Voicemail, voicemail, voicemail. Home, mother's cell, father's cell, no one would answer! What went wrong? I put the phone down and stepped outside, nibbling my thumb. Scenarios tumbled one over another in my mind, but nothing felt plausible. It looks like rain, find an umbrella. In other words; Nobody's home, go somewhere safe. Why would no one be home?

"Sachiko?" A man called.

"Um, yeah?"

He offered me the phone. "Your mother wishes to speak to you."

Mother?! I hastily brought it to my ear, "hello?"

"How many times must you break protocol?!" Mother yelled, practically biting my ear off. Oh. Protocol: 'once a message has been conveyed, no more contact is permitted unless instructed otherwise.' She then briskly continued, "listen, it's nothing to do with your case. Your Grandmother collapsed, so I've been at the hospital. They don't know what it is yet, but I'll contact you this time tomorrow for an update. Father isn't going to be home for work reasons, and the doctors have asked that I not leave until things are sorted out. Now, do as you're told." A dial tone replaced her voice; the call ended.

"Wait! Which hospital—?! Mother!" I plead to no avail.

I tossed the phone back at the man, and ran. They would have gone to the nearest hospital; Beika General Hospital. Why should I wait an entire day to hear about Grandma? After all I've done to help, they expect me to obediently—? I came to a halt at the school gates. My deafening thoughts ceased, and the world painted itself to life once more. Noises echoing from classes setting up stands, creating signs, and gathering supplies.

I bowed my head. Have I actually helped? My presence is it. They do everything for me... As long as I cooperate, I can stay and believe that I'm making a difference. My heels scuffed as I reentered the school, but still... It's vexing to not be near Grandma after hearing that... unaware of how she is.

The flame which fueled my drive has slowly been dying, and I only realised this fact now that the embers were fully extinguished. All too late the smoke from its remains pooled into my head, clogged my throat, and irritated my eyes. First Shinichi keeping me in the dark, and now this thing with Grandma. I gulped in a breath. This isn't good, tears tracked down my cheeks, The last thing I want is people asking why I'm upset. I glanced up, searching for a hideaway to compose myself, but froze at the sight of Shinichi.

His smile faded when our eyes met.

I kept my head down, briskly walking passed in hopes of escape. Yet he caught my hand. Then proceeded to drag me to an area under the stairs, secluded from prying eyes.

"It looks like rain, from how you seem to understand it, is a code phrase." Shinichi leaned persistently to and fro, struggling to maintain eye contact, as I looked everywhere but him. "What happened?"

After a ridiculous amount of avoidance, I slid to the floor, hiding away into the fetal position.

A moment alone is all it would take. A moment alone, and the rest of the day would fly by with no sullen emotions; no tears. However, Shinichi's presence alone pried open that carefully packed bottle within me.

"It's nothin'." I mumbled, "m'tired," then immediately regretted saying anything from the unsteady quiver in my voice.

Shinichi scoffed. "That's a lie." He knelt down, and managed to slip a hand between my arm and head. With two fingers he tilted my chin up. Unwillingly, I met him face to face. Training my eyes on the ground as he swabbed at my tears with his sleeve.

"Never thought I'd see you like this," Shinichi admitted, voice soft. "Can't say I like it... but I can't imagine leaving you alone either."

"I'd rather be alone." I scooted away. "They're my tears, I don't need any help to get rid of them."

"That's not going to keep me from helping you anyway."

Before I could protest, Shinichi pulled me into an embrace. Comforting me, unaware he's one of the reasons why I'm crying. I pushed him off in a fruitless effort.

"What kind of detective are you?" Although I planned to never bring it up, the urge to question him—to let him know why he should leave—was too strong. "You say you'll help me find Toreck, and then do nothing. I gave you my secrets. Is that all you wanted? To know what was going on?" I sucked in a breath before a sob overtook me. "Because if you didn't want to help, please say so before isolating me like this."

His grip slackened.

"My grandma collapsed. They won't even tell me why until tomorrow. Why am I constantly uninformed of everything important? Even by you." After shoving Shinichi away that time, I expected him to go—as he should. However he pulled me back with abrupt force.

