A.N: Ha, ha, who has another one-shot-turned-three-shot they'd like to share? Why... me, of course. Who else would it be? Lol! And no, I'm not kidding when I say that this was originally a one-shot that just went too far. By the time I was finished, it was fifty freaking pages, and that was BEFORE it was beta-ed! ((Face Palm)) I hate to think how much longer it's going to be now... Yet, I only have myself to blame. It all started one day when I turned on my Sirius radio, and low and behold, what was on but Secondhand Serenade's "Fall For You"? And then... the plot bunny killed my soul. Ask Kit-chan, she'll tell you! It nearly ate her alive, too!

I'm telling you, monster-status. XD

So, the rest of the story is done, but will be posted in two-day intervals so that you guys (and myself) can take a small breather. And by the by, this story is humor, but not the outrageous humor some of you may have come to expect from me. It's more down-to-earth, and definitely not as raunchy. ... ... And I mean definitely not as raunchy. Lol! Reviews are love, and just to let you know, I love being loved. Lol!

Special thanks goes to my beta, Kitsune55, who rocks in the most awesome of ways. I still feel guilty to this day for giving her this one-shot to edit all at once. O.O Poor, poor dear. Lol! Give her some love as well, people!

Disclaimer: I do not own "Fall For You" by Secondhand Serenade, nor do I own Death Note, which should be obvious by now by both my lack of riches and bitches. Boo-hoo to me.

"The best thing about tonight's that we're not fighting…

Could it be that we have been this way before?

I know you don't think that I am trying…

I know you're wearing thin down to the core.

But hold your breathe,

Because tonight will be the night that I will fall for you

Over again…

Don't make me change my mind

Or I won't live to see another day-

I swear it's true.

Because a girl like you is impossible to find…

You're impossible to find."

-"Fall For You" By Secondhand Serenade

Title: Fall For You

Chapter One: Wearing Thin Down to the Core

Raito scoffed as he got off of the bus, glancing around the abandoned bus stop in a scornful manner.

Still nothing.

Relaxing his posture, the 21-year-old man sat down on the decrepit bench that lay almost falling apart after years of abuse; the very same bench that held a memory so near and dear to the graduating collegian, that at times, it even hurt to think about. Raito sighed as he caressed the darkening wood, thinking of a day not so unlike this one…

A day where his whole world had unexpectedly come crashing down.

On this same exact date for the last four years, Raito continually came back to this same spot, looking for something that he knew would mostly likely never come, yet yearned to see.

As much as at times he wished to forget about this place and all the sentiments it held for him, he could not. Something tied him here that was much stronger than any stubbornness Raito could ever manage to conjure.

Hope was such a tricky thing sometimes…

Sepia eyes closed as the college student lay back against the aging wood and allowed his thoughts to slowly drift away, silently wondering just when the other half of their promise would finally be fulfilled.

"Don't you have some graveyard to haunt?!" 17-year-old Yagami Raito yelled as the immoveable object that was L Lawliet stood in his way, once again making him feel as if he just stepped onto a set of a horror movie. "I have enough people stalking me as it is, let's not add you to the list, shall we?"

Pale skin, gaunt from eating nothing but cake, seemed to illuminate against the orange glow of the sun, face partially obscured by the lengthy obsidian locks framing the boy's panda-like ringed eyes. Slightly slouched over within his incredibly uncomfortable-looking school uniform, L sighed as the attractive student in front of him scowled, so used to the overdramatic teen at this point that it barely even fazed him.

The bored teenager shoved his hands within his pockets as he rolled his large onyx-colored eyes, shrugging his book-bag on top of his slightly hunched over shoulders once more, wondering just why he bothered with the irritable boy sometimes. "Believe me, Yagami-kun, I do not feel the need to join the mindless masses and attempt to follow your lead. I have come to you for another matter altogether."

Raito scoffed, flicking his bangs back as he crossed his arms against his chest and raised his perfectly sculpted eyebrow in response.

"It seems that in our competition to become first in class over the past four years that we have reached a stalemate according to our student records." L bit his thumb, hating to have to admit that he had failed in trumping the boy after years of scholastic competition. It was well-known that both L and Raito hated each other with a passion, and to have to tell the other that they had reached a tie…

It was humiliating to say the least.

"And?" Though Raito was also seething internally, he did not understand why L would feel the need to tell him about it, especially if it was the truth. Wasn't that their principal's job?

