Chapter Text
THIS IS PART TWO TO 'FORGET WHO I AM TODAY'! If you have not read the first part then I highly encourage you to do so! Otherwise, part two will not make much sense. If you choose to read this anyway without the first part then I can't stop ya! Without further ado, let us get reading!
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Thirty days.
Thirty days since Chuuya was found.
Thirty days since Chuuya was declared to be in a coma.
Thirty days, Dazai has waited by his side — his hand never letting go of Chuuya's. Not unless Yosano physically removes him from the chair that resided by Chuuya's bed. It used to result into arguments that Dazai would lose but he doesn't even fight her anymore. This time, he gets up by himself once he notices that he's been sitting there for two solid hours — just staring at the sleeping beauty before him.
Despite being in a comatose state, Chuuya was well taken care of. Yosano has taught him and Fyodor (with reluctance) how to properly massage the limbs and muscles as to not let them lose circulation. It also provided something else but Dazai couldn't really remember what it was now.
Chuuya was regularly bathed by Fyodor and Dazai as well. The first three times was supervised by Yosano because she wanted to make sure that they wouldn't drown her patient which was honestly uncalled for. They would never hurt him, the person that they had spent so long looking for.
Nonetheless, Dazai was grateful for Yosano's patience and reluctant willingness to teach him how to care for Chuuya. He had to make it up to Chuuya somehow. For failing him spectacularly.
The agency was at a meeting table in their chosen chairs, including Fyodor, he looked so out of place. But nobody paid him any mind, especially when Yosano was at the head of the table, demanding their attention.
"Nakahara Chuuya is currently in a coma," she starts off her report with a steady and firm voice, "but he will awake once he's ready. As long as his care is not neglected, he will wake up."
There's relief in Dazai's bones at hearing that even though his (ex)partner is in a comatose state, it was almost a fact that he would awake from that state. But he stays wary because he knows that there is more to this.
Yosano sits back in her chair and crosses her arms, "however, there are injuries that I cannot fix. And these injuries will be a massive problem for Nakahara once he awakes and we need to be prepared for it."
Nervously, Atsushi pipes up from across Dazai, "what do you mean by prepare, Yosano-sensei?"
"Nakahara is permanently blind and his legs have been removed just below his thighs. Imagine waking up, being aware for the first time in a long time, to total darkness and having no ability to run? How would you react?"
Atsushi seems to pale in horror at the mental image of the notorious Nakahara Chuuya being treated in such a cruel way and Dazai sympathizes. He remembers that Atsushi wasn't here when Fyodor and Dazai came tumbling through the doors of the agency with a limp Chuuya in their arms.
Now that he thought about it, Ranpo hadn't been in the office either.
He side glances towards the detective and notices how tense Ranpo's shoulders has become but his face betrays nothing. Dazai focuses back on Yosano who had given them all a moment to process the severance of what happened to Chuuya.
"While those are two major injuries, there are more. Nakahara's body has been modified to cooperate with female hormones. Specifically with estrogen and progesterone. Estrogen prepares a female body for potential pregnancy and progesterone helps to maintain pregnancy. In order for that to happen, Nakahara's sex had to change. He now has the ability to possibly have a menstrual cycle and also the ability to become pregnant since he no longer has male genitalia and his hormones have been tampered with."
There's a gag next to him and Dazai turns his head to see Tanizaki looking extremely green in the face and Naomi being on the verge of tears. Dazai himself felt nauseous because Joseph had seen Chuuya as some kind of breeding animal and had gone so far in order for Chuuya to become one.
God, how had Chuuya react when he found out in a spare moment of being lucid? Or does he not know?
The thought makes his stomach coil in knots.
Yosano sighs and then continues, "he has also suffered from multiple electrocutions. His shoulders have been dislocated and set back several times from being chained from a high surface for long periods of time. He is currently healing from his fifth infection. Anyways, what I'm trying to say is, Nakahara has been tortured through and through."
Dazai clenches his fists so tightly that his knuckles become white.
"I will not be able to find out more of what he's been through until he wakes up and is lucid. But until then - he is my patient first and foremost. He is no longer an enemy as long as he's in my care. He is a patient and a victim that needs to be treated with the utmost care. He does not deserve any less than that," Yosano's voice had a sense of finality as she stared down everyone at the table, oddly protective of the port-mafia executive.
He understands why she would be.
"Of course," Atsushi speaks up first and with determination, "I want Chuuya-san to wake up." His colorful eyes are filled with tears but his voice doesn't waver and Dazai feels a wave of fondness over his student. No matter what Atsushi had been through, being treated like an animal by rotten humans, he was still compassionate for those in need — even if it is a criminal.
Dazai is so proud of him.
