The World Is Wide Enough For Two Detectives
Hakuba Saguru sat on a wooden bench in the park. His eyes were engrossed in reading a classic detective novel. The warm sunlight filtered through the lush green trees, casting spotted shadows on the ground. He relished the quiet ambiance, the occasional chirping of birds, and the distant laughter of children playing nearby.
As he turned a page, his attention fully captured by the intricate plot, a sudden commotion broke the peacefulness. A group of children and a familiar teenager, playing soccer in the distance sent the ball flying across the grass.
"Watch out!" a voice shouted.
But it was too late. The soccer ball that was kicked with a surprising force, flew through the air, went off course, and headed straight for Hakuba.
In the split second before impact, Hakuba looked up. He was startled and wanted to dodge it but it was too late to react. The ball smacked him on the side of his head with a solid thud, knocking him unconscious and sending the book flying from his hands as he slumped backward.
"Oh, I’m sorry! We didn't mean to hit anyone," a voice exclaimed as they approached the unconscious guy.
The voice belonged to Shinichi Kudo, a renowned high school detective, who was playing soccer with the neighboring kids. He dashed over to where Hakuba was and knelt beside him, concern visible on his face.
"Hey, are you okay?" Shinichi asked, gently shaking Hakuba's shoulder.
Hakuba groaned, his eyelids fluttering as he slowly regained consciousness. He blinked a few times, before focusing on Shinichi's concerned expression.
"What... what happened?" Hakuba muttered, rubbing his throbbing head.
"Mitsuhiko accidentally hit the soccer ball too hard and it hit you. I’m really sorry." Shinichi explained, gesturing to the group of children to come closer.
"Ah, I see," Hakuba said, gingerly sitting up and touching the sore spot on his temple. "Well, that's quite the unexpected turn of events."
Then, Hakuba was bombarded by the children talking.
“Are you okay, stranger-san?”
"What if he takes you to the police, Mitsuhiko?!"
“Shut up, Genta. I won’t be.. Right, oji-san?”
“First, I’m not that old to be called ‘oji-san’,” Hakuba said as he picked up the book, he was reading earlier, from the floor. “Second, I won’t take you to the police. And lastly, don’t worry,” He said as he patted the little girl, “I’m fine. It doesn’t hurt much.”
The children were ecstatic by his answer and talked among themselves again.
"Are you sure you're alright?" Shinichi asked again, his worry evident.
Hakuba nodded, offering a faint smile. "Yes, thank you. Just a bit shaken, but nothing serious."
Shinichi breathed a sigh of relief, relieved that the stranger seemed to be okay. He glanced at the book in Hakuba's hand, noticing the title.
"Ah, 'The Hound of the Baskervilles' by Arthur Conan Doyle. Classic choice," Shinichi smirked
Hakuba looked down at the book and smiled, "Indeed, it's one of my favorites. I find the deductions of Sherlock Holmes rather intriguing."
That piqued Shinichi's interest.
"Ah, a fellow detective enthusiast, I take it?"
"You could say that. I have a keen interest in detective stories and the art of deduction. My name is Hakuba Saguru, by the way." He said as he extended his hands.
"Nice to meet you, Hakuba-san. I'm Kudo Shinichi."
They shook hands, a mutual respect obvious in their gazes.
"Kudo Shinichi..." Hakuba repeated, the name sounding very familiar to him. "Wait, aren't you the high school detective who has been making headlines lately?"
"That's me. I prefer to keep a low profile when I'm not solving cases though."
Hakuba's eyes widened in recognition.
"Ah, now I remember. You're the one who solved the 'Moonlight Sonata' case, weren't you? Quite impressive, if I do say so myself."
"Well anyway, we need to go. It’s getting dark and I still need to accompany the kids on their way home. If you ever need anything, don't hesitate to ask. And do take care." Shinichi said as he told the kids they were going home.
Hakuba returned the smile.
"Likewise, Kudo-san. And thank you, I'll keep that in mind."
With a nod of farewell, Shinichi turned to leave, but then paused, as if remembering something.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small notepad and a pen. He wrote something on it and handed the paper to Hakuba.
"Here, Hakuba-san, this is my phone number. In case you need anything or if you ever want to talk more about detective or mystery-related things"
Hakuba accepted the paper with a grateful smile.
"Thank you, Kudo-san. I appreciate it. And I must say, it would be delightful to discuss detective mysteries with someone who shares the same passion."
Shinichi nodded, pleased. "Likewise, Hakuba-san. Feel free to reach out anytime."
With a nod of mutual understanding, they parted ways.
“Hey, hey, Shinichi-nii-chan?” The little girl tapped his arm to get his attention.
“Yes, Ayumi-chan?” The teen looked at the kid.
“Do you like Hakuba-niichan?” Ayumi asked with an innocent look on her face.
“What? Where did this come from?” Shinichi asked but the two other kids next to him screamed and that made him look over at them.
“You were basically,, uh what’s the word.. f-friting? Firting?” Genta murmured.
“It’s flirting, Genta.” Mitsuhiko looked at Genta before looking back at the teen. “Shinichi-nii-san, you were basically flirting with him! What was that small talk you did back there? We could have gone home after you made sure that he was alright but instead, you started a conversation!”
“Mitsuhiko-kun is right. And don’t think I didn’t see what you did after you wrote your number.. A heart! You drew a heart! That’s so cute of you, Nii-chan.” Ayumi said, excitedly.
“How did you– ugh, nevermind, I’m not even gonna question it.” Shinichi groaned. “To answer your question, hmm, maybe I’m a bit interested in him.” He smiled.
The children screamed in excitement.
“You tw– you three are such detectives.” Shinichi chuckled.
“Of course, we are! We’re your apprentices, after all.” He saw the smug look on all of the kids and laughed.
“Alright, alright. Calm down, little detectives,” Shinichi said with a smile. “It’s not like I’m going to confess my undying love to Hakuba-kun right now. I should get to know him further first.”
“But you like him, right? That’s so cute, Shinichi-nii-chan!”
Genta nodded enthusiastically.
“Yeah! And he’s really cool too! You two would make a great team.”
“Hakuba-san is very intelligent. If you’re interested in him, I’m sure there’s something special about him.” Mitsuhiko said.
Shinichi couldn’t help but laugh.
“You kids are really something. But let’s focus on getting home first, okay?”
“Okay!” The children happily skipped their way home as Shinichi laughed and just followed them.
