L x Reader oneshots 1 // series 3 • Death Note

Braids

A/n: for those who aren't white girls with pin straight hair, this one is for you.

You looked down at the vanity full of products, knowing this was gonna take forever but it had to be done. You'd been so busy with the case you'd negated your hair recently, and it's gotten a bit well... wild. So with your time off today, you had to tackle the task of taming it. With such fluffy hair that coils and tangles, you needed to take care of it frequently. Although the case had really gotten in the way.

First was to wash it, which you'd done last night. Next was to brush everything out, put your products in and start braiding.

Dragging the comb through your hair, pulling out all the knots you really started I regret letting it get so tangled. Your arms were already sore. As you brushed everything out, you could hear chatter downstairs as the taskforce continued to work overtime, they had no sense of taking breaks. This case had gotten in the way of everyone's lives and even small basic things were being neglected. People forgot to have breakfast, they'd spend days on end away from their family, they'd burn themselves out and fall asleep on the desk. And of course there's you, who somehow managed to go weeks without even touching your hair and letting it have a mind of its own.

"Man I really need to organise better..." you muttered to yourself, flipping the comb to use the handle to part your hair.

Hair now brushed out and parted the way you wanted, you rubbed your favourite creams and oils through it to keep it healthy. Not really paying attention to the world around you, being focused on getting their hair done, you jumped when you heard the door open.

"That smells good" L's voice rang out.

You looked up at the mirror and saw him in the reflection.

"It's for coconut oil in it" you replied.

"That'll be it then"

"What are you doing here Mr 'sleep is for the weak, I must work"

L sighed, walking over to you to snoop in on what you were doing.

"They're going off topic again, I'm getting bored of listening to their already debunked theories" He said.

"And watching me is more entertaining?" You replied.

"Yep, saw you were doing your hair on the security cameras"

That's right, there were cameras in this room. That means he probably saw you struggling to get the knots out and whacking your arm on the vanity in the process.

"This is going to take me forever, I've neglected my hair for too long" you complained.

"How are you doing it?" L replied.

"Braids, keeping everything neat and tied down"

L looked at your hair for a moment, and then over at the pile of products you had on the vanity.

"You do one side, I'll do the other side. It'll go faster" he said, picking up a comb.

"What the- since even can you braid? Your hair is fluffy sure but not coily" you replied, rather shocked to learn he apparently knew how to braid properly.

L combed your hair out, taking a section and spreading it from the rest.

"I babysat a kid back home with hair like yours. She loved to play dress ups so much I had to learn a million hair styles" he explained.

"You're full of surprised aren't you..?" You replied, watching in the mirror to make sure he was getting it right.

To your surprise, he was able to whip out a braid with the fastest fingers you'd seen. Neat, tied off properly and not so tight it hurt but tight enough to hold its shape.

"Wow, look at you go. I'm impressed" you smiled, picking up a comb to start on your section.

"You has no idea how many hairstyles I had to do back then" L replied.

"Box braids?"

"Yep"

"Cornrows?"

"Yep"

Damn, he knew a lot more than you thought.

"Dutch braids?" You asked.

"That one was a hit" he replied.

"Afro puffs?"

"So was that one"

"That zigzagging part everyone in the 90s was obsessed with?"

"That one was a bitch to get right" he snickered.

There seemed to be a lot you didn't know about L, this was all news to you. He seemed to know enough about hair to be a hairdresser. Whoever this kid he babysat was must have been one demanding girl to want all these different hairstyles so often. And L must have liked her if he was willing to learn them all.

"You're full of surprises" you chuckled.

"You'd be surprised the amount of random skills I've picked up over my life" he replied.

You were impressed not just by how much he knew, but by how fast he was doing this. He was already halfway done his side of your head while you'd only gotten a few rows done. To be fair though, it's kind of hard to see the back of your own head to get everything right.

"What about your hair? Have you done anything to it or do you just wake up leave it?" You asked.

"I wake up and leave it. I don't have to do much to it" he replied.

"Man I wish I could do that sometimes. Although you'd look good with long hair you know? Don't get me wrong you suit the emo cut, but you'd also be pretty with long hair"

He stopped for a moment, processing your words before continuing to braid.

"You think so?" He asked.

"Yeah man, black hair always looks good long. Especially when it'd be all wavy like yours" you replied.

He took a mental note of that, maybe he'd have to let it grow out at bit if you thought he'd be pretty with long hair. He was just surprised you found him pretty at all really.

"You'd have a field day with my hair if it was long" he said.

"Oh you bet I would. I'd be doing all kinds of styles for you, plat loops, space buns, Misa's pigtails..." You replied.

He was quicker than you thought, finishing off the final braid before you'd even gotten halfway. When he'd finished his side, he moved to yours and helped you finished it.

"Goddamn you're quick. Thanks for helping, I'd have been here all day if not for you" you thanked.

"Don't worry about it. It's more fun than listening to the same debunked theories all day" he replied.

"Maybe you can be my hair stylist from now on"

"That wouldn't be that bad actually, it'd give me a break from work"

It didn't take long for the two of you to finish off, and before you knew it you had all your braids done and your hair care almost completely over before lunch even started. Thanks to L, you'd have extra time to kill today. You looked in the mirror, examining everything and running your hands over it, feeling the bumps of the braids.

"You're good, I'm impressed" you complimented.

L just shrugged like it was nothing.

"You know what, just for that I think you deserve a reward" you continued.

He raised an eyebrow, not that you could really see it under his overgrown fringe.

"And that would be?" He asked.

You got up and looked up at him with a sly grin before placing a kiss on his cheek and leaving a lipgloss stain on it. He froze up for a moment, then slowly bought his hand up to touch his cheek in disbelief.

"I- I guess I should do your hair more often..." he stammered.

"I'd like that. You can get a kiss for each braid you finish" you replied, placing another kiss on his other cheek.

His face went red, and he had to take a moment to just stand there and reel in the warm fuzzy feeling. He'd DEFINITELY be helping you with your hair again.