First Draft: November 7, 2006
Completed: January 2, 2007
Last Edited: January 2, 2007

It has been six years since it all started, and with all members of the Black Organisation apprehended, I resumed my identity as the teenage. Life’s good since then, after our degrees in the University, the two of us got married, and will soon be blessed with our first child. I had also joined the police force, an odd choice for a lone wolf like myself, but nevertheless, it serves the purpose, I get to solve mysterious and save lives at the same time. There is also a sense of accomplishment as I lead my own investigation team, people I can trust on and people who believe in me. My superiors just told me that if all goes well, I will be expecting yet another promotion soon. Life’s good so far.

Just like every other day, I now find myself in another stakeout, but this time, I’m not following a suspect or a criminal. Oddly enough, just when I finally got my long-awaited leave approved, Ran apologised and told me that she had to visit her mother’s place to solve a family crisis between her parents. With my initial plan of a simple family drive around the coast cancelled, I found myself seeping on a cold can of coffee inside my two-year-old car.

I put down the half-emptied can of coffee in the cup-holder as the school bell ring. I find myself waiting anxiously for her arrival, and spy quietly through the little rear mirror. She walks out from the school gate together with two of her friends, swinging her school bag in one hand while hugging playfully onto the arm of her female classmates, laughing about something. She looks happy.

It is the life she wants to have, it was the ‘reset button’ she needed to escape from her past life. When she presented me the antidote, she told me that she had only made one for me, and that she wouldn’t be needing it. We lied to ourselves, that it would be better that way, for me to return to Ran, and for her to start anew as ‘Ai’.

I didn’t have the courage then to kill Kudo Shinichi, I had lied to Ran far too long, my guilty conscience was nagging me to fulfil the promise I made to her every night as I phoned her while using a voice-modifier. I knew as well that I had no right to persuade her to come with me, the pain of losing both her family and her life’s purpose were something I could not share with, I had no choice but to watch her walk away. A slow step at a time, as if waiting for a signal to tell her the pill had been thrown into the bin or crashed in my palm.

Ever since then, Agasa officially adopted her into his family, and reintroduced me in front of the others to her, a girl who had been of a great help to both Agasa and a boy named Conan, who unfortunately had to migrate to the States where his parents were. It was a new beginning for both of us, but we knew our age differences were something that would not approve of any relationship between us, and we now both have our own lives to live. We slowly broke contact with one another, another attempt for us to escape from the pain.

Taking one last look at her, I shift my vehicle to the first gear. She’s a smart girl, any longer and she will take notice my presence. It’s best for us to remain as it is, at least for her sake.

-

As the car rolls out slowly as discreetly as it could, the girl in the mirror suddenly skips to a halt. With the image of Ai slowly leaving the frame of the mirror, she hesitantly turns to return his gaze. Forcing himself to look away, Shinichi presses gently on the accelerator, bringing the car to a gradual increase of speed, putting the distance between them.

Watching the car speeding away, Ai presses one hand lightly against her bag. Feeling the budge from the bag, Ai traces the outline of a small metal case with her fingers, within it holds an expired pill, one of the pair she made six years ago.