[A lot had happened on the last couple of days. From his crazy escape with Brenda, to whatever it was that he was made to drink (still very pointedly not thinking about that) before entering that "party", to one of the most... out-of-this-world situations he had ever been in, to getting a car and actually traveling in it, there was a lot to occupy his mind.
However, in this trip break they had taken, at the outskirts of the city, something else had come to his thoughts.
It was unexpected; they had decided to set a sort of camp next to a fallen, abandoned building in such a way that they could have the car there, too. Everyone had their roles from then on: making a fire, preparing the bedding, cooking something to eat, standing watch and looking around their surroundings to scavenge for things to take for the rest of the trip. Thomas and Minho had ended up with the last task.
The idea was simple-- Just do what you do best. Walk around, try not to get lost, have a flashlight with you at all times, avoid one-way places in case you find cranks and need to escape. Once they were done, they were meant to come back, have their part of the meal and get some rest.
So far, so good.
Yet, in the middle of looking around what seemed to have once been a coffee shop, a sudden movement of the hand holding Thomas' flashlight made it point towards Minho's back and a thought that he had filed away, a few hours ago, suddenly came back with a vengeance.
What was that?
It was barely noticeable, just creeping out of his jacket, slightly, up towards his neck, but it was definitely there and Thomas was sure he had seen it too, when Minho leaned closer to him, when he had woken up before.
Frowning, Thomas approached him, the hand with the flashlight taking a hold of the other boy's arm, to keep him from moving away, while the other went, nonchalantly, to the collar of the back of his jacket and shirt, pulling both of them down about as much as he could without choking him.
What he saw, even with the dim light, made his eyes widen.]
[ Not as if it had been any less of an adventure for Minho. Between escaping with Jorge on the dim hope that Thomas must have somehow made it out of the building before it blew up, then trying to not get found by the remaining WICKED troops, while trying at the same time to avoid any crank dens, and even any non-sick humans who might give them away, their group had had quite a ride themselves.
The lesson Minho learned, above all, was that there was nothing in the world to be trusted. Nothing and no-one, besides the people he knew already.
If he expected an old man like Jorge to move more slowly, he was wrong. And maybe, maybe a lightning strike wasn't something he could shrug off quite as easily as that after all, but there was no time for resting up.
(There was nothing quite like finding Thomas again. Pure relief, and a weight off his chest he had refused to acknowledge was there, and then, as far as Minho was concerned, things looked up again.)
Scavenging assignments weren't his favorite thing, but they needed done, and it had all been blissfully uneventful until Thomas noticed something, and Minho turned around to see until he's held still - until it was clear it was him, or on him.
His stomach dropped, as much as he tried to will the thought away - he hadn't even been close enough to a crank in the last couple of days, it couldn't be an infected scratch, he'd be feeling a lot worse if it was - there was still that sinking feeling of not really knowing if he was immune or if he wasn't. Besides - he hadn't exactly had the chance to examine himself lately. The sprawling, winding pattern along his side and back wasn't something he'd had a chance to notice beyond the vague soreness of healing burns.
Minho tried to look at Thomas out of the corner of his eye. ]
What?
[ More a demand than a question. At the same time, he made no move to pull away. At least from what he could tell, Thomas didn't look horrified. It didn't completely ease his mind, but it was certainly a start. ]
[(To be fair, seeing them again had been more than relieving for Thomas, too. Mainly with the sort of things he thought he had seen in that place. It was enough nightmare fodder for the next few weeks.)
Thomas recognized the demand in the word like clockwork, far too used to Minho's speech, yet, to be fair, he still wasn't quite sure what exactly it was. He had an idea, but--]
Hold this.
[More a demand than a request, as well, Thomas gave his own flashlight for Minho to hold, so both of his hands were free.]
[ He'd seen Thomas worry about something. This wasn't it-- he thought. No reason, in other words, to panic, but Minho wasn't entirely sure how to communicate that to his twisting insides.
Inhale, take the flashlight, point it as instructed. Sigh, hoping to drain the tension from his shoulders, but no success on that account. He'd already asked his question, and didn't figure there was any point in repeating himself, so he raised an eyebrow at Thomas and waited for a verdict. ]
[The verdict didn't come-- At least, not right away.
As soon as Thomas got the light that he needed, his eyes widened again, as if he was seeing it for the first time, lips parting slightly too, this time.
His expression was a mix of curiosity and awe, and while one of his hands was still pulling Minho's collars down, the other was quick to softly touch his skin over the mark that he found.
It was beautiful.
Stretching like lightning under his skin, branching from the nape of his neck down-- Down to where Thomas couldn't quite follow, like this. Frowning, he didn't really wait to question (or for permission) before moving both his hands down, this time pulling both of Minho's jacket and shirt up from his waist.]
