If You Wanted To, Higuchi In Akutagawa's Clothes? :p

Anyway, have some Heiji 💚💚💚

(I might have to add this one to the shop honestly)

Aftermath

the start of my ongoing tsujitsuji obsession

~ ♡ ~

Tsujimura found herself trying to jump out at Ayatsuji in anger for teasing her so soon after she had thought him dead. She, however, momentarily forgot the fact that she had been shot in the thigh.  

She let out a strangled sort of noise as she began to fall but found herself supported by an arm. 

‘You idiot,’ Ayatsuji had caught her. He lowered her back onto the ground, kneeling beside her. ‘We should send you to the hospital.’ He manoeuvred her around, letting her stretch out her legs, and placed pressure on her wound. For a moment, Tsujimura thought he was being nice to her, and she was reminded of the smile he showed her as he was shot. 

‘I need my servant to return as soon as possible.’

That was more like him; she looked up at him, 'Like I said, I’m not a servant.’

‘That settles it,’ he cut in, placing his free arm on her shoulder. ‘We made a deal that you’ll listen to anything I tell you in a day, right? That day is tomorrow then.’

She looked at him incredulously. The nerve of him, 'Hang on, I’m injured, aren’t I?’

‘Now that’s pretty honest,’ he snickered.

He was just the worst; sometimes she wanted to shoot him herself. However, as she watched him laugh, clothes still soaked from his dip in the waterfall, tears welled in her eyes.  

He stopped laughing. 'Tsujimura-kun, why-’ 

She punched him softly, ‘How could you let me think you died?’ The tears were flowing freely down her cheeks now. 

‘Well—’ 

‘After all I said to you, after I thought you died for me?’ She was clutching his damp shirt and sobbing into it.

Ayatsuji found himself completely lost for words, choosing to simply rub her shoulder. They were in silence for a while; she sobbed, and he comforted her. If anyone saw them, it didn’t bother him; although he had never been a touchy person, he found he didn’t mind. Knowing Tsujimura was alive and okay made it okay, so he didn’t stop her when she clutched onto him harder.

‘I’m sorry I called you selfish,’ her voice was muffled. ‘You were just trying to bring a horrible person to justice. I shouldn’t have let my personal feelings affect me too much.’

‘It’s okay,’ he chuckled softly. He’d been called much worse by people who didn’t care who their words affected. He’d grown thick skin after many years dealing with his ability. 

‘You even made me a meal before you left, and I should’ve noticed it,’ she said, taking a shaky breath. ‘You’re never that nice to me.’

He stopped rubbing circles on her back, instead patting her head gently. He spoke softly, ‘I’m sorry.’ 

She stopped sobbing for a bit, looking up in confusion; maybe she had misheard, ‘What?’

‘I’m sorry, Tsujimura; I didn’t think he would shoot you.’

‘Huh,’ the confusion had successfully stopped her from crying. A million thoughts were going through her head; maybe she was really dying and her wound was worse than she thought.

‘What?’ He asked, a little exasperated. ‘Why are you looking at me like that?’ 

‘You never say sorry.’

'Yes, I do.’ 

'No, you do not!’ She said that louder, and the other agents stopped to look at them. She sheepishly looked away, trying to rub away the tear streaks on her face.  

She heard the sound of a siren nearby, surprised she hadn’t noticed it before. She looked around; the paramedics had finally arrived and were headed towards them with a stretcher.

‘Sensei, help me up,’ he supported her as she slowly got up. Leaning on him, they started to hobble over to the paramedics. Immediately they had her lie down on the stretcher and began heading back to the ambulance. 

He walked along with them, and as they approached the ambulance, he noticed Ango talking to another agent.

‘Tsujimura-kun.’ 

‘Sakaguchi-senpai,’ she turned weakly, finally feeling the effects of the blood loss. 

‘I apologise that you were kept in the dark and that you were injured,’ he ran his hand through his hair. ‘We’ll discuss this in more depth after you have healed.’ 

She nodded, ‘Thank you, Senpai.’ 

‘There’s no need to thank me; I really do apologise for this.’ 

She smiled as they loaded her in the ambulance. She saw Ayatsuji climb in behind her, but she was too woozy to notice the wordless exchange between him and Ango. Technically, he should be returning to headquarters to explain the situation alongside Ango, but he could spare a few hours for him to worry about his assistant.

She remembered very little of the journey, apart from the feeling of someone gently pulling out the pins in her hair. Decreasing the discomfort she felt lying on her bun (she found them in her wallet when she got home) 

She didn’t see Ayatsuji when she woke up after surgery. Thankfully the bullet hadn’t hit anything important, so they removed it and stitched her up. He would deny having been there the whole time, in his damp clothes, head in his hands as he waited for the surgeon to come out. Or how he sat by her bedside, holding her hand and tracing the little scars she got from being clumsy. He left at the first signs of her stirring, simply alerting the nurse as he left the ward and asking them not to mention his presence to her. It had been very early in the morning, so she drifted back to sleep with the faint memory of him. 

