If I can help you (an Amasai fanfic)

Weekends and moments

It was such a long time that they knew each other now. All of this time, Shuuichi was completely open to Rantarou. Rantarou got the pleasure of seeing Shuuichi smile more as he let out quiet, subtle laughs to his jokes. He even started visiting Shuuichi on the weekends, though his first visit was unexpected.

He remembered walking to his room to see Shuuichi lying down, he looked exactly like he did when he missed school for almost a week. Rantarou immediately panicked but Shuuichi let out a weak smile. "I-it's just a weekend thing, I'm tired.." he said, trying to dismiss his unhealthy behavior. Nonetheless, Rantarou told him to freshen up and decided that maybe he should visit him at the weekends often to make sure this doesn't happen again.
He found it odd how he couldn't find himself to leave Shuuichi alone, he found himself really enjoying his company. Sure he's been close to the people he's helped, like when he visited Gonta many times to help him out with homework, but he didn't grow as attached to him as he did with Shuuichi.
Duh! It was because Shuuichi's situation was more dire! He thought to himself, trying to dismiss any other thought, any embarrassing thoughts that is.

Nonetheless, it made him feel better when Shuuichi would answer the door with fresh home clothes with a soft and shy yet welcoming expression, despite him not having a smile on his face. He could see the health in his face and it made him even more prettier as it was not being hidden by his hat or in the last case, a binder.

"How are you doing?" Rantarou always asked. "I-I'm doing well, thank you.. come in.." Shuuichi said quietly as he opened the door further and moved to the side to give Rantarou space. Rantarou took a quick glance at the black haired boy who had just welcomed him in. His black hair looked silky and clean, as it framed his face. He had a ahoge that poked at the top of his head, it even looked lively, though it was Rantarou's first time seeing it. As Rantarou welcomed himself in, he saw a small blush on Shuuichi's face, sure he always looked this way when he welcomed himself in his home, but it still seemed odd to him. Shuuichi delicately closed the door and locked it. Rantarou noticed how Shuuichi no longer had the spare key, like he was trusting himself to open the door rather than relying on people to welcome themselves in.

Usually, they would work on schoolwork whenever Rantarou came over but today he noticed Shuuichi holding a small dvd case in his delicate hands. "I-I want to watch this with you, I-if that's okay.." He said, flustered as he showed Rantarou the dvd. It was a murder mystery movie that was based on the novel Shuuichi was reading. Good thing Rantarou made sure to read it himself. "Sure, no problem Saihara! I'll watch it with you!" Rantarou replied with a reassuring smile, getting a.. nervous squeak from Shuuichi?
"I-I'll make tea, boot it up please?" Shuuichi requested while he looked up at Rantarou, covering the bottom half of his face with the dvd case. "Sure, no problem!" Rantarou said as he accepted he dvd that Shuuichi handed to him. Why was he so nervous? He was giving him a dvd to boot up, not some love letter.

Rantarou took the movie out of its case and inserted it to the DVD player. He heard the sounds of boiling water. "T-truth is, I-I never really did this kind of thing before, not even with Akamatsu-San.." he heard Shuuichi say from the kitchen. Rantarou can understand why, Kaede is a girl and Shuuichi is a boy, it'll be awkward. He supposed that Shuuichi was more okay doing this with Rantarou because they're both boys. He heard Shuuichi's footsteps and the menu music of the movie. It sounded suspenseful. Shuuichi sat down on the couch and placed the cups of tea on the table. Then he looked flustered again. "S-sorry! I didn't ask how you liked your tea..!" He exclaimed. "It's fine, I'm okay with anything." Rantarou said as he placed his hand to pat Shuuichi's hair. Shuuichi closed his eyes to accept it but he looked really flustered. Maybe it was because he didn't have his hat. After all, the times he did pet him, he always had his hat on.

The movie started and the both of them immediately quieted down, focusing only on the movie. They were sort of huddling up to one another while the movie started.
The main character was a detective who had her own detective agency and investigated many cases. The main plot was when a masked murderer became rampant and it was her job to identify them and arrest them. Shuuichi looked really focused on the parts where she investigated crime scenes or when she questioned witnesses and the potential suspects. Rantarou couldn't help but to see how serious Shuuichi was.

He called it Shuuichi's 'work face' since he made that face when he was working on schoolwork. He chuckled a little, making sure he was quiet enough so the suspect's booming voice would drown it out. The movie droned on for another hour and their tea cups began to empty, leaving only tea bags once they finished. Shuuichi blinked when the movie finally ended, his eyes flashing back to reality.

"It was kind of disappointing.." Shuuichi immediately noted, he still looked serious. "What do you mean? I thought it was good." Rantarou said with questioning eyes. "No, I mean the story is accurate except they got many of the suspects all wrong, they picked the wrong actors and actresses. They don't match most of the descriptions at all. Also some of the suspects seem to be poor actors." Shuuichi immediately started to criticize every single flaw in the movie. Rantarou was so surprised at how analytical Shuuichi was, no wonder why he had such a high language grade and why he was the ultimate detective. "However, they got the main character spot on! She was so well done and it was like I was seeing her move straight from the book!" Shuuichi's eyes sparkled as he described how well done the main character was. This was the most Rantarou heard Shuuichi speak without stuttering. Shuuichi's eyes looked like the morning fog that was being cleared by the bright, morning sun of admiration. It was kind of charming. "Alright calm down there, Mr. detective." Rantarou said with a small chuckle as he placed his hand on Shuuichi's shoulder. "Ah, w-well it's more like Mr. Detective in training." He said, embarrassed by the sudden praise. Kaede really meant it when she told Rantarou that Shuuichi didn't take compliments really well.

Rantarou stayed much more longer than he expected, as it was night time. "Maybe I should go now, it was nice being here and watching a movie with you." Rantarou said with a warm smile. Shuuichi shyly nodded, saying a small goodbye. Rantarou did see that Shuuichi seemed grateful for his visit, it really did relieve his soft heart. He pet his head one last time before opening the door to leave, Shuuichi watching him leave the whole time.