Day 29: Cafeteria (2nd Shift)

[fly_petrelli]

Nathan had never actually been in a nuthouse before and had only recently contemplated checking himself into one in a fit of sarcastic, self-depricating humor as of late. It was safe to say that he wasn't terribly familiar with the typical layout, even though he guessed it wasn't too hard to assume in this case. Everything was clean and painfully

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[the_clown_king]

Tamaki was able to fake a smile for a bit. It was the best he could offer. But then... he just couldn't anymore, and he excused himself with the excuse that he needed to eat - he hadn't eaten at brunch. So he took himself to the cafeteria and took some food, letting his face fall once more when he was away from the twins.

He'd do his best for them, but he needed to deal with all of this. He couldn't be his usual self with all of this happening all around him. He sat down with his tray and poked at his food, almost scared to talk to anyone for fear of more bad news.

[lost_metal]

A little space and a quick nap had left Ed feeling a little better, even if he had been plagued by questions by that strange man. Honestly. But now he had more important things to think of.

He'd spotted Tamaki's blond hair on the way to the cafeteria and slipped in after him wanting to check that he was alright. He didn't look... well, he didn't look right and it worried Ed.

He grabbed a tray and some food and went over to slip into the seat next to the other blond. "Hey," he said, frowning a little at the look on Tamaki's face. This wasn't right!

[the_clown_king]

"Oh! Ed!" Tamaki looked up, and a small smile flitted across his lips. "I'm so sorry I never came back last night - there was a woman, she was badly hurt, I carried her inside and then there were all of these people who were badly hurt and they just kept coming and there were only a few of us on duty...."

A new wave of worry and sadness swept over him when he remembered he'd failed the other boy, and he pushed his tray away, his appetite lost once more.

[lost_metal]

That smile was much better to see on Tamaki's face, but Ed hated that it had disappeared so quickly. What had happened? He'd seemed fine yesterday!! And now...

Ed returned the smile and then shrugged. "Don't worry about it," he replied. "Helping someone who's hurt is more important. I think everyone got out fine anyway. I meant to come and check on you, but night ended just as I got to your clinic."

[the_clown_king]

"Good. That...everyone got out fine." Tamaki nodded. "I was worried. It was...very bad." He shifted, and reached up to touch the cut beneath his eye, still red and fresh. He'd read on the bulletin...about those monsters, and how the chose their targets.

He was never going outside again.

[lost_metal]

Ed nodded solemnly and then frowned darkly as he noticed the cut on Tamaki's face. He grabbed Tamaki's hand with the automail and reached up to touch the cut gently with his flesh hand. "What happened?" he asked, anger in his voice. He was going to kill someone for this! How dare they hurt Tamaki?!

[the_clown_king]

"One of those...bird things," Tamaki explained, looking down. "I was trying to get inside, and it attacked. I kicked it, though. And it backed away. It's going to leave a scar, and it's right on my face!" And it was such a silly thing to be so upset over, but it was his face! It had disfigured him!

[lost_metal]

Oh, those. Yes, Ed had got his own share of scratches from them, but Tamaki was lucky that he still had an eye! Another inch or so... Ugh, he didn't want to think about it. "But you weren't hurt any worse, right?" Ed asked, concern colouring his voice. He was worried! "And you fought it too!" he continued, a proud expression on his face. "Scars aren't so bad."

[the_clown_king]

"No, I wasn't hurt any worse." Tamaki shook his head. "But...it's on my face!" How could he possibly explain to Ed what that meant? "I'm disfigured! How can I Host with a horrible scar on my face?!?"

[lost_metal]

Ed heaved a sigh of relief when Tamaki said that. So the cut was the only injury. That was good to know. He'd been worried that those things had hurt Tamaki much worse and it would be his fault for not helping Tamaki last night, or for not making him a weapon.

He blinked in surprise when Tamaki continued, a little baffled by how upset Tamaki seemed to be over this. "You... you aren't disfigured!" he replied insistently. "It's... have you even had anyone look at it? They could heal it! Besides..." he said, grasping desperately at straws and the covers of romance novels that he'd passed in various bookshops and libraries, "Girls think scars are attractive!"

[the_clown_king]

"Not on me!" Tamaki bit at his lower lip. "I'm a prince type! I can't have a horrible scar! It doesn't fit! And they put little stitches in it, but that's only going to make the scarring worse! I'll have to have laser cosmetic surgery to fix it!"

[lost_metal]

And now Ed felt like a horrible person because Tamaki looked as though he was going to cry and Ed never had a clue what to do when people cried. "Hey..." he began, and then gave him a curious look. "What's laser cosmetic surgery?" Hell, what was a laser? But he shook himself and a sheepish look appeared on hsi face. "It can't look horrible on you, Tamaki," he said. "It's like... like a mark of honour. It shows how brave you are."

[the_clown_king]

"Oh, it's when they use lasers to correct blemishes and disfigurement." Tamaki waved his hand as though that were nothing. "They can get rid of tattoos with it, too."

A mark of honor. It was a mark!

"But it's on my face! I have scars all over now, but I don't look like me anymore. And...oh, everything's awful today. People are missing and everyone's disappointed in me... but I can't be happy! My best friend is gone, and I don't care what the twins say, I don't think anyone goes anywhere good when they disappear here!"

[lost_metal]

It was all very well saying that, but there was one question still to be answered. "What's a laser?" And they could get rid of tattoos? He didn't know that was possible!

"Of course you look like you!" Ed insisted, awkwardly running his thumb over Tamaki's cheek. "You look like Tamaki and you're still you." Who cared about scars? Ed had loads of them and it didn't mean anything more than that he'd got hurt.

But the news about people disappearing worried him. One of Tamaki's friends had gone? "No-one is disappointed in you!" he said fiercely. "You're doing a great job. You're helping people when most of them are being selfish. You don't have to be happy all the time. This place sucks."

He paused for a minute, thinking about what he'd been told. "And I don't know where people go when they disappear, but they aren't dead or anything. I was here before, apparently and then I disappeared but I'm ehre now, even if I don't remember anything about it. And the same happened with Al. So they can come back."

[the_clown_king]

"It's a...it's a laser." Tamaki didn't really now how to explain it. "It's some sort of super powered light, I think." He reached up and took Ed's hand in his, pulling it away from his cheek.

"They expect me to be happy all the time. The Idiot King." He gave a hoarse little laugh, that sounded very forced. "But I just can't. And... how do we know it's the same? If you don't remember, how do you know it was really you? They say there's dimensions where everybody exists, or something like that. It could have been a different you."

At least if Kyouya did come back, he wouldn't have forgotten about Tamaki. He'd still have his memories from home, right?

[lost_metal]

Super powered light? That... that sounded amazing! How did they make it and how could it remove scars? There was so much that he could ask but he managed to reign himself in for Tamaki's sake.

He was more worried now than he had been that morning. This wasn't right, that this place could hurt Tamaki so much. Because he should be happy all the time. He shouldn't have cause to be miserable. "You can't be happy all the ime," he said quietly. "But I wish you could." He hated the thought of Tamaki being forced into the kind of life that Ed had to live.

That was a good question though, but... "The people who told me, I trust them. They know me better than anyone. Al told me. And... if they remember you and remember being your friend and all the same things, is it so different?"