Sorry for taking so long to update. Between this story, my other story, and everything else I got going on...well it took a while. I'm glad you all want more though. Makes me a happy person. I hate to say that L's-well-not so involved in this chapter. Don't worry he'll be back in the next one. Just bear with me here.
Also, sorry for the length of it. Hopefully the next chapter will be a bit longer. For now just enjoy and review!
Mello woke with a large yawn, rolling over to snuggle into Matt's side. The redhead mumbled something in his sleep and slung an arm over the younger boy, pulling him close. Mello smiled and let his eyes close again, basking in the warmth and comfort he felt from the older boy. Matt shifted beside him and he reopened his eyes to meet the other boy's gaze. "Morning," Matt mumble sleepily.
"Morning," Mello replied. Matt yawned and stretched, light muscles rippling under his skin. Mello grinned at the sleepy redhead as he shook his head to clear it.
"So," Matt said, "Did I make it up to you Mel?" The blonde blushed and buried his face into Matt's side.
"Mhm," He hummed. Matt chuckled and ruffled the blonde's hair, making Mello glare at him.
"I'm glad," Matt said, gripping his chin gently. Mello let his eyes flutter shut and sighed as Matt's lips gently met his. He had no doubt that they would have gone further if not for the knock on their door. "I'll get it," Matt said with a sigh, "After all you shouldn't move for a little bit." Mello blushed again, growling as Matt slid out of bed and hastily pulled on a pair of pants from the floor. Again a knock sounded and Matt ran a hand through his hair. "I'm coming!" he called out impatiently before going to answer the door. Near was standing outside, hand raised to knock again.
"Something wrong Near?" Mello asked sitting up. The white-haired boy crossed his arms, a frown on his face.
"Light's gone," Near said, "His phone too."
"What do you mean he's gone?" Matt asked, stepping aside to let the youngest in, "There has to be some trace of him." Near shook his head.
"L said they had a fight last night," Near said while Matt closed the door, "They went to sleep and he was gone when he woke up."
"What does L think happened?" Mello asked, trying to pull on his pants underneath the blanket. Near glanced at him before looking away.
"That's just it," Near commented, "He doesn't think anything happened. He said Light most likely went to burn off steam somewhere."
"But you don't believe that."
"No. We may not have known him as long as L but..." he trailed off, lost in his own thoughts.
"It doesn't seem like something he'd do," Matt finished. "How long has he been gone?"
"A few hours."
"Where would he even go?" Mello asked as he finally slid out of the bed, wincing slightly as his strained muscles were stretched. "He hasn't been gone from here for very long unless he's with his mom and sister."
"He's not there," Near cut in, "They haven't seen him."
"Come on," Matt said.
"Where," Mello asked, "There's nothing to say there's anything wrong."
"Near has a bad feeling about this," the redhead stated as he pulled the door open, "If I've learned anything working with you two its that Near's feelings are usually correct. Now Light has that friend who works at the club downtown right?"
"You think he still works there?" Mello challenged, "After what happened?"
"Only one way to find out isn't there."
The club had been fixed up from when they'd last been in it, though there was still a bullet hole in the wood flooring from the incident. Matt looked around cautiously. Not seeing the faces of Gin or Kaito in the crowd he approached the bar with Mello and Near in tow.
"Hino!" He called. The brunette looked up at them as they approached, face slipping into a frown.
"Do I know you three?" he asked, obviously confused. Mello gestured to himself and Matt.
"The kids with the firecrackers at the warehouse," he said. Hino's eyes brightened with recognition.
"Sorry for not recognizing you," He said, "It was a bit hectic that day. What were names again?"
"I'm Matt," the redhead introduced, "And these are Mello and Near."
"Have you seen Light?" Near asked, always serious. Hino looked taken aback by the sudden question but nodded.
"He stopped by earlier today," Hino said, "He seemed really angry about something. Wouldn't actually talk to me about it though. Is something wrong?"
"Do you know where he went?" Near asked, ignoring his question.
"He left with our bouncer. There was something off with him though," Hino said. He paused a few moments, looking between the three of them. "Something's wrong isn't it."
"We don't know," Matt said carefully. This guy may have been a friend of Light's but...something didn't settle well with him.
"This bouncer," Near said, catching onto the detail the other two missed, "does he know Light?" Hino nodded.
