Monkey: Well, it's been a while, hasn't it?
To anyone who is still keeping up with my (as in Monkey's, not Cookee's) work, I apologize. I had all of my fanfiction (and original) stories that I've ever written (including the ones I had yet to post) on a flashdrive and it broke, destroying everything I had. This was a few months ago. I figured, new year, time to start fresh, so here's a new fic I'm working on. (I would totally start this mere days before the spring 2014 semester starts omg what was I thinking.)
As always, I own nothing.
"Dad, you need a haircut," the tallest of the two sons spoke during breakfast. He dug a spoon into his triple chocolate ice cream sundae with chocolate sprinkles and looked pointedly at his father.
"He's right," his youngest son added, taking out dry cereal pieces from his bowl and stacking them into a small house. "Your hair is always a mess but now it's gotten to the point where we see your hair instead of your eyes. It's going to impair your vision soon."
L rolled his eyes. He shook his head a bit to clear away his fringe before looking down at his giant portion of strawberry cheesecake. "You two are exaggerating. I can see just fine."
Near stopped in the middle of creating the ceiling and looked up. "You're developing a tick."
Mello laughed and continued eating. "Relax, we already made your appointment. About an hour from now."
L ate two more bites of his cake before speaking again. "I refuse to go. You cannot make me."
"Too late," Mello said, adding in some more chocolate sprinkles before taking a giant spoonful.
L's eyes, that were hard to see under the dark fringe, narrowed. "What did you do?" He glanced down at the half-eaten generous slice of cake. "The cake."
"The cake," Near agreed. "Mild sedative. Gives us just enough time to take you to the hair salon."
L had to admit, instead of being upset, he was mildly impressed. He could feel his vision blurring. "How did you put it in?"
"We baked it in," Mello replied. "We're freaking professionals. We should do this for a living!" He grinned at Near who gave a small chuckle. The blonde quickly looked over at his dad who closed his eyes and held up his head with his hand. "And by professionals, we mean pastry chefs, not killers."
"Or both," Near said jokingly, as they saw their dad's head fall into the rest of the cake with a small splat. The two preteens waited for a couple moments before Mello pulled out his cell phone and called the second number on his speed dial as Near reached over and checked L's pulse.
"Watari? Yeah, he's out cold. Let's roll!"
A bubbly blonde giggled as she skipped up to a resigned brunette. "Sayu still has blackmail on you, huh?"
The admittedly sexy brunette sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I thought I managed to burn all her incriminating photos of me."
A smiling raven haired woman walked up to them and placed a hand on the brunette's shoulder in comfort. "Light, what you consider incriminating the rest of the world considers sexy."
"Misa, Kiyomi, you guys need to stop encouraging Sayu to get me drunk."
Misa pouted. "But Light, you're an adorable drunk! I remember one time—"
Luckily for Light, the door opened and their first customer came in. Well, customers, it seemed.
A raven haired man who looked to be asleep was dragged into the hair salon, Stylin' Cute, by two preteens who waved to an older gentleman that walked back to his car outside.
"Hi there," the blonde boy spoke, addressing the three of them. He offered them his most disarming smile. "My dad has an appointment today, in about ten minutes?"
Misa smiled and was about to accept when Light raised a hand to stop her and stepped towards the three newcomers.
"He's sedated." Light quirked a brow. "Why is he sedated?"
Near and Mello briefly exchanged glances before looking up at the handsome brunette. "We had no choice. He refused to get a haircut otherwise."
Near stared at Light for a few moments while no one spoke. "How did you know he was sedated?"
Light returned the stare and smiled lightly. "No matter how deep their sleep is, no one would sleep through being manhandled into an establishment. They would have to be nearly or completely comatose. In this case, sedated."
Near eyed the brunette a second longer and nodded once. "Correct. My name is Near. This is my brother Mello—"
"I can introduce myself, squirt."
"—and our dad, L. Will you cut his hair?"
"Yeah, it's getting to the point where he's trying to go for a Kayako look. Help him."
"We have money."
Light looked amused. "Right. I'm sure Kiyomi or Misa—"
"No." Near cut in. "I want you to do it." He glanced at the two women around Light. "No offense."
