Death Note Fan Fiction ❯ A Balm for Social Failure ❯ Weekends are Made for Fun ( Chapter 5 )
[ X - Adult: No readers under 18. Contains Graphic Adult Themes/Extreme violence. ]
By: selena281 
sorry about the multiple updates. the chapter was being broken in the middle. :(
Anime/Manga: Death Note Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Hentai / Drama / Comedy / Psychological / Angst / Romance | Type: Yaoi | Uploaded On: 08.30.2008 | Pages: 5 | Words: 4.7K | Visits: 552 | Status: Work In Progress
sorry about the multiple updates. the chapter was being broken in the middle. :(
Anime/Manga: Death Note Fan Fiction | Genre(s): Hentai / Drama / Comedy / Psychological / Angst / Romance | Type: Yaoi | Uploaded On: 08.30.2008 | Pages: 5 | Words: 4.7K | Visits: 552 | Status: Work In Progress
A Balm for Social Failure
(Chapter 5: Weekends are Made for Fun)
Light x L
L begins to suspect something is missing from his life. He believes the key to be in social interaction - his weak point. At the appearance of the enigma named Light Yagami, he is challenged to rise to the occasion.
Disclaimer: see ch. 1 for full disclaimer
_______________________________________________________ ______________________________________________
Chapter 5:
Light left the campus with relief at 3pm Friday afternoon.
These last few days, his frustration had been eating him alive. It took monumental effort to avoid headquarters like he planned. To not stop by in the hopes he would be able to lay eyes on the dark-haired detective, who had completely stopped tailing him at school.
It was possible L had decided to work surveillance from afar, keeping watch through the cameras installed throughout the hotel room used as headquarters - as plentiful and haphazardly placed as a swarm of ants on a carcass.
If that were the case, he would not make things so easy. If L wanted to watch him, he would have to come out of his cave to do so. Light would make the appropriate excuses, plead off in favor of school, until this gridlock changed. He would stay out of reach until Ryuuzaki was forced to move.
The train was crowded today, Light saw with distaste.
It always bothered him to have to endure strangers in his personal space. As if their very closeness could contaminate him. And well it could. Some of them were little better than filthy animals. The lowest sort of offal - people who allowed their minds to lie wasted and unused, or their bodies to rot when it housed their most precious asset.
Vermin. Some days he could near smell their stench and it made his skin crawl.
"Light-kun!" a girlish voice chirped in delighted surprise.
He stowed the sneer that begged to be free upon his face, cowed it with a brilliant smile as he looked up. "Ah, Yamada-san," he greeted with warm cordiality. "What brings you to the A train at this time? I thought you lived in the other direction?"
"Oh!" she flushed a little and twirled a piece of hair around a nervous finger. "I was going downtown... to shop for something to wear to the party?" she made fleeting, embarrassed eye contact, before staring at the ground. "You're going, right? Mika-chan said you'd promised to..."
"Saturday at 7pm, correct?"
She looked up, nodding eagerly.
Light felt a cloud of oppression settle about him. Downtown was another 5 stops from here. His was 2 after that. That meant 22 minutes of enduring this, of fighting to keep this lackluster communication continuing. All for the sake of appearance and social nicety. When he ruled the world he would abolish such inane and useless discourse under penalty of torture. People could damn well just sit and stare at each other for all he cared. If they had nothing worthwhile to relate they could practice the art of silence. Perhaps that would ultimately increase the intelligence of the world. They'd be forced to read or become cultured on the hopes of being allowed to speak. HA.
"Light-kun?"
"I'm sorry, Yamada-san," he apologized with a disarming smile. "I was thinking of all this work I have yet to accomplish... it is a little daunting, to be honest."
"Oh! Do you have an examination for one of your classes you need to study for? If it is English or Literature..." she trailed off a little, blushing again. "... I'm very good with those, so maybe I could help you with your studies?"
As if! Had she somehow failed to notice he had never received less than a perfect score in English Language on the posting board when she was in the very same class? "That won't be necessary, although I appreciate your offer. Unfortunately, it is a little out of that realm."
"Oh.. like what?"
Like world domination, you fool. "Calculus 4."
Her entire being drooped. "O-Oh... um... I've never made it past Algebra... so um... well, good luck."
Feh. Luck had nothing to do with it. "Thank you." Ah, her stop was almost here. 40 seconds until they slowed and she could disembark. "I'm just glad it won't tie me up so much as to miss the party tomorrow. It's nice to be able to relax once in a while, don't you think?"
"Of course!" She perked back up under his attention and resettled her bag on her shoulder. "It's so great that you feel that way too... Some people feel too pressured to take a break even now and then." She eyed the slowing of the scenery outside the windows with disappointment. "Well, um, this is my stop... I guess I'll see you later?"
"Tomorrow night," he promised.
"Great!" She practically skipped off the train. It was amazing she didn't trip herself.
---
L hunched over a bowl of chocolate covered cherries, and for once felt alarmingly unmoved.
He poked their luscious roundness with a listless finger and would just as soon chuck one at somebody's head than eat one.
"Yagami-san?" he called out to the police chief. He clenched his toes around the edge of the couch cushion.