Her first visitors in the morning had been her colleagues, bringing her flowers and chocolates. They came before heading into HQ to talk to the director, who had allowed them until morning to sort out their stories.

Ayatsuji visited much later, having showered, changed, taken a nap, and accompanied Ango in speaking to the director.

She smiled as he stepped into the room before realising he was alone. ‘Sensei! Did you sneak out again?! You know I have to report you, right!’

’Would you calm down? Sakaguchi-kun is downstairs waiting for me,’ he remained as indifferent as always, but added with a slight smirk, 'Well, escaping from here would be easy enough.’

‘Sensei! Don’t say things like that! And Sakaguchi-senpai has enough work already!’ She groaned in pain as she tried to get up too fast.

‘Tsujimura-kun, you believe things too easily,’ he dropped into the seat by her bed. ‘Did you forget you need to get better for your special training?’

‘Training?’

'Well, it would be a waste to use up my day of controlling you when you’ve been confined to a bed. Instead, I have come up with a training plan,’ he smirked, revealing a piece of paper from his pocket. ‘You’ll begin as soon as you are discharged.’

Tsujimura’s face blanched as she looked at the words written on the paper: ‘Sensei, you can’t be serious, right?’ She had a thin strand of hope as she posed the question.

‘Why would I joke around with you Tsujimura-kun?’

‘Ayatsuji-sensei, I can’t possibly—’ she sounded a little desperate.

‘That’s the face,’ he chuckled ruthlessly, ‘you do make the most entertaining expressions.’

‘So this was a joke?’ She breathed out, lying back.

‘What? No, I expect you to comply or I will simply have to report you,’ he said, folding the piece of paper back up and putting it out of her reach. Not that destroying it would be of any help to her. He got up and dusted himself off and made a move towards the door.

‘But sensei!’ Taujimura tried reaching out towards him.

He turned and stared down at her with a contempt look on his face. ‘Well, rest up, Tsujimura-kun. I look forward to it.’ He didn’t bother listening to her protests as he walked out the door. Leaving her worried and confused in the hospital bed.

‘Maybe I should ask to transfer.’

~ ♡ ~

dcmk fandom I need yall to hear me out for this one

I've always thought his cowlick reminded me of something. I finally figured out what it is.

having a mutual who’s a good artist literally feels like beyonce saw me at a supermarket and decided to make me her best friend

conversations in secret

now with a chapter 2 :)

Chapter 1: to be close to her is to be vulnerable

~ ♡ ~

‘Tough case, I hear.’

He sighed as he took a seat opposite the woman, and she continued to flip through the file. He had a long week, with Tsujimura constantly on his back about reports and endless case requests. 

They had a serial murder case at a Tokyo restaurant: guests had been dying mysteriously. Initial reports couldn’t find traces of any poison in any of the dishes, and combined with the fact that the guests had all previous health problems, it had been ruled out as natural causes and coincidence. However, the latest victim had ties to the government, and that meant they were called in. It turns out that the maitre d’ had been poisoning guests that looked down at him; years of anger had led him to take such drastic measures. Of course he had ended up dead at the end of it all, his prize swordfish being his undoing. 

‘Yeah, well,’ he took out his kiseru and lit it, ‘we got him in the end, so what difference does it make?’ 

After the whole Kyogoku ordeal, he had promised to visit occasionally. To keep her updated on her daughter’s situation. She seemed to look forward to their meetings; she obviously couldn’t have too many visitors. Considering she wasn’t technically alive, and even though Ayatsuji pretended it annoyed him, she knew better. 

‘I heard she threatened to quit.’

‘She does that from time to time,’ he leant back, blowing smoke, regarding the pattern on the ceiling. ‘She never has though.’

Tsujimura has her phases; he’s not sure what brings on these mood swings, but they are quite entertaining. She had accidentally fallen into the fish tank attempting to retrieve a possible piece of evidence, blaming him for not holding her. He had warned her that he had only been contracted to solve mysteries, not entertain wild goose chases. He had also apparently deliberately kept her out of his plans, leading her to once again be thrown at a wall. So still damp and in pain, she told him that if he kept up with this, she would quit.

‘I’m sure you would regret it if she actually did quit,’ she chuckled at his recollection of events. She had already read both of their reports, and Tsujimura’s one had clearly been written with bitterness, her writing looking extra scratchy when it came to his name.

‘Yes,’ he took another long drag from the pipe. ‘No one else in her department is quite so easy to control.’

She shook her head, disappointed but not surprised. She knew her daughter’s character, her stubbornness, her strengths, and her weaknesses. She could be partnered up with worse people; she knows the department is full of them.

‘And?’