Kunikida was surprisingly the next person to speak despite being quiet so far, "while Nakahara and I have had our fights in the past, I also want him to wake up. I don't think he's... necessarily a bad guy." He presses his glasses up and avoids eye contact, seemingly flustered.
Dazai's eyes widened before softening and there's an upward twitch of his lips at the way that Kunikida was embarrassed to say the last part. He's proud of his current partner as well.
They really have come a long way, haven't they?
"He isn't a bad guy," Fyodor pipes in with an exhausted voice, "he cares way too much."
Kunikida blinks owlishly before scowling in distaste even though Dazai can see that it's half-hearted at best. Fyodor only smiles in response but it's forced and full of teeth. Dazai sighs and ignores them, deciding that it isn't worth the energy to interfere.
"It sucks what hat guy went through," Ranpo starts lightly but his eyes are dark and full of malicious intent in place of what would be Chuuya's rage, "and I wouldn't want it to happen again."
That was his way of saying that he agrees with Yosano. If he didn't know better, he would say that Ranpo was growing a soft spot for Chuuya.
Everyone else voices more or less the same.
Until Fukuzawa gets to his feet and walks over to the head of the table, resting his hand on Yosano's shoulder. Everyone goes silent and watches their boss with rapt attention.
"Under no circumstances will Nakahara Chuuya be threatened or attacked by one of us. We do not know who he will be once he wakes up. Until we are able to see what kind of person he is when he awakes, we will treat him with the utmost kindness and also like he is one of us."
It is, without a doubt, an order.
And nobody fought against it.
It has been a week since then and while Chuuya is still breathing, he also shows no signs of waking up.
Dazai sighs tiredly as he looks at his former partner's body one last time, knowing that it was nearly time for Fyodor to take watch.
"Oh, Chuuya... don't you think it's time to wake up?"
Of course, there's no answer.
And Dazai wasn't expecting one.
His heart still hopes for a change in Chuuya's breathing, even as he leaves the room.
Chuuya continues to rest.
AT THE HOSPITAL
"Do you have any idea who he is?"
"No, I don't."
"Dazai-san said that he's important to Nakahara-san."
"I've never seen him before. Maybe he was another captive."
"Why isn't Yosano-sensei taking care of him then?"
"She's already taking care of Nakahara-san, whom is the main priority."
"Both of you, be quiet."
Kunikida rubs his temple in exhaustion as his book closes with a resounding thump, looking over at both Atsushi and Akutagawa who were not-so-quietly bickering. Really, why did he have to have these two with him? He could look over the boy by himself!
The boy in question was in recovery after having eye surgery — apparently his eyes had been gouged out and then put back in as if he was a doll to fix. He had been found nearby Nakahara and whatever it was that Dazai witnessed, the boy was concluded to be important to the man who was now in a coma.
Thus, he's here in case the boy wakes up. He was possibly another trauma victim, another experiment of Joseph's. But Kunikida won't know until the boy wakes up.
"Why are you here?" He questions the duo warily.
Akutagawa straightens and looks dead-on at Kunikida, "Dazai-san had told me to stick by this idiot."
The idiot in question exhaled quietly in frustration but he also straightens as he looks at Kunikida with a nod, "I wanted to see how, um, Nakahara-san's friend was doing?" He looked shy now that he had Kunikida's attention.
Kunikida couldn't really blame him. He had also been curious about the 'friend' because Dazai and Fyodor refused to disclose any information except to Yosano and Fukuzawa. The rest of them had been left in the dark.
"The doctors have said that he's recovering splendidly, he should awake soon," Kunikida gives in, too tired to yell at them to leave. He's pulled two all-nighters just for the boy because the boy had been so small and frail and his heart had stopped beating and Kunikida was—
Kunikida was just doing what he had been told to do which was to monitor the boy.
That's all.
Atsushi seems to beam at the news to which both Akutagawa and Kunikida flinched at. Kunikida hasn't seen the sun for more than a few minutes at a time and everything that Atsushi does was too bright for Akutagawa to handle.
"Satisfied?" Akutagawa grunted after a moment, scruffing Atsushi up by the neck like he was a cat (which technically he was). Atsushi immediately hisses and starts to thrash but Akutagawa doesn't budge except for bowing to Kunikida as to say goodbye.
Kunikida nods his head towards the duo as Akutagawa drags Atsushi out of the hospital room. He pays no mind to the hissing and scratching as he looks at the boy.
"...Perhaps you'll be more inclined to wake up if I read to you?" Kunikida questions, opening his book up to the beginning. He hasn't really been ingesting the words beforehand but he had also already read this book.
Maybe the boy likes books?
Kunikida clears his throat.
He begins reading out loud and he wonders if the words will even reach the boy. If it was even worth it.
Oh well, it's a way to pass the time.