“I didn't mean your ‘work’,” Edgar huffed out a quiet laugh, stepping into the room and leaning over the other's shoulder, trying to take a look at his face, “I know you're thinking about it again. Go easier on yourself, dear”.

Edogawa furrowed his eyebrows slightly, turning his head away from him.

“Questioning your own worth after all, I see...” Poe hummed, a little bit sadly, “You want to talk about it once more? You know, I'm always here and my ears are ready to listen.”

The younger male kept looking away, going silent for a few seconds.

“It's... all the same,” he finally sighed, “There's nothing to talk about. Maybe you're right. I guess I'm just... a little bit too tired. Maybe”.

“I just want you to know that... having troubles with solving the case when you're not feeling like it doesn't make you look worse as a person. It doesn't make you look worse in any way,” Edgar spoke in a soft voice, gently hugging Ranpo from behind, “To me, to Fukuzawa, to the whole Agency - you are the most important person. Important in many ways”.

Feeling the younger male relax a little in his embrace, Poe smiled reassuringly. But he also wanted to see the detective's face now.

“Ran, just why can't you accept the fact that solving the case for a little bit longer than 15 seconds is absolutely okay, when you also don't have the-”

“I hahave my ability!” the detective really tried to sound serious, but...

“...Sure you do, giggles,” Edgar whispered with a smile, leaning a tiny bit closer to his partner's right ear on purpose, knowing exactly what he was doing.

“O-of course I- stahahap it!..” Ranpo squeaked, biting back a smile and trying to scrunch up his shoulders.

“Hm? Stop what? You don't want me to talk about how perfect you are on your own?” Poe's little smile became wider as soon as he saw Edogawa's ears turn an adorable shade of red.

“Yehehes..!” giggling quietly, the young detective managed to wriggle free from his partner's warm embrace and get up from his chair, covering his ear with his hand, his face flushed pink already.

“Ah, no-no-no, darling, not this time,” Edgar shook his head and came closer, chuckling softly and pulling Ranpo back by his waist with ease, being really gentle and using very little strength, “For someone who doesn't want it to happen, you sure don't look like you're running away...”

“Wehell, if yohou lehet mehe go, I wihill- WAHAHA– DOHON'T YOU DAHAHARE!..” Edogawa squealed loudly, feeling the familiar hands starting to squeeze his sides. This distraction was enough for his boyfriend to make them both fall on the bed, Poe laying comfortably on top of the detective and looking directly into his eyes, his smile wide.

“You know, I always say that I'm ready to listen, but I think that this certain someone we have here needs to learn how to listen, too”.

“Noho, oh nohoho!” Ranpo tittered, trying to shove at the writer's head half-heartedly, “Gehet off of mehehe! Thahat's a crime against peherson! Ahand thahat person is your bohoyfriend!..”

“I'll make sure to buy the biggest cake to make it up to you, little sugar cube,” the writer couldn't help but be amused at how his partner's blush instantly deepened at the nickname, “Sorry, but for now this big and scary criminal only wants to hear these sweet giggles of yours!”

“Ohoh shuhuhush...” Ranpo let out a giggly whine, covering his face with his hands.

“So there is something I'd like to talk about...”

“Dohohon't tahalk to mehehe!..”

“...about how hardworking...”

His breath tickling Ranpo's ear.

“...how talented...”

Now his neck... Oh no, oh no...

“...and how beautiful you are”.

The detective couldn't help but burst into squeaky giggles as soon as he felt his burning sensitive ear being peppered with kisses.

“Ihi'm nahahat..!” he squealed, kicking his legs out slightly and trying to scrunch up his shoulders, but it was far from enough to stop or even bother the novelist, “Stahahap it!”

“What, can't handle the truth? Are my words a little bit too sweet for you, dear?” Poe giggled along with his partner, blowing on his red little ear.

“Tohooth-rotting!” the younger shot back, squeezing his eyes shut and shaking his head at the sensation as he wiggled under the writer like a worm.

“Oh shush, don't be like that, I know we're both loving it,” the older male pouted jokingly, pinching at his boyfriend's sides to make him yelp cutely, ”You work an awful lot, but, even when you're feeling burnt out, who said that you should forget about what a great and smart detective you are? You know, you don't hahave to sue people every day to prove it!”

