AN: Hey guys, sorry for the wait. The past two weeks leading up to spring break were really busy and last weekend I attended anime Milwaukee, which was a lot of fun. My friend from IL came to stay with me so I had no time to write. But hey, it is here now, so enjoy :)

In the meantime, if you enjoy AU's I highly recommend the Red Nail Polish series by parasitic. It's a good read and hasn't received nearly the recognition it deserves. Yes I am pimping out a friend haha, but she's good so it's okay.

/…/…/…/

Chapter 8: Forging A Gap

The next couple of weeks passed quickly and without incident. Mello and I spent every day after school together, parked somewhere where no one would see us or hanging out at his house. We even went out in public a couple times, not as a couple, but as two friends just hanging out.

Mello's family was very kind to me. I felt truly accepted by them, and while that made me happy it also made me sad. It also made me angry with Mello if he ever had a complaint about them. He was so lucky; he had no right to complain about his parents.

But overall, everything was good.

But then, David started noticing I was getting rides home.

He was always watching me when I came home late, even going as far to ask what I had to be so happy about. He had also taken to asking what I had been up to, which was something he had never asked before. I wasn't sure if he suspected something or was just trying to make me miserable, but it made me nervous. David had seen Mello through the window and probably knew he was a guy…what would he do if he saw us together?

My phone vibrated and I opened it, smiling when I saw it was Mello texting me to say he was here. I grabbed my goggles and pulled them over my eyes before exiting my room, heading towards the door.

"Where you heading Matt?" David asked, sauntering towards me. He moved past me to look out the window and see Mello parked outside. "You hanging with that new kid you mentioned? You know my manager was talking about him the other day, heard some interesting stuff."

I kept calm, refusing to let the comment get to me. "Yeah? Well I have to go," I said, trying to move past.

"He can wait a minute; I think this is something you need to hear. I wouldn't want you to go on not knowing things you should know about him."

I did not want to hear this. "I can't stay, he's just dropping me off at work," I invented wildly. "They asked me to come in early today and I could use the extra hours. I'm going to be late so I'll see you later." I rushed out the door and to Mello's car. I glanced back towards my house and saw David watching from the window as we drove away.

/…/…/…/

"Where are we going Mels?" I questioned after nearly twenty minutes of driving.

"You'll see."

And see I did, when five minutes later Mello pulled up in front of an arcade. I turned towards him, grinning, and he gave me a small smile before getting out of the car. I followed and we walked into the arcade.

Instantly the sounds of games assaulted my ears. There were dings and beeps coming from every direction, and I could hear various techno songs coming from dancing games. There were bright, flashing lights everywhere and the sound of gleeful gamers in their element, and woeful groans of those who were not so talented.

A pair of boys several years younger than Mello and I ran past, laughing. A girl with short black hair and glasses punched a taller guy in the arm and pushed him off the In The Groove machine, gesturing for a brunette haired girl to join her, who did not seem entirely sure she wanted to play. I could hear the clocking of guns from Time Crisis beside me and my smile widened in glee.

This was surely heaven.

"Isn't it beautiful Mello?" I asked in a dreamy voice.

He stood beside me, looking around. "A bunch of nerdy teenagers and Satan spawns running rampant without parents or guardians to monitor their actions…oh yes, beautiful," he said, clearly unimpressed. "How do you stand it? It's so noisy!"

"It is perfection," I answered without looking at him. "Thanks for bringing me," I said, finally tearing my eyes away to look at him. "I know it's not exactly fun for you."

He shrugged. "Whatever. You gonna play or not?"

We stayed for hours playing, followed by a lengthy makeout session in the back of his car. We went out for pizza afterwards, and then sat at his house for ages just talking. It was the best day I'd had in a long time.

He leaned towards me once he had parked outside my house and I pulled back slightly, glancing nervously at the window. Mello's lips began to turn down slightly, the beginnings of a scowl tugging at his face, and I quickly moved forwards and pressed my lips against his. His lips quirked up slightly and I felt his hand drift up to rest against my cheek. He titled his head slightly and deepened the kiss, and for a moment the world fell away and all I could feel was him. He pulled back slowly and gave me a small smirk. "Night."