Oh.
[Oh God. It came all the way down the side of his back, turning to the side of his waist.
Again, he kept one hand holding Minho's clothes up, while the other carefully - very carefully - started tracing over the shapes he found.
[ At least he finally let go of his collars, which Minho promptly tugged at with his free hand. This allowed him to turn his head to actually look at Thomas, finally, even though it wasn't as if Minho couldn't feel what was happening. What the hell was Oh supposed to mean? ]
What're you-- [ except his word caught in his throat when Thomas touched him. The marked skin was evidently healing, and, while not exactly painful, still tender to the touch. There should've been a quip here, he thought in passing, something about needing an excuse, probably. But there were more important things. ]
['Don't flatter yourself' could have been the thought that would occur to him if that quip had come, but really, since when had he ever needed an excuse to touch the other? In the end, he would probably just go with the typical eye-roll. But the quip didn't come and Thomas was far too focused on what he was seeing to really think about anything else. It was both intriguing and fascinating-- He didn't think he had ever seen anything like it before.
That it didn't hurt, however, was very good to know.]
I don't know.
[His fingers continued to move ghostly over Minho's skin, above the mark and the places it stretched to, all the way down his back, to his side... It was so pretty.]
I think it might have been from when the lightning hit you.
[ That terribly light touch was distracting, Minho found, but now that he finally had more of an answer, it was easy to make up his mind. So, disregarding the flashlight he was supposed to be holding for Thomas, he quickly shrugged his jacket off halfway, not really paying attention if he whacked the other with it in the process.
A second later, he was pulling the shirt up himself to take a look, or as much of a look as the placement allowed. ]
H-Hey-- [The protest didn't work of course. Suddenly, Thomas had no more light on Minho's back and--... Was he undressing?
He was undressing.
Thomas looked around, quickly, making sure that they were in a free enough area with plenty of room to run before looking back at Minho again. The last thing he wanted was for them to be surprised by cranks in a cramped up place with Minho having no protection, whatsoever, from their bites or scratches.
Still, the place seemed safe enough and, well. He was curious to keep looking.]
Right? I never saw anything like this, before.
[His hands were back to touching it again, both of them, this time, in opposite ends.]
Get the light in here!
[Why he was whispering, and why it sounded rushed, he had absolutely no idea. But it was like it had come out, and he wasn't about to give it too much thought.]
It goes all the way from here, [He said, touching the mark closest to his neck.] to here. [He added, having traced all the way down his back again, with his other hand, until his waist.]
[ It was a little bit reckless, even as much as shrugging halfway out of his jacket as he had, but they had already checked the place before. Or perhaps Something about Thomas had a habit of carrying people along with him. Again, he listened without really thinking about it, bringing the flashlight back around as he was directed.
Tracing the whole thing made Minho's breath stutter as he exhaled, but with how fascinated Thomas was by just observing, he might not even have noticed. ]
Wow. Hell of a souvenier.
[ For, you know, almost dying. If it became a scar, Minho thought absently, it would be the prettiest damn scar he had ever seen. ]
So I guess you didn't just want an excuse to get your hands on me.
[Thomas' hand had been traveling up again, from Minho's side, when those first words came out, making his hand still, midway through. The words made his mind go back to that moment, back to when the lightning hit and threw him at the floor, too. Back to when he turned around just to see Minho on the ground.
Back to when he thought the worst had happened.
His fingers spasmed at the thought, eyes so focused on the spot he had been staring at, as he reminisced, that only Minho's movement woke him up from the daydreaming (nightmare?), head shaking slightly as he came back to the here and now of things.]
Glad that you got it.
[Since, you know, it meant that he was alive. And what a relief it had been, too.
His hand began to move again, then, up until Minho opened his mouth once more. There it was, the quip Thomas was sort of expecting by now (it had taken him a while). And, just like routine would have it, Thomas rolled his eyes, the words not taken seriously or seeming to affect him at all as he continued exploring the mark.
It seemed to have different textures in some parts. He wondered how the body healed from something like that. Mainly those blood vessels.]
You wish.
[Deadest of deadpan face ever, really. Right there.]
[ That deadpan restored a little bit of normalcy. Minho huffed, shook his head, and had to admit to himself that there was no such thing as normal anymore anyway, except that him and Thomas had never really had any reservations about touching.
What Thomas found was that the outer edges of the pattern seemed more healed than the center, a variation of freshly forming scars and healing injuries still scabbed over. Of course, wearing a backpack hadn't helped, wearing some patches a raw in comparison and preventing them from healing quite as quickly.
