A/N: The same thing happened to me twice. You think I would've learned my lesson, but noooo. I started this chapter and forgot to save the document, just like I did with 10. But this time it was a big deal, because I'd written about a page and a half and I was pretty proud of it. I totally cried, too. D:

Umm, just a quick note—don't freak out when I describe Ryuzaki's t-shirt as blue. X3 Knowing myself, I'd probably be bothered by it :D But it said (in passing) in the last chapter that he had to trade in his white one because it was bloody. D:

And now, I give you…FLUFF! (After some other stuff…OMFG THAT TTLLY RHYMED! XD)

Disclaimer: Death Note blah blah blah not mine blah blah blah, etc. etc. etc.

It felt like he was falling.

He was spiraling through the black nothingness, plummeting into the void—silent and endless, beautiful and frightening. It was as exhilarating as it was terrifying, and he wondered if it would ever stop. Did he want it to end? He couldn't think of any reason to.

Somehow, though, he knew it would end. He didn't know why, and he didn't know how. But he knew, and that was enough. He could feel that something—or someone—was waiting for him, and he felt like he should remember. So he waited, too.

And as he waited, he listened. He wasn't sure what for, but he would know it when he heard it; and perhaps, then, he would be able to remember.

He never stopped falling, not after what seemed like hours. It could have been mere minutes, for all he knew; time did not seem to exist in this strange vortex.

And finally, it came. It came in the form of a voice, so etched with pain that he could not recall its familiarity at first. But he instantly recognized the words it spoke; the voice had said his name. It pierced the void, reaching through the dark and deep into his core, and he found that he was no longer falling.

As tendrils of consciousness slowly wound their way through his mind, he found that he was lying down. There was a distinct numbness in his limbs and a strange ache in his chest. The dream-like haze that had surrounded his thoughts was slowly evaporating, replaced with an almost painful disorientation.

He slowly opened his eyes, bright white light spilling through his slanted lids. The light stung, causing him to take a sharp breath, and it was several moments before his eyes were able to adjust. As his vision cleared, he began to take in his surroundings: a spartanly furnished room with a drab black couch and white walls, the only splash of color belonging to a small bouquet of flowers on his bedside table. He looked down at himself, clothed in a thin gown and covered with blankets. There was a plastic tube connecting his arm to an IV, feeding into what looked like a cast of some sort. He could see bruises and cuts on his skin where it wasn't covered in bandages, slowly coming to the realization that he was in a hospital. He was still too confused for the word to mean much to him, and even his surprise at his own condition was bizarrely disconnected. His scrutiny of the room continued with the same indifferent detachment until his eyes came to rest on a familiar silhouette.

Disheveled black hair was set in a spiky halo around a pale face, features obscured by the denim fabric they were buried in. The figure was hunched over and dressed plainly, long, slender limbs draped in an oversized blue t-shirt and a baggy pair of jeans.

He blinked once, twice.

"Ryuzaki?" He asked uncertainly, the name leaving his lips before it had even entered his mind. But he recognized the man before him the second he spoke the name, leaving the now-unnecessary question hanging, unanswered, in the air between them as Ryuzaki slowly lifted his head.

"Light-kun?" Ryuzaki asked—the same voice as before—as his eyes met with Light's own. Obsidian clashed with honey, and a jolt of electricity traveled down his spine. He was reminded, vaguely, of the void as he stared into those entrancing, endless black orbs. He noticed an unfamiliar sort of sadness lingering in their depths, and a sparkle of light just below caught his eyes.

It was then that he saw the tears, spilling over onto Ryuzaki's gaunt, pale cheeks, reflecting the fluorescent glow with renewed intensity.

"Ryuzaki." This time it was not a question. He grimaced inwardly at the tears, opening his mouth to acknowledge them when a pair of warm lips suddenly met his. His surprise quickly melted under the softness of the kiss, plunging his thoughts back into incoherency as a familiar sense of pleasure filled his mind. He closed his eyes and, without breaking away, reached up with his good arm to wipe away a tear. He felt Ryuzaki shiver in response, causing him to smile into the kiss as he gently rested his fingertips on the detective's cheek.