The girls suppressed their giggles at the entertaining exchange between the two children and Light. Their interaction kind of reminded them of how Light was with Matt. They nodded at his assurance.
Kiyomi smirked at Light. "Well, Light? Are you going to cut his hair?" She and Misa enjoyed watching Light open his mouth to refuse but felt Near and Mello's stares and closed his mouth, admitting defeat this time.
"I don't even work here." He pointed out, crossing his arms over his chest.
Misa playfully shoved him. "Only because you refuse to let your sex appeal be the main reason why we have customers."
Light felt a blush creep across his cheeks. "I—"
"Besides, you've got magic fingers, Light. I'm sure you can fix up, what did you say his name was? L? You can fix his hair all nicely before the sedative wears off." Kiyomi extended her arm out to point to the large black chair beside them. It was Sayu's work area but the lively brunette was out today nursing a hangover and asked, begged and pleaded with Light to cover for her despite not working at Stylin' Cute.
She ended up resorting to blackmailing her older brother with an incriminating picture of him back when he first hit the drinking age and got plastered, only to end up wearing nothing but a pair of the tiniest black shorts he'd ever seen by the end of the night (which he had no idea who they originally belonged to) while his drinking buddy, Matsuda, was in a pink, frilly dress. That night was mainly a blur for the both of them. Light vaguely remembers being hit on by nearly everyone at the club while Matsuda let loose on the dance floor. That was before the fifth shot of whatever concoction of spirits Matsuda kept ordering for them.
Light was told Sayu only had two hard copies of the evil picture, but she actually had three and had it scanned into her computer and emailed it to herself so she would always have it. As much as Light abhorred the thought of that picture going viral, he was more worried about Matsuda should the picture be released, so he allowed his sister to rope him into doing many things all the while cursing her camera and everything between the first shot and the last whatever amount of shots he had had that fateful night.
Light looked between the four people currently staring at him and looked up to the ceiling. "I'm going to regret this." He looked at the two preteens. "I'm not aiding in a murder, am I?"
"Nope."
Light gave up. "Alright. Let's get him on the chair in the back." He helped get L settled into a chair with a sink attached while Kiyomi put the salon cape around him and a towel under his head. Misa passed Light Sayu's spare smock and Light frowned at the hot pink swirl designs over the black background. "Really?"
Misa grinned. "It's cute. Wanna use my spare instead?"
Light glanced at the neon pink and white cacophonous design on her ruffled, light green apron. "N-no thanks." He looked over at Mello and Near who stood nearby, watching their dad with curious and relieved faces. "You can sit in the chairs over by my—Sayu's area. I'll only be a moment over here."
The boys did as they were told as Light washed L's hair. The sedated man didn't move as Light ran warm water and his fingers through the raven locks.
Light learned long ago not to question Sayu's sometimes terrifying actions, but he was genuinely curious about how these boys managed to sedate their father all for a haircut. The two boys looked to be around Matt's age and L looked to be around his own age.
Mello looked like he had an easygoing personality while Near had a more calculative disposition. The way they looked at him reminded him so much of Matt that he paused and thought of what would happen should his son meet these two one day. The chances of that happening were low, but it could prove to be an interesting sight.
As soon as Light finished washing L's hair, he and Misa helped take him to Sayu's chair while Kiyomi started setting up the salon for the incoming customers that would start to arrive soon.
Light was looking through the chaos that was Sayu's organization of her products and tools when L first started to stir.
Mello, who had pulled out an almond chocolate bar from his pocket, frowned and muttered, "That wore off fast."
Near played with a deck of cards he pulled out of his pocket and twirled a strand of hair around his index finger and thumb. "I told you your proportions were a little off," was his quiet reply. "You should have accommodated for his pace and the concentration of the strawberry milkshake."
"Bite me, rugrat." The blonde indignantly bit off a large portion of his chocolate and looked away from his brother.
