A Book of Lies and A Heart of Memories

Request by: Just a Realistic Dreamer

Genre: Romance

Rated: K+

Lavi lay in his bed, watching the ceiling fan lazily as it zoomed around again and again, over and over in circles, so aimlessly, just like he went through thoughts in his mind. All he seemed to do was sit around and think, and yet he could never remember what he had been thinking about. Whatever it had been, it was important – that much he knew.

He could hear laughter coming from outside his window. He glanced through the screen once again, watching as the other exorcists enjoyed the first day of spring. They were all smiling so radiantly, running through the vibrantly green grass, and for a split second, Lavi almost wished he were out there with them. He slapped his hand to his forehead, trying to whack away the thoughts. He leapt to his feet and slammed the window shut with a bang, pulling down his blinds so that he couldn't see or hear them any longer.

Walking back to his bed, he almost tripped over one of the many books that he had lying about on his floor. Just as he was about to kick it out of the way, he realized it was his first notebook, talking about when he had first joined the Order. Intrigued, and with nothing better to do, Lavi picked up the book and lifted it open.

He sat on the edge of his bed and began to read. There was nothing in there about when he had first come or how he had met the other exorcists. It skipped right to his first mission, hardly mentioning people at all, and referring to his companions by their last names. The more he read, the more he cringed. What kind of history was this? It skipped over the best parts!

Lavi looked up from the book and stared at the fan again, recalling one of the first moments he had spent in the Order. It had been when Kanda and him had met…

…

Lavi walked aimlessly through the halls of the Order, trying to get a feel for the building. It was outrageously large, and the last thing he wanted to do was to get lost (that is, if he wasn't already).

No one else seemed to be in the halls. They must have all been eating lunch. If Lavi could find the cafeteria, he'd probably eat some, too!

At last, he spotted someone ahead of him down the hall. The person had long, straight hair and a quick, brisk walk. After a moment of observation, Lavi decided that it was a boy.

From the uniform, Lavi could tell it was another exorcist, but he hadn't met him yet. Not knowing his name, he merely called out, "Hey, you!"

The man spun around so fast that his action was a blur. He glared at Lavi as if he were his lifelong enemy as snarled. "Who the hell are you, and where do you go about calling me by my first name, huh?"

Lavi was taken aback. "Your first name?"

"Don't play dumb!" the boy snapped, storming towards him, his hand lingering on what appeared to be a sword. "Who told you? Was it General Tiedoll? It was him, wasn't it? Damn geezer never knows when to shut up-"

Lavi rolled his eye. "Look, femmi-face, I have no idea what you're talking about, but I didn't use your first name. Even if I had, I don't see what the big deal is!"

The man laughed in Lavi's face. "You're going to wish you hadn't met me, Cyclops. First you call me by my first name, and then-" He didn't bother explaining the rest. He automatically drew his sword and raised it, aiming for Lavi.

He quickly backed up, holding his hands out in front of himself. "Oi! I was just teasing, huh? Calm down!" Were all the exorcists this irritable? As if fighting akuma wasn't going to be hard enough, would he have to keep a defense against his allies, too?

"Kanda, stop!" a girl's voice cried. The sound of hurried footsteps echoed through the halls and a girl Lavi recognized as Lenalee Lee leapt in front of him, placing her hands on the boy's arms and pushing his sword back to his side. "Lavi's new here! Leave him alone!"

Kanda shifted his glare to Lenalee, but didn't say anything. He stared at her for a moment, finally placing his sword back to his side before casting his dark eyes upon Lavi once again. "Call me by my first name ever again, and I'll take your other eye." With that, he turned and stormed off in the opposite direction.

Lavi let out the breath he hadn't known he had been holding and wiped a bead of sweat from his forehead. "Man, I thought that nut was going to kill me. What is his problem?"

Lenalee shrugged. "He's always like that," she explained. "When I first joined, I mistook him for a woman. That didn't go well, either." She glanced over at me, her large eyes curious. "How did you learn his first name, anyway?"

