[DC] Lovesick
So while looking through my old writing binders in search of handwritten material for another story that I knew existed somewhere, I came across this fic. And realized that I had only started typing it up, and then forgotten about it. So yesterday I finished typing it up, bridged the main fic to the alternate ending that I had also written at the time, and did some revision. And now I'm posting it. Enjoy.
(Not looking forward to school tomorrow, but posting fic always puts me in a good mood. So here you go. :P)
Disclaimer: Gosho owns it, not me.
Word count: 1870
Lovesick
(or Everyone's Crushing on Kudou)
Ran looked forlornly down at her cell phone. It was a beautiful fall day, she was out in the park with Conan and his friends, and she was sulking. It had been weeks since Shinichi had last called her, or communicated with her at all, come to think of it. Sometimes, she just felt unbearably lonely. Why didn't he call more often? She briefly toyed with the idea of calling him, but these days she almost always got his voicemail when she did that, and she'd already sent him a text this morning. Which he hadn't responded to.
She watched the group of children playing hide-and-seek from the park bench where she sat. One child in particular. Even if her suspicions were right, it still wasn't the same. She couldn't talk to Conan like she could to Shinichi. And she had pretty much given up on him ever admitting that he was Shinichi, or her ever being able to throw away her suspicions if he wasn't, so she doubted that she would ever be able to talk to him that directly. It was like he was always just around the corner, or right in front of her, but on the other side of a wall that neither of them could climb or break.
She sighed heavily, internally admitting that she was every inch the stereotypical lovesick teenager. It made her feel rather silly. She looked back down at the cell phone in her lap.
Something heavy clunked onto the other end of the bench. A glance to her left told her that it was Hattori-kun (visiting them again, although Ran got the feeling that he was more visiting Conan-kun than her or her father). He let out a sigh strangely similar to her own.
"Something on your mind?" she ventured.
Heiji looked conflicted for a moment. "Nah, nothing. Just… thinking about Kudou," he finished, with a rather guilty look back at her.
She smiled rather bitterly. "Me too."
The lapsed into slightly uncomfortable silence until Ran spoke again:
"He's ridiculous sometimes! Always thinking he can do everything himself!" She broke off, slightly embarrassed by the outburst. But Hattori was chuckling, and smiling fondly.
"Yeah, Kudou's stubborn like that," he agreed. "Doesn't let people into whatever dimension he's thinking in most of the time."
She managed to smile back a bit, and they both fell silent again - but it was a more companionable silence. They just sat, watching Conan and the other kids. One of them wandered over. It was Ayumi - Conan had already found her, hiding in some bushes by the playground.
Ayumi paused, giving them a searching look. "What are you doing?"
Ran smiled. "Just watching." She patted the middle of the bench. "Care to join us?"
Ayumi brightened and hoisted herself up to sit between the two of them. Conan's voice rang out through the park, something about being able to see Genta's shoes. Ayumi heaved a gusty sigh.
"He always acts like he knows everything!" she said suddenly, frustrated in a sort of half-hearted way.
"You mean Conan-kun? Yeah, he's a little know-it-all," Heiji said with a grin.
"Yeah, except…" Ayumi hesitated. "Well, it's almost like he really does know it all." She turned wide eyes up to Ran, almost asking if she understood any of this.
Ran did understand. "Yeah. It's almost hard to stand sometimes, isn't it?" But she was still smiling.
And so was Ayumi. "Exactly!"
And they lapsed back into contented silence.
"Lovely day, isn't it?" said a female voice from just behind Ran's right ear. Ran thought is sounded vaguely familiar, but she couldn't quite place it. She looked up to see a young woman with light brown hair leaning over the back of the bench, not much older than Ran herself, smiling down at her. She was awfully close. And she had gotten there so quickly, without anyone noticing.
"Yes, it is." She hesitated. She didn't want to sound rude, but… "Do I know you from somewhere?"
The woman nodded back at her. "Seto Mizuki. Met you when I was working at the Suzuki house," she said, winking. "Mouri-chan, right?"
Ran felt that her eyes must have at least tripled in size. Her voice was nearly inaudible as she said, "Ki-"
"Shhh!" 'Mizuki-san' shushed her. "Don't say it," she whispered. "Or all the detective-types will insist on chasing me out."
Ran had to admit that was true. "Point," she whispered back. "They tend to pay way too much attention to their work sometimes."
Kid nodded. "But by another token, sometimes it isn't enough," he sighed.
Heiji and Ayumi appeared to not have heard (or maybe not cared about) the whispered conversation.
Silence fell over the four of them. It was a comfortable silence.
Ai wandered off, as the game of hide-and-seek devolved into a haphazard, strange combination of tag and wrestling. It was actually rather peaceful, away from the boys. Leaves crackled pleasantly underfoot, a bird twittered at her as she passed…
And four people were sitting - or in one case, leaning - on a park bench, watching the game of whatever-it-was-now with an identical, wistful look on each of their faces. More specifically, she realized, following their gaze, they were all watching Kudou-kun with a wistful look on their faces. She stopped and stared at them, unsure what to make of it. As she stared, the four of them let out a perfectly synchronized, heart-wrenching sigh.
