for the prompt: forehead touches, Shinichi and Ran

It's something of an odd first date.

Well, it might not exactly be their first, Shinichi thinks to himself, but it is most certainly a date – and as far as him not needing to worry about turning back into Conan goes, it's definitely a first.

…in retrospect, this is positively normal, considering all that. Probably. Shinichi's sense of what constitutes the mundane is in dire need of some recalibration, after recent events.

At any rate, he'd never pictured having their first proper date right here in his house, but with Ran tucked warmly by his side on the couch as she flicks through TV channels looking for something to watch, Shinichi has to admit that this hadn't been a bad idea at all.

He'd been at a loss for somewhere to take her – the media furor surrounding the Organisation's takedown hadn't quite died down yet, and the last thing he wanted was an interruption, whether of the journalistic or homicidal variety.

So when Ran suggested cooking for the two of them at home (his place, not the Mouri's, thank goodness) Shinichi hadn't needed much persuading to agree, though he had been close to protesting when she kissed him on the cheek and said, "Not everything needs to be grand, Shinichi."

(Honestly. Big Ben hadn't even been his idea, it'd just sort of… happened, and now it seemed like no one was going to let him forget it.)

Even with how often he'd had her cooking as Conan, Ran had most certainly outdone herself with dinner tonight, and had even brought over a lemon pie she'd made the day before. She'd only allowed him to help with collecting and measuring the ingredients, since they both agreed that he was a disaster in the kitchen, but Shinichi had sat at the counter as she cooked, content to watch her work.

He watches her now, too, one arm curled loosely around her shoulders, and thinks that he could stay like this forever.

As if she'd heard his thoughts, Ran turns to him, her face dimly lit in the flickering light of the TV. "What's wrong, Shinichi? You've been quiet for a while."

"Nothing," he replies, and for once it's not even a lie.

Ran doesn't look completely convinced, though, and he can't blame her.

"Just – I didn't always think I could make it here, you know? Even if I got back to being myself, I didn't know if you were going to be mad at me." Shinichi laughs a little, humourlessly, and looks down at his fingers. "Sometimes, I don't know why you still aren't."

"Honestly? Yes, I was mad, for a while." Ran twirls the remote in her hand once before setting it down, and he wonders if this conversation is as difficult for her as it is for him. "But I knew that you wouldn't lie to me about something this important without good reason, and I was right."

The extent of her trust is more than he deserves. He doesn't know how to respond to that.

"Oh, Shinichi," she whispers instead, and pulls him towards her, curls her arms around the back of his neck until their foreheads are almost touching. "I could never stay mad at you, not over this. So get that idea out of your head right now, understand?"

"But – " Shinichi tries to say.

"No, you listen to me, okay?" Ran interrupts, and they both fall silent for a moment before she continues. "You might've been gone for a year, Shinichi, but we already had so many before that, and if I have any say in it we're going to have many more. So…"

She exhales, breath warm on his face, and he can feel her arms tense ever so slightly around his neck. "Just promise me, Shinichi. Promise that you'll never leave again like that, not without telling me the truth first."

Shinichi lets his forehead fall gently to rest against hers, and wonders, a little, what he'd ever done to deserve her presence in his life.

He feels his eyes drift closed as he thinks, the seconds stretching out between them – he almost hates himself for hesitating, but he's broken too many promises to her already.

Then Ran murmurs, "Don't make me headbutt you into agreeing, Shinichi."

Shinichi doesn't know which part is scarier – the fact that Ran's voice is still perfectly pleasant, or his certainty that she'd most definitely carry through with her words.

"Okay," he agrees, meekly, and means it. "I promise."

"A wise choice," Ran says, tone grave, but Shinichi doesn't need to open his eyes to see her smile.

.

omake:

Okay, Shinichi's about to say, when he suddenly sneezes.

His forehead collides with Ran's hard enough that he sees stars, and he yelps. "Ow!"

"You don't say," Ran mutters, rubbing at her own head. "I wasn't the one that sneezed!"

"I don't know," Shinichi grumbles right back, "maybe you jinxed it by mentioning the headbutt."

"Oh? I'll show you what a proper headbutt looks like, Shinichi, don't think I won't," Ran replies, the faintest edges of a threat in her voice, and Shinichi gulps in terror.

END

that turned out way longer than expected? whew

anyway ye have yourself the ending of your choice idk