"I didn't want you to worry... seems the opposite happened," he shrugged, rubbing a hand across my back as he spoke. "The thing is, I did some research on property Toreck owns. Two plots of land were officially sold by him in Utah; one to your parents, and the other which had a facility built upon it that—I'm assuming—is where you worked. Other than that, there's six." His hand came to rest on my shoulder. "Those last six are plots of land he owns right here in Japan which have yet to be sold. One of those being in Ibaraki close to here."

I jerked back to confirm, "you didn't..."

He smirked. "Last weekend."

"You said you had a case!"

"It wasn't a lie. Besides, if you had heard the truth, you would have followed."

"Because it's dangerous!"

"Was dangerous."

"...what?"

He patted my cheeks dry with his sleeve once more, I recoiled slightly, yet bore it as he spoke. "When I arrived, it seemed to be just that; unsold land. No one lived nearby, so I couldn't ask around, but while investigating I noticed patches of grass which appeared greener than the surrounding area."

An answer popped into my head. "Fake grass?"

"Yep. When stepped on repeatedly, grass dies out, and creates a dirt trail. I think it had been put there to hide the fact that people frequent the area, because it led to the most unusual place." He ushered me to sit against the wall, then plopped comfortably by my side. "My weight on one particular artificial turf caused it to depress slightly. After moving it aside, I found a door which opened down into a hidden room. A rope ladder leading inside had been cut, but the floor wasn't too far."

My heart skipped a beat. If an enemy saw his face... "An underground room in the middle of nowhere. You called the police, right?"

He tilted his head, like the question itself sounded too bizarre to comprehend. "I jumped in, of course."

"Are you insane?!"

"No." His statement bordered a question. "I'm a detective."

"They're not some petty thieves." I cried. "They have guns, you idiot! On a good day you may be able to outsmart one crook with a weapon, but they are never alone."

"Yeah..." Shinichi averted his eyes. "Despite outer appearances, the place was huge. With a staircase leading down to another floor not far from the entrance, but on that floor alone, I counted over two dozen men and women."

My voice abandoned me in light of how dire this had become. How did he... get away...?

His nose wrinkled, a hint of disgust while he admitted, "it reeked." Shinichi took a deep breath, shook his head, and said in a sober tone, "probably hundreds down there, and every single one of them dead."

He glanced at me, then wrapped an arm around my shoulder. I could feel the blood draining from my face. "Did the FBI... maybe...?"

"No. The entire building had been burned. Any traceable evidence destroyed. This is the work of someone covering their tracks."

"In that case, do you think Toreck's cutting off loose ends because of what happened to me? I mean, it's on public record what land he owns, of course the authorities would have found what he hid there eventually."

"While that is true, it may not necessarily be Toreck cutting loose ends."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Think about it, if he wished to destroy what the public knows in connection to himself, wouldn't he have simply burned the building? From what I could tell of what was left, this underground building's purpose was to house these people. Almost like a safe house. Small separate rooms, and a plethora of various equipment. But the computers, mainframes, were smashed to bits. Interior of the towers were ripped out. Memories gone, no hope of getting anything retrieved."

"Complete destruction." Tapping a finger to my chin, I said, "they sound like desk workers. Only there for information the internet could feed them."

"Oh."

"Oh?"

"Intel gatherers," he mumbled. Then stated, "those men were secret underground scavengers. More than likely undocumented. No one knows they exist, so no one looks for them."

"Then how can this not be the FBI? Toreck wouldn't kill his own men, right? People are a valuable asset to come by, especially for criminals. Wouldn't he relocate them... or..."

"Maybe he couldn't relocate them. As we said before, it's publicly known what land he owns. Where would he put them?"

I roughly exhaled, running my hands down my face, "that's so cruel. How could he... to his own people...?"

"There's one more possibility..." Shinichi went silent, as if debating whether or not to speak the next word. "Sabotage."

My eyes widened. "That would mean..."

He nodded. "Either Toreck is being taken down from the inside, or a higher organisation is targeting him while he's down. Anyway, afterwards I called in an anonymous tip to the police about the area. No one's made an uproar, so the FBI must have gotten their hands on the intel to keep it under wraps."

"This is so complicated," I confessed. "It's making my head spin..."

Shinichi comfortingly rubbed my upper arm. "Don't worry, I've got all the facts straight in my head, and what doesn't make sense yet will come to light eventually. Trust me."

