I woke up in what I was guessing was early hours, feeling very warm and disorientated. I didn't open my eyes straightaway, reminding myself that I wasn't at my place. I was still at my family's house for the investigation. With L. Then I suddenly remembered that I hadn't been alone tonight.

My eyes flew open. It was still dark and my unaccustomed vision couldn't make much out. Though I didn't need to see to be able to tell that I'd moved around quite a lot in my sleep. I'd managed to press myself ridiculously close against L. My one hand had somehow ended up inside his shirt. He was very warm.

Crap. My face flooded red hot and I quickly cringed away from him, rolling over to face the wall. Thankfully, his eyes had been closed and his breathing was steady. I hoped like hell that he really was asleep and not just faking. I wouldn't have put it past him.

It was cold on this edge of the bed and I was now so close to the wall that the tip of my nose was touching it. I'd probably end up with a red mark on it later on. Still, at least that would be less embarrassing. Damn. I guess it had been a while since I'd shared a bed with anyone. My body must have missed it more than I'd realised.

I closed my eyes tight. I'd just have to pray that L had been fast asleep the whole time I'd subconsciously decided he was going to be my new teddy bear. That was enough to break the personal space bubble of anyone - let alone someone as no-touchy as him.

Though as I lay there on full alert, I could still just hear the same level breathing. Huh. Maybe I'd gotten lucky after all. It sounded like L really was asleep. I tried to concentrate on that fact, attempting to forget the feel of his bare skin underneath my fingers.

I continued to lie and listen to him breathing for a while, before my curiosity eventually got the better of me. Come on, how often did L actually sleep? I slowly rolled back over and very gingerly sat up, pushing my hair back behind my ear to stop it from obscuring my view as I looked down at L.

He was lying flat on his back with his arms straight by his sides. Man, even when asleep, his posture was still totally awkward. He actually looked quite peaceful though. His hair was half falling across his face, as usual, but his expression was smooth and untroubled in sleep. He actually seemed more human with those expressionless black eyes closed. It was a little unnerving.

Dammit, what was I doing? I silently cursed myself, dragging my gaze away from L and running a hand through my hair. This was not helping the irritatingly one-sided attraction I had for him. Not to mention I was supposed to be concentrating on trying to rest up right now if I wanted to keep my abilities up to scratch.

That was kinda hard to do though, knowing that L was lying fast asleep right next to me, I couldn't help thinking as my eyes trailed back to his face. It had been easier last night when the meds had kicked in - I hadn't really had time to think about it much. But the half a pill had clearly worn off long ago. So what was I supposed to do now?

Apparently, that wasn't my biggest concern, because without warning, L's eyes suddenly snapped open. And I was sat here staring down at him like a creeper. Oh god.

"Um..." I quickly tried to rack my brains for anything I could possibly say that wouldn't make the situation any worse.

L looked a little taken aback - who could blame him? "Err... Is everything alright?"

"I, um, err... was just... thinking how to get out?" Wow. That actually wasn't bad for quick thinking. Go me.

"Oh. Then go right ahead."

Great, now I was actually going to have to get out. And he wasn't exactly making this easier for me - he didn't even move! There was no way I was going to attempt climbing over him. I played it safe and ungracefully managed to get out from under the covers, then slithered down to the bottom of the bed. I hurried out of the room without looking back, then went and shut myself in the bathroom.

Perfect. Just perfect. Now all I could do was just hope that L believed my spur-of-the-moment excuse and didn't think anything else of it. Urgh, why was I doing this to myself? I'd decided when we'd gotten here that I had to remain strictly professional about the situation at all times. Yet it was only the second night and I was already blowing it.

Poor L. He really never would have guessed what he was letting himself in for when he'd first agreed to meet with me. Man, how long ago had that been now? Six, seven weeks? Somehow it felt like it should have been longer. I hovered in the bathroom for probably a little too long as I tried to get my head straight, before remembering that L was likely going to still be awake. I didn't want to raise anymore suspicions with him, so I reluctantly headed back to my room.

Sure enough, L was now sat up with the bedside lamp on and one of the Georgina Kincaid books in his hands. So he couldn't have moved out of the way earlier, but he could now? He looked round as I shut the door again behind me. "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah, fine," I said casually, as I awkwardly climbed around him to get to my side of the bed and wriggled my way back under the covers.

"You were in the bathroom a long time," L pointed out. "I guessed that you had an upset stomach."

"What? No!" I protested, horrified. That was why he thought I'd taken so long? "That's not it at all!"

"It's nothing to be embarrassed about," said L indifferently. "It happens to everyone."

I could not believe we were having this conversation. "Just go back to your reading," I huffed, defeated, as I turned back to face the wall. Maybe I would have been better off letting him know I'd just been watching him sleep.

XXX

Once again, L wasn't there when I woke up the following morning. He was probably downstairs and already showered again like the day before. I really, really didn't want to face him now. But what choice did I have? At least I could use the excuse of showering first to try and prolong it a little more.

I reluctantly dragged myself out of bed and to the bathroom, not really feeling all that rested. Though that was hardly surprising after the night I'd had. Sleeping medication was supposed to stop things like that from happening. I guessed that only half a pill was clearly no use, seeing as we'd both ended up waking during the early hours anyway.

