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A/N - I highly recommend that you press play on the song above and let it run throughout this chapter! ;)
You stood—frozen in your position—as you watched Mori breakdown, and for some odd reason, your eyes slowly but surely became glassy. The middle-aged man was on his knees, facing the back wall, screaming and crying. Tears streamed down his face like an everlasting waterfall, and his entire face was red, screaming at the very top of his lungs. His upper body and shoulders had wracked with every sob that forced its way out, chest rising and falling unevenly as he gasped for breath, and he squeezed his eyes shut, balling his hands tightly into fists each time he threw his head back to let out a blood curdling scream.
The memories were torturous to him.
And you couldn't help but bear the weight of every raw emotion pouring out of his body, his soul. As torturous as it was to him, it was also just as torturous to you—it was an aspect of your personality and ability that you had utterly despised with every single fibre of your very being.
"[Y/N]," a breath of air had hit your ear through the earpiece that Dazai was using to communicate with you. He could hear your heavy breathing from the other end, and he could also hear that you hadn't actually moved an inch from where you were originally standing, especially when most people would have already taken advantage of this opportunity and ran away by now. "You need to get out of there. I understand that you're an empath, and I love you for it, I really do, but you can't stay in there. You need to leave."
Dazai felt bad for you. He did. He genuinely did. He was not an empathetic man himself—luckily, he wasn't blessed with the burden of carrying the weight of other people's emotions, but he could understand how hard it must have been for someone like you to feel everything that other's felt, no matter how villainous they were, especially when you had to use this aspect of your ability; the part of your ability that you despised using the most, because it meant that you had to stoop to the lowest of levels. He heard you sniffle a little, and as much as it had tugged at his heartstrings, and as much as he desperately wanted to pull you into a massive hug and whisper sweet nothings in your ear, stroking your hair, he knew that time was not of the essence right now. He had to separate work from emotions, and so did you.
"Leave the room, [Y/N]." The sound of Dazai's voice in your ear had sounded much louder now, much harsher. This sounded like an order. "Now."
In an instant, you wiped the tears spilling forth like an unrestrained dam from your eyes with the back of your hand and swiftly turned around—before slowly walking towards the door; your heels clicking melodiously on the ground as you did so. When your hand had reached for the door handle, the fleeting second of solemnity and empathy that had momentarily plagued you, suddenly disappeared. Mori was not a good man, and his past was not an excuse for his actions. You looked back over your shoulder briefly at both Mori and Elise crying in each other's arms, and for some odd reason, a small smile appeared on your face. You didn't know why. Respiring deeply, you pushed down the intricately detailed handle and finally stepped out of the room, making sure to shut the door behind you on your way out.
