Love Me Till The End

Chapter Three

Celty knew something was wrong the moment she walked into her house.

It was quiet, but that was nothing unusual these days since Shinra said nothing and always kept to himself.

Everything looked to be in order. It didn't seem like someone had broken into their apartment.

Then what was it?

Feeling incredibly uncomfortable, the dullahan slowly took off her helmet and set it down on the kitchen counter, reminding herself that she would need to pick up groceries tomorrow.

Not that Shinra ate much anymore. Usually Celty had to force a few morsels down the doctor's throat just so he would keep living. It seemed her partner would rather drown himself in alcohol rather than food.

It wasn't like she blamed him for it, though.

The courier, as named by a certain deceased informant, walked to her room silently and 'looked' around to see if anything had changed.

Nothing.

Celty sat down at her computer and logged into the Dollars chatroom, hoping to talk to someone -hopefully Anri, her best supernatural friend- but was saddened to find out absolutely no one was on.

Well, Kanra always replied no matter what time of day it was. Unfortunately the unknown female left for good.

After a few minutes of desperately hoping for someone to join she gave up and turned off the computer, deciding to instead find her quiet lover.

It wasn't like Celty didn't know where he was.

She knew that he was locked away in his lab, most likely performing different experiments.

He didn't allow her to see what was going on in there. Usually, the dullahan would insist or even investigate on her own to see what the doctor was hiding but she just couldn't bring herself to do it.

The man needed his privacy, for Christ's sake. He'd just lost the two supposedly constant people in his life.

Instead of barging in, Celty would now simply knock on the door to tell her lover that dinner was done and would proceed to shove food down his throat.

Much like Shizuo and Izaya were to Shinra, the doctor was Celty's everything. She couldn't cope without him and refused to think of the future where he would eventually pass, leaving her alone to continue with her immortal life.

For now though, Celty refused to watch him waste away.

After eating, the dullahan would sadly watch the doctor stumble back into his lab (most likely still buzzed from another bottle of liquor) and wait until 9:00 p.m where she would send him to bed.

It was a dreary life.

Celty would give anything to have the bubbly and perverted man back in her life. This hollow shell wasn't Shinra.

No matter what though, she would never leave him. It would be downright cruel to abandon him when he needed her most.

The dullahan was ripped out of her depressing thoughts as a loud bang sounded from outside her room.

She rushed out, waiting to fight off a possible alien that had invaded earth.

The TV said it would happen sometime soon after all.

However, Celty was greeted with a breathless Shinra who ran towards her.

Celty stopped.

[Shinra...? Is everything alright?] She tentatively typed out and showed her lover.

Except...it really didn't seem like Shinra.

This man had his old grin splayed across his face again, eyes bright behind their glasses.

It was like Shinra had returned!

"Celty, my dearest love! I have something absolutely spectacularly amazing to show you! I'm sure you'll be absolutely and positively thrilled!" Shinra squealed like a little school girl and tugged her wrist.

If she had her head, Celty would be smiling softly at him.

Had...he finally gotten over it?

Not wanting to possibly put Shinra off, Celty immediately followed him.

That's when she realized where they were heading.

The lab she hadn't been allowed in.

All of the sudden that uncomfortable feeling she'd had when she first walked in hit her full force.

However, the courier understood what it was now.

It was foreboding.

Feet moving slightly slower now, Celty walked into the room after the joyful doctor.

She barely made it three feet inside when she stopped.

Her blood ran cold.

....What?

Had she fallen asleep?

This...couldn't be real.

Shinra wouldn't actually be this desperate!

"Celty, dear, I did it!" Shinra exclaimed, bouncing up and down like a kid on Christmas morning.

She didn't respond, her phone having clattered to the floor.

Instead the dullahan watched crimson and mocha eyes focus on her, both laced with obvious confusion.

"Meet Shizuo and Izaya 2.0!" Shinra chirped, gesturing towards the small brunet and tall fake blond.

Both men who were supposed to be...no, are dead continued to look her over silently.

Shinra...what have you done?