Someone Out of Town (3)

Blue.

Red.

No. Blue.

Or red?

This wasn't the first time Kaitou Kid landed himself in a situation with bombs. He'd been involved more times than he would like, courtesy to Snake and Kudo Shinichi's weird attraction to cases and murders (The latter brought those misfortune when he visited Kaito's heist sometimes). His experiences were more than enough to make him a bomb-expert now; something he would put in Kaitou Kid's resume if there was one.

Taking in a deep breath, he pressed the wire cutter down slowly, but at the moment when the sharp edge of the cutter touched the wire, he stopped again and released his grip on the tool. He tentatively shifted the cutter blade from the red wire to the blue wire, a process which he'd done thrice already.

His confidence was affected by his doubts.

Yes, there were bombs, and yes, there were all set up by Snake and his men, but this was different; Never once had that bastard ever strapped the bomb on a hostage (And Kaito would have long made the decision between which wires to snip off if it wasn't just his own life at stake).

"I can't believe you're here."

He looked up at the source of the brittle and hoarse voice. Nakamori Aoko. The only daughter of Inspector Nakamori. Second year at Tokyo University. Good grades. Bright future. Likes to bake.

And a hostage.

He observed her swollen eyes and tear-stained cheeks before lowering his gaze to the bomb and wires strapped around her chest and to the pillar.

"Nice to meet you."

She glowered.

Five minutes left.

Aoko looked out of the musty room (The door was broken down when Kaito kicked his way through). "Where's my dad?"

"He's with the other hostages."

She straightened abruptly, as though she'd forgotten about the weight and burden she was literally carrying now. "T-That means they are all fine, right? Arima-kun and Sakura-chan. The children." She asked, her lips trembled so hard that her teeth were grinding against each other.

Her boundless concern for other people was off the chart for him to understand. "Yes."

"Good." She relaxed her posture and nodded in relief. "That's… good."

Kaito bit his lips. The wires were a little more tangled now. "Try not to move so much." He told her.

"O-Okay." She finally replied after a short silence (He risked a quick glance at her and noticed she was blushing).

He was back to his dilemma again.

Blue.

Red.

No. Blue.

Or red?

The numbers on the bomb only ticked three times before Aoko spoke again. "Why… is it so quiet? Aren't there back-ups and bomb squads?"

He wasn't sure if she was always this talkative or if this was her attempt to forget her nervousness and situation, but either way, it worked for him; he didn't mind hearing her voice over the sound of the ticking bomb.

"Only the Task Force and I know about this kidnapping." He answered.

She pursed her lips. "Why?"

"It's a part and parcel of the kidnapper's demand."

"I don't get it. Isn't this a feud against the Police Force? That's why they kidnapped their family members, just so they could gloat and flaunt their capabilities and achievements and even bring it to the media's attention. And you—" She paused, swallowing hard. "You are here because my father wanted your help, no?"

"I'm grateful you've thought so highly of me—"

"No I don't." She gritted her teeth.

"—but you got it all mixed up, Nakamori-san."

"Explain." She said coldly. "And tell me the truth."

Kaito didn't know if Snake and the kidnappers mentioned anything, or if she had her own kind of conceptions based on the past nights she was captured here, but no matter what, she deserved to know the real truth now, and she had the rights to know it too.

"Their intention isn't revenge against the Police Force." He explained slowly, his muscles flickering in his jaw. "They want me, Kaitou Kid. That's the ransom."

"Y-You m-mean these... Sakura-chan and... the kids.. they all suffered... all because..." Aoko stuttered, her eyes that were once dried from tears were filled with them again. "This is- This is all because of you."

The words went straight to his chest. He fiddled with the tangled blue and red wires, his eyes growing dull and distant.

"I know." He whispered back.

There was a long pause. "Didn't you say they wanted you for ransom?" She spat.

"...Yes." He confirmed it for her.

"Then why are you doing here here? Why isn't my dad here instead?" She fixed him a glare. "Why you?"

"I'm the only one allowed here." He only bit his tongue after the words rolled out his mouth. It was too late to regret spilling the beans.

Aoko stared at him, but he had made sure his hat was lowered enough for her to see nothing but shadows on his face. "You're the only one allowed here." She echoed.

He inwardly winced at her low and overly-calm voice. "...Yes."

"Why?" She asked again.

"That's… also part and parcel of their demand."

Realisation dawned upon her (She was sometimes too smart for her own good). Aoko let out a scoff, and then a low laugh. "They wanted you for ransom, yet they sent you up here to get me out? Do you think they'll make the bomb easy to disarm and let you escape unscathed?"

Kaito tried his hardest not to wince at the hope draining out from her voice. He didn't have much in him either, and not knowing what answer he could give, he glanced down at the bomb's timer.

Three minutes left.

"I hate you a lot, do you know that?" Aoko hissed.

It was ironic how he still had the energy in him to smile at this moment. "I know."

"Good. Remember that forever in your goddamn head. Now go."

His smile faded as he jerked his head up so hard his hat almost fell off. "I'm not going to leave you here."

"You—the greatest, God-like Kaitou Kid that everyone admires—should be smart enough to tell this is an obvious trap." Aoko laughed, but what Kaito heard was a hoarse cry and a choke. "Just go."

"No." He exhaled, his fist tightening around the wire cutter. "And that's my final answer."

"You can't detonate the bomb, can you?" Her voice had turned from a breeze to a hurricane. "The last thing I want is to die with you!"

"And the last thing I want is for you to die because of me." He retorted, voice eerily calm that Aoko flinched. It took her only a few seconds to regain her composure, though.

"Do you think I'll forgive you for your nobility?" She snapped, her eyes turning, wide, red and moist. "I won't forgive you."

"I don't need you to."

Aoko shook her head. "I'm sick of this." The sobs were stifled at first as she attempted to put up a brave front, but it didn't last long. Her hiccups grew louder, and her tears had overwhelmed her eyes until it was filled to the brim. "There's nothing you can do so please, just get out of here!"

"And let you—?!" The temper he was trying to control flared, and he raised his voice, wanting to shout back as well. But he stopped, just in time to rationalise the need for his agitation (He wasn't even sure if he was Kaitou Kid or Kuroba Kaito anymore). He knew her fury was part of her act to hide how broken she was, and there wasn't a need for him to further break her to pieces.

Kaito took in a deep breath. "I won't let you die alone." His voice was calm again.

She looked at him in disbelief. "Two deaths aren't going to make things better, stupid idiot!" She screamed, her loud voice booming and echoed across the room.

He ignored her. "Have you considered how your father would—"

"Then have you considered the people who cared about your true identity?!" She bellowed. "Just! Go!" Her ankle-bound legs moved like a tail of a mermaid, and after a good struggle, she gave a kick at Kaito's bent knees, forcing him to fall back on his butt. He sat up and glared at her, and she scowled back at him threateningly.

Her blue eyes were raging like a stormy sea.

Kaito got up to his feet again; his white uniform dirtied by her kick and the dust from the ground. He squatted in front of her, ignoring her piercing gaze that was drilling a hole in his head, and picked up his wire cutter again.

"You're really a stupid, insolent jerk." She muttered.

"And you're a stubborn, feisty mad woman." He said as he tugged and tug onto the wires, knowing fulling well which to cut now.

(He decided to save the blue)

Aoko's glare had subsided to a curious frown. "…What are you doing?"

"Choosing the wrong wire isn't going to make any difference from doing nothing." He muttered, his firm hands steadying the cutter over the red wire. "Either way, we're going to die together."

He didn't give her a second to comment or argue back and pressed the handle together to cut.

"…"

"…"

Kaito had no idea how long he had held his breath, and he realised Aoko did too, with her eyes shut tightly together. His senses had gone into an overdrive, causing the silence to be painful to his ears. He dropped the wire cutter as it cluttered heavily onto the ground and flickered his hazy eyes wearily to the countdown screen.

The numbers had stopped at the 16th second.

"It… st-stopped." Aoko was the first to speak.

There was a thin line between Kaito's consciousness and sub-consciousness, so before he heard Aoko's trembling yet surprise voice, he thought that everyone was over, and that this was some kind of dream he was hallucinating after his death. The wave of relief that washed over him was almost painful in its intensity, and he slumped onto the floor, his gloved hands managing to support him from falling backwards and lying entirely on the ground.

With heavy breath, he glanced up, watching Aoko from beneath the shadow of his hat. She was staring at him with eyes that held nothing of all those previous, angered emotions she had shown. It was something like… gratefulness. She lowered her gaze and contemplated a few seconds before looking at him with the same look.

