A/N: Thank you:

To Kudo2315, doss5vaan, hai-edogawa, Suna No Ken, tylercass, Killthief99, JLBB, Michaela Miyano, Reina, Musyari Binta Aqila Kahfi, insanewriter1220, white-lily00, vccliu00, lil'chrome-chan, onepieceanime, Maltrazz and JMeSeKaiiCHi for leaving reviews! Thank you for all the praises, encouragements, and suggestions! U da best :)

To:

Reina: I hope I made this chapter long enough :3

JMeSeKaiiCHi: Err..I personally thought the school part should've been there so it would show how Conan would feel without Ai throughout the day. Of course, that could also be done by talking to the sleeping Ai, but it might've made the part too big..But anyways, I agree with you on the progress part. I wouldn't like it either if I waited for a week just to read a filler :D

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To all the followers and favorites; Thanks :)

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Disclaimer : I do not own DC.

Doomsday

By: GenuineProdigy

Shattered

For the first time, I could see what people meant by saying 'turn into ice'.

It felt like my stomach was a refrigerator and it was freezing the guts out of my insides. However, they don't remain frozen forever. They melt and give the strange prickly feeling like you're healing from a frostbite. And every time they'd melt, the refrigerator would get going again and they'd freeze once more, worsening the progress each time.

-0-

(Conan's POV)

I put my backpack on the desk. Next to me was, of course, not empty.

The Detective Boys were gathered on it instead of the owner.

The second day. I sighed.

Yesterday, the Detective Agency was endurable. Kogoro was almost unconcerned and Ran acted as though nothing happened; Except for the last sentence she said before she went to school: 'I'm sure she'll be alright in a few days.'

I sat down on my chair, and the kids looked at me immediately.

"How's Haibara, Conan?" Genta asked.

I knew better than to tell them Haibara might not see them ever again. "She's all right!...I bet she'll come to school in a week." From the side of my eyes, I could see Ayumi sigh in relief.

"Then are we going to visit her any time?"

"W-No, no!" I almost waved my hands. I smiled awkwardly at the gawking kids. "It's not like it's serious...She'll see us soon, so we don't have to make her uncomfortable in the hospital."

However, Genta frowned. "Jeez...Look at you, all grinning because you're excited to have your girlfriend healthy."

From the side, Mitsuhiko perked up. "Yeah. It doesn't even looke like you're sorry at all."

"S-Shut up, Genta." I could feel my cheeks heat up a little. "And why should I be sorry?"

Mitsuhiko looked at me with narrow eyes. "Because it's your fault, isn't it? That she's like that."

"Wha-I mean, oh. Well. Yeah..." I scratched my head unconsciously.

But talking about faults was a soft business, especially in front of Ayumi. I was about to see if she was still feeling guilty or something, when she chirped.

"Well, of course."

"What?" The three of us all looked at her, who smiled at me. Pink patches appeared on her cheeks. Dimly, I thought I could see a bit of sadness on her face.

"Because Conan-kun loves Ai-chan, right? Of course you'd be happy to see your lover healthy..."

That really made me blush. For once, I was glad that Haibara was not healthy enough to make it to school. The two other boys stared at me.

"Wha-Wait, wait, Ayumi-chan! But I-"

The girl looked back at me with innocent eyes, which were narrowing into a frown. "Why? Don't you love her, Conan-kun?"

I grimaced automatically.

Haha-It's miraculous how first-graders can be so deep down into these love stuff.

The bell rang, and I was saved.

Or so I thought.

"Well, guys-" I hung my backpack at the side of the desk. "-The class started, so why don't you go back to your seats-"

"-That's mean, Conan-kun."

My head snapped towards Mitsuhiko, who was glaring at me with a sullen look. "W-What?"

Suddenly, he stood up straight and slammed my desk. I sensed a few other kids turning around to look at us.

"You tell us one day that Haibara-san became your g-girlfriend, and now you tell us that?"

I didn't quite get the punch line here. His cheeks were turning red and his eyes were staring at me, clearly angry. "What's your problem, Mitsuhiko?"

"M-Mitsuhiko-kun..." Ayumi reached out an arm, but Mitsuhiko simply ignored it.

"You made Haibara-san get all these injuries, and you don't even look sorry. And what's that now, you don't love her?" He fumed and spat the words. "So all you've done till now was simply playing around with her!" My eyes narrowed.

