That Night's Conversation

"Dressed so formally..."

Shinichi Kudo, idly spinning his water glass, happened to look up and saw Ran Mouri approaching under the guidance of a waiter, wearing a fitted formal dress. He froze for a moment, then awkwardly cleared his throat.

Ran Mouri was beautiful. That was an indisputable fact. But when she had truly dressed up, her skirt swaying as she walked straight toward him while looking directly into his eyes...

"Only because you picked a place like this." Seeing his gaze dart away, Ran grew awkward too. "I only found out after asking Sonoko that this seems to be a very high-end restaurant. It must be expensive, right?"

She complained aloud, but inwardly, she was just as subtly flustered.

Bringing up her best friend's advice—well, Sonoko really had told her to dress nicely—could explain her outfit, but she herself knew perfectly well.

—She had dressed up to see him, to hear what he had specifically chosen such a solemn occasion to tell her.

"Don't worry, I brought my dad's credit card." Half joking and half trying to dispel the strange embarrassment, Shinichi pulled a credit card from the pocket of his casual suit and waved it twice between his fingers.

...All right, not just Ran. Hadn't he also stood in front of the mirror for ages, deliberately picking out a suit that would not look too serious while still flattering his figure?

His purpose in asking her to dine at this restaurant, so full of significance, was crystal clear. It was hard to deceive himself about it.

A subtle atmosphere spread between them.

Ran could not help avoiding his gaze as well, changing the subject with a jab. "Using Uncle Yusaku's card to take a girl out to dinner? That sounds like the behavior of some spoiled playboy."

"Parents