I smiled. "Night."

He leaned in again and kissed me chastely on the lips before I opened the car door and stepped out. I paused before closing the door. I was sad to leave him, to be forced to go home when I did not want to be there at all. He met my eyes a moment then I closed the door. I turned and walked towards my house, listening to him drive off when I opened the front door.

The stereo was still blaring, even though it was nearly three in the morning. I could hear snoring coming from the couch and rolled my eyes, moving past my slumbering dad.

"Where've you been?" I jumped slightly and turned to see David leaning against the wall near the kitchen.

"Out," I muttered, moving towards the kitchen once more. He stumbled away from the wall, nearly tripping over his own feet in his haste to follow me. I heard him crash into a side table on his way and the sound of something crashing to the ground but ignored it, making a beeline for my room.

"Hey, 'm talkin' to ya," he slurred and lurched toward me, grabbing my sleeve and pulling me towards him. He threw me off balance and we both crashed to the kitchen floor. I groaned and he kicked my leg. "Clumsy fucker. Who're you with tonight?"

I stumbled to my feet. "A friend! Why do you care so much?"

"Yer always wit him, why's that? Huh? What's goin' on? I went to yur work today. They said you weren't workin today. What were ya doin?"

"Nothing!" I insisted, even as my stomach clenched in fear. They could not find out about me and Mello. "You're such a freak!" I slammed the door in his face, even as he pounded on it. I slid down the door and took slow breaths, trying to block out his voice.

"What's goin' on Matt? Huh? Who's this kid?"

I bit my lip and closed my eyes. I'd be more careful. He couldn't find out, it would ruin everything.

/…/…/…/

"Do you want to come over after school? We can study and my mom is making homemade pizza…or trying to at least. It should be amusing to watch," Mello said, smirking.

It did sound amusing, and a lot of fun, but it would be the third night in a row this week that I went to Mello's house. David was starting to pay more attention to when I got home and if Mello drove me…maybe I should just go home…

"I'd like to but I really should go home today…"

"Why?" he asked, brows slanting in confusion.

"Um, I just…need to, you know?"

He just stared at me for a moment. "You don't have to stay late or anything, just come over for a couple of hours."

"I guess I could come over for a while." After all, I had been staying out later for years now. Maybe if I walked home David would stop watching me so much.

Mello sent me a couple odd looks during school but didn't say anything, for which I was grateful. I really did not want to talk about how crappy my family was; I just wanted to graduate and get away from that house. The less he knew the better, in my opinion. He couldn't understand, not with such a wonderful family. Not only that, it was embarrassing. I did not want him to ever meet my dad or brother. It would be humiliating.

David knowing about us could lead to nothing good. As if he needed another reason to hate me. This would just make everything worse, so I had to stop him from finding out.

Mello would understand that of course, but then I'd have to explain everything to him.

I didn't want to dump all that crap on someone I'd not even dated a full month yet, especially considering that I didn't want to talk about it to anyone. I'd dealt with it for years on my own, I could handle it for another few months.

/…/…/…/

Soon enough school was over and we went to his house. Neither of his parents were home yet so we grabbed a couple drinks and went upstairs. Mello closed the door behind us and smirked. "Hi," he said, pulling off his leather coat and tossing it on his desk.

I pulled off my own coat and dropped it on the foot of his bed. "Hi."

His smirk widened and his eyes swiveled to the digital clock on his dresser before he walked towards me and slammed his lips against mine. I leaned closer instantly, my arms slowly wrapping around his waist. His tongue probed against my lips and I widened them, allowing him inside. His tongue teased mine then slowly began to explore my mouth, and he gently pushed me backwards.

The back of my legs met the bed and I fell back so I was sitting. Mello didn't break the kiss, using the height to his advantage to ravish my mouth further. He pulled back a moment to breathe and nudged me backwards. I complied and he crawled up beside me on the bed, sliding an arm around my shoulders and turning me towards him. Our lips met mutually, and I steadied myself on the bed with one hand while using the other to brush his hair back and away from his eyes.

