AN~ So quick note, this is the first time I've ever written for this pairing or even this show in general. This is definitely for ShinRan. And another thing I just want to add. I know Hattori is from Osaka so maybe is on the wrong team but shhhh . . . .

~PurpleLlamanator

Disclaimer: I do not own Detective Conan/Case Closed. If I did we would have closure for this incredibly long series

Interview Mania

Chapter 1: The Interview

This was it. This was how he'd go. Life as he knew it was officially over and he would never be able to come back from this.

His days of being in the spotlight and on tv were done. Never again would he be able to show his face on a carpet event or even the playing field- which would be hard considering who he was and what he did for a living.

He'd work all of that out eventually.

Well, that's what he told himself. Deep down he knew there was nothing he could do.

There was no way he, Kudou Shinichi would be able to hide from this forever. One of the best athletes of his time and just maybe the best player for the Tokyo Spirits; he couldn't just disappear.

Sadly, there are things that not even fame can help with. In this case it happened to be a burden. It made him wish that he wasn't always in the spotlight because of who he was. It made him wish he were still a kid where only his school watched him play and not his entire country. It made him wish he were a nobody.

Because who would care if a nobody declared his somewhat stalkerish love for a celebrity? Nobody. Nobody would care but since it was said by another celebrity on live television. . . Well, turns out everybody cared.

He should've known something like this would happen the moment Suzuki Sonoko set her sights on him. Shinichi was already terrible with public events and interviews as it was. That's why he rarely did them. He was a soccer player, damn it! Not a talk show host. But his manager had already told him that yes, even the great Kudou Shinichi had to spare some time for the press. Why he chose to actually acknowledge Suzuki instead of one of the many other reporters clamoring for his attention, he'd look back on forever and never understand.

Suzuki Sonoko was, like him, one of the best in her field. She was a very popular reporter that got her fame from exposing celebrity secrets and lies to the public. Of course doing so, she had made some enemies but there was no doubt it had boosted her career incredibly. In fact she was now the host of her own tv show where she would interact with celebrity guests daily. Instead of emptying out famous people's dirty laundry for the public, she would interview them one on one and have themselves empty out their dirty laundry for the public. She said it was to make them more human.

Whatever that meant Shinichi didn't care. He had heard enough about her to know she was not one to take lightly. He'd seen some of her more recent interviews and he knew she was good. She even got the famous actor Kenzaki Osamu to publicly announce his secret love affair on his own. That had been the talk for weeks.

So he knew she was dangerously good at her job but that still didn't stop him from talking to her. If he had to blame it on anything he would probably do so on his arrogance. After all what did he have in his life that was a secret? He certainly didn't have any secret love affair for her to expose. Honestly, what could she do to him?

Apparently the answer was a lot.

For what felt like the thousandth time, Shinichi was replaying the events of last Saturday. It had been an annual rewards ceremony for athletes so naturally his team and himself were among the guests. He himself along with some of his friends had nominations so there was no way he couldn't show up.

The limo he had being driven in with the rest of his team had pulled to the entrance of the carpet. Before the door even opened he could hear the cheering and screams from the crowds; could even see rapid flashes reflect off the windows. It was nothing new. Just a regular day in the life of Kudou Shinichi.

The door opened and he stepped out of the car, and instantly the cameras were on him flashing with the loud obnoxious shutters. It had taken some time for him to get used to that. Basically being blinded the moment he exited the car. Now he could just plaster on his usual smirk and wave acknowledgingly to the crowd as he slowly walked by, stopping every once in awhile for a photo or to speak with a fan.

He never once minded the fanatic fans or the frenzied reporters. In fact there was never not enough time to stop and give a quick comment. He did have a reputation to upkeep along with a fan club that was solely dedicated to him.

So seeing the flock of reporters from various news stations awaiting him, he didn't have any fear as he walked towards them. They were all calling his name and shoving microphones and recorders in his face as they all asked different questions at the same time. Again, this used to overwhelm him but it rapidly became something he got used to after numerous post game interviews and such.

