The midafternoon agency office lays around in low energy. Though it's not surprising considering most of its members are elsewhere. Rei takes a break from typing to check out what's going on in the room. It's only her and Yosano. When did that happen?

The unorthodox doctor is sat across the room with her legs up on the desk. She's leaned back filing her nails. Her focus seems to be solely on that activity, without a single paper in sight. The younger agent glances at her coworker a few times. She'd hate to disrupt the doctor, for many reasons, but there is something she's been wondering.

"Um, excuse me Yosano." The woman in question looks up at her. "Um, I was wondering, how do you separate being a doctor and being a detective?"

Yosano stops filing her nails. What kind of question is that? And why would someone who only has one job ask it? "Why do I need to separate them?"

"Well," the girl scratches the back of her head. Is it getting warmer in here? "As a doctor, you save both the good and the bad, but at the agency, we only save the good."

Yosano slowly nods her head. It's this again. She swears, this girl is super obsessed with this "good versus bad" stuff. "I am not a judge. It is not my place to decide who is capable of what good or what bad. I help people who need my help, whether that is as a doctor or a detective, it does not differ. My job is to preserve life."

Rei takes some time to think about her words. Did that answer her question? Maybe in some sense. But it leaves out so many things she doesn't understand.

The door to the office opens and Naomi, Haruno, Tanizaki, and Kenji walk in. "Hey you guys," Haruno greets the two of them. "Kunikida just said we're done for the day."

One of the doctor's less sadistic smiles shows on her face; it's about time. "Well if Kunikida says we're done," Yosano grabs her bag and gets up from her seat. She bids adieu to her coworkers and swiftly leaves the room.

Rei heads back to her desk and starts sorting through her papers again. The four other people in the room watch her with varying emotions. The clerks sigh and shrug their shoulders; might as well give it a shot. "We're gonna go to the outer district for a bit," Naomi informs the agent, "wanna join?"

Rei peeks up at them, then back down at her desk. It's not that she doesn't want to, but there's so much work she has to do. So much clutter and no space to sort it out. "Sorry, I have some stuff I need to do. Maybe some other time."

The four of them turn to each other, then back to her. That was a vague response, but then again, most things she says are vague anymore. "Alright sure, we'll catch you another time." They turn and walk out the door.

The sun shines bright in the sparsely cloudy sky, accompanied by a cool breeze and warm air. Troves of people bustle up and down the sidewalks. Though it doesn't seem like any of them are enjoying the day. Which is a shame considering how perfect the weather is. Days like this don't happen that often.

It's a reflective experience, being out in the city today. From all the people running around, rushing to get from place to place, to all the car horns and stressed induced yelling. While it's true that Yokohama's like this every day, the atmosphere of it just feels different. Rei was going to head straight home after work, but now she's walking, not to anywhere specifically, just walking. It is quite rare to walk in this city. But now seems like a good time to do it. To observe people as they go about their daily lives while standing in the middle of it. To smell the flowers.

Speaking of flowers, her eyes catch onto a small floral booth sitting on the side of the sidewalk. It's a green and white cart with a striped cloth running over it. Its small stature is only made more apparent by the two multistory office buildings on either side of it. The agent watches as people walk past the small vendor, none of them seeming to even know that it's there.

She walks up to the booth, her curiosity getting the better of her. She's never much been into flowers, but it's not like she's doing anything else right now. The flowers are laid out all over the stand, sorted by type and color. There are tulips, lilies, daffodils, carnations, hydrangeas, and so many more she doesn't recognize.

"Hello dear," an elderly woman watering the flowers greets her. She studies the agent in curiosity, a glint of intrigue sparking in her worn brown eyes. Rei smiles and greets her back, then returns to her browsing. "They're pretty flowers, aren't they?" the woman walks behind her. "You should buy some. Pretty flowers belong with pretty flowers," she goes back behind the stand.

The agent laughs a little at her sales technique. They are very pretty. "I don't have much place for flowers." While that's not really true, she doesn't have much use for them anyways. She spins a stem in her hand. Though maybe she could use something to liven up her apartment a bit. "There are so many different kinds."

