Exorbitant 》Durarara!!

WaWa!!

“Tch.”

You heard someone click his tongue and something was stomp over.

“What. Was. That.”

“O-oi, Shizuo…” the man beside him sweat dropped.

You looked at the blonde in bartender suit, if your face already paled only by listening to the exact number that your father has borrowed, your face couldn’t turn paler when you looked at him. He has a vein pop up at his temple and the ambiance around him only make you want to crawl under your bed. But when you remember it, you don’t have your bed anymore.

“Your father loan that much and left his daughter to pay off all that. What kind of father is that?!”

It was like he’s the one who speak out for your mind. Of course, you want to scream, yell and shout about it too. But you couldn’t find the energy, even by seeing all of the stuff in your apartment has gone drained all of your strength to zero.

“…T-that kind of father who marry my mother.” You reply to him forlornly.

“Tch. So you only going to accept that as if it was a normal thing to happen?!” he asked back irately, you looked at him. What’s up with this guy? Why was he the one that mad about your current situation?

“I don’t know what I can do. Even if I know, it was no use, right? The only thing I could do right now is to settle his debt.”

“You are that type of person who will be stepped over if you don’t fight back. It wasn’t your responsible even if you are the daughter. Tch, Tom-san, I’m going first.” He looks like he was ready to tear off this apartment any moment if he lost his temper. And you only could breathe when he was gone. But still could hear he was muttering “I will kill I will kill I will kill I will kill,” under his breath.

“Sorry about it, he was always like that. But it was rare for him to give someone advice without... Well, in any case, since what he said was right too. I will extend the period that you need to pay. So here’s my contact whenever you have the money to pay back.” he handed you his business card and walk off from your apartment. But before that, he added, “And I don’t think it was safe for you to stay here alone. I don’t intend to add more of your worry, but you need to think that maybe your father had borrowed money to another loan company too.”

When both of the figures has vanished from your sight, only then you could close the door and rest your back on the wall. Slowly, you crouch down and hugged your knees with a translucent droplet of tears cascade down to your cheeks.

If only your mother was still alive.

*

“Come in, you don’t need to be shy [Name]-chan, I’m sorry that my place was in a messed.” your friend apologized and gesture you to come. If only she knew that her apartment was far better compared to your place right now.

“I’m sorry to bother you, Kurisu-chan.” you politely bowed to her, but she just waved her hand in dismissal.

“You don’t need to be that formal. We already know each other so it’s not a big problem if I help you. Come in, don’t just stand there.” she went to you and pushed you inside, helping to carry your luggage. There were only a few things that left for you.

“T-thank you. I don’t really know what I should do without you.” you said to her faintly. She leads you to one of her armchairs. “That’s why you need to rely more on your friend. You shouldn’t shoulder all by yourself. You can always count on me,” she smiles to you reassuringly.

You were grateful to have a friend like her who willing to let you stay for a while at her apartment. When the man—Tanaka Tom—that you read his name on his business card leave, you were searching for your contacts if there was anyone that willing to let you stay with them. And you stop at Kurisu, or her real name is Nakagawa Chris. She was your best friend since high school and you had always hung out with her before. You didn’t have many friends since you would only read books during your free time, absorbing the knowledge as many as you can to get a scholarship.

Although you were labeled as ‘bookworm’ Chris always talks to you and befriend you. But since you’ve graduated from high school, you rarely contact her because you were busy with college and study. But she still keeps in contacts with you once in a while and drops to meet you without prior notice.  And when you called her to asked if she would let you stay with her in the meantime, she jovially agrees to it without any question.

“I will… for now, and I will try to return the favor later.”

“You don’t really need to. Now tell me, is there anything else that I could help you with? You won’t ask anyone help and if you did ask, that’s mean something must have happened right? Tell me about it.” she stares at you intently. She always knows about you very well. Maybe she understands you more than anyone else that she could sense something was wrong.

You couldn’t hold it in anymore and start to tell her from the beginning, about how your father has abandoned you and now you need to pay his debt. All of your things has gone. How you felt that you were all alone into this. She only listens to you while stroking your back.

“It’s okay. It’s okay, I’m here with you. What are your plan to pay your father debt?” she asked you calmly. Though you could sense that she was agitated when she mentioned about your father.

“I will start to work part time and pay the debt bit by bit. Since that man said he give me time to settle my father debt.” well, you doubt that you could manage. But you still will try to reduce the amount. And you hope that they don’t have exorbitant interest.

“I see. The debt collector that you’re talking about… is he by any chance with someone who wears bartender suit?” Chris asked curiously. You do remember that blonde guy. How could you forget when you just meet him?

“Well… yeah. Why?”

Chris gasped. “O-oh, I see. You didn’t come here because you ran away from him right?”

“Hmm. Not really, that guy with him, Tanaka Tom said that I shouldn’t live alone for now. And besides, there’s nothing in my apartment anymore.” you answer her back.

“And… why do you ask? How come you know about that guy in bartender suit?”

“You mean you don’t know about him?!” Chris asked you back incredulously.

You ponder and try to remember if you ever know him before, “Uh… maybe I know but I couldn’t remember him right now. Who was he again?”

“Oh my God [Name]-chan, I think you are so dense sometimes. Don’t you know there was a guy in Ikebukuro name Heiwajima Shizuo? He was dubbed as the strongest guy and could easily lift vending machine without breaking a sweat and could rip off a sign pole from the ground with his bare hand.” hearing Chris said that in a serious face suddenly make you laugh.

“Nice joke there Kurisu-chan, no way he could do something like that unless he has a superhuman strength.”

“Well, in this case, he has. You will believe me once you see him with your own eyes.” she said and went to her kitchen to make a drink and give it to you.

“Thank you and sorry for the trouble.” 

“You don’t need to say you are sorry every time. I would appreciate if you only said thank. Well, now I probably should warn you to steer clear from Heiwajima Shizuo. He’s someone who you shouldn’t get involve with because of his monstrous strength, he was dangerous.” she said but that only make you puzzled about that guy.

“Again with that. I will keep that advice then…”

You sip the drink and think about him, although it wasn’t the time to think about a guy, you couldn’t help but think that you will meet him often after this.

Heiwajima Shizuo…