Hiding In Plain Sight

They're Persistent

The four runaway criminals huddled together in a small room, multiple escape routes planned on the off-chance they were ambushed. Shuichi chewed on his dry packaged noodles, none of them having the ability to cook anything. "I'm sorry," the bluenette muttered through the silence, catching his companions off-guard.

"What for?" Akamatsu asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"What I did before. I shouldn't have tried to kill myself, it was rash and dramatic, and I wasn't thinking straight. We'd promised to talk to each other if any of us felt that way, and I didn't. I'm sorry for putting everyone through that. Now the police found us and I know it's because of me." Staring at the ground, Shuichi nibbled on the last of his snack, a single tear dripping down his cheek.

"I understand, sometimes it seems like the only way out. We're not mad at you Shu," Rantaro smiled, leaning over to plant a brief kiss on the bluenette's cheek.

"As long as you realise that it was a mistake!" Kokichi chuckled in his usual, understating manner. "Can we check your wounds? To make sure they're healed," he asked, glaring at Akamatsu.

"Sure, just do it here," Shuichi mumbled, finishing his food and pulling up his sleeves to reveal the pink, scabbed skin coating his inner arms. Akamatsu attempted to hide her gasp of shock, tears pricking her eyes as she hugged Shuichi. The male allowed his boyfriends to check the wounds, leaning into his friend's embrace.

"I'm so sorry that I didn't notice anything, Saihara. I had my assumptions but I should've said something. I'm a horrible best friend," Akamatsu muttered into Shuichi's shoulder. Shuichi huffed awkwardly, pulling down his sleeves as Rantaro and Kokichi nodded at him.

"It's okay, I tried my best to hide it after all. I'm not going to do it anymore, I'll do my best to get better from now on. Especially since I now have a reason to live," he smiled at the three around him. "Anyway, let's cheer up a bit, okay?" I have to keep them happy, it's the least I could do for upsetting them.

"I'd rather go to sleep," Kokichi mumbled, yawning into his hand.

"I'll take the first watch, Akamatsu, I'll wake you up when it's time to switch. Shuichi and Kokichi, you can both be on watch tomorrow." Shuichi sighed, stretching his shoulders as he unrolled his blanket and curled into a ball, slipping into a deep sleep.

<--o--🩸--o-->

Shuichi's throat hitched as he was shaken awake, opening his eyes to see Rantaro's face hovering close to his own. "Ssh," the greenette put a finger to his lips, repeating the gesture to the other two previously asleep criminals. Kokichi, Akamatsu and Shuichi shared a worried glance, unsure as to what was happening until a strange voice answered their questions.

"They're around here somewhere, keep looking!" Someone shouted, faint footsteps stomping nearby.

"We need to get to higher ground, now. A rooftop would be best," Kokichi whispered, the ground silently crawling around to pack away their belongings. 

"Kokichi, stay down here whilst we get to the roof. If there's a problem, you can fly up, we'll need more time," Shuichi suggested, the group crawling towards the wall.

"That's fair," Kokichi mumbled. Reaching the hole in the wall where a window should be, the four peeked over the edge to see it led into an alleyway, police patrolling the street. Shuichi turned and pointed at Akamatsu before pointing upwards. Understanding the message, the woman vaulted over the windowsill and stuck to the wall, glancing upwards before starting her ascent. If I remember correctly, this building seems older than the others, meaning there should be enough crevices in the walls to act as a ladder.