It annoyed Minho a little that he didn't have a hand free to find out what it felt like for himself. On the other hand, this would not have been happening outside in better light. Too many angles, impossible for anything to be secure, no good reason to risk this kind of thing. He flashed Thomas a lopsided grin, looking him over. Look at what you're doing. ]
You sure? 'Cause you haven't really stopped.
[ Minho didn't care to tell him to either. If he actually minded, Thomas would know about it, and anyway, no reason to put it out there that he'd been scared for a second, and dealing with all the fallout from that. ]
Yeah, yeah, well-- [It's new, alright? And pretty. Like nothing he has ever seen. So sue him for being curious.
Moving one of his hands away, Thomas touched Minho's forehead with two of his fingers, pressing, softly, in an attempt to make him look away with that grin of his. Yet, as he did so, he smiled a little too, letting him know that that was his tease back, the sort that they knew, the sort that they were used to, between the both of them.
Once his eyes returned to the mark, so did his hand, fingers running over a fraction that seemed darker than the rest. For a moment, he wondered if he should believe Minho, when he said that it didn't hurt. As beautiful as the thing was, it also looked painful, like that, stretching underneath his skin.
Thomas frowned at the thought, mind setting on a decision: he'd be carrying Minho's backpack during the upcoming days.]
You'd tell if you weren't okay, right?
[He knew exactly what he was doing by making that question, too, to Minho, specifically-- Placing a weight on his conscience. At the very least, it would hopefully lower the chances of Minho lying about it (or hiding the fact, more like) in the future.]
[ He let Thomas push his head away, chuckling, and counted it as a win. All those worries and concerns passed him right by, of course, leaving Minho only with more time for the situation to really sink in. With anyone else, their hands under his shirt would have a different implication, for all that this seemed completely lost on Thomas.
He blinked at the question. It hadn't occured to him to be anything else but okay. They hadn't had the time for him to not be okay, and as surprised as he had been to find how few consequences being struck by lightning seemed to have, the discomfort he was feeling was never any more than that. ]
Yeah.
[ Hiding injuries was asking for trouble. It put the people who counted on him at risk. This, though? This hadn't seemed worth bringing up while under threat of death, but suddenly he felt self-conscious about his choice anyway.
[Thomas nodded as he answered, his eyes never really leaving Minho's back. He felt like they should put something on it, mainly the patches that seemed a bit rawer, but they didn't have any water or oil with them. Frowning at the thought, Thomas mentally added 'something oily' to the list of things he should keep an eye out for, during the rest of their search for supplements.
He was about to have one last look, when Minho's question made him tilt his head a little.]
It looks hurt. Some parts more so than others. [One of his thumbs moved, then, softly rubbing the skin underneath it, where one of the prettiest ramifications stretched.] I can't tell if it looks painful or not, though. For a wound, it's really very pretty. Visually.
[His eyes settled on it again, fully taking the shape of it in.]
[ That swipe of his thumb alone made Minho's breath catch in his throat again, more audibly this time, his back straightening a little on reflex alone. To credit what he'd said, though, he didn't look pained, not by his face or his posture. In fact, he huffed a laugh, lowering the flashlight and finally pulling away. ]
Well you're never gonna be a poet, but I guess at least you think I'm pretty.
[ He let his shirt drop down and made to shrug his jacket back on. Best to call this done now, before he did anything stupid. Wouldn't have been the first time, but really, nobody needed anything to be any more complicated than it already was. ]
[The catch of breath, and the way Minho suddenly straightened his back, didn't go unnoticed to Thomas. He frowned, eyes trying to see the other's face-- But he was surprised to not find any hint of discomfort or pain in there.
He wanted to ask, though. He wanted to ask what it was - It wasn't that cold in here, was it? - but before he could Minho was teasing again and, this time, Thomas just sighed, head shaking a little bit and lowering down, before he looked up at the other again, a small smile at the corner of his lips.]
Are you expecting a 'Yes, Minho, you're right'? Because you don't need me to help fill that ego meter of yours.
[He snorted at that, shaking his head again. He had been talking about the wound, but well. He hadn't exactly contradicted Minho's words either.
He helped the other boy move his shirt back down, then, as well as dress his jacket more properly. And then, he took a hold of the backpack that was resting on the ground, moving it over his own shoulder.]
I'm on backpack duty, now. You take the light.
[Some complications though, weren't really all that complicated, were they? Mainly not when they were like lifelines, keeping them above water in the middle of all of this mess.]
