In Charge
Chapter 18 – No Mistakes
By Threshie
AN: I'M ALIIIVE! :D LOL; welcome to chapter 18 of "In Charge". I got snowed in the past couple of weeks and couldn't get online, so sorry this took so long getting to you. You see, I have no internet at home—I usually get online at my dad's workplace. The snow kept me from going anywhere except a few quick outings to shop for Christmas presents at the last second! (Sweatdrop) So I wasn't just being mean with last chapter's cliffhanger, and no, I'm NOT dead! LOL.
On to the long-awaited chapter!
Disclaimer: Death Note belongs to Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata.
The red point wasn't blinking anymore.
It had been flickering more and more rapidly as Mello neared his destination, until the times it was off were too short to see, and now, finally, it glowed steadily on the GPS unit's tiny screen. The line leading away from it had ended as soon as the blonde had pulled into the driveway of a large one-story home with a meticulously-manicured lawn. Mello skidded the motorcycle to a stop sideways, the wheels tearing some of the perfect turf into ugly chunks. Topsoil sprayed out across the part that he hadn't yet touched.
Ignoring the mess he was making, the blonde checked the GPS one last time to be sure that he was at the right place, then hopped off of the motorcycle, killing the engine.
The house seemed peaceful and unassuming; it had new brown roofing, and looked like the siding had been repainted recently. An indigo two-door sedan was parked outside, perfectly parallel to the line where pavement gave way to neatly-mowed lawn. The windows were spotless.
Every window was also covered by curtains.
This is it! Abandoning the still-glowing GPS on the ground beside the bike, he didn't even take the time to put up the kickstand before hurrying over to the front door. Please let me be in time...! Searching Mikami's listed apartment had wasted valuable hours...
No time to think about that, either, he told himself, glaring up at the front door determinedly, I've got to get inside! If I try kicking the lock to break it, Mikami will notice and have time to draw his gun. I don't have a gun, so I can't let him know I'm there until I have the upper hand... Going back to the motorcycle, which was now lying on its side—the grass had muffled its fall--, he snatched the keys out of the ignition. These should work for this...
Climbing the front steps as quietly and quickly as he could, he drew a bobby pin from his pocket, knelt in front of the door, and inserted it carefully into the keyhole. Sticking the tip of the motorcycle key, which was smaller than a house key, in beside the pin, he very delicately rotated the latter. Only Matt really knew that he kept lockpicking tools on hand at all times; he had a feeling that L would disapprove of him being so good at a common breaking and entering technique, so he hadn't mentioned it.
He didn't ask how I'd get in, though—he probably already knows. Typical L.
A soft 'click' came from inside the door. One corner of his mouth curving upward in a grim smirk, the blonde stuffed the pin and keys into his pocket and reached for the doorknob.
Let's hope he isn't in the room right on the other side of the door...
Near shivered as he felt the soft cloth being slid down off of his shoulders. The restraints made removing his pajama shirt entirely impossible, but Mikami had opened the front and slipped it halfway off of his arms. Stop it...
Struggling against the straps was useless...talking to Mikami seemed to have no effect...what could he do but lie there?
No--if I don't do something, he is going to use those scalpels and other tools on me... It was an assumption, but a relevant one—why would Mikami have opened the case if he didn't plan to use the tools? The nurse may have put the right medication into his IV, but that didn't at all inspire confidence that he could put in stitches properly, a job for a doctor.
At this point he was probably so deluded that he thought he was a doctor...
Near didn't even want to look at Mikami, but steeled himself and turned his head back to face the tall man. I can speak, if nothing else...
"Are you going to hurt me?" He asked faintly, staring at the case of instruments instead of his captor's face.
"Of course not." Mikami sounded sympathetic...his tone was so gentle that Near didn't trust it. It was too gentle. He is lying. He will harm me...and then he will claim that I "was hurting myself". That was what had happened last time—Mikami couldn't admit that he could be the reason for his patient's suffering, so of course he would blame it on Near instead.
"...If you untie me, I will remove my shirt on my own," the white-haired boy whispered, closing his eyes. He had no intentions of doing so, of course. I just need a chance to get away...even if he shot me in the back it would be better than this!
