EDIT 9/27/2015: I've just started submitting stories on this site after two years of inactivity, so I decided to try and update some of my old stories so they more or less match my current writing style. This story was my first, and therefore originally read like a high school student's fantasy back when it first went up, mainly because I was in high school at the time. I've made a lot of changes to the story, so even fans of this from back in the day should be pleasantly surprised at parts, particularly the confession at the end. Whether you're old or new, I hope you enjoy this update.

This is the first fanfiction story that I've written in my life, so I hope you'll go easy on me in the comments about it. It's a ConanXAi love story, so if you don't appreciate the pairing, just what are you doing here reading this?

Disclaimer: If I owned this, it would be in the manga, not on a fan fiction website. That's why Gosho Aoyoma draws the manga, because he owns it.

Chapter One

Two years after the current storyline…

Conan was in school, as usual. The teacher was teaching the class 3rd grade level math, so Conan was bored out of his mind. He attempted to stay awake, though, since he knew that falling asleep in class was never a bright idea.

He noticed that Haibara was bored, too, though she did a much better job of hiding it. She'd been trained by the Black Organization to not show emotions and to tough out bad situations. While that probably hadn't included grade school, those strategies most likely still applied somewhat.

Conan usually used class time to think about problems and to try and find solutions to them. He'd had his big epiphany about the Organization during one such class, and that had directly led to their defeat. The only problem was that their APTX-4869 data had gone up in smoke along with them, so there was still not yet any permanent antidote.

Today's enigma involved Haibara. Two years ago he would've been thinking about Ran instead, but after seeing her waiting for him, Shinichi, to return for so long, he couldn't stand her crying for him anymore and had decided to make a painful decision. He'd asked Haibara for a temporary antidote and had called Ran up to meet six months before.

"Mouri Detective Agency," Ran had answered, thinking it would be another client.

"Yo, Ran, it's me Shinichi."

"Shinichi?"

"You sound surprised to hear from me."

"Of course I am. You haven't called in weeks!"

"Sorry, Ran, I've been having some… personal problems. Listen, I've been in Japan for the last few days and I'll be heading back to America tonight. But since I'll be in Tokyo today till the plane leaves, I was wondering if you'd like to hang out."

Ran sounded stunned. "Really, you'll be back today? And you call me right before you want to hang out asking me about this? Who do you think you are? I might've had other plans!"

"Well, if you have other plans, do you want to just talk, then?"

"No, that's OK. I was just surprised. When will you be here?"

"I'll be at there in 20 minutes. That good?"

"Sure, see you then!"

With that, Shinichi had hung up and walked over. Haibara had surprisingly allowed him to use an 18 hour temporary antidote for the occasion, though Shinichi had been kind of vague as to why he'd wanted it, only saying he needed it for a 'Shinichi-only errand'. He had arrived at the Detective Agency, and after making sure Kogoro was not around to give him grief about 'corrupting his daughter', had left with Ran. Shinichi hadn't needed to hide his face anymore due to the downfall of the Organization a year before, so he'd enjoyed his time as a teenager with Ran for the day.

Around five thirty that afternoon, Shinichi had offered to take Ran to dinner, and she'd gladly accepted. They went to a modest place that served Western food and had enjoyed most of the meal until Shinichi had dropped the bomb.

"Uh, Ran," Shinichi began cautiously.

"Yes, Shinichi?"

"There's, uh, something I need to tell you…something important. When I leave for America tonight, it will likely be for good."

"What? Shinichi, how do you know it's for good? Why would you go anyway? Everything you've ever known is here in Beika! Please don't go!" Ran had started to tear up uncontrollably at this, which made Shinichi's heart ache.

"Ran, will you listen to my reasons?"

Ran said nothing, instead just nodding. Shinichi decided to try another angle to take her mind off of him 'leaving'.

"Ran, do you love me?"

Ran immediately looked up and said, "What in the world would make you think a stupid thing like that?" She'd said it a little too quickly, though.

Shinichi just smirked and replied, "It was a simple deduction, even for a dense person like me."

"If you're so dense, then how do you know you're right?"

"I don't know, though I do have some circumstantial evidence. But anyway, here's my reasoning. Firstly, when Sonoko used to call us a married couple, you always protested loudly. Secondly, you agreed to accompany me for a day to Tropical Land, which most people would consider a date, as well as hanging out with me today. And lastly, you're blushing like crazy." Shinichi finished his 'deduction' smugly, watching as Ran's face turned bright red.

"I take it I'm right then?" said Shincihi. He had already known the answer from his time as Conan, but he was waiting for her to say it to him herself.

Ran looked down and sighed deeply. "I guess you really are the Great Detective of the East." She paused again, as if gathering up courage, and then said, "Shinichi, I do love you, as you so astutely pointed out. I have for years, since our trip to New York."

Shinichi just grinned again and said "I figured as much. At first I didn't really notice, though there were a few differences in the way you behaved around me. I was first certain at Tropical Land when you listened to me ramble about Sherlock Holmes for most of the day. You didn't even complain until your outburst on the roller coaster, which pretty much confirmed my suspicions."