Misa and Kiyomi hadn't overheard the boys talking as they were preparing their own, much neater stations while chatting about the latest celebrity gossip but Light's curiosity had been piqued at the boys' hushed conversation while he searched for scissors and a comb. As he searched, two customers came in and Misa and Kiyomi happily attended to them, one was a woman looking to dye her hair while the other was a woman looking to style her hair for a party later in the day. Light finally found what he was looking for and started to gently comb out the knots and tangles in L's hair as the sedated man at last began to wake.
Light turned L's chair so he was facing him and placed his hand under L's fringe to lift it up a bit and found himself staring into dark, wide, calculating eyes. Light gave him a lovely smile. "Good morning, L. My name is Light. Hope you're not too disoriented, the sedative has worn off and you're in my care now. I'm going to cut your hair. Would you like a trim or a whole new look?"
"Hi dad," Mello and Near piped up before returning to playing a game of poker.
L stared at the stunning Adonis in front of him before nodding once. "Very well, then. I apologize for the lack of desirable circumstances we find ourselves in. I only need a trim." He glanced over at his sons. "Mello, Near, I am impressed with how you handled the sedative. But you have much to learn in terms of acquiring more accurate results." Near gave Mello a smirk while the blonde rolled his eyes and muttered a curse word under his breath. "Also, the both of you are grounded. For a week." The boys groaned.
Light chuckled and dropped L's dark fringe, turning the chair back around so he could comb through the dark locks. "So L, why the aversion to getting a haircut?" He looked around for some clips and after opening three drawers, he found some and sectioned off L's hair.
"It is unnecessary. Every eight to ten weeks I obtain a pair of scissors and cut my hair. I was going to do it tomorrow, but these two thought it best to take matters into their own hands."
"Dad, your hair is a mess. And it's already been eleven weeks." Mello pointed out, his own long, blonde locks swishing over his shoulders as he turned to glance at them. He looked at Nears. "Yours is a mess too."
Near stared at him. "I will cut your hair to make it look like dad's hair while you sleep."
Mello narrowed his eyes. "Do it and I'll burn all your robot toys."
"Try that and I'll put laxatives in your chocolates."
"You little—"
"Boys." L interrupted. "You will cease this behavior before I extend your punishment for two weeks."
His sons stopped their arguing and opted to play a round of go fish.
Light smiled. "They're very bright, aren't they?" He started to take hold of chunks of L's hair before separating it between his fingers and cutting vertically to keep this cut just a trim.
"Too bright. They are on the path to becoming two of the world's leading minds." He paused. "Or leading criminals."
"Sounds like my son."
Mello and Near didn't hear them as the two boys got into a heated discussion (because if it were an argument then L would add to their punishment) over whether or not Mello was cheating.
Interested, L tried to look at Light through the mirror but his fringe wouldn't let him. It seems his sons were right. "Are you married?"
Light shook his head. "His mother is not in the picture."
L made a noncommittal sound. "We find ourselves in the same metaphorical boat, then." He blew a bit at his fringe and Light understood, reaching over to clip the dark locks back and out of his eyes.
Though Light was curious about this man and his sons, he decided to make small talk to pass the time as he carefully trimmed L's hair. L replied to everything without giving away too much and was very forward when asking Light some personal questions.
"Dad, you can't ask someone that," Mello scolded briefly before going back to try and beat Near at Bullshit.
L squirmed in his seat, unaccustomed to sitting normally on a chair, and looked at Light through the mirror. He almost missed the faint blush on the beautiful man's cheeks. "My apologies, Light. Although I must ask, would you still be able to work if I were to change the way I was sitting?"
Light paused with the scissors and raised a brow. "To what, exactly?"
"Dad," Near cut in before L could move, "don't make this harder than it needs to be for him. Let him do his job."
L frowned. "Mello, you are rubbing off on Near. I insist that you refrain from being a bad role model."
Mello's jaw dropped as he turned to face his father. "Hey! It is not my fault this brat is taking after me! I'm not doing anything, it's all on him!"
"No Mello, he's right. You're a terrible role model."
The blonde turned to zero in on his brother. "I will bury all of your toys."
"I will replace all the chocolate in the house with vanilla flavored candy."
"Two weeks," L interrupted. The boys stopped before groaning again and continuing their game.
Light laughed and carried on, careful of the still shifting raven haired man.
