Day 56: Intercom, Late Evening

[damned_intercom]

Despite the rough start and the heavier snowfall, the buses managed to stay on route and on schedule. With minutes to spare, they arrived at the gates of Landel's Institute, back to the waiting arms of the military. All pretenses seemed to drop at this point, and the soldiers again took on their patented gruff exteriors. Patients were filed out of

Comments

M57

[zack_fair]

Somehow, Zack had managed to get through that conversation with Aidou without getting his head bitten off, which he considered a victory, albeit a small one. They also all made it back into the institute without any zombies ambushing, which was something he could be grateful for. Heading back to his room, though, Zack found that it was unoccupied and his roommate's bed was empty and neatly made.

"Terra..."

He'd only spoken to the kid once and he hadn't really known what his deal was or why he'd thought that they knew each other, but he'd still believed him. It was a shame that they hadn't gotten to know each other better, and that Zack's pattern of going through roommates like he went through hair gel was continuing.

It made it hard to even put on a happy face for whoever might be coming through the door next, and yet Zack knew that he had to. It wasn't like he could tell his roommate that there was a good chance that he wouldn't be hanging around for long, after all.

Letting out a sigh, Zack went to the metal box near his bed and dug out his batteries, moving them into his desk so that he would have easy access. It occurred to him that the soldiers were probably going to move it back into the box every morning, though, which was mildly annoying.

There wasn't much he could do about that, though, and so Zack sat himself down to eat his gruel, keeping one eye on the door.

Re: M57

[in_your_defense]

When Phoenix had entered the Institute once more, he'd worried that he would be forced back into the military outfit - but as time passed and he was guided back to the area where the men's rooms were kept, he realized that the worry was unfounded and he was being allowed to wear what they had given him that morning. A relieved emotion flooded Phoenix, though he had to wonder if there was a reason why they hadn't forced him to change back - a kindness, or was there a purpose?

The soldier hadn't said much to Phoenix, only enough to direct him to follow him, and once they arrived at M57 the soldier stopped. "Your room," the soldier said simply, before he opened the door expectantly, as if he wanted to make sure that Phoenix was going to enter. Stepping inside, Phoenix was greeted with the sight of an identical room to what he had awoken in the previous night (though most of it was memorable merely by how it had felt) - and the door was pulled shut and locked behind him as he stepped past it.

Standing there for a moment awkwardly, Phoenix's gaze was quickly caught by the sight of the man sitting upon one of the beds. He looked young, with long, black, spiky hair that Phoenix couldn't help but to compare to his own - and the defense attorney tried to summon up a convincing smile, as he wanted to make a good first impression. "Hey," he said in greeting, as he took a few steps into the smallness of the room.

As Zack was preoccupied with eating, Phoenix didn't offer a hand to shake, as he didn't want to force him to balance trying to eat with trying to match the gesture. Phoenix couldn't help but to notice the pinkness of the food he was eating, however - a cross between pepto bismol and the slime toys he used to play with when he was a child. Sitting himself down on the bed opposite of Zack, Phoenix rested his hands on the edge of the mattress. "That looks delicious," Phoenix commented wryly, as he watched Zack spoon up some of the substance. "I didn't know they made us eat colors around here."

[zack_fair]

Not much time passed before the door opened and a stranger was let inside. It was someone who looked a bit closer to his age than Terra had been, but that made it even more certain that the young man was gone. Still, this new roommate of his was greeting him with a smile, and so Zack had to do the same.

He also noticed the other's hair, though Zack didn't even think they could be compared, seeing how his was much longer. Still, it was an odd similarity. It was almost certainly some sort of coincidence, though, and there were other things he should be focusing on.

Like the fact that the man's comment about the food made it completely obvious that he was new to this place. "Yeah, it didn't used to be like that," he said with a sigh as he took another bite, watching as the stranger eased down onto the bed.

"Sorry for my lack of manners." He really should have stood from his seat to greet the other man, but it hadn't occurred to him until it was too late. Luckily, this guy didn't seem like the sort of person who would get riled up about something like that. "The name's Zack. It's nice to meet you." And maybe this guy would last a bit longer than the others. Zack certainly hoped so.