What you're name ?

Chapter 23 Is that all?

Made by @cataclysmiceve1 on Twitter!
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Notes:

This chapter marks the end of Part III! Now onto Part IV, and V!
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Chapter Text
The next day, Dazai is waiting in the foyer.

"Listen—" Mori is buttoning up his coat. "—there's a good chance I might have a little too much to drink and stay the night. Will you and Chuuya be—?"

"We'll be fine," Dazai rolls his eyes, "I sleep five feet from a psychopath every night these days, you know."

"But I—"

"Really, Mori." Dazai pats his arm. "We'll be fine—tell Fukuzawa-san I said happy holidays."

Mori frowns reluctantly. "Alright. And Dazai—?"

Dazai glances up, fiddling with his sleeve. "Yeah?"

Mori's voice is firm. "Have him home by ten."

Dazai gasps. "I'm in university! I don't need a curfew!"

His uncle shakes his head, crossing his arms. "Chuuya isn't, and I'm responsible for him."

"..." Really, he's glad that there's an adult in Chuuya's life who actually cares about something like that, so he doesn't feel like he can complain. "Fine." Dazai sighs. "It's not like you'll be home to enforce it—"

"I thought you might say that, so I told Chuuya earlier." Mori smiles sweetly, and Dazai scowls.

"I said fine!"

"Good," Mori ruffles his hair. "Merry Christmas, Dazai."

"Yeah, yeah..." Dazai grumbles.

The door shuts, and Dazai glares at the dark wood for a few seconds before turning around, "Chuuya—" he calls up the stairs, "are you—?"

He hears the faint call of Chuuya's response. "Coming!"

Really, Dazai tries to reason with himself, ten isn't so bad, he can work with—

"Dazai?"

The older boy glances up, following Chuuya's voice to the top of the stairs, and—

Record scratch.

"Dazai...? You okay?"

"I'm—" his tongue feels like sandpaper. "I—" Chuuya tips his head to the side. "I'm—uh—fucking—"

"What?"

"I'm fantastic. When did you—" Dazai clears just throat, "when did you get a leather jacket?"

"Huh?" Chuuya looks down at himself. "Well—I didn't get all of my clothes out of the old house, and Mori said I needed to fill out my wardrobe before going off to college."

Dazai needs to send his uncle a card. A fruit basket. Maybe a spa day. And that isn't the only thing. Ever since they met, Dazai has always gotten the impression that there was another side to Chuuya, one that the redhead had just never felt comfortable showing off.