Chapter 6
Shinichi's P.O.V
Shinichi had woken up to Kazuha and Hattori arguing. He wasn't exactly sure what they were arguing about, but it was a relief considering what it might've been. He could've been dreaming this whole thing and still be back in that basement. Shinichi mentally shook his head. No, he needed to stop thinking like that. He was safe, he survived. It still bugged him that he didn't notice Imayoshi-san following him before though. "Conan-kun, how are you feeling?" Ran asked him when she noticed that he was awake.
"I feel okay," He said coughing a little. His throat was dry. "Could I get some water?"
"Sure," Ran said smiling down at him. When she left, Hattori and Kazuha took a spot on either side of him.
"I'm glad you're okay." Kazuha said, hugging him.
"Yeah me too," Hattori said lightly ruffling Shinichi's hair. Just then Ran came back with a cup of water.
"Where's Occhan?" Shinichi asked after emptying the entire cup in one gulp.
"He's talking to the doctor. I don't know if you remember or not, but on the way to the hospital, some policemen were chasing after us." Ran said shaking her head. "But Dad didn't stop the car until we got to the hospital." Shinichi chuckled.
"I bet he wasn't happy with those policemen." She giggled.
"You're right, he wasn't. He argued with the police officer in charge for ten minutes before Inspector Yamamura called the officer and yelled at him for stopping Dad." Ran suddenly frowned. "Dad's been acting strange though since the doctor told us about your surgery being a success."
"What do you mean?" Shinichi was honestly curious.
"He's seems kind of depressed," Kazuha said frowning too.
"I bet he feels guilty about something." Hattori said shrugging. Shinichi understood why Occhan would feel that way. Occhan's plan was to stick together until they thought of a way to get out, but Occhan wandered off a little, not realizing that Shinichi hadn't followed him, and that's where Imayoshi-san got them. Shinichi of course didn't blame him for what happened, but he knew Occhan didn't believe that.
"The doctor said we can take Conan-kun home in a week." Occhan announced walking in. Joy, Shinichi thought, he was stuck in here for a whole week with nothing to do.
"That's great news." Ran said looking relieved. Occhan finally noticed that Shinichi was awake and just stared at him.
"Uh, Occhan, what's wrong?" Shinichi asked tilting his head to the side slightly.
"It's nothing," Occhan cleared his throat. "How are you feeling, Conan-kun?"
"I feel fine," But it was probably just the morphine. Shinichi thought to himself.
"Good, good,"
"Dad, is something bothering you?" Ran asked him, looking concerned.
"No, I'm fine."
"Are you sure, Occhan?" Shinichi asked him, hoping Occhan would tell him if it was him asking. Occhan sighed.
"I'm sorry. I couldn't do anything, Conan-kun."
"It's not your fault, Occhan. We were in the dark after all." Shinichi said sincerely. Occhan smiled.
"You're right, Conan-kun." Shinichi smiled.
"Now, do you want us to bring you any books or games, so you won't be too bored?" Ran asked him.
"Yeah, I would like that." Shinichi would need all the distractions he could get. He remembered the last time he was stuck in the hospital and it was boring. He didn't really have much to do other than Genta, Ayumi, Haibara, and Mitsuhiko coming to see him with the Professor. It wasn't long before Hattori, Ran, Kazuha-chan, and Occhan had to go home. Hattori and Kazuha decided to stay the night and then they'd be leaving tomorrow morning. Hattori told Shinichi he would come back and visit him after he got out of the hospital before leaving the room. Shinichi sighed, exhaustedly, after everyone had left. He was tired from just interacting with the three of them.
The week went by slowly for Shinichi, but the day he could leave the hospital was finally here. He was glad. He didn't like the smell of the hospital and he definitely didn't like the food. The company and distractions were good though. Hattori, like he said he would, came to see him just as he was leaving the hospital with Ran and Occhan. Kazuha-chan was with him too. She brought him some sweets from a local bakery. "Thank you," Shinichi told her smiling.
"You're welcome Conan-kun." She said smiling back at him.
"So, do you want to do anything after being cooped up in the hospital for week, Conan-kun?" Ran asked him.
"Hm, I'm hungry."
"There's a new restaurant just down the road from here." Ran suggested looking at Occhan. Occhan sighed.
"Fine, let's go." Shinichi found himself walking along side Hattori while the rest of the group was walking in front of them. He also found himself subconsciously flinching away from the strangers on the streets and scolded himself. He knew it was hard for the body to forget the pain inflicted on it, but this was ridiculous. At one point, he found himself clutching onto Hattori's pant leg when a guy in his late 40's came a little too close for Shinichi's comfort.
"Are you okay, Kudo?" Hattori asked quietly, when the guy finally passed and Shinichi let go of Hattori's pant leg.
"Yes," He didn't feel like getting into any details right now.
"Okay, if you're sure." Shinichi knew Hattori didn't believe him, but he was relieved when his fellow detective didn't press him any further. The group finally made it to the restaurant. By this time, Shinichi just wanted to get away from the strangers, but he was so hungry. The group took their seats and started looking over the menu. Unfortunately for Shinichi, he got stuck on the outside of the booth they were sitting at. So when a waitress walked over to them to get their drinks, he found himself scooting closer to Hattori, who was sitting next to him. Shinichi caught the worried frown on his friend's face, but right now he was just trying to make sure the waitress didn't touch him. "We're talking later," Hattori told him quietly after the waitress left. Shinichi sighed.