Her eyes follow along the arrangement of flora, until they stray to one in particular. It's a beautiful white flower with many large petals unfurling from its center. The velvety planes of its petals look so smooth, so creamy. Its color seems almost iridescent in meaning. Like first snow, satin sheets, playground chalk, or brand-new sneakers. "Those are Tsubaki," the woman informs her. "The white ones mean waiting."

Rei looks up at her. She's sitting with a smile of nostalgia on her face, but it's more than that. It's a smile that's for more than just the past. "Waiting for what?"

The woman laughs. "Whatever you'd like dear." Her voice is charming, in a way that brings you somewhere else. "Is there anything you're waiting for? Anything that makes you wait?"

Makes me wait? The girl turns back to the flowers. Something that makes me wait. Compels me to wait. Snow falling on the other side of the glass in the winter. Freshly washed sheets hanging to dry in the spring. Worn down chalk tossing between hands in the summer. New sneakers bought just for the fall. These flowers. What is it about these flowers?

She wakes up in a room that's not her own. The walls, the ceiling, the floor are all completely white. Out of the window, there is no city; there is no anything. The room has no furniture; the bed is gone. She walks out if it, and it's empty space. There are halls and there are rooms, but that's it. No furniture, no decorations. Everything is white. She's the only thing there. Except she's not. There are people talking in another room. It sounds like they're playing a game. They're laughing. What are they playing?

"I'll take one." The city, the people, the cars. She's in Yokohama again. Rei looks up to see a hand reaching across the table and placing some bills down. She turns her head to the side where a slender brunette male is standing next to her. He's wearing tan pants, a pink dress shirt, and a blue jacket with bandages hanging off its ends.

The elderly woman smiles as she takes the money from him, handing him a single red rose in exchange. The man smiles and gives her a bow. He briefly turns to the other customer, just to catch her eye, then heads down the street.

Rei looks back at the woman sitting at the booth. She's smiling, and there's something about that smile that makes her feel uneasy. Like this flower vendor is staring into the depths of her soul. The agent quickly bows her head, "thank you," and hurries off through the streets.

It's doesn't take long for her to catch up with Dazai, mainly because he's moving at the rate of an exceptionally slow tortoise. She walks alongside him in the rush of the crowd. "I didn't even know you own other clothes."

"You like it?" He stops walking to spin around and strike poses for her. "Do I look fresh and fashion forward?"

She stands opposite of him, forced to notice all the people passing by with pissed off looks on their faces. "You look like a regular person," she comments as she pulls him to the side. That's probably the point, but it's weird when he does it. Even when he dresses down, he doesn't dress down.

As they walk down the sidewalk, she keeps finding herself looking over at him. It's not something she means to do, but. His eyes are closed and the rose is held up to his nose. It's a miracle he hasn't knocked into someone yet. The scarlet petals gently sway as he inhales and exhales. He looks content. Not in his usual overly dramatic way, but genuinely content. The thornless stem rests still in his hand. She never would've guessed that he's a rose person.

"You're staring at me." Huh? What? Her eyes travel up to see that his are now open and looking at her. She quickly turns away from him, thoroughly embarrassed. "I didn't say you had to stop," he lets out a teasing laugh.

She keeps her sight focused on the sidewalk and what's in front of her. It was bad enough that she was caught staring at him, but it was for the silliest reason. "Why'd you get a rose?"

The easy going smile returns to his lips. He closes his eyes and smells the flower again. "They're a pretty flower, don't you think?"

She nods her head in agreement. They are stunningly beautiful, but that's not the reason. There are many pretty flowers; it doesn't make sense that he'd pick this one. "But roses are a symbol of love. You've never been in love."

Dazai stops walking. His eyes open and he tilts his head to the side. Rei raises a brow at the sudden change in him. Is something going on? She turns her head to see what he's looking at. It's an old fashioned building with trifold windows and white paint. It looks like a – "Oohhh, let's go in there!" He grabs her hand and pulls her into it.

On the inside, it's very… homey. The walls are a pure alabaster white and the floor is a black and white checkerboard pattern. There are only three tables, though the small room can fit more. The low ceiling only contributes to the quaint feeling. A woman who appears to be about middle aged comes out from the back and tells them to take a seat wherever they like. Dazai sits down at the table by the window and Rei joins him.

