Kiss of Death
Chapter 17, Part 18
"Lying"
A/N: GUYS. PLEASE CHECK THE PREVIOUS CHAPTER. I REPLACED IT WITH A CONTENT INSTEAD OF THE ONE WITH AN AUTHOR'S NOTE.
Ai woke up, with a pounding headache. But she couldn't open her eyes -she was blindfolded. There was only darkness in her sight.
"Welcome back, my sweet Sherry-"
It was redundant to question the voice. Ai knew it all too well, giving the chills on her spine -it was Gin. She felt a hand flicked her hair and she felt it -the contact of a cold-blooded man. She figured that Gin was not wearing his usual black gloves.
"You know that your freedom is at my mercy, and you tried to get away," he spoke once more, each syllable was purposely dragged on to torture her. If he wouldn't kill her, he'll be scaring her to death. She fought to remain still.
"Maybe I should just crush your ankles so you won't run away-" he was whispering to her ears right now. Her right eye involuntarily twitched at the close contact. She shifted away in discomfort, like he was a bee that needed to be avoided. But she was a flower to him, the one that he preyed on for years "- and maybe gouge your eyes out while I'm at it, so that you won't look at anyone else."
He chuckled. Ai didn't question if he was joking. Heck, she knew that he lacks a sense of humour.
"But it won't be fun, you won't be able to see my welcoming gift," Gin added.
"I have no time to play with your games-"
"No, no, Sherry, I'm playing fair here. I'm already generous that I'm not mutilating you. But someone needs to be punished in our story," Gin said, rather excitedly.
"And let me tell you the rules- anyone who looks at your beauty will have his sight taken away. Anyone who touches you- well, I think I'll just rip his arms off," he said in a playful sadistic manner, completely toying with her vulnerability, "no one else can have you, except me. But I bet you don't understand. So I'll give you a preliminary example to explain the game."
"Wanna guess what my present is?"
"No, don't tell me-"
"That's right, you gotta see it for yourself, my sweet Sherry-" he removed her blindfolds.
No.
Ai gasped, the vision getting blurred out my tears threatening to fall. The frozen case encapsulating her emotions were thawing right away, at the gruesome sight. She choked on air. It seemed harder to breathe.
There he was, dead.
The bespectacled boy was battered and bruised, his eyeless head facing her with a look of horror in his expression that mirrors hers. The usual blue suit and blazer he was wearing were hollow around the arms.
She let out a scream.
She stood up in her bed.
I guess it was just a nightmare.
Ai heard distant footsteps - they were urgent, heavy and drawing nearer. The door swung open, revealing Conan, who was well and alive, in contrast to the one in her dream.
She never felt so relief.
"Haibara! What is it?!" he asked, as if the whole incident that happened between them two nights ago never occurred.
"Nothing..."
"You can't say that, you just screamed," he stepped forward, but she remained staring at him in awe.
"No... It's fine..."
It was alright, really. The sight of him being in a healthy living state was sufficient for her. She already lost her parents and Akemi -there was no way she'll lose another.
"But, you just screamed," he repeated, getting a little impatient.
"It was just a nightmare, Kudo-kun," she reassured.
She's not telling me something again, but- I have to remember what Hattori said.
He sat on the edge of her bed, so that he could be closer to her, yet sufficiently distant to give her some breathing space. "I think you need to eat, or drink something at least. Belmot knocked you out, lucky I was here on time. She's still alive, the one they caught was a fake. Someone disguised as her and they killed the woman," he explained.
"Ohh-"
"But don't worry, the FBI, CIA and Rei's National Police Security will be helping to track down the syndicate. I know you're afraid of them, Haibara. But we need a little bit of faith when fighting, if we keep running away, we can never win," he spoke softly, getting up to leave, "I'll go get some food for you then."
But something stopped him.
"Don't go... Please..." she said shakily, her hand gripping on his sleeve. He turned to her direction, she was petrified and pale as a ghost. She wasn't going to let him get away that easily -as if her nightmare would come true if he ever walked out on that door.
She placed another hand on one of his shoulders, whispering helplessly, "stay with me through the night. I can feel... The same pressure. It's here... Nearby..."
Her request sounded innocent, but otherwise, it might have been raunchy if it was another circumstance. Should I stay?
"I can't... Haibara," he said reluctantly, but the grip on him tightened, "the rest are staying up on their missions. You know I have to aid them."
But darn, she was stubborn.
