This post has the following content warnings:
He wakes up suspended in the dark, on his side, ringing in his ears and the pain of a sudden stop in his chest, smelling blood and dust and gasoline.
Light filters in above his head.
His cheek is pressed against glass, which is flush with the ground.
Wow he hadn’t expected a pop quiz.
Whatever. Kyou doesn’t, like, talk. Camillo drops his voice.
“I have total amnesia. Don’t tell anyone, Z will freak out.”
He’s always exactly like this. Camillo had the worst crush, freshman year.
“Where are we going to go? After this?”
He was actually fishing for more monster information but thanks.
“I’m gonna, uh. See if they need help with the car.”
The combined forces of Z and Dorothy absolutely do not need help with the car, but the idea of small talk with Kyou is genuinely horrifying.
Camillo’s glad it — he — isn’t real.
Ratchet straps are baffling, and screwing up in front of Dorothy is excruciating. But Z is a good teacher, and Camillo is nothing if not stubborn. The monumental task of ratcheting will be achieved.
He gets a cursory “good work” from Dorothy before she moves on to hitching the busted car to the Jeep.
He’s dying! He’s dead! She’s not even real and he’s catching on fire and dissolving into a fine mist!
Camillo hides in the car.
“Just. You know.”
Why has he walked himself into this conversational situation. He didn’t have to do that.
“Talked to me.”
Z climbs into the car, looking a little less bloodied, stuffing his soaked shirt into a plastic bag that’s half-opaque and crumpled from repeated washing.
The spines running down his back are long and flexible, fading from skin-toned to dark red at the tips. He has a set of familiar holes running between his ribs.
They’re going to be spending more time on the road, this time, especially as the Jeep struggles to haul the weight of an entire second car.
Therefore, Z is going to Lean. It’s just common sense.
Leaning: it's common sense. Experts agree.
Camillo leans right back in Z's direction and reaches up to pet his floppy spines.
View Flat HTML
View Metadata
Search Post
