He didn't know how much time had passed.
Kudō Shinichi woke up feeling utterly miserable. He opened his eyes groggily and found a smiling face staring down at him—dark-skinned, with eyes that held a strange gleam.
"Big brother... what happened to me?" His memory was still stuck at the moment when Hattori Heiji had carried him into the room, frozen in agony.
At his words, Hattori's expression stiffened. He made a gagging sound, visibly disgusted.
"Big brother, are you feeling sick?" Shinichi hadn't realized he'd grown back. He was still using his childish voice.
"Wait—Kudō, stop talking. Look at this first." Hattori pulled out his phone and held it up.
The screen showed a photo. The Kudō Shinichi in the image looked painfully familiar—because it was him. But his clothes were ridiculously undersized, straining against his body. He looked absurd. Ridiculous.
"I'm back to normal?!" Shinichi's head spun. He raised his hand to look at his palm. Definitely not a child's hand.
He touched his clothes. No wonder he'd felt so uncomfortable waking up. Elementary school clothes on a high school body—of course it was unbearable.
But someone had seen him. Taken pictures.
Shinichi's face cycled through shades of pale, then red, then flashes of murderous intent, then deep, deep embarrassment.
Hattori suppressed his gag reflex and straightened up. His expression grew serious. "Kudō. What happened to you? How did you turn into an elementary schooler? And how did you turn back?"
"Can you get me some scissors? I need to cut these clothes off. I can't stand it anymore."
He hadn't even considered taking them off normally. Too tight. The only option was tearing them apart.
"Already thought of that. On the nightstand. Help yourself." Hattori gestured.
"Thanks." Shinichi kept his expression neutral as he grabbed the scissors and started cutting.
When the clothes finally split open, the relief was immense. The suffocating pressure vanished. He felt light again.
"So, are you going to answer my question?" Hattori wasn't interested in his naked body. "How did you end up like this?"
"Sorry. I can't tell you." Shinichi remembered Professor Agasa's warning. He wasn't about to reveal anything about the men in black.
Hattori raised an eyebrow and adjusted his cap.
Silence filled the room.
Shinichi pulled the blanket over himself, not wanting to stay exposed any longer. Hattori seemed lost in thought.
Half an hour passed.
Neither spoke.
"Ugh..." Shinichi groaned, his body beginning to tremble.
Hattori snapped out of it. "Hey, you okay? Should I take you to the hospital?"
"No... I think I'm going to—"
He didn't finish. In an instant, the high school student was gone. Conan lay in his place.
Hattori wasn't as shocked as before, but the transformation was still something to see.
Conan fumbled for his glasses, which had fallen beside the pillow. He panted, face full of disappointment. "I thought I wouldn't shrink back... but I did."
He looked up at Hattori. "Please don't tell anyone about this. It'll put you and your family in danger. And mine too. Please."
"Don't worry. I'm not a gossip."
"Thanks. Also... can you get me some kids' clothes?"
"I'll go ask."
Hattori nodded and left.
A few minutes later, he returned with Koike Fumio.
Koike took one look at the bed—clothes shredded, a naked child lying exhausted and sweaty—and his eyes locked onto Hattori with undisguised suspicion.
Any normal person, seeing an elementary schooler in this state with the only other person in the room hovering nearby, would think the worst.
Hattori noticed. Sweat beaded on his forehead. "Mr. Koike, it's not what you think. I didn't do anything to him."
"I understand. I'll go make a call. I'll bring clothes right away."
"Please—please don't call the police. It's really not what you think. Kudō, explain this to me!"
"Hattori, if you delete the photos you took, I'll vouch for you."
"Fine, fine, I'll delete them." Hattori couldn't refuse. If the police got involved, his reputation would be ruined—true or not.
Meanwhile, elsewhere.
Kurosawa Hoshino and Ran were on the subway, getting off at Beika Station.
As they walked, Kurosawa Hoshino stopped abruptly. Ran, not paying attention, walked straight into his back.
"Hoshino! You're messing with me again." Ran rubbed her nose, convinced he'd done it on purpose.
"No." He turned around, eyes wide, smiling. "I was thinking about something. Spaced out."
"I don't believe you. What were you thinking about?"
"Actually, there's a book I want to find. The Beika Library is nearby. I was thinking of looking for it there."
"What kind of book?"
"Some kind of history book. I can't remember the title. I just want to browse. You coming? Or do you want to head back?"
"Let's go together. I'll see if there's anything good."
"Okay."
"Okay." Ran walked beside him this time, keeping pace. No way she'd give him another chance to pull that trick again.