D is for Dark

Rating: K+

Genre: Friendship/Fluff

Characters: Mello and Matt

I remember the day Mello came to Whammy's. If I recall correctly, I was sitting in a tree and hiding from some bullies while playing my game. I noticed a black car pull up and put the game away, hoping that L was back. I always enjoyed my conversations with him, even though I was only six.

Whammy stepped out of the car and opened the back door, from which the raven haired detective stepped. But in his arms was a bundle with strands of blonde hair peeking out.

I immediately jumped out of the tree and ran over to the insomniac, who smiled warmly at me.

"Matt, I'm glad you're here. This is to be your new roommate, Mello. Please lead me up to your room and tell me which bed is yours."

I froze. I had a... roommate? I'd never had a roommate before. It was a strange concept, to think of sharing my room with someone. I had my own room and had since I came to the orphanage. I ran to catch up with L and led him to my bedroom, pointing to the bed that wasn't mine. L slowly lowered Mello onto the bed, pulling the blankets away and tucking him in. I tilted my head and followed L to the library where we exchanged our usual pointless banter. When night came around and I started yawning, despite my best efforts, I went back to the bedroom.

Sharp but confused blue eyes looked at me. I shut the door and went to my bed, sitting down and studying from across the room.

"I'm Matt," I finally said. The blonde just looked at me silently.

"Where's L?" he asked.

"L? He's probably in his office working on a case. This is your new room and I'm your new roommate."

The blonde looked around. A suitcase had been placed on the floor beside the bed; probably while I was talking to L. Mello nodded and curled up.

"Hey, I know you slept a lot. And you probably aren't that tired, but you'll need to get up early to go see Roger. So you should try to sleep."

The newcomer burrowed into the covers, curling himself up as much as possible. I watched for several more seconds before stretching out and laying out on my own bed. I reached out to turn off the lamp that was the only source of illumination in the room.

"Goodnight," I whispered as I turned off the light.

Mello freaked. I'm pretty sure he pressed himself against a wall while screaming and starting to hyperventilate. I sat up and turned the light on, looking over at my terrified roommate. He curled up in the corner with tears streaming down his face.

"Hey, hey what's wrong?" I asked gently, sliding from my bed and walking over to his. He just shook his head quickly.

I looked over at the windows. L had bought me black duct tape to black out the window when he realized that lightening woke me up all the time (and it storms here a lot, trust me.) That equivocated to the room being completely black once the lights were off.

Apparently, he was afraid of the dark.

"Hey... are you afraid of the dark?" I asked gently. He blushed and shied away from me, but he didn't deny it.

"It's not the dark," he said after a while. "It's black. Not being able to see. I'm scared of being blind." Oh. I sat on the bed and reached out slowly, touching his arm. He looked up at me and watched me intensely, as though he were studying me. I met his eyes the whole time (I didn't have my goggles yet) and I suppose he decided that I was being truthful.

He crawled over to me and hugged me.

I sat there for a while and wrapped my arms around him, holding him there next to me. He kept on crying, which was to be expected. I simply petted his hair the whole time and murmured soothing nothings in his ear.

When he detached himself from me, I went to stand up. He grabbed my hand. "Will you... sleep here with me tonight?" he asked sheepishly. I smiled and nodded, crawling under the covers with him and curling up. He nestled himself under my arm and sighed. I turned off the lights once again and he tensed, pressing himself harder against me. I rubbed his back in soothing circles.

"I won't let anyone get to you. I won't let anyone hurt you. I'll keep you safe, even in the dark."

You see, we were always close. Even then, in the beginning.