Countdown continues: 2…
Masako paced the room. The waiting. She hated all of the damn waiting. Picking up the phone, she tried it again in hopes that it had suddenly begun working. No such luck. She went to the door, opening it to see Matsuda standing there. How convenient that he was the one sent to guard her.
"Would you like to come in for a minute? I wanted to talk to you anyway," she said, giving him a smile that he easily returned.
"I really shouldn't but …" He gladly walked in, closing and locking the door behind him. "So you won't try to leave," he explained with a blush.
"Touta, I've missed you," she proclaimed, hugging him when he stood in front of her.
"I never thought I'd see you again," he returned, hugging her back despite feeling quite self-conscious.
"Thank you for protecting me," she told him, letting him go. Ignoring his obvious discomfort, she took his hand and led him to the couch.
"I couldn't live with myself if I had let you die," he rejoined, clearing his throat and shifting anxiously when she sat right next to him. "I always liked you. You were so kind and sweet. Especially to L."
"Will you protect me again?" she asked, meeting his gaze that held obvious confusion. "Get me out of here, Touta. You know as well as I do that Light can want nothing good for me. Can I trust you with a secret?"
She smiled when he nodded like an excited child, his big brown eyes locked on her face. Taking his chin in her hand to turn his head, she whispered in his ear, "I had L's baby. I have a son. I need to get back to him."
Matsuda rotated his head back to her, his eyes even larger now as he gawked at her.
"Will you help me?" she implored him, begging him with her soft brown eyes.
"I…uh…I-I don't know," he spluttered indecisively.
"Don't tell him about my child. I'll never forgive you if Light kills him," she said, rising from the couch.
"But Light would never – " The words died on his tongue when she turned her fierce, angry eyes on him.
"Touta, please don't be that stupid. Can't you see what, no, who he is since you work so closely with him?" she inquired with a sharp edge of bitterness to her voice.
When the man only stared at her in dumbfounded shock, she went on to make her case by listing the reasons as to why Light is Kira. He seemed to grow more upset and downright distraught as she talked. He did not want to believe her. She was hoping she had not misplaced her trust. She had faith that Aizawa and Ide had already begun to suspect him. Mogi she was never sure about because he was always so quiet and kept to himself. Touta, in all of his endearing naiveté, would be the hold out and the most difficult to convince of Kira's true identity.
"Give me your phone," she requested, holding out her hand.
"No. I – I can't," he stammered nervously.
"Touta, please if you have ever cared anything about me, let me have the phone. I trusted you with my greatest secret. Please," she pled with him.
The inner conflict showed on his face, and it was a terrible struggle. After several minutes and a few meaningful gazes from Masako, he reached into his pocket to retrieve the phone. He blushed hotly when she kissed his cheek then rapidly dialed a number.
"Near!" she exclaimed into the phone when he answered.
"Where are you?" he asked hurriedly, the apprehension evident in his voice.
"Light has me. He kidnapped me from the hospital after ordering Misa to kill Halle. Misa is the one writing all the names down in the Death Note," she informed him swiftly, ignoring Matsuda's pale shocked face.
"Get out of there. I want you away from him. Forget this whole revenge thing," he told her, taking a deep breath before continuing. "The United States President has acquiesced to Kira. He has endorsed him and given him free rein to do as he pleases. He disbanded the SPK as well. Please get out of there. I can't live without you."
Masako felt so sick and weak. She grabbed her belly before falling to her knees. She could not believe her ears. The blatant fear and anxiety in Near's voice tore at her because he never got upset or emotional. He was always calm, always logical, but not at this moment. His voice sounded like he was restraining panic as he begged her to leave. She could not live without him either. Standing to her feet, she picked up the heavy crystal sculpture from the table behind the couch. While holding the phone to her ear with her shoulder, she approached the man above suspicion staring at her with uncertainty. She methodically judged the weight of the object in her hand to determine how hard she would have to strike him to render him unconscious without killing him.
"Matsuda, I'm sorry. Please forgive me. In the end this will save you from being killed by Light. Tell him I knocked you out and stole your phone," she instructed him, raising the weighty piece of art. "I'm sorry."
"Wait! What are you –"
Before he could finish the question, she brought the dense object down on his temple careful to strike the pressure point only to knock him unconscious but not to do any damage. He would have a hell of a headache but no blunt force trauma. He would be safe from the vindictive Light who would surely seek retribution for her escape.
"What happened?" Near questioned her with a tight, strained voice.
"Near, I'm coming," Masako said, stepping over the unconscious Matsuda.
There was no time to feel guilty over hitting the man lying on the floor in a heap. She looked down the hall, hearing the elevator dinging as it reached the floor and a room door opening for someone to exit. Both of those held a high chance of being Light, and he would immediately be coming her way. She saw the sign for the stairwell at the end of the hall.
"What are you doing?" he asked, hearing her panting into the phone.
