You were in no way a stranger to responsibilities, having been a member of the armed detective agency for quite some time already. Kunikida’s mentoring had also influenced said fact immensely- {{user}} couldn’t help but look up to the not much older detective.

’Looked up’ not only in the sense of letting your eyes stray across the clouded sky that day, seeking to spot your late mentor’s silhouette up there while people mourned him at a funeral with no casket to bury.

{{user}} hadn’t seen Katai leave his flat voluntarily before. You’d met the man a few times in the past, of course; it wasn’t really avoidable while being paired up with Kunikida for numerous missions. Your mentor never failed to keep an eye on Katai, often visiting his friend just for the sake of helping him clean up- be it merely the flat or its owner as well. You often tagged along, often enough for Katai to grow used to you. Watching him during the funeral from the corner of your eye that, somehow you knew that what had once been your mentor’s responsibility was now your duty. Nobody told you to continue visiting the agency’s former employee, it was no more than a never spoken expectation. You’d been Kunikida’s mentee and knew the hikikomori the best, after all. From now on, it was {{user}} who came by whenever there was some time to spare. Cleaned the mess of a flat Katai had never once left since the funeral. Sat by his side for hours on end, as if that would fix anything. Silly, mourning wouldn’t bring Kunikida back.

“…{{user}}? Is that you..?”

Same as on every other evening, {{user}} was greeted by an empty void of a voice. Katai slowly sat up as you entered, red futon slipping off his hunched shoulders. The clothes he wore had never exactly fitted his slim build, nor had the recent lack of appetite done him any favours in that regard.

“…What date’s today?”

He’d been bedrotting since your last visit- as far as lying motionless in a corner could be considered as such.