"Kid—"

He scrambled to his feet, cutting her sentence to a stop and began untying the wires around her. He didn't know what to expect hearing from her, or more like he didn't want to hear it too; Not her thanks or an apology, and not her raging and hateful words either.

Aoko said nothing after the interruption, only watching him quietly as he did his work.

(Maybe she wasn't sure of what to say anymore)

An inevitable silence filled the room again. Kaito could see she was struggling with impatience, wanting to be free from the pillar as soon as possible, but his current speed was just as much as he could do. He wasn't slow on purpose; those bastards had wrapped and tangled the wires to a complete mess, but while he was trying to pull the wires apart, he did take this opportunity to look at her, which might be the cause to his slight distraction...

Her skin was fair despite the lack of light, but the relief on her face made her look less dead than she previously was. Her eyes, which was filled with dread and empty hope, had a glint of life now. And he thought he could see his reflection in her eyes too—

"Did you hear that?" Aoko suddenly gasped, catching him by surprise.

Kaito stopped his untying task and switched his focus to his surroundings. He held his breath, waiting to hear whatever Aoko could possibly be referring to.

Then he did. It was very faint, but it grew gradually louder and louder.

He had heard enough running footsteps to know it wouldn't belong to anyone good.

"Shit." He gritted his teeth, something Kuroba Kaito would say rather than Kaitou Kid, and tried doubling his pace. "They must have known I've disarmed the bomb."

Once she registered his words, she snapped. "Cheaters."

Strange, how she had this weird kind of power of putting a smile on his lips and the worst and inappropriate kind of moments. But as the faint echoes of the footsteps floated to his ears, he wiped the grin off his face; There wasn't much time left.

After much effort, he finally untangled Aoko out of the mess and pulled her up. The tiny whimper that escaped her lips didn't go unnoticed by Kaito, and he could feel her leaning half of her weight against his side.

He stared down at her legs. It looked wobbly. "Can you run?" He asked doubtfully.

"Yes." Her face began to scrunch up. "Maybe."

Kaito couldn't bet on a maybe right now. He helped and dragged her towards the door and out of the room, the musty scent was gone and his nostril was filled with cleaner doses of air.

The sound of footsteps seemed to be coming from the staircase at the other end of the building's corridor. He pulled Aoko to another staircase that was nearer to their side and pushed her up a few steps, which she unwilling did so when she realised he wasn't following her.

"Go up as much floors as you can and hide. Don't show yourself unless your father comes for you."

Her frown deepened. "And what about you?"

"I'll distract them."

Before he could run and execute what he planned, Aoko grabbed his cape, choking him as he stumbled to the start of the stairs again.

"What the—?"

"Distract them and then what?" She spat, still refusing to let go of his cape. "You've just stepped out from your grave and you're so keen to jump back in again?"

"I know what I'm doing."

"No you don't." She murmured behind his head. Kaito could tell she was holding back the brittleness in her voice.

He sighed and half-turned. "Nakamori—"

And then he couldn't speak anymore.

Being used to her angered and frustrated moments, he wasn't prepared when he saw her worried-creased eyebrows and eyes that were brimmed with tears that threatened to spill any second; The sight of her face had stolen his breath, along with destroying all the thoughts he had came up with to respond her.

"You don't have to do this." She mumbled.

"I... have to." He managed to say after regaining his composure.

Most of her tears were blinked away. What was left in her eyes were confusion and... distress.

"Why?" She breathed.

"I've promise your father and myself that I won't let anything happen to you too. That's why."

Despite crossing paths occasionally during his heists, she still knew nothing about him and he knew nothing about her, not exactly besides superficial information. She might think his favourite colour was white when it was blue, and he knew she liked to bake but didn't know what her speciality was. But right at this moment as they stood before one another, something felt wrong—different—with the way she was looking at him and how his chest was responding to her gaze; there were staring at each other as if they were never once strangers at all.

"He's right up ahead! Get your guns!"

Kaito flinched, forcing him to tear his eyes away from Aoko and to the large wall that was blocking the source of the thumping footsteps. There wasn't any time to waste; he needed to run to the other corridor and distract them away before they reached the stairways and spotted Aoko as well—

Seeming to sense what he was thinking, she tightened her grasps on his cape. He clicked his tongue and pulled, and she pulled even harder (This could go on for hours if they had the time to spare, which they didn't). Heaving a sigh, he knocked both sides of his shoulders, dislodging his cape away from his suit.

The sudden release caused Aoko to fall back and slump onto the steps, her eyes turned wide with muted shock as the white cape pooled on her lap. Casting her one last glance, he then sprinted out from behind the big wall, exposing himself as he dashed towards the next corridor that led to the other end of the building.

"Kaitou Kid!" was the last thing he heard her scream before two bullets fired towards his direction.

The sound of the gunshots continued shrilling through the hallway, and the glass windows along the walls were vibrating to the echos of the loud, blasting noises. All of their shots missed, miraculously, and he thought had Aoko let him go a second earlier or later, he might have been—

Bang!

A bullet hit the glass window right next to him, smashing it into bits. The impact forced him to step back and raise his arms, to shield himself from the exploded glass pieces.

It was a wrong mistake to stop.

And then another bullet was fired, hitting him square in the shoulder and jerking him forward. Kaito staggered, and his feet seemed to have loss control as he tripped, and fell through the shattered window.

He'd fallen off buildings more than a hundred times, but this was, by hell, the most painful fall he had ever experienced in his life.

.o.

.

.

.o.

"Does it hurt?"

Kaito blinked, snapping himself awake from the trance. His shoulder stiffened in realisation at the distance Aoko had closed between them; and now she stood right before him, with her head lowered and eyes staring at his left arm.

As he absently raised his left hand, still not making sense to what Aoko was saying, she grasped his palm with two of her hands, sending an electrifying shiver he remembered he had when they were in the ice rink. Over the specific area she was caressing, he finally realised she was referring to the scar on his left thumb, which he got when a dove clawed him during a training many years ago. He almost forgotten it existed until Aoko reminded him... and held his hand like this.

He swallowed, an attempted effort to regain his composure.

Her hands were warm.

Seeming to wonder why he hadn't answer her question, she looked up, and he quickly glanced away and cleared his throat.

"Not anymore." He managed to say without a nervous stutter, thankfully.

Her eyes began running across his face, as though she was trying to absorb his presence "You're really alive, Kaitou Kid." She said, her voice shaky.

His heart was beating so hard it ached. "How did you know…?"

"Your father—" Aoko began, and then winced like she'd said something she shouldn't. "I know, and I… saw how he died. And everything else."

He should have seen the answer coming, but his throat still tightened and twisted into a painful knot. "You can see my memories." He murmured. It was more of a statement rather than a question.

Something flickered in her eyes. Something similar to sadness, heartaches... And as though she knew, she tried to dispel it by mustering a smile—like her life was made of sunshine and promises of a better life.

It would convince him perfectly if her eyes didn't stay sad.

"Is your father the reason why you became Kaitou Kid?" She blurted.

Kaito had forgotten what it felt the first time he put on the white uniform and monocle, along with with the true goal and motivation to why he actually put them on. His mother mentioned it was his legacy. Jii thought it was all for revenge. Hakuba said he was trying to prove his capabilities by destroying what his father couldn't. Everything was a blur, but eventually, it all came down to one thing: his father.

"…Yeah." He answered, his eyes growing distant.

"Can I hug you?"

His eyes snapped back to Aoko, wide and unblinking. There were just so much surprises he could handle in one night. "What?" Kaito whispered under his breath. He might be dreaming about what he heard—

"Can I hug you?" Aoko said again, but softer.

He wasn't sure what to say. Besides how a "Yes" or a "Sure" sounded stupid, he didn't know if it was right for him to agree to the contact (Not for his sake but hers). But Aoko was looking at him with all the seriousness in the world, and Kaito knew she really meant it, and was hoping for a positive answer in her case. In the end, he settled for a nod, and it was all it took for her to release her grip on his hand and take a step closer to hug him.

The last time Kaito remembered hugging someone was years ago. His mother temporarily came back from Las Vegas after she knew he found the secret basement, and she hugged him the moment she first stepped through their house door. Kaito thought it was her effort to comfort him after uncovering the truth that the father he respected so much was once a criminal. But now, thinking back, he wondered if that hug meant something more; because she knew the truth to why her husband really died, and that his son—their son—might end up with the same fate too.

And he did. Almost.

Kaito glanced down at the hug Aoko gave him. It was quite different from what he experienced before; She had slumped her forehead on his chest, hiding her face from his view. And rather than wrapping her arms around his back, she had them tugging at the bottom of his shirt like a lost child.

