Tabula Rasa (BakuDeku)

24

Survivors Guilt

Katsuki wakes up in a field.

Or a...park? The teen sits up and rubs his head, it's throbbing. What happened? He groans, expecting an answer. One doesn't come, but he doesn't question it. He stretches his arms to the sky. He looks up.

Strange.

The sky was filled with blotches of oranges and purples that curl into chaotic swirls and suddenly streak against the sky like a rainbow. The great big Crayola sky is devoid of clouds, wind, or birds, like time has picked this moment to hold it's breath.

Watching. Still. Reserved.

Waiting.

The warm sunlight is unusually suffocating, like it breathes oxygen too, and there's simply not enough to go around. The sun Katsuki knows is like home: calm and soothing and comfortable, rays washing against his skin in waves of heat with a casual elegance. This sun beats him down, squeezing the sweat out of him like he's a dirty, wet rag. This sun is hell.

He ignores the stiffness and tugs at his...collar? He looks down and notices he's in the typical UA uniform. School? Right. He was walking back home from school. So why is he laying in a park?

He brushes off the voice pulling at the back of his mind. Like he's forgetting something. His backpack? Katsuki's hands touch his shoulders and come in contact with the harsh fabric of the straps. No.

He brushes himself off, and starts on his usual path. He'll walk three more blocks, turn left, and another right a block down. Then he'll be home.

He focuses on the path he walks on, like he does every time. The sidewalk looks like someone took a sledgehammer to it, or dropped an elephant. Cobweb cracks litter the cement like umbrella's on a beach, and the crooked green fingers from the weeds reach for the harsh sun between the lines. Katsuki steps in the middle of each slightly misshapen rectangle, making sure to stay away from the cracks as much as possible. It's a game he likes to play in his head. Keeps him preoccupied. Reaching into his left pocket, Katsuki pulls out a fortune cookie.

Right! He remembers now! He was being dragged around by his idiot friends, and they had ended up at the park. They all left, but he decided to stay behind and enjoy the scenery on his own.

And now, he's walking home.

He's...walking home?

He's...

The hero in training stops. Is he forgetting something? He can't... he can't think properly, like his heads filling up with smoke. He blinks and shakes his head, hoping that will fix the fuzzy feeling.

It doesn't.

He continues his journey, but cant help but feel like he's forgetting something. Something he needs to remember. Something important.

Oh, right. Walking home.

He's nearing the left at the light, and comes across the tree that hangs too low. There's a certain branch that's always standing between him and his alone time, so he smacks it with an open palm like he always does.

He pauses again, and looks at his palm. He didn 't feel a thing. Or hear a thing. Katsuki looks down at his feet.

There's no shadow.

There's no noise.

The uncomfy blanket of serenity that covered Katsuki was torn off in an instant.

He scans his surroundings, ruby red eyes wide with panic. Where are the cars? Where are the kids who egg the cat lady's car? Where's the sound of angry drivers yelling profanities through windows?