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Kudo Shinichi was back, and clearly, something was wrong. His classmates notice how he would space out, stare out the window with a sort of longing. He doesn't say much when asked, but when prompted about someone he met during his disappearance, he would show the smallest hint of a smile.
“Yeah. I met a lot of people when I left. They helped me a lot,” was what he always said. Perhaps he missed them. Ran doesn't really know how to feel.
Ever since he'd been back, he felt so distant. Their confessions, their dates (Can she really call them that?), their whole…dynamic seems to have been thrown off. Did they even have a dynamic? Ran shakes her head, not wanting to doubt him. She trusts him.
The problem was… does he?
Up until then, he had never told anyone about anything that happened during his disappearance. They only got the news that a big syndicate was taken down, and a few days after that, Shinichi returned. Ran thinks they're somehow connected, but she doesn't want to push for answers. He doesn't look like his usual self, and Ran doesn't know if she can recognize the way he is now.
It's different. He's different. Changed, in ways Ran doesn't know how to ask about.
They walk to the classroom silently, Shinichi's usually relaxed arms behind his head were now on his sides, one in his pocket, and one carrying his bag. His usual stare upwards was now a downcasted look, his hair covering most of his eyes.
He also started wearing glasses. They were big and rectangular with rounded edges. Shinichi doesn't really provide a concrete answer for why. It's for style, he just felt like it, why not were some of his answers.
They sit down, and Ran is glad Shinichi doesn't have anyone sitting beside him because he always looked like he didn't want to be bothered. Ran only glances at him before she sighs, only to be dragged into a conversation by Sonoko. She laughs at her absurd topics.
“Did you know, Ran? There's a transfer today.” Sonoko exclaims, and Ran expresses the expected reaction of surprise.
“Really?”
Sonoko nods, “I saw her in the teacher's lounge earlier. She had this short permed bob cut, and she was talking to-” A loud skid makes Ran flinch, makes her glance back only to see Shinichi making his way to them.
“Strawberry blonde?” It was an oddly specific question, and Sonoko hesitantly nodded. Shinichi relaxes. “Thanks.” He goes back to sit down, now a small anticipating smile on his face. Ran blinks.
“Oi Kudo, I didn't think it would be a girl transfer that would make you smile like that.” One of their classmates commented. Shinichi only gived them a deadpan look. Before the detective could do a quip back, the door opens and everyone rushed to their seats. Their homeroom teacher comes in, followed by the rumored transfer.
Ran stares. She was really pretty, a slight cold look in her eyes. She sees her study the room, seeing her grin a little as her eyes passed by. Huh.
“A beauty!”
“Woah!”
“Settle down! This is Miyano Shiho, and she will be attending in this class for the rest of the year. Any other things you want to say, Miyano-san?” She only shook her head.
“None, sensei.”
“Alright, go take a seat wherever… I didn't know we only had one vacant seat. Kudo?” The entire class glances at him and were shocked to see a wide smile on his face. Shiho only made her way to the seat silently.
“Yo.” Shinichi nods at her, and Shiho sighs, as if exasperated.
“Really, Kudo-kun? Is that how you greet new people?” She sits down with a scoff, and instead of the usual deadpan stare the rest of the class gets, Shinich laughs.
“But you're not a new person.” Shiho doesn't say anything to that, and Shinichi only smiles wider, looking out the window with a softer look. Ran doesn't know how to read them.
-
-
“Shiho, where are you staying?” Shinichi asks as they prepared their things back into their bags. Shiho's hands pause before resuming, replying with a shrug.
“You know where I stay.” She gives him a skeptical look as he hummed, almost deep in thought. “Why do you ask?”
“I mean, you could also just move in with me.” Shiho huffs, now that the rest of the class has their eyes on them.
“You're insane, you know that?”
“It didn't hurt to ask.”
“I live next to you. What's the point of moving next door?”
“Mom is coming over..?” Even Shinichi didn't sound convinced. Shiho sighs as she lifts her bag, prompting Shinichi to hurry along with her.
