Shinichi spat out the mouthful of whatever chocolate syrup pretending to be coffee that was set in front of him, spraying it over the table and sputtering as he tried to get the taste off his tongue. He grabbed napkins from the dispenser and swathed over his tongue, the rough, wet paper even better than the extra-sweet drink.

"Don't worry bout the mess. I've got it."

Shinichi glared at the man seated across from him, amusement and irritation on his face as he dabbed at the mess between them.

"That was disgusting. Aren't you worried about diabetes?" Shinichi demanded, reaching for the untouched cup of coffee settled near the man's side of the table.

"About as much as you're worried about overdosing on caffeine." He grabbed the cup Shinichi abandoned, sipping on it and making an exaggeratedly pleased face. "Would it kill you to get decaf?"

"It might," Shinichi muttered, huddling over his cup defensively. "Don't you need to catch a train soon?"

"I've got another twenty minutes," the man said, tilting his chair back on two legs and grinning. "You know you miss me when I'm gone."

"Like a hangnail," Shinichi said, kicking under the table at one of the raised legs. The man wobbled in place, grabbing the table top to keep his balance. He resettled with a frown. "I see you for forty minutes twice a week. I barely know you."

"I doubt that, Kudou-keibu," the man said, leaning forward to rest his elbows on the table.

Shinichi narrowed his eyes, but it wasn't unusual for someone to recognize him. He was in the papers and on the news a fair amount ever since he replaced Shiratori as the head of Department One. But this was the first time that the man admitted to knowing him.

"And you're not going to introduce yourself?" he asked, when the man simply sat watching him, resting his chin in one of his hands and tracing a circle around the mouth of his cup with the other.

"Kuroba Kaito," he said, raising his hand from his cup and offering a jaunty salute. "It's been three weeks and you've never recognized me?"

"I'm supposed to?" Shinichi asked, frowning when Kaito shrugged and went back to staring at him intently.

"I guess not. Good job solving the Himura case, by the way. You were really impressive." Kaito hooked a finger in the small container of sugar packets and pulled it towards himself. He started shuffling through the packets and sorting them by color.

"Thanks," Shinichi said, watching the strange ritual with small interest. Kaito was always doing something with his hands, seemingly never settled unless he was doing close up magic tricks. "But I didn't actually solve that one. Takagi-san was responsible for-"

"Modest, too," Kaito interrupted, pushing the newly arranged sugar packets towards the middle of the table. "I actually heard Takagi consulted with you every step of the way."

"Consulted," Shinichi repeated, jabbing a finger at Kaito's face. "Takagi found the leads, followed up with everything, and made the major break-through we needed. All I did were basically spot checks. He orchestrated the whole thing."

"So not modesty." Kaito's fingers slid forward, but he pulled back when Shinichi swatted his hand away from his drink. "That's pretty admirable."

"It's basic decency," Shinichi said, warily watching as Kaito pulled a deck of cards from his jacket and started shuffling them in arcs between his hands.

"You looked really natural in front of the cameras during the press release," Kaito said, snapping the deck together and flicking a card on the table between them. "See you around, Kudou."

Kaito took off with a grin, vanishing between customers and towards the door. Kaito's unoccupied chair was quickly snagged by a group of students as they congregated at an adjacent table. Shinichi picked up the card and frowned at the phone number scrawled under Kaito's name and the tiny little heart at the end.

-X-

"So nothing interesting's happened?"

"We solved the Hamada case yesterday. Satou actually identified the vehicle through a convenience store camera-"

"In your personal life, Shin-chan!" His mother huffed over the phone. "Good job with that; we're very proud. But has anything changed for you?"

"No," Shinichi ventured, frowning as she sighed and clucked her tongue at him. "Should something have?"

"I live in hope," she said, laughing softly once. "Your father and I will be visiting in a few days. I'm finished with filming and your father's evading his editor until he gets the rest of his research done, so make sure you air out the house before we get there, okay?"

"Sure," he agreed, crunching up his nose in distaste. "How long are you staying?"

"Long enough to spend some time with you," she shot back. "So don't try to avoid us, understand? I'll march right to your office with embarrassing pictures, you know I will."

"I'll be free." He glanced up as Kaito settled across the table, scaring off one of the other customers angling for the chair with a ferocious grin. "I'll see you soon, I guess."

