Nayru's Note: Considering the timeline in DC just DOESN'T WORK (Valentine's happened twice, it snowed like 7 times by now, and supposedly not even a year had passed since Shinichi turned into Conan? I don't even), I figured I can manipulate something into my liking regarding the Gosho Boys' ages. You'll see what I mean when you get there.
Out of the four, only Heiji's birthday is unknown, though it's assumed to be somewhere in June/August. I just picked a day and rolled with it.
Also (not to get anyone's hopes up or down, but) I decided to change the rating of the story to Mature. I'd say "because of reasons" but it's mostly so that I can stay on the safe side and not limit myself when it comes to future ideas. … Especially when 'sex toys' are starting to get involved. *snorts*
~4 Idiots In A Closet~
Chapter 10: Birthday party gone wrong
Heiji eagerly rang the doorbell.
When Kaito finally made it downstairs and opened the door before them, he greeted both Conan and the dark-skinned detective with some confetti and a smile, although Hattori could swear there was… something off with it.
"Greetings to da birthday boy!" He cheered, trying to ignore his thoughts, although his doubts only intensified when he took a step inside. The thief started to discreetly move along and hide behind him like he was supposed to be some kind of shield.
That was when he also noticed Shinichi's judging stare.
"… I'm clearly missing somethin' here."
"Don't let him kill me," Kaito pleaded, giving the impression of not willing to let go of his shoulder anytime soon. Heiji blinked and checked again, only to see that the small detective's gaze didn't waver even the slightest bit.
"Should I ask?"
"No, just don't let him kill me," Kuroba repeated, fake smile back in place. "And keep in mind that if you do find me stabbed somewhere in the closet, it's going to be his work."
"You honestly think I'd let anyone find the body?" Conan finally spoke up with a morbid kind of smirk on his lips. The magician gulped.
"Yuuup. I'm clearly missing somethin' here," Hattori muttered, more to himself than to the two people he was currently in-between of. "No idea what ya did, Kuroba, but it takes quite a bit ta get Kudo goin' like that."
Kaito did explain everything regarding the whole ordeal with Kid and Ran as best as he could. He swore he did. That clearly didn't mean he was going to be forgiven easily, though.
Well, he kind of deserved it. He played with fire that wasn't meant to be toyed around with, after all. His mistake. But, hey… Shinichi was just messing with him, right? He wouldn't really do anything bad to him, right?
… Right?
"Truce for tonight?" Kuroba offered, giving Tantei-kun the most apologetic smile he could muster.
"So, you want to postpone the inevitable and make me kick your ass later," Conan concluded in an unwavering voice, giving the impression that it would take a lot more than that to change his mind on the matter. "Be thankful that it's your birthday today."
"Kaito? Aoko knew that you had a way with kids, but you never told me you were actual friends with one," the fuzzy-haired girl commented, resting her hands on her knees and lowering herself to get a better look at the small boy before her. "Hey, there. What's your name?"
Shinichi took a careful step back and just watched her in wary confusion, at first. All too amused that everything was going according to his visions so far, Kaito just grinned, eager to enjoy the show.
"Ah… Conan. I'm Edogawa Conan."
"Aww, he's so cute!" Aoko chirped in delight, and Kuroba couldn't help but snort at Shinichi's sudden, horrified expression. "I'm Nakamori Aoko. It's so nice to meet you, Conan-kun!"
"Nakamori…?" The small detective blinked, derailed completely. That's when Kaito finally decided to join in and squat next to him.
"She's Inspector Nakamori's daughter. And my childhood friend," Kid explained with both amusement and a weird hint of pride in his voice. "I knew you'd be surprised."
"But… She looks exactly like…" Shinichi scrambled for words, trying to get a hold of himself. "Well, not exactly like her, but…"
"The resemblance is striking, isn't it?" Kaito chuckled, well aware what the other meant.
Aoko blinked at them with her big eyes. "What are you talking about?"
