Chapter Text
Conan sighed deeply, feeling a kind of weariness. He looked at the clock on the wall and yawned, completely bored. The class was so monotonous. The hours dragged by, slow and overwhelming. The Natural Sciences teacher emphasized so much on the practices, both physical and theoretical, that would take place during the next visit to the greenhouse. His eyelids felt heavy. He rested his chin on the palms of his hands and struggled not to fall asleep.
Every teacher that tried to give lessons seemed incredibly boring to him. It was natural; he had learned to read almost at the same time as he learned to speak, so he had devoured every book he found in his father's library and even the public library. On his first day of school, surrounded by children his age, he realized how different he was from his classmates; some knew how to read, others had basic knowledge of math or science, but compared to him, it was like comparing the sea to a puddle. His sharp mind and vast knowledge on various subjects made classes seem tremendously dull, with zero interest or motivation.
Conan, who considered himself too mature for his age, showed that he was still a child when he began looking for different ways to pass the time, which involved making life difficult for certain students and several teachers who, in his opinion, deserved a lesson. This led to the involvement of the principal, who, in turn, complained to his father. Akai Shuichi was as overprotective as he was strict, but he had a serious weak point that Conan knew how to exploit quite well: Furuya Rei. So it all ended with a scolding and a, "I promise I won't torture my teachers and classmates too much," after a, "Leave my baby alone!" from Rei, Conan's mother and Shuichi's partner.
That day, boredom engulfed him. It was hot, and considering he had stayed up late reading one of his many favorite books in secret, he couldn't stop yawning and was starting to fall asleep. The next class was math, and the teacher who taught that subject was not to his liking; her teaching style was so simple it was tedious. But then, instead of the teacher, the principal stood before them. Conan noticed the sudden silence in the classroom under the serious gaze of that man, but it wasn't the principal that caught his attention. It was the person accompanying him.
"My dear children," the principal began with that condescending and sugary tone that Conan found false and hypocritical, "as many of you already know, your teacher, Miss Aoki-san, had her baby this morning, so for obvious reasons, she won't be teaching for a few months. Therefore, it is my pleasure to introduce your new substitute teacher: Hattori Heiji. He will teach Miss Aoki-san's class until she returns."
Conan was sure the principal had continued talking for a few more minutes, but he didn't hear anything else after those green eyes met his, scanning the classroom. He found himself letting out a small sigh after the young man smiled at him subtly. Conan bit his lower lip.
"Good morning, as mentioned, my name is Hattori Heiji. I will be your math teacher for a while," the new substitute teacher introduced himself to everyone. "I truly hope we get along well and can do great work together."
Conan noticed the unique accent of the new teacher. He understood it was the Kansai dialect and loved how it sounded in that voice. For a seven-year-old, Conan found himself completely admiring the teacher. He had no idea why, but this young man seemed to be surrounded by an aura that made it impossible for Conan to take his eyes off him. His green eyes, brown hair, and distinctive tan skin made him extremely attractive to Conan. Things only got worse when he started to speak, introducing himself formally and asking everyone in the class to share their names and interests.
Hattori Heiji shone so brightly in Conan's eyes that it only took a few minutes for him to realize that his boring days were over.
"My name is Conan," he said in his sweetest voice when it was his turn to stand up. He looked the teacher in the eyes and smiled charmingly. "I’m seven years old, I like reading mystery books, and I’ll be a detective when I grow up."
Conan saw the teacher's surprised look followed by a smile.
"A detective, huh?"
"Yes!" He smiled with his eyes closed, presenting a sweet and charming sight. Hattori couldn’t help but notice how adorable he was. "I will solve every mystery I find when I grow up."
Conan secretly enjoyed the curious look the teacher gave him. Hattori couldn’t resist laughing or the urge to pat Conan’s head like a little kitten; he found Conan as adorable as a stuffed animal.
"I’m sure you will," he encouraged him with a smile.
"I know..." Conan suddenly hissed in a low, almost seductive voice, "and I’ll start with you..."
Conan greatly enjoyed the flicker of confusion in the teacher’s green eyes. Hattori had quickly turned to look at him at the sound of his words. Conan almost noticed how the teacher’s throat seemed to dry up as he slowly withdrew his hand from Conan’s head.
"Alright, according to the study guide, you’re on lesson 7 on page 12," said the teacher, trying to regain his composure. "So let’s start there."
The rest of the class continued normally. At some point, the teacher decided to test the students with a small quiz. Conan noticed the genuinely puzzled look the teacher gave him after glancing at his quiz sheet. To Conan, it was clear that Hattori was wondering why someone like him was in elementary school when he could easily advance to high school or beyond if he wanted to.
"My mother values life experiences and its stages more than mundane opportunities for work, education, and status," he murmured with a sweet smile, noticing how the teacher’s expression softened.
In the following days, no one saw Conan engaging in his usual mischief or making any teachers suffer, as his entire attention was focused on Hattori Heiji, his new math teacher. He started to follow him almost everywhere, gathering all kinds of information about him. He knew where he lived, how old he was, and almost all his interests.
It didn’t take long for Conan to start loving the surprised look in those green eyes every time he intentionally got too close or spoke in ways that were far from appropriate for a seven-year-old.
“What are you talking about?” he heard the teacher ask one of those many times. “Conan-kun, I don’t think you realize what those words mean.”
