Dropped in a Fangirl\'s World

Dropped in a Fangirl's World

Chapter 3

Drowsy blue eyes opened partway as a strange noise and presence robbed Jeichan of sleep and pulled her back into consciousness. The clock blinked 3:41AM, her vision suffering from the onslaught of deep shadow without the aid of moonlight sneaking through the blinds. And the natural blurriness of vision that comes to recently awakened eyes did not help. The strange sound came again and it took a few moments of blinking before Jeichan could clearly see the culprit.

Above her a pale face surrounded by straggly black hair, and two deep dark eyes with a wild glint seemed to float in the heavy shadows. It took her a moment to comprehend that the window blinds were un-habitually drawn shut. The face above dived closer, a mere inch above hers and she felt the presence of two arms and legs straddling her.

"Holy. . . ." A pale, cool hand pressed down on her mouth, her words unable to escape. The wild eyes glinted crimson and the thin lips smirked. Outside the wind blew against the window and a sharp chill raced up her spine.

Attached to the face was a thin figure dressed in a long sleeved white shirt and blue jeans - a familiar appearance but an unfamiliar person. Jeichan swallowed as the wild - nearly crazed - face studied her; the next moment she picked up her L plushie and swung it against the person.

Once the hand faltered over her mouth at the onslaught, she bit down on it and kicked and pushed. However she did not scream, and merely glared at the figure as he fell off the bed while dodging one of her kicks. She listened to the silence of the apartment, inwardly cursing at L's decision to rent the whole apartment block and thus leaving her alone in hers.

"Damn it, B. I was sleeping."

"I see those others are not here. They have their own apartments thanks to him."

Jeichan glared and made an annoyed sound as the man sat down at the end of her bed, his crouch reminiscent of L's. Two days ago she had discovered B sneaking around the park just across the main street of the apartment complex; her evening walk bestowing upon her this treasured gift.

Or should she say treacherous? Since keeping B's presence a secret from the others - especially L - proved stressful. As well as like some sort of betrayal.

"Are you disappointed that you can't ravage L? You sore sadist."

"Hey. Like you mentioned the other night, put mine and that detective's code letters together and you get BL." B sniggered as Jeichan stretched and sat up on the mattress, his long arms wrapped around his knees. "I like it that I naturally come first in something. B and L - BL - Boy's Love."

"Guess that means you'll be seme and L uke." Jeichan yawned and scratched her head absentmindedly. The images quickly flooded in with her words, and her cheeks pinked briefly; she licked her lips then swallowed. "Picturing you and L is definitely better than L and Light - if you're in the picture I can clearly see L as a cute little uke."

"How about Watari and L?" B smirked as Jeichan first clamped her hands over her ears and then changed it to over her eyes. "With whip cream and -"

"Stop it, B. I can't believe I ever let you read the fanfic I wrote based on this. I haven't even let the others do so. God, why did I ever allow you -"

"What about Twinkies? Can't I have L's Twinkie? Or should I give him mine?" Next to B Jeichan clamped her hands over her mouth to muffle her laughter - being too noisy so late would definitely attract their neighbor's attentions.

"How about both? Do a sixty-nine. Maybe get Light to join you."

"That would be interesting . . . ." B's stomach growled and then his eyes narrowed. He turned to face Jeichan, bringing his face once again to within an inch of Jeichan's. "You need more sweets. There's only salad downstairs."

"Jeez, I'm trying to lose weight. Besides, L took all the candies and stuff with him when he and Watari moved into the neighboring apartment. I'll buy more the next time I go shopping." She yawned again and curled up into a ball beside B. The next second he pounced on her, pulling her arms behind her back as he glared enraged down at her.

The growl issuing from his stomach broke the angry air.

Jeichan grinned, about to laugh and give B the answer of 'go to sleep' when the man held out a card. He held it close enough in front of her eyes for her to read it despite the shadows.

"I say we go now." B chuckled as Jeichan's lips parted as she recognized the credit card she had swiped from L. The next second she reddened and stammered.

"Where - when - what - how - you - you. . . ." She gaped and then glanced toward her room's closed door, picturing the hallway closet set not far from it. Inside there she had hidden it in a place where many men would be embarrassed to search through, and had hidden it well.. "You searched through the maxi pads? Holy fuck! And I hid it inside one of them -"

"Hahaha. You should not underestimate me. You're dealing with the culprit behind the Wara Ningyo murders. If I can deal with setting myself on fire, I can deal reaching into a package of woman's maxi pads."

" . . . . Maybe I should've hid it among the used ones then."

" . . . ." B's face faltered and he scrunched up his nose, dark eyes glaring into blue. "I believe I've just lost my appetite. That is just great." He grumbled and slipped the credit card into his pocket.

"Maaan, after all the post-mortem mutilation you did you find that disgusting? Of course I think it disgusting myself, but still - chopping off limbs and such is not?"

"The mutilation of bodies that I did, did not include that part of the anatomy. And I am going back to the other room to sleep now." He growled and slid off the bed, his dark lined eyes shifting to where the L plushie now lay on the floor after falling from Jeichan's arms. Glowering at the plushie he picked it up and studied it with disgust, his lips pressed firmly together and his eyes glinting with anger. "It is highly inconsiderate to have plushies of L but not of me. I nearly defeated him after all, if only Misora hadn't gotten smart…."

"No, you just stupidly mentioned something you should not have known to her. If you hadn't then she wouldn't have figured it out in time to prevent you from burning to death." Jeichan sighed and sat up on the bed, back against the wall. Outside the faint light of dawn was approaching and she studied the brightening world through the window - there was no way she'd get back to sleep. "The stores won't open for another few hours, and I don't know how advisable it would be to have you tag along shopping, so give me back the credit card and go do whatever…."

