Y/n stood and moved to begin clearing the plates from the table. Before she could grab a single one, Naomi and Haruno got to their feet as well.
"No, you cooked, we'll clean." Naomi announced, catching Y/n's attention, "We know how much of a mess you make in the kitchen."
"And how much you hate cleaning." Haruno added.
"You guys are sweet but I've actually started to find stuff like that rather meditative. I don't mind cleaning up after myself."
"You've certainly grown up." Kunikida mused and Y/n chuckled.
"I guess. Just slightly."
"Let them take care of it, Y/n." Tanizaki insisted.
"Yeah, you've already done so much for us today." Kenji added.
"If... if you guys insist."
As she moved to sit back down, the sound of the door opening drew everyone's attention. Dazai walked in, surveying the scene with a cold and calculative gaze. Y/n frozen, halfway to her seat, the dishes half gathered by Naomi and Haruno, the crumbs on the table.
"What's all this then?" he asked lightly, stepping into the room.
Y/n seemed to come to her senses, straightening herself back up and folding her hands in front of her skirt.
"Well, um, see... I came in and made breakfast for everyone? As a sort of apology for yesterday."
"An apology for everyone except for me then." he scoffed and her eyes narrowed, "An apology for yesterday but not for two years."
"Dazai." Kunikida warned but it went unheeded by its target.
He approached the table, taking careful steps, letting the sound of his shoes on the floor echo in their ears.
"We set a place for you and there are some leftovers if you're hungry. I wasn't going to stay. They asked me to."
Dazai stopped, standing behind Atsushi and Haruno on the other side of the table from Y/n, his hands deep in the pockets of his coat.
"I don't want anything from you." he spat at her.
"Dazai-" Kunikida began to say, only to stop when he noticed Y/n holding up her hand to him, asking him to do so.
She straightened her back, squaring her shoulders, and took a deep breath before meeting Dazai's eyes. It was only then Atsushi noticed it wasn't grief or shock that held her in its grip, but anger.
"Why don't I go do the dishes. If anyone wants to help, they are more than welcome to join."
With that, she grabbed the last few plates on the table and, taking the ones Naomi and Haruno had gathered, made her way into the kitchen. Once the door had shut behind her, Yosano and Kunikda rounded on Dazai.
There seemed to be some unspoken conversation between the three of them as the water in the kitchen turned on and music began to play. At the sound, Yosano tilted her head to the side, eyebrows raised. The others looked on in confusion as at last Dazai relented. Those who had known him as a younger man thought he suddenly seemed to be eighteen again in that moment as he crossed his arms and looked away with a sigh.
"Yeah, young and sheltered. I know."
Y/n's own voice began to filter in through the door, mixing with the music she was playing. It wasn't something earth shattering, it wasn't divine, but her voice was beautiful. It was incredibly human, deeply and irrevocably so with its missteps and cracks. There was something holy about it, as if this was what a voice had been made for all along.
YOU ARE READING
Death Becomes Us (Dazai x Reader)
FanfictionY/n L/n, an agency member with an ability known as Deus ex Machina, meets Dazai Osamu. Fresh from the mafia, she helps him get adjusted to his new life and role in the world around him. One thing leads to another and, to no one's surprise, their thi...
