Chapter Twenty-One: The Poisoned Apple (Part II)

Third Person's View

While Hayley talked to Sato about what happened, Ran just keeps on glancing to the unconscious Shinichi while she's sitting on the sofa. Hands were clasped together on her lap.

Sato and Hayley came back to the room after the discussion. The feeling that Sato felt earlier was still there, even when she talks to her. It feels like something was hidden on the beautiful gem in front of her.

"Can you leave me for a moment with Jimmy?" Hayley asked and everyone reluctantly nodded.

Ran couldn't fought Hayley so she just did what she was told to do.

"Stop," she said that made them stop and looked at her. "Everyone will leave the room except for the teenage girl with the old professor."

Ran was curious but she didn't say anything. She leaves the room with the professor.

As they closed the door, Hayley's aura changed and smirked to the girl in front of her. Haibara is crossing her arms while looking at Hayley boringly.

"What is it now?" Haibara asked.

"Where is the antidote?"

Haibara rolled her eyes. "Excuse me. You just asked for it a couple of hours ago. Do you think it would finished that fast?"

"So, you're doing it?"

"Of course, idiot," Haibara replied and frowned.

Hayley smirked. "You're still loyal to your organization, huh?"

"It was not like I am really still loyal to the organization. I'm just protecting someone and everyone from you."

Hayley's smirked faded. "So, you're doing this for the sake of everyone?"

"Yes," she replied.

Hayley scoffed. "You're really dumb to risk your life for others. Can't you just save yourself by doing what I told you?"

"You can't decide what I want to decide. It's my free will and you have nothing to do with it."

"You'll do it for the sake of your love ones, aren't you?"

She shrugged off her shoulders as if there's no heavy burden onto her. "It's fine though even if I risk my life for them."

"They said, 'Live for once.'."

"Yes, I live once but I could do something I would never regret," she said to her that made Hayley frowned and she suddenly think.

What will I never regret as I live once?

~~~

"Ran-san," Sato called as she looked at Ran who's walking back and forth with her eyes shaking and her fingers fidgeting so reluctantly. She looks super tense. "Ran-san," Sato called again but she wouldn't even budge to look. She seemed so out of her own world. Her expression was still the same and she still walked back and forth. "Ran-san!" she shouted once again and she saw Ran stopped and her shoulders go up.

"Y-Yes?" she stuttered as she glanced at Sato.

She sighed. Never have been Sato thought Ran would be this extremely worried, especiallly to Shinichi and her friend, Haibara.

She walked towards her and placed her hand on Ran's shoulder. She squeezed it lightly. "Relax. I know you're thinking about Kudo-kun's condition. Everything will be fine. I assure y--"

"It's not that, Sato-san," Ran said, lowering her head. "It's about Hayley and her motive," she continued.

That made Sato frowned and curiosity builds up on her core. "What motive?"

Ran looked up at her and smiled. Looks like she tries so hard to send the message to Sato that it will be just fine.

Sato sighed. She can't invade someone's privacy because that's not a job of a police but. It doesn't mean she is disrespectinng the person, she just wants to know the skeleten in the closet.

"Ran-san, I know that smile and you'll never fool me," she said that made Ran's smile turned into a frown. "Well, I don't invade personal privacy but I want to know one thing. Who is Hayley and what is the real connection between her and Kudo-kun? Or perhaps, I may say that what is also the connection between her and Ai Haibara-san?" she asked, her voice turned into a whisper as she asked those questions.

Better be cautious than to be heard by someone else.

"Actually, I know how to answer all of your questions but I could not tell about Hayley and Ai-kun. It's certainly private but when time cones, you'll know." Ran smiled reassuringly.

Sato was really worried to this girl. She's so poor emotionally and mentally and has a lot of tiredness physically. She's hurting herself so badly and it was all of because she's worried.

"That would be certainly fine but the connections between Kudo-kun and Hayley?"

"I never really told you much about it because it would be such privacy for Shinichi but here I go," she said, taking breaths after she continued, "They're lovers ever since college—well, as Hayley thought they were. Shinichi confessed two or three times in front of Hayley one day that he really never loved her and it was all fake emotions when he's here in Japan. I know it's super sad to think that the boyfriend you love would just break up with you and go with another girl.

"I wanted to be selfish at that time because I am his real lover but Hayley don't want me to be Shinichi's girlfriend. She keeps on bothering him here and there, asking for him to come back and leave me alone. That she deserved him more than me. That I'm just a past and she's the present. That she's the first girlfriend so she would be technically his first love, not me. It was always the opposite for me. She became so desperate that she did things that could harm both me and Shinichi for just the sake of what she wanted.

"I never really get a proper talk to her about her feelings for Shinichi but I still want to be selfish. I wanted to fight and say I'm the real girl Shinichi would be dealing with. That he will just only love me and only me and I don't want her to be a burden on our shoulders anymore. To be the crack on our perfect relationship. To be the devil whispering to our ears."

"That's good to hear, Ran-san." Sato could feel the overwhelming love of Ran as she explained the connection between Hayley and Shinichi. She never thought she would hear such thing. She thought, it would be just scene in a movie or tv shows. "I'm sure Kudo-kun will be glad to hear your heartwarming message."

"But it would be too selfish if I do," she replied and smiled sadly. "Sato-san," Ran called suddenly.

"Hmm??"

"You know the Black Organization, right?"

She frowned. "Yes, I do. The organization in which they force Kudo-kun to drink the APTX4869 for their experiment. Why?"

"Hayley is part of that organization."

And that made Sato's eyes widened.