Chapter 2
The game lasted for a few rounds. Hanta found himself enjoying it greatly, loving the way that little traits were revealed in even his closest friends and finding similar interests in the new ones. Denki had put a flashlight in the middle, pointing upwards, so that everyone's faces could still be seen. He found himself yawning as the sun set, his head bobbing and eyelids growing heavy. Iida had already retired, and Midoriya went soon after him. The night watch was easily settled; Asui wanted to be awake to watch over her injured girlfriend, and Eijirou wanted to be the one to slowly bridge the gap between Katsuki and the group. Hanta didn't stare, but he could tell the blond was reassured by Eijirou and him staying awake. Definitely something happening there, Hanta muses, as Eijirou slides a hand down his forearm in a way that isn't strictly friendly.
Hanta sighs to himself, and wanders through the empty shelves of the gas station. Anything worth taking has already been took, so the shelves become a sort of privacy for everyone. Also, protection in slight separation; if something was to get in, it wouldn't get them all in a group and would be slightly slowed by the obstacles. They learned that early on, but that doesn't mean that the odd snuggle night isn't in order. Hanta kind of wants one, but he pushes the loneliness down and pulls out his space blanket before kneeling down.
The raven puts his bag down on the floor as a pillow, and prods at it until the hard things inside it shift so they're soft. He can hear rustling on either side of him and chatting somewhere to his left; someone turns the flashlight off and the ceiling stops glowing. Hanta lays on his back, half of the blanket underneath him and half around his side. He watches the ceiling with wide eyes; suddenly his earlier exhaustion has fled him and he's wide awake. He purses his lips and rolls onto his right side. His breath catches.
Through the slits in the shelves, he can just make out the red-white hair in the darkness. There's not a lot of room, but there's enough to tell that Todoroki isn't asleep yet, and that his gaze is fixed up on the ceiling. His position is similar to Hanta's was, sans the space blanket. It's not terribly cold in the gas station, but without the few rays from the sun, it's also not warm. Hanta shivers in his thin shirt, but Todoroki looks generally unbothered. His arms are crossed, and Hanta can see his chest rising and falling rhythmically.
Hanta squeezes his eyes shut. He should stop being a creeper and go to sleep, Christ. His hand reaches up and clasps around his grandmothers chain, the metal slipping between his fingers as he plays with it. It clinks against a clip on his bag, quiet and small, but apparently is enough for Todoroki to tilt his head over. Hanta opens his eyes just enough to see Todoroki look at him through the shelf space, and then scrunch his brows together. Hanta finds himself wanting to smile at the expression, something in his chest curling up warm, and sees Todoroki run a hand down his face before turning over.
Hanta rolls back onto his back, and eyes the ceiling. Suddenly, the heavy feeling is back, and he lets it take him under.
---
The coffee in the morning seems better than usual. Hanta got the pleasure of waking Todoroki up, who is definitely not a morning person. He earned himself a glare at his poorly concealed snicker, and a muffled raspy groan that sent him running back to the cash registers. Katsuki and Eijirou are nursing a cup between them, and Denki is passed out on Mina's shoulder on the floor. Midoriya is reading the ingredients on the coffee grind container, and Iida is rifling through his bag and repacking it. Hanta doesn't see Uraraka or Asui, but he assumes they're somewhere close if nobody is concerned.
Katsuki slides a half full Styrofoam cup in front of Hanta, and he takes it gratefully. Katsuki grunts. "Save some for the halfie, dumbass."
Hanta nods without really hearing him. His head is still foggy from sleep, but the sun is peeking through the windows with a golden glow. It lights up the dirty walls of the gas station, and everything seems very quiet. Eijirou sips the black coffee, and Hanta leans into the warmth around his shoulder.
Wait.
What?
Hanta stiffens minutely as the belt of warmth slides over his back, and a pale hand teases the cup from his hand. Hanta feels like he can't breath even as the heat falls away, taking up a place in his chest that he decides he should just get used to. Hanta tilts his head sideways to see a scar right beside his face, eyes closed and pressing the cup to his lips. Todoroki leans his hip against the counter, unknowingly sending Hanta into a spiral of hot hot hot and it's too early for this as he puts it down and yawns. "Good morning."
