Call Out My Name • Dazai Osamu ✔

｢12/31｣

12. "Taking in a deep breath, I drink it down, then release it to the sky."

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"Where do you think you're going, Kira-chan?"

I freeze in my spot. Slowly, I turn around and find Dazai behind me, standing in the middle of the hallway. He has his arms crossed and raises an eyebrow.

"S-Shopping."

"How are you going shopping? I thought you were broke until you got your pay for the month." The brown-head needs to know, and walks closer to me. I gulp, and look up at him.

Crap, I have no excuses. When I take a peek at my wristwatch, I see that it's already past 7.

It took me this long to clear out of everyone's watches and come out here.

All except Dazai's, it turns out.

"Er... Ranpo-san asked me to buy him some candy..." I lie quietly, trying hard to ignore the fact that Dazai was leaning closer and closer to me each second.

"But Kira-chan," he is standing so close to me that I can feel his breath on my face. "Ranpo-san has been out all day."

Shit. I'm dead.

I let out a long sigh, and Dazai closes his eyes.

Seriously, get away from me. This is so wrong on so many levels...

Dazai then walks past me, and leans his back against mine.

"You know, you don't really have to lie to me, you know." He whispers in a tone I don't even recognize, and walks off.

"Dazai..."

When I turn around, I see that Dazai is already climbing up the staircase.

This is not good. I really don't want to hurt him, but there's nothing I can do if he doesn't believe me.

And it's not like I'd show him the note and say it's from Akutagawa, like a girl in a shoujo manga would show to her friends.

Not that Dazai would believe me even then. And I can't really blame him. He's know me for only three days, after all. Who trusts strangers?

After letting out a loud groan, I walk out of the Agency.

As I walk to the pharmacy as fast as my feet could carry me, my brain repeats one sentence constantly.

'I've known Akutagawa for ages and I can guarantee you that's not something he's likely to do.'

How would Dazai know? Akutagawa is a member of the Port Mafia, and he's an enemy to the Agency!

Could Kunikida have gathered information about him, so much that Dazai knows about the guy enough?

But he wouldn't say something with so much guarantee if he heard it from a third party, would he?

It just doesn't sound very... Dazai-ish.

Why am I even going to the pharmacy anyway? It's past 7.15, and there was no way Akutagawa would stay there by now.

But then... He must have a reason to ask me to come meet him.... I need to know why.

I break into a run, and within minutes, I reach the pharmacy.

I look around, on the benches, in the park in front of the shop, even inside the store, but I do not find Akutagawa anywhere.

I should have known. He left. Why would he waste his time anyway?