The two on the bed didn't even seem to notice, the woman, Ai, rolled towards Masato, reaching out to put her arms around him. He yawned and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to him.
"There's nothing going on, don't be stupid," he said tiredly.
"You're right," she whispered. "You're always right."
"Good girl," the man replied.
Mello turned from them from them to Matt and back again. The room was different, no longer derelict it looked as if it had been decorated by someone with access only to an Ikea catalog. Everything was very new, very plastic and shiny. There were paper cranes of every color hanging from the ceiling, flying thanks to the large fan stationed next to the television set that certainly hadn't been there yesterday, balanced on a precariously small table.
Mello staggered into the bright pink plastic garbage can against the wall. He glanced down to see it full, there was something very shocking in just that. A full wastepaper basket filled with tissues, hair pulled off a hairbrush, and dirty cotton pads used to remove eye makeup.
The tape was missing from the doors.
"You're seeing this too, right? I'm not totally losing it, right?" Mello whispered to Matt, staring at the couple.
"This is fucked up." Matt murmured the words to himself. A cigarette would help, a cigarette would help anything. The only problem was that Matt always left them on the nightstand. But instead of his battered pack, there was a picture of the couple in the bed. Their bed.
Or was it? After all, Matt was well aware that these apartments and everything in them had once belonged to someone else.
"Yeah, I see it too." As for if they were losing it or not...well, the jury was still out. Matt glanced over at Mello and suddenly reached out to grab him, hoping that they were at least still solid and real to one another.
The pieces were clicking together, Mello looked back at the couple on the bed. "This was their apartment," Mello said, thinking out loud. "Before they died they lived here."
The man was stirring now. "Gotta go to work," he muttered, releasing her.
"O-okay," she said nervously, sitting up. Ai was hugging herself as if cold, and looked as if she would reach out after Masato. She followed him to the edge of the bed as he got up and stretched. He was taller than both Mello and Matt with a stocky muscular build.
"You still worried?" he asked looking back at her as he crossed to the closet.
She shook her head quickly, and her eyes shifted to where Matt was, looking straight through him at the far wall.
"So what the fuck does that say about us?" What Mello said made sense, despite the fact that nothing else did. Matt watched the scene in front of them, feeling like some ghost of Christmas future.
Matt sighed and went over to sit on the now vacated section of what would someday be his and Mello's bed -- someday. But not today. He didn't linger there for long though, not with the woman suddenly screaming just inches away from his ear.
"It touched me! Masato! Something touched me!"
Matt's eyes widened, his attention turning to Mello rather than the other man. "You saw me. Totally did not touch her."
"Yeah, I saw, you're fine," Mello said. He'd be more concerned if Matt was watching the naked man than the woman, but that wasn't really on his list of priorities right now. First thing was figuring out why this was happening and how they could fix it.
Masato turned, tying his striped tie glancing over the bed. "Nothing's there," he gave her a skeptical look. "You might be losing it. Maybe I should take you to the doctor."
Mello's eyes narrowed. He didn't like how this guy was talking, like this woman was his pet. If he wasn't positive his voice wouldn't reach this man's ears he'd have shared a few choice words with him. As it was he was just insulting Masato under his breath.
"I don't like this guy," Mello said in an undertone to Matt.
"There's really something here!" Ai slipped out of bed, shaking. She looked around the room as if trying to find Mello and Matt, looking passed them both in the process. "Why don't you believe me?" she whimpered.
Matt arched a brow as the man belittled the woman. It was ironic...she was right, after all. There really was something there, and yet she was the one who was automatically crazy.
Matt gave a single nod in response to Mello's words as he leaned back against the wall. It wasn't an unusual feeling to him really. He was used to watching without being seen, Mello's invisible eyes. It just really pissed him off that he couldn't light a cigarette.