"Yes, L?"
"Where did you say Light-kun has been these past few days?"
"He said he had tests to study for, and that he would be back to working the investigation as soon as possible," came the gruff response. Things had not quite been repaired between them. Light's father seemed to remain not-so-secretly bitter about his son being named a suspect.
"Ah." The cherries were of passable stackability.
"Is there any particular reason his absence warrants such notice?"
"Of course not, Yagami-san." It just unsettles me. What has he been doing all this time? Does he really need to study that much? Tests never required such preparation on his part before.
"Then?"
Light's probably lying to you. "Yagami-san, with the risk of sounding rude, I would like to remind you that I am heading this investigation." L stared at the cherries, willing the fifth in his current stack to stay balanced. "As such, I must know my alloted resources at all times. Light's assistance has been very useful and I would hate to lose that due to a misunderstanding."
"What misunderstanding?" Light's father looked suddenly very suspicious. The gears of his mind were turning, and it looked like it may have been painful. "Did he say anything... strange to you?" He peered at L as if he were dreading the answer.
L maintained a reflective veneer, being quite fascinated by this odd display before him and wanting to study it for just a moment longer. Light's behavior had been a bit out of the ordinary, but L couldn't really mark any of what he'd said as strange. But perhaps the word meant different things to the two of them? "Define what you mean by strange, Yagami-san?"
"Uh - anything personal?"
Hmm. That was an unexpected response, though an intriguing one. "If Light-kun had said anything to me of a personal nature, it is likely I would not share it," he said honestly.
Yagami stared at him.
He stared back.
Yagami blinked at him.
L stuffed two cherries in his mouth and chewed.
Yagami looked rattled, and stiffly walked back to his computer. He began to hit keys in a rather listless fashion. He may also have been mumbling under his breath.
---
Light decided to kill two birds with one stone.
The party was an excruciating affair of offensively loud music, horrible dancing, public displays of sluttery, and excessive drinking all in one tiny space. If one were being gracious, they could call this place a house. It was dreadfully small and quite overcrowded. People were brushing up against him for the simple reason that there was no way to move around and do otherwise. Though several times the 'innocent' contact would be more accurately described as 'groping'.
To make the most of his sentence, he was searching for a suitable female for the role of girlfriend. He wanted no repeats of the atrocity his father had visited upon him with the dating conversation.
He sipped at a glass of ginger ale, and kept part in a conversation 3 of his classmates had decided to torture him with, while he focused his mind on the crowd.
His eyes seemed magnetically drawn to a dark haired boy who had peeled off from the masses to talk to a brunette, also a boy. He gestured loosely with a bottle in his hand that was most likely beer. Light looked more closely and found he recognized him. Memory served a blazingly detailed flash of that same dark-haired boy pushing one world-renowned detective hard up against the wall at school and kissing him open-mouthed and insistent. Light heard the slight crunch of brittle plastic as his hand gripped his cup too tightly.
Oh, but that face L had made when he came upon them. Heat flashed through him at the remembrance. L's startled eyes had locked on him and made that expression of sinful pleasure, absent before that moment.
Oh, the things that look made him want do...
But no, he couldn't afford to think of that now. Not here.
He needed a distraction. He skimmed his eyes over the crowd. Girlfriend... girlfriend... Anyone would do. He just had a few basic criteria: Female, pretty enough to impress his family and not impugn his reputation; reasonably intelligent, but not so much that she would become a nuisance; and finally, someone who looked wildly different from L. The last was critical - he could not allow himself to become one of those people who settled for replacements of what they really wanted. Because he fully intended to get what he wanted. Also, his father was not a simpleton. If he brought home a girl that even slightly resembled the detective, there was a chance he'd figure it out.
He began to skim in earnest. No... No... Too short... too hoe-ish... too tall... too curvy... too - what the hell was that one wearing? Hideous.
His eyes snagged on someone else.
Oh, a blonde. That's different.
He narrowed his eyes, assessing. She dressed oddly, but in a very particular way, as if she put time and effort into it. She appeared fastidious, that was always essential. Somewhat short... though her platform boots hid that reasonably well. Hmm... Pretty enough, and if her questionable style made his parents uncomfortable they would be too focused on that to look too deeply into other matters. This... could be perfect. If only she isn't dreadfully annoying. Or stupid. That could throw the whole thing out. But there was no way to gauge her intelligence without hearing her speak.
He would have to go talk to her.
---
"Ohmigod! Light brought a girl home," Sayu squealed as Light entered the foyer with the girl called Misa Amane at 11:50pm Saturday evening.
He disliked the way she made it sound like an impossibility.
Her childishly cute face lit up as she saw an opening to dodge around her brother and get a better look at the visitor. "I'm Sayu," she chirped, giddy with excitement. Her eyes roved the goth-lolita-meets-denim look the blonde girl wore so comfortably. Light ignored the production and stepped out of his shoes.
A moment later his sister gasped and darted back around the corner. "Mom! Mom!" she cried in a stage whisper, "It's Misa-Misa! Ohmigod, Light's dating a MODEL!"