"We graduate in little more than a month, Yagami-kun. What do you think that means in accordance to the valedictorian slot?" The brunette's eyes widened in response as L brushed his messy ebony locks away from his tireless orbs.

"No… no way."

"It seems that we have four weeks to create a speech that will, what was it that Sato-san said? 'Wow the committee and student body,' fellow co-valedictorian."

"What about all the afterschool activities and volunteer work I put in?!" Raito cried out, not caring about the scene beginning to break out, other students slowing down in their trek as they stared at two of the most intelligent boys ever to grace their school's halls seemingly beginning one of their infamously destructive tirades. "Doesn't that count for anything?"

"Well, Yagami-kun must also take into account that I have done just as much in accordance to that as well." L could barely hold in the smirk at the outraged look on the 17-year-old's face, ignoring the fact that his own face had held the same look not even 2 hours ago. "All the volunteer work I have put into the library and hospital, my position as editor of the school paper, advisor of our literary club, being co-captain of the tennis team along with Yagami-kun…"

"Alright, alright, I get it! Neither of us gets an edge…" Raito finally took in a deep breath, trying to hold in the surge of anger bubbling just under the surface of his façade of calm. "So what, then? We don't have any say whatsoever in this? Obviously you must be just as pissed about this as I am!"

"Yagami-kun is correct. I was not pleased when Sato-san informed of me their 'well-thought out' decision." L tapped his thumb against his lower lip. "But there is nothing else we can do about this situation that would be satisfactory to us both."

"What the hell do you mean?!" The much less composed student glared at the pale boy now staring up at the sky, as if it itself held the answer to all the questions of the universe.

"Well, would Yagami-kun like to give up his spot as co-valedictorian?" L questioned, already hearing the shrill response before spoken.

"Hell no!"

And there it was.

"And neither do I. Therefore, it seems that, regardless of any other options, we are both at an impasse. As the scholastic committee anticipates this as a result, they are expecting the best of the best from us both." A pale hand reached into the never-ending depths of L's jeans pocket as it pulled out an over-sized cherry lollipop and un-wrapped the plastic covering from the delicious treat in record time. "Does Yagami-kun realize what this means as well?"

Raito groaned in response.

"They do realize that the last time we worked together, we almost killed each other and got the other landed into the hospital as a result?"

"We were thirteen then, Yagami-kun. Barely teenagers. I am sure we will be able to get through these next four weeks with little to no trouble." L gave an obnoxious slurp of his lollipop, relishing in the wince sent his way via Raito. "We are both much more mature now than we were then, yes? It might even be a bit fun."

The chocolate-eyed teen gave L a dubious glance.

L simply returned it with his own wide-eyed stare.

"Yeah…" Raito sighed as he ran a hand through his cinnamon locks. "I'm sure we'll have lots of fun trying to give the other concussions."

"That could be fun as well. Yagami-kun will meet me at my home today after school." L then announced before turning around and entering the building, the sound of the bell ringing signifying the end of their lunch break.

"Why not meet at my house?" The boy called out, arms flailing angrily in response.

"Why not mine?" The dark-haired teenager called out in return, barely looking back over his shoulder.

Raito rolled his eyes, knowing that if he didn't stop this game now, it would make them both not only late for class, but bruised and battered beyond belief.

'Mature my ass…'

"Fine…" The light-haired boy finally relinquished.

And with that, L finally left without so much as a goodbye, not hearing Raito muttering to himself as his shoulders slumped, ready to bang his head against the nearest wall in his vicinity.

"Godspeed to us both."

Operation: Write Speech – Week One

Raito looked down at his notebook, feeling a sort of morbid fascination at the implication of the words.

'With L, everything ends up being a damn mission anyways.'

The bell finally rang, teenagers whooping at the sound as they quickly stood up and charged towards the door, ignoring the instructor still speaking in vain. Raito slowly gathered his things, waiting for the horde of people to finally die down.

"RAI-KUN!"

Raito sweat dropped in response.

"… Amane. What's up?"

"I heard about you and L!" Amane Misa immediately jumped up on top of Raito's desk, ignoring the weird looks everyone around them sent as they continued to walk out the door. "I'm so sorry! I know that must suck sooooo bad, especially because it's L of all people... and everyone knows you practically can't stand the ghoul…"

"Yeah, well…"

"Amane! How many times have I told you to leave Yagami-kun alone!" Takada Kiyomi glared over at the childish blonde sticking her tongue out at the dark-haired beauty. "Hello, Yagami-kun."

