I Know Your Secret-Death Note

Parties of Cake and Misa (Part 3)

       Ori's mind was spinning. She felt hot and dizzy and sweaty and her lips were tingling. She felt drunk and confused and somehow ashamed, like it wasn't supposed to go like this. It wasn't though. They were supposed to bake the cakes, eat them and have a party, not suck face like a couple of horny teenagers.

       L's face was an unusual shade of pink, which didn't help Ori's pounding heart, but she pushed the image from her mind and shoved the cakes into the oven with spun the timer around.

       "I-uh... I need to go." She told him. He said nothing as she left the room; she was grateful. Face burning, she ran to the elevator and closed the doors. Now secure behind the strong metal, herlegs gave out and she collapsed. She couldn't breathe. She tried to gasp for air, but it froze before hitting her lungs. 

       She felt like she was going to combust. She felt hot under her clothes. Boiling. Was kissing someone supposed to make you so dizzy and lightheaded?

       Ori felt sick. She felt sick, but nothing came up from her stomach. Slowly, she sucked in air through her nose and out her mouth. The air was cool inside the elevator and it soothed her lungs and throat. 

       Maybe she was over exaggerated. It wasn't like the kiss had been bad. Far from it, but with Vivian's death and the Kira Case, it felt wrong. Holy shit, there was never even a funeral for Vivian. What had they done with her body? Did they just toss her in a morgue somewhere until they ran out of room and had to toss her somewhere?

       Ori's stomach churned again, but once more, nothing came up. She stayed on her hands and knees, gasping for air and wrenching on nothing until her throat was raw and aching. Sweat dripped from her forehead  and onto the gray carpeting. 

       She leaned back against the door, huffing and straining to catch her breath. With shaking hands she reached for her phone. Three more minutes until the kitchen timer went off. Maybe she could just stay in the elevator until the timer went off, finish the cakes, and never talk to L ever again. Easy peasy.

       "Fuck." She groaned aloud. She couldn't avoid him forever. She couldn't never talk to him again. But maybe she could just forget the kiss ever happened. They didn't need to talk about it. They didn't need to acknowledge it. No one needed to know. 

       She pushed herself to her feet and wiped the sweat from her face and neck. With a few more deep breaths, Ori opened the doors and strolled passed the Task Force members. They didn't notice her as she walked into the kitchen. Inside, L was gone. Disappointment and relief rolled around in her stomach like twin storms crashing on the serf of a beach, tearing into the sand and demolishing homes. What was wrong with her? One kiss and she was becoming a stuttering mess. She was Ori Nanase-Maggie End-and she wouldn't be torn apart by a boy. 

       When the timer went off, she pulled out one of the cakes and stuck a toothpick through it. She pulled it out and the toothpick came away clean. She pulled out the rest of the cakes and placed down the first chocolate cake.  It was then did she realize that there wasn't any frosting made. Great. Just... great. 

       She quickly went to work making a buttercream frosting. It was rich and smooth and perfect and Ori was completely miserable. She wanted L in the kitchen with her. She wanted them to mess around with flour (and maybe-possibly-kiss again). Ori trusted him more than anyone else on the Task Force, even Raito, she could maintain an intelligent conversation with him while also teasing him without him taking it to heart, where Raito broke down every time she called him perfect. He'd put her to bed and let her wet his shirt with tears when the weight of her mother's dead finally came crashing on her like a strong wave. But that didn't mean that she felt anything romantic towards him, right? She didn't get the strong butterflies, nor did she swoon at the mere thought of him. Ugh... why did feelings have to be so complicated.

       "Maggie!" Came the infuriatingly cheerful voice of Misa. Her loud heels click-clacked into the kitchen, stopping a few feet away. It seemed that she'd learned her lesson from before. 

       "What?" Ori asked dryly. Misa didn't pay any attention to her resigned tone.

       "I wanted to see if you needed any help with the cakes-"

       "Not necessary." Ori said blandly. 

       "Okay, you're right." She said dramatically. "I don't want to help with the cakes; they make you fat. What I really want to know is how long you and Ryuzaki have been dating." Ori had been holding a spoon covered in buttercream frosting in her mouth when Misa spoke and promptly choked on it. She coughed and fought to clear her throat before straightening and turning to face her.

       "What!?" Her voice was rasped and breathless. "D-dating?! We-we're not dating. He's my boss!"

       "Ooo~ work romance? How scandelous."

       "Do you not hear what I'm saying!?" Ori's heart was pounding in her chest. What was wrong with today? Why did today suck so much?

       "What I'm hearing is denial. I saw you two kiss." She waggled her thin eyebrows and Ori wanted to punch her right between them.

       "It was nothing. It was a kiss. It didn't mean anything." Misa stepped closer and Ori stepped back. This was wrong. All of this was wrong. 

       "I don't understand why you won't just go for it. You love him, he loves you."

       "Stop!" Ori was on the verge of hyperventilating. Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. "I don't understand what's going on! I'm confused and today was supposed to be an easy day for everyone to just relax and take a break from the case. We've all been so stressed out and-"

       "Maggie." Misa's voice wasn't as annoying as before. It was solid ground in a raging storm of frustration and confusion. "Take a breath, Maggie. It's all right. If you love him, you love him. There's nothing wrong with that."

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       SON OF A BITCH!!! I JUST HAD TO GO AND MAKE MISA A LIKEABLE CHARACTER!! I hate it when that happens. I thought this was going to be the last part, but that doesn't seem to be the case, so I'll just keep going until the party's over, I guess.