Light looked up at that. He hadn't known she was a model. Everything else became rather inconsequential once he learned she was the owner of a Death Note.
His mom and sister appeared in the entryway. "Heavens!" his mother exclaimed, "It is Misa-Misa! Oh my goodness, my dear, it is such a pleasure to meet you!"
Misa smiled at the attention and slipped her arm through Light's. "I'm honored to meet you Yagami-san," she greeted his mother. "Thank you for having me in your home." She tipped a graceful bow.
His mother twittered giddily, fawning over the "adorable", "polite", and "utterly sweet" girl that had chosen to give her son a chance. She began offering them tea and every baked good in the house.
Light extricated them from his family's grip, not without difficulty, and wondered if Misa's fame would work for or against him.
---
An hour later, Light had sent Misa home, and his father had arrived to be blasted with the news of Light's "super-awesome-cool" girlfriend. His sister had a way with words. She must've gotten it from her mother's side.
A brief knock at his door.
"Light?"
Light unlocked and opened it. "Yes father?"
His father motioned that they enter the room and close it. That accomplished, he said, "I just want to apologize again for that thing I said before."
Thing? The you wrongly accusing me of being gay thing? "Oh father, I'd all but forgotten about that already. Why bring it up? It's water under the bridge."
"Well, your mother and sister have been gushing about this new girlfriend you brought home, and I -"
Realize how utterly ridiculous your accusation was?
"-I was worried that you felt pressured to date because of what I said."
Light's mouth dropped open the slightest bit.
"It's only been a few days since then and I can't help but think that. And you should date someone you like, after all."
"I like Misa," Light said through gritted teeth. "And I can't very well help when I met her."
"Ah..." Light's father ran his hand over the back of his hair. "Alright then. As long as it's what you want."
"It is." Light managed a passably convincing tone, though it galled him to have to say it. To say any of what he was saying. How could he possibly choose Misa as a partner? She wasn't bad as far as girls go, but who he wanted, who he really wanted with every fiber and scrap of his being was-
"By the way, Ryuuzaki was asking when you might be back."
"Oh?" Light managed not to choke.
"Will your studies keep you from the investigation much longer? He seemed insistent that your contribution was sorely missed and that the investigation is all but gimping along without you."
"Did he now?" Light managed a small laugh. But the shock of the detective being brought up so suddenly, and his fierce desire to see those night-dark eyes in the flesh, made his chest constrict painfully.
"Light, I don't want you to feel pressured into doing too much... I know he respects your intelligence a great deal, and wants to utilize you in the investigation as much as he can, but I think he forgets that you are still in school and have other obligations whereas he does not."
"No father, it's quite alright. In the larger scope of things, attending school would seem of much less import than capturing Kira."
"I know you two are... friends-"
Light froze at that hesitation. Was his effort in gaining a girlfriend another classic case of 'a little too late'?. Had his father already guessed it?
"-and you don't want to disappoint him by declining his requests for assistance, but you must not allow that to interfere with your studies."
"I would hardly call us friends, Father, and I work on the case because it interests me. This is the field I've chosen to pursue as my career after all. Working with L just happens to be an added benefit - that I can see one of the world's best detectives at work on a case that will likely be the most difficult I will ever see in all my years."
"Hmm." His father was nodding, a serious look on his face. "Sometimes I forget that part of it. That such an unlikely fellow is heir to such greatness. Working with him everyday, like we do... I suppose the reality of it just seems rather distant."
Light let disapproval color his voice, "Especially when he binges on candy like a 5 year old." Though I would pay dearly to see even that right now. How long has it been since we last met, Ryuuzaki, L, whatever your true name is?
"Yes, there is that." The police chief agreed. He smiled for the first time since this conversation started.
"Tell him I will come in when I can. I admit that I did neglect my studies slightly, and I should reverse that before rejoining the investigation. I wouldn't want to reinforce any bad habits."
"I'll tell him tomorrow."
---
It had been two weeks. Two excruciating weeks. L paced the monitor room tirelessly.
He didn't think it would be this long. He hadn't expected it to be this boring, or himself to be so restless.
He'd fallen into bad habits, and now where had it gotten him?
After their last encounter, L had been avoiding Light. Something about it had seemed too immediate, too overwhelming, and too unfamiliar. So much so that he wasn't sure about how to act around the other boy anymore. He'd been afraid he was being teased, afraid of his reactions to that teasing, and unsure how to change the dynamic of their interaction into something less stressful. He was half dreading it happening again, and was half ashamed to find out he sort of wanted it to.
He'd compromised with himself by watching Light work via the video feeds he received in this room. He studied the other boy relentlessly, without worry of the task force members noticing him do so. He regretted the lack of time that afforded him with the other boy, as he could no longer continue tailing him at school for the same reason.
But it had been 2 weeks now. 2 weeks coasting on that flimsy excuse of school that Yagami-san had presented him to explain Light's absence.
His brain was all but withering.
He missed the engaging conversation, the games of chess, they way they could communicate with just a look, and how their debates easily soared out of the grasp of understanding of everyone in the room.