She looks over the menu on the table, though it doesn't take much looking over. It's one sided with about ten items on it. Well, deciding should be easier. The woman from earlier comes back out, a hand firmly on her hip. "Alright ya lovebirds, whaddya want?"

"I'll have coffee and cookies," Dazai sets the menu d – "oh and cupcakes too!" He adds cheerfully, then actually sets the menu down.

"Mmhm, of course you will," the waitress writes his order. "And for you dollface?"

"Um, I'll take a coffee and," she looks over at the pastries on display behind the glass, "a scone." The waitress writes it down and heads back into the other room.

Rei leans forward in her seat, not convinced that there's anyone else back there. This is very weird, being in a place like this with him. She faces forward to Dazai. His face is solemn and he's staring at the table. He's in deep thought. Her hands begin to tap against her chair. She can never tell what he's thinking when he gets like this. "Is everything alright?"

He dislocks from his gaze and turns to her. His reddish brown eyes set on her with a mixture of bemusement and apprehension. "I've never done this before. The only times I've ever been out with anyone is to the bar."

She moves her hands to rest on the table. And by "this" he means? The waitress comes back with their orders, then leaves again. "Who do you go to the bar with?"

Dazai takes a couple sugar packets and puts it in his drink. "Mainly Odasaku and Ango… though if I'm desperate enough…" he makes a disgusted face, as if he's actually going to convulse from saying this next part, "… Chuuya, ugh." He starts to gag and takes a quick swig of his coffee.

Rei nods her head. He's mentioned those names a few times to her. "Your friends, right?" She takes the rest of the packets in the container and dumps them into her cup.

"Two of them are."

"What're they like?" He sets down his drink, caught off guard by her question. "I mean, come on, we've been enemies for like a year now and I have no clue what your friends are like?" He chuckles a little at that. What a good point.

She stares at him with her eyes wide open, fully expecting an answer to this. It had always struck her whenever he'd mention his friends. Given how Dazai he is, it'd be interesting to know what his friends are like.

"Well Ango is really smart and efficient," he exclaims brightly. "He's so smart I'm sure he could find a way for me to commit suicide! Not only that, but he's also the best secret keeper in the mafia. You'd like him," he says with a warm smile, sure of this fact. "And Odasaku is super kind! You'd never guess he's in the mafia, that's how nice he is. He has a no killing policy just like you. You'd like him too."

The detective sits back in her seat, not believing how warm his voice sounds right now. She's heard him speak with the frigidness of an Antarctic winter and the blistering heat of a Saharan summer, but never with a warmth like a campfire. "I think they'd like you too. They always laugh at the stories I tell them."

Her mouth drops open. "You talk about me?" That idea is such a foreign concept to her. Why would he do that? "I'd never imagine talking to my friends about you." It's true. When she's talking to her friends, the idea of mentioning him is far, far away from her mind.

"Your friends at the ADA?" he asks in earnest. She nods. "I wish I could meet them."

Rei purses her lips in puzzlement. "You want to meet them when you know nothing about them?"

The mafioso smiles against his cup. "I know they're your friends."

She stops whatever she's doing to look at him. There's no smirk on his face. His eyes aren't coy. Did he just say something honestly? Without anything hidden behind it? "That's a lot of faith to put in someone."

He runs his fingers across his chin. Is it? He hadn't thought of it like that. It just seemed like the natural thing to say. "You think so?"

Things get quiet between them. She thinks it over. The idea of him and her friends. How would that go? He's a really bad person; that is undeniable. But if they were to sit like this and converse with him. "I think you'd like my friends. They're very likeable people."

Dazai smiles softly as he continues eating his desserts. He wishes he could believe that that's true. He doesn't have very many friends, only two. Friends are not something someone like him can have. Friends are an indulgence, and his life is not one of luxury. For luxuries are nothing but things you want, and things you want are nothing but things you lose.

Rei watches the world outside go by. All the honking and yelling coming in from all over the city. It's so different in here. There's practically no noise in this room, only the faint buzzing of appliances. Her emerald eyes fall asunder. It's like a whole other world.

