A/N: The next chapter will be the last Mello p.o.v for a while, I swear it! I just can't find the excitement in writing about a few guys watching Mello through monitors and glasses. Not to mention they'd be incredibly short chapters, but maybe I'll mention it later on.
Also, how are you guys diggin the longer chapters? Awesome? Time wasting? I'd like to know for future reference.
Once again, enjoy the chapter!
(Mello P.O.V)
My week in the school was both tough and easy at the same time. Easy in the sense where I was kicking ass in all of my classes, but tough in the sense where guys just wouldn't leave me alone. I kept up my appearance though and was as sweet as I could be to them when I inevitably turned down their date invites.
And there were a lot of them.
There were even times where I'd get the occasional guy to carry my stuff for me or I'd have him buy me lunch. Not once did I ask them to do so, but if they offered… why turn them down? I'd said yes almost immediately when one guy offered to buy me chocolate, considering I had to go through the days drier than the Sahara Desert. I'd learned just how bad my chocolate addiction was that week, and reminded myself to always keep at least one on handy for the rest of my life.
I didn't stray far from the friends I'd made the first day I was there. Crystal, Chase, and Mike were usually by my side during the days, and all three of them would mock me for the many times I was asked out on a date. I shrugged it off. It was kind of all part of the mission anyways. If I could fool a few hormonal guys into thinking I was a sexy, sixteen year old girl, instead of a raging, fifteen year old guy, I'd say I was doing an awesome job here. Not to mention L and Light were impressed that I hadn't snapped yet and kicked the ass of every guy that asked me out. It didn't stop them from worrying though and they kept close eyes on me at all times.
Matt and Near were also impressed with me, but Matt was starting to lose his mind at seeing me get hit on so many times. In fact, at the moment the first guy to ask me out spoke, the gamer turned on the earpiece and screamed at me to say no. In the background of his yelling I heard Misa and Takada try to restrain him while Near held his microphone away from him.
My poor Matt. The things I'd have to do to earn his trust after all this was over.
Thursday came around and now the date invitations had changed into dance invitations. Some of the guys had ditched their previous girls to ask me to this fall dance and it earned me a few haters in the female populace. The favourite words being slut, whore, and bitch.
Slut and whore I couldn't see, but even as a male I was, in fact, a downright bitch when I had to be. Too bad for the haters though that I turned down all of their guys. I wasn't given permission to go to the dance by L and Light, so I didn't bother to show any emotions for it. Besides, we needed to find our murderer first, and out of the four suspects I'd come up with, there wasn't much to go on.
My final class of the day had come around and half an hour in L had called me up to speak with him. Among the normal teenagers it looked as if he wanted to speak about my assignment, but the actual truth involved the murder case.
I sat down beside him and he began to whisper.
"We checked all your suspects, but other than the behaviours they share there isn't much to go on. I'd go as far as saying that they aren't guilty in this case."
I nodded, feeling a little down at the thought my suspect list was all wrong. "So what next then?"
He pulled out a few papers and showed them to me. They were pictures of the girls who had turned up dead. There were two to be shown, each from the school I was currently in, and both exceptionally pretty. Krista and Emma were their names.
"These two girls share many similarities. But the one I find most incriminating is that both of them have dated that Chase guy you hang out with."
"Seriously? Why wouldn't he tell me that?"
"Maybe he wants to keep it secret. Keep his head down and out of the loop so he doesn't look suspicious." He put the papers back into his bag, then turned back to me. "Mello, I want you to go out with Chase and find out what you can about the girls he dated in the past. Maybe you can grab some information from him that I'm not getting."
I nodded, but grinned. "Good luck explaining this to Matt when you get home today."
I stood up from my chair as I heard the detective scoff. "He's not going to be happy." He mumbled.
I took my seat next to Chase again then turned to him.
"So, you remember that coffee shop you offered to take me to?"
His eyes lit up the moment I mentioned it. "Would you like to go today after school?"
I smiled luridly at him. "I'd love to."
And a date was made. I'm too sure Matt was throwing a fit behind the earpiece and was having to be tied down to a chair in order to keep him from destroying all the equipment.
'Sorry Mattie,'
The last bell rang out for the day and both Chase and I were off for the coffee shop. Before we headed out though, we stopped by the principal's office for some reason.
Chase went inside her office with a small knock.
"Hey mom, I won't be home until later today. Going out with a… a friend."
She looked up at us and noticed me immediately.
"Oh? A friend Chase? Surely you can come up with a better excuse than that."
The boy blushed a bit before sighing. "I thought I told you to stop embarrassing me like that."
Principal Kathers only smiled at her son. "Just go have fun, dear. I won't worry knowing you're in good hands." She then looked at me. "Nice job on the dodge-ball game."
