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Too many people were chattering, the lights were too bright and it seemed like the host had rented extra crystal lamps as if the chandeliers weren't enough gaudy opulence for the space. Ranpo could tell they weren't usually in the room, and the food absolutely sucked. There wasn't even anything sweet, except for the flute of sparkling wine in his hand, of which he was on his third glass already. He was so bored, and his ride wouldn't even be here for another hour.
This was awful.
With nothing else to occupy his mind, he settled on people watching. He didn't want to talk to anyone, it was just a waste of his time and energy. Dancing was off the table for that reason as well, the idea of touching anyone here gave him hives, and he couldn't dance anyways. Which was a great out, on the off chance anyone asked him for some reason, but no one would.
He wasn't supposed to be here alone, Dazai was supposed to have come with him for this case. But after a slower week of work they suddenly were hired for a bunch of jobs with tight deadlines. Completely suspicious, but he couldn't bring himself to care. He had solved the case within five minutes of walking in the door, he didn't know why the client had insisted they show up in person for this, but whatever. At least the expensive drinks he was sipping on weren’t coming out of Ranpo’s or the agency's funds.
Their client needed to know if their venue was being used for illicit purposes, and if these monthly galas were just a cover for business meetings regarding crime syndicates. Not Port Mafia, oddly enough. The client was very insistent on that. They weren't lying, and they clearly did not want to share the identity of the organization they were suspecting, which anyone could see was suspicious in itself.
Ranpo could tell as soon as he walked in and put his glasses on, pulling them from the breast pocket of his tuxedo coat, that there were individuals in attendance that were only incidentally there for the party. He had followed one of them discretely down a hall, dutifully doing his job, for what reason he wasn't sure. A whim he guessed, it totally had nothing to do with Fukuzawa losing his patience with him a little when he whined about having to go by himself and wouldn't drop it and saying his name in a serious tone then raising his voice when Ranpo didn't get it at first...
Predictably, the person he followed had looked over their shoulders, completely missing Ranpo hiding around the corner before letting himself in a room. A room that Ranpo could easily picture given the design of this hall, and enhanced by Ranpo's deductions from his ability, a small group of people who were all very comfortable and used to seeing each other in this exact location. High ranking members of the unnamed criminal syndicate, smaller than the Port Mafia, without their own dedicated "home base" or permanent business front like the Mori Corporation to enact their dealings in.
He didn't need to see anymore, he hadn’t even needed to see that, but now he could report that he witnessed this himself, signed and stamped with the agency's approval. No reason for Fukuzawa to raise his voice at him again.
He sighed and took another sip of his drink, his glasses were back in his pocket, and his eyes followed a couple twirling together in the crowd aimlessly. His limited interest fell quickly, and he yawned without a care.
"This is so boring," throwing his head back he whined quietly too himself, uncaring of how it might look to anyone around him. When he brought his head back up though something interesting did command his attention.
Someone else who was not really supposed to be here. This was intriguing. He wasn't involved in the criminal syndicate, he would have still been in that room if so. He was foreign, and despite being as well dressed as anyone else in the room the dark bags under his eyes did not point to a charmed and relaxed life.
Ranpo appraised the man deciding to amuse himself by trying to guess his occupation. It was possible his health was poor not that he had something disrupting his sleep, but the damage around his cuticles and chewed down nails were a strike against that being the only reason. It could be an idle habit, but more than likely the man was stressed, or had a habit that was exacerbated by him spending long periods of time maintaining his focus. Ranpo debated putting his glasses on when he found his thoughts wandering as he trailed his gaze up the mans neck back to his face.
No, maybe he was the type to chew on them when he was excited too.
And now he was looking straight at Ranpo. Ranpo didn't care, he kept studying him unbothered by if he was making him uncomfortable or not. He was pretty and fascinating to look at, but Ranpo could easily imagine him hunched over a computer for hours while he chewed on those thin and long fingers.
