𝐁𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐋𝐄 𝐒𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐒

file 030 | never meet your heroes

"Heiji." His head popped up to look at Suzume, who nodded her head towards the doors of the restaurant. "Can I talk with you? Alone?"

He nodded immediately and waved a hand at Otaki, who watched them leave with a curious expression. Heiji blew into his hands as they stepped outside, rubbing them together.

"What's up?" he asked.

She pursed her lips as she tried to figure out what to say. "I don't know if I can work this case with a clear head," she told him, making him blink in shock. "If you haven't already gathered, Ray Curtis is one of my idols. When I was on my school's soccer team, his matches were all I ever watched."

Heiji listened with a slowly growing frown. "Conflict of interest," he murmured.

"Yeah." She nodded, looking regretful and apologetic. "I'm sorry about...all of this."

"What do you mean by that?" he asked, though he had an idea of what she was referring to.

She let out a humorless chuckle. "I'm the Shinigami of the Japan police," she said tonelessly. "Death goes wherever I go, and then I end up having to help the police solve the crime that happens when I'm around and I know that I can be an inconvenience and a smartass and—"

Heiji just pulled her into a hug, making her shut up and practically freeze. He soon felt her bury her face into his neck and wrap her arms around his torso. He rubbed a hand up and down her back to try and comfort her, feeling her shoulders shake slightly. Her breathing stuttered when she breathed in and her hands tightly gripped his shirt.

It took a few minutes of them standing like this before Suzume could calm down a little. She was the first to take a step away and break the hug, rubbing at her eyes. He watched her in concern as she avoided making eye contact.

"I've kept you away from the case for too long," she said with a sniff, her voice heavy. She smiled sadly. "Let me know what you find?"

"You gonna be okay?" he asked instead, frowning.

She nodded. "I'm gonna call someone," she said. "Someone who...won't judge."

He was reluctant to leave her, but he could see Otaki step out of the restaurant from the corner of his eye, waving a hand at him. "Alright."

~ — — — ~

When he got her text, he wasn't expecting to find her outside the brand new restaurant that was being opened. Of course, he had heard over his police scanner that there had been a murder there, but he had hoped that Suzume wasn't involved. He was proven wrong when he got a text from her asking if he could stop by her location so they could talk.

Hikaru walked over to the bench Suzume had situated herself at and took a seat beside her. They sat in silence for a minute before he spoke up.

"What's going on?" he asked quietly, giving her a concerned glance.

She swallowed. "Remember when I used to watch soccer all the time?" she asked, and he nodded. "Well, Ray Curtis is one of the murder suspects, and I felt my objectivity would be compromised because of how I look up to him as a soccer player and a goalkeeper."

He hummed. He had almost forgotten that Suzume had been a midfielder and a goalkeeper, just like Curtis. In the handful of years that he knew her, she always looked up to him since they played the same positions.

"So, you withdrew yourself from the case," he summarized. "What's got you in a funk like this, though?"

"Heiji was the one to invite us to the opening, and I feel bad that I can't be there and help him with the case," Suzume answered, fiddling with her fingers. "He always looks forward to working cases with me, so..."