Archive of Our Own

“Is it going to rain tonight?”

“I believe it’s supposed to be a clear night, Young Master. Is it looking cloudy?”

“No, just thought that, y’know, that some rain would fit in here. After all, everything else went wrong, so why not?” Kaito grunted as a gust of wind threatened to blow him off course. He barely heard Jii’s remarks of concern about his attitude as he struggled against the gusts.

Kaito was in a foul mood, and it felt like he had a right to be. He was exhausted; two in the morning wasn’t the best time to be flying through the skies. The police were still trying to track him down, and he’d just spent hours pulling off a worthless heist. Kaito swallowed down his disappointment at the Gem of Tiresias. For something so hard to steal, he had thought for sure it must’ve been his precious Pandora. Of course, it wasn’t. It never was. His frustrations amplified even more as his left leg protested at him; a stray bullet had just managed to graze it as he had escaped, annoyingly enough.

This wasn’t looking good. Kaito could hear the sirens behind him, faint for the moment, but only getting stronger. He had to find someplace to hide, someplace to establish the next part of his plan. His original plan had been perfect, foolproof even, but smart-ass teenage detectives had a way of making him a fool, especially one teenage detective in particular…

But there wasn’t time to think about it. Not when the police were on his tail, and when he had about a dozen concerned questions in his ear, and when his leg was getting worse rather than better. He definitely can’t make it to his planned pickup point now. The police would be taking to the skies soon, and when they found him it would be over.

“Jii,” He interrupted, swooping between billboards. “What’s around here? The rooftops all look the same from above.”

As Jii proceeded to search for details about his general location, Kaito focused on actually staying in the sky. His exhaustion was really getting to him now. It probably didn’t help that he’d pulled an all-nighter trying to get the fine points of his plan worked out. Yeah, that sure had done him a lot of good in the long run. Another gust blew against Kaito’s face as if to remind him that he didn’t have the time to get snippy and dwell on things. That could come later, once he found a place to settle down.

Thankfully, Jii worked quickly, and before long, Kaito had drifted down onto the rooftop of a nearby building. It looked reasonable enough. Kaito didn’t have a clue what this building was but it did look easy to break into. Listening to the instructions from his earpiece, Kaito transformed his hang glider into a cape, losing the bulk, and kicked open a vent with the leg that wasn’t bleeding...

Standing was harder than it needed to be; when he put weight on his injured leg, it all but collapsed underneath him. Swearing under his breath, Kaito ignored the pain and yanked open the grate, sending it crashing it to the ground. Not exactly stealthy, but it worked. From there, he listened to Jii saying the security cameras were out and that the guards weren’t going to be looking for him.

With some more swearing and even more effort, Kaito managed to navigate the cramped vents with the help of Jii’s instructions. He quickly reached the designated vent, broke it down, and tumbled right out onto the cold tiled floor. He laid for a moment, feeling the pain dull as the cold seeped through his clothes, but the feeling didn’t last nearly long enough. He struggled to sit up, and squinted in the near dark, trying to figure out where he was. Wait…was that a…

“Fish!” Kaito cried out, far more loudly than he should have. But to his credit, he was staring at a large poster of a fish wearing sunglasses gesturing, with a fin, the way to the tropical exhibit. “Jii, this is an aquarium.”

“A very unguarded aquarium, Young Master. Please, find somewhere to tend to your wounds and get some rest. I’m re-routing the police’s course of action, and that’ll give you some time to recover.”

Kaito grumbled to himself and pulled his body across the floor. He didn’t trust his leg to support him if he tried to stand. Besides, it was dark, and his eyes hadn't yet adjusted to the strange lighting of this place. He could spot some light over to the right, and since he really needed to check out his leg, he couldn’t be picky about light sources. Kaito winced as he moved, feeling both the pain from his leg and the dread over where he was going. A large glass tunnel loomed above a concrete floor; he knew that this tunnel probably had dozens, maybe hundreds of fish, all swimming around.

But he also knew that he didn’t want to see any of them, especially not right now. Kaito took care to keep his eyes on the floor, focusing on the concrete instead of thinking about what surrounded him. Jii was talking about the police’s whereabouts and general plans for the night; although Kaito should really be paying more attention, he only half-listened.

The metal base of the tank felt cold, the sensation cutting through his layers of clothes. Kaito didn’t mind that too much, as he was perplexed by what he saw on the floor. His eyes were adjusting to the dim light, but the way it spread across the floor wasn’t what he expected. It was too organic and free form to be artificial lights but yet it looked…familiar.

His mind was filled with a memory of Aoko teasing him with pictures of jellyfish. There weren’t fish apparently, she was just pulling his leg again. The shapes in the shadows, however, seemed to be eerily close to those pictures.

Kaito lifted his gaze off the floor and felt almost blinded by the light surrounding him. Those tanks sure seemed a lot brighter now. Or maybe it was the colours of the jellyfish floating around. He still could feel that lump in his throat, but knowing that he wasn’t surrounded by actual fish made things a little easier to take. Just a little. He could still feel something crawling over his skin, the feeling that came from being in this sort of place. Taking a deep breath, he tried to focus on something else.

“Where’s that dear detective of mine?” Kaito asked Jii, thinking about Shinichi. No doubt he was tracking him down, probably with some speech planned. That detective sure did seem to have a flair for the dramatic, after all.

“I’m not seeing any sight of him, Yo—“ Jii was interrupted by a series of sharp beeps coming from his end of the line. “Oh, that’s not good.”

Before Kaito could get the ringing out of his head, let alone ask a question about the beeping, Jii hastily said he had to attend to something. The earpiece went silent, leaving Kaito with only the hum of the aquarium tank and his own thoughts for sound.

He did have a lot of thoughts, which flipped through at a rapid pace, matching his emotions. A part of Kaito was concerned for Jii’s safety, and also for his own. He was also exhausted, from pain, and excited from the thrill of the heist. However, the majority of his feelings were related to disappointment, and it took him a moment to figure out why.

Shinichi wasn’t looking for him, Kaito realized, a weight pulling his heart down. He probably was safe at home now, likely asleep, and decidedly not dreaming about a phantom thief dressed in white. Of course, attention wasn’t the reason Kaito was doing this— any of this— but he had come to appreciate it. Now that Hakuba was back in England, Shinichi was the only snarky teenage detective Kaito had on his tail. He liked it this way.