"Yes you will. Love you, Shin-chan," she chirped, hanging up before he could say it back.

"Good news?" Kaito asked, placing a plate filled with muffins in the center of the table.

"Not bad news," Shinichi allowed, pulling his cup away from Kaito's reach. "What are those?"

"Lemon poppy seed muffins. Want one?" Kaito picked one up, pulled away the wrapper, and stuffed half the muffin in his mouth. Shinichi pulled his cup closer a he watched, reaching out right after to pull the muffin plate out of crumb splatter range. "They're really good."

"You are disgusting," Shinichi said, waving a napkin at Kaito. "Don't speak with your mouth full."

"Sorry," Kaito said, gulping down a huge bite and taking the napkin from Shinichi. "What's going on?"

Shinihi stared at him.

"On the phone. It's not bad news," Kaito prompted, finishing his muffin in more conservative bites.

"My parents are visiting so I need to clean the house and entertain them until they leave." Shinichi grimaced and took one of the muffins. He peeled the wrapper off and tore a little piece from the muffin top. It had a very strong lemon flavor, the poppy seeds and something only mildly sweet tempering the vibrant flavor. When he looked back up, Kaito's eyes darted away.

"Your father's an author, right?" Kaito asked, face turned back towards the door.

"Yeah," Shinichi confirmed. "And my mother's an actress, so they're both gone a lot."

"Even when you were younger?" Kaito asked, cautiously taking another muffin and mimicking Shinichi by tearing off small chunks instead of stuffing his face.

"Not when I was really little. But they were busy and it was easier for me to stay in one place than follow them and have tutors. I stayed with a family friend until I was old enough to stay alone." Shinichi tugged the lemon muffins closer, unwrapping another one and pulling the top off. "My parents are a lot to take."

"My mother's like that," Kaito said. "She writes for a travel magazine and spends most of her time out of the country. She used to take one trip a year until I graduated high school and committed to it full time."

Shinichi noticed the omission, but Kaito didn't have to explain anything to him. A dead or absent father wasn't really a topic someone discussed over breakfast at a coffee shop with a semi-familiar stranger. Kaito waved off the muffin plate Shinichi nudged his way, drawing out a deck of cards, building tetrahedrons and stacking them in a tower.

"Do you see her often?" he asked, twitching his hand away from the remaining muffins and curling it around his nearly forgotten coffee.

"We meet up when we can," Kaito said, smiling as he knocked the top of the tower off with a hand, the cards neatly separating as they landed on the table top and in a pile. Kaito gathered them up and tucked them out of sight. "So you're going to be busy then."

"Not busy enough," Shinichi muttered, starting as Kaito gathered up the muffins into a white paper bag he pulled from his jacket, crisply folding the top and holding it out between them. "What?"

"You liked them, right? Take them to work," Kaito pushed the bag into his hands, almost spilling Shinichi's coffee with the force of it.

"I can't!" he protested, juggling the cup to get a proper grip on the bag.

"Sorry! No can do. Consider it a thank you. Or a condolence gift." Kaito was on his feet and backing away from the table, rubbing elbows with the frenetic customers bustling between the tables.

Shinichi clutched the bag of muffins and sighed, frown growing more pronounced as he noticed the heart doodle with his name in the middle on the back of the bag.

Kaito was strange.

-X-

"I thought you wanted to spend time with me," Shinichi said, stopping in the doorway of the dining room. The table was still set, the unused plates, bowls and glasses arranged around three empty seats. His mother looked up at him, still typing away even as she met his eyes.

"You were just about to cry off with an excuse,"she said, arching a look at him when he shifted in discomfort.

"I wasn't," he lied, and jumped when his father's hand came down on his shoulder.

"You were. And it's fine. It's been three days and no one has had any peace," his father said, grin widening as he tightened his grip on Shinichi's shoulder. "We can go to that lecture series, instead of doing lunch."

"How cultures across the world profile serial killers?" Shinichi asked, perking up at the prospect.

"I have two tickets for the entire series."

"And I can go meet my friend for lunch," his mother announced, wiggling her phone. "They just said they'll be free. We can do late dinner if you want."

"Sure," he agreed immediately, relaxing as she crossed over to him and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

"I'll see you boys tonight," she said, turning to give Yuusaku a kiss on the cheek as well. She smoothed down her dress one last time and strode down the hallway, the front door slamming behind her. There was a moment of quiet, and then the sound of screeching tires reached them as she sped off.

