A/N: Hi, friends…Well. Here it is. The moment we've all been waiting for. Near's graduation. Are we ready for it? Because I'm not sure if you are or not. Even if you're yelling at your computer right now, I can't hear you. We are miles and miles away from each other. And if I can hear you, honey, I feel so bad for your throat. Take that shit down a notch. Alright. We ready? You got something to drink? Maybe a snack? Because a lot's about to go down. I'd hate for you to go malnourished and thirsty. Go. Go get your drink and your snack.

Before we get into this, first, we need to make some conversation. Hi, Skyla! I haven't seen you in a couple weeks. I was starting to worry. It had been a while since I posted anything spicy, so I figured what the hell? As for me, personally, my nephew decided to be a sweetheart and share his cold with me, so I've been wrestling with that since Friday. Lucky me. I also have someone trying to pimp out this novel app on my FictionPress reviews, so…There's that, too. But I'm glad to see you're still here.

And we're not only saying hi to Skyla this week, but to Haimerej, too! I'm glad you're indulging yourself in the gay mess that this story is. It took me a second to get into it, too, but once I did…Well, now I'm trash and writing Lawlight for the internet. Happy to have you aboard! Alright. Are we ready? Is that everyone? That seems to be everyone. Let's get into it then! X

When L and Light got to the graduation ceremony (after a morning of Light's butt cheek tingling), Light couldn't help but notice how academic the school looked. Of course, he knew it'd look academic, but he never realized how grand of a scale it'd be. This place is huge! And this is where L sent Near? It's not bad. I bet it's not much different from To-Oh. But out of the corner of his eye, Light noticed L shifting uncomfortably, ready to come out of his skin.

"L…?" Light worried, "Are you ok?"

"I don't know about this," L twitched, "Maybe this wasn't such a good idea."

"You'll be ok," Light slipped his hand in L's, "Hey. You know what would probably make you feel better?"

"What?" L scoffed, not holding onto too much hope. Until Light pulled a lollipop out of his pocket, "Light, I fucking love you."

"I love you, too," Light giggled, "You're welcome."

"If anyone ever tries to tell you that you don't understand how I work," L tore apart the flavor of his lollipop. It's not blue raspberry, but it's not blueberry alone. Mixed berry maybe, "You have my express permission to punch them."

"And by anyone," Light figured, "Do you mean Aizawa when he doubts me?"

"I never used names," L hid a smile from him. You do know me all too well, Light. It's almost scary, "Just know you have my permission. I will not stop you."

"Well, well," a familiar, angry voice took L out of his happy place, "Look who has the balls to show his face around here."

L's heart sunk to his feet. He knew this was to be expected, but nothing could've prepared him for it, "Mello…"

"You're ok, L," Light gave him all the reassurance he needed, "I'm not going anywhere. Go ahead. You can say hi."

"Hi, Mello," L pulled himself together. He barely held on, but he managed.

"What are you doing here?" Mello growled, more annoyed than angry.

"It's Near's graduation," L pointed out, "He asked me to come, so here I am."

"Of course," Mello rolled his eyes, "You always spoiled Near. Whatever Near wants, Near gets, right?"

"Mello," another familiar face joined them, "Play nice…Oh, shit! I know you!"

"I know you know him," Mello scoffed, "I've told you about L before."

"No, not him…" he turned his attention to Light, "You. I know you, dude!"

"Me?" Light thought back. Wait…This guy does look familiar.

"Yeah! From the coffee shop!" he squeaked, ever the excitable one, "We were talking about our sugar junkie boyfriends. How've you been, man?"

"Oh, hell no," Mello grumbled, "No, no, no. Matt, go sit down."

"Come on, Mello," Matt wrapped his arms around Mello, doing his best to calm him down before he could wind himself up too much, "Maybe you should come with me."

"No…Fucking…Way," Mello looked Light over, "You two are not…"

Then, his eyes followed L's arm down to Light's hand. And L's grip tightened, "I don't think that's your business anymore, Mello."

"Really?" Mello chuckled, "REALLY? THIS ONE?"

"Mello, please…" L begged, "Not here."

"HA!" Mello laughed hysterically, "Wow, L…I thought you were going through something when you picked Near over me. This guy? Really? Good luck. I hope you enjoy going lefty a lot and missionary."

"Mello," L stopped being nervous and started getting angry. If you only knew what Light does for me, "I told you to stop."

Mello slinked over to L's shoulder, purring in his ear, "Admit it, L. You miss me, don't you? You really think this vanilla mother fucker is going to satisfy you? You and I both know how insatiable you can be. We both know what you're into. There's no way in hell he'd ever be ok with some of the things you're into."

"Mello," L could feel his blood pressure spiking. And his self-control slipping away, "I'll say this once more. Stop."

"He's your rebound from Near, isn't he?" Mello figured, "And I know you and Near had some kink in your relationship, too. This asshole is probably as vanilla as it comes. And that's if he even lets you touch him."

"Mello, please," L did his best to keep himself from wrapping his hands around Mello's throat. But then, L receded into his head. A little too much.