He shot her a confused look, ‘And?’

‘How much longer are you going to deny it?’ She’d read about the Kyogoku incident in detail. Details that her daughter was never made aware of, like how he had made the choice to let Kyogoku go in order to save her life—of course that was before he knew the whole truth. Or how initially he had chosen her life over his. It was exasperating to watch him put on this performance of not caring.

‘Deny what?’

She shut the folder and sighed. She forgot how difficult he could be. With that sharp tongue of his, ‘Aren’t you tired of this?’

‘Again, I’m not sure what you’re talking about,’ he sat up, making eye contact with her. ‘Mizuki Tsujimura-dono.’

She shook her head, the lengths he would go just to avoid talking about things he didn’t want to. She could see why her daughter struggled to take charge of him; she was much too insecure in her own strength. And perhaps unaware of just how much power she had.

‘After everything you’ve done for her, are you still going to deny what she means to you?’

‘Ah,’ he went quiet for a second, choosing to look away. ‘You seem to forget that your daughter isn’t like us.’

‘Meaning?’

‘In this business you have to keep everyone an arm’s length away,’ more cryptic nonsense. He went back to leaning, choosing to smoke instead of elaborating. He just couldn’t admit it, could he? Even though they both knew what he was thinking. However, what was clear was that he had put a lot of thought into this; how anyone could forget he was human was beyond her.

‘I fear you might be past that now.’

His response was almost immediate and almost too quiet for her to hear: ‘She doesn’t know that.’

‘You underestimate her, Ayatsuji-kun; she’s grown so much,’ she smiled fondly, recalling all the reports she’s read about her daughter over the years.

‘I don’t disagree,’ he remembered the first time he had seen her. It had been soon after she received the news of her mother’s death. She had just started at the military academy, and Ango was offering her a job after she graduated, courtesy of her new ability. To everyone’s shock she had requested to be placed near him, usually people requested the opposite. ‘Tsujimura-kun has changed considerably, but I—I don’t know.’

'Don’t know what?’

‘I don’t see a future where it will end well.’ Their lives were in constant danger. His is in the hands of the government; what happens when they decide they don’t need him anymore? Tsujimura didn’t take the last kill on sight order well. Well, she didn’t listen at all, choosing to risk her life instead. Would she do that again? More importantly, he didn’t want her to, nor did he want to hear her cry like that again.

‘You forget Ayatsuji-kun, that even you cannot predict the future.’

‘Well forgive me for being a realist,’ he stood up to leave, dusting his clothing and tucking in the chair before turning away.

‘Leaving so soon?’ Of course he would leave like nothing important had been said.

‘She’s going to chew my ear off about being late to some meeting or other,’ he gestured noncommittally; at least this time he was attempting to lie.

‘Think about it, Ayatsuji-kun,’ she called out to him as he walked away.

He didn’t bother turning back to answer, just waved as he waited for them to open the doors again.

He’d thought about it enough.

~ ♡ ~

Chapter 2: your feelings amongst the rubble

~ ♡ ~

Tsujimura dusted off the debris on her blazer, struggling to get up off the floor.

‘Tsujimura-kun!’ She heard her name being called from somewhere nearby. She tried to reply, but all she could do was cough.

The last thing she remembered was Ayatsuji-sensei identifying the killer in their latest case. Then the guy tried to use her as leverage to escape. Unfortunately for him, she tackled him to the ground, and he began crying quite pathetically. Sensei revealed that his ability would soon kill the man, and he screamed something along the lines of, ‘It’s not fair!’ Before activating a bomb of some kind, how she hadn’t noticed it was beyond her. It was supposed to destroy the exits to the building, trapping everyone in so that he could kill them all one by one. Due to the frailty of the older structure, the explosion caused cracks to form in the ceiling above where Tsujimura was disarming and handcuffing the man. Ayatsuji yelled out for her to move or she would be crushed. 

She looked up, there wasn’t enough time to move. Someone, or something shoved her out of the way just in time, knocking the air out of her lungs as she collided with the wall.

She must’ve been out momentarily, waking up to dust and debris everywhere. Her head was throbbing, and her muscles ached; she must’ve hit her head. Using the wall to get up, she tried to make out where everyone was. There were multiple other people in the building as Ayatsuji-sensei pointed out the killer. She saw a hand from under the rubble, the watch on the wrist told her it was the culprit, getting what he deserved.

‘Tsujimura-kun!’ The voice was closer this time, and she was almost sure it was Ayatsuji-sensei calling out her name. She tried to make out where he was, but her vision was blurring, and when she touched her head, she felt blood. Using the wall as a guide, she tried to take a couple of steps towards the voice, though it was useless as she felt her knees buckle.

In the rubble, on her knees, she felt a sense of dread fill her. Was she going to die in this building?

