It was time.

She shivered a bit at the thought. She now had no excuse not to tell him. Kazuha-chan'd already confessed her love to Hattori-kun, so what was she waiting for...?

She was scared. Scared that he'd say no. Scared that he'd reject her.

And after all she'd been through!

No, thoughts like that weren't going to do her any good. This could be one of the most important moments in her life! She needed to gather up her courage, take a deep breath and spit it out, like she'd dreamed of doing so many times before. Then why was it still so hard?

Oh. Right. Because he wasn't even here.

How could she tell him how she felt if he wasn't even in the same city as her? Judging from when they met in London, he could even be overseas! Telling him over the phone just wasn't the same. Whenever she heard him speak over the phone there was something... different about him. He had changed somehow after that day at Tropical Land, and she couldn't quite put her finger on it. Even when he did return he kept his name quiet, and often looked incredibly sick, almost as if he was having a heart attack! She couldn't help but worry about him.

She definitely needed to call him.

Perhaps if she promised to listen to him rave on all day about Holmes he'd come back for a while? Or maybe if she offered to take him to Tropical Land - oh wait, she had tried that too.

What if she begged for him to come back, just for a day. If she cried her eyes out and screamed his name, would he come back?

But she knew the answer. His case was more important than she was, even if all she wanted to do was confess her feelings to him...

Shinichi...

She pressed her hands hard against her eyes, as a tear slid through her fingers, creating a salty, damp drop on the bed she sat on.

She only just heard the sound of a door gently closing over the sound of the traffic outside. Tiny footsteps echoed softly throughout the house.

Shinichi's heart sank. She'd been crying. Again. And he knew the reason why.

She'd been acting different ever since Hattori and Kazuha became a couple. He was sure she was glad for them, and he was too, but the last few times he had called Ran with his real voice she'd seemed down.

She wasn't going to do the same thing as Kazuha, was she?

In his heart of hearts he really, really wanted her to. He wanted nothing more than to hear her voice whisper to him that she loved him and that she wanted to be with him foreve-...

But he knew it couldn't be. He was still stuck going about his daily life from the perspective of someone who can barely reach high enough to turn doorknobs. Haibara was right. If Ran knew the truth, she would be burdened by it. She'd be in danger every day, and then Gin would find them, and... It didn't bear thinking.

Not to mention how embarrassing it would be for her to find out. What would it be like for Ran to find out that her confident, smart, famous, brilliant great detective was stuck pushing chairs around to reach cupboards? He felt helpless. He'd been beaten quite badly by many a criminal and had been patronised, teased or all-out ignored by many people (Hattori was the worst). He just wanted to be independent again. He wanted to be treated like a person again, not a kid.

Ran wouldn't be able to take him seriously anymore.

But he couldn't stand her crying. He wanted to make her happy, no matter the cost...

Ran, what should I do?

Zoe: Hello all! This is my first fic, thanks for reading! Reviews aren't compulsory (lolwut?) but are nice~~ :)

I sorta started writing this because I wish Shinichi and Ran would get together soon OTL Imma try and think up some cute things for the next chapter :)

Also, should I bother with honorifics? I don't know, so I guess I'll just stick with them for now. If they get too annoying I'll drop 'em. :P

P.S. I don't own any part of Detective Conan! ^_^ Aoyama-sensei, however, does!