So umm... I must apologize for this chapter. Probably the shittiest I've written so far for this story.


There was something odd about hearing his voice from someone else's mouth. But, since he couldn't do anything about it, he just watched Kaito pacing back and forth in the living room with a phone in his hand, perfectly imitating his tone. And not only that – after a few questions, he could use his personality too. It was frightening for Shinichi, but at the same time, he was amazed too. Kaito played his role so perfectly, as if he was destined to do this. There were a few things he said that made Shinichi flinch and frown, until he realized that he would say the exact same thing as well. Still, in his other hand Kaito had a piece of candy wrap, in case the connection had to go bad in an awfully convenient moment.

Shinichi wasn't expecting this. It seemed that when Kaito said that they needed to contact people, and that they would do something about it, he actually meant it. Even though Shinichi still had no idea how to explain it all, even though it was dangerous for Kaito, he was still willing to do it. However, while he was kind, he wasn't stupid, and he was careless, but not that much. He didn't let Shinichi speak. It was understandable, really, one wrong word and the police would find out everything about him, about Kid. He would've done the same, Shinichi thought to himself.

So they made a list about the people Shinichi needed to talk to. Once that was done, Kaito asked him about those who knew his story about shrinking and living as a child. He said that they would be easier to deal with, since they had to explain less. In fact, Kaito was planning to tell them the truth, only leaving out one little detail: the true identity of Shinichi's "saviour". He quickly found an excuse for disappearing for two weeks as well: the antidote which "knocked him out completely". Shinichi had almost no chance to disagree, even though he kept wincing at every idea and how risky it was.

"What a persistent guy…" Kaito sighed as he sat down on the couch next to Shinichi. He rubbed his temples slowly, he was frowning a bit too. Shinichi couldn't help but notice how he still winced when he raised his right arm higher than usual, or moved it too suddenly, or how all his movements were somewhat slowed down. He's been like this ever since that night, when Shinichi found him in the bathroom, covered in blood. "He just doesn't know when to stop." Kaito whined again, breaking him out of his thoughts and forcing him to react somehow.

"Hattori?"

"Yeah…" Kaito sighed again. "It was harder than talking to your parents, and that's something. But…" He smiled softly, with relief shining in his eyes. "…he seems to be a good friend. He was really worried about you." At that, Shinichi smiled as well, and shook his head fondly. "So I was thinking…" Kaito continued, though he kept his voice quiet, as if he wasn't sure if he wanted to be heard or not. "Maybe you'd be in good hands with him."

"What?" he gasped as he turned to the other boy, but he already stood up and grabbed the phone again, ready to take his role again.

In good hands? Does that mean…? Kaito would give him up?

It hurt. He felt as if his heart was squeezed then slowly torn apart, and he could've sworn that someone stole all the air from the room. He wasn't sure what would've been worse: not knowing the answer why his body reacted like this, and helplessly seeking the answer, or knowing it, but also having the knowledge that he couldn't do anything about it. But Shinichi was aware, he could understand perfectly well why he was like this.

No matter how unpleasant that nightmare was, it was useful for one thing: making him realize how futile it was to deny anything. He'd been interested in the thief from the very first moment. He was fond of him. He wanted to stay with him. It wasn't love yet, but the more time he spent in his house, the closer he was to it, and Shinichi had to admit, that he wanted this. He wanted to be in love with him. And – even if it seemed impossible – he wanted Kaito to be in love with him too.

They would talk about this, Shinichi decided. If Kaito wanted to give him up, he'd make it clear that he was against it. Getting out of this mess was one thing, letting him go was another. Yes, they would talk, they would, and then-

"I've arranged a meeting for you."

"A meeting?"

"Yeah. With your professor and your witch." He reached out to pat Shinichi's head, as he smiled reassuringly at him. "I need to do a few things first, but after that we'll go to his place, okay?" He didn't wait for an answer, just left the room.

He was alone with his thoughts again. So he would meet the Professor and Haibara. That was good. But it also meant that he would probably stay with them – thus he would be separated from Kaito. Not so good. He needed to find an excuse, any excuse really, so he could stay, even if it meant clinging to him. Not that he didn't have his pride anymore – he still heard it screaming in the background – he just choose to ignore it. He could scream into his pillow and bury himself later, when this was all solved.

He heard soft footsteps from the stairs, and moments later there was a complete stranger in front of him. His hair was blond, more like blond-ish, the shade that resembled the sand more than anything, and it was neatly divided in the middle. He had piercing black eyes, as they seemed to say "no nonsense" even from behind the grey-rimmed glasses with thick lens, that sat on his long, but thin nose. His thin lips were set in a straight line. The man couldn't have been older than 30, yet it seemed that he was already disappointed with everything in life. But that only lasted until a familiar grin appeared on his face, and his eyes were filled with light and mischief.

"A bug will fly straight into your mouth if you keep it open like that…" he said, and Shinichi already felt shivers running down his spine at his voice. It was still a bit like his Kaito's, but deeper, and somewhat dry, strict. "We should go."

"Hey, wait a second! Do you even know where to go?" Shinichi asked him. To be honest, he had lots of other questions, but at that moment that seemed to be a good start. The other boy only grinned at him again.

"No, but I figured you would tell me." And again, just like before, since he was convinced that he was right, and that he had the best plan, he didn't give a chance to argue, just grabbed him by his collar, and put him in the breast pocket of his brown suit jacket. With swift steps, he marched over to the front door, got his shoes, then left the house. "So, where do we go?"

Shinichi reluctantly told him the address, then just held onto the edge of his pocket, trying to hide but also wanting to see the streets outside. This went on for a while, and nothing much happened, until they reached a busier area. As a car sped past them and honked loudly, Shinichi, though he wasn't sure why, jumped, while he let out a frightened yelp. Maybe because it all seemed to big, so terrifyingly large compared to him.

By the time he gathered himself, Kaito was already staring at him with that weird, puppy-like worried expression.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm alright." He winced at how shaky his voice was. Kaito didn't seem to mind though, as he smiled at him.

"Don't worry. I'll keep you safe no matter what."

"…y-you should." he croaked out, then hid deeper in the pocket, not daring to look at the other. He missed the loving look Kaito sent him.