Was it meant to be?

Restless Sleep

Y/N's POV

It's been a week since that incident with Tessa, and things have finally settled down. She's been moved to a lower class due to her behavior, and the lessons have returned to normal. It doesn't feel awkward with everyone anymore, but whenever I think about what happened, I can't help but cringe. There's no changing the past, though.

Ever since Mello and I hugged, I can't fall asleep without thinking about him. I think I've developed a small crush, but I can't tell him. I don't want to ruin our friendship. Every night, I replay the moment he smiled at me; that memory warms my heart like nothing else.

I'm sitting on my bed, listening to music, when I hear a knock on my door. It's probably Shine again, coming in with yet another random question. "What now?" I mutter, a bit annoyed, but when I get no reply, I walk over and open the door.

"Shine, stop coming into my room! I just want to listen—" I start to say, but I freeze when I see Mello standing there.

"Oh! Mello! Hi! Hello! What's up?" I exclaim, my voice coming out a bit louder than I intended. Great, that doesn't seem suspicious at all.

"Oh, I'm sorry! Are you busy? I can come back another time," he says, sounding genuinely concerned.

"No, no! You're fine! Shine just kept barging into my room earlier, so I assumed it was her again, asking another random question. She could literally just message me like a normal person," I reply, mentally kicking myself for rambling.

"Oh, okay. I just wanted to ask something. Can I come in?" Mello asks.

"Sure," I say, stepping aside and allowing him to enter. He closes the door behind him.

"So, I know about that whole situation with Tessa, but I wanted to ask if you actually kissed Near and if you two are dating or whatever." Mello's expression is serious, and I can tell he's genuinely concerned.

My face turns beet red. "No! I was telling the truth. Near and I are only friends. A few people saw us talking in the library, and he walked me back because he was worried I'd get lost on the way," I explain, my voice trembling slightly.

"Oh, okay. But you don't have to be friends with him, you know? Did Watari or Roger tell you to be friends with him?" Mello presses, a hint of defensiveness in his tone.

"No! I want to be friends with him. Nobody told me to be friends with Near," I say, feeling a surge of frustration. I get that he doesn't like Near, but it feels like he's trying to control who I spend my time with.

"Alright. Well, L is coming to visit us at the end of the week. Just wanted to let you know," Mello changes the subject.

"Who's L?" I ask, genuinely curious.

"Right, I forgot you don't know. He's the world's best detective and used to live in this orphanage. He likes to visit from time to time. The reason we have this ranking system is to determine who will be his heir when he eventually dies," Mello informs me, his eyes lighting up as he talks.

I've heard whispers about L among the other students, and it's clear he's quite popular. I can't help but wonder what he looks like. It would be nice to see someone new. I tell Mello I'll keep it in mind, and he mentions he'll be in his room if I need him before heading out. It's a bit odd how he seemed so interested in Near, but I figure it's just because he doesn't like him. Wait a minute... Considering Near is ranked 1 and Mello is 2, is he jealous? I shake my head, deciding not to overthink it.

Twenty Minutes Later

Why can't he leave my mind? He talks to me for just three minutes, and now he's stuck in my head. Maybe I should go hang out with him. He did say he would be in his room if I needed him, which could be a sign he wants to hang out. I should at least see him for a bit.

I walk down the corridor and spot Near. I wave at him, and to my surprise, he actually smiles back. I guess we're making progress. As I walk, I notice there are seven doors in this section, even though only five of us live here. One of the rooms is a storage closet for cleaning supplies, but the other one, across from Shine's bedroom, is as big as the others. I wonder why they don't use that room. There's a patch of peeling paint shaped like the signs on our doors. Maybe I'll ask Shine about it later. For now, I head to Mello's room.

"Mello?" I call out before I knock on his door. He opens it, and we share eye contact for a few seconds that feels like an eternity.

"What's up, Y/N?" he asks, and all I can focus on are his eyes—they seem so powerful, and I'm folding under their gaze.

"Oh, um, well, I..." Why am I stuttering? "I wanted to..." What was my purpose in coming here again?

Mello giggles. "Did you forget why you came here?"

I nod, feeling flustered as he leaves the door open and sits on his bed, patting the space next to him as an invitation. I close the door behind me and take a seat beside him. An awkward silence fills the room.

"Missed my company, I see?" he jokes, a playful grin on his face. I laugh, but I can feel my cheeks heat up as a wave of nervousness washes over me.

"M-Mello, I...," I stammer, trying to gather my thoughts.

"Me and Matt just got a new TV for our room, so do you want to watch something?" he offers, breaking the tension. I nod eagerly, grateful for the distraction as he pulls up Netflix. We scroll through options and decide on something random to watch.

Mello's POV

Y/N seems unusually uncomfortable. I put on Netflix, but she still feels off. Ever since that incident with Tessa, she's been acting differently. She doesn't seem embarrassed anymore, but I can't put my finger on what's bothering her. I asked her about Near, wondering if she felt exposed, but she's adamant that they're just friends. Still, it's weird that they're friends at all. I can't force her to distance herself from him, but as long as I don't have to speak to Near, we're good. I still don't like him, though.

"Hey, Y/N?" I turn to her, noticing how lost in thought she seems. "Are you alright? You don't seem like yourself."

"I-I'm fine. I just feel tired," she replies, but I know that's not true. She can't be tired for a whole week straight. I just nod in response, unsure how to help, and we go back to watching Netflix.

Suddenly, Matt bursts into the room.

"Watching Netflix without me, I see," he jokes, a playful smirk on his face.

I invite him to join us, but he declines, saying he wants to play Fortnite and asks how long the episode will take.

"Listen, I need to go clean my room anyway. We can finish watching this another time, Mello," Y/N says, standing up and making her way toward the door.

As she leaves, I can't shake the feeling that something is off with her. I need to figure out what's going on.

"Dude, want to play Fortnite duos with me?" Matt asks, excitement in his voice.

"Fuck yeah!" I respond, grateful for the distraction as I try to unravel the mystery of Y/N's strange behavior.