Summary: Written for Poirot Cafe's Super Short Competition #5: Observation. Saguru observes, but doesn't see, something that KID knows all too well. Because sometimes it doesn't take a genius deduction, but rather a bit of common sense. /pre-HakuKai/
GA: It's fluffy-ish? I got really inspired, for some reason, by the SH quote, "You see, but you do not observe." Also cross-posted from AO3, sorry for the long wait! I've been computer-less for quite a while but I just got a new one so I'm good to go!
Enjoy!
SHERLOCK INVERTED
Sometimes, it's infuriating. The way Kaito- no, the way KID can see Hakuba's eyes flicker between the sparkling amethyst hidden behind a monocle and the chocolate diamond outstretched towards him. The way Hakuba makes a mental tally mark for every single quirk or trait he may be expressing at any given moment. The way heobserves.
Hakuba stands stock still, and Kaito has to wonder if the detective even realizes that the thief is offering him the gem. No, he realizes it, he's not an idiot, but instead of acting on it, he's filed the information away, categorizing and storing the way he does with every tidbit of knowledge. He's very systematic, and while endearing in its own right, it's a character trait that's starting to grate on KID's nerves.
"Not a word, tantei-san? Are you too dazzled by my presence to accept my gift?" A little flirting never hurts, but Kaito has long come to accept that it never particularly helps, either. Not like it would come off as anything but taunting, but a man can only try.
As expected, Hakuba scowls, reaching a bare hand out to grab the jewel. It doesn't disappear in a puff of smoke, doesn't explode, doesn't even move in the slightest. It just sits in KID's palm, waiting for the detective to claim it. "Why?" Hakuba asks, fingers alighting on, but not grabbing, the gem. "You could have just as easily left it while I was asleep. Did you really find it necessary to wake me up for this?"
Nonetheless, he finally wraps his hand around the diamond, and that's when KID strikes, grasping Hakuba's wrist and pulling him closer - still a good few inches apart, but enough to make him stumble towards the windowsill on which KID is perched.Elevated pulse, KID registers dimly in the back of his mind, but he already knows that.Dilated pupils, flushed skin, held breath. Hakuba isn't an idiot, but neither is KID, and the detective isn't as knowledgeable as the thief when it comes to hiding emotions.
"It's cheating if I tell you," he mutters lowly, but still with the sing-song quality that manages to make Hakuba catch his breath every time. This is no different, and KID smirks at the slight shudder in his chest. "So why don't you deduce it, instead?"
Hakuba is quiet for a few moments, long enough for KID to realize that tonight is just like every other night, but as he releases the other's wrist and turns to leave, Hakuba begins to speak. "Your pulse is higher than normal," he begins, sounding unsure of himself - oh, how adorable, the world renowned detective giving a hesitant deduction - but still carrying on. "You presented the diamond as one would present a gift, rather than a conquest. And...you're searching for something. Something from me." Yes, yes, just a little bit more, a little bit farther- "But none of it correlates with a plausible motive."
KID wants to laugh and cry at the same time, because for a certified genius, Hakuba can be a real idiot. But instead, he turns back and smiles softly at the detective, his detective, tilting his head. The shadows aren't enough to hide his face now and they both know it, but maybe that's the point. "Tantei-san," he intones clearly, letting the words hang in the air between them. "Stop thinking in facts and statistics." His grin turns more sly, but it still holds the same amount of truth as before. "You observe, but you don't see. Maybe the motive I have in mind isn't as implausible as you think."
He turns once more to the night sky, but paused when he hears a faint, "Kuroba." He doesn't react - oh no, he's not Kuroba, not at this exact moment, but if that's the kind of emotion that the name ignites in the detective, softness for Kuroba and fire for KID, then maybe, just maybe, he can be both at once someday - but instead waits for Hakuba to clear his throat and correct himself. "KID," his voice is a little stronger this time, but not by much, "are you insinuating what I think?"
"I'm insinuating that you shouldn't think," is KID's final answer, and glances back briefly at Hakuba -so close yet so far, more agonizing than any search for Pandora could ever be - to shoot him one final grin. "Ja ne, tantei-san."
And before he can reply, before he can give KID any reason to stay, he disappears, a white-clad magician blending in seamlessly with the dark street below. Hakuba gives the window one final glance before muttering his own farewell and closing the glass. "...ja ne, Kuroba-kun."
And down on the street - well, it's not a confession, not yet, but KID- no, Kuroba grins to himself nonetheless, his stoic mask spilling over into happiness. It's not a confession, but for now, it's enough.
GA: Hehehe, I'm kind of a sucker for HakuKai. I also have a super super late Halloween oneshot that I should be working on for these two, buuuuut...that might go up some time in December or January, haha.
'Til next time!
~G. Annihilator