Chapter Text
The article dropped when Shinichi is asleep.
With the adrenaline and euphoria from a KID heist faded and a bone deep tiredness taking it’s place, Shinichi had passed out immediately when he finally returned home and so he did not witness the internet set itself on fire when the video of Kaitou KID was released for the public’s entertainment.
When he woke up the next morning, he expected to see the news headlines filled with praise for KID’s victory or for the consolation praise Conan often receives for trying his hardest to catch the thief. So as he headed out of his shared bedroom and into the living room and sat down on his pillow at the low table and waited for Ran to bring him his breakfast he could already smell her cooking from the small kitchen, he did not bother to turn on the TV until he had a semblance of self and a belly full of warm food knowing that it wouldn’t say anything of too much interest until the hype of a heist had died down.
Because of this oversight, he was not prepared for when Sonoko burst into the house with a wail that resembled more of a cry from a dying cat than a teenage girl.
“RAN!” Sonoko screeched, uncaring of the small eardrums she had just burst with her unholy crying as she stumbled her way into the kitchen, “RAAAAANNNNN!
If it was anyone else, Shinichi would be alarmed at the show of dramatics. However, as this was a normal state for Sonoko to be in, Shinichi just grumbled under his breath about the noise and went back to staring listlessly at the table in his morning daze as he waited for Ran to deliver his breakfast.
That was until Sonoko sobbed out the magic words.
“I-It’s K-K-K-KID!”
Like lightning, Shinichi’s head whipped towards the kitchen.
The fog from waking up had faded from his mind, replaced by the presence of moonlight white and calming blue, and Shinichi was out of his seat and standing in the doorway to the kitchen before he even realised he had stood up.
Sonoko was crying into Ran’s shoulder as Ran awkwardly consoled her friend.
Shinichi felt his stomach drop in concern.
Yet even as he geared up to hear the bad news, he could never have predicted what Sonoko sobbed out next.
“H-Hic-He’s t-t-t-tak-k-ken!”
It took Shinichi a moment to realize what Sonoko had just said. It took him even longer to realize the knot in his stomach from his previous concern for his rival had not faded.
Unaware of Shinichi’s own personal crises, Sonoko continued to cry her heart out to Ran, who unlike Shinichi, was no longer concerned for her friend or the thief and was now looking down at Sonoko in exasperated sympathy as she tried to calm her distress.
“A-Apparently h-he has a b-b-b-boyfriend!” Sonoko whimpered.
For some reason, the news made Shinichi feel even worse.
Like a zombie, he stumbled back over to the table where his phone had been abandoned until he was more awake and flipped it open, mindlessly typing in KID’s name into the search and stumbling across the hundreds of articles that were mimicking Sonoko’s heartbroken sobs.
Kaitou KID, Gay?
Who is the mystery man who has claimed KID’s heart?
The video that has taken the KID fandom by storm!
An unexpected ally?
Shinichi opened one of the articles and found the video that had sparked the hysteria and clicked play.
"Of course not, he was there, after all!"
"Did you really do all of that just for him?"
"Yes, of course I did."
The world around him turned to white noise as his mind replayed over and over again what he had just watched.
The articles weren’t exaggerating, whoever KID was talking about, it was clear the person was dear to his heart. The way he spoke about him was so… soft. So unlike anything Shinichi had seen from KID before.
It made his stomach ache.
He didn’t register when Ran lead a still whimpering Sonoko to the table and began to console her with some breakfast, nor when she placed his own plate of food down in front of him.
In fact, he only noticed her presence when she softly called his name to get his attention.
“Conan-kun,” Ran spoke to him like she was speaking with a wounded animal, “You should eat, you’re a growing boy.”
Even though such comments usually bothered him greatly to be reminded that he was trapped in a body much younger than he should be, he barely felt the sting of it over the ache that had developed in him from the news.
He reluctantly began to eat, however, if only to not cause Ran concern.
Why was he so bothered by the news anyway?
It was only when he was on his way to school, absorbed to his phone as he thumbed through article after article, and was about to part with Ran and Sonoko that he was provided with an answer to that question.
