Author's note:
This is actually it. This is the last update for this story, and I wrote it in record time, too! So, never written an epilogue before. Well, who am I kidding? This was all new to me, and that is exactly the reason why I want to thank all of you. Even though this was my first fan fiction, and I made so many mistakes, you guys still gave so much support and I really appreciate it. Now, I'll shut up and let you read the epilogue to No Longer in Control.
Disclaimer: Still don't own Duararara!

Epilogue

Izaya never recovered. He was prescribed medication that he had to take on a daily basis, and even reluctantly attended therapy sessions. All of it together did help stabilize some of his symptoms so he was able to live a day-to-day life, but none of it could truly cure him. A few weeks with no traumatic incidents gave Izaya a looser leash and Shinra allowed Izaya to move out- given that Shizuo lived with him to keep an eye on him. Although Izaya didn't like the idea of still living with another person, he knew it was a step in the right direction.

It was different living with just Shizuo, and Izaya's instincts made him jumpy and nervous at first. Even though he knew Shizuo wasn't going to hurt him his body still tensed whenever Shizuo came close to him, so for the first month Shizuo had to keep an arm's length away from Izaya. Neither of them liked the distance forced between them, but both knew that Izaya couldn't function without it. Over a month passed, and Izaya gradually allowed Shizuo closer and closer as the days, then weeks, went by. Eventually they were back to Izaya being wrapped in Shizuo's arm for hours at a time. They unintentionally formed a routine for themselves, and their lives became as normal as would be possible for the peculiar couple.

Of course, as word spread that the informant, Izaya Orihara, was both physically and mentally unable to continue in his work, people took the opportunity. Whether gangs or his most loyal customers; Izaya was sent threats packaged in emails, voice-mails, and texts. The first messages caused Shizuo to dash out of the apartment in attempt to somehow find and kill the anonymous person, but each time he would end up coming home out of breath and frustrated. Some of the threats only caused him to leave an hour or two, while some of the nastier ones caused him to disappear for hours on end.

As the threats still piled in, Shizuo stopped searching for the owners of them, and instead unleashed his rage onto furniture and nearby objects. For the well-being of his apartment, Izaya started to keep the continuing threats secret, and let Shizuo believe that people gave up. Even though Shizuo's ignorance granted him some comfort, he still never eased his protectiveness over Izaya. On the occasions that they did go out, Shizuo would always remain practically attached to Izaya's side, and would loom menacingly over the swarms of people that streamed around them, scrutinizing each person that gave either of them a second glance.

The public's first reaction to seeing Shizuo and Izaya not only in the same presence of each other without ripping Ikebukuro apart, but also being so close, was to burst into gossip. Most of the people around them didn't even bother to be inconspicuous; they talked so loudly that Shizuo could have sworn it was intentional for them to hear.

"Is that Shizuo Heiwajima walking with Izaya Orihara?"

"You think they're gay for each other or something?"

"No way! That would never happen!"

"Ha, you seriously don't think so? I bet they were gone so long because they eloped or something."

Shrieks of laughter followed, and Shizuo nearly covered his ears as they started ringing from the sheer high-pitch of it all. He heard slurred-together words as conversations around him overlapped, and he could only occasionally pick out his name in the mess of garbled speech. He felt Izaya tense beside him, and although it didn't show, he could tell Izaya felt just as uncomfortable about the gossip as he did, if not more. Reputation had been a significant part of Izaya's career, and Izaya just couldn't shake the anxiety that enveloped him by the surrounding conversations.

Shizuo's fists clenched at his side, and he gritted his teeth to keep from ripping the street sign beside him out of the sidewalk and swinging it through the crowd of people around them.

"Izaya and Shizuo? Hell, no. It's not like either of them are capable of being in a relationship."

Oh, was that street sign tempting.

"I bet they're just fucking each other. Completely meaningless, of course."