"I should send an alert to the traffic cops to watch for her, shouldn't I?" Shinichi said.

-X-

"What is that?" Satou asked, loud enough to reach Shinichi in his office. He glanced up from the forms he was filling out and started in surprise as a bouquet of balloons, all in blue with his name on them, drifted in first, then a potted bonsai tree, and finally a delivery man from the Yamanaka flower shop until all were in front of his desk.

"Delivery for Kudou Shinichi," the man said, carefully placing the bonsai on the edge of his desk and letting go of the balloons. They bobbed up to the ceiling, their tails curling in the air around his forehead.

"Who sent them?" Satou asked, grinning as she followed the delivery man inside his office. She hooked a finger around the balloon tails and sent them rocking back upwards. "Do you have a sweetheart, sir?"

"Did the sender leave a name or note?" Shinichi asked the delivery man, ignoring the balloons for the more reasonable gift. The bonsai tree was delicately formed and recently pruned to keep it healthy and neat. He didn't have much luck with plants in general, but having one in the office meant someone would notice if it needed water.

"Just a card," the delivery man said, offering a small white card to Shinichi. There was a hand-drawn heart with his name inside on the front and blank space across the back. But he could make an educated guess concerning the sender.

Especially since Kaito missed their usual meeting that morning.

"You do have a sweetheart," Satou said, reading the card over his shoulder.

"Aren't you supposed to be busy?" he asked her, placing the card on his desk. "Was there anything else?"

"That's all. Have a good afternoon, sir."

"I'm taking my lunch break right now," Satou said, moving around his desk to study the bonsai tree. "This is lovely."

"With Takagi, right?" he clarified when Satou stared at him. "You take your lunches with Takagi, usually. So you're just bothering me while waiting for him to get back with takeout."

"I just think it's interesting that you're bringing muffins and cookies with your coffee in the morning; the bag usually decorated with your name and hearts. And now you're getting gifts sent to you marked in the same way. Like you're having breakfast dates before you come in. For the past four months." Satou brushed a finger over one of the branches, pulling her hand up into a lazy salute as she left the office. "If you're dating someone, you could just tell us."

-X-

The gifts continued to arrive, sometimes even on days when he'd seen Kaito. Lemon bars, lemon cakes, chocolate covered coffee beans, and sour candies arrived with whatever he'd ordered for lunch. Rare editions of Kaimen Yaiba manga were dropped in his mail. A ticket for an author's book signing was slipped in the pages of the book he read on the train when he traveled.

Kaito knew things about his life, things that Shinichi was sure he didn't divulge. Kaito was observant, so noticing that Shinichi enjoyed lemon-flavored treats wasn't impossible to believe. But the manga and ticket spoke a degree of familiarity with Shinichi's life, hobbies, and interests.

All things that weren't shared during their short morning meetings.

-X-

"I think he's stalking me," Shinichi said over the phone, cupping the mouthpiece with his hand to muffle his voice. "He knows things I didn't tell him so that means he's watching me. Observing me. That first time, when he let me know he recognized me, that was a test. How observant of his surroundings is my victim."

"The guy you meet for coffee dates?" Ran asked, train rattling noisily in the background. "I thought he was sending you romantic gifts."

"He knows I like Kaimen Yaiba and I've never told a single person that," Shinichi said, placing sunglasses over his eyes to hide how closely he was watching the people on the sidewalk with him.

"Except for me," Ran said, smirk audible over the phone.

"You were present when my obsession developed. I never had to tell you," Shinichi said back. "But you're missing the point. How does he know that? I buy new issues at a kiosk on my way home, and then they never leave my house. He either saw me buying one, which would mean he's stalking me, or he's been in my house and saw my collection, which means he's stalking me and isn't afraid to violate my property."

"Or he saw you buying one by chance and decided to send you a collectible because he's trying to be romantic. Wasn't it an issue you already own?"

"Yeah," he admitted, but that wasn't important. "But an intelligent stalker wouldn't immediately send an edition I was missing. That would all but admit that he was stalking. He's been smart. Testing me. Seeing what I notice and then switching tactics to get under my guard."

"By sending you manga," Ran said, "Shinichi, do you feel threatened?"

"Not really." But he had a skewed sense of danger.

