With his fingers crossed and bated breath, Chuuya flipped the packet that laid face down on his desk, a cold sweat beading on the back of his neck. The exam sheet crinkled as he squinted his eyes, awaiting the horrors that were waiting for him on the top of the page.

A big, fat 75% was scribbled at the top of his paper. It strained his eyes, his gaze now filled with the shade of bright red - every other question he answered had a red tick mark that indicated he was incorrect.

Chuuya's stomach sank.

75%...?

That- that was barely passing... Flipping the pages in the packet, he scanned over each question, only fueling his anxiety as it began to topple over his throat. He swallowed it down - almost choking - and slowly placed it with the blank side facing up.

He let them down.

He placed his face in his hands, letting himself drown in the darkness that consumed his vision.

It could always be worse.

Chuuya shook his head and squeezed his face with the palms of his hands, letting his arms drop down to his desk with a thump.

He didn't know what he should tell Dazai - or, even worse, his mother. He couldn't bear to hear their disappointed voices, to see his mother's concerned and disappointed face.

His phone felt heavy as lead in his hand, his index finger hovering over the 'On' button.

Should he...?

How could he tell Dazai that his assistance for this exam had been wasted? There was no way he could lie; the guilt would just make him feel like a douchebag.

Chuuya's thumbs hovered over the keyboard before tapping on Discord.

(King of Sheep): I'm sorry.

Really, all he could do was apologize for wasting Dazai's precious time for something as selfish as helping him on an exam that he knew he was going to fail in the first place. The reply came before Chuuya could finish his other message.

(No Longer Human): Chuuya, what happened? Is everything ok?

(King of Sheep): I'm sorry to have wasted your time. I'm sorry for being so self-centered, I should have let you sleep.

(No Longer Human): ??? What happened? What did you get?

Chuuya inhaled sharply, his eyes glancing to his sides to see if any of his classmates were watching him as he typed. No one seemed to be, for they were all occupied in reviewing their test answers or were on their own phones.

(King of Sheep): ... A 75%...

Chuuya waited for Dazai to say something - anything. Deep down, he knew Dazai would say something along the lines of ' you didn't study enough - you fell asleep during our tutoring session!' but, instead, came the reply:

(No Longer Human): Hey, hey. Why do you make it sound like it's the end of the world? You got a 75%, biiig deal. It's only October, Chuuya! You have plenty of time to study more and improve your test scores so your grade will increase.

(King of Sheep): But... That's barely a pass. My mother is going to be so mad at me.

Chuuya clenched his phone, his eyes drifting from his screen to his exam paper, the packet resting idly on his table as if he had never touched it in the first place.

(No Longer Human): Class is starting right now, but I assure you that your mother won't get mad at you or disown you for a simple test. Your career won't go down in flames for a flimsy Chemistry test. You can do better next time, little sheep. Believe in yourself.

Chuuya's thumbs typed rapidly on the keyboard, writing, deleting, writing, then deleting the sentence again. Right when he made a proper reply to Dazai's short motivational speech, the green button next to Dazai's profile picture turned to a bland gray.

The ginger cursed silently. He didn't get the chance to thank Dazai properly for helping him study last night. It would be rude not to, as Kouyou had taught him when he was young.

(King of Sheep): My career kind of depends on this class, but thanks, Dazai. Thank you for those words and thank you for helping me study. If you need anything as payment, don't hesitate to ask, please.

Chuuya owed Dazai big-time for keeping him up past his sleep schedule and disturbing him during the transition between his classes.

"Hey, what did you get?" Akutagawa slid into the aisle Chuuya was in, placing a hand on the empty spot next to Chuuya's arm.

"What are you? An elementary student asking for other people's test scores?" Chuuya tried to joke, although he knew that Akutagawa was definitely way smarter than him and the fact that he probably got something close to full credit made the situation worse than it should have been.

"Tell me."

"A fucking 75. And you, Mr. Smarty Pants?"

"91."

