Well this situation was something special. Normally one wouldn’t go around mistaking people for Shinichi. Yamato wondered if he had been working too hard to make him see strange things.
However, the other didn’t seem to be related to Shinichi other than having a similar face… and voice. It was certainly a bit scary how identical the two looked.
“Sorry. I mistook you for my comrade for a second there.”
Yamato bent down to help Kaito pick up the fallen items. It was partially his fault for running into the other after all. Still, it was rare for Yamato to be so clumsy like this; but then again, he hadn’t been himself lately. What a fool he was.
Extending his hand, Yamato held out the book he had picked up, for Kaito to take.
“I’m Yamato Hotsuin, a detective."
Of course he wasn’t only a detective. That was only for the public to know. Yamato was also the chief of JP’s and…. too many other things.
"That’s right- I haven’t seen you around here before. Are you new here perhaps?”
“Detect–”
Another one?! Seriously? What were the odds of Kaito meeting another cop after he had just met, his roommate, Charlie? Another guy in blue, a teen as well. He was honestly surprised by this outcome, but tried not to question it. He should just play along to avoid suspicion.
Okay. He sharply inhaled and then smiled. Quickly taking the book the other had picked up for him to clean up. His heart was pounding rapidly, but he tried to play it cool. There was something his dear father told him for situations like these, wasn’t there? Ah yes;
[ Always keep your poker face. ]
“Yeah.. I’m pretty new here, alright. Moved in here a few days ago, actually. It’s… uh…” He continued picking up the books that were scattered on the floor and placed them back in the bookshelf. “Nice to meet you, Yamato. Or should I say Hotsuin?”
Haha, awkward already. Somehow, Kaito never did well dealing with cops. Although, detectives on the other hand…
No, now was not the time to be thinking of that detective.
“But a detective, huh? Aren’t we the same age or something?”
School was one of those places which was especially dull to Yamato. Even though he attended classes during the first month or so after moving to the city, he soon found it boring and useless. He preferred being in the real world among those who were similar to him. Besides, there was a lot more action and adventuring waiting in the outside world, compared to the tiny place which was school.
Every once in a while Yamato would be told that he was trying to grow up too fast. Though honestly, he could care less about these things. He simply didn’t have enough time for both school and work. Hence you normally wouldn’t see him around the school, but today was different. He was working on a case which involved a visit.
Yamato ended up at the back of the school library with a pile of files to read through. It would take at least a few hours to shift through everything. About an hour in, he was about a quarter done with the files. He decided to return the ones he had already gone through to their original places.
Yamato picked up the files and made this way to the cabinets on the other side of the room, navigating through several bookshelves on his way. Making a turn, he ran into someone too concentrated on reaching a book located on the highest shelf, stopping too late. Yamato managed to stay standing up, but several files ended up falling to the floor.
“Ah, sorry."
He glanced at the person only to find a familiar looking face.
"Shinichi? No, that’s not right… who are you?”
“AAAA–”
Too late. The books came crashing down and even though he tried to catch them, he failed in actually doing so and got hit by the literature instead. It severely distracted him and it wasn’t until later that he noticed Yamato by his side, who apparently apologized.
Oh, right. Say sorry to him for not paying attention and–
“Heh?” For some reason, that was all he could let out when he heard a name he thought was very familiar. Shinichi… Shinichi Kudou? Maybe his own lone existence (he hadn’t seen the detective in about 9 months after all), made him somewhat delusional. He couldn’t be missing the mentioned boy that much, right?
“My name is Kaito… Kaito Kuroba.” God, this was awkward. Perhaps the famous detective was even known here and that is why the other made the mistake. Part of him hated that, but if faced with a reality check; Kaito probably did miss the detective from time to time, cosplaying him and teasing Conan and all. Duh.
“Uh…” The boy awkwardly shuffled and crouched down a little. “I would ask who you are in return and stuff, but let me pick up these books first.”
