Just Noticed

[Professor Conan Edogawa]

It had been quite a big surprise for Conan that Ai never came home after the school year had ended. Sure, he expected the girl to be hurt and angry after he had practically disowned her as his twin in front of whom she considers her friend. He was mad at the boy named Jeremiah at the time, and her arrival and defending the Gryffindor boy had only further his rage at the time. The two of them had managed to push the right buttons especially after Ai had been protecting the boy. That was why he disowned her, an immature reason of his, but at the time he didn't care.

But for now, he had been trying to search for his twin around the castle for days. But still he had no luck in finding his twin. Is she trying to hide from me? Conan wondered as he gave up on his search for the day. It was indeed impossible for the two of them to not see each other coincidentally since they were on the same house, unless, Ai had been trying to hide from him or maybe she wasn't here yet? He just had to sigh. Aside from the fact that he was worried, their aunt and uncle had been dying of worry as well because of the younger twin. They had no idea of what was going on between the siblings and so they were worried sick.

Due to his thoughts wandering as well as his feet, the Hufflepuff never noticed that he had already reached the Third Floor Corridors. As soon as he had notice, Conan shook his head, refusing to think any more of his twin as he already had. He knew she would turn up sooner or later and so, he had other things to worry about for the moment. He had other things to think about like his other friends which he was worried about as well. Like Taylor. He worried a lot about her during the course of vacation. Truth be told, he was sort of missing her. His feet kept him wandering as he kept on thinking about the Gryffindor girl.

 

[Taylor Blare-Edogawa]

Taylor ran through the corridors. Her hair whipping her face wildly as she skidded around corners. Her owl was on the loose and it would not stop no matter how many times she called it to her. She kept at it. If only she had her broom with her right now, but she had left it at the pitch by accident when she was there last, so she now had to make do by running. She was starting to puff as she skidded around another corner and ran into something. She fell to the ground with a rather loud 'thud'. Taylor threw her arms out behind her so as to stop her head from banging on the ground and looked up at the ceiling. Her behind hurt where she had landed on it and she carefully pulled herself into a sitting position and looked over to where she had hit the person. They were sprawled out on the ground too, even less graceful then herself, of course she had not been graceful at all anyway. And she rubbed her elbow and she crawled over to see who it was she had hit. She could see some yellow on the clothes so it was obviously a Hufflepuff. She hoped it wasn't a first year, she would feel terrible. "Oh my gosh! I am so sorry.. I-" She broke off, as she moved around to the side, she saw that it was her dear friend from Hufflepuff. "Eh? Conan!? Oh Merlin! I am so sorry!" She called, helping him up into a sitting position. Luckily, when she had ran into him, they had been close to the wall, so they weren't in anyone's way as they sat against the wall. She immediately got anxious and started to check to make sure he was okay, even pulling on his head to see if he had a bump. "I didn't see you. I'm sorry! I was running and I came flying around the corner and I just didn't have time to stop and think, I wasn't even concentrating on the fact that there might have been some-one that I could run into. Sorry, are you okay?" She asked, concerned. She was rubbing her own head slightly as she looked at him, he seemed alright, but you never knew. He could have broken something.
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[Professor Conan Edogawa]

Conan had kept his head too busy. His thoughts had been easily filled with Taylor as so, he just let his feet do the work of travelling and wandering around the confines of the castle. Even though the third floor was always busy, today was an exception since not many students were around still. Classes hadn't started yet, thus only those early comers were present around the castle. Not many casualties were happening either. He thought that he wouldn't be able to bump into anyone since the castle wasn't all that busy during this time of year. Well, that was until he literally bumped into someone that caused him to sprawl all over the floor. He was surprised at this that he didn't even manage to at least keep his balance even a little, and so hitting his head on the floor. He groaned a bit as he rubbed his head a little and was surprised to hear a very familiar voice. "Taylor?" he asked surprised as she helped him sit "No, no... I'm okay, I'm good," he said as she started to apologize. Conan managed to get himself leaning against the wall as he sat and he was quite shocked due to Taylor's worry. He couldn't help but chuckle as she continued to check on him. "I'm fine Taylor. Really. I was spacing out too, so it's not entirely your fault okay?" he reassured her with a smile on his face.