I grinned, blushing a little.
She then looked back at her son. "Darling, remember what we talked about though. I'd hate to see you get hurt again."
Chase nodded a bit. "I understand mother, can you please just…"
While they squabbled a bit I looked around the room and found various antiquities. The one that caught my eye the most though was the small, ancient looking rope on the wall behind her. Something about it looked vaguely interesting.
She caught notice of my wandering eyes. "Oh, you like?! I got it at an auction with my father when I was younger. It was used on the set of a rather famous movie at the time. If I'd known sooner he was wasting all our hard earned money on this type of stuff though, I'm too sure I would have given him a talking to."
I giggled. "Men. You can't train them to be good. You just have to get lucky."
She giggled back. "Too true, my dear. I suppose my mother wasn't a lucky woman. I'm almost glad my father died when he did." She admitted quietly.
What a very personal thing to admit. Even Chase was a bit nervous by what she'd said.
"Mother, don't you think that was a little… much?"
"Oh Chase, I don't care what people think of me. Besides, she doesn't seem fazed."
I chuckled to show she was correct. "Yes, Chase, I don't care. Your mother seems like a fine woman." I said as I began holding onto his arm to watch her reaction.
She only smiled happily though. "You two make a sweet couple."
I smiled happily at her before Chase closed the door in embarrassment and led the way out. I may not have gotten the reaction I wanted from her, but Chase seemed more than embarrassed by my sudden affection. Embarrassed… but happy.
On the way to the coffee shop some of the guys who had asked me out were more than eyeing Chase for having snagged me when they couldn't. Some of the girls looked a little relieved though, knowing that I hadn't wanted any of their guys. To be honest, I didn't want this one either. I'd wanted to go home and cuddle on the couch with Matt while watching a horror flick that was supposed to be on tonight. But, plans do change. I suppose Matt would have to wait a bit. I doubt this would take very long anyways.
We made it to the shop in no time and a sudden buzzing started in my ear.
Watari soon came on. "L says he'll be home right away. Light has your coordinates and sights on him. You're free to act as you please."
I hummed a bit in response, knowing I couldn't say anything with Chase so close to me.
We found a table for two, ordered our drinks, and soon my questioning began.
It started simple enough. "So why ask me to come here? Other than the fact I said I enjoyed tea, there isn't much of a reason to be here."
Chase smiled at me. "Maybe I just wanted some alone time with you. We don't spend a lot of one on one time together."
I scoffed. "We're in almost every class together and you say we don't spend any time with each other. Classic."
He chuckled slightly. "I meant we don't spend any time alone. You're always getting asked out or groped by some other guy at school. I swear the last one to touch you I almost took him out myself."
"Too bad I gave him a bloody nose before you had your chance." I said as our drinks were placed in front of us.
I cringed at the tea. This was not England's brew but I guess it was close enough.
I took a sip and Chase chuckled at my reaction.
"Sorry, this place is more famous for its coffee than the tea."
I coughed a bit and cleared my throat. "Boy do I miss England right about now. But back to our conversation. I think you just wanted me all to yourself, to be honest. Getting a bit jealous of all the guys asking me out?"
"Considering you're the new girl, I wouldn't put the thought past you. Most of the new kids struggle the moment they enter school, but you've had it easier than the rest of us. Not to mention you're a genius in the trade and barely need me as a lab partner. I've caught you more than once rolling your eyes at the way Mike screws up every time we mix chemicals."
"We were given instructions, and deadly chemicals. Of course I'm going to roll my eyes when he messes up. I'm surprised I haven't yelled at him yet."
Chase snickered. "I'm not even going to mention the way you handle the other girls at school."
"Oh no, do tell. I'd like to hear your opinion on those bitches." I smiled through.
The guy nearly choked on his coffee from laughing. "That right there is what I'm talking about. You don't get involved with the whole nattering and name calling, but you save it for later. You don't let it bother you, you don't let what they say about you bother yourself. I would have done anything for someone as confident as you when I first started dating."
'Jackpot.'
"Oh? There were others in your past other than Amanda? I'd like to hear about them."
He went quiet for a long minute, and I could see in his eyes that this was a touchy subject for him. Something was definitely wrong.
"Chase?" I tried.
He jolted a bit at my voice. "Oh, I'm sorry. I… erm… I just kinda lost myself there."
"Something wrong?" I asked genuinely.
He gave a small sigh. "I… I have dated in the past, but the two girls I had a real connection with didn't exactly care about me in the way I did for them. Krista cheated on me and blamed me for not being attentive to her, and Emma dumped me because I told her I was holding out until marriage. It tore my heart out when they'd done that."
Krista and Emma. Those were the names on the papers under their pictures. Was he really…?