"I'm sorry, Mr. Kennedy..." He felt his hopes tumbling to the ground as the gentle words reached his ears. "After the scene that you caused a little while ago, I'm afraid you may harm yourself if I untie you again. It's all right..." The white-haired boy shivered, as he felt a hand slipping beneath the thin white undershirt that he aways wore. He shrank away from the touch, his chest tightening in panic. No...don't touch me...! Let me go! He fought against the straps, even though he knew that it was useless.
"L...let me go!" He echoed his thoughts aloud; the small, frightened voice sounded like someone else. I should have run before—whether he would shoot or not, I should have tried to run away! At that point he had still thought that Mello might be able to find him...that he might escape somehow. It had been strategic not to make a fuss...
Now that he was willing to escape at any cost, he didn't have the chance anymore.
"Lie still...I'm not going to hurt you," Mikami soothed, sliding Near's undershirt up to expose his stomach. Yes you will! The boy thought, wincing as the strap around his injured wrist bit into the bandaged wound. He had tried to pull away with every bit of strength that he could muster, and was panting from the effort.
It was no use; the restraints hadn't given one bit.
He slumped down into the pillow again, trembling as Mikami's fingertips brushed across his bare skin. His hands felt warm and wet from the blood all over them, almost sticky; Near hated that heat slipping so softly over him... Pausing, the hand that had been undressing him a moment ago came to rest gently on his side as it rose and fell with each rapid breath.
"Shh...the tools are only to touch up your stitches if you damaged them in your panic before," Mikami explained very gently; he sounded like he could be speaking to a frightened animal more than a person. An animal, or a small child...
Near shook his head mutely; his chest and throat both felt tight, and his eyes stung with the tears he refused to show. He was afraid, and he felt sick, but he was determined that it would take more than fear or pain to make him cry. Mikami didn't deserve to have tears wasted on him. Didn't deserve to see him really break down.
No one is coming.
The thought came from nowhere, a hopeless reminder that he was nothing more than a victim in this. Mikami could do whatever he wanted without anyone stopping him; sooner or later, the white-haired boy knew, he was going to really lose his self-control. He always had such a firm grip on his emotions, though, that the walls were only now being broken down enough for it to show much...
"D-don't," he whispered, hiding his face behind one arm again. "Don't do this...please..."
"I won't hurt you...I'll be very gentle," Mikami replied in the same soothing voice as before. It was like he hadn't even heard Near; the boy shrank away as he felt the heat against his skin sliding down across his stomach...down to the hem of his pants. Stitches couldn't have had anything to do with the way that Mikami was touching him...
No—stop! Fingers slipped between the waistband and his skin; the warmth against his hip made his skin crawl. Please don't...please...
The door was thankfully silent; no creaking or squeaking of hinges when Mello opened it. Glancing quickly around, he saw that he was in a small entrance room; there was a shoe shelf in one corner, occupied only by a pair of grey house slippers, and a single windowless door leading further into the house. Maybe Mikami isn't here, the blonde thought, noting that there were no outdoor shoes on the shelf. No—there was a car outside. Unless he's got two cars like he has two addresses, he's got to be here!
Pressing himself against the wall, he slowly twisted the knob of the interior door, peering around the corner into the room beyond—and froze.
The scene before him was worse than he could have imagined.
Near was strapped down to a hospital bed. A tall Asian man with longish hair and glasses sat on a chair beside him; his nurse's uniform perfectly completed the person that Matt had described to be Mikami. His hands and Near's clothes were both spattered and stained with blood...and he was in the midst of undressing the white-haired boy. Near was trembling visibly, even from such a distance.
Mello was trembling, now, too.
Mikami...!
He couldn't have explained the feeling that had come over him. In seconds, fury filled him, threatening to scorch his body from the inside-out. At the same time, his stomach twisted sickeningly at seeing Near in such a state.
There was a set of scalpels and needles lying open on the table.
Blood stained the carpet beside the table, on the opposite side as the bed.
Mikami was so intently focused on Near that he didn't notice Mello at all...
I want Matt, Near thought miserably, fighting tears again. He didn't care if it didn't make sense. He didn't care if Matt was gone. Help me...Matt...I-I want Matt...! Mikami had slipped his pants down off of one hip, revealing the stitches that still throbbed dully. The pain only blended with that of his wrist, swirling with the pounding of his heart and the pleading of his thoughts into a dizzying panic.