It took another ten minutes before Light finished and he put everything he used away neatly and took the salon cape off L. He smiled. "You're all done."
Grateful to be out of the restricting cape, L brought a thumb to mouth and looked at his reflection. He looked almost as he always liked to look, with his fringe just out of his eyes and his hair at a manageable length, just a little shorter than he was used to.
Light looked a little worried. "Well?"
"Finally! He looks human!" Mello said with a grin as he and Near put their cards away and walked closer to L.
Near nodded. "We made the right choice bringing him here."
Light locked gazes with L through the mirror. L nodded as well. "I like it. Thank you Light." He stepped out of that uncomfortable position on the chair and stretched a bit. "Are you aware you have magic fingers?"
Misa, who was the closest of the two women, nearly cackled. "Told ya!"
Light crossed his arms over his chest. "I'm only here covering for my hungover sister."
L tilted his head to the side a bit. "So if this isn't your job, what is?"
"I'm actually—" a loud ringing noise interrupted him and he reached into his pocket for his phone. "Excuse me. Hi Matt, what's going on? … Ok, do you need a ride? … Alright. Matt, I expect you to be on your best behavior, I mean it this time."
As Light walked around the salon, Misa, who was waiting with her customer for the dye to hold, directed L and his sons to the counter so they could pay for the haircut. L let himself be guided reluctantly as he watched Light. Mello elbowed him, telling him he was being creepy again. Near paid the bubbly blonde since his dad was off admiring parts of Light's body that the young albino would rather not think about and he pulled on his father's sleeve to get him to snap out of it. It didn't work so Mello stepped on his foot and luckily for L, he was actually wearing shoes this time.
"I hope you guys come back soon," Misa gave them a cheerful smile while Kiyomi looked over and waved at them.
Light ended the call with his son and looked over at the family of three. He smiled. "Thank you for coming, hope you guys have a wonderful day."
Misa discreetly passed Near a business card who took it and whispered, "is he single?" She nodded. "Seeing anyone?" She shook her head. "Very well, I'll call in advance so you can convince him to show up."
Mello laughed, not having heard his brother or the bubbly blonde. "I know someone's day was made," he muttered as he cast a side glance at his dad.
L didn't hear him and didn't remove his eyes from the brunette. "Thank you again for the haircut, Light. I hope the next time I come here I see you again."
Light looked sheepish. "Well, maybe if you have extremely good luck you'll catch me on a day when my sister is blackmailing me."
"Oh I'm sure that'll happen sooner than you think," Kiyomi spoke with an innocent tone. Light opened his mouth to defend himself, then closed it when he admitted that she was probably right.
The kids steered L to the door. "Goodbye."
The two hairstylists plus Light waved. "Bye."
Once the family of three walked into the parking lot towards the car the elderly man was sleeping in, Light walked over to Kiyomi with Misa after checking on Misa's customer.
"I know those looks," Light said, giving the girls a pointed look. "Don't try anything."
Misa pouted. "But Light—"
Kiyomi stepped in front of Misa to stop her. "Oh alright, we won't try anything." She gave him her most disarming smile and he looked a little dubious but finally shrugged and walked back over to Sayu's station with the resolution to organize his sister's workspace. He completely missed the hushed conversation Kiyomi and Misa had after Misa threw Kiyomi and incredulous look.
Kiyomi expertly continued working on her customer's hair. "Relax, we're not going to try anything, we're gonna let things work out on their own."
Misa raised a brow in question.
"And give things a little push, of course."
Misa did her best to control her squealing but couldn't help bouncing a bit as she walked back to her customer whose dye was ready to be washed out now.
Neither girl had missed the looks L constantly threw at Light nor did they miss the way the kids were alright with it and maybe even a little willing to help out. Not to mention, the curious looks Light was giving the family.
Now all they needed to do was to have L come back and have Sayu bring Light in.
Seemed simple enough.
Right?
Monkey: Honestly I haven't read a DN fic in years, so if this seems horribly clichéd and has already been done in ten different ways, then here's the eleventh way. Also, I didn't bother going over this to fix any grammar mistakes and all that, so please ignore them, I'll fix them later.
Thank you for reading. n.n