Every Friday
.
It was like a custom, that every Friday Aoko would invite Kaito over for dinner.
"Are you free this Friday?"
Kaito looked up from his phone, his lips pursed just enough to hide his surprise. He hadn't realized Aoko was standing in front of his desk, hands by her hips as she stared down at him with a questioning look. Aoko's stealth had been slowly improving ever since she became a regular at his heists, but it could also be the news on his phone's fault, allowing himself to be so distracted and dropped his guard.
Nonchalantly, he exited his news app to check the calendar. "What's happening on Friday?"
"Nothing. I just want to ask if you want to have dinner."
"Isn't it too early? It's only Monday today." A grin slowly spread across his face. "Do you actually need four days of practice just to perfect a dinner?"
Aoko huffed and crossed her arms. "Just answer the question."
Kaito looked down at his calendar. It was blank, of course, but he'd already remembered all the dates for his upcoming heists. The next one is going to happen on Saturday, which was the night after her invite… But it was fine anyway, he already had everything planned, and there was no harm to spare a little time for a dinner date—
A dinner. Just dinner.
"Yeah, I'm free."
Aoko smiled and clapped her hands. "That's settled. I'll see you this Friday!"
Kaito was about to retort how he'd be seeing her every damn day actually, but she already left his table and went back to her conversation with her friends at the other side of the classroom.
Shaking his head, he continued reading the news on his phone
xxx
xxx
It was Omurice with curry, and as much as Kaito was reluctant to admit, it had been one of the best dishes he ever eaten in his life.
He wondered if Aoko really used those four days to practice and perfect this.
"So how is it?" Aoko grinned over the dinner table.
Kaito grunted in response and pretended his mouth was too full to speak. But actions were always louder than words, and Aoko came up with her own interpretation of his response before she began on her meal.
xxx
xxx
"Kaito!"
Kaito blinked and looked over his shoulder. He would recognize the voice even if he turned to ash, but he didn't expect to hear it while he was going back home after school today.
"Don't you have your math club meeting?" Kaito questioned after Aoko caught up to him.
"Yeah, but it was just a short one." Aoko said before they started walking together. "But even so, shouldn't you already be back home at this timing? You're walking quite slowly today."
Kaito could easily answer with something sarcastic or argument-provoking, but when he glanced to his side, Aoko was looking at him with eyes filled with genuine curiosity, and nothing in her previous statement was hinted with tease too.
In the end, he decided otherwise, allowing his original retort died in his throats and shrugged.
"It's a Friday today. There's no hurry to go home."
Aoko simply nodded to his answer and said no more, thankfully.
It was true, there was no hurry to go home; all his homework that were given over the weekends were already finished before the teachers left the class, and there wasn't a need to plan any heist for now when he just finished one yesterday (sadly it wasn't Pandora).
But that, was the reason why he was slow.
He had sprained his ankle when he missed a step on the stairs while escaping from the guards.
Although he had managed to put up a good enough act to pretend his feet were fine for the entire day today, this was where the limit ends.
He just hoped Aoko wouldn't notice.
"Are you free today?"
Kaito blinked out of his little trance and raised an eyebrow. "What's up?"
"Do you want to have dinner over at my place?"
Oh. At least it wasn't to go out to watch a movie or whatever. Dinner would still be fine for his ankle.
Kaito leaned towards Aoko with a grin. "It's tonight though, no need for practice?"
Aoko jabbed a fist into his shoulder. "Just a yes or no would suffice."
"Yes, yes." Kaito scoffed and rubbed his arm.
"One yes is enough."
Kaito rolled his eyes. "Yes, master."
xxx
xxx
Instead of going home, Kaito went straight to Aoko's house. They did a bit of homework (Kaito had to pretend to be doing it since he already finished.) and talked a whole lot more during those few hours before Aoko had to start preparing for dinner.
Kaito volunteered to help at first, but she refused and shove him out of the kitchen even before he could attempt a second try. He was then abandoned in the living room with the TV for company, and the first channel that came up when Kaito switched it on was the evening news.
"The Blue Sapphire that was stolen last night by Kaitou Kid has been returned. Appraisals will be conducted to ensure the jewel is genuine before the millionaire returns to America and—"
Kaito switched to another channel.
The sound of chopping from the kitchen continued.
Dinner was served an hour later.
It was spaghetti with white sauce.
And again, Kaito loved it.
"How is it?" Aoko asked after she set the plates on the table (Kaito helped with the utensils).
This time, he nodded back in reply as he slurped onto the creamy spaghetti
A small smile spread across Aoko's cheeks, and she began digging into her dinner as well.
xxx
xxx
Kaitou Kid raised his gloved hands in the air and shone the emerald under the moonlight.
He counted to ten (Ten was too much, but he just needed an extra bit of hope).
When the count finished, he sighed and put down his hand.
Not Pandora, of course.
Almost nothing could have been.
It was just a myth.
But if he didn't believe in it, chase after it, and continued whatever he had been doing, why did he put on the monocle in the first place?
What were all those sacrifices for?
"Kaitou Kid."
Kaitou Kid—Kaito—froze, but luckily his slightly oversized costume (it was tailored after his father's size) and flapping cape did wonders to hide that flinch. He slowly turned, suave and all, and stared at the girl he knew all his life across the roof.
Her stealth really had been improving.
"Hello, Nakamori-san. Fancy seeing you here." Kaito kept the jewel in his pocket. He'd decide on the methods of returning it later.
She glowered. "Fancy."
"It's a Friday night. Don't you have plans somewhere else?"
"He couldn't make it." She said simply, though her scowl was still plastered on her face.