The last thing she remembered before waking up in the hospital was Ayatsuji-sensei crouching next to her, telling her that she would be okay. He seemed to have suffered some slight injuries in his attempt to reach her. He was never going to shut up about that.

~ ♡ ~

‘I see you didn’t make it out of this one unscathed either.’

He shot her a glare as he made his way across the room. He had a bandage on his face and scrapes on his arm and back. He sat down in his usual chair, leaning back slowly so as to not aggravate the healing skin. She watched as he lit his kiseru as usual and relaxed for a bit before continuing. 

‘So?’ She was stifling a laugh as she took in his slight wince as he moved around. ‘Shocking to see the supposedly indestructible homicide detective injured.’

‘Why are you surprised? Isn’t it part of the job?’ His eyes were shut, and he was breathing carefully; his ribs must hurt. ‘Injury and pain?’

‘Yes, but it has been a while since you sustained significant injuries in any case, correct?’ If she remembered correctly, even during the waterfall confrontation, he had a few bruises from falling into the net with force, but that was the extent of it.

He nodded, 'It has indeed.'

‘Reigo Island, I believe,’ she chuckled, clearly amused by the memory she was recalling.

Ayatsuji seemed less entertained. ‘That ability of yours has no sympathy.’

‘In my defence, I was acting under orders.’ She had been instructed to kill the ability user when she was assigned there. ‘You held your own against us, even if it was for a short time. You must have been trained well.’

‘You still seem shocked about it,’ he was sitting up straighter now. Facing her as she continued to reminisce.

‘I was informed that despite your powerful ability, you lacked any combat skills. Imagine my shock when you tried to parry Shadowling with a nearby stick.’

‘I do not wish to talk about that time in my life.’

‘Which part? The part when I nearly killed you? Or the time you learnt to fight?’

His face soured when she brought up the fighting. ‘I think you know what I’m referring to.’

‘Fine, you’ve been through enough; I'll leave this conversation for another time.’

‘Bold of you to assume we would ever have that conversation.’ His face remained unchanged and slightly horrified.

She laughed, ‘Yes, yes. I know you have no inclination to discuss your past.’ She’d tried to bring it up before, having read all the files the government had on him. He’d shot her down then too. 

‘So? Is that all you wanted to discuss? Seems pretty mundane, even more than usual.’

‘What did you expect? You haven’t done anything of national importance lately.’

‘You haven’t enquired about your daughter once. Isn’t that why you wanted to meet? You could at least ask how Tsujimura-kun is,’ he folded his arms.

She smiled, he had an of way saying he cared, ‘And how is she?’

‘Well.’

It would seem he was being bratty for her earlier intrusion, ‘And is that all?’

‘Her injuries, like mine, were minor; she is fine.’

‘Fine? Was she not put under strict orders to rest because of a concussion?’

‘Miraculously,’ he seemed to be throwing some sort of tantrum, continuing to be petty. ‘She recovered.’

‘Well,’ she laughed, he could be such an annoyance sometimes. She felt it was her karma for not spending enough time with her daughter when she was a child. ‘That’s good.’

They lapsed into silence; he seemed to be out of things to say, or be sassy about.

She spoke first, ‘And how are you?’

‘Like I already said, I’m fine.’

‘No, I mean, you saw her in quite a bad state,’ she studied his expression, and although it remained largely unaffected, there was a flicker of something in his eyes. ‘I imagine that was not easy.’

~ ♡ ~

He was shaking her as she lay limp on the floor. ‘Tsujimura, wake up!’ He had watched her try to walk before collapsing. Running towards her as fast as he could.

Now, he was sitting against the wall, pulling her into his lap so she wouldn't be on the cold ground anymore. She was still breathing, so he felt her pulse; it wasn’t as strong as usual. He wasn’t expecting this to happen when he caught the criminal; the man wasn’t supposed to have bombs. He tucked the hair out of her face, taking in her pale countenance. He should’ve noticed the explosives in the building. Why didn’t he?

How was he supposed to get her out of here when the exits were blocked? She desperately needed some medical attention to check the head injury wasn’t serious. 

Thankfully, he knew Tsujimura and trusted she had contacted the division already, as was protocol whenever they’re sent on cases. They were the ones who clean up the messes left by his ability and make sure the others on the scene are questioned about the situation. They were already on the way, but they needed extra support.

He pulled out Tsujimura’s phone and tried to turn it on, but the crack on the screen was telling. He threw it aside and pulled out his own, contacting Ango, ‘Sakaguchi-kun, we need ambulances and the fire department now.’

‘Sensei?’ He motioned for Aoki and Murakoso. ‘What happened?’

‘There was a bomb; the exits have been destroyed. I don’t know how many people are hurt, and Tsujimura-kun is unconscious.’

‘Understood.’

He ran his hand through his hair; this was all his fault, and all he could do now was wait. He looked back down at the woman in his lap; she seemed so cold. Taking off his cape, he wrapped it around her. ‘And you called it pompous; who’s benefiting from it now?’