"Stay home with me today?" Ai lifted a hand, coaxing it down the man's arm. "Just call in sick, tell them you missed the bus, anything, just don't leave me here!" The almost hysterical tone that her voice took with that last sentence was enough to tell Matt that this wasn't going to end well. His eyes lidded a little as the man shoved the pleading woman to the floor and loomed over her. Matt slipped away from the wall then, moving to Mello's side.
Mello's eyes widened and, before he could help himself, he jumped across the bed attempting to knock the man into the wall. "BACK OFF!" he shouted, but it was as if he hadn't said a word. And when his shoulder met the man's side it was as if he couldn't feel the blond at all.
"I work," Masato said sharply, "that's why you get to stay in your goddamn pajamas all day and live like a princess. Because I work. Who the fuck takes care of you? Who the fuck brings in any income? Who keeps your fucking cat fed? Me! Don't you come whining over to me because you heard a noise like a fucking crazy person and beg me to stay home! I have a job for a reason!"
"I'm sorry," she breathed.
"You'd better be!" he snapped, tucking in his shirt. He did nothing to help her get up.
Mello was searching in desperation for his gun, maybe, somehow, the tape bullets could work from dead to living, but the only time his glock was separate from him was when he went to sleep and now it was gone from his bedside table the same way Matt's cigarettes were.
"Masato..." she got shakily to her feet. "What if something else happens! I could be pregnant, remember? What if something happens while your not here and something hurts me and the baby."
"You aren't pregnant," he said icily.
"But...."
Wham.
It happened so fast Mello almost missed it. The man's fist collided with her face, sending her backwards into the wall. She clutched her bleeding lip, staring at him with wide, tear-filled eyes.
"Stop acting like a maniac!" he shouted, looking far more like one than se did. "And stop trying to talk to what's her name down the hall! She said she saw you the other day! I told you to stay inside!"
"I-is that what this is about? I'm sorry! I'll stay quiet! I didn't mean--!"
"If you don't listen, I won't come back," he answered.
And she looked terrified. Mello was struggling to interrupt the scene, kicking, punching, yelling, trying to be felt, be heard, be seen, be SOMETHING.
"I'll be good," she said anxiously, breathlessly.
And the man smiled. "Good girl, I knew you would be." He kissed her on the forehead, pulling her to her feet.
Matt didn't move and his expression didn't change much. He knew there wasn't anything they could do. Mello knew it too, for that matter. But his emotions made it impossible for him not to try.
Finally he moved away from the wall, shook his head a little and sighed before leaning back again. So this was love. Well, not really. He knew what love was, even if he didn't bother with labels most of the time.
"Good riddance." He muttered, knowing that the man couldn't hear him, the woman wouldn't agree if she could. Matt turned his head towards Mello's growl, just watching him now.
"There's nothing going on, don't be stupid," he said tiredly.
"You're right," she whispered. "You're always right."
"Good girl," the man replied.
Mello turned from them from them to Matt and back again. The room was different, no longer derelict it looked as if it had been decorated by someone with access only to an Ikea catalog. Everything was very new, very plastic and shiny. There were paper cranes of every color hanging from the ceiling, flying thanks to the large fan stationed next to the television set that certainly hadn't been there yesterday, balanced on a precariously small table.
Mello staggered into the bright pink plastic garbage can against the wall. He glanced down to see it full, there was something very shocking in just that. A full wastepaper basket filled with tissues, hair pulled off a hairbrush, and dirty cotton pads used to remove eye makeup.
The tape was missing from the doors.
"You're seeing this too, right? I'm not totally losing it, right?" Mello whispered to Matt, staring at the couple.
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Or was it? After all, Matt was well aware that these apartments and everything in them had once belonged to someone else.
"Yeah, I see it too." As for if they were losing it or not...well, the jury was still out. Matt glanced over at Mello and suddenly reached out to grab him, hoping that they were at least still solid and real to one another.
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The man was stirring now. "Gotta go to work," he muttered, releasing her.