[ He accepted the retort as finally, something more than anything else. Minho had no need for anyone stroking his ego, that much was definitely true, but this was all just messing around, anyway. Neither did he really need help with his clothes, but it wasn't about that. As he accepted the help without comment or objection, Minho glanced down at Thomas' hands. For all the ease with which they shared space and physical contact, Minho still hadn't sorted it out for himself where he stood exactly-- didn't feel like he knew where to start, either. Maybe it wasn't important, but he'd had to stop himself from acting like an idiot more than once now.
But then the moment was over, and Thomas picked up the backpack. Perhaps he could've argued, but there was no point, no reason, nothing to gain. So he nodded instead. ]
Alright.
[ What he understood was that apparently his back looked bad enough to merit going a little easier. And when it was only a matter of shifting tasks around, that was as simply said as done. ]
And you know, I might've had enough compliments for one day.
[They wouldn't be shaking, when Minho looked at them. Thomas' hands, that is. They had been before; shaking, spasming, the nervous habits of opening and closing them, fingers curling, whenever an unsettling thought crossed his mind. He'd play with his fingers if he could, massage his wrists, but as it was (and in spite of the few moments that he had felt a bit anxious, lost in thought, and that half a second of uncertainty when he heard Minho catch his breath)... He actually seemed perfectly calm.
There was just something about Minho. He had this calmness emanating from him, making Thomas somehow feel calmer, too.
... Which was a remarkable thing to do, given the rush of thoughts (and feelings) running through Thomas' body as they spoke. A lot could go right over his head, but he wasn't stupid. That hitching in breath-- It brought back to mind a moment, a million years ago, it seemed, and yet, probably not even months old. They hadn't talked about it, they hadn't even mentioned it again, and well, as such, Thomas hadn't exactly tried to dig too deep into it, either.
He didn't know if he should. If he could, even. He was as lost as Minho was, in the whole thing.
He was looking at the floor, eyes narrowed, when Minho spoke again. He was glad that there were no complaints whatsoever.
Nodding, he just rolled his eyes again, at Minho's next comment, securing the backpack on his back and waiting for Minho to move.]
[ Minho watched as Thomas lost himself in thought for a moment, just staring at the floor, and couldn't help letting his mind backtrack to what little time they'd had in the Glade. It seemed like a completely different world. At the same time, what was true then was just as true now, the Gladers were family, were the only people they could trust and count on. Just that now, there were no walls and no maze, and no choice about dealing with the dangers of the world anymore.
Minho moved, glancing around the room once. They'd gone through it methodically as ever, picked it clean of anything they could use, time for the next one. He made for the stairs first, but found that part of what had supported them must have collapsed, bringing down debris from above. Going over the mess with his flashlight revealed there might've been a downstairs too. If they really wanted to clear this mess out, perhaps it might've been worth exploring, but there were people waiting for them to return. ]
Think we're done here.
[ It seemed there was something growing out from whatever was in the basement. Like vines, or roots, that had begun to overtake some of the larger chunks of concrete at the bottom of the heap. Minho couldn't have said if he'd seen a plant like that before, but he wasn't going to start questioning the vegetation now.
[It was daunting, in a way. How big the world was. How things were outside. The dangers that had been waiting for them. Yet, Thomas knew that this was a line of thought he couldn't dwell on for very long. He was feeling better than before, mainly so after having managed to escape the Scorch with his friends, finding them again after fearing the worst. But it was still a dangerous topic for him to think too deeply about. Once they made it to the Right Arm, the safe-haven, maybe then he could allow himself to relax enough in order to really put things in perspective.
Following Minho was easy. Thomas kept looking from one side to the other of the room they were leaving, making sure they hadn't overlooked any spots. Once they made it to the stairs, he sighed, seeing all the debris. He had been hoping that they could explore the building a bit more; though the lower levels were usually wiped clean, the higher floors tended to still have things for them to take.
Thomas didn't intend to go back right away, though. They should try to explore the buildings on the other side of the street. If for nothing else, they would hopefully be able to find some alcohol and sheets, perhaps some canned food and some sort of clean oil for Minho's back.
He nodded at his words.]
Yea-- [But then his eyes caught the vine-root like thing growing from the basement, taking over the debris, once Minho passed the flashlight there, and his heart almost stopped.
His eyes began to widen and he took a step back, out of instinct, before one of his hands went immediately to Minho's arm, pulling him back.]
Quiet. [He whispered, in a rushed tone, eyes never leaving the general direction where he knew the vines were coming from, though only seeing dark, now that the light wasn't on them.]
Come on, we need to go. [And he took another step back, tugging on Minho's arm again, for him to move as well.] Come on, Minho, we need to leave right now.
