Author's Note: If you hate Near, Mello x Near or yaoi pairings in general, then hit that back button RIGHT now. Because it focuses on all three of things, meaning you're an idiot if you read it anyways despite my warning. Now, as for the pairing itself, I adore these two SO much. I don't care what anyone has to say about them being enemies. Hell, I ship these two BECAUSE they're enemies. I love the dynamic these two have and I just cannot get enough of this pairing. Besides, I recently found out from an official source that the main producers of Death Note admitted on Near's character development info that Near has a legit crush on Mello. So I wrote this in celebration of that news.

P.S I'm just gonna let you all know now that this is my first Death Note fic ever, so I apologize in advance if the characterization seems a bit shaky. I'm still learning how to write for these two properly.

A lot of people, along with Mello, assumed that because Mello hated Near that meant the albino felt the same. They were actually incredibly wrong about that assumption. The hatred remained one-sided on Near's behalf though as he was far too intrigued by his self-proclaimed rival to abhor him in the slightest. Yes even though Mello focused a lot of negative behavior on him in particular, by either knocking over his tower of cards, dominoes, etc. or by wrecking/stealing his toys, Mello fascinated Near. And yet the two were incredibly different in almost every single way that two individuals could possibly be.

They were literally as different as day and night if one dared to put them in the same room side by side to compare them.

Mello was loud and reckless and preferred to dress in black, dark colors to reflect his mood. As for Near he was quiet and practical and was so incredibly white that he resembled a ghost. They didn't share the same opinions on anything (not that Near ever showed enough interest in anything to give his opinion on it.) They did not agree with each other's methods to get a problem solved. In fact Mello had this wild idea that Near was out to get him when all Near was looking for was an acquaintance.

But in spite of this, Near didn't seem to be too bothered by the negative attention he got from the blonde, from the looks of it. In fact, when the older caretakers of Whammy's came across the two they could almost swear that it seemed as if Near actually enjoyed the company of Mello despite how poorly the blonde treated him. But they shrugged it off as a mere misconception and decided to not dwell on the idea too much.

Unfortunately Near found it impossible to not dwell on the idea, on the possibility that he might have…feelings for the blonde. The idea of harboring affections for another human being was completely foreign to him. He had lived most of his life at Whammy's keeping his emotions dormant, for so long he wouldn't know how to handle them if something triggered them. In fact he had never thought that anything would bring his emotions out of their dormant state, much less his personal tormentor.

Whether he accepted them or not, the feelings were there and it was driving him mad. It was like nothing he had ever experienced before and he didn't know what to do with them. Near didn't really have anyone he could confide to about such matters either. He was not looking forward to the idea of admitting to this problem to Mello himself, but it seemed that he was out of options. Near was just going to have to bear with the inevitable humiliation. At this point, he was willing to try anything.

Now all it took was for him to gain the courage to actually personally confront Mello about the issue. That was the most difficult part of this whole plan. Mello was so unpredictable that he had no idea how he would prepare himself for this. The glaring fact that Mello despised his very existence made this feat all the more daunting. But in spite of his hesitation, Near took the plunge head on. He had finally managed to find Mello. Although to be honest, Mello had been the one to go to him first.

Near had been about to go search for Mello, only to find that his tormentor had already barged into his room. The blonde was extremely ticked off, looking like he was ready to tear something to shreds if it even looked at him funny. He stomps over to the albino, shoving him to the wall, fists gripping the collar of Near's white shirt. Near had no choice but to stare directly at Mello, and it was incredibly difficult to prevent himself from blushing. Mello seemed to be able to tell how nervous Near was, causing his lips to curl up into a sneer.

"Alright, you pale little freak," Mello began, speaking as if it made him sick to his stomach to even breathe the same air as Near, "I've been letting some things slide for awhile, but enough is enough. I demand an explanation for this bullshit."

The time it took for Mello to say this gave Near enough time to regain his composure. He went back to his usual apathetic state of mind, something that he was more familiar with than his previous feelings, "I'm afraid I don't understand what you are concerned about, Mello. You're going to have to be more specific."

Mello narrowed his eyes at the smaller boy, a growl rumbling deep in his throat. He tightens his grip on Near's collar, as if he were hoping to choke the truth out of him, "I'm not going to believe any of your bullshit for a second. You may think you've fooled everyone else with your stupid emo façade, but I know something's not right."