~ ♡ ~

‘Like I said, she recovered.’ 

‘But somehow that’s not what I asked,’ she had struck some sort of nerve, but what didn’t annoy him? Any mention of her and he seemed to clam up. 

‘I’m tired of this conversation,’ he stood up from the chair. 

She reopened her book, accepting that today wasn’t the day. ‘How many conversations will you just simply refuse to have?’

‘As many as necessary,’ he headed towards the exit.

He may act indifferent, but she had read the reports of the responding agents that day. How he had carried her out of the building, covered in injuries himself. Or how he had been insistent she receive medical care immediately, pushing her into the arms of the nearest EMT. Refusing to be seen until she had.

One day he was going to have to face facts, and she knows he’s not going to enjoy it one bit.

~ ♡ ~

They should really lock those doors

please🙏

⛔Stop a minute‼️

Get to know Hashem's family

My name is Hashem from Gaza. I am 32 years old and my wife, Samar, is 27 years old. We have a child born in the eighth month of pregnancy. His mother was premature because of my wife's fear of war. My large family consists of 8 members: my father, mother, four male brothers and 2 females. My father died in the war due to a lack of medicine in hospitals as a result of the fierce war on Gaza.

My story began when we were displaced from our home in northern Gaza in mid-October 2023 after a letter threatening eviction, and then the house was targeted and destroyed. Between this Exodus and the current fifth Exodus there are many stories and sufferings.

We now live in plastic tents, which are thermal ovens, which are not suitable for living and do not provide the minimum necessities of life, in addition to the spread of epidemics and diseases, which puts our lives in danger.

Through this campaign, we are trying to collect enough money to meet our needs and get us out of the Gaza Strip safely. We ask you to stand by us and protect us from this severe danger.

Support and share🤍

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Love Under a Starry Sky

my first fic how nostalgic T-T

full fic underneath :)

Chapter 1: The Letter

Hi guys this ff was meant to be more cheerful but Aoko is a little OOC. I do promise a happy ending tho!

~ ♡ ~

Kaito was no way or form in love with his best friend. Not at all. He didn't love her cute face or messy hair. He didn't love the way she speaks or the clumsy way she walks. And he definitely didn't love her eyes, not the way they sparkled - true to her name the child of blue. Aoko Nakamori. She definitely didn't keep him up at night. Kaito knew Aoko wasn't the prettiest or most elegant girl but to him she was perfect, but his situation prevented him from telling her. Telling her she was the only one for him.

Aoko definitely loved her best friend and it scared her. He was Kaito, her silly childhood friend. The one who always looked up her skirt or was pulling mean pranks on her. However, he was always there, when she was scared or upset. Ready to hug her or to cheer her up. She liked how his arms wrapped around her and his calm voice, she really liked that part of him.

Despite her knowing him most her life, it still scares her, he's definitely hiding something - something big. whatever it is she knows she'll be hurt. That's why when she got the letter, both of them were surprised - Aoko was friendly and cute but she had never received a love letter. Reading it, Kaito felt his heart twist and he didn't like this new feeling.

_Dear Aoko Nakamori,

I think about you all the time - I don't think you hear it often enough, but you're beautiful. I have wanted to tell you this for a really long time, unfortunately I never got the chance, so I am writing to you instead.

I like you. I don't expect you to reply immediately, let's say today 22:30 on the school rooftop. I look forward to seeing you.

Your Secret Admirer.

P.S. I hope you like the gift._

It was simple enough, it was clear whoever wrote this didn't spend too much time on it but the thought was there. The paper itself was of high quality and a pretty baby blue and the gift referred to in the letter was a pair of clip on earrings - the same crystal clear blue of her eyes. The same eyes he loved staring at.

'Aoko,' he began, trying to swallow his jealousy, 'you don't plan on going do you?'

Her reply wasn't what he expected, the usually happy and lively girl he knew just looked fed up. 'Why shouldn't I?' It was barely a whisper but it scared him, Aoko was never this quiet. Something was bothering her. 'At least that way I won't be alone, plus it's not like I had anything to do anyway.'

'Alone? Aoko what do you mean?' Kaito knew that even if she was sad, she usually made an effort to sound cheerful, but she wasn't. 'Kid's heist is today, that bastard that's stealing my dad away from me, strikes again.'

'Bastard? Aoko what do you mean alone,' this was very bad, Aoko hated being alone, but she hasn't brought up the topic in a while, 'you have me, don't you?'

'Do I Kaito? Do I really? Recently you've been so distant.' She looked like she was trying hard to hold back her tears. He hated seeing her like this, but he couldn't do anything. He was that bastard, the one whose stealing her father, the reason he's been distant.