[ In the split second of Thomas stepping back, the whole air seemed to shift from ease to tension. Minho's attention snapped to him in an instant. It didn't take any tugging, even though he shone the flashlight over the debris again just to try and see what it was that brought this on. He narrowed his eyes, confused, but didn't stall any further, making quietly but quickly for the exit and back into daylight, checking every dark corner on the way out.
He slowed once they were out, clicking off the flashlight and glancing over at Thomas to see if he thought they should be running. Report back to camp, or full on sprint for a good distance?
As far as Minho could tell, there wasn't anything following them, be it human, Crank, animal, or otherwise, but that didn't mean he doubted his friend's judgement. ]
[It was a relief, once they finally set foot outside. Though Thomas made his way out behind Minho, he kept looking back, into the darkness, ears sharp for any sounds following. Thankfully, it didn't seem like they had woken up what was certainly asleep in that basement.
With his eyes at the entrance of the store still, Thomas walked back towards Minho, eyes adjusting to the light outside. The sun was setting, but it was still not down enough that they would run out of light for the next hour or so.]
Whenever you see those things, on the ground or ceiling, [Thomas started, once he was close enough for Minho to hear him.] You move slowly away. [He turned his head then, to look at Minho, meet his eyes, before looking back at the coffee shop's entrance.] And if you hear a sound, you run out of there as fast as you can. [As it was, though, it seemed that they were safe.
He let some time pass, to allow his heart to slow down, before looking at their surroundings again. He moved a hand up, to shield his eyes from the sun as he looked at it too and then bit his bottom lip.
He knew that they should probably go back to the others soon, but he really wanted to go explore the other building and try to find some food and something oily, at least.]
[ Minho nodded at the explanation and decided to keep walking. There were other buildings, other doors yawning open like caves. Possibilities. Chances. Even if they were out of the maze now, the drive to explore had never left him, so he merely cocked his head for Thomas to follow him. ]
What, the vines? What are they?
[ Another one of those things Thomas had seen and lived to talk about, apparently. It turned out, the Runners' code served him just as well out here, only there were more chances to stop once in a while. ]
[He couldn't help the small (relieved) smile as Minho made the decision for him, as to what to do next. He nodded as Minho beckoned him to follow him, and he did so, without further question.
Even though scavenging wasn't one of Minho's favorite things to do, when it came to these divided duties, it was one of Thomas'. He likes to explore, as well, get new things, see new things, find answers to questions he didn't even know he had. Of course, there was always the (more likely than not) possibility of running into trouble, too, but well. They were sort of used to that by now, weren't they?
He waited to catch up with Minho, before answering.]
Yeah. [A nod.] I don't know what they are, exactly. But, apparently, when the Cranks reach later stages of the disease, those things start to grow out of them, and stretch over the floor and the ceiling, keeping them in place. They seem to be asleep but they really aren't.
[At all.]
They will break those things easily and they will attack like the rest. [Maybe even more viciously so.]
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no subject
However, in this trip break they had taken, at the outskirts of the city, something else had come to his thoughts.
It was unexpected; they had decided to set a sort of camp next to a fallen, abandoned building in such a way that they could have the car there, too. Everyone had their roles from then on: making a fire, preparing the bedding, cooking something to eat, standing watch and looking around their surroundings to scavenge for things to take for the rest of the trip. Thomas and Minho had ended up with the last task.
The idea was simple-- Just do what you do best. Walk around, try not to get lost, have a flashlight with you at all times, avoid one-way places in case you find cranks and need to escape. Once they were done, they were meant to come back, have their part of the meal and get some rest.
So far, so good.
Yet, in the middle of looking around what seemed to have once been a coffee shop, a sudden movement of the hand holding Thomas' flashlight made it point towards Minho's back and a thought that he had filed away, a few hours ago, suddenly came back with a vengeance.
What was that?
It was barely noticeable, just creeping out of his jacket, slightly, up towards his neck, but it was definitely there and Thomas was sure he had seen it too, when Minho leaned closer to him, when he had woken up before.
Frowning, Thomas approached him, the hand with the flashlight taking a hold of the other boy's arm, to keep him from moving away, while the other went, nonchalantly, to the collar of the back of his jacket and shirt, pulling both of them down about as much as he could without choking him.
What he saw, even with the dim light, made his eyes widen.]
no subject
The lesson Minho learned, above all, was that there was nothing in the world to be trusted. Nothing and no-one, besides the people he knew already.
If he expected an old man like Jorge to move more slowly, he was wrong. And maybe, maybe a lightning strike wasn't something he could shrug off quite as easily as that after all, but there was no time for resting up.
(There was nothing quite like finding Thomas again. Pure relief, and a weight off his chest he had refused to acknowledge was there, and then, as far as Minho was concerned, things looked up again.)