It was like it was begging to be uprooted from the ground so it could smack some sense into these assholes.

"Damn gays should just get a room."

Shizuo's hand shot out to grasp the sign. His fingers tightened around it until the metal crumbled slightly under his grip. It appeared almost effortless for Shizuo to rip the street sign out of it's place in the concrete.

"Shut the hell up," Shizuo growled, swinging the street sign into the air. All talk ceased, and everyone's eyes shot to the looming street sign, and terror played across their expressions. Shizuo's eyes wandered the crowd, and he looked closely upon each terrified face. He couldn't do it. He sighed and let the sign drop to the ground beside him, laying haphazardly in the approximate place of where it was originally planted. His other hand found it's way to Izaya's wrist, and his fingers wrapped around it. Shizuo turned back around in the direction of the apartment, and started walking, tugging Izaya lightly along with him.

The times they went out after that went smoothly. Enough people had heard of what happened before to not bother Shizuo and Izaya, although Shizuo would occasionally see out of the corner of his eye people leaning in to whisper to each other, while their eyes were locked on to him and Izaya. Shizuo chose to ignore them, though, deciding that they weren't worth the trouble that would come with losing his temper. Each time following brought less and less attention to them, and they became a usual sight in Ikebukuro.

As years came and went, people forgot about the fights and the damage that had been dealt in them. They still trembled under Shizuo's stature, but more out of first-impression than out of memories of his previous rampages. People even forgot about Izaya and his celebrity status. Both of them were not used to being treated like any other citizen, but eventually they too found themselves accustomed to just being overlooked in a crowd. Izaya was able to hide his schizophrenia well enough to be deemed unworthy of stares and curious looks, and Shizuo was able to contain most of his temper to just be considered an irritable man with little patience.

Their lives weren't exactly perfect- they had their fair share of struggles and hardships. Izaya's insanity sometimes tested their relationship. Just as everything else; they grew used to it. It became their day-to-day struggle that they dealt with. Shizuo didn't let it take the rest of their years, and he persisted to making Izaya join him in varieties of activities and events that filled their days. Despite their situation; they were satisfied with their imperfect lives. Each life had it's own conflicts, and this was theirs, so they accepted that and moved on from being spiteful at the world. They could only waste so much of their lives on spite before realizing how many years were in front of them to live.

-Fin-

A/N: What am I going to do now that this is done? O_O I feel like I've been working on this forever, and now it's done. Well, that concludes the probably cheesy ending to No Longer in Control. Hope you guys enjoyed it! Reviews are fab, just like you. And if you want more of my writing, hit me up with some possible ideas because otherwise it will take me a while to think of my own ^_^; Just as warning: I am picky, so if I don't go for it, don't feel bad; I'm just impossible to deal with. So blame me, but don't let it stop you from messaging me!

Review Responses: (To anonymous Guest reviewer[s]: thank you for your reviews and your time! I really appreciate it, and I hope you liked it!

AF: Heyy, I actually did update soon for once :D It only took me 13 chapters. Heh, I'm surprised by how fluffy it turned out. After that truck-incident at chapter 10 I thought it was the end to any dreams I had of writing fluff, but look at me now! I can write adorable-ness without someone getting seriously hurt! Anyways, thank you very much for reading! Stay tuned!

Rai Rai Blue: Luckily for you, a friend told me the secret to posting links. So this here is my Tumblr: standourownground .tumblr Just get rid of spaces, and if that didn't work then just google "notbuiltforninetofives" and it should be the first one. Then send me a message ;) Haha, yeah, it was anti-climatic. I was driving myself crazy with how to fix it, but then just decided that hopefully I can fix it with the epilogue. Did it work? I think the epilogue ended it a bit better, but may just be me. Hey, if there's anything I'm good at, it's cock-blocking stories. Don't worry, I'd figure out a way to avoid lemons. I always do. Anyways, hope to talk to you soon!

I think that's it! See you all next story!