Mello's other hand, which had been stationary on the bed, rose to cup my face, tilting my chin up to meet his movements more easily. My hand remained tangled in his hair; I loved the feel of it between my fingers. His hand drifted down my arm, then my side, and the hand on my shoulder moved to the back of my neck. He pushed me backwards until I was flat on my back and loomed over me, still smirking, before he leaned down and our lips met again.

His lips ghosted across my jaw to my neck, leaving small bites as he went. His fingers were toying with the bottom of my shirt, just slipping underneath to meet my bare skin. A small moan escaped me without my permission and he chuckled, lying down more fully on top of me. I wrapped both my arms around his back, rubbing them up and down until I found the hem of his shirt, fingers barely, finally, brushing his heated skin.

A door slammed downstairs and Mello leaped away, panting. He straightened his hair and I sat up, flattening my shirt and reaching forward to help him fix his hair as footsteps sounded on the stairs. We quickly got off the bed. I pulled out a random textbook and flipped it open; sitting on the floor as he straightened his blankets and dropped down beside me, whipping out a worksheet and pencil just as the door opened.

"Mello, I told you to leave the door open," his mother scolded, looking down at us.

"Sorry mom," he said.

His mother didn't seem to believe him but didn't press it. "Well I'm going to change and then start the pizza, so come join me. It will probably take us a while." She turned, leaving the room. Mello watched her go then leaned towards me, claiming a quick kiss before standing.

"Come on, let's go set up."

The pizza preparation did take a rather long time, as none of us really knew what we were doing. It was fun, though as the hours wore on I began to glance at the clock more and more. David knew I hadn't gone to work on Saturday…I really shouldn't push my luck.

The pizza didn't turn out too badly, and his parents left us to clean up duty, since we were the young ones. Mello rolled his eyes and complained under his breath and we set to work cleaning the kitchen. We sat at the table, exhausted, not long later, too tired to move to his room. We began chatting idly, though Mello seemed to notice as I grew more distracted the later it got.

"I need to get home," I said quietly several hours later. I was sad to go but it was necessary to keep David off my back. I had no clue what he would do if he found out I was dating Mello. Would he beat me up? How would dad react if David told him? I didn't have a clue. What made it so terrifying was how unsure I was of their reactions, though I was positive that they would not be good.

"Okay, let me grab my keys."

I jumped up and grabbed his arm. "Wait, I can walk. You don't need to drop me off. It's only a few blocks." Maybe if David saw I came home on my own today, like I always used to, he wouldn't start jumping to conclusions. It shouldn't be too hard to fool him

He gave me a perturbed look and glanced out the window. "It's snowing," he stated pointedly.

"It's not that bad," I reassured. As if to prove me wrong the wind gave a sharp gust and the snow blew wildly through the air. The tree branches outside Mello's house whacked sharply against the side of the house. I could hear the wind howling as the snow swirled through the air. Mello turned towards me and raised an eyebrow.

"Well maybe it's not ideal," I admitted sheepishly.

His eyes narrowed. "What's the problem with me giving you a ride home? You get so weird anytime we get near your house," he accused.

"I do not!" I said, glancing at the clock again. This was about the time I usually got home, before I started dating Mello. David could be paying attention, watching for me to be later than normal. Maybe I was just being paranoid…but still…

"Yes you do! What's up with your family?"

"Nothing!" I defended.

"Obviously something is up since you never want to be near me when we're in front of your house. Are they homophobic, is that it? You can tell me."

"Look, it's not a big deal."

"Yes it is! You're over here all the time. You've met my family, and I know almost nothing about yours! You've said they drink, is it bad? Why won't you tell me anything about them?" he asked.

"It's none of your business." The words escaped me before I thought about them, and Mello's face changed instantly. His eyes darkened and his scowl deepened. He took a step back and crossed his arms.

"Fine, go," he said, nodding towards the back door.

I cringed slightly. "Mello…"

His expression didn't waver. "You want to walk home so bad then fine. See if I care. Go home."