"You're a police officer. You know your resources and you know the law. If you think he's actually stalking you, you know how to handle it."

"But you don't think he's stalking me."

"If you think he is and it's worrying you, then I think you should handle the situation. I don't want you hurt."

-X-

In the end, he decided that direct action was his best route. As worrying as the gifts were, Kaito never seemed threatening. And Shinichi was sure the busy cafe would deter any hostile confrontation if Kaito was a problem.

"Are you following me?" he asked as Kaito sat down across from him, placing a plate of lemons squares on the table between them.

"No," Kaito said immediately, eyebrows flying upwards in surprise. "Why would I be following you?"

"I don't know," Shinichi admitted, "But some of the things you've been sending me are weird. Getting gifts from you is weird."

"Okay," Kaito said, pausing at length and staring at him. Shinichi felt warmer, discomfort pulling his shoulders tight. He kept his hands wrapped round his cup to stop himself from fiddling with things on the table or taking one of the lemon squares. "So you don't want anymore gifts."

"If I knew why you were sending them, it wouldn't be bad. At first, I thought you were just saying sorry for not meeting me here, but then they just kept arriving. And some of the things you sent me-"

"They did start as apology gifts," Kaito said, shrugging once and relaxing noticeably. "I enjoy our time together and felt bad about missing you. Then I started seeing things that I thought you'd like and couldn't bother stopping myself."

"But the manga? The author signing? How did you know-"

"I notice things about you. You were carrying a book last week. It was very used and the edges were colorful, like you'd made notations inside with highlighters. So when I saw a book signing, I bought one of the tickets to meet the author. And I buy gossip magazines at the same kiosk you buy your manga. The owner mentioned you and what you usually bought."

"So they were all coincidences."

"I pay a lot of attention, and I was asking around about you." Kaito nudged the plate of lemon squares over to him. "I think you're very interesting."

"You... like me?" Shinichi asked, dropping his eyes to the plate between them instead of holding Kaito's eyes.

"Of course I do," Kaito said, as if it was that simple. As if there wasn't anything else he could feel. "You're incredible."

"Oh." Shinichi straightened, glancing around them nervously, but he smiled when he looked back to Kaito.

-X-

"So you're dating someone," Satou said, leaning on the door frame in his office. She pointed at the bonsai and then the inexpicable globe made out of cork with little pins stuck in it for where his parents were traveling at the time.

"I guess I am," Shinichi said, though so far the only dates they'd had were the ones they'd had before they started dating. Only now they seemed to include Kaito pressing kisses to his hand when he left instead of just saying good bye. Which was both sweet and embarrassing, but no one seemed to notice Kaito's bizarre gentleman behavior.

"You guess?" Satou said, "You've been getting gifts for months now."

"Yeah, but we're still seeing each other about the same amount."

"You should tell them if you want to meet more often," Satou said, glancing over her shoulder at the commotion in the office. "You need to be direct with people."

"That's how you worked things out with Takagi?"

She blushed, but didn't back down. "Exactly how. Sometimes you have to be the one to take a chance."

-X-

"You really want to go on a date with me?" Kaito said, almost repeating verbatim what Shinichi said. But his face was open in genuine pleasure, lips curled up, eyes wide, a warm flush to his cheeks. "That's amazing!"

"It's not that amazing. If we're dating, that implies we go on dates." Shinichi stopped himself from crossing his arms or hunching his shoulders. He was highly aware they were in a public venue, even if no one was paying them any attention.

"But it seemed like you were really happy with just morning dates." Kaito shook his head, reaching across the table to grab Shinichi's hand. "Not that I'm complaining. I love morning coffee dates with you. Do you want to try dinner? Or a museum trip? Maybe a-"

"Dinner would be really great. Maybe on Thursday?"

Kaito's face faltered a little, brows furrowing in thought. "That's not a good day for me. Saturday night?"

He usually visited his proteges on Saturdays, but he could leave a little early for once. "We could eat at that French place a few blocks from Todai's administration building?"

"Yeah. That works for me. I'll meet you there or should I pick you up?"

"There. Then you could take me home." Shinichi couldn't stop the faint flush, but he pushed himself through it. Kaito seemed to appreciate him regardless, his eyes dropping to Shinichi's lips and then away quickly.

"Yeah." Kaito's fingers slid down to his wrist, nails scraping gently across his palm as he drew back. "Saturday at eight?"