 

[Taylor Blare-Edogawa]

Taylor relaxed a little, on Conan's assurance that he was fine. She wasn't totally convinced yet, but she was happy enough to at least lay off of him a bit. She sat back against the wall and rubbed her elbow in a circular motion. Her relationship with Conan had been rather strained last year, but she was happy that he seemed to be willing to slip back into their old routine from the year before. She hadn't even thought about Ai the entire time she had been on vacation, but she had thought about Conan, she had thought about him a lot, like the way he had defended her against Ai. She smiled at Conan and started to laugh. Of course this is how they would meet up. There was no such thing as meeting up as a plan for them as it seemed. She shook her head and looked over at Conan, he looked taller, but of course, she was slumping against the wall, which likely had something to do with it. "Sorry for being a pest." She said, looking up at the ceiling again. She felt bad for making him hit his head on the floor. She was sure he was going to have a bruise later today. She could already feel a bump forming on her own forehead. That was going to look great. It was a good thing she wasn't vain. "I can get you some cream for the bruise that is going to appear later. But you'll have to wait... I can't be bothered going back to my dorm right now." She added, laughing slightly. It was kind of funny this. Though she imagined that if he were anyone else, they may not have taken this so well. It was only in her favour because he knew her and they were friends. "I'm glad I ran into you.. and not someone else." It sounded bad when she put it like that. "I mean, you know, because we are friends and your not going to yell at me. Though feel free to do so if you want, I deserve it for knocking you over." She told him, rubbing her forehead and hissing in discomfort.
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[Professor Conan Edogawa]

Conan least expected that he and Taylor would meet up this way. Sure the two of them were used to accidental meetings, but this was just too much of an accident or coincidence. The young boy had only been thinking of the said Gryffindor girl and after just spacing out because of said thoughts, he just managed to run into the girl, literally. He smiled inwardly at himself as he didn't even mind the part where he got knocked over and hit his head, because despite that, he had been able to see a person that he wished to see through the course of vacation. Conan was suddenly cut from his thoughts by Taylor's out-of-nowhere apology. "Jeez Taylor. You're not a pest and will never be, I promise," he told her with a small smile gracing his Asian features. The Hufflepuff was quite surprised by the sudden remark of the Gryffindor girl. The boy smiled and said, "Nah, this is nothing I can't handle," as it was certainly true that the bruise he had gotten wasn't that much of a pain and neither is the bump forming on the back of his head due to hitting it on the floor earlier. But, Conan's sharp eyes had also not failed to notice the bump forming on Taylor's forehead. "On the other hand, you need the cream more. I'm not the one who has a bump on her forehead," he said with a little smirk, teasing the girl a bit which he wasn't sure if it would prove effective. The Hufflepuff continued to listen at the Gryffindor's words and although he was initially confused, he began to understand why she was at the very least glad that he was the one she bumped into, "Why the heck would I yell at you? Besides I for one find it a bit funny and I'm glad that I ran into you," he said with a smile before attempting to tease her once again. "Or you ran into me?" he told her a bit playfully, although he was a bit worried about the bump on the girl's forehead. The young boy looked worriedly as he went closer, "Looks like you really need to treat that bump. Let me see," he said as he pulled her closer to him, trying to examine the bump present on Taylor's forehead.

 

[Taylor Blare-Edogawa]

Taylor had to admit, she may, just a little, have been milking this closeness. She liked Conan, she knew that and she had known it for a while, but she wasn't really prepared to do anything about it, not yet. She didn't think she was ready last year and this year had only just started, who knew where it was going to go? She smiled to herself, turning her head away from him, she didn't want him to see her face. Especially not with the ugly great bump that was forming on her forehead. She shook her head when he told her she wasn't a pest. She knew she wasn't, at least not to him, but she definitely felt like it sometimes. It was ridiculous, she knew, but sometimes, it was just this overwhelming feeling that she was being a pest. She supposed it had something to do with losing her parents and wanting to be close to people that she cared about, since she couldn't be with her parents. But she wasn't a psychologist, she didn't understand the mechanics. She turned back to Conan when she was sure the red had disappeared from her face and nodded as he mentioned being able to handle it. She had to say she wasn't surprised, not after having witnessed some of the fights that he and Ai got into. They were awful. He was sure Conan would have gotten a few bruises and maybe given a few in return, Ai gave as good as she got. "As long as your sure, don't want to wreck your face, or arms... or whatever." She said, trailing off into a kind of awkwardness. She wasn't sure what she had originally been set out to say, but it seemed she had lost the context somewhere in its travel from her brain, to her mouth. She turned her head away again when he once again mentioned her bump and bit her lip. Why was she acting like this?