But then I couldn't really ignore the fact that L had actually slept. That was the first time I'd known him to sleep in... well, ever. That was hardly something to sneeze at, I thought to myself as I massaged shampoo into my scalp. I dragged the shower out as long as I could condone, before conceding that I couldn't do this all day. We still had work to do. Not to mention I didn't want a repeat misunderstanding. Urgh.

The moment I switched the water off, I heard a knock on the door and almost had a heart attack again. I hadn't really been that long, had I? Thankfully, it was only my mom. "Gee-Gee, can I just come in and grab the wash basket?"

"Sure," I called back, still behind the shower curtain. I heard the door open and then Mom start bustling about with the basket. "So, erm, is Ryuzaki downstairs?"

"Yeah, he's talking to your grandpa," Mom replied. "He's an early riser, isn't he?"

"Eh, something like that."

"What are you guys up to today then?"

"I don't know actually," I confessed. "We were gonna go out somewhere; I just don't know where."

It was true. We'd discussed yesterday that we were better not to do stakeout three days in a row if we wanted to carry on going unnoticed. So no icky coffee shop today. We'd agreed that one of us - clearly me - would quickly 'pop in' to the Nisa store later on the afternoon and get a quick rundown of the staff on duty during the later shift.

But until then, we didn't really have anything else to do. And Auntie Maggie was on an early finish today because of exams, so it was probably better for L's wellbeing if we were out of the house. I just wasn't entirely sure how I could keep him occupied for most of the day without the atmosphere turning awkward between us like it always did. The more that happened, the more it seemed to bother me.

"Why don't you take him to Entices?" Mom suggested. She laughed. "I swear you and Johnny used to go there almost every day."

I stared at her, amazed that I hadn't thought of that myself. "That's a great idea! Thanks, Mom!"

Entices was a little ice cream parlour downtown that Johnny and I had indeed frequented a lot back before we'd both moved to Kyoto for university. Not only did it have every possible flavour of ice cream that you could imagine, it also boasted the most delectable pancakes I'd ever tasted in my life. Could there be a better place to take an eccentric genius with a super sweet tooth? I think not. Not to mention that, all puns aside from my last failure of a night out, I'd had quite a craving for pancakes myself since then. Two birds with one stone and all that.

Mom just laughed again. "You're welcome. I'm surprised you didn't think of it first."

"Hey, it's still early," I protested jokingly.

"You keep telling yourself that," Mom teased. "Anyway, you kids have fun. If you need me before you go, I'll be out the back sorting the wash out."

"Okay, thanks."

I took that as my cue to hurry up and get ready so that I could try and thieve a jacket or something for L whilst Mom was busy. I got dried off and dressed in record time - much quicker than the day before. I stole into Mom and Auntie Maggie's room and hastily rifled through the large wardrobe.

This wasn't a new thing for me. I'd loved Auntie Maggie's fashion sense growing up and had been forever sneaking garments away from her. I just didn't want anyone to notice me taking something for L. Somehow, I felt that would be a little too weird. We just had to make sure we snuck back into the house later on.

All of Auntie Maggie's jackets and coats were a little on the feminine side. I didn't think that L would necessarily complain, but we wouldn't want to give anyone reason to take second glances at him. Thankfully, I found a faded red check shirt hiding behind Auntie Maggie's work blouses. It wasn't particularly girly and L could easily get away with wearing it over his usual white number.

I grabbed a half-cut brown leather jacket as well whilst I was there. I could swap my wolf hoody so that I'd be wearing something different too. I slipped it on over my 'Everybody Wants To Rule The World' tee and the shoulder holster that I'd already fitted into place. The jacket was just long enough to cover the Browning. Perfect.

Like the day before, L was waiting for me in the kitchen with an empty cup sat in front of him. The scent of coffee still lingered in the air. I'd always wished I liked coffee. I may not have liked the taste but I actually really liked the smell.

I tossed the check shirt across the table to L. "Here. New disguise."

We'd already discussed the idea the day before, but L just looked at the shirt in his hands and didn't move. "It's short-sleeved," he remarked.

I raised my eyebrows. What was wrong with short sleeves? "I didn't realise you were going to be picky."

"Won't it look unusual if I wear it over long sleeves?" asked L, oblivious to my sarcasm like always.

"Um, no? That's kind of the fashion." I had to remind myself that whereas I wasn't exactly up to date on all the latest style trends, I was dealing with someone who knew even less about it than me.

"Oh. Alright then." L pulled the shirt on over his shoulders and buttoned it rather sloppily. Well, at least he knew how to make the casual look convincing. "Shall we go?"

"No, let's stay and have a tea party and wait for the killer to come to us," I said sarcastically. Hey, sarcasm was my best defence and I was still feeling a little embarrassed from earlier this morning.

It clearly meant nothing to L though. He just looked at me, completely straight-faced.

"...Yeah, okay, let's just go."