Now he was walking straight towards him, and it struck him that he did not actually want to talk to him at all. He downed the rest of his drink quickly and started walking towards one of the staircases, hoping the object of his interest wouldn’t follow him upstairs, but knew it was likely that he would. If he was going to have to engage with this person he was sure he was the type that would be more disarmed if he was surrounded by less people.
This was a reckless idea but Ranpo was extraordinarily bored, and he still had to make it through quite a bit of time until his ride got here. If he needed to he could escape and just start walking down the street and force whoever was picking him up to come and find him or something.
He made it all the way up the stairs and down a hallway, and looked behind him. Weird, the man did not follow him. He kept his course, wandering around whistling to himself while checking his phone to see how much time had passed and sighing when it was less than he had hoped for. He should go downstairs and find something to snack on, nothing was really to his preferences but he could probably find something suitable, he was hungry and honestly pretty tipsy after that last drink he downed.
He turned a corner to find another staircase instead of going back the way he came in case there was someone waiting for him near the bottom of the stairs, and nearly jumped out of skin. He practically ran straight into the man and jumped back immediately, shouting in surprise as striking violet eyes pierced back into his. Sure, he was a little inebriated, but he didn’t think it was that bad. How did he not hear or sense that he was around the corner? Too creepy...
“My apologies, I didn’t mean to startle you,” the man’s voice had a soft and pleasant tone to it, and while his Japanese sounded fine his accent was definitely evident.
“I don’t believe that,” Ranpo straightened up and tried to compose himself, narrowing his eyes at this person. He had followed him up on purpose, and found a different staircase to use so they met exactly like this, he had no doubt about it. No one was around, it was quiet up here, and they were probably completely alone, but he had no clue if this person was dangerous or not, or what his intentions were.
He was going to find that out though, and as fast as he could. He wasn’t below screaming, running, or causing a scene just to get out of danger. The client might be angry with them, but that’s what they got for sending Ranpo out alone like this for this long! He had insisted he could solve this quickly, that there was no reason to have him show up in person like this especially when it was clear that someone, potentially the people they were investigating, had tried to spread their resources thin at the last minute, leaving Ranpo alone on the case anyways.
The man just smiled and thoughtfully brought his hand to his chin in a contemplative gesture, but it felt fake to Ranpo.
“Well I’m going back downstairs, bye,” with a blunt tone Ranpo said his peace and pushed past him, not wanting to come back the way he came and immediately turn his back to this person. He heard the man following behind him, but he really did walk softly and quietly, it was kind of eerie.
“Hm, I thought you actually wanted me to follow you but now I have to admit I’m confused,” his voice trailed behind him but he was keeping a respectable distance now it seemed, he didn’t feel him breathing down his neck or anything.
“Why would I want that?” Ranpo wasn’t stupid, he knew that he had garnered his attention by eyeballing the hell out of him across the room, but what this guy didn’t know is that he was just studying him like a bug. A really pretty, interesting, and completely weird bug.
“Well you were studying me pretty intently from across a crowded room, it would be normal to assume that you wanted to talk to me, but when you turned around to go upstairs I thought that was rather interesting as well, so I followed,” the man spoke too nonchalantly for Ranpo’s liking.
“Do you always follow strangers who stare at you into secluded places?” Ranpo’s voice was tinged with a hint of antagonism. Was this guy stupid? That, or he was somehow connected to the either the owner’s of this building or the ones that were throwing these parties, so he must have felt confident he wasn’t going to run into too much trouble if he went off by himself.
“No.”
At that response Ranpo gave into his urge to stop trudging forward for a moment to see his current shadow’s expression, and was met with a completely blank face, free of the soft smile or demeanor he was carrying earlier.
This was too confusing.
“Well today is your lucky day then, because I have no ill intentions with you and have someplace to be,” this was way too shady, and Ranpo had to admit he was following whims he usually wouldn’t, but he wasn’t an idiot. Something was off about this guy, beyond him just being like Ranpo in the sense that he was not a normal guest here and didn’t fit into this environment. He turned around to keep walking forward, trying to put distance between himself and this concerning stranger.