Something he was not used to however was gossip news. Whether it was arrogance or stupidity- call it what you will, when he was pulled to the side by Suzuki Sonoko, his first reaction hadn't been to run in the opposite direction. Even after all he knew and heard about her, it didn't cross his mind. Like he said- he had absolutely nothing to hide.

"Kudou-san!" It was like she had a sensor that honed in on him the moment he was in her vicinity. Like the mad reporter she was, she had snagged his arm with a determined and excited glint in her eye. She was dressed to the nines like much of the other celebrities at the event. Probably because she had exclusive access to walk along the carpet to question whomever she desired to. Or whomever was suicidal enough to agree to her interviews.

"I'm here with a live crew with Interview Mania! Would you be willing to spare a few moments to answer some questions?" She was giving a dazzling smile but after having watched the reruns of the interview, he now knew it was anything but. Malicious and pure evil was more like it.

A smirk of his own slid on his face and his hands tucked into his pockets casually. "Sure."

"Thank you so much," she said too fast for there really to be any gratitude to be heard from it before she turned to her camera crew. "For those just tuning in for the first time, Suzuki Sonoko here on the red carpet where we are able to speak with Kudou Shinichi-san live! Thank you again for allowing us to interview you! How are you doing this evening?" she turned back to him but this time angling the mic his way.

"I'm well Suzuki-san and it's no problem at all. How are you?"

So far so good. Just give the casual smirk here some cheeky comments there and it'll be a wrap.

"I'm very well," the reporter almost said too happily. "And I imagine my viewers are as well, considering we were able to get an interview with the great Kudou Shinichi-san!" She smiled back at the camera with a twinkling laugh.

Again, after seeing this on repeat on every news outlet in Japan, he understood what she did better now. Just like him, she was playing to what she knew he expected and would like to hear. Whatever it would take to hide the fact she was about send him a curve-ball.

Of course it would've been more beneficial to know that then, but since he did not he only thought it was nothing he hadn't heard before.

"I appreciate that but I'm only as great as my team. When you're out there on the field you need to rely on more than just yourself." It was something he said and mentioned all the time but he couldn't stress enough. He knew how good he was, of course, but he also knew how good his team was. He didn't much like taking the credit for his whole team's success.

"Humble as always," she grinned. "Well introductions out of the way, this is supposed to be an interview so we do actually have some questions," she suggested and he only nodded for her to continue. "It's only a few as we don't want to hold you up too long," she winked with a chuckle.

"So I think we can all agree that you had an amazing season last year, seeing as you guys were able to bring home the trophy. Is there anything specific you need to do before a game? Any pre-game ritual?"

"Honestly, before we go out there it's just a team huddle. I remind myself of how hard we trained. I remind myself of all the people rooting for me- my friends and family, my fans. Just wanting to do my best and give everybody a game worth watching."

Suzuki grinned. "Well you guys definitely didn't disappoint last year! Any game that was your particular favorite of the season?"

"Well, I know we're rivals and at risk of having a mob of enraged fans, probably our last game against Osaka," he chuckled. "It was a good game and it was really close all the way to the end. They're really worthy of being a rival- just a great team all around."

"Oh well we'll see how well that comment is received by Tokyo's fans."

"There will probably be rumors flying around that I'm moving to their team or something crazy like that," they both laughed as he said the words.

"Well speaking of rumors, what do you think is the craziest thing you've read about yourself?"

"Oh there are so many! If I had to pick one though," he trailed off racking his brain for something that they had tried to pin him with. "There was this one magazine that supposedly had all the details with my secret love affair with Kuroba." He had to repress the urge to shiver in disgust at that one.

"Kuroba Kaito-san?! You're teammate?" she was trying to speak through her giggles.

"Yep. I don't get what's up with the media wanting me to be in some affair with one of my teammates let alone how they pinpointed Kuroba. In fact that stuff just calmed down and I'm probably restarting it by mentioning it so we should probably drop it," he joked though he was being half serious. He could deal without another panicked call from his mother of how she had to meet Kaito and why he never told her.

"We can handle that problem easily!" And just like that the careless laughter in her eyes disappeared and in its place was a devious glint.

He was going to regret this. He could feel it in his gut.

"Is there anyone special in your life you'd like to mention? We noticed you didn't arrive with a date."