But Conan moved closer, much closer, his small nose almost brushing subtly against his teacher’s, who could only gape in surprise, crouching in front of him.
“Just Conan for you... no suffixes, please,” he murmured, placing one of his little hands on his face and caressing it gently. He smiled when he felt the skin under his touch tremble. “Teacher, I’m serious. There are many other things I’d really like you to teach me…”
Conan watched those eyes widen to twice their size and almost burst out laughing. Heiji was so gullible that Conan couldn’t help but become more interested in him. He saw him immediately pull away, completely red and bewildered, trying to appear serious.
“I don’t know what you’re trying to do,” he said angrily, “but it’s not funny.”
Conan then blinked, looking at him with his charming big blue eyes, beautifully framed by the black rims of his glasses, presenting a tender, confused, and shyly innocent expression.
“Huh? Bu-but, Mr. Hattori, what’s wrong with advanced math classes? I…” His eyes grew teary, and he looked down with a sad and disappointed expression.
“No, I…” and the teacher, feeling guilty for hurting him, patted his head, trying to make up for his mistake. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to…”
And that’s when Conan looked up at him with those bright, alluring eyes, like a manipulative demon, making something inside the teacher twist repeatedly to the point of madness. Conan loved every one of his dazed and flustered expressions. He adored confusing him, speaking in double entendres, and then acting like an innocent and adorable child, driving the teacher into a terrible mental struggle.
...
However, over the next few days, Conan began to notice that the teacher was slowly starting to catch on to his tricks and was beginning to stand up to him.
“Alright, I’ve had enough,” the teacher said on one of those days, and Conan only blinked, pretending not to understand anything. “I never wanted to believe the other teachers, but I see they weren’t lying about you. Please, stop bothering me; I haven’t given you any reason to.”
That morning, the classroom was empty; there were about ten minutes left before recess ended and the other children returned. Conan had stayed in the classroom alone with the teacher, who had been grading some assignments but felt uncomfortable the whole time with the boy staring at him almost without blinking.
“Huh? But teacher, what have I done? I…”
“No, don’t start. I’m not an idiot; we both know you’re pretending,” Hattori seemed angry. “Conan-kun, stop playing with me.”
Conan narrowed his eyes, the lenses of his glasses glinting. Hattori saw him smile, a smile that sent a shiver down his spine.
“Haa~... and who said I’m playing with you?” he said, observing with satisfaction how the green eyes widened in surprise at the tone of his voice. “Oh, come on, Hattori, I’m aware of how you look at me…”
The teacher nearly fell off his chair when the boy got too close to his desk, climbed onto it, and crawled towards him, placing his knees and hands on some papers and books.
“What are you doing!?” he shouted, trying to conceal the tension the boy was causing him. “Get down immediately.”
"But... Heiji-niichan..." Conan pretended in a sweet and incredibly charming voice. Hattori couldn't help but almost fall under his spell upon hearing him call him that. "You're so obvious..."
Heiji quickly stood up from his chair, and the boy stood on the desk, almost at eye level with him.
"Who the hell are you?"
Conan smiled, raising one of his little hands towards him. Hattori tried to move, but he couldn’t. Conan caressed his cheek, staring intently and without saying a word. It wasn’t until one of the boy’s fingers touched his lower lip that he snapped out of it, looking at his student. For a second, for an instant, he had forgotten that this child was seven years old. Once he read the situation, he quickly stepped back, nearly stumbling over the chair behind him. Conan tried to follow him, losing his balance in the process.
"Hey!" Hattori hurried to catch him by the waist, pulling him close to prevent the fall. "Are you okay? Did you hurt yourself?"
The boy smiled, hugging him and hiding his face in his chest, inhaling his scent and holding him tight with his little arms.
"I like you, Hattori..."
Upon hearing this confession, the young teacher's eyes widened in disbelief. He sighed deeply, looking at the boy with tenderness. He was tempted to caress his hair, but then he heard the sound of children’s voices in the hallway and knew that recess was over. He immediately separated the boy from himself and looked at his face. Conan was smiling. Hattori rolled his eyes, realizing how adorable he found that smile, and quickly reprimanded himself as he moved away, fetching his chair while the door opened and the children returned to the classroom.
As he gathered his things for his next class in another room, Hattori knew those blue eyes hadn’t stopped watching him.
Conan was well aware of the thoughts flooding his teacher’s mind. He was perfectly capable of noticing the chaos his presence caused in his life. And although their age difference was a significant obstacle, he wouldn’t give up. He wouldn’t stop until that teacher fell completely for him.
What Conan didn’t know was how strong-willed the teacher was, to the point that he started to get frustrated by how much he resisted him. Well, it was logical, given the ten-year difference.
On the other hand, his father was beginning to ask questions and look at him suspiciously, as if he knew what he was up to. Thank God he had his mother, who knew how to handle the situation.
But nothing, nothing had prepared him for the arrival of that girl, the brown-haired, light-eyed girl who had arrived one morning, minutes after recess had started.
She looked at Hattori with loving eyes, and he hated hearing her call him by his first name.
"…And who is this pretty boy?"
He heard her ask while looking at him with a falsely sweet smile. He narrowed his eyes at his teacher’s smile and had no choice but to leave before he did something stupid.
He closed the door behind him tightly, narrowing his eyes as he clenched his little fists.
"Mine, and that's my final word."
★‡★‡★
By: Yahir Abisai