𐌌𐌉𐌔𐌕𐌋𐌄𐌕Ꝋ𐌄, 𐌌𐌉𐌔𐌕𐌋𐌄𐌕Ꝋ𐌄, 𐌌𐌉𐌔𐌕𐌋𐌄𐌕Ꝋ𐌄

I Really Don't Know Where To Go 𝟙/𝟚

Junichiro Tanizaki was not one for romanticism.

He was perfectly aware of this fact -- and how it made him something of an oddball among his fellow detectives.

Spending time musing about the futility of life or how to uphold one's ideals was something more befitting of Dazai or Kunikida. Even someone like Atsushi, with his strong convictions about validating his existence, had a poetic dash to his character.

As a matter of fact, out of everyone in the agency, Tanizaki was probably the least eccentric. He had the least number of client complaints and had just recently been voted most likely to complete a job without blowing anything up.

He could quite easily pass for normal.

If it weren't for Naomi, of course.

At the thought of his sister, Tanizaki groaned, burying his head in his too-long sleeves. He was currently sitting on a small bench, watching mournfully as people passed him by.

After Naomi had dragged him out of the agency building, the onslaught of cold air had stirred him out of his shock. He immediately entered crisis evasion mode and broke out of her grip, losing her in a crowd of people downtown.

Tanizaki treasured his sister. He really, really did. Just...not in the same way she seemed to treasure him. And while he was able to tolerate most of her antics, he drew the line at cursed mistletoe.

Still, that didn't stop him from feeling earth-shatteringly guilty about it. She was probably going to be upset about the whole ordeal for the rest of the week.

Tanizaki sighed, leaning back on the bench.

No, he wasn't one for romanticism, but there was something undoubtedly romantic about the scene before him now. Sitting here on the wooden seat, observing the crowds of late holiday shoppers as the smell of something warm and earthy wafted around the otherwise chilly air.

If he were someone like Dazai, he might have then thought to himself something along the lines of being encompassed by his own loneliness, about feeling detached from the mirth that seemed to cover every inch of the avenue like a soft blanket.

But because Tanizaki was Tanizaki, all he could think about was how he was most definitely going to get frostbite.

He hugged his arms tighter together, painfully aware of how his teeth had begun to chatter. Considering the circumstances in which he had left the agency, he was woefully underdressed for the weather. Even the sweater he usually kept tied around his waist was currently back in the office, thrown uselessly over his chair.

If I'm ever going to make it back...

Tanizaki thought to himself,

...then I should start moving.

Because in addition to feeling incredibly guilty and incredibly cold, he also happened to be incredibly lost.

He had refused to believe it at first. Principally because this was Yokohama and he had lived here his entire life. All because the lampposts were now wrapped up in lights and storefronts decked out with tinsel, didn't mean he should suddenly lose all sense off direction.

And yet he most definitely had. After turning a multitude of unrecognizable corners into a multitude of unrecognizable streets -- he had finally been forced to admit defeat, collapsing miserably onto a nearby bench.

Perhaps...

...Perhaps running away from Naomi had been a mistake.

An especially strong gale of frosty air blew over the street, causing a shiver to run through the poor boy.