"Saturday at eight."

-X-

"So he wasn't stalking, he was actually being really observant about you and what you like, though asking people about you at places you frequent is a little weird, but on the whole, he seems to be very, very into you," Ran summarized, placing her chin in her hand and leaning on his counter. She ignored the way the skillet of vegetables sizzled and spat, something Shinichi himself couldn't ignore, but also reminded him of what Ran promised to do if he touched anything in the kitchen that was instrumental to the cooking process.

"Would you do something about that?" he snapped as she just waited for him to answer.

She rolled her eyes and made a big production of stirring the vegetables and turning the burner off.

"So?" she prodded.

"So Kaito's not so bad." Ran snorted and he raised his voice with a pointed look. "He's dialed back on the weird gifts."

"But not the food, right." She gave the heart-bedecked white bag with mini lemon cheesecakes a very meaningful look. "I always knew the way to your heart was through your stomach. You were gone on me the first time I shared my lunch with you, weren't you?"

"Ran!" He jabbed a finger at the skillet.

"It's a really good thing I never fell for you back," she said, grabbing the skillet and doling out even portions onto two plates. "You're really demanding."

"You're a bully," he muttered, stomach still churning at the reminder of his once-crush on his best friend.

"Of course I am," she agreed. "It happens when you're friends with the biggest troublemaker in Japan. If I couldn't stop you, no one could."

There wasn't anything he could protest about that. Ran's frightening displays of what she'd do to him if he even considered slinking after some strange men dressed in all black were what kept him alive and felony-free, he was sure.

"Tomorrow night, wear that outfit I laid out for you and do not let him pay. He's been buying you treats for months. You can cover dinner at the very least. And if you invite him in for coffee," she drew the word out, making a distinctly unladylike gesture she had to have picked up from hanging around Hattori. Subtle euphemisms were lost on Hattori. "You can show him how much you appreciate those little treats."

"Oh god." He dropped his head to the counter and wrapped his arms around to hide his face entirely.

"I know you, Shinichi," Ran said, blithely ignoring him. "You fall fast, you fall hard, and you fall for forever. If you're not thinking about it right this second, you will be as soon as I'm gone. Unless you'd like some tips?"

"If you promise," he started, raising his head so she would know he was being serious. "If you promise to never, ever tell anyone at all, I will admit to wanting some... tips. Deal?"

"Done," she said instantly, picking up chopsticks.

She would keep that promise, but she'd never, ever stop reminding him about it. He supposed he could live with that.

-X-

Shinichi had made reservations, mostly to ensure a table, but there weren't any other people besides the staff. It was suspicious, but not entirely unbelievable. There was a large student population nearby and most college age students couldn't afford dinner at a fine dining establishment. The staff didn't seem to think anything was wrong, in any case, so he ignored it until Kaito arrived.

The hostess was blushing as she led Kaito to the table, hurrying through the pleasantries as soon as Kaio was seated. She handed over menus and scurried off, vanishing behind the hostess stand. He watched her go and turned to Kaito, raising an eyebrow inquiringly.

"She probably thinks we're too cute," Kaito said, looking over his shoulder in the direction of the hostess before turning back to Shinichi. "You'd think they don't see same-sex couples here."

"Likely too few," Shinichi said, accepting it and pushing it aside.

"I'm really happy you're here with me," Kaito said, lowering the menu so he could meet Shinichi's eyes. "We see each other a lot, but I always have to leave too soon."

"I should give you my phone number." Kaito's eyes widened slightly, a grin stretching his lips that Shinichi mirrored back. "Then you can call me instead of waiting to see me again."

"That would be perfect." Kaito glanced at their waiter as he approached the table, visibly swallowing back something.

"Could I get you anything to drink?" he asked.

"I reserved a bottle of wine with the table," Shinichi said, ignoring the surprised look Kaito gave him. "Under Kudou."

"Yes, sir." The waiter hesitated. "And have you decided on your courses?"

"We'll start with the cheese plate," Shinichi said, turning to direct his attention at Kaito. Kaito nodded, eyes flitting over the menu. "For the main course, I'll have the braised pork."

"And I'll have the almond-crusted duck. And for dessert, the lemon and raspberry dacquoise," Kaito finished, handing over the menu. The waiter took the menus and headed for the kitchen. "Are you any closer to finding Tajiri?"

