Warning: Rated 'M' for a reason- LxLight (boyxboy) oriented, there will be a lemon(s) later on in the story, and a spoiler for anyone who doesn't know L's real name within this chapter.

Author's Note: I've had this weird idea for a story in my head for a while and I've finally gotten around to writing it. In this chapter L and Naomi are kinda close, but this is an LxLight story, so I apologize to all the LxNaomi lovers I'm going to let down... It's actually kinda funny because I really hated that pairing, yet here I am writing something close to it; I think it's because I'm so sure of what's already gonna happen between our two favorite boys… ;3

So without further ado, here it is! (~*v*)~

Chapter 1. Sorry

"We find the defendant… guilty."

Damn it.

Mikami Teru was an exceptional lawyer. In fact, he was a downright brilliant one. He'd won case after case, and even developed a reputation for doing so. But this… this was wrong. He was losing this case, and he didn't know why. No, he did know why; it was because that damn judge along with the jury was being quite generously bribed. His client was being accused of murdering a man, poisoning him to be specific, and there was no evidence to prove that he was responsible for the man's death, yet here the jury was 'finding him guilty'.

His client was going to rot in jail for who knows how long for a crime he didn't commit. It was unjust and disgusting, just like all of the filthy, greedy people within this court room who seemed to have no remorse for their crimes against an innocent man.

To let someone be wrongly persecuted like that…it was against everything he'd worked for and everything he believed in. He couldn't let it happen…even if it meant concocting a fraudulent 'defense'.

"Objection, your Honor. My client isn't mentally stable; if one isn't in the right mind, they have little to no power over their actions and can't be judged as a sane individual would," the dark-haired lawyer pleaded. This was his last resort, his last way of saving the man from jail at this point; he only hoped to God that his client would get the idea and play along for both their sakes.

The man looked up at the judge with a rather detached and deranged gaze. Perfect. He knew his client could fake insanity! I mean, everything about the man already screamed such an idea; he was pale with dark circles under his eyes caused from insomnia that made him look kind of like a panda, sat like a weirdo (to be quite honest) with his knees to his chest in a chair, and was so apathetic that it was hard to tell if the man even knew what was going on around him. They could definitely do this.

The judge looked thoughtful, and Mikami held his breath. They must have a chance seeing as the judge hadn't dismissed it immediately.

"Given what you've just claimed…I will let the Jury decide once again with that going into consideration. For now, I will postpone this case to exactly one week from today," the Judge said, finality ringing about the room as his voice echoed through the silence.
Mikami let out a sigh of relief, seeing his client relax more as well. He gathered his things in silence, walking out of the court room with his client L Lawliet.

As soon as they walked away from the building, Mikami came closer to L. "This is our last resort. I know your innocent, and they're lying for money. I don't know who's bribing them, but I've handled cases like these before; they're difficult to win."

"I know who's bribing them," L whispered, looking up at Mikami with his onyx eyes.

"Who?"

"A drug cartel. More specifically, the very drug cartel that I had investigated," he sighed. He might as well explain. "I am a highly successful undercover detective Mikami, and I had been working on a murder case where illegal substances had been involved. The police couldn't solve it, so they came to me, and I had handled it… But someone close to me told…'the enemy' just who had been responsible for putting one of their top men behind bars. And I'm only assuming it was someone in close contact with me since I have no other leads and no explanation as to how someone outside of my close circle could even get near enough to me to know such things."

Mikami took all that in. "Wow," he said lamely.

"'Wow', indeed… So I can really do nothing other than claim mentally insane…how unfortunate this is all turning out," he spoke to himself.

Mikami pursed his lips. "You'll have to stay in a mental institution for at least a year, but after a certain amount of time you can 'get better' and start being 'normal'. How good are your acting skills? Then again, since you're so apathetic now all you'd have to do is start showing some feeling… Yes, that should suffice… So do you think you can do that?"

"Yes. I can." He sighed heavily. "An asylum… I wonder what that'll be like; surrounded by the insane day and night, treated as if I'm one of them, and also having to act like one of them. I might just snap during the process." He looked over to Mikami, putting his thumb to his lip thoughtfully.

