I'm repurposing episodes with KID's heists in them, because I really don't want to have to come up with them on my own lol. Also this was one of m favorite episodes.
-x-
Shinichi was beginning to feel an intense sensation of déjà vu, as he found himself in the same position as last week.
Solving an impossibly easy murder case.
Sometimes he wondered how the police detectives could be so damn slow. At least Sato and Takagi were competent and knew how to do clear a crime scene and run forensics and whatnot; the police in this jurisdiction kept looking at him as if they expected him to magically find all the answers.
To be fair, he did, but it would have gone a lot better had he not had to put up with all the logistical failures in the process.
Anyway, all this just meant he was unfortunately on the same side of town as the Suzuki Museum and, incidentally, a Kaito KID heist he actually hadn't been planning on attending.
He'd started distancing himself from the task force, telling them he wanted to focus more on his studies and wouldn't be helping out on as many cases. They were welcome to call him whenever they needed him, but he wouldn't be showing up out of the blue like he usually did, whenever he was feeling particularly bored or listless and in need of something interesting. He was actually trying to sleep more, and take care of himself more—whatever the hell that meant.
And if that was really what he was trying to do, going to these Kaito KID heists that tended to end late in the evening was probably not the best idea.
He told himself he wouldn't go to this one. It probably wouldn't be all that interesting anyway, since Chairman Suzuki was baiting KID into stealing his latest ungodly expensive gem on display. Although KID might pull off something just for the fans. Still his invitation had said he'd steal the jewel at precisely twenty-two hundred, and Shinichi had actually planned to be in bed by that point. If he caught the next train out, he could still make it.
But then Ran texted him, and told him Sera and Sonoko were also there, and both of them wanted him to come. He couldn't believe he was actually being guilt-tripped into going to a Kaito KID heist by Sonoko, but he was totally being guilt-tripped into going to a Kaito KID heist by Sonoko. And getting guilt-tripped effectively, at that.
To be fair though, she really didn't have to try all that hard. Shinichi was all but waiting for an excuse to go.
He sighed loudly, causing Ran to look at him curiously. The four were standing by the back of the exhibit, Nakamori-keibu and his crew already casing out the place around them. The detective had already heckled Shinichi for a bit for being here—he'd already told Nakamori he probably wouldn't be helping out at as many heists as he normally did—but didn't bother to try to push him out like he had the rest of the crowd. Shinichi promised he had no intention of being part of the task force, he was just here with his friends. Nakamori was not nearly as forgiving when Ran's father all but kicked down the door, insisting to be part of the investigation. Shinichi decided he was better off watching this spectacle from afar, as the two began to quarrel loudly. He said as much, when one of the officers came up to ask if he was helping in the investigation.
Everyone gave him an incredulous look at that. Okay fine. That had never actually stopped him from solving a crime, ever, but it was the principle of the thing.
"If you're tired, you should just go home," Ran started, tossing him another worried glance. "I know you're still not over your illness."
"What bad luck, getting sick right when you got home," Sera added, shaking her head. "I can't believe you spent all that time in Costa Rica without getting Zika, and you turn up back here in Japan and get deathly ill."
"It's not deathly," Shinichi retorted lamely. He wished he hadn't told everyone he'd gone to Latin America. Saying he'd been undercover overseas held up wonderfully as an alibi for why he could so rarely call Ran and seemed to have disappeared off he face of the earth for a few years, but it made everyone all the more curious as to what he'd been up to.
"No, Shinichi-kun, please don't go!" Sonoko gasped, grabbing his arm. "I need you to lead me to KID-sama!"
"Lead you?" Shinichi repeated, scowling. "I'm not on the task force, you know. I'm just a spectator myself."
"You always catch him," Sonoko pointed out. "I mean, he still escapes—obviously, he wouldn't be KID-sama otherwise—but you're still the only one who ever gets close enough to take back what he's stolen!"
"Yeah, he likes you, Shinichi." Ran concurred with a wink.
Shinichi sent a dark look her way. Ran just giggled and gave him a shit-eating grin. Fortunately the insinuation went right over Sera and Sonoko. "I wonder what he'll pull off this time." Sera commented with a glint in her eyes, "I love seeing what crazy things he comes up with."
"He's certainly creative." Shinichi had to admit. KID was a genius. And he certainly knew how to put on a show. He flushed a little. Oh great, he was turning into Sonoko.
As if to prove his point, Sonoko sighed loudly. "He's just amazing. KID-sama can do anything! He's a genius, an artist." She ended, breathlessly.
Shinichi silently agreed, but he refused to ever actually tell the thief how highly he thought of him. It would go straight to Kaito's head.
"Still, I wonder how he's going to get through this thing," Sera gestured to the spectacle in front of them. "Suzuki-san has truly outdone himself."
"Yeah!" Ran agreed readily. "There's no way Kaito KID can get through this!"
I wouldn't be so sure, Shinichi thought, snorting.
True enough, KID managed to pull off some complicated stunt involving magnets and turtle food and moving carpets, and stole the Blush Mermaid—attached to a real live turtle in a tank, incidentally—right in front of their eyes. From his spot watching the chaos on the sidelines, Shinichi had to admit it was a pretty good job. Even now he was still puzzling over exactly how he did it.