“No, you don’t,” that soft voice had an edge of finality to it, like Ranpo had just tripped into an obvious trap.
Ranpo didn’t have to turn around to tell he was grinning when he said that either, and there was no point in arguing against it. He wasn’t bluffing, this guy knew. And now this added a new puzzle for Ranpo to solve, how and what did this person know about him? He reached toward his pocket for his glasses, but scoffed to himself before deciding not to take them out.
He still had time to kill, screw it. He would bite. Everything was already a bit out of character for him at this point with dealing with this stranger, whose name he hadn’t even asked for, what was one more questionable choice as he tumbled down this path? He could blame the alcohol on a mostly empty stomach, but he could probably think of a better excuse if he landed himself in any trouble for this, and he was extremely sure whatever was going on with this pretty and bizarre stranger would somehow be relevant to them at some point. Maybe not with this case, but whatever he was involved with was bound to end up in the agency’s periphery if not their lap someday. How did he know this? Was it just paranoia? “Absolutely not, he was Edogawa Ranpo, after all…”
“Oh? Are we introducing ourselves now? Excellent! I’m Fyodor though I think I will refrain from sharing my full name if you don’t mind,” This person, Fyodor, had caught up and appeared in front of him now, and shock fell onto Ranpo’s face as he realized he had been talking to himself out loud near the end of his internal monologue. Apparently he was more affected by those deliciously sweet glasses of bubbly he had downed earlier than he realized. He needed to get something to eat, fast, because this was not becoming of him at all.
He quickly regained his composure to play it off, like he meant to do that, like it wasn’t an issue he just shared his full name to a shady stranger while he was on a job where he was sort of undercover. But it wasn’t lost on him that his mysterious company in this hallway had not only not shared his last name, but made a point to explain that he wasn’t, politely. Which meant either Ranpo was supposed to know who he was, or it was just a way to make it seem like he wasn’t lying about his name. Giving Ranpo something to chew on, and make it seem like he was withholding more sensitive information from him, in an attempt to make the lie seem more genuine. But it would have been less weird where they were at for him to share only his last name instead, if this person knew that, that is.
Ranpo mentally added another strike against this person’s innocence. Now, he really wanted to know what his aim was and why his last name was worth hiding assuming his first wasn’t made up. A change of plans was in order now, because the intriguing being named Fyodor had just handed him a shovel, and now Ranpo was going to start digging until he unearthed the truth without his skill, or until his ride came to pick him up.
Whichever came first.
He knew he was probably dancing in the palm of his hand right now, but Ranpo had a trump card up his sleeve. That card? The fact that he could just go home, open his snacks that were waiting for him back at the agency while he relayed the facts of the case to whoever was there to help him tonight, and forget any of this happened unless this person caused them problems again. Then he would use the weight of the agency’s resources to completely ruin this guy’s day and he would regret crossing path’s with the great Ranpo Edogawa!
Tonight was a night full of missteps, so he shouldn’t have been surprised about what happened next. Before he could even offer for the man to follow him back downstairs to people watch with him, because he decided that would be how he would set up sorting out his curiosity and be able to make less creepy conversation with Fyodor, and also allow them to not be in a secluded area alone which was way too dangerous Ranpo was now realizing, he was being caught off balance and pulled into a room.
He tried to scream but just as an ice cold hand yanked his wrist and graceful legs kicked his out from under him, causing him to lose balance and fall into this shady companion, another cold hand was covering his mouth, muffling his cry for help as he was dragged out of sight from the safety of the open hallway.
Shit. He was totally being kidnapped, he needed to start biting. But just as he tried to chomp down the flesh covering his mouth, the hand was gone and Fyodor was shushing him and patting his shoulders off, as if he was offended by the dishevelment of Ranpo’s clothes despite the fact that he had caused the problem himself.
“What are you doing?!” Ranpo shouted as his pulse started to thrum in his ears.
