the beauty of water: resurfaced | o. dazai ✔

chapter twenty-nine.

(Y/n) skipped the last two steps, stumbling slightly as she reached nearly the top of the unfinished building. Her shoulders raised up and down quickly and heavily as she tried to catch her breath. Her legs felt like jelly after climbing those stairs, chasing after Aimi.

The only thing that kept (Y/n) going up what was probably hundreds of stairs was the idea that this would be what would end her torment. What would end the torture and fear that surrounded her life and those around her. She knew that she had to keep going for the mere idea of what could be a peaceful future.

(Y/n) just needed to find Aimi first.

(Y/n) finally caught her breath, letting out a deep sigh as she composed herself. She stepped out towards the center of the area, turning as she walked. She scanned the area, looking for any sign of where Aimi was hiding. She knew that Aimi was there – there was nowhere else to go except down.

"Is this really worth it?" (Y/n) called out, still turning as she searched for Aimi. "I know that Zack isn't worth any of this, but do you know that?"

(Y/n) paused, waiting for Aimi to respond. Whether it was fueled by anger or genuine regret, (Y/n) knew that she'd come out eventually.

"I see how he treats you, Aimi," (Y/n) continued. "You don't have to stay with him. You don't have to keep by his side.

"He's dead. You're free to live your own life." She paused, rotating herself slowly as she noticed the slightest bit of movement in the corner of her eye. "Are you really going to throw your entire life away for a ghost? The ghost of a lying, dirty, cheating cop? A sad excuse for a human—"

"I'd do anything for him!" Aimi screamed, emerging from behind a cutting table. She had a gun in her hands, one that (Y/n) had no idea was hidden with her. "Because that's what you do for family!"

Aimi shot at (Y/n), prompting her to sprint aside towards whatever cover was nearby. She leapt behind a pile of metal beams, sliding behind it with a grunt. She could hear the bullets ricochet off of the metal, piercing through some of it.

(Y/n)'s mind flew back to that moment. That one moment Aimi truly had the upper hand against her. The echo of the gunshot still rang in the back of her mind, the feeling of it piercing through her skull before complete darkness.

She squeezed her eyes shut and shook her head. No, she was not going to have that happen again. She knew that she would not let herself feel that pain ever again – or anyone else for that matter.

(Y/n) leapt up from behind the beams, her exposed skin covered with the blue markings. She threw her hands towards Aimi, the water still dripping off of her becoming a makeshift weapon.

It shot towards Aimi, snapping against the gun just as she was able to get out one last shot. The bullet flew through the air as the gun did. The gun flung off the side of the building, barreling towards the ground. The bullet pierced through the side of (Y/n)'s thigh, causing her to let out a slight scream as she fell back down to the ground.

Aimi looked over the edge briefly before turning back towards the stairs. She glanced back at (Y/n) before running up the last flight, disappearing once again.

(Y/n) hissed through her teeth, looking down at her thigh as blood gushed from the fresh wound. At least it wasn't her head – at least it wouldn't be fatal.

She pressed her hand against the wound, putting as much pressure as she could on it. With a pained groan, she used the last of the water dripping off of her to attempt to heal herself. She could feel the wound healing, closing up beneath her palm. The bleeding slowed but the pain was still there.