"Good morning, Todobroki! Want more coffee? I made double this time." Eijirou perks up like a puppy as Todoroki nods, and pours him more out of a pot. He must have dismantled it from the coffee machines at the back. Hanta wonders where he put the fire this time. "It's cooling off, but still be careful."
Hanta watches as Todoroki takes another massive gulp of the steaming cup, and nearly jumps out of his seat when the other boy sighs and leans further into his space. Their elbows brush, and the contact sends electricity up his spine. Hanta watches Todoroki and nearly misses him offering the cup back. Is he the only one affected by this? Is he overthinking it? It's different from the last time he had a crush, but then again he wasn't actively fighting for his life at the time. Todoroki could just not be a morning person, and not awake yet. Yeah, that's it.
"Good morning everyone!" Uraraka waves from where her and Asui make their way back to the main room. Asui sets her down on the chair again, and gently ruffles her brown hair before wandering off. Hanta smiles at her, but it wobbles as Uraraka's eyes zero in on the proximity of him and Todoroki. She smiles back, but there's a twist of evil in her eye that makes Hanta worried. Not like, threatened worried, but healthy worried because this WLW is about to fuck up his life (in the good way, he hopes).
Luckily she doesn't get a chance, because Mina gently shakes Denki awake again before speaking, "So what's the plan today? Give me a rundown, chief."
Katsuki grunts, and finishes his drink, "Hopefully fill the tank and get to the next stop. If we find a house to settle for a few days, that might be good."
Eijirou hums his agreeance. "Those houses are normally pretty well off on their own, fenced and maybe some private wells for water and stuff. If we're lucky, there could be a generator available."
"That would be ideal," Iida mutters from behind Hanta, "Unfortunately we have no immediate way of knowing and that could be very detrimental to our travels. Wasting time is not a priority!"
Hanta chews his lip. Iida has a point, but they also really could hit the jackpot with a generator. Holing up for a few days would be good; they could sleep and repair bodies and minds alike. It wouldn't hurt if they found batteries or other supplies people overlook when they're leaving a house. Uraraka could maybe get better medication that something over the counter, and they could clean up. "We could drive by a few. You can normally tell if something is worth stopping at just by the state of the windows. Anything with a solid and unbroken fence is probably safe, too."
"Flex-Tape is right. I'm not wasting gas on a shitty run, so we take out chances and hope we get a good one." Katsuki doesn't look happy about it, but what can they do? There isn't an x-ray option where they can peek through the walls and they're going to run out of food a lot faster now that there's double the mouths. "Let's pack up and get going. Shitty Hair, Four Eyes, you can help me tie those jerry cans on the top rack."
"Four Eyes?!"
"Name calling is Katsuki's love language, don't question it."
"The fuck did you say?!"
Hanta laughs, and looks at Todoroki. "Your nickname is halfie, by the way. Be ready for more as this goes on."
Todoroki scrunches his brow and nods seriously. "I will take it in stride. Bakugou seems like the type." The boy leans back then, his hand catching the sleeve of Hanta's shirt. Hanta can't help but watch him walk back towards the shelves, his back broad and shoulders strong. Hanta just knows that this guy could bench him with no problem. Todoroki runs a hand through his hair, mussing up the strands and Hanta swears he would fall off his stool if it wasn't so obvious.
"Congrats, you're a moron." Hanta startles as he turns back to Katsuki's smug glare. "Halfie? Really?"
Eijirou laughs as he moves out from behind the counter. He's walking away when he says, "Don't bully him, Kat. Leave the poor gay alone. Todoroki is a handsome guy, you know?"
At this, Katsuki flushes a little, and crosses his arms in a way that definitely isn't a pout. It's Hanta's turn to give him a smug look, "Shitty Hair? Really?"
Katsuki snarls and dives across the counter at him. Hanta shrieks and bolts outside, an angry Pomeranian right on his ass as he bursts through the doors. A startled Mina nearly drops an armful of empty bottles and wrappers, and Denki pokes his head around the side of the van, Midoriya right beside him.
