Near shut the closet quickly and walked out of the room, making sure nothing was misplaced. He shut the main door once he was out. There was no one in the hallways, much like before. It was odd, normally there was always a person or two. But he dismissed it and walked down to the stairs to his own floor. His eyes were on the black book he held in his hands. It seemed so delicate that if he were to even move, it would fall apart into pieces. He opened his own door and walked in, heading straight for his study.
After locking the door he sat down at the desk and turned the lamp on. As he realized before, the first few pages were blank. But under the light he could see something in the background. There were water stains. Very faint, but noticeable. Every page up until the diary started had the same marks. As if they had leaked through the multiple pages.
He started to read the first page that had writing on it. It seemed like a normal diary. They talked about family problems, school and mentioning that the diary was a birthday present. Near checked the page for a date. Unfortunately there wasn't one. He kept reading. The next few pages were basically the same. Talking about friends, family and other things. The albino one was nothing more than a journal. Nothing interesting at all. He closed the book after ready halfway through it and turned off the light.
The diary was probably left from the family that lived there before. Or even before that. The book was practically all teared apart. He sighed again and stood up, stretching his arms. He closed the book and left the room. Why wasn't there any kind of oddness in that book? If it belonged to the family that lived there before... than surely there had to be some mentioning about what happened. But then again, if they died without a cause, everything could have been perfectly normal.
Near sighed again and walked into the kitchen. He saw his phone light up from the corner of his eye and turned to it. His phone had been quiet today, it made him wonder who was texting him. He grabbed it and flipped it open. Mellos name flashed bright on the screen. Near rolled his eyes and opened the message. 'Matt and I are coming over. We have something to tell you.' After he finished reading the last word, there was a knock on the door. He closed his phone and placed it back on the counter before walking over and opening the door.
"Mello.. Matt." He looked at both of them.
"We have something to tell you." Mello pushed passed him and sat on the couch. Near watched them. Matt had a firm grip on Mellos hand.
"I know. I got your message. What is it?" He shut the door and walked over, sitting on the chair across from them.
"I found out what happened to that family."
"In apartment 305?" Near asked.
"Yeah. That's where Mello has been for the last seven hours." The ginger laughed softly but stopped when the blonde kicked his foot.
"Tell me what happened Mello."
"The family moved here a year ago. The daughter just finished a summer abroad in Japan. Since they were low on money, they decided to move here."
"Did they only have a daughter?"
"No. There was a son as well. Anyway, about a week after they moved in, the daughter started hearing noises. She was the only one to hear them. Then she started to see things too."
See and hear things? Near thought quietly to himself. Just like me.. It could be a simple coincidence or maybe none at all. Other people in the apartment had heard the same things. At least he knew he wasn't going crazy. Or so he thought. And maybe there was a connection. He had heard a little girls voice several times. But he shook his head slightly when he remembered Mello had said she finished a summer abroad in Japan. A little girl couldn't have spent a summer abroad there. Unless the family had relatives there. Near shook his head again. It was still not making sense. He came back to reality and looked at Mello and Matt who were both looking at him strangely.
"Apparently the girl started seeing and hearing more and more of the things and told her parents. Of course they didn't believe her and told her it was nothing. And if I read heard right... the things started happening to them too."
"The same things?" Near asked.
"I think, but I'm not a hundred percent sure."
Mello leaned back and spread his arms along the back of the couch, one carefully placed behind Matt. Nears heart skipped a beat before returning to normal. This was the first time he had a normal conversation with Mello since he had decided to continuing seeing the ginger instead of him. He was uncomfortable but refused to let it show.
"Let me see if I understood you correctly; The family that previously lived in apartment 305 had a daughter and son. The daughter had recently come home from Japan and then they moved into the apartment." Near paused and began again once Mello nodded. " The girl began seeing and hearing things. Her parents dismissed it. Then they began seeing and hearing around the same things. Is that correct?"
"Yeah."
