Oh baby, here comes the sound.
Raito awoke the next morning easily. The natural light was flowing in throiugh the bedroom window, splattering the bed in its freshness. It was somewhat earlier than he would have hoped for, but despite this he felt rested enough. Sometimes he feared he might be slowly morphing into a jaded insomniac like L.
The first sound he heard when he arose to consciousness was the repetitive tapping and clicking of computer keys. L. Raito pulled his face off the pillow and shook his bangs, slowly eased his body out of bed and stretched hid back and limbs out before turning over. Merely, of course, to meet with the back of the tanuki's scraggly black head.
Although L undoubtedly knew he was awake—the chain would have informed him, anyway—it would always be some seconds before he would respond.
"Good morning, Yagami-kun." He was used to the routine, of course. And then, if not with just a simple groan, Raito would greet him as well. Not making too much of a commotion on the bed, he shuffled over to sit next to the detective.
He wondered if the residue of that little message still lingered on his cheek.
"I've picked up some extra leads on the case. Would you like to hear?"
Like he had a choice.
L elaborated. "The pattern of the killings had certainly continued."
The brunette could only groan an answer. "You mean… the other Kira?"
Raito sniffed the air next to the detective's tresses. There was that feeling again.
But what was it?
For a second, L paused. "So Yagami-kun knows that this is the work of another Kira…" The tanuki stared off into space, in a trance of suspicion. Raito sighed internally, 'here we go again…'
"Oh, give it a rest Ryuuzaki. I'm just being logical. I can tell because unlike the first Kira, who only killed criminals and those who got in his way, this one seems to use it for his own right. That was our conclusion, wasn't it?"
He could feel L leering from beneath those shaggy bangs. He made no reply, which in L's language, meant that that god damned "Raito is Kira" percentage meter was creeping higher and higher. The man was, after all, always prepared for any wily trick that "Kira" could be preparing for him.
"If Raito weren't guilty of something… then what was the meaning of what he did to me last night?"
Well I took a train outta New Orleans and they shot me full of ephedrine,
This is how we like to do it in the murder scene…
He remembered reaching up to the glare-whitened face of Ryuuzaki, and giving it a soft peck on the cheek right before bed.
"Oh, that?" He responded casually, "I was just saying goodnight to you, is all. You know, it's manners?"
L, of course, would be very sensitive to even the smallest of physical intimacies. Which was what made it so interesting to play with. That peculiar man could bombard him with questions and keep him up at all hours of the night, he had accepted that that was the deal, but if it were, then Raito would damned well get his end of satisfaction for it.
…Can we settle up the score?
"Yagami-kun… kissed me."
…And if teasing his inner self was the way he got it, then so be it.
"Ryuuzaki, I did not kiss you." He said, this time more sternly. "You don't know what 'kissing' is do you?"
L ruffled his ebony tresses. "I am aware of my vocabulary very well, you should know that by now." This was a dodge. L was far too wise to feel the need to re-inform Raito of a little thing like that—he was trying to cover up.
Even if he didn't know it.
Raito felt his little inner smile again. "That's not what I mean. You don't know what one is like, do you?"
"Were we not just talking about Kira?" …There it was again."I do not involve myself in relationships, Yagami-kun. It would be too potentially harmful to my deductive abilities."
Perhaps, just maybe, if the other side of L were there—the one of which he had pondered over earlier, who had the heart and wouldn't go to these extents—then Raito wouldn't feel like such a basket case because of this him.
Looking back on the dusty old theories he had poked at the other night, the brunette stared down at his stubborn tag-along and got an idea.
"Excuse me Ryuuzaki…"
L turned his head, looking agitated. "Raito-kun, if this is about food, then I can get you food. Just ask and we can go right down to the—"
Just then, the suspect decided to come down on the tanuki with something even he would have never seen coming.
Forcefully, but with a dash of warmth, Raito's lips came unto the detective's in a heated kiss.
If you were here, I'd never have a fear
So go on live your life
But I miss you more than I did yesterday.
As the flesh of their lips pressed together, Raito felt something inside him. a thing he rarely felt, even in all the days he'd had of enchanting all those common schoolgirls.
You're beautiful!
Hands placed rigidly upon the man's shoulders, he detected little change in movement—save for the faintly quickening pulse that could be felt by the hand that rested a little closer to his neck. He held tight for a few seconds, and even gave the detective's white-clothed shoulder a little stroke of his thumb.
The bond held firm, and was then pulled away with the same jolt as when it was given.
When the brunette removed himself and stepped back to behold the show, not much was there to be seen. Only L, still frozen in his perching position and still eying him with those black mirrors. However, the man had already given him the thrill he needed.
L cocked his head. "What was that for?" He asked calmly.