"Denki, Denki, Denki save me!" Hanta squawks as he takes a sharp corner around the van, nearly skidding and falling. Katsuki's hand slaps the metal right where his head was.
"You're dead!"
"Only if you can catch me!"
Hanta laughs breathlessly as he climbs into the passenger seat. He holds his fingers out in a mock cross, and narrows his eyes. Katsuki is right there after him, flinging the door wide open. "The power of God compels you! The power of G-"
Katsuki grabs his hands and hauls him out of the van and deposits him on the pavement parking lot. "The power of God has nothing on me, get that through your thick skull and go help pack up."
Obviously, Hanta does what he's told and takes the walk of shame back to the gas station. He plans to head right to his little shelf home and pack, but he's surprised when Todoroki hands him his bag. "Oh, thank you." All of the zippers are closed and nothing is notably wrong with the bag. He takes it by a strap and sees that even the little Ghibli kodama keychain decal is swinging happily.
"No problem." Todoroki ducks his head and brushes past Hanta, but that doesn't stop the giddy smile that crosses his face as he slings it over his shoulder. He can feel the space blanket in one pocket, folded neatly and tiny, and the new weight that he will later identify as a full water bottle. So he's hot, awkward, and thoughtful too. Sounds just like Sero Hanta's type.
The gas station is quickly packed up and checked over one last time; they decide to hurry it up as Iida catches the sight of a few lurkers stumbling down the road. They all start to climb in the van, but one lurker is faster than the others and gets a bit close for comfort.
Hanta clicks his tongue at it. "I got it, just be ready to go." He jumps down, and pulls the knife that's safely sheathed on his thigh. It gleams in the sunlight, and he taps the butt end against the door of the van. "Over here, estúpido. Come on."
He leads the lurker away from the van with a sharp whistle. It must have died a sad death; the abdomen is completely cut open, and the entrails drag with every step. hanta is surprised it hasn't tripped yet, but as it stumbles towards him, he can see that it's pretty damn unstable. Hanta dances under a swinging arm and watches as its mouth opens in a nasty wet snarl. Yellow teeth glare at him, and Hanta lunges forward with one foot. He kicks the knee of the lurker in, folding the softened bone and sending it crashing down. It reaches for him, but he bats the wrist away with his forearm and stabs straight down into it's head. Immediately, the movement stops and it slumps. Hanta pulls his knife out and leans down to wipe it on what's left of the clothes before sheathing it.
The van rumbles behind him, and someone slides the door open. Hanta can see the other lurkers getting closer, and doesn't question it as he swings himself in. he barely has the door closed when Katsuki pulls away, the change between gravel and asphalt crunching under the tires. Hanta nearly loses his balance, falling back towards the window, but a large hand wraps around his and pulls him upright again. Hanta exhales sharply and grabs the person with his other hand. And of course, of course, it's fucking Todoroki. Apparently the seating arrangement didn't change.
"Are you okay?"
Hanta nods, glad that he had the foresight to put his knife away. "Yeah, thanks man." Todoroki nods, and only then does Hanta realize they're still holding hands. Tightly. Hanta quickly lets go. "Ah, sorry 'bout that!"
Todoroki says nothing, but shrugs and returns to sitting normally. "It's better than you falling out the door. Please be careful."
Hanta blinks, floored by the sincerity in his voice. He grins, but it's small and probably accompanied by flushed cheeks. He sits back, choosing to ignore the whispers behind him and the smug look in the review mirror. "Of course."
Evidently satisfied, Todoroki nods and goes back to looking out of the window. Hanta can't seem to drop the grin on his face, even as Eijirou offers him the little iPod Shuffle they found in the gas station. It was plugged into a battery run charger port, which looked like a crackhead made it, but it works. He doesn't know what's on it, but he sticks on earbud in. He glances at Todoroki, and then up at Kirishima. The raven sends him a wide smile and a sneaky thumbs up back. God, what is he doing?
