Author's notes:

Hi guys. Long time no see. Yes, I give you all permission to tear me to pieces for taking so goddamned long with this stupid fanfic. I'm very sorry, but I had lost all motivation to continue it. Even now, I'm a tad reluctant to go on with it, as I can't really see where this will go. Perhaps I'll turn it into a chaotic love story of tragedy? Or should I keep it light hearted and humorous? Please tell me which scenario you would prefer, as I am going to write this for the pleasure of the audience rather than my own, for I have very few inclinations towards this story, truth be told. ; I'm more in the mood to write angst-ridden and dramatic stories, but I think Death Note romances should be light hearted and warming to counteract the crazy amounts on tension in the manga! Love from your most LOYAL BEAST. (I used to be BeautyLiesWithin)

Chapter Two – The Walls Break

Raito glared at his monitor in a most hostile and accusing manner, as though it should personally take responsibility for the awkward predicament in which he now faced.

"Damn Ryuuzaki. DAMN HIM!" Raito thought, his teeth clenched.

He could feel his partner's scrutinising and curious gaze upon him. It only heightened his resolve to outstare the computer screen and avoid his counterpart at all costs. Though, admittedly, avoiding Ryuuzaki's stare was a hard task. After all, there were only so many hours one could stare at a monitor without receiving a splitting headache. Frustrated and tired, Raito stood up and made his way to the sofa, before throwing himself upon the cushions. He mentally thanked the Gods for having the mercy to release him of his stifling chains, whilst at the same time cursing them for leaving him to feel exposed without the heavy weight around his wrist.

Thankfully, the two had managed to press their prior incidents from their minds. Or at least, they kept up appearances that nothing had changed, and that no awkward exchanges had ever occurred. They continued to play their game of charades- they both kept appearances for appearance's sake of harbouring mutual respect and distance from the other.

Until Ryuuzaki chose to test these walls of estrangement with one question that sent a thunderstorm into the heart of their relationship.

"Raito-kun, may I ask you a question?"

Ryuuzaki asked suddenly, looking up from his steaming cup of coffee and independently purchased Piroko napoleon, a light smile playing at the corners of his lips. Raito merely raised an eyebrow, before resigning himself to his fate and turning to face Ryuuzaki. Big mistake, he chided himself. Almost spontaneously, his mind couldn't help but think just how fetching the other boy looked, with his shirt gently clinging to his torso and a mischievous sparkle in his dead pan eyes, creating some all-together very pleasant scenarios playing out in his mind's eye. Raito mentally kicked himself.

'What in God's name is that smug bastard smiling about?' Raito growled internally, whilst maintaining nothing less than a neutral expression and disregard of his erection.
"What might you care to ask?" Raito acquiesced, trying to hold onto the last vestiges of their once platonic relationship. Though ominous clouds begun to draw closer, and he had been expecting a conversation of this nature ever since their… incident.

"Are you attracted to me?" an amused voice chimed, in a most taunting and teasing voice. L kept his eyes upon the delicate coffee cup in his hands, smiling, but refusing to look at Raito, who was wearing a face that resembled a stunned goldfish.

Silence pursued whilst Raito's mouth tried to work around various words, but nothing but air came out.

His mind was wiped cleaner than an Apple hard disk during malfunction and he simply gaped at Ryuuzaki, before settling on an effective (albeit lame) comeback of,

"You are sick, Ryuuzaki. Fuck. Off."

"Hmmm. Am I to take that as a declination, are you perhaps suggesting the contrary?" the latter smiled, chuckling to himself whilst taking a bite of his third cake.

"If it were up to me Ryuuzaki, you would be confined to a padded room in a special institute with a straight jacket to obstruct you from infecting society with your irritating and grotesque questions." Raito bristled in response. "I made it well known that I truly detest your character, Ryuuzaki."

"I didn't ask if you liked me, I simply inquired if you were attracted to me, Raito-kun. There are fundamental differences between harbouring feelings of physical attraction towards a person and feeling empathy and appeal towards them. One being the more carnal and instinctive, the more a cultivated and civilised-"

"Shut up." Raito cut off the young detective, letting out a poisonous sigh as he rubbed the bridge of his nose, wondering why he didn't sock the smug bastard a fist in the throat.

"Why don't you like me then, Raito-kun?"

"Because you're a-" Raito stopped in mid-sentence, realising that all the insults and taunts he had seeded in his mind from the moment he knew of L's existence had dissipated into the still air, not unlike the steam of his anger and Ryuuzaki's coffee.

Ryuuzaki smiled knowingly at the once again blank face of Yagami Raito, before suddenly leaning in to give Raito an altogether unexpected kiss on the cheek- a kiss with such mock innocence that it made the spot on his cheek yearn for contact again.

"I don't hate you at all, Raito-kun." Ryuuzaki laughed, before standing up and shuffling to the door of the hotel. He turned one last time to take a glimpse of the blank bewilderment on Raito's face.

"We're even now." he smiled, fighting the impulse to giggle as he shuffled his bare feet into the loose sneakers and closing the door behind him.

It took a while for Raito to register the travesty that had just occurred. His face begun to turn an alarming shade of violent red and he broke out into a cold sweat. The humiliated genius banged his head on the computer desk.

But he couldn't help smiling a little and feeling pleased with himself.

To be continued. Reviews are welcome and tres appreciated.