His eyes rose in interest when Sera pointed out that the lights had been on the whole time KID pulled off his vanishing act—meaning he was still around, most likely posing as someone.
It took Shinichi a full thirty minutes to figure out just how he managed to pull it off, another five to figure out who KID was posing as, and another ten to put together why Jirokichi wanted them to wrap everything up so quickly. But of course he would, when the jewel was a fake and he knew it, and if Kaito KID managed to steal it he would know it was fake too.
He thought about telling the police, before ultimately he decided he didn't want to get involved in it. He'd seen enough.
Shinichi pushed off the wall, leaning in close to Ran to murmur a quiet apology over his abrupt departure and a hasty farewell. She took it in stride—actually, she looked a little relieved to hear he was going to head back and go to bed. She apologized as well, revealing she hadn't wanted to ask him, but Sera really wanted to see him and Sonoko all but insisted he come. Sonoko was starting to catch on to the fact that with Shinichi around, KID was inevitably going to show up. Oh great.
He was just leaving the premises when, to his lack of surprise, Sera shouted his name and ran to catch up to him.
He turned around impassively as she caught up to him,
"Shinichi-kun!" She glared when she neared him. "Way to say goodbye, you jerk!"
Shinichi just smiled at her darkly.
'Sera' felt her breath catch.
"I figured you already knew I was leaving," he commented, off-hand, as he shoved his hands in his pockets and continued walking. "And you could use an easy exit, anyway."
For a moment, Sera just blinked at him. Then she scowled. "How long did you know?"
Since the moment you tried to pretend to be someone else. Much to Shinichi's embarrassment, he realized with no small amount of horror that he could immediately tell KID was posing as Sera—and not just because he, like everyone else, got her gender wrong. He could just tell it was KID. The way he walked, the way he held himself, the way he tilted his head a certain way. The way he moved. Shinichi knew KID's body almost as well as his own.
There was no way he was going to say that, though.
"Since the body checks," he answered instead; it would have been true, too, had he not already been so intimately familiar with KID's physique.
KID tisked, shaking his head. "You could have ratted me out, then." He pointed out, lowly.
"You idiot. Of course I wouldn't have." Shinichi scowled, blushing slightly when the thief all but beamed at him in response. "Although with such a pathetic exit strategy you should have gotten caught anyhow."
"It's a good thing Nakamori-keibu can be so incompetent, huh?"
"He would have caught you this time," Shinichi retorted wryly, as they continued to walk down the street, "if he wasn't so distracted with shouting at Mouri-keibu."
"Ah, I see. I'll send Mouri-keibu a thank you note at a later date." KID conceded with a solemn nod.
"He'll be over the moon." The detective replied, with a sardonic smirk.
"It'll be as close as he'll ever get to catching me," KID boasted with a cheeky grin.
Shinichi just rolled his eyes. "As arrogant as ever, I see."
"Oh?" KID leaned closer. "Do you think I'm arrogant, Shinichi-kun?" He asked sweetly, in Sera's voice.
Shinichi gave him a nonplussed look. "Don't do that," he complained, putting distance between them again. "And who are you trying to fool? You're the most arrogant person I know."
"Aside from yourself?" Kaito pointed out drily.
"Well yes, of course." Shinichi replied without missing a beat, dead serious and utterly shameless.
Kaito couldn't help but laugh. Laugh and push him up against the wall and claim those lips for his—
"Don't do that!" Shinichi pushed him off with a hand to his mouth.
Kaito's protests were muffled by his hand until he pried it off, pouting. "What was that for?"
Shinichi glared at him. "Don't kiss me when you look like someone else."
Kaito blinked. Then he grinned, planting both hands on either side of the detective's head, effectively caging him in. "You don't like it?" He asked, lowly, pleased when the shorter boy blushed at his tone.
"No," he retorted, struggling to stay unaffected even in the face of KID's sexy voice. How the hell did the thief manage to pull that off? He was the only one who actually sounded hot when he did that, and not totally stupid.
This did nothing to deter the thief, who just moved closer into his space.
"KID," Shinichi hissed, pressing a warning hand against his chest. "Stop it."
"Stop?" KID tilted his head, his breath ghosting against Shinichi's neck. "Are you sure you want me to stop?"
For a moment, it seemed like Shinich was going to cave. Then he narrowed his eyes at him. "Yes. It's weird when you look like this."
"Ah, really?" KID crooned, leaning closer regardless. "You don't think I'm cute like this at all?"
"Not in the slightest." Shinichi deadpanned.
KID pouted. "Are you sure? Your friend is really cute, you know."
And unfortunately he wasn't even lying about that. It was the first thing he'd noticed; the boy standing next to Ran and Sonoko was really good-looking. And, to Kaito's surprise, Shinichi actually greeted him pleasantly and with genuine warmth. They actually seemed like real friends. When Shinichi turned to the other boy, he could see the honest appreciation and respect the high-school detective had for the other. It made something far too close to jealousy clench in his gut.