Misa gagged as the slightly more mature of the two blushed once Raito smiled back in response.

"It was nice talking to the both of you, but I really do have to get going, girls…" Raito smiled charmingly as both girls swooned, internally rolling his eyes at both of their antics. "Things to do, people to see… unfortunately…"

As both girls continued to gawk at him, Raito strolled by, nodding at his instructor in way of departure. Thoughts of what perilous mis-adventures lay ahead of him almost made the boy shiver, but he held it in, knowing that no matter how much he hated it… he was going to be spending his precious afternoon at L's house.

Dear God, what he had done to deserve this fate?

In all of his years of knowing the pale, gangly boy, Raito had only been to the boy's house/mansion/manor/castle three times.

Once when they were five, L had been forced to bring someone from his school back to his house on his grandfather Quillsh's orders. Though the two fought constantly (even as children), Raito was the only person L could even slightly stand to be in the same vicinity of, and luckily for him, he had asked the other five-year-old whilst his mother had been standing right next to him.

They both knew Raito would not say no then.

The 'play date' had lasted a grand total of ten minutes, after L threw a bucket of paint (where he had gotten a bucket of paint from, neither Quillsh nor Raito would ever know) on top of Raito's head and Raito, in return, punched him in the face and pushed him inside the refrigerator and locked him in for a good five minutes.

Both boys still shivered at the memory.

The second time Raito had been at the boy's house was when they were in the fifth grade. Both boy's had been assigned as partners on a project for their science class.

It was sufficient to say that Soichirou, Raito's father, and Quillsh had been this close to killing the moronic teacher for doing such an idiotic thing when both boys not only hated each other, but were so incredibly adept when working with chemicals of the scientific nature.

By the end of the first day, L no longer had any eyebrows as a result, and Raito could never look at volcano's the same way ever again.

The third, and final, time Raito had ever been at the boy's house was when they were 13, and their brand spanking new seventh grade History teacher decided that two geniuses of their caliber just had to work together to produce something amazing for their history paper on the Samurai…

The hospital had then had their names engraved on a set of plaques above two seats in the ER after that fight, reserving them for whenever they had anymore of their ridiculous rows. Even now, the new nurses were neatly instructed on what to do whenever they were brought in thanks to that incident.

Raito could still feel the scar on the top of his head, underneath his hair…

But Raito digressed.

The boy made his way to the gate, ringing the doorbell set there. After a swiveling of a camera above said doorbell, the gates automatically opened, revealing a long walkway to an equally humongous home.

Raito began his trek, giving one silent prayer up to whatever God existed that L had no paint or volcanoes within the vicinity of his castle.

That would just be cruel and unusual punishment by any means.

"L?"

A pair of large ebony eyes matching his own looked up into the thin teen's face as silvery hair swished to the side, the small boy tilting his head in inquisitiveness.

"Yes, Nate?" L stood up from their kitchen table, ignoring the mess of wrappers and half-eaten candies and other various treats strewn on the surface.

"Your friend is here to see you." Nate blinked as L's face turned a faint pink before disappearing rather quickly.

"He is not my friend, Nate," L sighed as walked past the confused boy, glad that his other two siblings were too busy raising havoc in the arcade in town than at their home. "Simply an associate from school. Although…"

"Hm?"

"Would you like to meet him, Nate?" L did not wait to hear the answer to his question as he walked out of the kitchen and into their main hall, ready to greet his greatest of foes.

Nate simply shrugged before slumping off after his brother, curiosity winning out before anything.

"Yagami-kun."

"L."

Both boys kept their cools, at least on the surface.

The underlying tension, however…

Nate blinked, never having seen this side of his big brother before.

It was almost like the two boys were in a world of their own…

"I suppose before anything else, I shall have to introduce you to one of my younger brothers who I have taken the responsibility of caring for upon my grandfather's temporary absence." L mumbled as he ignored the slightly bemused look on Raito's face as the words 'younger brothers' exited his mouth. "Nate… please come here. This will be the person assisting me on the speech I was speaking of earlier; Yagami Raito. Yagami-kun, this is my younger brother, Nate."

Nate tightened his grip on his teddy bear as he shuffled his way over to the older boys, perusing the brunette's figure before landing on his warm cinnamon gaze.

"Hello, Yagami-san." Nate whispered as he bowed half-heartedly, before dropping his sight onto the floor.