Shinichi grimaced. "No. We're still struggling to get access to his residence. His son is refusing to cooperate at every step. We know he's hiding him, but trapping him into implicating himself isn't working."

"And you're sure he's had something to do with the murder?"

"He's the only one with the questionable alibi. We've checked the whereabouts of all 100 guests at the event. And if they have questionable gaps, we've been able to prove they don't have the physical capability to have committed the murder in the first place." Shinichi rubbed at his temples, the reminder reigniting the ache that had been there since Thursday night.

"That's unfortunate," Kaito said, reaching across the table and offering his hand. Shinichi tangled his fingers with Kaito's and relaxed as the tension headache slowly dissipated.

"How have you been?" Shinichi asked.

"Been busy the past few days. Aoko's getting married and she's dragging me all over the country to find the perfect venue." Kaito squeezed his hand. All of the nervous and habitual tics he'd seen Kaito do during their time together seemed to have evaporated, stillness and intensity all turned to watching him instead of flipping cards.

"She still hasn't found the right place?"

"She wants it to be perfect. It's not every day you marry a diplomat, Kaito. The guest list is very large, Kaito. We need a venue to host a large group and still be intimate, Kaito." He rolled his eye and sighed. "I'm so sick of looking at majestic scenery."

Shinichi felt his lip twitch and turned his head aside so Kaito wouldn't see.

"And Hakuba doesn't care?"

"Hakuba has abandoned even the pretense that he cares. He'd marry in a courthouse if she'd let him. She's the one who wants to impress his colleagues."

The cheese platter being set between them broke the mood, but Shinichi didn't care. Kaito drew his hand back with a regretful look, chattering about flowers and table settings and reservations. Time constraints usually gave their conversations an edge that he couldn't ignore.

But he didn't have anywhere to be.

-X-

"You should let me drive, next time. We would have been here twenty minutes ago," Shinichi said, running his hands down the passenger seat armrest. The leather was soft under his fingers and the interior gleamed, everything smelling faintly like cleaner and polish.

"I'd like to arrive without a ticket or a scratch on the paint. Do you have any idea what this costs to get detailed?" Kaito said, shifting the car into park and casting an appraising look at the Kudou Manor. "Pretty big place for just you."

"It's my parents'. And it's easier to live here than to pay for my own place when they're barely home." Shinichi unbuckled, placing a hand on Kaito's thigh and smiling faintly at the stiff set to Kaito's shoulders. His heart was beating a bit faster, but he wasn't going to talk himself out of this. "Would you like to come in for coffee?"

"Coffee would be great," Kaito said, the darkened interior not hiding the flush on Kaito's face or his blown pupils.

Shinichi climbed out of the car, taking a deep steadying breath as he shut the door behind him. The soft thud of Kaito's door closing ratcheted his nerves, but it was more anticipation than anxiety. He lead the way to the front door, feeling Kaito's presence against the line of his back. Hesitant fingers wrapped around his hip, settling him against Kaito's side as he stopped on the porch.

His hands were steady as he unlocked the door. His stomach felt bottomless, like when he'd gone base jumping with Hattori last summer. It was a sweet, fearless anticipation, and just the gentle pressure of Kaito' had against his hip, even through the layer of his slacks and pants was so promising.

"Shinichi?"

"Welcome," Shinichi said, pushing the door open and taking a bracing breath. Kaito shadowed him as he entered, and Shinichi gave him an appraising look as he closed the door behind him and started to heel off his shoes.

"Coffee?" Kaito asked, a slight hitch to his breath, and more than anything else, that made up his mind for him.

He pinned Kaito against the front door, leaning his weight against the other man enough to keep him in place. Kaito's mouth opened in surprise and Shinichi took the opportunity to kiss him as deeply as he wanted. He sucked Kaito's bottom lip between his and lapped at it and then into Kaito's mouth, running the tip of his tongue against Kaito's.

The surprise was knocked out of Kaito at that. Hands tightened around Shinichi's waist, tugging him even closer, and Kaito's chin went up to make up for that small height advantage Shinichi had. It was less awkward when Kaito tilted into the kiss, but quickly becoming the best part of the night. Kaito kissed like he'd finessed the art years ago, and all that experience was gradually unraveling in the face of Shinichi's eager passion. It was devolving into a sloppy mess, but every wet pass of their tongues sliding against each other seemed wired to the heat building in his chest and Shinichi wasn't going to suppress a second of feeling that.

