Chapter 3: Training

"Oh, crap! I'm gonna be late!"

Shuichi checked his watch again. 7:50… I gotta get to the field, fast! I don't want to keep Maki waiting… the door's just down this hallway-

"Yo, Shumai! Whatcha up to?"

His short friend suddenly sprung out from around the corner ahead, wearing his usual childlike-smile. The Ultimate Supreme Leader, rather than march or hold out his chest proudly like his title implied, skipped down the hallway, stopping in front of the anxious detective and looking up at him with curiosity.

"Hey, Kokichi. Sorry, I'm a bit busy-"

"Hey, hey, hey! It's my turn to talk!" Kokichi impatiently interrupted.

He really is like a child Shuichi sighed internally. I hope he makes this quick. I can't keep Maki waiting, especially since I'm the one who invited her!

"I saw you and Kaede getting all lovey-dovey in the music room! Did anything happen? Did it, did iiiiiiiit?" Kokichi gave him an expectant look. He was asking for candy from the jar, and he clearly wasn't going anywhere until he got an answer.

"N-no, of course not!" Shuichi stuttered, waving his hands in front of his face in embarrassment. "There's no way that would happen! Really…" A forlorn look occupied his face as he calculated the perspective chances with his love interest. No way …

"Come on… not fair! You can tell me! " Kokichi replied, before suddenly jumping up and pulling Shuichi's head down so that their eyes were on the same level. Shuichi recoiled in surprise, but his friend's strong grip kept him in place. It's like when a baby grabs your hair… he thought as he felt the sensation of Kokichi's hands on his head. It's soft, but surprisingly firm. He's also hanging from my head. Wait…WHAT IS HE DOING?! He shuddered as Kokichi's soft breath flirted with his ear. His blood ran cold as he heard:

"If you're lying… I'll strangle you."

Shuichi jerked back immediately, sending Kokichi flying onto the ground with a plop! He exclaimed,

"Strangle? What do you mean? Wha-"

"Nishishi! I was lying, of course! I couldn't strangle you, Shumai! It was a lie. A playful, facetious, lie. Man, your reaction was pure gold! I wouldn't strangle my Shumai! Not for the world! Oh, and also," The self-proclaimed liar lay in repose on the floor, his hands behind his head. "weren't you in a hurry?"

Shit! In the shock of Kokichi's bold move, Shuichi had completely forgotten about his promise to Maki.

"Sorry, Kokichi, but I'll talk to you later!" Shuichi raced down the hall and through the door that opened out to the field. Come on come on come on-

"You're late." Maki's signature stare pierced him as soon as he burst through the door. "Are you sure this isn't a waste of our time. You must think so, since you didn't even bother to show up early."

"I'm sorry, Maki!" Shuichi bent down and clasped his hands. "Please, you gotta believe me! I just happened to run into Kokichi on the way here, and-"

"It's fine." She cut him off matter-of-factly. Her eyes turned slightly away from him, focusing on a piece of grass by the wall as her cheeks flushed slightly. "Do you want to get started?"

"Sure! Let's train, Maki!" Shuichi beamed at her as he got down into plank position. "I can do this!"

"I can't do this."

The Ultimate detective lay on the ground, panting so the whole school could hear him. Maki, having done a hundred pushups by the time he did twenty, pulled in her legs and sat next to him. She asked,

"Are you okay? That was only twenty, you know."

"I'm" gasp "fine." Shuichi's chest heaved faster than a fish out of water. He rolled over to face her, the moon's delicate glow faintly tracing her pale, immaculate skin.

"Hey…can I ask you something?" He registered the look of annoyance on her face before apologizing. "Nevermind, sorry."

"No, it's fine." She huffed as her fingers traced his hair. "It's about that, isn't it?" The Ultimate Assassin focused her soft gaze on him as she waited for a response.