"Ah, no it's just me," he tried to say casually but he should've known that wouldn't be good enough.

"You're single?!" He couldn't tell if the disbelief in her voice was genuine or not.

"Uh, yep."

"But you have a fan club. Would you ever date a fan?"

Oh this was going in a direction he was not expecting.

"I think it would depend on the circumstances."

At this point, he was stumbling over his words almost. She was asking her questions back to back- so fast there was barely a pause between them and his answers. It didn't allow him the time to think over his responses before he gave them. And that was when he finally realized that was probably her tactic. That didn't stop her questions from getting crazier than the last.

"Would you ever have sex with one?"

He broke composure and his mouth dropped open. "Uh. . . What-?" At first he just stared at her, stunned, and also giving her an opportunity to correct herself. That had to be worded wrong. A second after staring at her dumbfounded however, he realized it hadn't been. She was serious.

"S-same comment."

Suzuki almost looked like she was pouting. Because clearly he wasn't going to flat out say how he felt about the whole thing. He was still amazed she was comfortable asking him those types of questions. He was an athlete! What did these questions have to do with sports?

"Do you have anybody in mind?"

Well. . .

"Uh. . . "

"There's nobody out there? If you could literally pick anyone you wanted?" Not giving him a chance to say much of anything past a few stutters of denial she said, "Come on. You're young; handsome."

And then suddenly someone was grabbing his shoulders from behind and then another arm rested around his shoulders. Glancing around him quickly told him it was his team.

And his gut just sank. He had a feeling it would stay there for the rest of the night.

"Of course he does!" Kuroba said with his arm still slung over his neck and soon Hattori was on his other side with the rest of his team crowding behind. A resounding of snickers went through the group excluding him and the clueless reporter.

"Oh really?" Suzuki said excitedly and with a triumphant grin.

"Sure does! Don't ya', Kudou?" Hattori added and Shinichi took a second to send him a warning glare. Hattori only smirked.

"And who is this lucky girl?" He was sure anybody could hear the impatience in her voice. The reporter wasn't doing much to conceal that and she obviously wasn't going to let it go unless he responded.

He was just as stubborn though, if not then more so.

"There's nobody," he said way too quickly and he knew not even the viewers would believe that. He didn't care though. All he wanted to do was end this interview and get away from this insane reporter. He'd already decided he would never to do a live interview again.

The entire team groaned but he didn't miss the way they also were still smiling and holding him there so he couldn't walk away.

"What? Then why did we get you that gift?" Hattori asked, feigning hurt while also shooting a quick glance to Kuroba.

Shinichi elbowed his teammate in the side discreetly. "Hattori," he whispered harshly.

Still, he held onto hope. They were his friends. They wouldn't go that far.

"Yeah," Kuroba nodded after catching on to what Hattori was doing. "We waited hours to get you that model's signature. We even got her to kiss it with lip stick."

Okay, so maybe they would.

"Model?!" Suzuki didn't know who to give the mic. She was bouncing between Kuroba and Hattori now, completely disregarding his own answers.

"Yeah, I think it was that Nee-chan that did one of the spreads for Chris Vineyard's Angel line! What was her name again...?" Hattori trailed off unsurely and now Shinichi was gritting his teeth. It was all an act. His whole team knew her name and he was regretting ever telling them anything.

Kuroba acted like he was thinking hard. "It was something cute. A Reina-chan or maybe Ran-"

"Mouri Ran?" The reporter cut him off.

"That's it!" Hattori and Kuroba said at the same time Shinichi yelled, "No!" At this point, he didn't know if he meant that as a denial or disappointment that they figured it out. Sonoko tuned him out.

"Mouri Ran-san," she repeated excitedly and seemed to be glowing. "You're interested in the model, Mouri Ran-san?" she asked with emphasis on the model part. As if wanting to make sure there could be no misunderstanding later. As if there were any other famous Mouri Ran you could get her confused with.

"No!" Shinichi denied adamantly and the reporter looked at his teammates again for confirmation because apparently at this point his word didn't matter anymore.

At his denial though, Kuroba pretended to be offended. "What? Then why do you have the poster still in your locker?"

