Chapter Text
“Maybe let’s just… let’s just go and forget about it?”
Atsushi is the only one to voice his thoughts, but the other two are of similar mind. There is no real reason as to why they’re standing here, wasting time hesitantly eyeing the old house, while others are having a fun night full of laughter and sweets. They could just go to the next house, next street and forget about it all.
However —
“Yeah, I’ll gladly accept my victory.” Kyouka doesn’t try to hide the smug grin painting its way to her face as he stares at the redhead. “Together with my free crepes. For a month .”
—whenever there is a bet, Chuuya’s pride is on the line. And it’s the one thing he will not abandon.
“Oh, you wish , you devil.” The redhead crosses his arms on his chest, staring his little sister down with the most determined look he can muster, all while avoiding looking in the direction of the old house.
“I’m a ghost tonight, thank you very much.”
“Oh really? I thought you were a menace .”
“Hey!” Atsushi, as always, has to make sure they don’t start yet another half–an–hour banter ending with a bet no one enjoys. “Can you two argue somewhere else, please? This place is giving me the creeps…”
Both of them fall silent at that because it’s true .
It’s probably just their imagination fueled by the rumours and today being Halloween, but the street lights here seem… less bright than on other streets or even a few houses away, and the wind is somehow colder than it was just minutes ago.
It’s the last house on the street, the oldest one around. It’s been here longer than any of the currently alive locals and it’s the only building that has never been renovated.
Their town is small, located in a rather obscure part of the country dominated by old forests and fields that saw more battles than necessary. It’s small but it’s friendly , always welcome when someone new comes around.
Everyone knows each other, everyone grew up together — there is only one primary and secondary school, only one park with enough space to play ball with friends — and it’s peaceful . Most families have lived here for generations but there are also those who settled recently, finding the quietness of the town to be right for them.
It can sometimes feel like they’re separated from the rest of the world, but it doesn’t mean they’re old–fashioned, or trying to stay contained within their own, little society.
Just like everywhere else, there are school trips to big cities, there is a mall and a cinema around, all of the buildings are either new or have been renovated in the last ten years. Their streets are being kept in perfect condition and lit up at all times — many would call it not only the warmest town, but also the safest one.
If not, well…
If not for the one house that everyone knows and avoids talking about.
It’s old and dark, high bushes covering the fence around it like a warning sign or a protective wall, but, once you actually go near it, it’s surprisingly well kept. The walls may have wild ivy partially covering them, but they’re not falling apart anywhere, the windows are of the old kind — sliding with a wooden frame — but they’re not broken or dirty, they’re just always shut and dark.
One could say it looks antique, rather than plainly old, and with this aura of the past that’s so rarely left anywhere in the country anymore. Some probably say there is this kind of beauty to it, but…
But people talk .
And it’s never really consistent .
They say it’s abandoned, but who takes care of it then? Who keeps it from falling apart and from the wilderness swallowing it completely? They say a shadow lives there, a person who never comes out but whose presence you can sometimes feel when walking by at night, but if so, then who is it? How can they live without ever going out, without buying food or simple supplies?
Then there are some of the older people who believe that it’s simply haunted , that something is keeping it from decaying because it is bound to it, but that doesn’t make any sense. It’s not like anyone has ever gone missing around here, it’s not like anyone ever saw anything.
It’s just… rumours. Talks born out of boredom and dark nights such as this one when people’s imagination runs wild.
Along with their stupid bravery.
“So…” Kyouka crosses her arms, a still rather empty candy bag hanging from her wrist and hesitation tainting her voice. “Are you going, or not?”
“ We are going,” Chuuya clarifies, looking between his sister and his friend. “The bet was that I would be the one to knock . You guys are not getting out of this the easy way.”
“But—” they both try to protest, however, the redhead has no mercy left for tonight. He lost it when his freshly–turned–adult little sister challenged him to do this when they were waiting for Atsushi to get ready earlier.
“Or I can go alone but then there will be no crepes for you, even if I don’t knock.”
Is it his desperation showing? Maybe.
But the house is creepy, it’s already well past sunset and they still have more houses to visit before the kids take all the candy for themselves, not leaving anything for the grown–up–children that still very much like sweet things.
Some more than the others.
“That’s not fair !” Kyouka huffs. “It wasn’t part of the deal.”
“Neither was me going there by myself!”
“How about we just…” Atsushi interrupts them shyly. He’s the victim here after all. “How about we pretend there was no bet and go somewhere else?”
It’s a reasonable solution, a safe one, but—
“Absolutely not! ”
—they are both too stubborn to even think about it.
