AN: And now for a quick little Shinran oneshot that just sort of popped into my head! Until next time!

Take a Sick Day

Characters: Ran Mouri, Shinichi Kudo

Summary: She'd been stubborn about this sort of thing, for as long as he could remember.

"You're sick, aren't you, Ran?"

"Of course not, Shinichi. Whatever would give you that idea?"

Heaving a long sigh as he carefully studied his childhood friend, Shinichi folded his arms in front of his chest. That much was obvious to him just from one look, really- he didn't need to be a detective to detect this. "Your cheeks are flushed, for one thing. The rhythm of your breathing is off. And also, your blazer is inside out."

"Eh, oh no, is it?" Glancing down at her school uniform, the redness that tinted her cheeks had nothing to do with her fever this time. It really was inside out- and she hadn't noticed a thing until now. Carefully taking it off to fix it, Shinichi reached out a hand, helping her out of it- and then quickly pulled it away from her once it was free from her arms, folding it over his own. "Wait a second, Shinichi, I still need that!"

"No you don't." Shinichi's tone brokered no arguments. "You're sick, so you need to rest, Ran. You can stay here today."

There was no way she would get better back at the detective agency- he didn't doubt that Kogoro worried about his daughter, but that man had no idea how to take care of a sick person. Especially not a sick, stubborn Ran. He might not be a genius at taking care of sick people, but he was pretty sure he was better at it than Kogoro was. Experience alone had taught him that much.

"But we have school." Ran protested. "Besides, it's not like it's bad. It's just a bit of a fever."

"You said that last time, right up until you passed out." Shinichi pointed out, locking eyes with her. Honestly, usually Ran's work ethic was one of her good traits- but it also made her often push herself beyond her own limits, and not pay full attention to the needs of her own body. Such as whenever she got sick- she would often push herself instead of resting, insisting that she was fine the entire time, and that it wasn't bad as it looked, even as she wavered on her feet. "Missing school for one day won't kill you, Ran. I'll let them know we'll be missing it."

"We?" Ran blinked. "Wait a second, Shinichi, I don't need you to look after me! Besides, I can go rest at my own place."

"No arguments. Now, come inside." Stepping aside so that Ran could enter the Kudo manor, Shinichi was quick to shut the door behind her. "First things first, let's get you back into bed. I'll loan you some of mom's pajamas."

"Geez, you're so stubborn." Ran couldn't help but huff, even as she stumbled a little on her feet. Her breath was coming out in hot puffs, but she was certain that she was more than capable of getting through today without any problems. "I'm really fine."

"You're really not." Shinichi insisted, all but escorting Ran up the stairs to one of the spare bedrooms. "You're the one being stubborn here, Ran. I'll even call Sonoko and tell her to bring us over all of our missed work, so just give up already."

"...fine." After a moment of hesitation, Ran finally gave in. There was no arguing with him when he got like this. Taking a seat on the bed, she watched as Shinichi left the room, returning post haste with a pair of his mother's pajamas to loan her, dropping them in her lap.

"There you go. I'll step out for a second to make those calls, so get changed and tuck yourself into bed for now, Ran." Shinichi told her, not giving her any time to protest before he ducked out of the room, shutting the door behind him.

Huffing a little too herself, still under the belief that she would be just fine, Ran nevertheless realized that she wasn't going to win this fight. Carefully changing out of her uniform and into the pajamas, she slowly slid herself into the bed- and couldn't help but think how soft the pillow was the moment her head touched it. Perhaps she was just a bit tired after all.

When Shinichi returned a few minutes later, all calls made- including one to her father who had been very insistent that he take the utmost care of his daughter, no doubt she had slipped out of the Mouri apartment that morning without giving her father a chance to see her- he found Ran already fast asleep.

"See, you really were sick." His voice came out as a whisper, as he carefully tucked the covers over her slumbering form, a fond look surfacing in his eyes. He knew that he put her through enough trouble as it was already, so the very least he could do for her was look after her when she got sick.

"Now, where did I put that cold medicine?"