A/N: CHAPTER FOUR!!!! If only you guys could see what went into writing this thing. You'd wonder why we aren't locked up in the loony bin yet. XD Not much else to say, besides enjoy.
Disclaimer: We don't own Death Note. Believe me, if we did it would not be appropriate for children. XD We only own our own OC's.
Chapter Four-- Mitsubishi and Melodramatics
The flight to Tokyo was long -- nearly 12 hours -- and the members of the Anti-Kira task force were using that idle time as a chance for sleep. Everyone except for Mello, as usual.
Matt was snoring softly in the seat next to his brooding friend. Dead to the world.
Mello was beginning to go crazy. This was why he hated plane rides; they were too still, too inactive. He couldn't stand being stuffed in that overly plush airline seat with the snoring of the passengers and the crying of the baby in row F. This shit was the pits.
He couldn't stand to think of the case anymore, either. If he thought the word "Kira" one more time, he'd develop a distinct twitch.
"Matt, move your ass," the blonde grumbled as he pushed passed the snoozing gamer. The consequences of the window seat, he supposed. Matt offered a grunt and a slight stir, only managing to move out of Mello's way by an inch or two.
With a sigh, Mello made his way into the bathroom. He needed to throw some water on his face or something. Luckily, the green light was on above the door, so Mello let himself in. But with annoyance, he noticed that the lock was broken anyway…
Matt groaned slightly, wondering why Link was pushing him out of the way of get to Zelda. He opened his eyes a crack and realized it was a dream. Duh. He was still on the plane. He was still on his way to Japan.
The redhead was about to close his eyes and go back to sleep when he felt a pressure on his bladder.
He REALLY needed to go.
He thought about holding it...for about a minute. He quickly got up out of his seat and rushed to the bathroom, not even bothering to check if it was occupied.
Mello looked into the mirror of the tiny little bathroom and cocked an eyebrow. Water was dripping into his eyes from where it clung to his bangs. "Matt? What the fuck are you doing?"
Matt blinked. Oh shit. "Ummmm, trying not to piss my pants. Get out, I gotta go."
Mello sneered. "No way, man, I was here first. Wait your fucking turn."
Matt twitched, 'not cool,' he thought to himself.
"Don't be such a bitch, I ACTUALLY have to go. What are you doing that's so important?"
That stopped Mello for a moment. "I'm collecting myself before I grab a parachute and jettison out of this damn plane," he finally said.
Matt cocked an eyebrow at the statement. Seems like Mello had been thinking too much.
"Oh really?"
"Yes. And you obviously don't have to pee that bad, so get out."
"No. You are serving as a distraction so I haven't been thinking about going as much, but now that you've pointed it out...MOVE."
Mello sighed and brushed past Matt. "Big baby..." he muttered.
Matt rolled his eyes and shut the door, making sure that it locked.
When Mello returned to his seat, he found that Matt's damn PSP was still sitting on his chair; apparently, he had been sitting on it all this time. With a slight chuckle, the blonde plopped back down into his seat, rested his feet in Matt's chair, and turned the sleek gaming system over in his hands.
"Gonna give that back to him?" Mika asked, looking over at his boss from his seat in between his two sleeping comrades.
Mello smirked, shrugging, and fiddled with a few of the buttons. "I might make him work for it."
The taller blonde chuckled quietly, "Don't be dirty; there ARE kids on board after all."
Mello looked up at Mika, a bit shocked. "Damn, Mika, I never pegged you for a pervert. I wasn't even talking dirty."
Mika shrugged and leaned back in his seat.
"I'M not, but have you listened to the others talk when they're bored? Dear lord, if it weren't for the gutter their minds would be homeless."
Mello rolled his eyes. "I would hardly talk dirty about MATT, of all people."
"You seem to like him a lot. You get along better with him then you do with us."
Mello said nothing for several moments. It was true; Matt was one of the only people that he could ever let his guard down around. In their Wammy days, although Mello had accused Matt of being like a lost puppy, it was really Mello who craved the other boy's attention. Be that from need for companionship or something else...
"Shut up and go back to sleep," Mello said, not looking up at Mika. He was still fiddling with the PSP.