"Yeah! Did ya' lie, man. We worked hard to get that for ya'," Hattori stepped in and Shinichi wanted to face-palm. He could easily see the humorous way their lips twitched up and how their eyes were a light with mirth. They were clearly finding this hilarious.

He tried to calm his expression; tried to hide the panic this had sent him into. "They're just kidding," he said while forcing a grin.

"What?!"

"But you said she was the sexiest girl you'd ever seen!"

All these accusations were being thrown out from multiple people on his team but the last from Kuroba made the flush he had been holding down flare up his neck and to his face.

Shinichi did the only thing he could think to. Deny, deny, deny.

He shook his head rapidly. "T-that's not true. I never said that. They're messing around." And when the accusations kept coming and he got desperate he said, "She's not my type at all."

That pulled an odd reaction out of Suzuki- a defensive one and her eyes narrowed, affronted. "What's wrong with her? Is she not pretty enough for you?" Her arms crossed for a second before she seemed to remember that this was an interview and not just a casual discussion.

Shinichi floundered around desperately for something to say. "Nothing! That's not-!"

Sonoko cut him off. "Do you think she's ugly or something?"

"What?! No!"

"Then what's wrong with her?"

For the first time in the interview, Shinichi stopped just responding. This was taking a turn down something much more worse than just admitting you think a girl is cute. If that model were to see this interview- which she surely would because of how off the rails it went, it would appear like he thought she was unattractive. And between being embarrassed or looking like a complete ass to the only girl he ever really had any interest in, he chose the lesser of two evils.

"Look, nothing's wrong with her. She's gorgeous- probably the prettiest and nicest girl I've ever met," he blurted in frustration and the reporter looked to be calming down after his confession. "If she would accept, I'd very much like to take her out."

Suzuki blinked a bit surprised and all around him his teammates started cheering and hollering. Someone was grabbing him by the shoulders shaking him and whooping while others were just clapping and patting him on the back and head.

His face was scorching and he wouldn't maintain eye contact with anybody. They all sounded like a bunch of idiotic frat brothers tugging and pulling on him. He wanted to get back in his car and leave. Everybody had long since noticed the huge crowd that formed around them of his teammates. It was safe to assume that everybody had heard and even if they hadn't, this would surely be aired on repeat for days.

Quickly getting over her surprise, Sonoko actually addressed the camera this time and smiled cheekily. "Hear that? Sounds like Kudou Shinichi-san just asked you out on a date, Ran-chan!"

Shinichi knew she was joking but he never actually took into account that the model was watching live. She was a model. She wouldn't have any interest in a sport's reward show. . . would she? The thought made him even more flustered and for him it felt like the model was the camera right before him. He didn't know why but the idea of her watching it live was worse than her eventually seeing it online.

Before he could open his mouth to say he was done with this interview, Suzuki was already speaking to him again. "Well, it looks like that's all the questions we have. Thank you again for joining us and as for the other thing-," she snickered. "Let's just say you may be in business. A certain someone happens to be a very close friend of mine so, I'll make sure to put in a good word for you." Though she whispered the last part, it was clearly meant humorously considering she spoke it all into the microphone.

Then giving him a wink, she was off to find some other unsuspecting athlete. There was no relief however, even after the cameras were long gone and away from him. That interview had felt like it went on forever- so much so that he completely forgot the fact that he wouldn't be going home right away. He still had an award ceremony to sit through and since he was nominated for a few, he very well could be dragged on stage for a speech or two.

And he had been. He had been pulled up numerous times to speak and not all of them were with his team or other players. The news had spread quicker than he thought it would. Already the host and other presenters were making sly jokes or comments about his interview. Every time he would sink ever so slowly into his chair to make himself smaller. That wouldn't mean much considering he just knew they would be pointing the camera directly at him to gauge his reaction.

He was so embarrassed by the jokes that he eventually became furious. He was angry at that brazen reporter and her scandalous questions and he was even angrier with his team for giving her what she wanted. Where as he thought he would be enjoying himself, he ended up leaving the after party early. He couldn't bare to hear another joke so he knew there was no way he'd be checking his social media tonight.

