Before Current Thread:
As much fun as it was to antagonize Kuroba Kaito during class, there was nothing more satisfying than saying nothing at all on the morning after heists where he’d helped to prevent the thief from stealing. All he had to do was shoot him a look from across the room, lounge at his desk, and wait.
This usually carried through until lunch, when he’d get up and stroll over to Kaito, and smile. Whatever his classmate’s rude remarks were in response to the attitude, the detective never let his confidence waver. It was easy enough to mentally pin any faults on Nakamori-keibu, and it amused him so to see the glare that accompanied the accusation that Hakuba was going to accuse him, when in fact, he wasn’t. Not that moment. Just for fun. As far as he could tell, it drove Kaito crazy.
The finishing touch was, of course, when the magician would give him a snarky comment about how Hakuba was being creepy or whatever, to which he’d lean in to whisper, so softly, into Kaito’s ear. “Oh, it’s just beginning, dearest Kuroba-kun.”
After Current Thread:
It was a long time before Hakuba returned to school, and when he did, he made it a policy to avoid contact with most everyone. At least for the first few days. More than anyone, though, he steered clear of one Kuroba Kaito… to the point where it was painfully obvious to anyone who had paid much attention to their rivalry. As much as he wanted to keep it discrete, though, he found himself struggling with the reconciliation of what he now knew about the seemingly ‘innocent’ phantom thief. He was able to avoid him for most of the time, but eventually, the awkward aversion turned into a steady, cold-hearted glare across the room.
How could he? How dare he use him like that? And no word, no explanation, no remorse for his actions… The pain in his leg ached with an anxious burning, and the detective thought of Kaito with every throb. The things that they’d said that night echoed in his mind, all of the details prior to being hit were fresh, vivid. The fear, the pretense, the agony… what was he supposed to do with all of that? How should he deal with so much confusion and rage?
Eventually, it came down to a posturing threat. Hakuba limped down the hallway on his crutches, eyes fixed on the ground, and made it a point to push Kuroba as he past, The tension, heightened, had him turned around, pivoting on the crutch, to face him suddenly with an icy glare. He leaned in as he had before, sneering, and whispered a hissing, “You can’t get rid of me that easily, Kuroba….” before he turned to walk away.