"Really, Kaito? Dressing as Kid again?" Aoko asked, crossing her arms. "That's surprisingly unoriginal for you."
Shinichi blinked at her in bemusement. "Excuse me? I'm not Kaito."
She snorted. "Yeah, I've heard that before." She walked away, rolling her eyes. Shinichi watched her go, frowning.
This wasn't how he imagined people would react, but he supposed he was nothing if not adaptable. He put on a wide grin, shifting his stance to one more like Kaito's usual posture as Kid.
Of course, his eyes kept straying to the door. Kaito was late, as usual. It was weird that they weren't late together, though…
As if summoned by the turn of his thoughts, Kaito strolled through the doors, cloak trailing out behind him. He was wearing a black top hat, and a very dapper suit (approximately Victorian), and was toying with a magnifying glass. Shinichi's heart beat faster in his chest, and his face felt hot.
The air between them was charged as they both took in their costumes, eyes slow and lingering…
So of course, Hattori ruined the mood, slapping Kaito on the back. "Kudou, you finally made it!" Kaito raised an eyebrow at Shinichi; he shrugged. "Figures you'd come as your beloved Holmes, yeah?"
Kaito seemed to think about something for a beat before smiling, a little shy. "Ah, well, you know me. It's hard to stray from my inspiration, you know?" He scratched the back of his head, shifting into a stance Shinichi recognized from the mirror. He almost laughed.
"Kaito, you came as Kid again?" Kaito asked, rolling his eyes. "I know I said I like the cut of the suit on you, but that doesn't mean you can just wear the same costume every year!"
Laughing, Shinichi took his hand. "I wasn't Kid last year, so it doesn't count!" Winking, he tugged Kaito close and kissed him soundly. Kaito's hand found its way to the back of his neck, the other slipping under his cape to the small of his back.
Their friends whistled and laughed. Shinichi reluctantly pulled away, but allowed himself to take liberties, slipping a hand in Kaito's back pocket. Kaito jumped.
"Oh, come on, Shinichi, aren't you used to his groping by now?" Ran teased.
Shinichi smiled slow and wicked. Kaito crossed his arms, blushing. "Just because I'm used to it, doesn't mean it doesn't still surprise me!"
After a beat, Ran frowned. "You're not Shinichi. When did the two of you switch?"
Kaito's eyebrows shot up. Shinichi shrugged, removing his hand.
"You didn't try to get me to stop," he told him. "And we never switched. I thought it would be funny to come as Kid, but Aoko mistook me for Kaito. I just kind of… went with it."
Kaito nodded. "And I got called Shinichi from the beginning, but I just wanted to surprise him by coming as his favorite character."
"Gross," Shinichi and Ran said at the same time, both laughing.
"Like you can talk, Shinichi," Kaito said, looking him over pointedly. "Dressing as Kid is just as bad, don't you think?"
"I can't believe I mixed you both up," Aoko muttered. "You'd think after all these years…"
Hattori wasn't making eye contact, cheeks red. Shinichi snickered, even as Kaito subtly slipped his hand into his back pocket. He stepped a little closer, smiling and leaning into his side. The party picked back up around them, people coming and going, dancing starting and stopping…
Fun as it was, Shinichi couldn't wait to get home. There were more than a few things he wanted to do with Kaito in private. By the way Kaito was looking at him, he felt the same.