He wouldn't be able to hide forever. He still had a life and though the season hadn't quite started, he still had strict training and practice hours to attend in preparation. Sadly, most of those were spent in the company of his teammates that still enjoyed teasing him over the whole ordeal.

"Did any of you see the news? They're still talking about it."

Shinichi could hear the giddiness in Kuroba's voice but refused to turn around. Instead he reached into his locker grabbing his jersey.

He felt Hattori next to him and heard him jerk open his own locker to change. "I know! They were placing bets on which poster he has of her." The whole locker room erupted with laughter and Shinichi slammed his locker shut.

"You guys are assholes," he grumbled.

He couldn't believe almost a week later and people were still talking about it. He knew they didn't mean the actual daily news but pop news channels. It was still mortifying. They probably thought he was a pervert considering the whole poster thing. And that had been a joke. His friends knew he thought she was cute and with the intention of embarrassing him, they went to one of her signings and got one. He never asked them to get him one like they had clearly been suggesting.

Cheeks turning a healthy red, he began tying his shoes roughly from irritation.

"Dude, you need to relax," Nakamichi said. "It's not that big a deal."

"Yeah, if anything we were helping you out," Kuroba shrugged.

They thought that was helping him out?

Shinichi's jaw clenched. "She probably thinks I'm a creep because of you guys! How the hell was that helping me out?"

"Really, Kudou?" Hattori asked sarcastically. "It was an award ceremony for sports. Ya' really think a model was watchin' that? And it was helpin' you out because clearly you weren't ever gonna to do anything about it."

Kuroba nodded, agreeing. "No offense but you did need to man up."

"Yeah well if I did have any chance, you guys just blew it," he glared while grumbling under his breath.

"Not how I see it. We either got ya' a hot date or on the downside, some mild embarrassment and you'd have the same exact relationship with Mouri-san ya' already have- nonexistent." Hattori shrugged. "I don't know about ya' but I'd say that was worth the risk."

Shinichi wanted to be angry with him but sadly he could see his logic.

"But again, that's only if she saw the interview. There's been no comment from her and according to those stupid reporters she's currently overseas. By the time she comes back, this'll whole thing probably will have blown over already. Ya' got nothing to worry about, man." Hattori reiterated while closing his locker.

Shinichi sighed in relief before nodding.

"Although, maybe she hasn't made a comment because she's trying to talk directly to you," Nakamichi suggested and Shinichi froze.

He hadn't thought of that possibility. Instead, he had been too afraid and embarrassed to look at his phone, turning off all notifications except for call and text. It was true though. Even if it had been indirectly he still technically asked her out. She didn't have his phone number though so it would have to be through his Twitter or something similar- basically one of the notifications he turned off.

Safe to say she hadn't reached out to him. Like he suspected there to be, there was nothing but a bunch of jokes and, unsurprisingly, a bunch of messages from his mother to call him- which he would not be doing.

After a few more days passed and still nothing, Shinichi began to think that maybe he had been overreacting. The news had already moved on, now deciding to focus on Okino Yoko's sudden engagement and soon even his teammates let it go. There still had been no known comment from Mouri and he took that as God having pity on him and that she never even saw the interview to begin with.

That relief was short lived.

"Looks like that's it for us tonight. Be sure to stay tuned for Interview Mania with Suzuki Sonoko-san."

Shinichi groaned. "Please turn that crap off," he grumbled. Everybody else may have moved on but he still got sick anytime that reporter or her show got mentioned. Him and his team were currently in their lounge after a late practice relaxing. He would usually read while they watched TV but he just knew he wouldn't be able to concentrate the moment he heard that Suzuki's overtly cheery and devious voice.

He was being harsh but the whole thing was a sore spot for him still.

For once it actually looked like his friends would take pity on him. Remote raised and searching through the guide for something more entertaining, the two hosts continued speaking.

"I'm actually going to be watching this one myself tonight. The guest star tonight is Mouri Ran-san!" The hostess said, clearly excited.

Everybody in the room froze.

"What?!" The other host began laughing as if it were the funniest thing he ever heard. "Oh my gosh, this is going to be good. Don't you dare change it!" The host actually pointed at the camera comically and Shinichi got the sense that even they were making fun of him.