We passed by the Nisa store on our way and I tried to inconspicuously get a quick look inside. All I really managed to establish was that the teenage girl from yesterday seemed to be the only one serving behind the checkouts. But I had to remember that that wasn't the plan this time. We just had to wait out the day until we could check back later on, ideally somewhere in a fairly near vicinity. Entices was actually only two blocks away. My mom really had given me the perfect suggestion.

Now I just had to hope that it would keep L entertained enough until later this afternoon. I realised that I actually really wanted him to like the cute little ice cream parlour that had always been my favourite hang-out. I'd already told him that I knew the perfect place where we could kill a few hours, so I didn't want to disappoint.

Great, now I was treating it like a date. Way to go, Gee. Because that's not going to frustrate you even more. But even so, internally scolding myself didn't quite get rid of that feeling of anticipation.

"Ta-daa!" I said with an elaborate arm gesture when we reached the front of the parlour.

"It's an ice cream parlour," L replied blankly.

"Well, yeah." Why did he always state the obvious like that? Did he think I was blind? Or stupid? And you'd have thought he'd at least be a little more enthusiastic about it. Damn robot boy. "I figured it'd be a good place to kill some time. And I'm guessing you'd be able to get a much more decent cup of coffee from here."

"Alright."

Gosh, now didn't he sound thrilled? I just rolled my eyes to myself and led the way inside. It was fairly quiet at this time on a week day. Good. I was sure that would suit L even better. I was pleased to see that the booth in the furthest corner was also free - the same one I'd always sat at. Hey, some habits just die hard.

We moved over to stand at the ice cream counter. There were rows upon rows of various flavours. Everything you could think of from bubblegum to strawberry cheesecake to amaretto. Which was made with real alcohol, I might add. Above the counter was a menu listing the many varieties of pancakes, waffles, sundaes, hot drinks... God, I'd forgotten how much I loved this place.

"I think you're cruel in bringing me here," said L.

Huh? I stared at him, feeling totally lost. "Um, why?"

"Because there's just too much choice..." replied L, staring through the glass of the counter.

I started to laugh. Wow, he'd actually made a joke. The world had clearly imploded. "Yeah, okay, I'll happily take the blame for that one. If you want ice cream though, you can have up to three different flavours in one of those cups, so go nuts."

"That might be an idea," agreed L, still looking at the ice cream and chewing the tip of his thumbnail thoughtfully. I didn't think I'd ever seen him look more human before. It was really quite adorable.

I almost felt like slapping myself to make sure I got a grip. I cast around for something else to say. "Or you can do my trick and get something else for now and then the ice cream to-go later."

L just looked at me. "I think that's the best idea you've ever had."

I laughed again. I liked to think I was a good detective, but apparently, my best idea yet was regarding ice cream? "I'm not sure if I should be flattered or offended by that."

"You should be flattered," L reassured me. "I never say things lightly when it comes to ice cream."

I couldn't resist a smile. "Okay then, I'll take your word for it." Whether it was about ice cream or not, I was going to take whatever compliment I could get. It wasn't like L was the type to dish them out regularly after all.

He was now looking at the menu above the counter. Without looking away, he said, "Why don't you choose a table and I'll get these."

"Wait... what?"

L did look at me then. "I said why don't you choose a table and I'll get these," he repeated patiently like I was a small child.

"No, that's not what I meant," I protested, not quite as patiently. "What I meant was... why?"

"I'm not sure I understand the question."

Genius detective, my ass. "I mean, where has this suddenly come from?" Somehow I got the feeling that L definitely wasn't the type to buy things for people.

"We're supposed to be a couple, aren't we?" L reminded me. "I thought that this was the social protocol."

I wished he'd stop saying 'protocol'. It was too business-like. And we all knew how much I liked to pretend and think otherwise. "That's only for the benefit of my family. We don't really need to keep the pretence up out of the house."

"Don't we?" said L. "As you know, you used to live here and you've already bumped into somebody that you know. It doesn't hurt to cover our backs - in case of the possibility of information being passed along."

Wow. That was actually a good point. You'd have thought I'd be the one wanting to take advantage of this situation. How had I not thought of it first? "Okay, that may be true, but..."

"Exactly," L cut across me. "So go and sit down."

"But..." I didn't really know how to explain to him that I didn't like guys buying things for me. Even if it was just a dessert. "I haven't decided what I want yet."

"I'll choose for you."

Geez, talk about bossy. I hated to admit it, but I actually quite liked this authoritative side of him. It now seemed like a long time since it had been me bossing him around. "Fine," I conceded reluctantly. If he happened to make a poor choice, then at least I wouldn't be paying for it. "I'll go and get that booth in the corner."

I scuttled away and plonked myself down in the corner booth. This was going to be a weird day; I could just tell. I pulled my iPhone out of my pocket, looking for something to distract myself. It was lucky I did - I had four new text messages from Johnny. Yeesh. He'd clearly ignored the rule of not texting someone more than twice before getting a reply. And I was pretty sure he'd actually taught me that in the first place.

Though that only made me more intrigued as to what he could want so badly. As I read the messages in succession, I realised it was actually just Johnny being Johnny. And by that, I mean having an incredibly one-tracked mind.

'How's the case going, missy? Jumped anyone's bones yet?'

'You promised you'd keep me updated.'