"No…."

"B…."

"I'm tired of hiding. It…it infuriates me how L has probably not even thought about me, hasn't even consider that I could be here too…." B grumbled, tossing the plushie onto the bed, his expression a mixture of wild fury and a pout.

"Sheesh….You're just too cute looking like that. Ok, we can go hang out somewhere today…maybe Dairy Queen or Friendly's, or an all-you-can-eat buffet with an all-you-can-eat dessert bar….." Jeichan muttered, her lips holding a slight smile at the corners.

"What the…? An all-you-can-eat dessert bar? There's a place like that nearby? Where?" B straddled Jeichan once again, his face mere centimeters from hers. "Why did you wait this long to mention it?"

"Give me back the credit card and I'll bring you there. Also…." Jeichan grinned evilly, holding out her hand until B complied. "You should feel special, I haven't even told L about the all-you-can-eat place yet….he still owes me for eating my Reese's."

0

"Ah….Mello, not there! No….wait!"

"No, I can't wait any longer."

"No, they'll hear…you can't….ah!"

"Shut up, Matt, you're making this sound like a porno." Mello seethed, eyes narrowed as the TV screen flashed a huge 'Game Over' sign, swarms of blood-sucking aliens feasting on the RPG's main character. Matt groaned beside him mumbling how he had to sneak around the aliens in order to pass this part of the game, and that getting caught meant an automatic game over. "Play it yourself then!"

"But this is the boring part, I want to save myself for the big boss character right after this." Matt whined while grabbing the controller from the blond's hands, lips twitching with a concealed grin as he watched Mello catch onto what he said. The nineteen year old turned and glared at the red haired gamer.

"What do you mean 'saving yourself for' the big boss? Are you trying to sound perverted? Or have you been hanging around Jeichan too long?" Mello tore open the wrapper of the nearest chocolate bar and chomped down on it while he grumbled, ignoring Matt as the teen restarted the game using the save file to a higher level. Monsters swarmed Matt's character the moment the level began and he began tearing through their numbers gleefully.

"If you've interpreted that as perverted- holy hell, DIE! Argh! - that quickly, I think you're - Oh no you don't, die! Die! - the one hanging around Jeichan too long." Matt leaned forward toward the screen, jabbing the controller buttons at expert gamer speeds and cursing the enemies out, all while continuing his conversation with Mello. He glanced at the blond briefly from the corner of his eye, turning back to the game as Mello lifted a soda can to his lips. "…though I'm ready for you to take me anytime, Mello."

Beside Matt, Mello sputtered and choked on his soda, face turning red from being unable to breathe and embarrassment at the red-haired gamer's unexpected words.

"Hahahahaha! Whoa, your face! Hahaha!" Matt dropped the controller as laughter ripped through him at Mello's response, the alien zombies ripping apart his character on the game screen. "Its all red…priceless! Oh, hahaha…."

Mello face reddened further as anger replaced his initial embarrassment and his fist tightened around the soda can, crushing it. The next second he lunged with a snarl, knocking the heaving with laughter red-haired gamer to the floor.

"Stop, Mello, you're too rough! Go…Get yourself off -." Matt pushed against the blond, pausing in his laughter briefly before realizing the unintentional perversity of his words. His face reddened deeper than Mello's, who froze for a moment before throwing another readied fist at Matt's twisted form. "Holy hell, I meant get off of me. Ah! I didn't mean…it's not my fault…Jeichan's been corrupting me! Agh."

"Go stay with Jeichan then! Why did I agree to share an apartment with you anyway? So annoying, waking me all hours of the night with your stupid requests to play….tiring me out with your…."

"….interesting…." Mello and Matt froze at the unexpected voice interrupting their solitude and the soft click of the door as it closed. "You two being here must mean I have died….I began to wonder…."

"What the…" Mello and Matt turned toward the intruder, eyes roaming over the shoulder length white-blond hair and the slender body clothed in a stark white shirt and pants. Dark gray eyes stared back at them as the interloper twirled a strand of hair with his right forefinger and thumb. "…NEAR?"

"Yeah….it's been a while, Mello, Matt….I….."

"What are you doing here? Did you die? But….you look older….." Matt pushed Mello off of him and sat up, goggled eyes absorbing the used-to-be-same-age fellow orphan's appearance: the child-like Near had grown in height and possessed a less delicate, more wary facial expression, and an aura only age or experience could bestow. "How…?"

"….it doesn't seem those who take the mantle of 'L' can make it past the age of thirty. I just celebrated by twenty-seventh birthday last week, and now…." Near glanced around the apartment living room, then headed to the nearest chair and sat down in it, one leg pulled close to his chest, the other hung loosely so that it touched the floor.

"Maaan. That blows. So what sort of criminal killed you off?" Matt asked without hesitation, missing Mello's sharp glare but noting the yellow-blond teen's disguised interest in Near's response.

Near's cheeks pinked and he abruptly looked downwards at the floor with a sudden darkened expression. His lips firmly pressed together, he studied the floor as he considered how to respond. He sensed his fellow orphans' eagerness to hear his reply, and knew they'd just continue to pester him even if he pointed out it was a morbid topic.

Still studying the floor, he slowly shook his head, the pink on his cheeks fading though he felt no less abashed. He listened to Matt's intake of breath as the gamer misinterpreted his head shake and began to protest, quickly cutting him off with a crisp reply.

"Criminals didn't kill me….an earthquake and a tower of Rubik's cubes did."

Silence filled the room while Mello and Matt merely blinked, then gaped as what he said sunk in. The next moment laughter fit to wake the dead filled the apartment.