To say that Orihara Izaya's life had gone downhill would be an understatement. It had dropped far lower than that, into the deepest depths possible. Honestly, though, Izaya could care less.

His battle with Shizuo had destroyed him, physically and mentally. It left him a pathetic shell of the once great informant he used to be. He never thought he could stoop this low, but he didn't even want to try and climb back up.

The second Izaya was released from the hospital, he bought the first plane ticket he saw, ended his lease, and dropped all contact with anyone in Ikebukuro. He ended up in Osaka, but didn't care to try and go any farther.

It took less than a week for him to turn to alcohol as a comfort. He'd sit in his hotel room, just drinking and drinking. When he was drunk, the scars were gone, his arms didn't hurt, and everything was better.

But it wasn't enough.

He knew his old self would have spat and called such behavior pathetic… But he was just so hurt, so tired, so lonely.. So, he started spending nights at hostels, brothels, and sleeping around anywhere he could to try and get a modicum of human contact and affection.

Izaya knew it wasn't real, that it wasn't really helping. But, he didn't care. Why should he? There was no reason to try, it wasn't like anyone needed him or cared. Why would he even put any effort anymore? It was better to wither away and die.

Days turned to weeks, weeks turned into months. The raven just kept drinking and sleeping around, there was nothing else he could do in his worthless life. With the little money he had left, he rented a small apartment and resigned himself to his new pointless existence.

Eventually, drinking was all that Izaya had energy to do. In his broken down apartment on the edge of the city, he would simply lay among the bottles, too depressed to move, and constantly hoping and wishing for the day he would finally waste away and die.

And his life stayed that way….

Until one fateful day.

Izaya, surprisingly, wasn't drunk that day, mainly because he didn't have the energy to go grab anything. He was just laying on the ratty old couch, staring at nothing in particular and hating himself for everything that had happened.

A sudden, sharp knock on his door snapped him out of his thoughts. His red eyes blearily blinked, looking towards the ratty old door. Why would someone be knocking? He wondered, but was too exhausted to care anymore than that. He sighed, lowering his head back down.

Then, there was a knock again, even louder than before. This was followed by a frantic call. "Izaya, I know you're in there! I need to talk to you!" A girl's voice snapped.

Izaya jerked up once more, realizing that he did indeed recognize that voice. It was… Well he didn't really remember her name. Just one of the women he had spent a night or two with.

He forced himself to a standing, stumbling over to the door. He unlocked the pathetic excuse for a deadbolt, and opened the door the smallest bit.

Outside the door was a young woman with dyed red hair, dark eyes, and a nervous face. In her arms was a large bag, and, to the raven's horror, two newborn babies were cradled in her arms.

"Izaya, let me in, I need to talk to you," She begged,"I'm not going away until you talk to me."

The raven narrowed his eyes hatefully, before pulling the door open a little farther. "What the hell do you want?" He sneered.

"I'm here for your help," She said, walking inside so that Izaya couldn't shut her out. The raven backed up, staring at her through his shaggy bangs. Then, the woman took a deep breath. "Izaya… These are your children."

His heart dropped, blood running cold. "What the fuck are you talking about?" He demanded.

She moved farther into the apartment. "After our nights together, I got sick. I found out I was pregnant, but I couldn't find you until after they were born-"

"That's impossible!" Izaya snapped, swiping his hand through the air. "We used protection!"

"It's rare, but sometimes protection doesn't work!" The girl hissed in return,"It doesn't matter, they're already here. You need to take responsibility-"

"NO!" Izaya yelled over her. "I never wanted kids, I don't want them! Leave and take them with you! I don't want to see you again!"

She frantically shook her head, eyes brimming with tears. "I can't! I'm too young to have to take care of kids! I'm not ready!"

"Oh, but I am?!" Izaya demanded, making the two newborns start to stir and whimper.

"You have to help! You're their father!" She yelled over him.

"No I'm not! They're a mistake, never supposed to exist!" He returned,"Listen to me closely, okay? I'm don't care about them, I don't care about you, and I want nothing to do with any of you!"

Silence flowed between them, the girl just continued to silently weep in front of him. Izaya didn't back down, staring at her with a steel, disgust filled gaze. The girl finally seemed to understand that the man would not budge. She released a long, sad sigh and nodded.

A modicum of pity filled the raven. He sighed as well, rubbing his pale hand over his face. "Look," He began,"I'll pay child support, I'll even give you the first check right now…. As long as it makes it so I don't have to be involved in any other way."

The girl seemed to think for a moment, and then perked up. "Y-yes! That would be perfect! Why don't you go get the check, and I'll stay right here. Then, I'll never come back." She quickly told him.

Izaya nodded, leaving the room, and going to his small bedroom^%. But if it would make her leave him alone, it was worth it.

He wrote out the check, signing it as quickly as he could. He then hurried out of his room. But the second he opened his door, he could see what happened.

There was no sign of the girl, his front door was shut tight, and- on the ratty old couch -was the large bag that she had been holding only seconds before…

And the two newborn babies were right next to it.