Me? Playing around with her?

He had no idea how I felt today.

"Shut up, Mitsuhiko."

The words were out of my mouth before I knew it. You know nothing.. I gritted my teeth and muttered coolly. "You don't know what the hell you're talking about."

His face reddened deeper, embarrassed. He shoved me on my shoulders and grabbed them. I could tell he was mad. Real mad.

"I bet I could do better as Haibara-san's lover."

I leapt out of my chair unconsciously. A feeling somewhat like wildfire erupted in my stomach and it woke up with an ache. I was dimly shocked by how the words incensed me. Mitsuhiko's face was now so red it was suprising how his head didn't explode.

"Really?"

I closed the distance, trying to imitate that ice-cold glare somebody I knew could make so easily; It was almost successful, Mitsuhiko shrunk back for a second. From the corners of my eyes, I saw other kids surrounding us, waiting to see something happen.

It got very silent.

After taking one more look around me, I took off the two hands on my shoulders one by one.

"...Then good luck, Mitsuhiko-" I smirked humorlessly. "-Because I doubt you'll ever be."

I knew those words were harsh, but hey, it's the truth.

Or I'll make it the truth.

The kid stared at me like he never did before. His eyes glinted and his body was trembling. But I also felt the irrational hatred towards Mitsuhiko, something strong that I've never felt. Our foreheads almost met, and our eyes connected, giving that feeling of two electric surges meeting in between.

Then, the front door opened.

"Hey class, sorry I was a bit late, we had a conference-"

Kobayashi sensei halted mid-step, her glasses askew. She looked one by one at the kids surrounding me and Mitsuhiko in a circle.

"D-Did I miss something? What happened?..."

-0-

School sucked to the worst. The classes were so boring, I didn't know how I survived until today. The teacher alerted me twice to keep my head up, and a kid spilled a bucketful of paint-mixed water on my future portrait in art class. Although Kobayashi sensei told me it was okay since she already saw it, I told her I'll redo it. It was better than staring at other kids working.

And of course, besides that, a lot of kids asked me what happened between me and Mitsuhiko. Not to mention they were glancing at us every few minutes as if we would fight any moment. I ignored them.

And the second protagonist of today's incident...

Mitsuhiko denied talking to me or anybody else, and he didn't even join the Detective Boys at lunch. When the lunch bell rang, he was the fastest one to leave the classroom. The kids stared at the open door and then glanced back to me.

Like I cared. I huffed heavily and took out my chopsticks.

But Genta stalked off towards Mitsuhiko to talk to him (which would only annoy him) and Ayumi tried to persuade me to reconcile. I barely listened.

"...So try, okay, Conan-kun?-"

I only nodded at whatever she said to me. I noticed Genta bringing in an annoyed Mitsuhiko through the front door.

Then, some images flashed through my mind.

.

"Hey, what do you mean that Conan is king and Ayumi is queen?"
(*The case with the traditional dolls)

My head snapped towards a shy Ayumi, dumbfounded.

"Conan, get out of there! I'm going to be her king!" Genta pushed one of my shoulders roughly.

"No!" Mitsuhiko pushed all of us. "We're going to sit there-" Then, he shot out a hand towards Haibara. "-Haibara-san, come!"

"Eh?" I glanced, and saw her eyes widen in surprise. Mitsuhiko grabbed one of her hands.

For the tiniest second, I was frozen in place (except for the fact that Genta was pushing at me like hell) looking at Haibara smile reluctantly, trying to refuse.

I cocked my head once then turned my attention back to Genta.

.

"I hope I'll get to live in a house like this with my future husband!"
(*The case with the suspicious neighbors that turned out to be Shinichi's parents)

The two boys besides me gasped at Ayumi's statement, and I thought I could see what was going on in their mind as I saw Mitsuhiko and Genta blush. There was no doubt that Genta was imagining Ayumi cooking food for his delight. And I could guess by the way Mitsuhiko glanced at Haibara, he was thinking of living the life of her husband...

I couldn't help but to hide a laugh with a cough. That would be one tiring life for Mitsuhiko.

And impossible, too.

I glared at the two boys and readied myself to wake them up from their dreams, but Ayumi got there first, saying she wanted to live with me. Dang.

.

"Maybe I'll do it this Valentine's! I'll wear a nice suit, and give her the chocolate cake! I'll have candles lit around us, and give her a confession, and maybe a ring-"

.