He liked Shinichi’s banter, his casual yet intellectual manner. Kaito wrote his calling cards with Shinichi in mind now, trying to figure out how to stump him, while also hoping that he would figure them out. Everything about Shinichi gave him a little thrill, especially since he was a teenager again.

Yes, Kaito knew more about that than Shinichi probably thought. A teenage detective turned into a child detective and back again was mind-boggling, but Kaito’s mind had been boggled plenty of times. He still didn’t know how the transformation had happened; he was missing those details. But judging from Shinichi’s ‘full size’ Kaito figured that things had worked out pretty well on that front.

But there was another front, one that was even harder to understand than age swapping. The one that said, ‘this detective is really cool and really pretty and I really like taunting him and, oh my gosh, he taunts back; wait, does this count as flirting?’ Kaito spent a lot more time thinking about that and the related issues involved, of which, there were many.

Kaito was a thief; Shinichi was a detective. Kaito was a boy; Shinichi was a boy. He had a soulmate, someone that the universe paired him with to love; Shinichi had a soulmate, someone that the universe paired him with to love. And the biggest problem of all; they weren’t each other's soulmate.

Kaito was meant to be with Aoko, and they had the matching tattoos to prove it. He absently rubbed his right hand, through his glove, knowing what it was disguising. He loved Aoko, he really did, and he thought she was great. They were close, they had history, and they had plenty of great times together. But he didn’t love her like he was supposed to.

He didn’t really know if he was in love with Shinichi and, considering they barely had any proper conversations, he guessed he wasn’t. But the way Kaito felt when he saw him...that was something special and he knew it. The flutter in his heart, the heat in his cheeks, the urge to be cool and impressive; all of that was how he felt, whenever he laid eyes on that guy’s smirk.

Oh great. Now that he was thinking about Shinichi, Kaito could all but smell the scent of his cologne. And hear his light breathing, along with the sound of his careful footsteps. Wait. This wasn’t in his head anymore. This was real. Very, very real.

“I knew you would be here…Kaito Kid.” Shinichi said, stepping into the room. The detective noticed the crumpled form at the base of a tank from the hallway. It wasn’t hard to deduce who that could be, and sure enough, his hunch paid off. Not too many people were in aquariums at two in the morning, especially not when the aquarium in question had closed hours ago.

Shinichi had Kid right where he wanted him— well, in a manner of speaking. As he walked closer, he recognized the smell of blood, saw the state of Kid’s clothes, and noticed the spreading dark stain engulfing the fabric of his pants.

“Of course you did,” Kaito sighed, feeling the ghost of a smile play at his lips. Damn. This guy really did have a knack of making him feel giddy. Or maybe that was the blood loss starting to kick in.

Either way, he could feel his heart start to race as Shinichi took a place on the floor, on Kaito’s left, beside his injury. Shinichi set his flashlight between them, its light shining up, casting strange shadows. Kaito knew this, him being in a closed aquarium, wasn’t going to be the easiest situation to talk his way out of. It would take some coherent thinking and quick lies...yet all of those instincts escaped him when he saw what Shinichi had brought with him.

“How bad is it?” Shinichi asked as he sorted through the medical kit. It must have been well-stocked too; he took out items Kaito didn’t even recognize.

Kaito scoffed, words coming back to him now. He inched away, trying not to let the pain show on his face. “Like you really want to know. What are you playing at this time, Detective?”

“Can’t I help someone who's injured?”

“Not when it’s you!”

Kaito immediately paused as he felt an onslaught of regret at his angry tone. He spoke a fair degree softer, as he finished his thought. “Not when it’s me.”

All they could hear for a while was the sound of water bubbling in the tanks surrounding them, and the sound of their breaths. Kaito felt the weight of the tension between them, and the blood that was making its way down his leg. He looked over at Shinichi, who was lining up medical supplies on the floor. Maybe he should toss this guy a bone for once. He didn’t think this was a trap. His leg really needed some medical assistance, and well, he sorta wanted to trust someone. Especially when it was this someone.

Sighing, Kaito started to remove his disguise; pulling off his jacket, his tie, and setting them beside him. He slipped off his pants, gingerly, wincing as he felt the wound being exposed to air— not to mention the cold tile hitting the back of his legs. Thankfully he wasn’t wearing any embarrassing underwear. This was awkward enough as it is, that would just be too painful.

Shinichi looked at the wound closely, seeing what it entailed. The first thing he had to do was get that steady stream of blood to stop. “Elevate it,” Shinichi instructed as he riffled through the supplies.

Although he was prepared with a biting remark about not following orders, Kaito realized that this really wasn’t the time. Dutifully, he shimmed down so his back was on the floor and lifted his leg up as far as it could stretch. Thank goodness he was agile enough to do something like this; he just hoped this floor was cleaned recently.

Within a minute or so, the blood slowed to a small trickle. Satisfied with that, Shinichi asked him to get back to a sitting position. Kaito obliged, pulling his leg down and his body back up. His muscles ached in his legs, his hips, his back, and just about everywhere, but he had felt worse.

Since the bleeding had stopped, Shinichi went on with his work. He cleaned the wound with a vial of water and a handkerchief, before applying some sort of cream. Then, after waiting for the cream to set in, he wrapped the wound in a secure bandage.

“There,” He sighed, dusting off his hands. “That should do it, for now, just keep it clean.”

“Yeah, I know. Had too many infections to forget about that,” Kaito said, offhandedly, as he focused on wiggling his pants back on, forcing them over his shoes. It was true, he had gotten some pretty nasty scrapes in the past.

He felt a sweet sense of relief as he rested against the tank again. Not only had his wound been dealt with, but Shinichi had also been the one to deal with it. And he had his pants back on! He wasn’t so much concerned with modesty as he was concerned about catching a cold from the floor, but either way, it was a relief.

Staring up at the ceiling, Kaito tried to figure out how to get this conversation going. He was reaching a dead end when he heard his earpiece crackle to life. Glancing over at his companion, Kaito realized that Shinichi was busily organizing his medical kit.

“Jii?” He whispered, turning away from Shinichi. “Uh, this isn’t the best time.”