Even if the man was sane, he still kind of gave Mikami the creeps looking at him like that.

"I'm sorry I can't help more," Mikami said solemnly.

"I'm sure that if there was anything you could do to help me any more you'd do it, so an apology is not needed. In fact, I think a 'thank you' would be appropriate. So I thank you, Mikami Teru."

"…It's my job," Mikami said with a weak smile.

Mikami's eyes widened as he looked at L. He could've sworn he'd just seen the faintest smile grace his client's lips. He looked down and smiled inwardly. He glanced over at the odd man once more before muttering a good bye, walking in the opposite direction. As Mikami walked down the busy streets of Tokyo, he was unaware of the growing frown making itself apparent on his face.

How could he let this happen? He knew better than anyone that it wasn't his fault (his record of cases won showed that his capability wasn't to be questioned) but he couldn't seem to push away the feeling of guilt bubbling up in his chest. His innocent client would have to spend at least a year in a mental institution…a sane man in an asylum! And even though that thought sounded terrible, it was better than the alternative that was jail…Right? He hoped it was.

His frown turned into a grimace as he realized that there was really nothing he could do; he'd never felt so utterly powerless in his life. He knew that the law wasn't perfect, but he'd never been so blatantly exposed to corruption of the system. It may seem rather insignificant to others, but each innocent person being affected by the holes in the law was to lose their life; to be broken. The very thought made him feel sick.

Such a rotten world, he thought.

L walked into his mostly empty apartment, immediately moving to sit in his favorite armchair – his most used and appreciated piece of furniture.

He was nervous, yes, and anxious to know what the outcome of the case would be, but he felt he could do it; he knew 'how' to pull it off, but actually surviving in a mental institute (when you're sane) and just thinking about doing so are two very different things.

The dark-haired man had become lost in thought when two swift knocks got his attention. As he got up to get the door he noted that the sky had gotten significantly darker – he must've been sitting there for a couple of hours.

He opened the door and was greeted by the sight of a beautiful young woman.

"Miss Misora," he acknowledged.

"Please, Ryuzaki, call me Naomi," she told him. "We've known each other too long for you to be that cold," she said smiling playfully, but strangely, it didn't meet her eyes. Then the smile vanished.

"Is it true?"

L held his breath. "…How much do you know?" he whispered.

Naomi bit her lip, her expression becoming one fit for a funeral, and before L knew it she had pulled him into a hug.

Now L wasn't very fond of physical contact with others, but he wasn't rude enough to push her away; he had a good idea of what she could be feeling at the moment. They had worked together on many cases and 'knew' each other well enough to be viewed as 'friends'. No, Naomi didn't know his name, or that he was an undercover detective while also being her co-worker, and no she didn't know just how intelligent he was either, but he enjoyed her company nonetheless and had always been impressed by just how talented of a detective she was; she was indeed the closest thing to a friend he had.

"Ryuzaki… they're going to put you away?" she whispered, her face in the crook of his neck.

"Yes. In either a prison or a mental institution," he answered factually. He wasn't quite sure how to deal with such close contact mixed with such intense emotions. Then he felt a certain wetness, and knew that she was crying.

"Naomi, please don't cry."

"R-Ryuzaki," she cried, hugging him tighter. She pulled back to look at him. Her eyes were slightly red and her cheeks were shiny with tears. "How can you be so calm about something like this?"

"…Getting upset would be pointless. It wouldn't change anything."

Naomi looked back at him, frustrated. "Pointless? So what do you plan on doing Ryuzaki? Sitting here until the court day?"

"That seems about right."

"You're unbelievable sometimes, you know that?" she snapped. He just stared and watched as she closed her eyes, willing herself to calm down.

"I wish I could help."

L looked down, rubbing his toes together, doing anything not meet her eyes. He just couldn't. She was expressing all the feelings he was suppressing and it was making it difficult for him to continue to do so with her so openly displaying them.

Then he felt a hand on his chin, and jumped in surprise as she leaned closer to him.

Shit.

He knew what was about to happen, but he wasn't going to be fast enough to stop it.

