"Whatever. Let's just get this over with."
"My thoughts exactly."
Namie paid close attention as Shizuo extracted the sword from Izaya.
"That is quite a trick."
Shizuo's first attack was mindful of the fact that Namie was a girl. She step sided it easily. Shizuo found himself running ahead past her. He spun around with some effort and Namie smiled. Shizuo rushed ahead again and Namie twirled out of his range. He was still trying to figure out just how he kept missing his target when Namie dashed with surprising and impressive speed, materializing into his defenses and shredding Shizuo's white rose in one sweep.
Shizuo did not even feel anything. Not even a prick. If not for the flutter of petals he would not have believed it.
"I lost…? That can't be."
"What's the problem, Shizuo-kun? Can't lose to a girl? Want me to tell you how and why you lost?"
It was with an effort that Shizuo supported himself on his legs.
"How…?"
"There's more to these duels than brute strength. I calculated your exact position using your speed and power as gauged by your attacks. It was quite easy, actually. You can wave your magical sword all you want, physics and mathematics will always defeat superstition."
Shizuo swallowed but could not get past the knot on his throat. He did not even notice that the sword had disintegrated.
"Izaya, you're not going back with her, right? Tonight there's that show we both like…and you don't even know her."
"This is as far as we go, Shizuo-san."
"'-san'…? Izaya, wait! Don't you like being with me? Didn't we have fun, just living together, shopping for clothes, hanging out, wasn't that fun? That woman will lock you away in a lab and do weird experiments on you!"
"Now that you mention it that may be a good idea. I want to prove that this Izaya person is just a guy with a penchant for gender inappropriate outfits, that thing spinning above is a trick of sorts. More interesting is the hydraulic system that activates this entire arena via these rings. I would like to see the blueprints and investigate the engineering behind it."
"See? She doesn't like you, Izaya, please!"
But Izaya was already walking away with Namie.
"By the way, if you're going to start crying I should warn you that the other duelists are probably watching this entire affair. Everyone is a voyeur around here."

It had not truly sunken in until Shizuo arrived at the dorm and found Izaya's name crossed over. Every single item of Izaya's had already been cleared apart from the fur trimmed jacket that was neatly folded as if deliberately left behind. Shizuo stared up and down at the empty apartment and wondered when it had become so absurdly large. He closed eyes and stupidly wished that Izaya would be back. It did not work.
Shizuo ended up lying in bed throughout the sleepless night, the jacket next to him.
The following day he skipped class. There was simply no energy to get up, get dressed and drag himself to class. Shizuo kept looking around as if in a daze. For the first time in his life he felt weak and utterly powerless.
"Shizuo? Oy, Shizuo! Open up, will you? It's me, Erika. Come on now, staying cooped inside like that won't help any."
"Come in."
"Ah, who would have guessed it! I thought Namie didn't care for dueling. Cheer up, Shizuo! Losing sucks but all you got to do is bounce back."
Something that Erika had no troubles doing.
"Izaya just…left. Without even saying goodbye, he just left. I thought…dunno, that we were friends."
Shizuo had no such things as friends at his old school. Only thugs that gravitated around him in the hope of becoming strong by proxy and gaining some protection by belonging to Shizuo's posse.
"It's not personal. Izaya leaving, I mean. He does that every time someone loses a duel. I've seen it happening a few times already."
"But…that Namie, she'll lock him up in a lab and do horrible things to him. Doesn't he care?"
"Probably not. But don't worry, I doubt she would do such a thing. Namie is probably after Izaya because he's part of the Orihara family that runs this place. She won't harm him."
This did not cheer up Shizuo but it was some comfort. He wondered how he had become so attached and in so little time. But ultimately it did not matter.