Chapter 7: Fragments of Friendship

Kuroba Kaito, here once again.

Now, why do I feel like I'm your source entertainment? Well, I guess, my life is entertaining.

Anyway, it was still the first day, yet the tension between Kudo and me… Did he feel it? Was I even supposed to feel it? Come to think of it, was it even there at all? My bet is that it was, but maybe my course of action wasn't the best thing I could have done.

So there I was, in Kudo's classroom, saying let's go home, while stupidly forgetting that my bag wasn't with me.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Eh?" I looked at my hands, which held nothing, and remembered that I had left class early and my bag was still in my classroom. "I guess it's still in my classroom. I'll go get it." I laughed at my own foolishness. "Wait for me by the entrance, okay, Kudo?" I said, leaving him with Hondou.

I ran for 2-4's classroom, when someone suddenly came around the corner and bumped into me. With a feminine "Oh!" she fell back and almost landed on her butt. Well, she would've, if I hadn't caught her. "Gomennasai (sorry), Jodie-sensei. Daijoubu (are you okay)?"

I helped her regain her footing, holding on to her hand and lower back. When she said, "Daijoubu desu~ Kega wa arimasen~ (no injuries)," I knew she was alright, so I knelt down on the floor to pick up her notes and purse. She too, dropped to her knees and reached for the pieces of paper scattered on the floor.

Standing up, I helped her once again to her feet and handed her her things. I smiled apologetically. "Seriously, I'm sorry Jodie-sensei. As a sincere sign of my apology, please, accept this," I said, handing her the rose which Shiho had refused to accept earlier.

She didn't reach for the rose and instead, just smirked at me. "Kaito," she started, her tone holding no hint of that awkward Japanese she usually spoke. "You don't really expect me to accept a reject, do you?"

That made me stop, drop my grin, stare at her in surprise. What?

"Do you, Kaito-kun?" she repeated.

Looking like a dumb fool, I slowly shook my head, all the while looking at Jodie-sensei with widened eyes. H-How does she know?

"You seem surprised," she commented, walking past me. I turned around, my eyes following her every step, and just as she was about to disappear from view, she turned around and said, "You better act fast if you don't want a certain soccer player to outdo you."

All I could was stand, stare and wonder, How the hell could she possibly know?

The thump of a distant ball snapped me to attention, reminding me that Kudo was heading for the entrance. I held my bag over my shoulder and ran for the other exit, hoping to arrive before that certain soccer player does.

I got to the gates just as Kudo exited the school, his focus on the soccer ball he was kicking. I leaned against the wall and steadied my breathing. "Oi, Kudo, what took you so long?" I shouted, trying to sound as if I've been waiting all this time.

He grinned and replied, "I didn't take long Kaito. You were just fast, that's all."

I matched his pace and rolled my eyes. "That still makes it seem like you were slow, Kudo. Seriously, who would've thought Teitan's soccer star was such a slowpoke?"

Only then did I see just how big of a hypocrite, just how big of a liar I was. I lowered my head in shame of that realization. Just by acting as if nothing was wrong, I'm already lying to myself, to Kudo. But to tell him the truth, how could I do that when I have no idea what the truth was? And to confront him... Could I really do it? Is there even a need? Is Miyano Shiho even that big a deal? Does he like her? Why the hell would he like her? Even if he did, what does it matter?

Those thoughts were going through my mind, and I didn't even hear Kudo reply. Hell, I didn't care if he even replied at all.

My feet stopped moving, and only due to muscle memory did I realize that we had reached the railroad that separated our ways. My mind was racing, I knew Kudo would leave. I was torn with the notion of wanting to know and afraid of hearing the answer.

But I panicked, and just as Kudo crossed the tracks, my mouth moved of its own volition.

"Ne, Kudo."

The caution signals started beeping and flashing. The bars at the side of the path blocked the way, making it impossible for Kudo to get to my side of the road.

"What is it?"

Finally, I looked up, wanting to see how Kudo would respond, wanting to know how he would react. "Su..." I started, and hesitated once again. I balled my hands into fists, lowered my voice and tried again, "Suki nano? Miyano-san no koto?"