"This kid here has a nee-chan that looks just like you," the magician quickly explained. "You'd be surprised. I found it unbelievable at first, too."
"Oh, really?" If anything, Nakamori seemed intrigued by that remark. "Well, I hope I can meet her someday, as well. I don't know what kind of person she is, but… Aoko wouldn't mind being your nee-chan for today, Conan-kun."
Shinichi went silent and blushed, obviously not knowing what the hell was going on, nor what he just got himself into anymore.
"If there's anything you need, just come to me and say so, alright?" The girl added in a cheerful, kind voice.
Hesitantly, the small detective nodded, watching her smile at him.
"Well, you're in good hands." Kuroba gave Tantei-kun a sly look, as if wanting to imply something. "Just enjoy the ride."
If he wasn't feeling so out of it, he'd probably kick him for that. "… You planned all of this, didn't you."
Kaito looked to the side, trying to fake innocence. And then, the moment Conan heard the door bell ringing again, Kid was already gone.
"Wow, ya really look like this brat's nee-chan, though," the Osakan detective came to join in on the fun. "I'm Hattori Heiji, nice ta meech'ya."
"Nakamori Aoko. The pleasure's mine," the girl giggled. "You have a funny accent."
Needless to say, that earned her an evil look from the dark-skinned teen.
"Ah, I didn't mean that in a bad way! It's just… something Aoko hasn't heard before," the girl quickly added, flailing her hands before her in apology. "I take it you're not from around here?"
"Okay, chill." Hattori let it slide. "Yeah. I'm from Osaka."
"Oh! That's pretty far away. And you came all the way here, especially for Kaito's birthday party?" Nakamori seemed intrigued by that information.
"Actually, I mainly came to visit Ku—this brat here, who lives over at Beika," Heiji explained, jumping away from Conan, who barely missed kicking him in the leg. "But I timed my visit so dat we'd be able ta come."
"I see. Aoko is just surprised, because Kaito's never even mentioned anything about having friends from outside of Ekoda before. And I talk to him practically every day," she informed. "How did you guys meet?"
"Uh, we met…"
Heiji started, immediately trailing off, when he realized that he couldn't actually tell her how they really met. And why wasn't an 'official' version established by all three of them for such case scenarios yet? For fuck's sake!
"W-We met because of a case, didn't we?"
Hattori looked at Conan for confirmation, who looked just as terrified as he did. "T-that's right! Heiji-niichan is a great detective!" Shinichi clearly figured his pride was less important than them blowing both their and Kaitou Kid's cover.
"Right, right! Conan-kun wants ta be a detective when he grows up, so I agreed ta teach him da basics 'n stuff. That's why we hang out together a lot," the Osakan explained, trying to sound as believable as he could. "And during one of da cases, we stumbled upon Kuroba-kun, and he helped us catch da culprit."
"And then you guys invited me over for some coffee, as thanks." Kaito suddenly appeared next to them again, adding his two cents. "It was the start of a beautiful friendship."
"You never told me about that, BaKaito!" Aoko yelled, clearly displeased about being left out of the loop.
"I didn't?" The magician faked being surprised. "Sorry, it must have slipped my mind somehow."
"So, you say you met during a case." Another girl's voice interrupted their conversation, and before Shinichi and Heiji knew it, there was someone else standing next to them, too. "And you two are detectives."
"Hattori, Tantei-kun, this here is Koizumi Akako, also one of my classmates," Kuroba introduced them, though he didn't sound happy about doing it in the least. "Akako, this is Hattori Heiji and Edogawa Conan. I hope you can play nice and get along well."
There was definitely something odd about the way Kuroba said those last words. However, at that moment, Shinichi was more worried about the fact how the newly appeared girl suddenly started to stare at him, as if intrigued by something he wasn't aware of.
… Was there something on his face?
"Edogawa Conan-kun… right? May I see your hand?"