“What? Has something happened? Are you compromised, have the guards spotted you? I can work out a secondary escape plan if you’re in trouble agai—“

“No!” Kaito hissed, before calming down with a deep breath. “Everything is fine, it’s just, ah, working out…differently. Everything is fine. Here, I’ll check in soon. I’ve got some things to deal with. Keep those police away, okay? Please?”

As soon as Jii agreed, Kaito muted the earpiece, not wanting to hear anything else; he already had a headache, after all. As he lowered his hand, he winced, feeling a spasm of pain shoot through it. How that little action gave him a cramp, he had no idea. It certainly felt like a cramp though...and Shinichi noticed it.

“What’s the matter?” He asked, abandoning the medical kit, and grasping Kaito’s hand. “What’s wrong with it, are you okay?”

Although the questions were of a concern relating to a medical situation, Kaito felt like it was something much more personal. He gazed at Shinichi, who still was asking him questions about his hand. The grasp felt so warm, so comforting, the cramp all but melted away. That didn’t mean that he pulled away from the hold though. He wanted to enjoy it a bit more.

He realized then, that yes, he might not be in love, but something was certainly happening here. Kaito forced himself to rip his gaze away from Shinichi, and focused on the ceiling again. He felt a question of his own, the words ripe on his tongue. He barely trusted his voice to say them, but his heart told him that he had to, before this went any further. He waited for a lull in Shinichi’s stream of questions and asked his own.

“You know who I am, right?” Kaito mumbled under his breath, feeling as if he were in a ridiculously cheesy romance novel. Still, it was the most direct way of asking it. He’d never really had to say things like this before. It felt strange, but in a way, he was relieved to get this off his chest, and relieved that Shinichi was going to hear this.

Still holding Kaito’s hand, checking it over for a sprain, Shinichi cleared his throat. He knew this conversation had to happen at some point. Or at least, he had hoped it would happen. That didn’t make it exactly easy to answer though. Swallowing, he nodded, looking down at their intertwined hands.

“I know.” Shinichi then glanced up, not sure if he was supposed to be the one to say it, or if he was supposed to explain how he knew it.

His eyes widened as Kaito used his left hand to take off his gaudy top hat and monocle. His heart flipped a little when Kaito turned to face him. His hands started to shake as Kaito carefully slipped out of Shinichi’s grip, and his gloves. His entire body felt like it was tingling when Kaito reclasped their hands and smiled at him.

“I’m Kaito Kuroba. Nice to meet ya, Shinichi.”

Shinichi blinked in surprise at the sound of his name, his given name. That was forward...but maybe they should be a bit forward? He didn’t really know how to reply, not at first, but the words soon came to him.

“It’s a pleasure, Kaito.” He cleared his throat as he started to blush. This handhold was going on longer than he expected, and it was somehow impacting his ability to think. “I should probably be turning you into the police now.”

Kaito groaned. Just as he got somewhere, that gulf of distance between them sprung up. “Hey, hey, I returned that jewel basically as soon as I got it! Which you did not make easy, by the way!”

“Well, what do you call breaking into an aquarium at two in the morning?” Shinichi shot back, feeling some of his confidence come back. “Because I would call it trespassing.”

“Oh yeah? You’re here, so I guess I’m not the only criminal in these parts.” Kaito could feel his eyebrow twitch. He could feel...something starting to bubble up in him.

Shinichi felt a smile come over his lips as he spoke, and rolled his eyes. “Does it really count as trespassing when the guards invite you in?”

“You’re even more impossible when you’re a teenager,” Kaito growled, the heat of the moment causing him to speak before he could think. Thoughts came a beat later, once he saw that sly smirk slip from Shinichi’s face. Oh no. That was too far.

As he processed the remark, Shinichi let his hand fall from Kaito’s grasp. He knew that Kaito grasped at least part of what happened. Hell, Kaito had even lent him a hand with the final takedown of the Black Organization, albeit unknowingly. Still, he never thought that Kaito would outright say it. Especially not like this.

“You can’t possibly know everything that happened,” Shinichi muttered, running a hand down his leg, feeling his body; his body, his proper body. “Even if you did, you couldn’t understand anyway.”

Ran knew the full story. Of course, so did his parents, the Professor, Haibara, Hattori. Once they were old enough, he was thinking of telling the Detective Boys too, telling them the truth behind Conan. But Kaito, he didn’t. He didn’t know what happened and everything that came afterwards; the anxiety of trying to fit into what seemed like a different world. It was hard, harder than he had ever imagined. But he wasn’t about to tell Kaito that. He didn’t want that to be open between them.

Kaito stared at Shinichi, who was locked in thought, and sighed. “Sure, I probably wouldn’t. But you think you could understand all of this?” He gestured to his outfit, to the room at large, indicating the situation that they were in. “I doubt it.”

They rested there, with the weight of the secrets they harboured shared between them. Kaito took a shuddering breath, feeling even more stress press down on him. He didn’t want to expose everything about himself, not to this nosy detective. After all, what right did Shinichi have, sitting here, talking like they were friends? Kaito took another deep breath, trying to calm this enormous storm of emotion. He didn’t want to be angry right now...especially when he realized that Shinichi could have called the cops the second he got here. Instead of doing that and turning him in, Shinichi brought a medical kit to patch up his wounds. Suddenly, Kaito felt a sort of exciting, giddy feeling; Shinichi was paying attention to him. Of all the people Shinichi could have chosen, he had chosen Kaito.

He glanced over at Shinichi again, who was still deep in thought, and focused, and very serious. Too serious. The mood was stifling. He could barely breathe, but his thoughts were racing. He needed, desperately, to lighten this mood, to make things okay.

“Hey, remember the Black Pearl case?” He blurted out, his voice a tad too high pitched for his likening. He didn’t bother to fix it, he just wanted to keep talking, even as he started to ramble. “Man, that thing took me ages to figure out. Pearls, you know, aren’t really my thing, I had to do a heck ton of research on ‘em.”

Encouraged by Shinichi’s confused but engaged look, Kaito barrelled on, talking about some of the difficulties in planning that heist. Timing, strategy, improvision, he lamented about it all. He never talked like this, not even to Jii, but at that moment, he felt like he could gush about all the details he had labored over at the time.

When he ran out of things to talk about the Black Pearl heist, he went onto the Kirin Horn heist. And then the Blue Wonder heist, followed by some information about the Purple Nail case. Kaito knew that time was slipping away, that he was probably getting annoying, and that Jii was waiting for him. But he also knew that he just wanted to keep talking.

