"It's done!" Ran cheered as she lifted up a plush Higo phone strap.
"Hm? What's done?" Kogoro asked as he flipped through his newspaper.
"Ai-chan's phone strap! Conan-kun asked me to help fix it up."
"Ai-chan…" Amuro said as he walked up to Ran. "That's the girl that lives with Agasa-hakase, isn't it?"
"Mm!" She nodded. "It doesn't look brand new or anything, but I think it looks much better now."
"Yes, I remember helping Conan find this." Amuro examined the strap. "It does look much better now!"
"I hope Ai-chan will think so too."
"If you don't mind…Why don't I just go deliver it now?"
"Eh? You don't have to do that, Amuro-san." Ran chuckled.
"Yeah, that brat can just give it to her at school tomorrow." Kogoro scoffed.
"Oh, it's no trouble! I could use the fresh air." He cheerfully smiled.
"Then…if you insist…" Ran handed him the phone strap.
"I'll be back soon!"
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.
.
'That girl, Haibara Ai…' Amuro thought as he walked down the stairs. 'She looks so much like her…'
He stopped to take a quick glance at the Mouri Detective Agency.
'I was able to track Sherry down, thanks to that video. She carelessly let herself get exposed like that by saving those kids…' He shook his head.
'It was just for a split moment, but the way she cared for them, it reminded me of Elena-sensei…'
'Did you share her kind heart? I wish I could have known you longer but… I was reckless.'
Rei let out a deep sigh before crossing the street, clutching tight onto the phone strap.
'Is that why I'm fixated on this girl? Is this just my guilt? Elena-sensei would probably hate me for what happened to her daughter, no wonder I'm projecting her onto you…Haibara Ai.'
Amuro stood in front of the Agasa residence, hesitantly ringing the doorbell.
"Did you forget your key again? Haka…se…" The young girl's eyes widened in fear at the unexpected guest.
"Ai-kun?" Rei gave his signature Poirot smile. "I'm Amuro, Conan-kun's friend, remember?"
Haibara took a step back, hiding half of her face behind the door.
"I came to deliver something to you."
The girl flinched as Rei raised his hand towards her, making him feel a bit sad for her.
However, once she saw her beloved Higo strap in better condition, her eyes widened with excitement.
She held out her hand, letting him drop it into her palm. She smiled happily at the strap, admiring Ran's handy stitching.
"She looks quite cute." Amuro smiled sadly at her. "She really is a child after all…such a cheerful face over a little toy."
"Are you home alone?" He suddenly asked.
Haibara took a step back cautiously, not uttering a word.
"Wow, you're really brave!" He kneeled down to her level. "I hated being alone when I was your age. I used to visit a doctor often, even when I wasn't injured, because I liked her company.
Her name was Miyano Elena…"
Haibara looked down, trying to hide her expression.
Amuro sighed internally. 'Why am I trying to get a reaction out of her? She's not Miyano Shiho…'
"Sorry for rambling…You look so much like Elena-sensei, I just started thinking of her all of a sudden."
"…"
"Well, I'll take my leave then…"
"Do you…"
"Hm?"
"Do you really think I look that much like her?"
"Mm, strikingly so." Amuro smiled. 'But even more so, like her daughter…'
Haibara clutched the strap close to her chest, still staring at her feet.
Amuro stood back up, turning away from her. He heard the door quietly shut, and he began walking away.
"Bye bye, Ai-kun."
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.
.
Haibara went back to her room, popping in a cassette tape and putting on her headphones. She must have played these tapes a thousand times.
She was tempted to listen to the next tape marked for her 19th birthday, but held great restraint.
'Part of me is scared that I won't live to hear the rest of your tapes, but I want to wait to hear your words properly. I don't want to give up yet…'
She hugged the Higo plush strap as she replayed the tape for her 18th birthday.
"Someone told me today that I look like you." She smiled sadly. "I wonder what your expression would be like, seeing me in this shrunken state."
'Mom, I want to see your face…'
.
.
.
'Elena-sensei, is it really just my delusion? Could she really be Miyano Shiho? I can't help but wonder what you would say to me now...'
'Would you yell? Cry? Laugh? Even if you despise the man I've become,
Elena-sensei, I want to hear your voice…'
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.
Rei walked up the steps into the Mouri Detective Agency, putting on the cheerful mask of Amuro Tooru.
Shiho took off her headphones after finishing the tape and looked in the mirror, staring at the childlike figure of Haibara Ai.
'If I keep this facade for another day, and another, and another…maybe one day, I can show my true self once more.'
The two looked up to the sky, thinking about the warmth of the same blonde angel.
'For you, I can keep it up another day.'