Chapter 28: You Want to Stay Away, but You Can't
"Kasuka, I'm here!" Shizuo announced upon barging into the restaurant.
"No need to be so loud Ni-san," Kasuka said upon seeing him, seeming as calm and collected as ever as he sipped his tea, "You'll disturb other customers."
Shizuo felt quite relieved that even while they haven't spoken for ages, things were still the same as ever as they both talked about their everyday lives, and what they had been up to the past few months. Taking off his glasses, settled down at the table and began to converse with his little brother, who too seemed happy to see him.
"...Man, you sure are amazing," Shizuo grinned, as tried to choose which sushi he wanted to eat, "To think you'd be doing three movies at once."
Kasuka shrugged as he slowly chewed his food, "What about you Ni-san?"
"Don't worry about me, the gig I have with Tom-san is still working out fine," Shizuo replied, seeming quite content, "Plus, we even got a raise."
Kasuka nodded, "I'm glad to hear that."
"Really, it's quite amazing how well this day's been going. It almost makes me feel like something bad is going to mess it up real soon," Shizuo grumbled, suddenly becoming sullen, "That flea's back in Ikebukuro again, what could he be possibly be planning this time... I swear, I'll kill him before-"
He snapped out of it, when Kasuka placed something on the table. A small carton of milk, the same brand he used to always give him when he was pissed off. Shizuo blinked a few times, before sighing and giving a smile.
"Alright, I get it. I'll try to keep myself in check," he chuckled, and took a swig of it, "You know, it's funny. I thought you'd be pretty busy, so I also got you a carton of milk... to you know, relieve stress."
Kasuka watched as Shizuo pulled the exact same brand of milk on the table, and for a moment, a small smile broke out on his usually still and emotionless face, "Is that so... thank you."
"O-oh, it's nothing!" Shizuo replied, proud that he had managed to earn a smile out of his brother. He should really thank the woman when he saw her again, for helping him choose that gift. He would really try to not hit her this time, and properly greet her like a normal human being.
Suddenly, Kasuka's phone rang.
"Excuse me, ni-san," Kasuka said, and picked up the call, "Hello?"
He seemed to listen carefully to whoever was on the other side, while Shizuo watched curiously, munching on sushi. As expected of a famous actor, he seemed to have a lot of contacts and people who needed him.
"It's my manager," Kasuka informed Shizuo, after he had hung up, "The set has been fixed. They want to resume filming as soon as possible, so they want me back right now."
"Even on a day off?" Shizuo remarked, seeming quite disgruntled by the information, "You have it hard."
"...I could get out of it if you want," Kasuka said, phone ready at hand.
Shizuo immediately declined, and urged Kasuka to do what he had to do, "Seriously, no need to go so far. I'm sure we can see each other again sometimes. Go do your job, Kasuka." Truthfully he was disappointed that he wouldn't be able to talk more with him, but he didn't want to get in the way of Kasuka's acting career.
"Alright..." Kasuka stood up and looked Shizuo in the eyes, "Goodbye. Do your best."
"Do your best? That's what I should be saying to you," Shizuo laughed, and patted Kasuka on the back, "Don't overwork yourself."
He watched as Kasuka called a taxi and waved goodbye as he left, leaving himself feeling quite sad that the meeting was so short. At least he had been able to make Kasuka smile... Shizuo was about to pay the bill for the meal, to only find out that it had already been paid for by Kasuka.
"Idiot, at least let your older brother pay for your meals," he grumbled, and started go home, when someone stopped in front of him, blocking his path. He wore rectangular glasses with a black frame, and was dressed in a business uniform. He seemed to be someone important... or was he looking for a fight?
"Move," he said, looking the man straight in the eyes, hoping he could just scare the man away. If he managed to get through the day without a fight, he would celebrate or something.
The other just sighed, and said, "Pleased to meet you. I'm Yuuhei Hanejima-san's temporary manager, Akimoto Saitou." He handed Shizuo his business card, where under usual circumstances he would've just ignored, but seeing as this was Kasuka's manager, he felt compelled to take it.
"Is there something you want from me?" Shizuo asked, as he stuffed the card in his pockets.
"It's about your little brother, Kasuka-san," Akimoto said, which seemed to catch Shizuo's attention, "He's been continuously taking jobs, and I fear that he'll overwork himself."
"What? That's why he's been everywhere recently?!" Shizuo exclaimed, feeling angry that Kasuka didn't tell him about this.
"To be incredibly frank... Shizuo Heiwajima-san, I think it's your fault," he said cautiously.
Shizuo, unable to contain his anger, grabbed the man's collar and shouted, "WHAT WAS THAT, YOU BASTARD?!"
"H-He hasn't been taking up this many jobs since a few months ago, when your debt to the city hugely increased," the man bravely continued, as the knowledge that he was talking to the strongest man in Ikebukuro rang in his head, "All this time, he was the one who returned your debt to the government, and right now you're losing it a little too much, you've become too strong, and Kasuka-san's the one that is struggling to use all the money he gets from acting to keep your debt down to a manageable rate..."
Shizuo was shell shocked, and for a moment he couldn't move. Kasuka had been overworking himself, just because his older brother couldn't contain his temper and went around destroying everything like a kid having a tantrum. How could Kasuka not tell him this? Shizuo wanted to punch himself for being such a useless big brother, to think that a single milk carton would ease all of Kasuka's stress.
"By telling me this, what do you want me to do?" Shizuo said steely, his sharp cold gaze connecting straight to the other man's calmer and more steady gaze.
"Isn't it obvious? You're the big brother. Help your little brother out by behaving a little won't you?" the manager said, and carefully removed Shizuo's hands from his collar, "Please reflect on your actions and their consequences..."
The man walked away, leaving Shizuo standing there stiffly. Dammit this was all the flea's fault! If only he had never came back.
'Don't be such a child Shizu-chan, no one's making you go nuts and destroy things~'
How annoying. Shizuo couldn't help but get irritated when the louse's voice played itself in his head... though it was nevertheless true. No one made him throw things... it's just that Izaya made him angry, and that reason was enough to pacify for all his actions.
'Well it's your own fault for not being able to control yourself... as expected of a protozoan'
Shut up! What was he to do? How could he help Kasuka? It pissed him off that Izaya's words seemed to fit in every question he had, as if the flea had predicted that he would think this way and said those words to mock him. His debt collecting job didn't have that high of a pay, so there was no way he would be able to pay back the debt with only that salary, and he knew he didn't have it in him to take any other jobs (he would wreck everything).
'I could help you pay it off though... no strings attached~!'
There was no way he was going to search for the help of the flea. No way. Extra jobs were troublesome, but he'd rather do that than get help from a blood sucking pest who definitely had some evil plan that he wanted to include Shizuo in.
'I guess that's no then... hehe~ Well, you know where to find me when things get too troublesome...'
"DAMMIT IZAAAAYYYAAAAAA! SHUT UUUUP!"
