A Friendly Gesture

Click. Click. Tap. Tap. Click. Tap. Click.

". . ."

Tap. Click. Tap. Tap. Click. Click. Click.

". . ."

Click. Tap. Click. Click. Tap. Tap. Click.

Sigh.

"Yes, Light-kun?"

Responding to his name, Light turned his body to look at the detective warily. He propped his head up on his palm and yawned; the chain that bound them clinked lightly with his movements. "Do you really need to ask? It's 2am… Don't you think it's about time to give the case a rest, and get some rest yourself? You never sleep, and your dark circles have gotten worse… It can't be good for your health."

"Are you really that concerned about my health?"

". . ."

"Please do your best to ignore me and get some sleep, Light-kun."

"Please sleep with me, Ryuuzaki-san. You look pale."

Click. Click. Tap. Tap. Tap. Click. Click.

Sigh.

Light laid his head back onto the pillow and stared at the mattress with half-lidded eyes.

Tap. Tap. Click. Click. Click. Tap. Click.

Light sat up straight and looked to his comrade's stoic face. "Ryuuzaki-san… how do you expect me to get any sleep when I know that you're awake?"

"Why should it bother you?"

Frowning, Light shuffled closer to his friend. He shut the laptop and darkness overpowered the room. He leaned over Ryuuzaki's lap and set the device on the floor.

"I was using that."

"Yeah?" Light spoke as he sat back up, effectively leaving the detective's lap empty. "Well now you're going to sleep." He circled Ryuuzaki's waist with his arms and slid back down to lay on the bed, dragging the form next to him along. He surprisingly received little resistance. He pulled the covers over the both of them and tried to go back to sleep.

"Are you okay, Light-kun? This is very unlike you," Ryuuzaki mused, curiosity evident in his usual monotone.

"Good night, Ryuuzaki-san," Light said simply as he buried a soft smile in his rival's back.

"Uhm… good night."

The next morning, Light awoke still attached to the older detective. Not having opened his eyes yet, he didn't pay it any mind. He even snuggled closer into the warmth. Snuggled! He inhaled the scent of sickly sweet vanilla and strawberries, and his mind skipped. That smell… His eyes snapped open, and he saw what he hesitantly expected. Slowly, he removed himself from the body before him and sat up. What the hell…?

"Good morning, Light-kun. Did you sleep well?" Ryuuzaki asked, unmoving.

Thinking hard about what happened, Light responded: "Uh… yeah. I did. You?"

"…acquiescently. Shall we get breakfast?" he asked, rising from the bed and looking to Light for an answer.

Light also stood, deciding to forget the small situation. It's not like anything extremely unnerving happened. "Sure."

Poking at his food with his fork, Light tentatively watched the raven eat his pancakes from across the table.

"Did you know that your personality changes slightly when you get tired, Light-kun? It's not dramatic, but you become less… protected. Your personal barriers diminish," Ryuuzaki commented.

Quirking a brow, the brunette answered: "Is that so." He poked at his pancakes some more.

It became… somewhat of a habit. Every night, Light would put Ryuuzaki's laptop away and pull him into a sleepy embrace. They would share their good nights and fall asleep together, tightly spooned. And every morning, Light would wake up confused. He would remember everything clearly, but not recognize why it happened.

It might not be such a bad thing though. I mean… his dark circles have lessened in size a little, so that's good. And I've been sleeping better without his constant typing. And my subconscious must be doing it for a reason… Ryuuzaki is the first real friend I've ever had; of course I'd feel a closeness to him. And there's also the fact that Ryuuzaki has never complained about it, or much less, resisted my holding him. I don't know… I need some coffee.

"Ryuuzaki-san, would you like to get some coffee? My treat."

"Wait a few minutes for me to finish this report, and I'll go with you."

Click. Tap. Click. Tap. Click. Tap. Click.

"Is this a date, Light-kun?"

Nearly choking on his coffee, Light looked up at the questioner. He quickly recomposed himself. "What? Why would this be a date? I wanted coffee, that's all."

Ryuuzaki looked into his coffee cup, thinking deeply. "Isn't it customarily a date when one person offers to take another person out somewhere and pays for said other person's confectionaries? You even bought me a scone. And with the way you've been acting recently… I was just thinking out loud, I suppose, but if you say it's not a date, it must not be."

"The way I've been acting recently? Does it bother you? I'm not sure if I'm really okay with it myself, honestly, but I can't help it. It just happens without my making it happen."

"I wouldn't say it bothers me. It's actually quite comforting; I'd like to think that we're close."

"…" Light decided on not responding and he swirled his coffee in his cup.

"Light-kun?"

"Yeah?" He looked up from his coffee trance to the detective's eyes.

L stared a moment before speaking. "I appreciate your friendship."

Light blinked. "Yeah, me too, Ryuuzaki-san." He smiled and continued to drink his coffee.

Friends. I like the sound of that.

So I wrote this a while back, April, I think, in a journal of sorts that I had. I no longer use that journal, but I found this today. It was incomplete and I can't remember to save my life what I was going for at the time, so I stuck a half-assed ending on it and I figured I'd post it as my first ever story on ~ ^3^