"No." And Mello was practically getting off on it, "Tell me you miss me. You know you do…"

"It's Mello, right?" Light stepped in, pushing L away from Mello.

"Yeah," Mello brushed him off, "Do you mind? We were in the middle of something."

"You were in the middle of putting my boyfriend through the wringer for no reason," Light argued, "I don't know how things ended with you two. Quite frankly, I don't care."

"You don't know anything about me," Mello defended himself, his fight or flight response needle leaning toward fight.

"L's told me enough about you," Light remembered the stories about Mello. L's favorite forays into exhibitionism were because of Mello. You're L's Misa. You two would get along famously. Light shuddered at the thought of Mello and Misa ever meeting and becoming best friends. But he had bigger things to worry about. He got in Mello's ear the same way Mello did to L, "It's you who doesn't know a thing about me other than me dating L. Because if you did, you'd know about what L and I did on the London Eye last night. Or what we've done on the Odaiba ferris wheel in Japan. We almost got caught last night. I know what kind of shit he's into. Don't you ever make assumptions about us."

"Really?" Mello backed off, less angry and more…intrigued, "Alright…That was my mistake. And I can admit that. It's a shame you're stuck with L. I bet you'd be fun for a night or two. What a shame."

"And you'll never know," Light took L's hand, "Come on. Let's go sit down."

"Ok…" L spoke meekly. The second they sat down, L wrapped himself around Light's arm, "I love you, Light."

"I love you, too," Light stole a quick kiss, "What's that for?"

"You didn't have to handle Mello," L explained, "But thank you. I should've told him off, but…"

"But you couldn't at the time," Light settled him, "And that's ok. That's what you had me for."

"What did you tell him?"

"Not to make assumptions," Light smiled, "I told him about last night."

"Hey…" L gave him a little nudge, "Our ferris wheel adventures aren't his business."

"But they're always fun," Light pulled L into his shoulder, "But it's alright now. We don't have to deal with him anymore."

"When did you meet Matt?" L wondered.

"When I went to get coffee," Light told him, "I didn't know who either one of them were. In my defense. We made small talk. That's it. In hindsight, I should've known that was Mello outside."

"You couldn't have," L shrugged, "But that's here nor there. Can we not talk about Mello anymore?"

"Sure," Light looked over the crowd and watched at the ceremony began, "Which one is yours?"

L took Light's hand, "This one."

And Light's heart melted into the best kind of puddle. I should've seen that one coming, "Which one was yours?"

"The little one," L pointed toward a fidgety, white haired boy on the stage.

"What?" Light gasped, getting a good look at Near, "Really? That's Near?"

"That one was mine," L felt a heaviness in his chest he didn't need today, "That's Near."

"Well," Light thought it over for a moment or two, "He's cute. That's for sure."

"He's adorable," L explained, "That's half the reason why I picked him. It's why I fell in love with him. He was small and fit into my lap perfectly. He was my perfect little spoon. And cuddly…My god, he was cuddly. But it wasn't enough. And I moved on. And now, I have you."

"Of course," Light got a few more kisses out of L, "It's just us."

"Absolutely," L promised, "Um…Hey, Light…Do you still…?"

"Hold on," Light dug into his pocket and got another lollipop, "Is this what you're looking for?"

"Yes, please."

Light put the lollipop in L's mouth, "There. Is that better?"

"Much," L pulled the stick out and got one last kiss in, "Thank you, Light."

"You're welcome." It's like you said, L. No one understands you quite like I do. No one gets how you work quite like me. And nobody—not Near, not Mello—is going to take you from me. This isn't petty jealousy. Mello made it clear. This is war. If he had his way, he'd steal L away from me. I could feel it. I'll be damned if some whiny little punk is going to take him away from me.

As the ceremony came to an end, everyone started clearing out. Proud parents went to find their children and L and Light stood in the back. As Near grew closer to L, it made him nervous. He could already feel his knees wanting to buckle out from under him. Fortunately, L knew he wasn't there by himself. If I wouldn't have brought Light with me, I have no doubt we'd fall into old patterns. Or worse, I'd fall apart. We don't need that. Even if I did do this on my own, I'd still want to go back to Japan in one piece. I'd want to come home to Light in one piece.

"Dare I say hi to Near?" L worried, "You saw what happened with Mello. Near might be a tad worse."

"It's alright," Light assured him, "You'll be ok. And I'll be right here."

"Thank you, Light," L caught a glimpse of someone out of the corner of his eye. Oh, thank God, Near's not here by himself either, "Hold on. I think I just found my ace in the hole."

"What's that?"

L approached an older man Light had never seen before, "Hello, Roger."

"L…" the man looked at him strange, "I didn't expect to see you here. I was just about to get Near."

"How is he?" L wondered.

"He's been worse," Roger reported, "Why?"

"Do you think…" L kept his voice down, "I could see him? Is he that good?"

"I think so," Roger allowed, "He should be relatively ok."

BAM!

