Away From Home
Chapter Twenty-Three
By Andruindel
lilililili
My heart was thumping madly as me and Matsuda approached Light, and a group of his friends. I glanced up at Matsuda, and he looked nervous. I smiled lightly, glad that L had let me go. I wasn't about to give Light the chance to hurt Matsuda. And if I remembered correctly, he embarrassed him, at least once. I was going to prevent that, I hoped.
As we walked toward Light and his group of friends, my mind went back toward the few minutes before my departure. Matsuda left the hotel room before I did, to get his car. I took a minute to glance in a mirror, and make sure I looked alright. I'd gone with a simple out-fit, a cute t-shirt and jeans. I looked like a typical girl who was going out to spend a day with friends. When I turned from the mirror, it was to find L close behind me, watching me.
"Be careful out there, Amy," He said softly. He came a step closer, and then when I didn't protest to it, he took a few more, until he was very close.
I stared up at him. "I will," I promised him.
"I don't know what I'd do if you got hurt..." He said softly. Almost as though he wasn't completely aware of what he was doing, he lifted a hand and ran his fingers through my hair. My eyes flickered closed at the soft touch, and then snapped open again as he drew away abruptly. I watched him shuffle away, his hands in his pockets, pondering his words.
I don't know what I'd do if you got hurt...
"Uhm, exscuse me, Light?"
I started; we'd reached Light, and Matsuda was addressing him. I tried to look attentive, and pulled a pleasant smile onto my face as Light introduced us, Matsuda as his cousin, and me as Matsuda's friend, Amanda. Obviously, they had to give me an American name, because I didn't look even slightly Japanese.
"It's his first time in Tokyo," Light explained, leaving me out of the equation completely. "And, he mentioned he's looking for a girlfriend, any volunteers."
The girls in the group giggled at that statement.
Me and Matsuda hadn't gotten around to making up a back story, but I decided, spur of the moment, that I didn't want any of those girls volunteering to be Matsuda's girlfriend for the day. Acting spontaneously, I linked arms with Matsuda, and laughed. "Oh, Light, stop joking! Why would he need a girlfriend when he's already got a perfectly good one?" I smiled up at Matsuda, who at first seemed some-what surprised by my words, and then he resigned himself to the fact that I'd just made our characters boyfriend and girlfriend.
I thought one of the girls looked disappointed, and I smirked to myself. No friend of Light's was going to get near my Matsu.
The day passed pretty much uneventfully. Mostly, I just amused myself by treating Matsuda as though he really were my boyfriend. I hung on him; I almost constantly either had my arm linked through his, or even went so far as to hold his hand. He didn't seem to mind, but I could tell that he was embarrassed. It was especially easy to tell when our group stopped for ice cream, and he offered to pay for mine. I was surprised, but pleased, when he pulled me away from the group to explain that if we were going to pretend to be a couple, he should buy the ice cream.
As the day went on, our act got better and better, until I was wondering if that was what it was really like to be Matsuda's girlfriend. I just hoped we wouldn't be called on to display any more affection than simply holding hands, although once or twice, when we stopped for some reason or other, I let my arms slip around his neck, he put his arms around my waist, and we made the most adorable couple.
Light congratulated us on our act later that day, as we were finally heading back to the hotel. I was exhausted; acting took a lot out of me, apparently.
"Are you sure you guys aren't secretly a couple or something?" Light joked as we climbed the stairs. Unlike the sudden way our act had begun, it stopped much more slowly. I had to remind myself that we were not really a couple just to keep from reaching for his hand as we climbed the stairs.
I laughed. "I guess you'll never know, will you?" I replied, matching his joking tone. I glanced up at Matsuda, winked, and then, as we reached our floor, skipped away toward the hotel room. I couldn't wait to tell L all about the day.
Unfortunately, Light beat me to it, heaping praise on me and Matsuda for our excellent performance. Not only did his praise embarrass me, but the look on L's face as he listened to Light talk about my one day as Matsuda's girlfriend was killing me. I wanted to talk to him, to make sure he knew I didn't have feelings for Matsuda at all, but I didn't get the chance. He was busy all night.
lilili
A few days later, I was sitting in a corner of the dark work room, listening to the group discuss the uneventful past few days. I had forgotten to keep an eye out for Misa while I was under cover, not that it mattered much anyway. She didn't do anything other that find Light, and then leave.
I had more important things to worry about, anyway. L hadn't spoken to me since I'd come home from my day with Matsuda and Light. I couldn't decide if he was mad, or depressed. His emotions were hard to tell apart some times.
I was just sinking into an elaborate day dream, which involved L finally talking to me again, when Watari's 'W' showed up on the computer screen along with the familiar buzzing noise that alerted the entire room that he had something to say.