"It was hell for you, wasn't it?" She mumbled, her voice hoarse and sounding like she was about to cry.

He fought back the urge to pat her head and stood stiffly like a dead tree with his arms stuck to his sides like glue. He only nodded back to Aoko's question, though it wasn't like she could see it, or that the answer wasn't obvious enough.

Aoko sniffed. "I'm sorry."

Kaito looked down at her sharply. "It's not your fault—"

"Not that." She shook her head, her forehead scrapping across his chest. "I'm sorry… for hating you."

It was impossible if she didn't sense him flinching.

She finally lifted her head up to look at him. At this distance, their faces were close, but not very. It was just enough for him to see her blue eyes glistened in the dim light.

"I'm really glad you're alive." She whispered.

In between her smiling and gentle face were traces of relief, if he looked close enough. And he was definitely looking close enough, like he'd never looked at anything or anyone, and carving her into his memory—his new memory that she wouldn't get to see (Which was a good thing, because he thought he felt something more than what he should be feeling, and he wasn't sure if he was willing to let Aoko know about it).

He wondered if she knew he could see her memories too. Even if she knew or didn't know, he felt a compelling urge to tell her he could, and to comfort her just as well, taking the fact that her own life wasn't all that great and yet she still had the capacity in her to feel sad… for him.

His tongue suddenly untied itself and the words he previously didn't dare to say finally fell out of his mouth. "Can I hug you back?"

Most of Aoko's nervous energy had already dissipated, leaving her with a blank look. "What?" She spoke.

"Can I hug you back?" He repeated.

There was an awkward pause. It was only when she stopped blinking and fluttering her long eyelashes then Kaito noticed the slight tint of pink on her cheeks.

She chewed her bottom lip nervously before looking down again, hiding her face from his view. "Y-Yeah."

Slowly, and robotically, he raised his arms to Aoko's back. He didn't exactly embrace her, not really. He simply patted both hands on her shoulders, with a rhythm he remembered his father used on him when he was sad the trick he practiced didn't work out. The quietness in the room echoed even louder than anything else, and if Aoko didn't sniff at the moment, he would have thought she had fallen asleep on him.

"I'm sorry too." He said.

Her shoulders tensed under his continuous patting, and he gave her no chance to cut into his words as he continued.

"I said nothing when I saw you at the ice-rink. You were one of the hostages. You were involved. And I should have at least told you that I'm alive." He lowered his gaze to the fluff of brown hair below his chin. "I thought it'd be better to end with the knowledge that I'm dead. I didn't know… you'll care—"

"If you haven't figured it out, I guess I am obliged to mention it." Aoko interrupted, and he could almost hear the smile in her tone. "Thank you for saving me."

Before Kaito could respond to the moment, a faint sound of a vibrating buzz filled the air and broke into a soft melody that grew louder and louder a few seconds later. Aoko began fumbling in her pocket after realising it was her phone, and Kaito took a step back, which she did too before they awkwardly looked at each other across the distance between them.

"Sorry." She muttered, and glanced down at her phone screen.

Kaito shook his head. He still wasn't sure whether to be disgruntled or relieved, but as of now, he was feeling more of the latter. The chance of screwing the moment up with his awkward silence and possible stuttering of words seemed highly possible, and whoever called had saved him from that.

When Aoko knew who the caller was, her face creased up with uncertainty. He didn't have the chance to catch a glimpse on her screen as she cleared her throat and picked up the call.

"Inspector Kudo."

Kaito instantly frowned. To think that of all people in the world, it was that detective who unintentionally saved him with his call, but what did he want with Aoko at such a timing of the night anyway?

"Yes, I'm fine." She said into the phone and paused. "I'll be going to work later. Yes. Yes. No, I don't need a day off. Really. Thank you Inspector Kudo. Okay, I'll see you later." After the conversation finished, she cut the call and looked up at Kaito.

"Kudo Shinichi.'' He scoffed. It was more of a statement than a question.

Aoko tilted her head. "You know him?"

"An… acquaintance." He averted his eyes.

She twitched her lips almost knowingly. "I see."

Her smile drew his eyes back to her. He had to admit her smile was pretty to look at, and he wished he had the capability to smile back, to at least encourage her to do that more often so, but his thoughts were weighing heavily in his head and he could barely afford a twitch in his lips.

"Can I ask you a question?" He muttered, gulping down the clot of nerves in his throat.

Aoko nodded, waiting.

"Why… did you become a police officer?"

Her lips parted to his question, and she looked at him with enough intensity to mute him and his urge to take back his words. "On the surface, some people thought I'm following my father's footsteps. And for those who knew about my hostage situation, they thought it was because of you." She looked away sheepishly. "But no matter what the reason was, it didn't matter anymore; Because I'm not going to stop what I am doing now. I am happy with where I am."

He wanted to believe her words, but not because of lessening his guilt (and he considered the possibility that she was bluffing to do so too). So he studied her, trying to hunt her face for any indication of a lie, and he couldn't see any. Instead, he saw something else—the genuineness in her eyes—and in a world where darkness and deceptions were interminable, it was rather refreshing and up-lifting to see.

"I'm glad you're happy." He confirmed it for her.

She smiled broadly, exactly proving that point. It only faded a little as she inclined her head curiously at him "Then what about you?"

Kaito lowered his gaze and said nothing. It felt like it was just yesterday since the BO was finally put down, and it would be a lie if he said he didn't like the thrill of being Kaitou Kid. The adrenaline was one of the few things he missed, but he could have all that without stealing and crossing path with bad guys and guns; by being a magician rather than the ghost of his father.

Maybe he should start performing at parks, where there wasn't any superficial need to look cool and charming for the children and old retirees that wanted to see his magic shows. He would slowly gain supporters and audiences from there, and be known as Kuroba Kaito the Magician rather than Kaitou Kid the Magician Thief. He believed he had tweaked enough tools and trained himself well enough over the years in his secret basement to do just that.

And perhaps among the crowd of audiences one day, Aoko would be smiling instead of scowling with an anti-Kid sign in her hands.

Yeah. It seemed like a good idea.

.o.

.

'Breaking news: This morning, the Police Force had received a retirement notice from Kaitou Kid. The notice was confirmed to have come from its true source, and the Task Force are now going to…'

Remote in hand.

A click.

The TV was switched off.

A sniff.

Gaze lowered.

Fingers began caressing a piece of white cloth—cape.

Kaitou Kid's cape.

Blurry image.

Eyes felt hot.

Two drops fell onto the cape.

A hiccup.

The grasp on the cloth tightened.

'He's gone.'

.

.

Darkness.

Spatters of white spots.

Fluttering eyelids.

White ceiling.

A groan. Muffled behind the oxygen mask.

Breathe in.

Pain.

Breathe out.

Pain.

Arms felt heavy. Like cement.

Pain.

Another groan.

A blurry figure blocked the view of the white ceiling.

One blink. Two blink.

The blurry figure became Saguru Hakuba.

'You're finally awake.'

.

.o.

"Inspector Kudo."

The moment Shinichi recognised the voice, he glanced up, staring at Aoko as she stood by the entrance with her knuckles on his glass door, preparing for a knock.

"Aoko." He greeted.

"I'd just came." She informed sheepishly, putting both hands behind her thin back. "And Akira told me you're looking for me."

Her clothes were different from last night, which meant she'd at least went home before coming to work. He unconsciously nodded to the observation and gestured her to come inside his private office.

"Take a seat."

Aoko obliged and sat on one of the chairs across his desk. This wasn't the first time they met privately like this, but something seemed a little different. Her expressions looked more fresh, and her brows weren't as furrowed as what he saw most of the time; it seemed like the barriers around Aoko, which Shinichi never knew even existed, were removed. Not all. But maybe some or most of it. She still had that seriousness in her features, but Shinichi wasn't sure if it was because he was senior in rank or it was something to do with hereditary (In the Police Force, Inspector Nakamori was quite known for the passion he had towards his work after all).

Shinichi pushed all his papers aside and settled both arms on his table. "Are you alright?" He began. It was the only thing he knew to say to start the conversation.

"I'm fine." Aoko nodded, before shifting her weight on the chair nervously. "But I am sorry about going to your house last night and throwing a fit. I… hope you can help to express my apologies to Ran-san too."

"We don't blame you." He insisted quickly. "We were only worried."

"I still have to apologise."

"Then I have to apologise too." Shinichi stated, earning a widen gaze from Aoko. "For not being frank about Kaitou Kid even when I knew how important the truth of his well-being is to you."

"Like you'd said, it's not your secret to tell." She spoke evenly. "And I understand."

