This chapter is shorter than most, but I've got a big one up next, probably, so it's worth it, at least for me, if maybe not for you.

Chapter Six

Conan had been saddened when Haibara hadn't joined them, but he understood not to interrupt when she'd said she'd be visiting her sister's grave. He went to the park with the other three, as usual, but didn't bother with his plan. When he got home, though, he noticed that Ran was awfully quiet, and it looked like she'd been crying again. So he asked, "What's wrong, Ran-neechan?"

"Oh, I was just thinking about Shinichi again. I've wondered what he's been doing, but he's always been vague. Plus he never calls as much anymore. After hearing his confession, I realized that I needed to move on, too, but I still can't stop thinking about him."

Conan was not surprised she'd been thinking about him again. It was one of the only things that made her cry. So he decided to cheer her up. "Ran-neechan, you shouldn't cry for Shinichi-niichan. He made his choice and you made yours, and you're both happy now. I don't think Shinichi-niichan would like it if you cried because it'd make him feel sad, too."

"I know Conan-kun, but I just had an unfortunate reminder today of what happened, so I was just thinking about it."

"What happened?"

"I, uh, saw two friends become a couple earlier, so I was wondering what might've happened if Shinichi hadn't had to go away for his big case."

That explanation sounded a bit fishy, but Conan didn't comment on it. "I know Ran-neechan, maybe getting a boyfriend will cheer you up!" he said childishly.

Ran smiled and simply said, "Maybe so," and went to make dinner.

The next day, Conan decided to walk to school normally. After hanging out with Ayumi for a day, it was time to judge if it was having any effect on Haibara or not. However he didn't meet her at their usual spot, so he went to Agasa's house and rang the bell to see what was up.

"Oh, Shinichi!" said Agasa, peering out the door. "If you're looking for Ai-kun, she isn't feeling well today."

"What happened?" asked Conan worriedly, "Is it bad?"

"She just said she's not feeling well today. She might be coming down with a cold."

"Well, I hope she gets better soon. She shouldn't be stuck in the house all day. Well, tell her I came by, will you?" With that, he waved goodbye and went on to school, thinking about what might be wrong. She'd mentioned feeling sick before he'd put his plan into action, so he knew it wasn't because of that.

At school, he didn't do anything much with Ayumi because Haibara wasn't around. He also missed her sitting next to him and keeping him company. Or at least snarking at him. At the end of the day, the four of them decided to go visit Haibara to see if she was any better.

"Ai-chan!" said Ayumi, talking to the closed bedroom door. "Are you OK in there?"

"Sure," Haibara replied sarcastically. "I feel just fine. So just leave me alone, OK?"

"Ai-chan…" said Ayumi worriedly. They didn't get any further with convincing her to come out, so they just decided to leave and try again later.

The next day was Saturday, and the Detective Boys gathered at Agasa's house as soon as possible to check up on Haibara. This time, she came out to visit them, though Conan noticed she had bags under her eyes. Since she looked tired, he took a day off from making her jealous and just had fun with his friends. He tried to bring her in to the games, but she wasn't having any part. Haibara wasn't as outgoing as normal, but Conan wrote it off as her still feeling bad.

The next few weeks went by just the same as before Haibara had gotten ill. Every day, Conan would do little things for Ayumi. It wasn't enough to raise any red flags with anybody, but would be more than enough for Haibara to notice. He had to give up on coming to Ayumi's apartment in the mornings because it was too much hassle to get up earlier than normal every day, but he always played with the other three and went home with them. He also made sure that Haibara was never left out of anything, unless she pulled out another excuse he couldn't ignore. This is how he lived his life for a while, until the next big shocker occurred.

Typical transition chapter. I'll upload the next one in a while, and the rest of them should be longer than 900 words. Next up is an Ayumi vs. Haibara confrontation, and I'm wondering how much I should make them fight over poor Conan, or whether they should fight at all. Chime in with your opinion by reviewing!