She could tell he was only kidding with her, but for some reason, it kind of upset her that he was even seeing her with a bump on her head. Conan had seen her at her worst, that day she had that big fight with Ai, she had ended up on the floor, crying like she had never cried before and then Conan had been there. Taylor had thought that he would have taken the side of his sister, but he hadn't, he'd taken her side and Taylor had never forgotten that. Not ever. She knew he had said something else, but she hadn't heard him. She had been too busy thinking and when she turned around to ask him to repeat what she had said he was pulling her closer to get a look at her forehead. Taylor immediately looked down and turned red. He was so close to her right now, she wasn't sure what she was supposed to do, so she just dropped her head and pulled her hands onto her thighs to keep from moving them. Not looking up, she spoke again. "C..Conan, w...what are you doing?" She asked, trying to keep her voice even but failing. This was ridiculous. She wasn't this person. She didn't go to jelly just because a guy she liked was paying attention to her. Conan was one of her best friends. This didn't happen. Except that it was and there was nothing she could do about it.

Sorry, couldn't resist.
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[Professor Conan Edogawa]

Conan wasn't very good with feelings. He wasn't one to easily understand the concepts of liking and loving someone, because like the old Ravenclaw whom he used to know as a friend, he is also one to think that understanding the feelings of like and love were also more difficult than memorizing a history or maybe solving one of those math problems. He really wasn't good with these stuff at all because all he knew, that what he was feeling right now for Taylor is what he used to feel for Amelia before. He wasn't comparing them. Not at all, because he sees Taylor as someone who is completely different and he just absolutely loves that she can just be as she really is around him. The boy smiled at what the Gryffindor girl uttered, "It would take a lot more than running to wreck this face, Taylor," Conan said arrogantly with a hint of playfulness in his voice. He absolutely had no idea when his playfulness with Taylor began to show, but he was certainly enjoying it.

Conan didn't even get the chance to get a good look at the girl's forehead since she almost immediately looked down as he managed to get her closer to him. Truth be told, Conan was quite enjoying this closeness. Stop thinking like a pervert! he thought to himself as he knew that he was just enjoying this closeness because the girl he liked was this close to her. Wait, liked? he surprisingly thought to himself as he partly shook his head, removing his thoughts as he tried to at least take a closer look at Taylor's bump. "I'm checking how bad your bump is and if it's bad, I'll be taking you to the hospital wing," he told her as he was still trying to check on her but could only catch a tinge of red on her face. "Hey, come on. Look this way, please?" he told her as he held her chin with one hand and made her look up at him so he could examine her forehead properly.

 

[Taylor Blare-Edogawa]

Taylor couldn't help it. She just, for whatever reason, could not look up at Conan. It was ridiculous, she knew that, but she felt that if she looked at him, he would suddenly know how she felt and it would ruin everything. She sighed and left her head down. She didn't want to look up at him, but he was stronger then she was and lifted her chin easily. Tears were stinging the backs of her eyes and her cheeks were red. She was in pain, that much was true, but she didn't want to walk to the Hospital Wing. She seemed to have injured her ankle in the fall to the ground, but if she told Conan he would insist on taking her to the hospital wing and she had always hated hospitals, ever since her parents and they hadn't even let her in to see them, they had been all alone and that was one of Taylor's fears, being alone in a hospital. It was not a pleasant thought for her. She bit her lip to try and stop the tears and wrenched her chin from Conan's grip. Surely he had looked long enough to appease him. Though it wasn't just the pain she wad crying over. It was everything, she didn't even think Conan had noticed what he was doing. He was just trying to be a good friend and this was how she was repaying him? What kind of a friend was she by treating him like this. She moved her leg so that he ankle would move from underneath her and quickly put it behind her again. It had already started to swell. She had many sprained ankles before and it was obvious that this was going to be a bad one, probably one of her worst.

