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If there is one thing Kokichi can admit, it’s that Shuichi’s eyes are very pretty. Curiosity always seemed to linger in those goldish grey orbs. Sometimes lack of sleep could also be depicted in them, which was always funny to notice, considering how Shuichi was always one of the last people to wake up.
“Kokichi, is there something on my face?”
At the sound of his name, Kokichi perks up. His staring must have been more obvious than he anticipated. But then again, this was the Ultimate Detective. Shuichi must be prone to noticing such details.
Kokichi puts on an innocent smile before answering. “Hmm? Oh nothing, my beloved. I was just thinking.”
Clearly Shuichi doesn’t seem to buy it, which for some reason flusters the smaller male. In an attempt to ignore the growing feeling, Kokichi turns his gaze away from Shuichi and instead continues nibbling at the little snack Kirumi had brought the two of them to share.
However, to his dismay, Shuichi doesn’t take the hint and tries his hand at continuing the conversation.
“What were you thinking about then?”
Kokichi has a hard time covering up the strange noise he makes with a cough.
Okay, no biggie, nothing a little lie can’t handle, right? So, being the liar that he is, Kokichi plasters on another smile that morphs itself into a condescending grin.
"Just wondering about when the next murder will occur, that’s all!”
During the faint moment of silence that passes between them, Kokichi takes a second to briefly side-eye Shuichi.
The detective’s expression twitches before faltering into something that resembles both dread and uneasiness. It’s not a very pretty look, in fact it makes Kokichi’s stomach drop just from the sight of it.
And his eyes. They seem to lose a bit of their light.
Kokichi furrows his brows. He lets out a huff that could be deciphered as annoyed before placing down his half eaten mini sandwich and turning his face toward Shuichi, a giant smile plastered over his face.
“That’s a lie!” he exclaims in hopes of removing that awful expression from Shuichi’s face. “God, Shuichi, you should know that I’m a liar by now. And to think that I thought you were this amazing detective.” He rolls his eyes and lightly shoves Shuichi’s shoulder. “Guess I was wrong.”
Shuichi frowns then shakes his head, as if removing a growing thought. When he looks at Kokichi again, he opens his mouth to reply. “That’s not very funny, you know.”
“Aww, did what I say scare my favorite person?” Kokichi chuckles. “So sorry, Shuichi. I’ll be more aware of your fragile heart from now on.”
The detective lets out a breath of air, one that could almost be read as a laugh. “Thanks, I guess.”
The silence before them is longer this time, which gives Kokichi a moment to ponder his next move. He could easily move on to a topic more interesting, or even resort to teasing Shuichi some more. But a lingering thought at the back of his head, one that he tried to suppress in fear of it leading to something more, steps forward.
Kokichi swallows, eyeing Shuichi once again before gulping down his fear and taking that first step into uncharted territory.
"Do you want to know what I was really thinking?” His voice comes out soft, any previous hint of playfulness now completely gone. He was nervous, yes, but eager in a way to see just how his favorite person would react.
Shuichi’s eyes – God, they’re so beautiful! - widen at this, and he takes a moment to search Kokichi’s face before seeming to determine that what he was saying was, in fact, the truth. After a second more, he nods. “Yes, I do.”
Kokichi makes direct eye contact with the detective. His face, for a second, is stoic. Then Kokichi lets himself smile; sincerely for that matter, and he points to his own purple-colored eye to get his point across. “I was just thinking about how pretty your eyes are, Shu-i-chi!”
Kokichi splits up Shuichi’s name in hopes of taking away the weight of his words. He even decides to add his own playful wink in hopes of alleviating some of that tension.
However, if the blush on his classmate’s face has anything to say about the matter, it’s that maybe his wink just fueled the flames of the kindling fire he himself had unknowingly just created.
At this point, Kokichi can feel his own blush creeping upon his already pale cheeks. His hand pointing to his eye falters slightly before dropping all together. Hastily he faces forward, breaking the eye-contact they had been holding.
He can feel Shuichi’s eyes baring holes to the side of his face, as if staring there will answer whatever unanswered question the detective was currently asking himself.
At last, he spoke. “T-that’s a lie, right?”
For a brief second, Kokichi has the audacity to look shocked at Shuichi’s question. “Wha-? No! It’s completely and utterly true!” He crosses his arms, thankfully still able to shut off his embarrassment and return to his childlike persona. “Jeez, I wouldn’t lie about something like that, my beloved. That’s just cruel, and I’m not a cruel person at all! I’m an angel; a saint!”
With that, Kokichi stands up and begins stretching his body out to relieve the tension that had been patiently growing in his joints. He places his hands behind his head and grins, eyeing the detective who now had to lift his head to view Kokichi’s face.
Ignoring the burning in his own cheeks, Kokichi rolls his eyes and sticks out his tongue. “Stop staring. It’s creepy,” he says.
As if remembering where and what exactly the two of them were doing, Shuichi blinks twice before removing his gaze from the supreme leader’s face. “Ah, my bad,” he mutters.
Shuichi raises one hand up towards his forehead, fingerings flailing at nothing before returning back down to his lap. Kokichi watches Shuichi sigh before standing as well, straightening his folded uniform as he gets up.
The supreme leader brings his hands down to rest on his hips and he beams a smile at the taller male. “Alrighty then! Looks like our little date is done so let’s head back inside, yeah?”
Shuichi splutters. “D-date?”
Kokichi chooses to ignore him and instead returns his attention to the school building in the distance; the place they had been forced to call “home” for the time they had to spend in this caged prison.
He starts waltzing ahead, only looking behind himself to beckon a gawking Shuichi forward. “Let’s go, my beloved!”
Kokichi only watches him long enough to see his classmate shake his head and smile, following the supreme leader’s lead. Kokichi returns that smile and turns back around, slowing his pace so that the other can catch up.
And when he does, Kokichi lets his eyes slide over to his classmate’s face and linger on his eyes.
Goldish gray.
Yep. Still very pretty.