'Aoko-san?' This voice - ugh. Hakuba. Kaito turned to face the boy walking towards them, his face suggested he was worried about Aoko's demeanour, her usual smiling face covered by her hair and eyes glassed over with tears.

'Nakamori-san? What are you holding?' Akako wasn't really one to talk to Aoko without insulting her in some way, but even she sounded concerned.

'Aoko-san, if you're not feeling well you should go back home and rest.'

'That's right Nakamori-san, you should get some rest.'

Aoko mumbled something along the lines of 'okay, I might as well,' but it was hard to tell. As she walked towards the door she bumped into Keiko - one of her good friends, they talked for a little bit before Aoko walked out of the classroom and made her way out of the school.

'Shouldn't you be doing something Kuroba-kun, she is your best friend?'

'I don't think she wants to talk to me,' he began, feeling the eyes of his class land on him as Aoko left.

'Don't be ridiculous Kaito-kun, of course she wants to talk to you.'

'Keiko?'

'She's clearly upset about something and the least you could do as her best friend is try and talk to her.' He sighed, Aoko was upset about something he was a part of, he couldn't postpone today's heist without confirming Hakuba's suspicions and probably Aoko's too. The best he could do was to talk to her after school.

Today was definitely going to be busy.

Chapter 2: Talk

The day was painfully long, Kaito couldn't listen to his teachers anymore and lunchtime was even worse. A number of students had assumed that Aoko had left that morning because of a fight they had. A number of girls from their year asked whether she had been rejected by him, to which he could only blush and deny that anything romantic had happened between them.

However the worst part of all was his own classmates asking if the love letter had been from him - idiots, he'd have done something way better than this, something way more extravagant.

He couldn't wait for this day to be over and when it did he was glad he didn't have cleaning duty. He got back home as fast as he could, ignoring his mum's questions and running to his room. He quickly changed into something more casual before, once again, running out of the room and towards the exit. His mum had other plans though. She caught him by the hood of his jacket and made him explain what happened. 

'I see, Aoko-chan is upset with you in more ways than one,' she chuckled, clearly thinking about the irony that he so happens to be Kid. 'You should kiss her.'

'Kiss!?' he sputtered, his mum was known for her carefree attitude and weird personality, but that was crossing a line. 'WHAT- what do you mean kiss?'

'Ha - you thought I wouldn't notice your little crush on little Aoko-chan, you should tell her and probably kiss her too. After all when your dad kissed me I couldn't help but fall head-over-heels for him...'

Kaito had quickly sneaked away whilst his mum was stuck reminiscing about the past, kiss Aoko - ridiculous he definitely didn't like her, at least not in that way. He sighed before crossing the road to get to Aoko's place, he had been delayed too much.

Taking a deep breath, he knocked on her front door hoping she would answer and preferably not kill him. Aoko took a while to answer the door so he waited before knocking again. She was really taking her sweet time getting to the door, but before he could knock a third time she opened the door. She had clearly been crying and had probably cried herself to sleep at one point - her eyes were very puffy, her clothes, and hair was messy as if she'd been lying down.

'Kaito?' Her voice was quiet, he fought the urge to call her cute, her cute clothes and messy hair were making it really hard. However, it would probably make her more annoyed.

'Aoko can I come in?' She nodded silently and motioned him to come in. 

'Why are you here Kaito? Don't you have anything to be doing right now?' 

'I do, but you're more important than that,' he shot her one of his signature smirks, but she rolled her eyes and chuckled. Good - he thought - she's smiling again.

'But really why are you here?' She sunk back into the sofa and he followed.

'You weren't yourself this morning, and I guess I was worried about you,' he inched a little closer to her and nearly jumped when she turned to face him. Her face was suddenly very close to his. He was used to teasing her from a slight distance, however being this physically close made his stomach flip. He also made the mistake of glancing at her lips and his mum's words came back to him. If he leaned further in their lips would meet and they'd be kissing. Kissing Aoko, Aoko his best friend, Aoko the girl he was currently very close to. He could feel his face heat up and was slightly thankful when she buried herself in his arms so she couldn't see his face that was becoming redder. 

'Um Aoko? Is everything okay?' He carefully wrapped his arms around her and tried to calm his heart down.

'I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be rude to you this morning, I was just annoyed and took it out on you,' when she looked up, her pouting face made his heart beat way too fast. Her lips were also very close, he shook his head and pushed her away slightly. Cursing those thoughts for coming back.

'It's quite hot in here, right?' He fanned himself with his hands. Aoko looked at him with a confused face.

'I did turn up the heating because it was cold, but you're probably feeling hot because you're wearing that massive jacket of yours.' He chuckled nervously at her statement and tried to shrug off his jacket. He placed his jacket in the edge of the sofa and looked back to her, she was slightly further away from him, which was a good thing, but he suddenly missed the feeling of having her in his arms.

'So, um, you know,' he began, anxiously turning to face her.

