*Trigger warnings: mentions of kid abandonment

{i. before: first wave}

∫rin∫

Apparently, Sousuke's a shit conversationalist, which is usually just fine for Rin, but right now, he's bored and stubborn. He's too stubborn to start the conversation though so he'll just say simple instructions every now and then, which Sousuke will usually respond with some high-pitched grunt. Puberty is a bitch, he can tell him that right now (he doesn't).

By the time Rin stops and mentions food, it's already just past noon and the small teal-eyed kid looks dead on his feet. Rin feels a slight pang of guilt before realizing that he doesn't actually hold any responsibility for Sousuke. He's just there to survive.

"Wait here. I'm going to get us some food," Rin says, gesturing toward the convenience store across the street. Sousuke frowns.

"No, I'm going with you," he insists. Rin gives the kid a once over.

"Look, kid, you like tired as hell. Just sit here for a moment. I'll be right back, okay?" he says, trying to appease him. Sousuke shakes his head.

"That's what she said, but she's not here anymore," he says. Rin freezes.

"That's what who said?" he asks, although he thinks he already knows the

answer. He's been through the whole "lone kid" thing already. He knows about that.

Sousuke bites his lip. "My mom."

Rin nods. He figured. "Alright, fine. Just keep up, okay?"

"I've been keeping up so far, haven't I?" is all Sousuke says and Rin just shrugs. The kid's got a point.

"Yeah, just come on then," Rin replies before opening the convenience store door with a hesitant pause. There wasn't anybody in here though.

"Will we get in trouble?" Sousuke asks as Rin starts to grab some food. Rin shrugs.

"If we're going to get in trouble then that means the whole world's going to get in trouble, right? Plus, I don't really think they're going to be putting in people in jail when the first wave is coming in two days."

"Oh."

And that's all he says for the rest of the day.

∫haru∫

"Are you going to hole up?" Makoto asks as Haru flips the mackerel. Haru shrugs. He doesn't really want to think that far ahead just yet.

"I don't know," he says. "Are you?"

Makoto nods. "Yes. My family is. I'll be with them. We're sealing ourselves in today. Do you want to stay with us?"

Haru tilts his head, considering it. He probably should. He really really should, but he didn't want to leave his home even if to be with his best friend. He didn't want to. Plus, he had made plans for today. The first wave is happening tomorrow evening and he wanted to just go out for a bit.

"No. I don't think so," he replies. Makoto stiffens.

"Haru. Please. Are you sure?" he asks. Haru looks back down at his mackerel. It's time to flip it; he does.

"Not really, but I want to go out for a bit. Just walk around. I think I'll get some more toilet paper," he says. The toilet paper bit is a lie, but he just wants a reason to go out. There always seems to have to be a reason and Haru doesn't have one. He just wants to see Japan one last time before everything becomes drenched in water.

"Okay. Okay. Just…be inside when it hits, yeah?" Makoto asks. Haru smiles while he nods. Of course. He's not stupid.

"Okay, Makoto. I will now stand outside the entire time," he deadpans. Makoto rolls his eyes and glances at his watch. Since when did he wear a watch, Haru wonders aimlessly.

"I have to go…you'll be safe, okay?"

"Yes," Haru sighs. Makoto glances over him one more time before pulling him into a tight hug. Makoto's warm in comparison to this cold house and Haru just smiles against him.

"Be safe, Haru," he whispers before pulling away. "See you later?" There was no possible way Haru even had a chance at saying no to that.

"Yeah."

Makoto nods, pleased. "Okay. I've got to go now. Bye, Haru."

"Bye, Makoto," Haru says and then, Makoto's gone and Haru's left once again with his thoughts. Tomorrow. They say it's happening tomorrow.

Haru doesn't want to believe that.

After eating his almost-burnt mackerel, he puts the dishes in the sink and heads outside. He considers locking the door but then wonders what the point is. It's not like someone will steal anything he cares about and all he has is his mackerel. Actually, someone might steal his food, so in the end he does lock it.

Haru sighs and looks up at the sky. The sky is cloudy and dark, sunlight barely streaming through and illuminating the world around him. He looks around him and grimaces. Everything is broken, it seems. There are few other people on the streets and Haru doesn't want to think about that.

He briefly wonders where his parents are before realizing that they probably aren't wondering where he is. They were never a part of his life before. Maybe it was too hopeful of him to think that they might want to be when the world's going to chaos. Or at least, according to the news.

He sighs again and walks down the long stream of stairs before reaching the bottom with hopeless resignation. Well, he's already walked down here so he might as well go with his original plan, right? He looks back up at where Makoto would go to and thinks if he really should join him. He probably should.

He doesn't.

∫rin∫

"Where are we going to sleep?" Sousuke's voice breaks through Rin's thoughts and his gaze snaps to him. He looks tired—probably what Rin looks like as well—and Rin lets out a deep breath.

"That's what I'm trying to figure out," he replies, looking around. They've wandered onto some street and it's nearing dark.