"O-okay," she said nervously, sitting up. Ai was hugging herself as if cold, and looked as if she would reach out after Masato. She followed him to the edge of the bed as he got up and stretched. He was taller than both Mello and Matt with a stocky muscular build.
"You still worried?" he asked looking back at her as he crossed to the closet.
She shook her head quickly, and her eyes shifted to where Matt was, looking straight through him at the far wall.
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Matt sighed and went over to sit on the now vacated section of what would someday be his and Mello's bed -- someday. But not today. He didn't linger there for long though, not with the woman suddenly screaming just inches away from his ear.
"It touched me! Masato! Something touched me!"
Matt's eyes widened, his attention turning to Mello rather than the other man. "You saw me. Totally did not touch her."
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Masato turned, tying his striped tie glancing over the bed. "Nothing's there," he gave her a skeptical look. "You might be losing it. Maybe I should take you to the doctor."
Mello's eyes narrowed. He didn't like how this guy was talking, like this woman was his pet. If he wasn't positive his voice wouldn't reach this man's ears he'd have shared a few choice words with him. As it was he was just insulting Masato under his breath.
"I don't like this guy," Mello said in an undertone to Matt.
"There's really something here!" Ai slipped out of bed, shaking. She looked around the room as if trying to find Mello and Matt, looking passed them both in the process. "Why don't you believe me?" she whimpered.
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Matt gave a single nod in response to Mello's words as he leaned back against the wall. It wasn't an unusual feeling to him really. He was used to watching without being seen, Mello's invisible eyes. It just really pissed him off that he couldn't light a cigarette.
"Stay home with me today?" Ai lifted a hand, coaxing it down the man's arm. "Just call in sick, tell them you missed the bus, anything, just don't leave me here!" The almost hysterical tone that her voice took with that last sentence was enough to tell Matt that this wasn't going to end well. His eyes lidded a little as the man shoved the pleading woman to the floor and loomed over her. Matt slipped away from the wall then, moving to Mello's side.
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"I work," Masato said sharply, "that's why you get to stay in your goddamn pajamas all day and live like a princess. Because I work. Who the fuck takes care of you? Who the fuck brings in any income? Who keeps your fucking cat fed? Me! Don't you come whining over to me because you heard a noise like a fucking crazy person and beg me to stay home! I have a job for a reason!"
"I'm sorry," she breathed.
"You'd better be!" he snapped, tucking in his shirt. He did nothing to help her get up.
Mello was searching in desperation for his gun, maybe, somehow, the tape bullets could work from dead to living, but the only time his glock was separate from him was when he went to sleep and now it was gone from his bedside table the same way Matt's cigarettes were.
"Masato..." she got shakily to her feet. "What if something else happens! I could be pregnant, remember? What if something happens while your not here and something hurts me and the baby."
"You aren't pregnant," he said icily.
"But...."
Wham.
It happened so fast Mello almost missed it. The man's fist collided with her face, sending her backwards into the wall. She clutched her bleeding lip, staring at him with wide, tear-filled eyes.
"Stop acting like a maniac!" he shouted, looking far more like one than se did. "And stop trying to talk to what's her name down the hall! She said she saw you the other day! I told you to stay inside!"
"I-is that what this is about? I'm sorry! I'll stay quiet! I didn't mean--!"
"If you don't listen, I won't come back," he answered.
And she looked terrified. Mello was struggling to interrupt the scene, kicking, punching, yelling, trying to be felt, be heard, be seen, be SOMETHING.
"I'll be good," she said anxiously, breathlessly.
And the man smiled. "Good girl, I knew you would be." He kissed her on the forehead, pulling her to her feet.
And she smiled back.
And Mello let out a bitter and angry growl.
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Finally he moved away from the wall, shook his head a little and sighed before leaning back again. So this was love. Well, not really. He knew what love was, even if he didn't bother with labels most of the time.
"Good riddance." He muttered, knowing that the man couldn't hear him, the woman wouldn't agree if she could. Matt turned his head towards Mello's growl, just watching him now.
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