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It had been approximately 439 days since Near had installed cameras in Mello’s dingy little apartment.
He’d first had to track the man down, which was a bit of a challenge. Outside of Wammy’s, Mello didn’t exist. Not on paper.
Though Near had decided it was worth the effort.
Excused it with the fact Mello might be important to the case, wether they worked together or not.
He’d made many excuses to achieve this. To have access to Mello.
To see his other half.
The others weren’t allowed to watch the cameras. And of course. No one would question him on why. Not Rester. Not Gevanni. And not Linder.
Sure, some would probably claim he was obsessed with Mello. But why wouldn’t he be?
They were destined to be together.
Near wasn’t one to belive in gods, or anything divine. He was still struggling to grasp how shinigamis even existed. Gods of death? Sounded illogical to him.
But even so. He did belive fate had brought Mello to him. Fate wanted the two boys to meet. They were made for each other.
Ying and Yang.
Near didn’t really remember life before Wammy’s. And by extension, he didn’t remember life before Mello. So therefore, they must have been destined to meet.
Mello clearly didn’t think so.
The older boy would always deny their shared fate. Act as if all they were was enemies. It was infuriating, frankly.
But Near would never say that out loud. Part of their ying and yang, was that he didn’t react. He had to be monotone, to clash with Mello.
It was his role.
Their roles.
Their game.
And part of this game, was to find Mello. And he’d succeeded
Succeeded without Mello even knowing. He watched the man as often as possible.
It wasn’t a form of entertainment, or like watching an animal. No. Mello was his equal. His missing puzzle piece. Not an animal. Not some pet. Not entertainment.
Mello was his. Only his.
Near should, by all logic, be ashamed to admit that he’d put cameras in the bathroom. But what was there to be ashamed of?
Why should he feel shame for simply watching his other half?
Nudity had never really been important anyways. Near didn’t understand why it was a big deal. The body was flesh, bones, and blood. Nothing more. And nothing less.
It wasn’t the body itself that made him lust for Mello. No. Mello’s body was nothing special. He’d seen it unclothed many times.
It was the mind trapped in that body that mattered.
That brilliant, oh so confusing mind that Mello had.
Most minds were built like standard puzzles. Easy to learn, easy to memorize, and oh so boring to piece together.
Mello’s puzzle was missing pieces, a picture that made no sense, and the thrill of trying to figure it out.
Near was certain he had the pieces Mello’s puzzle was missing. They could complete the puzzle together.
He wondered what the final picture would be.
Chocolate? No. Only Mello enjoyed that bullshit. Near could never stomach the taste. Too thick when it melted in his mouth. Too hard to bite into.
He was getting off track. This was about Mello. Him and Mello.
Two unfinished puzzles. Two parts of a puzzle. Two halves of a person. They’d complete each other. And become L together. Even if Mello denied it.
They both knew it. And Mello could only deny it for so long. The truth would eventually prevail.