(disclaimer: I don't own Death Note, and this story is set in the established manga world)

work in progress

part i ;

He stared out the front windshield of the stolen 2003 Camaro, a small smile forming on his face as the blonde next to him screamed and threw up his hands. How he lived for these moments.

Mello's hair fluttered wildly as the car sped down the highway, and Matt's hair strained against his goggles, desperately trying to escape it's binds.

Other cars zoomed by, unaware of the two teenagers and what they had just done.

"I can't believe you actually stole the car," Mello told his best friend, a smile still evident on his face.

The blonde's voice was almost lost to the wind, but Matt had a habit of hearing everything Mello said.

"Of course I did. Did you ever really doubt me?" Matt stole a sideways glance at Mello, his smile lighting a fire in his heart once again. He focused his eyes back on the road ahead, telling himself not to get carried away. "I told you you needed a break, didn't I?"

"You did," Mello agreed. "Damn, Roger is going to be pissed!" His light laugh filled the night air around them, soon left behind as Matt saw the speedometer reach the 80s.

"If he finds out, you mean."

"Right," he agreed.

Matt hadn't seen Mello this carefree since... well, since they had met. He wanted to make this moment last forever, but would take what he could get.

The two had been at Wammy's House for as long as they both could remember, their earliest memories being of each other.

Mello had been at the orphanage since he was three, and when he was five he met the four year old Matt. Before Matt, all there was was a flash of a hand reaching out to him. Next thing he was at the gates of Wammy's, and then nothing else until the little red head walked into him and almost knocked him over, too absorbed in a video game to pay attention. Mello had pushed him to the ground and yelled, but Matt had simply gotten back up and stood next Mello, still playing his game. Matt hadn't left his side since.

Matt didn't care to remember anything before Mello, on the other hand. He remembered his life before the orphanage: his abusive mom, the calming voice of his brother, but a majority of it wasn't pleasant, so he simply focused on one thing: Mello. Classes and grades were second to Mello, as were video games, although he preferred his games to the homework he was given. He could probably get as good of grades as Mello if he tried, but he simply didn't care about that.

The air steadily got colder the later it got, and Matt took the opportunity to rest his arm on the back of Mello's seat. He was a little surprised when the blonde leaned into him, but didn't say anything.

"Hey Matt, how do you even know how to drive?" he asked, his curiosity getting the better of him.

"Mels, you act like this is the first time I've done this," he laughed, then sighed and cleared his throat. "I crashed a few cars, but soon I got the hang of it. It's really not that hard."

"Maybe you should teach me sometime," Mello casually suggested, though Matt knew it would be hard to get Mello to leave Wammy's again, even for a few hours.

"I'm serious," he insisted after Matt didn't respond. "Teach me."

Matt glanced at him,which was a bit hard since Mello had rested his head on Matt's shoulder. "Alright," he agreed after a moment of thought. "But next time, okay? It's too late tonight, we should start heading back anyways."

Mello hummed in agreement when he saw that the clock on the dashboard showed it was 2:43 a.m. They turned around and headed back towards Winchester, this time hitting the 90s, almost 100, in order to shorten the travel time.

It was almost four a.m. by the time the got to Winchester and dumped the car on the side of the road on the outskirts of Winnall. Most times, he returned the car to it's owners with a thank you note stuck under the windshield wiper, but he hadn't been paying attention to the time and they were already cutting it close. A glimpse of a newspaper in Roger's office a few weeks ago had informed him that the repeated incidents had caught the attention of the media, but he wasn't worried about getting caught.

Matt mapped out the routes in his head. From where they were, it was roughly a fourty minute walk back to Wammy's, thirty if they went through the woods.

"We're gonna take a short cut," the gamer announced, heading towards the line of trees.

"Through there?" Mello asked, unsure. He brushed off his nervousness, and tried to sound skeptical. "Are you sure? What if we get lost? What if there's a fox?"

Matt shook his head softly, a small small finding it's way to his lips as he stopped and looked at Mello, who hadn't moved.

"Come on, it's quicker," Matt told the blonde, taking his hand and darting off between the trees.

Mello wasn't exactly thrilled to be forced into the leafy darkness, but he had never left Wammy's since he got there, so he put his trust in Matt, who seemed to know his way around.

Away from the street lights, it was harder to see where they were going, although the light that shone down through the higher branches helped illuminate the path slightly. Matt had made subtle hints for himself in order to find his way back on his previous adventures away from Wammy's, so he wasn't phased by the darkness, having followed the path too many times to count.

The redhead felt a tug on his hand and a whispered "fuck". He turned around to see Mello catching himself from hitting the ground with his free hand.

"Watch your step," Matt warned, lightly laughing.

"No shit," Mello retorted. He picked himself off of the ground, letting go of Matt's hand and brushing the dirt off of his hands and knees. "Let's just get back to Wammy's..."

He sighed and motioned for Matt to lead the way, this time focusing on not tripping again.

The rest of the trip was without accident, the blonde carefully watching where he stepped and following closely behind his best friend.

Matt soon saw the trees part and the edge of the familiar property came into view. Mello took out his Nokia 8250 and checked the time. 4:32 am. He nodded to Matt, who sighed.

"When are you going to get the new one, huh? The Samsung S300 is so much better!" To prove his point, he took out his own phone and dangled it back and forth by the Mario charm that was attached at the close.

"I told you, when I need a new phone, I'll let you know. In the mean time, let's get back inside before we get caught."

The two slipped through a lose peg in the fence that surrounded the mansion, being careful to put it back in place. They climbed the ivy to Mello's room, then crawled in through the window, shutting it quietly behind them. He estimated they had about two hours before Roger would be waking up for morning rounds, so there was time for a small nap, though he figured Mello wouldn't sleep.