“ Fine,” the girl eventually says and Atsushi almost believes she’s agreeing with him , if not for the way she’s narrowing her eyes at Chuuya. “We all go, but only you step on the porch and knock.”
“ Coward. ” The redhead rolls his eyes but doesn’t argue anymore.
Silence falls on them again as they stare at each other and glimpse at the house looming over them behind their backs. They are the only people nearby, even if they can see kids walking with bags full of candy down the street, so there isn’t anyone to point out how suspicious they may seem from an outsider point of view.
Just three people, two barely out of high school teenagers and a man turned twenty two not that long ago, in their overly eagerly put together costumes and nervously fidgeting in front of The house for almost 15 minutes now.
Atsushi really tried to veto their idea before they got here, but Kyouka was set on winning these crepes and Chuuya loves challenges, so there wasn’t anything he could have done to prevent it.
“But why do I have to go too?!” His tiger ears are very much fake, but they still seem to flop down as his expression turns defeated. He knew nothing of it before they met up at his place.
“Because group responsibility is a bitch,” Kyouka fires at him.
“And,” Chuuya grins at the younger boy. “You wouldn’t leave your cru—”
“Okay, I get it!” Atsushi’s blush is saved from being seen only thanks to the darkness enveloping them, but the redhead knows it’s there, the boy hasn't really been subtle about his feelings toward Chuuya’s sister. “Let’s just do it quickly and get this over with, okay?”
“Right.” The girl looks between the redhead and the metal gate separating them from the wild garden in front of the house. “After you.”
Of course.
“Ugh, you’re both unbelievable.”
After years of taking these two out trick–or–treating for every Halloween, this is how they repay him.
Turning away from them, Chuuya is faced with the black metal gate that looks creepy enough during the day , and during the night sends shivers running down his spine from the sole thought of crossing it. But no shivers can ever make him back away from a bet.
Taking one last deep breath to calm his nerves, the redhead reaches out with one hand — he doesn’t grab the gate, but simply pushes it and…
It opens.
Just like that.
A part of him curses the fact that it’s not locked in any way, that he can’t use it as an excuse to leave it be. It’s the only house with an actual gate, so everyone just assumed it was locked somehow and, well, apparently it isn’t .
So what’s the point then?
“Go on.” Kyouka has the audacity to poke him in the back, not even with her hand but with her fake, small knife, standing at least two steps away from Chuuya.
“I am ,” the redhead hisses at his sister, looking back over his shoulder to make sure the other two aren’t running off to somewhere. “And so are you .”
“Yeah, yeah…” Atsushi’s voice turns to whisper as they all slowly step onto the property. “It… it is abandoned, right?”
As they step closer, Chuuya finds himself hoping it to be true. He doesn’t believe in ghosts and all that stuff, but there’s no denying that this place feels off — too quiet, too dark, too cold — and he’d much rather believe it’s because there is no one here.
He can live with his mind feeding him strange feelings of being watched or of leaves seemingly dancing in the wind but without making any sound as long as, at the end of the night, he’ll be able to tell himself it’s just his imagination .
“Well…” Chuuya starts slowly, his eyes darting towards every shadow that seems to move as they step closer. “The lights are off.”
“Or the curtains are shut—”
“Or the lights are off .”
His sister really needs to learn when to stop speaking, Chuuya doesn’t need to be coming up with more scenarios than he already is and Atsushi is barely keeping it together.
There isn’t any movement around them and the night seems overly quiet ever since they crossed the small gate, which only adds to the uneasy feeling blooming in all of their chests. The redhead stops before the porch, eyeing the three steps he’ll need to climb alone because his sister and his friend are traitors .
“Okay.” He inhales sharply before moving his feet up, but is immediately stopped by Kyouka’s quick comment.
“You need to wait 15 seconds after knocking.”
“What?!” Chuuya would scream, but the eerie atmosphere around them only allows him to whisper his exasperation. He looks over his shoulder, not entirely eager to expose his back to the house that is so close now. “ Why? ”
“Because—” His sister sounds stubborn but at the same time hesitant, her hands moving to tug at Atsushi’s costume involuntarily. “What if there is someone inside? You have to wait and see, not just run away!”
“ Me running away?” The audacity of his younger sister is something that will never cease to amaze him. ”I’m not the one hiding behind my friend who actually is as pale as a ghost right now! And it was your idea!”
“Just get on with it, please… ” Atsushi whimpers quietly, already wishing for them to go back as fast as possible, even if a part of him likes how Kyouka sticks so close to him.
“Ugh, I hate you both .”
Giving them one last glare, Chuuya looks back at the house — the dark door looming over him, the space on the porch that feels almost like a trap and the two steps he still has left to cross.