"It's tomorrow," Sousuke whispers, looking straight at Rin. Rin can only give a stiff nod in response. Yeah, tomorrow. They say the first wave is happening tomorrow around noon.

Rin doesn't particularly want to think about it.

"Yeah," he says, voice tight. Sousuke doesn't say anything else. Rin can't find it in him to care too much. They just need to find a place to stay, but they haven't been able to find a motel to crash in and everyone's houses are barricaded or destroyed.

Everything is in ruins.

∫haru∫

Haru studies the broken streetlight with awed horror. He hasn't really left his home since he went out to buy mackerel a few days ago and it's as the world around him is something from the movies. He tries to imagine some American actor running around saving the day and briefly, he hopes for it.

The night is chilly and yet, it warms Haru who kicks at a pebble on the side of the road. There are few other people out, either shuffled up against walls or watching him from inside windows. Haru wonders what they're thinking.

As he walks, he realizes there are steps behind him. He stops and turns, as if he were just stopping to study his surroundings rather than see who is following him.

It's a boy who looks to be twelve or thirteen with striking teal eyes and a mop of dark hair. Haru wonders where his parents are but then realizes that he doesn't even know where his are so it shouldn't matter all too much.

He turns back around, itching at the back of his palm to calm the feeling of nervousness he didn't even know he had. He's happy that he's nervous. Finally, something to hold onto.

Haru walks for almost ten more minutes before he finally decides that the boy is indeed following him. He considers talking to the boy and finding out why, but he doesn't know how the boy will react if Haru calls him out on it so he keeps walking.

Surprisingly, two minutes later when Haru stops hearing the sound of footsteps, he looks behind him and sees that the boy is gone. Maybe he wasn't following Haru after all. He simply sighs and turns to look ahead of him, but the boy is standing right there, staring at him. He looks bad, gaunt and tired, and Haru wonders how he could look so bad just after a few days? What happened to his parents?

"Why are you out here?" the kid asks, breaking Haru's thoughts. Haru frowns and him, kicking at a pebble before choosing to respond. Why is he out here? He doesn't know.

"I wanted to see the world before everything," is what he finally says, and the boy gives a long, slow nod. Haru wonders once again where his parents were.

"Do you have a home?" the kid asks and Haru stiffens.

"What does that have to do with anything?" he asks, but the kid is already looking behind him and Haru's gaze shifts to the man nearing them.

The first thing he notices about the man is his hair, a contrast to the Japanese population, since it had to be some shade of burgundy. Haru met the man's gaze and found his breath literally taken away. He was quite beautiful, even with the tired bags under his eyes and the way his lips were worriedly pursed, but maybe that just added to his foreign beauty. Hah. Like Haru even knew what he was talking about.

Before Haru can say something—anything—to the man, the kid was addressing him.

"Rin, he seems nice," is what the kid says and Haru raises an eyebrow. He seems nice, huh? Haru keeps his gaze on the man—Rin—and watches him study him for a moment before looking back at the kid.

"That's really all you got, kid? He seems nice? He could literally take us home and murder us to eat us for when the world runs out of food," Rin says, and Haru has to laugh at that because like…come on what? Rin's gaze snaps back to him and his eyes darken for a second before he breaks out into a hesitant smile.

"Yo, I'm Rin," he introduces, stepping closer as he holds out a hand. Haru grasps it and they shake, and Haru's reminded of his father when he'd shake hands with all of those important people who'd come by when he thought Haru wasn't there.

"Haru," he replies and Rin smiles a bit more; Haru thinks he looks hot, but he doesn't mention that part.

"I'm Sousuke," the kid adds and both Haru and Rin immediately let go of each other's hands.

"Well…hi?" Haru says, unsure of what's really going on here. Do they want something from him? Why are they even talking to him?

"Yes, hi. So…we have a favor…sort of," Rin says sheepishly, ducking his head a bit as if too embarrassed by the fact that he was asking for some sort of favor.

"What is it?" Haru asks.

"We don't have a place to stay tonight," Rin explains and ah. Haru understands the desperate look in Rin and he peeks a glance at Sousuke, who's staring determinedly at his feet. So, if Haru says no, then these two would be stuck out when the first wave comes?

"So, you're asking to stay at my house," Haru adds up aloud and Rin ducks his head again, although nodding as well.

"If you wouldn't mind," he says. "I know we literally just met, but yeah…we have nowhere else to go and Sousuke thought you looked nice so…."

Haru studies him briefly, Rin shifting uncomfortably a bit under his gaze, but Haru finally nods, as if he actually considered turning them down.

"You can stay with me. It's okay," Haru says and Haru watches as Rin lets out a small sigh of relief. He looks at Sousuke as well and sees that he's smiling as well.

"Thank you so much," Rin says, smile so bright that Haru thinks it could counter the sun.

He just nods. "Sure. Here, we'll head home now."

∫rin∫

Rin honestly started to think that him and Sousuke would be stuck outside when the first wave hit and was already seeing his death in his mind because honestly, what was the chance of them getting anybody to help them so late at night?