"Who? Sera?" Shinichi blinked, before letting out an incredulous snort. "You're joking, right?"
"Why would I be?" Kaito challenged, dropping the pretense of teasing entirely. "You two seem close; he's certainly not bad looking. And he's a detective too, right?"
Shinichi blinked again, before shaking his head in wonder and fond exasperation. He pushed KID away, continuing his walk to the station.
"Sera is not my type." Shinichi called over his shoulder, chuckling. "And for the record, I'm not exactly into her entire gender, either."
KID blinked.
And then blinked again.
Then he looked down at himself. "Wait. Seriously?!" How the hell did he get that wrong?
Shinichi just continued to laugh at him, even as he turned the corner.
-x-
Despite his best efforts to stay on top of things, it felt like something in his life was going to have to give. He couldn't go on like this.
It was all just… too much.
Not even discussing his current… predicament, there was his relationship with an internationally wanted criminal, his current occupation as a student turned world-renowned detective, his own struggles coming to terms with being Shinichi again as opposed to Conan, and his—his future, to consider.
Fuck, just even thinking about the future made him restless.
He hadn't seen KID since they'd last met when he was posing as Sera. In hindsight, it occurred to Shinichi that they had actually managed to have a conversation. Just like, like two normal people. Like friends. Like people who knew each other in real life.
And it scared him as much as it excited him.
He seriously didn't know what to do with that, so he just tried not to think about it at all. He wanted what they had, and he couldn't possibly jeopardize it with the truth.
But it wasn't as if he couldn't… not tell the thief. He'd turned the idea over and over in his head, and ultimately came to the conclusion that he couldn't do that to the thief. He couldn't expect anything out of him either, but he certainly couldn't keep it a secret for the rest of their lives.
Shinichi was stuck between a rock and a hard place. Regardless of whatever internal conclusions he had come to, he still couldn't even contemplate the idea of telling the thief. No way in hell.
It was finally during another restless week that Shinichi finally just sort of lost it.
Not in any grand or dramatic way, or even in any way that could be considered interesting. He just woke up one day, and decided he needed an abrupt and life-altering change. He didn't know what kind of change. He just knew something very drastic had to happen.
He'd woken up after another night of vague but unsettling dreams, blinked up into the deathly, endless silence of his house, and very calmly made a decision.
He'd been having fucked up dreams. No surprise there, he was in the business of inspecting dead bodies and interviewing psychotic people. Nightmares, he supposed they could be called, had ceased to bother him, as the moment he opened his eyes those dreams melted with the bright morning sun. His nightmares recently, however, had been settling around the thing growing inside his stomach (he couldn't quite yet call it a baby, but he had considered calling it other things, like, "it", "thing," and "legume", also "zombie baby", but only because it had come from unnatural origins. He really hoped it wasn't a zombie) and a shifting restlessness he couldn't quite place, the unimaginable silence of the house only furthering the fluttery sensation until he couldn't quite stand it any longer.
He phoned his mother, who, while confused, was completely okay with him moving out of the house.
He rolled right out of bed and picked up a clean sweatshirt out of the forever rotating pile of clean and unsorted clothes that lived at the foot of his bed, tugged it on, pulled on a pair of jeans and toed on his air max's and decided today was the day. He spared a look at himself in the mirror before he went out, puling a grimace when he saw his unruly hair.
KID said he loved his hair like this, he called it his 'sex-kitten' hair. He flushed. What did he care what KID thought about his hair? He turned away from the mirror with a scowl.
The fresh air immediately cleared his listless and irritable mood; there was something about the cold and crisp wind and the warm sunshine that always melted his bad moods away. He took the train and checked his phone; filled to the brim with concerned messages from people he hadn't realized had his number, a call from Haibara, and an overly worried message from Ran. None from KID.
For a strange, maudlin moment he felt an odd and disconcerting pang of hurt at that. KID had his number—obviously, how else was he always sending him emails? But he'd never tried to call him before, or text him, or get in contact with him outside of the heists. He could, if he wanted to, he did have his number after all. But he never had. Did that mean something? He frowned thoughtfully, before shaking his head. This train of thought was ridiculous.
Well, that's not true. There was a broadcast message on a heist invitation for tonight, but it hadn't come from KID. It was one of those emails that just got circulated around. Shinichi wasn't sure how to feel about that. He almost felt like… not attending.
The train pulled to his stop, and he shook his head out of his sobering thoughts, tugging his way through the crowd before the doors closed.
He looked around with an appraising eye; it was clearly a nice area.
The apartment complex was new—so new it still had an unfurled banner advertising leasing space waving over the side of it. It was clear they'd built up the entire area in anticipation for a new flood of residents to come with the advent of the new housing buildings; trendy shops and cafes directly marketed towards people around his age; modern architecture and perfectly placed parks and fountains. And it was right off the station, too.
The listings online really hadn't done it justice.
Shinichi stuck his hands into his pockets, examining all the building tops as he wandered about the streets. There weren't too many people living here yet, but it was clear once all the developing was over this place would fill right up. Would he be okay with that? He was so used to the grand mansion with all its space… He shook his head. No. He was definitely okay with this. He'd prefer the bustle of the city as opposed to the endless silence and loneliness of his family's old house.
