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turnupswritessometimes · 6 years ago

Text

The One With the Zombies

Title: The One With the Zombies

Chapter: 10

Word Count: 5455

Description: Another what it says on the tin from me - it's a Zombie Apocalypse AU because how else could this anime/manga get any darker? Whilst on the run from the outbreak of zombies, reporters Ibe and Eiji stumble across a New York street gang, safely huddled in an abandoned warehouse. As if the undead weren't surprising enough, Eiji finds himself becoming closer and closer to the gang's leader, mysteriously dubbed Ash Lynx. But safety doesn't last forever and soon it's only Ash and Eiji. And they're up against more than just zombies.

Note: This is available on A03, and I would recommend you follow it there, as I remember to update it. I would post a link, but then Tumblr wouldn’t include it in search results.

It was when Ash was facing away from him that he said it. He was staring out the window, his eyebrows pinched together.

"Do you know what I’d do if I could touch you?" Ash asked.

"Mm?" Eiji was fiddling with the TV remote. None of the channels worked, but he considered setting it to static and just staring at that. It was something to do.

"I'd kiss you," Ash said. Just like that, Ejji could feel his heart racing in every one of his muscles. "I'd sweep you down like they do in movies and kiss you. One hand on your back and the other buried in your beautiful hair."

Eiji paused. He wetted his lips because his throat was dry. Kissing Ash. Kissing Ash when they weren't covered in blood and because Ash wanted to kiss him. When had he wanted that? Had he fallen in love with Ash Lynx?

"I'd put my arms around your neck and kiss you back," Eiji said. His eyes lowered as he imagined it. Ash holding him.

"It'd be this big, mushy, slow kiss at first but then I wouldn't be able to control myself and I would kiss you until your mouth was black and blue."

"Mm!" His face was hot.

"And then I'd kiss your cheeks until they were bright pink." Ash's eyes glanced across at Eiji's, his mouth curving upwards as he spotted Eiji's red cheeks.

"Well," Eiji drew the word out because he needed to say something cheeky and clever that would make Ash grin. "I would have to kiss your nose until it went red."

That made him laugh. The first genuine laugh Eiji had heard in a long time. When it faded, he was still looking at Eiji. Green eyes searching his face.

Eiji was staring back, more words on his lips never quite making it to the air. There was something that had happened. This wasn't a friendly game anymore. Ash wasn't looking at him as if he was just a friend – just the Japanese boy that his gang found wandering around with a camera. He was looking at him as though he was shining. And Eiji didn't mind that. It did make him feel bashful - but it also made his chest warm, and he somehow knew that he was looking at Ash the same way.

Somehow, without even knowing it, Eiji Okumura had fallen for Ash Lynx.

There was a boy sat on the bed. A boy who looked even more like a girl than Ash did. A boy with long, dark hair and darker eyes. Skin the same colour as Eiji's.

He had looked up when Ash had kicked open the door and was now smirking slightly, as if he expected Ash to get angry. Ash didn't. He leant against the doorframe and crossed his arms.

He wasn't angry, but it did make him uneasy. If he didn't know where Papa Dino was and didn't have eyes on Eiji, he felt nervous.

"Yut Lung," the boy said. He looked even younger than Ash.

"Ash Lynx."

"So you're the favourite." It was said strangely, as if it was something important. Something to be covered.

"How'd you get here?" he asked. It had only been a few days, but he had forgotten the outside world existed.

"My brothers sold me for protection," the boy - Yut Lung, said it casually, but Ash recognised the tone of voice. It had hiding cracks underneath. He glanced up at Ash. Calculating his expression. "Charming, isn't it?

It did make Ash's skin crawl. A lot here did. But he was sensing that this boy wanted a rise out of him. He couldn't figure out why, but he felt like a circus lion being poked with a stick.

"Mm." Was the non-committal noise he chose.

"So do you think he'll do us both or just watch the two of us fuck?" Yut Lung was still talking lightly, but there was a fragility there. Brittle, Ash thought. This boy was terrified but he didn't want Ash to know it. "No offence but you're not really my type."

"Full offence, you're not mine either," Ash said. He shifted his weight, leaning against the other side of the doorframe. "Look, you can save the bitchy looks, I'm not here to play French mistresses with you."

"You say that now," Yut Lung paused, looking down. More and more fear was seeping into his voice. "What about when you're kicked out onto the street?"