"Todoroki, wanna listen with me?" Hanta offers him the other earbud, some alternative song playing through the wires. If he takes it, they would have to lean a little, or one of them could move to sit on the middle-
"Oh, sure." Todoroki unclips his seatbelt, which makes Katsuki glance up, but he doesn't say anything as Todoroki moves closer to Hanta. He takes the earbud, and leans his shoulder against the side of Hanta's seat, moving bags and backpacks out of the way to make room. Todoroki glances back, and wordlessly shuffles up to make room for Mina's knees behind him, and rests his arm on Hanta's seat even more. The hot line of his exposed forearm is like a fire as it brushes Hanta's thigh, but he can't find it in himself to say a word as Todoroki hums along to whatever is playing. Hanta's heart seems to want to break it's way out of his chest, and he's definitely not expecting Todoroki to look up at him with the first proper smile he's seen from the boy. "This is nice. My brother used to play this on his guitar."
Hanta grins back at him, and turns the volume up one click. "A little nostalgic?"
"A bit."
"Want me to change it?"
"No, it's alright. It reminds me of him in a good way."
"Alright."
They settle back into silence, and Hanta finds his hands slipping down his lap. Katsuki and Eijirou are chatting up front, but he can't concentrate on their words as Todoroki's head falls against his bicep. Hanta looks down, and sees his hand mere inches from his own. Hanta holds his breath, already thrumming with the split-dyed head on his arm, and gently encases Todoroki's forearm with his hand. Just above his wrist, not quite on his elbow, and Hanta finds that his hand follows the curve perfectly. Todoroki's head moves against Hanta's arm, and he prepares to pull back, thinking he'd overstepped, but Todoroki just sighs, and seems to melt further into the side of the chair.
Hanta smiles softly, and he glances up to see Katsuki watching him through the mirror with an indescribable look. Hanta sends a pointed look at Eijirou, who's happily talking to Iida. He looks back at Katsuki, who's frowning in a more pensive than angry way. He glances back at Hanta, who just offers a small smile before looking away and back down at Todoroki. Katsuki needs to do it by himself, but Hanta knows that Eijirou would never reject him. it's just a matter of who moves first.
But that, of course, is none of his business. For now, Hanta is going to doze off with a pretty boy leaning against him, music crooning in his ear, and a warm feeling that surrounds his heart. Yeah, he muses, absolutely none of his business.
---
The first house they stop at is definitely a bust.
Katsuki keeps the van running, ready to leave at a moments notice incase things go south. Hanta and Todoroki stick together, and Iida and Denki are the other pair. They slowly move around the outside of the house, checking windows and peeking in rooms. Denki comes around the side and shrugs. "I can't see anything, and there's nothing moving. Two lurkers, but we took care of them. The backdoor was wide open though, so I'm not expecting a lot."
Hanta looks to Todoroki. There's still a line from Hanta's shoulder on his cheek. "Do we go in?"
Todoroki shakes his head. "If the door was open, there's no point. I'd say it was already cleared, and we have a few hours of daytime left. Bakugou would probably want to move on and find something promising."
So they head back to the van, hop the little fence that surrounded the house, and kept going. Hanta takes the time to check on Uraraka's wound - it's starting to heal nicely - and rewraps his own knife slice. It's mostly closed, but as he slides his glove back over it, it feels more secure and safe. No guts are going in that cut, no sir. "is everyone good? No aches or bruises or wound that you haven't told me about?"
"Can you fix a broken heart? The Shuffle is dying..."
"Unfortunately, I'm only practiced in amputation and not therapy, so that's a negative."
"Damn."
Hanta chuckles lightly, and settles back into his seat as they slowly move on. The gas gauge is getting lower, but the jerry cans on the roof rack will hopefully tide them over. Hanta is quite attached to the van; he doesn't wanna give it up just yet. It was a golden find, so maybe the luck will hold and they won't have to abandon ship.
"Let's see what the next house has to offer."
As it turns out, there was a few things that were useful. They uncovered a bottle of prescription medication called tramadol, which was taken for Uraraka to help her pain. They found a huge stack of batteries, all of different sizes, and when Hanta opened the bedroom vanity he found out why. If he could choose one way to scare his friends, it would always be to dump a basket of dildos over the railing below. Denki's shriek is still ringing in his ears when Hanta runs into Todoroki, who's halfway inside a hallway closet.