She waited for something else to happen. Nobody moved. None of them even seemed to notice she was there. Turning to look back at the boys (who were now chasing each other around a tree) it was obvious that Kudou-kun hadn't noticed his watchers, either.
"Edogawa-kun is oblivious," she muttered, more to herself than to anyone else. She was surprised by a murmur of agreement from the bench.
She turned back to face the four of them, feeling slightly conflicted.
"I don't know," she noted. "Whether to call all of you a bunch of lovesick idiots, or join you."
The woman leaning on the bench from behind raised an eyebrow at her. "You want to join us? 'My, my, what a loving chibi.'"
Well, that was one mystery solved. Ai scowled at her. Him. It. Did it really matter?
"Why are you here, anyway?" Ai pointed out. "Don't you have plenty of fangirls that are madly in love with you?"
Kid waved it away. "That's not the same."
"Well, I'm sure you have some fanboys out there too." Point for her, she thought dryly, as Kid shot her a look. He was cut off from whatever witty response he had just prepared by Ayumi.
"What are you guys talking about?"
A guilty look seemed to flicker across Kid's face, but it was gone before you could even be sure it was there.
"Sorry, Ayumi-chan," he said quickly.
"I'd like to second that, actually," said Heiji. "What are you guys talking about?"
Kid ignored him. "Ayumi-chan, how about I teach you a magic trick, alright?" I bet that Edogawa-kun won't be able to figure it out!"
"Really?" Ayumi jumped off the bench, and with barely a backwards glance at the others, followed 'Mizuki-neechan' over to the shade of a nearby tree. Kid produced a deck of cards from somewhere as he walked.
Heiji looked confused for a moment, then got up and tagged along, either worried about Ayumi or hoping that some sort of explanation was about to happen. It was apparently obvious to him that Ai was unlikely to be forthcoming with any sort of explanation.
Incredibly awkward silence fell between the two girls left at the bench. Ai turned her head, pretending to be very interested in the game in front of them. It was starting to look a lot like Calvinball. She sighed.
"You've got a crush on Conan-kun, don't you?" Ran teased her gently.
Ai deliberated for a few seconds on just how to answer that.
"About as much as you do," she answered as casually as she could. And of course rather cryptically, if anyone should choose to think too much about her words.
But that was just her being silly. And slightly paranoid. But she was always slightly paranoid, and sometimes a great deal more than slightly.
There was more silence. It was hard to tell whether this silence was awkward, or merely thoughtful. It was more mysterious than all the previous silences combined, although of course Ai hadn't been witness to those early stretches of quiet.
"You're like him," Ran said suddenly.
"Edogawa-kun?"
"Yes." Ai was about to ask how in the world she was at all similar to Kudou-kun when Ran continued. "Like Shinichi."
The message was unmistakable. Ai froze. Mouri-chan had figured it out and knew about her and was going to hate her. She wanted to turn around, to look up, to deny it, but knew she couldn't look Ran in the eye. There was no choice.
"Yes, I am." She spoke as calmly as she could, given the circumstances. "And… I take full responsibility for his current condition."
"Would you mind… telling me about it?" Ran asked. "Not now, necessarily, but… sometime?"
Ai sucked in a deep breath and let it out like it was physically painful to her. "You have every right to know, really."
The next silence was tense. It stretched and gnawed at Ai and rung hollowly in her ears.
Ai decided that she didn't like silence.
"So you do have a crush on Shinichi," Ran said finally.
Ai turned her head back to look at her. Ran was smiling, but there was something sad there. "Well… yes, I suppose so. But I can promise you that he likes you. He always will."
"…Yes," Ran said slowly, not looking her in the eye. "I know, but… you know what?" She looked contemplative. "I'm tired of waiting. I really am."
Ai blinked, surprised. Ran still had that combination of sadness and happiness dancing across her face, but there was not an ounce of regret to be seen there.
Ran met her gaze, her smile widening slightly. "And really, who needs inobservant detective idiots?"
"…You mean that?"
"Absolutely. Now- what do you say to me taking you out for some ice cream?"
Ai stared. Ran's grin had turned nervous, and the wind had breathed a pretty flush into her cheeks. And there was no regret. No dwelling on the past. Just looking forward to ice cream and discovering a friend that neither of them had known about.
Still she hesitated. "Aren't you supposed to be watching the kids?"
"I think 'Conan-kun' can watch them just fine, don't you?" She winked. Behind her, Ai could hear Mitsuhiko shouting that Genta was breaking the rules.
Ai felt a smile creep onto her own face.
"I would have to agree. And I think I'll take you up on the ice cream."
Ran stood up, offering her hand. Ai slowly took it, and the two of them walked off, in search of the nearest ice cream shop, leaving everything else behind them.
The other were all too distracted - in games, magic tricks, and the general confusion of a day in the park - to notice where they went.