"What doesn't make sense?" We came up with possible answers for everything he discovered, right?

He hesitantly smiled, something he probably thought would reassure me, but I definitely noticed the conflict in his eyes. "Small details. Nothing too important."

"Alright," I reluctantly agreed.

He tilted us forward. "Ready to return to work?"

"My eyes are red."

"Yeah?"

"I'm gonna wait till they're not."

"Okay." Shinichi relaxed, resting his head atop mine against his shoulder.

"...you can go," I murmured

"And do what? During preparations for the Cultural Festival, they don't count attendance. The only reason I didn't skip today is because you were so excited about it."

That got me to giggle. "You're such a goof."

"It's pronounced, thank you," he said, although the humor was palpable in his tone.

"Right," I smirked. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

The end of school bell. It rang loud and clear. Excited footsteps followed. Down the halls, through the school. I blinked awake, instantaneously aware of a faint breathing beside me.

"Shinichi?"

He confirmed his presence with a small disapproving groan.

"Wake up." I wiggled off his hand around my shoulder.

In retaliation he wrapped both arms around, snuggling closer to my collarbone. "Sleep"

"You passed out," I said accusingly, ignoring that warm fuzzy feeling his proximity brought.

"To be fair, you passed out first."

That effectively ended my side of the argument. He yawned and stretched; a contagious act, as I began doing the same.

Shinichi then pulled me to my feet, smiling and patting my hair as he said, "guess it's time for us to head home."

"Can I stay at your house tonight?"

"Yeah."

"No one's in my home at the moment. Sorry it's a bit last minute..."

He shook his head, "nothing last minute about it. Besides," he grinned, "I finally got the kitchen cleaned."

I outright laughed, "we are not baking Castella again!"

"Yeah." He scratched the back of his neck. "I don't think it was supposed to blow up like that."

"It's not!" my stomach ached from laughing harder. "I can't believe you mixed up self-raising flour with regular flour."

"How was I supposed to know there was a difference...?" he grumbled.

There's something so tranquil about Shinichi's abode. With it's vast space, and occasionally unoccupied rooms, it's understandable how others would find it eerie. However, the stillness to me is an oasis. An island away from the roaring waves of energy outside.

"I'll be in the shower," Shinichi announced after dinner.

"Don't steal all the hot water!" I sharply replied.

My ears recoiled at the sound of him slamming the bathroom door. Say nothing though, and he will leave me to freeze in an ice cold shower...

While preparing for my turn in the tub, I sifted through a drawer. Not his; mine. With the amount of sleepovers I have, Ran and Sonoko also keep one. It's a spare spot for me packed with pajamas, a toothbrush, towels, soap, and basic living necessities. Always prepared for my spontaneous arrivals, seeing as I'm terrible at planning anything.

"Shinichi, you bathe forever..." I openly complained, throwing myself onto his bed out of boredom. To my surprise, it rebounded me to my feet with elastic ease.

"Cool!" I shouted, leaping atop it, and bouncing to my heart's content. Eventually challenging myself to tap the ceiling.

"Your turn!" Shinichi shouted at the slam of a door.

"Wha-!" In a frenzy, I jumped forward.

My elbow inadvertently knocked on Shinichi's desk, toppling a small ceramic pencil holder to the floor. Diving to save it proved useless as it shattered mere inches from my fingers.

Shinichi's incoming steps propelled me into action. I whipped my towel out and scooped the ceramic remains into a pile. Then folded them into the towel, and shoved it all into one of Shinichi's many drawers.

Shinichi began to call, "Keik—?"

As I sprinted past him out the door shouting, "goin'!"

...No towel.

No towel, ergo, no way to dry when I finished my shower. Even after shaking and wringing my hair out I confirmed: air drying does next to nothing... So, I slipped my clothes on over damp skin, half-forcing it, then returned to Shinichi's room. Only to find my efforts were made in vain. He had my towel unfolded, and every bit of what was once a pencil holder laid out before him.

"There's a story here..." Shinichi said, sitting at his desk, eyes darting between me and a piece of broken ceramic between his fingers.

I nervously snuck around his gaze to sit on the bed. "Must be tiny writin' to fit on that."

With a crafty smile, he approached me, stating, "having grown up in Osaka, it's only natural to adopt their tongue. That being said, Osaka-ben is hard to mask, but you do hide it well... except in certain situations..."

