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Dazai searches the rubble for Chuuya. Despite not even using Corruption, Chuuya managed to completely destroy their enemy’s base. That’s great and all, but now there’s a huge mess. Dazai keeps wandering the rubble since he can’t just follow the sounds of screaming and destruction, or maniacal laughter.
“How did he manage this?” Dazai mutters frustratedly.
He hears something clatter to his left, immediately grabbing his attention. Chuuya is sprawled across a rock on his stomach, but it looks like he just fell. His eyes are only half open and there’s blood all over him.
“Chuuya! What happened?” Dazai demands, dropping down next to him.
Chuuya opens his mouth, but nothing comes out. Dazai flips him onto his back so he can get a better look at him. This causes Chuuya to hiss in pain. There’s a pretty large knife wound in his gut. The knife is gone, blood flowing freely from the open wound. Chuuya just watches Dazai’s face twist in horror.
“What?” he asks quietly.
“Nothing, you’re fine, Chibi. Come on. We’re done now, so we should head back to the agency.”
“Why does everything hurt?”
“Don’t think about that.”
“Ok, are you gonna go now or what?”
“What does that mean?”
“You said you had to get back to the agency. I have to get back to the PM, but I think I’ll wait a few minutes. Maybe let my vision stop blurring,” he says in a breathy whisper.
“No, you’re going to come with me.”
Dazai picks Chuuya up, bridal carry style. Chuuya’s back arches as he groans in pain.
“I know, I know. Just hold tight for me.”
He starts walking quickly towards the car that Kunikida should be waiting in to take him home. It’s a few streets over. The distance is just long enough to make his heart clench in fear and worry. Chuuya is quiet, still watching Dazai’s face. His gaze is getting farther away the longer Dazai walks. Kunikida is doing something on his phone when Dazai bangs on the car door. He jumps, climbing out immediately. He opens the back door.
“What is happening? Why do you have him?”
“We’re taking him to Yosano, now.”
Dazai’s tone leaves no room for argument, so Kunikida gets back into the driver’s seat while Dazai gets settled with Chuuya in the back. Chuuya gasps when the car starts, blood coating his teeth.
“I know, not much longer now. You’re gonna be fine.”
Chuuya blinks slowly with a sigh. He turns his head to the side so it presses against Dazai’s stomach. He closes his eyes, and it takes Dazai a second to realize that he’s not just blinking again. He pinches Chuuya’s ear, making him shudder.
“Ow.”
“I know, but you can’t fall asleep.”
“Why not? I thought you said everything was fine. It doesn’t even hurt anymore.”
“Shit, Kunikida, go faster.”
Kunikida speeds up, racing towards the agency. Yosano is waiting in her office for them. Dazai leaves Chuuya with her after telling her that she isn’t to hurt him any more than completely necessary.
“We can’t have the Port Mafia claiming that we kidnapped and tortured one of their executives, and Chuuya’s patience only goes so far,” he says, folding his arms.
“Yeah, I know. I might not have to do anything to him though.”
Dazai sighs.
“I thought that might be the case. Just let me know when I can take him home.”
He walks out before she can respond. He waits in the office for almost an hour before Yosano walks in.
“He’s fine. I let him rest for a while, but you can take him home now.”
“Ok.”
He stands up, heading back to her office. Chuuya is still asleep, so he just picks him up. Instead of taking him home, he takes Chuuya to his own apartment. He sets Chuuya down on the hardwood floor so that the blood won’t stain his sheets or carpet. Then he grabs baby wipes and wipes as much of the blood off of Chuuya’s skin as he can before changing him into an old pair of basketball shorts and a band t-shirt. It’s far too large on Chuuya, but it’s not covered in blood, so it’ll do. After that, he sets Chuuya down on his bed before sitting down in the armchair with the complete guide to suicide. He’s still reading a few hours later when Chuuya starts to stir. He blinks lazily before looking around.
“Where am I?” he asks, sounding confused.
“You’re in my apartment.”
“Oh, why? What happened?” he asks, sitting up.
He has a sleepy kitten expression on his face as he rubs his eyes.
“You got hurt.”
“Oh, I feel fine,” he says, pulling the collar of the shirt back up over his shoulder from where it fell off.
“Yeah, that’s because I took you to Yosano.”
Chuuya freezes.
“You did what?”
“I took you to see Yosano. I already know how you feel about her, but she didn’t do anything, I swear. You were already bad enough off that she didn’t need to.”
“Did she see anything that she mentioned to you?” Chuuya asks, looking at his lap.
“No, what does that mean? I changed your clothes, and there was nothing out of the ordinary.”
“Nothing.”
“Chuuya,” Dazai says, his tone menacing. Chuuya sighs, knowing what that tone means.
“If I don’t tell you, you’re gonna talk to Akutagawa, aren’t you?”
“Yeah.”
“I… do you have any makeup remover here?”
“Yeah.”
“Go get it.”
Dazai stands up, heading to the connecting bathroom. He comes back with a makeup remover and cotton pads. He hesitates in front of the bed.
“You didn’t do anything, did you? Anything worth hiding?”
Chuuya scrunches up his face.
“What are you- You mean to myself? No, I’m not the one cutting myself.”
He takes the remover and pads. He puts some on the pad and starts scrubbing his hand. Makeup, dirt, and some excess blood comes off, revealing a pinkish scar. It looks exactly like a corruption mark. Dazai stares at his hand as he continues to rub makeup off, slowly moving to his wrist, and then up his arm. He stops at his elbow as Dazai just watches.
“It started scarring after Lovecraft. I don’t have a problem with it… I just can’t let other people see them.”
“Why not?”
“Cause I’m the mafia’s ace. I can’t be seen with scars like this, even if they are from my own power. No one else is gonna know where they came from. Any other stupid questions?”
“No, but I have a not stupid question. Did the marks cause wounds that scarred, or…”
“Yeah, it was like the skin was burned away from those spots. I got it treated properly, but it always scarred anyway. It wasn’t even noticeable at first, but after a few times of using corruption, it was. It got more and more noticeable. Now it’s constantly pink so the only way to cover it is makeup.”
“Alright, well, I’m gonna set up the shower for you. I know that you hate being dirty. I want you to stay here for a while though, so I’ll leave you some more clothes.”
“I can barely even keep these on,” Chuuya complains. “I feel like if I stand up, these shorts are going to fall off.”
“Well, I can see if I have some children’s clothes lying around for Chibi.”
“Shut up, Dazai.”
Dazai smiles as he grabs the things for Chuuya’s shower. However, once Chuuya’s in the shower, he can’t help but feel the worry growing in his chest.
“I know that he said he was fine with it, but that looked bad. Maybe I should just convince him to go see Yosano whenever he uses corruption.”
His mind races around different possible solutions. After a while, a hand lands on his shoulder.
“Whatever you’re overthinking, stop. You’re working yourself up over nothing,” Chuuya says, sitting back down on Dazai’s bed next to him.
“Yeah, you should get some more sleep though. Yosano’s ability is pretty harsh on people’s bodies, especially children.”
“What’s with the repetitive insults today? Normally you’re not this bad about it.”
“Oh shut up.”
Chuuya snickers as he turns away from Dazai.
“Everything’s fine.”
It will be.