'Yes?'

'About that..'

'About what?'

'That letter, you know the one you got this morning? Are you going to go?'

'Oh that I nearly forgot,' she got up and walked towards the chest of drawers, picking up the letter and shaking out the earrings put inside. She clipped them on as she walked towards him.

'What do you think? Aren't they pretty? I'm going to wear them when I meet whoever wrote that letter.'

'So you're really going huh?' 

'Ooh are you jealous Kaito?'

'NO! Why would I be? Hah! Jealous - preposterous!' He was really sputtering now. Aoko on the other hand was laughing at the odd face he was making.

'You should see how you look right now. I'm just going to thank whoever it is, but I have someone else I like.' She giggled at his clear relief, only to be confused yet again.

'You do!? Who?'

She chuckled, 'I'm not telling you,' and walked away, leaving a very puzzled Kaito behind.

'Hey! Wait! At least tell me how you're going to get there and back!'

Aoko stopped walking away and looked at him, 'you know I haven't really thought about that.'

'Really,' he wasn't surprised, she was usually this scatterbrained.

'I can't drop you there, but I can pick you up,' he started, but quickly added that he had to do something for Jii-chan when she glared at him. 'You should bring your helmet with you, I'm taking my bike to the parlour.'

'Sure, don't be late okay?'

''Kay.' He smiled at her before leaving, it had gotten surprisingly late. 

He smiled as he got onto his bike, all he had to do was complete this heist and meet her at school.

Easy.

Chapter 3: The Heist and the Confession

10 minutes. Kaito was listening carefully to the bugs placed at the heist location. His target tonight was a sapphire, it was being bought over for an exhibition. Sadly, this was the only big jewel on display.

'Inspector Nakamori, the emergency lights have been prepped and the generator is hidden at the back of the room.'

'Good, we'll be ready for that pesky thief now.'

He breathed out, 'so that's how you want to play it.' He placed the mask of the officer on and placed another mask on top. One could never be too careful. He turned on his walkie-talkie and in Inspector Nakamori's voice told the officers he had spotted Kid in the exhibition room and for everyone to gather there.  Now the officers not in the exhibition room would rush there, allowing him to slip in.

He made his way there, ready to start the next phase of his plan.

As soon as he was there, the room was already in panic allowing him to go to the back of the room. After confirming that the generator was turned off, he tripped the switches. The room was plunged into darkness.

'TURN ON THE GENERATOR, QUICKLY!'

'But, sir...'

'NOW!'

'Sir, the generator, it's broken!'

'WHAT! SOMEONE TURN ON A LIGHT!'

'Sir! The sapphire!'

'WHAT!'

Kaito let the lights turn on, after all, what's a heist without showing off?

'Inspector Nakamori, as you can see I now have the jewel.'

'KID!'

'You really made it too easy, Inspector, that wasn't even a challenge.'

'KID HOW DARE YOU!'

'Oh calm down inspector, there's no need to shout.'

He pulled his hat further down and threw a smoke bomb, allowing him to escape on his hang glider. It was odd that the heist was too easy, there was a tracker on the fake jewel. The real one was inside the generator. He had slid the jewel into the pocket of the exhibition owner. Who was also 'sleeping' in the toilet (he disguised the officer he put to sleep as the owner). That way, they will be tricked into thinking that the Kaito Kid flying away is just a dummy (with the help of a fake propeller and some balloons). He laughed, no-one can trick someone who lies professionally.

Now to Ekoda High School.

Aoko shivered slightly as she stood on the roof of the school. It had been slightly hard work to sneak in, but that didn't really matter. This feeling was definitely liberating. The cold night air and slight wind didn't deter her. She had chosen to wear a white dress with dark blue details, to match the earrings she had been given.

She stared up at the sky, the city lights dimmed the stars but the moon was beautiful. She glanced around the night sky, hoping to catch a glimpse of Kid, she wasn't sure why she was looking for him. Maybe she just wanted to know whether he'd been caught or not. Sighing, she turned around only to be surprised by a new presence on the rooftop.

'Kid.' The Phantom Thief was standing a few feet away from her. She could see his smug smile from underneath the hat.

'Nakamori-san,' he pulled out the jewel from today's heist, 'just the person I was looking for.'

'What are you doing here?' Her happy mood has disappeared. He held the sapphire to the moonlight.

'This isn't what I'm looking for, so I'll give it to you.' 

She blinked in confusion, 'me?'

'I don't doubt you Nakamori-san,' he began walking toward the end of the roof.

'Why return them? The jewels I mean?' She chuckled at his confusion as he turned around, 'you worked so hard to steal them, why not keep them?'

'It's quite simple actually,' he pulled out his hang glider, 'I don't keep what's not mine, after all I have a better sapphire.'

He stepped off the edge of the roof, flying away.