This is very strange. His internal thoughts stared racing again. He brought a hand up and twirled a piece of his hair with his pointer finger. There had to be a logical answer for this. Near had never not been able to figure out something. He wasn't going to lie; he was smart. Probably smarter than normal teenagers. His daily routines consisted of mostly reading, doing puzzles or putting together elaborate sculptures out of toys. Yet he couldn't make something out of the clues that were right in front of him. It frustrated him greatly.
"Where did Mello figure this information out?" Near asked, bringing a leg up to rest on the chair with him.
"I have my sources. There's no need to tell you. I'm sure they're right." His voice had a bit of sting to it. As if he was trying to prove something.
"Right.."
Near couldn't help but notice how quiet the ginger was. He looked over at him and was not surprised to see a PSP in his hands and head phones dangling out of his ears. This whole situation never seemed to spark an interest in him. Of course he had never experienced what happened to him and Mello.
"I went to the apartment again today. It was not like the other times I went. I was able to access the room you got trapped in, Mello."
The blonde seemed taken back by this. "What did you see?"
"It was an ordinary room. No different than the one in my apartment. It is as if they cleared out everything but the furniture in that room. Which is strange considering the rest of the apartment is furniture free. I did find something in the closet though."
"What?"
Near stared directly into Mellos icy blue eyes. "A diary."
"A diary? Who's is it? What did it say?" He sat up some, obviously eager.
"I am not sure who it belongs to, but it does seem like it belonged to the family that died. It is rather beaten up and very fragile. I only have read up to the middle and so far nothing has been explained."
Mello took a moment to think. His head fell slightly and his eyes were locked on the coffee table. He didn't move when Matt leaned back against the arm that was behind him, holding the system in the air and looking up at it. Mello bit his lip and continued his deep thought.
Near watched him carefully. How his blonde hair hung in the air, hiding the right side of his face. Mello looked very handsome, even more so while he was thinking. The way his bright, white teeth showed a bit under his pink lips and he bit the bottom one. The way his icy blue eyes were searching, as if everything was laid out in front of him. It was truly a sight Near found fascinating and he suddenly began to think of how he looked when he thought.
"You didn't finish reading the diary though?" He asked, still staring at the same spot.
"That is correct. I believe I will finish reading it after you leave. I think it might have valuable information in it."
"I think you're right, Near. If it's a diary then it should have everything that happened up until the familys death."
"Assuming it belonged to one of the members of that particular family, then yes."
Mello went back to thinking. He too was trying to piece all the clues together. Whether he was having luck or not; Near would find out soon. They sat in silence for several minutes. Near twirling the same piece of hair and Mello staring at the same spot. Matt was off in his own world, currently unaware of anything that was going on. Perhaps it's better this way.
"Near, there is something else I forgot to tell you. I figured it out and it'll make sense to you once you hear."
The albino nodded and waited silently for him to continue.
"All of that family's relatives and close friends all died. Each one happened within months after. They also heard the noises. They also saw the shadows."
His fingered continued twirling his white hair but stop and his eyes widened. Mello was right. It does all make sense. It was a horrify truth but everything made sense now. The clues were put together in a big skyscraper and Near had just reached the top level. Why didn't he think of this before? That last bit of information Mello gave me was what it needed. The last dice or card of the sculpture. The missing piece. Now Near had to face what was going to happen. He took a deep breath before looking up at Mello and looking into the blue eyes that were staring back at him.
"Whoever enters that apartment, dies." Mello said softly.
Near said a simple "Yes.
A/N: Wow sorry guys, I got all out of wack because of last weeks two early chapters. Anywhoooo, Heres the new chapter. I know its not Sunday but since midterms start Tuesday I'll be busy as a bee this weekend studying. But you should expect a chapter at the end of this week (next Friday) and also next Sunday.
And I know I said these next chapters were going to be longer, but I felt that theyre find how they are, so yeeeeah.
Hope you enjoy !
