/!\ WARNING: VERY LONG CHAPTER. :D
AN: I really wanted to finish this chapter by Thursday night, but I was forbidden by mom from writing past nine o'clock. I did my best to finish this by Friday, and here I am now, typing away this author's note at 12:05 in the morning here in the Philippines :D
This chapter is very long, but I enjoyed writing this. :D It made me very happy to write this one, and since I ran out of people to dedicate this story, I am now dedicating this and the next chapter to the two persons who brought out the best in me and encouraged me to continue writing.
This is for the one I truly love the most. Hope you enjoy it, Lancelot :)
[Act 3 – Page 10]
--
Welcome home, sweet home, going back to a place I love.
-Okaeri, Zettai Kareshi
--
Light fell on the ground with a loud thud, his knees trembling madly. The bullet hit him in the arm, and he winced at the pain that suddenly stung him. He was thankful that it didn’t hit his chest, or else it will be fatal, and he won’t be able to protect Ryuzaki and Amaryllis
He stood up eagerly, trying to ignore his bleeding appendage. He’ll worry about it later, for there are other things he need to attend first. This is for the best, anyway.
“Light-kun...”
The brunet turned around to face his friend, giving a rather pained smile to reassure him that they will be safe and sound, and then walk towards Misa, the smile never leaving his lips.
“What the hell?! Why did you...why did you catch the bullet?! Why are protecting them?!! I thought you’re on my side!!!”
Light’s smile widened and he continued to drag his body towards the model. Misa was unnerved with his action, and she raised the gun and shot Light again...and again...and again.
“Ugh...” Light coughed harshly, but shook the pain off. He wanted to be close to his love, and if catching these mean bullets is the only way to touch her, then he’s glad to do so.
“Why?! Why?! Why are you doing this?!” She punctuated each question with a shot, but Light didn’t seem to mind that he’s starting to wobble and his blood oozing from the bullet wounds he received. “Stop it! Stop it, Light!!!”
Misa pulled the trigger again, but no bullet was released. She tried again but failed miserably, and she resorted to her last escape; that was, running away. But before she could even turn around to run, Light grabbed her on the waist and pulled her against his trembling body, gripping her tightly.
“Let me go, you idiot!” She screamed, struggling against him and slapping Light’s wounded arm.
Light only groaned, his constant trembling hindering his task to prevent Misa from escaping. His wound was suddenly hit, and he bit his bottom lip to stop himself from screaming in pain.
“If you stop struggling, then I might release you.” He whispered harshly, his grip tightening against the model, but Misa didn’t stop. A groan escaped and he furiously pulled the syringe from his sleeve and injected the clear liquid on Misa’s arm, pushing the transparent fluid inside her veins. This made the model shriek in utmost pain, her body going stiff and then limping in his arms.
“There, there.” Light kneeled slowly and helped Misa lay down on the floor, the shock of being paralyzed by some unknown medicine brought tears in her eyes. Light swallowed thickly at the sight, but he shook away the compassion that flooded his heart. Now is not the time to be emotional. Besides, he still needs to find the control that will lead to a bigger chaos if pressed accidentally.
"What..."
Light didn't bother to turn around. He knew that the detective is inquiring about what happened to Misa.
"Suxamethonium chloride. It's only for short term paralysis, but I guess this would work."
He rapidly looked for any push buttons that she might have been hiding, his mind fearing the result if he unintentionally pressed anything that will send the warehouse into flames.
When he found none, he screamed in frustration. L quirked his head, his heart beating faster.
“What’s wrong, Light-kun?”
The brunet spun his head around and looked at him warily.
“There’s a bomb planted in this warehouse and from what I gathered, the control is kept by Misa, but I can’t find anything that might be used to remotely command it to explode.” He quickly explained, his mind once again frantic.
L seemed to think about it first, until he suddenly murmured something that Light couldn’t properly understand.
“What was that?!”
“Her phone! Her phone might contain the program that will direct the explosive!” L spoke loudly, wanting to punch Light in the head for not even thinking about it.
“H-Huh?! Wait!”