"Thanks Conan, but I think I can take it from here." She told him, moving away and clutching at the wall to try and get the grip to help her stand, even with her pained ankle. It wasn't going to be easy, but if she could get the right angle... sh*t. She hissed in pain as she landed on her sore leg. That would be about right. She turned and threw a smile down at Conan, bending carefully and reaching a hand out for him to take to stand up. Maybe she could get to her dorm before lunch and apply some of that cream. It wouldn't fix the problem but it would relieve some of the pain, at least for a little while anyway.
​

 

[Professor Conan Edogawa]

Conan didn't like what he saw at all. Taylor's bump wasn't all that bad, it was totally fine actually, all it needed was a bit of cream and maybe some compress and it'll disappear in a jiffy. It was the look on the Gryffindor's face she was holding back tears and she was red. What's wrong? he thought to himself frustrated at what he failed to get hold of knowledge of. Taylor is already here in front of him and clearly in pain, yet he can't do anything about it until he figures it out. He needed to know what was wrong. He kept silent as he worried about the Gryffindor girl he was with now and he certainly wasn't going to leave her until he finds out what's wrong.

Conan watched Taylor as she tried to stand and at the very least hide the pain. But the Hufflepuff never failed to noticed it as her face was already contorted with the pain she was feeling as he assumed. His eyes scanned her until it her bump looks fine, her arms looked good, she didn't seem to have any visible bruises. But Conan's eyes fixed at her leg, it was swelling and it was swelling badly. The boy frowned as he stood up and went beside Taylor to support her, "Would you please at the very least consider having your leg treated?" he told her almost pleadingly. Conan was worried, it was a long way from where they were now until the Gryffindor Common Room, even going to the Hufflepuff Dormitories would be a big burden and could worsen the condition of Taylor's leg. "We can at least treat it ourselves because I won't be letting you walk all those stairs in that condition," he told her almost sternly. "I worry about you a lot, you know," he said as he looked into her eyes hoping that she'd at least consider.

 

[Taylor Blare-Edogawa]

Taylor looked at Conan as he came to support her. She didn't know why she was so surprised, he had always been there any other time, so why should this be any different. She supposed that she still, subconsciously thought that Conan was only helping her because of Ai, but she knew that wasn't true. They were closer then that, if only she would get it through her incredibly thick skull. If she wasn't figuring it out yet, she was never going to figure it out. This boy was trying to help her for Merlin's sake and she was throwing it all back in his face. No wonder she had trust issues, she keeps pushing people away, it was a stupid coping mechanism, that she had yet to rid herself of, but it was starting to grate on her nerves. How was she ever going to be a good Quidditch player being this indecisive? She sighed and leaned on Conan, not too much, but enough to take the pressure off of her own leg. It was a lot easier like this, as it turned out. She smiled and held onto his arms as she stepped away from the wall, so that she wouldn't fall. She nodded at him and took a slow step on her foot, wincing as she moved it. "I, uh, really appreciate this Conan. Thanks." She told him. "Maybe we should go to the Hospital Wing? If you think that might be better. It's closer then my place or yours." She joked, laughing a little, though it was only light as the pain in her leg bit at her again as she moved it. "We'll move slow, I don't want to jar it." She added, almost as an after thought. She seemed to have forgotten all her first aid instruction. She looked at him after her mentioned worrying about her a lot. It made her more then a little bit happy when he said that, but she also felt a little bit guilty. She wasn't really sure if it was with friendship, or something else.
​

 

[Professor Conan Edogawa]

Conan wanted to support Taylor, and not only at this point in time but also in the future. Somehow, one way or another, he wants to protect her and be there for her whenever she needs someone to be with her. He wouldn't mind being that person, in fact he wants to be that person she could lean on always. Conan smiled a small smile as Taylor finally considered having her leg treated, he knew it was for the best or else her sprain could worsen. "You sure? My place is just a flight up. I could grab the first aid kit and be back here for you real quick," he said with quite a worried face. Conan had a hunch that Taylor wasn't really ready to go to a hospital and that was the reason of him suggesting that they treat it themselves. He didn't want the Gryffindor to have another break down when she had just come back to being her old self again.

