds me of you a little..."

They stared at each other for a moment. Then Maury grabbed Spyke by his shirt and kissed him. He pulled away a second later with blush on his face along with an embarrassed look. Meanwhile the urchin looked shocked yet smug.

   "... I still don't fucking like you..." Maury said.

   Spyke grinned.

   "I know~"