ideal lover

"...Let's go with that child."

Oda Sakunosuke fell into his arms and said, worrying about Kobayashi Hirano Aya in his eyes.

Good old man, obviously only met once.

Osamu Dazai looked at the distant sky, where the sky and the ocean meet, under the halo of the sun, for a moment he couldn't tell the boundary between them.

Want to try it for Aya Hirano?

Osamu Dazai's eyes lit up, he walked to the self-service vending machine, took out coins, and smiled at the corner of his mouth: "If you win the lottery, take Aya Hirano away."

clang-

The sound of coins falling into the machine makes people feel happy. Press an option at will, and the drinks in the vending machine will slowly fall.

thump—

With the sound of heavy objects falling, Osamu Dazai took out the can, and the fate of Aya Kobayashi Hirano was perfunctorily pinned on this can.

pat.

The sound of gas gushing out, the ring of the soda can was put on his finger, and there was no word on the curled iron sheet. Dazai Osamu threw away the soda can with a blank expression, and the outflowing carbonic acid liquid invaded the ground under his feet, with white foam , quickly oxidized and disappeared in the air.

A little, inexplicably irritable.

clang-

Again, the sound of coins falling.

This time it was a drink bottle, and the unscrewed lid was still empty.

clang-

I don't know how many times, I threw the coin in.

clang-

He missed, and the discarded drink bottles piled up at his feet, and the sound of the collision was a bit harsh.

clang-

"Hey! Please don't destroy public property!"

"Wait, what are you trying to do—?!"

It's noisy, and I feel very irritable.

An invisible low air pressure enveloped his body, Osamu Dazai kicked the machine, and the air seemed to stagnate for a second.

The voices of arguing around him gradually faded away, and the silence returned.

The coin in my hand was only half thrown in, and the machine made a high-pitched sound.

what……

A red light flashed in front of his eyes.

Empty vending machines screaming "No".

Already, it's all over.

The coin in Osamu Dazai's hand slipped, circled on the ground, and fell into the dark puddle.

……

Two years later.

"Look, this apartment is not only facing the sun, but the master bedroom is also equipped with a balcony, where you can see the sea view of Yokohama. The kitchen was also top-of-the-line. Not to mention the bathroom, the oversized bathtub has a massage system to relieve your fatigue from the day , please come here and have a look."

The clerk opened the floor-to-ceiling windows of the living room, and the flowers and plants planted on the balcony grew lushly. Although it was a bit messy, but after tidying it up, seeing these potted plants every morning would make me feel happy.

"These potted plants are left by the previous owner, and the management staff of the apartment will water them regularly. Although they grow a little wild, they are also of great ornamental value if you take good care of them. If you move in now, we will not only help You ask the cleaners to do the cleaning, and the potted plants also invite professionals to come and take care of them.”

"The most important thing is that you rent this apartment now, and the monthly rent is only 5 yen."

"Only 5 yen?!" Kunikida Doppo exclaimed in surprise, looking at the salesman in disbelief. The monthly rent for such a good apartment is only 5 yen?The property fee here is probably more than 5w, right? !

Damn, why is this Dazai so lucky? !

Glancing at Osamu Dazai resentfully, the young man in a sand-colored windbreaker seemed very satisfied with this apartment, looking around with a satisfied smile on his lips.

"Such a nice apartment is only 5 yen. Is there some hidden secret?" Kunikida Doppo, as Dazai Osamu's partner, although he thinks this person is troublesome, but out of the partner's responsibility, it is better to check for Dazai Osamu.

"Ha..." The salesman sighed, as if he had been asked countless times, and he didn't even change his answer pattern. He put on a polite smile and explained:

"Since you asked this question, I won't hide it any more. Two years ago, a murder happened here."

Sure enough, I knew there was no such good thing in the world.

Kunikida Doppo's glasses shrewdly lit up, and he continued to ask, "Murder? So this is a haunted house."

"Please don't say it so badly. It was an accident. After all, the victim had a good reputation, but it was just bad luck that he met a thug."

Probably thinking that the business would be ruined, the salesman simply told everything, and his tone became like a complaint: "Actually, it's just an ordinary murder case. The victim's death is a bit miserable. I don't know why. It was rumored that the house was cursed, which is why the owner died so badly, and there were also rumors that the owner was killed by a black interest collector, obviously the victim was a good person."

"Nice person? Can you tell me about the victim's situation?" Osamu Dazai asked with interest.

"Ah, although I haven't met him in person, when I took over the business of this apartment, I also learned about the situation of the previous owner. He said that he was a very nice kid, with a smile on his face every day, and he was gentle and polite. I've never seen him lose his temper, and it's just a fantasy that such a child would make enemies with others."

"However, it's really a coincidence. On the day the owner was killed, he happened to be moving, and even the room was tidied up. It was like preparing for the next person to move in. Speaking of this, do you still want to rent the house?" This apartment."

The clerk asked programmatically, thinking in his heart that this business would definitely be blown off, after all, this apartment has been a long-term lock for two years.