Akako hunched down next to him, catching him by the limb before he could even say anything. And then she started to observe his palm intently. Shinichi had no idea what the point of that possibly was, but...
"… You're no ordinary boy, are you?"
He barely blinked when Kaito suddenly yanked his hand away from the girl's grip.
"Stop that," The magician demanded, giving the girl a worryingly serious look. "You didn't come here to pester my friends, did you?"
Shinichi honestly wasn't sure what was going on, but the intensity of the way the two ended up staring at one another all of a sudden made him a little uneasy.
Eventually, Akako smiled and closed her eyes, as if deciding to let it go. "Friends, hmm? You really intrigue me, Kuroba-kun."
With a wave of a hand, Koizumi turned around and walked away, possibly wanting to give Heiji a 'proper greeting,' too.
"… Should I be worried?" The small detective asked, feeling Kaito relax and finally letting him go.
"She's weird like that. Just ignore her."
"And you told me I had weird friends."
That's when the door bell rang one more time, with the last invited guest making it to the scene. Kaito teased Saguru that it was unusual for him to be late.
The magician didn't expect to get any kind of gifts from anyone, to be honest, let alone so many.
Aoko and Hakuba decided to join forces and ended up baking a huge - very huge - chocolate cake for him, which was neatly decorated with all kinds of colorful pearls, stars and flowers made out of sugar. Just looking at it was enough to give one cavities. All of them would have been able to stuff themselves till oblivion with it, and a big portion would probably still remain.
Not that Kaito was complaining. Cake form or not, chocolate was chocolate, and chocolate was always great in his book. None of it was bound to go to waste.
He got a mug showing the words 'Do you believe in magic?' from Shinichi. Considering how much tea and coffee they drank together lately, the gift couldn't have been more spot-on. The thief was informed that there was a trick to it that he needed to figure out for himself, and while he inspected the thing, he also found a small bonus inside. Which turned out to be… an SD Card.
Kuroba had no idea what was on it, and as curious as he was, Conan insisted that he check it out in private, later on. Which, naturally, made him only more curious - but he put it away, holding on to the thought.
Heiji gave him… a pair of fluffy, pink handcuffs. Along with an elbow nudge and a suggestion that he should use them "with a partner of his choice" and have fun. Not sure whether to be mortified or to simply laugh, Kaito wasn't one to be easily offended by obvious implications, though (well, the bloody thing was practically a kinky sex toy, and he kind of did jokingly accuse Hakuba of having a handcuff fetish in front of them just a little while ago.) Hattori got some plus points in his eyes - for boldness, creativity and a great sense of humor.
The dark-skinned detective spent the next hour of his life cuffed to the radiator in the kitchen, with his yells and apologies left completely ignored.
From Akako (oh boy), Kaito got some kind of… weird contraption made out of threads, beads and colorful feathers. Needles to say, he was reluctant to even touch it, at first. The thing was probably cursed and out to steal his soul or something. Koizumi reassured that it was completely safe (he didn't believe her) and explained that it was a 'handmade dream catcher' - something to hang on the wall in order to 'keep bad dreams away.'
Kuroba wondered if keeping it inside of the house alone wouldn't give him only more nightmares.
It also turned out that the cake wasn't the only surprise Hakuba and Aoko had prepared for him.
The magician honestly didn't expect to get a bottle of Adderall as an obvious joke from his blond classmate. He was so proud, though. Saguru's sense of humor was becoming as messed up as their was. It only showed that hanging out with them managed to corrupt him in the best possible way.
It made Kuroba wonder how Hakuba managed to get his hands on something like this in the first place, though. Weren't drugs meant for people with ADHD unavailable without a doctor's prescription? … Not to mention that they were illegal both in Japan and in the United Kingdom, as far as he was aware of. Could it have been that Saguru went out of his way to break the law just for him?
The thought made him smile in a very mischievous way.