Kaito blinked. He? Who was that he? It definitely wasn't him since she didn't ask him out today, much less having the chance to reject her invitation.
His gut gave an annoying twist, and he lowered his hat to hide that slight grimace that almost slipped to his features. "What a pity, Nakamori-san. I bet he's missing out."
She didn't answer.
He stepped onto the roof's ledge. "I hope your date will work out in the future." Of course he didn't wish that date to work out in the future, no way in hell, but he said it, just because it was necessary to end this conversation.
"As long as you don't hold it on a Friday." Aoko spat.
It was a little too late to question what she meant as he had already free-fall off the roof, allowing the wind to take control before his wings took flight into the night.
But it didn't matter; Kaitou Kid had no rights to ask her anyway.
xxx
xxx
Kaito went back home, clearly exhausted. He dumped the tools that required fixing in his basement, took a quick bath and slumped onto his bed, all ready to hit the sack. But as a habit, he would check his phone for some Kid's update and reply some texts he couldn't see when he was busy thieving.
There was a text from Aoko. Just ten minutes ago.
He sat up on the bed and opened the message.
'Are you free next Friday for dinner?'
Kaito frowned at his phone screen, the short conversation he had with Aoko as Kid came back to him and hitting his stomach with that awful twist again.
"It's a Friday night. Don't you have plans somewhere else?"
"He couldn't make it."
Kaito crafted a reply, his thumbs hovering over the screen. But he stopped and sighed. What could he ask or even say about her failed date when the person that knew about it was Kaitou Kid? This was truly one of the worst dilemmas he ever faced, perhaps a close second after wanting to tell Aoko the truth about everything.
He slumped back onto his bed and decided what he should reply instead.
'Yeah, I'm free.'
This was the only thing he could say.
xxx
xxx
When Kaito entered Aoko's house (they both had each other's house keys), the strong aroma struck Kaito so hard he swooned, literally. He stumbled a few steps and entered the kitchen.
"What on earth are you making?" He gasped.
Aoko turned around in her apron and tied-up hair. "You're early!"
"Well, for once I'm glad I am." Kaito sniffed the air.
She chuckled. "Stop being a moron."
"Can I help with anything?"
"You can set the table."
"Ok."
It was Tempura for dinner on that Friday night, and there were of all kinds that Kaito could ever imagine, from prawn to mushroom to pumpkins…
But no fish, thankfully. At least Aoko remembered not to cook that.
In actual fact, she never once used any fish for all these past countless dinners.
"How is it?" Aoko asked as she watched Kaito munched over the crispy, battered mushroom.
His mouth was full, but he swallowed them all and nodded. "It's delicious." He said.
It really was.
Aoko smiled and picked up her chopsticks.
She left most of the mushroom for Kaito to finish.
xxx
xxx
It wasn't Pandora, again.
Kaitou Kid then retired for the night
Kaito ditched most of his costume behind Jii's bar, leaving in just his blue shirt and white pants as he staggered home like every other heist. In this aspect, change was never constant. Exhaustion was constant, same with disappointment and bitterness.
The wish to destroy Pandora just all seemed so bleak.
He tried to push behind all those thoughts as he continued his way home. The streets became familiar again, and he passed by some blocks of houses he recognized, especially the one at the end.
Aoko's.
It was dark and empty. Of course, Inspector Nakamori must still be hard at work somewhere, and Aoko… she didn't come to the heist today.
Tonight was a Friday night after all. She must have had her plans.
He thought back about the night she told him of her failed date that happened months ago. Strangely (not really), the twisted-gut feeling bit him back as though it happened only yesterday.
He glowered and shut his eyes, stomping past Aoko's house with quick steps.
Kaito reached his home a couple of minutes later.
He slotted the keys and went in.
Beside his secret basement, there were many mechanisms in his house, like the ability to draw the curtains with a few claps and switching on the TV just by telling it to do so. But this, the ability to switch on the lights when he opened the door, wasn't part of the mechanism installed.
So when the house lit up after Kaito closed the door, his hand went straight for the secret pocket that kept his card gun.
What barely stopped him from whipping it out and firing the shots were the bright blue eyes that stared at him a few steps away.
Kaito breathed.
"What are you…"
And it was the last breath he took.
Aoko left the light switch and slowly ambled towards the entrance. From the distance he could tell her eyes were moist, but with a few blinks, those tears were gone.
"We're supposed to have dinner every Friday." She huffed, with a slight tease in her voice that Kaito couldn't understand. "And you just have to hold the heist today. Didn't I already tell you about it?"
"As long as you don't hold it on a Friday."
Kaito gaped. "You…"
"I know, Kaito. I know." Aoko said, her eyes suddenly droopy and… and shaped into something Kaito disliked.
"But— How…"
"The how doesn't matter. I've decided to do what I can do, even if it was the bare minimum." Her gaze dropped to his body, and she looked all much sadder despite the small smile etched on her lips. "You always look so skinny in your suit, like you've never eaten enough. You look slightly better without it. "
His heart sank with a mix reaction of relief and confusion, but it was more than enough to allow him to breathe again. "Aoko—"
"But as for the why…" She looked back up at him. "You have to tell me everything."
Kaito couldn't nod any harder in his life. "Okay." He managed a croak.
"I cooked Ramen today." Aoko tugged onto his hand and led him into his house. "Are you free to eat it?"
"Yeah, of course."
Her fingers curled into his palm as she glanced at him over her shoulder. "Good, because I put in a lot of effort on the broth."
"I can't wait." to tell you everything too.
She nodded, already understanding his implications, before her face split into a perfect grin. And it was one that was enough to answer about anything in the world.
The world that only existed for him and her.
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