'Are you not updating me because you're too busy having sexy times?'

'Hope you're having fun ;) '

Good grief. I made an exasperated gesture towards my phone, despite the fact that Johnny couldn't actually see me. He really was a force to be reckoned with. He was worse than all of my girlfriends put together. I impatiently texted out a quick reply. 'Don't be ridiculous. I haven't updated you because nothing's happened.'

I was already regretting telling him anything. Obviously, I hadn't gone into detail about the case - I'd simply explained that I was staying with my family and that I had to try and pass L off as my boyfriend. I knew he'd get a great kick out of that. I hadn't even mentioned the whole bed sharing thing. He'd probably explode.

As always, Johnny lived with his phone in his hand. It took all of a minute for him to reply. 'I'm disappointed in you. Have you really not got ANYTHING to give me?'

He was persistent too. I racked my brain for something I could give him. 'Actually, we're at Entices right now. He's buying.'

The next reply was even quicker. 'Jealous. And get in.'

I couldn't help but smile. I wasn't the only one who missed coming to this place every week. I wished we had somewhere like Entices back in Seika. 'I can't promise anything.'

Lightning speed texting was clearly Johnny's superpower. Despite the new message being a little lengthier, it still didn't take him any longer to reply. It took me that long just to get onto my text messaging screen. 'Well, at least TRY and be sexy. Put some skimpier things on than you normally do and make sure you wear your best perfume.'

I rolled my eyes. L would probably take more notice of me if I wore a giant cake costume than he would if I tried wearing something skimpy, like Johnny was suggesting. Apparently, no amount of telling my best friend that was going to get it through his thick skull. My sarcasm was obvious even through texting. 'Yeah, I'm holding my breath on that one.'

I only had time to read Johnny's last piece of advice, 'At least ditch the glasses', because L had suddenly appeared around the side of the booth. I hastily slid my phone off the table and back into my pocket. L either didn't notice or simply wasn't interested. I was betting on the latter.

He climbed up onto the seat opposite me and settled into his usual position. Apparently, he felt comfortable enough to do so in our corner booth. I didn't bother chastising him for it this time. It wasn't like the parlour was busy or anything. For now he could be as weird and as... L as he liked.

"They said it'll be ten minutes," he stated.

"Oh, okay." He'd clearly ordered hot food if it was going to take ten minutes. "So... what did you order?"

"It's a surprise," said L without the slightest change of expression. If he'd said it and smiled, then it would have sounded like a light-hearted joke. As it was, delivered with his usual poker face, it was more along the lines of creepy.

"Great..."

I was just about to start worrying about the atmosphere turning awkward between us like it usually did, but surprisingly, L was the first to break the silence. "How's your finger?"

"Oh..." I'd actually completely forgotten about it. It had stung when I'd showered and replaced the Band-Aid, but besides that, it had been fine. "It's okay. It's not actually as deep as I thought it was."

"Then if you're lucky, you may not even need stitches," said L.

"That's the dream," I replied jokingly. I did not want any unnecessary needles stuck in me, thank you very much.

"For someone who has quite a dangerous job, you seem to be quite afraid of something so small," L pointed out. If I hadn't known any better, I'd have said that he was teasing me.

"Hey, I had to have eight stitches in my leg once," I protested. "Forgive me for not wanting to repeat that."

"What happened?" asked L. God forbid, he actually sounded semi-interested.

"I got stabbed actually," I confessed. "When I was a police officer."

I knew it sounded pretty dramatic, especially when you said it out loud, but I still personally felt that getting shot was more hardcore. Provided you didn't die, of course. Chad had been shot once before, but there was nothing hardcore about where he'd been shot. I'll leave that to your imaginations.

"Some jackass I was trying to apprehend got the jump on me and pulled a knife. He sliced my leg up pretty good - right here." I traced a line out along the top of my skirt, knowing exactly where the killer scar was underneath the material. Of course I hadn't forgotten - it had been a right bitch to heal.

L watched where I was pointing and didn't say anything else for a little while. When he did, he'd kind of changed the subject again, as he so liked to do. "You're very comfortable talking about yourself," he stated.

I hadn't quite expected that one, but then I was often surprised by what L came out with sometimes. "Funnily enough, that's part of what you do when socialising," I teased.

"Hmm. I can't say I really socialise that often," said L.

"Really? I never would have guessed," I said sarcastically.

L just looked at me. "I do believe you're teasing me."

I couldn't help but laugh. "Well, at least you're clearly learning. There's still hope for you yet."

The waitress came over then with the food, effectively distracting us both. L had ordered both of us pancakes. Good lord, I hoped it wasn't any kind of implication towards that night. I quickly forgot about that though when I realised just what was packed into my pancakes. Spiced apple and cinnamon. I loved cinnamon. Not too shabby, L. Definitely not too shabby.

"Maybe I'll let you order more often," I said appreciatively after my first forkful. It was piping hot and just as delicious as it smelt. "How did you know I liked cinnamon?"

"I didn't," said L plainly. His pancakes appeared to be some kind of forest berries mix. They were also stuffed full of whipped cream. "I guessed."

