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The case was over, finally. It hadn’t been a difficult one, but rather, the clues simply would not add up in any meaningful sense. Not that Shuuichi had been paying that much attention to them. He’d let Conan do all the deducing work, along with Masumi who had tagged along. She’d still been extremely wary of Shuuichi’s disguise as Subaru. It was as if she knew something was up with him. The last time she’d met him, she’d gotten so riled up from his words that she’d tried to kick him over the head. What a hothead, Shuuichi had thought back then.
Well, it seemed like she was still a hothead. This time, she’d dashed at the culprit, using her momentum to wrench his arm back, and brought him down in an impressive full-body lock. Masumi was Shuuichi’s sister all right.
“That was impressive, Sera-chan!” the Mouri girl said as the culprit was being cuffed and taken away. “You’ve got to teach me that move! It looked so cool and fluid.”
Masumi laughed awkwardly. “It’s not that difficult, really”, she explained, “you just need to move really fast at first to make it work.”
“Says you”, said the Suzuki girl, “the martial arts master who can do anything. It’s probably good that you weren’t wearing your uniform – I’m sure the skirt would have flipped over during the move.”
Blushing, Masumi made a face at her friend. Shuuichi couldn’t help but crack a little smile himself. For once, Masumi was acting like a normal high schooler.
Masumi had opened her mouth to say something when a loud noise went off. A gunshot, Shuuichi realised. Before he could even turn to look at the source of the sound, he saw Masumi’s face fall. Her knees buckled, and if the Mouri girl hadn’t caught her, Masumi would have fallen face first on the ground.
Masumi had been shot. In the abdomen, of all places.
Shuuichi’s blood ran cold as he scanned the area around them. He made his way to the girls, dialling the emergency number. The police were scrambling around, trying to find the shooter. Relaying the necessary information, Shuuichi listened to the girls’ anxious words. Masumi lay flat on her back, clutching her friends’ hands while Conan pressed his jacket on Masumi’s wound.
“Don’t worry, Sera-chan”, the Mouri girl said, voice trembling, “the ambulance should be here soon. You’ll be okay. Right, Subaru-san? Sera-chan’s going to be okay, right?”
Still on the phone, Shuuichi nodded. Without thinking, he placed his hand on Masumi’s forehead the same way he’d done the couple times he’d met her when she was younger. Masumi frowned, as if she recognised the gesture.
“Oh, I’m not worried about myself”, Masumi whispered through her teeth, trying to keep he voice light, “you should worry about the guy who did this when I get my hands on him.”
“No, you should definitely be worried about yourself”, the Suzuki girl muttered, “isn’t the abdomen a really bad place to get shot in?”
It certainly was, but Shuuichi didn’t think it wise to scare the kids too badly. Despite an ambulance having been called, Masumi was far from being out of the woods. Who knew what kind of damage the bullet had done.
“No, no”, Masumi said airily, “I should be okay. It doesn’t hurt too bad, you know?”
Shuuichi’s heart sank. If Masumi could not feel the pain, she was going into shock. If that was the case, how long did she have until she’d lost too much blood? The bullet had to have pierced something vital after all. One look at Conan confirmed that he’d realised the same.
“Although”, Masumi continued, her voice becoming more and more breathless, “I might have to stay in the hospital for a bit. That might be a problem for the hotel I’m staying at. See, I’ve had a friend over, and they may get worried if I don’t turn up. Maybe…someone should call my hotel room and leave a voice mail. I doubt my friend will answer, though. They’re very shy, you see.”
Shuuichi frowned. Masumi’s words weren’t making much sense. Which friend? Who would be staying at Masumi’s room?
It was at that moment when Shuuichi noticed the ambulance lights. He stood up, waving to the paramedics to come to the right direction. He kept listening to Masumi’s voice, which was growing weaker by every moment that passed. Masumi had switched to English. It seemed that the Suzuki girl was having trouble picking up what she said, but the Mouri girl understood Masumi just fine.
