Chapter Text
It was eight o'clock in the morning, Shima was in the car, watching the captain's lecture, the broadcast chat was full of comments flattering the woman, but it was not the kind of flattery someone would like to hear.
When the lecture was over, a tall woman with a powerful bearing and beautiful appearance approached the car, Shima opened the door for her and then he himself got in, saw the woman in the rearview mirror and then said:
- People were talking about you -.
- Did you see the conference? - the woman asked.
- Yes, everyone said that you are "sexy"- Shima said the last thing somewhat annoyed, it seemed to him that the captain was a hell of a lot more than just a pretty face, and he was completely sure that she had earned her place with effort, as if Kikyo had heard him he said:
- If anyone else says that again, tell them I didn't get my place because of that - she paused and then continued - let's go to the station-.
Shima just nodded and started the car.
Shima was wearing a black suit, a white shirt and a tie to match his jacket, it had been more than a year since he had lost his job as a policeman and now he was working as a driver for the captain of his old unit. Once at the station he changed his clothes to something more normal, something more in keeping with his personality. A baggy pants, a t-shirt and sweater was what the young man was wearing, he was on the second floor of the station, apparently the captain had something important to tell him.
The news was that Shima would be back in action, apparently the police in Japan didn't have enough agents, so they decided to create the Mobile Investigation Unit to provide support to the cops in the field, the only problem for Shima is that he would have to work with someone else, he didn't know his partner and when he asked about him the only answer he received was "ah, he's a good runner" other than that he didn't know anything, he was sure that the guy would be completely opposite to him. From the little he managed to hear, it was certainly not good, apparently the guy had a bad reputation, in his unit nobody liked him and they said he was uncontrollable. Shima didn't know what to expect, the only thing he could do was to meet him himself, he looked for him at the station but discovered that his partner was no longer there, at least that's what one of the other MIU agents told him.
He went out to the parking lot and found a man checking his car, well, the car that had been assigned to him. He approached and asked:
- Are you Ibuki? - the man got up from the floor and answered:
- Ibuki Ai, nice to meet you - he said this with a dazzling smile, just by looking at him Shima knew he would be a pain to work with, but there was something about the person standing in front of him that made him feel strangely warm, Shima mentally slapped himself and introduced himself.
- Alright, I'm... - before he could finish the sentence the other man interrupted him.
- Detective Shima Kazumi, I know, nice to meet you- he paused and then continued- I'm your partner, aren't I? -.
It hadn't even been five minutes of meeting him and Shima already felt irritated by the presence of the other, he just nodded and started walking to get into the car, he was carrying the car key in his hand, and so it was, because Ibuki snatched it from the shorter one and hurried to get in from the driver's side.
Shima sighed in exasperation and got in from the opposite side, he looked sideways at the man sitting next to him, he hadn't noticed, but he really looked athletic, he was slim and long-legged, his hair was wavy and messy, he had a goofy smile on his face when he turned to look at him.
- It's been three years since I've driven a car -he turned the key and closed his eyes.
- What? - said Shima.
- The engine, it sounds good-
-Yes, of course, there is no need to hurry, get out that way-
The car moved forward and they left the parking lot. They had only gone a few blocks, when the car radio began to sound, in a nearby area a man had been attacked while leaving a restaurant.
They quickly arrived at the scene of the crime, there was already a team analyzing the scene and questioning witnesses. Shima greeted a man, also wore the badge of UIM, Jinba Kohei, an officer with a career of 35 years. Shima approached him to ask him about the incident, Jinba briefly gave him the details of the case and walked away to question a witness.
Shima walked over to Ibuki and explained in a general way what had happened.
-Well, that's the way it is, we must interrogate all the witnesses, go to that man and let him tell you what he saw - said Shima while pointing to a man standing a few meters away from them.
- Understood! - replied Ibuki, but before he could start walking Shima's hand stopped him.
-Wait... -Shima was a little shorter, he had his hand on one of Ibuki's shoulders, this forced the taller one to lean forward a little, that way he could appreciate the other officer's face a little closer. His skin was pale, but the constant exposure to the sun gave him a toasted glow, he had long eyelashes and thick eyebrows, a little above the lip there was a small mole. Shima's free hand went to Ibuki's head, paused for a few seconds on his hair, then went down to the level of her face, right in front of her eyes.
- Leaf - Shima said briefly, then turned and walked toward one of the witnesses.
Ibuki froze for a moment, trying to process what had happened, then shook his head and walked toward another of the witnesses.
The UIM officers had been searching until exhaustion for the culprit of the robbery, a few hours later Ibuki and Shima managed to catch him, all thanks to "Ibuki's intuition", he had heard a car like the culprit's and thanks to that they were able to find him. To Shima it seemed ridiculous,
¿how was it possible that he recognized the car just by hearing it?, but it seems that his "instinct" had been of some use. Still, Shima had a strange feeling, when they were about to catch the culprit, he fled towards a factory, Ibuki ran to catch him and they both left Shima behind, when he could catch up with them; inside a warehouse, Ibuki was holding his gun against the man's head, at that moment Shima told him to put the gun down, he tried to make him see reason, in the end, he discovered that Ibuki was just trying to scare the man to stay still, and in reality he hadn't even taken the gun out of its holster.
Shima was really angry, and he couldn't help but hit Ibuki for his childish behavior, it had been a few hours already, they were both sitting having dinner, but Shima was still uncertain about Ibuki's behavior a few hours ago.
- Why did you do that? -
- Do what? - Ibuki said confused as he looked up to see Shima.
- The man, the one with the assault, why did you threaten him like that?... - Shima paused for a moment, he wasn't sure to finish the sentence, anyway, he didn't have time to finish speaking because Ibuki answered him quickly.
- Ah, that, don't worry, it was just a strategy to make that man stay still, I really didn't plan to use my gun, besides, I'm a lousy shot- Ibuki also stopped for a few seconds and then continued- Sorry, for making you worry-.
That shocked Shima.
- What, what are you talking about? Of course I didn't worry! - replied the shorter one in annoyance, "I just thought you were dumb enough to do something like that! -.
- Ah Shima-chan... So my performance was that good? - There it was again that playful tone and the silly grin that annoyed Shima so much.
- Good god, how annoying you are - The man just averted his gaze and continued eating.
- Shima - said Ibuki - Shima, Shimaa, Sima-chan -
- What? - He answered looking him in the eyes with the little patience he had left. That threatening look was enough for Ibuki to keep quiet and turn his attention back to the food on the table.
Back at his house, Ibuki opened the door, left his shoes in the entryway and plopped down on the bed, his new job was heavier than the previous one, working at the MIU was completely different from the small station he was at, but the change made him completely happy, he couldn't wait to solve more cases. He was lost in his thoughts when suddenly that moment in the parking lot came to his mind, when he first saw his partner, he was shorter than him, it was the first thing he could notice, besides it was almost obvious that both had completely opposite personalities, but this didn't bother Ibuki, in fact, it made him even more excited, in his previous position he hadn't had any partner, but now he had someone to work with.
Without realizing it, Ibuki fell asleep.