Chasing Broken Dreams ~A Death Note Fanfic~

Chasing Broken Dreams /*Chapter 8*\

I walked next to Light, slightly trailing behind him and gazed at all the decorations they had set up. There were few balloons scattered everywhere, tied to chairs, taped to walls, etc. Even a huge blue banner was hanging around the stage that said in huge white letters "CONGRATULATIONS".

I personally think that they just wanted to get us out of this school after us being here so long. Well, Light, Ryuuga and the others anyway. A movement over in the corner caught my eye. A teacher was moving a chair around to some other place. Once he left, Ryuuga was revealed to be behind him.

A smile made its way across my face as he began to walk slowly over to Light and I. He wasn't dressed up all nice or anything. He was still in the same clothes he always wore. Long-sleeved white shirt that was lightly baggy. And of course his baggy blue jeans. I'm pretty sure he had his hands in his pockets to keep them from falling down.

He finally caught up to us with the same bored/emotionless look he always gave. I've never seen him smile. "Ryuuga!" I chirped happily before I could stop myself. He glanced at me and gave me a weary nod. There's something on his mind. I can tell. My smile faltered slightly, but stayed.

"Ryuuga, i'm glad you could come."  Light spoke up suddenly. Whoops, forgot he was there.

"Yeah...we should sit down."

Light and I gave him weird looks but did anyway. Ryuuga sat next to Light and I sat a few seats away since the seats next to them were already taken. My smile faltered again and slipped off my face. Why was Ryuuga being so distant and secretive?

Soon enough the graduation started and I tried to focus on it, but I just couldn't. My mind kept wandering to the conversation Ryuuga and Light were having quietly. What? I had awesome hearing.

"I'm L.."

I froze up. Did Ryuuga just say he's L? No. I must've heard wrong. I leaned out in my seat and got a glance at Light's face. All the color had drained from it and he looked surprised. Ryuuga was looking at him expectantly, as if waiting for a response. It's true. I leaned back in my seat. 'Ryuuga' is L. How will Light react? He is Kira after all. I risked another glance at them. They both were siting forward again without a word. Crab monkeys! I missed it.

The rest of the graduation went by quickly. I was so lost in thought, I almost missed my turn. But once it was done, I had made a plan. Ignore the fact that Ryuuga is L. You have a better one? No? That's what I thought.

A week flew by and I suddenly couldn't ignore the fact that he was L. I looked up from the floor and pressed the stop button on my MP3 player. Anna wasn't anywhere to be found and the place was empty. Huh, guess no one wants coffee. Weirdos.

I put my broom back in the closet and checked out. Soon enough I was walking down the sidewalk, trying to figure out where L would be. Lucky for me, I ran into him! Much easier. I quickly regained my balance and looked up at him. "Ai, you should really watch where your going you know." I faked a smile. "Sorry Ryuuga. Can I talk to you for a minute?" He gave me a strange look but nodded.

Excellent. I tugged on his arm a bit an pulled him into an alley. Best place to tell.

"I know you're L." I blurted out, clutching my pants tightly. His eyes widened momentarily but went back to normal.

"What are you talking about? I'm not L." I frowned.

"Yes you are. I heard you telling Light that you were!"

"When?"

"At the graduation."

"Ai, you were hearing things. I'm not L." He turned away from me and began walking out of the alley. "Wait!" I cried, reaching out to him. I missed and fell to the ground. He didn't even give me a glance. He just kept walking.

My heart shattered. I stumbled and got up then rushed out of the alley and looked around. He was gone. Oh, no. No, no, no. I slumped down to the ground. I messed up. Now he's mad at me. Why did I have to confront him? I covered my head with my hands. Great, I messed up so bad.

A month passed and 'Ryuuga' has been avoiding me ever since. I haven't even seen him. I haven't seen Light either. It was really depressing. My best friends are no where to be found and one of them is probably mad at me. Right now, I was working at the register. Anna said she couldn't come in. It was her husband's birthday. I told her it was fine because... well she had someone that she loved. I wasn't going to take that away from her.

The bell rung, signaling someone came in. I looked up to see L and some old guy with half-moon glasses. He looked like a butler, yet really awesome. L's eyes met mine. I could tell that he was debating whether to walk back out or stay. Please, please stay. Oh, never mind.

I walked away from the counter and over to him. His eyes never left mine. "Ryuuga.." I looked down. "I know you're probably mad at me. That's probably why you've been avoiding me. But, please don't hate me. I can live with you being mad at me. Not easily, but I can. But if you hate me... that I couldn't take. You and Light are my only friends and I don't want to lose either of you." I could feel tears brimming my eyes, but I kept them in. I was strong, I wouldn't cry. "Please, please don't hate me. I couldn't stand it."

He didn't respond. A tear slipped down my cheek before I could stop it. I quickly turned away before he could see me crying. OK, so he hates me. Now what? I started to walk away, but was stopped by strong arms. My eyes went wide as I was pulled into L's chest. "I don't hate you Ai. I never could. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have ignored you like that." I took a few seconds to process the words he just said. He doesn't hate me? Yes! "I'm glad..I couldn't bear it if you hated me." I whispered, letting a small smile dance its way onto my lips.

We pulled apart after a few seconds of realising how close we were. "I need to ask you something." I looked up at him. "Hm?" He glanced around the shop to see if anyone was here. Nope, empty. "I am L. Would you join the Kira case with me?" I was shocked. He just admitted it and he wants me to join the Kira case. Yosh! I'm so awesome. I smiled at him. "I'd love to." His face brightened. "Good. I'll have Watari pick you up at your house tomorrow at 10." I nodded as he and the butler guy (I think he was Watari) walked out of the shop.

My smile suddenly fell. He's against Kira. Light is Kira. Oh man.

Which side am I on?