"I'd welcome it."

"Really?"

"Zombies aren't the worst thing in the world." Ash only sounded slightly bitter when he said it.

Yut Lung looked at him again. He spoke slowly. "...You're something of a name in Chinatown, you know." He said. "Have you seen much of Shorter lately?"

"In passing," Ash said. "There's internet here. And electricity. How did that happen?"

"Because he's rich. He's a rich white old man and no apocolypse will change that." Yut Lung picked at a stray thread on the duvet. It made him look even younger. Ash was reminded of Soo-Ling - how his confidence faded whenever he was actually placed in charge. The same with Bones and Kong. "So now my brothers are trying to cash in on that."

"Round the clock protection from zombies?"

"I think the official term is walkers."

For all the cocky smiles that he had given Ash, Yut Lung sounded miserable.

"Zombies is better." Ash shrugged. He thought of standing outside of a warehouse a month ago and looking at a stammering Japanese boy tell him that zombies was too cool of a word not to use. It brought a twitch of a smile to his face.

And maybe it was because it was what Eiji would do. Maybe it was because he was missing his gang. Maybe the apocalypse had made him gone soft.

But he was stepping forward and ducking his head down so that his voice was muffled slightly.

"Two days. We meet Shorter in two days."

Dark eyes glanced up at him. Calculating again.

"Why are you telling me this?" Yut Lung asked.

"Because I'm offering you to come with."

"And leave a lovely air conditioned mansion?" A thin dark eyebrow raised at him.

"Air conditioning isn't worth staying for." Ash said.

That was when he heard footsteps up the corridor and leant back, tucking his hands into his pockets. They waited, and Ash's heart was pounding. No. No he had been to careful that they couldn't have found out now.

He put a cigarette between his teeth. Then at least if Papa Dino had heard he would be too ticked off by that to remember it.

But it wasn't Papa Dino.

Marvin was the one leering at Ash today and it almost made him bite the cigarette in half. He thought he had this under control. He thought he could do this - could ignore the shakes and the nausea and push down all the memories with the rest.

But Marvin was here. Undoubtedly to call in the favour. It had been for Eiji, Ash reminded himself. It had been for Eiji and no price was too steep for him.

He tucked the cigarette back behind his ear. He would need it later.

It had almost stopped Eiji's heart.

When the door had opened he had been expecting Ash. It was always Ash. So when it wasn't he hadn't known what to do.

This was just a man.

Eiji didn't know what he was expecting. A shadow figure or demon from a horror movie. The bogeyman. But this was just an ordinary old man - overweight and balding. Maybe if he smiled there would be a grandfather-esque twinkle in his eye. That was a disturbing thought. The thought that this man had a life and a family.

And had completely and utterly ruined so many others.

"Where's Ash?" The question came out of Eiji's mouth before he could stop it. It scared him - that Ash wasn't here but this man was. Dino Golzine. The man profiting off of the end of the world.

He looked at Eiji. Not in a particularly threatening way - not like a tiger stalking prey. Just looked, then eased himself into the chair in the corner. Leaning on a cane. He wasn't some immortal, evil creature. Just a mortal, evil man.

"He's helping out one of my men." Came the reponse. An ordinary voice. Not the voice of an eldritch monster, but it still sent chills down Eiji's spine. "Did you know he promised one of them a favour so that you wouldn't have to be checked over?"

Eiji hadn't known. He didn't know what to do with that information. Didn't want that information because it made him feel useless and ashamed. It made him feel guilty that Ash had to - that he had even thought about it for a moment. And he felt like Ash knew that. That Ash hadn't told him bot because he was ashamed, but because he knew it would send Eiji apologising again.

So he did what Ash did, and stayed silent. He still had a hand in the book Ash had found for him. The English was difficult to understand and it took him ten minutes just to read a single page, but what else was there to do but wait?

"Are you scared of me?" the man - Eiji refused to use his name because that would make him even more human than he was already becoming - sounded amused. "No," Eiji said, and was glad that his voice sounded as strong as it did. "No, I hate you. I hate you for what you've done to Ash."

Drained him of all colour and made him wake in the middle of the night retching.

"No," Eiji said, and was glad that his voice sounded as strong as it did. "No, I hate you. I hate you for what you've done to Ash."

Drained him of all colour and made him wake in the middle of the night retching.

There was a long pause. When he spoke, his voice was slow and quiet.