Oh god, was all Shinichi could think before his entire team turned to face him, each one with devious smirks. Closing the guide and turning up the volume, Kuroba dropped the remote in his lap, all the while making eye contact with him.

At this point, he knew there was no use in complaining or asking them to change it. He knew they wouldn't and yet he didn't leave. He decided it was because if they happened to address his oh so embarrassing interview, he'd want to hear it himself and not through the jokes his friends would bombard him with. That and that he liked her so he did actually want to watch now- which he would never admit to Kuroba and the rest of those idiots.

Truth be told, he honestly did want to hear her reaction about it. Was she flattered? Angry? Creeped out? This would be his chance to find out because there was no way Suzuki wouldn't be bringing him up. She even said that she was friends with the model which he was now figuring she mentioned because she knew she had an interview with her coming up.

While the intro of the show played, Kuroba was rubbing his hands together excitedly.

Hattori on the other hand chuckled nervously. He actually seemed apologetic and Shinichi realized he really did believe that Ran would've never saw that interview. He also must've realized the chances of Sonoko not bringing it up were extremely low.

Once the show began and Sonoko introduced herself, Shinichi felt his heart speed up. "Tonight our guest has walked on runways around the world. First coming to fame as Miss Japan and then soon after bringing home the title of Miss Universe, she's dabbled into some small acting rolls and continues to be one of the most renowned models in the world. Please welcome my best friend, Mouri Ran!"

All at once, the audience erupted in applause and the camera panned over to show Ran walking on stage. She was smiling and waving at the crowd happily before Suzuki pulled her into a tight hug where they were laughing and saying things into each others ear that the mics weren't able to pick up clearly. The crowd finally quieted when the two sat and Shinichi swallowed hard.

God, she looked good.

"Oh my gosh, I've missed you! How have you been?" Sonoko questioned as she settled in her seat with her reference cards.

"I've been good- tired but good," Ran laughed. "It has been awhile though. I feel like I haven't seen you in ages."

"I know! I had to set up an interview just to see you," the host joked before addressing the audience. "Not many of you know this, but we went to school together. This is my best friend since cherry blossom class."

Oh, he was in trouble. That just solidified the panic attack he was about to have.

Their conversation at that point went smoothly. They were more than halfway through the show and neither of them mentioned his name. He was beginning to think that they wouldn't be addressing it which he didn't know was a good or bad thing. Even Kaitou appeared to have lost interest and seemed to be bummed out. Then Suzuki decided throw out one of her famous curve-balls within the last six minutes of the show.

"So I also recently heard that you are considered to be the sexiest woman in the nation."

Oh god. Here it was, he thought as remembered his old interview.

But Ran didn't make the connection. Instead her mouth fell open and her cheeks tinted a light pink. "I- What? I wasn't aware that was a thing," she laughed.

Sonoko waved her off. "It's not but I know someone who thinks so," she admitted casually. It was like she was fishing for a reaction but Ran wasn't giving her the one she wanted.

"Uh... Thank you?"

"It wasn't me!" Sonoko laughed along with the audience. "Though if that really were a contest I'd vote for you," she winked. Ran just rolled her eyes, already used to her friends antics but smiled no less.

"So," Sonoko started, sounding way too casual. "Enough beating around the bush," she said and Shinichi gulped.

"You know I have to ask. Are you still single?"

She took the question in stride. "I am," Ran admitted easily.

Sonoko jerked forward in her seat looking almost horrified. "Still! After last week?"

If anything, the model looked confused. "Last week?" She clearly wasn't aware of what the hostess was getting at.

Oh, but he and his whole team was.

"At the sport's awards," Sonoko said as if it were obvious. When she saw that it wasn't to Ran, her eyes widened. "You haven't seen it?"

Now Ran looked nervous, her gaze kept moving from the hostess to the camera as if she wasn't sure if this was a planned script. "Um, seen what?" she asked almost meekly.

Suzuki jumped up from her seat startling her.

"Wait, wait, wait!" Sonoko ranted before she tossed her cue cards over her shoulder. "Drop the screen, get the projector- somebody pull up YouTube." The host was shouting orders at her crew and the audience began to cheer because clearly they saw the video she was about to pull up.