“If you do not quiet down, I will make you quiet down, and I don’t want to have to do that so can you please listen for one moment?” his soft voice pleaded in earnest.
Ranpo wanted to start kicking, but he decided to choose patience in spite of the threat Fyodor had slid into that request.
“You have ten seconds!” He whispered his condition as harshly as he could, and hoped he came off at least semi threatening.
Fyodor sighed and shook his head, but he wasn’t starting to talk quick enough for Ranpo, not at all.
“One...two…”
“You’re actually counting?” Fyodor asked as if offended by the reality of it.
“Yes! Three…”
“How many glasses of wine did you have earlier?”
“Four...that isn’t relevant, five…” Ranpo continued and stared him down.
“Is it? You didn’t notice the voices from down the hallway or the fact that someone had come up looking for us,” with arms crossed he had taken on an air of condescension that Ranpo couldn’t be bothered with.
“Six...wait. I didn’t hear anything,” He fumbled his brow and his heart sank as he processed the words that had come out of his mouth a few seconds too late. He really wasn’t paying attention earlier. He was not in as much control as he thought he was, and his frustration with himself increased.
“Yes, I just said that. I don’t think those men had good intentions, and I think they thought we were up to something more than slipping away for some privacy together,”
“We weren’t up to anything though, so that is stupid of them, I didn’t know for sure that you would follow me,” Ranpo snapped back.
“Did you want me to follow you?”
“I already said that I didn’t, didn’t I?!” Ranpo did all he could to shout without shouting, to whisper with enough bite that his displeasure wouldn’t be ignored.
“Did you?”
“Do not start that with me, I can go on forever until you are begging me to shut up and stop asking questions, I’m really good at asking questions actually,” Ranpo crossed his arms in annoyance and peered down his nose at him.
The soft giggle emitting from Fyodor made Ranpo’s heart leap, and he thought under different circumstances he would want to try to get him to laugh like that again, he swore he saw a sparkle in his violet eyes for a minute before they sharpened back into something that felt a little more sinister.
“May I ask one more question then, without you questioning me back?”
“Go ahead…” Ranpo leaned forward in cautious anticipation.
“Do you want to know a secret?”
Eyes widening, Ranpo felt himself nearly jump out of his skin. Of course he wanted to know a secret! He knew that Fyodor knew that he wanted to know a secret that was why he was asking, and Ranpo had all but forgotten their pursuers outside in the hall and had returned to his original focus. Figure this intriguing stranger, Fyodor, completely out before he had to leave. But he didn’t want to seem overeager, he had some of his pride still.
“Sure,” He tried to seem like he was being blasé about it, but even after such a limited amount of time together he had a strong inkling Fyodor could see right through him.
“I know that neither of us are supposed to be here, but neither of us can leave easily if we were to be found out right now,” he said it as if it was something clever, but Ranpo could hold in his groan of displeasure.
He threw his shoulders and head back dramatically and sighed, “You know what, I was wrong.”
“Pardon?”
“I thought you would be interesting to figure out, but you just told me something I already know. Is that seriously your only secret? Can you do any better? I mean really!” he wanted to figure Fyodor out, but he was slightly offended that despite only knowing Ranpo for an extremely short period of time, that he didn’t realize that of course Ranpo would already know that, that it wasn’t a secret at all and he had teased him for nothing.
The smile that suddenly radiated on Fyodor’s face was one of the most refreshing expressions he had seen the man make so far this evening, it was pure glee. But Ranpo was incredibly confused as to why he was making it.
“You exceed my expectations…” He trailed off at the end like he wanted to say something else but couldn’t.
“Your expectations are crap then, because it was glaring obviously to anyone with half a brain that you aren’t supposed to be here!” He resisted the urge to stick his tongue out to tease him and rub it in.
Fyodor’s eyes narrowed, looking like a predator about to devour his prey, causing Ranpo to take a step back and try to reevaluate this exchange. He just had a misstep, but how? He desperately wished he was sober right now.
