Expectations // Soukoku

13 // Pretend all you want

LMAO, I WAS LATE FOR ONLINE CLASS COS I WAS SO FOCUSED ON WRITING THIS-

In this chuuya meets the parents

I procrastinated writing this for such a long time, cos I just wanted some FLUFF in my life but then there's this book which is gonna get aNgSty

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NOTE: THESE ARE THE REAL AUTHOR'S but I'm a fan of his so I wanted to use him as an influence for the story.

Father's name: Gen'emon Tsushima

Mum: Tane Tsushima

Dazai birth name: Shūji Tsushima

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Friday really couldn't have come too soon. Dazai resented the very idea of seeing his parents and now that Chuuya would be coming with him, he wasn't sure if he should be less or more nervous. And so, the week passed way quicker than it should have in Dazai's opinion and now it was Friday afternoon — around 3 to 4 PM to be exact — and Dazai was standing at a busy bus stop with Chuuya.

The pair was unusually quiet as they waited in the group of hustling people. Mops of black hair waved around as people from kids to their teens climbed onto passing busses some with bright smiles on their faces and others looming with anxiety. The duality of man was truly fascinating.

Even Chuuya — who had been playing some sort of game on his phone for the entirety of the waiting period so far — managed to look up from the gadget practically glued to his hand, when loud snickers burst from the group of high schoolers standing next to them. "What's up with them?" Chuuya asked in a dry voice, sounding annoyed about the divergence of his attention, although he himself had given it to the scene unfolding some metres away.

Dazai directed his gaze to the group with a curious look on his face. He could see 6 teens, some male and some female, laughing at a 7th person who lay on the ground, curled up in a ball with loud sobs emerging from him. The boy looked quite young, possibly a few years younger than Dazai himself, he had pale skin and short black hair that was getting mussed by the shoe pressing against his temple. It didn't take a genius to know what was happening, the boy was being bullied by this group.

The scene made Dazai drop from an awkward smile to a disapproving frown and creases form between his — now — furrowed brows. His eyes travelled up from the trembling boy to the one who was almost standing on him. This one looked about the same age as the kid on the ground, with humoured eyes and an evil grin stretching across his face he appeared rather malicious. He turned his head to the group behind him and asked in a loud — and very annoying — voice: "What should we do with him? We don't want him on the same bus as us, do we?" Even the way he spoke made him sound like a heartless bully with no better things to do than harass others.

What made Dazai's skin crawl was how he could imagine himself as the boy lying on the cold pavement. He could almost feel the dirty shoe rubbing against his skin. It brought up memories of his past that he thought he had long since buried. And now at this moment, he wanted to go over and punch the bully, be the hero he always wished would save him.

Just as he was about to stomp up to the insensitive boy, a hand was placed on his shoulder. "Don't do anything irrational", sounded Chuuya's voice from behind.

Dazai froze, all thoughts and movements halted from a single sentence. He turned around and looked at Chuuya with an unreadable emotion clouding his eyes. "I won't. It's just... I used to... used to get bullied like that. Seeing it makes me want to help him." He whispered, voice thick as he held back tears.