And then the train came, dividing Kudo's world and mine. It was only for a few seconds, I could've waited. But my will gave up on me, and I couldn't stop my feet from turning, couldn't stop myself from running away.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Taking dejected steps back home, I tried to keep my mind off what I had done. Reaching my house, I unlocked the door and called out 'Tadaima (I'm home)!' No reply came, I didn't expect any.

Even though my father was the world-famous magician, Toichi Kuroba, he was dead. Even though we were loaded with the riches he left behind, my mom couldn't bear losing him and was constantly busying herself with work.

Yeah, so you could say I was lonely. That's probably even the reason why I had so many girlfriends. I try not to think about it. Especially since Kudo's my only real friend, and that pretty much every other guy in school hates me.

I climbed the stairs to my room, and threw my bag on the desk. As I lied down on my bed, the events of that afternoon came rushing back to me.

I couldn't believe what I had just done. I ran away, the one thing I promised Kudo I would never do. Yet there I was, doing that exact same thing to that exact same person. I smiled, a bitter smile. A sad, self-pitying smile that hasn't appeared on my face since I met Kudo.

My thoughts went back on that day I met him, on the day I promised I would never run away.

It was the last day of vacation, the next day would be the start of another school year. Another year of ooh's and aah's from people I don't know, from people who just watch me from the bleachers as an elementary school kid snatches first place from the middle school students.

Yup, that elementary school kid was me. My father trained me to be the fastest, saying that it was one of my 'strengths' and that it was the one good thing I could do besides magic. No, my father wasn't strict, not much. But well, imagine a whole month of running. Who wouldn't get tired of it?

So just as me and my dad arrived at the park, and just as a couple of his fans spotted him and, and just as his attention was turned away from me, I ran away.

Not towards home, no. He would be sure to find me there. But the park was divided into two, a canvas of trees blocking the view of one to the next. So that's where I headed. But, just as I got there, I heard my father's voice calling for me, a tinge of irritation in his tone.

"Kaito!"

I looked around, and saw a bunch of picnic benches nearby. Hiding under one of the tables, I held my breath and prayed that he wouldn't see me.

I heard his footsteps, distinguishing them from the others. But instead of getting closer, they were fading away, as if he were going in the direction of home. I let out my breath, and leaned against one of the table legs.

"What are you doing?"

I jumped in surprise, which was something I probably shouldn't have done. Especially considering I was under a table. "Itai (Ouch)!" I cried out as my head came in contact with the 'ceiling.' The boy laughed, and I glared at him, hissing "What's so funny?"

He clutched his stomach and said in wheezing breaths, "Y-you sh-should have seen th-the look on your face!" He continued laughing, and I was getting more and more pissed. Who did this kid think he was, laughing at the son of Toichi Kuroba?

Crawling out of my hiding place, I stalked toward the kid, attempting to tower over him. We were about the same height, so standing on my tip-toes did the trick. "You have no right to laugh at me."

He stopped laughing for a moment, looked at me in surprise, then started chuckling, covering his mouth with his hand.

I fumed, my ears turning red. "You're not allowed to laugh!" I shouted.

"I'm not l-laughing," he said, unable to hide the giggle from his tone.

"Yes, you are!"

Then, his pitch grew higher and higher and his voice was so out of tune, it was the stupidest thing I had ever heard. I couldn't stop the snicker that escaped my lips.

So we stood there, laughing at each other. Or maybe it wasn't at each other. Maybe we were laughing, just for the heck of it. Who knows? And for that matter, who cares? I was having fun. That's what mattered then.

Then, he put a hand his chest, and breathed deeply. He seemed to have recovered a bit of his composure, his snickers few decibels lower. He gave me a fond grin, one that suggested we knew each other for a long time. "The name's Shinichi. Kudo Shinichi."

Regaining a bit of my dignity, I glared at him in return. But his smile didn't waver, and I grudgingly held out my hand and said, "Kaito... Kuroba Kaito."

"Nice to meet you, Kaito," he said, shaking my hand enthusiastically.

I looked at him through slightly narrowed eyes. "Yeah... whatever, Kudo," I replied, emphasizing his last name, hinting that we weren't close enough to call each other by our first names.