“But I didn’t have confirmation that you weren’t supposed to be here until just now,”
Ranpo’s face fell flat, why did he need “confirmation”? Did he not trust his instincts enough? Ranpo surely looked out of place, if only with the way he was avoiding everyone and acting like he wanted to be anywhere else. What was this guy’s aim like that he needed “confirmation” of his suspicion?
He felt his mind jolt, like a light switch was flipped on suddenly. Ranpo was there having to get confirmation that people were not there for the advertised intention of the gala. Fyodor was working. Not for whoever was running the meetings here at these events, and not for the organizers of the event or the ADA’s client. But working none the less.
“Ah, I’ve displeased you.” Fyodor’s comment made him realize he was wearing his thoughts on his face just then, but that wasn’t the issue.
“Why does it matter if you displease me?” Ranpo reverted back to questions defensively.
“I suppose it doesn’t, in the end I’m bound to,” he shrugged.
“What the hell does that mean?”
“Who knows?” Fyodor shrugged again.
Ranpo rolled his eyes. He was over this, it didn’t sound like their tails were still outside and he felt like Fyodor and him were on the verge of ending up in a circular song and dance that would annoy them both in the end.
“Can we get out of this room? It feels stuffy in here and I think those guys are gone,” he didn’t wait for permission before moving to open the door, and Fyodor said nothing as he silently followed him back out into the hallway. The air between them felt a little awkward, and Ranpo didn’t know what to say. Not that he really wanted to keep talking to him or anything…
They made it to the staircase, and Ranpo turned around when he realized Fyodor wasn’t trailing behind him after traversing halfway down the steps. He was struck with the sight of him making a strange expression as he watched Ranpo on the stairs. He looked conflicted, and it didn’t look good on him, Ranpo decided. Not that he wasn’t still incredibly pretty, just that out of the few ways he had watched his fine features move tonight, this for some reason was his least favorite expression on this new acquaintance.
“What?” Ranpo stopped himself from asking if he was coming with him or not, realizing how that would sound, like he expected him to still accompany him for the night, even though there really was no reason to. Ranpo may have originally caused the issue by staring at him, but he didn’t have to follow him, and everything else that had happened was never Ranpo’s intention at all. He still had time to kill though, and out of everyone here, Fyodor was who he would rather spend time with for the remainder of the night if he had to, though out in the open without the privacy they had upstairs was more ideal.
“Nothing,” he shook his head and any indication that anything might have been wrong was cleared from his face as he quickly joined Ranpo down to the main floor.
Before Ranpo could ask anything else, both his and Fyodor’s eyes were trained on the men approaching them from the other side of the room, pushing past various well dressed guests who huffed in offense at the behavior, but then quickly concerned themselves with what they were doing before, laughing and talking with other people of means as if they were unbothered in the end. His heart raced and he knew they were about to get into a confrontation. He could plan for himself, to try to talk his way out of whatever he needed to, but too much was happening tonight, and Fyodor wasn’t so predictable. He couldn’t count on him going along with Ranpo’s story or explanation, and he definitely couldn’t trust him to not act on his own agenda that might not involve saving Ranpo’s hide. Why would it? They just met.
The men were now right beside them and rattling off questions about who invited them, who they were with, things that wouldn’t have seemed so concerning if they weren’t clearly aggravated and trying to keep what little composure they had left among the guests around them. That was interesting, Ranpo guessed they probably had instructions not to cause too much of a scene, the organization who was using these events as a front clearly must not have a lot of other options and didn’t want to lose what they had going on. This worked in Fyodor and Ranpo’s favor, because it meant they were unlikely to get into any sort of physical altercation or serious situation where Ranpo would have to run away as fast as possible, as long as they played their cards right.
His thoughts moved at lighting speed as he rapidly formulated a plan and an explanation to get them to leave them alone at least long enough for Ranpo to get out of there and picked up by the agency. Whatever happened to his new acquaintance wasn’t his problem.
