He looked up from his papers and glanced toward the clock situated on his work desk. It read 5:30 PM. Letting out a small sigh, he reached up a hand to pull his reading glasses from his face, revealing his bright azure eyes. They felt tired and he rubbed them, then leaned back and stretched his arms behind his back.

Shinichi had had a long day. Cases after cases. So many opened ones. He silently cursed the department's head for being too greedy and taking up way more than they could handle, and now it's up to the detectives to sort through them tirelessly to decide which ones and how many each one should take.

The sun was slowly descending outside his window, tiny rays were trying to squeeze into his musky office. He reached over and turned on a lamp.

He suddenly felt so tired and just wanted to go home and take a nap. Then he remembered.

He had a date tonight.

Standing up from his seat, he organized his papers into neat piles, picked up his suitcase and gently placed them inside. He'd take a look at them tonight before bed.

Just then, another detective knocked onto his slightly ajar door.

"Hey," he said. Shinichi glanced up.

"Hey" was his reply.

"The guys are gonna go grab a drink now. Wanna come with?" He gestured with his head toward a bunch of others standing in the lobby. All in dark suits.

Shinichi shook his head then grinned. "Can't. Got a date tonight."

The other's eyes lit up. "Oh man, is she hot?" he asked.

Shinichi clasped his suitcase closed. "Very," he replied, smirking.

Shiho combed her wet hair that matted against her forehead as her bright green eyes ran over the words on a piece of paper swiftly. She did a report tonight on an experiment and somehow she wasn't very satisfied with the results.

A frown made its way onto her pretty face as she kept reading. Then, she put down the comb and pulled the paper closer to her. There was definitely something off here… As her train of thought was running wildly, the sound of an opened door startled her.

Turning toward the sound, she stood up, fixed her robes and walked downstairs.

Shinichi closed the door behind him, glanced up at her and grinned.

"Hey, how's your day?" he asked.

She followed him into the kitchen. "Decent," she replied. "How's yours?"

"Typical" was his reply.

She sat down in a kitchen chair and watched as he poured them cups of tea. She thanked him and brought it up to her lips. Jasmine.

He was struggling today to get his tie off. She stood up, walked toward him and placed her hand over his shoulder.

"Let me," she said softly. His hands stilled and she took over.

Her soft, pale hands worked their magic swiftly against the knot and before long, the black tie came loose in her hand. He was watching her the entire time.

Then, out of the blue, he leaned down and kissed her.

It was so perfect and unexpected that she didn't have time to react. Before she knew it, he pulled away with a smirk on his face. His cologne dangled in the air.

"Thanks," he said, took the tie from her and walked away. She didn't move.

"I guess it's the adrenaline," he was saying as he walked up the stairs to their bedroom. "Usually, I'm good at this tie business but I suppose the date unnerves me."

She felt shattered. Right, he had a date tonight. Not with her. With an unknown woman.

Shiho followed him into the bedroom. He wasn't there. The shower was turned on. She sat down on their neatly made bed. Her hand tenderly reached out and caressed the blankets. Maybe tonight they would make love. Maybe these blankets wouldn't look so perfect then.

A sigh escaped her lips. She stood up, walked toward the dresser, picked up the hair oil and started oiling her smooth locks. The woman staring back at her from the mirror seemed so alienated.

The shower shut off. She didn't know how long she'd stood there. He walked out in his white robes, rubbing his dark, wet hair with a towel.

"I have three more cases today," he said as he was trying to pick out his outfit for tonight. "The other ten are still unsolved so I don't know how I am going to do this."

"You'll figure it out," she said.

"They need a better system actually," he sighed. He'd picked out a black shirt, black pants and blue tie that complemented his eyes.

She allowed herself a small smile. "You'll look handsome in that," she said.

He looked back with a playfully hurt look in his eyes. "Are you saying I don't normally look handsome?"

"More handsome." She almost laughed but refrained herself.

"Who is she?" she blurted out before she could stop herself.

He was looking for his shoes now. "Just a coworker," he replied. "She helped me with a case before. It was a tough cookie and we had to stay late on lots of nights."

She remembered those nights when he didn't come home. Different scenarios played in her head, almost drove her crazy then she had to calm herself into thinking that she's a very rational and logical woman. Her head ruled, not her heart.

"So you asked her out to return the favor?" she asked.

"If you want to put it that way." He was changing. She didn't blink. It wasn't the first time she saw him naked.

"Do you like her?"

He paused briefly, then, "She's a nice girl."

"I see." Shiho stood up and walked to the landing leading to the stairs. "I'll be in the study. Lock the door when you leave."

He didn't say anything and she left the door wide open.

Suzy was a beautiful woman. Her dark straight locks fell neatly to the small of her waist. A couple of strands fell around her oval face and framed it in such a lovely way. Her bright azure eyes just like his sparkled with laughter as he was retelling a story.