"Nonetheless, I still kept the truth from you. And that's a fact."

Perhaps deciding it was pointless to change his mind, she simply nodded, leaving his words as a mark of conclusion. It was rather convenient for him too, to move on to the next puzzling question which he'd called her into his office to ask about.

He cleared his throat. "So, where did you go after you left my house?"

Aoko fidgeted in her seat, and Shinichi wondered at the late moment if it was something he shouldn't have asked. His jaws tightened, with guilt weighing down his shoulders. "If it's something sensitive—"

"Not really, no." Aoko shook her head. "I… went back to the building where the children of the Task Force's members were kidnapped three years ago."

He would have repeated every single word of her previous sentence if it wasn't so taxing to his tied-up tongue. "You—" He shot her an uncertain gaze. "And are you… really alright?"

"I'm really fine." She nodded assuringly. "I just needed closure, and I've got it."

Shinichi regarded her carefully for a moment and had came up with two verdicts: Aoko had either regained all of her composure overnight or became a great actor overnight, because in any case, her tone didn't sound anything close to what he thought would be when someone was hiding something, especially emotions. He'd been through many real-life experiences to know that.

"...Alright." He clasped his hand together to form a bridge, deciding to move on from the conversation. He had no evidence to rebuke Aoko, and truthfully, he did hope she had found the closure she needed.

"Thank you for your concern, Inspector Kudo." She smiled.

Shinichi afforded a smile back, but it faded not long after. He still wasn't done with what he had to say. "Actually, there's something I've been wanting to ask you for a while; Since the black organisation had been taken down, and now you knew Kaitou Kid is alive, are you considering leaving the Special Task Force?"

Aoko blinked. "Am I fired?"

He let out a soft laugh. "No, no. I'm asking if you're still keen to stay."

"Of course I am." She said in a heartbeat.

Shinichi watched her expectantly. "I thought there wasn't any reason left for you to."

"Everything I did was my choice. And I'm going to stay." Her words flowed out with practiced conviction, and he wondered if she had been thinking about it for a while. Or maybe somebody even asked her recently.

He decided to leave all those thoughts to the back of his head.

"Is there anything else, Inspector Kudo?" Aoko asked after a short silence fell. "The Watanabe family are expecting my phone call to arrange a witness testimonial on the recent case."

"Ok. I shall not keep you back." Shinichi nodded and gestured her to the door. "But anyway Aoko... good to see you well." He said after a millisecond pause.

"Thank you." Aoko stood up from her chair and bowed, turning to leave. Just as she was about to step out, she whirled around, her long hair swiping from her back to over her shoulders. "Oh, Inspector Kudo?"

"Hm?" He was halfway shuffling his papers and he stopped, looking at her with curiosity.

"Remember the song I told you about? I'm in Love with a Girl by Big Star."

Shinichi tilted his head. While considering the oddity of her random question, he was, at the same time, trying to recollect the familiar memory, and his eyes snapped up in alarm when he did.

"Yes, I do. Why?"

"You mentioned that you caught an acquaintance of yours humming to that song when you met him."

He blinked.

"Was he Kaitou Kid?" She continued.

How did she—? "Yes… it was." He admitted.

"I see." She beamed, her smile so radiant and big that his cheeks ached for hers. With that, she left the room, leaving Shinichi to wonder what kind of thoughts and guesses she had made to even come up with that conclusion.

.o.

As usual, business became slow and the cafe was mostly empty since its location was inconvenient for anyone from the business district to come over for lunch. Taking advantage of that, most of Keiko's colleagues were loitering in the kitchen, talking to the chefs. There were just two customers sitting at a corner of the cafe, enjoying each other company rather than the cake and coffee they ordered, and they didn't seem to mind the lack of staff that weren't waiting on them.

Instead of joining the gossips and conversations, Keiko volunteered to take charge of minding the cashier counter, in case there were new customers or that the couple finally decided to leave and continue their romantic display somewhere else. And for the past fifteen minutes or so, she had been standing in her spot, pretending to be ready to do her job when in actual fact she was scrolling through her photo album and deciding what pictures to delete because of the minimal memory space on her phone.

But so far, she only succeeded in deleting a few food and repeated spammed photos, and it didn't exactly make a difference in her memory space at all. She just couldn't choose when most of her photos contained fond memories of her friends, especially the ones in her good old high school and college days. Most of them had Aoko in it, and the brilliance in her smile was something Keiko hadn't seen in a long time, which made it harder for her to delete them at all.

However… that brilliance did appear recently, though.

Aoko had became a little bit more cheerful since two weeks ago. Maybe a little bit seemed like an understatement. Seeing Aoko's strained smiles and efforts to show that she was happy for the past three years had become a common norm, that was why her genuine cheerfulness and excitement suddenly made the difference too obvious to ignore.

Keiko hadn't had the chance to question about Aoko's change yet. She wasn't sure if it was a temporary thing or that Aoko had finally let go of her guilt towards Kaitou Kid and found something worthy to be happy about in her life. She wasn't even sure if Aoko noticed the change in herself, and she was afraid if she brought it up, Aoko would return back to how she usually was.

The memory of that night when Aoko burst out crying in her arms, still tormented about Kaitou Kid's death remained clear in her mind. It wasn't something she would like to go through ever again.

As her thoughts drifted to the thief in white, Keiko scrolled to her album folders and found one of them labelled "Kaitou Kid!" with a heart shaped emoji at the end (She tried not to cringe at her past self and focused on her objectives instead). It had been last updated exactly the time of his retirement, and deleting it would recover more memory space than all the photos she had struggled to delete just now.

She tapped on the options.

Are you sure you want to delete the folder? The photos in the folder will be deleted permanently.

Her thumb hovered over the button for a second before she clicked away.

The folder remained as it was.

Keiko let out a resolute breath and kept her phone in her back pocket.

If Kaitou Kid had truly retired like what the media claimed, maybe deleting the folder would have been easier. But knowing that he was responsible in saving Aoko from that terrible fate had changed her perspective about the thief, which also made it even harder for Keiko to forget him even though she hypocritically wanted Aoko to forget and let go of the guilt too.

All of the sudden, an unexpected chime came from the bell by the door and Keiko jumped in minor shock. She hastily pushed all the distracted thoughts to the back of her mind and focused on preparing her cheerful greeting.

"Welcome to—"

Her words stopped the same as how the customer halted in his movement, the glass door slowly closing behind him as time stood still...

When things finally became clear, Keiko gaped, and slowly lifted a hand to point at the man. "A-Aren't you the ice-rink guy?"

The said ice-rink guy blinked and realisation dawned upon him. He glanced around the cafe before looking back at Keiko again. "What a coincidence." He said, though lacking the surprise she thought he should have sounded.

"Do you live around here?" She couldn't help but asked. This place wasn't far from the ice-rink, and seeing how they met in the same area wouldn't make it odd to guess that.

There was a pause before he answered. "Yeah."

"It's strange how I've never seen you around before."

He shrugged. "I don't exactly eat or go out much, but well, my feet decided to bring me here for a change."

Seeing his laid-back and casual attitude, he didn't look like the kind of person that believed in superstitions, which was why Keiko found it weird to hear him speak in a manner like some fate had brought his feet here and that it was the ultimate answer to their coincidence.

"I wish more customers' legs are like yours." Keiko managed a smile when she wasn't sure what else to comment. "Anyway, sorry to keep you waiting. Table for?"

"One."

Having more spaces to choose, she led him to one of the booths with the best window-view of the streets. After he settled in his seat, Keiko handed him a menu. He flipped through the pages quite quickly and stopped when reached the dessert section.

Keiko felt she had interrogated him enough since he entered the cafe, so perhaps asking him why he was having dessert during lunch time would be over-stepping the boundary. Instead, she gave a suggestion. "Our chocolate parfait is the most popular dessert." She said, making sure her tone didn't sound like she was rushing him. It just seemed the ice-rink guy had some trouble with finding what he was looking for too.

"Then I'll have that," he grinned before looking down at the menu again, his eyes scanning across the colourful pictures. If her type wasn't men with green eyes and straight, black hair, his charming and carefree demeanour might have made Keiko fall for him. And anyways, if all things worked out, she thought Aoko would be better paired with him, given how she was captivated by him during their first magical meeting, even if she refused to admit it.

Oh boy, she couldn't wait to text Aoko later.

"Anyway, do you allow requests?"

Keiko's mind quickly drifted back to reality. She steadied the notepad in her hands. "Ah, yes. Sure."

"I want extra caramelised sauce and peanuts, and an additional serving of vanilla ice cream. Oh, and I don't want the cherry on top too."