Despite Ranpo’s intelligence and ability to think quickly, Fyodor was still two steps ahead of him. He barely registered Fyodor’s explanation that was more of an apology for “seeking a quiet moment,” with his “partner” away from the lights and noise of the gala, he name dropped someone Ranpo didn’t recognize but he couldn’t commit it to memory in case it was important or related to the ADA’s case because he was immediately thrown off balance by the man pulling him onto the dance floor and taking his hand, trying to lead him into the waltz that was happening around them.
Ranpo resisted of course, but Fyodor’s grip tightened around his wrist and the pain that radiated through his arm suddenly added a completely different layer of danger to the situation he was currently in. Fyodor’s thumb dug into a precisely pinpointed pressure point that caused Ranpo’s hand, gripped into a fist, to relax in sudden weakness.
“Stop it!” Ranpo hissed but let himself be lead along, unsure how to proceed at all for the first time in a long time.
“Dance with me then,” it wasn’t a request, despite the honeyed tone Fyodor had taken on, and Ranpo made a split second decision to just roll with it. Fyodor had gotten them out of trouble, what did it matter the methods he used to do so? They couldn’t very well sneak out of the crowd, eyes would be on them in seconds and they would be followed again. Hiding in the crowd and acting like Fyodor’s story was true was probably the easiest way to survive the night without anymore headaches.
Ranpo felt awkward as he tried to follow Fyodor, their motions feeling more like he was being dragged around like a marionette.
“Relax, just follow my lead and stop being so stiff,” His words sounded weirdly reassuring, but Ranpo bit his lip in frustration.
“I can’t dance!” No amount of reassurance from his temporary companion was going to change that fact. Ranpo had avoided these sorts of situations his entire life, successfully he might add! But here he was, formally dressed and holding the cold and smooth hand of someone he met less than an hour ago, doing the impossible. He suddenly became aware that Fyodor’s other hand had traveled down to his hip as well, how had this turned out this way? He only wanted to people watch and pass the time. He was never going to just go with the flow and follow his inebriated whims again, he decided right then and there.
Fyodor’s soft laugh, the one he had wished to hear again, blessed his ears, and he finally focused on the face of his dancing partner. He looked surprisingly in his element, and Ranpo had to admit under the lighting of the gaudy chandeliers that were much too bright for Ranpo’s comfort right now, he looked almost angelic. Ranpo tried to relax his body and stop resisting against Fyodor’s movements as he attempted to guide him through the dance, he followed his lead and looked down to watch his foot work, complimenting it with his own. It wasn’t as hard as he thought it would be, but he would never choose to do this again if he had his way. He didn’t like it at all, it was just a necessity.
“Are you okay now? You’re a fast learner, Ranpo. You are doing really well, you might be able to fully match my steps yet” Fyodor’s praise tickled Ranpo’s ear as he leaned in, his voice low and gentle, and his lips nearly touching Ranpo’s skin. He shivered and felt a rush of pride, but made an effort to not make it look like it affected him at all. He hoped he wasn’t blushing. Somehow despite the fact nothing had truly happened between them and there was no clear evidence that Fyodor was friend or foe, Ranpo felt like he was locked in some sort of game with the man, and slipping up more than he already had would spell out disaster for him.
He couldn’t explain it, it was just a gut feeling. He was suddenly compelled with the urge to put his glasses on, but his hands were currently occupied and it would look too awkward and obvious so he let it go. He had been doing that a lot tonight, letting things go. He wasn’t sure it was leading him anywhere good, interesting sure, but not definitively good. Interesting was good for Ranpo, but not necessarily for the agency. And in the end the agency was what was truly good for Ranpo, he would always choose them over anything else.
A melodic set of chimes interrupted them and Ranpo recognized it as his phone going off in his pocket, his ride must be here. Finally, he was free! He separated himself from his dancing companion and fumbled with his phone, his excitement causing him to be clumsy with his movements. He answered it right there in the middle of the dance floor, decorum be damned, he was finally out of here!