Light searched for her phone, smiling like a lunatic when he found it. His fingers fumbled to open it, only to throw it away when he saw the screen displaying a countdown timer.
“One hour and fifteen minutes!”
“What?!”
“Quick! There’s no time to lose!” Light dragged himself up and pulled up Rue who passed out due to blood loss. L exited, assisting Amaryllis the whole as they walk with enough speed down the long staircase. Light was about to follow with Rue supported in his shoulders, but stopped when he saw Misa staring at him with pleading eyes, tears dripping down her cheek and her body still paralyzed.
“I-I’ll be back. I promise!”
He quickly dragged Rue’s body with him, nearly falling down the stairs when he attempted to run away.
“Damn it!” Light angrily whispered under his breath. The hallway is too long, and he was running out of energy. Ryuzaki was out of sight, and with his failing faith, he leaned on the wall, his legs refusing to cooperate with him. He slowly dragged Rue again, his eyes crossing because of exhaustion.
“I...I can’t... ugh...”
He collapsed on the cold, tiled floor, his breathing turning into shallow gasps and his eyes closing slowly.
I’m sorry...
With a final exhale, his body gave up.
--
Darkness consumed his mind. Voices are everywhere, haunting and taunting him for showing how weak he is. Light covered his ears and curled up, tears forming in his hazel eyes.
He heard footsteps, and when he looked up, Amaryllis was looking down at him with sadness in her eyes. She gently propped down, caressing his wet cheek.
“Light...”
Her voice was similar to a ghost, and it sent a shiver down his spine.
“...I’m sorry...” He faintly whispered.
“Don’t be. You haven’t done anything wrong...”
“...No. I did a lot of mistakes...I’m sorry...I’m really sorry...”
Amaryllis then caressed his hair, so gentle and so soft that it made him cry harder.
This was the girl he dumped for another one, and he regarded himself worse than an idiot.
“You should save her...”
“...Huh?”
“She’s waiting for you...”
And within a second, Amaryllis morphed into Ryuzaki, the man looking down at him with dull eyes.
“If you won’t get up, I’ll kick you.”
--
Light snapped his eyes open, suddenly awake. He groaned lowly and stood up, overlooking the pain of his wounds. The thought of Ryuzaki kicking him made him cringe, but it helped in grounding his attention. He regained his energy back, and with his remaining strength, he lifted Rue once again, doing his best to quickly reach the main entrance of the warehouse. He can’t afford to lose time now.
He nearly collapsed again, this time in relief, when he saw Ryuzaki placing Amaryllis inside the limo. He dragged the red eyed man and quickly pushed him inside the car. Ryuzaki climbed inside, supporting the two casualties and looking at him expectantly. When he just stared at him, the detective shouted at him.
“Why are you just standing there? Get inside, you idiot!”
That seemed to do the trick, and he snapped out of his daze. He shook his head and turned to face the warehouse; it had taken forty minutes for him carry Ryuzaki’s twin down, and now he only have a small time to return upstairs.
“What are you doing?!”
“I’m going inside.”
“What?!”
He looked at the detective with a smile.
“You risked your own life in saving Amaryllis. Now I’ll risk my own life for Misa.” Light smiled again, then ran inside, his lithe frame swaying slightly, eager to reach the room as fast as he could.
--
L just stared at the disappearing form of Light. He can’t believe that his friend would do the same thing; he always believed that Light’s ego is far more important than his emotions.
And now that L was wrong in such assumption, all he could do is smile.
He prayed for Light’s success, and then turned his attention in attending Amaryllis’ and Rue’s condition, opening the medicine cabinet that was hidden under the seats.
--
Light jogged on the hallway, forcing his legs to move faster. He climbed the stairs quickly, holding on the railing for support when he nearly tumbled down. His wounds started to hurt again, but he dismissed the pain, and continued to climb up, gasping desperately to catch his breath.
Suddenly, the ground rumbled and the stairs shook. Light pushed away the pain in his legs and jumped up on the last flight of stairs, crawling away when he felt his feet go numb. He cursed himself repeatedly and continued crawling, only to stop minutely when the ground floor tiles shattered and exploded into small pieces, the fire consuming the long carpet along with the curtains, and the stairs where he climbed from collapsed and succumbing into the burning blaze.