His mom had been somewhat surprised when he'd called to tell her he wanted to move out of their old house, but by the end of it she'd sounded quite thrilled. She was always telling him to go out and socialize a little more with people his age, especially now that he was actually his real age again. He'd have ample opportunity here—at the very least, he'd be surrounded by other young people, even if he chose to avoid the hell out of them.
He dodged around a herd of jogging college girls to get to the entrance of the apartment building he was looking at. He looked around the entrance lobby—clean and modern. He wasn't sure how he felt about it; he liked it, sure, but he didn't have much of an opinion on it either way. Wasn't he supposed to have an opinion on this sort of stuff? He'd have to buy his own furniture and decorate and what not; what the hell was he supposed to put? He didn't even know what he liked!
"Kudo Shinichi, I presume?"
Shinichi startled at the voice, turning around to see a girl who couldn't be a day older than him, leaning against the door to the apartment when he got out of the elevator.
He blinked.
This was the realtor? She looked like she wasn't even out of high school.
"Yeah, that's me," he frowned slightly. He hadn't said who he was when he'd scheduled the appointment, now that he thought about it. That was suspicious.
She nodded, opening the door behind her and swinging it wide to let Shinichi in.
He stepped in hesitatingly. Whatever suspicions he had on the girl drifted off when he finally stepped inside, too preoccupied with examining the place up and down.
"It's nice," he offered, after he'd walked he perimeter of the big, open floor plan.
"Three bedrooms," she noted casually, propped on the kitchen bar outlooking the living room, "Kind of big for one person, no? Are you planning on living with roommates? Or… are you planning on moving your family in?"
Shinichi frowned, gaze swinging away from the windows to narrow at her decisively. That was a rather leading line of questions. She was blinking at him owlishly—knowingly. So she had intentionally wanted to blow her own cover?
"Who are you?" He asked, bluntly.
She just tilted her head. "Koizumi Akako."
"You're not the realtor." He noted, bluntly, not even bothering to frame it as a question when he already knew the answer.
She beamed at him. "Not in the slightest." She enthused.
He scowled. "Then why are you here?"
Great. She wasn't a stalker, was she? Ever since that stupid Kudo Shinichi fan website went online he'd started getting far too many of those. He had no idea why he used to love getting fan mail. Fans were creepy. And invasive. And always posting photos of him onto tumblr.
"I was curious what kind of place you would pick." She answered, with equally blunt honesty.
Shinichi scowled further. "Did it meet your expectations?" He asked, sarcastically, crossing his arms.
"It did. In a good way." She assured, walking around the island to face him fully. "I hadn't expected you to keep it, but guessing from the amount of bedrooms I guess you are!"
Shinichi stilled. His hands fell to his sides as his eyes grew very wide. "W—what?" He sputtered out.
She hopped onto the bar, crossing her legs primly. "The baby, I mean."
This was going beyond stalker to just plain terrifying. "How the hell do you know that?" he asked, faintly.
"Oh, I talk to the devil sometimes. The connection is spotty, because you know, hell is far and stuff, but I can see into the future." She revealed, casually. "I'll be honest, it's a pretty shit deal. What's the point in seeing some things and not everything?" She lamented with a sigh, before shaking her head. "Well, I suppose I should be grateful for what I can see. I've always loved spoiling things, you know."
Meanwhile, Shinichi continued to stare at her dumbly.
She only blinked back, smiling.
"Look, I don't believe in this occult nonsense," he started, slowly.
"You don't have to." She assured. Then she laughed with an eyeroll; "I'm not trying to convert you, or anything. Although joining the Satanic Temple will be the best decision of your life."
"I'll pass." Shinichi retorted, blandly.
"Well, anyway, my point is that you don't have to care about how I know things." She continued. "Just accept that I know them."
"Alright, I guess that's great at all." Shinichi cut in, annoyed, "But that does not at all explain why the hell they're here."
She ignored him, hopping off the surface of the table to hop over to him. She was in his personal space before he could stop her, swooping in low.
"Is this at a mark?" She crooned, causing Shinichi to dart back and slap a mortified hand at the base of his neck, where he knew KID had left a dark red mark.
"Did KID give you that mark?" She continued, tilting her head with a sly smirk.
Shinichi flushed spectacularly. "How the hell—how do you even know that?"
She rose a brow at him. "Didn't we just go over this?"
Shinichi opened his mouth, bewildered. Did she really expect him to think she was psychic? Although this was a lot of private information she shouldn't be able to know.
"How do you feel about KID, anyway?" She asked curiously, when he didn't respond. "You don't look like one of his rabid fans." She commented with a contemplating look.
"What? Definitely not." He scowled. As if he'd ever be one of those ridiculous fan boys that proclaimed their adoration for the equally ridiculous thief.
"But he must mean something to you, right?" She pointed to his neck. "Or, do you just let him do that to you because he's easy and available?"