"I wouldn't say they're best friends but they know each other," Hino explained, "Ari, our bouncer, enjoys trying to seduce the poor kid rather than anything else." He sighed, dropping his chin into his hand. "He needs to give up on this puppy love of his though. Light's made it pretty clear he isn't interested."
"Where did they go then?" The brunette shrugged.
"Hell if I know," He said, "It worries me a bit but..." he shook his head, "I'm just being paranoid. I have to get back to work but...let me know when you find him." He trotted towards the other end of the bar and Matt scowled.
"You think Ari did something?" Mello asked. The redhead shook his head.
"He sounds like an asshole but...well the way Hino talked about him doesn't make me think he'd hurt Light. Maybe he really did just go out to cool off after all." Mello snorted softly, rolling his eyes.
"What about Near's hunches being something not to ignore?" Mello asked tauntingly.
"That's the only reason I haven't given up yet." He leaned against the bar, watching Hino work at the other end. "Whether or not he's involved it yet to be seen," Matt commented.
"He's hiding something," Near stated in agreement. He pulled away from the bar, drawing the other two boys' gazes after him. "But I don't feel that he's involved. If anything he's worried."
"Now what?" Mello asked.
"Didn't Light bring a girl who worked here to the hospital a few days ago?"
"Yeah," Matt said, "I think he called her Trisha."
"Perhaps we should locate her," Near said, ready to get out of the club as soon as possible. He didn't like the looks they were getting from some of the patrons. "She might know a side of this Ari that Hino doesn't." Mall gave a lopsided grin, already plotting as he pulled out his phone.
"Let's do it then."
It was the sudden knock on her apartment door that startled Trisha from her position by the sink. The bowl in her hands slipped back into the sink with a loud clack. She winced, hoping it hadn't cracked from the drop. The knocks sounded again and she sighed, drying her hands off before going to open the door carefully. "Hello?" she asked curiously. It didn't help when she saw three young boys outside the door. "Are you-um-lost?"
"I'm Matt," One boy, a redhead, introduced, "and these are Mello and Near. We're friends with Light." She nodded but didn't open the door any wider. "We can't find him and we were wondering if you could tell us a little bit about the bouncer who works with you." Trisha cocked an eyebrow and opened the door a bit more.
"Which one?" She asked, "We have three for crying out loud."
"Ari." Immediately she huffed and rolled her eyes.
"Don't tell me Light actually went off with that sleaze," she said.
"I'm guessing you don't like him," Mello stated sarcastically.
"Of course not," She said with a frown, "Why would I? He's only interested in getting sex. He doesn't care for the person one way or another." She sighed and ran a hand through her hair. "If Light's with him then they're probably in some ally somewhere while Ari attempts to strip poor Light."
"Any idea where we could find him?" Matt asked.
"Not a clue," She replied, "I don't associate with him outside of work. He tries to sleep with me as it is during work. I don't want to deal with that shit outside of work too. As for Light," She paused, "Well I wouldn't worry to much. He'd be more likely to sleep with any girl on the planet before Ari. And that's saying something since he's gay." She stepped away from the door. "Good luck though. Maybe you should try calling him." With that the door closed in their faces.
"Why haven't we done that yet?" Mello asked accusingly. Matt shook his head in annoyance.
"Because," Matt said with a scowl, "His phone's out of range. It won't put the call through."
"So now what?" Near asked, "We have no lead, no way to contact him, and no clue if he's even in trouble to start with." They were cut off by a buzz. Matt tugged his phone out and flicked it open.
"We might have something after all," he said softly, staring at the photo now on his screen, "We need to get back to L."
"Why?" Mello asked, "What did you get sent?"
"I'll show you later," he said, a dark look in his eyes, "For now L needs to see this."
The feeling of something being wrong hit Light before his eyes actually opened. He took a deep breath, assessing himself before he opened his eyes. Nothing felt broken, though the bruises from the previous day were still smarting. Despite that they weren't too bad in reality. Other than that he felt fine. Nothing amiss...except that his arms were trapped to the cold wall behind him. He opened his eyes slowly, taking in his surroundings. Stone walls. A single bulb hanging overhead. No windows. A single, metal door that was likely locked. No easy way out. Great. He laid his head back against the cold stone and shifted his gaze to his wrists. They were pinned to the wall with thick bands of metal that weren't going to break easily. The only way to open them was to either use the key or pick the lock. Neither option was something he could do in his current state.
He tried to remember how he got here but he couldn't recall anything. He'd parted ways with Ari and...some time later...someone had knocked him out. It didn't make sense. Where was he? And how had he gotten here?
