In Detective Conan: Intercepting Miwako Sato at the Start

Page 109

"It's not shameful at all!" Miyamoto Yumi glanced at the other person with a slight tilt of her head. "Takada-senpai, you are so gentle. Ever since I met you that time, I think you have become especially handsome."

"Huh?" Yuki Takada suddenly raised his head and looked at Yumi Miyamoto next to him.

Miyamoto Yumi continued, "Miwako knows a side of Takada-senpai that I didn't know, which makes me a little envious."

"No... what did you say!" Yuuki Takada quickly retorted, "My relationship with Miwako Sato isn't what you're imagining."

Yumi Miyamoto did not immediately refute, but simply watched the rain quietly.

Water droplets along the edge of the umbrella formed a transparent curtain, separating the two people from the outside world.

Miyamoto Yumi unconsciously stroked the umbrella handle with her fingers, and after a while she said softly, "But Takada-senpai, the way you were desperately searching in the rain just now doesn't seem like something an ordinary friend would do."

Yuki Takada opened his mouth, but found himself unable to refute it.

Rain dripped from his hair, spreading dark water stains on his casual clothes.

Yuki Takada suddenly realized that his heartbeat had not completely calmed down.

Even now that they know Miwako Sato is safe, the anxiety is still as clear as the marks left on the beach after the tide has receded.

“I just…” Yuki Takada tried to organize his thoughts, “As Miwako Sato’s superior in the Metropolitan Police Department, it’s only natural that I’m worried about my junior.”

"Really?" Miyamoto Yumi turned her head, the streetlight reflecting dappled light in her pupils. "Then why did everyone else wait patiently in the rest area, while you rushed into the rain all by yourself?"

Yuuki Takada paused for a moment, then said, "No matter who was in this situation during the event, I would have gone to rescue her without hesitation. I would never abandon anyone, including you."

Looking at Yuki Takada's expression, Yumi Miyamoto unconsciously lowered her head and thought to herself.

I said...

Senior Takada, I've never seen you with that expression before.

"By the way, how have you been lately?" Takada Yuuki asked softly, looking at Sato Miwako in front of him. "You know... how were you doing after you had that fever?"

"Nothing much. Oh, right, I haven't had a chance to thank you for what happened last time, Takada-senpai."

Yumi Miyamoto instantly recalled the awkward scene from that day, and her face flushed red: "Thank you, Takada-senpai."

“But seeing you like this, I feel like something’s not quite right,” Takada Yuki said, looking at Miyamoto Yumi in front of him.

"No, no, I was just thinking about the time we were struggling..." Miyamoto Yumi immediately panicked and hurriedly explained:

"that……"

“I have rarely experienced such emotional fluctuations since breaking up with Hideyoshi.”

"I see!" Yuuki Takada said casually.

"I vaguely remember last time, didn't I try to get you, Takada-senpai, to sleep with me?"

"Um... let me think about it." Takada Yuki lowered his head, his thoughts suddenly pulled back to the night after watching the movie with Miyamoto Yumi, it seemed that such a thing really did happen.

Seeing that Yuki Takada ignored her, Yumi Miyamoto casually said, "Haha, that's true!"

"I'm sorry, I asked some strange questions." Miyamoto Yumi stood up from the bench. "I'm really sorry, it was all just my guesses."

"Yumi?"

“The rain is starting to subside.” Miyamoto Yumi took a step forward.

Seeing this, Yuuki Takada immediately stood up, took a step forward with his umbrella, and grabbed her hand, saying, "You'll get wet in the rain like that."

After listening to this, Miyamoto Yumi remained silent for a while, then turned slightly and nestled into Takada Yuuki's arms. "Even when you carried me on your back, I felt a special kind of warmth."

Chapter 131 Yumi Miyamoto Gives a Kiss

"I feel so lonely right now." Miyamoto Yumi continued to lean on Takada Yuki, saying, "When Miwako was around, was it impossible for me to stay by your side in this capacity?"

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry to Miwako..."

"Huh?" Yuuki Takada was immediately puzzled.

"Since Miwako isn't special to you, then, Takada-senpai, could you tell me about things that Miwako doesn't know..."

As she spoke, Miyamoto Yumi slowly rose on her tiptoes and gently pressed her lips to Takada-senpai's.

……

Meanwhile, under the eaves of the pavilion, Miwako Sato was carefully moving her ankle.

The pain had lessened considerably, but what bothered her more were Fujita Maiko's pointed remarks earlier.

"You said you guessed who I'm interested in..." Sato Miwako tentatively began, "What did you mean?"

Fujita Maiko did not answer immediately, but instead reached out to catch the raindrops dripping from the eaves.

Rainwater dripped continuously from the dark gray tiled eaves, splashing into tiny droplets on the stone steps.

Fujita Maiko stretched out her hand, and the cold raindrops fell into her palm, but she was completely unaware of it, only gazing at the scenery outside that was blurred by the rain.

“It means…” she finally spoke, as softly as if she were talking to herself, “Some people are like this rain, seemingly clear, but hiding a depth you don’t know.”

Fujita Maiko withdrew her hand and turned to Sato Miwako, her gaze filled with a complex scrutiny. "Takada Yuuki-senpai, he is far more complex than you see. And you, Sato-senpai, the way you look at him is different from how you look at others."

Sato Miwako's heart skipped a beat, and she instinctively wanted to refute.

A dull pain shot through her ankle, instantly snapping her back to reality.