“S-stahap tahalking alreheady..!” Ranpo didn't even bother to try and argue anymore as he threw his head back, squealing like a child, his hair messy from all that squirming, his face and ears bright red from laughing, compliments and Poe's small amused chuckles ringing pleasantly in his head. The latter looked up once again, quietly admiring the detective's features and feeling his own face become a little bit pink.

“...Do you have any idea how much I love you?” he suddenly asked, stopping all the tickles. The raven haired male raised his head, looking surprised by the question (and even more flustered now, which made Poe huff out another little laugh).

Ranpo looked in his partner's eyes which were half-hidden by his hair, looking at him happily; his sincere smile, which was full of love and support, and he just- couldn't- Did he even deserve someone like Poe..?

“I'm... Poe, I'm juhust-” the detective stuttered, now avoiding eye contact.

“No-no-no,” the older male cut him off softly, leaning in forward and making their foreheads touch, “I know what you're thinking about. For once, just for this once, I want these thoughts to stop running around in this little head of yours. Just look at me, just let go and laugh... Do you trust me with this, dear?”

Ranpo was silent for a few seconds, but eventually lay his head back down on the pillow, blushing like mad and retracting his hands from the novelist's shoulders:

“...Okay. Just for a little bit, though”.

“You can hold onto me if you want,” the latter smiled sweetly at him.

The younger male thought for another moment, and his hands awkwardly returned to where they were a few seconds ago.

“Well, come here, then,” his partner laughed, lowering his head once again-

“I sAHAid yohou cahan tihickle me, but I didn't sahay you cohould tOHOuch my ehears!..” suddenly, Ranpo's high-pitched giggling filled the room. Nobody was even touching him yet!

“No?” Poe tilted his head slightly, as if he was surprised, “But how are we going to continue our conversation?”

“Noho mohore tahalking abohout mehe, thehen!”

“But that's the whole purpose!”

“Nohoho!”

The writer always considered funny the fact that his partner wasn't able to take any kind of compliments if tickling was involved. This knowledge made Poe a little bit braver in situations like this, but the detective always made sure to get him back (usually, tenfold, but we don't talk about that).

“Oh... Maybe your neck, then?”

“Noho, I'm waharning- pleHEEHEEase..!” Ranpo's shriek quickly dissolved into shrill giggling and his fingers softly squeezed the novelist's shoulders, as soon as his boyfriend tried to blow a tiny, shy raspberry on the side of his neck. Poe just couldn't tickle him roughly or even all that confidently, because, the moment he heard the detective's laughter or saw his smile, it was impossible to really concentrate because of this tingly feeling in his chest.

A couple of small raspberries was soon followed by the avalanche of neck kisses, which made Ranpo want to curl up into himself and squeal eternally. All of this was too much, his face was going to explode...

“Okay, ohokay, you said just a little bit, so there's just a few more things we need to do,” the novelist stopped to give his partner a little break.

“Ohoh gohohod...” the detective tittered, covering his flushed face with his hands and trying to calm down.

But, to be honest... with his non-stop giggling, with all this warmth, with this feeling of safety and belonging... Ranpo couldn't even really tell why he was so upset just a few minutes ago. His partner was one of the few people he could show this side of himself to, and Poe was the only one who always knows what exactly to do to help him feel better...

“...Ihit's nohot fahair,” the younger male let out a sarcastic, giggly groan, ”You nehever lehet me be like these cohold, mysterious dehetectives in moHOVIES–”

He flinched suddenly, but didn't even say anything in protest when he felt these familiar fingers starting to move down his ribs with tiny, gentle pokes, making Edogawa melt further into the bed in his quiet, muffled, high-pitched childlike chuckles.

“Nonono, no Mr. Gloomy Ran-Ran in this office, not on my watch!” Poe grinned playfully, slowly lifting the other's shirt up and revealing Ranpo's quivering tummy, “Are we ready, oh my Greatest-and-the-Most-Ticklish-detective in the world?”

“Wh-whahat are yohou- nOHo-! Noho kisses! I waHAsn't reHEHEADY-!..”

A/N: It's not perfect and probably ooc as hell, but I WANTED THE FLOOF WITH THESE TWO AT 3 AM AND DAMN I'M NOT GONNA REREAD THIS AFTER PUBLISHING, I'M SCARED-