Chuuya clicked his tongue, falling back in his chair as he crossed his legs. Akutagawa took a seat, taking hold of Chuuya's exam papers.

"I suggest you get a proper tutor instead of an online friend," Akutagawa said, leafing through the test sheets.

"I would but- hey, wait... How did you know it was an online friend who tutored me?" Chuuya raised an eyebrow.

"Your mother told me to keep an eye on you today since you didn't sleep as much last night. She wanted me to make sure that you didn't slip down the stairs or accidentally pass out during class," Akutagawa dodged the question with a shrug.

Chuuya's eyes averted to the large windows at the side of the room, the soft sunlight of the late morning pooling on the ground in front of it. "So, a tutor, huh? You have any recommendations?"

Dazai was a great tutor and all (Chuuya can hardly get the guy's voice out of his head), but Chuuya didn't want to rely on Dazai that much when it came to exams. Maybe a new, professional tutor would be the missing factor in his deranged college life.

"Well," Akutagawa started, placing the packet down before facing Chuuya, "there's this particular tutor I know. He may be unpopular, but his tactics for studying and his knowledge on every subject are beyond even my boundaries. You may or may not like him because of the way he thinks, but he's the only option you have left at this point."

"Oh?" Chuuya lifted his eyebrows, urging Akutagawa to go on, "And who may that be?"

"Fyodor Dostoyevsky. He's president of the Rats in the House of the Dead."

Chuuya cringed, "isn't he the one who threw a stink bomb in Mrs. Smith's class first semester?"

"No. That was me."

~~~

Dazai sipped the rest of his coffee, dissatisfied with how cold it had gotten throughout the day. He tossed it into a nearby garbage can and returned his hands to his hoodie's pocket, his teeth playing with his bottom lip. School had just gotten out and he was searching for Kunikida - he was his ride home. If Dazai was late, Kunikida wouldn't hesitate to just leave him there.

Sometimes he'd have to hitch a ride from Ranpo, who stayed a little bit after to get more hours for his forensics class and Dazai did not enjoy staying at school more than he already had. If he was in his criminal justice class, though, he wouldn't have had a problem with it.

Much to Dazai's luck, Kunikida was waiting on him right where he had parked this morning. Greeting him with a wave, he slumped into the passenger's seat and let out a long sigh, finally able to relax.

"How'd you do?"

"Failed," Dazai set his backpack on the floor.

"Dazai-!"

"I have a perfectly good reason why I did." Dazai's eyes narrowed as he slung both arms around the headrests of the seats next to him.

"What could possibly-?!"

Dazai clicked his tongue at Kunikida's lack of faith in him, "I was helping someone else."

Silence.

"You...What?"

"That's why I was up late, too," Dazai explained, "Chuuya, a friend of mine from a game, needed help with his Chemistry final. I stayed up all night trying to help him."

"Did he pass?"

"Yup."

"Well, that's good to hear," Kunikida looked away and put the key in the ignition, starting up the car, "at least you were useful for once."

Dazai feigned a sharp gasp, his eyes widening in mock terror. "Kunikida, are you implying that I was never useful in the first place? Oh!" Dazai slung his head back, hitting the headrest with a thud, "my heart!"

Dazai smirked when he saw Kunikida's knuckles turn white with rage as he gripped the steering wheel.

"If you were truly useful, you would have called your friend!" Kunikida snapped, swerving the car suddenly so that Dazai nearly collided with the window.

"Maybe I will," Dazai sneered, sticking his tongue out as he dug inside his back pocket for his phone.

"HEY, YOU'RE NOT CALLING YOUR GAMER BOY IN MY CAR!"

Dazai ignored Kunikida's curses as he opened Discord, tapping on Chuuya's icon.

(No Longer Human): I'm booooooooredddddd

(No Longer Human): What are you doiinngg?

When his phone didn't alert him that Chuuya had responded, he huffed and dropped it in his lap.

"Well?"

"He's in class, probably."

"Still?"

"We've got different time zones, Kunikida. I thought you were smarter than this," Dazai shook his head. His phone then vibrated in his hand. Wasting no time, his arms shot back up to see if it was from Chuuya.

(King of Sheep): I'm still at school, idiot.

Kunikida's curiosity got the better of him, so he averted his eyes from the road to peek.

(No Longer Human): So meaaan!!! :((

(King of Sheep): I still have two more classes, but I'll text you when I'm on my way home, okay?

Dazai smiled to himself.

(No Longer Human): Don't forget about me~!

Chuuya's texting bubble appeared and disappeared a few times, confusing Dazai as each second that passed by without him sending anything.

(King of Sheep): Trust me, I won't.

