Chapter Summary: It's hard to summarize this chapter. It's a brief interlude just showing how L is kind of… cared for in his day to day life by Light and Taryn. It ends with L and Light about to go on a shopping expedition (that will become quite scandalous and involve very little shopping, so stay tuned).
Objectionable Material: Personal Questions, and lewd humor. Rated T.
Disclaimer: Death Note and affiliated characters are owned and created by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata.
XI. Different Approaches
Taryn seemed jumpy about the pregnancy ever since L nearly decided to terminate it. She swore she would never breathe a word to Light about what had transpired during his absence, and perhaps it was the weight of this secret that wore on her nerves.
She responded by taking it upon herself to care for L. Between her efforts and Light's, no aspect of his pregnancy went neglected. He was taking a regimen of vitamins, sleeping several hours every night, and even getting moderate amounts of exercise. He still looked fatigued, as Taryn noted with concern, but Light said, "I think he just looks like that."
The two had wildly different approaches in their caregiving efforts, however. Though Light had made an effort to be more patient since his return, he still occasionally became cross and shouted "Ryuzaki!" if L was ever evasive or uncooperative. Taryn on the other hand had a sweet way about her, and could coax anyone to do what she wanted.
"Sweetheart," she said, when he resisted going to his follow up doctors visit. "It's so important. You need to take care of yourself. And today, you'll be able to see your baby more clearly on the ultrasound."
"Alright, are you ready to go yet?" Light asked L impatiently.
"And you!" Taryn turned crossly to Light. "I heard you were teasing Ryuzaki at his last appointment. You'd better not, or you'll have me to deal with." She jabbed Light in chest with her finger. "Now hurry up, you two."
L grudgingly went, and even asked for copies of the ultrasound images to shown Taryn, as she had requested.
Mayu was supportive in her own way. She didn't care to hear about prenatal vitamins, or C-sections, or the effect of pregnancy on sex drive. She glanced over Taryn's shoulder at the ultrasound pictures and shrugged, announcing she had no idea what she was looking at. However, she was always willing to sneak him unhealthy foods, or go for a walk in the middle of the night if he couldn't sleep and didn't want to wake Light.
During these late night strolls, L discovered that Mayu had a habit of asking personal questions in a completely nonchalant way, for example:
"Have you ever been with a girl?"
"No."
"Why not?"
"The opportunity never arose."
"Hm… did you always know you were interested in boys?"
"Don't you consider this a personal topic?" He wasn't offended, just genuinely interested in her view on the matter.
"Not really."
"I see. Well, the answer to your question is no, but for a time I considered myself relatively asexual."
"How did you guys decide who would be the top and who would be the bottom?"
"We flipped a coin."
"You liar!"
L tried to peer into the kitchen to see what Taryn was doing. It sounded like she was making tea or coffee. He hoped he would get some coffee, but based on past experiences, he would probably be encouraged to have juice or tea.
Light was in the kitchen as well taking out dishes and slicing up baguette. Mayu was sitting at the table with L, yawning and rubbing her eyes.
"Why do I have to be dressed and ready at 8 am?" She asked. Her body looked ready to start the day- she was incredibly polished in tall boots with gold buckles, a tailored black skirt and a stylish off-white coat. But her head- her face and her hair more precisely- looked as if she were waking up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night. She had dark circles under here eyes, and her hair was tangled and bunched up in the back, defying gravity. She did, however, seem relatively awake and alert.
"Today we are going to shop for clothes," Taryn said. "I needed a few things, and L will need some bigger clothes soon if he hopes to fit into anything." She set a cup of tea in front of L, and tugged at the hem of his shirt. "They're getting a little tight," she teased.
Light put a bowl of cereal in front of L.
"What is this?" He asked.
"High fiber cereal. It prevents constipation, which is a very common complaint during pregnancy," Light said.
"That's true. It is," Taryn added, pouring coffee for herself and Mayu.
L frowned at the bowl in front of him, and Light scowled angrily. "If you become constipated, I'm going to hold you down and force you to have an enema, so… take your pick!"
"Lovely," Mayu muttered.
Taryn joined them at the table, and said, "Light is just impatient-"
"None of my business! Consenting adults and so on," Mayu interjected.
"-because sometimes taking care of Ryuzaki is a lot of work." Taryn pushed the bowl slightly closer to L and said, "Come on, eat your cereal."
"Sucks to be you," Mayu said. "Mmm, I'm so glad I get this."
L looked across the table, as she started to lift a cinnamon-sugar coated pastry out of a box that she had apparently brought with her. No time to brush her hair, but plenty of time for early morning trips to the bakery, solely designed to antagonize him. Typical.
"How come she gets that?" L whimpered.
"Because I don't care if I become constipated," Mayu retorted.
"Mayu!" Taryn reached across the table and slapped the lid down, knocking the pastry back into the box. "Eat that some place else."
"Relax," Mayu said. "I brought this knowing that Ryuzaki was probably going to be uncooperative this morning. I was going to strike a deal, and offer him a piece if he eats all of… whatever Raito is trying to feed him."
Light went back to the kitchen. "Will you eat the cereal if I add some chopped fruit?"
L nodded, and Light took out a cutting board and a basket of strawberries.
"He chops berries for you?" Mayu asked. "Jeez. Raito-san, will you be my boyfriend?"
Light continued chopping the fruit, without looking up, and said, "Would you have my child?"
Mayu snickered. "Touché, Raito, Touché."