"Should we be grabbing cloths?" His low voice echoes as Hanta approaches, and Hanta shrugs, leaning closer to Todoroki so he can look inside the closet. It's a linen cabinet, and has piles and piles of towels. Hanta's gaze slides over to the shoulder right beside him, and he can help but inhale. He was right, Todoroki does have the slight scent of smoke, and Hanta loves it.
"Maybe, grab what you can and see if there's any bags to put them in. They're good for packing wounds and stuff, and work wonders as pillows. Let's see if there's any blankets we can grab too." Hanta wanders into the nearby bedroom - not the dildo room - and starts rummaging through the chest at the foot of the bed. He's looking for thin, stackable and easy to fold blankets, ones that they can easily store. He blinks as his hand brushes against metal, which is strange seeing as this is a wood chest. "Todoroki, come here for a sec. Help me lift these out."
Todoroki comes to the opposite side of Hanta, and starts helping him haul wool blankets out of the chest. A case thunks against the bottom, and they share a look. Hanta wraps his hand around the handle, and when he lifts the briefcase, lots of things rattle inside. He smirks at Todoroki, who watches him as he sets it down on the bed. "If these are tons of vibrators..."
The case clicks open, and Hanta trails off.
Bullets. Tons and tons of bullets. They're packaged into little cases, all with what looks like matching sizes. Hanta wasn't expecting it, but he can't say that he's upset. He closes the case. "If there's bullets, there's probably guns. I'll take these out, can you bring the blankets?"
Todoroki nods, still looking at the case with an uneasy look. Hanta catches it. "It's okay, we only have a few guns. We haven't used them in a while, they're noisy and attract unwanted attention, so we use knives as much as we can." Hanta pats the case. "I know that others use them a lot, and people are gonna start getting desperate for ammo. If we take it, even if we don't use it, then they don't have it to use against us. Call it foresight, or if you wanna be mean, paranoia." Hanta ends his sentence with a wink, and smiles at the blush that colors Todoroki's ears and cheeks.
"It's smart, Sero. Iida has a gun, we can let him know and see if anything will fit it."
"Sounds good. Let's go."
Hanta hears the other boys footsteps behind him as they walk back downstairs. Mina is still looking through the kitchen, and Hanta is pretty sure Midoriya is in the bathroom. Hanta holds the door open for Todoroki, who reaches over his head to grab it. They turn towards the van, where Katsuki is securing a jerry can back to the roof rack, and hear a shout from beside the house.
They drop what they're doing, and are immediately on guard, but as Denki and Asui come around the side of the house, they relax.
Denki waves, "We found a water pump! We can clean up!"
Katsuki rolls his eyes, but Hanta knows that he's feeling the same joy as the rest of them; it's not as good as a shower, but getting cleaner in any way is always amazing. Hanta nudges Todoroki's arm with his own. "Hey, we can put those clothes to use now."
Todoroki huffs, but it's light and he nudges his arm back hesitantly. "I guess so."
---
They end up staying there for the night. It hasn't been decided if this is the settle-down house, but as Hanta wipes his shoulders off with a cool, damp cloth, he really couldn't care less. Dirt is smudged against his tan skin, but he wipes a few times more and it comes off. He's alone in the bathroom, the water changed out and slightly warmed on the fire Todoroki got going in the old woodstove. It's cooled off by the time it reaches his skin, but it's better than nothing.
Hanta sighs, and turns around so he can see his back in the mirror. Scars cross down his back, nowhere near fading and not old enough to be totally white. At least they stopped scabbing over about a month ago. Reaching the best he can, Hanta gently rubs the cloth on what he can get at. They aren't at risk of getting infected, nor opening up again, but he should still try and be as clean as he can. Hanta is fast about it, letting his chest dry as he strips off his pants and wipes down his legs and whatnot. There is a new pair of boxers sitting on the toilet beside him and he pulls them on, and shakes out his pants in the tub. The new long sleeve is a light grey, and he rolls up the sleeves before tugging his gloves back on. The scars on his hands closed up long ago.