~~~

Chuuya sighed for what seemed to be the tenth time this hour - he was struggling so keep his head up to take notes for Biology, so he propped it on his fist. Wearily blinking his eyes, his teacher was spouting nonsense at the front.

"Hey," someone poked his shoulder.

"What?" Chuuya's voice was groggy, his irritation spiked due to his boredom and fatigue.

"Sorry to 'other you, 'ut your friend told me you needed a tutor?"

Next to him stood a raven-haired man wearing an oversized winter coat that descended until his ankles. Chuuya caught the man's gaze in his, squinting as he made out the features on the other's face.

"Fyodor, right?"

"Yes," Fyodor kept his voice down as he took a seat next to Chuuya, his eyes flickering to the front of the room every few seconds. "I 'anted to know if you still 'ant tutoring lessons?"

"Would you mind tutoring me? I don't want to waste your time or anything," Chuuya's eyes fell downcast when he remembered that he made Dazai stay up to help him study.

"O' course not. My services 'ren't free, though. 'ut 'ecause I hate 'is teacher as much as you do, I'll lower the payment."

"Tell me about it," Chuuya groaned, "this professor has me wanting to keel over."

Fyodor laughed lightly, folding his arms on the table. "If you agree to pay me seven dollars an 'our, 'e can get started 'ight away."

"Can we settle for two hours two days a week, then?"

"I can make that 'ork. After school is fine, yes?"

"Yeah, thanks man," Chuuya breathed a sigh of relief.