Apparently that chance came in the figure of an unfairly attractive male who was just so happening to be wandering the streets alone.

They don't speak at all on the way to Haru's home, but Rin doesn't really mind. It's not as if he expected Haru to start asking him his life story when they had just met and besides, Haru doesn't seem like the type to speak so much when he just met someone or maybe just in general.

They reach a long line of steps and start going up them. Rin's never really been to this part of the city before so it was definitely a new sight to see as they kept inching higher and higher. He could hear Sousuke behind him, letting out small tufts of breath every now and then from the exercise. Even Rin is panting a bit when they get to Haru's place, which says a lot about how much exercise he's been getting in the past week, which is to say, none at all.

"This is it," Haru says, gesturing to a place that could look as if it belonged on the side of the road, if not for the ridiculous amount of steps before.

"Nice," is all Rin can say in reply because really, what was he supposed to say? Haru cracks a small smile at his response and quickly unlocks the door, stepping in first, Rin and Sousuke trailing in after him.

Rin's first impression of the place was that it was cold and horribly plain. Rin didn't have anything against plain houses, especially when it was the place he was allowed to stay at during the soon-to-come first wave, but it was hard for Rin to understand how a place could be so boring.

Haru shuts the door behind them, locking it once again and then turns around to face the both of them.

"So, we only have two bedrooms. My parent's and mine, but my parents aren't here, so do the both of you want to use that one? Or do you want to sleep somewhere else? What's okay for the both of you?" Haru asks and Rin has the sudden urge to reach over and place a light kiss on his cheek. Maybe it was the blue of his eyes that had Rin in chaos.

Rin stays perfectly still when he responds with, "Er…I don't know. Up to you, Sousuke?"

"I want to sleep alone, but I don't care where," is his instant reply. Rin nods, thinking over his words.

"So, he can sleep in one of the rooms and I can sleep with you? Or on a couch if you have one? Honestly, you could just give me a pillow and I'll fall asleep on the floor or something," Rin says.

Haru shakes his head. "I don't mind you sleeping in my room…unless you're planning on killing me in my sleep. In that case, then I'll have to get you a pillow instead and a locked room."

Rin laughs, rolling his eyes. "Why would the killer reveal his motives to his victim? This isn't a bad anime."

Haru shrugs. "Could be and we just don't know it." Rin just shakes his head, wondering who exactly this man was and why he was even being so nice to them.

Sousuke suddenly gives a loud cough. "Okay, well I'm going to go to bed now…?" Haru nods immediately.

"Here, I'll show you their room." He starts heading somewhere down the hall and Rin stands there awkwardly for a few more moments before Haru's already headed back toward him. "Do you want to go to bed too?"

"Sure," Rin shrugs, shouldering his backpack. Haru starts walking back down the hallway, but this time, Rin follows him, pacing his steps slowly and evenly. He doesn't know why he even noticed that.

The room is average-sized and plain, like the rest of the house, but it has an actual bed in comparison to a futon, so Rin's partially relieved.

"Do you min if I take off my shirt?" Rin asks. "It's incredibly dirty and I wouldn't want you to sleep next to me unless that doesn't mind you…?"

"You can sleep without it. It doesn't really matter to me," Haru responds. Rin nods and pulls it off of him, the smell of dried sweat and exhaustion raking his body. He thinks he feels Haru's gaze on him, but when he looks at him, Haru's prepping the bed, completely ignoring him.

Haru's changed his shirt, it seems and Rin slips into bed, sighing a bit at how comfortable the bed is. He looks at Haru, who's getting into bed as well.

"Seriously. Thanks for doing this," he says honestly and gratefully. He is nothing but thankful for the man. Haru nods and bites his lip.

"You're welcome, Rin."

"Well, good night," Rin says awkwardly, and Haru turns off the light beside him. They're pitched into darkness and all Rin can hear are the unsteady breaths escaping the pair of them and his own, quick heartbeat. It's almost as if his heart's a time bomb ticking away, waiting for the explosion. Fuck. It's tomorrow, isn't it?

"It's tomorrow," Haru suddenly breathes out and Rin's heart quickens. He's turned away from Haru, but it's almost as if he's right there in front of him, reminding him of everything that is to come. Rin almost wants to scream at him to shut up and to never talk about and forget that anything like that is to actually happen.

He wonders briefly once more how Gou is doing. He really fucking hopes that she's safe.

"Yeah," he sighs. "It is."

"Yeah," is all Haru says in response, before shifting and turning over so now they both have their backs to each other.

They don't say anything more and Rin's convinced that they won't even be able to sleep, but eventually, he's drifting off to the sound of Haru's unsteady breaths and the faint sound of Sousuke crying.

Well…death to tomorrow then.

*Jesus christ, I am updating like a crazy person this weekend go me :) Although, I still have yet to do my project that's due on Monday or any of my AP World homework ugh.

Anyway, I hope you liked it? I am really enjoying writing in this story and yeah, big things to come :)

Have an amazing day and Happy Easter!

Bai guys :)

-DiAnna44

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