It was a bright Saturday morning in Yokohama.
I was sitting in front of my desk while arranging some sort of paperwork that Kunikida-san told me to do. I can read and write, but I don't have any idea of what the paper is about. I only listen to what my seniors instructed me and I do it all without questioning them.
I was concentrating on stapling the papers when I suddenly heard a sound of a metal dropping and rolling down on the floor. I raised my head slightly, roaming my eyes to where the sound came from and found out that it was from the metal trashcan— filled with colorful wrappers of Ranpo-san's favorite sweets.
I looked at the tall man who's standing in front of the trashcan and saw Dazai-san wearing his usual trench tan coat. He has a new set of bandages wrapped around his entire body—only his face, hands, and feet are left uncovered. Under the coat he's wearing is a black vest over a striped dress shirt that is light blue in hue. He has dark brown hair and bangs, some of which are gathered at the center of his forehead.
He picks the metal trashcan up and gathers all the wasted wrappers on the floor before throwing all of it back to the trashcan at once. Dazai-san noticed that I was looking at him so he also looked in my direction. We stare at each other for a couple of seconds. I blinked two times and unconsciously straightened my back. I sat properly on my chair while Dazai-san immediately apologized after realizing that he had disturbed me by the noise of the trashcan he accidentally dropped.
"I'm sorry Atsushi-kun, I was just searching for something but the trashcan slipped from my hand." He demonstrated what happened using hand gestures. He's explaining it to me while smiling—his eyes almost disappearing from his face.
I felt my forehead creased, curious of what he's searching inside the trashcan which Tanizaki-san bought two months ago.
"Dazai-san, may I ask what you are searching inside the trashcan? I can help you to find it if you tell me." I asked.
He shakes his head from left to right.
I noticed him searching for something these past few days. At his desk, at Kunikida-san's desk, even at the cafe on the first floor where all of us mostly gather or hangout during our free time. He searches for it everytime Kunikida-san isn't around. I guess he doesn't want to be caught by Kunikida-san skipping from work. Although he doesn't need to hide and pretend in front of the bespectacled man because Kunikida-san knew more than anyone else that Dazai-san is always loitering and he doesn't like to do all the tasks that failed to pique his interest.
Kunikida-san will yell at him and even choke him to death because of that, and to say it without any exaggeration, it does happen almost every single time.
"How kind of you, Atsushi-kun. I appreciate the thought, but I don't want to bother you searching for it, so I will search for it myself. You don't need to help me."
I wanted to ask why. I wanted to ask what he's been searching for. I know there's a reason why Dazai-san is looking for it. It must be important to him because he wouldn't waste his time scanning the area and surroundings of our office if not. Maybe he thought someone threw it in the trashcan. If it's important to him, he won't throw it with his own hands, right? I'm also confused. Why does Dazai-san not want me to help him? He helped me a lot so I want to help him as well. He has been so kind to me.
I remember the first time we met. It was the time when I was wandering on the Yokohama streets alone after getting kicked out from the orphanage where I suffered and experienced living in hell. I starved for weeks as I don't have any money to buy food. I also don't have a house to shelter in so I only sleep on a cold, lonely dark corner of the streets, embracing myself tightly hoping that the night won't be so cold as it's always been to me. I even told myself that it's better to die than to live like a stray dog. It also came to the point where I just silently sat at the riverbank—specifically, Tsurumi River of Yokohama while waiting for my death.
I can say that I have found a reason to live again after meeting Dazai-san. After meeting him, he gave me delicious food to eat, (though it was Kunikida-san who paid for it) he gave me a comfortable place to sleep. He also gave me a decent job so I could earn money for myself and help people.
Dazai-san actually has a bad habit, he likes suicide and death. But just like ordinary people, he also hates dying from pain.
Kunikida-san calls him a crazy suicidal maniac, but it won't change the fact that that suicidal maniac have saved me. I am so thankful for Dazai-san because he's the reason why I am working at the agency right now. I owe him my life so I want to do everything that I can do to help him.. even if it'll cost my life.
"Atsushi-kun, have you finished arranging the papers I asked you to arrange earlier?"
I heard Kunikida-san's voice as soon as he entered the office while holding his ideal notebook in his right hand. Kunikida-san is tall—he's actually the tallest person inside our agency. He has a deep, green-grey eyes but it wasn't that noticeable as he wears eyeglasses everytime. His bangs are parted to the right side and he has spiky golden-blond hair that ends in a long ponytail. I glanced at the papers I'm holding and raised the stapler on my other hand to staple the papers once more before looking at Kunikida-san and answered his question with an average tone.
"Yes, I already finished arranging the papers." I said.
He gave me a proud smile.
"Great job, Atsushi-kun. Now I want you to give those papers to Ranpo and help him to solve a case."
It took me a minute before I got back to my senses after hearing what Kunikida-san had said. It's not the first time that I will solve a case with Ranpo-san but I always get frozen whenever I hear that I will solve a case with him. No, Kunikida-san isn't really telling me to solve a case with Ranpo-san because Ranpo-san needs my help in solving a case.
Everytime I hear someone saying, "Help Ranpo solve a case," it actually means, "Come with him because he's going to solve a case and he doesn't know how to ride on a train by himself. He might get lost if he goes to the crime scene alone so you need to guide him and not just tell him the way."
Ranpo-san is a great detective but he cannot commute on his own. It won't even take him 5 minutes to solve cases that took the police 3 days to solve. With just a couple of seconds and a few clues, he already knew who the culprit was and even guessed the reason and motives of the culprit behind it.
Ranpo-san is not an ability user. His intelligence is not because he is gifted. He was purely born to become the greatest detective in the world and that is the fact that everyone needs to know.
Before I left the office to go to Ranpo-san and deliver the papers to him, I looked at Dazai-san once again and was gobsmacked after seeing him already sitting down in front of his desk and focusing on his work. I know he was just acting because Kunikida-san is here right now. Even the bespectacled man got bewildered and was about to faint after seeing Dazai-san in front of his table, working so hard. It's really rare to see Dazai-san working like this.
I thought Kunikida-san will question him if he ate something bad or his mind got reset after trying another method to commit suicide, there must something happened that made a lazy man work this hard, but he didn't ask any questions. Instead, Kunikida-san chose to just let Dazai-san continue to act because it's better to see him acting like that than not working at all.
I shake the thoughts from my head while suppressing a smile. I turned around and was about to take a step towards the door, when I heard Dazai-san speak.
"Take care and come back safely, Atsushi-kun." he said.
My head moved by its own will. I looked at Dazai-san's direction once again and saw him raising his hand in the middle air, gently waving it at me.
I nodded my head before shouting, "I'll be back quickly." and waved my hand back at him. Kunikida-san cleared his throat, reminding us of the tasks that were entrusted to us. He is strict when it comes to time. He didn't like to waste even a single second.
It's also not good to do something that will make him mad so I immediately walk to the door and go to Ranpo-san to give him the papers.