Aoko showed up with a team of officers with guns at the ready, securing the area before she even approached Saguru. There were a pair of paramedics with them, and one went to Hanaka even as another followed Aoko to look at Saguru.
"There was a woman in possession of a gun trying to leave the area when we got here," Aoko said, explaining the high alert. "Speaking of guns..."
Saguru pointed to the trash can he was sitting on. "Under the can. It seemed the best way to keep anything from being set off accidentally."
Aoko let out an explosive breath. "You don't do anything by halves do you?"
"Sadly, no." Saguru held still as the paramedic tilted his face this way and that. "That's the only open wound," he said—the cut had stopped bleeding finally, but it stung and oozed when the paramedic started to clean it out. "I have bruises, but no other serious injury."
"What the hell were you thinking coming here on your own?" Aoko sighed. "You should have waited."
"It's a good thing I didn't. Hiroto would have been dead and no doubt all the evidence would have been erased."
Aoko grimaced. "Still. What is it with stupid men and running straight into danger?"
"Perhaps it's a testosterone thing," Saguru said drily.
Aoko gave him a glare that said she'd smack him upside the head if he didn't already have a head wound.
"The stab wounds on the suspect were me," Saguru said, changing the subject. "Given in self-defense. They were inflicted with a pair of scissors from the suspect's desk."
"Unusually brutal of you."
"I didn't have much to work with between being held at gunpoint and having someone else to worry about."
Aoko waved a hand. "It was self-defense. Considering he had a gun, it should hold up in court."
"This should be fine with a bandage," the paramedic cut in, taping a bit of gauze to Saguru's forehead. "It might scar a bit though and you'll want to get a blood test with both of you bleeding all over."
Saguru winced. He truly hoped there were no blood borne pathogens coming out of this. "Thank you. Um, if someone could see to Hiroto? He isn't used to this sort of situation."
"A friend of yours?" Aoko asked as the paramedic moved on to Hiroto.
"Ah, I suppose, yes." That was the simplest explanation. "Someone I went on a few dates with shortly before the press callout outed me," he admitted.
"Huh." Aoko looked over at Hiroto. "Doesn't seem like your type."
Part of him wanted to ask what she thought was his type, while the rest of him felt a bit embarrassed since she probably saw right through his interactions with Kuroba from the start. Instead, he said, "He knocked the suspect out with a toilet seat."
Aoko laughed, a short, surprised burst of sound and looked Hiroto over again. "Okay, so maybe there's more to him than he looks then. He found the files?"
"Yes. He has two flash drives, but the computer with all the files is in that office."
"Right." Aoko put a hand on his shoulder. "I'm glad you're okay. Now I'm going to go do my job. My partner will be around to take your statement."
"Of course." Saguru watched her go and felt like he was seeing the crime scene through a glass window, separate and distanced. He still hadn't panicked. His hands were steady and even though everything hurt, it was pain from action, not his knee hurting from mental stress. It was like he'd gone around stress and traumatic triggers and come out unfazed by things that should have rightly sent him back around the bend again. Perhaps it was a delay. It would hit later and he'd be blindsided by it.
He almost died, found proof of Mel's killer, and had stabbed a man and it wasn't even five in the morning yet. What would Kuroba say?
Actually, thinking of Kuroba, he should make it clear to Hiroto where things stood there. It felt a bit like he'd gone behind Kuroba's back even though there wasn't anything happening there at all.
*o*o*
It was almost seven by the time Saguru and Hiroto left the office building. Aoko and her team were still working and would be for who knew how long. The sun was up and the air was already filling with early September heat. They made a picture, Saguru's blood-stained clothing covered up by a jacket an officer had been polite enough to lend him, and Hiroto curled around himself still though the shock had worn off a bit.
"I have to be at work in an hour," Saguru said as they made their slow way toward the train station, extremely grateful to have his cane back.
"I don't know if I'll have work again," Hiroto said with a nervous laugh that fell flat. "This still doesn't feel real."
"Do you have anyone you can go stay with? So you're not alone?"
"Maybe. I used to go to Emi when things were bad, but since the article..."
Emi must be the reporter then. The world was a boulder on their shoulders today. "If there is anyone, go to them. Family or friends, somewhere you feel safe." When your world was uprooted it was hard to feel safe and you felt better if you weren't alone. "It helps."
"I'll take your word for it," Hiroto said, tired. "Sorry about earlier," he said, broaching the topic before Saguru could think of a way to transition to it. "I know you're not interested in that anymore. It was mostly being so relieved we were alive."