"Do you think the answer is how we're similar?" Her voice is light and placid. "Before, I wasn't paying much attention, but we do have more similarities than I thought. Maybe that's why. Because there's a part of me I see in you, or you in me, or something like that."

He leans his chin into his hand. "I was thinking the answer is our differences. It was obvious from the start that we are very contrasting. You are drawn so much in the light, and I in the dark. I'd say that's why. You are very different from me."

"There are a lot of people who are different from you."

"Yes, but, there's only one who'd sit with me like this."

His words echo, but not in the restaurant. Slowly, but surely. Time flows. Space passes. Has it all been found? Figured out? So nicely wrapped in a box like this? Words can be true, but they so seldom express the full truth. In this restaurant, in this city, on this planet. With her, with him. It isn't possible that I may have –

They both jump at an unprovoked ringing sound. Dazai sighs as he takes out his phone. And then that sigh turns into a frown once he sees who's calling. The executive rolls his eyes habitually as the voice on the other side goes on, and on, and on, and… "I'm busy right now," the brunette cuts him off.

Rei sits back in her seat as she hears some very… energetic, yelling coming through the phone. She can't quite pick out what's being said, just something about being a lazy waste of life and what does or does not constitute as being busy. Dazai sighs again; there's only one way to get him to shut up. He hangs up the phone.

The detective watches with worry as he puts the device away. That's sure to only make Chuuya even more angry.

They both get up and push their seats in. He picks up his rose. "You should see me tomorrow."

"Two days in a row?" she questions. They've never seen each other on consecutive days before.

"This hardly counts as a day," he reasons. "We haven't even taken any clothes off."

"Osamu!" she scolds him, now noticing the woman is standing at the counter again.

"Unless you wanna try something now," he smirks, "but it's going to have to be really quick." Rei gives him a face he's very accustomed to. She doesn't have to say anything anymore, he knows she's done with his shit. "I'll see you tomorrow then?"

The agent looks over at the woman by the counter. She's not even trying to look like she' not watching them. In fact, she looks rather bored. Rei turns back to the man standing in front of her and nods.

He smiles and leans in for a kiss. Their lips meet in a quick embrace, but not too quick so as she doesn't notice his fingers prying her hand open.

Dazai withdraws from their moment, then from the restaurant. Rei watches the door swing close after he's left, twirling the rose that's in her hand. She stops the unwarranted blush creeping on her face and turns to the woman at the counter. "Do I pay up front?"

The woman smiles a very old smile. "No need sugar, your boyfriend already paid before you got here."

Paid before she –? "He's not my boyfriend," the agent feels the sudden need to correct her. It may be childish, but it's a distinction that needs to be made.

"Whatever ya need to tell yourself," the woman shakes her head as she heads back into the back.

Rei leaves the restaurant and walks out onto the sidewalk, where she sees four familiar faces coming her way. Three of them have shopping bags, while the fourth has a ton of produce. The agency members soon spot her, and they all come to meet each other.

"Oh hey R – Is that a rose?" Naomi points out.

The mauve haired girl glances down at the flower, then to her friends who have varying levels of confusion on their faces. She'd honestly forgotten she's been holding it. "Oh, yeah, I bought it."

"Why?"

"Why not?" the girl twirls it in her hand. "They're a pretty flower."

"I guess," the clerk shrugs.

Rei lowers her hand to her side. Things lull a bit as she peers down the side of the street. Now it's like she's far away, all the way to where the buildings start to fade.

"Are you okay?" Haruno asks, eyeing her coworker with worry.

The detective shakes out of it and smiles. "Yeah, I just." She turns to them. "I really love you guys."

The group of four look at each other. Is she really okay? "Yeah, we love you too Rei," Naomi's the one to respond. "Just don't get all sappy on us now."

Rei laughs. "Alright, alright, I promise I'm done. So, are you guys still hanging out?"

"Yeah, you don't have more "stuff" to get done?" the black haired clerk pokes fun at her.

"Uh, no, I got it taken care of."

"We're on our way heading south," Tanizaki offers, "if you'd like to come."

"That sounds great."

The group of now five joins together and starts heading down south, with the sun still hanging plenty high above them. "I love the outer district! It reminds me of the farm. I love the farm! I love cows! I love all kinds of cows. And I love…"