This was the fourth time today that he flipped his phone over, stared at the screen desperately, shook his head, and let out a sigh of frustration.

Ran didn't mean to keep a running tally. Her brain did that for her, and despite telling herself that it was wrong to accuse her childhood friend of "indecent things" when she had no proof and no right to, she couldn't keep her imagination at bay.

Ah, there he goes again. Fifth time today, and the number's bound to increase as time went on.

"Shinichi?"

Only then did he drop his exasperated expression and replace it with one of attentiveness and delight. Yukiko-san definitely had an influence on this boy.

"Sorry. What were you saying?"

"Nothing," said Ran, forcing a smile onto her face. "What's the matter with your phone? Are you waiting for a text?"

At this, Shinichi rolled his eyes and sighed. "Yeah. That idiot Miyano is probably still sleeping. It's literally four in the afternoon already. She must've stayed up finishing up work again. She really can't give me a break, huh?"

Ran laughed, ignoring the feeling of her insides twisting in discomfort. "You two are so close; I'm surprised she doesn't listen to you."

Oh, no. Was that tone too sour for her to use? Her discomfort was blatantly obvious. Shinichi, however, being the dense idiot he is, didn't notice a thing. "I know, right! It's really annoying, honestly. We've been through so much together and yet she still doesn't give a damn about me. I really can't tell if she even thinks of me as a friend, at this point."

Ran resisted the urge to roll her eyes at his stupidity. Ugh, men. Always so, so dumb. "How come the two of you still address each other by your last names? You two are so close."

"No idea," said Shinichi, shrugging and taking a sip of his coffee. "She refused very quickly when I brought it up the first time. And the second time. And the ten times after that. Seriously, it's like she doesn't care about her precious partner at all."

At this, Ran fell silent as she remembered how everything started and, at the same time, ended. When she closed her eyes, she could still remember the day he returned as clearly as ever. He swooped her up in a hug and held her so tightly that her heart felt like it was about to explode from the happiness. A few minutes after the smiles and the tears and the long-overdue reunion, he introduced her to her.

Shiho Miyano, his assistant, his partner, his Watson. Not only was she a talented individual in the fields of biochemistry and medicine, a genius that rivaled and even prevailed against Shinichi's brains, but also an extremely beautiful woman with her auburn hair and ice blue eyes that had a certain edge to them but seemed to soften only when facing him. They met in London during the case Shinichi was desperately pursuing, and she was the one who helped him solve everything and return all in one piece. Since then, they have been close friends, and she started to help Shinichi in his detective work, being the only assistant he accepts help from. She moved into an apartment near his house, settling down in Japan permanently.

The existence of Shiho Miyano was something Ran never expected. She had dreamed of Shinichi's return for a long, long time; it was all she could think about, day and night, for the longest time. She was overjoyed when he surprised her, but that happiness cooled down quickly with the arrival of his Watson. Ran knew it was wrong to hate her, as the girl did nothing wrong and was always respectful, but she couldn't stop herself from disliking her for no reason.

After all, she and Shinichi Kudo were not dating.

It was true that they confirmed their feelings for each other a few years back, during his temporary returns in the middle of his case. He was not able to come back for good until another year had passed, and Ran realized an obvious change in him even months before he came back. He was distracted, clearly thinking about something (or someone) else, and Ran was not stupid. She knew, oh, she knew, but she kept her doubts a secret, playing the perfect girlfriend. In reality, she never even had the luxury of living out the full potential of such a title; being the great detective's "girlfriend" for that year seemed to distance her even further from him. As time went by, she realized that she could never become the one he needed by his side. His world was full of mysteries and cases, while she wished to live an ordinary life, immersing herself in a romance that was filled to the brim with pink bubbles and sweet smiles. For years, she thought they would be soulmates, but reality proved her naive self wrong. It wasn't anyone's fault, really.

It was simply never meant to be.

Ran knew that the both of them realized this, as upon returning, Shinichi and she had a serious conversation. He admitted that he was not ready for a relationship, the sort of relationship she envisioned and wanted so desperately, and she confessed that his prioritization of delivering justice over her did not give her the sense of security she needed. The two broke off their relationship before it even began — they stayed good friends, of course, but between them now stood a wall nothing could break down, not even the strongest force of love.

It was mutual, she told herself. It was better this way, for both him and her. Despite all the pep talk she gave herself, Ran knew that deep down, she still loved the boy to bits, and she would never forget a love so strong, so tender, so heartbreaking.

As expected, he did not realize her sudden quietness or discomfort. He never does. He was about to pick up his phone for the seventh time when the phone rang, and once he saw the caller ID, his face bloomed into a smile more brilliant than any he had shown when he was with her. Ran bit her lip as he picked up immediately.

"Hey, Miyano! Finally decided to respond to me? Please don't tell me you just woke up." He paused as he gave her time to respond, taking another sip of his coffee. He stood up abruptly, startling not only Ran but the people at the tables around them in the cafe.

"What the fuck?" he yelled. "Didn't I tell you not to do that anymore? Didn't you promise me? Jesus Christ, what the hell, Miyano? I'm coming over right now. No, shut up. Stay there and wait for me, idiot."

"What happened?" asked Ran as Shinichi hung up and started to pack up his belongings.

"That idiot fainted because of overworking and lack of sleep. Drank too much coffee, too, and hasn't had any real food for a few days. I need to get her some food. And some help."

Without another word, the two left the cafe and, after stopping by a restaurant for some take-out, went to the Miyano apartment. Shinichi led the way, his confident strides exposing just how many times he had taken this path. They walked up the stairs to the third floor, and Shinichi casually opened the door with a key on his keyring.

"Miyano? We're coming in."

