Going Through the Motions - Bedtime


"It's bedtime, Conan-kun."

He groaned inwardly, though his face betrayed nothing of his annoyance, it was not her, it was all on him, she was only doing what she was supposed to do; looking out for a six-year-old brat. She would be a great mother. The thought just floated up out of nowhere. He shook his head, cheeks burning, cursing himself silently. No thinking about that, stupid.

It was still light outside, birds chirping. It was way too early for a sixteen-year-old highschooler to go to bed. Except, currently, most didn't see a sixteen-year-old. They saw a snotty brat with huge glasses, a first-grader, a child small enough to still have bedtime at 8pm.

Heh. What a drag.

However, there was nothing he could do but to play his part. Conan was the character he had created to keep everyone safe—to keep Ran safe. It was his responsibility. His burden.

He heaved a deep sigh, pushing his glasses back onto his nose before opening his mouth to answer her in his high-pitched voice that had become so natural to him to use. His child-like act, it had become so familiar, it was like flipping a switch. And even though it was all part of his act—his responsibility, the effortless way that act seemed to come to him now after all these months;

Deep down, it terrified him.