Shinichi loomed over, giving me no choice but to lean back. "An' that'd be?" I chirped, my accent heavily laden into those few words.

Shinichi rolled his eyes, smiling as he took a seat next to me, and asked, "explanation?" Then promptly shrugged. "Or should I tell you what I've picked apart?"

"Ya see," I began in a strong voice, aware he's offering me an out, but also aware of his sense of humor. "Someone broke in. And not only did this person jump on your bed," my voice raised accusingly. "This person had the nerve to shatter that precious pencil holder as well— o-on accident, of course..."

"Oooh?" Shinichi chuckled. "Does this person have a name?"

"Um... Well... This person, for fear of blame, wished to remain anonymous."

"Ah, I see." Shinichi draped his towel over my head. "This person left behind a crucial piece of evidence though. Can you believe it? They wrapped the crime up in their own towel; no getting around that in court." He then tugged at my soggy sleeves. "Not to mention the evidence which now shows on their person since they left said towel behind."

Suddenly the door flew open, immediately followed by Agasa's beckoning, "Shinichi!"

We froze on the spot, staring at one another in shock. Until, slowly, we turned, but by then Agasa took it upon himself to scurry away, sputtering an abashed, "sorry!" as he did.

Shinichi rushed into action, "hey, wait!" He chased Agasa down the hall, hurriedly explaining, "it's not what it looks like..."

I rejoined the two as Agasa joyfully stated, "oh, a simple sleepover."

He then produced a beaker from his pocket, and dangled it precariously before us. "Well, it's good that the two of you are here. I have invented a new refreshment! But not just any drink, the flavor of this one varies with each individual's taste bud!"

"But it's blue," I felt the need to point out.

"Someone may find it delicious." Agasa contradicted.

"But it's blue..."

"Moving on," Shinichi interrupted. "What do you want us for?"

Agasa shoved the breaker to Shinichi's lips. "Try it!"

At Shinichi's horrified response, I snickered and elbowed him forward. "Yeah Shinichi, try it. You're the one who asked."

Shinichi resorted to collapsing dramatically onto my shoulder, bemoaning, "and after my poor poor pencil holder was—"

My guilt ridden hand reached for the beaker. "I-I'll try it Professor..." As he passed it, the thick glop sloshed inside, sticking to its clear encasing occasionally with each sway. "Just a taste?"

Agasa eagerly nodded.

I sipped the drink, yet surprisingly, "it tastes like... grapefruit and green tea."

"Really?" Shinichi wrapped his hand around mine to raise it to his mouth. He sampled the concoction, then spat, "gross! Broccoli and coffee!"

"Liar," I yanked it away. "It's good."

"Success!" Agasa proclaimed. "Blame the taste on your genes. For example, some people love broccoli while others can't stand it. This is because your taste buds are different. You two were born with different taste receptors. So, one can taste flavors in food which the other cannot. And this," he proudly pointed to his blue glop, "is proof!"

"Really? Then—"

The telephone interrupted me. Shinichi dismissed himself to answer it.

While sipping more, the idea fascinated me enough to ask, "Professor, how'd you make thi—?" My question broke off at a hiccup.

"A side effect?" Agasa suddenly grabbed my chin, popping my mouth open to examine inside. "Or are you prone to hiccups?"

"No, I'm— (hiccup) it's rare."

"I'll look into this." Agasa scratched his head. "It is late, however I know a store which is open 24/7... Right! I'll buy some equipment before bed, and perhaps you could come by tomorrow for a test?" He allowed me no time to answer before he snatched the beaker and swung out the door. "So much work. Goodbye, Keiko!"

"B— (hiccup) bye!" When Shinichi returned I stuck my tongue out, and inquired, "is it blue?"

He disregarded me to search the room. "Where's the Professor?"

"He left for the— (hiccup) store. Why?"

Shinichi palmed his forehead. "Megure called me in for a case, but now no one's here to watch you."

"I don't need any baby— (hiccup) sitters," I grumbled. "The one constantly tailing me is enough..." At that moment, a brilliant idea occurred to me, "how about I go with you?"

Shinichi checked the clock; nearly midnight. After much consideration, and an attempt to catch Agasa, he finally gave in, "fine..."