"I understand that." Saguru shrugged wearily. There was a stream of people coming and going from the train station and they joined the mass, easily overlooked in the press of bodies. Before they could go their separate ways, they moved to the side to finish their conversation. "Actually, I want to say that I am interested in someone at the moment..."
"Your neighbor, right?" Hiroto said with a wan smile.
Saguru sighed. Apparently he was just that obvious to everyone then. "Yes."
"I had the feeling." Hiroto shrugged. "From some of the things you said, it doesn't sound like he'd be uninterested. Not if he seeks you out all the time."
"Hm, I suppose we'll see." That was as close as he'd come to admitting he intended to do anything about his crush on Kuroba to someone else.
"Friends?" Hiroto said. "Can we be after everything?"
Saguru found he meant it when he said, "I think I would like to try."
Hiroto smiled. He was pale and drawn and looked like he needed to sleep for a week but the expression was genuine. He'd been genuine in all their exchanges and he was someone Saguru would like to have as a friend if they could manage it without feeling too awkward. "I'll see you sometime then," Hiroto said, and he left. He'd be alright, Saguru thought. Nakahara Hiroto was stronger than he first appeared.
That left Saguru to get ready for work in a short amount of time and running on too little sleep. He would be alright too though. They'd lived; tackling another work day wasn't near so hard.
*o*o*
Saguru broke and bought coffee. He hated coffee, but sometimes tea just wasn't strong enough caffeine to jump start his brain when it was smothered with the haze of exhaustion. He staggered into work with all his necessary papers and as impeccably dressed as ever though. He might feel like hell, but he still had to make an effort.
Kate took one look at him and got more coffee from the staff pot. "You look like you didn't go to bed last night," she said, taking Saguru's empty can of coffee and putting a chipped mug in its place.
Saguru barely grimaced at the taste of black coffee. He preferred it with sugar and cream but he was past the point of taste at the moment. "Thank you, Takata-san. And I did. Unfortunately I had something that needed taken care of in the middle of the night."
"Did it involve falling head first into something?" Kate asked, eying the bandage on his forehead. "Because that must be pretty bad considering it's taking up half your forehead."
"It involved the police and a case under investigation and an angry individual with a weapon and I'm afraid that's all I am at liberty to say."
"You live an interesting life," Kate said.
Saguru laughed, because wasn't that an understatement. "Long story short, I only got a few hours of sleep last night." Besides nearly dying. But he didn't need to tell her that. "The cut on my head isn't that bad or I'd have been told to get stitches. I have a horrible headache though."
"Want ibuprofen?"
"Already took a painkiller, but thank you. How was your evening yesterday?"
"Unless you count a child having a meltdown over breaking the head off an action figure, completely uneventful." She grinned. "We can't all have action movie moments interrupt our lives."
"Consider me envious," Saguru said, though they both knew he was mostly joking. He didn't dislike the life he had despite occasional stresses.
"Hey," Uemoto Arisa said, cutting into their conversation. She had a phone in hand and held it out to show a young woman with a baby grinning at the camera. "Yumi-san sent more photos." She shot Saguru a quick smile, most of her attention on Kate. "She looks happy. I think it's a little crazy that she's planning to come back next year when she could be spending time with her kid, but that's Yumi for you. She misses the job."
"She's coming back?" Kate asked. "For sure?" She glanced at Saguru and it took his exhausted brain an embarrassingly long moment to realize why she didn't look as happy as he'd expect her to look when her friend was coming back.
Right. He was in her job. And if she was coming back, that meant that the administration planned on letting him go.
Uemoto caught the look and glanced at Saguru too. "Ah, yeah... She said she talked to the higher ups already..." There was an awkward silence.
Saguru put on a slightly forced smile. "Well, the literature club is going to be happy about that. I know they've missed her. And so have most of the staff."
"That doesn't mean we won't miss you," Kate said immediately.
His smile was a little more genuine at that. She had been a friend from day one to him and he truly appreciated that. "And I've enjoyed teaching here. Still, it was only supposed to be temporarily filling in for Yumi-san from the start." And the board would no doubt breathe a quiet breath of relief that they could wash their hands of him without any further scandal.
Shizume Erika took that moment to come over. "You're leaving? You've only been here a year."
"It wouldn't really be up to him," Kate said. "If Yumi's coming back..."