He didn't seem to notice or, probably, pretended not to notice. "So, what were you doing there Kaito?"

"Why should you care?" I know, I was being mean, but I wasn't used to someone just coming out of nowhere and acting as if we've been friends for years.

He just nonchalantly replied, "Coz we're friends, isn't it obvious?"

I raised an eyebrow at him. "I don't remember asking you to be my friend, Kudo."

"Awww, Kaito," he said, lightly clapping me on the shoulder, "There's no need to ask."

I raised my palm to swat his hand away, but he already bounded a few steps before I could do so, laughing all the while. He grinned at me from his place five meters away, then gave me the most mocking expression I have ever seen on his face and shouted, "Catch me if you can!"

Now, I may have been stupid, acting on impulse and chasing after him, but… it was fun. Normally, running, for me, was a chore, an obligation I wasn't too happy to do. But… Chasing after Kudo... It was different.

Having the training that I did, I was able to catch up to him. But it seemed like he had some training too, because it took me longer than I usually did to overtake kids my age. Just as I was about to reach out for him, hold on to arm and say 'Caught you!', he had an immediate burst of speed.

He turned around, running backwards and shouted, "Is that the best you can do?"

I smiled, and accepted his challenge. So there we were, running around like a bunch of insane kids. Well, maybe not insane. Maybe we were running around like a bunch of kids being kids.

It took me a while, but I finally caught up to him. I tackled him to ground, getting dirt on both our faces. Instead of resisting, he just laughed it off. "Wow Kaito, you're fast!"

In reply, I grinned at him, the same grin he gave me. The same one that said 'we're best friends.' I got off him, and lay down on the grassy dirt. "Faster than you, of course," I haughtily said, knowing he'd recognize it as a joke.

He grinned faintly, then a serious expression settled on his face. "Ne, Kaito," he said, "Why were you running away?

My eyes widened, and I stared at him in surprise. "I-I… I wasn't running away!" I said, as I molded my face into that of outrage.

His eye slid over to meet mine, but he didn't utter a word.

In the silence that settled between us, I couldn't stop the words that came out of my mouth. "I didn't want to run anymore."

He still didn't say anything.

"I never wanted to run anyway! My father was just forcing me to do it!" My voice grew louder. "And what do I get from running anyway!? A bunch of strangers cheering for me? What a joke!"

He then turned his head to fully face me. "You mean," he started, his voice almost inaudible, "You don't enjoy running?"

I didn't realize that in my outburst, I had managed to climb to my feet. I took a small step back muttering, "I-I-"

"You didn't enjoy chasing after me?"

I raised my head and glared at him. "Of course I did! Would have I been laughing if I didn't!?"

"Then why?"

"I-I… Those are two different things! We were playing then! Playing and training are worlds apart!"

"I don't think they are."

That stopped me. Because, not only did his voice gain volume, he had also stood up, and his tone held a conviction that was alien to me.

"Kaito, I saw you here, on the first day of vacation."

What?

"You were with your dad, running."

If you saw us, then why didn't say anything?

"Kaito, your expression then, and your expression today, were the same. But if you compare it to the one you had yesterday, Kaito, that's what I would call worlds apart."

What are you talking about?

"You seemed like you were being forced."

I finally snapped out of my silence. "Who wouldn't be!? My father was practically forcing this training down my throat! I'm sick of it!"

Kudo cocked his head to the side and said, "Are you sure about that?"

"Who are you to doubt me!?"

"You love running."

"You are in no position to say that!"

"But you're not denying it."

"…What do you mean by that…?"

"Kaito… Why did you run away from your father earlier?"

"Because I don't want to run anymore! I'm sick of it! How many times must I say that?!"

"You're sick of what?"

"I'm sick of-" running. That's what I was supposed to say. But the words won't come, and all I could do was glare at Kudo as he stood there with a calm expression.

"See?" he said, a slight smile forming on his face. "Aren't you just running away from your father? Running away from the expectations he placed on you?"