Wait a minute—!

"All of that and… you don't want the cherry on top?"

She might have sounded like she wanted to bite his head off because he squirmed in his seat, visibly uncomfortable. He stared at the menu for a while before looking back at her. "Is the cherry an icon of your cafe or something?"

"No."

"Well… I can still have the cherry on top if it is necess—"

"You said you don't want the cherry on top and you will not be getting the cherry on top."

His puzzled look turned to amusement. "Alright."

Keiko took in a deep breath and mustered a perfect smile to show it was definitely alright when nothing really was. This special request of his was actually—!

She had been so distracted by the order to not realise the bell had chimed again, signalling another new customer coming in. It was until when one of her colleagues, who just came out from the kitchen, suddenly greeted with a merry voice.

"Oh Aoko-chan! Nice to see you."

"Hello Haruka-chan." Aoko smiled, giving a wave as she walked to the middle of the cafe. She stopped short once Keiko turned and their eyes met.

"Aoko!" Keiko waved, gesturing her to come over.

"Hey." Aoko's grin turned bigger, but it falter to a gape when she noticed who Keiko was serving.

"You remember him, don't you? The ice-rink guy." Keiko jabbed a thumb over her shoulder (If Keiko was more perceptive enough, she would have noticed the odd silence from the ice-rink guy was a way of regaining his composure of seeing Aoko at the cafe too).

Aoko slowly walked towards them, her blue eyes trailing slowly from Keiko to the ice-rink guy. "I do remember him." She said, her voice soft and gentle as she reached to Keiko's side.

"What a coincidence isn't it?" Keiko raised her eyebrows teasingly, but her smile faltered once she noted the lack of reaction coming from Aoko. If it was the usual, Aoko would have been flustered and asking her to stop. But instead, she was looking at him with a faint smile that Keiko couldn't understand. And what made things ever weirder was how he was looking back at Aoko the same way too, and Keiko felt as though she'd intruded on a private moment.

Keiko cleared her throat, effecting snapping their gaze away from each other and onto her. "You don't usually eat here for lunch; Isn't this area quite far from your office?" Keiko asked Aoko as she glanced at the empty entrance door.

Aoko shrugged. "I just had the urge to come here, that's all."

Urge? "Then... Are you alone?"

"Yeah—"

"You can join me." The ice-rink guy gestured over at the empty seat across him.

Keiko blinked.

Aoko paused, seeming to contemplate his offer. "Would it be inconvenient?"

What?! Keiko bulging eyes narrowed into slits. No hesitation? No uneasiness? No straight-out rejection? That's… a first.

"I'm not expecting anyone." He explained.

"I see," Aoko made a movement, something between a shrug and a nod. "I don't mind joining you, if that's the case."

An agreement within a second?! Keiko gaped in horror. That's another first.

Aoko turned to Keiko and was about to say something when she stopped and pursed her lips. "What's wrong? You don't look okay." Aoko asked.

Lots of wrong but I don't mind it being right. Keiko shook her head. "I'm fine. So, uh, what do you want to eat?"

She looked sceptical, but said nothing more. "I'll have my usual."

"Usual?" Keiko blinked, again. "You want ice cream for lunch?"

"Yeah." Aoko answered like it was the most logical thing in the world. "Why not?"

The awkward silence lasted for five seconds before Aoko couldn't handle the tension any longer and blushed, her eyes began fluttering in a manner that Keiko knew would make most men stare (And most men included the one currently sitting in his booth).

Being oblivious by her own charms, of course, Aoko leaned towards Keiko, her eyebrows raised curiously. "Is there a reason why I shouldn't have ice cream for lunch?" She whispered.

"Just… never mind." In truth, Keiko had no idea how to describe this odd situation, and she decided to continue her job's duties since her next sentence would make things self-explanatory anyway. "So, let me repeat both of your orders: Two chocolate parfait with extra caramelised sauce and peanuts, and an additional serving of vanilla ice cream." She looked up from her notepad and pushed her glasses up her nose as she cleared her throat. "And without the cherries on top too."

As though they were in some synchronisation competition, both of them turned to each other at the perfect second, looking as if they were sharing some secret that Keiko definitely wasn't a part of to know.

It was Keiko's turn to be unable to handle the tension any longer as she cleared her throat again. "Is that all?" She asked.

Aoko looked too awkward to say anything so she just shook her head. At least the ice-rink guy seemed to find back the composure to muster a reply. "That's all." He closed the menu and handed it back to Keiko.

"Alright then. Your food—desserts—will be coming shortly."

From the corner of Keiko's eyes after she left, she watched Aoko slipping into the booth, their awkward smile turned into growing grins as they fell into a comfortable conversation that Keiko couldn't hear from where she was.

"New orders." Keiko said, sliding the torn note from her notepad through the small kitchen window as her eyes continued fixating at the pair.

"Oh?" One of the kitchen staff looked through the window and waved the paper in his hand. "Aoko-chan is here?"

"Yeah."

"And she's having two servings?"

"She's with a…" Keiko paused, "a friend."

Or is it?

The kitchen staff left to prepare the food after making a comment or two, which Keiko was too busy and immersed in her own thoughts to hear. She tapped her fingers on the counter and bit her lips until it turned sore. Friends or not, it was undeniably that at one point after the ice-rink encounter, they must have met and something positive happened, unlike the incident where he acted as though he had constipation and a stick stuck up in his ass the same time.

Ughh. Keiko almost wanted to pull out her pigtails. Why didn't Aoko tell her anything beforehand? The more she pondered about it, the more tempted she was to get Aoko out of the cafe and ask all the questions that were suffocating her right now.

Wait… Could he be the one that caused the change in Aoko?!

Keiko hastily stretched her neck, giving a quick glimpse at the booth again. Her suspicion grew even bigger as she watched the pair talking and smiling, like it was the first time they were ever happy in their life, and that they had waited forever for this moment…

(There seemed to be some truth in it. And for Aoko's sake, Keiko decided her questions could definitely wait till later)

.o.

There's someone I want you to meet.

Pushing the phone into the back of his pocket again, Jii smiled and picked a wine glass to wipe for later uses. He had already looked at the message for the tenth time since he received it this morning from Kaito.

When Kaito first told Jii of his plan to start performing magic shows more than a month ago, he immediately jumped to offer help in getting some networks to make it easier for Kaito to strive it out on stage, but Kaito insisted he wanted to start afresh, and everything on his own too, and it happened just that. Those small magic shows he performed in parks and streets had garnered attention on social medias and even among Jii's connections that he originally wanted to introduce, and that was it. He was flying with his own wings. He did what he believe he could. He wasn't in his father's shadows anymore.

Jii wondered if the person Kaito wanted him to meet was someone from the magic industry. Maybe it was someone who wanted to sign a contract with Kaito so he could perform a show on stage? Or a famous inventor that wanted collaborations? Or a producer who wanted to invite Kaito to a Talent show? There were lots of maybes and what-ifs, and Jii was so happily distracted with these thoughts that he didn't hear the sound of footsteps entering his bar.

"Yo, Jii-chan!"

Kaito never failed to surprise Jii every time, just like that day when he came over with homemade tamagoyaki. But there were limits to it, and at this moment, Kaito had broken that limit.

His rare and chirpy tone was already enough to make Jii glanced up with wide eyes, but seeing it was a woman walking beside Kaito, and that the identity of the woman was one he never expected in his whole life, he was so in shock he almost dropped the wine glass he was in the midst of wiping.

Isn't she…?

They both walked towards the bar counter side-by-side, which made it easier for Jii to realise their steps were in sync.

"Hello." Jii said carefully, and glanced between Kaito and the lady. He wasn't that senile to not remember her recent visit to his bar, and she certainly remember it as much as he did, but all she gave was a knowing look and pursed her lips for the remaining seconds, not once speaking or mentioning about how she'd came here before. And for some weird reason, it made Jii feel oblige to not mention it too. Well, maybe not now—

"She's the person I want to introduce to you," Kaito gestured. "Nakamori Aoko."

Jii blinked, the name ringing a loud bell in his head as those feelings of familiarity floated to the surface again, nibbling at the back of his thoughts.

And then it clicked. Everything clicked.

All the senses of familiarity weren't random or meaningless. They did meet before, long long ago when Kaito was still actively searching for Pandora as Kaitou Kid. Nakamori Aoko. Daughter of the Inspector in-charge of the currently disbanded Kaitou Kid Task Force. The number one anti-Kid fan. One of the hostages of the terrible kidnapping case. And the ultimate person who finalised Kaito's decision to never wear the Kaitou Kid's suit again.