He gave another sigh. "Even worse, some maniac is on the loose right now and… well… they happened to be in his way."
This took me by surprise a bit. He was so open about their murders, but why would he be? Wouldn't he want to hide his crimes? Did he even commit them?
He looked up and into my eyes at this point. "Maybe Krista and Emma broke my heart, but I would never wish death upon them. It's just sickening." He then realized his morbidity. "I'm sorry, I really shouldn't be talking about this. I just can't believe they're…"
Compassion overwhelmed me at this point and I took his hand. I didn't care if he was the murderer or not, he needed comfort. And if he was the murderer, which I was almost sure that he wasn't, this made for a good act in order for his trust.
"Don't even worry about it, Chase. I know how terrible you must feel for their deaths. I'm sorry for your loss."
He smiled a bit at me and enclosed his hand around mine. There wasn't anything there, though. No spark or butterflies. Not like when I held Matt's hand. With Matt, I felt like I could do anything, but Chase was just part of the game.
The boy chuckled a bit. "Hey, I know it might be a bit late, but you know about the dance tomorrow night, right?"
I groaned. "Yes, and I've had almost every guy at school ask me to go."
Chase chuckled. "Well, would it be so terrible if we went together?"
I blinked at his question and awaited for someone to give me a response in the ear piece.
A slight pause came after the buzz started and L spoke. "Mello, I'll give you permission to go, but only if you're certain that things will be alright with you. We'll still have cameras on you at all cost, but we can't be at the dance personally."
I took a breath before deciding.
"Alright, Chase. I'll go with you."
His eyes lit up a bit more. "Really! Oh geez, I thought for sure you'd turn me down!"
I giggled a bit. "Well, you're a lot better than the other choices."
He chuckled then contorted into worry. "Oh, but it's a formal affair and we haven't gone shopping or anything. We could go right now if you…"
I stopped him from getting up and giggled again. "No need to go shopping. Just wear your best suit and I'll make sure to be dressed for the occasion." I then stood up to make my exit. "I should go home now. My parents are gonna want me home."
Chase stood with me. "I could walk you home, if you want."
I grinned at him. "No need. I don't live far from here. I'll see you tomorrow though, don't worry."
I made my exit and began my walk home. The whole way there I thought about Chase being the possible murderer. It was a possibility he was the killer, but when I'd looked into his eyes all I could see was sadness over the loss of the two girls. There had to be something wrong with L's deduction about him. There just had to be.
I remembered the photos again. No stab wounds or open cuts. These girls were strangled to death, but not by the use of hands.
That's when a new suspect came to mind and I was suddenly happy I'd agreed to go to the dance with Chase.
I entered the house and immediately tore off the heels I was wearing. They were sexy as hell but were murder on the feet. I also removed the hat and choker so I could be at least semi normal.
L and Light greeted me at the door.
"And how was your date?" Light sniped.
"Bite me." I growled. "Where's Matt?"
"Upstairs sulking." L said humorously.
That's when Matt's voice came from his bedroom. "I'm not sulking! I'm seething!"
I rolled my eyes. "I'd like to remind you, Matt, that Chase never got a handjob from me! Hell, he's waiting until the day he gets married to fornicate with others! I'm not waiting for that shit!"
His door opened and closed and I soon saw the red head at the top of the stairs making his way down. He had his arms crossed and a scowl on his face.
When he'd made it to my side, he glared at me.
"Did you kiss him?"
"No."
"Did he kiss you?"
"No."
"Are you in love with him?"
"Matt." I warned.
He growled. "Fine. But I still hate the fact that you're going to that stupid dance with him."
"Speaking of which, is Misa here?" I asked. "I need her help for a choice of dress."
Light answered. "She's way ahead of you. She's got a few dresses lined up for you and Takada is picking out the makeup choice. Teri will teach you how to dance."
"But before that," L began, "Tell me why you agreed to go."
"Two reasons." I answered. "First, it gives me a chance to get close to Chase and find out more about his relationships with the girls that wound up dead. Second, if he is the killer he'll want to take me out next. That's what I'm counting on. So you and Light might have to be at the dance after all, but not really be there. You get what I mean?"
Light hummed at this. "You think we're going to capture our killer tomorrow. But how do you know?"
"Believe me, the killer will be there whether we know it or not." I said angrily. "So I'll need backup."
Light and L agreed. "We'll get the police involved as well then." The brunette spoke up. "But you'd better be correct."
"Believe me, the killer will be there. And they'll be targeting me. When they do go to kill me, do nothing to stop it. Believe me, I can handle it."
Although L and Light looked more than worried for me, they agreed.
"But when do we get involved?" L asked.
"You'll know when." I said as I moved passed them. "At the moment I need to do some research on someone. If anything, it'll be vital to this case and ending it once and for all."