"No problem."

~~~

Chuuya wrapped his scarf tighter around his neck, trapping in all the warmth he could. His fingers were numb with cold, but there was no way he could warm them up without his gloves, which he had left in the classroom on accident. On the other hand, he needed to check his notifications on the way back, so having no gloves wouldn't be such a lost cause.

(No Longer Human): Hey, you out of class yet?

(King of Sheep): Yeah, why?

(No Longer Human): You wanna voice call?

Chuuya checked his surroundings, debating whether or not if it was a wise choice to speak aloud while he was walking. Luckily, the sidewalk was empty, and only a few cars traveled up and down the road.

(King of Sheep): Sure. I'm walking home now.

In a blink of an eye, Dazai had connected to voice call and Chuuya followed suit once he had plugged in his headphones. Stuffing his phone in his back pocket, he twirled the cord around with two fingers.

"Hiiii, Chuuya!" Dazai greeted with a laugh, voice blaring from his headphones. Chuuya let out a chuckle at the man's enthusiasm.

"Hi, Dazai."

"If you're still worrying over your test, you'll be fine. A 75 really isn't that bad."

"It.. was barely passing, though..." Chuuya drawled; his walking pace seeming to slow down.

"Well, it's only your first final before school ends, so take it easy! There are more tests that can help your grade. Don't worry, the most important thing is that you passed!"

"Thanks... Dazai...are you sure that there's nothing I can do to repay you?" Chuuya pushed the subject yet again.

"Oh, no. Really, I don't need anything."

Chuuya wasn't going to give up that easily, but he couldn't exactly physically give anything to Dazai in return. Maybe when they met in real life one day, Chuuya would pay Dazai back for his services.

But he knew that wouldn't happen. After all, chances were slim and he highly doubted their relationship would spur to something as big as that.

"Okay... if you insist. Well, besides me, how was school for you?"

"Eh," Dazai said in a light-hearted tone, "you know, the usual. My roommate yelling at me, getting up late, getting kicked by him, and dying in general during class."

"Your roommate sounds very..." Chuuya paused, rummaging his mind for the right word so he didn't offend Dazai's friend on accident, "very spirited."

"Nah, he's very violent actually. He threatened to drive the car into a tree if I wouldn't shut up," Dazai snorted, "It wasn't even my fault that he wouldn't let me call you in the car. Hell, don't even get me started on how mad he was this morning while trying to wake me up."

"What happened?"

"I was up all night and he wanted to know why, so, naturally, I said I was jacking it to porn."

Right at that moment, Chuuya had opened the door to his house and choked on his laughter, "you actually said that?!"

"I've got the bruise to prove."

Chuuya howled again, but this time, he gasped for air and it evolved into a loud, obnoxious snort which startled his mother. He had to lean against the doorframe for support when his stomach cramped up and his shoulders shook violently, the former noise he made only spurring him on.

"Chuuya?"

Chuuya barely heard his mother call for him through his laughing fit. Dazai had also started chortling, making everything more ridiculous and hilarious tenfold. His guffaws stopped as he started convulsing, gasping for breaths through the laughs stuck on the walls of his throat.

"Chuuya, are you alright?" Kouyou tapped him on the shoulder. His mother's look of horror instantly sobered him up. Tears were still streaming down his face.

"Are you okay?"

Chuuya heaved for air, Dazai's laughter still resonating in his earphones.

"I-I'm fi-" Another burst of laughter seized him before he could finish his sentence. The ceiling was swirling above, his legs quaking beneath him. His laughter stopped within a few seconds, fortunately, and he was able to prop himself up.

"Chuuya?" His mother called again, this time waving her hand in front of his face.

"I'm fine, mom."

"Oh, your mom's there?" Dazai mused, "say hi to her for me."

" Hell to the no-"

"Who are you talking to? Is it that friend of yours again?" Kouyou crossed her arms in disapproval.

"Yeah," Chuuya deflated a little, "he says hi."

Kouyou shook her head, though a slight smile danced on her face, "so how did your exam go? Did you pass?"

Chuuya's breath caught in his throat and Dazai fell silent on the other end. How would he tell his mother that yes, he did pass, but only with a 75%? Worst of all, if he did tell her that, she would lecture him on the fact that he spent all night last night talking to Dazai and that was why he winded up with a grade that barely slipped by. Then, she was going to scold him about the fact that he spent too much time on his games and that he should have studied instead of talking to a stranger.

"U-Uh... I passed?" Chuuya swallowed nervously, hiding his hands behind his back so that his mother wouldn't see him wiping the sweat off his palms. Though, his answer sounded more like a question the more that time passed.

"With?"

Chuuya's gaze fell, his teeth scraping along the inside of his cheek.

"Chuuya, look at me and take out those earbuds of yours," Kouyou demanded.

Chuuya made no attempt to do so, his hands clenching into fists behind his back. Dazai's voice flowed through his ears, laced with concern as he asked Chuuya if everything was alright. Chuuya took a slow, shaky breath through his nostrils, the intake of air fluctuating as his body began to shake.

"Nakahara Chuuya, I told you to take off your earbuds, did I not?" Kouyou's voice lowered into a strict tone, her gaze unyielding and cold.

Hesitantly, Chuuya removed his earbuds, Dazai's voice fading away as they fell limply to the sides of his backpack.