That Nakamori Aoko.

He flashed a glance to Kaito, at the same time sending him silent signals of 'what is going on?' before Aoko spoke, snapping Jii's attention back onto her.

"Nice to meet you." Aoko smiled sheepishly and bowed in greeting.

"Nice to meet you too." Jii settled the wine glass on the table and bowed back courteously.

No wonder Jii found her so familiar after she left the bar that day. Although she had grown more feminine-looking, there were still traces of her old features, like the shape of her nose and the style of her hair, and the more Jii looked at her, the more he couldn't help but feel nostalgic about the past.

Then what about Kaito? He should know better than to think she was some random woman who happened to be named Nakamori Aoko on the street. How many Nakamori Aoko with the same blue eyes and brown hair were there in the world for such coincidence? And if he knew, what was he thinking? Getting close to her with his real identity…

He wanted to ask Kaito right now, but the only thing that was holding Jii back was Aoko's presence. Every word he said could cause a slip up, and he wasn't sure if she knew the truth about Kaitou Kid's true fate, much less his true identity—

"Don't look so worried, Jii-chan." Kaito shook his head, his eyes crinkled almost mockingly. "You'll understand soon."

Had he been frowning? Jii cleared his throat. "Understand what, Kaito-botchama?"

"There's a really long story I want to tell you, but let us get comfortable first." Kaito hopped onto a high chair and patted the empty spot next to him for Aoko. "Take a seat. And before you consider your drinks, you should try Jii-chan's Tequila Sunrise. It's nice."

Aoko, who was staring at the pools table at the other side of the bar, turned back and gave Kaito a smirk. "I know, and it is." She answered as she propped herself onto the high chair.

Kaito blinked, obviously not expecting that, and Jii couldn't help but chortled at his curious frown.

He remembered those late nights when Kaito dropped by his bar to have a drink. The difference between how he looked now and then was almost like water and oil. He didn't look like a lost puppy that Jii wanted to rescue from the pet shelter anymore. He looked more like his old self, the happy grandson that Jii wished he had.

"So, two Tequila Sunrise?" Jii prompted for the drink orders before Kaito could ask what was happening.

"I'll like to try something new." Aoko settled an arm over the counter, her shoulders relaxed. "Do you have any recommendation?"

"How about Ginger Ale?"

"Ginger Ale?" Kaito echoed in disdain.

Ignoring his scrunched-up face and judging, squinty eyes, Aoko grinned.

"I'll love to have that."

.o.

For once in the longest time, the office was empty and quiet. Having recently solved a big scandal case, most of the work load was gone, and Hakuba's subordinates could finally find the time to go out for a proper lunch, rather than eating stale bread with coffee while waiting for phones to ring and looking through files every day.

Hakuba, on the other hand, was the only one left in the office. Someone had to stay behind to take the emergency calls, and he took the role, just so to give his subordinates that well-deserved break (although most of them were hesitant about it, Hakuba meant his words). Akako had prepared some scrumptious bento lunch for him too anyway, so all was good—

"Good afternoon, Inspector Hakuba."

The unexpected voice almost caused Hakuba to miss his aim when he threw his crushed napkin into the waste paper basket (He had just came out from the pantry area after washing the utensils he used for his lunch)

"Kenzou?" Hakuba blinked when he realised who the voice belonged to. His surprise instantly changed to puzzlement. "Why are you here?"

"Thought I could come back and settle some last minute edits in my report before submission." Kenzou said, his eyes scrutinising the empty office as he walked towards Hakuba. "Has everyone gone for lunch?"

Hakuba narrowed his eyes.

Although he recognized the sharp face and neat attire, something still seemed off. The Kenzou he knew was serious and composed, which completely contrasted how he strode across the room with arms swinging around. Besides, the way his gaze lingered over the office was the most suspicious thing of all; The casual glances were more of an attempt to hide his actual intention of making observations around the office...

Just like how Kaitou Kid would do in his disguised form when he held a heist in an unfamiliar location.

"I'm conflicted." Hakuba muttered

Kenzou raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Between the fact that I'm impressed you knew the real Kenzou isn't around and disappointed that you got his impressions all wrong."

The smile on Kenzou's face turned into a smirk. "Can't have you guessing for too long." His solemn voice was replaced with the snarky, honeyed-pitched tone of Kuroba Kaito. "My throat isn't feeling well these days."

Hakuba regarded Kaito warily. "Why are you here?"

Kaito put out a hand. "I heard you'd solved your case. And I want my file back."

"You could have told me and I'll just bring it to your house."

"That's the thing. I don't want you to go my house."

Hakuba scoffed at the typicality of his answer. Having no other excuses (for his tardiness since he did promise Kaito he would return his file after he finished using it), he retreated to his private room to take the file from his desk drawers.

"Here." He passed it back to him after returning to his side.

Kaito flipped through the file and nodded, feeling appeased after checking all the contents were there as it should be. "Okay, I shall—"

"Inspector Hakuba! And... Kenzou-kun?"

Hakuba swore Kaito's shoulders flinched even more than his own. They both turned as Daisuke, his ever-enthusiastic subordinate, skipped across the room and towards them. (Hakuba wished he could tell how lucky Daisuke was to make it to the short-list of people that could surprise Kaito, even if it was done unintentionally).

"Daisuke." Hakuba greeted back, for Kaito's sake if he needed the information.

"Didn't you call in sick?" Daisuke asked. "Why are you here?"

Kenzou mustered a smile and waved the file in his hand. "Came to pick this up. I'm leaving soon."

"I can never beat you for the amount of hard work you put in to the job every time." Daisuke slapped a hand on Kenzou's back, the latter looking more disgruntled as every second passed.

Hakuba bit his lips, trying to hide the smile that was itching to appear. Besides Akako and his favourite tea, the third thing he loved was to see Kaito uncomfortable. But after all these years, he'd understood there were many things that went beyond the world of logic, and karma was one of it. Hakuba cleared his throat, trying to get Daisuke's attention away from Kenzou.

"Where are the others?" He glanced at the empty entrance in front of their department. "I thought you had lunch with them?

"Oh," Daisuke broke into a big smile. "I had lunch with Aoko-chan."

Kenzou snapped his neck and cast a disapproval look over to Daisuke, which made Hakuba narrow his eyes in observation. Daisuke, on the other hand, continued talking about how the food in the cafeteria had improved, and Hakuba believed it must be really that good for him to talk so passionately about the food and not noticing how Kenzou's gaze was basically piercing holes into his temples.

Luckily, the sudden shrill of the phone ring managed to save Hakuba the effort to change the course of the conversation. Daisuke excused himself with a nod and dashed to the phone before picking it up, his chirpy tone turned serious in an instant.

Hakuba had no problem with reminding Kaito when to leave because he always did before there was a need to mention it. And now was exactly the best moment for Kaito to do his disappearing act, but for the first time that ever happened in history, he remained rooted to the ground and showed no signs of leaving.

Nothing had made Hakuba so confused in his life.

"Why are you still here—"

"Isn't office romance prohibited in your line of work?"

Hakuba stopped short and blinked. "Pardon?"

"Your subordinate is hanging out with another female subordinate." Kaito's line of focus was still on Daisuke's back as the latter talked into the phone, and Hakuba almost thought he could see the gears in Kaito's head moving. He'd seen that ominous stare before, and it often happened right before pranks broke out…

Ah.

"It's just lunch. And technically, Nakamori-san is not from my department, as you should already know—"

"Is that supposed to make a difference?" Kaito sneered. "And I'm talking in general, not just about the two of them."

Hakuba bet three of Akako's magic pots that Kaito was talking about the two of them and no one else.

"You're being oddly sensitive." Hakuba smiled knowingly. "Is it because it involves Nakamori-san?"

Kaito returned a gentle smile, though his eyes were steeled in a manner of dying patience. "No." He said, voice eerily calm.

Unlike everyone else Hakuba knew, Kaito handled his emotions better when he wasn't in his territory. His mask was already up in the first place, making it much harder to break it down. That was why Hakuba often liked to do surprise visits to Kaito's house. His guard was lowered, and pushing discomfort in his comfort zone made him snap and talk easier.

To think that Kaito already talked so much here, Hakuba wondered what to expect if he confronted him at his house instead.

"Actually, it's been quite a while since we had a good chat." Hakuba snatched the file from Kaito's hand, catching him off guard. "I guess I'll have to make a detour and pay you a visit later, and return your file too."

Kaito scowled. "I don't want—"

"Sir, there's an emergency." Daisuke interrupted as he put the receiver down. "One of the witnesses was said to be missing from his home."

