Rebel Red Carnation {Kiribaku}

XII

holy shit i'm so sorry it's been so long since the last update. if you don't know, i've been on a semi-hiatus for personal reasons. that said, i do wanna try to get back to posting regularly. i've also got a oneshot in the works and i posted the first chapter of another fic i've been working on for a long time over on my patreon, if you want to (and can) go check that out!

thank you guys for being patient with me, and once again, i'm really sorry. ♥

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It's weird as fuck just now much I don't want Eijirou to leave early the next morning. I bury the feeling as soon as I realize it's there, and with a shitload of sleep and a handful of dried apricots from Eijirou's bag that he, of course, leaves with us, I've mustered up enough strength to walk him back to the edge of town. It's not before he insists upon changing my bandages again (something that'll be hard for me to do alone, go figure, and nearly impossible for my blind mother; I do remind him I have Ochako, who supposedly stopped by sometime while I was asleep) and checking to see if my fever has broken.

"You're cooler," he says, grinning just wide enough for the slight imprint of a dimple to make itself known in his left cheek. "Still a little too warm, but definitely better. Keep takin' those meds."

All I do is roll my eyes at him before I tell my mother I'm going to walk him back to where his parents are—several kilometers away, we tell her, for an excuse as to why he stayed the night and won't be back for a while—before ducking out of the curtain before she can say anything.

The day is a little warmer so the walk isn't so bad, and I am feeling better. Eijirou, on the other hand, has the slightest hints of dark circles forming under his eyes and he looks completely wiped out.

"Think your family has put out a search party for you yet?" I ask, half joking.

"Maybe," he says, not failing to give me that classic fucking smile in spite of his blatant exhaustion. "I don't really doubt my parents have an idea of where I went, though. Miyako probably told Mom to give it a while. She... sorta trusts me more, and she's good at talking Mom down."

"Yeah? So what kinda shitstorm you think'll be waiting when you get back?"

"...hard to say. They'll probably put me on lockdown and basically interrogate me. Probably won't trust me to do anything alone for a long while, too. But don't think I won't put my foot down and tell 'em what they need to hear. About you. About this city."

"You gonna tell 'em we're soulmates?" I murmur, skidding my foot along the ground, silently appreciating the fact that my feet are warm, protected, in the shoes he gave me.

"Haven't decided..." He scratches at his head through the wig. "I mean, I can show them my back but they might just say it's coincidence so unless you come with me, I won't entirely have proof. But you can't, 'cause you have to stay here with your family and I don't think you'll do very well makin' another long trip like that."

"Fuck off, I'm not that weak," I mutter, kicking a stray pebble.

"No, no! I wasn't saying that," he scrambles, holding up his hands. "I'm just—worried. About your fever. Besides, I really think it'll be better for you to stay here... help everyone get ready for the colder days until I can convince my family to come help, y'know?"

If you can convince your shitty family to come help, I think.

"Just don't take too damn long, or a lot of people are gonna lose their toes when winter comes," I mutter instead. "Or worse."

"...I know," Eijirou says weakly, looking away almost like he wishes he has something better to say. Something more reassuring.

The walk falls into silence for a long stretch, and we keep our pace slow. I'm not in any hurry to get to the edge of town where we'll part ways, and whenever my brain tries to nag me about what that means, about why I'm not eager for that moment, I focus on the still-stinging state of my back to drown out the thoughts. Fuck wasting energy on some bullshit, sentimental crap like that.