Dipping and wringing out the cloth, Hanta leans over the sink and wipes off his face. Dust and dirt comes off, revealing somewhat smooth skin and heavy bags under his eyes. He can't do much about his hair, but as he gets his face clean as possible, he decides it can wait. His neck is already wiped off, and Hanta steals a hair tie from the drawer to tie his hair back. The yellow bandana goes back around his neck, and he's just lacing his boots when someone knocks on the door.
"Sero, we're all going to be in the kitchen!"
"Okay!"
Hanta hums a song to himself, and realizes that it's some sad love song. He finishes wit his boots and dumps the dirty water down the sink. He leans his hands on the counter, and stares at his clean face.
He's lost some weight since the beginning. His jawline is a bit more defined, and there's slight scruff that makes the edges rough. Maybe there's a razor or something in here that he can take with him next time. He takes his hair out of the tie and redoes it, making it a bit tighter before unlocking the door and heading to the kitchen. The hallway is dark, but someone has a flashlight on in the kitchen. He can smell the fire in the stove and something simmering in a pan on it, and prays that Katsuki or someone caught something to eat. He was a little tired of running strictly off protein bars and popcorn.
Everyone is gathered around the center island, the stack of Uno cards laid out. Bakugou and Kirishima float around the kitchen, poking idly at the fire in the stove and stirring a few things on the two saucepans. Hanta spies an open stool beside Midoriya, and deftly slides in. The game that's going on intense, and Hanta has to stifle a snort at the sheer amount of cards in Todoroki's hands. Mina has two left, and it's a staredown between her and Iida as to who is gonna hit uno first.
Hanta peeks at Midoriya's cards; he's doing well, with only four left. Two green and a yellow and wild draw four, and the stack is yellow right now. Midoriya looks sideways at Hanta, and Hanta nudges his head towards the draw four. Mina is beside him, and Hanta knows she's ruthless so he'd rather take his chances with Iida. Midoriya lays the wild card down, and Mina howls as the table explodes.
"Cheating! Hanta, you know the rules!"
Hanta raises his hands placatingly. "I don't know what you're talking about, your Honor."
Midoriya laughs as Mina grumbles, and adds four cards to her stack. "Pick a damn color, traitor."
"Green."
The game progresses, and Katsuki ends it by laying a steaming plate of some kind of meat on the table. He slams down a handful of forks, and crosses his arms. "Eat up, bastards. Make sure everyone gets some." He picks up his own fork and stabs a piece before chewing thoughtfully on it. "Gotta add more basil next time..."
Hanta picks up a fork, and leans across the table to snag a piece. There's a decent amount of meat, so maybe Kirishima's traps worked well. Rabbits are fast, so lurker's can always catch them, but in the end, they're just animals. As it turns out, lurkers are just as stupid, and they fall in makeshift traps all the time. He wonders if there's any sheetpans in the kitchen.
"So how are we splitting rooms? The house is pretty secure, but we should take advantage of closed doors," Asui says, licking her fingers clean of juices. Everyone seems to be in agreeance, so they start to divide what they know. There's three bedrooms and two couches that pull out into hide-a-beds. Asui suggests that her and Uraraka should take a bedroom, for the sake of Uraraka's leg, and Hanta immediately requests to not be close to that room tonight. Katsuki and Eijirou volunteer to take a couch, ever the loyal and protective parents, and Midoriya and Denki offer to take the room across from the girls. Mina glances at Iida, and shrugs.
"Iida and I can share a couch too. Hanta, you and Todoroki take the upstairs room. From there, at least you can see if something is coming."
They all agree that no one really has to keep watch tonight; the fence and the security of the locked and barred windows and doors is enough to make them all exhausted, and they deserve at least a night of sleep. Hanta doesn't hear much after that. He keeps replaying Mina's sentence in his head.
...you and Todoroki...
...upstairs room...
Dios mío.
Hanta doesn't really want to sleep on the floor, not when the bed looked so soft, but he just might for the sake of his sanity tonight.
People don't start to turn in right away; the game of Uno is continued after the meat is finished, and Hanta watches as Todoroki slowly starts to lose his cards. Mina wins the round, regardless of Hanta's meddling, and they start anew. Todoroki wins it surprisingly fast, saying Uno! with the lowest and most excited tone Hanta's heard from the guy. It's adorable, really.