“We’re outside one block to the west, you can meet us there but call if you have any issues or think anyone is following you,” Kunikida’s voice was music to Ranpo’s ears.
“I’ll be right there!” He hung up and rushed towards the exit, pushing past bodies with little regard for who they were, but he stopped just shy of the atrium and turned around. He didn’t even say goodbye, that was really rash of him. He wrestled with navigating the crowd to go see Fyodor one last time, but he didn’t want to be pressured into sharing his contact information. Would he even ask? He couldn’t give it out, there was no way. His decision was quickly made for him though as his temporary companion for the night rushed up towards him, looking slightly annoyed.
“You at least could have given me a warning so I could have walked away with you instead of putting me in a bind after what I did for us, it makes our story look fake you know, and I can’t exactly leave yet,” He scolded him while pulling his Ranpo’s hands into his and he complied without thinking, suddenly finding himself pulled into an embrace.
“Help me out for a minute Ranpo? Please? I would really appreciate your cooperation, then you can go meet up with your little ADA friends,” Fyodor cooed as he squeezed his body against his gently.
Ranpo’s heart sunk, tumbling down into his stomach, the force of it causing him to forget how to breath. He froze, and Fyodor gave his back a small rub before releasing him, speaking loudly enough so the people around them could hear, prattling on about his partner feeling ill and not doing well in crowds, and sending him off for their driver to pick him up early while Fyodor stuck around a bit longer to meet up with “a friend” he still needed to see that wasn’t in town often.
Soft lips touched his forehead in a gesture that should have been sweet and comforting. Ranpo wanted to cower away from him, but he was caught, like a helpless animal in a steel trap, and merely stood still in wide eyed shock, completely unable to move.
Ranpo never told him about the ADA.
When he finally stepped away further, making it clear that it was Ranpo’s cue to leave, all of his anxiety fueled energy hit him in a single wave, and he turned around and ran faster than he ever had in his entire life. Striking violet irises cutting into him like their first meeting of the night were the last thing he saw before bolting. He overshot Kunikida’s car by an entire block, running straight past it, not even noticing him and Yosano sitting there waiting for him. He only stopped because they had followed him down the street, trying to “shout” without really shouting out of the window to get Ranpo to break from his dazed sprint.
“What the hell are you doing?! Is someone following you? Did something happen?” Kunikida barked at him and motioned for him to get in the car, and Ranpo complied.
“Sorry! I just really wanted to go!” He tumbled into the back seat and slammed the door behind him.
“Are you alright?” Yosano asked concerned.
“Fine! Just fine! I can’t believe you made me stay there that long it was awful! I’m never going to a party without one of you again!” He knew his voice was less than controlled right now but he desperately wished they wouldn’t question it.
He didn’t want to talk to anyone right now about anything, he needed time to think. If he was going to tell anyone it was going to be Dazai, but even then he didn’t know how to explain any of this! Fyodor didn’t corner him, or approach him first, or seek him out. Ranpo had started all of this, and lured him into following him, and Ranpo didn’t necessarily want that but at the time he didn’t fully not want that, if that even made any sense. Saying it out loud would garner at best raised eyebrows, at worst more questions he wasn’t going to want to answer at all!
He had been completely enraptured with this stranger, acted completely out of character, and potentially put the agency at risk. But then again, the agency might have already been at risk! He knew them, or did he just know Ranpo? It was all too confusing, and now he was certain that man was completely and utterly dangerous.
Yosano chuckled and took his words at face value, apologizing for the situation but praising him for making it through to the end. Thankfully, she couldn’t hear his thoughts.
He looked out the window watching the buildings and sidewalk rush by as they drove back towards the agency, and hopelessly tried to forget everything that had happened tonight. He was safe, the agency wasn’t exactly a secret organization, and he had let himself get too rattled. Still, he made a desperate and silent wish that the pretty face he was sure he wouldn’t ever forget was actually angelic, and that he hadn’t foolishly mistaken a demon for something he was not.