Nightshift 31: M71-80 Hallway

[visualize]

The Colonel had always been infamous for his crude sense of humor. Even now, as he hurriedly prepared for the night, Jade found himself chuckling light-heartedly at the events he recently witnessed

Comments

[fyeonly]

( From here)

It was taking less and less time to make it to the men's cells each night. Naomi was rather surprised to see L outside, waiting, as she passed her flashlight over the hallway. Well, he had said he had things he had to do tonight.

"Hi," she managed, the entire awkward dinner conversation coming back with a vengeance. She cleared her throat out of habit, and her eyes dropped. Just for a moment, but it was enough for her to realize what she'd just done, and she looked away immediately, wishing she'd learned how to control her facial expressions better. There were some things she didn't really want L to know. Such as why, exactly, she was blushing.

Besides that, it was extremely unprofessional to look, even discreetly, at your boss's...pants front.

"I, um, got here as quickly as I could." Another clearing of her throat. "Didn't run into any monsters."

[fyeonly]

Naomi's blush deepened and she turned her head sharply, gaping.

"I...No!" she exclaimed, quickly. "Oh god, no! I'm not!" She shook her head, embarrassed and miserable. She wasn't interested! She was just...morbidly curious! It was all Arlene's fault!

"I wasn't..." Wasn't what? She couldn't very well deny it. Not when he'd seen her. "Dinner," she managed, her face a mask of awkward discomfort. "Arlene. She brought up things - and admitted you asked her not to - and asked questions and it made me wonder.... I've just got a lot of things on my mind right now!"

A touch too defensive, maybe, but the last thing she wanted was L thinking she was attracted to him.

[fyeonly]

"Ryuga, really, it's...nothing." Naomi raked back her hair and rolled her eyes. "You just know how sometimes your mind gets stuck on something random and inappropriate?" Everyone's mind did that. Well, maybe not everyone's, she amended, glancing over at L. "Anyway, that's all it is. I had to make up a lot of things, and it just got me wondering about...you." She waved vaguely at him, figuring he'd get the idea.

"But I'm not interested in you. Despite the fact that I spent half of my dinner assuring Arlene that you're particularly skilled behind closed doors, you're not my type. I guess I'm just...frustrated and everything, and my mind just grabs at whatever it can to keep me from thinking about other things. Not that I want to be thinking about you like that. And I'm not really thinking about you like that, anyway." She groaned.

"You know what I mean."

[fyeonly]

Naomi sighed. He wasn't going to drop it. Either because he was genuinely curious or because he just liked seeing her squirm. She rolled her eyes. Fine. It was obvious he wouldn't let it go, best to just get it out there and move on.

"Because it's you, and you're my boss, and it's highly unprofessional to wonder what your boss looks like naked, or to tell your boss that you're wondering what he looks like naked. Now can we please drop the whole subject? Don't you have something to do tonight?"

[fyeonly]

"I told you it was...." Naomi was speaking as she turned to put her back against the door, and then she shut up. She wasn't sure whether she should roll her eyes, be horrified, or just laugh.

"Ryuga, you don't...no." She did put her hand over her face, realizing exactly the situation she'd walked into. And that it was no one's fault but her own. Of course he'd think of this. Either that, or he was just trying to break the tension. Either way....

"Hideki Ryuga, if you take off your pants, we're going to have a much bigger problem on our hands." Her words were more teasing than angry or distressed. She shook her head, and tried hard not too look...but her curiosity got the best of her.

And rather than being greeted with a living poster for starving children, she was rather surprised that L wasn't scrawny. Or sickly looking. Nothing particularly spectacular, but he obviously wasn't a stranger to physical exertion. What was that called? A swimmer's build?

"Huh."

[fyeonly]

"I don't know either, but if you lose the pants, I'm pretty sure one'll pop up." She'd been ridiculous. But she was all mixed up as it was. At least now she was relaxed. Somehow, L was able to do that for her.

"Okay. You proved your point." Naomi shook her head again and gestured at his sweater on the bed. "You know, just because a woman says she wonders what you might look like without clothes, that doesn't mean do a strip tease for her. Some women might take it as an invitation."

[fyeonly]

Naomi couldn't help it. She lost it. She doubled over, shoulders heaving, laughing.

"Ryuga!" She braced herself against the wall, barely able to control herself. And she couldn't remember the last time she'd laughed, really laughed. She knew it had been longer since just Raye's death. The months since she'd left the FBI had been like months spent in a gloomy fog - not exactly the best mind set for a woman who was going to be married - and then after Raye...

But now she was laughing and she felt like she couldn't stop. She finally looked up, eyes bright but for once not with tears, and swatted her hand in L's direction.

"Put your shirt back on!" she managed, between laughing and gasping for breath.

[fyeonly]

Naomi straightened up and wiped at her eyes, feeling drained. But in a good way. In a way she hadn't in so long. She leaned back against the door for just a moment