But it’s just in his head, it’s just all this Halloween crap messing with his thoughts — he’s a 22 year old man, he is not afraid to knock at the door of some old house. It’s nothing, it’s fine, just do it quickly, wait the stupid 15 seconds and go back .
He is so drinking that wine he has in his room when it’s all over.
Forcing his feet to move faster is in turn making his breath erratic, but after what feels like hours, Chuuya is finally standing in front of the wooden door. He’s not getting too close, just so that he can reach it with his hand and—
Knock knock !
Maybe it’s a bit too quiet, but the redhead ignores it, retracting his hand immediately after. He did it, it was audible enough so now all he needs to do…
...1
Kyouka and Atsushi are definitely freaking out behind his back, he can hear their breathing from here.
2
It’s all really stupid anyway, it’s just a house, it’s not like there are any stories of anything actually happening here.
3
At least not recently, or in the last two decades. They don’t even have that many serious accidents around here.
4
People just like to talk. Surely if it were dangerous in any way, someone would have got the council to do something about the old house.
5
And, fine, maybe there is a story, a very, very old one, about someone—
6
They all jump at the sudden light coming from one of the windows on the ground floor. It looks normal , like someone just switched it on, but who —
7
“ What was that?!” Atsushi cries out, not moving away because his body is frozen in place.
8
“Someone,” Kyouka’s voice breaks when she corrects herself. “ Something lives here?”
9
“Don’t say that !” Chuuya tries to hiss at her but it only comes out as a strangled whimper.
10
Now there actually are footsteps coming from the inside, not too loud but they are definitely there, making Chuuya’s heart race with the need to run .
11
“This was a bad idea, let’s go—”
12
The footsteps get closer and closer until they stop, right on the other side of the door. Chuuya can’t see the other… person but he can feel them being there.
13
“Guys…” Kyouka whispers something behind him, but blue eyes are focused on the door’s handle turning .
14
It was a mistake, they’re so done, they need to go now but none of them can actually move . Atsushi’s face is as white as his hair now, Kyouka doesn’t even pretend not to be grabbing at his clothes in a desperate attempt to hide and Chuuya—
Chuuya feels like he can’t breathe , like his body is too cold to try and move because the doors are opening —
15...
“Hi there~”
The redhead, his eyes shut and hands fisting in the sides of his clothes, feels like he’s just been hit in the stomach. His heart definitely stopped for a second when all air left his lungs, waiting for whatever is lurking for them in the darkness of the house to—
What was that...?
“Huh?”
Chuuya’s eyes open in confusion. His vision is a bit blurry, his pupils still trying to get used to the light coming from inside the house, but when it finally focuses, the redhead can see…
A man.
Or, well, a man’s chest .
He needs to tilt his head back to actually face the person in front of him, to see what they look like, because the man is much taller than him. He’s wearing a black button–up shirt with the last two buttons left open and something white peeking from underneath it...
Are those bandages ?
But it’s only a fleeting thought, quickly getting pushed aside when Chuuya’s gaze gets caught by the two, bottomless pits of darkness staring right at him from behind the cascade of unruly, brown locks falling down the stranger’s face, and the smile that feels dangerous in its gentleness.
“I said ‘hi’,” the man muses, leisurely leaning against the doorframe. “Can I help you with anything?”
Tension is slowly leaving Chuuya’s body as confusion starts to settle in — what just happened? Who is this man? Since when has he lived here? Why…
Why was Chuuya knocking at his door in the first place?
“I…” The redhead’s wide eyes don’t leave the man’s face as he’s trying to come up with anything coherent to say. “I was just…”
“Are you real??” Atsushi’s voice coming from behind him brings Chuuya back to reality, his mind slowly putting everything together as he moves to turn and look at the other two.
Kyouka is still a bit behind the boy in a tiger costume but she’s now looking with something close to curiosity at Chuuya, or rather, at the man behind him.
“I am very real, boy, I assure you.” The brunet sounds amused at the question, a note of playfulness ringing through his voice. “I’m assuming you’re all here for… sweets ?”
There’s something in the way the man says it, that makes Chuuya’s cheeks heat up. He doesn't think there is anything bad about them going trick–or–treating, even as adults. Again, the town is fairly small so he knows for sure they’re not the only ones, plus he takes his sister for it every year so…
“Em… kind of?” Kyouka murmurs, not really sure what to do with the situation.
“Well, I’m sorry to disappoint you then.” The man does sound apologetic, but in a very teasing way, his eyes linger on Chuuya just a bit longer than on the other two. “I didn’t expect anyone to come here, so I didn’t buy any.”
Yeah, no one expected him to be here, either.