The last gift Kaito worked on unwrapping happened to be from Aoko. And while he wondered what could have been fairly big and squishy to the touch, he got rid of the blue ribbon tied around it, and carelessly proceeded to unwrap the paper—
Nobody - well, nobody beside Aoko - expected the sudden, girly scream echoing throughout the house, with Kuroba jumping to the ceiling andstaying there with a horrified expression on his face.
"Aoko, you traitor!" Kid yelled in utter panic, pointing an accusing finger at the mentioned girl.
Nakamori jumped in apparent joy, lifting a fist into the air. "Score~!"
Conan, Heiji, Hakuba and Akako started at the whole scene unraveling before them in shock and confusion. Intrigued what could have triggered such a reaction from their crazy thief, Hakuba moved to pick up the gift that was brutally left abandoned on the floor. And with a couple of swift tugs, the paper was eventually gone, revealing a… pillow.
A pillow which seemed to be hand-made and happened to be in the shape of a fish.
"What…"
Before Saguru could even begin to comprehend where the problem was, Aoko snatched the fluffy item away from him, clearly intending to throw it up into the air, straight into Kaito's face.
"N-No, stop! Get that thing away from me!" Kuroba screamed in horror, barely managing to dodge the thing by jumping down and making a run for it.
"Tee-he~ This is what you get for harassing Aoko all year long!" Nakamori seemed to be delighted with her childhood friend's reactions, as she picked up the 'fish' and went right after him.
Eventually, they two ended up downstairs, and the rest could only hear something breaking and smashing to pieces as they tried to comprehend what the hell was happening.
"… You're afraid of fish."
"I'm afraid of fish," Kuroba confirmed Shinichi's assumption with no amusement whatsoever. If anything, he was being grumpy. "Go ahead and laugh."
"But that was… a plushie." There was both disbelief and amusement in Heiji's voice, and oh, Kid's poker face was being tested.
"I hear someone wants to stay friends with the radiator for another hour."
"Hey! Have some mercy here!"
"Now it makes sense," Saguru commented, looking thoughtful about something. Well, at least he wasn't laughing at him. "Aoko-kun told me to watch out with the seafood when I was making tempura for you a while back, and I had no idea why."
"Doesn't make her any less of a traitor." Kuroba deadpanned, unconvinced. And then, he blinked, sudden unease seeping into his features. "Wait… Does that mean there was seafood in it?"
The London detective stared at him in silence, which was probably enough of an answer in itself. "… Does that even make a difference now? You already ate it."
Kaito wanted to cry. "Lie to me. Lie to me, like you've never lied before, please."
"Hey, can someone get me something ta drink?" Hattori yelled from the background. "I'm dyin' here!"
"Well, at least we know da thing is pretty well-made for bein' a toy," The Osakan detective concluded with a smile, massaging his freed wrist and accepting a glass of juice from the magician that finally let him loose. "Yer lovers won't run away from ya dat easily."
Kuroba snorted, wondering if he should try to push that. Heiji was definitely bold. "Are you implying that you're my lover now, Hattori?"
The dark-skinned teen didn't take offense at the remark and simply laughed. "If yer idea of 'fun' consists of cuffing people ta radiator pipes…"
"Awesome," Kid joked, grinning. "Tantei-kun's next on the—ow!"
'Tantei-kun' clearly overheard the whole thing without the magician noticing, and now someone had an aching leg to deal with. "Don't you even dare."
"Sorry, Kuroba," Heiji spoke up again, amused to see Kaito jumping on one leg and holding onto his other one. "It seems Kudo doesn't return yer feelings. Maybe ya'll have more luck with someone else."
"Oh, the heartbreak!" The thief remarked in a dramatic voice, ignoring Conan's unimpressed stare. "And here I thought we could have something beautiful."
Kaito eventually stopped with the theater and handed Shinichi a glass of juice, as if nothing. He could tell the small detective was wondering where the hell he even got it from, which only amused him more.
