Code: Execute

Code: Exhaustion

They didn't get up from the chair until noon the next day. 

He stayed until noon, which was when he heard Ranpo was back in town.  He gave her a chaste kiss on the hairline, to which she mumbled a quiet goodbye to him. 

She stayed there until he returned later that night with a slight skip to his step and a bag of vegetables from a local market.  When he arrived, he was told by a worried Haruno and nervous Naomi that she hadn't eaten or gotten up all day--except to use the bathroom once.

"What about water, did she drink anything?"

Naomi anxiously rubbed her fingers together as she said, "Whatever was in her glass beside the chair this morning is all she's had..."

He nodded in understanding before he showered quickly.  He turned the bathtub on and let it warm up as he dried off, turning the water off once it was full. 

He went over to her laying form, causing her to peek up at him and give him a soft smile before returning her attention to the database that was in front of her.  He scowled and tapped the screen with his finger, causing it to disappear into small blue particles.  Before she could protest, he slung her over his shoulder and tossed her fully clothes form into a full bathtub in her bathroom. 

She tried to get out of the tub and attack him out of anger, but he simply said, "If you can't bathe yourself, I'll gladly help you with it.  I can promise you would enjoy nothing else for the rest of your life if that happened though."

He had a smirk on his face as his tongue licked his bottom lip in excitement.  With her face the color of hot iron, she shouted at him to leave the bathroom and let her bathe alone.  He stood by the door and picked at his nails, Naomi and Haruno peeking at him from around a corner.

"Naomi-chan, can you and Haruno start cutting up the vegetable I brought home today?"

The pair nodded in agreement before scurrying back toward the kitchen while whispering and giggling to one another.

When Y/n emerged from the bathroom, she had on a pair of leggings and a loose band tee that had a tendency to hang from one shoulder.  A towel was laid across her head and shoulders covering parts of her face.  As she walked passed the bathroom door, she felt her towel lift from her head and be pulled around her face like she just walked into saran wrap.  The towel was pulled backward until she felt her back hit a familiar warm chest.

She felt one arm wrap around her waist in a familiar manner as another hand grabbed the towel and began to dry her hair.

"You're so tired you can't even dry your hair?  I  really should have helped you with that bath, huh?"

She felt her face flush seven shades of crimson before she said, "I'm a grown-ass woman, I can take care of myself, Osamu..."

He twirled her around in his arm as he smirked down at her with a knowing smile as he said, "A grown woman should know they have to eat and drink, even when they're sad and stressed."

She looked off to the side to avoid his piercing and all-knowing gaze.  She felt a kiss on her cheek as Dazai said, "We're going to eat dinner together with them so they stop worrying.  Then we can snuggle in the chair all night long again, okay?"

Y/n grumbled out, "You're acting like that's all I've been looking forward to in life..."

He gently patted her hair with the towel as he said, "Based on your behavior today that's the opinion everyone got. Naomi and Haruno certainly think so."

"W-what?! They do not!" She huffed out in defense.

He sing-singed out, "Yes, they do.  Why do you think they're offering to make dinner?   They're worried you'll be upset if you can't get back to that chair quickly."

Her face flushed in embarrassment at his statement and she brought her hands to her face. "Why didn't you tell them that wasn't the case?"

He pulled the towel from her head and tossed it on the ground. He moved her hands from her face and held them in his own. "I didn't tell them anything because I also wanted to get back to the chair, and having them make dinner would be the most efficient way to do so."

She paused for a moment before she quickly placed a peck onto his lips, and during his shock, she slipped from his grasp. "Then let's eat dinner."

And that is exactly what they did. Sort of.

Dazai watched Y/n the entire time, making sure she ate enough to make up for the food she hadn't eaten earlier.  Once he was satisfied with the amount Y/n ate, everyone let her leave the kitchen, where she briskly made her way over to the recliner again.  Dazai offered to stay in the kitchen to load the dishwasher while Naomi and Haruno left the dining room and scuttled to their shared bedroom down the hallway.  Dazai shook his head in amusement as he thought about how they seemed as if they were giving the couple privacy, but really they would be out of the room and spying on them when they heard the clinking of dishware cease. 

When the dishes were loaded and the washer started its cleaning cycle the brunette walked over to the large chair where he found his one and only was already scooted to the same side of the chair she sat the night before.  The blanket was upturned, waiting for his arrival.   The only thing that was different from the night before was that Y/n would be more alert today considering she basically got the day off today— and with good reason.  

Tomorrow, she would play a big role in the events that would destroy the Guild, and she didn't even know it yet.

Tomorrow, she would be the reason the Agency gained a new official member, and she didn't even know it yet.

Tomorrow, she would change the future of this city, and she didn't even know it yet.

He slipped into the space beside Y/n after grabbing the remote off the coffee table.  He learned in the past that she can't change the channel with database when they are touching due to his ability.  He handed her the remote and pulled the blanket over himself. She quickly melted into his side, and he wove his arm around her waist.

"What do you want to watch?" She asked.

"Whatever you want is okay with me."

She pressed a few buttons on the remote before a familiar movie came on the screen. He knew from a past conversation that this was her favorite movie.  Though he himself had never seen it, he could quickly deduce from the first few scenes that it was one she drabbled about often.

They watched the opening scenes before she interrupted the movie to ask meekly, "What's the plan from here? There's no way you went to the Agency today and didn't make a plan.  I mean, Ranpo is back in town too, so I feel like I'm entitled to know what's going to happen this time."

She could feel the knowing smirk grow on his face. He pulled her closer, as if it were even possible, before he said, "We're going to crash their fortress before they can drop it on Yokohama.  And you, my lady, are going to run remote support for us."

...
...
...

"Whoa, what?! What's being dropped on Yokohama?!"

End chapter