Shinichi's mouth dropped open, horrified. So it could get worst, he thought and Kuroba started giggling crazily. "This just gets better and better!"

When the screen behind their chairs at center stage began to lower, Ran looked even more confused. Her violet eyes were flitting around the room nervously as she struggled with what she was supposed to do.

"Sonoko, w-what are you doing?" All formalities were dropped and the model began to rise out of her chair unsurely.

"Sit down, I'm playing matchmaker. Now look at the screen," Sonoko barked and Ran obediently did as she was told.

By this point their lounge room was a riot. His so called friends were laughing and clapping till the viral video was playing on the screen. Kuroba hurriedly shushed them all while turning up the volume though he himself was still snickering adding to the noise.

Shinichi didn't know if he could bare to watch this. He could deal with her speaking about it but to actually see her seeing it for the first time and reacting- that was a lot. Already his face was turning a vibrant scarlet, his limbs getting shaky. All he could be thankful for was that he was seeing this in private and not being bombarded in public. That small amount of relief he felt vanished when he saw the title of the video.

'Kudou Shinichi BUSTED for having Scandalous Poster of Mouri Ran!' 2,539,601 views.

All he could hope for was that the hostess enlarged the frame before the girl could read it because already this wasn't looking good for him. What was wrong with people?! He never admitted to having a poster of her let alone a scandalous one! His eyes narrowed at Hattori and Kuroba.

Unlike when he was doing the interview live, the video was actually quite short. It was only a little more than three minutes and it definitely hadn't felt like that at the time. He didn't much pay attention to the video as he did Ran. He wanted to try and determine her reaction to it but as it was, he couldn't gauge much. Her eyes were still wide and getting wider. Her cheeks were getting darker. She actually covered her mouth in what he could only guess was shock when Kuroba said he labeled her the sexiest girl he had ever met, no doubt finally understanding the joke Suzuki had made before playing the clip.

Other than that, he didn't know how she felt. Clearly she was surprised and really hadn't seen the video before. But under her hand covering her mouth- was she laughing, grimacing? He didn't know. Sonoko was obviously enjoying all of this and her gaze was flitting between the screen and Ran excitedly.

By the time the clip was over, Ran wasn't saying anything and could only look around in shock; as if still wondering if this was all part of a script- maybe some elaborate skit.

Shinichi thought he would be sick. His team was still laughing at the model's reaction. Suzuki was staring at her expectantly and the crowd was silent. She genuinely looked like she had no idea what to say.

"I-is that real?" she finally asked while discreetly looking at the crew off camera, clearly still unsure if this was a joke or not.

Some of the audience members laughed and even a few called out, confirming it was.

"O-oh," she mumbled.

"I can't believe you never saw it! I sent it to you," Sonoko said almost accusingly. "I did you a favor and you didn't even it watch it."

What?

Ran's mouth dropped open. "A favor?" she asked incredulously. "I said he was cute- not harass him!" And then as if realizing what she said, her hand slapped to her mouth again and her cheeks went vibrant. The entire audience gave an initial gasp before they started clapping and jeering and slowly she let both her hands come up to hide her face in embarrassment. All the while, Suzuki just smirked as if she had planned all of this. She probably had.

The lounge room for once was dead silent. Nobody was saying anything and Shinichi was sure he would go into shock.

"Don't play this off," Suzuki laughed. "She's gone to every single one of his games!" She jabbed her finger accusingly at Ran as she addressed the crowd but the model still wouldn't uncover her face. When she finally did, it was barely and instead of covering her mouth she leaned on her armrest using the hand to conceal her eyes.

Her shoulders were shaking and it took him a second to realize she was holding back laughter. She couldn't help it though because her chuckles were leaking into her voice. "Oh my gosh- please stop embarrassing me," Ran groaned. "Soccer players don't watch these kinds of shows do they?"

"Oh, you know he's going to see it," Suzuki waved her off. "Besides- you go to all of his games, he has posters of you," Suzuki shrugged while ignoring the model's plea and the audience laughed again. "I'm just saying- what more can I do?"

Finally uncovering her face completely, she shook her head in disbelief and he could tell her eyes were narrowed the slightest bit at her supposed friend. Even though she was very obviously embarrassed however, there was a small grin on her face.