"What grade did you get?"

Chuuya's tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth, his throat parched and his stomach seemed to flip like a pancake.

"A 75%..."

Kouyou didn't so much as bristle, but Chuuya knew that she was greatly displeased - hell, maybe even angry - Chuuya couldn't tell at this point.

"Everyday, I see you talking to that friend of yours. He's a stranger; you don't know where he lives or how he looks like-"

"He's not a stranger!" Chuuya yelled back, "I know him!"

"Well, I don't! You are always on that computer, twenty-four-seven, playing those games of yours instead of studying."

"I did study! You didn't know because you were asleep!"

"You may be a college student and I can't monitor you as I had in the past, but I know when you're studying and when you're not."

"You weren't even awake then! That's prejudice!" Chuuya's voice increased per word, anger bubbling within his chest.

"Nakahara Chuuya, don't you dare raise your voice at me! Do you want to lose your electronic privileges?!" Kouyou quipped.

"I'M NOT A FUCKING KID, MOM! AND ALWAYS, EVERY SINGLE DAMNED TIME WHEN THIS HAPPENS, YOU NEVER LET ME BE ANGRY!" Chuuya snapped, his eyes turning to slits as blind rage consumed his senses, nostrils flared.

Kouyou gritted her teeth, but she made no attempts to lash out at Chuuya - although her gaze held a murderous intent, "well, have you ever thought if you had the right to be angry?!"

The right?! The right ?!

"I DON'T NEED A FUCKING RIGHT TO BE ANGRY! I DIDN'T CHOOSE TO BE MAD!" Chuuya seethed, his throat sore from yelling, "I DIDN'T CHOOSE TO BE BORN!"

Kouyou froze in shock and Chuuya was too enraged to feel any remorse for what he just said.

Shoving past his mother, Chuuya stomped up the stairs and slammed the door shut behind him. It was like an act of a teenager going through puberty and throwing a tantrum, but Chuuya could care less - he was pissed.

Chuuya's back hit the door once he slammed it shut, sliding down until his ass hit the floor. He covered his face with his hands, crumpling into a ball as he forced himself not to cry.

Soft voices flowed from his earbuds, catching Chuuya's attention. He placed them on again, because fuck his mom, he wasn't going to listen to her.

"Chuuya? What happened?" Dazai's voice was urgent with a tinge of helplessness.

"I'm fine," Chuuya started. However, as soon as he did, his voice wavered.

"Chuuya? Are you sure you're okay?"

Tears burned behind his eyelids, threatening to spill. But not in front of Dazai. Crying was a form of weakness; he couldn't show Dazai that he was weak.

"Hey, hey," Dazai's soothing voice came again, like a gentle hand against Chuuya's cheek. "I have something that might make you feel better."

Chuuya held back a sniffle, brushing the lingering tears from his eyes, "what?"

"Video chat with me."

...Video chat?

Dazai had never asked to video chat together through the months they have known each other. All they would do was scream together on their game, rage-quit, and leave it at that.

Needless to say, Chuuya was surprised.

"Uh...I don't-"

"Trust me, please," Dazai pleaded, "just give me five minutes to get ready."

"Okay," Chuuya breathed, "okay."

"I won't be long, I promise."

That was the last thing Dazai had said before he disconnected.

Chuuya also clicked out of the call and got up, using his door-handle as an aid and peeled his earbuds out. His knees popped when he righted himself and he made his way to his laptop. He was not about to go out of his room to check his face, so he decided he'd simply use his laptop's camera.

It'd be the first time they truly saw each other instead of listening to the other's voices.

Booting up his device and tapping the passcode in, he swiftly clicked on the camera and was met with his own face.

His own face was red, tear-stained, and puffy. It almost made him cry even more, but he shut his eyes and combed his fingers through his hair in an attempt to make it look somewhat decent. He used his hoodie's sleeve to wipe at his eyes and nose.

He let out a shuddered breath when he couldn't fix anything - he still looked like he had just cried.

When Dazai initiated another call, everything went crashing down.

Chuuya viciously blinked away the new, hot tears that welled up in the corners of his eyes and clamped a hand over his mouth to stifle any noises that dared to slip out.

Reluctantly, he joined as well, but a conversation was already brewing on the other side.

"Dazai, you've never taken that out before-"

"I know, I know!" Dazai hastily replied, as if in a rush, "I'm aware, but-"

" Why?"

"Kunikida, could you please just give me a minute?!"

"It's about him, isn't it?"

"Kunikida, please! Just an hour or so, I'll explain myself later!"

"Dazai-"

" Kunikida!"

Silence.

"Fine. I'm coming back when dinner's ready, but after that, you'll say everything ."

"...Everything?"

Chuuya was met with a slam of the door and a loud thump.

...

"...Dazai?"

"Oh shit - fuck - you heard that?"

"I'm sorry-"

"No, it's not your fault. Kunikida can be a huge ass when he wants to be," Dazai hit something on his end and it made noise, "buuut, enough about him. Are you ready?"

"If I'm being honest, no, I'm not," Chuuya laughed somberly.

"That's okay, we can do this later, then," Dazai set something down and pushed it away.

"Wait, no-! I still want to talk to you-"

"Oh, I wasn't leaving. I was going to see if you wanted to play a game or something before I showed you that."

"Showed me what?"

"Noooothiinngg~"

Chuuya frowned, picking up his computer and setting it on his bed to get comfortable. Grabbing his blanket and wrapping it over his shoulders, he leaned over and closed the blinds a bit to keep the cold out.

"Anyywayy, what do you want to play?"