Scavenging assignments weren't his favorite thing, but they needed done, and it had all been blissfully uneventful until Thomas noticed something, and Minho turned around to see until he's held still - until it was clear it was him, or on him.
His stomach dropped, as much as he tried to will the thought away - he hadn't even been close enough to a crank in the last couple of days, it couldn't be an infected scratch, he'd be feeling a lot worse if it was - there was still that sinking feeling of not really knowing if he was immune or if he wasn't. Besides - he hadn't exactly had the chance to examine himself lately. The sprawling, winding pattern along his side and back wasn't something he'd had a chance to notice beyond the vague soreness of healing burns.
Minho tried to look at Thomas out of the corner of his eye. ]
What?
[ More a demand than a question. At the same time, he made no move to pull away. At least from what he could tell, Thomas didn't look horrified. It didn't completely ease his mind, but it was certainly a start. ]
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Thomas recognized the demand in the word like clockwork, far too used to Minho's speech, yet, to be fair, he still wasn't quite sure what exactly it was. He had an idea, but--]
Hold this.
[More a demand than a request, as well, Thomas gave his own flashlight for Minho to hold, so both of his hands were free.]
Point it here.
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Inhale, take the flashlight, point it as instructed. Sigh, hoping to drain the tension from his shoulders, but no success on that account. He'd already asked his question, and didn't figure there was any point in repeating himself, so he raised an eyebrow at Thomas and waited for a verdict. ]
no subject
As soon as Thomas got the light that he needed, his eyes widened again, as if he was seeing it for the first time, lips parting slightly too, this time.
His expression was a mix of curiosity and awe, and while one of his hands was still pulling Minho's collars down, the other was quick to softly touch his skin over the mark that he found.
It was beautiful.
Stretching like lightning under his skin, branching from the nape of his neck down-- Down to where Thomas couldn't quite follow, like this. Frowning, he didn't really wait to question (or for permission) before moving both his hands down, this time pulling both of Minho's jacket and shirt up from his waist.]
Oh.
[Oh God. It came all the way down the side of his back, turning to the side of his waist.
Again, he kept one hand holding Minho's clothes up, while the other carefully - very carefully - started tracing over the shapes he found.
Wow.]
... Does this hurt?
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What're you-- [ except his word caught in his throat when Thomas touched him. The marked skin was evidently healing, and, while not exactly painful, still tender to the touch. There should've been a quip here, he thought in passing, something about needing an excuse, probably. But there were more important things. ]
No. What the hell is it?
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That it didn't hurt, however, was very good to know.]
I don't know.
[His fingers continued to move ghostly over Minho's skin, above the mark and the places it stretched to, all the way down his back, to his side... It was so pretty.]
I think it might have been from when the lightning hit you.
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A second later, he was pulling the shirt up himself to take a look, or as much of a look as the placement allowed. ]
Damn.
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He was undressing.
Thomas looked around, quickly, making sure that they were in a free enough area with plenty of room to run before looking back at Minho again. The last thing he wanted was for them to be surprised by cranks in a cramped up place with Minho having no protection, whatsoever, from their bites or scratches.
Still, the place seemed safe enough and, well. He was curious to keep looking.]
Right? I never saw anything like this, before.
[His hands were back to touching it again, both of them, this time, in opposite ends.]
Get the light in here!
[Why he was whispering, and why it sounded rushed, he had absolutely no idea. But it was like it had come out, and he wasn't about to give it too much thought.]
It goes all the way from here, [He said, touching the mark closest to his neck.] to here. [He added, having traced all the way down his back again, with his other hand, until his waist.]
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Tracing the whole thing made Minho's breath stutter as he exhaled, but with how fascinated Thomas was by just observing, he might not even have noticed. ]
Wow. Hell of a souvenier.
[ For, you know, almost dying. If it became a scar, Minho thought absently, it would be the prettiest damn scar he had ever seen. ]
So I guess you didn't just want an excuse to get your hands on me.
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Back to when he thought the worst had happened.
His fingers spasmed at the thought, eyes so focused on the spot he had been staring at, as he reminisced, that only Minho's movement woke him up from the daydreaming (nightmare?), head shaking slightly as he came back to the here and now of things.]
Glad that you got it.
[Since, you know, it meant that he was alive. And what a relief it had been, too.
His hand began to move again, then, up until Minho opened his mouth once more. There it was, the quip Thomas was sort of expecting by now (it had taken him a while). And, just like routine would have it, Thomas rolled his eyes, the words not taken seriously or seeming to affect him at all as he continued exploring the mark.
It seemed to have different textures in some parts. He wondered how the body healed from something like that. Mainly those blood vessels.]