Shinichi scowled further. "What part of him is easy or available, exactly?" He pointed out acerbically, looking away with a blush.
Akako blinked. "Oh. That's a good point."
Shinichi wanted the floor to swallow him up and die. Or alternatively, for the same to happen to his companion. Did he just inadvertently admit to wanting the thief for more than sex?
"So what are your intentions with him, anyway?"
"W—What is that supposed to mean?" He retorted hotly.
Akako tilted her head. "I mean, you know. What do you want to happen? Do you want to continue like this forever? Do you want to start something new?"
"I'm not sure if you've noticed, but he's an internationally wanted criminal," Shinichi bit out, still half in awe that he was even bothering to reply—let alone take this seriously. "What am I supposed to want to happen? There's no future in that."
"He's more than that too, you realize." Akako replied, seriously.
Shinichi paused, thoughtful.
Akako just shook her head with a sigh. "You should just think about it, you know."
Shinichi frowned slightly. "What is there to think about?"
Akako just gave him a long look, before she twirled around and mad for the door. "Just give it some thought okay?" She called over her shoulder, blowing him a kiss.
The door closed behind her.
Shinichi stood in the empty apartment alone, clutching his head.
"Am I hallucinating right now…?" He wondered aloud, very seriously,
-x-
Disregarding the incredibly bizarre, possibly hallucinatory encounter he had the first time around, Shinichi returned to sign the lease immediately the day after.
The actual realtor—far older, and considerably far less remarkable—was surprised but thrilled to have someone sign so quickly.
This time he actually made sure to take a good look at the house. Now that there were no witches hanging around to distract him, he could give it his full attention. He had no idea what to look for, but fortunately he'd called his mother, and she'd reminded him to check that all the windows worked and to ask about appliances. They did, and the appliances and bathrooms were all brand new. No surprise there, considering the price tag. He would have preferred his parents didn't pay for it, but his mother insisted. They were still going to keep the family home out in the suburbs too. Shinichi supposed one more house was nothing to them; they already had the one here, the one in America, the one in France, and who knows how many others he wasn't aware of.
By the end of the week he'd started packing his stuff up from the family house. He had yet to actually move anything in to his new apartment, but quite frankly he was impressed with himself for at least managing to pack up most of his clothes.
"Moving?" Ran echoed with surprise, when he told her the news. "Why?"
Shinichi shrugged the answer off. "Just wanted a new change of scenery."
"What's wrong with your house, though?" She asked with confusion. "It's so nice! And big!"
Shinichi supposed it did sound really foolish when he thought of it like that; his family's house was really nice. After living with Ran as Conan for so long, he could appreciate just what it meant to have that much space.
"It… makes me feel stuck." He confessed, honestly, as they walked to the train stop together after school. "Like I haven't moved on."
"…Moved on from what?" Ran echoed, still clearly confused.
"Maybe it was just all the traveling," Shinichi lied with a smile, "I think I just got used to being in different places so often that it feels weird to me to stay in one place for so long."
Ran frowned softly. "Is that why you've been so restless, lately?" She asked, with surprising insightfulness.
Shinichi turned to her with a bare look of shock.
"I can be observant too, you know." She retorted drily. "Anyway, I know you, Shinichi," (romantic failures not withstanding) "I can tell when something's bothering you. And… and something's been bothering you these past couple weeks. And it's not just being sick—although I know how much you hate that."
Privately Shinichi was actually surprised she could be that observant. She had been incredibly dense through all of Conan's absurdly obvious detective sleuthing after all, but maybe that was just willful ignorance.
But there was nothing he could say; he couldn't tell her. She may be taking this whole quasi break-up thing in stride, and she even seemed to be a fan of him and KID together, but he doubted she would take the whole pregnancy mess so easily. Even Shinichi wasn't handling it all that well—clearly.
"Yeah, you're right." He conceded with a defeated sigh. "I couldn't really tell you what it is, though. I just haven't felt like myself since I've gotten back."
Ran stopped walking, turning to him with a difficult expression.
To Shinichi's horror she launched herself at him before he could try to get out of the way, clinging to him in a death grip. He really, really hoped she wasn't crying.
"Oh… Shinichi," she murmured, sounding sad but not tearful, thank god. "I'm so sorry. How could I not notice? I hadn't realized you were having such a hard time adjusting to being back home."
Shinichi patted her back awkwardly, trying to use his impressive brainpower to come up with an answer. "It's okay, Ran… I really didn't want anyone to know."
I couldn't let anyone know. No one could know he was Conan. Not only because he and Shiho couldn't be sure if Black Organization was truly disbanded or simply biding their time once more, but because he had no intention of ever having to explain that to the people closest to Conan. It would only hurt them terribly. Having to say his abrupt goodbyes as Conan had been difficult enough for them—the Shounen Tantei he had known would take it hard, but he hadn't realized how many other people truly loved Conan. Sonoko, Ran, Sera—even Kogoro and Megure-keibu and Nakamore-keubi. And for the people who had known he was Conan… they had all decided it would be best to let them believe Conan returned to America to be with his parents.
"I wish you wouldn't keep all this stuff to yourself," Ran mumbled into his shirt.