I frowned and waggled my fork at him. "You're gonna have to enlighten me on that one." I was certain that I'd never mentioned it to him before. And how did you guess something like that?

"One of your perfumes smelt like cinnamon," explained L. "It wasn't difficult to deduce that it was something you'd like, seeing as you're happy enough to wear it as a fragrance."

Huh? What perfume did I have that smelt of cinnamon? That was definitely news to me. I racked my brains to try and think of which it could be, which I might have used during this case... But I had no idea. Maybe L had some kind of Gus style 'super sniffer' where he could identify the individual ingredients that most people couldn't pick up. Or maybe I just liked referring things back to Psych.

"I didn't even realise I had a perfume like that," I said. "When was this?"

L didn't answer straightaway. "I don't remember," he eventually replied stonily.

I frowned again. Somehow, I got the feeling that he wasn't telling the truth. This was the world's greatest detective after all and it was L. I was certain that his memory was flawless. Why he was lying, I had no idea, but I knew that I'd never get it out of him if he didn't want to tell me. Stupid robot detective.

So instead, I just said, "Oh." And left it at that.

We stayed in Entices for a couple of hours and even had a round of hot waffles too. Oh, man, I was going to get fat on this case. I needed some action now purely for the exercise. How did L never seem to suffer from this fate? He seemed to eat sweets constantly, but I'd certainly never seen him exercise.

What was even more amazing was that whilst we were there, the awkward silences had actually been minimal. L still hadn't really ventured anything about his own life, but at least he hadn't just left me talking by myself. I realised that even though he never gave a great deal of input, I was still finding him easier and easier to talk to.

When we decided it was a suitable time to leave, we grabbed some tubs of ice cream to-go like I'd suggested. Cue more weight gain. I was tempted to suggest we raced each other home, but A) that would definitely draw unnecessary attention to ourselves, and B) I didn't want to risk dropping my ice cream.

Not wanting to miss out on the great variety of flavours, L ended up choosing a bizarre combination. It sounded fun, so I did the same. Pineapple, strawberry cheesecake and black cherry, mmm... L went for the strawberry cheesecake too, as well as chocolate mallow ripple and, amazingly, the amaretto.

I was betting that he had no idea there was alcohol in it, even though it was definitely easy enough to taste. I'd tried some of Johnny's before - I didn't personally like amaretto, but he'd wanted to prove that he wasn't being a wuss and that it was genuinely quite alcoholic. L either didn't notice or he simply didn't care. I snuck a few glances at him on the walk back, but nothing in his expression suggested that he could taste anything unusual. But then I guessed that L's expression rarely suggested anything anyway.

I popped into the Nisa store on the way back like we'd planned, whilst L feigned looking in some of the windows of other shops along the street. It wasn't helpful at all. I didn't see any suspicious customers or staff. The mousy girl from earlier was still serving and the only other staff member that I hadn't seen yet was an elderly woman with pure white hair.

I crossed her off the suspect list immediately. Her eyesight was obviously incredibly poor - even wearing thick bifocal glasses, I could see that she was still straining to read the display on the cash register. Plus her hands were clearly so riddled with arthritis that she could barely even grip the item scanner. She definitely wasn't who we were looking for. I met L a little way down the street and quietly relayed this back to him as we were walking. I was starting to get a bit antsy - both about the case and also about L himself.

We'd already agreed that tomorrow would be our last day in Osaka if we didn't manage to find any more clues. It would have been a whole week since the day when Sunae Michishio's credit card had been used. If there was nothing to find after a week, then it was safe to assume that our identity thief had already moved on elsewhere. It would be pointless staying in Osaka longer than necessary, seeing as we couldn't actually do any work from my family's house. We were better off back in Kyoto.

That left us with two scenarios. One being that we'd find something good and be that much closer to solving this thing. Only when that happened, I had no doubt in my mind that L would disappear and that I'd never see him again. As much as I wanted to see this case through, I definitely wasn't looking forward to that part of it.

The other option was going to be that we didn't find anything and we had to go back to Kyoto. That was the preferable choice, considering the L aspect. But even so, I felt that things were different between us whilst being in this close environment with my family. I'd felt a lot closer to him the last few days and I was sure that he seemed more comfortable around me too. I didn't want to lose that.

Johnny's advice from earlier had started to play on my mind. If I really wanted to make an impact on L so that he wouldn't forget about me so easily, then I was going to have to up my game. But how exactly did I do that? Johnny's suggestion had been pretty useless, seeing as it was L that we were talking about. Unfortunately, I didn't have any ideas of my own.

When we got back to the house, I let us in with the spare key that I'd borrowed for the day and shouted hello, rewarded with a chorus of replies from the lounge. L pulled the check shirt off and then followed me through into the kitchen so that we could dispose of our now empty ice cream tubs.

"You did realise there was alcohol in the amaretto ice cream, didn't you?" I told L.

For once, L actually looked mildly taken aback. "There was?"

"Yeah, couldn't you taste it?" I asked. "Didn't you know that's what amaretto is?"

"I did, but I didn't think that they'd use real alcohol in ice cream. I'd just heard that it tasted similar to marzipan," said L, looking thoughtful. Ah, that was why I didn't like amaretto. Marzipan... urgh. "There was a taste to it that I couldn't quite put my finger on... I guess that was it."