"What?" Hakuba growled, his instinct and professionalism of an inspector back on. "Inform another member to get back to the office as backup. We'll head to the scene." He dashed past Kaito and back to his private office, tossing the file onto his table and grabbed his phone and car keys before stomping back to the main office.

"I've called Satoshi." Daisuke informed as he buckled the holster around his belt. He then glanced at Kenzou, who was still standing there composedly, as though enjoying the show. "Is Kenzou coming or is he staying as backup?"

"Neither." Hakuba narrowed his eyes. "He's going home."

Daisuke looked between them curiously, but said nothing. Without another word, they sprinted out, leaving Kenzou alone in the office.

All was fine in the end, thankfully. No sooner after a brief search around his neighbourhood, the witness was found drunk and wasted in a secluded alley. Hakuba tried to show concern for his recent break-up loss, but it would be another case if his disappearance act happened on the day of the big case's trial. And that being said, he ordered the witness-protection squad to tighten their security before both Daisuke and him returned to the headquarters.

Lunch break was long over by then, but when they reached the office, everyone seemed to be as happy as the moment lunch break just started.

And Kenzou, of course, was nowhere to be found.

"Inspector Hakuba." A few of them greeted, but most of the energy and attention seemed to be on Daisuke.

"You could have told us instead of an email, Daiani." Someone at the back yelled. The snickers grew louder, but Hakuba and Daisuke didn't get the meaning behind the supposed joke.

Daisuke frowned as he returned to his seat. "Who's Daiani? And why are you all looking at me like that?"

Hakuba would have stayed to hear the answer too, out of curiosity, but his strides continued all the way until he reached his private room. He closed the door behind him and let out a breath once he saw his table. The file, which Kaito came for, was still there. At least he meant what he said about stopping his thievery.

But Hakuba still had a bad feeling about something.

He walked to his desk and slumped onto his chair. He moved his mouse, lighting up his computer screen as he accessed his inbox (Someone did mention something about an email after all). His inbox was spammed with follow-ups, reports and newsletter and there wasn't anything out of the norm, until he noted an email that was marked as important, with the subject line stating: An announcement to make.

And it was from Daisuke.

As Hakuba clicked on the email, a loud roar echoed from outside.

"WHO THE HELL SENT IT?!"

The email finished loading.

Dear everyone. I will be going through a sex reassignment surgery at the end of this week. And from today onwards, I would like to be called Daiani. Thank you. Your support would mean a lot to me. xoxo Daiani

Hakuba smirked, clicking on the recipients that the email was sent to. It definitely wasn't a coincidence when the first one on the list was none other than Nakamori Aoko.

.o.

It had been a long time since Ginzo was ever this early for dinner.

Work had become less hectic than before ever since his daughter and team had wiped out those big criminal organization, which instigated most of the frauds they once handled. The BO's end had brought a good change to the world, and of course, the joy of lesser crimes and work too (Except for him, maybe. It was... better when Kaitou Kid was still around).

All his subordinate sang nothing but praises for Aoko, saying how they'd seen her potential ever since she came to help out at Kid's heists occasionally. Proud was one of the things he felt, definitely. Worry was another, and guilt was the thing that tied it all together in a ribbon...

Ginzo shook his head. Even though he'd reached her doorsteps, his early arrival would end up late anyway if he continued to think about things that didn't matter at the moment. Resolving his nerves, he straightened his tie once again and rang the doorbell.

Usually by the count of three, Aoko would have opened the door and welcomed him in. But the door remained closed even after Ginzo counted to ten, and just when he was about to ring the bell again, the door finally flung open, revealing Aoko beaming in her yellow apron.

"You're here!" She chimed, moving aside for Ginzo to enter.

"Has Keiko reached?" He stepped in, trying to strain his neck to see where his daughter's best friend was.

Aoko blinked. "She's not coming tonight."

Ginzo blinked in return. And he was originally thinking Keiko was the reason why Aoko was taking so long to answer the door. "I thought you said a friend is coming over?"

"It's not Keiko."

"Then who?" He glanced down, noticing a pair of shoes lying near the door.

It didn't look like female shoes.

"You'll know once you come in!" Aoko closed the door and pushed him away from the entrance. As her father, of course he loved seeing his daughter happy, but for some reason he found her enthusiasm a little discomforting.

As they entered the living room, a figure—a man—suddenly jumped up from his seat, his back straight and stiff as he afforded a smile. Ginzo wasn't a businessman; the more confident a person was, the less he would trust. So seeing the little nervous tension on the man's shoulders made him less annoying than what Ginzo felt towards many men he'd met. But there was something else about him that Ginzo couldn't quite put his feeling to words. Familiar? Nostalgic? These weren't exactly good signs either, if the reason he felt this way was because this man was one of those criminals he'd sent to jail before. That would explain the nervousness too.

"His name is Kuroba Kaito, the friend I want to introduce you too!" Aoko gestured at Kaito. Ginzo frowned. It was that chime in her tone again. Very suspicious.

The last time Aoko introduced a man to Ginzo as a friend was… wait, was there ever once? He only knew her old high school and college friends, and from what he remembered, they were all female, and they were all not properly introduced to Ginzo like this. He just found them in his house one particular day and Aoko would casually introduce them and mention about the school project they came over to work on, that was all…

Ginzo darted Kaito a glance before looking at Aoko. "Your boyfriend?"

"No!" Aoko yelped and eyed a nervous look over the surprisingly impassive-looking man. "He's just a friend, really."

'Really' wasn't enough to convince Ginzo. Maybe this was the get-to-know-each-other phase he heard his subordinates talked about. They had shared many stories at work, about how their daughters brought their boyfriends back home without notice, and how boys these days were so stuck up and impolite even though they were supposed to earn brownie points during those family dinners. It was funny to listen, but never did Ginzo realise he would experience that ever, or at least not so soon.

He never had the privilege to add anything to those head-aching stories, not like he wanted anyway. Like how he met his wife, he thought love would come if it was destined to, and he never once pressure Aoko to find a partner (Though maybe his wife would, if she was still here).

But that didn't meant he wasn't prepared for this day to come.

He narrowed his eyes, and if Kuroba Kaito noticed it, he sure as hell didn't show it. Instead, he suavely but politely took out a hand. "Nice to meet you, sir." He spoke, his voice calm and cool.

Ginzo said nothing and only returned the handshake.

"Dinner is going to be ready in a while." Aoko jogged toward the kitchen before turning back hastily. "Don't keep standing there! Take a seat." She gestured the two men to the sofa.

They both sat in sync and a short silence fell. From his past profiling experiences, Ginzo easily guessed his age was perhaps the same as Aoko, or a little older. There was something that made Ginzo feel comfortable with this man, but it explained nothing about why he felt familiar—

"I heard from Aoko that you've been working in the Police Department for over thirty years." Kaito said, breaking the silence and Ginzo's focus of analyzation.

"Yes. Thirty four to be exact."

"Isn't the working hours exhausting?"

"If you love your job, you wouldn't count the number of hours as long or exhausting." Ginzo muttered and glanced towards the kitchen, where he could see Aoko humming from one side of the kitchen to another. "But time isn't what I've sacrificed the most."

Kaito nodded thoughtfully. "I see."

He turned back to the living room. "So what do you do?"

"I'm a freelance magician."

Ginzo widened his eyes. It was staple in his previous management to hear the word magician every day, and it felt so weird to hear it again after all these years. He cleared his throat, hoping to dispel those possible irrelevant thoughts from floating to his mind. "Interesting field." He remarked.

"Many said so too."

Besides his past commitments, what were the chances that a magician and a police detective would cross path in broad day lights? "How did you and my daughter first meet?"

"It's quite complicated." Kaito shifted in his seat and said no more.

"I'm pretty sure it wouldn't be as bad as those stupid and barbaric sob-stories I've heard from criminals." Ginzo scoffed. "Nothing is going to faze me easily."

Kaito let out a short laugh and shifted in his seat again. "Well… We met at a museum." He paused and gave a short, recollecting look. "I was performing for a show when your daughter came to watch as an audience, and she hated it. She was quite feisty for that."

Ginzo wondered if Aoko had some prejudice against magicians because of Kaitou Kid, but she hadn't complained about the thief for a long time since his death. He wondered if he should tell Kaito about Aoko and everything that happened before.

Perhaps not now.

"Did she give any reason for disliking it?" Ginzo asked curiously.

"It was too flashy."

He nodded. "I trust my daughter's taste—"

Kaito's smirk turned into an honest smile. "Of course."

"—But would you still care to impress me?"

