They arrived at a hospital rather than a doctor's office, which made Light swallow again, trying to hide how much it was hurting him. L held his hand as they approached the building. Watari signed them in while L and Light sat down on one of the provided couches.
"Have you been coming here long?" Light asked.
"No," L looked up at him, "This is the first time I've been here. We're here to confirm if I have what they think I have. We'll also be able to tell what stage I'm in, if I do have it."
Light put his arm around L's shoulders, "Don't worry. I've known you long enough to be sure you won't go down without a fight."
L forced a smile and leaned into him. They stayed like that, each passing moment bringing new pains into their hearts.
We still haven't had Christmas together. We still have to do all those things we talked about. What if those two rooms upstairs stay empty forever?
My life's been pretty fulfilling, but there's still things I wanted to do. Then there's Light. I just found him. Is this all the time we have left?
"Ryuuga?" a nurse came through the door.
L and Light stood, and Watari followed them into the hallway. The nurse led them wordlessly into a room where L and Light sat down in chairs, and Watari remained standing. There was an examination table, but L didn't seem too keen on getting on it. They waited there for a few minutes until the doctor came. L tensed, but Light squeezed his hand reassuringly.
"Mr. Ryuuga?" the doctor smiled. L bowed his head, indicating that he was the patient. The doctor nodded in return.
"Hello, I'm Dr. Cunningham. Would you mind taking a seat up here?" he asked gesturing at the table.
Yes.
L stood and sat down on the table, wishing with all his heart that he was still holding Light's hand. The doctor followed his eye line.
"Why don't you pull your chair up over here?" he addressed Light. L and Light both let out a breath, and Light slid his chair next to L and let his hand find its way to his lover's.
"Excuse me," the doctor looked at him, "Er…"
"Light," he informed him.
"Well, Light," he smiled, "Would you mind sharing your relationship with the patient?"
"We're partners," Light scooted his chair closer as if to prove it. The doctor nodded in understanding.
"I'd like to point out that cancer is a frightening concept, and if it turns out you do have it, it's suggested that you attend therapy," he sighed, "And it always helps when loved ones help you through it."
Light nodded, and the doctor turned his full attention to L.
"I'm going to ask you a few questions before we get started.
"Okay," L squeaked. Light squeezed his hand.
L, it's okay. You're going to be okay…
Light, I'm so scared…
"Have you been experiencing any heartburn, nausea, vomiting, belching, constipation, or diarrhea?"
"Nausea, vomiting, constipation," he answered, staring intently at the floor.
Is he… embarrassed to be saying this in front of us?
Sorry, Light. I didn't want you to know that. It's disgusting.
"Do you take any vitamins?"
"No," he answered, finding his voice again.
"Had any surgery before?"
"I had my appendix removed when I was little," he recalled.
"Anything else?"
"No," he murmured.
"Is there any blood in your stool?"
"No."
"Blood in your vomit?"
"Yes."
"Any weight loss?"
"No."
"Alright," he grunted, standing up, "I'll get this logged in, and I'll get a nurse in here to help me see if it's safe to do the endoscopy."
L gulped visibly, "O-okay."
The doctor left, and L stared after him.
"Watari," L whimpered, "A stomach endoscopy requires a…"
"L, you're going to be fine," Watari said quickly, "The doctors here know what they're doing, I promise."
"Wait, what does the endoscopy require?" Light asked, confusion mixed with concern.
"Any stomach examination has to be confirmed as safe for the patient by a rectal biopsy," Watari said slowly. L gasped and began to shake violently. Light stood and pulled L against himself, rocking back and forth.
"The body has to have a conscious reaction to it," L whimpered, "They can't put me under, or numb me, or anything…"
Light kissed him on top of his head.
"L," he murmured, "L, you're going to be fine. I'll be holding your hand the whole time."
L nodded and restored his mask of impassiveness the best he could. Light sighed.
"You know you don't have to hide it," Light told him, "We're all scared."
The doctor walked in with a nurse who wheeled a raised metal table into the room.
"Alright, if you could just take off your pants and lie on your stomach, we just need to do a quick rectal biopsy before we do the endoscopy," the doctor said, pulling on a pair of rubber gloves. Watari turned and faced the wall. L removed his pants and dropped them unceremoniously on the floor. He lay on his stomach and buried his face in his arms. Light grabbed his hand, and L turned to look at him. Light smiled reassuringly.
"So, I was thinking," Light started.
"Never a good sign," L murmured.
"Very funny," Light said, "But I thought that if we do decide to adopt, we should look for a kid with your hair."
L tried to keep his face from contorting when they started.
"Yeah," he agreed, "And your eyes.
"Your smile," Light suggested, "Although maybe not quite as rare."
"I smile plenty," L said, "What about your laugh?"
"Your personality."
"No, yours."
"Okay," the doctor smiled, "You're all done. We'll just get this confirmed, and then we can start on the endoscopy."
"Can I put my pants back on now?" L asked.
The nurse chuckled, "Yes."
L sat up and replaced his pants. The doctor and the nurse left, and L and Light let out a breath they didn't they were holding.
"You did great," Light told him.
"All thanks to your thinly veiled attempt at distracting me," L smiled.
"Did it work?"
"Sort of."
Light paced back and forth, waiting for L to come out so they could take him home.
"Do endoscopies usually take this long?"
"Light, please calm down," Watari insisted, "The procedure's probably already over."
"But wouldn't they have told us? What if something's gone wrong?"
"Then for peat's sake stop worrying and ask somebody," Watari sighed.
Light decided this was good advice and went over to the reception desk.
"Yes?" a kind looking, if not slightly overweight woman addressed him.
"Do you have access to updates on patient conditions?" he asked hopefully.
"No, but I could call a nurse who does," she smiled, "What's the patient's name?"
"Hideki Ryuuga," Light quickly belted out L's false name.
"Alrighty," she said, typing something on her keyboard.
"Thank you so much," Light returned warmly.
He resumed pacing again until a short blonde woman approached him.
"Are you the one who was asking about Ryuuga?"
"Yeah. How is he?" Light questioned.
"He's fine," she said, "Right now we're just waiting for the anesthesia to wear off. Then you can take him home."
Light let out a sigh of relief, "Thank you."
The nurse nodded and walked away, muttering about how all the hot one's were gay. Light turned as well and sat down next to Watari.
"Good," Watari murmured.
"Huh?" Light turned to him.
"You sat down," he smiled, "That means L's okay."
Am I really being that obvious?
They sat in silence for a while.
"Mr. Yagami, Ryuuga's not ready to go home just yet, but he's allowed to have visitors, if you' like to see him," a doctor called, but Light was already standing. Watari followed them down the hallway and through an open door. L's eyes lit up when he saw Light.