He heard a tiny whimper, and only realized afterward that it had been his own voice. The warm hand on his hip hadn't moved away...the other hand joined it, caressing his side as softly as a whisper. He shuddered, trying to pull away, but the straps held him firmly in place.
Don't....don't...!
Smack!
There was a solid smacking noise, followed immediately by a sharp cry of pain from Mikami. The hands abruptly pulled away from Near's skin.
Wh-what...? Near opened his eyes, staring in shock at the scene before him. Mikami was staggering away from the chair he had been sitting in, a hand pressed over his nose. His glasses were gone; before Near could wonder where they went, a tiny crunch from the nurse's feet told Near that he had just stepped on them. Blood trickled down the side of his nose where the metal frames of them had bitten into his skin. He was staring off to Near's right, eyes wide in shock.
"Get the hell away from him!"
Mello! Turning his head, Near spotted the blonde just as he was lunging for Mikami again. It felt surreal, seeing him there...he looked and sounded absolutely livid. Mikami's eyes were wide and had a crazed look in them; he had the gun out of his pocket before Mello could even reach him. His hand shook terribly, causing the weapon to rattle softly.
Near didn't want to watch the standoff, but he couldn't tear his eyes away. If Mikami shot Mello...if Mello died in front of him like Matt had...
Will he kill anyone who interferes?
"Who are you?!" Mikami's voice snapped him back to the present. The Japanese man sounded strange again, but in a way that surpassed the stoic act—his voice wavered, like he was about to snap. If he could snap any more than he already had... "Get away from my patient!" He screamed at Mello, crushing the trigger down.
No...!
There was the instant sound of shattering glass—behind Mello, sparkling shards rained down around the curtains in one window frame. Mikami's vision must not have been very good without his glasses; he had missed the blonde by a good six inches at point blank range.
Seeing his chance, Mello lunged forward and grabbed Mikami's wrist, twisting the arm holding the gun away toward the wall. "Drop it!" He growled, "Now!"
"D-don't you dare touch him! He's my patient!" Mikami sounded completely hysterical now; his face was hidden from Near's view because his back was turned, but his expression couldn't have been pleasant. They are still struggling for control of the gun...
He didn't want to think about what would happen if Mikami won.
So this was the person who had tried to kill Matt.
Mello wanted nothing more than to strangle the life out of the babbling black-haired man, regardless of the fact that Mikami was half a foot taller than him and undoubtedly heavier. The odds didn't matter; he wasn't thinking of what was the rational thing to do at the moment, he was acting on his emotions and instincts. Fury was a powerful thing...so long as the gun was taken out of the game, he was sure that Mikami would lose in a one-on-one fight with him. And did he ever plan to make it a painful loss, too...
I'll kill you...! How dare you even think about touching Near, after what you were doing to him! He gritted his teeth, giving the nurse's arm a vicious twist with both of his own.
Mikami was more muscular than he looked; he wrenched his wrist roughly out of the blonde's grip, swinging the gun around to press the barrel into his chest. Mello's eyes widened—there was no time to move, barely even time to notice--
BANG!
Mikami screamed, the gun clattering to the floor as he brought his other hand up to clutch at one shoulder. His shooting hand hung limply at his side, blood streaming down from his fingertips to bloom in a crimson stain on the carpet. Having expected to feel a bullet ripping into his chest, Mello stared, wide-eyed, and said nothing.
Someone else shot him before he could shoot me...!
"Y-you....you....!" The tall man shrieked, staggering backward away from the front door. Turning, Mello saw a tall blonde policeman holding a still-smoking gun, a grim look on his face. The cops that L sent finally caught up to me!
Men in uniform filtered rapidly into the room, training their guns on Mikami. In under a minute, the nurse was completely surrounded.
"Freeze! You're under arrest!"
"G-get him," Mikami wailed, pointing at Mello with his one good hand, which was bloody and shaking badly, "He's the intruder—I-I'm a medical professional! I've n-never made a mistake when caring for a patient—not a s-single one....!"
Without thinking, Mello lunged for him again. You bastard...!
