A/N: I forgot to say last chapter, but request are open
TW for descriptions of passing out, goes along with the next three chapters as well

(Age 15)

The first time Chuuya had passed out in front of Dazai had been on one of their sooner missions. A mission that was just gathering intel from a supposedly 'dangerous' client. Chuuya assumed that the only reason he was brought along by Dazai was to act as his bodyguard (even though he had a whole squadron) and to annoy him.

Chuuya had not been in the mood for the others' antics (he never was) but today was especially bad.

He felt like complete and utter shit.

Chuuya would admit that he was irresponsible with his work matters, meaning that he worked far too much than any other kid his age did.

Adjusting to the port mafia was hard, it was way different than it was with the sheep. More organized and less on the run, though that didn't make it any less exhausting. And Chuuya had been so caught up in the work that he failed to care for himself properly.

Not that he would ever actually admit that.

So he found himself in a particularly pissy mood when he awoke to a hand hitting his face. Chuuya whined as he felt around the bed for it to viciously push the body part away from him. He turned over trying to get more sleep that he desperately needed, but the sun was uncomfortably warm.

Too late to sleep now.

Shitty Dazai seemed to have opened his eyes at the exact same time Chuuya did because when they both yawned and sat up at the same time, they sent each other accusing glares.

"You hit me in the face."

Dazai glared right back at him, "Yeah? Well, you sleep talk. I did not need to hear about your pet llama named Josephine."

Chuuya flushed "My pet wha-"

"Anyways" Dazai waved him off "we need to get across town, the suns rising."

Chuuya wanted to grumble about how, yeah he could see that, he wasn't blind. But a sudden feeling tugged at his stomach. He wasn't hungry and it didn't hurt, he just felt... off.

It was weird.

He pushed it to the back of his head, it was probably just because he was tired.

Of course, the sun was blazing. Even if it was just the morning, the humidity clung to his skin like an unwanted blanket, making his insides crawl with discomfort. He ignored it in favor of pushing forward, shoving his shaky hands in his pocket even if it was stifling.

The walking waste of bandages occasionally spouted some shit about his high ranking in the port mafia, casting the bait out and waiting for Chuuya to take it like always. But he kept his mouth clamped shut, not wanting to waste his energy.

He could feel the analyzing looks that Dazai was shooting at him, but Chuuya avoided eye contact altogether, opting to look down at his feet and the sidewalk ahead of him. He had gotten new shoes with his port mafia money along with a new wardrobe, it had been the first thing Ane-san made him get.

He didn't hate it.

But in this weather he sure did.

His stomach tugged again, a weird sense of emptiness filling the void. It was weird. He wasn't particularly starving, he just felt off. His pounding headache only increased by the sun's rays. Chuuya should have bought his sunglasses, though at least his hair was tied back.

The walk to the port lasted forever, and Chuuya wasn't sure why they couldn't have just met in Yokohama. Why did he and Dazai have to travel to another city over and stay in another ratty hotel just to meet some other organization and settle boundaries?

Whatever he didn't ponder too much over the technicalities. He was smart, but that was Dazai's job and he was still pretty new to the underground scheming and such.

Chuuya was jolted out of his stupor when a voice that wasn't Dazai's started talking. It sounded like an older man, and he was proven correct when he looked up from his perch leaning against a cargo box. He immediately straightened himself next to Dazai, trying not to show any weakness.

The old man shook Dazai's bandaged hand, the two guards on either side of him seemed to size Chuuya up. They looked weak.

"It is nice to see you again, Dazai"

Dazai went into business mode, ew. "Likewise."

They continued to chat for what couldn't have been longer than twenty minutes when Chuuya spotted it. He was surprised he even managed to react as quickly as he did with how odd he was feeling and the sun beaming down on them.

Chuuya dealt a swift kick to the guard on the left, sending him crashing against the nearby concrete wall. A needle fell out of his hand. How was he even planning to inject that thing with Chuuya in his way?

Unless...

