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Born to be Wild

Hinata stood beside Kageyama, both of them staring at the decimated remains of the former mansion. The rain was soaking into his shoes and Hinata really wanted to head back to the hotel to get out of the downpour, but he felt a little bad for Kageyama, who looked like he wanted to shoot something and scream in anguish at the same time.

I must be nicer than I thought. Hinata sighed inwardly and held out a hand. "Hey... you can come and hole up with me for a while if you have nowhere else to go." He prayed Kageyama wouldn't say something asshole-ish enough to make him revoke the already regrettable offer.

But he only sighed, tearing his hood off to run a hand roughly through his damp hair. "You probably shouldn't stick around here." (He was ignoring the offer, Hinata noted sullenly.) "After that explosion, every zombie within twenty miles will be drawn to this place."

"I guess you're right." Hinata frowned at the decrepit remains of the burning mansion. "So... are you coming with me or not? You'll probably die if you stay here alone."

"Die?" Kageyama scoffed, adjusting the strap of his rifle. "As if." He paused. "I... suppose I'll come with you. But don't think this makes us allies or friends or anything idiotic like that." He slung his rifle over his shoulder, ramming Hinata's shoulder as he passed. "I work alone. Always have, always will."

"You sound so emo," Hinata snorted, jogging ahead of him. "You don't even know where we're headed, so you can stop trying to look cool. Who spit in your apocalyptic cornflakes, anyway?"

He slowed to a walk and Kageyama grumbled something under his breath that was undoubtedly supremely offensive before shooting him a terse glare. "Why are you so nosy? You act like Armageddon is just an everyday occurrence for you. Aren't you depressed, hopeless, wallowing in self-pity, et cetera?"

"What's the point in that?" Hinata kicked a piece of asphalt with the toe of his scuffed boot, watching it skitter over the cracks in the road. "If you do that, you're basically dead already. I still want to live, even if I have to fight for it." He shrugged. "Being alive is one reason to be hopeful, isn't it?"

Kageyama said nothing for several seconds. "You're incredibly odd, you know." Hinata caught him in the tiniest of smiles. "Like, incredibly."

"Well, you're incredibly mysterious," he replied, walking backward to shoot Kageyama a teasing grin. "You wouldn't even tell me your name at first, and you might just be the best sniper I've ever seen. But you're also a tremendous jerk," he added before Kageyama could get too full of himself.

"You know I can still shoot you, right?" he replied dryly. "Hey, don't laugh. I'm not kidding. I can't stand this irritating cheerfulness."

"You're certainly an interesting person." Hinata swung back around, still smiling, and began scouting for enemies in their path. Kageyama was by far the most interesting person he'd ever met, apocalypse or no. "I never knew people went around hiring bodyguards nowadays. Doesn't seem like a very permanent job."

"There's no such thing as 'permanent' anymore," Kageyama muttered. "I do what I have to do to survive. Isn't that what you do?"

"I guess so." Hinata paused to double-check their bordering side alleyways for zombies before leading Kageyama down the next block toward his old campsite.

He couldn't seem to get any information out of him. Kageyama had a sarcastic, deflective answer prepared for every question he could think to ask. He was harder to break into than that house he'd been guarding—which, of course, only made Hinata want to try even more.

"So, if you're going to be traveling with me... I think we should get to know each other a bit."

Kageyama scoffed. "What, are you taking me home to meet your parents or something? This isn't a first date. I'm going with you because it's mutually beneficial—no other reason."

"That's cold," Hinata joked, ducking through a ruptured chain link fence to reach the hotel's back entrance. "Don't worry: I'd never go on a date with you, anyway." He kicked open the door and flashed a saccharine smile. "You're not really my type."

"Hey—!" Kageyama rammed into the door when Hinata kicked it closed and slipped in behind him with an aggravated grunt. "You're a thousand times more annoying than I thought— Ow."

"Oh, yeah: watch out for that fallen ceiling beam."

"Now you tell me."

Hinata snickered to himself and carefully clamored over a pile of concrete rubble, jumping across the ten-foot gap to reach the broken remnants of the stairs. Loose marble tumbled to the floor with a loud crash and Kageyama looked up at him incredulously. "Will that stairwell even hold us both?"

"Either come up here and find out or stay down there with the zombies all night," Hinata hummed, waving at him flippantly as he moved farther up the stairs. "Your choice."

"Dammit," Kageyama grumbled irritably under his breath. There was the sound of running feet before a loud, uncomfortable-sounding impact. Kageyama cursed loudly as several more pieces of marble broke off, stumbling farther up the stairs.

Hinata found his allusive cat-like attitude much funnier than he should've. "I'm a little surprised you survived so long if you're afraid of climbing a staircase," he quipped. "Don't tell me you've never had to climb anything before."

"I... don't like heights," Kageyama grumbled, barely loud enough to be heard. He kicked the railing irritably, sending marble showering down on their heads. "Why don't you just shut up. How much farther is your dumb camp, anyway?"

"Top floor," Hinata told him, trying not to get annoyed at his brash words. He could tell Kageyama was the type of person who'd lost his people skills in the apocalypse—if he'd ever had any to begin with. He'd just have to be patient and eventually, he'd break him out of his shell.

