By the time the Sakura TV incident had passed, Yagami Light had come into the picture and occupied the majority of L's time. L was now involved in a dangerous game of life and death, and it was one he couldn't lose. Just as well, because L didn't like to lose anyway. In the midst of all the planning and plotting his next move, L had forgotten all about Matsuda. When Yagami Light was in the room, it was easy to forget about Matsuda.
Although Matsuda didn't really make an effort to be noticed now. He still ran the errands, yes, but now he didn't ask; he just assumed and got. Sometimes he even asked Watari to get the food, although he apologized profusely for making the elderly man go through all the trouble. Only talking to contribute or explain an idea in a group meeting, one could say Matsuda was now as quiet as Mogi. The observational part of L noticed that it hadn't really taken long for Aizawa to go back to normal.
It seemed that with the arrival of Yagami Light, things had taken a turn for the worse for Matsuda. It was like his school years and his first years in the police force; constantly being called stupid because he could be a bit of a pushover or because of how young he looked. And while Matsuda could fix the appearance part by cutting his hair to a more "respectable" style, he figured he'd still get called stupid because of his personality so why bother with the hair?
With each hateful word aimed at him from everyone but Mogi and Watari, Matsuda could feel himself withdraw from the others just a little bit more each passing day. Ukita's death had hit him hard, and while his parents called to check on him, they lived in Hokkaido and couldn't really do anything in the physical sense. His coworkers, though... well, Matsuda supposed he deserved being called stupid in that sense. Did he really expect L or any of the others to sling an arm around his shoulders and say, "It's alright. Everything will work out"? And along with the verbal negativity aimed at him, it was getting a bit overwhelming.
Some days, Matsuda felt like giving up. Or at least retreating back into his quiet section of the world and becoming a normal detective again. Things were a lot less stressful back when he was a detective. But Matsuda had joined this group, and he was going to stick with them until the end.
Matsuda Tarou was not a quitter.
I am declaring Seether ft. Amy Lee - 'Broken' LxMatsuda's unofficial theme song. Seether!bits are L bits, and Amy Lee!bits are Matsuda bits. It fits them so well I think. And ya. :'D