"You guys want some cake?"
"Okay, so Kuroba's birthday is on da twenty first of June. Mine is on the twenty ninth of July. So dat practically makes me a month younger than ya," Heiji deduced while munching on a piece of cake, occasionally drinking his juice. "What about ya guys?"
"Mine's on the fourth of May," Conan informed, looking at them with half-lidded eyes and a smile on his face. "So that makes me the oldest of you three. The irony."
"Aww, that means we already missed yours!" Kaito seemed disappointed with the information.
"Well, it's not like I could really celebrate it, anyway… Without it being suspicious."
The date belonged to Kudo Shinichi, not Edogawa Conan, after all. He couldn't really tell Ran what his actual birthday was… Which only reminded him that he still needed to come up with one for his smaller appearance, in case it ever needed bringing up, for whatever reason.
"You could always celebrate it with us."
"Next year?" The small detective sounded unimpressed. "Don't make me think about it, because I immediately start to wonder if I'll still be stuck like this by that time, and it makes me depressed."
"Ah, sorry," Kaito apologized. "I didn't mean it like that."
He was happy to see that Shinichi seemed to like the juice he gave him, though.
"What about yers, Hakuba?" Hattori elbowed the London detective in the gut, making him almost spill his drink. Saguru let out an annoyed sound, frowning at him.
"Twenty ninth of August," he admitted, somewhat grumpily.
"Ha! That makes ya the youngest of us all!" The Osakan teen exclaimed as if he just won some kind of lottery.
"Oldest, actually," Hakuba corrected in a calm manner. "I'm already eighteen. I'll be nineteen in two months."
Needless to say, all the boys turned to look at the blond, surprised.
"Wait, what? You mean to say you're actually a year older than we are?" Kaito frowned, puzzled. "How the hell did you get into our class, then?"
There was a moment of silence before realization hit hard.
"Wait, don't tell me… You didn't fail a year, did you? I mean, of all the people, that's something I'd never even suspect you of—"
"Of course not," Saguru cut the thief off, smirking. "I didn't enroll to your class for learning purposes, obviously." The implication behind the words wasn't that hard to figure out. "And to answer your question: I had my ways."
"Wow. Unbelievable." Kuroba didn't even know what to say anymore. "It's times like these that make me wonder who's the sanest person around here."
"Despite everything, it's definitely not you." Hakuba was sure.
"Hey, Hattori, you okay?" Shinichi suddenly asked, wondering about his friend's mental state. The way he kept stabbing his piece of cake with his fork was a little worrying.
"I am far from okay," Heiji whined, finally stuffing his face with the murdered dish. "I'm da only guy around here who hasn't hit eighteen yet!"
"Hey, Kaito! Look, look!" Aoko yelled, looking like some kind of scarecrow with the way her hands were up in the air. She was balancing a pile of books on her head…
A pile of books that unceremoniously fell down to the floor the moment Kuroba turned to look at her.
"Dummy. You're so bad at this, it hurts."
"Hehe~ Aoko's mistake~" The girl chirped in a goofy way and swayed to the side before hunching down to pick the fallen items from the floor. Somewhat worried for his childhood friend's well-being, Kaito joined in to help her.
"… Is Aoko-kun drunk?" Came the shocking observation from Saguru. "Kuroba, did you add alcohol to our drinks?"
A finger was pressed to the magician's lips as he looked around, wondering if anyone else heard them. "Hush."
"Wait, what? Did ya just say da drinks have been spiked?!" Heiji yelled from a little further away, staring at his drink in horror.
Neither Kaito nor Saguru seemed to notice both Hattori's and Conan's sudden distress.
"Honestly… You're aware what the legal drinking age in Japan is, right?" Hakuba gave Kaito a scolding look, and it didn't take a genius to figure out that the blond was displeased with the issue.