"Okay,"
"Is something wrong?" Ran asked him worriedly.
"No, it's fine." She nodded before going back to looking at her menu. This was going to be a long day. Shinichi thought as the waitress came back with their drinks, causing him to subconsciously move closer to Hattori for the third time today.
The group finally made it back to the Mouri residence and Shinichi never felt so relieved. They had decided to go watch a movie after eating at the restaurant. Shinichi wouldn't have minded it so much if it weren't for the female employees who thought it would be fun to treat him like a baby. Hattori seemed to have gotten a kick out of it, though. Shinichi wanted to kick a soccer ball right into his face. Thankfully Occhan saved him from the employees, by literally picking him up, and carried him all the way to their seats. Shinichi would've been embarrassed but he was more relieved that he didn't have to put up with those employees anymore. So yes, Shinichi was very relieved when they finally made it back to the Mouri residence. He also felt safer in there. Hattori and Kazuha ended up staying the night and it was when Hattori gave him a stern look that Shinichi remembered that Hattori wanted to talk to him about what happened.
They waited until Occhan and the girls went to their rooms, before they started talking. "Alright Kudo, tell me what's going on in that head of yours." Hattori said quietly. Shinichi sighed.
"I know it's hard for the body to forget the damage it takes, but it's hard not to flinch away and think someone's going to hurt me." Shinichi didn't know where that came from, but he knew that must be how he really felt about this situation. "Logically, I know that Imayoshi can't come back and I know that this is a psychological thing going on here, but I don't know how I can fix it." Hattori rolled his eyes.
"We're working on that right now, ya aho!" Shinichi nodded, thoughtfully. He supposed talking would actually be more beneficial than keeping it all inside. "Ya just have ta remember that Imayoshi can't hurt ya anymore and ya can't be afraid of others hurting ya, because it's going ta happen. Ya just have ta keep moving on and don't let it get ta ya." Shinichi nodded once again, sighing a little.
"Yeah, I know. It's hard though."
"I bet, but ya also have ta remember, you're not alone." Hattori said smiling at him. Shinichi smiled back.
"Thanks, Hattori. You can give some good advice sometimes."
"Oi, what's that supposed to mean?" Hattori asked scowling at him. Shinichi grinned.
"Oh, you know." He said shrugging. Hattori sighed.
"Whatever, I'm too tired ta deal with this. I'll deal with ya in the morning."
"Alright," Shinichi said shrugging again. The two went into Occhan's room and went to bed. Shinichi was exhausted after the long day he had. The next day, Hattori, like he promised, dealt with Shinichi by giving him a noogie. He didn't do it very hard, but it was still annoying; especially since Shinichi isn't a morning person to begin with. Hattori and Kazuha decided to stay for the next few days since Kaito Kid sent out a new notice. Shinichi didn't really want to go, but he could see that everyone else did, so he said he'd go. Maybe it would do him some good and he could get everything off his mind for a little bit. Shinichi had to go to school today though, so while he and Ran were at school, Hattori and Kazuha were going to just look around town and find something to do.
Shinichi wasn't exactly happy about going back to school, but he didn't make a fuss over it. He could tell Ran and Occhan were still worried about him and he didn't want to make them worry any more. So, when he got to school that day, he was greeted by Genta, Mitsuhiko, Ayumi-chan, and Haibara. All of them, well Haibara not so much, asking him if he was okay. Of course he told him he was fine, but he knew Haibara didn't believe that. He was surprised Genta, Mitsuhiko, and Ayumi-chan didn't call him out on his obvious lie. He really wasn't okay. He flinched from strangers every time he went outside and he didn't let anyone, even if he knew them well, get too close to him.
There were a few times where Ayumi-chan hugged him and he had to concentrate on not flinching. It was probably the hardest thing he ever had to do. At lunch time, Haibara pulled him aside. "I heard about what happened." She told him, with a stern look on her face.
"So?" She sighed.
"So, stop acting like it never happened."
"I'm not. I flinch every time someone gets too close to me and I still have nightmares about what Imayoshi did to me and I know that he can't do anything to me anymore. I know that it takes a while to heal mentally, but I can't stop these things from happening. I've talked about it, so don't badger me about talking about it." Shinichi said to her quietly. He didn't want the other three to hear.
"That's good and all, but you have to talk about it more than once to heal faster." She told him rolling her eyes. "Besides, you shouldn't be hard on yourself. None of what happened is your fault and you survived. I know you already know that he can't hurt you anymore, but you need to hear this. There is always a chance of someone hurting you no matter where you go, but you just have to move on. And the way to move on, is to talk about it. Not just about what happened, but the nightmares too." Shinichi sighed. She was right of course.
"I know, but I don't feel like talking about those just yet." She nodded.
"That's fine, but you have to talk about it some time. Don't forget that."
"I won't." He told her feeling a little annoyed.