Ryuzaki pulled away, hand tightening in Light's hair as his sweet breath ghosted over the boy's face. The saccharine taste of strawberries lingered on Light's lips, and he pulled the man down by his shirt for another kiss. This one was short and chaste, but just as sweet, and Light found himself strangely dizzy from the contact as they parted. It was a pleasant sort of dizziness, he decided, looking up into Ryuzaki's strange, beautiful eyes as another smile played at the corners of his mouth.

The moments seemed to stretch and warp as he looked into those eyes, until time ceased to mean anything altogether. It was just them, them and no one else—because nothing else mattered. He forgot where he was, forgot that he didn't even know in the first place. But that didn't matter, either.

The silence between them flowed as easily and comfortably as words, but, like all things, it had to come to an end. It was some immeasurable amount of time later—a minute? an hour?—that Light finally spoke.

"Why are you crying, Ryuzaki?" he asked softly, his eyes breaking Ryuzaki's gaze to follow the path of a tear as it trailed down the man's cheek.

Ryuzaki smiled gently, reaching up to wipe it away. "Has Light-kun noticed what he looks like?"

Light looked down again, observing the abused condition of his body with a renewed interest. This time, seeing the deep cuts made him flinch, as if he were expecting sudden pain. It's probably morphine that's keeping me numb, he deduced with a sudden appreciation for painkillers.

"About that," he replied, eyes returning to Ryuzaki's, "…what happened to me?"

"You don't remember?"

Light thought for a moment. He remembered…a car. And Ryuzaki. We were heading home from my house, he recalled, racking his brain for an answer. He remembered kissing Ryuzaki, remembered his annoyance when the car had suddenly swerved…Ryuzaki was screaming his name, and then…blackness.

He couldn't remember. The realization sent his mind into a panic, and he thought harder. But it was no use; his next memory seemed much more recent, waking up in the hospital just minutes ago—there was nothing in between. "No," he whispered. "I don't…I can't—" He trailed off, looking to Ryuzaki for an explanation.

Ryuzaki's eyes were sad again as he spoke. "You were in a car crash, Light-kun. I saw it coming, but I was too late…" He was gripping his jeans tightly, his knuckles turning white and his eyes dropping to the floor as he tried to hide his emotion.

"Was it that bad?" Light asked quietly, surprised at Ryuzaki's reaction. The older man's eyes met his again, and his heart ached to see the depth of the sadness in them. He never imagined he would see Ryuzaki like this, so vulnerable…those tears had been for him.

"I thought you were going to die, Light-kun," Ryuzaki said, his tone weighed with immeasurable grief. He was silent for a moment before continuing: "Watari has always said that you don't realize how much you care for someone until they've been taken away from you," he whispered. "I thought that you were being taken away from me, Light, and I couldn't bear it. But, like the saying goes, it made me realize something."

"What?" Light asked weakly, overcome with emotion at Ryuzaki's words.

Ryuzaki shifted so that his face was only inches away from Light's, his sparkling onyx gaze strikingly intense, before he finally spoke.

"I love you, Light-kun."

A/N: *fangirl squee* Finally! I've been waiting for forever to write this scene. Did the over-the-top fluff-tastic fluffiness work? Did it make you fangirl squee too? I sure hope so :) I've kind of finally accepted the fact that this story is going to be kind of OOC, but I'm trying to keep it somewhat-kind-of-but-not-really-sorta-semi-realistic (that made sense x___X)…Actually, I honestly have no earthly clue what I'm doing and am sort of just hoping it doesn't totally suck. :D

FYI~this chapter is called 'falling' because of the beginning, but also because of falling in love. :) Just so yah know.

Next Chapter: More fluff! (Who woulda guessed!?? :O)