Shinichi had walked a distance away from Ran and Sonoko but he still overheard their conversation when they thought he was far enough away to no longer hear them.
“What’s wrong with the brat?” Sonoko asked, in the same callous tone which implied she wasn’t really too interested but was bothered all the same.
“Same as you, I think,” Ran answered here and it took all of Shinichi’s will power not to stop and make is obvious he was listening, “I think hearing the news must have upset him. He must be jealous of whoever it is KID designs his heists for.”
Wait.
…
What?!
Shinichi wasn’t jealous?!
So what if KID might be gay?! So what if he made his best heists for one person in particular?! Good for them, he says!
So what if his stomach twists because of the thought KID might be dating someone? It was just because he can’t believe someone is actually flirting using a goddamn heist! Yeah, that was it! I mean, how reckless can you be?! It’s just asking to be caught by the police!
But that doesn’t mean he’s jealous!
If anything, it just made Shinichi’s job of capturing the obnoxious thief even easier! That’s why he’s been studying the threads and forums on social media discussing the situation like a college student cramming for their finals and why he was currently skimming through a thread about how Hakuba Saguru was definitely the person KID was flirting with as knots formed in the pit of his belly at every logical point about why he was-
But.
He.
Wasn’t.
Jealous.
“Conan-kun? What are you doing?”
Shinichi startled and dropped his phone, making it skid against the concrete towards the shoes of the Detective Boys who he hadn’t even heard approach him.
Ayumi, Genta and Mitsuhiko were looking at him in concern while Ai reached down and picked up Shinichi’s fallen phone.
Her eyes rolled when she saw the content and Shinichi felt his cheeks redden involuntarily, much to the growing concern of the trio still studying Shinichi in worry.
“You don’t look so good,” Mitsuhiko commented, “Are you okay?”
Shinichi opened his mouth to answer but before any words could form, Ai was huffing a laugh and holding out his phone for him to take back.
“He’s fine,” she said, “He’s just had a visit from the green-eyed monster.”
Genta, always one to take Ai’s words so literally began to chant about a case while Ayumi and Mitsuhiko looked between the two shrunken teenagers with concern-laced confusion, aware they were missing something but not entirely sure what it was they were missing.
Shinichi barely managed to contain the words he wanted to bite back at Ai, only managing to do so because he didn’t want to have to deal with the kids also pestering him about the situation. Instead he snatched his phone from her hands and angrily shoved it back into his pocket.
“Ignore her,” he said instead, shooting a glare at Ai who just brushed it off with an amused smirk, “I was just looking at the news, there’s been some serious cases happening recently.”
Changing the topic to the news had been a bad excuse however as Ayumi’s eyes lit up in excitement.
“Have you heard the news about KID?” She asked, clasping her hands in front of her like she was performing a prayer, “He’s in a relationship and designs his heists for them! How romantic!”
Ai looked like she was struggling to contain her laughter as Shinichi felt his eye twitch.
“I heard.” He answered curtly, “He would be insane enough to do that. However he’s just making it easier for the police to capture him.”
Ai shot a sly look in Shinichi’s direction, the smirk on her face making him clench his fists as he prepared for more of her unnecessary comments, “Perhaps he wants to be caught?” she commented, “The common consensus is that he’s either dating or trying to date one of the detectives who turn up at his heist.”
Shinichi’s hand instinctively twitched towards his pocket, where his phone was still displaying the thread about how Hakuba Saguru was the detective in question.
“I heard people say it’s someone he invites to the heists!” Mitsuhiko spoke up and soon the trio of children were in a heated discussion about KID’s love life just like the rest of the internet had been for the past day or so after the release of that video.
Shinichi drowned them out as he pulled out his phone from his pocket, looking at the latest set of internet gossip he had been reading previously and trying to ignore the emptiness that grew in him as he read more and more about who KID could be in love with.
So engrossed with his phone, he missed the way Ai sighed in his direction and mutter “Idiot,” under her breath.