"And? It would have been legal in a lot of other countries by now, so who cares!" Kuroba got closer to his classmate, only to smack him on the shoulder. "Cut yourself some slack! Have some fun! Live a little!"
"You're unbelievable." The half-British teen sighed, deciding to go to the toilet.
"Moron!" Hattori suddenly yelled, getting Kuroba's attention. "Didn't Kudo tell ya 'bout da alcohol thing?"
"… Alcohol thing?" Kaito didn't follow.
Heiji planted a hand into his own face, dragging it downward. "Ya didn't tell him."
"It didn't seem important!" There was a hint of panic in Conan's voice. "Besides, this thing is a gamble; hell if I know how this actually works!"
Kid had no idea what was going on, but… that sounded worryingly serious.
"What kind of alcohol was it?" Hattori turned back to ask him.
"Um… some vodka?"
Shinichi seemed to go even more pale at his words.
"Kudo— Kudo! Don't panic!" Hattori caught his small friend by the shoulder, shaking him violently. To Kaito, it looked like the Osakan detective was panicking more than the person he was yelling at. "Maybe the amount you drank won't do anything…"
"Y-Yeah… and usually, I needed to have a cold for it to even—"
A sudden, pained gasp interrupted Shinichi's words, with his eyes going wide. Then he ended up in a coughing fit. That was Hattori's cue to panic even more.
"Sweet lord, it's happening…"
"W-What's happening?" Kaito tried not to freak out. "What did I do?"
"We need ta get him away from da girls!" The Osakan teen hunched down next to the small boy, who was currently clenching his chest in pain. "Ya got some spare clothes ya could lend him?"
Some cogs turned in Kuroba's head, making his eyes go wide in turn. "Wait, you don't mean—"
"Yes, I mean! Move it, kid, we don't have time!" The dark-skinned detective yelled, before realizing something and stumbling on his own words. "I mean— not that kind of kid! I didn't mean to—"
"—Shut up! And calm down, for heaven's sake!" Kuroba smacked the other on the shoulder, ordering him to get his shit together. They were both losing it. "Can you get him downstairs?"
That was when Hakuba came back from the bathroom and approached them again, looking a little lost. "… What is happening?"
Akako peeked from behind the London detective, clearly intrigued by the whole scene.
Meanwhile, Aoko finished picking up all the books she let fall and placed them back on the shelf, which meant there was nothing there to occupy her alcohol-ridden mind anymore.
"Maybe Conan-kun just needs a hug!" Nakamori cheerfully announced, hopping over to the small boy before Heiji could drag him away.
Before any of them knew what was going on, Shinichi was doomed to the hugs ans squishes of someone who looked like Ran.
Someone who looked like Ran and was very, very drunk.
Fuck.
Quick to act, Kaito ran over to the laptop and speakers, turning up the volume of the song that was currently playing. Elbowing Hakuba on the way back, the magician whispered into his classmate's ear: "Hey, you have a mission. Invite Akako to a dance."
Kuroba dearly hoped he wouldn't regret asking him that, but for now, they didn't have the luxury to be picky. Shinichi's identity was on the line.
So, while Mai Kuraki's 'Dynamite' exploded through the speakers, Kaito swiftly moved over to snatch Aoko away from Conan and ask her for a dance as well, trusting that Heiji would be fine on his own with their shrunk friend for a minute or two.
"Kuroba-kun is so sneaky, don't you think?"
Koizumi asked with a mischievous smile, letting her hands rest on Saguru's shoulders. The song might not have been a slow one, but that clearly wasn't stopping her from being sensual about the dance.
"Using you just to get my attention like this…" She practically purred, making the half-British teen shiver. "It really makes me wonder what he wants to hide away from me so badly..."
Everyone drank the goddamn juice, which meant that all of them had alcohol in their system, even if the intensity of its influence had to vary from person to person. For once, Kuroba cursed the trap he himself had set up and fallen into along with everyone else.