“Hey, hold on.” Shinichi interrupted, as Kaito finished explaining how he picked his disguises and took a breath. He held that breath, as he waited for what Shinichi had to say. Kaito’s thoughts began to race with all sorts of hypotheses about how exactly Shinichi was going to tell him to shut up.

“Let me talk for a while?” Shinichi asked, his question taking on a shy tone, his eyes sparkling with excitement. “I’ve got so many stories, ugh, some of these cases are wild.”

“Try me!” Kaito’s challenge sounded far more playful than demure, but screw being cunning and mysterious! He wanted to know more about Shinichi; he wanted them to talk forever, swapping stories and analyzing things.

He listened, in rapture, as Shinichi described some of the mysteries he had solved in his life. Of course, he wasn’t so much focused on the stories but on the person telling them, albeit both were enjoyable. He didn’t know how long they sat there, in the frigid air, listening to these stories, but Kaito knew he could have easily stayed there for hours. The way Shinichi spoke, with such passion and power behind his words, made Kaito want to listen.

“And, in case anyone asks, no, scars don’t grow with the body,” Shinichi concluded one of his stories with a sigh. “Man, that really kills your throat. See a water fountain anywhere?”

Kaito blinked before really processing what Shinichi was saying. He was still immersed in the latest story, and it took him a moment to come back to reality. When he did, he laughed.

“Seriously?” Kaito nodded towards a nearby glowing sign. “Why settle for a water fountain when you could get whatever you want from the café?”

“Because…it’s not open? What, you want us to break in?”

Kaito scoffed, already pushing himself up from the floor. “As if you’re a hero right now. Sneaking around, lying, getting into closed aquariums, snooping…a little café break-in is nothing compared to that sort of stuff.”

“That’s different!” Shinichi protested, scrambling to his feet. “That’s for the greater good. This is just for…well, nothing.”

“Oh please, I’m injured, thirsty and hungry. Isn’t that a great enough good for you?” Kaito asked, coyly, pressing against the tank for some balance. His leg really wasn’t all that better, it still hurt like hell, but it did have a bandage on now.

After some more arguing, Shinichi gave in to Kaito’s plan, and packed up the medical kit. He carried it, along with Kaito’s costume as they walked together to the café, using the weak beam of the flashlight to guide them. Well, Shinichi walked. Kaito sort of limped while clinging onto him for support, and trying to wince whenever he jarred his leg. Thankfully, the café had security just about as good as the rest of the place, which meant it didn’t have any. Kaito barely broke a sweat as he jimmied open the lock, but he was grateful when Shinichi told him to sit down.

“Don’t get anything weird!” He called to Shinichi, who vaulted the counter to get the snacks. Satisfied, Kaito rested his leg on the opposite chair, stretching out yet another annoying cramp. They really had been sitting on that floor for a while. He glanced at the heap of clothes on the table, beside Shinichi’s medical kit. He hoped that it wouldn’t get too creased, but, eh, it had seen worse.

Shinichi, for whatever reason, took his sweet time returning. Kaito didn’t mind, considering when he did show up, he brought an armload of drinks and assorted snacks. He also rested the flashlight upended on the table, casting the snack pile in an eerie glow.

“You’re paying up half, you know,” Shinichi said matter of factly as he opened a bag of chips.

Rolling his eyes, Kaito nodded as he twisted the cap off a bottle of tea. “Yeah, yeah, how much is that?”

“2173 yen.”

Kaito all but choked on the sip of tea he took. “Wait, what? No way this stuff costs 4346, you gotta be kidding. What did you get, champagne and caviar?”

“No, these prices are, well, pricey. Here, I wrote them down.” Shinichi slipped over a piece of paper, with neatly printed numbers on it. “I had to include tax of course.”

“Of course you did,” Kaito muttered, as he took a look. He was impressed by the math involved but still this annoying. Damn aquarium prices! This place got worse by the minute…

As he was doing math in his head, Kaito didn’t notice where Shinichi’s gaze settled…on his exposed right hand. Shinichi drank in the tattoo resting on the skin, the rose petals curling around the curves of the hand. It was a gorgeous piece, so enchanting that he knew that it hadn't been made by a human. He wanted to play it cool, wait for Kaito to be done looking at the receipt, but his nerves betrayed him, as he drummed his fingers against the table.

“Your tattoo is beautiful.” He said, nodding to the exposed hand. Shinichi could feel his throat go dry, even after taking a sip of water. This answer could change the rest of the night, how he saw Kaito and knowing how Kaito saw him…

“Yeah,” Kaito said, rolling up his sleeve to show how it wrapped around his hand down to his wrist. In the light, Shinichi could see that the rose petals were blue. An odd choice for a rose, but strangely…alluring. “Not as much as she is, of course.”

It was the truth, really, Kaito did think Aoko was beautiful, no matter how much they teased each other. But he also didn’t see her as his…romantic soulmate. He blushed at the memory of their disastrous first kiss. The date had started out fine; they were on a nice bench in a nice rose garden in a nice park. Heck, even the kiss itself had been nice. But when they had pulled away, they both realized that was not how it was supposed to be. Then he did a magic trick and she chased him through the park. And they never really spoke about it or tried something like that again.

But Shinichi didn’t know that. He just thought Kaito was blushing because he loved his soulmate that much. He could feel his heart fall to his stomach as he realized that meant he didn’t stand a chance with what he wanted to do tonight. Oh well. Logically, he knew that this would be a lost cause, and sure enough…it was. But he didn’t want to leave, not like this. Even with the bitter taste of disappointment in his mouth, Shinichi had a hunch. A hunch that he shouldn’t leave, that he should stay to see the night through, and maybe, just maybe, something would change.

“Guess you should see mine, huh?” Shinichi said, shifting his gaze from Kaito to the table. He loosened his tie and unbuttoned his shirt so he could pull it over his left shoulder. He turned his head to the right so that the full tattoo was on display.

That snapped Kaito out of his daze. He leaned forward, looking at the intricacies of the cherry blossoms curling around Shinichi’s neck, spilling down onto his shoulder. Sure, he vaguely noticed the shape of the tattoo before, but this time he could make out the finer details. Not only was it an elegant work of art…the sight of so much exposed skin was causing Kaito’s heart to race. It was such a casual thing but the sight of it made him feel spellbound.