Chuuya whipped around, and in record time he stopped the other man from pricking himself with the needle, shattering it with his bare hand. Was it the smartest thing? No, he would regret the stinging of the glass in his palm later. But it got the job done. The serum had not been injected into their veins.

The man landed in a heap next to the other one, both knocked out for the count. The earth tilted on its axis as Chuuya twisted around to take down the boss, only to find him and Dazai having some sort of stare-off, both unwavering with their poker faces.

He slowly made his way back to his partner, careful to hide the grimace on his face as he finally stopped seeing double.

"So I'm assuming that you're not our work partner anymore?" Dazai drawled, hand not yet moving to his gun.

"Not with the ambush, no. We are cutting ties and figured it would be best to catch you off guard before we delved into territory wars."

Dazai blinked, showing no hint of surprise or remorse. "The tactic would have worked on anyone but us. Ability enhancing drugs are nothing to sneeze at, but unfortunately, my dog beat yours."

Chuuya really didn't have the energy to argue against the reasoning, in fact, it was as if everything was being sapped from his bones. The rest of their surprisingly civilized conversation was muddled at best. He only got snippets of the parting words before the old man was suddenly gone.

"Won't... Attack... needlessly."

"...Be... Back."

And then Dazai turned back to him, a victorious look in his uncovered eye. "That's how you get a job done with little collateral damage... Slug?"

Chuuya couldn't get his voice to function properly, he tried to get out that he was feeling lightheaded, but for all, he knew it was just a whisper. His tongue felt numb. The world once again shifted, gravity not working in his favor for once as he swayed in place.

Nope. This wasn't happening.

A searing flash of heat overcame him, it was overwhelming coupled with his nausea.

Yeah, it was happening.

The last thing Chuuya saw before his eyes rolled to the back of his head and his limbs gave out on him was a set of bandaged hands reaching out for him.

When Chuuya woke up fuck knows how long later, he felt worse than he did before. It felt like one of those stupid monkey toys was hammering their symbols in his brain, his limbs felt like jelly. Just the overall sense of crappiness made him groan as he forced his eyes open.

He absorbed the room, and from what he could tell it was the same damaged hotel room they slept in the previous night. Chuuya licked his chapped lips as he lifted himself up, the covers falling down as he reached up to rub at his eyes.

"Oh, I was hoping you had died," an annoying voice said as the door opened. Dazai held boxes from a nearby restaurant and set them down on the nightstand. "You could have at least waited to pass out until we got back? I had to call a cab and waste money. The enemy could have attacked me, you know."

Chuuya rolled his eyes but immediately regretted it when his head flashed with pain.

"Oh- and you hit your head when I lugged you into the taxi so don't whine about it."

"You mean you hit my head?" Chuuya's voice sounded like shit. Maybe he just shouldn't speak.

Dazai shrugged "Whatever you say. Not my fault you passed out."

"Yeah, like I did it on purpose."

Dazai sat down on the chair that was pulled up to the bed "With how shitty your conditions are, you were practically asking for it. What, did you want to be a damsel in distress?"

Chuuya ignored that last part. "What do you mean by conditions?"

Dazai snorted "What, so you really didn't notice how tired you were? Or your lack of hunger? When was the last time you even ate?"

Chuuya scowled, crossing his arms defensively. Could Dazai just go back to complaining instead of lecturing? It was getting violating. "That's none of your business."

Dazai scoffed, leaning forward in his chair "Sure, but it becomes my business when my guard suddenly passes out on the job. You can faint during your own free time."

Chuuya sighed, aggravated. He supposed the shitty Mackerel had a point. "I'm not sure '' he answered honestly. "I just wasn't hungry."

Dazai took the to-go boxes and set them down in Chuuya's lap before standing back up. "That's how unwanted eating disorders start, remember to eat." He seemed to be talking from experience. "I'm taking a shower, don't faint again."

Chuuya didn't bother telling him to save the hot water, it was useless. Instead, he sat back and opened up the box to be pleasantly surprised by his favorite meal.

Chuuya huffed out a breathy laugh.

That shitty Dazai had a weird way of showing his concerns.