"Yeah… may I?" Shuichi returned her eyes as he stared into them. Rubies…no, fiercer, more like… a defensive rose…

"Sure." Maki's fingers pulled back quickly, the tingling reaching from the tips and buzzing in her cheeks.

"Can you imagine a scenario where you wouldn't have to kill anyone? And, if you were ordered to… would you kill me?" He flinched as soon as the words left his mouth. He didn't want to make her uncomfortable… Shuichi hastily rectified his last question.

"Oh, but it's not as if I don't trust you-"

"That's a pointless question." The vibrant crimson shade of the roses became duller, as if the color had faded over time, like clothes that had been washed too many times. She paused slightly, before continuing. "There are just some things that can only be solved with murder. To clients, the ends justify the means. And, you remember what happened at the hotel, right? I-I would never hurt you." Maki played with her hair, the tingling escalating into a buzzing oscillation in her cheeks and her forehead. She gave a little cough.

"Are you getting sick?" Shuichi placed his hand on her forehead. "Your face is really red…"

She swatted it his hand off, her nails then lingering around his digits lovingly before being ripped away.

"As for that question, I'll make a promise." Shuichi sat up and faced her head on as hoped filled his breast. "I know I can't promise much, since I'm a pretty lousy detecitive… but I want to use my talent to make sure that you won't have to kill anyone. I support you a hundred percent- I've heard what you're doing this for. But I don't think you should keep killing people. You of all people deserve to be a normal girl, living a normal life! Well, as normal as it can get around here." He gave a small chuckle. "That's my promise. So until then… can you wait for me, Maki?" Shuichi stared into her eyes once more, waiting for her answer. The rose turned upwards. She displayed a rare smile.

"Yes."

Over the next couple weeks, Shuichi and Maki continued to train. Over pushups and dandelions, they continued to bring each other closer, the bond shared between them becoming thicker and secretly drawing them in. Shuichi watered and tended to the rose with the upmost care and compassion. One starry night, as he lay exhausted on the grass, his companion knelt down beside him and offered him some water.

"Thirsty?" Maki's grin, which had become more and more common, refreshed Shuichi aching body.

"Thank you." He accepted the water and drank. All the while, Maki's eyes never wavered. The tired detective, now finished, set the bottle aside and began to rise. "Now-"

He slipped, as if Fate had pulled the ground out from under him. Shuichi toppled on top of Maki, his face now mere centimeters away from hers. With her reflexes, she could've avoided the fall easily. The flushed detective felt himself falling into her gaze once more. So why didn't she?

The rose, once timidly furled over, was now fully in bloom. Its hungry, velvet-like petals hosted a stage for the dancing moonlight, as the stumps that had once been thorns gave a longing sigh. Her fingers, seizing the opportunity, now ran along his hands admiringly, exploring every nook and cranny as his hairs stood up. Time slowed to a syrupy consistency as they both acknowledge the gap between them. The stars shining in their eyes tugged their vessels toward each other, pulling the ropes in with all their might.

They succeeded. The gap closed.

"Mmph!"

They both turned scarlet as they felt their lips connect. Shuichi closed his eyes and braced himself, expecting a slap. To his amazement, Maki leaned in further, her hands now running through his hair as her audacious tongue slipped in his mouth and began to dance with his. All the while, everything around them stopped. What am I doing… is this real?

Their tongues began to dance more excitedly now, as if they had been waiting for this honest dance their whole lives, the pure thoughts gushing from them now freed from the chains in the dark recesses of the mind. Both participants began to moan louder, as Maki's arms clutched her love's head close, while his hands began to travel the faint crevasses and outlines on her stomach, eventually snaking further upwards to the hills at the front. The butterflies that Shuichi had felt when he went to see Kaede play were flapping hurricanes, and he felt a boiling arousal building up just as one his arms wrapped around Maki's slim waist and began to reach around down the back-

flash! click!

"Well, well, well. JUST WHAT DO WE HAVE HERE?"