𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐢𝐧 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐃𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 | 𝐁𝐒𝐃 𝐱 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐞𝐫

𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐈: 𝐀𝐜𝐭 𝐈 - 𝐖𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐦𝐧𝐞𝐝

𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐈: 𝐀𝐜𝐭 𝐈
𝐖𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐚𝐦𝐧𝐞𝐝

𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐂𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭: 𝟑,𝟓𝟎𝟕
𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐮𝐬: 𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝟓/𝟏𝟓/𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟒

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"Chinatown...?" Dazai rose a brow as the two passed under the large sign that read 'Yokohama Chinatown' above the entrance to the bustling foreign community.

     [Name] gave an affirmative nod. "That's right," was all she said.

     With no further comment, Dazai could feel himself becoming more stressed by the minute, and that was saying something. For someone who didn't normally bother with this sort of thing, it really felt as if [Name] was intentionally trying to keep him on his toes, and somehow... it was working.

     That uncomfortableness refused to go away as just about every person on the streets turned to greet [Name]. He walked alongside her awkwardly, watching as she returned their greetings earnestly, switching between Japanese and Chinese depending on the person. Though still a bit stiff, Dazai could not help but become somewhat intrigued. "You know Chinese?"

     Though the same could not exactly be said about Dazai, [Name] was quite a sociable person, and she was good at, well, interacting with people. Even while casually waving at someone all the way across the street, she did not neglect him for a moment. "I do," she nodded. "I lived there for quite some time before moving back here."

     Not only was Dazai not very proficient in the art of idle chatter, he was even worse at conveying his emotions. Thankfully, he was, simply put, a genius. Thus, he did not attempt to lengthen the conversation, and simply nodded as he was able to understand her implications: she had been born in Japan before moving to China—presumably when she was very little—for a few years.

     "Don't worry, just a bit farther and we'll be there," [Name] chimed, breaking the silence between them that had lasted for nearly half a minute. Though it was not an awkward silence, it could not exactly be called a 'comfortable' silence either—perhaps it was somewhere in between.

     Either way, Dazai followed along until the two came across a small metal gate that lead into what appeared to be a courtyard of sorts. A note had been left taped above the gate's handle, and Dazai could only watch her read it due to the fact that it was written in Chinese (he could faintly make out the characters he recognized from Kanji, but that was all). The note didn't appear to be much more than some kind of reminder for something, as [Name] didn't seem too bothered by it, and she simply folded and pocketed the small piece of paper before walking into the yard, holding the gate open for Dazai to enter behind her.

     The two walked further intside (which wasn't very far, as it was kind of small), yet there were no kids to be found. Dazai deadpanned for a moment before he understood. And judging by the small smile on [Name]'s face, she certainly knew what was going on too.

     "Oh no, where have those little troublemakers run off too?!" She let out an exaggerated gasp, making a show of looking around dramatically. "Don't tell me..." She covered her mouth, a horrified look appearing on her face. "They've been kidnapped!! Waahhh, what am I supposed to tell their parents?? They'll be so sad..." She cried, her face falling as crocodile tears appeared in her eyes.