The Fall of Izaya Orihara

Chapter 21

Izaya's POV

I heard another knock, before a voice spoke up, "Flea, you there? It's Shizuo, I brought you some ootoro..."
I let out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding, heading to the door. I quickly let Shizuo inside, glancing around the hall before shutting the door. Oh boy was I a nervous wreck.
Shizu-chan raised a brow at me, "Umm, whatcha doin' there?"
I flinched slightly before turning to him, "Nee? Doing what?"
"You know, like you're looking for someone? Like a ninja?" Shizuo replied, sounding a little confused.
"Ah! Well you see Shizu-chan! In my line of work I get a lot of enemies, can never be too careful!"
Shizuo seemed to acknowledge and understand what I said, but didn't seem too convinced. "You never did that before? Why now?"
"No reason...now let's eat!"
Shizuo still looked unconvinced, however sat down at the table with me as we began to ate.

Shizuo finished before me, throwing away his trash before sitting back down, staring into me. "Is it those guys again? The ones who stabbed you?"
I nearly choked, coughing after swallowing. Shizu-chan handed me a glass as water which I drank hastily. I panted, turning back to him, "Wh-what makes you think that?"
Shizuo narrowed his eyes at me, and I knew I was found out. The brute always read me like a book.
I sighed, pushing away my half eaten meal, no longer hungry.
"Fine...you got me." I mumbled in defeat.
"Anything else important to tell me?" He said, furrowing his brows.
"Stop looking at me like that, you look constipated."
"Don't avoid the question, Flea!" He shouting, getting annoying, causing me to flinch slightly.
"Fine, fine." I huffed, looking away, "The Yakuza aren't very pleased with my not working as of late. I'm one of the only information brokers in the area, and the Yakuza rely on me often to get information, especially on other gangs."
Shizuo looked even more annoyed at this, before burying his face in his hands, groaning, "I should have known you would have been working with them..."
I nodded before continuing, "However being one of the few info brokers has given me significance to them, so they most likely won't try to kill me just yet...however I can't say they won't try to get back at me in some way."
Shizuo glanced back up at me, "Punish you? How?"
I grimaced before replying, knowing lying to the perceptive monster would be a bad idea. Though I doubt the truth will be much better, "Ehh, the usual, nothing they haven't done before most likely. Torture and interrogation is my first guess, however they could have something worse planned this time. However, I need to remain on good terms with them, as they are still my main source of income and work. Which means you can't interfere with whatever they decide to do. Even if they decide to kill me."

I could almost see the gears turning in Shizu-chan's head. Veins appeared on the beasts head as he shoots up from the chair, throwing the table aside. He grabs me by the collar, bringing me up to face level, causing me to cringe away in fear.
"YOU MEAN TO SAY YOU WANT ME TO JUST LET THEM FUCKING KILL YOU??? YOU KNOW BETTER THAN ANYONE THE ONLY ONE ALLOWED TO KILL YOU IS ME, FLEA!!!"
I swallowed, putting my hands up defensively, "Uhm, well, yes?"
"NO WAY IN HELL!" He yelled in my face once more. I sighed, not knowing what to do in this situation. I didn't want to fight Shizu-chan, after all he's done for me and we'd just gotten on decent terms. I also didn't want to end up with another trip to Shinra's because of the brute's temper and strength. I closed my eyes, trying to breathe and escape his grip. I could feel myself shaking, an anxiety attack sure to come if this kept up.

Suddenly Shizuo took a deep breath, sighing before loosening his grip, instead pulling me into a hug. "I don't want you to get hurt Izaya...and you said they tortured you before? How many times? When did this all start? When did you first get involved with that scum?" Question after question came, however any response I tried to make was muffled by Shizu-chan's chest. He pulled away from the hug, rubbing the back of his neck, "Sorry for yelling..." he apologized. Him apologizing to me still felt so alien, so I chose to ignore the feeling for now.
"I got involved with them before I met you, I was scouted by the Yakuza in highschool, which started my path into becoming the famous information broker I am now."
"They've tortured me quite a few times, however Shiki usually manages to get me out of it, he's a soft spot for me." I shrugged, still not understanding the big fuss.

The monster's eyes softened, and he mumbled," I don't want you to get hurt, Izaya..."
"C'mon Shizu-chan, I'm tough, I can't take whatever they throw at me!"
He raised his brow, chuckling, "Flea, you said yourself that you've gotten weak over the past few months..."
He sighed, "A few months ago I wouldn't have doubted that you could take it, like a flea that won't get squashed. But now you're more like a fragile kitten..."
The last part came as a whisper, barely audible.
"I may have catlike reflexes, but I'm not a cat!" I replied, flustered. "And I think I can get myself out of this somehow, just need to think."