Near felt his heart skip a beat at these words. So he had noticed a change in his behavior. Near silently prayed to whatever deity that was listening that Mello had at least not been able to figure out the cause of his recent behavior, "Is that so? Then how you be absolutely certain that your assumption is correct?"

"Because if you weren't staring at me all the time, I wouldn't have noticed a thing," The rage in Mello's eyes seemed to intensify as he admitted this. Near couldn't see anything else in his expression other than burning hatred towards him, "And if you aren't staring like a creep, I can see you watching me out of the corner of my eyes, as if you're testing me or something. What is your problem with me!? If you hate me sobadly, then admit it to my face already!"

"I have no reason to admit anything to you," Near states in his deadpan tone of voice. The only thing that was true about this response was that he didn't want to admit to what was really going on with him. He was already beginning to regret this decision even though he was sure that the worst of it hadn't happened yet.

"BULLSHIT!" Mello screams in outrage, causing the pale boy to cringe slightly at the volume of his voice. He grabs Near by the collar his shirt as he leans in close to him, sneering at him in his disgust, "Your lies aren't going to work on me! So cut the crap and SAY IT ALREADY! Say that you hate me, you worthless piece of shit!"

The albino was about to respond with his usual indifferent attitude, when he notices just how closely their faces are touching. He felt his heart skip a beat again, but for a different reason this time. Oh god he hoped that he wasn't blushing, "I…"

Mello's enraged face contorts into that of absolute confusion over the strange reaction from his arch rival. At first he doesn't want to believe what he's seeing. Then when he understands what's going on, he begins to laugh derisively, "Oh, you've gotta be shitting me! You-you actually almost made me believe you might have a crush on me!"

Near lowers his head in embarrassment as the blush on his cheeks grows increasingly brighter. He feels he would've preferred for Mello to beat the crap out of him for admitting his secret rather than endure the embarrassment he was feeling. The albino inhales to prepare himself for worst as he explains, "I-it's not a joke, Mello. I do think it could really be true that I have-"

Mello rudely interrupts the albino before he can get a chance to finish his sentence, "Whoa whoa whoa, wait a second. I don't think I heard that correctly. Are you saying that you actually like me!? WHAT!?"

"I thought that for a smart person like Mello, it would've been obvious to figure out," Near mutters in a quiet voice, absentmindedly twirling a lock of soft white hair. Unable to look Mello face-to-face, he instead chooses to examine the floor.

"But that doesn't make any sense!" Mello exclaims, looking like he doesn't know whether to be horrified or disgusted. This all has to be some sort of awful nightmare, it just has to be.

"From what I have researched on the subject, the emotion called "love" is infamous for being illogical," Near retorts calmly, seeming to be unaffected by Mello's revolted expression. Despite his words, his voice still sounds as bored as ever. "I find this feeling to be rather…complicated, to be honest. I'm not certain whether or not I enjoy it."

Mello recoils from the white haired boy's reply as if he'd just been violently struck across the face. He's quick to contradict his rival's perplexing claims, unable to accept it at the moment, "What the fuck!? Now you're trying to say you love me!? What is wrong with you!? We're enemies, remember!? I hate you and you hate me!"

For a split second, sadness seems to glimmer in Near's grey eyes as he allows this fact to sink in. He heaves out a disappointed sigh before he continues to explain himself, "As usual, Mello is wrong. Even though I'm not entirely sure why this is, I'd always secretly admired you…"

"Admired me? Not that I'm complaining about having a fan, but what the hell would someone like you admire me for?" Mello says, looking at the albino questioningly. He had honestly never considered that the rivalry between them was only one-sided all this time. Mello could feel a headache forming over this baffling turn of events.

Near shook his head in disagreement at the blonde's response. The blush from earlier returns as he begins to list off the reasons, "I know you probably don't believe me, b-but I really do. I always like how confident you are about yourself, how you have this strong passion about everything you do, how you strive to put your best efforts into succeeding and most of all, that you're never afraid of anything. You're everything that I never can be..."

