part 2

If Dazai were nice, he would knock on the door and poke his head in, introduce himself politely. He would be quiet and calm and subtle about his unannounced visit.

Dazai is not nice.

He throws Chuuya’s door wide open, letting it slam against the wall with a bang. The person who had been sitting on the bed (he can only assume it’s Chuuya) leaps a full foot into the air and scrambles to face him, and Dazai finally gets a good look at this boy everyone’s been talking about.

Immediately, Dazai can see why Kouyou nee-san has taken Chuuya under her wing. The boy is...well, beautiful, there’s really no other way to describe it. He’s petit, a good 12 cm shorter than Dazai is, and he’s skinny; a strong breeze looks like it could knock him over. Chuuya is pale, paler than anyone Dazai has ever seen before in his (admittedly short) life but still breathtakingly beautiful, proving a sharp contrast with his eyes that are a dark blue that make Dazai think of the water down by the port and his hair that is an almost unnatural shade of red and falls around his shoulder in soft curls.

He’s only distracted for a second by the other’s looks, but it’s a second too long. Anger at himself wells up inside him and Dazai resists the urge to grind his teeth. He’s a mafia brat, and things like sex and a pretty face shouldn’t matter to him, not if he wants to stay alive. And usually, he’s very good at keeping his emotions under control-his ability to disconnect from feelings is what drew Mori’s attention in the first place.

“Hello.” Dazai says pleasantly, masking his distaste. “I’ve heard a lot about you.” He takes a step into the room and is pleased to see Chuuya scoot backwards on his bed. Good. The kid should be afraid of him.

“My name is Dazai Osamu.” He continues, and he can see Chuuya’s eyes widen in recognition. He’s not surprised; he’s become rather infamous in the Port Mafia as Mori’s shadow, a demon prodigy in his own right. He knows exactly what he’s capable of and it looks like Chuuya does as well, and that pleases him. “And you’re Nakahara Chuuya.” It’s a statement, not a question, and Dazai takes another step towards Chuuya as he speaks.

Shoved back into the corner of the bed, Chuuya looks like a cornered animal. However, he doesn’t seem to be frightened. His body is stiff and his lips are parted slightly, but he hasn’t backed away from Dazai again and his expression is impressively blank. Dazai realizes that Kouyou hasn’t taken the boy in just for his pretty face; there’s something dark about him, something he does a very good job of hiding but is dangerous nonetheless. Dazai stops and tilts his head and ponders just what about this scrawny brat could be useful to a mafia executive. His distraction costs him, because he fails to notice the other tensing and shifting his legs around.

^^^To be continued. ^^^

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***