Shiho rolls her eyes, “I don't need to move in to see Yukiko-san.”
“C'mon, please?” That gets Shiho to laugh as Shinichi deflates in defeat.
“You'll just get me to cook for you.”
“Hey, I've been getting better! I had Subaru-san teach me.”
“Still burning eggs, Kudo-kun?”
“Shut up.”
Only then did Shiho notice the silence in the classroom. She spares them all a glance, before looking away hesitantly.
“Eh? Miyano-san, you and Kudo knew each other?” Shiho doesn't know how to answer.
“Yes. I helped him during his case before his return.” Shiho spoke slowly, but surely, making sure she wasn't so easy to read as she said so.
“You were more than just help, y'know.” Shinichi starts, but Shiho shuts him up pretty quickly.
“Do not.” Shinichi only frowned as he watches her walk out of the room first. He follows after a small while. Ran could only watch in…awe? Disbelief?
“What was that about?” Sonoko comments with a look out the window, as if waiting to see the two by the school gates.
“Let's just go, Sonoko. I just remembered I had to do a little grocery shopping.” The mentioned girl only nods, and slowly, students left the classroom with questions they weren't willing to voice.
“Hey Ran, wanna follow them?”
“Eh?” Such a thought didn't even occur to her. As curious as she is, she doesn't really want to see how they are with each other.
“C'mon, we need to catch if that husband of yours is cheating or not!” Ran gets pulled along without much thought. She blinks as a sentence flashes in her mind.
We don't even have a label. Is he even my boyfriend?
The two somehow catch up to them, reaching the Kudo mansion's neighborhood without getting caught. Either that, or the other two never cared enough to call them out on it.
The two stop at the Kudo residence's gates. “Want to come inside and have some tea?” Shinichi breaks the silence that somehow permeated the road, and Shiho finds herself unable to answer, yet unable to walk away.
The detective takes a few steps, now standing in front of her, blocking her from Ran and Sonoko's view. The latter clicks her tongue in annoyance.
“Shiho. Can I..?” Shinichi dropped his bag against the gates’ bars, signalling for a hug. Shiho's breath hitches, before wrapping her own arms around him.
It felt safe. She doesn't understand how she even endured being away from him for so long. Her hold tightens.
“I missed you.” Shiho only nods in reply, a small sound of agreement escaping her lips, muffled as she buried herself into his uniform. “I'm glad you came back.” She only nods again. “As much as I trust you, I was pretty scared you wouldn't even try to come back.”
She understands. With multiple attempts under her belt, it's not so unthinkable for him to be so worried about that.
“I have to go, Kudo-kun.” She doesn't move, despite that.
“No tea?”
“No tea.”
“Tea at the professor's?” Shiho only sighs.
“Okay.” Shinichi reluctantly loosens his hold on her, and they both make their way next door.
Ran watches. She could only watch. What happened while Shinichi was gone? Before she knew it, Sonoko was dragging her to the professor's house and ringing the bell.
“Sonoko??” She had this furious look on her face. Ran couldn't find the strength to stop her. The door is answered by the professor, who was shocked to see them. Ran could only offer a smile.
“Ran? And Sonoko, huh? What brings you here?” The professor seemed to be hesitant to let them in.
Sonoko parts her lips and the professor shushes the inevitable loud volume.
“Sorry about that. It's just that Shinichi finally managed to fall asleep so easily, I don't want to disturb him.” The professor laughs helplessly.
The two walk in as he opened the door wider, and were greeted by the sight of Shinichi and Shiho on the couch. The detective lied down on most of the couch, his head resting against—not on, Ran noticed—Shiho's lap. The transfer simply sat in her spot, unbothered as she played with Shinichi's wild locks while drinking tea.
She looks up to see the two, and she flinches at the sight of them. She mutters a small greeting, moving her hand to hold her cup of tea as well. Shinichi stirs at the change, and blearily looks up.
“Shiho?” His voice was uncharacteristically soft.
“Yes, Kudo-kun?”
“Did I fall asleep?” He gets up, and sees Ran and Sonoko awkwardly standing in their spots. “Oh.”
