Author's Note: As I said, I wanted to write more regularly and so here I am with another update. It's time for a little Izaya – Shinra confrontation. I really think those two are 'friends' for a reason :). Hope you'll like it...

Coldplay – X & Y

"When something is broken
And you try to fix it
Trying to repair it
Any way you can"

This day's events started to play more on my nerves with every passing minute. First the earthquake, then Shizu-chan and his accident and now, not even being exactly sure why and how, I found myself in Shinra's apartment instead of mine. Who the hell said that I wanted to be here? And the fact was that I absolutely preferred the confines of my own spacious flat. Especially, when there was no rational reason for me to let my time slip through my fingers by sitting on Shinra's less than comfortable couch (I had my own standards). I was doing virtually nothing except the most obvious bodily functions like breathing and ageing. And I wasn't very fond of the thought that the irreversible process was spent on nothing worth remembering... Even Celty wasn't accompanying me, probably playing the role of a nurse or something of the kind.

Once again, the 'why' question appeared in my head. They must have had something in mind dragging me with them. And I didn't believe that it was them worrying about my state. I wasn't one to suffer from trauma after finding a bloodied body, more so if it belonged to Shizu-chan. So what was going through Shinra's head? I knew very well that sometimes he could be as devious as me, though mostly for different reasons. Maybe that's why our... familiarity didn't stop after finishing Raira. He was a closest to a friend I have after all... If it was any other way, I wouldn't be sitting on his aforementioned couch, waiting for whatever he was going to pull out of his sleeve...

My answer came in the form of Shinra in his usual doctor's kit, but with a pair of what looked like latex gloves covered in blood on his hands. Who was going to bet that I knew the previous owner of it...? I rose my brow, my eyes fixing on Shinra's face, ignoring the rest of him. Mostly his hands...

"What is it, Shinra? You came to tell me the bad news? Was my heroic act wasted? I always knew that Shizu-chan liked to behave in spite of me, but going to such measures... Don't you think it's a little to much even for him, ne~?" I winked playfully. Shinra's right eye twitched. Oh... It looked like he didn't appreciate the joke...

"Cut the crap, Izaya. Even you should be civil from time to time. I know you hate him, and that it is mutual, but he is mine and Celty's friend and I would like to make him suffer as little as possible right now. Besides, you made the first move yourself by contacting me to help him. So if you said 'a' you can as well say 'b', which is why I would like you to come with me for a moment. Without any redundant comments... Could you do that for me?" he asked me with all his professionalism and seriousness. I haven't seen him wearing such an attitude often. Once again, I sighed inwardly. It really started to be one hell of a day...

"It would be nice knowing what I would be exactly agreeing on, don't you think, Shinra? I wouldn't like to wake up without a part of my liver or any other organ... So, what does that 'b' stand for?" I asked him, losing some of my usual indifference for pleas.

"Your blood type is O if I remember correctly...?" he asked me slowly. Oh, now it was obvious where it was going... He really wanted to ask that of me? Was he insane?

"Shinra, I know I told you once that I consider you my only... well, friend, to be frankly, but it doesn't mean that I will do something like sharing a part of my precious self with Shizu-chan because of that. It's gross even when I think about it, really... So get that stupid idea out of your head and try seeking somewhere else... You're an underground doctor. Don't you have some hidden supplies of blood in your closet? Ask his brother if it's that necessary... They have the same type if you're not aware..." Shinra looked at me tensely, though questioningly.

"I am an informant Shinra, I collect information, so it shouldn't be strange that I know things..." I said incredulously.

"Right, it doesn't matter right now even if it's true. And if you are an informant then you should be aware that Kasuka isn't anywhere near Tokyo. That would cross that option out... It's just some blood, Izaya. It's not like I will pump you dry... You will do nicely without a pint, you won't even feel the difference...!" Shinra chirped sweetly. Changing tactics? How nice of him...

"It's not some blood, it's my blood that we are talking here about. And I don't find the thought of it circulating in the idiotic brute's body comforting..." I replied, vehemently denying.

"Fine! Fine... Forget that I said anything, go home... Just, when you will be looking through your files, add the information that from today onwards Heiwajima Shizuo is no longer a two legged monster. Just so you know..." he said flatly and turned his back on me, ready to leave the room.