You wish.
[Deadest of deadpan face ever, really. Right there.]
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What Thomas found was that the outer edges of the pattern seemed more healed than the center, a variation of freshly forming scars and healing injuries still scabbed over. Of course, wearing a backpack hadn't helped, wearing some patches a raw in comparison and preventing them from healing quite as quickly.
It annoyed Minho a little that he didn't have a hand free to find out what it felt like for himself. On the other hand, this would not have been happening outside in better light. Too many angles, impossible for anything to be secure, no good reason to risk this kind of thing. He flashed Thomas a lopsided grin, looking him over. Look at what you're doing. ]
You sure? 'Cause you haven't really stopped.
[ Minho didn't care to tell him to either. If he actually minded, Thomas would know about it, and anyway, no reason to put it out there that he'd been scared for a second, and dealing with all the fallout from that. ]
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Yeah, yeah, well-- [It's new, alright? And pretty. Like nothing he has ever seen. So sue him for being curious.
Moving one of his hands away, Thomas touched Minho's forehead with two of his fingers, pressing, softly, in an attempt to make him look away with that grin of his. Yet, as he did so, he smiled a little too, letting him know that that was his tease back, the sort that they knew, the sort that they were used to, between the both of them.
Once his eyes returned to the mark, so did his hand, fingers running over a fraction that seemed darker than the rest. For a moment, he wondered if he should believe Minho, when he said that it didn't hurt. As beautiful as the thing was, it also looked painful, like that, stretching underneath his skin.
Thomas frowned at the thought, mind setting on a decision: he'd be carrying Minho's backpack during the upcoming days.]
You'd tell if you weren't okay, right?
[He knew exactly what he was doing by making that question, too, to Minho, specifically-- Placing a weight on his conscience. At the very least, it would hopefully lower the chances of Minho lying about it (or hiding the fact, more like) in the future.]
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He blinked at the question. It hadn't occured to him to be anything else but okay. They hadn't had the time for him to not be okay, and as surprised as he had been to find how few consequences being struck by lightning seemed to have, the discomfort he was feeling was never any more than that. ]
Yeah.
[ Hiding injuries was asking for trouble. It put the people who counted on him at risk. This, though? This hadn't seemed worth bringing up while under threat of death, but suddenly he felt self-conscious about his choice anyway.
Outmaneuvered. And so easily. ]
'S it look bad?
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[Thomas nodded as he answered, his eyes never really leaving Minho's back. He felt like they should put something on it, mainly the patches that seemed a bit rawer, but they didn't have any water or oil with them. Frowning at the thought, Thomas mentally added 'something oily' to the list of things he should keep an eye out for, during the rest of their search for supplements.
He was about to have one last look, when Minho's question made him tilt his head a little.]
It looks hurt. Some parts more so than others. [One of his thumbs moved, then, softly rubbing the skin underneath it, where one of the prettiest ramifications stretched.] I can't tell if it looks painful or not, though. For a wound, it's really very pretty. Visually.
[His eyes settled on it again, fully taking the shape of it in.]
Kinda looks like a tree. A lightning tree.
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Well you're never gonna be a poet, but I guess at least you think I'm pretty.
[ He let his shirt drop down and made to shrug his jacket back on. Best to call this done now, before he did anything stupid. Wouldn't have been the first time, but really, nobody needed anything to be any more complicated than it already was. ]
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He wanted to ask, though. He wanted to ask what it was - It wasn't that cold in here, was it? - but before he could Minho was teasing again and, this time, Thomas just sighed, head shaking a little bit and lowering down, before he looked up at the other again, a small smile at the corner of his lips.]
Are you expecting a 'Yes, Minho, you're right'? Because you don't need me to help fill that ego meter of yours.
[He snorted at that, shaking his head again. He had been talking about the wound, but well. He hadn't exactly contradicted Minho's words either.
He helped the other boy move his shirt back down, then, as well as dress his jacket more properly. And then, he took a hold of the backpack that was resting on the ground, moving it over his own shoulder.]
I'm on backpack duty, now. You take the light.
[Some complications though, weren't really all that complicated, were they? Mainly not when they were like lifelines, keeping them above water in the middle of all of this mess.]
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Maybe it wasn't important, but he'd had to stop himself from acting like an idiot more than once now.
But then the moment was over, and Thomas picked up the backpack. Perhaps he could've argued, but there was no point, no reason, nothing to gain. So he nodded instead. ]
Alright.
[ What he understood was that apparently his back looked bad enough to merit going a little easier. And when it was only a matter of shifting tasks around, that was as simply said as done. ]
And you know, I might've had enough compliments for one day.