"...He's planning to leave, isn't he?"

Two days. Ash had said two days.

"No."

"You're not as good at lying as he is." He leant backwards, a faint smile on his face. "Where is he going?"

"I don't know," Eiji said. He fumbled, wondering whether to be honest or keep lying. "He wouldn't say - he wasn't - he wasn't serious."

"You're not as good at lying as he is." He leant backwards, a faint smile on his face. "Where is he going?"

"I don't know," Eiji said. He fumbled, wondering whether to be honest or keep lying. "He wouldn't say - he wasn't - he wasn't serious."

"He does not say things he doesn't mean." How could someone like this know anything about Ash? "He's kissed you, hasn't he?"

"No." Yet Eiji's lips tingled.

"You know if you keep lying to me, I can make things very uncomfortable for Ash."

"It didn't mean anything!" Eiji was getting frustrated now. He felt like a mouse being toyed with by a cat, and yet he was still lying. He knew that now. It might not have meant anything then, but it did mean something now. "It didn't - he was just happy to be alive - he wasn't seeing me - he wasn't-"

"But he is planning to leave."

"I said I don't know," Eiji repeated. "I don't know anything."

He must have been a better liar than this man originally thought. There was a pause, then a smile, then a long moment where he stood.

"It's no wonder Ash has been hiding you away," he said. Eiji just stared, though his heart was pounding. "It was nice to meet you, Mr Okumura."

He didn't vanish into thin air, or dissolve into the shadows. He just walked from the room. Like a normal human.

But Eiji couldn't deny that it felt as though a weight had been lifted. Like the air had been cleansed and he could finally breathe.

Ash did tell him things. Ash told him that Soo-Ling had been right, in a way. It was like Cell - whatever that meant. Ash had explained that waves - he wasn't sure if it was radio waves or mobile waves - but he was sure that had something to do with the outbreak of the undead.

He was sure that they had been lead back like rats in a trap.

"But why?" Eiji had asked. Flicking from static channel to foreign news to static.

"Because he doesn't like to lose. Not money, not merchandise, not anything that's his. And I'm all three."

"Ash." Eiji couldn't help smiling. "Are you really telling me that the whole zombie apocalypse was because of you?"

"Am I not worth an apocalypse?" Ash was smiling back. But it only lasted a moment. " I'm just a little plan on the side. Probably a test, to see if it works. There's more to this. Control the apocalypse and you control the world."

"He wants to take over the world?" It sounded like a joke, and Eiji was still smiling. Only because for all its absurdity, it was scary. That wasn't the kind of thing real people did. Not the kind of thing real people should be able to do. That made it scary.

"Who knows?" Ash had sighed and flopped back down on his bed. "Who knows what straight cis white old men want?"

The final day passed. They had everything under their beds - bags full of necessities that they would hitch over their shoulders. Then it was a matter of thing the bedsheets together and climbing out the window.

Ash had made it sound easy. It should have been. The right after dinner drink would allow him to disable the cameras they needed, make it look like a blip in the system. They would have the time they needed to cross the estate and be in the city by the early hours of the morning.

And everything had gone to plan so far. Everything had gone to plan until Papa Dino's fork was resting on his desert plate.

Ash's was untouched. He was struggling to keep food down lately.

"I want to show you something I've been working on."

Ash wasn't sure what to say. He hadn't really believed the part about grooming him to take over. Not deep down. Deep down he had never believed he would live till eighteen, much less outlive Dino. And he couldn't say he didn't want to see it now - not when everything was balancing on a razor edge. One wrong word to get him suspicious and they were through.

So he stood. And followed.

He was going to be late. He was going to be late back to their room and Eiji would be worried. He was going to be late to meet Shorter. But there was nothing to be done.

Maybe alarm bells should have rung when they went down the stairs. All the way down. But Ash had never been scared of basements. The bedrooms had always set him on edge.

There was a lab down here. It should have surprised Ash. Maybe he was running on too much adrenaline to think properly. Too much adrenaline because if he stopped to think about any of this he wouldn't be able to move.

So he stepped inside.

"Is this where the fountain of youth is created?" He asked. There was something in him that wanted to be snarky - some kind of superhero gene that meant he just had to have a quip for every occasion. He wished that was the truth. Really, he knew he had to say it because he was nervous. He didn't like this situation and couldn't put his finger on why.