Raito knelt down to the boy's level, offering a small smile as he beckoned the boy closer and offered his hand.

"It's nice to meet you, Nate-san. You could just call me Raito if you want." The younger of the two shyly smiled before shaking the teen's hand.

"Thank you and likewise."

L bit his thumb, tilting his head to the side as Raito straightened up once again.

"Well, are we going to get started, or what?" The brunette quirked his eyebrow over at L, waiting for whatever the teen had to dish out in insults.

The quieter of the two teens shrugged before slouching off into the kitchen once again, obviously expecting Raito to follow.

Raito felt his eye twitch before glancing down at the boy still staring up at him.

Nate simply held his hand out to the amused brunette, smiling once again. This garnered a grin out of the older boy, allowing his grasp to be taken before making his way after the much more annoying of the two siblings.

"Obviously that's wrong." Raito stated as he glanced down the paragraph written by none other than L Lawliet.

"Yagami-kun is delusional." The dark-haired teen scoffed as he slurped on his strawberry hard candy. "My wording and metaphors are perfectly acceptable."

"Maybe in your demented mindset, but to the rest of the world, that would be wrong." Raito threw the paper down on the table, already feeling a headache bubbling in the back of his head.

Both boys glared at each other as Nate continued to play with his puzzles and toys', sitting contently to Raito's right as L sat at the end of the table on Raito's left.

"Yagami-kun does not know what he is talking about." L ground out, obnoxiously chewing on the candy as Raito sneered over at the boy, knowing L was only doing it to annoy the crap out of him.

"This is coming from the anti-social freak of the year who is trying to compare his first year of high school to a damn strawberry." The prissy teen flicked the smooth locks of hair out of his eyes as the child next to him began to make car noises, crashing his cars against one another rather violently. "Hm… I'll definitely take your sound advice any day above my own."

"Obviously the strawberry itself holds a deeper meaning than just being a strawberry-"

"As I'm sure our classmates will see…"

"And if our classmates cannot see that, they obviously should not be graduating from high school to begin with."

"Because of your warped strawberry metaphor?"

"Yagami-kun…"

"I'm sorry, let me just get over the fact that you just debated someone's eligibility to finish high school because of a metaphor… based on a strawberry." Raito faked a big breath before banging his hands against the table, and nodding emphatically. "Ok… I'm good."

"Yagami-kun is now trying my patience." L stated uselessly, knowing once Raito was on a roll (especially in concerns of insulting him), he would not stop no matter what anyone said.

"Woosh…" Nate then crashed his plane onto the table, bringing his army men over to salvage whatever was left of the wreckage. "Boom… Help us…"

"Trying your patience? Considering you never had any to begin with, that's quite an amazing feat." Raito leaned forward and placed his chin against the palm of his hand, his arm now perched against the table. "So tell me, was this patience buried deep inside yourself, or, and I consider this more likely, from wherever you managed to pull the strawberry metaphor? Like, your ass, maybe?"

A twitch of L's eye was all the warning Raito got before the piece of cake that had once lay innocently on the table now became splattered against Raito's usually perfect face.

Nate took the tank that lay on his right side and dropped it onto the floor, before conveniently slipping away from the room unnoticed.

From the sounds of Armageddon arising from the kitchen, Nate could only assume that it was all downhill from there.

"L LAWLIET! WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU DONE TO MY KITCHEN!"

L blinked as the sponge that lay uselessly within his hands dropped onto the table, splattered bottles and somehow, busted cans, of various food completely enveloped what used to be the kitchen floor. The teenager himself was covered from head to toe in edible items, looking like the poster child of messy eating.

"… Yagami-kun did it."

Quillsh sweat dropped.

"Why was he even-"

"We were both honored with the valedictorian spot at graduation." L stated needlessly, scratching his nose as his grandfather eyed the wreckage with a weariness that belied his age. "It seems we will also have to co-write a speech together, and as a result-"

"I don't even want to know the rest. Where's your brother?" The older man asked, his head throbbing painfully against his temples.

"In his room, safe and clean." L replied before retrieving the fallen sponge and continuing in his cleaning. "For someone as volatile as Yagami Raito, they both got along swimmingly."

Quillsh sighed as he grabbed the grocery bags he had dropped in shock and carefully made his way towards the island in the middle of the kitchen, the only still relatively clean countertop within the wrecked room. "Perhaps it is only with you Yagami-kun holds any hostility with, L. For some bizarre reason that I can never fathom, you manage to inspire the worst out of the poor boy."

