Aftermath

This prompt doesn’t exactly have a ship? I’d like to see Ran and Sonoko helping Shinichi after a case he solved. ( Also I hope you have a good day. Sending virtual hugs if you want 🙂)

Friendship is the best ship. Any ship also includes friendship, or none at all, rather. Thank you. And thank you for the prompt. Not sure if this is exactly what you were looking for, but I tried my best.

Aftermath

In the aftermath of a brutal case, Shinichi stares past the culprit as he’s cuffed and led to the back of a police cruiser. 

Things don’t happen for a reason. Things just happen, one after another, unceasing. He wishes for once things would just stop happening. 

Shinichi shakes his head, and limps towards Inspector Ayanokoji to give his follow up, only to be stopped by one Suzuki Sonoko, who steps in front of him with her arms stretched out as if to block his path. “Oh no you don’t!” she says. Blood mats her hair, her headband stained, and she’s a little bit sooty.

It’s superficial, but Shinichi still winces when he sees it. He wishes the culprit didn't try to take her as a hostage. Then he frowns. “Sonoko, let me by.”  

“You’re going straight to the hotel, Shinichi-kun!” Sonoko says, stamping her foot. 

Shinichi crosses his arms and narrows his eyes. “Yeah?”

“Yeah!” Sonoko says in response, crossing her arms and leaning forward. "Ran's not here to ride herd on you so that means I have to. Annoying."

"Yes, you are," Shinichi grumps, attempting to push past her.

Sonoko pushes herself up on the balls of her feet for more height, and then she hooks her arm around his neck, pulling him down and trapping Shinichi under her armpit.

"Hey!" Shinichi yelps, stumbling, but Sonoko jerks him forward anyway, strong-arming him to one of the Suzuki company cars and shoving him in.

"Get in, loser."

"This is a kidnapping," Shinichi complains, but Sonoko ignores him and gets in behind him, pushing him over and slamming the door.

"This is an intervention," she says, cutting her eyes at him.

Shinichi scoffs.

"Our hotel," she says, before pulling a nail file out and smoothing the rough edges where she'd scrabbled for purchase on the edge of the building. 

They ride in silence until she's done with her nails on one hand, then she picks up the phone. "Ran, get dressed and be in my room in like, five. No, no arguing, this is non negotiable." She hangs up and begins work on her other hand with the file.

Shinichi crosses his arms and stares at her.

Sonoko looks up, and then snorts and goes back to her phone.

"I was fine," Shinichi says finally.

"You're an idiot and you would have been there all night," Sonoko says. "You forget I grew up with you, moron."

"Like abducting me is any better?" Shinichi asks.

"Yes, actually. You should thank me." 

"In what universe?" Shinichi says. Though he might be grateful. Just a little. He's tired and it's been a long day.

Sonoko rolls her eyes, and the car is silent until they arrive back at the hotel, where Sonoko also proceeds to strong-arm him to her room, a small suite.

Which is how he ends up blinking at Ran as she opens the door for them with Sonoko's hand clamped down on the back of his neck.

Ran giggles, and so he lets Sonoko maneuver him to the sofa in front of the television before forcing him to sit down, limp obvious and in full force.

"Look at his ankle, will you Ran?"

"Sonoko!" Shinichi says, annoyed. The last thing he needs is Ran getting worried.

"I'm gonna go take a shower. Behave, Shinichi-kun!"

"I don't even want to be here in the first place," Shinichi says.

"Uh huh," Sonoko says, and slams the door to the bathroom, leaving Shinichi and Ran together in silence.

"Which ankle is it?" Ran says, thankfully no nonsense, grabbing a compression bandage from the first aid kit she brought with her.

Shinichi says, "...Left."

She sits down beside him, pulling his leg into her lap, easing off his shoe, then his sock. It's already swollen. Ran clicks her tongue. "Did you even get this looked at?"

"No." Shinichi's just glad Sonoko's not here to tell her he ducked out from medical. "It's just a sprain."

"It's not 'just' anything," Ran says. "You should take better care of yourself."

Shinichi can't hide his wince as she probes his ankle, then begins wrapping it tightly, but not tight enough to restrict blood flow. The pressure feels good, relieving, and she's done it often enough her movements are steady and sure. He wonders how many times she's done this for karate, and then more darkly, how many times she's done it after getting dragged into a case with him. More than she should have.

Once she's done, she grabs a few pillows from the bed, then moves the coffee table in front of the sofa.

Shinichi doesn't have to be badgered into elevating his foot. 

“I’ll go get some ice after a couple of hours, okay?” Ran says.

"Hope you're decent!" Sonoko calls out.

"Sonoko!" Ran and Shinichi say in unison.

Just then, a knock on the door. "Room service!"

"Oh, goodie," Sonoko says, and comes back from the door pushing a cart filled with food. A big bowl of caramel popcorn and two smaller bowls. There's boxes of candy, water and juice and soda, and even a sandwich tray and fruit tray. "That's kettle corn for you, Ran, and plain for mister plain and boring here."

“Thank you, Sonoko,” Ran says.

“What’s all that for?” Shinichi asks.

“Can’t you deduce it, Mister Detective?” Sonoko says. When he gives her a flat look, she continues, “Movie night!” She waves her hands in a flourish towards the TV. 

“I’m not watching anything with Brad Pitt,” Shinichi says immediately.

Sonoko scoffs. “Considering the ‘audience,’ I brought a selection,” she slams three boxes on the table, two noticibly bigger than the other. Elementary, Enola Holmes, and Miss Sherlock. “I know your detective nerd self wouldn’t watch anything else. Pick one.”

“What about this one, Shinichi?” Ran says. “She’s supposed to be Sherlock Holmes’ sister.”

“He never had a sister,” Shinichi says in half-protest, and apparently that’s enough of a complaint for Sonoko to decide on it and put it in the player while Ran sits down beside him. 

Sonoko grabs the remote and distributes the popcorn and drinks, and then for some reason she sits down on the other side of him, pushing him into Ran with a wink and a nudge, and then she doesn’t move. 

“Sonoko!” Ran scolds, but she laughs and accepts it.

Shinichi’s annoyed with it for all of two seconds, and then he remembers how much she’s gone through today, just for the simple act of being in his vicinity, and lets it go. Sonoko’s good at having a brave face, but he remembers her frightened one all too well, and that’s why he slips a comforting arm around her. Sonoko must need it more than he realizes, because not only does she not say anything about it, she leans into it, resting her head against his shoulder. 

For good measure, he slips his arm around Ran, as well. It’s hard too, to wait, not hearing things for hours and hours. 

“I’m glad you’re alright,” she whispers.

“I’m glad you weren’t there,” he replies. Sonoko shouldn’t have been there, either. Neither one of them should have to deal with the work that’s by now ingrained deeply in his blood.  

It’s not hard to get engrossed in the film, which turns out to be much better than he was expecting. Sonoko’s commentary drops off around the middle of the film, and Shinichi looks down to find her dead asleep. 

He turns and Ran too, has faded, resting her head against his shoulder, all of the stress and anxiety of the day knocking them both neatly out. 

Shinichi’s now being used as a glorified pillow. He can’t say he minds though. They’re both here where he can keep an eye on them. 

Once the credits roll, he shifts just enough to grab the remote and turn the television off. Instead of moving and disturbing them, he just tilts his head back and closes his eyes.

It’s been a long day for him too.