Surely Light valued those things as much as he did? Was his not a spot that would be difficult to fill, should Light even have the thought to?
L damned himself for coming to care about this. Any of it. That he had ever started to crave friendship and acceptance. That he might have actually found it, but was terrified that he hadn't.
He'd been acting stupidly. Avoidance would not change whether Light was indeed a friend or not - it would merely delay the confirmation of it.
Logically, he could affirm that. But emotionally... he almost felt it better never to find out - so convinced was he that Light would prove the most traitorous sort of friend: The kind that never really cared at all.
---
(Chapter 5: Weekends are Made for Fun)
Light x L
L begins to suspect something is missing from his life. He believes the key to be in social interaction - his weak point. At the appearance of the enigma named Light Yagami, he is challenged to rise to the occasion.
Disclaimer: see ch. 1 for full disclaimer
_______________________________________________________ ______________________________________________
Chapter 5:
Light left the campus with relief at 3pm Friday afternoon.
These last few days, his frustration had been eating him alive. It took monumental effort to avoid headquarters like he planned. To not stop by in the hopes he would be able to lay eyes on the dark-haired detective, who had completely stopped tailing him at school.
It was possible L had decided to work surveillance from afar, keeping watch through the cameras installed throughout the hotel room used as headquarters - as plentiful and haphazardly placed as a swarm of ants on a carcass.
If that were the case, he would not make things so easy. If L wanted to watch him, he would have to come out of his cave to do so. Light would make the appropriate excuses, plead off in favor of school, until this gridlock changed. He would stay out of reach until Ryuuzaki was forced to move.
The train was crowded today, Light saw with distaste.
It always bothered him to have to endure strangers in his personal space. As if their very closeness could contaminate him. And well it could. Some of them were little better than filthy animals. The lowest sort of offal - people who allowed their minds to lie wasted and unused, or their bodies to rot when it housed their most precious asset.
Vermin. Some days he could near smell their stench and it made his skin crawl.
"Light-kun!" a girlish voice chirped in delighted surprise.
He stowed the sneer that begged to be free upon his face, cowed it with a brilliant smile as he looked up. "Ah, Yamada-san," he greeted with warm cordiality. "What brings you to the A train at this time? I thought you lived in the other direction?"
"Oh!" she flushed a little and twirled a piece of hair around a nervous finger. "I was going downtown... to shop for something to wear to the party?" she made fleeting, embarrassed eye contact, before staring at the ground. "You're going, right? Mika-chan said you'd promised to..."
"Saturday at 7pm, correct?"
She looked up, nodding eagerly.
Light felt a cloud of oppression settle about him. Downtown was another 5 stops from here. His was 2 after that. That meant 22 minutes of enduring this, of fighting to keep this lackluster communication continuing. All for the sake of appearance and social nicety. When he ruled the world he would abolish such inane and useless discourse under penalty of torture. People could damn well just sit and stare at each other for all he cared. If they had nothing worthwhile to relate they could practice the art of silence. Perhaps that would ultimately increase the intelligence of the world. They'd be forced to read or become cultured on the hopes of being allowed to speak. HA.
"Light-kun?"
"I'm sorry, Yamada-san," he apologized with a disarming smile. "I was thinking of all this work I have yet to accomplish... it is a little daunting, to be honest."
"Oh! Do you have an examination for one of your classes you need to study for? If it is English or Literature..." she trailed off a little, blushing again. "... I'm very good with those, so maybe I could help you with your studies?"
As if! Had she somehow failed to notice he had never received less than a perfect score in English Language on the posting board when she was in the very same class? "That won't be necessary, although I appreciate your offer. Unfortunately, it is a little out of that realm."
"Oh.. like what?"
Like world domination, you fool. "Calculus 4."
Her entire being drooped. "O-Oh... um... I've never made it past Algebra... so um... well, good luck."
Feh. Luck had nothing to do with it. "Thank you." Ah, her stop was almost here. 40 seconds until they slowed and she could disembark. "I'm just glad it won't tie me up so much as to miss the party tomorrow. It's nice to be able to relax once in a while, don't you think?"
"Of course!" She perked back up under his attention and resettled her bag on her shoulder. "It's so great that you feel that way too... Some people feel too pressured to take a break even now and then." She eyed the slowing of the scenery outside the windows with disappointment. "Well, um, this is my stop... I guess I'll see you later?"
"Tomorrow night," he promised.
"Great!" She practically skipped off the train. It was amazing she didn't trip herself.
---
L hunched over a bowl of chocolate covered cherries, and for once felt alarmingly unmoved.
He poked their luscious roundness with a listless finger and would just as soon chuck one at somebody's head than eat one.
"Yagami-san?" he called out to the police chief. He clenched his toes around the edge of the couch cushion.
"Yes, L?"
"Where did you say Light-kun has been these past few days?"
"He said he had tests to study for, and that he would be back to working the investigation as soon as possible," came the gruff response. Things had not quite been repaired between them. Light's father seemed to remain not-so-secretly bitter about his son being named a suspect.
"Ah." The cherries were of passable stackability.
"Is there any particular reason his absence warrants such notice?"