"And I thought he'd let it go," she said laughing. Her laughter was shrill.

She reached out for her glass of wine. Her long slender arms were naked. The red dress hugged her curve charmingly. The way she casually flicked her dark hair behind her shoulder came off seductively. He knew he shouldn't be thinking like that because they were coworkers but he couldn't help it.

She looked like her and he just couldn't help it.

"Thanks again for helping me with that case," he said as he cut into his steak.

The waiter came out again with a bottle of wine and politely filled her glass. Shinichi put up his hand as the waiter asked if he wanted more.

"You're very welcome," she said smiling. Her glass of wine was dangling near her bright red lips. Her eyes were half lidded. "This is a very fancy way of saying 'thank you' by the way."

He grinned. "The least I can do."

Then, their legs touched.

It wasn't a casual passing of limbs. Her long slender and pale legs brushed against his dark trousers in a way that couldn't be mistaken as an accident.

He looked at her. Her eyes were still half lidded and she had that mysterious smile on her pretty lips. She was folding her arms on the table, leaning forward. The illuminating candle was the only thing that separated them.

He leaned in for a kiss.

It was quick. When he pulled back, she looked surprised but recovered quickly. Then, she reached out her hand and placed it on his. It was a gentle touch.

He smirked.

Her lovely smile broadened.

Shiho put down the papers, took off her reading glasses and massaged the bridge of her nose. Her cup of macha tea was empty. She looked at the clock in the study. It was a bit past midnight. She checked her phone. No message or call from him.

She threw the phone onto the sofa, got up and walked out, slamming the study's door behind her.

The bed was cold and she almost cried herself to sleep.

She awoke to the sounds of running water.

Shiho opened the door to the bathroom and here he was, taking a shower in the steaming room. She leaned against the door's frame for a bit then left.

The clock read 9 A.M. She rubbed her eyes. Then the shower shut off.

When he stepped out, she didn't bother saying a word. Instead, she got up from the bed with her clothes in her hands and made a beeline to the bathroom.

He grabbed her elbow.

"Hey," he said.

She glanced at him. "What?"

"Are you okay?" he asked. It didn't take a detective to see she was not fine.

"Of course I'm okay. What kind of a question is that?" she said. Her elbow was still in his grasp.

He peered at her. "You look more pissed than usual," he replied.

"Are you saying I look pissed all the time?" she blinked.

"Yes, but more so today." Then he grinned and she felt all her anger evaporated.

She hated the magic he had on her. She knew what he did last night. Where he had gone. Who he had gone out with. Why he didn't come home.

But she couldn't say anything because they were just friends.

The benefits part didn't make her his priority. She would never be his priority.

His priority was miles away, worlds away, lifetime away.

Shiho shrugged her elbow free. "I'm late for work," she said then stepped into the bathroom, closing the door behind her with shaking hands.

He didn't see those hands.


Shiho decided to take a long walk today in the park along the river.

It was autumn. Beautiful weather.

She was beautiful, she knew. She was smart. Everyone said so. She could have any pick. All her male coworkers had a crush on her. She had a lot of suitors but turned them all down.

For one guy she couldn't have.

Sometimes, she wondered if she's really this weak. She never fully understood how the heart worked. How it could override the brain. She was a very logical woman yet here she was, suffering the same heartbreak as a high schooler. She had to laugh at that.

The earphones were in her ears, playing soft music in the background and she let her mind wonder. She had trained her brain so well that it could stay focused on one task for an unlimited time but now she wanted it to relax, to just run wild into the fantasy world.

Right now, she just wanted to feel human.

It had been three months since the night he didn't come home. Shinichi and Suzy had been dating that long. Three months. Shiho knew it wasn't technically very long but she felt that he had been quite committed to her. He had been going on various dates but no date had ever turned into anything serious.

This one did. Meaning Shiho no longer held any importance in his heart.

Every since Suzy became his girlfriend, Shiho felt uncomfortable living with him even though Shinichi insisted that she do. She felt embarrassed whenever Suzy was around. They had stopped the whole friends with benefits as soon as he started dating her. Props to him for being loyal, Shiho had thought. That's why she decided to move out.

She couldn't stand seeing him with another girl.

And she could see why he was so drawn to Suzy. In a way, Suzy looked like Ran, shared some of his old flame's characteristics. Even the way Suzy laughed reminded Shiho of how Ran used to laugh. She briefly wondered if Ran ever laughed anymore.

Shiho stopped in her tracks. Her face felt cold and wet. Then she realized she was crying.

It had been three months. This was it. Shinichi would never come back. He had found her replacement, his solace in Suzy. He no longer needed Shiho.

She felt shattered inside. It was then that she fell to the ground and sobbed with her gloved hands covering her face. Her shoulders shook violently in the wind.

Luckily, no bystanders were around. The weather was too cold at this time.