"Seriously, Heiji, y' got shot again?" I say when I walk int' his hospital room. "What'd y' do this time?" Heiji attempts t' glare at me. But his eyes have this far-off, glazed look t' them, so th' glare's about as menacin' as a kitten. "Aho. Leave me 'lone," he slurs.

He's loopy. Loopy as hell. How many painkillers did they give him? I pull a chair next t' the bed an' sit down. Heiji tries an' fails again t' glare at me. "I told you t' leave me-." He stops suddenly. "What's wrong?" I ask. "Should I get a doctor?"

Heiji's eyes lose their not-even-close-t'-bein'-menace, replaced by fascination an' something else, something I can't identify. "Y're pretty," he says.

"What?" Did I hear him right?

"Y're pretty," he repeats, and his hand creeps over the side o' the bed t' hold mine.

He's even loopier than I thought. Heiji saying "y're pretty" t' anyone is almost a sign o' th' apocalypse, but him saying it t' me… I attempt t' remove my hand from his grip, but th' aho just clutches it tighter. "Kazuha," he whines.

I'm about t' retort, when there's a knock on th' door. "Come in," I say. A doctor an' a nurse walk in. "How are you feeling, Hattori-kun?" Th' doctor asks. "Fine," Heiji responds. He's so out of it, he doesn't give a sarcastic response.

Th' nurse looks at th' monitor an' writes Heiji's vital signs down. The doctor, waitin' for her, continues chattin'. "And who is this lovely lady?"

"Kazuha Toyama," I respond. "I'm-."

"She's my girlfriend," Heiji interrupts.

I blush an' try t' correct him, but th' nurse has finished with the vitals, so she an' th' doctor examine Heiji.

"You're doing well, Hattori-kun," th' doctor says once he's finished. "We'll probably be able to discharge you soon."

"That's great," I say.

Then they leave. I'm about t' confront Heiji about callin' me his girlfriend, when it hits me. That look in his eyes before…it was affection. I think about everythin' Heiji's said. Could he…? No, there's no way. He's always teasin' me, callin' me aho…

"Hey, Kazuha, what're y' thinkin' 'bout?" Heiji interrupts. Should I ask him? I take a deep breath an' gather up every gram o' courage. "Heiji, do y'…like me?"

"Yes," he answers. I'm surprised at his confession- an' that he said it without any hesitation, stutterin', or even blushin'. Maybe him being out of it is a good thing. "What about y'?" he asks. "Huh?" I start thinkin' that the room's getting' hot. "What do y' think o' me?" Heiji clarifies.

I freeze. Never mind what I said before- I'd rather have normal, sane Heiji. Normal, sane Heiji would never ask me that. What should I tell him? Unlike him, I still have my inhibitions. But isn't this what I've wanted- a chance t' tell Heiji how I feel about him without th' likelihood that he'll run off?

I nervously turn my gaze back t' Heiji. His eyes are still on me, waitin' for a response. Those green eyes, patiently waiting, make up my mind. "Well," I start nervously, "I think… no, I know, I've known since we were in junior high… I think… know… that I…I…I like y'." There. I said it. I look around the room, at everything but Heiji. So I'm shocked when I feel his hand- th' one not holdin' mine- cuppin' my face, pullin' it down 'til it's centimeters from his. "Good," he whispers, an' then th' distance between us is gone an'…wow.

Even though th' kiss feels amazin', something inside screams that this's wrong. I pull away- well, I try t' pull away. Heiji's kept his grip on my face, an' as I break contact, he just pulls me back into it.

After a minute or two, though, his grip loosens, lettin' me sit back. Even though he's pantin' for air, his smile is bright as the sun, an' despite my misgivings, I can feel an equally bright smile on my face. We look at each other, an' I notice that his eyes are no longer glassy…

Dong. Dong. Dong. Dong. Dong. A nearby clock chimes. "I have t' go," I say, standin' up. "Already?" Heiji whines.

"I told my dad I'd be back by five-thirty." I'm already makin' my way t' th' door. "But don't worry, I'll come t' see y' tomorrow!"

All th' way home, I think about what happened. I can't conclude how I feel, there're too many emotions swirlin' through my heart- happiness at our confessions an' th' kiss; guilt that I kissed him back, even though he was essentially high; nervousness at what will happen tomorrow and after. But every time I try t' think o' something else, I remember th' feeling of his lips on mine, pulling me back.

Th' next morning, when I walk in, Heiji's back t' normal. "Hi," I say. He responds, but distractedly an' possibly on reflex. He's readin'- an Ellery Queen novel that he's probably read a dozen times before. I sit down. He appears t' be ignorin' me, flippin' pages as if he's alone.

After a few minutes, I'm tired of being ignored. I tap Heiji's shoulder. He immediately turns- a good sign that he was ignorin' me. "What'd you do that for, aho?"

"Why are y' ignorin' me, aho?" I counter. He guiltily turns back to his book. "Ha, I'm gettin' t' be as good a detective as y'!"

There's a few seconds of awkward silence, then…

"I'm sorry," we say at th' same time. Heiji an' I look quizzically at each other. "Why?" he asks.

"Because I kissed y' back, even though y' were high on painkillers an' didn't know what y' were doin'."

"Kazuha." Heiji leans toward me, close enough that I can feel his breath on my face. "When y' came, th' meds were startin' t' wear off. By th' time I kissed y', I knew exactly what I was doin'.

"I'm th' one that should be sorry. I didn't stop 'til I wanted t'. Even when y' pulled away, I kept at it. An'-"

"I liked it," I interrupt. "Didn't expect y' t' be so good."

He smirks. "Glad t' hear that."

"Aho."

"Y're th' aho!"

"Oh, really?" We glare at each other, then start laughin'. Confessin' an' kissin' hadn't changed a thing.

"So, what do we do now?" Heiji asks.

"Well, my kissin' skills could use a little work..."

AN: Yeah, awkward ending, but I felt like it was dragging and couldn't think of anything better.