"Of course it will be rented."

The unexpected answer made both the salesman and Kunikida Doppo exclaim in surprise at the same time: "Huh?!"

The salesman reacted quickly, put on a warm smile, took out the contract, and handed over the pen.

"Please sign your name here. For special reasons, this apartment does not require a deposit. You only need to pay three months' rent. If you need to renew the contract after three months, please use this number to contact me. I Will visit in time with the contract."

Signing the contract smartly, Osamu Dazai took the business card and asked, "Then what you promised just now..."

"I will arrange for you today. The cleaning staff should finish cleaning this afternoon. You will not have any problems staying tonight. The furniture is well kept. If you avoid taboo, we will arrange for someone—"

"No, I'll put these furniture to good use. They're all living in anyway, aren't they?"

"That's great, here is the key, please keep it, and I won't bother you from now on."

Fearing that Osamu Dazai would regret it, he stuffed the key into his hand and bowed. The salesman was extremely happy: Great, this month's performance has definitely met the standard!

"You really want to live here?" Kunikida Doppo looked at Osamu Dazai suspiciously, he didn't believe that such a shrewd person as Osamu Dazai would live in a haunted house.

"Of course, since the contract has been signed, it is natural to live here."

Wiping the dust on the fabric with his fingers, Osamu Dazai breathed a sigh of relief, and said desolately: "After all, it is a lover's house, and now I can only miss him in this way..."

"Hey, shouldn't it be?"

"The owner of the house that person said just now is my former lover." With melancholy eyes, drooping eyelashes trembling slightly, Osamu Dazai's nostalgic tone made Kunikida feel guilty when he left alone.

"Sorry, I don't know..."

The silent back melted into the shadows, Kunikida stepped forward alone, and patted Osamu Dazai on the shoulder, before he could utter words of comfort, the slightly trembling body under the palm made him dumbfounded.

Could it be that she was crying...

"Pfft-"

Osamu Dazai, who failed to hold back his laughter, covered his stomach, laughed so hard that tears came out, wiped away the tears from the corners of his eyes, and said to Kunikida Doppo rather embarrassingly: "How is it? A man with a sad relationship, a beautiful lady should be happy for you." Let’s be moved~”

Kunikida Doppo: "..."

Did I take this bastard's words seriously just now? !

Am I stupid? !

Kunikida Dopopo, who doubted his life, slammed the door angrily and left. The corner of Dazai Osamu's mouth fell, and he looked at the empty room and murmured: "Aya Hirano..."

"Mr. Dazai?"

Osamu Dazai turned his head in astonishment at the sound coming from behind.

No.

The heart suddenly fell to the bottom.

The young man in cleaning work clothes asked, "Excuse me, are you Mr. Dazai?"

"Yes, it's me."

Osamu Dazai nodded indifferently, and the cleaning staff standing at the entrance held the cleaning tools and said, "Now I will clean the room for you. This is an order. Please sign on it after the room is cleaned."

"Have you finished cleaning..."

Kneading the order in his hand, Osamu Dazai signed it and put it on the shoe cabinet.

"I signed the order in advance, and you leave directly after cleaning."

"Ok."

It was not too far from the apartment building to the nearby supermarket, and Osamu Dazai was going to go shopping in the supermarket to pass the time.

Canned crab meat, cigarettes, alcohol.

Bandages, alcohol, cigarettes.

Canned food, smoke.

cigarette.

So annoying, I really want to smoke.

His fingers rested on the cigarette box, and when he came out of the supermarket, he took away only an unopened box of cigarettes and coins for change.

clang-

Hearing the sound of coins being dropped, Osamu Dazai turned around and saw the vending machine beside him, with heavy coins in his pocket, reminding him of its existence.

Osamu Dazai threw a coin into it.

thump—

It seems to have returned to that day, the moment when Hirano Aya's fate was decided.

The unscrewed bottle cap is in the palm of my hand:【One more bottle】

bingo.

His pupils dilated instantly, and he remembered the last words that Aya Hirano said to him that day, which was different from usual.

【Bon Voyage】

"what……"

What, I knew the final result early on, so in the end, I was the one who got lucky?

The script of fate or something, it sucks.

Osamu Dazai chuckled, threw away the cigarettes in his pocket, walked back to the apartment on foot, deliberately slowed down his pace, and walked into the deep red place, the falling shadow stuck to his heels, and was about to melt into the dark red sea.

The world is turned upside down here.

Click.

The door opened.

It's been a long time, the room has been unlocked for the first time in two years, and the room has been cleaned. It is placed too squarely, like a cold hotel apartment.

It's an eyesore.

He took off his shoes and lay on the sofa with his bare feet. The lights in the room were not turned on, only the afterglow of the setting sun swayed to illuminate the room, making the darkness even more silent.

Covering his eyes, Osamu Dazai opened his lips and teeth slightly, and vague syllables flowed out from them.

"You" are so cruel, Aya Hirano.

☆、Nakahara Chuyaichi