In the cinema
Summary: The pandemonium that came during election was a bit more than Ging is used to handling daily. Even after everything ended, the problems of standing in public seem to still haunt him in his dreams. This is a simple story describing one of Ging's dreams as he drifts off to sleep the day after he leaves the Zodiacs. Shonen ai.
Author's note: I don't own Hunter x Hunter or its characters.
Beta reader: terracannon876.
Ging has a dream that night.
In his dream, he and the rest of the Zodiacs are going with Netero to the cinema. Netero is alive, like always, because this is a dream.
He's already bored with the idea alone. It all feels contrived, like an subtly forced integration.
On one hand, it's not like they have no choice but to go there, but every one of them knows the possible consequences of their individual absences. So, Ging is on his way, strolling unhurriedly with his hands dug in his pockets through some busy street late in the evening.
He sees the crescent moon hanging between the branches of a tree – the tree is a sky blue colour and the moon is green, but for some reason it all feels completely normal.
He knows the new movie "Wars x Wars" is out, and everybody is excited about it.
Okay, maybe not everybody in the Zodiacs since they are busy people who have more important things to do daily than just watch movies with their boss. But this is nothing more than a dream, so everyone is all raring and excited to go, as though they were hyperactive children just hitting their teenage years.
Somebody approaches them to inform them the movie is already starting, and suddenly Ging finds himself sitting inside the cinema already.
He recalls the light clicking off the moment he had entered the hall.
For a second, it occurs to him that it's strange he can't remember who told him the movie was starting, but it seems irrelevant now when there are other things drawing his attention.
He takes the seat number written on the ticket, although something feels off about this, too. He has a strong impression that when he was looking at the ticket on his way here, the number was completely different than the one written on it now. 7 just can't be 56. Regardless, he takes the indicated seat.
He notices other Zodiac members seated as well. Saiyu is sitting behind him to the right. Cheadle and Netero are in the next two rows towards the back. Kanzai and Geru are in the same row as the old man but further to the right. There are some hunters he recognizes and even many random people scattered throughout the theatre. Among them is even Killua's brother, Illumi, sitting with someone else.
It seems Beans didn't buy seats near each other for the Zodiac members, and Ging inwardly thanks him for that.
It is more convenient this way. After all, they all can live without each other for two hours or so. He feels somewhat relieved to find himself sitting alone. Oh, but it seems Pariston is joining him. He has no problem with that, really. He's not exactly leaping for joy either, though. But, all right.
He's surrounded by the cacophony of creatures, human and not, arguing. He can hear Kanzai and Cheadle already raising their voices as they argue with Geru and Saiyu, respectively. He hears the laughter of the Chairman as Gon waves to the old man from afar in the first row. They'd come together with Killua, that Leorio guy and some other familiar faces.
Ging dips his head down to hide his face beneath his cap's brim, wishing to stay unseen by his son and his brigade before the light from the flashing projector could unveil his anonymity.
Seems he survived. The movie is already starting and he can see from afar that Gon, somewhere up front, is focused wholeheartedly on the screen.
He sees some Chimera Ants sitting in the third row to the left. Now it's come to this, where even people and magical beasts are watching movies together in one room. How incongruent.
Ging can feel from the mood that the movie seems actually very interesting, and everybody's attention is completely absorbed by it. The great majority of everybody, that is. Ging is sure there are more people like him who are just waiting for the opportunity to leave.
He sighs.
People not focused on the movie but just looking for liberation from this closed theatre – like him – or for some entertainment at the very least – like Pariston.
Some probably even came here for some purpose in mind other than just watching a damn movie for over three hours long.
Perhaps they're here for someone's life, or maybe they're just here for information on someone.
He feels Pariston's palm moves over his, his fingers sliding slowly and playfully between his.
It's winter now in his dream, and it must be cold even in the hall inside because they both have coats loosely thrown over themselves. Thank goodness for that because when Pariston starts to touch his hand, nobody else can see it.
As Pariston's hand leaves Ging's forearm in favour of his knee and thigh, Ging feels a warmness spread through his body with lightning speed, as though a heater had turned on somewhere. At first, the warmth came slowly, but quickly it was starting to burn him alive.
This is confusing. He shuts his eyes. There are so many people around.
He needs to catch and squeeze, possibly break, the bastard's hand, (How could the idiot do something like that in public?!) but he can't, because then everybody's attention would zero in on them instantly. Pariston would start babbling his cheap excuses, and it wouldn't matter who'd win the discussion because either way the spotlight of attention would fall on Ging, who was the main problem here, no matter the reason. Gon would notice and approach him on top of it all, and it wasn't like he didn't want that, but … some part of him honestly did not.
Everyone knows well enough that he prefers to have his solitude, so why are they all doing everything to ruin it all so unceremoniously? Like, for example, what Pariston is doing now.
Ging can no longer stand these empty, suggestive gestures, so he grabs Pariston's shirt and necktie and pulls him close.
"Ging." He hears somebody calling his name. Oh. Right. It happened. Everybody's attention is on him instead of on the screen, and now it's on him when he least wants it. "Ging…"
"GING…"
"Ging?"
He blinks awake to a distant, still unidentified voice in his spot next to the TV at their current hideout.