He looked so damn intrigued by it that I couldn't help but laugh. "Congratulations, you just had your first taste of alcohol. Well... I'm guessing that was your first taste, right?"

"Of course," L replied, like I would have been stupid to think otherwise.

"Alright, Mr. Snooty. Just because you've never been afflicted by that particular vice before doesn't mean that nobody else has," I said jokingly.

"No, I understand that for most people, it's simply human nature to indulge in such things," L agreed. Yup, human nature. That was definitely me. "But you appeared to be quite ill the last time that you did so and I'd certainly rather not experience that myself."

Oh, cringe. Did he have to bring that up? "Yeah, you're better off avoiding that side of it," I said offhandedly. "Though in my defence, it's not that often that I get that bad."

"I don't think it's anything you should be ashamed about. It seems to be a common way for people to relieve stress," said L indifferently. I was sure we'd already had this conversation before, but at least he still wasn't holding the incident against me. "Those books of yours also seem to back up that theory."

Uh oh. This was the first time he'd actually brought up the Georgina Kincaid books. "Oh, yeah, I guess they do... So, um... have you enjoyed them so far?" I still wasn't sure I wanted to know, but I felt obliged to ask.

"They're... tolerable, I suppose," said L. I have to admit that was the kind of answer I'd expected. What I didn't anticipate was him then adding, "It's not the kind of genre that I'd choose to read myself, but I have to admit that I find the characters quite likeable."

"Really?" I brightened. I'd never thought he'd actually find something he liked about them - I'd assumed they'd just remain a way for him to pass time during the night. "The characters are actually my favourite thing about the series." I was still eager for him to know that I was interested in the books for the characters and the storyline - or at least not the erotica.

"Yes," confirmed L, looking quite thoughtful again. "The character of Seth, for instance. I find him quite... relatable, in some ways."

I managed to keep myself from laughing for all of about two seconds before I gave in. L just looked at me, so I explained. "He actually reminded me of you straightaway. As soon as I first started reading these books."

"Oh," said L. "So you've only started reading this series whilst on this case?"

"Yep. Apart from the two that you've been reading - I haven't read them yet. Feel honoured that I let you read them first," I joked. "And of course, don't tell me anything that happens."

"Really? So you don't want to know about..." L started to say.

"Hey, come on! What did I just say?" I protested, cutting in.

"But it's extremely obvious that Georgina and Seth are going to..."

"La la la la la!" I said loudly, putting my hands over my ears. "Come on, don't ruin it for me!"

Irritatingly, my reaction actually seemed to amuse him. "You really believe that you haven't already guessed the outcome? Novels are always highly predictable - particularly the relationships within them."

I lowered my hands. The action had been pointless anyway - I'd still heard every word he'd said. "Well, when it comes to real relationships, it's rarely that black and white. So there's always the possibility that some authors could take a more realistic approach."

"You think it's much more complicated in reality?" asked L.

"Trust me. I know it is," I said very pointedly.

But obviously, L still didn't get it. He just stared blankly back at me like he usually did. I resisted the urge to sigh. Just once, it would be nice to get something black and white myself. But then how likely was that ever going to be whilst I was still mooning over L?

And of course, he always found more ways to confuse me even further. "I liked Georgina too," he commented, going back to the original conversation. He clearly wasn't keen on this one. "She actually reminded me of you."

"Um, she did?" Now I was interested. Sure, I'd made the same comparison myself before, but it was different when it was someone else. Especially L. And especially after he'd just stated that he liked said character. I knew I was kinda clutching at straws, but that was generally what I did with L anyway.

L nodded. "She's very quirky, much like you. And she's also quite funny."

"You think I'm funny?" I said, surprised. It may not have been the best compliment he could have given, but personally, I was happy with funny. A sense of humour was one of the main things I looked for in a person. One I'd clearly overlooked when it came to L.

L almost smiled. "I may not know what you're even talking about half the time, but yes, I do find you rather amusing at times."

Well, damn, I was pretty happy with that. Brilliant or amazing would have been even better, but maybe that was asking a little too much. Not to mention being incredibly unrealistic. "Well, I think Georgina's awesome, so I'm going to take that as a very big compliment," I grinned.

L actually did smile at that one. It was a shame he didn't smile more often - it transformed his whole face. It really was quite something. "I don't think that Georgina is as nice a name as Georgia though."

Now that really did confuse me. I didn't get the deal he had with my name. But whether I got it or not, it still made me blush - I felt my face heat up. Damn it. That would have barely been classed as a compliment if it had come from anyone else. And to make things worse, even he noticed my reaction.

"Are you alright? Your cheeks look a little pink," L pointed out.

"I'm fine," I said hastily. Sometimes it was actually a good thing that he couldn't distinguish most emotions all that well. "It's just a little warm; that's all."

"Why don't you step outside for a bit if you're feeling flushed?" L suggested, making towards the kitchen door.

"Wait..." I started, grabbing his arm without thinking as he'd gone to step away. We'd actually been having what felt like a real conversation for once. I didn't want it to be over yet.