"Since when do nurses shoot people?!" He snarled, wrapping both hands tightly around the tall man's throat, "I'd say you made a goddamned mistake when you shot Matt!"
"Sir, stop!" He felt someone grabbing his shoulders, trying to yank the two of them apart, but he held on as tightly as he could. Mikami was making choked gurgling sounds, bulging eyes glaring murder at him as he clawed at the blonde's hands with his one good one. The blood slipped against Mello's leather gloves uselessly; it was hard to tell whether it was Mikami's or Near's at this point...
"Stop right now! Do you want to be a murderer?!" The voices shouting at him made sense, but he wanted to ignore them—oh, how he wanted to ignore them. Just a little more pressure, and he could crush Mikami's throat...then he could never utter another hateful lie about never making a mistake again. No mistakes—no mistakes! You've made lots of mistakes, and the biggest one was crossing me!
Hands were grabbing onto his arms, arms wrapping around his waist...more hands were prying his fingers off of Mikami's throat. No—let me kill him! He deserves to die, dammit! The strength of four cops versus one furious teenager was hardly even, though...he found himself struggling and swearing at the men restraining him, vaguely acknowledging in the background that Mikami was gasping for air and babbling nonsense while he was handcuffed.
"NO mistakes--none! Th-they're ruining me! My career—I never made a mistake! Never! Perfect records--K-Kennedys—i-it's them, not me...!" Several officers dragged the tall man out to one of the cruisers parked on the lawn, the echoes of his hysteria drifting back to the house long after he was out of sight.
--End Chapter 18
AN: And now I've written a scene with Mello hopping mad in it. I'm sure he would've loved to beat the stuffing out of our resident psycho-perfectionist-possibly-pedo nurse some more if the police hadn't shown up (good thing they did, though, or our dear Mello would have a bullet hole in him, eheh.)
This chapter was even worse about making myself squirm while writing certain scenes...which is the intended effect for the reader, too, so if it made you uncomfortable, mission accomplished! As...odd as that may sound, LOL. If Near freaking out seems out of character to you, please remember that he was never put in any situation that physically endangered him in the series, and definitely never had to deal with anybody like Mikami is in this fic. (Sweatdrop)
Trivia: This chapters title comes from Mikami's ranting about making no mistakes in his care of Near. It also refers to Mello's mental scoffing at Mikami's whole "no mistakes" rant. It refers to the fact that the police made no mistakes so they got there just in time to save Mello from being shot. L mobilized them so fast that he kind of saved Mello's life in a way. :) I guess the last "no mistakes" part would be the ironic one—that you better not make any "mistakes" that involve wronging Mello!
I outlined this and chapter 19 as one chapter originally; the characters had other ideas. I would have preferred to not end this chapter so abruptly, but there's no other spot to cut that doesn't make one chapter 14 or so pages long, so just treat this as a "two-parter" and watch for chapter 19 very soon. (And I mean actually soon, not "I'll update than get snowed in for two weeks" soon. XD; )
-Threshie
In Charge Akugi! Volume 18
Akugi #69
Narrator: Abandoning the still-glowing GPS on the ground beside the bike, he didn't even take the time to put up the kickstand before hurrying over to the front door.
Mello: "Why does a GPS have a kickstand, anyway?!"
GPS and Motorcycle: (Fall over for lack of kickstands being folded out) CRUNCH.
Akugi #70
Near: "Are you going to hurt me?" (Looks at case of instruments)
Mikami: (Gently) "Of course not."
Near: u.u "Prove it."
Mikami: u_u "All right, I will! I'm not going to do a single thing to you—does that sound harmless enough?"
Near: "We'll see how long you can keep your word."
Mikami: "Forever--I always keep my word!" (Sits and does nothing for the next few hours to prove his point)
Near: (Waits patiently for Mello to show up)
Akugi #71
Narrator: The scene before him was worse than he could have imagined.
Mello: OnO (Gasp) "Scalpels, needles, straps, an insane guy...this is like a scene from Frankenstein!" (Resolves to get out of there before FrankenNear "re-rises" and ends up much physically stronger than he looks...)
Akugi #72
Mikami: "Who are you?! Get away from my patient!"
Mello: "My name is Mihael Keehl! You shot my best friend! Prepare to DIE!"
