DUALITY || Kudo Shinichi x OC ||

CHAPTER EIGHT || COLD FEET.

This boy, this boy isn't normal Akira thought in her mind, observing as the boy laughed nervously as Ran questions him, peeking subtle glances towards Akira. They had followed the boy after he had so eagerly hopped into the car after Ran's father, his once childish face briefly dropping into a smug one at the mention of a 'case'. Now, she was standing in the distance with her brother, a hot cup of tea heating her hand as she stared at Conan, watching the way he juggled the soccer ball.

Too much, he reminded her of Shinichi too much, not to mention she had never heard Shinichi mention or seen Conan before. Not to mention, Conan had appeared right after Shinichi's disappearance. 

"Hey, Akio, Horishi-niichan, do you think...." Akira muttered under her breath, staring at Conan as his face dawned in realization, running off somewhere else.

"Hm," the two twins stared at her in confusion, waiting for her to finish her sentence.

"Do you think it's possible to turn back into a child?" Akira turned to stare at them dead in the eyes.

"... HAHAHAHHA," Akio laughed, choking on his saliva as he tried to process her words, earning a harsh glare from Horishi.

"Don't laugh!" Akira scolded her brother, smacking him across the back on his head.

"Sorry, sorry," he hiccupped, giggling after his words.

"It's definitely not possible," Horishi chimed in, shaking his head in careful consideration, "you still pondering about that little boy again?"

"Look Akira," Akio sighed, patting her head, "I think you're thinking about it too much, you miss Shinichi too much your mind is fogging up. You're not even trying to solve the case!"

"I guess..." She murmured, turning away from her brother to observe the house again, watching as Ran, ran to her frantically.

"It's Conan!" Ran confronted Akira, "there was a phone call by a kidnapper who kidnapped the young girl of the house, and he gave us a clue to where he is and Conan just ran off riding the dog!"

"What!?" Akira gasped, "which way?"

Ran pointed towards the direction Conan left in, Akira wasting no time to run after the boy. Who is this boy? How is he so smart? Did he solve this case by himself? Her thoughts ran through her mind as she after Conan, taking a deep breath in whenever she felt out of breath.

"Ran this way!" She called out, looking behind her shoulder to Ran to make sure the girl was still following her along with her father, "the dog is outside this school shed!"

"I'm Edogawa Conan, detective."

Akira froze, her feet weighing down onto the concrete floor beneath her, her breath hitching. Only a single thought occupied her mind.  Shinichi use to say that.

"Akira what are you doing girl!" Mouri yelled at her, nudging her forward, "he's in trouble come on!"

But she was too slow, Ran dashed into the school shed, using her arm to block the attacker as he was about to strike Conan. She let out a battle cry, punching the man in the stomach multiple times, leaping back to give him a kick in the face knocking him out.

Akira watched as Mouri cheered for his daughter, running in after her, a condescending look plastered all over his face. Her on the other hand, stood in shock, she didn't even go help the boy. She let those words get into her head...

"Akira!" A voice called out behind her, her green eyes meeting with her brother's blue ones, filled with concern, "are you okay? You just stood there."

Oh.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she grinned, lifting her hands up into a thumbs up to reassure Horishi, "as healthy as I can ever be."

"Akira," Ran called after her too, making her way towards the girl, "what a relief huh?"

Akira let out a chuckle, "yeah... hahaha.'

.

.

.

Why did it sadden him so much to see her like this? Conan's gaze never left her figure for a second ever since she froze up at the school shed. The taxi ride was only filled the banter between father and daughter, leaving Akira to silently stare out the window, a lost look in her eyes.

"Nee-chan," Conan pulled at her sleeves, whispering quietly so only the both of them could hear each other, "are you okay?"

"Hm?" She turned to look at the boy, tilting her head with a soft smile, "of course. Why?" 

"Well, you just, you seem out of place," he attempted to sow the right words together.

Akira's gaze softened as she looked at him, ruffling the young boy's hair, "you are a lot like him you know?"

His breath hitched, a tint of red spreading across his face, keeping a hand over the spot she had ruffled. Shit, wouldn't this be so much easier if I was Shinichi?