Heart racing, Shuuichi watched as his little sister was packed into the ambulance. Without thinking much, he offered to give Masumi’s friends a ride to the hospital.
It was oddly quiet in the hospital waiting room, despite the people gathered there. Shuuichi had sent a message to Shuukichi about what had happened, but luckily Shuukichi hadn’t arrived yet. He would cause so much chaos. Not to mention the fact that Conan seemed to be in a shock of his own. He had an incredible ability to calm nearly any situation he got in.
Masumi’s friends were talking quietly. The Suzuki girl – Sonoko – was pestering Ran about what Masumi had said in English. Ran kept shaking her head and saying that it was up to Masumi to explain if she wanted to. She said quietly that if Masumi had said it in English, it was because she may not have been comfortable sharing it with everyone.
The sound of running caught Shuuichi’s attention. Shuukichi had arrived. He slid to a halt at the waiting area, looking around wildly. Shuuichi waved at him to sit next to him.
“What happened out there?” Shuukichi asked, then lowering his voice to continue. “And…why are you dressed as someone else?”
“There was a case and Masumi got shot after the culprit was arrested”, Shuuichi explained quietly, “apparently the culprit had an accomplice who was ready to cause trouble if he got caught. As far as we know, it wasn’t to hurt Masumi specifically. As for my clothes – they’re a disguise to keep a low profile for a while.”
Shuukichi groaned. “I should have told her to stay away from the case after all”, he muttered, “I had my doubts about how the trick was done, but I didn’t warn her when I should have. What was I thinking?”
“It’s not your fault”, Shuuichi said, “no one noticed the accomplice until it was too late. We’ll just have to hope Masumi pulls through.”
Shuukichi slumped against the hospital chair’s back. He looked wretched, worry plastered all over his face. Shuuichi felt bad for him – Shuukichi had a tendency to worry all too much about things he couldn’t change.
“I’m sorry”, said someone from Shuuichi’s left. He looked up to see Ran standing next to him and Shuukichi. “Are you Sera-chan’s older brother?” she asked, looking at Shuukichi.
“Oh”, Shuukichi said, “yes, I am. You must be her friends, are you?”
Ran nodded. “My friend and I go to the same school as her”, she explained, “we’re in the same class. I…did the doctors tell you anything when you came in? Is there any change in Sera-chan’s situation?”
Shuukichi shook his head. “Not yet. I was told we’d be informed when she’s out of surgery. I’m sorry we meet under such circumstances. My name is Shuukichi Haneda. You’re…Ran, aren’t you? We met once, ten years ago.”
As Ran was about to reply, Sonoko yelped. “You’ve met Sera-chan’s family?!” she asked, voice far louder than it should have been.
Ran shushed Sonoko. “It was ten years ago”, she said, trying to hold Sonoko at bay, “I was at the beach with Shinichi and his mother. Sera-chan’s family helped to solve a case. I only recently realised Sera-chan was the same girl as back then.”
“You could have told me”, Sonoko pouted.
Luckily a nurse appeared in the waiting area before the discussion could escalate into a fight. She called for Masumi’s family and Shuukichi was up in a flash.
“Sera-san is out of surgery”, the nurse said, “and is expected to wake up soon. No organs were irrevocably damaged. Visitors are allowed now; you may go see her even though she’s not awake yet.”
Shuuichi let out a breath he hadn’t noticed he’d been holding. Against all of his instincts, he followed the others into Masumi’s hospital room.
Waking up was unusually difficult. Masumi felt like she was under a layer of particularly thick mud, trying to reach the surface. When she eventually managed to open her eyes, the lights above her blinded her temporarily. Groaning, she brought her hand up to shield her eyes, only to see a bunch of tubes attached to the back of her hand.
“Wha’ happened?” Masumi groaned. Someone was instantly by her side, fiddling with her bed. Part of the bed lifted up, moving Masumi to a sitting position.
