The sawblade finally broke through the cast, releasing Izaya's healed leg from it's confines. Instantly, a huge breath of relief escaped Izaya. After almost six weeks of wearing the stupid thing, he was finally free. The raven quickly sat up, pulling his leg close and rubbing his hands over it to get the blood flowing. "Thank you, Shinra!" He exclaimed happily.
Shinra put the blade down, and easily replied,"No problem, I'm just glad everything is healing well. Just be very careful with the skin for the next few days as your limb will be very sensitive. Now you just need to start working on getting the muscles strong again, and soon you'll be back to normal!"
Izaya nodded, before moving to slide off the bed. He placed his good leg on the floor first, before gently placing his newly healed leg back down. Slowly, he added more pressure, and felt relieved to feel no pain, only a slight bit of soreness.
"How does everything feel?" Shinra nervously asked, wanting to make sure his best friend felt as good as he could after his incident.
Izaya forced a smile to climb up on his face, and declared,"Just a bit sore, but I feel amazing!" Outwardly, that was the truth, but Izaya's insides were still heavy with the words he had overheard less than a week ago. He went silent for a moment, simply giving himself some time to breathe, before he looked towards Celty. "Is Haru still down for his nap?" He asked.
The Dullahan nodded, swiftly pulling out her PDA and replying [Yeah, he'll probably be asleep for a little while. He wore himself out today.]
Izaya felt relief, knowing he wouldn't be leaving his friends with a crying child for a bit. He turned his red eye towards Shinra, and said,"I'm going to go take a walk, get my muscles working again."
He moved over to his clothes, grabbing a hoodie and pulling it over his head. Shinra exchanged a worried look with Celty, before he quickly asked,"B-but what about Shizuo?"
The raven turned, his plastic smile on his face as he replied,"Don't worry, I'll be careful! I'm not trying to provoke him, anyways."
Shinra was about to yell, and worriedly blurt out the truth. But Shizuo doesn't care! He'll attack you no matter, he won't listen! But he stopped himself, and simply nodded. His friend had been through enough recently, he didn't want to add to that by telling him what Shizuo had said. It was better he didn't know.
As Izaya got to the front door, and opened it, Shinra merely whispered,"Be careful, okay?"
His best friend turned to him again, giving a soft smile, and a gentle nod. Then, he shut the door behind him, and soon his footsteps faded away. Shinra felt a bundle of nerves in his chest, a tangled mass that felt like it would never unravel, and he knew why it appeared.
He could only hope that Izaya was truly just going on a walk.
The soft spring air was stagnant around Izaya as he joined the crowd, walking a little slower but still with a sense of purpose. He looked down at his phone, the address of the building displayed brightly on it. Those poisonous thoughts seemed to have taken over his being, and he kept on going.
Finally, he found the building. It was very high, and near the edge of the city. The raven knew it was perfect for what was about to take place.
So, he went to the highest floor, taking the elevator as high as he could. Through the glass, however, he saw the West Gate Park. The view made his eye widen in surprise. Oh.. I didn't realize it was already Sakura season.. He thought, causing a bright light to appear in his darkness. Would Haru like to participate in Hanami? He loves bright colors so much.
Before the light could completely strip away the darkness, the elevator opened up with a ding. The raven's attention was jerked away from the trees, and he found his mission clear once more.
Finally, he reached the top of the building. Sure enough, there she was. The teenager's black hair was down, but it had a blue bow on it. She was wearing a simple outfit, consisting of a blue colored skirt and a blue cardigan over a white dress shirt. In her arms, strangely, she held a stuffed baby lion.
Her brown eyes finally caught sight of him, and he saw the telltale shudder of her shoulders. "Are you.. Nakura?" She asked.
Izaya placed his same, snake like smile on his face as he nodded. "Yes, that's me," He replied,"So you must be Tasukete Kimi."
The girl nodded, lowering her head to look down at her stuffed toy. "Yes.." She whispered, before taking a deep breath. "Let's.. Let's get this over with."