A snort came out of my mouth, not a good thing to do while I had a spoon of soup in my mouth. I inhaled the thing and started coughing.

While Ayumi thumped my back, I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. It was Conan's. I reacted to the phone rather than Ayumi who just asked me, "So how is Ai-chan?"

I sighed while taking the phone out.

Why was I being so stupid?

I mean, I didn't have to taunt Mitsuhiko. What would I gain if he was angrier towards me? The first time I saw him after declaring that fake relationship, I knew he was depressed. Did I really have to push it?

But childishly enough, my mind (or my ego) simply refused point blank to apologize.

Like, was I really angry because Mitsuhiko wanted to love her? Was I really angry at Mitsuhiko just because it was wrong for him to date a girl that lived at least 10 years more than him? I still didn't know. I thought this was called jealousy. But that couldn't be, right? Because...Because...

I automatically grimaced at the image of Haibara teasing me.

Because...I loved Ran...Right?

What is love, anyway?

Everything was a damn mess. And once more, by the time I put the phone next to my ear, there was only one thing in my mind. That I had to prevent Mitsuhiko from being-'Haibara-san's lover'.

Then, I saw the letters 'Professor Agasa' on my phone, and answered it immediately.

"Hello?"

"SH-Shinichi!"

"Lower your voice!" Thankfully, Ayumi didn't hear him. She looked at me innocently. I was dimly surprised by the professor's tone of voice. "What is it, hakase? Did-" I couldn't help but to gulp. "Did she wake up?"

"L-Lost!"

I paused for a second, then began hesitantly. "Lost...what? Your license? Wallet?"

"No! It-It's-"

Then, the bad premonition hit me. The one that always got me leading storms of cases.

"It's Ai-kun, Shinichi..."

And it was right.

"She's gone..."

Instantly, my burning insides froze once more.

-0-

Hundreds of possibilities ran through my mind. But there was only one that seemed most likely.

Kidnapped?

Ran away?

Just don't tell me it's...them?

Almost out of breath, I crashed open the hospital door. Some nurses told me not to run, but I didn't care.

If it is them, then how did they know? How did they find out where she was?

I ran straight upstairs, to the fifth floor. Thankfully, I spotted the professor talking with a doctor near the stairs.

"Hakase!"

The old man whirled around, and muttered in relief. "Shinichi..."

"What happened? What do you mean 'she's gone'?!"

"Shi-Shinichi, calm down."

"How can I calm down! Just tell me, what happened?!"

The professor looked around, as if looking for an escape. "I, I don't know exactly. I went home this morning, to eat lunch and receive some fax from other inventors. And suddenly, one of the doctors called me and said-" I could see fear in his eyes. "-said she was...gone."

And I looked at the doctor next to him.

"What happened?" Hopefully my voice wasn't aggressive as before.

"I-I'm not sure about it, either. I came in to replace her nutrition packet but...All the needles were pulled out, the oxygen mask was on the bed, and..." He took out something from his pocket. "...Here. I found this on it, too."

I looked at the lemon-flavored candy on his hand. Unopened.

"So? Did you search the floor?"

"Yes, we searched all the patient's rooms on the floor and asked if anybody saw her, and just in case, I had a few other doctors look for her on the fourth and the sixth. But..." He swayed his head.

Damn...What happened?

I began to run again, leaving the two people behind me. I entered the room 503, where she originally used to be.

The empty bed and the machines were still there, making an annoying monotone. I checked the windows and the closets. The windows were locked and the closets were empty. I slammed the doors shut.

I sat down on the empty bed, dejected. I caressed the bars unconsciously, trying to calm down.

When my breathing was finally even, I looked around carefully for any kind of traces.

I gripped the needles that were sprawled everywhere. One dropped out of my hand as I pulled them up.

Cut?

No...It was ripped apart. By force.

But that meant there were fingerprints on these. And no culprit would be stupid enough to leave evidences lying around. Especially if it were to be Gin or any member of the Organization.

Then that means...she did it herself?

Slowly, I rose from the bed and went out of the room. I carefully looked around. There were some people in the corridors. She would have been seen if she walked through them. Then that only meant she went into the room in front of here, which was-

-The Chemical Supplies Room.

The doctor said they checked the patient's rooms, so...

I gulped and opened the door.