"What is it?" asked L, turning back to me.

It wasn't just the conversation I didn't want to end. It was this whole day. Entices, the random topics of conversation, Georgina and Seth, the spot-on guess about the cinnamon pancakes... They were each small, insignificant things really. But when you combined them all, it made me feel that I really had made more progress with L today.

I'd broken down more barriers between us, I thought, as I stared at those onyx black eyes. I felt I could talk to him almost as easily now as I could with any of my other friends. Except maybe Johnny. His ideas of conversation were sometimes too intimate even for me.

But it was his advice from earlier that was still circling inside my head. And it was partly that advice that made me do something very, very stupid.

I leant in towards L, still not entirely thinking straight. It was only at the last moment that I noticed his eyes widen in surprise. I stopped dead, my lips barely an inch away from his. It was the exact same reaction he'd had before. He wasn't welcoming this - he hadn't even been expecting it. Oh, Gee, what were you thinking?

"...What are you doing?" L asked slowly, completely unmoving.

Crap, crap, crap! I desperately racked my brains for some crazy excuse I could use, still frozen to the spot. How the hell was I going to talk my way out of this one? Wait... Talk... A certain, beautiful show that I adored suddenly sprang to mind, providing me with my saviour of an answer.

"This is just, um... very close talking," I improvised. My heart was now thudding hard in my chest. I still couldn't move.

L didn't move either, but then he didn't really have any other choice. I'd kind of unintentionally trapped him in the corner. "I see..." His voice was still very level, unlike mine. "And is there a reason for this... very close talking?"

"Oh, I don't know. I saw it on a TV show - thought it might be fun," I said in my best attempt to sound casual. I wasn't really sure if it was actually working. I could practically hear my heartbeat in my ears.

And my main problem now was that I wasn't sure how to get back out of this situation. I wasn't even entirely sure I wanted to. Even if my pulse was racing and I felt scared to even breathe. I quickly cast around for something else to say. Something mundane that would be easy to concentrate on.

"So... did you like Entices?" I asked carefully, barely even moving my lips.

"I did," replied L, seemingly just as careful. "Thank you for introducing me to it."

I could practically taste the scent of amaretto still lingering on his breath. Huh, maybe I'd develop a new liking for it after today. I was distracted by the fact that his tone wasn't quite as flat as it usually was. He was also standing extremely tense, his arms stiff at his sides.

We may not have actually been touching, but I could feel it positively radiating off him. I was making him very uncomfortable. Of course, I definitely didn't want that, but then at the same time, the last thing I wanted to do was move away. When would I ever be able to get this close to him again?

Let's face it; after this, he'd probably drop-kick me the next time I tried.

"Was there anything else?" L asked, quite softly for him.

The alcohol in the ice cream clearly hadn't been enough to affect him at all, even for a first taste. Part of me thought that it was a bit of a shame, but then maybe it would be better if I was the only one feeling stupid after this. I probably shouldn't have been thinking about bringing the world's best detective down to my level.

"No. I guess not," I admitted reluctantly. I still wasn't sure if I'd be able to pull myself away, short of L giving me a push.

I ended up not having the option either way, as a new voice suddenly called out, "Knock, knock!"

I sprang away from L so abruptly that it was a wonder I didn't fall back on my butt. Auntie Maggie had poked her head around the door. She'd looked mildly surprised for all of a second before amusement had taken over - no doubt because of the rather, err... compromising situation she'd found us in.

"Sorry, guys; didn't mean to interrupt," she grinned knowingly. "I'm doing a coffee run. You kids want anything?"

"Err, we have coffee here," I pointed out. There was a pot right by where L was still standing.

"Not Starbucks coffee, we don't."

Ah, now she hadn't mentioned that part before. Now I could understand her motive better. "You didn't even teach for a full day today and you still need coffee?" I teased, jumping on the first opportunity I could to try and lighten up the atmosphere again.

"It's just a little treat from me to me," Auntie Maggie laughed. "I've gotta get my fix either way." Geez, why did everybody I knew have an addiction to that crappy stuff? And by 'everyone', I actually meant three people. "Ryuzaki, would you like anything?"

"Coffee sounds good, thank you," replied L smoothly. His voice was back to its usual monotony. I wasn't sure if that was good or bad. I sure hoped I hadn't scarred him for life with that idiotic 'very close talking' move.

Auntie Maggie turned back to me. "Gee?" I just gave her an obvious grin in response and she laughed again. "Yeah, why am I even asking? I know what you want... Alright, I'll be back in about fifteen. You kids can carry on where you left off." She winked at us before disappearing.

I cringed internally. Wow. Way to shoot things right back down to awkward again. I wouldn't blame L if he didn't ever want to speak to me again after this case was over. Scratch that; I wouldn't even blame him if he went back to Gibs and pressed sexual harassment charges against me.

Urgh. I mentally ticked off another box of incredibly stupid things I'd done since deciding working alongside the greatest detective would be a good idea. In hindsight, maybe that should have been a very different decision.

XXX

To top it all off, that third night was undoubtedly the worst yet. I'd ended up having a nightmare about being trapped in the burning library again. It was a recurring one I'd used to suffer from all the time. I actually hadn't had it in a while. I should have known it'd still come back and bite me in the ass at some point.

