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Kaito did not hate winter; he really didn't. However, it was very difficult to perform magic when his hands were freezing. Normally, that was okay, but today it bothered him. If he could perform magic, he might not have ended up in this situation.
The snow had been falling throughout the entire night, trapping him in this little barn in the middle of the woods. It was supposed to be a normal heist night. The target of tonight's heist was a beautiful Amber called the *Sun Rays of Rom,* quite ironic considering the weather.
He had already accepted his fate, that he would have to wait for the next day and hope that it would stop snowing. But his fellow inmate did not appear to be so patient. Mouri Ran was an iron-willed woman, she had seen her fair share of dead bodies, thanks to that little death bringer that followed her around. She knew it was impossible to go outside during the storm, but she desperately tried to call someone for help on her phone, even if there wasn't any signal.
Ran hadn't noticed him yet, he was standing in the shadows like the phantom he was named after. It wasn't possible to escape before the day arrived, and honestly, he was exhausted and just wanted to sleep. Ran's pacing did not help his headache that started even before this disaster began. The only reason why he was stuck with her in the first place was because Conan chased him into the woods, and Ran followed Conan. The two must have lost each other during the chase. Kaito was thankful that the little devil wasn't here with them. Both Kaito and Ran sought shelter from the weather inside this barn.
He was still contemplating whether he should reveal himself to her when a shout interrupted his thoughts.
"KID!" Ran was staring at him; how she saw him was a mystery to Kaito. He must have been quite distracted to not notice her coming closer.
"Good evening, young miss," he tried to walk away from her, but it didn't really work in the small room.
"What did you do?" Of course, the first thing she would do is accuse him of something.
Kaito tried to remain calm, but one of the few things that scared him was an angry Ran. "I can assure you, that for once I am innocent." She didn't really seem to believe him, but that wasn't a surprise.
"I fear we are stuck here until the storm stops and we can leave this place." Kaito did not want to spend the night here with her, but what other option was there?
Ran, on the other hand, was even less pleased by the situation. "I cannot believe I will have to spend the night here with some pervert," she mumbled more to herself than anything else.
Okay, that did hurt his feelings, and maybe his headache was worse than he thought because before he knew what to think, he had already opened his mouth.
"I can assure you that I am not, in fact, a pervert." Yes, it was definitely the headache's fault for taking it so personally.
Ran didn't seem happy with this statement and immediately replied, "Oh yes, because it is normal to go and pretend to be Shinichi and then flirt with me."
"I am not flirting with you, just simply trying to perform a beautiful show. I can't help it that you have to force yourself onto me."
That was the wrong thing to say. Ran only seemed madder, and she told him so. "I am not forcing myself onto you, don't make it look like you are the victim. You are just a stealing thief, a liar, and a pervert!"
Kaito didn't really care what he said at this point. "Do you think I enjoy it when some random girl thinks I am her lover for the thousandth time and just doesn't learn that perhaps I might not be Shinichi!" He should have stopped there, but he didn't, so yes, it was entirely his fault for what he said next.
"Every time you or honestly any woman shows more than just admiration for my magic, I am left there feeling like a cheater."
Ran stopped, and all the fury melted from her face. "You are in a relationship?"
Shit, shit, shit, he did not mean to say that. He tried to just ignore her and hope that she forgot this ever happened. But Lady Luck wasn't on his side today of all days.
"I can't imagine someone like you, the womanizer Kaito Kid, in a relationship." That did hurt his pride just a little bit.
"Just because your love life isn't successful doesn't mean the rest of us have to be miserable." Hopefully, this would get her mad, and she would start arguing about anything else.
Ran had a different fire in her eyes now, one of interest and curiosity.
"So who is the lucky girl? Do I know her?" Ran asked, oblivious to all his attempts to direct the conversation in a different direction.
Kaito didn't want to continue this conversation, but he saw the fire in Ran's eyes and knew it was a lost battle.
"I don't have a lucky girl." Kaito looked closely for any judgment in her face.
"You are gay?" Surprise, yes, but not the slightest hint of judgment.
"Something like that," was his only answer.