"Miss Miso-" he tried.

She cut him off with a kiss. A kiss so light and unsure that it could barely be called a touch. It was filled with sadness, confusion, and something L couldn't quite recognize. She pulled back, her forehead leaning against his, her breathing shaky.

He couldn't help but feel flattered that she was attracted to him, for he'd never felt attractive before or even seen himself as someone's possible love interest; however, he didn't have such feelings for her or anyone.

"…I'm so sorry Naomi. I realize that you have feelings that are more than friendship for me and I cannot accept them. Again, I'm sorry but I cannot return them and I wish you would not take it personal. You are a friend to me, perhaps my only true friend, and I don't wish to cause you any form of pain by saying that that is all you are to me, but I also do not wish to lie."

She inhaled sharply, not looking up or letting him go. "…No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that, and I understand."

Her words were like a slap in the face. They were drenched with so much hurt that he felt guilty in a way. How long had she had something for him? He knew that was a bit illogical, it wasn't his fault if he didn't feel the same way, but…

Would sharing my cake with her be an example of me being insensitive? Maybe I've been accidentally leading her on…

She moved towards the door and turned the knob, but stopped in her tracks. "But… why?" she asked softly.

It wouldn't hurt anyone for me to tell a small lie for her benefit…

"I am merely not attracted to females, Naomi."

He pursed his lips. Just because he didn't want to lie didn't mean he wouldn't, and it might make her feel better to know that it wasn't because he didn't like her specifically like that. And honestly, it wasn't exactly a lie per say, he had never been attracted to either sex.

She stared at him for a few moments, almost as if she hadn't heard him correctly. "Oh…oh… I-I had no idea."

He stared back at her. He didn't care if she or anyone else thought he was homosexual, though the fact that she wouldn't judge him if he were proved to be more comforting than he thought it would be.

She gave him a weak smile. "I really do understand now." She wiped the tears brimming around her eyes. "I'll be going."

He gave her a small nod and watched the door close behind her. He sighed. He hoped that things between them would go back to normal…not that it would matter seeing as he wasn't going to be around for much longer.

L spent most of the week sauntering around his house- quite comfortable in enjoying his home until he'd have to leave- seeking an escape from reality, for just a little while. In his mind anything was possible; in his mind, there was no court case, no final sentence creeping closer and closer with each passing day, and there was nothing that could threaten him. In his mind, he was safe.

His thoughts were his safe haven, yes, but over time he'd become lonely. Such loneliness would start to constrict him, to suffocate him until he felt utterly trapped, and he'd think of nothing other than trying to escape before it consumed him.

When he wasn't seeking nor shunning his mind though, he was with Naomi who would come over with movies and snacks just to talk to him.

"I wish I could take your place tomorrow."

He looked over to her and away from the TV screen with wide eyes and what was almost anger. "Why would you say that?"

"…You're much too fragile."

"Bu-"

She moved closer to him on the small couch and wrapped her arms around him. L couldn't help but think that this was how a mother held a child.

Protectively...

Then she started to hum, and L tensed in surprise. She smiled lightly at him and continued, her hand coming up to run her fingers through his hair. He would give her this much, and frankly he was enjoying it; it made him feel secure, and surprisingly sleepy.

Before he knew it, he had leaned against her and his eyelids had become heavy. It was peaceful, and he let sleep take him.

Author's Note: Was it alright? I hope it wasn't boring. O.o But not to worry, things had to start this way to prepare for everything else that's going to happen… X3

Oh! I wanted to mention that there will be other couples that will be more than introduced within this story. Other couples such as: MelloxMatt, MelloxNear, MisaxLight (Misa's love for Light that is and will remain one-sided), and possibly some OC characters to throw into the mix will be shown too. I won't give all couples a random lemon or some limey events, but I will take requests! So if you have a favorite couple, let me know! ;)

P.S: Reviews are nice! They make me happy and inspire me to write faster, so please take the time to let me know what you liked and where I can improve! :) And sorry in advance for any mistakes I failed to notice and correct.

Sayonara :3

-Sashimi123-