A/N: MAH! Sorry for the day lateness. I was so busy finishing summer homework and school shopping yesterday. Plus, I had to go to sleep early for the first day of school, which was today.
It was my first day of high school today, so I was super nervous, but there was this cute guy named Rem sitting behind me in French, so it was all good. For anyone who cares, I had a pretty good first day of high school. My future boyfriend's locker is right next to mine, so it's pretty nifty.
Anyways, back to the story! I hope you enjoy this chapter, sorry for not replying to your reviews if I didn't reply to them… Busy lately, so didn't have much time to.
The next few days went by rather quickly and smoothly. Mello's situation with Matt and Near was slowly getting better. He got his best friend back. Unfortunately, Matt was right and he did begin to like Near. It was terrible and good at the same time. He no longer lost his temper when Near poked fun at him. The only thing that really bugged him about Near now was the fact that Near was still 1st and he was still 2nd, but as long as they didn't talk about school, they would avoid complications altogether.
April got progressively easier to deal with, and both Near and Mello got better with taking turns taking care of her. Sadly, this required them to switch off hourly during the night, too. They were losing sleep, but they were still doing better.
Near was glad that Mello was getting more used to having him around, as was Matt. Although it shocked him, Near found Mello to actually be quite a pleasant person to talk to. Well, when he wasn't beating you senseless.
Matt was just happy to have everyone get along.
Unfortunately, the day came for Near and Mello to go buy clothing for their beloved April. They had been instructed that it had to be done on their own time, as it wasn't a school-sanctioned event. It added to the parental responsibility. Near woke up that day with a strange feeling in his gut. Usually, he could feel whether the day would be good or bad when he woke up. Today was a bit different because he felt that the day would be… unpredictable, in a word.
So with a slight feeling of anxiety, Near trudged out of bed and stretched a little bit. Then he headed over to Mello and Matt's room. He gave the door a few good knocks and waited.
Mello groaned, getting out of the bed. His muscles were still stiff, but they would be fully functioning soon enough. Matt was still asleep with his artificial kid, so it was probably Near at the door. Grabbing April by the hand, he let her dangle by his side as he made his way to the door.
"Coming, coming." He opened the door, and waved to Near, rubbing his eyes with his free hand. "Morning Near."
"Good morning, Mello," Near greeted, "is Matt still sleeping?"
Mello nodded, then turned to look back at the red-head, who rolled over.
"Won't be for long, though. I swear to god, any time he hears you, he wakes up. It's like he's got a freaking Near-dar or something." He laughed.
Near grinned a little bit. "Mello, today is the day that we agreed to go shopping for April's clothing. That's the reason I'm here, you know."
Mello sighed, raking a hand through his hair and straightened it out. "Yeah yeah, I know." He assured the younger child. "Do you want to go now? If Matt wakes up, he'll want to go with us instead of Linda, and I don't want to risk having her tag along."
"Is that any reason to leave Matt? I want him to come with us…" Near's voice trailed off, as he was embarrassed.
Mello paused, and hung his head. Ugh. There was no arguing, was there? Matt was bound to wake up soon, and then all hope would be gone. Near and Matt kept their relationship hidden from all the other students and staff, but they were open around Mello. Sadly, that meant he got all their sappy words and kisses every day. Mello wanted to go somewhere else while they were like that, but who else would he talk to? All the other students bored him to tears. Sometimes he had to explain things over and over again, which got really irritating. Without those two, he'd be pretty much alone.
"Alright, alright. Just… no mushy stuff while we're out, dear god." He added in the one condition that mattered to him. Not only did it creep him out, but it made him rather irritated as well.
Near gave a flustered sigh. "Mello, that's the whole point of bringing Matt along," he said. He pushed past the blond and entered their cluttered room. There were cords from Matt's game systems, lollipop wrappers, chocolate wrappers, and clothes strewn all about the room.
Near hummed in disapproval at his beloved's sleeping quarters, but said nothing aloud. Intead, he crept onto Matt's bed and gently laid down on top of the redhead.
Said redhead mumbled something in his sleep before groggily opening his eyes. Finding that Near was laying on top of him and staring at him made his cheeks erupt in a mass of red. He let out a startled breath and his eyes widened.
Near gave a small chuckle before planting a kiss on the redhead's cheek.
Mello frowned, crossing his arms. "Well then, at least give me a warning so I can turn away or something. It's more than slightly uncomfortable being around you two when you get into that… mode." He pointed out.
"What mode?" Matt asked, rubbing his eyes groggily as Near got off of him. The redhead gave a small yawn.