"Of course not, Yagami-san." It just unsettles me. What has he been doing all this time? Does he really need to study that much? Tests never required such preparation on his part before.
"Then?"
Light's probably lying to you. "Yagami-san, with the risk of sounding rude, I would like to remind you that I am heading this investigation." L stared at the cherries, willing the fifth in his current stack to stay balanced. "As such, I must know my alloted resources at all times. Light's assistance has been very useful and I would hate to lose that due to a misunderstanding."
"What misunderstanding?" Light's father looked suddenly very suspicious. The gears of his mind were turning, and it looked like it may have been painful. "Did he say anything... strange to you?" He peered at L as if he were dreading the answer.
L maintained a reflective veneer, being quite fascinated by this odd display before him and wanting to study it for just a moment longer. Light's behavior had been a bit out of the ordinary, but L couldn't really mark any of what he'd said as strange. But perhaps the word meant different things to the two of them? "Define what you mean by strange, Yagami-san?"
"Uh - anything personal?"
Hmm. That was an unexpected response, though an intriguing one. "If Light-kun had said anything to me of a personal nature, it is likely I would not share it," he said honestly.
Yagami stared at him.
He stared back.
Yagami blinked at him.
L stuffed two cherries in his mouth and chewed.
Yagami looked rattled, and stiffly walked back to his computer. He began to hit keys in a rather listless fashion. He may also have been mumbling under his breath.
---
Light decided to kill two birds with one stone.
The party was an excruciating affair of offensively loud music, horrible dancing, public displays of sluttery, and excessive drinking all in one tiny space. If one were being gracious, they could call this place a house. It was dreadfully small and quite overcrowded. People were brushing up against him for the simple reason that there was no way to move around and do otherwise. Though several times the 'innocent' contact would be more accurately described as 'groping'.
To make the most of his sentence, he was searching for a suitable female for the role of girlfriend. He wanted no repeats of the atrocity his father had visited upon him with the dating conversation.
He sipped at a glass of ginger ale, and kept part in a conversation 3 of his classmates had decided to torture him with, while he focused his mind on the crowd.
His eyes seemed magnetically drawn to a dark haired boy who had peeled off from the masses to talk to a brunette, also a boy. He gestured loosely with a bottle in his hand that was most likely beer. Light looked more closely and found he recognized him. Memory served a blazingly detailed flash of that same dark-haired boy pushing one world-renowned detective hard up against the wall at school and kissing him open-mouthed and insistent. Light heard the slight crunch of brittle plastic as his hand gripped his cup too tightly.
Oh, but that face L had made when he came upon them. Heat flashed through him at the remembrance. L's startled eyes had locked on him and made that expression of sinful pleasure, absent before that moment.
Oh, the things that look made him want do...
But no, he couldn't afford to think of that now. Not here.
He needed a distraction. He skimmed his eyes over the crowd. Girlfriend... girlfriend... Anyone would do. He just had a few basic criteria: Female, pretty enough to impress his family and not impugn his reputation; reasonably intelligent, but not so much that she would become a nuisance; and finally, someone who looked wildly different from L. The last was critical - he could not allow himself to become one of those people who settled for replacements of what they really wanted. Because he fully intended to get what he wanted. Also, his father was not a simpleton. If he brought home a girl that even slightly resembled the detective, there was a chance he'd figure it out.
He began to skim in earnest. No... No... Too short... too hoe-ish... too tall... too curvy... too - what the hell was that one wearing? Hideous.
His eyes snagged on someone else.
Oh, a blonde. That's different.
He narrowed his eyes, assessing. She dressed oddly, but in a very particular way, as if she put time and effort into it. She appeared fastidious, that was always essential. Somewhat short... though her platform boots hid that reasonably well. Hmm... Pretty enough, and if her questionable style made his parents uncomfortable they would be too focused on that to look too deeply into other matters. This... could be perfect. If only she isn't dreadfully annoying. Or stupid. That could throw the whole thing out. But there was no way to gauge her intelligence without hearing her speak.
He would have to go talk to her.
---
"Ohmigod! Light brought a girl home," Sayu squealed as Light entered the foyer with the girl called Misa Amane at 11:50pm Saturday evening.
He disliked the way she made it sound like an impossibility.
Her childishly cute face lit up as she saw an opening to dodge around her brother and get a better look at the visitor. "I'm Sayu," she chirped, giddy with excitement. Her eyes roved the goth-lolita-meets-denim look the blonde girl wore so comfortably. Light ignored the production and stepped out of his shoes.
A moment later his sister gasped and darted back around the corner. "Mom! Mom!" she cried in a stage whisper, "It's Misa-Misa! Ohmigod, Light's dating a MODEL!"
Light looked up at that. He hadn't known she was a model. Everything else became rather inconsequential once he learned she was the owner of a Death Note.
His mom and sister appeared in the entryway. "Heavens!" his mother exclaimed, "It is Misa-Misa! Oh my goodness, my dear, it is such a pleasure to meet you!"
Misa smiled at the attention and slipped her arm through Light's. "I'm honored to meet you Yagami-san," she greeted his mother. "Thank you for having me in your home." She tipped a graceful bow.