Shinichi knew every petal on the tattoo, especially since he often stared at Ran’s exact tattoo. His cheeks grew warm at the thought of her, and he hoped she would be asleep right now. She knew what he was doing, where he was and even what he wanted from all of this, but Shinchi really didn't want Ran to worry. He already stressed her out enough as it was, after all.

Ran didn’t understand, not exactly, why Shinichi wanted to do this, or what he felt. But thankfully, she knew that he had to try, and she was supportive in her own way. In a way, it was a blessing that they had realized that they weren’t comfortable being in a relationship early on. They were still plenty close, and they loved each other, but it was different from everyone’s expectations. Of course, ‘everyone’ didn’t know they weren’t a couple. Shinichi still liked holding Ran’s hand after all, and she said he gave great hugs. Feeling a chill go through him, Shinichi buttoned up his shirt again.

The resulting lack of exposed skin brought Kaito out of his trance, and they both quickly set into their late-night snack. Their very expensive late-night snack…they could at least pretend that it tasted better than it was. Their conversation was subdued, partly because of the hour, and largely because of their individual thoughts.

But when Shinichi disposed of their trash, he had a jolt of realization shoot through him. They were in an aquarium. An empty, empty, aquarium. It really was just them and the fish. When would he have another chance to see them like this again?

“We have to go walk around this place.” He declared once he got back to their table. “Also, you need to pay up your half.”

“Whoa, whoa, wait a second.” Kaito raised his hands in a surrendering gesture and laughed nervously. “One, do you think I carry any money on me when I’m doing a heist? And two, no way. We can’t walk around here. We’ll totally get caught.”

Shinichi scoffed, pulling out his wallet. He would pay off the debt himself. Sure, getting Kaito to pay him back might be an issue, but still. “Oh sure, like we haven’t drawn enough attention to ourselves already. C’mon, it’ll be fun! We could see all the nocturnal fish. Snappers! Moray eels! Scorpionfish!”

“I’m scared of fish!” Kaito blurted out, far more directly, quickly and loudly than he’d planned, but it did get the message across. “Just, drop it, okay?”

Falling quiet, Shinichi sat back in his chair, and pressed his fingertips together, tapping his index fingers. “Why?” He asked finally, words directed to his hands.

Kaito shrugged. He didn’t really know himself, and really didn’t care about it. “Don’t know. Does everything need an answer? Also, hey, let’s add this to our pile of secrets, alright? Don’t want all my fans to think I’m a wimp.”

“Don’t worry, I’m not going to tell anyone,” Shinichi promised, before getting a sly look on his face. “But I do have another idea for our walk around the aquarium…”

No matter how much Kaito pleaded with him, Shinichi wasn’t giving up the idea, or any details. Instead, he quickly helped Kaito walk to another room, and settled him on a bench, before consulting a nearby map of the aquarium.

Figuring it was as good a time as any, Kaito unmuted his earpiece, deciding to check in with Jii. “Hey,” He whispered, eyes darting to Shinichi. “How’s it going?”

“How’s it— Young Master, do you know how long it’s been? I would have called the police if we weren't...well...” Jii coughed, remembering their present situation. “What have you been up to?”

Kaito’s mind went blank. He couldn’t even think of how to talk, let alone how to lie effectively. Besides, could he ever manage to lie his way out of something with Jii? Luckily, he didn’t have to tell the truth or dwell on the situation, because Jii carried on speaking.

“Never mind that. The police are across town, but they’re still looking for you. How’s your escape plan?”

“Uh…” Kaito stalled as he watched Shinichi bend to read the map. “You know, I’m not sure yet. Still resting the leg.”

It wasn’t a lie, not really. Just not…the full truth. When he was about to divulge some of the evening’s adventures, he heard an alarm ring. Thankfully, it wasn’t coming from the aquarium, but rather, the earpiece.

“These police are more determined than ever tonight!” Jii had to raise his voice to be heard over the sounds of the alarm and some fast typing. “I’ll take care of them, but Young Master, please, stay safe. Let me know when you’re planning to escape.”

Swallowing a lump of guilt down, Kaito cleared his throat. “Sure, sure. These fools have nothing on us, I’ll be out soon.”

Kaito clicked off his earpiece, just as Shinichi stopped his map viewing and walked over. Judging from that damn sly smirk, Shinichi had figured something out for the two of them. Kaito was itching with questions and was prepared to ask them...but he decided to let Shinichi have his fun. For once. Even that meant closing his eyes, being supported by Shinichi, and romping around a very dark and very scary aquarium.

“Alright, you can open them!” Shinichi announced, coming to a halt. Kaito could feel that they were in another part of the aquarium, judging from the air shift.

Kaito obliged the request, and opened his eyes. He was already planning to act surprised, for Shinichi’s sake, but his gasp was a genuine reaction. All around them were glowing blue tanks, filled with marine life, but…there wasn’t a fish among them. He could recognize manatees, turtles, and jellyfish, and there were so many more he couldn’t name. Not to mention the tanks seemed to stretch on for a mile. His heart raced, and he turned to Shinichi.

“C’mon, let me show you around!” Shinichi said, shifting his weight to support Kaito further. “There’s so much to see, we could spend hours in here.”

It wasn’t hours, but it sure felt like it to Kaito. They took their sweet time as Shinichi half walked-half dragged Kaito up and down the room, looking at everything in every tank. Kaito felt all sorts of overwhelmed for so many different reasons. From a sensory perspective alone, the lights of the tanks were exceptionally bright in the dark setting, and he could feel his shirt fabric unpleasantly rubbing against Shinichi’s blazer. Yet with some deep breaths, he felt, well, at least a bit better. Still, being beside so many sea creatures, although they weren’t fish, was taxing Not to mention, Shinichi was talking a lot, which was wonderful, but he sounded so informative about all these things. Everything from their diets to their habitats, he knew, and it made Kaito feel just a little bit inferior in comparison. Sure, he knew stuff, but Shinichi sounded like he could be a professor on all of this.

Plus, Shinichi was cute, very cute, when he got all into what he was talking about. It wasn’t a bad feeling being so attracted to the guy, but it was yet another problem for Kaito to deal with. All in all, the pair had a wonderful but also incredibly exhausting time together. Kaito had a splitting headache, his stomach started to regret all those snacks, his emotions were all over the place and his leg really hurt.