And no matter how many times I dreamt it, it never lost any of the fear factor. I sat bolt upright in bed, practically hyperventilating. I could still smell the smoke and I could almost taste the burning wood heavy on my tongue. Feeling my stomach roil, I hastily - and awkwardly - clambered over L and dashed to the bathroom. I fell to my knees in front of the toilet just in time to vomit into the bowl.

I groaned, my eyes watering. I hated throwing up. Okay, I'm sure that nobody actually enjoyed it... But I really hated it. I never let myself get sick - besides the occasional hangover, of course. It was the one time I felt most vulnerable. I'd never been sure why it was built into people that when they were upset in any way, the first person they wanted was their mom, but I was no exception to that rule.

Luckily, my mom has always been majorly intuitive with that kind of stuff. She still always knows whenever I need her. Sure enough, within moments, she'd appeared behind me and started rubbing my back to try and comfort me. "Are you okay? Was it a bad dream or do you think you may have eaten something funny?" she asked me gently. She knew me too well. It wasn't the first time my recurring nightmare had made me physically sick.

"Bad dream." I spat bitterly into the bowl again. Urgh. My mouth tasted horrible.

"Sit tight, Gee-Gee. I'll go get you a glass of water," Mom reassured me, disappearing from my side.

I sat back and leant my head against the side of the bathtub. I didn't think I'd vomit again now. I seemed to have gotten it all out of my system. What I really wanted now was a good cry. Throwing up always made me feel miserable and the nightmare certainly hadn't helped any. But that definitely wasn't going to happen anytime soon.

Mom returned quicker than I expected. She started lightly massaging my back again. I sighed. I was ready for my bed again now. Not to mention I'd have to explain to L what the hell I'd been doing. He'd been sat up reading again and had certainly looked taken aback when I'd suddenly woken up and proceeded to hurdling him in order to make my escape.

I sighed again and turned around to take the water from Mom, then jumped in surprise. Mom hadn't come back upstairs yet. It was L. "What are you doing?" I blurted out, shocked and more than a little confused.

"I saw your mother do this," said L impassively. "It seems to be the social convention for when people are ill."

How long had he been watching? Had he seen me throw up? Oh, hell. I groaned, turning away, and pressed my face back against the side of the bath. Instead of going away like I wanted him to, I felt L's hand tentatively on my back again. Damn protocol and social conventions...

"You don't have to do that. I feel better already," I lied. In truth, the feeling of L's hand on my back was just making my stomach churn even more. I think in normal circumstances, it would have been from butterflies, but right now my body was still feeling a little messed up.

"Alright." I felt his hand move away. "Then have this instead."

He passed me a glass of water. Mom had clearly returned at some point whilst he'd been there and had decided I'd be okay with him. Oh, Mom, you could have come and interrupted us... Why couldn't you have come and interrupted us?

I supposed it wasn't an altogether bad situation that L actually seemed like he may have been concerned, but I still didn't like the idea of him knowing that I'd thrown up - or worse, had seen it. That was a weakness that I only ever showed in front of my mom or Johnny, when we had to hold each other's hair back. Oh, what was I talking about? Johnny didn't have that much hair.

"Thanks." I took a few sips of water and swirled them unpleasantly in my mouth, spitting them back out in the bowl, before I actually drank any. "You can go and carry on reading. I'll be fine now."

L didn't seem convinced. "If you feel you're going to be alright, then you should go and get some sleep."

Wow. I was giving him the chance to run and he wasn't taking it. "Okay."

"Do you need a hand getting up?"

"Yes, please." My legs still felt like jelly.

L lent me his hand and helped me to my feet. His slender fingers were cool and smooth. He was being real nice to me and I sure as hell didn't deserve it. The guy sure had an incredible tolerance for my inappropriate behaviour.

"Thank you," I said with much more meaning than he probably understood.

"You're welcome."

As I climbed quite gratefully back into bed, I couldn't help but marvel that even after I'd tried making a move on L again, he'd still stayed with me to try and make me feel better. Maybe the day hadn't been quite so bad after all.

XXX

Author's Note!

Ahh Gee... you really don't learn, do you? xD It just had to be done though. Do you guys have any IDEA how long I've been waiting to use the very close talking plot bunny?!

Seriously long chapter this time - my longest yet! I was kinda tempted to leave the last scene until the next chapter, but there's gonna be a LOT going on in the next one so I figured it'd still be better off in this one!

Plus I thought I'd leave you guys with something lengthy, since this'll be my last update on this story for quite a while. I'm going travelling for a couple of months in just over two weeks (going to tour America, eeeee!) so I won't get chance to post anything until after we get back. Of course I'll still try and do some of the actual writing part whilst we're there though - certainly got enough long-ass flights and coach journeys ahead of us!

On another note, I've been planning out a new Death Note "story" - which will actually be a collection of one-shots/side stories revolving around Gee (and L too of course!) It's following a specific alphabet pattern, which will become more apparent once I get it posted. The title's going to be "What's in a Name: From A to Z" so keep an eye out for it!