~~~

"Kill the baby chicken and see what happens," Chuuya threatened.

"But I'm going to starve if I don't!"

"Make bread, then!"

"Chuuuuuyaaa!!!" Dazai groaned, "that's too much work!"

"Don't kill the chicke-DO NOT-" Chuuya gasped as he watched Dazai do exactly what he just said not to. The chicken keeled over, covered in a red glow, and dropped a feather and a slab of meat.

Chuuya leisurely equipped his iron sword.

"Chuuya, don't."

Chuuya moved forward.

"Chuuya, don't kill me, please! I have so much on me-!"

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't."

"You... love and cherish me?"

Chuuya hit Dazai's character with his sword, Dazai trying to get away. With a few more hits, Dazai was killed and he sobbed, all of his items on the floor, twirling around in all their glory.

"Chuuya, I expect to get all my things back," he wailed, trying to respawn as fast as he could.

"Ooohh, you had diamonds~"

"CHUUYA-"

"Sharing is caring," Chuuya smiled, walking forward and collecting everything Dazai had dropped.

"Chuuya's so mean," Dazai whined, fake complaining.

"I hope you get blown up by a creeper, too," Chuuya rolled his eyes, his words dripping with amusement, "then maybe I can stop hearing that obnoxious voice of yours."

"You think my voice is obnoxious?" Dazai gasped, sucking in a breath.

"Not really..." Chuuya's voice lowered, "it's actually kind of melodious..."

"Hah? What was that? I couldn't hear you~"

Chuuya flushed, cursing instead for his stupidity, "Nothing! It was nothing!"

"Oh, really? I thought I heard something along the lines of 'Not really... it's actually kind of melodious.'"

Chuuya gaped at the green. How had Dazai heard what he'd said? He kept his voice as low as he possibly could, so Dazai would either have to be superhuman to hear or he miraculously guessed the right phrase (impossible, Chuuya thought).

"Chuuya, time for dinner!"

Chuuya bit back a snarky remark, his back stiffening.

"Do you need to go?" Dazai asked, his whiny tone disappearing in a split second.

"I'm really tempted to say no."

"Well, I can't let you starve. If you do, I'll have to kill a baby chicken again."

"Don't you fucking dare!"

Dazai's laughter ensued, filling his whole room, "but really, go get your food. I'm not gonna go anywhere."

"Fine, I'll be right back," Chuuya kept his blanket wrapped around himself as he slid from his bed and down the stairs.

Thankfully, his mother wasn't in the kitchen and he was able to make his plate without any complications. Just to spite her, he piled on more macaroni than he normally would - she chastised him in the past, preaching that it 'wasn't healthy'.