Katsuki and Eijirou leave the kitchen first, and Hanta can hear them checking doors and locks. The couch creaks, and Kirishima laughs from the living room. Hanta turns his attention back to the table, and catches Todoroki's gaze. Hanta offers a grin, and Todoroki looks away, but not without a small smile back. Another twenty minutes passes, and soon everyone is yawning and ready to turn in. Asui helps Uraraka limp to the bedroom, and Denki and Midoriya follow, chatting about something to do with videogames. Hanta makes a move towards the stairs, and looks back at Todoroki. He's slowly standing up from the stool, almost swaying on his feet. A huge yawn breaks his face, and Hanta's chest squeezes.
"Come on, Todoroki. Bed time." Hanta teases, and Todoroki just nods sleepily, eyes half closed already as they head up the stairs. He follows after Hanta. Suddenly, everything feels much closer and intimate than when they were up here before. Maybe it's the darkness, or just the way that Hanta can hear the other boys breathing right behind him. They get into the bedroom, and Hanta closes the door. The window is illuminating the room, the moon just starting to achieve its peak.
He turns to see Todoroki kicking his boots off, and moving to flop on the bed. Hanta laughs softly at him. "Oh, no amigo. Brush your teeth first, and then we can go to bed."
The bedroom they landed in has a joint bathroom, so Todoroki groans and floats over, socked feet quiet on the floor. Hanta sees and hears a flashlight click on. He unties his own boots, and waits on the bed for Todoroki to finish up. Hanta unbuckles his belt, and takes off the sheath strapped to his thigh. It's no good if he stabs himself or another while he's sleeping. He lays the weapons and belt on the floor beside his backpack just as Todoroki comes out of the bathroom.
"I left the flashlight on for you."
Hanta nods, unsure what to say as the boy comes closer. He holds his breath as Todoroki sits beside him, above the covers, and takes off his own belt. Leather slipping through beltloops should not be a turn on, but here Hanta is, watching large hands move across the strips and oh God, his shirts coming up-
Hanta springs up, bouncing Todoroki slightly. He feels light and breathless as he walks into the bathroom. He nearly slips on the tile, not used to slippery sock feet. it isn't often that he takes his boots off to sleep. Hanta eyes the unopened toothbrush packet, and the water bottle that sits next to it. There's an open brush that sits in the holder, and of course Todoroki would put it back in the holder. He's definitely different, but Hanta doesn't find himself minding as he dips his brush in the bottle and squeezes a tiny dollop of mint paste on it. It feels so good to brush his teeth; he takes back all those times he complained as a kid because mini-Hanta didn't know what he was missing.
Hanta spits and rinses, and turns the flashlight off. He walks out of the bathroom, and has to stop and switch his breathing to manual. Todoroki is cuddled up in the bed, under the covers this time, and hugging a pillow to his chest. He's on Hanta's left, which is fine because Hanta likes the actual left side of the bed better. Hanta slowly creeps up, careful not to make too much noise, but Todoroki looks dead to the world. Hanta huffs softly, and pulls the corner of the blanket back to crawl in.
He settles under the covers, and this seems a lot easier than anything he's ever done. Getting into bed with a boy he met like a week ago? Best decision of his life. He's so proud of past him that decided stopping at that shed was a good idea. Hanta tucks the blanket under his chin, facing Todoroki, and resists the urge to brush his fingertips over his cheekbone. His scar is slightly hidden by the pillow, but the blanket squished against his cheek doesn't conceal it completely. His lashes are long, and flutter against his cheeks when he shifts, but doesn't awaken. Hanta exhales, and they're just close enough that his breath moves the wispy hairs on Todoroki's forehead.
Hanta surmised quickly that his hair isn't dyed; it's unnatural, but the gene mix-up seems to suit the boy perfectly. The split is directly down the middle of his head, but there's no hair loss or patches to make Hanta think that it's an autoimmune disorder. It's just the way it is, and Hanta likes it.
He rolls onto his back, and the last thing he remembers is the popcorn ceiling and the warmth on his right arm.