“Oh? OH? Is that all you have to say, Shinichi?” Sonoko starts, and Ran tugs at her sleeves in an attempt to stop her.
“No. I suppose not.” Shinichi lifts his hand, pushing his hair back slightly. Shiho simply sits quietly.
“We are going to sit here, and you're going to tell us what happened no matter how long it'll take you.” Sonoko sits on the opposite couch, and the professor hands them their own cups of tea. With a defeated sigh, Shinichi faces them. Ran noticed the way his hands were shaking, glancing at Shiho to know that she was too.
“Are you okay?” She mutters with no real audience in mind. She gasps, and she watches as they flinched, giving each other a glance before nodding slowly.
“As alright as we can be, really.” Shinichi breathes, and its shaky and uncertain.
“Kudo-kun.”
“Yes?”
“It's over now.” Shiho reminds, the painful irony worming under her skin, itchy and laughable. Shinichi chuckles humorlessly.
“Thanks.” He faces them again. “There were two reasons as to why I was gone, and now that both of them have been solved, I can finally tell you.” His gaze was focused, as if he was in one of his deduction shows. If Ran didn't notice the way he held his hands together, she would've thought the Shinichi from before had returned.
“Quit stalling and just say it already.” Sonoko was impatient, to say the least.
“First: I got involved with a syndicate where one wrong move could cost me more than just my life.” He pauses, making sure they process whatever it was he just said. “Second: I was incapacitated.” That much wasn't a lie. He really was, in all senses of the word.
“Incapacitated how?”
“I was Edogawa Conan.”
“And I was Haibara Ai.” Shiho continued for him. Deafening silence covered the professor's living room. Ran couldn't even hear them breathe. Ran thinks they actually aren't.
“Miyano-san…” a heavy gasp resounds from her as she blinks, hand already making its way to the side of Shinichi's shirt. Shiho looks down at it, before retreating to herself once more.
“Kudo-kun, continue.” Shinichi leans back onto the couch, head reeling as he groans, hand over his eyes. His head hurts.
“Where do we even begin? So many things happened. We almost died how many times by now?”
“Far too many to count. Far less had you let me just die that one time.”
“As if I'll do that.”
“Exactly. You and your reckless justice and superman complex wouldn't let them get away.”
“It's not just that.” Shiho looks at him in surprise. He faces the two once more.
“Ran, do you remember Hirota Masami-san?”
“The billion yen robbery case?” Shinichi nods, and Shiho wonders about where he'll take this conversation.
“Her real name was Miyano Akemi, Shiho's sister. Her case was closed as suicide but that couldn't be further from the truth.” Shiho closes her eyes, not willing to see their reactions to such news. “She was killed by the syndicate, manipulated to rob the bank in hopes that Shiho would be free from their control. I had promised her that I would keep chasing after them, and I did. Both for her as one of the people I couldn't save, and for me who was wronged by them.”
“After she…” Shiho gulped, not willing to put it to words, “I stopped working for them. That prompted for me to be locked up, and as a last resort, ingesting the very poison I made. The very poison that turned Kudo-kun into Edogawa-kun.”
“You… you made that? What?” Sonoko butts in, disbelief in her eyes. Shiho only nodded.
“Shiho was practically born into the syndicate. She had no choice.” Shiho doesn’t speak up to confirm nor deny, knowing Shinichi’s insistence on her pseudo-innocence. She lets herself believe him every time.
“Yeah we- we’ve been through a lot, huh, Shiho?” She only nods. “Really, looking back at it now, we did some really crazy stunts.”
“Mostly you.”
“Sure sure. Remind me who ended up all worn and torn trying to look for me when I was kidnapped?”
“Who walked back into a bombed bus to save a former of an organization he's been trying to chase for who knows how long by then?”
“You…” Shinichi knows that she could go on an entire tirade just to prove her point, one he can't even begin to refute because she was right.
“See? You’re just insane like that.” Shiho stands, empty cup in hand. “I worked on the antidote as fast as I could. Sorry that it took this long, Mouri-san.” She turns to give her a sad smile, before walking to the kitchen.