He hoped it was because they both admitted they liked each other.

"Was this why you asked me to come on tonight?" It was hard to tell if the question was serious or not. From Sonoko's sheepish grin however, it was obvious that it was the reason.

"You're terrible! You bullied him," she said somewhat seriously.

"Are you disappointed?" Suzuki raised a brow challengingly, not at all denying what Ran said.

Ran turned into a stammering mess.

Suzuki smiled victoriously until her eyes glanced off camera and she frowned. "Looks like that's all the time we have for tonight. But before we go I think you owe someone a response. . ." she trailed off mischievously.

"W-what do you mean? He didn't really give me a way to accept."

Suzuki gave her a flat look and nodded towards the camera. As if that weren't enough, she pointed her cue cards as well, as if to say 'after you'.

The model bit her lip as if contemplating if she should continue this craziness. When the audience began to turn on her and started chanting her name, her cheeks flushed. She was so flustered he almost felt bad for her. He would but he'd have to be lying about how happy he was right then. It was impossible to wipe the grin from his face- the grin he wasn't aware he had until just now.

"W-wait! He might not even be watching this," she tried to argue in a last effort and the crowd's demands got louder.

Huffing out a breath, she finally gave in to the crowd's demands and straightened in her chair. Looking directly into the camera she said, "I am so sorry for any inconvenience my friend may have caused you Shinichi-kun," she angled a glare at Suzuki. "But if you're watching this- my acceptance is yours."

The audience went wild, loving every second and Ran's face was so red, he thought it might melt off. Sinking lower into her seat, she covered her face again.

Sonoko was laughing along with the crowd and through chuckles she faced the camera as well. "You heard her Kudou-san! We know you're watching! But that looks like we're done for tonight. I'd like to give thanks to our guest, Mouri Ran, and tune in tomorrow when we greet idol Okino Yoko-san!"

After that the outro music began to play and the beginning of another show began. It didn't matter though because no one in their lounge room was moving. Everybody was still in shock and staring at the screen, mouths dropped open.

Shinichi didn't know what to do. His mind was still trying to process everything that just happened. His heart had yet to calm down and he doubted it ever would. When she had given her acceptance directly to the camera- said his name so casually, it had felt like she was right before him and he could hear his pulse thrumming.

"That's just not fair," Kuroba whispered in awe from his place on the couch. Others on his team nodded in sync but Hattori ignored them and got up to stand near Shinichi.

Still in an odd trance, Hattori was able to sling his arm across his shoulders. He bore an impish grin and he tugged Shinichi closer. "I think some thanks are in order," he hinted deviously.

Normally, he'd be irritated by Hattori's touchiness but it was hard to be anything but a happy bubbly mess in that moment. The girl he had been infatuated with since he met her in person just admitted to liking him back. She wasn't mad. She wasn't creeped out. It was quite the opposite. She liked him.

She likes me.

He had met her a handful of times and each occurrence had been a disaster in his eyes- usually caused by his nervousness from just being around her. Every time he saw her in person he contemplated asking to take her out but after the interview mania, he had lost all hope. But now that he had confirmation that she didn't mind his advancements, that she even preferred them- he was ecstatic.

She likes me, he kept thinking.

Grin stretching wide across his face, he threw his own arm across Hattori's shoulder accepting the closeness. Laughter bubbled out of him before he nodded. "Thank you."

A/N~ So I definitely spent way more time on this than I'm proud of. LOL This was literally sitting in my drafts since I first started reading hislips story Satisfaction Brought it Back. If you haven't read that and love some ShinRany goodness, I HIGHLY recommend checking that out. I was thinking about leaving this as a oneshot but after finishing it I kind of do want to continue this but we'll see. Thanks to anybody that decided to read and made it to the end. This is actually my first time writing for this pairing so I was nervous to post it. Feel free to let me know how I did. Recommendations and CONSTRUCTIVE criticism is welcome and happily accepted. Oh and as for the part referencing KaiShin- that was just something for the fic. I respect all ships so please don't blow up my feed about bashing ships. That is all

~PurpleLlamanator