AN: Surprise! Another ficlet. Not sure where this one came from. It jumped me and made me write it out of nowhere. So. Much. Fluff. It's weirdly sticky in its undertones that contrasts my usual angst. Hope you enjoy it. Not sure how much fic I will be writing in the next year. I will be starting on my senior writing project for college in a few days. It will eat my soul for the next year as I have been informed.
"Shinichi…." Ran watched the man she had loved since middle school shift from foot to foot and scrub the back of his head with his hand. He was blushing and she could feel the anticipation of what he would ask. The text came yesterday afternoon, wanting to meet up in the park, and she couldn't have been any happier to comply. Now…now her heart was in her throat and "yes" was on her lips.
"Ran…would you…err." He scratched his cheek and coughed. "Um, I was thinking maybe this weekend if you had time we could go see a movie." He darted a glance at her and at his feet and back again. His hands pin-wheeled. "I mean, only if you want to! I thought the movie could be your choice! You mentioned that one with what's his face in it… Tamamoto? Nishimoto?"
"Motodoki," she said, smiling. He was so red it was making her feel shy. "I'm surprised you remembered. You never remember."
"Ah, well, I was, err. It's not like I was waiting for an opportunity or anything! That would be silly. Ha. Ha ha."
Ran smiled. "Shinichi?"
"Uh. Yes?" He froze, watching her take a step closer. He smelled like some cologne she couldn't name, and she felt a thrill that this was for her.
She took another step forward, closing in on his personal space. "Is this a date?"
He smiled back. "Ye—."
"YOU BASTARD!" someone shouted, and suddenly there were two Shinichis; one looking comically startled, the other with his face twisted in rage as he tackled the first to the ground. "What did I tell you about staying away from Ran?"
"Ouch! Ow! What the hell, that was my kidney!" The first Shinichi tried to squirm out from under the second without success. The second Shinichi grasped at air as the other man squirmed.
"I'm going to strangle you!"
"I was doing you a favor!"
"How the hell was that a favor? You tied me up in my bed with what might as well have been a ransom note!"
"Well if you had the guts to actually ask her out we wouldn't be here right now." One of the Shinichis—it was hard to tell which since they were wearing the same clothing—twisted away and dusted himself off. "You're welcome."
"What." Ran was headed quickly from stunned to annoyed, but the boys didn't seem to notice. The Shinichi on the ground kicked at the standing one. He neatly stepped to the side.
"Excuse me Mouri-san," an exasperated male voice said. She turned to find Hakuba, the English detective she'd seen a few times, striding toward her looking annoyed. "It seems I need to put a leash on him."
"What?" she repeated. Hakuba strode up to one of the Shinichi clones and smacked him on the head.
"Stop taunting people."
"Owwww… What the hell, Hakuba?" The man—who probably, Ran reflected, wasn't Shinichi after all—pouted in a very not-Shinichi way.
"If you want to play matchmaker, go bother Koizumi. I'm sure it would amuse the hell out of her. Actually, why not go tell her right now?" Hakuba had one hand on the man's wrist and another on his shoulder. Shinichi watched the exchange, panting.
"You wouldn't." The not-Shinichi looked a bit pale. Hakuba smirked.
"Try me." He glanced at Shinichi. "I apologize for the inconvenience. I'll take him back now."
"What am I? A lost puppy?"
"A puppy would be less troublesome." Hakuba smiled at Ran. "I hope your and Kudo-san's date goes well. This idiot will be coming with me."
"Date?" Shinichi asked.
"Come along, Kuroba," Hakuba said, putting the man in a headlock. "We're going to have a nice long chat with Aoko-san on relationships. Actually, I should call Koizumi to join. I'm sure she would love to chat."
"Shit. No. Please, I won't do it again." For all his words, he wasn't trying too hard to get away, staggering with the detective's steps. "Don't waste your chance Shinichi!" he called halfway down the street.
"Shinichi?" Ran said after a moment. "What just happened?"
"Ah…uh…" Shinichi, still on the ground, blushed. "Just an idiot who likes to interfere."
"Please tell me that wasn't Kaitou Kid."
"Err…"
Ran sighed and sat down right on the sidewalk next to Shinichi. "I think I need a warning sign. This time he actually sounded like you."
Shinichi shrugged. "I don't think Kaitou come with warning labels."
"No. I suppose not." She laughed, then laughed again, collapsing in a fit of giggles at how absurd it all was. And she had been so excited too…
"Ran?" Shinichi patted her back, not quite sure what to do with a sudden lapful of laughing girl. She sat up and hugged him, catching him completely off guard.
"Shinichi, would you like to see a movie this Saturday?"
"Saturday? Uh…sure. I guess." Cautiously, he hugged her back like she might combust at the slightest touch.
"Good. I'm glad." She leaned up and kissed his cheek, grinning when he blushed. She was blushing a bit too. "Care for some lunch?"
"Oh, yes, please. I've been tied to a bed for the last five hours."