Once the window was closed and the adrenaline subsided, Mello visibly relaxed.

"See?" Matt whispered, "Everything's fine. We didn't get caught, just like I promised."

"Yeah, you're right," Mello sighed, offering a small smile, but Matt could tell he was still slightly on edge.

"Get some rest, Mels," he muttered. He leaned over and gently kissed the chocoholic on the cheek. "Next time your driving lessons start."

"Yeah," Mello breathed after the other male had retreated to his room. His hand rested where his best friend's lips had been, a tugging feeling on his heart as he laid on his bed, not bothering to change before passing out.

The banging on his door didn't cease, even after five minutes.

Matt glanced at the door, frustrated. He paused his Super Smash Bros. Melee game and took off his headset, wondering who the hell was knocking at his door this late at night. In all honesty, he wasn't exactly sure what time it was, but he figured it was late, as the last time he had checked, it was well past midnight.

He looked through the peep hole, expecting to see Roger, prepared to scold him for staying up too late.

Instead he saw his best friend.

He opened up the door in confusion, concern written all over his face.

"Mels, whats-"

He stumbled backwards in order to keep his balance as the blonde threw himself at the gamer. A protective arm went around the him while the other hand quietly shut the door.

Matt guided Mello to his bed, now extremely worried. He had never seen Mello cry. Before now, he didn't believe Mello was capable of crying.

He comforted him for a few minutes, wondering what had been so bad to make Mello this upset. After a few minutes, he knew. There could only be one thing that would make Mello this upset.

Another minute passed as the news sunk in.

"Mello? Did he pick-"

"No." The word came sharply yet softly, something only Mello could do. "He hadn't chosen yet."

Matt hugged Mello tighter to his chest, knowing the pain he must have been feeling. Everything Mello had ever worked towards was gone now. The only person Mello had seen as a role model was dead. And he hadn't picked a successor.

In a way it was almost worse. Mello would never know if he was the best. He would never know if L thought he was worthy to be his successor, or if Near would beat him out once again. It was agony for Mello. What was he supposed to do now?

"I told Near to take L's place."

"What?" Matt asked in disbelief. "Why?"

Mello pushed away from Matt, wiping under his eyes. He went to the sink and hung his head, his blonde hair falling over his face.

"L would have chosen him anyways-"

"You don't know that."

"-He's detached and only thinks logically. He doesn't let his emotions affect him. He's obviously the better choice."

Matt reached out towards Mello, feeling tiny threads start to snap. Mello was his safety net, the one who caught him when he broke. When he first got to the orphanage and was recovering from the separation from his older brother. When Roger took away his cigarettes and he had withdrawals for three weeks. When A took his own life when Matt was six, and he had discovered the scene trying to run away from BB.

Suddenly, his safety net was ripping apart all at once.

"Mello."

And there was nothing he could do to stop it.

"No, Matt," he started. "You don't have to say anything."

Matt stared at Mello, not quite understanding what was going on in the blonde's head. He didn't seem like he was there anymore. He was someplace else, though his body was still there. It frightened Matt.

"What are you gonna do?" he asked.

"I don't know." The words were once again short.

Matt wrapped his arms around Mello's waist from behind. He had never been very forward with Mello about his feelings, not to mention keeping physical interaction at a minimum, but he felt it didn't matter now. It was his turn to be the safety net.

"We'll get through it Mels... Together. Like we always have." His thoughts raced with how he could live up to his words. There was nothing left here for Mello, and Matt only stayed because he had no reason to go elsewhere.

"We'll leave," he suggested. "We'll leave Wammy's. We'll leave England. Start over. We can go to Denmark, or France."

Matt gave Mello a little squeeze and rested his head on his back.

Mello turned around after a few seconds, causing Matt to stand up straight.

Mello was a little taller than Matt, though only by an inch or two. They were the same height when Matt wore his combat boots, however all Matt wore at the moment was Legend of Zelda boxers and a plain black t-shirt. He mentally noted that Mello was kind of intimidating if you didn't know him, but, naturally, Matt knew better.

"You're serious?" Mello asked, studying the other closely.

"If you want to," Matt said, eyes shining up at Mello.

Mello cursed inwardly, finally realizing just how deep in Matt was.

It was a moment before he answered.

"Then Friday night," Mello agreed. He couldn't drag Matt into the shit storm he was about to get himself into. He cared about him too much.

But for better or worse, Mello let his body take over, abandoning all logic he previously tried to use against himself.

His lips connected softly with Matt's, and his hands snaked up through the gamer's red locks to pull him closer.

Mello's heart felt like it was going to explode in his chest, and he immediately regretted the kiss, but he didn't pull away.

Matt did.

The gamer's cheeks were flushed and he was slightly out breath, and he was obviously embarrassed.

"Mels," Matt said nervously, no other words coming to mind.

Mello averted his eyes to his own feet, and ran a hand through his hair, cursing himself for surprising his best friend like that.

"I uh..." Mello started towards the door. "Don't forget: Friday night. If you still wanted to go, that is."

The blonde didn't wait for a response before slipping out into the hall, leaving Matt dumbstruck in the glow of the television.

Matt.

I have to catch Kira before Near does. It's the only way I can prove that I'm capable of being L's successor.

Don't follow me.

Mello.

P.S. I don't regret it.

Matt looked out his bedroom door to see Roger and a few of the staff members securing the loose peg, where Mello had left it obviously open when he left the night before. Now that the fence was being fixed, Matt would have to find a new way to get out, which is exactly what Mello wanted.

He glared over at the note on his desk, wondering where his best friend was at.

Damn him.

part ii is in progress.

there will be three installments to this story.