The silence lasted a second or two.

"Oh for fucking Christ! Shinra, wait! I'll give you that damned blood if you're so desperate for it! But if I become infected with jaundice or any other shit then you'll pay for it..." I hissed.

"Don't worry. I may be an underground doctor, but not a careless idiot. I wouldn't want my clients visiting me for any other reason than patching them up..." he stated. Was that supposed to calm me?

"Yeah, right... Just, do what you have to and let me go my way. And remember, I'm doing it for you, not the protozoan, so don't have some stupid ideas later like trying to make us friends, got it? And just so you know, you owe my one... My precious blood in Shizu-chan's bloodstream... I wouldn't be surprised if he would sense it somehow and his body would try destroying my cells out of habit, the stupid barbarian..." I added with amused distaste, following Shinra to wherever he was leading me.

"And Izaya...?" he turned his head, looking at me, a little smile starting to form in the corner of his mouth.

"What?"

"Thank you..." he said simply and opened the door to what was supposed to be his surgery most probably.

"Yeah... Don't get used to it, you blackmailing git..."

"How many times will you ask me? I'm telling you, it was a pint!" exclaimed Shinra.

"It didn't look like a pint for me... Homeostasis of my organism is very fragile and any unwanted interference may pose a threat to my well-being. You're playing with fire here, Shinra..." I said conversationally.

"Then you shouldn't worry as we have a fire extinguisher in the room... Could you please be serious for a moment?" he sighed loudly, slowly rubbing his eyes. He looked tired, or maybe downright exhausted would be a more fitting expression to describe his current state.

"Fine, fine... I just wanted to cheer the mood. I'll stop trying." I assured him. "You know, you should go rest because you look like crap. I've seen you after some of your operations and you never looked so bad... Was it really so harsh on you?" I asked, this time genuinely... maybe not concerned, but curious.

"Yeah, well... It never was my friend that I was operating on." he replied with his eyes closed, a certain stiffness visible in his facial features.

"How so...? You patched me up many times before. You say that you don't consider me a friend after all? And you're telling me this now, Shinra? I am truthfully heartbroken..." I added a grave tone to my words, though a slight smile was on my lips. Shinra actually laughed under his nose, his muscles loosening a bit.

"You had to realise someday. It was making my conscience scream..." he patted my shoulder lightly. "It's that... you never were in such a bad state really. You never needed an actual operation, under anaesthesia and all that, but just as you said, some patching up... It was the same with Shizuo. There were cuts and bruises, a concussion or strained muscles, there were even bullets to remove. But nothing that ointments, antibiotics and some stitches wouldn't heal. There were also many broken bones, but that was when he was young, more fragile. Now and then he came with a broken rib or a dislocated shoulder, but... I always treated him when he was conscious actually, I knew that everything was going to be fine, nothing major... And now... Fuck, I don't even know why I'm telling you this..." he tightened his lips into a thin line.

"Maybe because you had to throw it out of your system and I happened to be here? Shinra... In what condition the brute actually is... You really were considering amputating his leg?" I know... I know, but I just had to ask... An occupational habit if you want to call it somehow.

Shinra studied me for a moment, only to reward me with a sight of him facepalming.

"What? What? I didn't have in mind a nasty remark if that's what you're thinking... I was just curious. Now even that is a crime...?" I asked him somewhat flustered. How could he facepalm on me?

"No, it's not... It's only... Sorry, I just totally forgot about that... I only wanted to..." Shinra looked at me somewhat uncertainly.

"You only wanted what?" I eyed him carefully. I didn't like my own suspicions and when he tried to avoid my gaze... "Oh, no you didn't... Say me you didn't...! That's emotional blackmail, Shinra! And falsifying testimony! That's obvious, voluntary and perfidious-"

"bullshit. And what? Did it hurt you so much? It was used for a good reason. One would call it a white lie..." he interrupted my sentence.

That poisonous, sneaky little viper... I should have known better...

"You lied to your friend. The rest is insignificant. You played me..." I narrowed my eyes.

"And here goes the flamboyant Izaya... As if you weren't doing the same all the time. With everyone... You wouldn't let me do it any other way. Now stop emphasising your fake emotional pain. I didn't draw your blood for fun. I really needed it. Shizuo really needed it. Though, just to recuperate more quickly, to help his body accommodate to the changes and... to retain his body homeostasis." he stressed the last word.