"Hell yeah, it's about time you admit just how fucking amazing I am! But still...do you really mean that?" Mello questions the boy, as he leers at him suspiciously for any signs that he might be bluffing. He clearly did not yet entirely believe that all of this was truly genuine, "Nobody set you up for this, did they?"

Unfazed by Mello's attempt to intimidate him, Near blinks in confusion at the blonde's reaction, "What could I possibly gain from lying to Mello about something this serious?"

Mello stared at him in utter disbelief for a moment, he had actually been hoping that his rival really was lying. But he knew that the albino's innocent tone said otherwise, "Damn, you are more fucked up in the head than I thought!"

Near actually seemed to look slightly ashamed by the blonde's reply although Mello was sure he was imagining that. Even if he apparently had the capacity to love someone, there was no way he could ever be nervous about anything, "I wish I could just ignore it, but I don't think it will be as simple as that…"

"No shit, dumbass," Mello scoffs, rolling his eyes in exasperation at the younger boy for making such an obvious statement. Seeing that Near was staring at him expectantly, Mello snaps at the boy harshly, "But what do you expect me to do about it?"

If at all possible, Near's blush becomes even brighter as he works up the courage to respond. He had in fact come up with a solution, but he wasn't too sure that his rival would be happy about it, "Er, about that, I…I don't really know how to ask something like this…"

Mello is too impatient to give the albino enough time to regain his composure. He just wanted this extremely awkward confrontation to be over as quickly as possible, "Spit it out already! I can't stand seeing you act like this!"

Near twirls his hair in nervous anticipation, as he struggles to keep himself calm, "D-don't get mad, but I think that the only way this can be fixed is if you…k-kiss me!"

Mello grimaces in disgust at the idea, who might seriously be about to vomit any second, "Ugh, hell no! Not even all the chocolate in the world would make me agree to that!"

"Mello!" Near unintentionally lets out a whine as he says Mello's name, which surprises the both of them, "I promise that it'll just be one kiss, no more than that! I want this problem to go away just as much as you!"

Mello was going to say no, but the desperate look in Near's told him how badly this was affecting the albino. Much as he hated the kid, he felt a little bad for him. It must be really awful to crush on someone who hates your guts, "God, the things I do for brats like you. I'll do it but if you tell anyone about this I will fucking murder you. Got it?"

Knowing that Mello was the type who would actually go through with that, Near nods his head in agreement. Besides he needed this too badly to screw up a chance like this, "I can promise you that."

"Since this is your first kiss, I'll show you how an expert does it," After laying him down on Near's bed, Mello leans in close to the albino and their lips connect. Truthfully he didn't know what to expect, but nothing could've prepared him for the intense sensations it brought forth.

The kiss he was sharing with Near now wasn't Mello's first kiss but this one was by far the most amazing one he'd ever had. It felt as if an explosion of fireworks had erupted in him, leaving him breathless. He supposed he shouldn't get too into it since this was Near's first experience, but oh god, he needed more than this. Startled, Near yelps into the kiss as the blonde it to another level. Mello practically loses it when he hears that delicious sound come from his rival. The blonde lets his tongue travel every inch of Near's mouth. The albino trembles underneath him, either out of pleasure or nervousness.

Near squirms uncomfortably over all of the foreign sensations his body is experiencing. He had no idea that something like this could overwhelm him so much. As big as his vocabulary was, he couldn't find any words that could describe this. He soon found himself turning into a whining mess from the force of Mello's kiss. Eventually, Mello finally broke off the kiss so he could take a moment to gasp for air.

Near was doing no better than the blonde was, as he lay panting in exhaustion. For awhile, neither knew what to say each other after such an incredible moment. But they couldn't have said anything at the moment as they regained their composure. Their minds were reeling with an assortment of confusing thoughts. Neither of the rivals thought they could feel such intense feelings from one another.

For the first time, their thoughts were on the same wavelength: what's going to happen to their rivalry from this point on? They didn't even need to exchange any words to know what they were thinking.

Near decided to be the one to break the tense silence between them, still sounding a bit breathless, "…wow."

"Did you expect anything less from the best? You know you enjoyed it."

"I wouldn't go that far."

"Fuck you too, Near."

In spite of the animosity in the blonde's response, Near smiled since that kind of attitude was exactly what he loved about his rival.