Shinichi shifted his weight uncomfortably. "Well… that's…"
She pulled away a bit, blinking up at him with big eyes. "Do you have anyone to talk to?" She looked away, biting his lip. "I understand if you don't want to talk to me… I'm just so worried about you."
"Ran," Shinichi grimaced. This was about as close as they'd gotten to their painfully awkward breakup conversation since it happened, and quite frankly he was still looking to avoid that for the rest of his life.
"Ever since you've gotten back you've looked awful—no offense—and you never eat and you never sleep and you don't talk to anyone…" She trailed off, her large brown eyes turning to him with yet another oddly insightful look. "Is that why you always go to the KID heists? Do you… do you two talk?"
Shinichi was privately stunned and impressed that she could manage to deduce that much on her own. Then his eyes narrowed. "Why would you think that?" Because it was a little too close to the truth, and there was no way Ran—or anyone short of Haibara—could possibly know enough to infer that.
Ran averted her gaze, rubbing her arm awkwardly. She didn't reply for a moment; a group of classmates brushed past them on their way to the station, a flurry of movement and noise washing over the two quiet companions.
"I… saw you two," she revealed, blushing.
Shinichi's eyes widened. Oh god.
"…You did?" He squeaked, blushing just as violently.
"I mean—I think I did." She continued quietly. "It was just… Sera left and I went to go find her. And I saw you two."
Oh god.
"You saw us," Shinichi repeated, blankly.
"I—I couldn't hear what you were saying!" She rushed to say. "But I saw her—uh, push you up against the wall." Ran's face was as red as a tomato at this point. "And I couldn't believe it! Sera would never do that."
She bit her lip. "…But that wasn't Sera, was it?"
The detective sighed, running a weary hand through his hair. "No, it wasn't Sera." He admitted, sounding tired.
Ran's eyes flickered up to him briefly, still blushing slightly. "So… it was KID?"
Shinichi remained stoically silent. But his silence was telling enough.
Ran swallowed. "How long has this been going on?"
Shinichi let out a long breath. "I don't know." He hedged evasively.
"And you two… you two are really…" Her voice had gone really high as she tried to finish her sentence, and failed. She darted a quick look around them, before leaning in closer. "You two are really, like, together?"
"Ran," Shinichi complained, feeling heat reach the tip of his ears. "Don't say that."
"But it's true, right?" She prodded, insistently. "Because that looked a little too friendly for the two of you to just be friends, if you know what I mean."
Shinichi palmed his face. "It's not like that."
"Shinichi, he tried to kiss you!" She hissed quietly, with another look around them to make sure no one was listening.
"He's a consummate flirt, I swear." Shinichi denied weakly.
Ran just stared at him flatly.
Who was Shinichi trying to fool, here? At any rate, Shinichi hadn't seen the thief's face once the boy had left. Ran had ran outside the museum just in time to see Sera push Shinichi against the wall. In a very, err, non-platonic gesture, to put it mildly. At first she was flabbergasted, then hurt, then curious. She would have never suspected… Shinichi and Sera? Seriously?
Shinichi looked annoyed with attention, but he did absolutely nothing to throw 'Sera' off, even though he could have easily done so. In fact, he actually seemed a bit unwilling to leave her arms. But he brushed her off eventually, walking off towards the station. Sera didn't move for a long time, staring out into the direction he'd left. Ran could see her expression underneath the dim streetlights; an expression of sorrow, longing, and regret.
It wasn't until they found Sera afterwards that Ran put two and two together. The girl had been found unconscious in the men's bathroom, annoyed to find she'd been used as part of Kaito KID's escape. But if it hadn't been Sera out there with Shinichi, than it had to be…
Ran couldn't believe it. That had been KID? And Shinichi hadn't looked scared or surprised in the slightest, and Ran knew that if she could put it together, than Shinichi had already figured it out long before then.
Suddenly her light-hearted teasing over Shinichi and his 'rival' had turned completely serious.
"He does that with everyone," Shinichi continued, off-handedly. "I really don't take it personally."
Ran just blinked at him. "You didn't see him after." She accidentally blurted out. Shinichi looked at her in surprise. "He… that wasn't the expression of someone just fooling around, Shinichi."
Ran watched in vague disbelief as the exact same expression she's seen on KID's face that night made its way onto Shinichi's. He looked as if he was both happy and saddened to hear it.
Shinichi didn't reply for a long time, expressions darting across his face faster than she could catch.
Finally he sighed, looking lost. "It would be a lot easier if he was," he commented sadly.
Ran tilted her head questioningly.
"Fooling around, I mean." He sighed again, turning to continue their walk to the station. Ran fell in step beside him with a worried frown.
She wasn't sure what to say to that.
-x-
Shinichi didn't want to go to the heist.
He couldn't quite place what it was, because there was no overt reason for him to feel so wary at the idea of going to the event. Objectively, he and KID were getting along… splendidly. Better than that, really. The sex was fantastic, and KID had proved himself to be more than just outrageously sexy and good at sex; he was funny, and genuine, and a thousand other things Shinichi couldn't put into words. Maybe that was the problem. He was so much more.