"Ryuuzaki, apparently Sakura tv has just recieved another message from the second Kira." Chief Yagami, Aizawa and Light all stood up to get a better look at the screen. I followed suit, standing and moving to stand close beside L, where I could listen. "It was postmarked on the twenty-third."
The screen blinked, and it said 'Kira' now. "I'm happy to say that I have found Kira," Misa started out. I swore quietly to myself. Things were just beginning to get interesting. She went on to thank the television station and the police department.
I watched the group's reactions. Both Light and L were deep in thought. I carefully reached out and put my hand on L's shoulder. He didn't react.
"This is a disaster if he found him!" Aizawa broke out.
"Yes," Chief Yagami agreed with him. "This most likely means that the two Kiras are now cooperating."
L calmly picked up his forgotten cup of tea, and stirred it thoughtfully with his spoon. "At this point I don't think we should jump to any conclusions. The second Kira is simply saying he found him, nothing more. He may not have made contact yet." His eyes moved up to focus on Light. I knew his mind was working feverishly to connect Light with Kira some how. "Now that it's come to this, we have no choice but to communicate as the police with the second Kira."
"You wanna send a message?" Matsuda asked, just to confirm.
"Yes. We need to reach out to the second Kira and offer him a deal."
I watched the men, worried. Without knowing it, my fingers tightened on L's shoulder, until I felt him shift slightly, and realized what I was doing. Then I swiftly let go of his shoulder, and crossed my arms, continuing to watch the rest of the group. Light's eyes were hard as he considered the problem this new development put him in. It was rather like watching a game of chess, I thought idly to myself, only with death being the final factor.
As the discussion went on around me, I let my mind wander. After hearing the message, Misa was going to contact Light. I mused on the implications. If I could stop Misa from getting to Light, then maybe... But that wasn't any good, the anime gave no indication of how long after this night they sent the message out to the fake Kira, so I had no idea when Misa would try to contact Light.
Dispirited, I leaned against L's chair, watching as they planned the message they would send, and then as Light finally went home, followed by Aizawa, Chief Yagami, and Matsuda.
"Good night," Matsuda called as he finally left, giving me the first chance to be alone with L I'd had in days. I barely acknowledged Matsuda's words, just glancing over my shoulder in his direction before turning my attention to L.
"I've given it some more thought," L began in a thoughtful tone. "And I have come to a more logical conclusion."
I leaned forward, my heart-rate increasing significantly at the thought that L may have come to the right conclusion. "Yes?"
L's eyes never wavered from my own; they were deep, dark, and captivating. "You have feelings for Matsuda?"
This time, I knew better than to give him a definite answer. If I told him that I did not like Matsuda, then that would leave him with only one logical conclusion, and that would be potentially dangerous. "I'm not going to tell you." I said, a playful smile coming across my face. "If I did that, then you'd know!"
L's eyes widened. "Know what?"
I looked away, refusing to look him in the eye, fearing that he may see the answer in my eyes. "You'd know who I.. have feelings for," The phrase was a little awkward, but I decided I'd follow his lead and let him call the shots. "If you knew, then it wouldn't be a secret any more, and besides, there's only two possibilties left, so either way, if I confirm that I do or do not have feelings for Matsuda, then you'll know who I have feelings for, and I'll be stuck in an embarrassing situation." I wasn't even sure what I was saying any more. Either way, my logic was making little sense; I hoped it would confuse L.
Apparently, my logic worked. He stared at me for a moment, biting his lip in what I assumed was a nervous reaction. "What?" He finally asked.
I smiled, and stood up. "Forget about it, Ryuuzaki," I leaned down to kiss his cheek, and then wandered into my room, where I planned on cuddling with Panda for a bit while I tried to sleep. My mind was muddled with thoughts about L, and about myself. I wondered if maybe things were finally begginning to pick up. I couldn't keep myself from wondering whether or not L liked me. The minute I let myself consider it, I pushed the thought out of my mind. I didn't want to think about it, in case I was disappointed.
I spent a long time lying in bed, hugging Panda close. My eyes were heavy, but my mind was feverishly active. I had no idea how to handle the situation with L. I fell asleep with thoughts of L running through my mind.
lilililili
Hey, y'all! As some of you may be able to tell, I've finally gotten into a regular updating schedule. Expect updates from me every Friday, at least until I finish the story (I've been writing the chapters before hand, I'm up to chapter 28!), then you can expect updates every few days!
Thanks for reading. I hope you liked it. I enjoyed writing about Amy and Matsuda, but this chapter made me realize that they wouldn't really be a good couple. He's like that one guy that she'll always cherish, and be really close to, but a relationship wouldn't work. I know I've got at least one guy like that in my past lol. No need for those kinda guys when you've got an awesome boyfriend though, right? ;D
Anyway, thanks again for reading, and don't forget to hit that little 'review' button!