Well, yelling at your son when he actually tried isn't healthy either, now is it?

He climbed up the stairs with a water bottle and his dinner, eager to talk and play Minecraft with Dazai again - he wasn't going to keep his new friend waiting.

"I'm back," Chuuya announced, plopping onto the same spot on the bed.

"Welcome back," Dazai greeted, "also, thanks for giving me my stuff like I asked."

"Huh?" Chuuya's reply came muffled - he just filled it with food. Chuuya then saw that when he was away, Dazai had taken advantage of him and killed his character - collecting back his things, plus whatever Chuuya had on.

"DAZAI-" Chuuya about choked on his food.

"I'll give it all back if you promise to do something for me."

"Hell no! Whatever it is, it's probably going to be something manipulative as fuck!"

"You're no fun," Dazai sulked.

"God, you're giving me a goddamn migraine," Chuuya put down his fork down to rub his temples, "ughhhhh."

"Take some medicine?"

"I usually get migraines, it's fine. I take medicine each time, but they usually never work," Chuuya chewed, "I'm sure if I eat it'll go down some."

Dazai made a noise of acknowledgment and proceeded to play the game. It took a while for Chuuya to finish dinner, but when he did, he got up and set it down on his desk to put away later - he didn't feel like going out of his room anytime soon unless he had to pee.

"You finally ready now?"

"For what?"

"Our video call, remember?"

Oh.

Shit.

"I guess so?"

"You sound pretty anxious, we don't have to if you don't want to," Dazai said, though Chuuya could hear the twinge of disappointment in his voice.

"No, no, no, no. I want to... It's just-"

"It's just what?"

Chuuya bit his lip, drawing his tongue over the area. How was he going to explain that he thought that it was going to be awkward for him to meet Dazai? He had no idea who Dazai was, where he was, or how he looked like - his nerves were jittery, his palms sweating from the tension. Heck, he wasn't sure if he was even willing to show his face to a stranger. Yes, Dazai was a friend who helped him with his studies, but Chuuya couldn't hide the feeling of some sort of anxiety in which Dazai would be completely different than he imagined, or if he had another side personality that he hid from Chuuya.

"Chuuya?" Dazai spoke again.

"Huh? Yeah, yeah. Give me a second."

This would probably be his first and last chance to see Dazai for real. It wouldn't be plausible if he threw away his chance; he wanted to thank Dazai face-to-face despite how he looked or how his true personality was like. Chuuya drew in a breath, rubbing his hands.

"Okay. Do you want to start, or should I?"

"You can."

Chuuya was met with a black box with a loading sign, going around and around until an image took its place.

An image of a guy- no, wait - scratch that.

An image of a guy with chestnut hair and tan skin. The guy - presumably Dazai - was looking downwards, his hair covering most of his face. When he raised his head, however, Chuuya's breath caught in his throat.

Dazai pushed his hair out of his face with his hand, moving it upwards. He smirked, which only made Chuuya's attempt at breathing normally futile.

"Am I sexy as hell or what?"

"Absolutely not ," Chuuya quipped, though his heart was involuntarily pounding fists against his ribcage as if it wished to throw itself at the man before him.

"Rude," Dazai stuck his tongue out, letting his hair flop back into place, "I guess it's your turn, or whatever."

Feeling a new sense of pride, Chuuya pressed the camera button. He saw his own face pop up next to Dazai's.

Chuuya messed with his hair, trying to brush down the ends that were sticking up, his face tinged red as he saw Dazai's mouth open. Ignoring him, he patted down his shirt and bit his bottom lip when he was done fixing it.

"Freckles," Dazai gaped, his voice so soft Chuuya could barely hear.

"What?"

"Blue? Orange? Wait," Dazai squinted, moving his face closer to the camera, "are you a ginger?"

"I mean," Chuuya blushed, "yeah?"

"Do you have any other freckles?" Dazai's eyes were wide with curiosity, clearly wanting to know more about Chuuya.