"Oh?" Izaya whispered, walking by her and towards the edge. "So.. Eager," He exclaimed,"What could have led you to this?"
Kimi looked at him, before lowering her head. "My.. My parents," She croaked, her voice becoming more shaky with every syllable. At those words, the raven quickly went through all the other issues he had heard. Abuse, cheating, drugs, alcohol. What could be next?
"My parents deserve better than me.." She whispered, stopping Izaya right in his tracks. He froze, turning his head to look at the girl once more, red eye filled with utter confusion.
Kimi moved to the edge, her empty brown eyes moving to him. For a long time, neither of them said anything. Then, Izaya softly asked,"What.. Do you mean by that?"
The girl frowned, lowering her head once more as her eyes scrunched up. Soon, the tears began to tumble down. "My brother.. I- I was supposed to watch him.. But now he's missing.. " She exclaimed,"I'm a horrible daughter! They'll be better off without me!"
Kimi's voice was determined, as if she believed that it was the truth. She moved to the edge, being stopped by no one, because her words, left Izaya frozen. Not because it was an answer he'd never heard before.. But because of the realization he had just come to.
Her brother.. Her parents.. I'm a parent.. A shock of cold ice went through his chest. What would he ever do if Haru went missing?! What would he do if Haru decided to end his life? He would want to die too, he knew exactly how her parents would feel. They wouldn't want this.. They love you, they want you to live and be happy! His eye burned, tears filling his vision. No.. No.. I can't let this happen!
Jerked from his trance, he whipped around to see Kimi standing on the ledge, her arms spread, and ready to fall. Panic exploded through the raven, as he frantically yelled,"NO!"
His hand reached out, grabbing the back of the her shirt, and pulling her back. She fell backwards, falling to the ground and taking Izaya with her. Kimi sat up quickly, her wide, red rimmed eyes turning towards Izaya in utter confusion. "W-what?"
Izaya cut her off, wrapping his arms around her, and pulling her close. "Don't jump, please!" He whispered,"I-I don't know what I was thinking.. But I do now. Your parents love you, Kimi. They would never want this. But you already knew that, didn't you?"
The girl was silent for several long moments, taking in everything that he said. Then, her shaky hands went to wrap around him, hands tightening around his hoodie. Finally, she let the floodgates go. She burst into tears, burying her face deep in his shoulder. Izaya felt as if he was holding Haru, and rubbed her back comfortingly.
"I was.. I was going to.." She whispered, suddenly beginning to become aware. "Oh god! I'm- I was-" But her voice descended back into sobs again, and Izaya felt his own eye grow wet once more. His clouded perception was once again cleared, and he knew what he had to do.
"It's okay.." He promised,"Everything is going to be okay. We'll work this out together.. I promise."
An hour later, the raven and Kimi were sitting on a bench at West Gate Park. The teen now held a hot chocolate in her hands, while the lion stuffy sat between the two unlikely companions.
Kimi looked towards Izaya, and softly asked,"You weren't going to jump with me.. Were you?"
"No," Izaya answered honestly,"I.. I was going to talk you into it.. But I can't do it. I'm not the person I once was anymore."
Kimi didn't seem to know what to say to that, so instead she asked,"So.. Your name isn't Nakura either, is it?"
"No, it's a fake.. My real name-" He hesitated, before realizing this girl had every right to know. "It's Izaya."
The teen nodded again, and took a sip of the warm drink. "Have you talked others into jumping?" She questioned.
"I would meet them, and tell them that they were cowards and wouldn't really do it.." He explained,"I was.. Such a monster. I never want to do that ever again.. I'm sorry I put you through that."
Kimi looked surprised, before her eyes glossed over again, and she replied,"I think that.. If you hadn't done that, I still would have jumped.. My parents really deserve better than me after what I did."
"Is this about your brother?" Izaya asked, watching her cringe at the mention of it before returning his question with a nod. "Can you tell me what happened?"
