DUALITY || Kudo Shinichi x OC ||

CHAPTER 5: SWEET NOSTALGIA AND THE BITTER MYSTERY

||DISCLAIMER: THIS STORY IS RATED MATURE SO THERE MAY BE MENTIONS OF INAPPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR, STRONG VIOLENCE AND GRAPHIC DESCRIPTION OF IT.||

"Akira, are you sure you don't want to come on this ride with us?" Ran questioned, a look of concern plastered on her face.

Akira snickered under her breath, her eyes glancing over towards Shinichi who stood next to Ran, his lips jutted out into a small but noticeable pout. His cobalt blue eyes glued themselves onto Akira, shoving his hands deep into his pockets.

"Mhm, I've been craving ice cream from here anyways. They only open the stall at this time and I don't want to wait in line," Akira reassures Ran, patting the girl in the back, taking a couple of steps back, "make sure Shinichi doesn't get into any trouble would ya?"

"Hey!" Shinichi snapped, his eyebrows furrowing and teeth ground together, which triggered a small giggle out of Akira's lips.

"Will do, I'll keep your boyfriend safe," Ran patted Shinichi's back twice, winking at Akira's flushed face, dragging Shinichi by the collar of his jacket along with her.

The girl shook her head, pressing her hands up against the warmth of her cheeks, turning around and moving her feet towards the stalls. The air was chilly, nipping against her face, the leaves lush and green as they swayed along with the wind.

Akira remembers vividly that she's been here ten years ago, with Shinichi as a child, just the both of them with their parents. The two would run off towards various rides with their hands linked, Akira constantly tugging Shinichi towards every single ride they were able to go on, taunting the boy for his weak stomach.

After various rides and Shinichi's constant nagging, they decided to take a rest at the stalls with Shinichi's parents while her parents made their way towards the stalls to grab some snacks for them. Shinichi slumped in his seat, panting heavily, the feeling of falling still evident from the 'intense' slide they had just ridden down.

Akira, on the other hand, was in utter bliss. She shook her leg up and down, lips wrapped around the red coloured straw, holding the glass of orange juice with one hand. Her other hand was held in Shinichi's, a small comfort in knowing that they were still in each other's presence.

Yukiko squealed under her breath, snapping a quick picture before showing the picture to her husband, a proud motherly smile on her face. It wasn't long until her parents came back to the table, a tray filled with ice cream.

"Mija, here's yours!" Her mother carefully settled the plate in front of Akira. It was her favourite, mint chocolate with chocolate drizzle. Akira shot up, her hands slipping out of Shinichi's grasp to grab her spoon, the boy huffing under his breath.

"Thank you, mama," the girl shoved the spoon full of the cold desert in her mouth, a rush of sugar sending a shiver down her spine.

"Whatever," Shinichi grumbled under his breath, reaching over to grab his serving, only to be interrupted by a cold, sticky sensation hit his cheek.

Akira froze in her seat, mouth hung open, taking in the ridiculous site next to her. Shinichi sat there, a spot of ice cream dribbling down his cheek, onto his shirt. She couldn't contain herself, laughing loudly as she clutched her stomach, ignoring the yelling she gained from her mother and Shinichi.

Now she was here, ten years later at the age of sixteen, sitting on the very same seat she did all those years back along with the mint chocolate ice cream and the chocolate drizzle. Akira plopped the spoon into her mouth, a nostalgic taste filling her mouth. Her hand rested against the seat next to her, humming under her breath.

Akira allowed herself to drown in the memories that flooded back to her, recalling the very same moment when Shinichi had decided to wipe the leftovers of his ice cream on her face, running away while she had chased him with her half-melted ice cream.

Before she realised, the sky had turned dark, the remainders of her ice cream nowhere to be seen. Why is it taking them so long? Akira grumbled in her mind, wiping her hands with the napkins provided, throwing them away immediately into the trash can next to her. 

As if they had heard her complaint, Shinichi and Ran came around the corner, the girl crying while Shinichi tried his best to comfort her. Akira gasped, rushing over to the two with a worried expression, looking up at Shinichi silently for an explanation.

"Well, um-"

"It was horrible!" Ran sobbed, leaning into Akira's touch when she patted the girl's back, her words muffled against the sleeves of Akira's jacket. 

"What?" Akira raised an eyebrow, "what was so horrible?"

Ran choked another sob, Shinichi rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly, trailing his eyes away from the two girls. His gaze landed on the table in front of him, a soft smile crawling upon his face as she stared at the seat. He would never admit it, but the reason he wiped his ice cream on Akira was because of how close she leaned in to clean his cheek. His heart thumped rapidly at the memory, sighing under his breath.

"Shinichi!" Akira's voice snapped him back to reality, tilting his head at the girl, "there was a case and you didn't call me?"

"Oh- Haha," Shinichi looked away, sucking a sharp breath in, "I forgot..."

"Forgot!? Why-"

Her words trailed off in his mind, his blue eyes sharpened as they landed on something in the distance, something that stood out to him despite the crowd. His heart now pounded against his chest, now for a different reason. For the thrill of the new mystery, he will unfold, not the mystery of the feelings held by the girl he liked.

"You're sleeping at Ran's house, right? Take her home, see you tomorrow!" He waved, running forward.

"Shinichi!" Akira called out her him, her heart clenching as if she was never going to see him again. She longed to run after him, yet, she couldn't leave Ran alone crying like this. Her eyes could only follow the boy's retreating figure, hoping that the horrid feeling in her heart would never come true.

Shinichi pressed himself up against the wall closest to him, peeking around the corner as little as he can, holding his breath. There in front of him were two men, one dressed in all black while the other wore a green suit, a case filled with money presented to the other.

Truly, he had been suspicious of them the moment he met them at the scene of the crime, yet he never hearts the heart to push and corner the man in black for the answers he wanted. But, now he learnt the truth behind their visit at the amusement park, his hands reaching into his pocket in an attempt to pull out his phone.

That's strange, I thought there were two of them? Shinichi questioned himself in his mind, turning around momentarily as he heard the grass shuffle behind him. Shinichi choked up a scream, greeted by a terrifying man with a sadistic grin, long silver hair and wearing all black.

He attempted to run away, only to receive a painful blow at the back of his head, his body slamming to the ground. The world around him blurred, the only final moments he remembers are his mouth yanking open while a small capsule washed down his throat and the horrid feeling of his heart and bone melting away.