Usually when I write Wammy's-era fics like this, Mello and Matt are roommates. But I felt like this one would work better if they weren't, but instead had their own individual rooms right next to each other (or at least close together).
Rubbing his eyes wearily as he walked back to his room, Mello couldn't help but be proud of himself for staying up as late as he did to study. 3:30 AM. And on a Friday night, no less. He had been the only one in the library and he smiled thinking about the upper hand he was sure to have on Near now.
Finally he made it to his room. Mello opened his door and dropped his bookbag on the floor rather than hanging it up on its hook. Without bothering to even take off his shoes, let alone change into his pajamas, the exhausted blond collapsed with a belly flop onto his bed and instantly fell asleep.
He woke up the next morning to the sound of his door creaking open. He looked at the clock on his nightstand and saw that it was 10:30 AM. He never slept in that late on weekends, but then again he didn't exactly make a habit of staying up late either.
"Morning, sleepyhead!" beamed Matt, Mello's best friend and the inhabitant of the room next to his. Mello noticed that he had a tray in his hands.
"Matt, wha-" he grumbled, rubbing his eyes.
"You missed breakfast. I figured you'd be hungry, so...here," Matt said, smiling. He walked over to the bed and sat the tray on his friend's lap. "So, you okay? You never sleep past 8:30, even on Saturdays. You're not sick are you?"
Mello examined his breakfast—bacon, eggs, and chocolate chip pancakes—before answering. "Nah, I just stayed up late studying last night. Finally got to bed around 3:30 or so."
Matt shook his head, an amused look on his face. "Only you would stay up half the night on a Friday studying, Mels," he said with a grin.
"Well, that gives me an advantage over that white-haired brat Near then, doesn't it?" the blond replied before tearing into his pancakes ravenously.
Matt sat down on Mello's bed. "Mello, listen...I know you're set on beating Near, but...don't let it totally consume you. Don't let that be the only thing that matters."
"Matt, you don't get it," Mello said. "I've been second best my whole life. I need to finally be first at something. I know if I just try a little harder I can be."
"That's the thing though," Matt persisted. "You don't need to try so hard, because..." The gamer stopped himself.
"Why exactly not, Matt" Mello asked, a little irritated. "Some sappy reason like 'I'll always be first in your eyes' or something?"
Matt blushed. "W-well, actually..." he trailed off, not meeting his friend's eye. He stayed silent for a few minutes and Mello continued eating his breakfast.
"Hey...Matt?" the older boy said when the silence became uncomfortable.
"Yeah Mel?"
Mello opened the carton of chocolate milk on the corner of his tray and took a sip before continuing. "You ever wanna say something, but...you didn't exactly know how or you were afraid to?"
Matt raised an eyebrow, confusion in his goggled eyes. "Well yeah...but I've found that your best bet is to just say it. What's up, Mels?"
The blond sighed, trying to drown the butterflies in his stomach with another swig of chocolate milk. "Would you be totally thrown for a loop if...if I told you I loved you?"
Matt looked down for a minute. This was a little surprising, but not earth-shatteringly so. He'd suspected for a while now that his best friend was gay, but not necessarily for him. Finally he looked up again, leaned forward and softly kissed Mello on the lips.
"No, because I love you too Mello," he whispered, smiling.
I really liked writing this. The dialogue toward the end is what I said the first time I told my Matt (my amazing husband as of March) that I loved him, and what he said in reply. I originally had Matt saying "I love you" first, but since I have more of Mello's personality and my husband is more like Matt, I figured it would be more fitting to switch them.
So...yeah, now you all know I'm just as mushy in real life as I am in my writing.