The sound of footsteps outside the door made him pause and allow his eyes to slip shut once more. The door opened silently, clanging against the stone wall. He tried to keep his breathing calm when the footsteps entered the room, the door shutting with a soft click. Someone approached him and a gentle hand caressed his cheek.
"No need to pretend you're sleeping," A voice, Gin's voice, cooed. He resisted the urge to open his eyes. It was possible he was bluffing after all. "Tch. You don't listen very well do you." Nails dug into his cheek, right where one of his bruises sat, and he hissed. Realizing that pretending was now useless he opened his eyes, glaring at Gin with a look that could kill. "There you are," Gin cooed again, continuing to gently stroke his cheek.
Light's gaze focused on Kaito instead, standing beside the door while he looked away. "What," he said slowly, gaze sliding back to the male in front of him, "Kaito not enough? You need to find other people to fuck too?" Gin's gentle expression faded and he saw Kaito flinch slightly. "I'd find a new partner if I were you Kaito," he said while staring into Gin's cold eyes, "One who wouldn't treat me like I'm some sex toy rather than a lover." Gin stood, retaliating against his comments by jamming the toe of his boot into Light's bruised side. The brunette winced, glad that the elder male was not near him any more. Gin instead approached Kaito who refused to look at him and caressed his cheek in a similar manner of what he'd done to Light. He murmured something that the teen couldn't catch before kissing Kaito soundly.
"Besides," Gin said, finally loud enough for Light to hear as he turned back to him, "You enjoy him as well don't you?" He turned back. Kaito's gaze softened and he nodded. "See," Gin said, brushing his fingers lightly over Kaito's face and neck, "He's just trying to discourage you." Light looked away from the pair, part of him extremely sick. He hoped they weren't planning on doing anything in front of him.
Luckily that didn't seem to be the plan. Gin turned back to him and approached once more, this time with Kaito by his side. He crouched in front of him, practically straddling his waist while Kaito crouched beside him. He forced Light to look back at him and the teen swallowed nervously. "Perhaps we could try a different approach this time?" Kaito suggested. Gin looked back at the brunette before nodding.
"If you'd prefer that then certainly," He said, "After all, it may have a different result than expected." Light growled as Gin leaned in closer to him, jaw clenched. Before he could say anything the man had kissed him roughly, pressing his head back into the stone. His stomach clenched and he seriously wanted to be sick. When Gin pulled back he was snarling and rightly reviled. Gin ignored him, instead looking back to Kaito. Something passed between them silently and Gin shifted out of the way. While Light was trying to process what the hell was going on, Kaito leaned towards him. He didn't kiss him like he'd believed. Instead he leaned down to whisper into his ear.
"I'm sorry," he murmured before pulling back and pressing his lips against him. Light tensed but Kaito did nothing more than press his lips against his sweetly for a few moments before pulling away.
Now Light was thoroughly confused. Where was the self-confident boy that had hurt him previously. He recalled how aggressive Kaito had been in the original rape. How Gin had encouraged him. Gin. Had the brunette done that simply to please his older lover? He felt a small pang of sympathy but forced his face to remain stony. No need to let them into his thoughts.
Gin released a low purr and pecked Kaito on the cheek. "Be grateful," he said darkly, eyes focused on Light, "If not for Kaito here then you'd be flat on your back right now." Light couldn't help the shudder that racked his frame at that. He glanced into Kaito's dark eyes and saw remorse. That didn't help his confusion one bit. "However," Gin said lowly, bringing Light's gaze back to him, "There will be time for that in the future." Gin laughed as his captive's eyes widened and stood. Kaito followed, face once again cold and emotionless. "Sleep tight little Light. It's about time you met your last admirer," Gin cooed before the door opened and the two left.
Light slumped against the wall as the door clicked shut once more. Kaito's behavior bothered him but...he didn't have time to question it. Gin's words bothered him much more and he curled himself into a ball as best as he could, dropping his head into his lap. He sighed, feeling his heart sank.
'Ryuuzaki,' He thought sadly, 'The last thing I said to him...' He gave another sad sigh and buried his head further into his knees. "I'm sorry...Ryuuzaki."
I'm so sorry! I feel absolutely terrible for this chapter but...angst gonna happen. I hope this chapter will sate you all for now until I can write the next one. Hopefully it won't take nearly as long.
Review if you want more guys. You're comments really help.
Until next time.
