Disclaimer: Detective Conan is not mine. This fanfic is a translation.
Enjoy Reading!
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December 25th
The annual health checkup day for the operations unit had arrived once again.
Having already gone through it twice, Ritsu was used to it by now. But after finishing his checkup with his number tag, Akai didn't look so great. It was obvious he'd been thoroughly shaken by the female doctor codenamed Taylors.
"Rye, you don't look too well?"
Of course, he could hear the teasing in the tone. But it wasn't the doctor's "enthusiasm" that had unsettled Akai. Rather, when it was his turn, he had noticed a manga book on the desk. With just a glance at the cover, he was utterly shocked.
Because the cover featured Gin and Macallan.
Macallan's expression looked like the domineering CEO type straight out of a shoujo manga, while Gin's expression… completely shattered his worldview. That faint blush, burned deeply into Akai's mind and refused to leave.
"Hey, she didn't actually do anything too outrageous to you, did she?" Ritsu asked curiously. The two of them were clearly not on the same wavelength.
Akai tried to shake a cigarette out of his pack to calm his nerves, only to notice the no-smoking sign on the wall. With a sigh, he stuffed it back.
"No. Macallan, I have a question for you."
"What is it?"
"Does Taylors have… some kind of unusual fetish?"
Ritsu recalled his first medical exam experience and gave a half-lidded look as he complained, "She likes young, well-built men. Does that count as unusual?"
So it seemed he didn't know about the manga. That meant Gin probably didn't know either… If those two ever found out they'd been drawn like that, they'd probably raze this place to the ground.
That's right, the Organization's resident female doctor, Taylors, was a seasoned BL enthusiast. She liked using the handsome young men in the Organization to indulge her little hobby. Of course, none of those comics would ever be published or she'd die a very unpleasant death.
"I suppose it does."
"You'll get used to it. If she harasses you, just report it to Gin."
"…Got it."
Akai wasn't worried she'd actually do anything to him, he was more concerned about whether he'd end up being drawn into one of those manga next time. Just imagining it gave him chills.
Meanwhile, the very person they were discussing walked over to her computer in high heels. She pulled up two files and compared their results, silently grumbling to herself about why such a wonderful day had to be spent conducting checkups for the operations unit.
Lighting a cigarette, she took out her phone and dialed a number. When the call connected, she brushed back her long hair and said.
"Sir, the one you asked me to observe… is indeed very suitable for that experiment."
There was no immediate response. After about ten seconds, an elderly voice came through, gentle and calm.
"Taylors, send me all the data you have."
"Yes, Boss."
Taylors smiled as she stubbed out her barely smoked cigarette. With a few clicks, she sent the files to a certain email address. After finishing, she heard a faint sound from the other end of the call before quietly hanging up.
Things were starting to get interesting. What kind of surprise would he bring her?
...
The two left the underground hospital together. As they stepped onto the street, snowflakes began to fall.
Akai pulled out his cigarette pack, intending to smoke, but then remembered he had a date with Akemi today, he'd promised to quit. Reluctantly, he put it away again.
Looking up at the gently falling snow, Ritsu frowned slightly. He had just been thinking that his head hadn't hurt this time but suddenly, a sharp pain pulsed at his temples. Lowering his head, he pressed against it hard.
It actually hurt more than usual.
"Fifty-fifty. That makes us even."
That phrase again.
He still couldn't recall the blurry figure. Couldn't there be just a bit more of a hint…? How was he supposed to figure out what his parents looked like like this?
At least give him something more.
"What's wrong?"
Noticing the concern on Rye's face, Ritsu was a bit surprised. Straightening up while holding his head, he said, "Nothing. Just an old problem, my head always hurts when it snows."
"Has it been like that for a long time?" Akai asked.
"More or less." Ritsu didn't want to reveal his situation to someone he didn't fully trust. With one hand in his pocket, he added, "You've got a date today, right? Unfortunately for you, it looks like the number of people on that date might increase."
"What do you mean?"
"Sherry's been locked up doing experiments these past few days, so she hasn't used her chance to see her sister this month. She wants to spend Christmas with her today."
Come to think of it, his original goal in joining the Organization had been to get close to Shiho and gain higher authority.
But somehow, he had ended up becoming Macallan's subordinate and even obtained a codename in a short time.
So why was he still maintaining a romantic relationship with Akemi?
Realizing that his feelings for Akemi might actually be genuine, Akai frowned. That was not a good sign.
"You don't look too happy. Don't tell me you had some private two-person plans… that just got ruined?" Ritsu raised a brow.
"…No. I didn't have any plans to begin with."
"Oh? Then you don't mind two extra third wheels tagging along?"
"Heh, not at all."
"Then why are you following me?"
Ritsu opened the driver's door and said, "My car only fits two people. I need to go pick up Sherry from the lab first."
"…Got it."
Akai suddenly felt like he should buy a car of his own, always relying on others for rides wasn't very convenient.
Watching Rye leave, Ritsu drove toward the research institute. He had been coming here less and less often, but the experiment was progressing quite well. They had successfully obtained a lead compound and had now entered the optimization stage, working to fix its flaws and improve its properties.
This phase would likely take a while, but by next year, they should be able to move into animal testing. At this rate, clinical trials could begin in three to four years.
Pressing his palm against the scanner, Ritsu entered Lab No. 5. Looking at Shiho, wearing a lab coat and seeming a bit taller, he said, "Starting experiments this early for once. Need any help?"
"You're here." Shiho skillfully operated the automated medicinal chemistry equipment and said, "Optimization isn't going very smoothly. The Organization still refuses to let other researchers get involved before the animal testing stage, so I have to handle hundreds, if not thousands, of trials myself."
Holding a reagent, she added in a teasing tone, "After all, someone with the title of associate director seems to spend more time slacking off than working."
Ritsu awkwardly rubbed his nose. "Can't be helped. The operations unit's been busy this year. Once things settle down—"
"Gin came by yesterday."
"What was he here for? To check on the experiment's progress?"
"Seems like he hasn't told you yet." Shiho handed a document to Macallan and said calmly, "You're no longer in charge of APTX-4869. The entire project is now under my responsibility."
"You mean I'm no longer part of the research division?"
"Mm."
He had joined the Organization as a researcher, only to get kicked out. The feeling was… complicated. Life probably wouldn't be easy from here on. As a full-time operations member, most of the mission burden would likely fall on him.
"If you run into anything you can't figure out in the experiments, you can still ask me."
"Mm. Let's not talk about that for now. I'll go change, then we'll leave."
"Alright."
The two left the lab. Leaning against the door, Ritsu thought about what he needed to do next. Gin's decision to fully assign him to the operations unit meant a high level of trust but he wondered when he'd finally get to interact with the Organization's true higher-ups.
"I'm ready. Let's go."
"Mm."