The sky ripped open with roars of gunfire, heaven's artillery tearing across the street.

You tripped forward in a blind dash as the rain lashed at you from above, obscuring your vision and quelling the noise of traffic as it raced past, spraying you with muddy water.

Trust you to be caught out in such weather.

Pulling the collar of your jacket over your mouth, you bowed your head against the rain and pressed onwards through the town square. You'd been sent to retrieve important documents from a secure location within Yokohama's busy urban quarter, but nobody had thought to warn you of the impending storm.

Damn mafia dogs.

You were almost drenched to the bone when all of a sudden you couldn't feel it anymore.

Skidding to a stop, you lifted your head to the black material now fanned out above you, rebounding droplets of water back onto the street. For a split second, your heart skittered a beat, until you turned your head fully and discovered a shock of white hair rather than black.

"A-Atsushi-Kun," you exclaimed, unable to impede the disappointment in your voice. "Thank you."

The boy sighed, reaching up to loosen the tie from his neck as he held the umbrella at a crooked angle. "You shouldn't be out in this weather," he murmured with a sheepish glance at the hair plastered to your head, water droplets glistening from your nose. "C'mon."

The two of you seemed to have a mutual destination in mind, for neither of you needed prompting when you turned into the small, overhanging porch that heralded the teahouse you had frequented in the past few weeks.

"You thought I was someone else back then, didn't you?" Atsushi ventured in a subdued voice. His eyes didn't quite meet yours as you took a seat in the far corner of the room, wringing the water from your hair.

You ignored his question, pursing your lips in silent contemplation.

"Dazai told me about you and Akutagawa."

Your eyes shifted to his suddenly, catching him off guard as his cheeks flushed pink. "That bastard," you cursed, making the boy flinch. "What exactly did he tell you?"

A small sweat broke out across his forehead, Adam's apple bobbing visibly in his throat. "I'll get us some tea, then we'll talk. Though... do you promise not to, uhm, kill me or anything."

You loosened your posture, allowing a short, humorless laugh. "I'm here on personal business. I promise I won't kidnap you, or kill you, or cause you any harm," you listed as if swearing an oath, holding your hand against your chest for dramatic effect.

Apparently satisfied, he left you with a bow and padded slowly over to the counter. You turned your attention to the window, a sigh parting your lips as you watched rivulets of water race down the glass, pooling along the window pane below, and wondered how Akutagawa was getting on. He seemed to have been getting more distant lately, disappearing for long periods of time without telling anyone and neglecting his duties around base. Chuuya had made a frequent habit of pointing out to you the fact that he hadn't acted like this until you came back. But you figured it was his illness; perhaps the winter nights closing it were affecting his chest.

Atsushi interrupted your thoughts as he pulled out the chair opposite - the wooden legs dragging against the floor - and settled into it with a stifled grimace.

"I'm sorry about before - trying to trick you and whatnot."

He fidgeted in his seat, drumming his fingers softly against the underside of the table. His mottled eyes were now downcast, imbued with unease. If he felt so uncomfortable around you, why did he choose to stay?

"I didn't want to do it, you know. If Dazai hadn't been there, I might have backed out," you admitted, your voice barely rising above the dismal patter of rain against the window. "You have to understand it was my job."

The boy nodded, his feet swinging to and fro underneath the table. Still, he couldn't look at you, studying his fingers instead.

"So you don't... have to be afraid of me, you know."

Blood suddenly rushed to his cheeks, an uncertain smile flitting across his lips as the waitress set a tray down onto the table. With a bow, she bid you enjoy your drinks before taking her leave. The pink hues dancing around his face still hadn't diminished, but he had finally worked up the courage to meet your eye.

"I-I'm not," he stammered, bringing the cup up to his lips and taking a sip. He immediately pulled a face, sticking out his tongue and wafting it furiously. "Hot, hot, hot."

Chuckling under your breath, you blew across the surface of your own drink before pressing it to your mouth. It seemed to warm your entire core, filling your mind was a sleepy hum.

"Uhm, can I ask you a question?"

"Mhmm."

Atsushi cleared his throat, smoothing down the creases in his shirt. "Was Dazai telling the truth? A-about you and Akutagawa?"

Emitting a quiet sigh, you reclined back in your chair and fixed him with a hard look. "Depends what he said."

He shuffled in his seat, gripping the underside of the table with white knuckles. "Th-that you, uh, were together... is that why you left?"

"Then no. He wasn't telling the truth. We were never... together," you told him with a bitter taste in your mouth, pushing your hair out of your face to give you a better view of your surroundings.

A customary measure in your line of work.

"But you wanted to be?"

A sharp glance his way sent him stuttering apologies again. "S-sorry, it's not my place to ask."

You blew heavily through your nose, setting your chin forward. "No, no, it's fine," you muttered. "I... It wasn't like that. It was - I don't know - maybe a little like that." You sunk your teeth to your bottom lip, your voice sounding fragmented as you struggled to find the right words. You'd kept this part of you hidden for so long, it was difficult to structure your thoughts. You weren't sure what had persuaded you to reveal it all now - and to your enemy, no less - but if you were going to use this as a chance to unburden yourself, there was no point in holding back. "It's difficult to understand what's going on in that mind of his, y'know. Akutagawa's a man of... little emotion. All he ever really shows is anger and hatred. I'm not sure he's even capable of feeling anything else, no matter how much Chuuya persuades me otherwise," you added with a dry chuckle, pausing to sip your drink. "We grew up together in the slums, so it's no surprise we were close. Practically inseparable. Neither of us went anywhere without the other. Back then, I thought I'd understood him. I thought I had more than just an inkling of what went on in that mind of his. He was lost and lonely - we both were - searching for a way in life, for a purpose. I thought, in the end, we gave each other one. When we looked out for each other and stuck together. Because we connected, like nobody else could. We shared a curse, we shared a purpose. And, well, I suppose we had nobody else."

You raised your eyes briefly to meet Atsushi's, dull and hazy, as if hypnotized by your voice. The clouds had reined in the light outside, leaving shadows prowling in its wake. They made his features appear sunken and deep, not unlike Akutagawa's.

"He could've pushed me away. He could've left me on the streets and made off on his own, countless times. But he didn't. Instead, he stayed with me. I... I thought he'd grown to care for me, or something stupid like that. I thought he stayed because he couldn't leave me behind - because he refused to." You paused, sighing shakily through your nose. "I suppose I never really had a clue. I was stupid. Reckless. Naive. Letting myself care for someone like that. Someone so heartless... no, so broken. Broken beyond repair. He couldn't be fixed like the way I thought he could. I couldn't help him the way I wanted to. Caring for someone like that only leads to pain. I guess it took me long enough to realise that." You pursed your lips, eyes licking with flames as you rekindled your anger from the past you'd fought so hard to suppress. To forget. To keep secret.

You finished off on a bitter note, glancing down at the thin grooves in your palm from where your nails had dug in. "Me and my reckless heart, huh?"