Sato Miwako steadied herself and tried to make her voice sound calm and even: "I don't understand what you're talking about."

……

Meanwhile, by the bushes at the other end of the streetlight, the sound of rain could barely drown out Miyamoto Yumi's pounding heartbeat.

Her lips touched the water like a dragonfly skimming the surface, then quickly moved away.

Yuuki Takada froze. He could clearly feel the warmth and softness of that brief contact, so different from the icy rain, carrying a hint of the sweet scent of her usual cherry-flavored lip balm.

The fragrance, like a tiny hook, unexpectedly probed into the depths of his memory, attempting to stir up the silt he had deliberately sealed away.

“…Takada-senpai?” Miyamoto Yumi took a half step back, looked up at him, her eyes filled with boldness, anticipation and a hint of barely perceptible fear.

Rainwater dampened the ends of her hair, with a few strands clinging to her cheeks, making her usually bright expression reveal a rare vulnerability.

Yuki Takada fell silent.

He looked at the beautiful face in front of him, but through his blurred vision, he could see Sato Miwako's eyes, which always carried a hint of heroism and focus.

Yumi's kiss was like a sudden flame, burning him with fear. He didn't notice anything unusual when it was there, but once it was gone, everything around him dimmed.

"I'm sorry." Miyamoto Yumi finally spoke, her voice slightly hoarse from suppressed emotion, "Takada-senpai, I..."

Seeing this, Yuki Takada was about to forcefully push Yumi Miyamoto away, but he found that Yumi Miyamoto refused to let go. Under such circumstances, he had no choice but to accept what was happening.

The rain continued to fall incessantly, as if a hole had been torn in the sky, pouring down without end.

The dim yellow glow of the streetlights struggled to create a small, hazy space in the rain. Light and shadow intertwined and shattered on the wet ground, only to be disrupted by new raindrops.

Yuki Takada's back stiffened, as if frozen in an instant.

The unreal, cherry-scented warmth on Miyamoto Yumi's lips had already left, leaving behind a wildfire that scorched his senses and burned through the calm shell he was trying to maintain.

The fragrance was faint, yet it stubbornly lingered around Takada Yuuki's nose, completely different from the refreshing scent of soapberry that he remembered on Sato Miwako.

“I’m sorry… Takada-senpai, I…” Miyamoto Yumi’s voice trembled slightly, mixed with the sound of rain, hitting his eardrums.

She tilted her head back, and the rain and perhaps some other liquid made her eyes appear exceptionally bright, yet also exceptionally vulnerable.

That boldness seemed to have been drained away, leaving only the panic after a desperate gamble.

Seeing that Yuki Takada didn't say anything, Yumi Miyamoto pressed herself against him again.

But now, Yuki Takada doesn't know what to do.

Yuki Takada stood frozen in place, raindrops sliding down his hair and seeping into his collar with a chill that did nothing to quell the burning heat within him.

Miyamoto Yumi's second approach was even more resolute than the first, her hands gripping tightly the front of her dress.

The sweet scent of cherries wafted back, moistened by the rain, lingering on his lips and teeth.

He should have pushed her away—that's what his reason told him, but his body was frozen in place.

Perhaps it was the dreamlike quality of the rainy night, or perhaps it was the desperate vulnerability in Yumi Miyamoto's eyes that touched a soft spot in his heart.

Yuki Takada's heart sank. Almost instinctively, he finally reached out and grasped Yumi Miyamoto's shoulder, slightly widening the distance between them.

"Yumi... that's enough." His voice was hoarse, carrying a weariness he hadn't even anticipated.

Yumi Miyamoto looked up at him, the light in her eyes gradually dimming.

She understood that this rejection was more hurtful than any straightforward word.

"Is it because of Miwako?" she asked softly, her voice almost inaudible in the sound of rain.

Yuki Takada remained silent.

This problem is too complicated for even he to understand.

For Miwako Sato, it was a tacit understanding and appreciation that had grown from years of fighting side by side; it was the unconscious relaxation that came with seeing her; it was the impulse to protect that pure sense of justice.

As for Miyamoto Yumi... this junior who is always full of energy and surrounds you like a little sun, from some point onwards, her smile would also make Takada Yuki feel a moment of warmth, and her approach would also make his heart beat erratically.

“Not entirely.” Yuki Takada finally answered, an answer that was for Yumi, and also for himself.

He released his hand easily, took a step back, and the cold rain immediately filled the suddenly empty space between them.

Without the support of his body heat, Miyamoto Yumi trembled slightly, but she stubbornly refused to look away.

“I’m sorry, Takada-senpai,” Miyamoto Yumi repeated, this time her voice much clearer, with a resigned calm, “I was too willful.”

She forced a smile that looked more like a grimace, turned and rushed into the rain without looking back.

Yuki Takada did not chase after them.

He stood there, watching the figure disappear into the depths of the rainy night, as if the tenderness and chaos of just moments ago were nothing more than an untimely dream.

Chapter 132 Two Women Have a Heart-to-Heart Talk

“Actually, I could tell right away that you have feelings for Takada-senpai,” Fujita Maiko said softly as she sat on the bench.

“Fujita Maiko, you didn’t say anything more.” Sato Miwako blushed and shook her head.

“How should I put it?” Fujita Maiko looked into the distance and said seriously, “It’s like how a younger sister feels when she hears her older sister introducing her to her boyfriend.”