[ Flashlight ready, time to move on. ]
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There was just something about Minho. He had this calmness emanating from him, making Thomas somehow feel calmer, too.
... Which was a remarkable thing to do, given the rush of thoughts (and feelings) running through Thomas' body as they spoke. A lot could go right over his head, but he wasn't stupid. That hitching in breath-- It brought back to mind a moment, a million years ago, it seemed, and yet, probably not even months old. They hadn't talked about it, they hadn't even mentioned it again, and well, as such, Thomas hadn't exactly tried to dig too deep into it, either.
He didn't know if he should. If he could, even. He was as lost as Minho was, in the whole thing.
He was looking at the floor, eyes narrowed, when Minho spoke again. He was glad that there were no complaints whatsoever.
Nodding, he just rolled his eyes again, at Minho's next comment, securing the backpack on his back and waiting for Minho to move.]
You go ahead. I'll follow.
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Minho moved, glancing around the room once. They'd gone through it methodically as ever, picked it clean of anything they could use, time for the next one. He made for the stairs first, but found that part of what had supported them must have collapsed, bringing down debris from above. Going over the mess with his flashlight revealed there might've been a downstairs too. If they really wanted to clear this mess out, perhaps it might've been worth exploring, but there were people waiting for them to return. ]
Think we're done here.
[ It seemed there was something growing out from whatever was in the basement. Like vines, or roots, that had begun to overtake some of the larger chunks of concrete at the bottom of the heap. Minho couldn't have said if he'd seen a plant like that before, but he wasn't going to start questioning the vegetation now.
Maybe they'd have better luck elsewhere. ]
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Following Minho was easy. Thomas kept looking from one side to the other of the room they were leaving, making sure they hadn't overlooked any spots. Once they made it to the stairs, he sighed, seeing all the debris. He had been hoping that they could explore the building a bit more; though the lower levels were usually wiped clean, the higher floors tended to still have things for them to take.
Thomas didn't intend to go back right away, though. They should try to explore the buildings on the other side of the street. If for nothing else, they would hopefully be able to find some alcohol and sheets, perhaps some canned food and some sort of clean oil for Minho's back.
He nodded at his words.]
Yea-- [But then his eyes caught the vine-root like thing growing from the basement, taking over the debris, once Minho passed the flashlight there, and his heart almost stopped.
His eyes began to widen and he took a step back, out of instinct, before one of his hands went immediately to Minho's arm, pulling him back.]
Quiet. [He whispered, in a rushed tone, eyes never leaving the general direction where he knew the vines were coming from, though only seeing dark, now that the light wasn't on them.]
Come on, we need to go. [And he took another step back, tugging on Minho's arm again, for him to move as well.] Come on, Minho, we need to leave right now.
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He slowed once they were out, clicking off the flashlight and glancing over at Thomas to see if he thought they should be running. Report back to camp, or full on sprint for a good distance?
As far as Minho could tell, there wasn't anything following them, be it human, Crank, animal, or otherwise, but that didn't mean he doubted his friend's judgement. ]
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With his eyes at the entrance of the store still, Thomas walked back towards Minho, eyes adjusting to the light outside. The sun was setting, but it was still not down enough that they would run out of light for the next hour or so.]
Whenever you see those things, on the ground or ceiling, [Thomas started, once he was close enough for Minho to hear him.] You move slowly away. [He turned his head then, to look at Minho, meet his eyes, before looking back at the coffee shop's entrance.] And if you hear a sound, you run out of there as fast as you can. [As it was, though, it seemed that they were safe.
He let some time pass, to allow his heart to slow down, before looking at their surroundings again. He moved a hand up, to shield his eyes from the sun as he looked at it too and then bit his bottom lip.
He knew that they should probably go back to the others soon, but he really wanted to go explore the other building and try to find some food and something oily, at least.]
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What, the vines? What are they?
[ Another one of those things Thomas had seen and lived to talk about, apparently. It turned out, the Runners' code served him just as well out here, only there were more chances to stop once in a while. ]
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Even though scavenging wasn't one of Minho's favorite things to do, when it came to these divided duties, it was one of Thomas'. He likes to explore, as well, get new things, see new things, find answers to questions he didn't even know he had. Of course, there was always the (more likely than not) possibility of running into trouble, too, but well. They were sort of used to that by now, weren't they?
He waited to catch up with Minho, before answering.]
Yeah. [A nod.] I don't know what they are, exactly. But, apparently, when the Cranks reach later stages of the disease, those things start to grow out of them, and stretch over the floor and the ceiling, keeping them in place. They seem to be asleep but they really aren't.
[At all.]
They will break those things easily and they will attack like the rest. [Maybe even more viciously so.]
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