"Maybe one day."

There was a heavy smell of chemicals in the air - something similar to a swimming pool. Everything was white and shiny, bleached within an inch of its life. A few scientists were down here, standing in the corner and making notes on their clipboards as they compared results with each other.

And of course there were the men who had stuck of Papa Dino's side. They had guns. Within an arms reach of Ash was a gun. His finger was itching for that trigger almost as badly as he needed a cigarette.

Ash tried to read everything he could in the second he was given to look around. Two words stood out everywhere.

"Banana fish." There was something about saying it out loud. Two words that seemed ridiculous together and yet incredibly familiar. As if Ash knew the phrase from long before.

"It was meant to be a drug." Papa Dino was walking through the lap, so Ash took careful steps behind him. He had the feeling of being a lamb led to slaughter. It was fine, he told himself. He was needed. They wouldn't get rid of him. "Something akin to mind control."

"You're kidding me, right? That stuff only exists in bad sci-fi movies."

"I said something akin to mind control. It was supposed to create a heightened state of paranoia. The test subjects could be persuaded to attack anyone."

“Charming.” Ash’s heart was pounding. Things were starting to piece together, and he didn’t like the sound of them. "But it didn't work, did it?"

"It became uncontrollable, yes. Not so much paranoia, rather a complete frenzy. It stops the heart, after a while. But a miracle of nature means that the brain is still active. Just enough to keep the person moving."

"A miracle?" Ash felt sick. It was like his bravado was being peeled back.

"The living dead," Papa Dino was still walking. Scientists still looking at them like they were a nature documentary. “Isn’t that a miracle?”

“I guess it depends on whether you’re in or out of the mansion.”

That got a smile that he couldn’t return. “But you’re in the mansion now, aren’t you?” A hand on his shoulder and Ash was looking away, pretending to read a nearby computer screen. “And you wouldn’t go back to the dante’s inferno that is New York City, would you?”

He knew. He knew, he knew, he knew.

So, Ash dropped any lingering indifference – any lingering acting – leant back on one of the nearest desks and crossed his arms. Dinner jackets made it hard to move. If they were going to run, he would have to ditch it or rip it.

“So, my choices are dante’s inferno or just regular hell?”

“It’s true then?”

“Why else am I down here?” Ash asked. His heart was hammering but he could drown it out. It became background noise when you were used to gunfights. “So, you invented a real zombie virus. Is this when you inject me with it?”

A hand on his cheek that he could barely feel. Adrenaline did that. Made him pure energy.

“Never. Not you.” It was almost fatherly. To people who didn’t know the whole truth, it might have been touching. Maybe there was a spark of warmth in those cold eyes, but Ash didn’t care to look. “This is for your own good.”

The tension was starting to bother him. “What have you done?”

“Invited a friend for dinner.”

Ash had seen Silence of the Lambs, but the way Papa Dino said that gave him more chills than when Hannibal Lecter did. It felt as though it had chilled him down to the marrow. For a moment, he knew his expression had slipped – he could tell from the smile appearing on Dino’s face.

“Where is he?”

“Only in the next room.”

Ash stumbled as he stepped forward, the scientists parting like a wave before him. The door behind them pushed open and he didn’t even see the room beyond them. He just saw a pair of dark eyes. Dark eyes. Not fleshy like egg whites. Eyes like a golden retriever.

His arms went around Eiji, with enough force that made Eiji stumble backwards. But his hands found Ash’s jacket – his fingers clutching the material for dear like. It had been such a sudden movement that Ash heard a rip. And, fuck, he had missed Eiji. He had forgotten how much nicer it was to touch Eiji. To feel the warmth of his body and his breath hitching in Ash’s ear. To choose to be close to someone. To feel the flutter of Eiji's heart in his chest like the wings of a trapped bird.

"Are you okay?" Ash demanded.

"I'm fine - I'm fine. But Ash-"

"I'm not so much."

It was another voice. A voice that made him freeze completely. Eiji's head was nestled on his shoulder, but he wasn't shaking. He was holding Ash firmly as he looked up.

Shorter was pulling himself to his feet. His skin was clammy and his legs shook as he did so. And yet he still smiled slightly as he pulled the sleeve of his jacket up. There was a tiny pinprick on his arm. "A virus. It's always the cheesiest movies that start with a virus."