"Do I need to explain everything?" Raito said with a hint of a smirk. He had to admit, he felt rather… proud of himself in a self-sickening way.
Well I'm a total wreck and almost every day
Like the firing squad or the mess you made
Well don't I look pretty walking down the street
In the best damn dress I own?
The detective brought his finger to his lip as he normally would when thinking, only this time, instead of simply pulling he took the back of his index and brushed it across the roughly pinkened flesh, as if to wipe something off. Raito smiled on the inside. Although he was fairly intelligent himself, he knew you didn't need L-like mind-powers to spot that the mighty sleuth was feeling uncomfortable at the moment. Who knew. Beyond that shell, he could well be in a state of utter shock.
The raven's eyes drilled down upon their suspect, as he prepared for his protest.
"Yagami-kun, I know that you are simply trying to pull a reaction from me." His voice had all the sweet return of a mouthful of dust. "And I can assure you, it won't work."
Certainly the brunette didn't want to wake up the accusation monster again. However he just couldn't resist tormenting the detective a little. L asked for it, it was his own annoying persona that was so damn intriguing.
If you were here, I'd never have a fear
So go on, live your life, but I miss you more than I did yesterday
You're so far away
So c'mon show me how, 'cause I mean this more than words will ever say.
"I answered your question," he said. "That was a kiss."
He heard L begin to mumble. Something barely audible, the brunette had to ask what it was. He tried to stare past the dark mess and see the man's face, so at least he'd be easier to speak to.
"What was that?"
"I'm just saying… that it was quite the immature thing to do, Yagami-kun. I hardly recall asking you to do that."
He smirked. "I'm immature?"
L pulled his lip again.
Three cheers for sweet revenge, ha! If Raito was bound to stay caught up in the twenty-four-hours-a day-predicament the detective had made for him, then he damned well felt he had the right to shove it back down his scrawny throat every once in a while. Maybe he should have tried this kissing charade earlier…
Some might say we are made from the sharpest things you say...
"I'm thinking you enjoyed that Ryuuzaki. Why not admit it? Even you must feel the need to have some fun sometimes," the brunette coaxed, in a futile attempt to lead the vulture a little bit off his throne.
"You know as well as I that the Kira case is far too important for that," he breathed.
Without a doubt L would ignore his smaller teases. Why, to his eyes, Raito probably looked like no more than a silly child. A child who could very well be the most powerful mass murderer in history, but "inferior" nonetheless. If he really was so cold, then he would disregard the entire concept.
We are young and we don't care,
Your dreams and your hopeless hair...
At that point, the room seemed to go silent. Even L had ceased his fiddling with the laptop, surely in a state of ruffled thinking. The brunette was staring him down like a falcon. All of a sudden, as he looked, the reality of what he'd done came right up to him and slapped him upside the head.
Yes, even Raito himself thought that what he was doing was insane. Who in their right mind would want to touch such a lowly, broken, hump-backed…
But he gave in, and before he knew it felt the taste of sweet, sugary coffee touch his lips.
He could tell that L was trying hard not to budge against it, which only made him feel better. He gave it a bit of a halt—for although he disliked the concept of fear, prodding the man too hard and too fast could all-too-realistically land him in trouble. With that thought, however, Raito realized that he had been wanting to get closer and closer to him... and the scent of it was even stronger now than it was the other night and before. Alas, he began to believe he actually was 'guilty of something.'
Was he... falling in love with L?
We never wanted it to be this way for all our lives
Well, it would sure help if he would crack for once.
Do you care at all?
The suspect found himself pleased as he thought he heard a small sound vibrate from his throat.
If you were here, I'd never have a fear
So go on live your life
But I miss you more than I did yesterday...
The detective started to itch around a little. Now this was good… for it was L's right to be arrogant, and little insignificant Yagami-kun's right to have fun with him for it. Raito took his palms from L's shoulders and instead embraced him. He held the lock on his captor's lips, which even still refusing to return their favor.
The body that bore such an icy gaze was actually quite warm and soft.
...You're so far away,
So come on, show me how
'Cause I mean this more than words will ever say
--
Meanwhile, on the other end, behind two coal irises, thoughts were stirring beyond what even their attacker could have guessed.
'Raito... kun?!'
--
What'd you call me?
Well There's no way I'm kissing that guy!
--
Sometimes, just as a note, you'll have to look a little closer to see the relation of the story to the lyrics. And I may screw with them a little sometimes, but whatever. And forgive me for the rather stubby chapters, I kind of like the "abstracty" feel of them.
To be continued. Remember, reviews give me wings… speaking of which, should you ever find me getting anyone a little too OOC or whatever, feel free to warn me, and I'll try and fix it.