His mother twittered giddily, fawning over the "adorable", "polite", and "utterly sweet" girl that had chosen to give her son a chance. She began offering them tea and every baked good in the house.
Light extricated them from his family's grip, not without difficulty, and wondered if Misa's fame would work for or against him.
---
An hour later, Light had sent Misa home, and his father had arrived to be blasted with the news of Light's "super-awesome-cool" girlfriend. His sister had a way with words. She must've gotten it from her mother's side.
A brief knock at his door.
"Light?"
Light unlocked and opened it. "Yes father?"
His father motioned that they enter the room and close it. That accomplished, he said, "I just want to apologize again for that thing I said before."
Thing? The you wrongly accusing me of being gay thing? "Oh father, I'd all but forgotten about that already. Why bring it up? It's water under the bridge."
"Well, your mother and sister have been gushing about this new girlfriend you brought home, and I -"
Realize how utterly ridiculous your accusation was?
"-I was worried that you felt pressured to date because of what I said."
Light's mouth dropped open the slightest bit.
"It's only been a few days since then and I can't help but think that. And you should date someone you like, after all."
"I like Misa," Light said through gritted teeth. "And I can't very well help when I met her."
"Ah..." Light's father ran his hand over the back of his hair. "Alright then. As long as it's what you want."
"It is." Light managed a passably convincing tone, though it galled him to have to say it. To say any of what he was saying. How could he possibly choose Misa as a partner? She wasn't bad as far as girls go, but who he wanted, who he really wanted with every fiber and scrap of his being was-
"By the way, Ryuuzaki was asking when you might be back."
"Oh?" Light managed not to choke.
"Will your studies keep you from the investigation much longer? He seemed insistent that your contribution was sorely missed and that the investigation is all but gimping along without you."
"Did he now?" Light managed a small laugh. But the shock of the detective being brought up so suddenly, and his fierce desire to see those night-dark eyes in the flesh, made his chest constrict painfully.
"Light, I don't want you to feel pressured into doing too much... I know he respects your intelligence a great deal, and wants to utilize you in the investigation as much as he can, but I think he forgets that you are still in school and have other obligations whereas he does not."
"No father, it's quite alright. In the larger scope of things, attending school would seem of much less import than capturing Kira."
"I know you two are... friends-"
Light froze at that hesitation. Was his effort in gaining a girlfriend another classic case of 'a little too late'?. Had his father already guessed it?
"-and you don't want to disappoint him by declining his requests for assistance, but you must not allow that to interfere with your studies."
"I would hardly call us friends, Father, and I work on the case because it interests me. This is the field I've chosen to pursue as my career after all. Working with L just happens to be an added benefit - that I can see one of the world's best detectives at work on a case that will likely be the most difficult I will ever see in all my years."
"Hmm." His father was nodding, a serious look on his face. "Sometimes I forget that part of it. That such an unlikely fellow is heir to such greatness. Working with him everyday, like we do... I suppose the reality of it just seems rather distant."
Light let disapproval color his voice, "Especially when he binges on candy like a 5 year old." Though I would pay dearly to see even that right now. How long has it been since we last met, Ryuuzaki, L, whatever your true name is?
"Yes, there is that." The police chief agreed. He smiled for the first time since this conversation started.
"Tell him I will come in when I can. I admit that I did neglect my studies slightly, and I should reverse that before rejoining the investigation. I wouldn't want to reinforce any bad habits."
"I'll tell him tomorrow."
---
It had been two weeks. Two excruciating weeks. L paced the monitor room tirelessly.
He didn't think it would be this long. He hadn't expected it to be this boring, or himself to be so restless.
He'd fallen into bad habits, and now where had it gotten him?
After their last encounter, L had been avoiding Light. Something about it had seemed too immediate, too overwhelming, and too unfamiliar. So much so that he wasn't sure about how to act around the other boy anymore. He'd been afraid he was being teased, afraid of his reactions to that teasing, and unsure how to change the dynamic of their interaction into something less stressful. He was half dreading it happening again, and was half ashamed to find out he sort of wanted it to.
He'd compromised with himself by watching Light work via the video feeds he received in this room. He studied the other boy relentlessly, without worry of the task force members noticing him do so. He regretted the lack of time that afforded him with the other boy, as he could no longer continue tailing him at school for the same reason.
But it had been 2 weeks now. 2 weeks coasting on that flimsy excuse of school that Yagami-san had presented him to explain Light's absence.
His brain was all but withering.
He missed the engaging conversation, the games of chess, they way they could communicate with just a look, and how their debates easily soared out of the grasp of understanding of everyone in the room.
Surely Light valued those things as much as he did? Was his not a spot that would be difficult to fill, should Light even have the thought to?
L damned himself for coming to care about this. Any of it. That he had ever started to crave friendship and acceptance. That he might have actually found it, but was terrified that he hadn't.
He'd been acting stupidly. Avoidance would not change whether Light was indeed a friend or not - it would merely delay the confirmation of it.
Logically, he could affirm that. But emotionally... he almost felt it better never to find out - so convinced was he that Light would prove the most traitorous sort of friend: The kind that never really cared at all.
