Thank goodness for Kaito’s forethought, which reduced the chances of full-blown panic to being only merely startled. “Ah?” Hakuba asked, blinking as he turned away from his work hunched over the desk, and pulled the pair of silver-rimmed reading glasses from their perch on his nose.

“Oh, Kaito… Good evening.” The detective rubbed his eyes, then offered a pleasant smile of his own, slanted, happy to see him but, as always, not far from puzzled concern. “Yes, of course. More than, if you’d like. Is something wrong?"