Mika smiled and closed his eyes, ready to feign sleep for Mello's sake even if he himself was fully rested.
Matt finally walked back to his seat. He couldn't sit down though; Mello's feet were in his chair. He also saw something shiny in Mello's hands …HIS PSP.
"Move and give it back."
Mello smirked. Still looking down at Matt's beloved artifact he said, "You're gonna have to convince me."
So he wants to play that game, Matt thought, his brows creased in frustration. Alright, he could play that game too.
"What do you want?"
Mello stuck the PSP in the breast-pocket of his coat and began examining his fingernails. "What are you willing to give?"
"Depends on what you can handle."
Mello snorted. "Don't even try to talk like the dominant one, Matt; it's unappealing to your obviously submissive nature." He looked up at Matt through his bangs, an unintentionally sexy smirk on his face.
Matt huffed and leaned in close, supporting himself on the armrests. "Is that so?"
"Yes," Mello said simply. "Even a girl could top you. It's simple knowledge." He wasn't at all disconcerted by Matt's closeness.
Matt glared at the blonde, peeved that his friend would think him so weak. He was tired of Mello always treating him like this. In a frightening lunge, Matt fell forward and grabbed Mello by the collar of his jacket and brought him close.
"You may not know me as well as you think you do, Mel."
Mello instinctively grasped Matt's hand, harshly digging his fingers into the other man's skin. "What the fuck are you doing, Matt?" he hissed dangerously under his breath. He had only been kidding around with the gamer -- what was up with the violent reaction?
"Do you honestly think of me like that?" He glared at the blonde, pulling him closer.
"Like WHAT?" Mello couldn't help but shout this last syllable. They were starting to attract attention now. Mello saw the steward making his way over...
"Sir, could you please-"
Matt growled and pushed the blonde away only to turn on the steward. "What!?" he barked.
Mello jumped to his feet and pulled Matt back by the shoulder. "Matt just sit down," he said in the redhead's ear. "Shit, man, just sit down and cool it."
Matt took a deep breath, trying to clam himself down. What the hell was that? He fell into his chair, running a hand through his hair.
"Go on, we ain't gonna kill each other," Matt said, making a 'shooing' hand motion at the steward. The man looked at the two suspiciously, but left nonetheless.
"I need a smoke..."
"I, uh, don't think you can smoke on the plane, man," Mello said. He absently ran a hand over his neck where Matt's nails had scratched him. "Matt...What was that about? I was just joking around with you."
Matt squeezed his eyes shut, trying to figure it out himself. Fuck, why'd he do that? It felt good, he couldn't deny. To be able to do that, to feel like he had the upper hand for once…but he had attacked Mello...
"I have no fucking clue. You started off on your little spiel and...I don't really know..." He turned to Mello, "You okay?"
Mello rolled his eyes. "No, man, you punctured a blood vessel and I need a transfusion, stat. Of course I'm alright. I think you need to be more worried about your serious sexual frustration."
"Fuck you, man."
Mello held up his hands. "I'm not being an asshole, here, Matt. I'm just coming to a conclusion."
Matt rolled his eyes and looked out the window; it was cloudy so he couldn't really see much. He started to play around with his lighter. Mentally, he scoffed at the idea of 'sexual frustration.' He wasn't THAT deprived…kinda…
Mello sighed and looked across the aisle at his team, whom had all woken up during the commotion. He returned their confused looks with a shake of his head and settled back into his seat.
"Here's your PSP..." Mello set the console in Matt's lap.
The other man looked down at the device in his lap and started to fiddle with it.
"Thanks."
Mello nodded in return and finally closed his eyes to get some sleep. After discovering that the window pane was too cold to lean against, the blonde opted for use of Matt's shoulder instead.
The redhead glanced at the blonde. Of COURSE Mello would use him for a pillow. Matt spared a roll of his eyes before returning to his video game. A cough across the aisle drew his attention, however.
"Soooo....what was that about?" said a young woman's familiar voice.
Pip was watching Matt carefully. On her left, Mika and Iggy were otherwise occupying themselves, which was fine with Matt; at least they weren't watching him. "Is everything alright?" the girl asked softly.