---
Light was almost blinded with elation early Tuesday morning.
After nearly 2 and a half weeks, what sight greeted his eyes but the shifty, ducked head of L, watching him from the crowd of students overwhelming the school's courtyard. His sullen and dejected stance looked out of place amidst the brightly colored bustle, but Light loved him for it. For falling so neatly to his plan, though it took much longer than he'd expected.
He made his eyes flick past as if he had not seen the other boy at all and called out to a classmate he'd been subjected to at the party, as his smile leaked past his reserve, making a show of camaraderie for the benefit of watchful eyes.
He advanced into the building, savoring the prickle between his shoulder blades that was L's resentful stare. He'd dare say he felt almost giddy as everything turned full circle and all the pieces were falling into place.
Though L did not attempt to speak with him that day or the next, Light didn't care. Having that unparalleled focus leveled on him, where it should be, was enough to carry him for at least a week. He would start tearing L down soon enough.
---
L felt tormented.
His observations were confirming nothing positive. In fact, his subject seemed not to have noticed him at all. Though that couldn't possibly be the case....
Every new face, every new voice that sought Light out was a sharp pang in his chest. So many people vying for his attention... And what am I but one more?
He wasn't sure how long he could take this.
But then, he didn't feel he could give up until he knew for sure.
He would have confronted Light directly, but he couldn't here... not when he was on such unfamiliar ground. But Light was choosing to remain absent from headquarters. So all he could do was wait and watch. And try not to let the structured, disciplinary hell of the place weigh too heavily upon him.
The biggest obstacle to that, of course, were the people.
Chattering cliques of girls how shot reproachful looks at you merely for walking by, the boys who rough-housed with their friends in a way that made you wish you could be a part of some accepting whole as they were. But there were loners too. Plenty of them. Ones with averted eyes and quick steps, ones with glassy eyes and a wandering gait, ones who blended in to the overwhelming mass of humanity as well as any puzzle piece.
He cataloged every detail. His mind ached with it - the useless observations. But he couldn't turn that part of himself off - he'd honed it for too many years.
How did Light do it?
How did he stay sane?
How much did it cost him to maintain the flawless persona he donned here?
He made his eyes flick past as if he had not seen the other boy at all and called out to a classmate he'd been subjected to at the party, as his smile leaked past his reserve, making a show of camaraderie for the benefit of watchful eyes.
He advanced into the building, savoring the prickle between his shoulder blades that was L's resentful stare. He'd dare say he felt almost giddy as everything turned full circle and all the pieces were falling into place.
Though L did not attempt to speak with him that day or the next, Light didn't care. Having that unparalleled focus leveled on him, where it should be, was enough to carry him for at least a week. He would start tearing L down soon enough.
---
L felt tormented.
His observations were confirming nothing positive. In fact, his subject seemed not to have noticed him at all. Though that couldn't possibly be the case....
Every new face, every new voice that sought Light out was a sharp pang in his chest. So many people vying for his attention... And what am I but one more?
He wasn't sure how long he could take this.
But then, he didn't feel he could give up until he knew for sure.
He would have confronted Light directly, but he couldn't here... not when he was on such unfamiliar ground. But Light was choosing to remain absent from headquarters. So all he could do was wait and watch. And try not to let the structured, disciplinary hell of the place weigh too heavily upon him.
The biggest obstacle to that, of course, were the people.
Chattering cliques of girls how shot reproachful looks at you merely for walking by, the boys who rough-housed with their friends in a way that made you wish you could be a part of some accepting whole as they were. But there were loners too. Plenty of them. Ones with averted eyes and quick steps, ones with glassy eyes and a wandering gait, ones who blended in to the overwhelming mass of humanity as well as any puzzle piece.
He cataloged every detail. His mind ached with it - the useless observations. But he couldn't turn that part of himself off - he'd honed it for too many years.
How did Light do it?
How did he stay sane?
How much did it cost him to maintain the flawless persona he donned here?
L waded through bodies, moving bodies, suffering the impersonal touches of jostling one could expect in such a place, heading for an exterior door that right now looked like the holy grail. He pushed against the metal bar and slipped out of the building with mindless relief.
There were still people out here, but they were fewer in abundance and much quieter. He sat on a stone wall that edged some questionably cared for shrubbery, and waited for the echoing din from the halls to fade from his head.
He was hunched over, his head in his hand when he noticed a pair of shiny, waxed black boots, and dark plaid pants stop before him. He pretended to be zoned out, as if he was so deep in thought that he couldn't see them. He felt something like a pained scowl struggling to emerge as the owner of the boots spoke.
"I was wondering when I'd see you again," a vaguely familiar voice said.
L managed a bland expression before looking up.
The dark-haired boy from the assembly hall - the one who'd once backed him into a wall in a particularly compromising fashion - was standing before him.
L sighed dejectedly. He was about at his limit for dealing with anything. This did not bode well.
"Aww," the boy said with disappointment, plopping himself down next L, "So I guess you heard already, huh."