“Oh, thank heavens”, someone said. This voice Masumi knew. It was Kichi-nii. Masumi looked up and saw him sitting on one of the chairs in the room, his head in his hands.
Looking around, Masumi saw other familiar faces too. There were Ran, Sonoko, Conan, and…Subaru Okiya? One of those faces definitely did not make sense. Ran and Sonoko did, they were Masumi’s friends. Conan did, he had helped with the case. Subaru, though, Masumi didn’t understand what he was doing in her hospital room at all.
“Whazzat?” Masumi mumbled, her mouth and brain not cooperating with one another. Oh, how she hated whatever she had been given for the pain. She felt so slow.
“You got shot, Sera-chan”, Ran said. She grabbed Masumi’s hand and squeezed her fingers. “You’re okay now, but…the way you were talking out there, I feared that you wouldn’t make it.”
Ran’s eyes were glistening. Suddenly, Masumi was all too aware of what she’d said before she’d passed out. A blush crept on her cheeks. Masumi had switched to English because it had been easier for her. Only, Masumi wasn’t sure how much Ran had understood. She spoke English well, but Masumi had never tried to have a conversation with her Japanese friends in English.
Masumi’s heart had to have picked up speed, because the monitor next to her began to beep faster. Not fast enough to cause an alarm, but enough to alert the others. An expression of confusion and then understanding crept on Sonoko’s face when she looked at Masumi and then Ran.
“So that’s what you said to Ran!” Sonoko shrieked. Masumi yelped at the sound and tried to sit up straight.
Luckily, Ran was quick enough to grab Sonoko and physically push her out of the door. She stammered something about going to buy some snacks for everyone before she and Sonoko disappeared into the hallway. For a few minutes, Masumi could hear Sonoko’s high-pitched voice ranting at Ran. Oh, Masumi was so embarrassed.
“What on earth was that about?” Shuukichi asked, having not picked up the obvious clues.
“Nothing”, Masumi said. She’d buried her face into her palms, hoping to disappear entirely. A disaster, her mother would have called Masumi, a silly little disaster.
The bed tilted to the side and arms wrapped around Masumi’s shoulders. Shuukichi was hugging her. He was shaking a little, possibly from the stress leaving him. Oh, Masumi thought, she had made him worry. Again.
“Don’t ever do that again, you fool”, Shuukichi said, “mum’s gonna kill me if something happens to you. Or at the very least, physically fight me. And you know full well I won’t survive a fight with her.”
Masumi laughed, patting Shuukichi’s back awkwardly. “Yeah, well, mama’s not here to fight you”, she said, “and I think she’s softened a little. She wouldn’t kill you. Just yell at you.”
A soft cough alerted Masumi and she looked up. To her dismay, Subaru was still there, trying very hard not to grin. For some reason, his presence irked her enormously. Why did he get to be there when Masumi and Shuukichi were having a family moment?
“What are you doing here?” Masumi asked, frowning. “Ran-chan and Sonoko I kind of get, since they’re my friends, but how come you’re still staying here?”
Still hugging Masumi, Shuukichi all but stopped breathing. Masumi raised an eyebrow. Shuukichi knew something and he was trying to keep a secret from Masumi. What secret could Shuukichi and Subaru be hiding between each other?
“What are you hiding?” Masumi asked point-blank. It was at this moment that she realised that Conan had not left with Ran and Sonoko. He was sweating profusely. “Why does Conan know whatever it is that you’re hiding?”
“Oh dear”, Shuukichi said, sweating now, “if neither of you will tell her, I will. Masumi deserves to know.”
Letting out a sigh, Subaru nodded and turned to Conan. “Would you be kind enough to go tell Ran and Sonoko that Masumi has fallen asleep again? It’ll be easier that way.”
Conan nodded, picking up the girls’ coats. He left the room swiftly, almost like he was afraid of whatever was going to happen next.
