Unfortunately, L was right. Mello and Matt's visits had grown less frequent upon his arrival, but not in the way he'd expected.
The two of them had hated the little albino freak from the moment they saw him in the doorway holding L's hand. Particularly Mello, who was even more prone to possessive behavior than Matt was. It didn't help that the 7-year-old was in the same classes as they were and nearly surpassed them academically.
"Alright children," Their history teacher Mr. Geoffrey said the day after his arrival. "I'd like to welcome a new student to our class. Please say hello to Near, who has skipped from 2nd grade to 7th grade."
Mello's eyes nearly popped out of his head. "Look, Mel! It's that Near kid!"
He ignored his best friend's statement and proceeded to go from surprised to angry in a matter of seconds. He's in our class?! That's probably why L likes him so much! He thinks he's smarter than we are!
"Hello Near," the class chimed in unison, most looking at the genius boy from 2nd grade with raised eyebrows. And they thought the snobby brats Matt and Mello were so smart for skipping ahead from 4th. Near nodded, his face remaining stoic and disinterested. He could tell that they were impressed with him, and secretly, it made him feel happy. Maybe this new orphanage wouldn't be so bad.
"Now please take a seat so we can begin the lesson."
He nodded once more and sat down in one of the open desks in the middle of the room. Some people gave him a few slightly patronizing smiles, to which he responded with a forced smirk. He may have wanted to be accepted, but he certainly didn't want for people to think he was just a little kid.
"Now then, can someone please tell me who invented the printing press?" Mr. Geoff had to put effort into keeping from rolling his eyes as Mello's hand shot up, eagerly waving back and forth to grab his attention. "Mello?"
"The printing press was invented by Christopher Latham Sholes," he responded, giving Near a superior look that he refused to acknowledge.
"No, that's incorrect. I think you're confusing the printing press with the typewriter."
Mello turned a deep shade of red as the class snickered at him. This time it was Matt who was the one to silence them when he raised his middle finger when the teacher wasn't looking. "Mind your own business, you asses!"
"Can you please tell us the correct answer, Near?"
The younger child looked thoughtful for a moment before answering. "I believe it was Johannes Gutenberg in the year 1440."
"Yes, that is correct!" Mr. Geoffrey said with a grin.
Matt could literally feel the hatred radiating off of his friend.
"Mel..?"
He then received the most intense glare he'd received in his entire life. Mello was no longer just red but a vibrant scarlet color and had concentrated his entire being into that one simple glare. Matt's cowered down submissively, hoping not to set him off into an even deeper stage of wrath. He could be so scary sometimes.
…
Mello hadn't been quite right for the rest of the day, and resorted to staying locked in he and Matt's room after class with nothing but a box full of smuggled chocolate. Occasionally he allowed for his red-headed minion to come in, only to send him away after five or so minutes of forced conversation.
"PMSing drama queen…" Matt muttered as he walked downstairs to the kitchen. "It's all that stupid Near's fault. If it weren't for him, me and Mel would be outside playing right now instead of being stuck inside while I wait for him to finish sulking…"
It was very rare that he would even think of insulting Mello, but he was being ridiculous. Matt sat down at one of the barstools that the staff used during their lunch break and placed his head on the cold marble table. Perhaps he could play with someone else for the time being?
No no, that's impossible. He and Mello had a reputation of being self-righteous bullies that prevented him from ever making any other friends. Not to mention the fact they scared the crap out of most of the children here. It had seemed like a good thing to build himself up as at the time. He'd talk to L, but he had to admit that he'd grown rather frustrated with him for the time being. What was so special about Near anyway?
Near…
Then it hit him. He leapt up and hoped that Mello was in the mood to talk at all, because he had just the thing to cheer him up.
…
"Queer Near?" Mello laughed, falling back onto his bed. "Brilliant!"
"Yeah, I thought you'd appreciate that. And you know what he does with those toy army men of his?"
His face twisted in a sick sort of amusement as Matt went into detail about what Near did when he was alone in his room.
"Oh, man! That's disgusting, Matty!" he chuckled once he had finished, now restored to his old self temporarily. "I bet he does that though!"
The two of them shared their increasingly perverted stories until about ten-o-clock, unaware that Near was bemusedly sitting outside their door, listening to every word of their immature ramblings. Oh, yes. He was defiantly going to like it here.
AN: Eh… shortness. –was rushed- Also, I'm sorry for the disturbing lack of L in this chapter. Don't worry; he'll be in a lot of the next one, which involves the four of them, Roger, and Wammy going shopping. ;3 How else do you think they got all their toys, video games, leather, and such? Hopefully it won't be completely crack. I won't be here from July 3rd-13th, so it may be awhile before I get a chance to update.
Remember to review. Ciao! :D