Roulette // Chishiya x Banda // alice in borderland

Twenty Five

Those last twenty four hours were really intense and Chishiya wasn't sure how he still managed to wake up before noon like it was nothing. Could blame the hunger, probably.

They'd gathered enough bottled water from the apartments in Banda's building earlier and while some of it was left to be drank, they poured the rest into the bathtub. It was a rather cold bath but Chishiya didn't mind; anything that could get the sweat off him worked. He noticed that Banda had a lot of various lotions and gels in the bathroom, everything scented similarly with either tropical fruit or coconut and almond. How much do I not know about him? A brutal serial killer that adores plants and fruit-scented shower gels is not someone I imagined myself with in Borderland. He was kind of grateful for his taste in selfcare products, however; for once since coming here he could actually feel fresh enough. 

They went to an emptied grocery store in the neighborhood, carefully trying to find proper food while still keeping their guard up. Chishiya sat on the counter and watched Banda search through whatever was left on the shelves - mostly instant ramen, to their surprise. A large part of canned food was gone, as well as rice and beverage. No alcohol either, fortunately.

"I'd like to know more about you. Like, small things" Chishiya said, his legs hanging off the counter freely. He was tired enough and Banda didn't seem to care about the little input Chishiya had to offer, doing absolutely nothing to help him search.  "I know you like the light switch sounds but that's not a whole lot of exciting knowledge, no offense. What's your favorite color?"

That's about as exciting as light switches are but we have to start somewhere.

"I haven't actually thought about it before." Banda stopped between the shelves and looked up, thinking. Both of his hands rested on a metal shelf in front of him. "I guess... blue?"

"Yeah, predictable. I like white."

"Now that's predictable" Banda pointed out and Chishiya just rolled his eyes in response. 

"Favorite animal?"

"Do people really think about those?" Banda needed another second to think about the answer. "I don't know. Ladybugs maybe."

"Huh. Not so common." Chishiya nodded. "That'd be cats for me."

"And music? You're so predictable I'll tell you yours." Banda stopped to stare at him for a longer while. "Rock. And heavy metal."

"And where did that come from?" Chishiya asked, amused.

"I don't know. I like classical music and jazz so I imagined you'd like the opposite."

"I like classical music too" Chishiya said, for his defense. "And... well, the whole rest you mentioned."

"I knew it." Banda sent him a brief smile, proud of himself, and took another dive into whatever was left in the pile of packed products. Chishiya enjoyed those moments, when they didn't do anything specific and just spent time with each other talking about nothing. Even if stuck in a terrible world at least that gave them the opportunity to meet and rest from whatever they left behind. Sure, fearing for life everyday didn't sound exciting but Chishiya never had that much free time before, away from hospital-related duties and family issues. It felt alright.

They left the market, slowly taking a stroll in the morning light. The birds wouldn't stop chirping and a bunch of dried leaves danced around carried by wind but other than that it was dead quiet. In a world like that one it was a rather good sign.

Coming home with bags full of groceries felt like such a basic task, bringing Chishiya back to thoughts about an everyday life. He could imagine them doing the same things in normal Tokyo, living together and spending time similarly, just coexisting in peace. Take a walk after shopping, go home, make food; in the evenings, when Chishiya would come back from work he could play the guitar while Banda read books, resting on the bed together before sleep. And after painful night shifts he could be coming home to Banda sleeping so soundly in his bed, making him breakfast before he wakes up. Chishiya could take him to his favorite onigiri bar on weekends, and maybe do karaoke together sometime. They could get tipsy and sing the dumbest songs they could find.