I took a step towards him but he turned his face away, instead glaring at the wall. There was silence for several moments except for the howling of the wind and the sounds of the television in the living room. I waited for some type of acknowledgment from him, but none came. I sighed to myself and turned away, heading towards the stairs to get my coat from his room. I glanced at the bed as I pulled my coat on, wondering how such a wonderful day could have gone wrong so quickly. I went back downstairs, contemplating telling him a bit more about my family, but decided against it quickly. I didn't want to think about it, let alone talk about it, and I was ashamed to display such an awful family that would never accept us when his had been so kind to me.

I paused at the door and turned to face him, but he still wasn't looking at me. "I'll see you tomorrow." He said nothing and didn't turn to face me, so I opened the door. "Bye," I said quietly, wincing as the snow blew into my eyes. I ducked my head and went outside, closing the door firmly behind me.

The snow stung my eyes and I cursed myself for not wearing my goggles. I couldn't wear them during class and so I often did not bring them with me on school days. I bent my head farther down and started walking.

I shivered slightly, regretting that I didn't just let Mello drive me. Would it really have been such a big deal, especially in this weather? The snow was cold and wet. I looked up to make sure it was clear before I began to cross the street.

I slipped on the ice and fell hard on my back. I groaned and rolled over, pushing myself up on my hands and knees. Great; now I was covered in snow and slush. My pants were uncomfortably damp now, and my hands were freezing from their plunge into the snow. I stood slowly, making sure not to slip again, stuffing my hands in my pockets in the hopes that they'd help warm them.

Suddenly headlights shone on me and I looked up to see a car turning the corner at an alarming speed. I stumbled backwards as it slid on the ice and came towards me. I dived out of the way, jarring my wrist on the curb as the car slid past me. The driver regained control of their car and slowed, but did not stop.

I was shaking for entirely different reasons now and stood slowly, breathing heavily. My heart was pounding against my chest and I quickly made my way fully onto the sidewalk, turning towards home. I hesitated the next time I had to cross the street and hurried across, making it without incident.

I was almost home when I felt my phone vibrate. I slowed my stride and pulled it out, glancing at the caller id to see that Mello was calling. I pressed the talk button and lifted the phone to my ear as I opened the door to my house. "Hello?"

"Hey," Mello said, then went silent. David was watching TV and my dad was nowhere to be seen. David glanced at me as I slipped past him and into my room, closing and locking the door behind me.

"Hi," I said when it became apparent he wasn't going to say anymore. "Why are you calling?"

"Am I not allowed to call anymore either?" he asked, sounding defensive.

"No, I was just wondering why you called," I told him, a trace of irritation in my voice. Why did he have to jump to conclusions like that?

"Did you get home safe? It's gotten kind of bad out there" he questioned.

I blinked. "Um…yeah."

"You hesitated. What happened?"

"Nothing, it's no big deal," I said, opening a drawer in search of something dry to change into.

"You're always lying to me! Why can't you just tell me?" He exclaimed. "Whatever, night."

"Wait! Mello, wait. I'm fine; I just nearly got hit by a car. It's not a big deal, I'm okay, just a bit shaken," I interjected quickly.

"You just nearly got hit by a car?!" he shrieked. "What happened?"

I sat on my bed, pulling off my wet shoes. "I slipped on some ice crossing the street and a car turned before I got back to the sidewalk and slid on the ice. I'm fine though." He said nothing, so I continued. "You can drive me home next time."

"Oh can I?" he asked, his tone biting and facetious. Neither of us said anything, and the silence stood, impenetrable between us. Several minutes I heard him take a deep breath. "Okay I'm going to go. Can I pick you up for school tomorrow or not?"

"You can pick me up," I said quietly.

"Fine, see you tomorrow." He hung up without another word, and while I felt something had been mended when he called to make sure I made it home, it felt like I had broken something too. Dwelling on it did not make me feel any better so I pulled off my damp jeans and pulled on a dry pair of bottoms and a t-shirt, turning on my DS and sinking into a sort of calm as the familiar music eased my worries.