Light stared at the mess in horror.
He had forgotten about the bomb! How pathetic was he?
He slapped his forehead and tried to stand, successfully doing so.
This stunt might kill him this time, but he found out that he didn’t care anymore.
“Misa!”
He coughed when the smoke reached the second floor, but his desperation forced him to concentrate. He found the model still lying down on the floor, crying and coughing. Light quickly kneeled down and pulled Misa in his lap, caressing her hair and rubbing her back in an attempt to calm her down. That did the trick, and the model leaned on him, gripping at his bloody shirt. The effect of the drug seemed to have worn off, and Light was thankful for that.
He raised the blonde’s head to wipe away her tears and brought their lips together in a searing kiss.
Once their physical bond was broken, Light embraced her tightly, not wanting this moment to end.
The fire consumed the upper floor, but he didn’t care anymore.
As long as Misa is in his arms, he didn’t care about anything else.
He closed his eyes, a smile adorning his face while the flames destroyed the room where they are residing.
--
L stared at the crumbling building with horror. He shouldn’t have let Light go back inside, because that idiot seemed to have forgotten about the bomb that was planted at the basement of the building.
His genius mind calculated the risks of going inside and saving Light, but when his emotion overcame his decisions, he cursed logic and opened the car door, startling Watari at the driver's seat.
"L, what are you-"
"I'm going inside."
Watari gaped at him. "What?!"
L looked at the person who stood his father for years, and with a sad smile, he answered.
"Light may be insane, but he's my best friend. I'm willing to save him."
Watari stared at him, at loss for words. But after a few seconds, his frown turned into a smile. He nodded solemnly, that made L's smile brighten.
"I trust that you will take care of them."
"Yes. Oh, and please return safe and sound."
L nodded, and with that, he ran towards the burning warehouse, the building crumbling into nothing.
--
Amaryllis sat at the edge of the small bridge, her feet dangling on the water. Light smiled beside her and gently brushed away the fallen locks of her hair to get a better view of her face. She blushed slightly and turned her attention on the river stream. It wasn't like Light to act so sweetly, but Amaryllis felt that there's something going on; the real reason for the brunet's behavior.
She smiled slightly, but her happiness faded when she saw something on the water. Her reflection is clear, but there was another one, and it isn't certainly her boyfriend. When she leaned down a little, someone laughed behind her, and within a split second, a force pushed her down, and when she was able to lift her head out of the water, her eyes widened at the sight before her.
There stood Light and Misa, embracing each other protectively. A smirk adorned the model's lips and a disgusted expression painted Light's face. She shivered at the cold water, and while she floats there, freezing, Light whispered something on Misa's ear, and with a smile, they both walked away from her, eyes filled with hatred and loathing.
Amaryllis stared at them with weakness in her vision. She gave up with the thought of losing the brunet, and was about to let herself drown when she felt a hand drag her away from the deepest part of the water. Losing all her will power, Amaryllis collapsed on the ground after being lifted from the cold river.
"If you're going to drown yourself, I won't let you do it alone. I'll drown with you."
The voice was painfully familiar…and when she turned around, her blurry vision disabled her from recognizing the owner of the said voice.
But there were piercing dark eyes looking at her, and she knew that those orbs belong to only one person
Ryuzaki...
She looked at him directly in the eyes and asked softly.
"Why?"
He didn't answer, but smiled instead. Although his eyes looked happy, his smile brought out pain and sadness that formed inside his heart. He closed his eyes and rested his head on her shoulder, gingerly touching her hand with his trembling fingers.
The whole place turned black but a spotlight pointing down towards her, and she found herself in the middle of a crowd, wearing a ball gown and dancing with someone whom she doesn't even known. She wanted to stop, because she only wanted to dance with the only person who owns her heart, but her feet made the decision for her. They danced in circles until she felt her ankles hurt and her toes tingle. Her eyes became dazed in tiredness, but she didn't miss the owlish eyes that looked at her with loathing, and those eyes left her, running away and disappearing into nothingness.
"Ryuzaki!!!"