“Oi Shiho, I already told you it would’ve been fine even without it.”
“No, it wouldn’t have.” Shiho spits out before Ran could even comment on it. Was he willing to stay as Conan? “You can’t tell all of us you didn’t miss your body, that you didn’t miss being Kudo Shinichi again.”
“And yet ever since I’ve been back, I have never felt right.” Shinichi's long sigh has all three of them staring, in concern, confusion, disbelief. “It’s even more ironic to say that I matured while I was Conan.”
“Oh Shinichi…”
“Please don’t look at me like that, Ran.” Shinichi doesn’t know how to handle the worry in her eyes, not knowing where he would even begin to describe the feeling. Only one person understands his adversary.
Only one.
“I can’t even fulfill my promise to you.” Shinichis were downcasted, apologetic but not regretful. Ran sucks in a breath.
“But you’re here.. You're back now, aren’t you?”
Shinichi’s breath shudders. “But not to you, right?” He said it. He really said it. All at once, his body relaxes into the couch, a tired accomplished look to his winded stare up the now interesting ceiling. Ran’s mouth was agape, in shock, sure, but she also can’t find herself too surprised.
Shinichi had been distant ever since his return. Casual talk was hard to even begin, much more so maintain. It was as if he was hollow, living through the motions of what he missed.
“Oh you can’t be serious.” Sonoko stands up, grabbing Shinichi's collar in anger for her best friend. Ran reacts late enough for her to pull him up. The detective offers no resistance. “First, you made Ran wait, then now that she's done waiting, you declare that it’s all for nothing? What kind of lover does that?”
“Lover, huh? I was so ready to be out of her life if need be, and now that I'm back, I’m essentially a stranger who knows too much of what has been happening to her because I’ve been by her side this whole time.” Shinichi pats Sonoko’s hand, but she doesn’t loosen her grip. “Did you really think I didn’t know of the pain I caused?” Sonoko’s hand slowly pulls away from him. “I broke not just Ran’s, but mine and Shiho’s in the course of the past year. Some guy I am.”
Ran stares at Shiho, who only hugs her arms in defense. She can’t deny it. Ran could only walk to her. The former scientist flinches, but doesn’t move, simply waiting. She didn’t expect the hug that came right after. She didn’t expect the way Ran moved her hands across her back in a comforting manner.
“Thank you for trying not to. It must've been hard.” Shiho tears up, but refuses to cry on the shoulder of someone she’d hurt so deeply. “It’s his decision, Miyano-san. I can’t fault you for that.”
“But I..” It only took Ran tightening her hug to shut her up once more.
“Though I can stay mad at Shinichi for an extended amount of time. You owe me so much time.”
“That I do.”
“I missed you.” Shinichi could only nod.
“Thank you for trusting that I’ll return.”
“Thank you for saving me, time and time again.”
“Of course.” Shinichi had tears in his eyes, but he doesn’t dare let them flow. Ran’s was freely flowing into Shiho’s hair, and the latter could only really hold her in place. It felt like a goodbye.
“Being friends again sound so good right now.” Ran comments, and Shinichi finally laughs.
“Oh I hope so. I honestly didn't think you’d still be willing.”
“Who do you take me for? Besides,” She separates from Shiho with a wide smile. “I want to be friends with Miyano-san!”
“Ehh??? Ran???” Sonoko was out of the loop, not understanding how Ran was even able to do such a thing. Even Shiho was shocked, not expecting such a warm welcome.
“Do take care of her.” Shinichi comments to no one is particular.
“Because clearly, someone doesn’t know how to.” Shinichi huffs, taking offense to that.
“What? What do you take me for?”
“An idiot.” Shiho didn’t even hesitate, making Ran laugh. It already felt better like this.
“Your idiot.” Ran felt Shiho flinch, felt her glance at her hesitantly. Ran only nods.
“Really? This is how you reply to my confession? How rude.”
“What the heck is happening?!” It seems Sonoko still can’t catch up. That’ll be Ran’s problem, that’s for sure.