“Sorry, we—” Chuuya needs to clear his throat to sound as if he wasn’t ready to face a monster just minutes ago. “We didn’t know anyone would be here either.”
“Oh?” The man tilts his head to look at the redhead. “Why did you knock then?”
Because…
Oh, right, because it was a bet.
Because they thought it was abandoned or haunted .
But all of those feel somehow awkward to admit to, especially when it would also mean admitting to being scared of knocking at his door . Fortunately, Atsushi’s habit of bursting his thoughts spares Chuuya the embarrassment of saying it out loud.
“It was just a bet, but… since when have you lived here?”
It’s a question all three of them were thinking about. They never heard anyone mentioning someone like this being around, let alone living here . It hangs in the air for a fraction of a second, Atsushi and Kyouka’s eyes still staring at the brunet, while Chuuya…
He doesn’t look at him. He looks at his friends, slowly realising that… he’s confused .
// How have you been? //
// What a lovely day, isn’t it? //
// Who are the flowers for, hm? //
“A while.” The answer doesn't come from the man, but from Chuuya, who is still staring at the other two as if he wasn’t sure why they would even ask that. “He’s been here for a while now.”
He isn’t looking at the man so he can’t see the grin growing on his face when the redhead says that, not a single note of doubt in his voice.
“What?” It’s Kyouka who asks this time, confused as to why Chuuya is the one to answer. “How do you know that?”
But how wouldn’t he know? He’s seen the man so many times on the streets, in shops, in the park. They’ve… talked a bit? Maybe he never mentioned where he lived but…
“We know each other,” the answer leaves his mouth faster than he can think about it, faster than he can think about why he was surprised to see him. “He’s…”
// Yep, just moved in! I’m D— //
“Dazai.” Chuuya can’t see how Atsushi and Kyouka look at each other in confusion because his eyes come back to… Dazai standing a few steps away from him. Grinning .
“Dazai Osamu, that's correct~” The brunet muses while stepping out of the house, not paying much attention to the way everyone freezes when he does so.
Well, everyone but Chuuya.
“I’m sure you two saw me around at least once.”
“I…” Atsushi’s brows furrow, ready to say that no , they didn’t , but... is it really true? “Maybe?”
“Yeah,” Kyouka doesn’t sound more certain than him but she still manages a weak, awkward smile. “I think we did… Somewhere.”
The more Chuuya listens to it and the more he looks at the brunet, the easier it feels to breathe. His shoulders relax, even if just slightly, and his hands aren't as tightly gripping at his clothes anymore because... why would they?
It’s just Dazai, just one of Chuuya’s neighbours, the man he’s talked to a lot .
And why was he afraid of this place in the first place? It looks normal and the bushes around it are well taken care of. Why would people be spreading rumours about it?
It’s just another house.
“So~” Dazai is now leaning against the porch frame, seemingly between the redhead and the other two. “I don’t have any sweets but I can invite you for some wine if you’d like?”
It’s not specifically directed at anyone, the brunet looks at all three of them but, inviting as his words are, not everyone feels reassured by them. Not enough to accept the invitation anyway.
“I—I think we’re fine,” Atsushi is the first one to answer, awkwardly scratching the back of his neck. He’s not that good with alcohol and he doesn’t feel like drinking with someone whose name he didn’t know until two minutes ago.
“We still have more houses to visit,” Kyouka sounds less nervous than her friend, but there is still a faint sense of uneasiness creeping down her back. “We should go.”
“What a pity~”
But there is still one person who hasn’t said anything, one person that doesn’t even realise all eyes are on him until he can hear Dazai’s voice meant only for Chuuya…
“How about you?”
Well, he didn’t come here alone so he really should—
“Or, is Chuuya scared of going inside, hm~?”
…
Huh?
“Why would I be scared, asshole?” All of the anxiety keeping a hold of him suddenly lets go, leaving only his pride in charge of making any decisions. “It’s just a creepy house.”
“Well, your friend here said it was a bet and bets aren’t supposed to be this easy, are they?” With the way he’s standing, it’s hard to tell what colour Dazai's eyes are as they stare down at Chuuya — brown, black or red . “Oh, I know, you thought it was haunted , didn’t you?”
“I did not !”
At least it wasn’t his first thought. Chuuya has always been leaning more towards the ‘abandoned’ theory, not that he’s willing to admit that.
“But you did say it’s creepy just now.”
“Because you are creepy.”
Which is by all means true , even if Chuuya can’t really pinpoint why he thinks that way. He’ll blame it on the fact that despite looking, well, this way , the brunet is so easy to forget that even the redhead didn’t recognize him right away. And he goes out so little that his own home is rumoured to be abandoned by everyone .