Maybe all those problems were the reason that Kaito agreed to go with Shinichi to the non-fish touch tank. He barely registered that he had done so until he was on a bench in front of an open tank, and his hands were submerged in the cool water. Just as Kaito started to wiggle his fingers, enjoying how the water felt, he felt something brush against his fingertips.

“Eugh!” He cried, wrenching his hands from the water. He didn’t care that he was now dripping wet, or that he’d sprayed Shinichi, but he did care about what happened. “What the hell was that?”

Shinichi blew a strand of wet hair out of his face before peering into the water. “What did it feel like? Was it scaly or rubbery? Did it have any fins? Wait, did it bite you?”

“It didn’t bite me, I know that.” Kaito retorted although he did check his fingertips for any puncture marks. “I guess it sorta felt like…a leathery…tube?”

“Ah! A sea cucumber!”

“A sea what?”

Shinichi gestured to the poster above the tank, pointing out what appeared to be a gray tube. “There. At fifteen thousand feet below sea level, they make up about ninety percent of the sea life population. On average, they’re between three and fifteen inches long.”

Although impressed by yet another display of Encyclopedia Shinichi, Kaito resolved to not put his hands back in the tank. Even if he knew what that thing was, it didn’t make it any less creepy. Kaito watched Shinichi’s hands instead, how his fingers cut through the water, causing gentle ripples. They were quite nice hands.

“Oh, this is a long one!” Shinichi said in a hushed whisper as a sea cucumber passed through his fingers. “Easily ten, maybe twelve inches. Oh, Ran would have loved this.”

“Ran, huh? Didn’t realize she was into all of this.” Kaito paused, a question forming on his lips. Before he could think it through, he said it. “She’s your soulmate, right? Your girlfriend?”

Shinichi took his hands out of the tank and dried them on a handkerchief. He sighed, realizing where this conversation was going. He didn’t think that it would be asked so directly, but he wasn’t about to lie, so he had to answer the question. Shinichi stood up, tucking his handkerchief in his pocket. Once he gathered up the medical kit and Kaito’s costume under his arm, he extended his free hand to Kaito and pulled him up to a standing position.

“You’re right on one account,” Shinichi admitted, as they walked together, through the maze of darkened rooms and hallways. It felt better to be moving while he talked, although he wasn’t really sure where he was going. “Ran is my soulmate, but she isn’t my girlfriend.”

“Oh!” Kaito felt his cheeks grow warm, as his thoughts became less coherent and more along the lines of excited squealing. Did this mean that he could actually…have a shot? Of course, he still didn’t really know what he wanted but this felt promising. This felt good like this was how it was all meant to be. Or maybe all that sugar was going to his head.

Shinichi led them over to one of the tanks they had visited, one full of brightly coloured jellyfish and other assorted creatures. It seemed like as good of a place as any, after all. They sank down to the floor, with their belongings on the side, and questions on their minds.

“So…you’re not together? Like, with your soulmate?” Kaito asked, to get the conversation going. Once he saw Shinichi’s nod, he continued. “Same here.”

“What?” Shinichi sputtered, his heart beating faster and faster as he thought this through. “But before, you said that she was beautiful!”

Kaito scoffed, rolling his eyes. “Well, yeah, of course! Just because she’s gorgeous doesn’t mean we’re all kissy-kissy with each other. We’re friends, close friends, but it never felt like…well, you know, like that.”

With those words, Shinichi felt the reality he built up fall apart. It wasn’t the first time he felt like that, of course, but at least this time it was for a happier reason. His earlier hunches were right, so did that mean these feelings were too? After all, Kaito wasn’t dating his soulmate and neither was he. Logically, that meant that they were at least available to date other people. The pieces were falling together and Shinichi felt his body move a little bit closer. That little bit was all that he needed.

Kaito had never had anyone snuggle into his shoulder before. Or well, not like this at least. Not with a guy, a detective, that had been chasing him for what felt like an eternity. A dozen quips were forming on his lips, but as Kaito glanced at Shinichi’s almost restful face, he had a change of heart.

Their hands found each other, and their fingers linked together. It felt good, like it did before, as if their hands fit into each other perfectly. Although both boys were giddy, and their minds were full of thoughts and their hearts with emotion, it was a peaceful moment. Until Shinichi began to speak the words they were avoiding saying..

“We’re not soulmates,” Shinichi whispered softly, watching as his breath became visible in the cool aquarium air. His slender fingers tightened around Kaito’s, feeling as though they had become one and the same.

“I know,” Kaito responded, also melancholic. “But…does that matter?”

Shinichi immediately pushed away from Kaito’s shoulder. With a rough yank, Shinichi ripped his hand from Kaito’s grasp and pushed himself up to a standing position. Kaito’s throat went dry as he saw how Shinichi was looking down at him…both literally and figuratively. This wasn’t good.

“What do you mean? Of course, it matters!” Shinichi cried, his words cutting through the air like knives. “Do you know anyone who ended up happy with someone who wasn’t their soulmate? I sure don’t know any!”

Kaito sat up and looked at how Shinichi’s shoulders were shaking. This was getting serious. How had they become so tense all of a sudden? He cleared his throat and tried to not let his voice shake.

“So what?” He asked, trying to laugh but not quite managing it. So much for making this any less awkward. “Wouldn’t we be something, if we were the first?”

“Are you hearing yourself?” Shinichi’s voice grew more bitter as he started to pace, shooting daggers with his glares. “Can you be serious for one minute? Society works like this for a reason, it’s like how we have laws for a reason. Oh wait, I forgot, you’re above to the law too, now aren’t you? Damn, how pompous can one guy be?”

Kaito ignored the pain in his leg and stood. He could feel the anger starting to flare up inside of him; how dare Shinichi talk to him like this? As if he was some sort of idiot that didn’t understand how society worked. What, did Shinichi think that he was the only one who knew anything? But just as Kaito was going to let Shinichi have a piece of his mind, he stopped. He looked at Shinichi, and he stopped.

He saw hurt in those eyes. Shinichi was hurt, and Kaito knew that it wasn’t just from this argument. No, that came from growing up in a world where soulmates were the only constant. You grew up, you met your soulmate, and you married them. That’s it, that’s how things went. But Shinichi knew that wasn’t how it worked, or at least, not how it worked for him.