"I don't even know it," Lavi defended. "I don't know what he's smoking, but it's causing him to imagine things. All I said was 'hey, you', and he goes bonkers!"

Lenalee let out a soft, musical laugh, a smile spreading across her lips. "That explains it, then! His first name is Yuu. ­Y-u-u!" she spelt.

Lavi smacked his forehead. "Oh! Now I get it. Though I still don't understand why he's so sensitive about it…"

She shrugged again. "Kanda has his pet peeves, and we can't do anything about them." She paused before adding, "Why were you talking to him, anyway?"

Lavi had been so distracted that he had forgotten about his quest to find the cafeteria. "Oh! I got lost on my way to lunch." He glanced at his watch. "I guess it's too late now."

"Jerry will be happy to make you something!" she reassured him. "Come on – I haven't eaten, either. We can have lunch together!"

Before Lavi could say anything, she took his hand and began pulling him after her down the hall. Her hand was small, but warm, almost as warm as her smile.

Lavi nodded as she pulled him down the hall. "All right, then! Sounds like a plan."

…

Lavi smiled gently as his memory came to an end. He shut the notebook and placed it back on the floor where he had found it. It seems that history always skipped the best moments. There was nothing he could do about that, though.

Even though the window was closed, he could still hear the laughter of the other exorcists. He wished he could join them, but was that right for a bookman? There was nothing down there for him to record. Nothing down there was needed for the books. History didn't care about what made its characters laugh and smile and cry – actions and events were all that mattered. If history wasn't interested in playing outside, then Lavi wasn't, right?

He pulled down one of the blinds to peek outside. He spotted Lenalee standing to the side, smiling as the others ran through the grass. She should be laughing just like the others. She almost looked lonely, even though so many people surrounded her.

Lavi had the sudden urge to open the window and call a greeting to her, just to make her smile. She smiled a lot when he said hi to her, and she laughed a lot at his jokes. Maybe if he just leaned out of the window and said something brief, he would be able to make her happy without joining in.

That's insane, he thought, stepping away from the window. How an exorcist feels is none of my business. There is no in-between. Either I go outside, or I stay inside. The window stays closed.

On his way back to his bed, he almost tripped over the same book. He groaned. "If you get in my way again, I'll make an exception and open the window to toss you out," he mumbled. "Stupid book."

…

"How does it taste?" Lenalee asked, leaning across the table to look at Lavi's expression. "Do you like your ice cream?"

"It's not much of a lunch, but it's good," he said with a laugh.

She took another scoop of her ice cream, though she didn't eat it. "Why did I take strawberry? I don't like strawberry."

"It's all he had left," Lavi responded, "and you said you didn't like vanilla." When she didn't say anything, Lavi laughed in shock. "You liar! You knew I didn't like strawberry, so you let me have the last of the vanilla!" He rolled his eye, digging into his ice cream with his spoon and holding it out towards Lenalee's mouth. She stared at it, not understanding. "Open up, will you?"

Hesitantly, she opened her mouth, allowing him to place the spoon inside. For some reason, her cheeks were the same color as her ice cream.

"How is it?" he asked.

She smiled at him, blushing softly. "It was delicious."

…

Lavi kicked the book out of the way as roughly as he could, and stormed to the door, muttering curses under his breath as he went, knowing that even if he knew he shouldn't go, he had no choice in the matter. No matter who he was, or what rules he was supposed to follow, he had to be with Lenalee, and that was for sure, as it always had been.

Author's Note: Hey, everyone! I finished my first one shot, and a lot sooner than I expected. I probably won't be able to update this quickly everytime, but I'll do my very best! Once I finish a one shot, I'll email the person who requested it.

So, anyway, I hope that everyone liked this first chapter. Each one will be entirely different than the last, so I hope everyone will stick around and keep reading and requesting (and hopefully reviewing, too LOL)