This was the first time Ran was inside the Miyano apartment. It was in a good location, but it was messier than she expected. Piles of books and papers were scattered across the desk, and tangled blankets covered the ground in front of the couch. On the table were current issues of fashion magazines beside cups after cups stained with the remains of day-old servings of coffee. In the midst of the mess on the couch lay the brown-haired beauty herself. The loose white button-up she wore was long enough to serve as a dress, showing off her slender legs and creating an air of maturity and elegance around her. Ran couldn't help but eye her own pink dress, which, in comparison, seemed childish.

Shinichi kneeled in front of her, inspecting her sleeping face with a gaze so gentle it hurt to watch. "Miyano, wake up."

The woman stirred and mumbled something inaudible as a response. Even from the distance she was standing, Ran could see the dark circles under the scientist's eyes. That, however, didn't make her less beautiful. Ran hated to admit it, but every time she saw her, she felt a sense of shame for how much she lacked.

Shinichi held up the plastic bag of food he bought earlier. "Hey. I have your favorite sandwich here. Peanut butter and blueberry jam, just as you like it."

Groggily, Shiho sat up and took the bag from him. Shinichi stood up and poured a glass of water for her. After a long sip of water, she looked more refreshed and awake.

That's when icy blue orbs met the dark blue ones, and the former clearly tensed up.

"Hi, Miyano-san," said Ran, feeling the need to announce her presence. "Are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine," Shiho replied, dodging her gaze. "I'm sorry for presenting myself like this and troubling you. There's no need to worry."

"What are you saying?" Shinichi sat down on the floor in front of her. "If I didn't come over, you were going to just pass out for forever. You know, if you die, the police are probably going to investigate me as a prime suspect. That'd be actually troubling."

"Oh?" Shiho raised an eyebrow. "And what would your motive be? 'My assistant only suffered a week of lack of sleep for my case?' 'I hate the way she does all the work I tell her to do perfectly?'"

"You really aren't cute." Shinichi rolled his eyes. "Also, please don't tell me you passed out because of the Sakura Fujimoto case?"

"What else could it be?"

"Are you dumb? I told you not to push yourself! I know it's hard to research! I thought you were working on a research paper!"

"I am," said Shiho, tossing back her hair. "Get me some coffee."

"Shiho Miyano, you did not just overwork yourself to finish your paper AND the casework this week."

"Yes, I did, now get me some coffee."

Shinichi raised his eyebrow. "What's the magic word?"

Shiho stared at him. "Kudo-kun, I need coffee."

"The magic word?"

"Please?" said Shiho, sighing.

Shinichi smiled at her. "Good job, but the answer's still 'no.' You've had enough black coffee for the year. No more of that. It's unhealthy."

"Kudo-kun, I'm not a child."

"Then stop acting like one," he said, poking her forehead playfully. "Don't talk back."

Shiho swatted his hand away. "Idiot," she said simply, covering the pink tint that appeared on her cheeks with her sleeves.

"You need to take a break. Let's watch Sherlock later. You still haven't seen it, right?"

"I don't need a break, but I'll take the offer if you finally read the articles I sent you. They're very intriguing."

"Deal. Jesus, I still don't know how you did all that work. Miyano, why do you do so much for me?"

Shiho's fingers that were reaching towards one of her cups faltered, and for a second, Ran saw a dozen emotions flash across her face. Biting her lip, Shiho stole a glance at Ran before sitting back.

"Don't be narcissistic. I'm just doing my job. You should leave. I'm interrupting your date," said Shiho, avoiding Ran's eyes.

That was when Shinichi seemed to remember Ran's existence. He turned to look at her, almost seemingly surprised that she was there, and Ran forced a smile onto her face. "Ah, sorry, Ran," he said.

"It's okay," said Ran. "Miyano-san, it wasn't a date. Don't worry. Also, I should get going. I just remembered that I have to meet Mom for something."

"Sorry, Ran, I'm gonna stay here with this idiot for a bit. After she recovers, we have some work to go over," said Shinichi. Shiho seemed to want to protest, but Shinichi gestured for her to eat her sandwich, to which she complied with.

"Ah, okay. Then, I'll be off. I hope you feel better, Miyano-san." Without another word, Ran left the apartment. Before closing the door, she took one last glance at the two. Shinichi was scolding her for not taking care of herself while Shiho tried to look annoyed as she hid her smile. As she walked away from them, she let out a long sigh.

From the very second Shiho Miyano showed up, Ran Mouri knew that she could never win against her. Shiho was beautiful, talented, and most importantly, she lived in the same world Shinichi Kudo lived in, a world of mysteries, danger, and fighting crime. She was able to listen to him talk about Sherlock Holmes and the cases he was involved in, and she could even win against him in mind games and intellectual debates. Ran could never reach such a level, no matter how hard she tried.

She knew that Shiho did not destroy her perfect romance. No, it was far from that. It was bound to happen. Ran knew that Shiho kept fighting against her feelings because the love she was feeling was the same as Ran's — for the same man. It was obvious that Shiho's refusal for Shinichi to address her by her first name was because of such a struggle; she saw Ran's love for him, and she did not want to stand in their way. Although Ran may back down in defeat when it came to IQ battles, she definitely was not stupid in matters of love. There was no right or wrong in this situation, just unluckiness. After all, all is fair in love and war.

No matter how much they tried to cover it up, anyone and everyone could tell that the two were in love with each other. Shiho's willingness to do anything and everything for Shinichi, his desperate care for her wellbeing, their playful banter, and the way they looked at each other gave everything away. There was no use in hiding it — their love for each other overflowed from every move, every look, and every word. There was no space for Ran to interject in the beginning.

No matter how much she outstretched her arm and tried to hold on, maybe a little too desperately, deep down she knew that she could never be a part of their world. Great detective Shinichi Kudo loved mysteries, and Shiho Miyano was Miss Mystery herself.