They felt the same way, Kaito realized, coming to grips with everything. Neither of them loved their soulmate the way they were supposed to, and they both— it seemed like— fell for someone else. Kaito had to fix this, he had to fix this. Although Shinichi shouldn’t have ripped into him like that, he did, sort of, make light of it all.

“Look, I didn’t mean to say it like that.” Kaito blurted out, his words running together as he spoke quickly. “But you know, that was pretty uncalled for. Like, seriously, you don’t know any of my reasons for any of this! The thieving stuff, the soulmate thing, you just don’t have all the information. And yeah, you know, I might want to tell you, because you’re pretty cool actually, but it’s hard to tell ‘cause you’re on a pretty high horse, like, really high. God, it’s super annoying.”

Kaito took a breath, letting his words sink in. He shook out his hands, trying to feel less jittery, and then figured that the tone of his words wasn’t the greatest. That really wasn’t how he wanted to say things.

”Oh.” Kaito said with a wince, blush burning against his cheeks. “Yeah, that wasn’t good, this isn’t sounding good. Just look, look, okay, you’re cool? Really cool? And I want us to be cool! Oh, this isn’t making any sense, is it? I’m just…sorry. Yeah. I’m sorry for all of this. This isn’t how I wanted this to go.”

Shinichi chose that moment to kiss him. A quick, impulsive, unplanned, short and sweet kiss that stole a thief’s heart. As soon as Shinichi pulled away, and started to make excuses, Kaito returned the favour. He grabbed him, and kissed him right back, hands grasping his face.

He didn’t see it— his eyes were closed— but as Kaito’s right hand drifted down Shinichi’s face and settled on his shoulder, their soulmate tattoos aligned. When Kaito’s rose petals met with Shinichi’s cherry blossoms, forming a beautifully melded bouquet, they glowed, the soft light shimmering in the dark. The glow faded as they pulled away from the kiss, but a feeling of warmth stayed with them both as a lingering effect.

Once they made eye contact, a giggle escaped out of sheer nervous energy. Still smiling, Shinichi leaned in and pressed their foreheads together. As he ran a hand through Kaito’s hair, Kaito’s hand rested on his shoulder. It was a blissful moment of pure intimacy, free from worry and full of immense passion. This felt…special. Something that didn’t happen every day, or maybe even in a lifetime.

Even with the aftermath of their abrupt confession, Shinichi still had a lot of things to say. Once they sank back to the floor, backs against the tank again, he snuggled against Kaito and delivered his apology.

“I’m sorry,” He said, voice soft, words full of sincerity. “I was overwhelmed, and well, I got snappy. You didn’t deserve that. Any of that, really.”

“What, I didn’t deserve that kiss?” Kaito teased, laughing as Shinichi started to stammer out random words. “I’m kidding, kidding, it’s fine. Everything’s fine, don’t worry about it.”

Shinichi sighed and nodded. “Okay, good. Because there’s a lot of other things we have to worry about. Like, how is this going to work? Are we telling people about us? Are you going to stop stealing stuff and come clean about who you are? Wait, wait, who’s paying for dates?”

“Why don’t we just elope!” Kaito laughed, feeling like it was an alright time to joke. “C’mon, would that solve all our problems or what?”

“…No. That’s a really, really bad idea.”

“Aw, c’mon, you totally thought about it for a second there.”

Shinichi buried his face in Kaito’s shoulder, and although his words were too muffled to be understood, Kaito got the feeling it was time to be serious. So, he sighed and began to answer Shinichi’s multitude of questions. He had a feeling this was only the first wave of them, but it would be best to answer them quickly.

“I have no idea how this is going to work,” Kaito admitted, shrugging the shoulder that didn’t have Shinichi resting on it. “I mean, what are we even? Yeah, I don’t think we’re ready to tell anyone just yet. I can’t stop doing what I do either...personal reasons. And, can’t we just take turns for date paying? Hey, where would we even go?”

Shinichi pulled away from Kaito’s shoulder and laughed. “At least we already got the aquarium checked off the list.”

“Ooh, happy first date then! Let’s see, other places to go...oh! How about Tropical Land? I’ve heard some good things about it.”

“No.”

Kaito waited for him to explain. He didn’t, but he did suggest a visit to the zoo. They went back and forth for a while, suggesting everything they could think of. A walk through the botanical gardens, camping, board game nights, a picnic…Shinichi slyly suggested fishing, which got him a few mock slaps on the shoulder. After their ‘fight’ ended, they fell into a comfortable quiet moment, feeling the effects of this long, long night…

“We’re not really deciding on anything, are we?” Shinichi said it like a question, fighting back a yawn. He could feel the rush of everything wearing off and he was getting tired.

“Maybe we don’t have to. Or at least, uh, not right now? Let life come at us. I can probably fight it, you know, I’m very sneaky. Slippery too.”

Shinichi laughed, and then said, “Yes, you’re very sneaky and slippery. But, really, it’s basically us against the world now.”

“Then together we’ll defy the universe.” Kaito spoke those words sincerely, feeling them ring true with all the fibres of his body.

“I think I would do anything to be with you.” Shinichi smiled into the nook of Kaito’s neck and shoulder, feeling all sorts of emotions. For once, they were happy emotions that didn’t bring any sort of anxiety.

Of course, that was when the sirens started, followed by the blaring of the aquarium’s alarm system. If those weren’t bad enough, the once peaceful hallways became filled with yelling and the sound of people running down them. As Shinichi stood up, trying to figure out what to do, Kaito switched his earpiece back on.

“Jii?” He yelled, trying to hear his words over the harsh sounds around him. He clamped a hand over his other ear, muffling the sirens slightly. “Jii, what’s happening?”

“They’re there, aren’t they?” Jii’s voice sounded strained, with underlying notes of franticity. “My apologies, Young Master, I tried to warn you, but you muted your earpiece.”

“Never mind that! Escape plan! Now! Please!” Kaito’s words were clipped and harsh, but he was starting to panic. He got himself in this situation, and now he was going to bring Shinichi down with him. They had to get out here fast.

If Jii had a great plan to do that, Kaito wasn’t able to hear it. The sirens and the alarms grew ever louder, efficiently drowning out everything but his pounding heartbeat. He didn’t have enough time to get someplace quiet, the guards would be there any minute.