Mello turned to look at Matt, sighing. How could they be so dense? Wasn't it staring them in the face? "Whenever you guys are together, you are all… I dunno. Affectionate would be the understatement of the year… Well, I'm surprised you two can keep your hands- well, more importantly, your mouths- to yourself while you're in public, that's for sure." Mello tried to explain as best he could. How are you supposed to tell two clueless people that their relation is starting to escalate to the level where Hellen Keller would be able to see that you're together? Mello laughed; when he thought that, he pictured an old lady sending her German Shepard seeing dog after Matt and Near. Sure, Hellen wasn't an old hag, and German Shepards aren't usually one's choice for a seeing dog, but hey. It sure was funny imagining it. Near being tackled by the massive dog, Matt pounding uselessly against it's back...
Mello chuckled to himself. That'd show Matt just how good he was at protecting Near.
Matt let out a small chuckle and Near smirked.
"Mello, we're so affectionate because we have to make up for the time we can't be affectionate in public," the gamer replied, smiling.
"Matt's always the one to sweet talk and touch me affectionately. I do enjoy it, but I don't usually start those kinds of things up…" Near replied, looking down at his feet, feeling a bit shy.
"See, Mello? He's just too fricken adorable for me not to swoon over!" Matt couldn't keep himself from grabbing Near, and pulling him back onto the bed and into his arms.
That was the final straw for Mello.
"Yeah yeah, whatever. Come on, let's go before Linda shows up like the stalker she is." Mello grabbed Near's wrists, tugging him out of Matt's grasp and heading towards the door. Their actions were upsetting, to say the least. In fact, he could almost be called pissed off.
"Matt, if you want to come, then hurry up. I'm not waiting." He called over before dragging Near out of the room.
"What?" Matt stood up and confusedly scratched his head.
"Mello and I have to go clothing shopping for April. If you want to tag along, then you may, though I doubt Mello would last until lunchtime if you did come along," Near explained.
"I think I'll actually stay here…," Matt said. When Near's face showed a very slight bit of hurt, Matt reassured him, "For Mello's sake, Marshmallows!" The redhead walked out into the hallway and ruffled Near's hair.
Near frowned with slight annoyance at being treasted like a little kid. He usually didn't mind, but it bothered him occasionally. "Good bye, Puppy," said the albino, his voice void of emotion. He began walking down the hallway a little bit, but Matt stopped him by grabbing his shoulder.
"What, I don't get a good-bye kiss?" he said in mock anger, though Near couldn't tell if he was joking or not. The readhead spun Near around, wrapped his arms around him, and gave him the most passionate kiss he'd ever given before, tongue and all. He didn't break the kiss, either.
If all the straws were gone before, then Mello was definitely in the negatives now. Murderous rage shot like bullets through his system, consuming his mind, taking over his actions and dominating his motives. His muscles tensed up, rock hard, and then, almost like a spring, it came out.
"WHAT THE FUCK DID I JUST TELL YOU?!" He shouted, shoving Near onto the other end of the hallway and turning around on Matt, his eyes practically ablaze. "DIDN'T I JUST TELL YOU NOT TO DO THAT?!" To prove his point, he leapt at Matt, shoving him against the wall and fisting the red-head's hair with one hand and pressing against his chest with the other.
"DID YOU HEAR WHAT I JUST SAID?!" He was practically at full volume, and he really didn't give a damn about who heard him or if it hurt Matt. Heck, that would be a bonus. Clenching his teeth, he pulled down sharply on Matt's hair.
Near grew worried quickly. Matt had been asleep when Mello told Near that he didn't want to see them kissing. He picked up April and then his mind reeled over what to do.
"Mello, I don't know what you're talking about!" Matt shouted, not seeing any way to get the upper hand in this situation. He let out small cries as Mello pulled his hair.
Near knew what he needed to do, but he wasn't sure how he should do it. He was also afraid of what Mello might do to him. Gulping down his fears, Near shouted at Mello, "He was asleep when you said you didn't want us to kiss with you around!" Then he quickly approached the blond from behind and jabbed him in his sides with both fingers. He really hoped Mello was susceptible to tasers, because that's the only way Near could think to stop Mello. He wasn't a very strong person, after all.
"OW!" Mello clenched his sides, releasing Matt and rounding on Near.
"What was that for?!" He demanded, raising a hand to slap it across Near's face.
That's when a tiny bead of consciousness formed in his mind.
"…" Lowering his head, Mello fisted his hands so hard they almost started bleeding, and stormed off.
"Shit! Shit shit shit shit shit shit shit. God-damn fucking shit!" He cursed, leaning against a doorway after turning a corner and trying to calm his rapid breathing. His hands weren't bleeding, but the skin was broken and quite tender.
Near quickly approched Matt and looked him over carefully. "You okay, Puppy?"
"Yeah," Matt panted, "how about you?"