Then, he ran, headed for the exit, turned around and said, 'Byebye!' as I stood there, gaping at him. I didn't notice, so much time had passed, and it was already late afternoon. I kicked the pebble by my feet, sending to the cover of the trees.

"I'm not running away Kudo," was what I was muttering, the whole time I trudged home. "There's no way I'm running away."

Now that I think about it, my father might have staged that whole encounter. He didn't get mad at me when I got home, didn't even ask where I went. And the next day, first day of class, Kudo was right there in my classroom, right in the seat next to me.

He grinned, waved and even greeted me with a 'Yo, Kaito!"

I should've been mad at him, really, I should have been. He did say I was running away after all. But, I guess, his smile was contagious, and I couldn't help myself from grinning back, couldn't help myself from saying, "Yo, Kudo."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Kudo's changed a lot since then, huh…

BEEP! BEEP!

"Wha-what!?" I shouted as I fell from my bed with a thud. "Damn," I muttered to myself as I stood up, and reached for the cellphone that had disturbed my trip to memory lane.

Girl Information Center

That's what was written on the caller ID. Hondou? I swear if it's nothing important, I'm so gonna rip him to shreds.

I pushed the receive call button. "What do you want?"

"A-Anoooo, Kuroba-kun?" came his paranoid, high-pitched voice. "Did I call at a bad time?" Hondou was always nervous on the phone. He was more composed when we talked one on one.

"Depends on what you got to say," I replied, not bothering to hide my irritation.

"Oh-uhm-oh! I-I-I," he said hesitantly, obviously sensing my bad mood. "I promise it won't be a waste of your time! I-uh-I… I got Miyano-san's home address!"

My irritation immediately disappeared, a small smile appearing on my face. "Great job, Hondou. Where is it?"

"Oh-uhm-oh! It just appeared on the school's database a while ago. I guess somebody updated it…"

That's not what I meant, idiot.

"She lives around 16 Beika Street, just two blocks away from Kudo-kun's house."

What? I couldn't believe it.

"A-a-and Kuroba-kun? I heard from the teachers that there's gonna be a dance."

A dance?

"You know how we're gonna combine with the girls in PE? Th-the school'll be holding a dance, something like a prom, t-to 'show off the results' of dance class. I-I dunno when it'll be though, I-I just thought you'd be interested…"

He started stuttering, "S-S-So K-Kuroba-kun? Uhhh… That's all I got to say. J-" beep! He immediately hung up, probably afraid of my silence.

Kudo lives two blocks away from Shiho. That night, only one thought crossed my mind. I gotta act fast.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"Ittekimasu." I whispered to the still silent house. No one was home, so why do I bother? It's not out of habit. Even before, there was no one to say 'ittekimasu' to. I guess… I just…

It was earlier than I usually left home, and the neighbourhood was only starting to wake up. Bag in hand, I made my way to 16 Beika Street.

The night before, I had sent Kudo an SMS saying I couldn't walk to school with him. I didn't tell him why, and I pretended that I never asked that question by the railroad. He replied, only saying an 'ok.'

Anyway, there I was, leaning by the gate of the only house with no nameplate, waiting for the girl with reddish-brown hair.

She finally walked through the door, five minutes later, yet still earlier than I expected. She didn't notice me, and only when she had closed the gate did I tell her of my presence.

"Ohayou."

She froze, her eyes widening a little. Yet that was the only reaction she showed. A second later, she turned that expressionless face to face me, her eyes saying 'What do you want?'

I smiled, already having decided to try the direct method with her. I took a few steps forward, steps that would bring me closer to her. "Ne, Miyano-san," I said, taking her hand.

I brought it closer to my lips, and to my surprise, she didn't resist. But it was obvious she was unwilling. Just as my lips made contact with her slender fingers, she snatched her hand away and would have slapped me, if I hadn't taken hold of her palm.

I grinned, my trademark grin with a little bonus.

"Will you go out with me?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Did she say yes? Do you think she said yes? Maybe she did, maybe she didn't.

Maybe next time, okay? I'll be sure to tell you all about. Here's a clue, her first answer was a question. It wasn't a direct yes or no. Did that help? I don't think so.

'Til next time, ~Kuroba Kaito~