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

Third Person's View

Ran was breathing heavily as she is running without no stop. As she stopped, beads of sweat came falling down her forehead as she looked at the five persons waiting for her in the waiting area.

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She looked at the sign at the top of the wh9te double door in sight to her position.

Emergency room, she reads. Yes, Shinichi is inside, taking an operation.

The five people-two are sitting and three are standing-were looking at her with shaking eyes.

She took heavy steps as her eyes were also the same as their's. Her eyes were settled now to the people in front of her, waiting for some explanation.

"Ran-kun," the inspector started talking. Beads of sweat forming to his forehead. "A truck bumped to Kudo-kun. It is not yet confirmed if it was really intentional that Kudo-kun is really just standing in the middle of--"

"Is the driver alright?" Ran asked, cutting off the inspector's words.

Megure-keibu was stunned by Ran's sudden question and slowly nodded. "Y-Yeah..."

"He is in the emergency room right now," Sato said, composing herself to act strong in front of everyone but her eyes said the opposite. Sje fixed her purple blouse as she looked at Ran. "Someone called the hospital and the police to check the incident right away."

"I'm informed first," Agasa Hakase said. He's one of the person who's sitting in the waiting area. "Well, we're informed first I mean," he added as he felt the glare of Haiabra to him.

Haibara sighed heavily before looking at Ran. "They informed us. Well, Sato-keibu did. She told us to call you for emergency about Kudo-kun being drove to the hospital, head bled badly."

"His blood was spilled on the ground, Ran-san," Sato said and sighed. "His body was lying on the floor. His clothes were drenched in cold rainfall and his body, well... covered in bruises and his head was banged to the ground hard."

"He needs a stitch in the head and a few treatments to his body," Takagi-keibu said.

"Yeah, right..." Ran muttered as she keeps her thoughts to herself.

The atmosphere between all of them was too heavy, she just can't add up to their main problem.

Few hours later...

Shinichi was being taken by a stretcher leading to his room. All of them followed him all the way to his room until the doctor took out his mask and asked, "Any relatives of the patient?"

Agasa Hakase was about to raise his hand when Ran raised hers without no hesitation.

The doctor nodded in response. Agasa Hakase and Haibara were silently listening to the doctor's statement.

"The patient's operation was a success," the doctor said making all of them relief. "However his condition was still not yet confirmed."

"What do you mean by that, doctor?" Haibara asked.

Ran felt so worried as she waited for the doctor's explanation.

"Kudo Shinichi-kun is in comatose, Mouri-san," he answered that made Ran's breathing hitched.

"C-Comatose? H-He's in a comatose?" Ran stuttered. "H-How?"

"His head had a fatal hit from the accident that causes his brain to shut his body down. He's still going to feel your beside him or when you touch him but he can't response."

Ran nodded, the condition where Shinichi was in hasn't been sinking to her mind. It was so slow as a turtle.

"Well then, I'll get going now. Kudo-kun will still be monitored under the hospital's rules. His condition was too at risk to be monitored at home."

"We know that," Haibara said and uncrossed her arms. "Just give what Kudo-kun's body needed, we'll take care the rest."

The doctor nodded. "Then, I shall go." He bowed before calling the nurses for them to leave.

They went in the room and Ran's eyes almost teared up as she saw Shinichi, lying on the stretcher with all the machines stuck all over his body. His head and his whole body have white cast. It was like they're visiting a mummy from its tomb.

The air his breathing was from the huge green tank beside his bed and his heart pulse was being monitored to a machine on the other side of the bed.

A sofa was just across his bed and two chairs on the side of his bed, that's where Ran sat and stared at her man.

She held his hand and kissed the back of it, tears fell down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry," that's what she came up to speak first. "I'm sorry, Shinichi."

She felt some kind of heavy burden on her shoulder as she was looking at his critical condition.

"It was my fault," she whispered as she caressed Shinichi's bandaged hand. "You're not going to be like this if I don't reject you. Wake up now, please."

Of course, there's no response. Ran knew that because of what the doctor said but her heart still aches as she didn't even see Shinichi's eyes opened nor his lips pursed or slightly opened to talk.

"Ran-kun," Agasa Hakase said and put his hand on Ran's shoulder. She and the two professors are the only ones in the room because the police officers must take care about the accident. "If Shinichi's awake, he would insist that it is not your fault."

"B-But, I--"

"Agasa Hakase was right, Mouri-san. It's not your fault. I know your reason and he knew it too so don't feel the guilt, Kudo-kun would not like it."

Suddenly, the door on Shinichi's room opened. "Oh. My. God.," someone said loudly and screamed.

Ran hurriedly stood up as she saw the new visitor and clasped her hands together as she smiled with shaking eyes. "H-Hayley," she called the guest's name.

Hayley looked at her with emotionless eyes before running towards Shinichi's bed and she's sulking with no end as if she was the real girlfriend.

As if it was a coincidence, Sato noticed she left her phone to the hospital and came back to stop at the entrance of Shinichi's room and saw the gloomy and dull atmosphere.

Sato's eyes slowly looked at the woman who's kneeling down on Shinichi's bed. Her hands clasped on his hand as she could hear the cries and sobs of the woman.

"Excuse me, miss." Sato's sudden called made everyone turned their heads at her but her eyes was just focused on the woman who looked at her.

Her eyes were not that red and teary. Her cheeks were flushed.

She's beautiful. She thought but then, Sato's eyes told some difference on the woman's eyes. She's odd.

"Who are you, miss? And why are you in here?" Sato asked Hayley.

"A-Ah! Sato-keibu," Ran called and ran in front of Hayley. "This is--"

"Oh! Must be one of the police officers who took Jimmy to the hospital!" Hayley exclaimed and passed Ran, her shoulder bumped to hers.

She did that on purpose. Sato said to her thoughts. The woman shook her hands frantically.

"Nice to meet you. I'm Jimmy's girlfriend, Hayley Ford, from America," she greeted in English.

Liar. Haibara said to herself.

Sato frowned and looked at Ran for help. Ran nodded and said, "She's greeting, Sato-san."

"Oh. Nice meeting you as well," Sato said in English with force. English language was never been her type to speak of but she knew a little bit. "The patient's name not Jimmy, but Shinichi, miss. I think you've got the wrong room."

"Oh, no, no! I'm pretty sure he's my boyfriend!" Hayley said and let out a laugh.

"Shinichi's English name was Jimmy," Ran whispered to Sato which Sato immediately understands..

She cleared her throat and said, "Well, if you may excuse me. I'll just take my phone, everyone."

She passed them all and picked her phone on the sofa that everyone just noticed in that exact moment.

Sato leaves and gave them a goobye but her mind has something else to be planned on.

That woman is fishy. She thought, referring to Hayley. I felt something bad.