The detective sighed, taking a long sip of his hot chocolate. It was vending machine standards, so too sweet and too thick, but he didn't mind at this point. It was something warm in his hands, and something to do as he watched the fading lights far out in the distance.
He didn't want to go, and yet he was here watching it anyway, far enough to be unnoticeable, close enough to still see the action.
He intentionally chose a place he knew wouldn't be part of KID's escape route. Normally he plopped himself right where he knew Kaito would end—he knew where that was tonight too, the top of a parking garage at least five blocks over—but something gave him pause at the thought of it.
His eyes slipped shut.
He could see it so clearly; the thief's dark smile, the two of them, tumbling down into each other's arms. His heart constricted upon itself, and he scrubbed a hand over his face wearily.
Shinichi let out a long, weary sigh, leaning over the railing, gazing listlessly at the river down below. The street behind him was quiet with the night; the only sounds came from the distant echoes down the steel buildings, the flickering search lights and droning helicopters above. It must have been a very impressive heist, he thought idly, for them to bring out search helicopters and everything. He could hear it, and he could see the lights from the crowd, but not much else. This was totally intentional. He didn't want to see anything else, didn't want to be tempted.
"Did you think I wouldn't find you?"
Shinichi gasped, almost dropping his can of hot chocolate into the water below.
He spun around with wide eyes, disbelieving. It really was KID, right next to him, gazing out into the river as if he'd been there this whole time. Shinichi noticed somewhat distractedly that the street lamp above them had conspicuously gone out, leaving the two of them in darkness.
He closed his mouth, blinking in surprise. "I… no. Actually."
He would have expected the thief to tease him for that, but he was uncharacteristically quiet. Shinichi looked away, feeling stupidly guilty, all of a sudden. He was, in essence, running away. Problem with that though was that he hadn't exactly expected to get caught. He hadn't expected this from the thief.
"Shinichi," he hadn't expected that either. When had Kaito started calling him by his name? "Are you alright?"
He wanted to brush the thief off, just like he did everyone else who prodded him with that question. He didn't, though. Instead he found himself leaning into the other man, surprising him as he caught his weight.
"No," he said, muffled by the fabric of his suit. He turned his head, closing his eyes and breathing in deeply; the smell of smoke and storms.
The thief's arms tightened around him, holding him almost too tight. On the subject of unexpected things, he was surprising himself quite a bit too. Why was he telling the other boy all this? Why did he feel like he wanted to?
"What's wrong?"
The detective pulled away, shaking his head wryly. "What's with all the concern, anyway?" He asked lightly, folding his arms over himself and putting distance between them.
The criminal seemed to study him deeply. "I can't be concerned about you?"
"I…" He dropped his arms, surprised. He swallowed thickly. "You can."
"Good, because I am." Kaito stepped closer, and Shinichi did nothing to stop him. Those arms found their way around him again, settling on his hips. If anything, Shinichi leaned into it. "What's got you so exhausted, anyway? You really look unwell."
"Are you telling me I look ugly?"
"Impossible." Kaito snorted, and Shinichi hid his smile in the thief's jacket. "But you do worry me."
The detective said nothing to this, turning his head so he could nose in against the other boy's neck. His eyes drooped low as he felt warm and content and rather drowsy, staring sightlessly out into the shimmering lights. He blinked suddenly, a thought occurring to him. "There wasn't a heist, was there?"
The thief tilted his head. "Did you not just see it? It was a bit hard to miss."
Shinichi shook his head. "But you didn't steal anything, did you?"
"No, of course not." KID laughed. "But how would I have lured you out otherwise?"
"Lured me-?" Shinichi echoed. "And just where were you trying to lure me?"
Kaito pulled away, just enough to search his features. "Would you come with me?"
He shouldn't, but when had that ever stopped him from doing whatever the thief wanted of him? "Alright," he agreed, unprepared for the arms seizing him tightly. He closed his eyes, feeling the wind rush past him. A paraglider? Some sort of pulley system? You could never know with KID. Hell, maybe they were being pulled by a personal aircraft. At any rate, the travel didn't last for long.
When Shinichi opened his eyes, they were on… a rooftop.
It looked like any other rooftop they'd been on—well, almost. There, in the corner, he spied what looked suspiciously like…
"A bed," he smiled, with wonder. "And a blanket."
Kaito made a noise of affirmation, kissing him deeply.
Shinichi practically melted into it. It wasn't just the kiss, or the hands wandering underneath his shirt. It was the bed, up here with the stars, and the heist that wasn't really a thievery, just a grand show to distract everyone else. Kaito did all of that—for him. "Kaito," he murmured with a sigh, leaning into him.
"Do you like your surprise?"
"I do," he smiled. "I like it a lot. So much, in fact, that I really think we ought to put it to good use."
The thief laughed. "I like the way you think, meitantei-kun."
KID wasted no time in divesting him of his clothes, and this time when he stretched out over him there were silken sheets beneath him, and a soft mattress. He hadn't been lying when he said he didn't mind where they had sex (or when), but he appreciated the effort nonetheless.
