I do not own Death Note!

Meh...I'm not to happy with this chapter but I wanted to post something. Its like...a filler chapter. Next one will be better!

Chapter 10 - Bandages

Mello sat on a stool at Near's bedside and gently brushed his fingers over the back of his hand, careful not to touch the IV's. As soon as he had walked into the room his eyes had filled with tears at the sight.

Near lay in the hospital bed looking very pale and very small. His right hand and arm were a mass of white bandages, a pale blue cast stretched from his wrist to his elbow. White sheets and blankets were pulled up over his chest with his arms resting on top of them. He had two IV's in his left arm, one for fluids and medication, the other for blood. A thin line of plastic wrapped around his face to feed oxygen into his nose. There were more bandages wrapped around his head.

Shaking, Mello wrapped his arms around himself and gently laid his head on Near's leg. He wanted to hold him, to wrap his arms around his small body and hold him in his lap until he opened his eyes.

Mello jumped when Roger put his hand on his shoulder. "We cant stay long, Mello."

"I wont leave him. Please don't ask me to leave him." Mello wrapped his hand around Near's fingers, wincing when he felt how cold his skin was. "His fingers are cold."

Roger touched Mello's hair softly, smoothing back his hair from his face. "I know you want to stay. But Near needs to rest. We will come back tomorrow."

A nurse stepped into the room and walked to the IV bags next to Mello. She smiled reassuringly down at him as he looked up at her and put a syringe into the tube. Finished, she walked around to the other side of the bed, Mello's eyes following her as she moved. She set Near's chart on a steel table and pulled it to the bedside. Mello watched as she pulled on gloves and opened a sealed package of sterile bandages.

As the nurse pulled back the blankets, Mello grabbed it from her and covered Near back up. "He's cold. Don't uncover him."

Roger put his hands on Mello's shoulders and pulled him back. "Mello, let the nurse do her job."

"I just need to change his bandages. I will cover him back up when I am done. Don't worry." She reached for the blankets again and Mello grabbed her hands and shoved her away. Backing up from the bed, she nodded her head at Roger. "I will get the doctor." She left the room quickly.

Mello leaned over Near's legs and tucked the blankets back around his body. He sat back onto the stool, one arm over Near's legs, the other pressing Near's fingers against his face. He was whispering something to low for Roger to hear. The door opened again and Roger turned to shake his head in frustration at the doctor.

Roger put his hands carefully on Mello's shoulders and pulled him away from Near. The wheels on the stool squeaked softly as Mello let his hands fall away. "Mello, you need to let the nurse help Near or he could get very sick. We need to go now so he can rest."

Mello's whole body shook as Roger turned the stool around and knelt in front of him, his hands still on his shoulders. Mello lead forward and rested his forehead against Roger's shoulder. "I wont leave him. He's cold. He needs me to keep him warm."

Sighing, Roger rubbed Mello's head softly and stood up, taking his hand to lead him from the room like a stubborn child. "We need to go now, Mello. Please don't make a scene or I wont bring you back tomorrow."

The doctor put his hand on Roger's shoulder and pointed at Mello. "What happened to him?"

Roger turned and looked where the doctor was pointing. The knees of Mello's jeans were soaked through with blood. "Mello what happened to your knees?"

"I knelt in the glass."

"Why did you tell me?"

Mello shrugged. "I forgot."

Roger sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Let's go home, Mello. I'll look at your knees when we get back."

"If you wouldn't mind, I would like to take a look at him. If he knelt in the glass we pulled out of Near then he might need stitches."

Roger nodded. "I would appreciate it. Should we go in another room?"

"This one is fine. Mello, if you would remove your shoes and pants and sit on the other bed please, I will look at your knees."

Mello stood and walked to the empty bed across the room from Near. He kicked off his shoes and turned his back as he pulled his pants off. While he did that, the doctor stepped out of the room to get some supplies. When he came back, Mello was sitting on the bed. He had blood soaked bandages wrapped around his knees.

The doctor pulled a steel table and a stool to the bed and sat down. Taking a pair of bandage scissors from the tray, he cut off the blood soaked cloth and cleaned around the wounds carefully. "I don't see any glass still in your skin, but a few of these need some stitches." He picked up a filled syringe and pulled off the cap. "This may sting a bit as I numb the area, but you wont feel anything while I stitch you."

"I've had stitches before, doctor." Mello wasn't even watching the doctor as the needle went into his skin. He didn't pay the man any attention as he carefully stitched the cuts in his knees. He sat patiently, his eyes never leaving Near. He thought he could sit there all night just watching the slight rise and fall of Near's chest.

The doctor stepped away from Mello, having finished stitching and bandaging his knees, and approached Roger. "His knees will heal up fine as long as they are kept clean. When he is calmed enough to listen, be sure to tell him not to bathe for at least two days. Bring him to his doctor in 10 days to get the sutures out." The doctor looked back over his shoulder at Mello, who was still watching Near. "I think he may be in shock over what has happened. I have given him a very mild sedative. It will be easier to bring him home." He scribbled something on a pad of paper and handed the page to Roger. "Take this to the pharmacy on your way out. Two medications for Mello. One is an antibiotic and the other is the pill form of the sedative. Give the sedative to him only if you feel he needs it."

"Thank you, doctor." Roger looked over at Mello to find him laying on the bed, asleep.

"I will have someone help you bring him to your car while you get the prescriptions filled."

Roger watched as the doctor left before turning his attention back to Mello. He bent over and picked up the bloodied jeans from the floor and slid them on the sleeping boy. He hadn't expected the doctor to give him something to knock him out, but he was grateful. Mello had sounded so heartbroken when he pleaded to be allowed to stay with Near. He wasn't sure what he would have done if Mello had tried to fight to stay.

A nurse came in with a wheelchair and told Roger she would meet him downstairs at the exit for Roger to bring the car around. Roger tucked Mello's shoes under his arm and went to fill the prescriptions. When he pulled the car around to the door, the nurse was waiting for him with Mello. They put the boy in the car and Roger left for home.

Back at Whammy house, Roger carried Mello inside and brought him to his own room. He had thought about it the whole drive home. He was afraid of what Mello might do to himself if he woke alone in his room after seeing Near like that. After tucking Mello into his bed, Roger went into his sitting room and laid on the couch. He put his arm over his eyes to try to block out the thoughts going through his head. Eventually, he fell into a fitful sleep.