The girl didn't speak for a while, before finally nodding. "He went missing about six months ago.. Right after his fourth birthday. I was at the park with him when this guy started talking with me," She began,"I thought he was cute, so I started talking with him. When he left, my baby brother was gone, and that was left was this stupid lion! It was all my fault!"
Her hand grabbed the raven's sleeve, beginning to shake. "Mom and Dad have spent so much money, looking for private investigators to help, detectives, the cops.. But we can't find anything!" She yelled,"T-they act like it wasn't my fault but I know it was. And I thought that.. Maybe if I went died, it would be less of a burden for them to keep looking for one kid while providing for the one that lost him."
"What if they found your brother with you gone?" Izaya asked,"How would they explain to him that his big sister was gone?"
Kimi's big brown eyes widened, and she whispered,"I… I never thought of that.."
Izaya watched the guilt appear on her face once more, and felt his own return full force. I can't believe I almost went back.. That I almost made this poor girl do.. Do that.. But then, the negative feelings were pushed back, and he felt the light within him return.
Placing his hand on her shoulder, he firmly declared,"I'm going to help you find your brother."
Kimi gasped, jerking up to face him once more. "R-really?" She croaked,"B-but I have nothing to give you-"
"You don't have to give me anything, it's the least I could do," He replied.
Kimi seemed to be overcome with emotions, her eyes filling with tears once more before she threw herself forward, hugging him tightly and knocking both their cups to the ground. "Thank you.. Thank you so much.." She whispered.
Izaya hugged her back, letting her cry once more. In that moment he was thankful for so much. Thankful he was alive, and that Kimi was too. Thankful for the flowers around them, and the world they lived in.
But most of all, he was thankful he had been stopped before he could become a monster once more.
It was late in the night when Izaya finally returned. He slipped through the dark living room, and down towards the hallway. He quietly entered the room he was staying in, wincing at the door's creeks, and instantly catching sight of the crib. He could see his son inside, causing that warm feeling to return to his chest.
The raven moved forward, leaning over the bars to watch the child. He was laying on his back, wearing his fox pajamas and hugging the otter toy against his chest. Izaya smiled, leaning forward and running his hand against the soft cheek. Haru stirred softly, before leaning into his hand as if he knew who it was.
Izaya felt love overflow him, before a frown returned to his face. I almost went back to who I was before you, Haru.. He thought sadly. I can't believe I let Shizuo get to me.
Before his thoughts could continue, the raven heard the door creek open once more. He turned his head, noticing the headless woman in the doorway. "Celty.." He whispered softly.
The Dullahan pulled her PDA out swiftly, and shoved it in his face. [What did you do?] She demanded. The raven sighed, he should have known Celty could see through his facade.
Suddenly feeling extremely ashamed, the raven's arms wrapped around himself, and he softly said,"I almost made someone.. You know.."
[Almost?] Celty questioned. [What stopped you?]
"Haru did.." Izaya answered,"I thought.. 'What if I found out Haru did this? What if he killed himself?' and I.. I just couldn't. I never will again. I'm sorry Celty.. I'm sorry I ever acted like that."
Celty pulled her PDA back, typing another message. [It's okay, Izaya, don't beat yourself up over it. You didn't do anything, you stopped yourself, and it was because you are not that person anymore. You've changed, for the better.]
Izaya sighed in relief, looking towards her with a gentle smile. "What would I do without a friend like you?"
Celty suddenly pulled away from him, shoving the PDA as close as possible. [You'll have to find out soon if I have to change one more dirty diaper! Disgusting! Why can't he just use the toilet?!]
"Celty, he can't even stand yet!" The raven quietly exclaimed, chuckling at her joke. Celty's shoulders shook, laughing at her own words. They enjoyed each other's company for a moment, before the wheels in Izaya's head started turning.
He looked towards the headless woman through the darkness. "Actually.. Speaking of friends.." He awkwardly began.
[What is it?] She asked.
Making up his mind, Izaya looked up with determination. "I need your help finding someone, a little boy named Tasukete Hiro."