Bloom and Scatter [Free! Zombie AU]

Masks - Part 1

Rin knew better than to binge, but he hadn't eaten peaches in a long time, and Tachibana had been kind enough to turn a blind eye to it. He still didn't fully trust the guy, but he had to admit that Tachibana had indeed saved his life. And after a long overdue sleep, all Rin's things were still accounted for on his person, even though the guy was already awake and bustling about the house, gas mask still attached securely on his face. Rin didn't know what Tachibana's aims were, but he wasn't going to waste time getting friendly with the guy; as far as he was concerned, he was only using Tachibana for supplies and information. His only goal was to survive long enough to make it to the Iwatobi Coast, and then things would pan out from there. As for Tachibana himself, well, as long as he didn't get in Rin's way, Rin wouldn't put a bullet in him. He felt it was a fair compromise.

Part of him did wonder what Tachibana looked like. It was hard not to, considering that this was the guy he'd chosen to ally with for the time being, and being able to see his face was generally something that made it easier to trust him.

The gas mask seemed like an older design. It was black and synthetic and covered the entire face, with two filters alongside the chin and some sort of circular fixtures where his ears were. There was a pair of straps at the temple and jaw on each side that reached around the back of his head, where they were buckled securely against his mussed brown hair. The only visible part of him otherwise were his eyes – although the eyeholes were covered in a darkened glass, he could generally make them out. He supposed that if light shone in at just the right angle, he could probably see them clearly. The mask wasn't attached to any tanks as far as Rin could tell, and Tachibana had helpfully explained that it was an air purification model, hence the double heavy duty filters.

Other than that, Tachibana was tall and gangly. That was pretty much all he'd filed away about the guy.

"Kitajima," Tachibana said, "You should cover up completely."

"Are you insane, or has the heat gotten to you?"

"I live here," Tachibana said patiently, and gestured to his own person; unlike Rin, he was indeed covered from head to toe, "Direct exposure to the fog and the sun will get you burned and possibly heat stroke. What you need to do is wear light and thin clothing that completely covers up your arms and legs. I suggest you take off the tank top and wear only your hoodie, zipped all the way up. Then pull the hood over your cap."

"That sounds like bullshit."

"It's what works."

"This hoodie is made of wool."

Tachibana fell silent for a moment, "Then wear only your button up shirt. It's cotton, isn't it?"

Rin grumbled but began to change. He could feel Tachibana watching him and snapped his head up.

"What."

"Oh, sorry," he was always quick to apologise and it irritated Rin for some reason, "It's just... it's been a while. That's all."

"If you're ogling me like a goddamned pervert, I'll have you know that I will cut your balls up faster than a sushi chef if you so much as—"

"Oh! No! Did it seem like that? I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to give off that impression at all!"

Rin glared at him, hand still on the grip of his machete.

"I promise, it really isn't like that. I've just, um, it's been a while since I could last talk to another human. Or... well, be around another one without having to worry about getting attacked."

After holding his gaze for another moment, Rin released his machete with a grunt. He pulled his tank top off and paused at the silence.

"Turn around."