Metamorphosis

Chapter 19: Road, Driving Coach

Disclaimer: I don't own.

He shook her shoulder lightly with an un-bandaged hand.

"Lee. Lee-ee."

Lavi sighed.

The sun's first rays peeked in through the blinds and reflected off her ebony hair, pulled back in a loose bun.

The redhead lightly tucked the stray strands behind her ears, brushing others away from her face.

"Oi. Lee."

She still wasn't waking up.

He rubbed his neck, which was still sore from when he'd left his head hanging off the arm of the couch downstairs as he slept.

That thing was seriously too small.

He nudged her shoulder again.

"Lenalee."

His best friend stirred. Her eyelids fluttered but did not open.

"Mm…"

She stretched out like a cat, and then recoiled into a foetus position.

Lavi laughed as her bun came loose, her ebony tresses spilling over the mattress and all over.

He sat himself down next to her and ruffled her hair.

"Hey, wake up."

Lenalee turned to face the windows.

"What time is it?" she queried sleepily.

The redhead glanced at his bedside table, looking, among a million items strewn across its surface, for the alarm clock.

"It's eight twenty-"

Wait.

What were all those things doing there?

Lavi frowned. He recognised Lenalee's mobile phone and notebook. There were a couple of pens as well and a packet of mints.

"Eight twenty…?"

The ebony haired girl yawned.

"I'll get up in a half hour. We meet your driving instructor at ten…"

Lenalee shifted on the mattress again, curling her body. Her back was warm against Lavi's.

The redhead looked at her upon this contact and smiled, chuckling softly.

"You worked really hard for me yesterday, huh?"

He ruffled her hair.

"Damn, what time did you sleep, if you even did until now?"

He was inconspicuously inspecting the large dark circles under her eyes when she spoke.

"Well, thanks for waking me up extra early. I don't think I would have been able to wake up myself."

Lenalee sipped her mug of hot chocolate.

Lavi leaned against the back of the chair.

"'Welcome. I've been disappointing the heck out of you recently. Excluding yesterday."

The ebony-haired girl raised an eyebrow.

"Yesterday was worse, actually."

Lavi frowned at her accusing tone. He'd done fine yesterday! At least according to Allen and Chomesuke.

He'd actually done more than fine, to be specific.

Where was the justice in this world?

"Yeah? How so?" he challenged.

Lenalee took a sip from the white mug she held with both hands again before continuing.

"You never do that gentlemanly act here."

She snorted.

Lavi sighed.

"So you want me to act like a gentleman."

He rested his head on his palm, his elbow on the cool surface of the table.

Lenalee nodded with visible intensity.

"Yes."

She thought for a moment.

"And if you make it through, I will admit defeat."

Lavi's eyebrow shot up.

This prompted the redhead.

"Alright, then," he said slowly.

"We'll give it a try."

Lenalee smiled.

"Good. Now. Grab your stuff."

The ebony haired girl grinned at her best friend as she made her way to the sink to deposit and wash her mug.

"We're going to meet Road."

"You know, I had no idea Allen would be following us everywhere."

Lenalee rolled her eyes.

"You know, even if he's your boyfriend, you don't have to exploit him."

Lavi's tone was light, but she could sense the sarcasm dripping from his words.

"I am not exploiting him! Okay? Unlike some people Allen is nice enough and sensitive enough to know that I spent the entirety of last night up for your sake."

She folded her arms.

The white-haired boy in the driver's seat backed her up.

"Yeah. I don't mind, really, Lavi. She does need to sleep a little more, and since the place is far away from here and I know where it is, have time and haven't seen Road in a while, why not?"

Lavi sighed from the backseat.

"Alright, Lee. I rest my case."

The ebony haired girl frowned at his suddenly submissive demeanour.

"Thank you."

Cynicism trickled from her voice, a prompt to get him rebutting her every word.

"You're welcome."

Lavi's tone was polite.

Lenalee had not expected him to continue being so compliant.

He spoke again before Lenalee could reassume her efforts in annoying him into a light banter.

"Who is this 'Road' person any- by the way?" he corrected. "Do people just call her that or is that really her name?"

Lenalee snorted.

"It's her name," Allen chided, "Don't ask about the pun in that she's a driving teacher."

Lavi stifled a laugh.

Lenalee stepped up her efforts again.

She turned in her seat to look at the redhead seriously.

"You should get ready. Some of the things she's going to teach you are unimaginable, and possibly unacceptable in society."

Lavi frowned at her, not unkindly. More curiously than anything else.

"What do you mean unacceptable in society?"

They stood before a closed garage door adorned in the musings of delinquent teenagers.

The redhead stood, admiring the stray vandalisms, products of teenage boredom.

"She's late."

Lenalee tapped her forefinger on the surface of her watch.

Allen nodded.

"Yup."

There was the roar of a powerful engine and the three of them looked up.

A black Lamborghini with an electric blue hood rounded the corner at high speed, coming towards them.

To Lenalee, it seemed to be going too fast.

Way too fast for her comfort.

The ebony haired girl's heart almost stopped beating as the car continued to draw closer, still moving at top speed.

The engine purred as the car skidded on the tarmac, turning a hundred and eighty degrees to stop just in front of the three.

The car door flipped open – where it opened upwards – and a slim, striped-socked leg emerged from the darkness within the sports-car interior. A lithe form rose from behind the tinted windows.

A head of vibrant electric blue hair, just as blue as the hood of the Lamborghini, and gold orbs.

Oh, these were striking, yes.

But Lavi's emerald orb goggled at something else.

Lenalee smirked.

"Lavi, this is Road, your driving instructor."

…This 'Road' character really wasn't what he'd expected.

She looked to be at most fifteen, and was clad in a frilly white blouse with a red ribbon tied in a bow around the collar, and a short fluffy skirt. Not to mention the buckled shoes and black-and-purple striped high socks.

She looked like a little girl.

"Yo," the girl offered her free hand for Lavi to shake, "I'm Road. Nice to meet you."

She smiled innocently.

Somehow, that smile looked too sadistic for the redhead's taste.

A/N: hey guys. thanks to everyone who reviewed last chapter! they made me really happy. (: I'm so glad you guys are sticking to this story even though it updates oh-so rarely. thank you very very much! I'm going on a trip today, so I decided to post before I go. (: thanks again for reviewing and for reading! and a big hug to all of you who favourited or put this story on story alert! (and for even bothering with this story. xD) review? (:

also, a special thank you to that one reviewer who reviewed practically every chapter of my fic when I last updated. (: you know who you are~ :D