"I do nothing with him that I do not do with everyone else." The grouchy sugar-depraved teen mumbled, missing the smirk implanted on his grandfather's face as he pulled out some jars and set them on top of the counter. "I treat him with the same indifference that I give all the other students, even go out of my way as to not interact with him, and yet still that does not please Yagami Raito. I do not understand him whatsoever…"

Quillsh simply gazed at his grandson, wondering how such a smart boy could miss something so obvious.

"Perhaps a truce is in order then, just until graduation. After that, you two will never have to see each other ever again." L froze in his cleaning, back straightening at the sound of his grandfather's words.

"Never…" The faint murmur did not go past the older man unnoticed as the hand holding the sponge began to move once again. "I suppose so."

"Soon, he'll be out of your life for good…" Quillsh began to put away the cans as he turned his back to the boy he had practically raised from birth. "Soon…"

'And maybe that's the problem, dear grandson.'

"Raito, what the hell happened?!"

Yagami Soichirou backed away in horror as his food-splattered son quietly and neatly tucked away his smeared sneakers at the doorway and began his trek up the stairs, not even deigning to look at his father's direction.

"Raito, answer m-"

"L Lawliet."

That was all the answer Soichirou needed as he sweat dropped, allowing his son passage as a vein began to throb on his forehead.

The poor boy looked as if he were ready to explode.

Raito made his way into the bathroom and shut the door, not even bothering to shed his clothes as he jumped into the shower and turned the cold water on at full blast, wondering just why he even bothered any more.

Operation: Write Speech – Week One

Today was absolutely horrible!

Can you believe that the stupid idiot actually wanted to compare studying in his first year to eating strawberries?! EATING STRAWBERRIES?! Who does that?!

I swear, sometimes I think he does things like that just to piss me off…

I wouldn't be surprised that was the case, anyway! Yet the thing that gets me is he actually looked serious about the whole thing. Well, I mean more serious than usual. And when he gave me the paper to read, he honestly looked as if he valued my opinion on the stupid thing. But that isn't possible. L doesn't care about what I think. It's always been about beating me and making me eat my own words. What an asshole.

Though I did learn that he magically spawned siblings from the time he was thirteen to now. It's weird, since I've never seen them before… but L never talks about his personal life, so it's not that surprising all the same. For all I know, he probably hacked off his arm and spawned new life, like an evil L-sponge, or something. Hm. Actually, now that I think about it, that really wouldn't be too implausible to think about…

Dear sweet mother of all that's good in this world, I am actually contemplating this, aren't I?

Damn it, L, even when you're not here, you're still driving me fucking insane!

God, how long am I supposed to deal with this kind of crap?! This skinny jackass isn't even worth glancing at, and yet he manages to get under my skin without trying…

Why is that?

Raito glanced down at his own writing, wondering just why he was surprised at the animosity of his own words.

He had never actually asked himself just what it was about L that bothered him so badly.

'Hm… There's something to think about.'

The tired brunette simply shrugged before closing his journal and climbing into his bed, eyes closing before the boy's head even managed to hit the pillow.

'But those are thoughts… left for another day…'

"Yagami-kun."

Raito almost smashed his head against his locker as the familiar baritone voice called out to him after nearly a week of hardly even looking in his direction.

The brunette had thought it strange at first, knowing that this was hardly the first (or the worst, for that matter) of their fights, but if L wanted to ignore him, he would ignore the boy in return. He could out due anything L did, and he would prove it continuously if he had to.

But now L was speaking to him as if nothing had happened.

What the hell?

Raito slowly turned around, tucking the book he held underneath his left arm as he swung his book bag back against his right shoulder. Blinking, the 17-year-old brunette stared at the other teen, sensing something different in L's persona as he slouched closer to his person.

"I must speak to Yagami-kun about the speech before the end of the day. Will he meet me at the library during our lunch break?" Even the way L spoke seemed different than before as Raito nodded, speechless in his assessment of the usually bored-looking teen.

"I will wait for you near the vending machines behind the old staircase on the first floor to discuss the matter at length." Without another word, L took his leave, Raito watching him in disbelief as he fought to determine just what was up with L.

'Did I just… somehow get one-upped by L?'

Raito blinked before turning about-face and walking to his next class, hoping to eliminate the last five minutes from his memory banks, and make it to his AP Psychology class without making a complete ass out of himself…

Again.