"Then he just can't keep Yumi's position," Erika said. "Saguru-kun, you're qualified to teach something other than English, correct?"
"I taught Chemistry in London."
"Then it's simple; you can get a job teaching sciences. I know Junichiro who teaches the third year sciences is retiring, you can apply for his position when it comes open." She smiled. "We can always put in a word for you too."
"Yeah!" Kate chirped, looking a lot happier now that it seemed possible Saguru could stay. "If a few of us recommend you for the position they're sure to take it into consideration. And you've done fine as a teacher. They can't complain about your work ethic."
"But that won't stop them complaining about other things."
The fallout from his being outed hung in the air, unacknowledged. Erika lifted her chin stubbornly. "We can make it work. And we can always collect some character recommendations too. It's not like you don't have connections and friends here."
"Thank you," Saguru said, touched. "I'd like to stay here." He'd just have to see if he could. With staff support and his experience they wouldn't have much excuse to turn him away. And if he didn't get hired...there were other schools nearby. He could make this work. "Truly, thank you."
"What are friends for?" Kate said, grinning. "Now come look at baby photos before we have to be serious, professional adults."
Saguru sipped at too bitter coffee and smiled at pictures of a woman and child he'd never met but felt like he knew already. He could let himself worry over the future on a day he wasn't exhausted, but for now he'd take the little moments.
o*O*o
"Good news," Kuroba said to Saguru the moment he stepped in his room. Kuroba had jeans and a t-shirt on for the first time Saguru had seen in weeks, one pant leg slashed so his leg brace could fit properly. "Aoko called and said that lady they picked up turned out to be someone watching your apartment. Which means you no longer have a watcher." He shuffled papers at his bedtable, putting them in order and brimming with energy like he had been before the heist. "So," Kuroba continued, "that means I finally get to go home!" He grinned, twirling a loose pen around in his fingers. "Don't get me wrong, the Kudos are good people and their kids are great, but I am going to go crazy if I don't have my own space again."
"That's great news," Saguru said. He was caught off guard as Kuroba spontaneously grabbed his hand before giving them both a twirl and dumping the papers into Saguru's arms.
"I'm leaving tonight and sleeping in my own bed no matter what Haibara says. I will crawl out a window if need be."
"Don't crawl out a window, your ribs are only just healed."
"I won't crawl out a window," Kaito said, "because you're going to help me pack and leave okay?"
"Okay." Saguru couldn't help smiling a little as Kuroba started humming. He was exhausted and still ached from that morning, but seeing Kuroba's enthusiasm made him feel a bit more energetic himself. "What all do you need to get?"
"Mm, some clothes you and my mom brought, a few books, the remnants of my Kid uniform, and probably anything you've left here unless you plan on staying over more?" He glanced over his shoulder, hands working at folding pairs of socks Chikage must have brought over.
"I was mainly spending the night to be closer to you," Saguru admitted.
"Cool, so you won't mind moving back. Now where is the bag Kaa-san left—ah, there it is." Clothes thumped to the bottom of it, quickly followed by a few things Saguru recognized from Kid's pockets—a deck of cards, a scarf, and a trio of smoke pellets. "So your kinda-sorta date-friend was working for a corrupt company. Small world."
"Just a friend," Saguru said. He added the papers to Kuroba's bag and sat as Kuroba flitted from one side of the room to the other, pulling various items out of seemingly random places, like under the left top corner of the mattress. "I knew he worked with an international clientele, but even he didn't realize what was going on until this morning."
"I can't believe we missed that place. Is your head okay?"
"It's not a bad injury. And it's still not clear how they're connected; they could just be a hiring group for assassins or an unaffiliated hub, but considering their reactions, it's probable that they are involved." Kuroba tossed books he'd borrowed from Saguru into the bag. He looked intent on his task, but Saguru knew he was paying close attention. "There was a file that looked like it was connected to Mel's death," Saguru said and Kuroba paused to look up, knowing how much that meant to him. "It might just be the last piece needed to solve the case."
"That's great." Kuroba set a hand on Saguru's shoulder. "I hope it solves it."
"Closure," Saguru said, "would be nice." He'd reached acceptance, gone through all the stages of grief, and come out the other end. It would always hurt, and he'd always miss Mel, but he was healing and feeling and living again and that was okay. Saguru leaned into Kuroba's touch, forehead pressed against his stomach as Kuroba adjusted to a half hug instead of merely touching him. "Really, truly nice." Kuroba smelled like fabric softener and ointment. Saguru could fall asleep, just like this.