If that didn't convince him, maybe wrapping her arms around him will do the trick. She wanted to hold him tight, like a child holding her teddy bear in the darkness. The inner child was screaming, afraid and alone within her. And he was her teddy bear, the friend she needed to cuddle to chase the bad dreams away. Conan froze but he made no move to turn to her. He was confused- he actually liked the warmth she was radiating to him. Ai didn't speak or even cry -perplexing him further. He attempted to move an inch, but the grip became tighter around him and at that moment- he knew he wouldn't win. Sighing in defeat, "alright, maybe I'll stay until you fall asleep. Then I'll go and help them, okay?"
Conan felt her nod in response and continued to lay on her bed. "Come here," she cooed, motioning him to lie next to her.
"Are... You sure?" he asked hesitatingly, the idea of her lying with him sounds scandalous. She nodded her head in response. Once he was settled, he was met eye to eye with the strawberry blonde. The girl slowly had her eyelids shut, while resting her arm around him. Yet, he didn't make a move to touch her.
It's funny how, the word "lie" and "lying" are ambivalent.
To lie with one another.
To lie to one another.
Lying together.
Lying together.
They were lying with each other yet lying towards one another.
Self-denying their emotions, their insecurities, their needs. He might be proximal to her now, physically. Yet, there was this unspoken distance between them. The mystery of her past and Gin... Did she love him? That made her seem faraway from Conan. All the years of interactions and their adventures in their secondary childhood seems to have vanished into thin air.
Conan became more puzzled in what they were.
As always the one with the keen eye, her facial features were under his scrutiny. The features that made her glow were prominent to him, but he never noticed it before.
Since when were her lips became so naturally light peach-coloured? Or the fact that her hair was reddish under the nightlight? And her eyelashes are actually long. There are slight puffiness in her eyelids- an indication of an unhealthy sleep schedule. Nonetheless, the sight of her peaceful facial expression warmed his heart, instead of the usual negative emotions that she harbours that always made him worry- no fear, no worry and no crying. He silently wished that time would halt just for this moment. Gingerly, he tucked a strand of her hair under her ear.
I could wake up to her pretty face everyday.
Wait- what?! Did I... Just thought of that? Shit. I need to go.
He hastily removed himself from her, careful not to wake her up. With one last look, he whispered, "sweet dreams, Haibara."
"Ah, Jodie..." Akai said, noticing the woman approached him. He lighted a cigar and gave a puff of smoke.
"Shuu..."
"What is it?"
"It's just... Akemi and Shiho Miyano are your cousins," she stated bluntly.
"Yearp-"
"Then didn't you have a romantic relationship with Akemi?" she asked, the discomfort was evident in her.
Akai gave another puff while nonchalantly adjusting his sniper. "We weren't. We were just posing as a couple. It is to get me into the syndicate since no one knows that we were related," he explained, but Jodie became more saddened.
"But Shuu..." she whispered, her voice becoming weaker, "didn't you tell me that you couldn't love two, so you ended it with me? Why... Was it all a lie?"
The helplessness in her voice seemed to have caught his attention. He finally turned to meet her teary eyes, and said, "I did love Akemi, as a family. I suppose I said that in hopes that you'll hate me. But here you are, still the same as ever."
"Shuu..." she began once more, advancing forward, "you have no idea, don't you?" Tears were beginning to fall bit by bit, "I thought... I thought you died. Yes, I was very upset, but I could never... Hate you." Her lines were uneven.
"Here-" he handed out a handkerchief to her.
"Now isn't the time to worry about this. We're in a mission. We're in a war, and we're like soldiers preparing for it. War and such fairytale endings cannot co-exist, soldier. So straighten up," he reminded her, there was no variation in his voice. He remained as cool as cucumber, which frustrated Jodie because she can never read him.
"But I suppose-"
He hesitated, but sighed in defeat.
"I suppose after this war, we're allowed to feel what we feel-"
Dawn broke, thankful that the syndicate has not made its move.
Ai stirred, seeing that the detective was nowhere to be seen. She couldn't help but feel her heart sank in disappointment, looking at the empty space on her sheets. She didn't dream anymore, thankfully. There was still that intense pressure pressing on her chest, like the presence that the syndicate is extremely proximal. Yet, it wouldn't have made any sense. She was informed that the place isn't bugged and the house was closely monitored by officers. There was no way someone from the organisation could sneak in here. So was her fear that irrational? Was she just paranoid?
She walked down the steps, seeing Conan in the living room, drinking a cup of iced coffee. After making her own cup of hot coffee, she sat on the chair opposite of him. "Hey," she whispered.
"Hey..." he responded, rather awkwardly.
"Thank you, for consoling me last night," she broke the silence.
"Don't mention it-"
A/N: Sorry if this was rather short. I meant for it to be longer but the momentum will be broken.