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Chapter 15

Ai sat on the roof, shivering slightly in the cold. It was two in the morning, and she couldn't sleep.

Big surprises there.

She kept contemplating, much as she tried not to think about it, how it would happen. Would she just fade away slowly, or simply vanish, being here one second and gone by the next?

Ai hated how she feels so scared. How she is afraid even to close her eyes.

"How long were you planning to stand there?" she asks lightly, after awhile.

Behind her, Shinichi stepped out of the shadows, looking sheepish. He could never manage to sneak up on her somehow.

"You breathe too loud." Ai said, answering his unspoken question.

"Oh." Shinichi sat down next to her, handing her his jacket. "Here, it's cold."

"What are you doing here? It's two in the morning."

"Snuck out." Shinichi said with a grin. "Mom would kill me when she finds out."

"Why would you do that?"

Shinichi looked at her for a long time before her shrugged. "I figured you're probably still up, and you might like some company with Hakase not being here and all."

"…" Ai was annoyed at herself for being glad that he's here, when really she should be telling him to leave.

There sat there, side by side, like a scene in a movie. It always happens like that, the roof, the star filled sky, the couple holding hands, falling in love, living happily ever after. Except here, the skies were clouded, and Ai doubted very much that her story would have a happy ending.

"Ai-chan?"

"Hmm?"

"Is it true that you're not coming to school anymore?"

Silence. Then, a nod. She knew that he would ask why, and tried to come up with a plausible answer. But he fell silent, and his next word weren't what she expected.

"Ai-chan…what do you think the future would be like?"

Ai turned to stare at him. His remark was carefully composed, and she couldn't tell if it was just a casual, truth-or-dare-ish question, or if there's something behind it. She studied his face carefully. But nothing seems different...

Deciding to avoid the question, she shrugged. "I don't know. What do you think?"

"No fair. I asked first."

Ai exhaled sharply. "Okay. In the future, Kudo Shinichi would become a famous detective."

"Would you like that? Me being a detective." Shinichi asked seriously, and Ai can't help but smile.

"Of course."

"And then?"

"You'll be in the same class as Ran-san, grow up with her, be there when she wins the karate tournament...and be happy."

"What about you?"

"Me? I..." Ai smiled thinly. I'll be Miyano Shiho... someone with nothing to do with you...

She fell silent, staring at the ground before her. "I..."

Then she felt him take her hand gently. Ai looked up questioningly to find him looking at her solemnly.

"…Let's go downstairs."

Ai nodded, and let him lead her down the stairs.

"Bye, Ai-chan. See you tomorrow."

Ai closed the door, then slumped onto the couch, staring into space. Was she imagining things, or did the way he said 'See you tomorrow' seem like a question?

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A/N: I'm sorry for the slow update. I have exams coming up soon, but I'll try to write as much as possible. Maybe during English class. Hope you enjoyed this!