So, to make it clear: updates come twice in one week, on Monday and on Thursday.
As always, thanks you all for your support, it really means a lot!
Please enjoy!
Maybe the neon lights did it, or maybe his white clothes, but Kid looked so pale, so weak, so fragile. Like a dry leaf, ready to be blown away by the wind. His chest heaved, and his breath left him with a weird, high pitched sound. A broken bird, that's how he looked like. Slumped against the bathtub, legs bent awkwardly, shaky hands on the cold tiles. If a death god appeared in front of him, it wouldn't be a surprise. He very much look liked he was on the verge of dying.
And yet, with the stubbornness only Kid could have, his every breath was a raised middle finger to death, because he was still there, he was still alive. His lips were curled into a pained, but manic smile, one that seemed to scream "Is this all you can do to me?" He should've been pathetic, pitiable, but Shinichi kept staring at him in awe, as one would look at an old sculpture, broken, but still beautiful.
"Kid…" he found himself whispering, and he was surprised by how quiet he was. He expected himself to shout, to scream at the state the thief was in, but… he couldn't seem to raise his voice any higher. That would've broken the trance he was in.
As he heard Arthur's voice, Kid turned his head, slowly, and only with a wince that he couldn't hide, but as he spotted his little guest, a smile, a genuine smile appeared on his face.
"Hey. Can't sleep?" he croaked out. Oh, how much Shinichi wanted to throw accusations at him…! You drugged me, you bastard!, he wanted to shout. He already took a breath to do it, when Kaito started coughing again.
"Kid…" Arthur said again. This time, however, the thief frowned at him.
"My name is Kaito. Didn't I tell you that?" Shinichi just stood there, the same frustration he felt when Kaito told him his name filled him again. He choose not to say a word, otherwise he might've said something that would put his identity in danger. Kid just sighed. "Couldn't you… call me that instead? I'd love to be nothing more than just "Kaito" right now." After that he turned away from Shinichi. He chose to stare at the wall instead, but with such a sad expression, that it made Arthur want to break something, or someone, possibly the one who did all this to Kid. But that wouldn't help him, Shinichi reminded himself. Not right now.
"We should… we should call an ambulance…" Arthur said. Maybe he would've run through the whole house just to reach the telephone, but Kid stopped him, as he raised his hands.
"Yeah, yeah, and we might as well call the police, don't you think?" he smiled wryly. "It sure would be convenient to capture me right now, when I can't really fight back." He glanced at Arthur, and when he saw how dejected he looked, Kid added, "But hey. I appreciate the thought. Thank you, Arthur. I… didn't want to make you worry."
"Is that why you drugged me?" Shinichi murmured, meeting Kaito's eyes with a frown. The other boy only smiled at him.
"Yes, that was the plan. Also… I had a feeling that you'd follow me, if I didn't." His smile grew wider when Arthur averted his eyes. "Looks like I was right."
"It's still a stupid reason," Shinichi pouted slightly.
"True, true." Kid nodded. "Sorry." And the smile he flashed was truly genuine then. "Though… this won't do."
"Huh?" By the time Arthur raised his hand, Kaito was already bracing himself on the edge of the bathtub, as he tried to stand up. "Hey, hey, what are you doing?" Arthur shouted, but… his voice… his voice was weird. Deeper than it was before. Almost like the voice he had before he shrunk.
Kid seemed to notice that too – for a few moments he only stared at Shinichi with wide eyes. His chest still heaved, the same high pitched noises leaving his throat. This is it, Arthur thought. He found out. But in that moment Kid's knees buckled under him, and he fell down on the floor. With a growl he tried again, this time fully focusing on himself instead of Arthur. Finally he managed to stand up, even though his legs were shaking. And then, to Shinichi's horror, leaned down again, though with a wince, and picked his little guest up.
"C'mon, you need to sleep." With that, he left the bathroom with a very dissatisfied Shinichi on his palm.
"What do you think you're doing? You're covered in blood! You're injured! We need to take care of that!" Shinichi shouted. He couldn't really think about this voice, not when that moron who carried him was so, so careless. He couldn't even stand straight for God's sake! He had to support himself with his other hand, constantly leaning against the wall and stopping for a breath, yet he smiled at Arthur like everything was alright.
"Nope. I need to take care or that. You, instead of worrying, need to rest." They arrived at the bedroom. Kid couldn't help but let out a relieved sigh when he opened the door, even though he knew it was far from over. Just those four steps he had to take to his bed without the support of a wall seemed difficult. Not to mention what would happen to Arthur if he fell over – he might squish him under his own weight! He still gathered all his determination, and, though he wobbled a bit, reached the bed.
He put Arthur on his pillow as gently as he could. Shinichi was tempted to just run up on his arm, and cling to him to make sure Kid didn't do anything stupid, while he fought the mental image of himself being a squirrel. All his will to resist left him though, when Kid flashed another smile, the brightest one that day.
"Just stay here, okay? I'll be back soon." Kaito kissed the top of Arthur's head before he left.
Shinichi decided to just hide his red cheeks under the blanket.