-0-

Although in front of the door it had been labeled 'Restricted Section', the door creaked open. Shelves and cabinets of various jars full of medicaments I haven't even heard of were standing in a row.

My mouth went dry while my trembling hand fumbled for the switch.

Click-

However, the lights did not turn on.

Could this be a trap? From them?

I adjusted my tranquilizer watch and decided to wait, scanning the room during the moment. A minute or so passed. There was still no sound except for my breathing, so I cleared my throat and called quietly.

"Haibara?"

Her name echoed. A few more seconds passed.

"..."

Nothing happened.

I sighed and lowered my arm.

Then there was a sound of broken pieces of glass scraping across the room's surface.

My head snapped towards the noise. "Haibara?"

The sound continued, and I started to walk towards it, although some kind of fear was starting to fill my mind. By the time I could hear somebody, I was running.

"Haibara!"

I turned at the second last shelf. There were broken pieces of glass everywhere and pills were scattered on the floor.

And the girl was lying in front of me. (I blushed slightly) Her white patient clothes were ripped apart, partly revealing her underwears, cuts could be seen here and there, and the bandages covering the broken parts of her body emphasized how fragile she was at the moment.

Her eyes stirred.

"Haibara!" They turned towards me. I chuckled in relief. "Y-You're awake!"

She sat up with a slight moan, and I became silent. I couldn't see her expression because her bangs covered her face.

I thought her entire body was trembling. "H-Haibara? Are you all right?.." I tried to reach her with my hand, but she pulled back.

And she started to cry.

W-What?..

I froze in place. Then I grabbed her left arm when she tried to sweep her eyes. "Whoa! There might be splinters..."

She finally looked at me, and I was sure something was wrong.

I breifly remembered the only time I ever saw her cry. That time, her eyes were a mix of resentment and grief for her lost sister.

This time, they were full of fear.

She was actually crying like...Like any other 7-year-old kid.

The ice inside of me shattered as brutally as the broken splinters of glass lying on the surface.

-0-

"H...iabara.."

"No." I sighed again, frustrated. "Haibara. That's your name."

"Hia-Haibara..."

She touched her lips in wonder, as if mesmerized by what she had uttered. I watched her repeat her name countlessly.

"It's..a pretty name."

My head snapped towards her flushed face. "...Yeah.." My mind was close to blank. How could this have happened? I ran my hand through my hair. Apparently, it seemed like Haibara actually lost her identity.

"Hey." She flinched, and I noticed.

Yeah, well maybe I wasn't talking so nicely at the moment.

"Do you know who I am?"

"Y-You?"

"Yeah." I stared at her in disbelief. "Me. Don't you know?"

She stared back. I almost had the urge to snort. And not just her identity. It looked like she forgot everything.

I hung my head. I was stressed out. After scratching my head for a few seconds, I looked up at her again. "Do you even know what you were doing in that room? Why were you there? What were you looking for? When did you wake up?" And I guess my eyes were burning; With her mouth slightly parted, she turned away from my gaze. And - I couldn't believe it - she looked like she was going to cry from fright.

Jeez.

"Haibara-"

"I'm sorry..." I winced at the trembling voice.

Too late. Water started to fill her eyes. "Don't be! I, I'm asking too much..."

I couldn't bear looking at her cry again. It was so different, so distinct from her usual self. It made me sick. My head hurt. I stared at the floor until she stopped sobbing.

I stood up and walked towards the door.

But the hesitant voice stopped me right before it. "Uh.."

I reluctantly turned my head a little. "Yes?"

"..What's your name? You saved me, right?"

Was it because she was so different, so delicate and fragile? Was it because she forgot about everything, including herself? Or was it because she didn't remember a bit of me at all? Somehow her trembling voice pained me.

"Edogawa Conan."

I muttered and left.

Before I closed the door, I thought I briefly heard her say "Edogawa-san.."

-0-

I covered my face with a hand. I could hear hakase and the doctor talking in the corridor. Although they were talking in quiet voices, I could still hear words like 'hippocampal cell' and 'amnesia'.

Not really wanting to hear the conversation, I walked to the stairs. My body slumped down on it. But my mind was still hazy.

I stood up and walked upwards. Just up and up and up.

.

After about fourteen sets of stairs, I was panting. Mustering the last strength, I made my way towards the window. The outside air made it easier to clear my jumbled thoughts. I peeled off some skin off of my lips, thinking. Voices filled my head.

"There is nobody who stands up for a traitor."