"So what the hell is it, now?" If there was one thing Raito hated wasting, it was time. And quite frankly, L had a way of uselessly ticking down the minutes, along with the rest of Raito's sanity. "Going to throw more cake in my face? Try to shove a weird strawberry metaphor down my throat and then wonder why the hell you're so fucking weird? Or are you going to cut to the chase and just put me out of my misery for once and for all?"

"We are graduating soon, Yagami-kun." Raito blinked as the pouty teen began to bite on his thumb, an almost forlorn look set on his normally unmoved visage as the random comment threw Raito off guard.

"Yeah…" The misanthropic brunette leaned back against the vending machine, wondering just where L was taking all this. "And?"

"Everything will change in little over three weeks. Does Yagami-kun not realize this?" Raito shrugged as the boy continued to nibble on his thumb, just a bit more voraciously than before. "If there is one thing about Yagami-kun and I that has held true throughout the years, it is the animosity we hold for the other. But after graduation, that will change. Does Yagami-kun find himself thinking about this?"

Raito shifted within his spot against the smooth metal encasing, the thought never actually entering his mind until now.

"It is most probable that I shall never see Yagami-kun ever again, as I am transferring to an American school in the Northeast." L glanced down at the ground, missing the way Raito's eyes widened at the confession. "And though I have always held Yagami-kun as a worthy adversary, I must ask myself, in all the times we have worked together, have we ever completed anything we have been tasked with?"

"No…" Raito admitted, knowing that even when both boys had ever come close to finishing a project, their fights either destroyed the whole damn thing or they never began to begin with anyways. "We haven't."

"It is with this thought that I propose a heavily thought out truce to Yagami-kun, so that we may finish our last project together. A sort of adieu, if you will, to our past aggressions and a beginning to a completely clear slate." L shuffled his sneaker-clad feet against the libraries carpeting, still not glancing up to meet the other boy's gaze. "Does Yagami-kun accept?"

There was a thing to be said about Yagami Raito. If there was one thing he hated to waste, it was time.

"Of course."

And time, he refused to waste.

"Meet me at my house afterschool tomorrow, then." Raito smirked, remembering the nearly identical words having come out of the other boy's mouth just a week before. "And we'll get started on our last endeavor together."

L hid his smile behind his thumb as Raito spun around as regally as possible and walked out of the library, having lost the battle, but quite ready to win the war.

Operation: Write Speech – Week Two

Tanned hands flicked the journal shut as a knocking intruded Raito's thoughts. Slowly lifting himself up, the amazingly conceited brunette ran a hand through his pale chestnut colored locks before opening the door, not the least bit surprised to see the pale, gangly teen that was L Lawliet.

"Took you long enough." Raito muttered before holding the door open and nodding for him to enter. Soichirou peeked through his own door and raised his eyebrow, silently asking his son if he would need to get a construction crew after both boys were done doing whatever it was they were doing.

Raito simply rolled his eyes before shutting his door shut with a soft click.

"Before we begin," L shrugged his book bag off against the boy's bed before plopping himself on the floor, bringing up his knees to his chest rather childishly. "I believe a set of rules is in order."

"Rules?" Raito grabbed his computer chair and sat down, crossing his legs as he did so.

"Yagami-kun does not truly believe that we will be able to get along without some sort of boundaries, does he?" L began to take out a notebook from his bag, barely glancing up at the other boy as he pulled out a pen and began to scribble some things down. "No ridiculing of metaphors should be our first rule."

Raito almost scoffed, just out of habit.

"Fine. But only if the metaphor is well-thought out and actually holds a bit of substance in concerns to what the students will be able to understand and graduating." Raito shot back, watching the dark-haired teen grumble to himself.

"Duly noted." L finally looked up at Raito, his large ebony eyes ringed with dark smudges making the slightly uncomfortable brunette even more uncomfortable than before. "Next, we shall have to no longer insult each other for this work."

Both boys stared at the other.

"I honestly don't think I know how to do that with you." Raito answered honestly, realizing that he had never had a conversation with L that didn't include insults. "Uh…"

"To be truthful, I am in the same position as Yagami-kun." L admitted, knowing the same was true on his own account.

"How about this; we'll just cut back on our insults. Is there anything I've insulted about you that bother's you in particular?" Raito leaned back, blinking at the incredulous stare L shot at him.

"Besides everything Yagami-kun has ever said about me?" L began to write things down in his notebook again, his dark fringe obscuring his gaze once more. "Oh, nothing specifically."