It was supposed to be funny. And all of it would have been funny, under normal circumstances, he was sure. Not when they had an unexpected situation on their heads, which they needed to deal with very carefully.
"Sorry, Hakuba, but I'd like to borrow your dancing partner for a minute," Kaito suddenly announced, breaking their two classmates apart. "Look after Aoko for me for the time being, will you."
Relieved that Saguru didn't complain, the magician swiftly took his place, catching the witch by the hand and placing his other hand on her hip. His mind might have been a little fuzzy from the alcohol, but he liked to believe that he still knew how to dance properly with ease.
"Oh, my~" Koizumi was hardly complaining, if her satisfied expression was anything to go by. "Now I can ask the person in question directly."
Kaito tried to keep his poker face intact as they began to dance. "How about we talk about what you're trying to pull."
"What ever do you mean, Kuroba-kun?"
"Don't play dumb." The thief pulled her a little closer, so that he could lower his voice and still have Akako hear him just fine. "I can see you're bewitching him with your voodoo spells or whatever."
"Those aren't voodoo spells," Koizumi corrected. "And why do you even care? I'm making your greatest rival pay less attention to you."
The remark made Kaito frown. So she was bewitching Hakuba, and she just admitted it. Before he could say anything back to that, though, it was the girl's turn to lean in closer to him.
"Or are you jealous?"
Whoa, where did that come from?
"I'm not jealous," Kuroba immediately denied, his voice dead serious. "I just don't think you'd make a good pair, especially when Hakuba's under the influence of some kind of spell with you."
Okay, so he was being protective of him. So what. Akako didn't exactly give off the impression of being a good person, and he still didn't trust her. Saguru might have been a jerk with a stick up his ass sometimes, but he was still… a friend. Okay? Okay. Kaito didn't want him getting hurt.
"How do you know he is, though?" Koizumi interrupted his thoughts with that unnerving, superior voice of hers. "Did it occur to you that he might simply like me?"
The magician made her do a swirl while holding her hand up in the air, fitting it into the rhythm of the song.
"I've seen him interact with all kinds of girls before," he informed when they got close to one another again. "He's never been this weird with anyone."
That made the witch smirk again. "Love tends to do that to people."
"You don't even mean that."
"Haven't you ever been in love, Kuroba-kun?"
Well, that was… unexpected. Which probably showed, because for a split moment, Kaito almost stopped moving to the music altogether. And while he could keep his poker face up just fine, it took him a while to come up with some kind of response to that.
"Have you?" He figured he might as well fight fire with fire. "Because I doubt it."
To his surprise, Koizumi's expression softened at his words, her smile suddenly losing its twisted mirth.
"You're so cold today..." For once, she sounded genuine. And as she averted her gaze away from him, Kuroba was a little startled to see and feel her resting her cheek on his shoulder. "Cheer up, it's your birthday."
That was when Kaito noticed that the previous song had already ended and a new one was playing. A slow one, this time. So that was probably why…
Letting himself hide behind Kid's mask, the thief didn't push the witch away and decided to continue their dance. Even when his mind was currently more occupied with how Shinichi and Heiji were doing than anything else.
He needed to bail out of this somehow.
"… What do you want me to do? In order for you to stop bewitching Hakuba?"
He might as well be asking 'how do I sell my soul to the devil?' but Kuroba figured he didn't have time for this and went straight to the point of what he came here to talk about with his classmate in the first place.
"Think about it, okay? And, please, don't force him into anything stup—gha?!"
Kaito had no idea when it happened, but he had Akako's hand… under his shirt. Which was suddenly tickling his side.
Needles to say, his poker face flew right outside the window. He tried his very best not to laugh. And failed miserably.
"S-Stop!"
"My, my, Kuroba-kun~" To the magician's further distress, his classmate's voice was back to her usual again. "I had no idea you were this ticklish~"
"—Your hands are cold!"