"Kaito…" He breathed, spread erotically out on the sheet, legs falling apart to let the thief feast upon him with his eyes.
Kaito made a valiant effort to reign in his lust, even with such an enticing picture as the boy spread out beneath him. It's like Shinichi did it on purpose, honestly… Well, it wasn't the other boy's fault he was so mind-blowingly sexual, or that everything he did was super hot and sent all his blood rushing right to his cock.
"Are you just going to sit there and stare all night?" Shinichi teased, smiling darkly at him.
"I…"
The detective snatched the bottle of lube out of his limp hands, popping the cap and spreading it liberally on his fingers. "I hope you don't mind watching, then."
Kaito tried to close his gaping mouth. "I—what—yes." He didn't even know what he was saying, far too engrossed in watching Shinichi press his own fingers into himself.
His breath hitched as he felt hisown fingers against his entrance. He'd actually never done this before, weirdly enough. He'd never touched himself this way, but in his defense he'd been turned into a six year-old child and it would have been a bit strange to think about doing this, let alone actually doing it. And afterwards, he'd always had a very talented individual to help him out with that. He found he didn't really mind, though. It felt—good. He wasn't nearly as good at it as Kaito was, but he knew his own body well enough to know where to press, how to get himself hot and ready for the other boy.
Kaito found he couldn't do much of anything, mouth going dry and brain turning incoherent. He did have enough presence of mind to spread the boy's legs even wider, giving him ample view of Shinichi finger-fucking himself—preparing himself for Kaito. The thought was almost enough to make him malfunction.
He finally gathered enough of himself to find that damned bottle of lube—it had rolled onto the floor, much to his chagrin—coat his own hand and press a finger of his own in with Shinichi's. The detective clearly hadn't expected that, for his eyes flew open and he cried aloud.
He wasn't gentle in any sense of the word; he ripped the boys hand away to shove two fingers deep into him, pounding ruthlessly against the boy's prostate. "Oh, oh, oh—" Shinichi arched into his fingers, opening up so beautifully for him. At this rate, he was going to blow his load before they even got to the fucking.
He lubed himself up, removing his fingers to replace them with something far bigger. The detective shivered with anticipation as he felt something far larger and thicker press against him, barely spreading him open. He rolled his hips, and Kaito slid in with a choked groan, taken by surprise. He bottomed out with a long, shaky breath, fisting the sheets tightly in an effort not to come just from this.
He set a frenzied pace that knocked the breath out of Shinichi on every stroke, as if making up for their recent lack of rough and dirty sex. Shinichi didn't mind at all; he loved it when Kaito took him slowly and gently, making him beg for more—but he loved this just as much too. It was too much and not enough all at once, and as usual it felt as if his whole world was centered around Kaito, and his delicious cock nailing him on every stroke—
"Harder," he gasped out, grappling for purchase against the sheets. "Fuck, Kaito, I want it harder—
"Harder?" The thief repeated. And then he was pulling out abruptly, and before Shinichi knew what was happening he had flipped him over and entered him ruthlessly from behind.
His groan of appreciation was muffled in the sheets, but Kaito seemed to hear it anyway, making him pound even harder into the lithe, willing body beneath him. He actually screamed at the brutal invasion, unable to hold it in as the thief rammed into his prostate on every stroke, driving him wild. He reached down to grab a hold of himself, but Kaito smacked his hand away, taking his arousal in his own hand and setting a punishing rhythm. That was all it took, and then Shinichi was coming all over Kaito's hand, shivering and clenching around him as he rode out his orgasm. The sight—and the feel—of the boy coming undone was always enough to ruin him, and it wasn't long after he fucked the boy through his orgasm that he was coming too, buried deep inside that warm, slick passage.
He pulled out slowly with a groan, the sight almost enough for him to come again. Shinichi, laid out beneath him, completely fucked out, come sliding out of him as a sticky mess down his thighs. He looked like he'd been claimed ruthlessly and loved every second of it.
After a long moment of appreciating the sight he moved to clean them both up, throwing the dirtied sheets to the floor and thanking himself for having the foresight to bring two.
Shinichi grumbled unintelligibly as Kaito cleaned him up, before turning in against the other boy once he'd flopped down beside him.
Kaito grinned happily as the detective wormed his way determinably into his arms, cuddling up right next to Kaito without much space between them. He didn't think he'd ever get enough of Shinichi's affection. The boy was normally so standoffish, and very protective of his personal space. He'd seen Shinichi brush off a wayward hand on his shoulder, or a pat on the back, like the idea of contact with another human disturbed him. And yet he clearly had no compunctions with human contact with Kaito, if anything, he was rather insistent upon it.
The thief maneuvered the sleepy boy until he could wind his arms around the boy from behind, holding him tightly against his chest. Shinichi made a drowsy noise of content, snuggling closer, grabbing one of Kaito's hands with his own and holding it close to him. He kissed the nape of the detective's neck, relishing at the feel of the long line of warmth next to him.
He wouldn't be able to live out his fantasy of waking up next to the boy, but at least he could live out his dream of falling asleep with him in his arms.