"I'm running. I'm taking the stairs. When I get outside I'll find some landmarks to tell you where I am." She hurried down the stairs, hoping Light had not yet discovered that she was missing. She knew he would have surveillance cameras so she could only pray that her timing was good, and he was away from the computer. Running outside into the freezing air, her breath puffed out in front of her. All she was wearing was a thin silk shirt and a short skirt, no shoes or jacket.
"Where are you?" Near almost yelled into the phone.
Masako gave him the name of the street and the direction she was walking. She also added the name of a few of the shops she was walking past.
"Sa – Masako!" she heard Light's voice yell behind her.
Time to run.
"Damn! He's coming. Hurry!" she shouted into the phone, running down the street.
"Rester, he's behind her. How far away are we?" he asked the man driving the car.
"Ten blocks. Shit!" Anthony exclaimed, slamming on the brakes when a large truck blocked the road in front of them. He pulled out his gun, getting out of the car. "Tell her I'm coming to her!"
"I heard, Near," she told him before he relayed the message. "Which way is he going so I can run to him?"
Near told her and she turned the next corner. Her feet felt as if the skin was being scraped off by the concrete sidewalk. Her lungs were burning for lack of air and her muscles were sore and beginning to cramp. It was difficult dodging the crowd of people streaming around her on both sides. How can all of these people see a person in obvious distress and not bother to help at all? Ignoring the pain in her body, she continued to flee while asking for directions through the phone. The next corner she turned, she saw the big blond man standing at the end of the block. She had never been so happy to see him.
"Anthony!" she screamed, running toward him. She smiled when he saw her and made his way to her. Flinging herself into his wide chest, she buried her face against his light blue shirt.
"There he is," he growled, raising his arm to aim the gun he held.
"NO!" she screamed, pushing his hand skyward before he pulled the trigger.
"What the hell did you do that for?" he demanded angrily.
"There's too many people here. You can't risk shooting an innocent person," she panted, leaning against him.
"I'm an excellent shot," he told her, holding her against him with one arm as he took aim again at Light.
"But you're not a murderer. Get me out of here," she implored him, holding on to his shirt.
"Dammit!" he snarled, not taking the shot. Twice he had a bead on Light Yagami and could have blown his head off. Instead, he holstered his gun and picked up the almost unconscious woman to get her to safety and her beloved Near. Opening the car door to the backseat, he shoved her in beside the young man. He got into the driver's seat as quickly as possible to get them all out of there.
"I'm fine," Masako assured Near before he even asked. She looked into his dark gray eyes as he touched her face and looked her over for any evident injuries besides the bruises and scrapes from the explosion.
"You are the only person who has ever made me feel fear. I don't like it," he told her in his tranquil, toneless voice.
"I'm sorry," she apologized, kissing his forehead.
"Let it go. Let's go home," he said, kissing her briefly on the lips.
"We won't be safe as long as he is alive. Did Mello come to see you?" she inquired, seeing the bewilderment flood his eyes.
"Yes, but –"
Relief flooded her upon learning that he was alive. Masako had been so sure he had been killed in that explosion at the warehouse. He will be able to keep his promise to her after all. "He and I were able to come to an agreement. He's actually helping me. I'm supposed to meet him in a few days."
"But, how could you – " Near stopped speaking after looking into her eyes. He felt anger and jealousy rise within him. She was making him feel all sorts of uncomfortable emotions. "What did you promise him or already given him in return for his cooperation?"
Masako had accomplished something he never could which was obtaining the assistance of the obstinate Mello who held a deep seated hatred for him. How had she done it? He was uneasily awaiting the answer while irritation and envy seethed within him. She belonged to him and no one else. The thought of another man touching her was unbearable especially if that man was Mello.
"Near, I did not do that," she assured him, pressing her lips to his. She liked kissing him. Maybe too much. Her eyes lingered on his full pink bottom lip and roved over his childlike face. He barely looked older than the first time she met him, but he was in fact a legal adult and considered a grown man.
"Masako, I –" Near started but was cut off as the car slid around a corner.
"Where are we going?" Rester inquired, keeping his eyes straight ahead on the road.
"The airport," he replied with a tone that did not allow for argument. "We're returning to England."
~\..'../~
"Mama? Mama!" the L in miniature yelled as he ran to his mother.
Masako knelt down to open her arms for her son who had celebrated his fifth birthday during her absence. She held him with tears running down her face. That would be the first and the last birthday of his that she would ever miss.
"Oh, Mama! I missed you so much," he cried in his little boy voice. He was still young enough there was no shame in plastering kisses all over his mother's face.
"Oh, baby! I love you! I missed you too. I'm so sorry," she apologized, kissing his little cheeks over and over.
"Here, Hideki," Near said, stepping up to hand the child a present.
"Near! Near!" the child yelled, unwinding from his mother to go to Near. Bypassing the present, he wrapped his little arms around the neck of the man he called brother.
