Light had been lying awake in bed for about an hour staring at the ceiling. Something was bothering him, and thinking about it kept him from falling asleep.
He turned his head ever so slightly to glance at the man lying next to him.
Ever since they had been chained together, their nights were usually the same; while Light tried to sleep, L would work quietly on his laptop.
For the most part, he was quiet enough that Light could sleep.
This night, however, was different. When Light said he was going to sleep, L sat on the bed in his favored crouching position and worked quietly as usually.
But after a while—it seemed when he thought Light was sleeping—he suddenly turned the laptop off and lay down with a sigh.
He hadn't moved or made a sound since; Light was a little worried.
It's probably nothing, he thought. After all, L is human, too. It doesn't matter if he seems to be an insomniac; even he needs to sleep once in a while. But then again… I guess he has been acting weird all evening. Weirder than usual.
Right before they went to bed, it took Light several minutes to finally gain L's attention. It was as if he was lost in thought, but he wasn't stacking things like the way he usually did when he was thinking hard. He just crouched in a chair and stared silently out a window.
This behavior was rather odd, even for L.
Something isn't right… I could ask, but he'd probably deny that something's wrong. But could I make him understand I'm worried about him…?
Light's thoughts were interrupted when he heard a quiet noise followed by a slightly louder noise.
It sounded like…a stomach growling? If that was the case, the sound that followed was most likely a moan.
Is L sick? Maybe his stomach s upset…
Light slowly sat up and turned to L once again. L was lying on his back, as well.
It was unclear if his eyes were open or not.
"Hey, Ryuzaki, are you awake?"
For a moment there was no answer. Then, "Yes, Light. What is it?"
"I couldn't help but hear you moan just now," Light explained. "I wondered if you're feeling okay."
"…"
"Ryuzaki?"
"I'm sorry if that woke you up, but it was nothing…"
I knew he would deny it. "Oh, okay then." Light lay back down. "And don't worry about it; I was still wake anyway."
He rolled over, facing away from L.
Now, either he'll be quiet the rest of the night, or he'll eventually admit he doesn't feel well. Either way works for me.
They were both quiet for what seems like hours, though it was most likely only ten minutes or so.
Just as Light felt like he was about doze off, he heard another moan. This one was much quieter than the first one, but he still heard it.
It was very obvious L was trying to keep quiet so the younger of the two didn't hear him, making Light all the more sure something was wrong and L was trying to hide it.
Just ignore him, Light told himself. Pretty soon he'll admit defeat. Then I'll laugh at him a bit and… What will I do after that? Take care of him if he is sick? Oh well; I'll worry about that after I find out what's going on.
He waited a while more.
The more time that past, the more uneasy Light felt; over half an hour had gone by since he'd asked L if he was okay, and still the older man was keeping quiet aside from soft moans every now and then.
That's it; I can't stand listening to him be in pain any more. I've got to find out what the problem is. Somehow…
Once again Light sat up and turned to look at L, who had at some point rolled over onto his side, his back to Light.
"Ryuzaki," he said gently, slowly rubbing his companion's shoulder. "Why won't you just me what's wrong? I only want to help."
Silence.
Light sighed deeply. "Look, I would love to just go to sleep and leave you alone, but I can't sleep knowing you're in pain. I've been laying wake here for around an hour and a half worrying about you."
"Light… You're worried about me?" L asked, sounding…truly touched at Light's words.
"Of course. Since we've been working so closely together lately, I guess I can't help but worry about you a little." He forced L to sit up. "All I'm asking right now is that you let me help you. Then we can both get some sleep."
The detective stared at him, as if trying to figure out if he was being honest.
Finally he sighed and said, "…fine, I'll trust you."
Now we're getting somewhere! "Good. Just tell me what's bothering you and we'll go from there." Light give what he hoped was a reassuring smile.
L opened his mouth to say something, but before he could speak he suddenly hugged his stomach and moaned again.
"Ryuzaki…"
"Light…I don't feel so good…"
Light looked at him sympathetically. "I can tell. It's your stomach that's bothering you, isn't it?"
L gave a tiny nod. He looked up, looking slightly frightened. "I don't know what's wrong with me; I've never felt this way before."
"Oh, come on. Don't tell me you've never had a stomach ache before," Light said teasingly.
One look into the older man's dark, serious eyes told him he hadn't.
You've got to be kidding; how is it even possible someone who eats as much as he does has never gotten a stomach ache before?
"Well, I guess there's a first time for everything. Sleep is probably the best thing for you right now, but since it looks like you can't fall asleep… I'll just stay up with you until you do."
"You don't have to do that…"
"It's fine; I want to. Just lie down and try not to think about how sick you feel."
Wordlessly, L lay back down then startled Light by curling up next to him.
What the—?! Why is he suddenly trying to sleep right next to me?
Annoyed, Light thought about telling him to move to his own side of the bed, but after looking down at him, decided against it.
Despite the fact his stomach still didn't feel good, L looked peaceful now. It was as if he were happy just to have someone be with him.
He just wants or needs little comfort, Light realized with a smile. I guess the desire to have someone take care of you when you're sick is something you never lose. No matter old you get.
"Hey," he whispered. "Why did you just tell me sooner that you didn't feel well?"
"Because, I didn't want to trouble you," was the sleepy reply.
He didn't want to trouble me, huh? That's…actually pretty nice. I feel like I should do something or at least say something to help him feel better.
Light thought rubbing L's stomach might help him, but worried that wouldn't be appropriate.
After thinking it over for a moment, he started slowly rubbing L's back, figuring it would help him sleep.
"Light, after tonight…let's never speak of this."
"We won't." Like I would ever want to talk this anyway… "Just try to rest."
"Thank you. You're a good friend, Light…" The detective gave a quiet yawn and, for the first time in a while, fell asleep.
Light was stunned.
F-friend? He's still calling me his friend? Does that mean… he wasn't lying before?
He glanced down at the sleeping man and smile.
I guess…I like to think of him as a friend sometimes, anyway.