Kaito's fingers tangled into the line of his slacks, dragging his hips into a soft rolling grind against Kaito's. The distinct bulge of Kaito's cock pulled his attention from mapping Kaito's mouth and memorizing his subsequent reactions, pushing all of Ran's advice right to the forefront of his mind.

He pulled out of the kiss and was on his knees so quickly, Kaito made a dissatisfied groan until he realized where Shinichi was. Kaito's belt was opened and slid free, buckle hitting the ground beside Shinichi's knees. He popped the button and pulled the zipper before looking up at Kaito.

"Is this too fast?"

"No!" Kaito's hands hovered over him, brushing through his hair, his shoulders, the side of his face, before one slid back to grip the door handle and the other braced himself upright. "Not too fast. But I'll need to return the favor, you understand."

"Tomorrow," he promised.

-X-

Shinichi woke up when the bed shifted under him, the warm skin under his hand briefly stirring and then resettling with a sigh.

He pushed himself upright and blearily took in Kaito's sleeping face, turned into a pillow and drooling. He had one arm over Kaito's chest and a leg thrown over Kaito's. He drew back as silently as he was able, climbing out of bed and out the door before he could disturb Kaito.

He did stop to pull a pair of pajama bottoms out of his dresser before he left, though. He didn't expect anyone to bother them, but he wasn't comfortable walking around naked either. And he wanted to grab the morning paper without scandalizing his neighbors.

He turned on the coffee pot before heading for the front door and collecting the paper. He straightened the shoes in the genkan, picking up and shaking Kaito's hastily shed jacket. He hung it on a hook and went back to the kitchen, yawning at the early hour.

Kaito's face grinned back at him when he shook open the paper, staring at it for so long the coffee finished brewing and clicked to warm. Apparently, Magic 1412 was a box office hit and expected to launch a sequel in the upcoming years where Kuroba Kaito would be reprising his role as infamous magician thief, KID.

"Morning," Kaito said from behind him, passing Shinichi in a beeline for the coffee. "I slept fantastically. Your bed is so comfortable."

Kaito was opening and closing cabinets in search for a mug, idly chattering about something Shinichi wasn't paying attention to in favor of reading the rest of the article.

The reviewer gushed about the acting choices, including one cameo by Kudou Yukiko as the head of the ever-intimidating Organization. The special effects were excellent, oh and by the by, were viewers aware that Kuroba Kaito actually performed all the magic in the movie himself? Son of famous deceased magician Kuroba Toichi and world-traveler Kuroba Chikage, Kuroba Kaito could have had a lucrative career in magic, but auditioned for a role that made him a household name, instead.

"Shinichi?"

Shinichi folded the paper flat and stared at Kaito. Kaito had two coffee mugs, one held out in offer to Shinichi, and his eyes widened as Shinichi directed his attention to the paper.

"This is why the restaurant was empty? Why people don't feel uncomfortable to share information with you? Why you thought I should recognize you?"

"Yeah," Kaito admitted, setting Shiichi's mug in the center of the table and turning the paper so he could read it. "It's a surprise when I meet people who don't. After I admitted I knew about you, I thought you'd look into me."

Which Shinichi should have done as soon as he suspected Kaito was stalking him. But Kaito had a way of disarming suspicion that was only partly the fault of his habitual treats and presents. The rest was undeniably the fault of the electric energy he'd felt last night, being Kaito's sole focus in such an intimate setting.

"And you didn't explain because..."

"I liked that you didn't treat me differently, when I thought you knew. And I told you all the important things about my life. Acting and being famous isn't any different from your job, except I get far harsher criticism about my personal choices."

Shinichi let that settle, watching Kaito and his anxious fingers folding the edges of the newspaper. Kaito was tense, the stiff lines in his shoulders worlds away from the tension Shinichi had been so gratified to build and crest.

Like he was expecting everything to fall apart now.

But Shinichi still had a bag decorated with hearts sitting on the counter behind Kaito that told him more than enough about Kaito's intentions.

"Sugar's in that cabinet," Shinichi said, pointing at the cabinet to his right and taking a pointed sip from his mug. He pulled his paper away from Kaito and straightened the edges, ignoring Kaito's huge smile and victory arms.