Rain drops fell lightly on Shinichi's head as he gently swung back and forth. The gentle creaking of the chains offset the rain just enough to prevent him from being carried away in their hypnotic music. He knew he shouldn't be out here. Not in the middle of the night. And defiantly NOT in the middle of a rain storm, but he really needed to think.

Today he had found out the Ran was going to marry Araide-Sensei.

She would also be moving to America with him for a few months after the marriage to get thing situated with Araide's clinic duties before returning to Japan.

Shinichi smiled to himself as the raindrops rolled down his cheeks.

He wouldn't cry.

He had never seen Ran so happy in her life and he was not going to take that away from her just because he had been too scared to make a move. He had tried for years to figure out just where he stood with his childhood friend, but he had been young and naïve at the time and it had never crossed his mind that the two could be more. Then, just as he figured out his feeling for his best friend, the whole Conan fiasco happened and any chance he might have had with Ran died.

Shinichi snorted and leaned his head against one of the swing chains. It was ironic really. When he first disappeared all Ran did was wait and wait for him to return. He had seen the signs though. Each day she waited for him had pulled them that much further apart until there was nothing left between them except friendship. Shinichi had known this way before he had returned to his own body, but it still hurt to think about the life they might have shared. Then, on the day Ran didn't have to wait anymore for him, she had ended it.

She had grown a lot from the Conan incident and it had given her a lot of time to think. She said that perhaps it was fate that they had been at Tropical Land that day and it was fate that the men in black had been on the same roller costar the murder had taken place on. She said that maybe it was fate that turn Shinichi into Conan that day and that maybe it was fate that had pulled them apart.

Shinichi had wanted to argue, to tell her that it was just an accident and that it all didn't matter now that he was back. He wanted to tell her that they could go on with their lives and put this behind them. But he had grown a little himself and even to him the words sounded hollow and false.

So he had let her go.

He had let her go and resigned himself to the fact that fate seemed to have dropped him face first onto the cold concrete on truth.

Luckily, it seemed that fate had a plan for him after all and it came in the form of a suit wearing phantom thief.

True Shinichi had first really dueled with him over the clock tower, but, in the wake on more pressing matters, he had forgotten all about the thief until the Black Star heist.

A soft smile graced the detective's lips as he thought about his first true meeting with Kid and how surprised and, truth be told, amazed when Kid did an exact impersonation of Nakamori's voice and had then vanished in the crowd of confused police officers. It was then that Shinichi knew that this thief would be his and his alone to catch. So clever were the riddles and so thought out each plan that it had made the then child detective momentarily forget his own life. Every time they met an exhilarated thrill shot through Shinichi and every time Kid got away it had only strengthened the detective's resole to catch the elusive thief.

Kid had turned into a drug for him.

A safe place to run when he was at his breaking point.

For the first time in months Shinichi had felt that there was a reason for what he did. He had not known that he was falling for the thief or vice versa until just that very morning.

Shinichi awoke to a pair of soft lips on his own and for one crazy second had thought it was Ran. Upon opening his eyes however he had just enough time to see the blue, monocle cove eye go wide before its owner jerked out of his sight and fled. Shinichi had just lain there in bed wondering what had just happened. He stayed there for a long time turning things over in his mind when Ran had called and said they needed to talk.

A soft squelching noise behind him made Shinichi open his eyes. Head still leaning on the chain he allowed himself to stop swinging as an invitation to whoever it was that he was paying attention.

"You shouldn't be out here," Shinichi smiled at the concerned voice, "you could catch a cold."

"Is that concern I hear Kid?" There was a series a squelches and suddenly the rain ceased to beat its steady drum on Shinichi's head. Shinichi closed his eyes again as a pair of soft lips rested against his own before pulling back.

"Of course it is, now let's go home and get you dried off, okay?" Kid moved his umbrella to his other had and took Shinichi's hand pulling him gently from his swing.

Shinichi stared at their intertwined hands for a minute before smiling and squeezing, "You know you technically haven't asked me how I feel about this."

Kid stopped and turned to look at the detective, a beautiful grin plastered on his face, "Who says I need too? Oh and before you ask, the name is Kuroba Kaito, but you can call me Kaito."

Shinich's smile widened and he leaned forward to peck Kaito's mouth, "Nice to meet you Kid."