Before Kaito could reply, Aoko chimed a "Dinner's ready!" from the kitchen, and he broke into a huge grin (Ginzo wasn't sure if he was smiling to him or the fact that dinner was ready).

"How about afterwards?" Kaito suggested.

This boy—man—might not be that bad after all.

.o.

As everyone's claps and cheers died down, Aoko realised she was the only left clapping like a hyperactive seal.

No matter how many times Aoko seen Kaito's magic, be it on stage or simple ones in parks like this, she was always impressed beyond words. It made her feel like a happy child again, with curled up toes and clasped hands and feeling excited to know what was going to happen next. And it was kind of the same whenever she was with him too.

Finding no more reasons to stay, the crowd dispersed quickly after Kaito concluded the show,. Only a few children lingered around Kaito's portable table, still feeling awed in the aftermath, and the sight of Kaito whipping out lollipops for each of them made her lips tug uncontrollably.

Despite how the entire Japan population was once captivated by the Kaitou Kid, no one seemed to be able to recognise him without his ridiculous top hat and monocle, even if the skills and tricks were mastered and executed with equal passion. And it was kind of stupid and unfair, Aoko thought, when the original was undeniably more handsome than his alter ego form. Especially his eyes, which weren't hindered by any shadows; Even though she had explored more than half of his life in her dreams, it seemed like he had hidden more stories behind those eyes that she had yet to see.

Ok. She should stop looking. Or at least not afar and acting like a stalker. After a few seconds of breathing exercise to calm her flushing cheeks, Aoko walked over to the Kaito, who was now looking down and packing his things (The children had left after their parents tugged them away and to their dinners).

"Hey."

Unknowingly, her heart fluttered when she noticed how Kaito broke into a grin even before looking up. And when he did, his smile grew wider.

"Aoko." He breathed out her name, like he couldn't believe she was standing right in front of him. She was conflicted between feeling flattered and embarrassed by his reaction, so she responded with a compliment instead:

"Your performance is great, as usual."

"Thanks." His eyes were warm and sincere. "Anyway, since when did you arrive?"

"At the moment when you did the rabbit trick."

Kaito raised his eyebrows. "That's basically the start of the show. I didn't know you'd knocked off so early."

Aoko shrugged. She didn't have an answer for that; her work hours were dependent on her and the team's capabilities, and even that fluctuated on a day-to-day basis too. She turned the topic back to him. "I should be asking why you'd shortened your performance. You usually do seven tricks. This time you only did five."

He cast her a quick glance before looking away. "I wanted to end things early so I could drop by your work. I guess you beat me to it."

She chuckled. "You can just call the audiences back. I'm pretty sure they would love an encore."

"Nah, there are more chances for that next time." He waved a hand, while the other juggled with three metal balls before he dropped them into his bag of props. "It's rare that your shift ends so early. We should drop by Keiko's cafe and have ice cream instead."

Aoko walked around the portable table and stood next to him, eyes running across the desk to see what packing she could help with. She started with his cards, and shuffled them together to form a neat deck. "I'm actually craving for Jii-chan's Ginger Ale though." She pondered out loud.

Kaito sneered. "Are you sure?"

She turned to him accusingly. "What's with the question?"

"In case you have the thought of going there to play pool."

Aha. He got me. "The pool table is there for us to play anyway."

"Not when your cue stick whacked my head more times than the pool balls."

"It was all an accident!" She pursed her lips stubbornly. "And I'm still learning."

"What a convenient excuse."

"You know what? Maybe whacking your head with the cue stick might just be my intention after all."

Kaito smirked (He always did whenever he managed to ruffle her emotions). "Sounds like a sport that fits you well."

Aoko scoffed before forcing herself back to neutrality. "So… are we going to Jii-chan's bar?"

"To whack my head with the cue stick?"

She wrinkled her nose. "That, and Ginger Ale."

"Alright." He said (much to Aoko's surprise), and returned to his props again.

Aoko gave a triumphant grin, which she knew he saw from the corner of his eyes and causing his lips to curl up to a faint smile. Fuelled with energy, she focused on her packing task again, and they slowly fell into a comfortable silence. Once in a while, their hands would brush against each other when they reached for a common item, and she thought she did well in keeping her emotions in check. Kaito was doing exceptionally great at it too, if those moments even mattered to him, of course.

After a good ten minutes passed, they were finally done. Aoko was about to fold the portable table to make it easier to carry it to Kaito's car when he suddenly dropped his props bag and leaned against the table, stopping her and her intentions.

She blinked and stared at Kaito in confusion. "Is there something wrong?"

"Before we go… there's actually something I've been wanting to tell you." Kaito said, his face slightly scrunched up, as though he had been straining his brain's capacity to fit his endless thoughts (And she wondered how long had it been going on). It was rare for Aoko to see him shedding his pokerface so easily, which made it intriguing and equally worrying. At the moment, she was more of the latter.

"What is it?" She asked in concern.

"I had a dream last night."

"A dream?" Aoko echoed, her eyelids fluttering.

He paused, watching her. "Yeah."

The way he sounded didn't seem like it was a bad thing, and she slightly blushed, wondering if perhaps by some chance, he had dreamt about one of her embarrassing memories, like somersaulting into the snow during her last skiing lesson…

"What did you dream about?" She willed herself to say.

"About us." He answered in a heartbeat.

That wasn't something she expected to here. "Something bad?" She managed a squeak. It was the only thing she could think of to say.

A brief surprised look flashed across his face before he laughed, and it made her squirm in her position. She didn't mind his laughter, not at all, but it did make her confuse to why she enjoyed hearing it so much.

Still, she couldn't just let him continue laughing at her without at least knowing the reason. When he showed no signs of stopping, Aoko lightly punched his arm and huffed. He did stop afterwards, though his huge smile was still in place.

"What's so funny." She growled.

"The first thing that came to your mind was something bad?"

Aoko glanced away. "Call it a habit but I always expect the worse before thinking about the good. It helps me to handle things easier."

Kaito nodded, seeming to be drinking her words seriously. "Then is this bad?"

She was about to ask what he was referring to when she felt her hand embraced by something warm, and she looked down, to see his hand over hers, and he squeezed it as hard as how her own heart was doing too.

Her tongue was basically tied and she couldn't speak. She shook her head at his question instead.

Kaito nodded to her answer in a solemn manner again, and then that was all he did. The next few seconds ticked by in silence, saved for the faint chortles from the children playing in the background, and they were suddenly engaged in this staring battle that Aoko didn't know when she had participated. And by the looks of it, she was going to lose; The intensity of his stare was so strong, as though he was trying to memorise every inch of her face and scarring it onto his brain.

And then she couldn't hear the children's laughter anymore.

Her pulse was thumping in her ears like a herd of galloping horses, and she couldn't breathe. She thought her heartbeat couldn't have gone even faster, until when he suddenly yet slowly tilted his head towards hers. Her body must have thought she was suffering from cardiac arrest as she jerked, and her hand gave a tight squeeze.

She forgotten their hands were still locked together.

Kaito stopped. Even with his long eyelashes, it didn't hide the transition of how his eyes grew from distant to unreadable. Whatever he was thinking, Aoko was sure it wasn't what she meant, and the thought of that misunderstanding sent her straight to inward panic. But her throat was still tied and her heart was still beating so hard it even pained her to breath; she couldn't find the voice in her to speak.

It all came down to actions.

Just when he was about to move back, she pulled his hand, tugging him forward and plummeted her lips into his.

His lips were warm at first touch, wonderful when the next second passed, and it became like a combination of both at the third second. She lingered there for a heartbeat more before shyly pulling away, and she smiled after she recognised his gaze again; it was 100% of pure shock.

"If you're going to ask if that is bad, then my answer is the same. It's a no." She informed him.

After regaining much of his composure, Kaito licked his lips, and her heart soared, knowing that she had left part of her on them. Her face turned hot and she would have looked away in embarrassment, if it wasn't the fact that his sparkling eyes had magnetised her to the point she couldn't even blink.

"So… if those aren't bad, do you still want to hear more about my dream?" Kaito asked. His voice was tainted with curiosity, but his smile, though, told her he was fairly sure of her answer.

It wasn't a dream about their past. It was a dream about their future.

And Aoko couldn't help but to smile back. "Okay."

.end.

A/n: Hahah gosh it had been a hell of a ride omg and I'm not really sure how to feel about this… but it's finally done (This is by far one of the most taxing story I've written so far and I don't intend to break this record any time soon) Thank you for all of your support and finding the patience to finish this draggy-ass story, and I would appreciate a lot if you'll leave a review :')