"Well, you're no saint either! You've practically called me gay from birth, and I still don't know why!" Raito glared at the boy as a faint smirk overcame L's face.

"… … Does that hurt Yagami-kun's feelings?"

"You know what?! Forget it!" The frustrated high school student dramatically stood up from his chair and crossed his arms against his chest. "This is obviously not going to work! I don't think us working together is even plausible, let alone something that's within our abilities. We hate each other… that's obviously never going to change, whether it be now or fifty years from now."

After a moment of strained silence, L carefully picked himself up from where he was sitting on the floor and straightened himself at full height, meeting Raito right in the eyes. "I must admit something to Yagami-kun that I think may shock him into speechlessness."

Raito raised an eyebrow, not impressed with the boy's love for corny climatic effect.

"I do not hate Yagami-kun." L announced, looking as if it were revelation just made on the fly.

"Bullshit." The words came out without Raito even realizing it the first time.

"Say what you will, but my words are true."

"Double bullshit." The second time, however, was all Raito's doing.

L pouted as his widened his onyx eyes. "What must I do to get Yagami-kun to believe me?"

"Nothing! I know you hate me! Years of hating me prove you hate me!" Raito seemed almost hysterical at this point, as the one constant in his life that always held true was being shaken at its core. "What the hell are you trying to prove now by saying you don't hate me?!"

"I suppose once I realized that after these next few weeks that I would never see Yagami-kun ever again, I finally understood just how much of a staple Yagami-kun held in my life." L tilted his head to the side, watching the boy flinch slightly at the reminder. "I have realized after years of fights, that though our confrontations consisted mostly of conflicts, Yagami-kun is the only person I have felt even a slight inflection of tolerance for. The world seems gray without Yagami-kun to brighten it just ever so slightly…"

Raito coughed. "Have you always been this sappy?"

"Yes. Hasn't Yagami-kun ever noticed?"

"I suppose I was too busy dodging your punches and kicks to really realize it." Raito stated dryly, a smile beginning to twitch at the edges of his mouth.

"Hm. Well, it is after much thought that I have realized that Yagami-kun is my first and only actual friend." L sat back down against the floor, back leaning against the mattress of the bed as he stared up at the shell-shocked form of Yagami Raito. "And if Yagami-kun thinks about it, I suppose the same applies to himself as well."

As much as Raito wanted to say otherwise, he knew everything the lying bastard was saying… was actually true.

Damn it.

"So, I suppose any and all gay jokes are to be excluded in our lists of insults, Yagami-kun?" And as much as a part of Raito wanted to punch the other 17-year-old boy in the face, another much greater part could only laugh out loud at the ridiculousness of it all.

"You are such an ass."

"And Yagami-kun wouldn't have me any other way."

Operation: Write Speech – Week Two

I… can't believe it.

I'm sorry, I'm still in shock so give me a second.

Or two.

Or a billion.

I actually got along with the stupid jerk. Me, Yagami Raito, actually got along with my (former?) arch nemesis, L Lawliet.

WTF?!

Ok…

Uh…

WHAT THE FUCK?!

After having him practically confess his… undying friendship (?!), we finally finished off our sets of rules for the other on how to practically get along. Which only makes me wonder just what kind of 'friendship' this is going to be anyway.

Sadly enough, though… I actually think I might just enjoy being L's friend.

Dear God, I think Hell just froze over and someone just tossed about in their grave.

Yet in retrospect, how long can a truce between myself and the most annoying sugar-addict the world has ever seen actually last? We've barely tolerated each other for the last 17 years, and I'm only just able to use the word 'barely' because we don't fight ALL the time.

Only 99 percent of it. That 1 percent counts, damn it.

But that's not the point. The point is, I don't think I'm going to survive these next two and a half weeks. In fact, I predict great doom and destruction onto myself, and it only gets worse as I continue to think about it. And no, I refuse to admit I am scared shitless about what's to come…

At least not out loud, anyway.

Hopefully, I'll live to see graduation and have a speech to go along with it.

Keyword: Hopefully.

Definitely going to need some sort of medication after this…

Raito looked down at what he had written, still wondering just what it was he was getting himself into. Dropping his pen, the high school senior closed his journal and turned off the light, wondering just what the future held for two enemies-turned-'friends' who didn't know what the hell they were doing.

'Well, at least if I go insane, I know I'll have someone going insane along with me…'

TBC...