"Shorter, no." They were the only two words he could think of. His fingers tightened into fists against Eiji's back and he felt Eiji press himself closer against him, like the way a dog would comfort someone.

"It's unthinkable. To let you go back to the chaos of the city. Especially now." Papa Dino's voice sounded far away. Like it was coming from above Ash and not behind him.

"I'm sorry, bud." Shorter was still smiling. Somehow, despite the world being jerked off balance, he was smiling. "I fought back as best as I could. I didn't have the heart to try and bite anyone on the way through."

"Let me guess." Ash's voice sounded rough. But he wasn't going to give in now. They had come too far for him to show that he was shattering into pieces. Brittle. He was brittle. "An extra strong dosage? Immediate effect?"

"What were you going to do? Try and find me a cure in a few days or so?" Shorter shook his head. Even his mohawk was drooping. "There's never a cure, Ash. And Maggie's just a depressing movie."

"So what's the lesson?" Ash turned, enough so that Papa Dino could see the white hot fury on his face, but not so that he could make out any features. "You'll infect someone every time I try to leave?"

"I told you, I can't let you leave. I'll even tolerate you your little friend, if it will make you happy."

Friend? Eiji wasn't a friend. Which was bizarre, because Ash hardly knew him. All he knew was that Eiji came from a small town in Japan whose name sounded like the name of a Gremlin. That he used to do high jump.

And yet he felt closer to him than anyone else he had ever known. He knew that he had to have Eiji by his side because otherwise he felt as though he was thrown into a choppy ocean without a liferaft. That was the surprising part about his life now. Not the zombies, but the fact that Ash Lynx had fallen in love. He had never expected to know what that really felt like, but now he did. He loved Eiji Okumura.

"Here." Shorter pulled out a revolver from his waistband. His hand was shaking as he held it out to Ash. "You need to take this. Its fully loaded."

No. The word didn't quite make it out of Ash's mouth. But no. He couldn't. He couldn't do this again.

And yet he recognised the look on Shorter's face. He recognised the waxy skin and dull eyes. Eyes that would be like runny eggs in no time, he knew. He knew he couldn't leave Shorter like this. But-

A hand took the gun. A hand with coffee coloured skin.

Eiji flicked the safety off.

"Its fully loaded," Shorter said. He was watching Eiji with a strange expression on his face. He was almost proud. "You know how to shoot it, kid?"

"Well enough." There was a determined look on Eiji's face. That was what kicked Ash's gut into action. He took the gun.

And in a split second all of his options raced through his head. He didn't have to shoot Shorter. He could turn around and shoot Papa Dino. Kill him now and take over his work. Find a cure for Shorter - keep him safe until then.

He could shoot himself. The ultimate act of defiance. Ruin perhaps the only thing that he was sure Papa Dino loved.

No he couldn't. He couldn't leave Eiji here. Eiji was the only thing he hadn't considered shooting.

Both of them. Go out like Romeo and Juliet.

No. There was only one real option. He aimed the gun at Shorter. His smile had started to droop at one side, as if he were about to have a stroke.

"I'm sorry," Ash said.

"What for? That you'll never know what it feels like to turn into a zombie?" His speech was starting to slur. "Just tell me about the shed, Ash. The video games and the rabbits and all that."

And despite everything, Ash found himself smiling.

"You're shit at video games, Shorter."

"Fuck you." Shorter had closed his eyes, but now he opened them. There was an almost lazy look to him. "Don't feel guilty about this, Ash. You're my best friend. I need you to-"

The shot rang out. The word ‘remember’ was underneath it like an echo.

Shorter fell forward. The world collapsed in as if it was made of paper.

Ash felt his fingers slip on the gun. What had he done?

What had he done?

Hands closed around his. Steadied the gun. Coffee coloured skin on ivory.

His eyes flicked sideways. Towards Eiji. His face was pale, but set. It set the fire off in his chest. No. No, they were getting out of this.

They weren't getting away with this.

Ash spun on his heel, firing the gun again. And again. And again. For a split moment, he wasn’t sure if he would ever be able to stop. He had hit Papa Dino. Just the shoulder but enough to send a spray of blood like paint from a spray can. And he had hit a doctor. One of the bodyguards before he could pull out his own gun.

The other one had his pistol pointed at Ash and for a moment he didn’t care if he was shot. He’d go out in a blaze of glory. Fuck it.