L melted inside, a melancholic smile stretching across his face. Not too many people would just walk right into me like that. He looked down at the tiny pair of arms wrapped around his waist. Just as I thought, "Hello, Near…"

Near didn't say a word. He didn't want to. He had all he wanted right there. And it made Light sweat a little, "Um…L?"

"Near," L turned around, getting onto Near's level. But Near couldn't even make eye contact with him, "Near? Are you ok?"

Silence.

"Near," Roger nudged him a bit.

"No, no," L stopped him. So, this is how it is, huh? Back to this, "Near? Are you ok?"

Near nodded, still staying quiet.

"Let me guess," L figured it out, "The crowd's getting to you, isn't it?"

Near nodded.

"You should've seen it this morning," Roger told him, "I practically had to drag him out the door."

"Why would you do that?" L growled, "If you knew he was going to be miserable, why would you force him into that?"

"Because you can't baby him forever, L!" Roger snapped, "That's half the reason why he is the way he is!"

"Because something that works for you doesn't work for him?" L got defensive, "No. That's not how that works. Near can't handle big crowds. Any more than five people and Near goes catatonic. You should know that."

And as the crowd got thinner and thinner, Near got brave, "L…"

L started to relax a little, "What is it, Near?"

"I…" Near's meek little voice came out, "I didn't think…you'd come…"

"I've been looking for an excuse to come back to London anyway," L brushed him off.

"Near," Roger called for him.

"I'm sorry…" Near backed away from L, wanting nothing more than to keep holding on. We're not together anymore. And that's ok…Right?

Near's sudden detachment caught L by surprise. Wow…He really is getting better, "I am glad to see you, though, Near. I've been wanting to introduce you to someone for a while now…Light?"

And that someone was doing his best to figure out the situation. You handled that way too well, L. Almost as if it were muscle memory. I thought you were over that. But then, Light stopped himself. He's going to be like that. Near was L's sole focus for a while. I can't blame him for getting that defensive. Light snapped back into his head, "What?"

"Near," L introduced him, "This is Light. And before you say anything, you did tell me it was ok if I brought a date."

"And I stand by that," Near agreed, the feeling of jealousy twisting him up inside. We're not together anymore. And that's ok. It's only natural that he'd move on, "I figured that's who he was."

"He is very special to me," L assured him, making sure there was no wiggle room.

"I can see that," Near took slow, even breaths, doing his best to keep his head about him, "I'm…Happy for you, L. Really, I am."

And I'm so damn proud of you, Near. I know that took a lot for you to say, but whether or not you meant it is an entirely different story. Still, the words were nice, "I'll be in town for another day or two if you want to come talk."

"Really?" Near perked up, "That'd be ok?"

"If you bring Roger with you and clear it with your doctor first," L stipulated, "I don't see why not."

"Ok," Near's heart was about to burst out of his chest. But he had to bring himself back down. We aren't getting back together, though, are we? Still, it's a foot in the door, "Where will you go after you leave town again?"

"Back to Japan," L told him.

"And…" Near shot a mistrusting look toward Light, "With…Him?"

"That's right," L nodded.

"Come along, Near," Roger ordered, "We have other things to do today."

"Ok," Near threw himself into L's arms, trying his hardest not to start crying, "I miss you, L."

And L knew what he had to do. He had to break his own heart. L peeled Near off him, "That's nice, Near. But we need to leave. We have other things to do, too."

"Oh…" Near shook it off, internally writhing, "Ok. So, I'll see you soon?"

"With your doctor's permission and Roger's presence," L reiterated, "Yes. Hopefully before I leave town again."

"And when you leave…" Near hoped, "You'll come back again…Right?"

"I'm not sure," L made Light's heart skip a beat, "I like it in Japan. Light and I have an apartment there. I might consider moving there permanently. I'll figure that out later."

"Oh…" Near's face fell, "Ok. See you soon."

L shook off Near's sadness and pulled himself together. That could've gone worse. I'm impressed he didn't throw a fit when I told him about Light. Nowhere nearly as bad as Mello. I know you want us to get back together, Near, but it's not going to happen. L could still feel Near in his back. Until he realized that wasn't Near. Light. That's right. I came here with Light for a reason. He's still here. After all this, he's still here.

"L?" Light worried, "Are you doing ok?"

"Better than I thought," L admitted, "But it's been a long day and it's hardly after noon."

"You want to go home?" Light suggested, "Maybe nap this one off?"

"With you?" L hoped.

"Of course."

"Will you make me pancakes when we get back?" L asked, a certain sparkle in his eye.

"Absolutely." Like Light was going to turn that down.

"And…" L followed Light toward the car like a lost puppy, "I can watch just like we did in Odaiba?"

"It's your house, L," Light giggled, "I'm not going to tell you what you can and can't do."

"Ok." You really are a unicorn, Light Yagami. Some days, I may not know what I'm going to do with you, but others…Most days, I don't know what I'd do without you. Today was a major test of your resolve and did you pass with flying colors. You took care of Mello, so I could take care of Near. I know I shouldn't still be so attached to Near, but I couldn't help myself. I couldn't let him suffer like that. I know how terrible that feeling is. But I never have to feel that with you, do I?