She broke from the metal-like clasp of her faceless partner and ran away, trying to find Ryuzaki and successfully spotting him.
"Please, Ryuzaki! Stop!"
He did stop, but when he looked at her, his eyes were filled with anger and hatred.
"What do you want now, Amaryllis? After what you have done? You said I'll be your first, and you said that you love me, but my sense of hearing was never wrong." He sneered at her, making the pain increase. "What you have told Light, I thought that those words were meant to be only mine, but your actions told otherwise. You never loved me. You lied a lot."
"Ryuzaki! Please, listen to me first! I really didn't mean that!"
"NO!"
With one hurtful look, Ryuzaki fled away, disappearing into nothingness, leaving Amaryllis broken hearted once again.
The whole place morphed again, and she stood in the middle of a large staircase, staring at Ryuzaki and another girl whom she didn't even know, hugging each other lovingly and she wished that she could pierce her eyes out, for she couldn't stand to watch such scenery, and everything suddenly melted, and there she is, trying to struggle out of Light's grasp before the brunet could hurt her. She screamed, and Light disappeared, leaving her into a crumpling form kneeling on the floor. Her memories played in front of her, again and again like a broken recorded tape, and it drove her onto insanity as the voices of people blended, the light blinding her painfully and her actions hitting her directly into the heart.
Stop it...
Please, make it stop...!
Someone...please...
Ryuzaki...
Ryu...
L...
L, please make it stop...
...
...
...
...
...
L...
…
…
…
The whole place was quiet, and when she opened her eyes, she saw Ryuzaki laying on the grass, his eyes closed and his face peaceful. Amaryllis looked around: it was a paradise beyond dreams. There were a lot of flowers and trees, the birds singing sweetly, the butterflies dancing with the gentle wind, and the sun shining brightly.
She quietly crawled towards him, a smile spreading in her lips when she saw a purple amaryllis on Ryuzaki's hand.
She gently traced the man's deep eye bags, careful not to wake up the man. Her smile widened as she playfully pressed her lips against his, Ryuzaki startling her when his hand pulled her into a deeper contact.
Yes, this is purely paradise.
And she couldn't be anymore happier that L is here with her.
...
...
...
--
Amaryllis woke up from her dream, sad that it was only a product of her sleep. She craned her neck to look for Ryuzaki, but she found out, sadly, that she was alone. It was the same room where she first woke up in Wammy’s House. Nostalgia struck her, and it brought a smile in her face.
She tried to sit up, but she couldn’t. Her body was rigid and her muscles felt like they were unmovable.
Could…could it be…?
She started panicking and her mind jumped into wrong conclusions. Her train of thoughts stopped when the door opened and Rue entered, his footsteps light and careful. He looked at her briefly, before his eyes widened in what could have been shock. He gaped at her for a few seconds, until the frown turned into a wide smile.
“You’re awake…Finally.”
“…What?” She asked, her voice small and scratchy.
Rue marched towards her and sat on the same familiar wicker chair beside the bed.
“After the warehouse bombing, you were unconscious for hours, until I examined you closely on the hospital, and you were diagnosed for comatose.” He began.
It was her turn to be shocked.
She was diagnosed…for coma?
“…H-How…long…?”
“Two weeks. Ryuzaki is actually frustrated and angry that I couldn’t do anything about it. I may be a doctor, but I don’t have the skill to wake up someone from comatose. That’s impossible and stupid.”
She felt her eyes soften. “…Where…is he?”
Rue laughed lightly. “He’s sulking in his room. I never dared to enter his quarters because I know how angry he is, and I won’t take any risks of fighting with him again. Besides, I think he’s content with eating sixteen whole cakes a day. I’m wondering how he never gets fat or diabetes at his lifestyle.” He ended with a chuckle.
Amaryllis suddenly remembered something. “…Are you…alright?”
“Hmm?”
“…I mean… aren’t you…shot by Misa? Are you alright?”
He smiled casually. “I’m fine. I’m used to it.”
“Huh?”