He has grounds to call him creepy.
He has grounds to leave with Atsushi and Kyouka, and not give in to the wine’s temptation.
But, again, his pride will be his downfall one day.
“Is Chibi afraid of me now?” Dazai’s teasing is dangerous as it picks exactly the right strings of Chuuya’s mind, and it’s also very much annoying . “Oh, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“I am not scared of your house or of you, shithead,” the redhead hisses, crossing his arms on his chest to keep himself from strangling the brunet.
“Sure~ If Chibi says so~” The taller man waves it off as he walks back to the door, keeping it open with one hand. “So you are fine with coming over?”
Well, this is not what Chuuya said, but when Dazai looks at him like that , his eyes full of challenges and… something the redhead doesn’t understand, it’s impossible to think rationally about the possible consequences.
“You bet I am!”
Maybe if he thought about it a bit longer, maybe if Chuuya only saw beyond the teasing grin on Dazai’s face or so much as spared a glance in Atsushi and Kyouka direction…
Maybe then he wouldn’t have brushed off the instincts telling him to run in the back of his head.
Or he would have listened to his sister.
“Chuuya, I don’t know if that’s—”
“It’s fine,” the redhead immediately cuts her off, still glaring at the brunet. “You guys go ahead first, I’ll catch up later.”
“B–but—”
“ Really ,” Chuuya sighs, more at himself than at them, and his voice turns calmer, more reassuring as he looks at them with a cheeky smile. “I’ll be fine . I’ll just drink every drop of this asshole’s wine and meet you back at Atsushi’s, okay? Or I’ll call if it’s still early.”
It feels strange, but neither Atsushi or Kyouka are kids anymore, they don’t need Chuuya to be looking after them. Sure, they agreed to go together, more out of tradition really, but this way should work for the white–haired boy better — maybe he’ll finally be able to get his feelings across.
“I’m sure your friend knows what he’s doing~” Dazai’s voice turns sweet when he’s speaking to the other two, not a drop of ill–intent left. “It’s not the first time we hang out together, right, Chuuya?”
// What would you do without me, hm? //
// It’s nice being carried around like this, right? //
“Yeah,” the redhead agrees absentmindedly. “It’s not.”
Atsushi looks like he wants to argue, but there is something about Dazai that makes him… believe it. It makes Kyouka’s nerves soothe as they both bow slightly before turning around and walking back.
It feels okay to let Chuuya be, but is it really?
It feels okay to let Chuuya walk into the man’s house, but…
W hat was his name again?
Neither of them look back at the redhead and, eventually, they disappear behind the high bushes, leaving Chuuya alone with the brunet still holding the door open for him.
“Are you coming inside or not, Chibi~?”
“Stop calling me that.”
His legs refuse to move for a second — from the cold, probably; right? — but Chuuya forces himself to step closer and then past Dazai, stubbornly ignoring how he needs to walk under the man’s arm to get inside.
And there are many things that should feel off about it but, for whatever reason, Chuuya’s mind chooses to ignore, to see past them.
Like the cold air inside the house.
Like the quietness of Dazai’s movements.
Like the way the door closing behind them feels so final .
But his mind still chooses not to think about it because why would it matter? It’s just a house, Dazai is just a man and there is nothing strange about drinking with someone you know .
Right?
“I don’t believe you just happen to have wine when you hate it so much,” Chuuya says matter of factly while taking his jacket off, with his back facing Dazai. “So spill, what do you w—”
Click!
The sound of the lock turning breaks the spell of the redhead’s calmness, it brings him back to the reality of being alone with the tall brunet, in his house and so late at night.
Why did he agree? Why did he go inside?
When has he ever seen the lights being on in this house?
A shiver comes down his spine as Chuuya turns around to see Dazai still standing by the door, his head tilted to the side and his smile wide .
“—want…?”
The chuckle that answers him is amused and dark in nature, making the redhead unconsciously step away until his back hits the nearby wall.
“Oh, I want many things, Chibi,” Dazai muses, slowly stepping away from the door and closer to Chuuya . “Some good crab, alcohol that doesn't taste like grape juice, a nice game of chess perhaps? However …”
When he stops right in front of Chuuya, Dazai is looming over him and blocking any light coming from behind him. His eyes are shining with mischief and with the colour that looks dangerously close to red, but it couldn’t be that, right?
The redhead’s legs are frozen again, blue orbs unwilling and unable to look away as Dazai leans down until their faces are so close, but he never breaks eye–contact.
He keeps Chuuya hypnotised, keeps him in place—
“I wouldn’t mind taking your soul instead tonight.”