“I’ll call you back!” He yelled desperately, before taking a look around. There were three exits to the room; two led through to the main hallways, but the last one let out to a service corridor. Was running for their lives the best plan? Probably not, but it was the only one they had.

He yelled the plan to Shinichi, who stuffed their belongings in his arms, and they set off towards the exit, running the whole way. Kaito winced as his leg screamed at him, but they didn’t have time to take this slow. They raced down the service corridor and started down the maze, desperately looking for somewhere to hide. Kaito slipped at one point, but Shinichi caught his hand in time to avoid a fall. Kaito gripped it tightly, maybe too tight, but at this point, he couldn’t afford to care about that.

They ran and ran, hand in hand, until finally, they settled into an alcove. Face to face, it was a snug fit, which started off some more nervous laughter. Finally, Kaito kissed Shinichi, and Shinichi kissed him right back, and it made them feel even more nervous about everything happening. They probably would have kept going at it, but a new round of alarms started ringing causing more voices and footsteps to rush past.

“Time and place!” Shinichi choked down a giggle as he pulled away from their liplock. “Time and place. Let’s get out of here, alright?”

“What, you got a master plan up that sleeve of yours?”

“This is sort of your area of expertise.” Shinichi pointed out, looking at the bundle of white costume pieces he clutched in his arms.

Kaito huffed, although a little flattered. “I wouldn’t be an expert if you didn’t keep hunting me down!”

As his words faded into the noise of the sirens and alarms, they looked at each other, eyes wide with realization. An understanding dawned over them, about how they had worked together before, and with that understanding came a plan. A plan to say goodbye to who they were, and to say hello to who they were going to become.

It took some more whispering, and Kaito had to wiggle into his outfit in that tight alcove, but they burst out of there with more than enough energy to pull off this scheme of theirs. A mix of love and excitement pumped through their veins, as they tore down the hallways again. This time they weren’t running away from people, but rather, towards them.

“You’ll never catch me alive!” Kaito shouted, letting his glee affect his volume. They passed a quadrant of startled police officers who started after them. Good, this is going to work. He hoped it would anyway, they were really low on options.

But it was working; the police officers joined Shinichi in his pursuit of ‘that damn phantom thief’ and Kaito led them all right to the lobby. Just as they suspected, the place was crawling with guards, police officers, all of whom were surprised to see what was happening.

Kaito stopped dramatically in the center of the lobby, his cape swishing behind him in a flamboyant fashion. “You think you’ve got me cornered, dear Detective?” He let his taunt rise up into a question, as he wiggled an eyebrow.

“Of course I do! Looked around recently? Where do you think you’re going?” Shinichi’s words shook with laughter, likely at Kaito’s eyebrow waggle, but he managed to keep his composure. He walked around in an arc, ending up by the border of guards.

That was Kaito’s cue. With a laugh for dramatic effect, he threw a smoke bomb down on the floor and moved quickly through the resulting cloud. He joined Shinichi, judging from the hand he grasped. They ran together, through the smoke cloud towards the glowing exit light. It wasn’t a lot of smoke, and they managed to break through it easily and ran for the exit doors in front of them.

As they ran, Kaito couldn’t help but glance over at Shinichi’s face. He imagined it was like looking in a mirror; cheeks flushed pink, forehead dripping with sweat, with an ear to ear grin to finish it off. They ran down the hallway, shoes clicking on the tile floor, and they broke out into the cold night.

Once the doors closed behind them, they were taken aback by the sheer silence. Sure, they were still in the city, and they still could make out some of the alarms inside, but it was still a much-needed relief. Seeing the lights of police cars pass them over, they dove for a nearby wooded area.

They waited there, chests heaving from the exertion of the schemes and the running, until they were sure no one was going to find them. Not yet, at least. Shinichi pulled out his phone and made a call to police headquarters, and Kaito made a call of his own.

“Hey Jii,” He said softly into his earpiece. Not wanting to waste any more time, he cut off Jii’s concerned questions and spoke quickly. “Listen, everything’s fine. I’m safe, in one piece, but I’m going to go somewhere else for the night, okay? I’ll check in the morning. Or well. A couple of hours from now, I guess. Sheesh, it’s late.”

Once he confirmed Jii got the message and was relatively okay with the plan, Kaito muted his earpiece once again and caught the tail end of Shinichi’s phone call.

“Eh, yeah, he uh, slipped away from me. You know him, that uh…weasel of a thief. I’m sure we’ll get him next time!” Shinichi nodded to himself as whoever he was speaking to said something. “Uh-huh. Yeah...wait, maybe not that? Okay, I’ll touch base later, see if anything’s come up. Right. Night, Inspector Nakamori, thanks.”

Kaito raised his eyebrows once Shinichi hung up. “I’m a weasel now, aren’t I?”

“I think weasels are cute, so why not?” Shinichi laughed, lightly, putting his phone back in his pocket. “I can’t believe that just worked.”

“Oh, really? I can. After a very smart detective helped me with it.” Kaito said coyly, tracing Shinichi’s jawline with a gloved finger.

After kissing that gloved hand, Shinichi batted it away. “Now what do we do?” He asked, glancing out to the crowded street. “Do you have somewhere to go or something like that?”

“I happen to know that you have a pretty big house. Any chance it has enough room for a weasel to spend the rest of tonight?”

Once Shinichi stopped sputtering and complaining, playfully, about how damn forward this was, they got to work. Again. They had a quick disguise session, swapping parts of their clothes, rearranging their hair, and generally trying to look like anyone but a thief and his beloved detective.

With their appearances thoroughly changed, and the spare parts of Kaito’s outfit stuffed into Shinichi’s medical kit, they headed for the street, acting as casually as they could. Luckily, the nearest police officers didn’t give them a second glance, and they walked on by. Kaito felt a thrill go through him, the same sort of thrill he got whenever he escaped a heist flawlessly. And, this time, he managed to escape with his favorite jewel of all. Pandora might be precious, yes, but this was definitely something special.

As they walked, heading for the nearest train station, Kaito looked at Shinichi again. Shinichi looked right back and smiled. A secret smile meant just for Kaito. They knew full well things would stand in their way, and they would face those things as a united front. After all, Kaito and Shinichi couldn’t defy the universe if they weren’t together.