Masako wiped away her tears for them to be replaced by twice as many as they flowed faster down her cheeks. She watched silently while the two hugged each other tightly.
"Here. Your mom and I bought this for you." Once again he brought the child's attention to the present.
Hideki sat down on the floor, viciously tearing off the wrapping paper. He opened the big box to find action figures, decks of cards, dice, and other various toys. There was a smaller box at the bottom. Forgetting about the toys temporarily, curiosity drove him to open the box. A silver X in old English script hung from a delicate silver chain.
"X? But my name begins with H," Hideki protested staring at the fancy letter.
"It's not for who you are now but who you will be someday," Near explained though the child still did not understand.
Masako bent down to place the necklace around the child's neck. She kissed him on the forehead and stroked his wild fly away hair with a smile on her face.
"How about some cake?" Roger suggested. "Hideki helped me make it especially for you two when we knew you were coming. He's a lucky boy. He gets to celebrate his birthday twice."
Mello watched from the sidewalk with the hood of the parka pulled low over his scarred face. He was basically hiding in the jacket but if they had just looked his way they would not have missed him in the black jacket standing against the mostly white landscape of freshly fallen snow. However, he did not want to interrupt the heartwarming family reunion he had just witnessed. There was no hurry. He would be back later.
...
Masako tossed and turned in her bed, unable to sleep. She listened to the sound of her son breathing next to her. Getting up slowly to avoid making a sound, she painstakingly eased from the bed so she would not wake him. Looking down at him, her heart physically ached for the man who owned it despite no longer being with her. Oh, god he looked like his father. She bent down to kiss him tenderly on the cheek. A smile curled her lips when he wriggled a bit and sighed loudly.
"I love you, Mama," he mumbled in his sleep.
"I love you too, baby," she whispered back.
She did not bother to grab a robe before she left the room. She was wearing a pair of Near's pajamas that were too big on him but to her humiliation she filled them out nicely with her extra inches of height and full curves. Putting on the old fashioned whistling tea kettle, she dug for her favorite tea that she always hid in the back of the pantry. Her body was encased between the shelves up to her waist when she heard the soft scraping of footsteps behind her. Judging by the slight shuffling sound and the almost complete silence, she guessed it to be Near.
"What are you doing?" he whispered touching her behind. He smirked with satisfaction when she jumped and hit her head on the shelf above her.
"Ow! Near," she whined, extracting herself from the shelves and rubbing her sore head. She was more aggravated with herself than him because she had known he was there but it still frightened her.
"Want me to kiss it and make if feel better?" he inquired unable to wipe the smirk off his face.
"I'll tell you what you can kiss…" She hooked her thumb in the top of the pajama pants acting as if she were going to pull it down to reveal her derrière.
"Be careful," he warned, moving closer to her. "I just might do it."
"Hmph," Masako snorted. Her eyes met his when he trapped her between the shelves and his body with his hands gripping the shelf behind her.
"You don't think I will?" he challenged.
"No," she retorted, sliding her arms around his neck.
Near pushed himself up the few inches it took to reach her lips surprising her. He pressed her into the shelf while he kissed her like he had only dreamed about for a long time.
Masako's fingers buried themselves in his silky white hair, twisting a lock of it like he always does when he is thinking. She was thinking a lot of things but one of them was not that she needed to stop kissing him. The tea kettle started whistling alerting her that the water was hot and ready for her tea. Her eyes met Near's when he broke the kiss to stare at her.
"Um, I need to go get that. I don't want to wake everyone in the house up," she murmured, sliding past him when he dropped his arms. "Would you like some tea?"
Near followed her out of the large pantry standing behind her while she made her tea. He slid his arms around her waist, propping his chin on her shoulder.
"I only want you," he whispered, hearing her take a deep, shaky breath. 'Here it comes. Just like always,' he thought to himself waiting for the usual you're just a child remark.
Masako thought a moment before saying anything. Whether she was willing to admit it or not, he was no longer a child. She had missed celebrating his birthday as well because they had been so deep into the Kira case. Sooner or later she would have to start regarding him as an adult and what then? How would she treat him? What would she feel? Turning to look at him, she searched his eyes for her answer. The deep gray eyes with half dilated pupils held hers and communicated so much.
"Near, you and I need to talk," she said, dropping the strawberry tea bag into the water.
"We are talking," he retorted in his snide manner. He had an undercover way of being a smart ass that was easy to overlook.
"About what to do with each other," she pressed the issue, sipping her tea while staring into the cup.
"I know what I'd like to do with you," said with thinly veiled snarkiness.
"You can take me to your bed after I finish my tea," she rejoined swiftly without looking at him.
"Wh-what?" he stammered, tripping mentally.
Masako smiled with satisfaction. Gotcha! She slowly raised her eyes to his while he stared at her in mute disbelief. "You heard me. You want a special present for your nineteenth birthday right?"