Oh my God, how long as it been? Over a week I know. Ugh, I am so so sorry you had to wait so long. School just got super busy this week and I was in a total slump from writing. All I wanted to do was roleplay and go on tumblr. xD Writing was unfortunately the last thing on my mind. But I'm starting to get back into the swing of things so hopefully updates will be frequent again. Once again, I'm so sorry for the delay!

AN: I just received a review I wanted to reply to immidiately. Unfortunately, it's anon so I can't reply to them directly. But I think it's important.

"Maybe you should think about finishing this up instead of making it longer and longer. I'd hate to see you come all this way and then leave your readers with a wip. I'm not sure how rping and writing is much different though?"

Don't worry! I WILL NOT abandon this fic. I just might be slower with updating. I've kinda spoiled everyone with the frequent updates. All the authors I look up to take their time with it x'D. But I won't drop it. It does have an end. I'm actually quite close to the end. I'd say another...10-15 chapters at the very most? Depends on how much I write. I could wrap it up really fast, but then I'd feel like I dropped the ball. I'm giving it my all to the very end!

And Roleplaying is no different from writing. I've just been writing TsugaruxPsyche. Writing Psyche is MUCH DIFFERENT from writing Izaya or Shizuo. So RPing him has kinda thrown off my Izaya muse and made it hard for me to get back into him. However, I'm getting back into writing Izaya so things should speed up.

I hope that clarifies anything. I don't want people getting nervous that I'll drop the fic. I promise I won't! And I am very sorry it took a long time. I'll try to do better this week!

In the end, Izaya didn't really have a choice. Even if he decided he'd rather not learn more about Shizuo's condition, he was surrounded by the rumors. He stood quietly on the street corner, looking up at the evening sky. All around him, he could hear the whispers saying the same things.

I saw Shizuo Heiwajima pass out.

I saw Shizuo coughing up blood.

Shizuo Heiwajima is in the hospital.

Shizuo has cancer.

Shizuo is dying.

He couldn't shake them out of his head. Three hours after logging off, and still the chat log was burned in his memory. Still eating away at him. The information Masaomi had given him was vague, but enough to tingle this senses and make him itch for more information.

The only problem was that it was information he didn't necessarily want to hear.

With a sigh, he ran a hand through his hair and stepped out of the alleyway he was lurking in, wondering where his feet would take him next. Perhaps to Russia Sushi, or back to Shinjuku. Maybe they would take him to the cemetery as some sort of sick joke.

He stared tiredly at the ground, watching his shadow move in sync beside him. Unchanging. Constant. Always by his side. Sometimes he wondered if Shizuo was like a shadow too. Unchanging strength. Constant anger. Always chasing him, but never unable to outrun him.

His silent musings were cut short when he saw his shadow ripple beneath him. He curiously looked down, and smiled when the black tendrils crawled up his legs and coiled around his body tightly.

"Ahh, Celty, it's a pl-hgnn!"

She shoved him backwards into the wall, knocking over a few trashcans and boxes that littered the alleyway. His body slammed into the brick with enough force to knock the wind out of his chest.

At first, he was delirious - head throbbing, chest aching, and spots dancing in front of his eyes. The next moment, a blinding light was shoved into his face, causing him to grit his teeth in pain.

"I can't read it that close…" he hissed, trying to pull his head away from the PDA. Celty complied, pulling her trembling hand away so Izaya could read the words she had typed.

[This is all your fault.]

He quirked a brow, "Ahh, most things are. Please elaborate."

[Shizuo is sick because of you!]

So that's why she was so upset with him. He shook his head, sighing as he tried to untangle himself from the tight web of shadows around him. His attempts were futile; her grip was too tight.

"Celty, I can't breathe…"

She shook with fury, the dark tendrils surrounding them quivering. [Thanks to you, he can't either!]

"Is that meant to guilt me?"

Another crack as his head slammed into the wall. He groaned, feeling his brain rattling in his skull. Celty was serious this time, and wouldn't let him use his wit to cut her off. She even wrapped a shadow around his mouth to keep him quiet. A muffled groan was all she allowed before she held up the new message on her PDA.