For a while, no one said anything, and Kaito stupidly hoped that was it. He should have known better; if Mouri Ran wanted answers, she would make sure she got them.
"You haven't answered my question. Do I know him?"
For a moment, Kaito considered ignoring her, but then he decided he would be stuck here with her for a while, so it would be a good way to kill some time. "I wouldn't say the two of you know each other, but you have definitely met him."
Ran seemed to be quite intrigued by this.
"How did you meet him?" she asked.
If there was one thing Kaito could talk about for hours and hours, then it would be Saguru. So if Ran asked all these questions, then Kaito would talk.
"The first time I met him was at a heist. You should have seen him, beautiful and proud in that gray sea of officers." Kaito could remember that day vividly. "At first, he annoyed me, and I didn't want to admit to myself that I liked him."
Ran looked at him with a puzzled expression. "You really like him, don't you?" she said.
Kaito was taken by surprise. Of course, he loved Saguru. That was never a question since they started dating. But thinking about Ran and Shinichi's relationship, he could see how she wasn't used to such boldly stated admiration towards someone else. Kaito still wasn't entirely sure if the two of them were even dating at the moment. He hoped so for Ran's sake. The poor girl really seemed to need it.
So all he said with a little smile was, "Yes, I do love him with all my heart." Oh, Aoko would tease him for being a sap if she ever heard that.
Before he could think otherwise, he told Ran, "You and Shinichi should talk more, and you should be bolder."
Ran just looked at him with surprise written all over her face.
"I mean, both of you clearly like the other, just neither of you dare to do the first steps and seem to want to embrace the idea of being in a relationship." Kaito tried to explain.
"Who would have thought that the Kaitou Kid would ever give me dating advice," Ran joked.
After a small pause, she continued. "Tell me more about him, what do you two do?"
With a smile, Kaito thought about the last date he and Saguru were on. "Last week, he took me to a magic show, only to not pay attention to the magician and just stare at me. Another time, he ambushed me during one of my heists, and we ended up dancing under the moonlight."
Ran just stared at him.
"The other time, we wanted to bake a cake, but it just ended with both of us covered in flour at 3 o'clock in the night."
Kaito could go on and on, talking about Saguru. But before he could go on rambling about his love life, Ran interrupted him.
"So he knows you are Kaitou Kid, but he also knows your real identity?"
Kaito blinked at her for a moment before he could reply. "He figured out my identity within the first week we met, but we have only been dating for about five months now."
Honestly, Kaito couldn't believe it had only been five months. It felt like Saguru was a part of his life since, well, forever. It was one of his biggest fears, that at some point Saguru would become tired of him and leave. After his father's death, Kaito had difficulty trusting anyone and believing that people would stay with him. The fact that his mother left to travel the world did not help his insecurities.
Unaware of Kaito's inner conflict, Ran continued her questions, "And he never tried to arrest you or expose your identity?"
"In the beginning, he always accused me of being Kaitou Kid in front of others, but at some point, he stopped and even started to support me."
"That's surprisingly sweet of him. I am glad that you have found someone that loves you so much," Ran said with a smile.
Kaito did not know what to say to that, so he only pulled her closer to himself, and the two of them lay down in one corner. Kaito used his cape as a blanket. Ran looked at him with a tired face and asked, "Tell me some more about him."
Kaito did. He went from one adventure he had with Saguru to the next, or he would gush about that cute face Saguru made whenever there was a riddle he couldn't solve. So it went on and on until Ran fell asleep, and shortly after, Kaito started sleeping.
---
An excited voice woke Ran the next morning. Conan and her father were standing above her, relife written all over their faces, and they obviously were talking frantically with her.
Ran ignored them for now and tried to remember how she got in this barn in the middle of nowhere. All of a sudden, the events from the night before came to her.
Kaitou Kid was gone, and if it wasn't for the cape that he left for her, she would have thought that she had imagined the entire conversation.
Conan took her hand, and she obviously knew that she should mention all the knowledge that she had discovered about the thief. After a small moment of hesitation, she decided not to tell anyone what had happened that night. Kid's secret would be safe with her.