A/N: Hola. Chapter 9. I had to do it. It was cute. I had to. And the song is so perfect for them. Plus it'll be important later. It's Some of Us by Starsailor. Bold italics are lyrics. I'll let you decided what happens at the end. On with the chapter.
Thank you to AlisterRainbow for reviewing!
Disclaimer: I own neither Death Note nor Some of Us.
It was ten after eight when Mello got home. He had had a long day, to say the least, so it was to be expected that he was not happy about the sight he was greeted with. Cables and various bits of tech-junk he couldn't even begin to identify were strewn all over the floor. It wasn't so bad when Matt was just playing with the stuff, but half of it looked like something that had wandered out of Frankenstein's lab. Not to mention that it now required about forty feet of cable to wire the whole damn thing together. And their apartment was not that big.
And to improve his mood, Matt was sitting in the middle of it, grinning up at him like a mischievous puppy who thinks he's done something good by fetching his master's slippers, never mind the fact he's chewed holes in them.
"Matt, is there a reason I can't get in the door?" Mello sighed. His shoulders hurt horribly and his head ached. That might have had something to do with being slammed into a concrete wall. The only good thing about it was that the man hadn't made it out of the building alive. Mello's aim wasn't famous for nothing.
"Yes you can," Matt practically chirped. "There's a path."
Great. Matt was in one of those moods. How on earth could the boy be so damn happy? Mello groaned when he saw where the redhead was pointing. "But that leads…" To the centre of your technological warzone.
"I know," Matt replied. "Come here. There's room for both of us. Just don't step on my equipment."
"What," the blonde demanded bluntly.
"Come here," the gamer repeated.
"Fine." Mello did his best to weave through the sea of multicoloured cables and blinking boxes. Damn techie. But if Matt noticed the sharpshooter's agitation, he didn't show it. Instead he just waited patiently until Mello was seated at his side. The blonde waited in silence as the techie turned to his laptop. The screen was black and it remained that way even though Matt had pressed several buttons on the front of it.
At first Mello barely heard it, but after the first few seconds it was unmistakeable. Heard you today, that isn't my name, you were fast asleep. He looked up at Matt who had a big stupid grin pasted across his face. "You remember this?"
Forget what he did, can I be the kid for your soul to keep?
Where did he find that? "Of course I do."
Some of us laugh, some of us cry.
Matt stood up and offered Mello a hand. "Well?"
Some of us smoke, some of us lie.
Mello took the hand and rose to his feet. "Now?"
But it's all just the way that we cope with our lives.
Matt just smiled a little more. "Yes now."
Mello sighed and let Matt wrap his arms around his waist. The gamer pulled him close and rested his chin on his shoulder. The blonde flinched and almost yelled at him, but he thought better of it. Instead he wrapped his arms around Matt's waist, mirroring the redhead. Matt smiled, holding him tight.
I've grown to see, the philosophy, of my own mistrust. We all have our faults, mine come in waves that you turn to rust.
"Remember the first time we heard this?" Matt asked. He knew Mello felt stupid letting him do this, but that just made it better. Mello was letting him make him feel stupid.
"I remember you making me dance," Mello said in what could almost be considered a grumble.
"You didn't protest this time," Matt pointed out.
Some of us laugh, some of us cry, some of us smoke, some of us lie.
Mello sighed. "No. You're right. I didn't. Should I have?"
But it's all just the way that we cope with our lives.
Matt stopped swaying and looked into Mello's eyes.
I've been hanging onto something, you keep laughing, awe-inspiring.
"Why? Do you not like this?"
Some of us laugh, some of us cry, some of us smoke, some of us lie.
The redhead looked almost hurt and Mello wanted nothing more than to bring that smile back.
But it's all just the way that we cope with our lives.
"You know I do."
Some of us laugh, some of us cry.
Matt smiled. "Good."
Some of us smoke, some of us lie.
Mello was almost surprised when Matt let go of his waist. Until one hand tangle itself in his hair as the other rested on the back of his neck and Matt pulled him into a kiss.
But it's all just the way that we cope with our lives.
He hadn't been expecting that. Still, he couldn't object. Instead he tightened his grip on his gamer and kissed back. It was Matt who broke first. He smiled to see that Mello was blushing. Without a word he leaned forward so that their foreheads were pressed together and just held him like that.
My wandering soul, found solace at last, I wanted to know, how long it would last. She's losing control, she's coming down fast, the heart that I stole, I'm not giving back, never giving back.
When the music ended they both let go and took a small step back, a moment passing in silence before either of them spoke.
"Our song," Mello said slowly. Matt had always been sentimental that way. "To what do I owe the surprise?"
Matt took a deep breath before explaining. "Three years ago today you came back."
Blue eyes widened slightly. "You still remember that?"
Matt nodded. "Of course I do. You were the only person to ever come back for me."
Mello didn't know what to say to that, so he didn't say anything. Instead he just hugged the redhead. That seemed like enough of a reply for Matt. He could feel tears in his eyes, but he blinked them away before Mello could notice. The blonde knew that it had been a shock to the gamer when he came back, but he didn't realise it had meant this much. When he thought about it, though, it made sense. Matt's own mother had abandoned him at birth. He had spent most of his childhood drifting from foster home to foster home, shelter to shelter. No one had ever come back for him. No one had ever wanted him. No one but Mello.
Matt was pressing too hard on his bruised shoulders, but Mello didn't say anything. Normally he would have snapped at him, but now was not the time for that. He really wanted to go lie down, too. His headache was making his vision fuzzy. But somehow it didn't seem to matter as much now as it had when he first got home. Damn his shoulders and damn his headache. He was staying right here. Matt, however, recognised the look of pain the minute he let go and demanded to know what happened.
"Why are you still standing here?" he said as soon as Mello told him what had happened. "Go lie down. Now."
Mello just rolled his eye and grinned slightly. "You sound like a worried mother."
"Well someone has to watch out for your health," Matt replied. "I know you sure as hell won't. Go."
Mello smirked as he headed down the hall. "Yes mom."
"Don't make me come in there," Matt threatened teasingly.
"We'll see about that," Mello shot back. He would be perfectly fine and they both knew it, but the blonde knew he still had Matt in the palm of his hand. There was no way he wasn't messing with him.
Matt just rolled his eyes. Mello could be such a pain sometimes. He put down the remains of an old hard-drive and followed the blonde. The electronic explosion in the living room could wait.