[What you did to him was even worse than what I ever thought you were capable of. You broke him, Izaya.]

His carmine eyes practically shone with sarcasm. Of course, that was the plan.

[Do you realize he started smoking again when you left?]

Izaya was counting on that fact, hoping it would eventually kill him off. After all, that was the ulterior motive for the past few months they were together. Although, those intentions faded away toward the end…

[Multiple packs a day from what he told us. He couldn't stop. They were keeping him sane.]

Sane?

Shizuo thought he was going insane due to Izaya sudden absence? Wasn't that Shizuo's dream from the moment they left? For Izaya to leave and for the brute to regain peace?

What had changed him? What made him want Izaya's constant nagging and annoyance?

Celty could see the uncertainty in Izaya's gaze, and unwrapped the gag from his mouth. He sucked in air and licked his lips.

He smirked, "You don't taste very good." He could practically feel her seething at his comment. "Anyways, I don't really care about Shizuo's condition. He chose to relapse into smoking those cancer sticks. It's his own fault."

[What you did to drove him to do it!]

His smirk grew, "Ahh, thank you Celty. I'm proud of my accomplishments. Are you here to give me my medal?" His shoulders rocked as he chuckled to himself. Celty didn't appreciate his sick humor, and constricted the black bands around him, causing the raven to wince.

[You broke his heart.]

"So what if I did?" Izaya growled, narrowing his eyes dangerously, "After what he did to me, he deserved to have his heart broken."

Celty shook her helmet, typing angrily onto her PDA. [He did nothing to you.]

The informant remained silent, sighing lightly. He didn't feel the need to explain himself. Not like she would believe him anyways. Why waste his breath explaining how the brute had managed to tear down his walls, tie him down, and make him feel emotions he'd never longed to feel.

"Shizu-chan deserves to die."

SMACK.

Izaya's cheek stung from the blow of her gloved hand. He knew he had pushed a certain button, and couldn't help but feel like he won that small battle. He stared at the floor, spitting out the blood that pooled between his gums.

[You listen here…] she started, forcing his eyes up to look at her screen. Her shadows turning darker if possible, and the tendrils around him seemed to grow ice cold as she tightened her grip.

[You were paid to watch him. Shinra trusted you to take care of him. I know you might not have the same feelings back for Shizuo, but I know you at least care for Shinra as a friend. You disappointed him. You nearly killed his friend. You failed your only job.]

All truths. The dullahan wasn't lying, and Izaya knew it. Yet…hearing it from her seemed to make it all more real. The novel of a relationship they had written was being reread to him, and it felt like a completely different story.

This time, it sounded more painful. More cruel. More…real.

[Do you even know how serious this is?]

"No." Izaya found no use in bluffing or twisting his words. He wanted to know just as much as any man on the street did.

Celty's shoulders sagged slightly as if she sighed, and typed rapidly on her PDA. Izaya's stomach dropped when he read the cold, bleak words on the all-too-bright screen.

[Shizuo's sudden smoking flared up another infection in his lungs. There's a good part that is too damaged to heal. He needs surgery to remove the portion of it. Otherwise it could become cancerous.]

"…What good is telling me this, courier?" Izaya grumbled, eyes narrowing slightly as he tried to hide the shock on his face.

[You know why.]

Izaya sighed, nodding. He knew exactly why Celty had hunted him down. It was a bold move on her part. Izaya could have easily declined. Rejected the offer and walked away.

Shizuo's life was in his hands, and he could crush it as easily as he could a butterfly's wing.

The real question is…

…could he do it?

After what had happened. Their past was rewritten. Pages had been torn out of their novel, and had been rearranged to tell a new story. Their life suddenly had a new direction, one Izaya couldn't control.

And Izaya was now the author. The pen was in his hand. The pages were turning.

What would he do?

Celty waited silently, letting Izaya free from his confinements as he theatrically brushed off the nonexistent dust from his jacket. He paused, looking back at her dark figure before turning to leave the alley.

"Put it on my tab."