When the door closed, Subaru sighed again and took off his glasses. He then did something with his hair – it was a wig! – and removed them completely. Huh, he had some sort of a full-head mask under the wig. When Subaru removed the mask, he revealed an achingly familiar face.
Shuuichi was alive.
For a moment, Masumi was completely still. Then she yelled and tried to sit up. Shuukichi yelped and held her even tighter than earlier. He was trying to hold Masumi down, to stop her from fighting their oldest brother. In hindsight, his idea was solid. His only problem was that even after a serious injury, Masumi was stronger than him.
“You bastard”, Masumi yelled, having shifted to English, still trying to wiggle free, “you liar, you arse! You were alive this whole time? You were alive and didn’t bother to tell me? I’m going to skin you once I get my hands on you! Do you have any idea what I felt after we got the news that you’d died? How sad mama and I were? You selfish prick!”
“Don’t kill him!” Shuukichi shrieked, laying on Masumi’s chest as dead weight. It was a poor attempt to hold her down, but to his luck, it worked. “Just hear him out, okay?”
Shuuichi walked closer to Masumi’s bed, sitting on the side opposite to Shuukichi’s. He patted Masumi’s head like he’d used to when she’d been tiny. How long ago had that been? Masumi felt tears prickling in her eyes. She pursed her lips together and pouted.
“I’m still mad at you”, she said, voice thin.
Finally, Shuuichi hugged Masumi and she could let the tears fall. She punched his side lightly before hugging him back. Shuuichi let out a little cough at the impact. Good, Masumi thought, he hadn’t expected the punch. He deserved it for making his little sister think she’d lost him.
“I guess I deserved that”, Shuuichi said, sighing, “for making you so sad. I’m sorry. It was my way of protecting my family and others who might be in danger for knowing I was alive. There’s a whole lot of things I’m trying to solve. Because of it, some dangerous people are after me. They don’t know you’re my siblings, though, so you should be fine for now.”
Masumi sniffled. “They got to mama”, she whispered, “they gave her some sort of a drug, and now she’s the size of a kid, maybe a thirteen-year-old. She’s still the same mama as she’s always been, just tiny.”
Shuuichi sighed and brought one hand to massage his temple. Masumi felt…relieved? She’d had no idea how awful she’d been feeling, bottling all that up inside. She’d just needed someone to listen to her, to believe her. Keeping secrets really did wear one down. How on Earth did Shuuichi do it so easily, hide all those things?
“That explains a lot”, Shuuichi muttered, “a lot more than I would have liked explained today. Conan-kun being one of them.”
“Yeah”, Shuukichi said, still laying on Masumi’s chest to hold her down, “I was wondering why he was still a kid too. To think that such a terrifying poison exists.”
A rather gloomy silence filled the room. And yet, for the first time in months, Masumi felt warm and happy. She finally had her family back, even though it was a bit – scratch that, a lot – bent in its own way.
“So”, Masumi said, eyes still teary, “I guess you’ll want me to keep this a secret from mama?”
“That would be helpful”, Shuuichi replied, a smile tugging at his mouth, “but I suspect you won’t.”
Masumi laughed awkwardly. “It’s not that I won’t. It’s that mama reads me like an open book. She’ll get the truth out of me soon enough. I’d say…maybe two weeks after I get out of the hospital. I’ll try to keep your secret identity a secret. Deal?”
“Deal”, Shuuichi said, “and I’ll try to make sure no angry thirteen-year-old destroys my kneecaps.”
This made Masumi laugh. The mental image of their mother destroying Shuuichi’s kneecaps was simply too hilarious. As she was now, she was simply so tiny compared to Shuuichi. While she hadn’t lost any of her agility, she would have so much harder a time to fight her eldest son. Maybe Shuuichi would simply hold her at an arm’s length by her head.
Maybe, just maybe, Masumi would be okay after all.