The Great Book of One-Shots

Consequences

SOoo, this is a weird concept that I had beautifully written out on my phone and got deleted with so many other things before I could edit and post it... *twitches*

ANYWAY, the original was a lot shorter and was legit poetic and didn't have any dialogue so you can tell I didn't quite rewrite this the same way as the other was, but it still conveys the same angsty message~

Warning: mentions of gore (and torture?), self hate

Enjoy!

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Everyone knew the nuclear end to the war would have consequences - the famine, drought, and radiation were expected. Though, no one could of guessed that a chemical reaction would lead to tattoo ink becoming corrosive acid.

People had started rushing to get their tattoos laser removed as soon as the horrifying realization had been  made. Some went straight to doctors and tried getting their inked skin removed to prevent the undeniable pain and suffering the acid would cause once it reached them. Others futilely begged for amputations of whole limbs. Others, in a last desperate move to keep from experiencing what could only be classified as torture, had gone as far as killing themselves.

Ben, on the other hand, had sat and cried, knowing full well that the doctors were so overwhelmed by the number of other people with tattoos trying get something done that the radiation would probably start effecting him long before he could get an appointment. So, he just sat, with his knees to his chest, and rocked back and forth as he cried and cried.

He didn't want this. Nobody wanted this. The pain. The suffering. It would be torture - pure torture. He didn't want to go through it. But... but he didn't want to die either. Though, he knew the acid wouldn't stop until it killed him. It would eat away at his skin and flesh and bone until it killed him then it would eat away at what remained of him until nothing was left.

He was terrified. 

He had always liked his tattoos, but now, now there was nothing in this world he hated more. He dug his nails into his arms, wishing he could just rip away the inked skin. He felt pain and something wet, but didn't quite care behind his curtain of tears.

He felt his hands be moved away and briefly glanced at his lover beside him. He had long been ignoring any and all comforting words, opting for the horrible thoughts he couldn't make leave his mind.

A few days passed like that, crying and scratching at his skin until all the tattooed spots were glowing an irradiated red. Then, then, it started.

At first, it was just a tingling sensation, but it quickly turned to a burning one that only intensified into the hottest, most painful thing he had ever felt. Skin started to be eaten away and all he could do was cry and scream in pain as he was finally taken to the hospital for an emergency procedure that those effected had priority for.

He had been wheeled in on a gurney with a red tag around his wrist signaling that he had an urgent case that would need immediate attention. He had been brought to the operating room with little more than a blurry sight of his lover and a quick 'I love you' from the older's lips before hand.

Several agonizingly long hours later, he had been brought to a recovery room and Ian waited by his side until he woke up. The older knew Ben wouldn't take what had happened to him nicely. He knew his boyfriend would be devastated by the results of the surgery. He knew Ben had enough self-confidence issues with his natural body; he didn't want to know how he'd react to this.

Ben looked so peaceful lying in the hospital bed unconscious. It seemed like he was just sleeping and Ian almost wished he'd stay like that - peaceful and asleep. Though, he knew that would change once the smaller woke up.