“Watari trained us on how to hold a gun, and what happened back at the warehouse is nothing new to us. L may be the world’s greatest detective and hides behind a screen, but he has his option to appear publicly on disguise. He was never content with such simplicity of the police handing him crime scene photos. He’s more paranoid than that, and that led us into a military training.”
“…”
“Don’t worry, I’m fine now. Besides, the bullet didn’t do much damage. You shouldn’t worry about anything, anyway. Everything is okay now.”
Amaryllis looked away, tears threatening to escape. How could she be so useless? Every one risked their lives for her, and she’s just lying down here? She mentally cursed herself, the tears making its way out of her eye.
Rue dabbed it away with his delicate fingers, smiling as he continued.
“Don’t cry. It’s over now.”
He sat on the bed and started stroking her hair like a big brother comforting his little sister, and that overwhelmed her heart that she couldn’t stop herself from crying.
“I-I’m…I’m so sorry…It’s my fault that you were…and Ryuzaki…and… and Light…”
“No, it’s not your fault. You just happened to be on the wrong place at the wrong time. Don’t blame yourself.”
She sobbed, her throat constricting for not being usable for the past two weeks.
Rue hummed softly before pulling out his cell phone with his free hand, pressing the speed dial of the phone that resides on the guest room.
“Yes, good morning. This is Rue. Yes, yes, she’s awake now.” He heard some relieved cries from the other line that made his smile widened. “Please come here. I believe that she needs you right now. Yes, thank you.” He closed the phone and Amaryllis looked up.
“…Who is that?”
He ignored the question and resumed stroking her hair. “Just wait.”
They stayed silent for a few minutes, until someone knocked on the door.
“Come in.”
The door opened, and her parents eagerly walked inside, staring at her in surprise, disbelief and relief. Her mother slowly marched towards her, before swiftly embracing her tightly. It was good that her wounds had closed now, or else she would have screamed. She returned the gesture eagerly, her cries of joy audible throughout the room.
It felt so good to be reunited again with her family, and Amaryllis treasured the time that she spent with her parents.
--
It was three in the afternoon when Rue walked into her room, carrying two containers of what could have been cream. He sat on the bed and pulled her arm, stretching it lightly and dabbing the white, cold cream against the dark brown scar.
The application lasted for twenty minutes because she refused to remove her blouse and let him rub the cream on her chest wound. He just snorted and proudly bragged that he had seen more naked women before because of his profession that earned him a slap on the arm. It ended with Amaryllis applying it by herself and with Rue outside the room, enjoying his precious jam.
She asked Rue if they have a rooftop at Wammy’s. He nodded and led her up there, where she gasped at the wonderful scenery of Winchester.
A few minutes later, and she was alone at the rooftop, enjoying the quiet ambiance it gave. Suddenly, she felt something wet on her arm, then on her face, and when she looked up, the dark clouds covered the sky, and this erased her smiled.
The rain started pouring, but Amaryllis refused to leave the rooftop. She just smiled and closed her eyes, humming softly under her breath. She halted her musing when the rain seemed to stop, and when she looked up, she saw an umbrella hovering above her, and when she turned around, she found Ryuzaki smiling at her.
“I believe that you aren’t fully healed. What are you doing up here? Shouldn’t you be at your bedroom?” He asked in a reprimanding tone, his sudden smile betraying his serious face.
Amaryllis smiled in return but ignored his consecutive questions. Instead, she grabbed the umbrella from his hand and threw it away, pulling him closer and planting a soft kiss. As time flew by, their kiss intensified, but it was broken when the need to breathe interrupted. Amaryllis laughed, grabbed his hands and waved their entwined appendages up in the air, a poor imitation of a dance. Ryuzaki rode with her crazy habit, and they laughed wholeheartedly as they danced in the rain.
When they were exhausted, they sat on the tiled floor, gasping incoherently. Their laughter slowly faded into silence, and both are happy with the way they are right now.
With her remaining energy, Amaryllis pulled his head down, capturing his lips again, and they continued in this manner until the rain stopped and the sun shone brightly on them, their wet clothes clinging into their bodies and their lips remain in contact.
Amaryllis smiled.
Yes, this is purely paradise.
And she couldn't be anymore happier that L is here with her.
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The End
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