The Strange Way We Met (Soukoku) [NO ABILITIES!!] {BSD Collage AU}

Crack in the Mask

The next time they interacted after leaving the show Chuuya put on was a couple months later.

Chuuya was simply taking a walk, earbuds in and listening to "Addict" from Hazbin Hotel.

Don't judge. He likes his English music and it's a good song.

For the most part, the shorter male preferred to be left alone.

He'd thought about Dazai here and there, but Dazai seemed to be avoiding human interaction in general. Chuuya had run into the guy with the hat and brown hair that he'd seen with Dazai last time. The moment they made eye contact, Chuuya took out an earbud.

"Oi.. Edogawa-san, right?"

The smart boy tilted his head at Chuuya, blinking a couple of times.

"Umm... who're you again?" Ranpo blinked yet again, seeming confused for a moment before his eyes travelled to the other's hat. 

A look of recognition sparked in the brown-haired boy's face, and he spoke right as Chuuya was about to say something, "OH! You're that guy who was with Dazai! There's no way I'd forget such a hat!" 

The owner of said hat was momentarily flattered by Ranpo's words, but after a moment, he mentally questioned whether the brunette meant his hat was unforgettably good or unforgettably bad. 

... he shakes his head lightly, dislodging the doubt from his mind. This wasn't what he got the other boy's attention for anyway. 

"Yeah, name's Nakahara Chuuya." 

"Yeah, yeah, Nakahara-san! Anyway, what did you need?" Ranpo tilts his head childishly.

A tiny pause for the redhead to think over how he was going to ask, and then he just dismisses all of the roundabout phrases he could use because he is a straightforward man.

"I was wondering if you knew where Dazai-san is?" Normally, he wouldn't be too worried, but with the topic Dazai had brought up on that scenic trip they took,  Chuuya couldn't help but be worried.

"Dazai-san? I haven't heard from him for a little while, no. Last time we talked, he said he was going to go on a mini vacation." Ranpo knew this was vital information. And in fact, "a little while" had only been about ten minutes.

But Dazai had seemed to get closer to Chuuya in such a short time than he was to anyone else. So maybe he could help.

So Ranpo continued to speak, "Not sure if he would have gone back to his house, but if you wanna check up on him, here's his address." He handed Chuuya a piece of paper that had totally most definitely not been prepared in advance.

Chuuya thanked Ranpo and rushed toward the direction of the house address on the sheet of paper. Luckily enough, he had arrived just as Dazai was about to turn the corner into the correct neighborhood, walking slowly, eyes downcast and zoned out.

For once, there was no smug smirk and no smile of any sort taped to his face.

"Dazai!" He basically ran over to the taller boy.

Said boy looked caught off-guard for once, "Eh? Chuu-chan?"

When Chuuya had gotten closer to Dazai, he took one look and asked, "Are you alright?"

Dazai gave a tired laugh at that, "What's this, Chuu-chan's worried about lil ol' me?" It was meant to be a taunt, but he almost sounded incredulous.

"Yes, I am. Am I not allowed to worry about friends?" Chuuya challenged. Something about his demeanor at the moment was greatly resembling a good mother.

Friends? Chuuya actually saw him as a friend? Dazai knew a lot of people stuck around because he wasn't only a class clown, but also a valuable asset and... well... he didn't know if anyone else considered him a friend...

... because Chuuya was the only one so far to straight up say it.

Nonetheless, Dazai was caught off guard and took a moment to respond, "Well, when you put it that way, I guess not." Another bout of silence. Just then, Dazai realized that he'd stopped walking and that the two of them were, in fact, not walking and talking.

"Well, you're clearly not doing too well. You don't have to tell me what's going on until you want to. But if you need anything, you can ask whenever."

After another long moment of silence, Dazai sighs, "Actually, I really don't want to go home right now."

Chuuya didn't miss a beat in asking, "I'm sure my roommate wouldn't mind you crashing at our place for a night or two. If you want." In retrospect, it seemed a tad desperate, but Chuuya was sure that Dazai looked a little too lonely today.

"Really?" Dazai seemed to brighten up much more at the prospect.

And just like that... Chuuya had been among the first to see the crack in the mask that Dazai showed the world.