But then Eiji was pushing him to the side. Then a bullet was buzzing so close to Eiji’s ear that it ruffled his hair. He had his hand on Ash’s chest, holding him out of view of the door. Ash couldn’t die. Not here.

He backed along the wall, taking another shot. The bodyguard fell back. The scientists were crouching – avoiding the gunshots and trying to get to Papa Dino. So he ran.

And he was halfway down the corridor before he realised that he was holding Eiji’s hand. He slowed his pace and tried to loosen his grip. The beating of his heart was making it hard to hear anything else.

But he forced himself to breathe, to keep his ears pricked for the men that he knew would be coming after them.

They wouldn't be able to climb out the window. Not now. It would be ridiculous to try. And he had no idea where they would be going back to now that Shorter-

Now that Shorter was-

They'd need to get away quickly. They'd need wheels. And he knew where to get them.

"The garage," he said.

Eiji's hand tightened on his own. They started off again, pausing at every corner so that they could make sure the way was clear. It made Ash's skin itch. It was wasting time. They needed to move and move quickly.

"I'm sorry," Eiji said. "I think its my fault."

"Its not."

"You don't understand. He came to the room - he knew - he knew that we were leaving. He said he'd- if I didn't lie, then he wouldn't-"

"And what did you say?"

"That I didn't know. I didn't know anything."

"So you didn't tell him anything," Ash said. "So it's not your fault."

"So - so, then, how..."

"There was another boy. His name was Yut Lung. I told him we were meeting Shorter - I even said where. He was the only one who knew. It was him."

That was when they heard them. Shuffling footsteps. Of fucking course. They kept moving without saying a word to each other.

There wasn't a lot of other people around. The men who were running down the corridors were more focused on the "outbreak of test subjects" rather than Ash and Eiji. That suited Ash just fine. There was already too much blood on his hands. He had no desire to kill anyone else that evening.

It was in the garage that things looked messy. The labs had been down here and it was the labs that were overrun with zombies

They saw them through glass doors and on security monitors as they passed. They were close - closer than Ash felt comfortable with - but they hadn't made it to the garage yet. In front of the door they stopped. Eiji met Ash's eye and he wondered how they were able to tell what the other was thinking without saying a single word. He raised the gun, Eiji pressed the button to open the door, both of them tense and ready for a fight.

It was empty.

And there, only a few feet away was the gleaming red surface of their escape vehicle. Ash had never been particularly fond of it. At the time he had thought it was ridiculous and tacky. At the time he had known he would never use it - it was just a larger toy car for a larger boy. Now he had never seen a car so gorgeous.

The keys were on the rack. It opened easily and Ash slid into the leather front seat. It still had new car smell, it had been used so little. He grinned, the exhaust purring to life as he turned the keys.

And Eiji was in the passenger seat. Not smiling, but not shaking or frozen. He wasn't the boy from three weeks ago that had broken down at the sight of a zombie. He was Ash's partner in crime now.

They were silent as they pulled out of the garage, the door opening automatically. There was the street. The sky. The night sky stretching above them, stars sparkling like a stock photo. Stars didn't used to look like that. They didn't used to be so bright. So perfect. But this was the outside. They had done it. They were free.

"You have a car?" Eiji eventually asked. He was pulling his seatbelt across and sounded calm - way too calm.

Ash changed gear. His heart was racing with exhilaration - he felt like he was flying. "Sixteenth birthday present." He paused, feeling brave. Feeling untouchable and not wanting to waste this moment. "Do you know what I'd do if I wasn't driving?"

"What?"

"Kiss you."

"Ash, pull over." There was an urgency in Eiji's voice that made his gut drop. He obeyed, pulling to the side of the road and glancing behind him. He could see figures in the open garage door.

"What's wrong?" He asked.

"You're not driving anymore."

Ash glanced across at him. Eiji was smiling at him, ever so slightly. His eyes caught their headlights and shone. He was shining silver like a coy angel. So Ash leant over, not even hesitating as he pressed his lips against Eiji's. His mouth was open and his breath was hot. The kind of sexy kiss that action movies always had.

He could feel Eiji melting as he kissed Ash back. Eiji kissed Ash back and it sent tingles through him. They were kissing each other and it felt like lighting. Ash could get used to this – could get used to kissing Eiji, he thought, as he took Eiji’s bottom lip between his teeth. He toyed with it like he was savouring a sweet. There was a small sound from the back of Eiji’s throat and it made his heart pound. This. This made everything go numb. It was only him and Eiji and the rest of the world was blacked out.