With an abrupt catch of Koizumi's wrist, they both stilled and started staring at one another in intense silence. … That's when Kaito realized just where exactly that hand of hers was resting, and he had the weird feeling it didn't end up there by simple chance.
He didn't carry the bandages anymore, but a few plasters were still there, and Kuroba was positive that the freshly scarred tissue from his shot wound needed to feel odd to the touch. Judging from Akako's stare, she wasn't even surprised to find it, and clearly knew more than he'd ever feel comfortable with her knowing.
"I'll be right back," the magician announced, pulling away from the crazy witch with a displeased frown. "Don't hex anyone while I'm gone, okay?"
"Ya sure this is a good idea?"
"Well, what else are we supposed to do with him? Get him back to the agency? Leave him locked inside of the closet and wait for him to change back? It's going to be fine, trust me."
The two boys took part in a heated debate, though they tried to keep their voices down as they dragged their 'newly appeared' friend upstairs.
"I can hear you, you know," Shinichi murmured, so horribly unamused. "God, get me some water, my head is killing me… And some of that vodka of yours, too, while we're at it." He coughed, trying to get the raspy edge out of his voice. "I didn't get much of a chance to experiment with it last time, but now that it's already happened again, who knows… maybe I won't change back as long as there's enough alcohol lingering in my body."
"That's kind of scary, man." Kaito spoke up, sounding concerned. "Having the choice to be eternally drunk in your own body, or being sober in the body of a child." It would have been funny if the whole situation wasn't so serious. "I don't know what's worse."
"Kudo, I know it was my fault that ya started with da drinking. Even if I was only trying ta help." Heiji almost sounded guilty. Almost. "But don't ya turn into an alcoholic on us. That kinda path never leads to anythin' good."
"Yeah, giving half of a glass filled with booze to a seven-year-old could have been only paved with good intentions." Sarcasm? Shinichi had it. "It honestly makes me wonder what the hell you were thinking back then."
"I heard it was good for colds! Ya had a cold!"
"Seven years old, Hattori." Kudo repeated, standing by his point.
"You guys are the best." Kuroba wasn't sure what the actual circumstances of the stuff they just brought up were, but all of that definitely sounded like an amusing story. "Where have you been all my life?"
"Reading books, solving crimes and chasing phantom thieves." Shinichi gave in and answered the rhetorical question with a bit of dry amusement of his own. "To makes things funnier, that's actually how Hattori and I met."
"I want to hear that story later on. All of it."
They were finally at the top of the stairs, though, and while entering the adjoined living room and kitchen, they had Aoko, Akako and Hakuba to interact with again. Hakuba, who… was currently dancing with both Nakamori and Koizumi. At the same time. And doing half-bad of a job while at it.
Kaito wondered if he didn't give someone enough credit.
Once the London detective noticed them coming back, he excused himself from the ladies and went to turn down the volume of the music. The girls eventually stopped dancing and turned in their direction.
"So, um…" Kaito finally started, feeling everyone's gazes on himself. "Guys, this is one of my friends, who I thought wouldn't be able to make it to the party… but what do you know!"
With a wave of his hand, he gestured to the person that was standing behind him, and took a step to the side in order to reveal him properly.
Their new guest seemed somewhat exhausted, with slight bags under his eyes and sweat rolling down the side of his face, but he made an effort to stands still and act like he was fine. It was a grown, teenage boy, which looked strikingly similar to the magician himself.
"I'm Kudo Shinichi…" The detective spoke up, forcing a smile. "It's… nice to meet you."
—t.b.c.
Nayru's Note: Wow, this chapter turned out weird. Oh, well.
Google 'fish pillow,' look at the image section and laugh together with me. Come on, you know you want to! xD
A ton of thanks to Sin-Shira for exchanging thoughts and helping me out with birthday gift ideas! (The gifts are going to have some plot twists that will be revealed in one of the future chapters, khe khe khe.)