Kuroba rubbed his hand along Saguru's back. It was slow and soothing and Saguru really could fall asleep if he let himself.
"Kuroba?"
"Hmm?" He could feel Kuroba's chest vibrate with an acknowledging hum. Saguru didn't want to move, but he needed to see his face for this. He pulled back reluctantly. Kuroba raised an eyebrow.
"I feel the need to say this now because I don't want to regret not saying anything." He'd almost died today. He'd possibly gained closure and almost died, but he'd lived and tomorrow they would go back to being neighbors again. Kuroba waited patiently for him to find the right words. "You are important to me," he said, feeling each word roll about in his mind before he let it pass his lips. "I care for you more deeply than I thought I'd be able to care for anyone again. You've brought the best in me out again and helped me live instead of just existing." Saguru couldn't look away from Kuroba's face, didn't dare read into its stillness. "You've been a friend when I needed one most and I think I'm falling in love with you." Had fallen, still was falling, and love remained too deep a word for him to say casually. He felt both terrified for using it and at peace because it was finally out in the open. "I'm not going anywhere no matter how you feel in return. I'm here to stay if you'll have me."
"Hakuba..."
"I know being direct isn't as much the done thing in Japan but I feel there have been mixed signals—"
"Hakuba." Kuroba put a hand over his mouth before he could start nervously spewing words and possibly make everything worse. There was a smile growing on Kuroba's face. "Saguru." And Saguru's eyes widened at the use of his first name. "I have been flirting with you on and off for months," Kuroba said. "If anything, I think I was getting a hell of a lot more mixed signals from you."
"Oh."
Kuroba snickered and Saguru found his face smashed against Kuroba's stomach again as he was pulled into a hug. "Y'know with how many times you emphasized being friends, and the whole dating thing, I really didn't think you were interested."
"I thought you were straight," Saguru said, muffled.
"Yeah, I got that when you were surprised about Kudo." Kuroba let up enough so Saguru could blink up at him dazed and not quite sure that this wasn't just a dream and he'd dozed off in Kuroba's chair or something while his sleep deprived brain played havoc. "I didn't want to be direct and make the first move because you were grieving. And we both needed a friend more than a date." And then Kuroba's face was right in front of his and he was lost in his blue eyes and wide smile. "As for if I'd have you; Saguru, I invited you into my apartment. You went on a family outing with me and my son. You've seen my job and met my friends and literally saved my life. I think it's safe to say you're already a fixture and I want you there. For someone so smart, you're pretty slow at getting you're wanted."
"There have been a lot of people that don't want me around."
"There have been a lot of people that feel the same to me, but you're not one of them and vice versa." Kuroba dipped closer, brushing their noses together. Saguru stopped breathing. "So, can I kiss you or are you too overloaded right now?"
"Yes," Saguru hissed, air rushing back into his lungs. He didn't wait for Kuroba to initiate it, but pressed into the last breath of space to meet him. He could feel Kuroba trying not to laugh, his lips stretched in a smile before he tilted his head and kissed back. Saguru felt his hands settle on Kuroba's hips, and the moment Kuroba slid a hand up to rest on the back of his neck. It was a chaste kiss, but it lingered, turning into two, three, four shorter presses of lips as they breathed shared air.
"All good?" Kuroba asked, resting his forehead against Saguru's.
"Yes." If this turned out to be a dream, he would be very disappointed. But even his subconscious couldn't make up Kuroba looking this fondly at him. Saguru touched the edge of Kuroba's smile just because he could. Kuroba tilted his face into the touch like he had the other time Saguru dared to touch his face. I love him, Saguru thought and thinking it didn't come alongside fear or guilt.
Kuroba gave him one last kiss on the nose that had Saguru cross eyed from surprise before he pulled away. "Now, Detective, I think we have a bit more packing to do before you take me home."
"Right." Saguru pulled himself together, a smile almost as wide as Kuroba's slowly spreading across his face. "What else do you need?"
"Get my Kid stuff from Kudo if he kept any of it? I think I can get the rest."
"I can do that." He moved for the door, paused, and went back to give Kuroba another kiss. Kuroba was laughing for this one too. "Thank you," Saguru said against his lips before hurrying to find Kudo. It was funny how a kiss could make all the exhaustion and aches melt away for the moment.
*O*O*
AN: *shouts* FINALLY!