Matt gave her a mere nod and a weak smile. With Mello leaning so close on his shoulder, Matt couldn't say much. But everything was fine this way.
~*~
The rest of the flight went by somewhat peacefully, besides the usual bickering that is. By the time they finally touched down they were sore and rather cranky.
Mika gripped his bags and tried to keep up with Mello's speed walking. "Where are we going exactly, boss?"
"Hotel," Mello grunted. No need for specifics, right? He led them not to the line of people waiting for taxis, but to the check-in counter for car rentals. A false name was given, money was exchanged, and finally the team was trolling the parking lot.
"What kind of car are we looking for, Mello?" Pip asked.
"Something sporty, I hope..." Iggy grumbled.
That was when Mello stopped them short in front of a bright red Mitsubishi Eclipse. The blonde smirked and tossed a set of keys to Matt. "You're driving."
"Wait," Iggy interjected. "What about us? That thing is tiny! There's no way we can fit all of us AND our stuff in there."
"I know," Mello said as he climbed into the passenger's side. "That's why I got you guys the Toyota over there. Have fun." With a wink, he tossed Iggy the keys to their very own minivan.
Matt was already in the car, playing around and trying to get things situated. It was a beautiful car, like something he'd only seen in his Grand Theft Auto video games.
"Finally got a good car. Nice choice." His eyes were shinning; he couldn't wait to get this baby out on the streets...
Mello chuckled around the chocolate that he was already tearing into. "Thanks. Keep in mind that if you stink up this thing with your cigarettes, I'll kill you."
"Too late," the other replied, lighting up his first cigarette in over 13 hours. "If I have to put up with hearing your chocolate chomping, you'll have to deal the smoke."
Mello heaved a sigh. "Fine. Just take us to the hotel." He had pulled out a sleek GPS system from his pocket and was plugging it in.
Matt nodded and rolled down the window. He pulled his goggles up onto his eyes and revved the engine.
"Hold on."
With a grin, he stomped on the gas he peeled out of the driveway.
Mello sniggered and put his hand out the window to wave to the members of the team. They were still loading up the minivan, but luckily, Mello had slipped a second GPS into the pocket of Mika's coat.
As they drove, Mello examined the streets with narrow eyes. Signs supporting Kira were everywhere: shop fronts, bumper stickers, hell, even t-shirts. It was really sickening.
"Alright," Matt began, making a sharp turn, "where do we go from here on out?"
"Do you mean literally or figuratively?"
The gamer rolled his eyes, "You know what I meant Mello. Do you have any idea where Kira might be holding them?"
Them…the damned SPK…
Mello took a deep breath and let it out in something of a hiss. He had been thinking about nothing but the SPK's whereabouts for many months now. It was only until now that he had any solid leads, but even then the clues were vague. "I can guess that Kira would want to keep them close... I'm certain that Near and at least Halle are alive, as well."
Matt nodded and sped through another light. "So, all we have to go on is the fact that they are somewhere in Japan and kept close by Kira."
"It is my guess that the SPK may be in Kira's very own home..."
Matt thought about that for a second. If the SPK really were in Kira's home then it would be next to impossible to get them out. Kira would have them guarded 24/7.
"Damn," he took a drag and blew the smoke out the window. "So how do we get them out if they're really there? It'd be suicide to just burst in there."
"Duh, I know that. I'll have to get back to you on that one." Mello punctuated his sentence with the breaking of chocolate.
"Try not to hurt yourself thinking too hard."
Mello shot him a stony look. "Your sarcasm is not appreciated at the moment, Matt."
When is it ever?,he thought as he pulled to a stop in front of a large hotel.
"We're here."
Mello looked up at the towering glass-paneled building that was to be their home for an untold amount of time. The blonde hopped out of the Eclipse and pulled up the hood of his coat. "Go park the car, I'm gonna check us in." Mello winked and headed inside.
It was with great effort that he ignored the "Kira is Justice" badge on the doorman's jacket… This was going to be Hell. Necessary Hell, but Hell nonetheless.