Author's Note: Hello again, my dear followers! Before any of you get too invested in this story, I feel the need to address a comment I received from a guest. This isn't meant to be a call-out post or anything like that, simply a response and a sort of heads up for anyone who might feel similarly. The comment is as follows:

"Please please PLEASE... no Shizaya. It literally took me forever to find a good story with no Shizaya or romance with an OC that also updates fairly. You can't betray me now! If there's any romance, I'd prefer it to be Shinra x Celty, anything else would probably ruin the story for me. So please, Author-san... don't start the Shizaya now. Or at all. I don't mind thickening the plot with Shizuo keeping Izaya, but please no further unnecessary boosts in their relationship. - A reader whom has no way to get an actual account so has to review anonymously."

Friend, I completely understand that it's frustrating to find a fanfiction you like, only to discover later on that it contains a ship that you're not a fan of. Unfortunately, I don't have good news for you; I'm a gay trans dude with Borderline Personality Disorder, and writing Shizaya fanfiction is how I cope with that, my transition, and the dysphoria that comes along with both. I know this must be disappointing to hear, but I'm afraid that this story, like my others, will contain Shizaya. There will also be one-sided OC/Izaya, thought it probably won't come up until much later. Sorry. ;w;

Izaya loves secrets.

He loves knowing them, telling them, selling them, even having them; he loves how much power they can give someone who knows how to use them - and how much they can take away from someone who doesn't. His entire way of existence relies on secrets; without them, he has nothing. Without them, he is nothing.

In his time as an information broker, Izaya has learned that there are basically three kinds of secrets. The first kind is your normal, average, everyday secret; it's the kind of secret everyone has at least one of (the kind it would be stranger for someone not to have at least one of). The second kind of secret isn't as common as the first, but it's still fairly prevalent; it's the kind most often told after one-too-many glasses of wine, the kind thats discovery has a 50/50 chance of either ruining someone's reputation or not doing anything at all. The third kind is the 'big deal' kind - it's the kind you spell with a capital 'S', the kind that under no circumstances should be allowed to get out; it's the kind that gets people killed, sometimes even worse. Most people don't have that kind of Secret... but as Shinra stated earlier, Izaya isn't like most people.

While he has his fair share of both the first and second kinds of secrets, Izaya only has one of the third - but if the first kind was bronze, and the second kind was silver, then the third kind could easily be considered gold, and his is no exception. If a single person were to find out, it'd be over for him; the only reason no one has yet is because his paranoia has always been stronger than his desire for companionship, keeping him from ever putting himself in a situation where temptation might become a problem -

- until now.

I have made a terrible, terrible mistake.

Standing in the doorway of Shizuo Heiwajima's cramped studio apartment, he's starting to regret agreeing to let the other man take on the role of guard dog. If it hadn't been for the phone call Shizuo had gotten from his stalker, he most likely wouldn't have; his paranoia has come around to bite him in the ass, and now he has no choice but to suck it up and make the best of it.

"The kid already has dibs on the futon, so you're gonna have to sleep on the floor. I don't have any more pillows or blankets though, so don't bother askin' for any - bathroom's through the door, there's towels on the rack. If you piss me off, I'm kicking you out... but if you keep that annoying trap of yours shut for long enough, I might start tryin' to be a little nicer. Got it?"

"Got it."

"Good." He takes his American Spirits out of his pocket and pulls a cigarette out of the pack, letting it dangle from his lips while he feels around for his Zippo.

"You're not actually going to smoke that in here, are you?" Izaya asks, raising an eyebrow.

"It's my own goddamn house, isn't it?"

"Technically it's an apartment, but that's not the point. She is." He points at the girl with his thumb. "Do you really want to expose a child to the dangers of second-hand smoke?"

Unfortunately for Shizuo, he can't argue with that. "Goddamn it. I'll be on the porch." He sighs and opens his front door, stepping out into the crisp evening air. Izaya waits until the door shuts again to finally take a second to relax, sitting down on the futon and letting out a shaky breath.

A terrible, terrible, terrible mistake...

"He won't hurt you, you know."

Blinking, Izaya turns his attention over to the girl. "Excuse me?"

"He won't hurt you. He can't."

"What are you talking about?"

She raises her eyebrows.

"What? What's that look for?" Her stare is starting to make him feel uncomfortable. Sighing, the girl shakes her head and grabs one of the new pajama sets Celty had bought her from the little pile of stuff she'd been collecting. Shooting Izaya a curious look, she goes into the bathroom and shuts the door behind her, the sound of running water following a few seconds after.

What the hell was that about?

It's at that moment that the front door opens and Shizuo comes back in, about to say something when he realizes the girl isn't in sight. "Where's the kid?"

"Where do you think she is, Shizu-chan?"

"I don't fucking know, that's why I asked you. Where is she?"

"If you would stop and think for a second, Shizu-chan, you'd realize that there's literally only one place she can be." He says, half-amused, half-annoyed. "Here, I'll give you a hint... if you listen carefully, you might be able to hear it."

"Just fucking tell me, flea - it's not that goddamn hard."

"Shhhhh, hear that?" Izaya puts his hand up to his ear.

"Damn it, flea..."

"Shut up and listen, Shizu-chan. Do you hear it?"

"Hear what, flea? The sound of water running? Yes, I fucking hear it, so... oh. She's taking a goddamn bath, isn't she?"

"Bingo!" Izaya gives him a round of applause, smirking. "That wasn't so hard, now was it?"

"Remember that whole thing about pissing me off?" Shizuo snarls, already starting to get fed up with the informant's bullshit. "This is your first warning. You get three."

"I'm impressed you can count that high." Izaya remarks.

"That's two, flea. Sure you wanna try for a third?"

"That depends." He says, swallowing thickly. He knows he should probably quit while he's behind, but he just can't seem to help himself. "Are you really just going to kick me out, or do you plan on teaching me a lesson first?"

Shizuo doesn't respond right away, but there's a flash of something in his eyes that gives him the chills. "If you don't stop tryin' to push my buttons, you're gonna find out." He informs him, his voice low... almost suggestively so, Izaya realizes, goosebumps starting to spread across his skin.

"What if I want to find out?" He asks, his heart pounding in his chest.

"Flea... I really don't think you want to play this game with me." Shizuo growls, taking a menacing step forward. Looming over the smaller man, he leans forward until their foreheads are touching. "So why don't you be a good little flea and stop before you get yourself into trouble you can't get out of, huh?"

Izaya suddenly remembers one of the more... effective messages he'd gotten from his mystery texter: 'do u think hes ever jerked off to the thought of raping u?' The message had successfully wormed its way under his skin, but not for the reasons one might expect; while the thought of the beast snapping and taking him by force (not that he'd need to use much of it, considering) did scare him in no insignificant amount, it did an even better job of getting him excited.

Jokes on you, Stalker-san... you can't rape the willing.

You see, for Izaya, the 'S' in 'Secret' also stands for two other things; 'Sexuality', and 'Shizuo'. That's why, despite his common sense screaming at him to run away, he throws caution to the wind...

...and kisses him.