Tantei wa Mou, Shindeiru - Volume 8 - Chapter 1.4

 The romcom is a cover story

My encounter with Reloaded had wiped me out. Once I got home, I slept like a rock.

When I woke up, my phone was ringing insistently next to my pillow.

“…Nnuh,” I groaned, mouth dry. “Hello?” I looked up at the clock on the wall. The short hand and long hand were both pointing to the number twelve.

“…Hello?” said a reproachful voice from the phone. It was Natsunagi.

I bolted up in bed.

I’d had plans with Natsunagi that morning, and it was already past the time we’d agreed to meet. I hadn’t forgotten about it, of course; I’d just overslept after an exhausting night.

“So, um. The train was late. I’m on my way over, but…”

“A minute ago, you made a noise like you just woke up.”

Busted, huh? Without hanging up, I headed for the sink.

“I’ve been waiting since eleven, you know?”

“Weren’t we meeting at half past?”

“…I just happened to get here early. Or something.”

Did people normally get to places thirty minutes early by accident?

“Sorry, I’ll be right there. Are you waiting somewhere warm? Stay in a café or something and don’t let any weird guys try to chat you up, okay?”

“There he is: the occasionally overprotective Kimizuka.” Natsunagi giggled. “I’ll be waiting,” she told me, and she hung up. Right then, I got a text from Reloaded.

The text said she was going on a Pandemonium patrol at eight this evening. That was fast; we just met yesterday. I replied that I’d be there if I finished in time. I didn’t know when Natsunagi and I would be done. It was probably better than using the cliché I’ll be there if I can.

I hastily got ready, then left the apartment. Twenty minutes later, when I reached the café near the station where we’d planned to meet, I spotted Natsunagi sitting at the counter through the window. Once she noticed me, she trotted over to leave her cup on the “used dishes” shelf, then came out, pulling her coat on.

“I thought you’d stood me up,” she pouted. Her lips looked a little redder than usual. Her makeup was a bit more striking overall, and the way she was dressed seemed almost like…

“You look really grown-up today.”

“Why don’t you just be honest and tell me I’m pretty?” Natsunagi raised one eyebrow.

“Sorry I was late,” I apologized again.

“It’s fine—just forget it. More importantly, you look…the same as always, Kimizuka.”

Natsunagi gave me a full once-over. Even I admitted that my outfit was nothing special, and I hadn’t styled my hair. I’d been prioritizing speed.

“So about the reason we met up today…,” I started. Natsunagi averted her eyes. “It’s just for fun, right?”

“…Mm, well, yes.”

Even though Natsunagi was the one who’d asked me out, she looked uncomfortable. When she noticed me watching her, she hurried to add, “But I did tell you why, remember? Even if we’re just here to have fun, it’s part of the necessary communication between a detective and her assistant.”

Yeah, I knew that. During those three years, although Siesta and I had carried out jobs and our mission, we’d also played around quite a bit to let off steam. Siesta had usually been the one to suggest it. We were partners whose lives were in each other’s hands, which meant we needed to take time to clear up any friction between us.

When I’d told Natsunagi that old story the other day, she’d said that since we were in a similar situation now, we should make that sort of opportunity for ourselves.

“Come to think of it, we’ve hardly ever spent any time together that’s completely separate from work, have we?”

“Yeah. And even when we had some, we were with Saikawa, Charlie, or Noches.”

That meant I understood Natsunagi’s logic, and I was here because I agreed with it.

However, there was one thing that bothered me.

“Did it have to be today, though?”

This was December 25. Christmas. Everywhere you looked, there were couples, couples, and more couples. At this rate, Natsunagi and I would seem…

“Yes, every day except today was out. I’m booked up for the next five years.”

“What are you, a superstar?”

Yeesh. If she was going to insist that today was the only possible day, then that was how it would have to be.

I stretched lightly. “Okay, shall we go?”

Natsunagi nodded, falling into step on my left in a rather satisfied way.

And then…her right hand drifted up, hovered, then lowered again.

“Did you just start to raise your hand, then change your mind?”

“Weren’t you pretending you hadn’t seen it?!”