Or at least that's what it looked like. This time it really was a dummy flying away, the real Kaito had put on his black cloak and was now dangling from the side of the school. He carefully made his way down the side and changed his clothes. Now all he had to do was to appear in front of Aoko, as if nothing had happened.

He made his way to the roof.

'Aoko.' He couldn't stop the blood rushing to his face when he saw her. The faint glow of the moon made her dress light up in a way that made her look angel-like. The wind blowing through her hair only served to make her look like she came out of a fairy tale. He shook his head, now was not the time to be fawning over her.

'Kaito,' her face lit up and she waved at him.

'Aoko did you meet whoever sent the letter.'

'Oh that, no I didn't,' she shrugged and turned to look at the city skyline. 'They must've forgotten, but guess who I did meet?'

'Um, who?' He smiled at her obvious excitement.

'I'm not telling.'

'Hey.' She giggled and looked at him, pulling him into a hug. After some hesitation, he pulled her closer. He felt his heart pounding, why was he feeling this? This entire day Aoko had made him feel a real variety of emotions.

'I'm glad you came Kaito.'

'Aoko, I,' he gently pushed her away from him, so he could see her face. 'Aoko I have something to tell you.' He gulped hard, what was he trying to do, what was he going to tell her? He could always confess. Confess what? His secret life? His love for her?

Love. That was it. This whole day had really proved it. 

'Kaito,' she tiptoed up to feel his forehead, 'are you okay? You're face is really red.'

'I-,' this was really bad, she was really close to him. Her lips were way too close. 'Aoko- I.'

She pushed a strand of his hair away from his face, he had to do this, 'oh spit it out.'

'I think, I want to kiss you,' he cursed at himself inwardly. He had to ask now or he wouldn't ever. The thought had been plaguing him for hours. 

She looked at him with wide eyes, 'kiss?' He glanced at her lips, dammit she was definitely wearing lip gloss. He moved his hands from her shoulders down towards her waist and pulled her closer.

'When you got that letter, I was jealous. When you said you'd meet him, I was jealous. And when you were upset, I was worried. You- You've always been important to me, I guess I didn't realise it was like this. And you look so pretty right now. You've been on my mind all day and, and I-'

She had effectively silenced him. With her own lips. The kiss had only lasted mere seconds, but it was enough to shock him. He already missed the feeling of her lips on his, so he pulled her closer.

Her lips were warm as he kissed her. She tiptoed further to tangled her fingers in his hair, so he steadied her with his arms. He had thought about kissing Aoko, before, but this was new. This feeling was unbeatable. 

He felt one of her hands gently stroke his face, her body rocking against his. He had stopped being able to function properly, thoughts of her consuming his mind entirely. They way she felt in his arms. The way her body fit perfectly against his. The way her lips were so soft. He felt her hands travel down to his chest and crumple his shirt.

He gently pulled away, starting to feel slightly light headed, but he kept her close.

'I love you.'

'Bakaito,' her voice was quiet. He smiled as he pressed a quick kiss to her lips.

'Ahouko.'

'Do you plan on kissing me again?' She gently tugged him down.

He chuckled before capturing her lips in another kiss.

- fin - 

Chapter 4: Epilogue (kinda)

Who exactly sent the letter?

'Hakuba-kun! You said this plan would work!'

'Now Akako-san, considering Kuroba-kun, there was a chance it wouldn't.'

'Well now he has the girl and the jewel!'

'Truly unfortunate,' but he could't help but smile, they were made for each other.

Hakuba and Akako had worked together to reveal his secret and capture him (Aoko was an unfortunate addition to the plan). However, they really were unsuccessful. 

~ ♡ ~

What happened to the jewel?

'Ah Kaito stop here.'

'In front of the police station, why? Did your dad forget something?'

'Ah not really,' she stopped to think a little, but she added, 'its a secret!'

Kaito could only really think one thing - God was she cute. He smiled as she walked into the, that girl was his girlfriend!

However as he was lost in thought about the idea of telling her his secret identity she came back.

'Let's go!'

'Do you want me to drop you off at your place?'

'Aren't you coming as well?'

He had to admit, when she said that he did get the wrong idea at first, but the Aoko he knew was not that bold. So he confirmed, 'for what?'

'Dinner! Obviously, I bet you didn't eat doing whatever you did with Jii-san!'

Kaito had to admit he was very hungry and he would never turn down a free meal. Especially one made by his girlfriend, it felt nice calling her that.

'It better be good!'

~ ♡ ~

What about her dad?

'I wonder what she was doing out so late with Kaito-kun.'

'Nakamori-keibu, the report on tonight.'

'Ah detective, you're dismissed, go home.'

'What about you inspector, wasn't that your daughter?' He stood up and walked to the window in his office. He could see Kaito and Aoko drive off towards their house.

'Nah, I'll give them sometime.'

~ ♡ ~

tsujimura panel colouring!!