Conan supported Taylor's weight even more as he felt her tighten her grip a bit from the pain she was feeling. He was really worried about the condition of the girl's leg and he could only sigh as she added that they should move slow. He took a peek at the girl's injury and it seemed that it was only getting worse. The boy shook his head and bent down as he slowly but surely carried Taylor in his arms, supporting her back with her left hand and the back of her knees on his right. "This will be much faster and less painful I hope, but you still have to hold on though," he said almost in a whisper to the girl in his arms as he began to walk. "Wouldn't want the girl I really like to be in pain now would we?" he said in a whisper as he continued to walk in a pace where he could be sure that Taylor wouldn't be in pain. His face was tinged with a little redness at his sudden confession as he just looked straight at the path they were headed to.

 

[Taylor Blare-Edogawa]

Taylor shook her head. She was definitely sure she wanted to go to the Hospital Wing. It wasn't that she didn't trust Conan, it was more like she wasn't sure how bad the damage to her leg was and she wanted to know for sure. If it needed medical attention of the sort she thought it might, then nothing Conan did was really going to make that much of a difference. But she was glad for the offer none-the-less. She smiled at Conan and shook her head in the negative. "No thanks Conan. But I appreciate the thought. Really." She told him. She had to face her fear of Hospitals and institutions of a similar type, she was being irrational and she knew it. He was only looking out for her, which she was glad for, but that was all she would ask for, she would only take what he gave her. However, she suddenly found herself being pulled up into Conan's arms and she stared at him wide-eyed and quickly brought her arms up to encircle his neck. She wasn't sure what he was doing, but at least it took the pressure off of her leg. She was sure the last time she had been carried like this, she seven and it was by her uncle when she had wanted to wait up to see her parents. She had fallen asleep and she had woken up to her Uncle carrying her from the couch to her bed. She had been a little girl, not fifteen, tired not injured and being carried by her uncle, not her crush, this was definitely something different then what she had encountered before. "Um, thanks Conan." She said awkwardly, tightening her grip around his neck. The wobbling of her leg as they moved was a bit painful, but nothing compared to what she would feel if she walked. He was right. This was a much better option. She watched behind him down the corridor as he continued to the Hospital Wing and as a result, his final words were almost lost on her. She snapped back to reality and back to him. What did he say? "What did you say?" Her words echoed her thoughts. She couldn't believe it. He wasn't even looking at her and she could see the slight red slipping up onto his cheeks. She knew that expression well. She had made it herself many times. "Conan..." She didn't know what to say, she simply leaned her head on his shoulder. After all, actions spoke louder than words.
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[Professor Conan Edogawa]

Conan smiled a small smile as Taylor thanked him for his offer, but she still chose to decline it. The Hufflepuff boy was proud of her for this. She was being brave and facing her fears and Conan would always try his best to be there for her when she needed him. The boy continued to carry the surprisingly light girl on the way to the hospital wing. Conan didn't expect Taylor to be this light since the both of them fell completely to the ground in a not so pleasant position, leading to the Gryffindor girl attaining the injury she presently has now. Conan at the very least didn't expect to just confess to Taylor, but at that moment, he could only think of what he felt and that he didn't want the girl to be taken away from him. "Don't make me repeat it yet," he said barely above a whisper the tinge of red on his face remained. I probably look like an idiot right now, he thought as he suddenly felt her head leaning on his shoulders and heard her speak his name. "Ne, Taylor... I'm not really sure about your answer but, I'll anyway," this was it. He wouldn't wait any longer, instead he would make up for it in the time that they would be together for now, he just wanted to know her answer.

"Would you be my girlfriend?"

 

[Taylor Blare-Edogawa]

Taylor looked up from where her head was on his shoulder and was about to tell him what she meant, when he continued to speak. She felt a small smile forming on her lips. She wasn't sure people even asked that any more but she thought it was kind of cute that he was. Who was she kidding, it was downright adorable. She found herself laughing slightly and then immediately stopped herself when she realised that it could be taken as a bad sign. She didn't want him to think she was laughing at him, because she was not laughing, she was quite serious about this. She happened to be quite nervous as well, and when she was nervous, she did things that could be mistaken for things they were not. She planted a kiss on his cheek quickly and smiled at him again. "You don't even have to ask. But, yes. Yes, I would like that very much." She told him again, moving her head back to his shoulder and tightening her grip again. She was suddenly enjoying being carried a little bit more.

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Fin​

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