"Very funny... Now, if you won't finally say what is wrong with Shizu-chan then I will have to make you suffer. How about that, Shinra~?" I said in my sing-song voice.

"Getting a bit sentimental, don't you, Izaya?"

One murderous glance was thankfully enough to make him change his mind about teasing me.

"Yes. Right. You saw him, didn't you? Apart from minor bruises and cuts, you probably noticed that he had a gush on his head. It was bleeding pretty badly, but it's quite normal for a head wound... I had to disinfect it and suture it. Head trauma can be tricky and he had to have a concussion so I was reluctant to use any anaesthesia, but it was necessary for me to deal with the fraction of his leg... That's why Celty is watching him right now, to make sure that nothing is out of order with his life parameters... I'm still afraid that it can eventuate in a coma, though..."

"You had no other choice. I understand. What's with the leg then?" I asked more softly this time. I was a malicious person most of time, however, Shinra was one of those who I tried to treat more like a friend than all of other 'humans'.

"As I said, it was an open fracture. Moreover, it was a femoral shaft fracture, a thigh bone fracture that is... They're more complicated, as that particular bone, if healthy, is very strong and harder to break than most. It gives under high energy impacts, which undoubtedly took place when Shizuo fell with the fire escape. The greater the impact, the worse the fracture and, logically, a longer healing process. I actually had to use an IM rod. In addition, the broken bone perforated one of the thigh muscles. It will take some time for Shizuo to recover and then he will definitely need rehabilitation to use his leg properly and let his muscles rebuilt their strength. I don't know at that point if he will regain full extension of that leg's dexterity. Not to mention that he will have to cut on smoking. It delays bone healing... Maybe that will hurt him the most..." he snorted sadly.

"Well, that was a professional health analysis... Though, what is an IM rod?" That was too much of a surgical crap even for me to understand...

"It's an intramedullary rod. One that is forced into the medullary cavity of a bone to treat fractures of long bones of the body. In other words, a metal rod that I put into Shizuo's leg in order to let it heal properly."

"Oh. Oh..." I expressed eloquently. That was a bit of a surprise. So he actually was hurt pretty badly. How? He was always so indestructable. Even being hit by a truck didn't damage him much... So why that fall? "Shinra, don't you think it's strange? For him to break like that, I mean...?"

"I thought about it to... And what I concluded is that it was because of the maltitude of the damaging factors. It was the fall from the heigth plus the impact with the concrete and all the metal that landed on him partially. And all the times before, he strained himself too much... Even Shizuo's body has its limits. He's not immortal. He's still blood and bones. Flesh. Just more durable than a 'normal' one. An average human being would have died, I am certain..."

"Hmmm... You're probably right. Though, don't feel down. You did well, the brute will live and he still has a leg, now doesn't he? And with my equisite blood in his system, he will be chasing me down the streets in no time... Now, it's all fine with the chit-chat, but I finally have to leave you, Shinra, my beloved friend. Thank you for the entertainment. And the chocolate... I already feel an additional pound on me. Thanks to you, I will be running slower than Shizu-chan with crutches... I can't wait to see him with those... So sexy..." I winked again and stood from the couch we were sitting on.

Shinra smiled slowly, nodding his head.

"Yeah, I always knew you were a kinky bastard, Izaya... And you know what? You can be awfully cheerful and mindful for a sociopath..."

"Ah, well... I always was a special one. In everything. Actually, I think you should thank Kami-sama for my existence. It makes the world shine so brightly, right?" I said with a mocking seriousness.

"Then why do I have such a high electricity bill every month...?" he asked me playfully.

"Ah, that's because of your own imperfection. And a lack of faith in my greatness, I presume... Nothing I would worry about... Jā ne~, Shinra! Have your beauty sleep!" I exclaimed finally and left his apartment.

I passed the streets without putting much mind into it. My head was too cloudy for any other thoughts than a pressing need to be home, preferably in my cosy bed. Almost... A crippled Shizu-chan...? Now that will be something new... If exciting? That was to be revealed in the future. What was sure, is that some things were definitely going to change, even if for a short period of time. Shizu-chan... He was making my mind race even without his actual knowledge. But that was something that I didn't want to dwell on right now...