"Ash?" Eiji’s voice was soft. His fingers grazed Ash’s shoulder.

"Mm?”

"Sweetie, there are zombies behind us.”

There was a small grumble in the back of Ash's throat as he pulled away, revving the engine back up. The shadows were closer in the rear view mirror now, but he was finding it hard to care. How could he care about anything other than kissing Eiji? It made everything else feel far away and insignificant. Helped chase away the thoughts that were plaguing him – that would come back as soon as he stopped for breath.

"That's shit," Ash muttered. He was basically flooring it. The roads were empty enough for it.

"Tell me about it, stud."

Eiji placed a hand on Ash's thigh and watched the smile grow on Ash's face. His fingers squeezed and Ash found himself grinning, because Eiji was being playful and completely calm about being chased by zombies.

"Does this mean you'll wear leather trousers?" Ash asked. It was better than any other thoughts that were going through his head.

"If you sew me into them."

I think that could be arranged.” Ash was still smiling. He wanted to keep smiling, but whatever spell had come over him had broken. Eiji’s fingers twitched and it made his stomach turn. It suddenly felt too hot and too heavy. "I can't- hold my hand instead?"

Eiji twisted his fingers into Ash’s outstretched hand instead. “Sure.”

“Eiji, I –“ Ash broke off. He was slowing down, now. Reality was coming back too quickly. “I don't know what to do. I don't know where to go now that – that –“

That Shorter was-

“Don't,” Eiji said and squeezed Ash’s fingers. “Don't think about it. Just - let's just focus on our next step. Do you know where Soo-Ling is?

“He was meant to be with Shorter.”

“What about Max?”

Ash dropped Eiji’s hand to pull the flip phone out of his breast pocket, handing it to Eiji and not hesitating to take his hand again. "Call him.”

Eiji’s hand was warm in his. Warm and solid and real and it felt like the only thing that was keeping Ash grounded.

“...you have another phone?” Eiji asked. He was flipping it open and going through the contacts.

“Yeah,” Ash said. He was concentrating on the streets – finding his way out of the city. He’d never seen it so empty and it was chilling. “They found my real one and a burner when I came through the door. They wouldn't think of finding another one.”

“That’s how you managed to talk to Shorter?”

“Yeah. It wasn’t easy. But the phone signal – it’s still operating from within the mansion. There are some others that he turned off remotely. I flicked them back on whilst he was asleep to send it.”

Eiji smiled at him. “Aren’t you smart?”

And Ash couldn’t answer that. Partly because he couldn’t find the words to respond to this Eiji, but partly because it wasn’t true. If he was smart he could have found another way around this. He wouldn’t have gone there in the first place. He wouldn’t have made shitty deals. He wouldn’t have shot his best friend.

The phone was at Eiji’s ear. He lowered it slowly. “It’s not going through.”

“What?”

“There's no signal,” Eiji said, checking it.

“Fucking bastard. Must have turned it off when I wasn’t looking.”

“It might have been the zombies.”

Ash took a breath. They were back on the main road from the city. Going back up the hill that they had rolled down on a bicycle. Ash had been whooping then. He had been overjoyed and a part of him was now.

“They'll be at the farmhouse,” Ash said. He wasn’t sure why he knew that.

“Are you sure?”

“No.” Ash sighed, his hand tightening on the steering wheel. “I'm not sure of anything. Don't even think I know how to get back there.”

“It’s somewhere safe,” Eiji said. “Let’s go. I trust you.”

“You shouldn’t.”

“It wasn’t your fault.”

“I don’t want to talk about it.”

Eiji whispered, “okay, sweetie.”

That made Ash’s heart flutter and relax like a dying moth. He could breathe, just, and his fingers tightened around Eiji’s. Eiji dropped their hands onto his lap, leaning back in his seat and taking a deep breath out.

The streetlights weren’t working, and Ash still wasn’t sure he’d be able to find the farmhouse. But their headlights cast a silver moon on the tarmac in front of them. It was oddly comforting – to not have to worry about what was beyond that light. They were safe, they were travelling away from danger, and now they were heading to safety.

And that was more than enough for now.

#banana fish #bf #ash/eiji #asheiji #asheiji fanfiction #the one with the zombies #turnupswrites

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