"I have some more on my shoulders?" Chuuya tugged at his collar, proving that yes, there were many more, "also on my arms and back."

"That's cu- nice," Dazai tripped upon his words, "really, I would have never taken you for being a ginger, let alone have blue eyes."

"And you're all brown," Chuuya squished up his nose, "which is boring."

"I have beauty marks too," Dazai also squished his nose, mocking Chuuya, "but I'm not showing you ."

"Whatever," Chuuya let go of his collar, his hand shooting up to massage his forehead, "wasn't there something you wanted to show me?"

"Oh, right!" Dazai leaned to the right, half of his body disappearing from the camera, "I thought this would make you feel better - about your mom and your headache."

Dazai held a large, tan object in both of his hands.

"A.... guitar?"Chuuya's eyes blew wide, "you can actually play that?"

"Yup!" Dazai popped the 'p', "when I was young, my father taught me how to play. I haven't touched it in a while, so I might be a bit rusty."

Chuuya pointed at the screen, "and you're going to... play that... for me ?"

"I mean duh, " Dazai grinned, "man, you're quite dumb, y'know that?"

Chuuya sunk into his blanket, "I'm not dumb, I just didn't think that..."

"Hmmmm~?"

"It's nothing," Chuuya dropped the subject, "but let's see what you've got."

"My pleasure," Dazai smiled, righting the guitar in his hands, placing them where they needed to be. Chuuya watched intently as Dazai slid his fingers over the strings, getting ready to play.

His fingers brushed over the strings, flicking them and playing the first few notes of the song.

Chuuya was met with something he never would have imagined - Dazai wasn't kidding when he told him he knew how to play.

One thing, though, that he'd never have expected in a million fucking years, was that Dazai was going to sing as well.

"Fly me to the moon, let me play among the stars..." Dazai made eye-contact with Chuuya, his face brightening with the sight of Chuuya's slightly parted lips.

"Let me see what spring is like onnn a~ Jupiter and Mars. In other words, hold my hand, and in other words, darlin' kiss me.."

Dazai's voice was so slick and deep - it tingled every fiber of Chuuya's being - especially when Dazai glanced upward for a split second. But, that split second sent tendrils shooting up Chuuya's body. The way Dazai looked at him - the way his mouth morphed into a half-smirk - and the way Dazai sang sent Chuuya over the fucking moon.

"Fill my heart with song and let me sing forevermore. You- you are all I long for, all I worship and adore."

Chuuya's stomach flipped.

"In other words, please be true annd in other words," Dazai's voice wavered, "...I love you."

Dazai started to hum and Chuuya took note of how Dazai closed his eyes and creased his eyebrows together at the last sentence. His fingers glided over the strings one last time and lightly slapped the guitar.

Chuuya was at a loss for words, to say the least.

Dazai's features changed from melancholy to happy in a blink of an eye, "sooooo~?"

"You - you sing so beautifully and I never knew- I never knew you could-!" Chuuya gushed, "you should become a singer, holy fuck!"

Dazai chuckled, eyes darting away. His fingers shook as they clenched over the guitar.

"...You really think so?"

"I- I know so! Could you..." Chuuya mulled over what to say, "could you... play another song?"

Dazai laughed at that, "of course! I'll stay up all night playing for you if that's what you want."

"No- that's fine, really! I'm actually already tired.."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, your singing legit just like... made me so tired - my headache is going away, too."

Dazai's lips quirked into a smile, "I'm glad. Ya got any requests?"

~~~

Chuuya eventually fell asleep, which didn't take long at all. His headache quickly subsided and he was able to sleep peacefully - Dazai's voice still murmuring incoherent things in his mind.

He never noticed that someone was listening in on their conversation on the other side of his door the entire time.

He never noticed that his mother also agreed with him that Dazai - whoever this man was - had a beautiful singing voice.

He never noticed that she was trying not to cry when Chuuya closed his laptop, muttering something about hope - something about bright, new tomorrows.