If they didn't kill each other first, of course.

Kageyama had to admit that Hinata was pretty smart. Camping out high up was a good strategy—not to mention it was impossible to reach unless you were daring enough to climb up a sketchy stairwell. Even though he was a dumbass, he was at least a prepared one.

They exited the stairwell on one of the hotel's highest floors and Hinata flopped down beside a broken window, slinging a leg carelessly over the edge. Kageyama set his stuff down a few feet away, eyeballing him warily. "You must have a thing for heights."

"Height means safety." Hinata swung himself around into a crisscrossed position and grinned up at him. "Scared?"

"As if." Kageyama crossed his arms and leaned against the wall to keep from reaching for his gun. He hadn't dealt with other people in so long, his impulse control was pretty out of whack.

He'd probably have to work on that... Until then, the most important thing to do was come up with a new plan. He hadn't survived so long by going with the flow—which was probably why he didn't get along well with a presumable drifter like Hinata. People without plans were people who wouldn't live long.

"So, what are you going to do from here?" he asked, pushing aside his thoughts to focus on the problem. He moved away from the wall and crouched beside him, peering out at the rain. "Another horde will reform eventually. The rain always draws them out."

Hinata slung an arm around his neck with a long sigh. "I was already planning on moving out, but I didn't expect to have another person with me. We need to get clear of the city limits, so we'll need supplies—and a vehicle."

Huh, so he's not so much of a drifter, after all... Kageyama cut him a sidelong glance. "I know where we could get both. How soon do we move out?"

"Night will be falling soon." Hinata scooted across the floor to unzip his pack. He tossed Kageyama a ratty red blanket that had more holes than usable square feet. "I suggest we get some sleep and head out early tomorrow when it's the quietest."

Kageyama threw him back the blanket. "You go ahead. I'll keep watch." As if he trusted this kid enough to sleep and leave himself vulnerable. Was he an idiot?

"Whatever." Hinata simply shrugged, throwing himself down beside the window. He propped up his backpack like a pillow and within seconds of hitting the ground, he was out like a light.

"What the hell..." Kageyama pulled off his rifle and slid down the wall. "What a weirdo."

The wind howled outside like an orphaned wolf cub, rain berating the sides of the hotel like zombies pounding against glass doors. Lightning flashed across the walls like eerie camera flashes, illuminating piles of broken rubble and ripped canvas blowing in the wind. The world had never looked eerier.

The storm lasted all night, and by the time Kageyama realized it was morning, the downpour had let up into a light drizzle. He shifted, disgusted by his damp clothes, and cracked his stiff joints. Hinata was still passed out by the window, his ratty blanket dusted with droplets of moisture.

Stretching uncomfortably, Kageyama got up and nudged him with his foot. "Hey." He nudged him again. "Get up."

When he didn't stir, Kageyama grabbed the blanket and pulled it off him impatiently. "Oi, I said wake up!"

With a gasp, Hinata jumped upright and before he knew it, a bullet whizzed right past Kageyama's head. He barely managed to duck in time, crashing into the wall with a loud shout. "What the hell?!"

Hinata stared up at him, breathless and wild-eyed. After several breaths, he slowly lowered his gun, hiding his shaking hands in the red blanket. "You... shouldn't wake people like that." He tried for a smile, but it wasn't very believable. "I'm not really a morning person."

Kageyama wanted to protest further, but the haunted look on Hinata's face was enough to dissuade him. It looked like he'd seen a ghost—which was saying something in the zombie apocalypse. Kageyama had his fair share of skeletons in the closet, and he wouldn't force anyone else to relive theirs. They probably both had things they'd rather not dredge up.

Instead of saying something indignant, Kageyama turned away to give the redhead some space. He retrieved his backpack and slung it over his shoulder. "I'll... go scout the block. Meet me by the train station."

He disappeared down the hall before Hinata could respond, clutching the strap of his rifle. He was the one who was mysterious. He kept trying to pry, but it seemed more like he wanted to deflect the attention away from himself. Kageyama hated being attached to anyone or anything, but he couldn't help but be curious.

Stumbling back down the uneven stairwell, Kageyama slid down to the floor and found his way back outside. The wet wind gusted into his face and he pulled up his hood, re-securing a black bandanna around his mouth and nose. This type of weather was absolutely vile.

"Now, where to find a ride..." he muttered, pushing aside thoughts of Hinata and the storm.

He remembered seeing an old mechanics shop a few blocks south of the Madokas' place: He could probably find something there. A small, lightweight motorcycle would be ideal if they wanted to keep the noise level to a minimum.

Mechanics shop it is. Kageyama retrieved a pistol from his backpack and restocked the clip before heading south. Although there didn't appear to be any zombies around, he was still uneasy after that huge horde. Rain always drew them out, and the storm looked like it could start up again any second.

Besides, after how much noise they'd caused that morning, there was bound to be corpses lurking around somewhere close. What was that old saying, again?

'Bad things always come in threes.'

A/N: Sorry for the late release on this chapter! I've started classes again so I won't be able to update much. Anyway, hope you guys liked the chapter, and I hope to release more for this and other stories fairly soon ^-^