Actually, Shinichi had had no clue about Ran's feelings for him at all at the time. He had only found out later that night when he'd turned into Conan, when Ran had found no problem confessing the truth to a little boy that she thought was a completely different person. Shinichi had no plans to tell Ran about him being Conan, though, because his 'deduction' would be seen through right away.

"So Shinichi, if you're so certain about my feelings about you, it's my turn to ask you a question," said Ran pleasantly, leaning forward slightly. Shinichi internally braced himself. "Who was the girl you were talking about when you turned down Uchida Asami-senpai in junior high?"

The question was different than Shinichi had been expecting her to ask. He'd been expecting a flat out 'Do you love me, too?' but Ran had surprised him again. He decided to tease her by saying "Who do you think it is? Conan-kun said that when you met her and she told you about what happened you had no clue who it was. Do you have any new ideas?"

"Not really. No one I know matches your description."

"Sonoko was there right? Who did she say it was?"

"The same as usual. She said it was probably me since you knew me the best…" Ran stopped mid-sentence as the full weight of what she'd just said hit. Shyly looking up, she asked, "Was she right?"

"Actually she was. At the time I did have a crush on you. That's why I turned Asami-senpai down, even though she was so smart and popular."

"So, Shinichi, by 'at the time' you mean you don't love me now?" Ran asked, sounding sad again.

Shinichi sighed, bracing himself for all the crying. "Ran, if I hadn't had to go away for two years, then I'd probably still love you as much as I did when I left, if not more. But now, since I've been away for so long, my feelings have diminished back down to those of a friend or a brother instead of a lover. If I was able to stay here longer, then I might begin to love you again, but as I said earlier, I can't. I have to return to America." Shinichi hated lying. He hated breaking Ran's heart. But with the current circumstances, he had no choice. It was either this, or forcing her to wait longer.

"Shinichi…" Ran said, crying freely now.

'Ran,' Shinichi thought sadly. Wordlessly, he'd paid the bill and taken her home. Neither of them broke the silence. Upon reaching the bottom of the stairs leading up the Detective Agency, they had embraced heartily before parting.

Shinichi had gone back to Agasa's house, transformed back into Conan, and gone home to comfort Ran, who was an emotional wreck for a while after that. Over the weeks that followed, Ran slowly got over Shinichi, and with encouragement from Conan, had gone back to a normal routine to forget about Shinichi.

It had taken a while for Conan to get over letting go of Ran like that. While he appeared to be just as cheerful as normal, inside he was fraught with conflicting emotions. Eventually, he got over Ran completely, and that was for one reason: his friend Ai Haibara. When he made a conscious effort to try and let Ran go, he realized he'd been unconsciously shutting out romantic feelings for Haibara.

Conan was thinking of Haibara again today, as he did most days. After he'd realized he loved her as more than a sister or a friend, he had started thinking of her a lot more than normal. He'd had to physically stop himself several times from gazing at her in class, since he'd been teased by Genta once about it and didn't want to give anybody any ideas. He had never quite realized before just how much he appreciated Haibara for who she really was: a smart, intelligent girl who actually could keep up with his thoughts and trusted him completely. To Conan, it was a good feeling.

However, there was a problem. While Conan was sure he liked Haibara, he had absolutely no clue whether she liked him back or not. Since he'd realized his feelings, he hadn't treated her any differently, though he did blush a little more than he used to when she was around whenever she made a sarcastic comment at his expense.

He hadn't let on about how he felt about her because she was so popular among the guys that doing something like wouldn't end well for him at all if she said no. Plus, he knew he had a ton of admirers of his own, so making a move would break a lot of hearts, and he'd rather not jeopardize his friendships with anybody else. Ayumi in particular would've been devastated.

Even if he did get the courage to ask her out, Conan knew he couldn't use the direct approach, since she'd think he was joking and say no. Since the girl would never admit to liking him even if she did, that meant he'd have to come up with another way of finding out. The easiest way to do that would be a test.

The plan, in his mind, would involve making her jealous by going on 'friendly dates' with somebody close to her, though he wouldn't let on to the girl or anyone else what he was up to. He'd just feign innocence and say they were just friends if anybody asked. It was his hope that if Haibara did actually like him, some proof of this would show eventually and he'd have his confirmation. He just hoped he didn't accidentally ruin his friendship with her or anybody else in the process. Despite these potential issues, he decided to put his plan into action as soon as possible.

And so Conan starts a plan that will probably backfire on him at some point. You can probably guess some of what will happen, like who the other girl will be. I apologize to CoAi fans for the ShinRan stuff, but I had to establish background for the story, so please forgive me.

Asami Uchida showed up in episode 100-101.

I use everyone's given names over their surnames during descriptions because I'm American and that's how books are written here. In conversation, I use the names that everyone calls each other by, including honorifics, so try not to get confused. I use Japanese names instead of the English because I know how a lot of people hate the English names. If anyone has any other questions, feel free to ask in your review, which I hope you'll give, because this is my first ever published story, and I have no idea how good I am at writing (especially romance). Thanks again!