Near shrugged and wrapped his arms around Matt, finding comfort in his warmth.
Matt responded positively and held Near tightly against himself. He was glad that Near was okay, but worried about Mello. Was he still bothered over the fact that Matt was dating his ex-rival? Or was it for a different reason? He didn't want to consider the other reasons, so he hugged Near tighter, as if his innocence could drive away the bad thoughts.
"Matt," Near said, his voice muffled by Matt's shirt and person, "please let go." He pushed against Matt's chest, trying to get free.
Matt frowned but released him.
"I'm off to catch up with Mello," said Near. He began walking in the direction Mello had went, but Matt stopped him again.
"No, Marshmallows, I don't want you around Mello when he's angry like that." Matt shook his head in disapproval.
"I have to go, Matt. I can take care of myself." Near brushed past Matt and walked down the hallway.
This time, Matt let him go. He was still worried, but what else could he do? Especially since he heard his baby start to cry. It was just perfect. He didn't know what it could want. He didn't even know the little hooligan's name.
Near shuffled along the hall, April in hand, looking for Mello. It wasn't terribly hard to find the blond. And once he did, he approached him without hesitation. "Sorry for upsetting you Mello. I assure you that I'll be on my best behavior so as not to cause any more trouble for you," he said, trying to comfort the blond in his own, awkward, and very indirect way.
Mello threw his best death glare at Near, though considering that he was rather shaky and the anger was slowly leaving his body, it wasn't his best.
"Sorry doesn't help at all, you know." He muttered, frowning and turning his head. There was something about Near's face that greatly unsettled him.
He shifted uncomfortably.
"So…" Mello's gaze darkened, and he glanced over at Near again, initiating eye contact. This time, his glare was more prepared. "Where's Matt? I thought he was your puppy." He spat the word out distastefully. Bubbles of anger and jealousy rose and popped and rose again like tar in his chest. What he was jealous of, he did not know. Was it because life seemed so easy for them? Was it because they knew that there was someone that loved them? Or was he just off the mark entirely?
"Matt decided to stay here at Wammy's…," Near explained, though he knew Mello had heard Matt say he was staying for Mello's sake. "Mello, if that topic bothers you, then why bring it up? I said sorry, not because I wanted to fix something, but to show that I regret upsetting you. You had just calmed down because of it, and now you've gone and ruined my work by getting angry again," he said. Again, he was merely trying to calm Mello down, but he hadn't exactly acquired the people skills required to actually do much.
Mello frowned. "Shut up. You're giving me a headache." He muttered, placing his head in his hands and shaking it slightly, as though trying to shake water out of his ears. "Please, just…" He released his head, loosely grabbing onto Near's shoulder and leaned forward slightly.
Oh. That actually felt rather nice… he leaned in a bit more, and the pressure and anger was slowly relieved from his body. "don't talk."
And then, Mello leaned in a bit closer, tilting his head slightly as his lips touched Near's.
It was nothing like Matt and Near's kiss- unlike the demanding air it had, this was just a feather-light brushing of skin, one that rather irritated him. He didn't want to move closer, but their lips brushed together in such a way that was almost irritating. But then again, wasn't everything irritating?
Mello pulled away quickly, his head suddenly feeling a bit light and dizzy from the sudden pressure that was piled upon it once more. It was so much easier to be in his previous position…
Mello blinked, surprised.
What had he just done?
'Oooooh, god. You're in deep shit now, Mello. FANTASTIC. You've just gone off and kissed Near. NEAR! WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU BEEN SMOKING, MELLO?! Has someone put something in my chocolate? Yes, that has to be it! That's why I've been acting so strange since the food fight! Yes, I can see it now! It's a conspiracy! But who the hell would want me to do this? Maybe they're trying to mess with my head! Yes, that has to be it! But who would do that? Matt would! Yeah, it's Matt's fault! Wait, there we go again! God damn it, what's wrong with me?! Ugh, stupid conspirers! Stupid chocolate- wait. What? Chocolate's not stupid, retard! God, what did they put in there?' Mello's thoughts were running wild as he stood there, staring down at Near, confusion and surprise etched into his features.
A/N: I have mixed feelings about this chapter. I like it, but I don't like it at the same time. I know it seems like Matt and Near's relationship is developing too quickly, but it's important to the plot, and not just because of Mello.
This chapter pretty much explains why Mello was so angry whenever Near and Matt were lovey-dovey! You get a high five if you knew this would happen!
Time for shameless advertising! I wrote two oneshots for Near's birthday and they're up, so if you want to read them and review and love me, that would be fantabulous. One's called Happy Birthday, I Guess and the other is called Over the Hill.
Until next time, review, fave and alert!