"Heard what?" L asked mechanically. Like anything happening in this school would actually concern him. He was an outsider here. A true fake. As fake as any name he'd ever given out for someone's use.
"You're kidding! You really don't know?"
"Know what? L said with exasperation.
"Well - I guess you were gone a few days..."
"More like 2 1/2 weeks," L interjected with annoyance.
"So it was," Graham said thoughtfully. "Why were you out?"
"I was ill."
"Hmmm, sorry to hear that. Because while you were out, it looks like you lost your chance."
"Chance?" What was this kid babbling about?
"Mmm-hmm. Light Yagami has snagged himself a girlfriend."
L was rather unprepared for the feeling of the earth giving way under his feet. It shouldn't matter. He stared at the immobile ground, and yet the feeling persisted. Having a girlfriend is normal. That's probably the reason he hasn't had time for... for the investigation.... He felt ill.
L roused himself for speech, "How long has... When did this happen?"
"Ooooh," Graham drew the word out as he thought, "about 2 weeks ago?"
So the two did not directly coincide. It made him feel marginally better. But still...
"It's surprising, really," Graham was rattling on, "I've told you before that Light is a really difficult person to get close to. This is the first time I've heard if him dating anyone, and I've talked to people who've known him since Junior High."
So why now?
"Huh?" the other boy responded to what L thought had been an unspoken question. "Well, I'm not sure. Maybe he finally snapped under the pressure of all that pent up sexual tension." Graham obviously meant it as a joke, but to L, it just wasn't very funny.
"That's a rather forward thing to say about someone you barely know," L said with a sharp edge to his voice.
Graham shrugged. "You asked. Besides, what gives you the right to tell me what I can and can't say about him? You hardly know him, either." Graham straightened up and peered at him with a speculative smile. "Unless... you do know him after all."
"Of course not." How can I claim to really know someone as elusive as Light? For all I know, I'm just acquainted with one of his false skins. As soon as he discards that, I'll be discarded by default.
Graham looked like he didn't believe him. "Oh, cheer up," he said lightly. "You may still get your chance. Relationships aren't forever."
And that was both mildly uplifting and wildly depressing all at the same time.
---
TBC
There were still people out here, but they were fewer in abundance and much quieter. He sat on a stone wall that edged some questionably cared for shrubbery, and waited for the echoing din from the halls to fade from his head.
He was hunched over, his head in his hand when he noticed a pair of shiny, waxed black boots, and dark plaid pants stop before him. He pretended to be zoned out, as if he was so deep in thought that he couldn't see them. He felt something like a pained scowl struggling to emerge as the owner of the boots spoke.
"I was wondering when I'd see you again," a vaguely familiar voice said.
L managed a bland expression before looking up.
The dark-haired boy from the assembly hall - the one who'd once backed him into a wall in a particularly compromising fashion - was standing before him.
L sighed dejectedly. He was about at his limit for dealing with anything. This did not bode well.
"Aww," the boy said with disappointment, plopping himself down next L, "So I guess you heard already, huh."
"Heard what?" L asked mechanically. Like anything happening in this school would actually concern him. He was an outsider here. A true fake. As fake as any name he'd ever given out for someone's use.
"You're kidding! You really don't know?"
"Know what? L said with exasperation.
"Well - I guess you were gone a few days..."
"More like 2 1/2 weeks," L interjected with annoyance.
"So it was," Graham said thoughtfully. "Why were you out?"
"I was ill."
"Hmmm, sorry to hear that. Because while you were out, it looks like you lost your chance."
"Chance?" What was this kid babbling about?
"Mmm-hmm. Light Yagami has snagged himself a girlfriend."
L was rather unprepared for the feeling of the earth giving way under his feet. It shouldn't matter. He stared at the immobile ground, and yet the feeling persisted. Having a girlfriend is normal. That's probably the reason he hasn't had time for... for the investigation.... He felt ill.
L roused himself for speech, "How long has... When did this happen?"
"Ooooh," Graham drew the word out as he thought, "about 2 weeks ago?"
So the two did not directly coincide. It made him feel marginally better. But still...
"It's surprising, really," Graham was rattling on, "I've told you before that Light is a really difficult person to get close to. This is the first time I've heard if him dating anyone, and I've talked to people who've known him since Junior High."
So why now?
"Huh?" the other boy responded to what L thought had been an unspoken question. "Well, I'm not sure. Maybe he finally snapped under the pressure of all that pent up sexual tension." Graham obviously meant it as a joke, but to L, it just wasn't very funny.
"That's a rather forward thing to say about someone you barely know," L said with a sharp edge to his voice.
Graham shrugged. "You asked. Besides, what gives you the right to tell me what I can and can't say about him? You hardly know him, either." Graham straightened up and peered at him with a speculative smile. "Unless... you do know him after all."
"Of course not." How can I claim to really know someone as elusive as Light? For all I know, I'm just acquainted with one of his false skins. As soon as he discards that, I'll be discarded by default.
Graham looked like he didn't believe him. "Oh, cheer up," he said lightly. "You may still get your chance. Relationships aren't forever."
And that was both mildly uplifting and wildly depressing all at the same time.
---
TBC