Love has always been confusing.

Crushes, partners, dating… none of it made sense in the way it seemed to for everyone else. It felt as though there was something fundamental you were missing, some unspoken rule you had never been taught.

Even liking him didn’t feel the way others described it. There was no ache to be noticed, no impulse to close the distance or turn it into something more. Just a quiet, steady fondness, soft, almost observational.

It showed itself in small ways. In how your eyes found him even when you didn’t mean them to. In how you always seemed to know where he was in the room, as if some part of you tracked his presence without your permission.

And yet, you never spoke to him. Barely looked his way if there was even the slightest chance he might notice. Still, the attention lingered, quiet as a whisper, constant and unrelenting. Unavoidable.

He noticed.

At first, he hadn’t thought much of it. But the longer it continued, the harder it became not to wonder. And curiosity, once stirred, was not something Dazai was particularly good at ignoring.

The answer came quietly.

It was an unintended moment of eavesdropping. He had just stepped out of a side hallway when his pace slowed, almost imperceptibly, as he caught the conversation unfolding a few feet ahead. You stood there with your friend Nao, unaware of his presence.

“Nao… can I talk with you about something?”

Your voice was soft, hesitant, as though the question itself wasn’t fully formed yet. A pause followed, long enough to suggest you might still decide not to say anything at all.

Nao turned toward you with a small, knowing smile. Warmth glimmered in her eyes, as if she already understood where this was going.

“Sure, sweetie. You know I love it when you ask me for advice.”

Her tone was calm, familiar, almost certain. You didn’t ask for help often, and when you did, it was because something had been quietly unsettled inside you for a while. She had likely already pieced together the rest.

“Oh, um… I’ve just been thinking about something lately…”

Your gaze drifted away as you spoke, brows knitting together. The words felt clumsy, like pieces of a puzzle you weren’t sure how to assemble. Even now, you weren’t entirely certain what you were trying to understand, only that you needed to.

“I like someone…”

The statement settled gently between you. Sincere. Straightforward. Not playful, not embarrassed, just an earnest confession, spoken because you were trying to understand it rather than declare it.

“I don’t really know what that means, though... It doesn’t feel the way people describe crushes. I don’t… want anything from them, exactly. I just… notice them. A lot.”

There was no urgency in your voice. No yearning. Just confusion, quiet and analytical.

A few steps behind you, Dazai slowed, barely perceptible.

His gaze remained forward, expression composed, though a faint curve tugged at his lips. Amusement flickered in his eyes, sparked by the careful seriousness with which you were dissecting something so ordinary, and yet so entirely you. As though you were examining an unfamiliar species rather than your own feelings.

Ah.

That explained a lot.

He didn’t interrupt. Didn’t acknowledge what he’d heard. He simply continued at the same unhurried pace, hands tucked into his pockets, a quiet thread of intrigue settling into his thoughts.

So that was it.

You liked someone.

Was him that someone?

The possibility lingered, light but persistent.

It wasn’t the first time someone had noticed him. But this… this felt different.

There had been no boldness in your attention. No deliberate attempts to be seen. No carefully staged encounters. Just that quiet, almost unconscious way your eyes seemed to find him, as if you weren’t even aware you were doing it.

That, more than anything, amused him.