Part of Your World {A Bungo Stray Dogs fanfic}

Bread Crumbs

There's a harsh LED light blinking above us, its electricity buzzing endlessly. I sit next to Dazai in the waiting room of the vet clinic where I used to volunteer. After escaping the Port Mafia's base, Dazai had scooped Creed up and we rushed over here to see a doctor. They've been in the operating room for an hour now. My leg is shaking so incessantly that it causes both our chairs to vibrate. Dazai notices my anxiety out of the corner of his eye and slips his hand silently into mine, giving it a light squeeze. I smile weakly up at him, trying to be brave. I'm just so worried about Creed... Dazai does manage to calm me down a bit though as he rubs his thumb in little circles on my hand. Then something occurs to me.

"Dazai?" I start.

"Yeah?" He says.

"How did you know where to find me?" I ask, looking up at him with my eyebrows furrowed.

His face begins to darken and he avoids my gaze as he answers, "I actually didn't find you. I had just assumed you were avoiding me until I received a... message... from Mori." He squeezes my hand a little tighter as the memories come back to him, making my heart rate pick up considerably. He continues in a low pained voice saying, "He sent me a recording of you... you were crying out in pain... And he said that if I didn't agree to return as a mafia executive... he would kill you." That's when I remember that Mori had set up a tape recorder before he tortured Creed.

"Oh," I say. My voice comes out as little more than a whisper. He pulls me tightly to his chest and lets out a long sigh. There must be so many thoughts running through his mind right now. I wrap my arms around him in response and nuzzle my face into the lapel of his coat. Then we break apart, our faces both donning soft smiles, as the doctor steps into the waiting room.

"I've given Creed some stitches and cauterized the deeper wounds. Good news is, he's going to be just fine. Bad news is, his claws will probably never grow back because they were removed all the way at the root," the doctor informs us. I run over to her and trap her in a grateful bear hug.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" I say, my voice muffled into her shirt.

She pats me on the head with a smile on her face as she says, "You're very welcome Kagami. You know you'll always have me in your corner." I pull away as Dazai walks over to shake her hand gratefully. "Now, Creed's gonna be sleeping for a while until the meds wear off, so be careful getting him home alright? And make sure to give him lots of good food and water when he comes to."

With Creed's sleeping figure safely curled in Dazai's arms, we make our way back to my apartment. I'm so exhausted, I feel like I could sleep for days. I take a shower and spend the rest of the night with both my special boys. My arms remain wrapped tightly around Creed and my face buried in his fur until morning.

I'm never losing him again, I think as I drift off into sleep.

Little did I know, Dazai was thinking the same thing about me.