Evening.
Third floor of the Mouri Detective Agency.
A loud thud echoed as Kogoro Mouri slammed his bowl down on the table, his eyes wide as he stared intently at his daughter and Kurosawa Hoshino.
"Miss Yoko? You mean the Yoko Okino?" he exclaimed excitedly.
"Yes," Ran replied with a smile. She knew her father was a die-hard fan of Yoko Okino and was deliberately keeping him in suspense.
Conan opened his mouth to speak—
Whack.
A fist connected with his head. Tears sprang to his eyes as he instinctively clutched the sore spot.
"Ouch! Uncle, why did you hit me?!"
He looked up at Kogoro Mouri, who was sitting next to him, feeling extremely wronged.
"Who told you to interrupt?" Kogoro glared at him, then immediately plastered on a wide grin for his daughter. "Ran, did they say where they're filming?"
"I'm not telling you." Ran winked mischievously.
"..."
Kogoro's expression froze. He shifted his gaze. "Kid. You tell me."
Kurosawa Hoshino chuckled. "Uncle Mouri, Ran wouldn't actually keep it from you. Just ask her a couple more times and she'll give in."
"You think I don't know my own daughter? She's definitely cooking up some condition. That's why I'm not asking her. You tell me."
"I—"
Hoshino never got the chance to finish. Ran's hand clamped over his mouth.
He raised an eyebrow at Kogoro, eyes full of helpless apology: Not that I won't tell you. I literally can't.
"Dad, my condition is simple. Agree to it, and I'll tell you the location."
"Hmph. No way."
"Then we'll sneak over tomorrow, and I guarantee you won't be able to follow."
"Tch... Fine. You're getting less adorable by the day. What's your condition?"
Kogoro figured that agreeing to a few terms to see his favorite idol wasn't so bad. Besides, he was her father—he could always go back on his word later. It wasn't like Ran would beat him up.
"It's simple: when Yoko-sensei is filming, you can't shout or cause a scene. No crowding her. You have to wait until she's done. That's all."
"Fine, fine. Now tell me—where is it?"
"Beika Shrine. Starting this afternoon."
"Beika Shrine! That's perfect—it's close!" Kogoro's breathing grew heavy with excitement. He grabbed his sake cup and downed it in one gulp.
Ran sighed. She had a feeling her father wouldn't keep his promise.
Then she felt a tap on her hand.
She turned her head and realized—she was still covering Hoshino's mouth. She snatched her hand back, blushing furiously.
"Hoshino, I'm sorry. I didn't mean to."
"So it was intentional, then." Hoshino grinned.
"I'm really sorry."
"Make me something delicious sometime, and I'll forgive you."
"Okay. Deal."
Conan rubbed the lump on his head, watching his childhood friend and Hoshino interact. He made a decision: tomorrow, he wasn't going to Professor Agasa's house. He was going with them.
He couldn't let them keep spending time together like this. His childhood friend was in danger.
An hour later.
Dinner had ended thirty minutes ago. Ran had already washed the dishes.
Kurosawa Hoshino stretched and patted Conan's head. "Let's go. Time to sleep."
"Okay." Conan had figured out Hoshino's rhythm by now. As long as he went along without resistance, Hoshino was actually pretty easy to get along with.
"Ran, Uncle Mouri, we're heading back."
"Go on, kid. I'm going to bed too." Kogoro stood up and shuffled into his bedroom.
"Hoshino, Conan. Bye-bye." Ran came out of her room and waved.
Without further delay, the two left.
A few minutes later, they reached their apartment across the street and climbed to the third floor.
Hoshino flipped the light switch.
Click.
Nothing.
He tried again. Still nothing.
"Power outage?" He patted his pocket—empty. "Great. I left my phone in Ran's living room."
Conan pulled out his phone, activated the flashlight, and walked over to the TV. He pressed the power button. The indicator light stayed dark.
"Hoshino-nii, it really is a power outage."
"Well, nothing we can do about that. You go to sleep. I'll head back to Ran's and grab my phone."
Hoshino turned and felt his way down the dark stairs.
When he reached the roadside, he looked around. The tall buildings in the distance were all lit up. Only their block was dark.
He quickened his pace and hurried back to the third floor of the Mouri residence.
Just as he raised his hand to knock—
The door swung open.
A blinding light hit him square in the face.
"Ahhh—!"
Thud.
Hoshino blinked, his eyes still dazzled. When his vision cleared, he saw Ran sprawled on the floor of the entryway, her phone's flashlight illuminating her face—still frozen in terror.
"Hoshi... Hoshino?" Her voice trembled.
"Ran, you scaredy-cat."
"I didn't know you were standing right outside the door! You almost scared me to death!"
Ran's voice was full of grievance, but the fear was slowly draining from her face.
Hoshino stepped inside and helped her up.
"What were you doing, heading out?"
"After you left, I saw your phone under the small table. I figured you'd come back for it. Then the power went out. I thought about it for a bit and decided I'd just bring it to you instead. I didn't expect you to already be at the door. I nearly had a heart attack."
She patted her chest, still a little shaken.
The image of a dark figure appearing right in front of her the moment she opened the door—her heart was still racing. She really didn't want to experience that again.
Hoshino chuckled, bent down, and picked up her phone—still lit.
"Oh, right. Your phone." Ran pulled his phone from her pocket and handed it over. She inspected it carefully, then breathed a sigh of relief. "Good. Not broken."
"Thanks. I'll head back now."
"Okay."
Hoshino nodded and turned to go downstairs.
When he reached the roadside, he unlocked his screen.
A notification waited in the bar.
The sender's name: I Don't Drink Sherry.
Shiho Miyano.
He wondered—was this girl here to argue, or to chat?