"Don't you understand? When you get into the Organization..There is no going out."

"If I.."

My eyes opened slowly.

"If I were to be the one that lost my past memories, about my sister's death, about joining the Organization, and lived the life a normal elementary school kid Haibara Ai..."

My legs reversed, and began to walk down the stairs. I knew I'd go back sometime. I couldn't run away, just like I told her she couldn't run away.

"I wonder how good it'll be..."

.

"Hey...Haibara."

The girl's head snapped up when she heard my voice. "Edo..gawa-san."

"Yeah. You remembered." She looked tensed. Probably still feeling sorry or maybe even afraid of me being angry. I punched myself internally for doing that earlier. I grinned and put the bowl of porridge on the bed. "I figured you were hungry...So.."

Haibara stared at the food.

"What are you doing?" I sat down next to her, at the edge of the bed. "Eat."

She startled for a second and then picked up the bowl and spoon.

It was still kind of awkward. I mean, she didn't know me at all right now. I stared at the floor for a while, then the best I could think of was this.

"Hey, Haibara."

"Hm?" I almost chuckled when I saw that she had her cheeks bulging with porridge.

"You know Professor Agasa, right?..."

She gulped down the food in her mouth and answered. "Yeah!" Her voice was a bit animated, as if she was glad to have something to talk about. "He's old, fat, and has white hair, right? He's really nice!"

I almost snorted. Old, fat, white hair. Great description.

"Well, he's sort of like your grandfather, so..." She looked up from her bowl. "Treat him like your family."

She kept staring at me with a puzzled expression.

"What?"

"..Uh.." Then, she looked away, laughing nervously. "It's nothing.."

I narrowed my eyes. "I know you want to ask something. What?"

But she only concentrated on her food.

I glared at her, annoyed. But she refused to see my face at all. I snatched her arm. "What is it-?"

Then, I instantly let go of it when she gasped in pain. "Ah-!" It was her right, the broken one. The spoon clattered onto the plate.

"I, I'm sorry." I muttered and picked up the spoon. "Are you alright?"

For a second, she winced but then answered, smiling lightly. "Yeah." She took her spoon and continued eating.

Then, I noticed her trembling arm.

"Here."

I took the spoon and she looked at me, alarmed. I rolled my eyes. "I'm not gonna take it away or anything.."

Her eyes widened as I scooped up a spoonful of porridge in front of her mouth.

"You're gonna make it fall." I twitched it once, and she quickly put it inside her mouth. I smirked when I saw her cheeks become faintly pink.

When she was finished, I picked up the tray. On my way to the door, I glanced at the clock. 3:55. I had enough time, so I figured I'd stay a bit more in the hospital. Then, like an hour before, her voice stopped me right before the door. "E...Edogawa..san?"

"Yeah?" I turned around.

"When will you.." Her eyes darted to the blanket and then back to me. "When will you be back?"

"Oh." I laughed once and tried to get out. "I'll be back in a few minutes. Just have to return this tray."

Then, I turned around once more. "By the way, Haibara. Don't call me Edogawa-san. Call me-"

I halted, and she gazed at me with a confused expression. Then, I smirked.

"-Call me Conan-kun."

.

Walking my way back from the hospital restaurant, I sighed.

Was this what she had meant?..How it'd feel good without her memory...

But really, the way she smiled at me just seconds ago, the one face of Haibara that I have never seen before, it really made me believe like...

She was happy.

Of course, she wasn't really the Haibara Ai that I used to know...

I smirked when I remembered her surprised face when I volunteered to feed her.

But not all changes are necessarily bad, are they?...

The smile was still on my face when I opened the door to room 503.

"Hey, Haibara-"

And it disappeared right then.

Haibara was looking at me with an innocent expression on her face.

While Mitsuhiko turned around with his hands holding the sides of her shoulder, his eyes turning from annoyance to fear.

"C...Conan-kun."

I glared at him with a look that hopefully said,

I guess I interrupted something, haven't I?

-0-

-End of Shattered-

A/N: There is a problem this week. OTL

I'm moving to a different school, and I don't know if I'll be able to write as much as I am doing right now...

But I won't give up on the story. I'll try to update as fast as I can, but I just don't think it'd come out in a week or two.

Hope you'd wait for the next chapter. :]

P.S. I noticed while reading my own chapters; I've got hell lot o' cliffhangers XD