In Love with the Law 4

In Love with [the] (L)aw
4 – Ayu the Maid

Sakura decided to go back to the couch where she had slept earlier to relax for a while. She reflected on the day's events and ascertained that her situation might not have been as bad as she first thought. At least I'm not handcuffed anymore.

She was looking for positives now instead of being gloomy and annoyed. I got to eat some delicious cake... and I guess that old guy is going to give me a present! I wonder what it will be? I'm so curious.

She yawned and laid down on the couch, staring up at the rusty metal ceiling. Guess I'll try to sleep for a bit. Today went by pretty fast... I wonder how many days it will be before I can leave? Maybe it will be weeks, months... years?

She shuddered. No, gotta think positive, Sakura. I should try to make that cake tomorrow... L seems to love sweets, so if I make a really tasty cake he might let me go free! Oh, I'm a genius! This plan will definitely work.

The young woman fell asleep, and some odd hours later she was awakened by the sound of L and Matsuda talking. She opened her eyes a bit and listened in on their conversation.

"A series of killings, you say?" L sounded concerned. "Yeah, and there has been no evidence left behind. Police can't make anything of it... it's really strange. I got a baaaad feeling about this, L." Matsuda replied. "Don't worry too much, we'll get them. Eventually, they'll slip up – they all do. For now, we wait."

"A-are you sure? What if these killings continue? Isn't there anything we can do?" Matsuda was eager to see justice served. "Calm down, Matsuda. These things take time, and we can't risk getting in the middle of it just yet. You understand, don't you?"

"Y-yeah... whatever you say, L. Anyway, aren't you going to let that girl go home? I'm sure she has a life, you know. We are supposed to be the good guys and keeping her here against her will is a bad thing." Matsuda tried to convince him. "We'll see. I'm not sure if we can trust her yet. Why are you so worried about her, anyway?"

"I-I dunno... I thought we were supposed to be chivalrous and stuff. Gah! Never mind, I'm going to get back to work." Matsuda said with an annoyed sigh, and then he walked away. L came over to Sakura's side, who immediately closed her eyes and pretended to be asleep. "I know you are awake. Go to the kitchen, I think Watari said he has a gift for you, did he not?"

Sakura glared up at L, "Why don't you let me go home, Panda-Man?" L raised an eyebrow, "Again with that silly nickname?" he sighs. "Ugh, I don't have time for this nonsense. Goodbye for now, Ayu." As he walks away, Sakura jumps to her feet. "MY NAME IS SAKURA, JERK!" L shrugs and snickers quietly, disappearing into the computer room.

She couldn't contain her frustration as she stomped over to the kitchen, grumbling the whole way.  "Hmph, stupid L... grrrr, making me stay here in this stupid place! I thought he was cool – a defender of justice, but he's just a... a big fat meanie!" With a grumpy look on her face, she walked into the kitchen and saw Watari holding a large box. "Good morning, Miss Ayu!"

Sakura face-palmed, "You know what... I'm not even going to fight it anymore. Whatever, my name is Ayu! Sure, okay. Can I go home now?" Watari handed her the box, "I do hope you can return soon Miss Ayu, but for now I hope that you understand our situation. Please take this as a token of my apology."

She opened the box and found a maid outfit inside; her eyes widened and she felt a bit irritated. "What? How is this an apology...?" she sighed deeply and Watari looked confused. "I was informed that you had been working as a maid before you came here. L insisted that you work as a maid in hopes that you would feel more at home, so I decided to get you a suitable outfit."

"WHAT?! A MAID?" Sakura couldn't believe it. L had straight-up lied about her career to Watari. I shouldn't be mad at him, she thought. He was trying to be nice, I guess. "What seems to be the matter?" he asked. "Is it not the right color?" The young woman took the outfit out of the box and forced herself to smile, "N-no, that's not it. I love it! I was just so, uh, surprised... yeah."

L walked into the room eating an ice cream cone. "Oh good, I see you've received your gift. Why don't you put it on so you can be more in-character? You can be my personal maid!" Sakura turned her head slowly, her eye twitching. "What did you say?"

L sat down at the table and finished his ice cream cone. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were deaf, Ayu. Would you like me to get you some medical attention for that?" Watari laughed, "Please don't mind him, Ayu. He can be a bit crude at times, but he is a good man."

Sakura turned away from L, "Yeah... I'm sure he is." She reflected on that thought for a while, and part of her believed it to be true; there was a secret desire within herself to become closer to L and learn more about him. "I'll go... put this thing on now, I guess."

After Sakura got changed into her new outfit, she returned to the kitchen and smiled cheesily. "Marvelous. You look splendid, Ayu. Well now, I have to be going. There is work to be done!" Watari left the room without another word, leaving she and L alone.

"Well now, that suits you perfectly. Why don't you make me a cake?" L was twiddling his thumbs as he sat awkwardly on the chair. Sakura stared at him for a while, and then decided that instead of being upset about everything, she should try to make the best of things. "Fine. I'm not the best cook, but no matter how it tastes, you have to eat it. Deal?"

"If it's that bad, I suppose we could share; consider it an offering of friendship." L smiled strangely and bit his thumb. Sakura ignored him and gathered all the ingredients for a cake. "L, what was that I heard about those murders in town? Is it something serious?"

He was silent for a time and his expression became perplexed. "...I'm not sure yet. It is alarming that there is no evidence, though. I have a hunch about who might be behind these crimes, but I do hope that I'm wrong."

It was the first time that L had sounded the least bit unsure of himself. Sakura wondered about it for a while as she mixed the ingredients together. It's almost like he's afraid of someone... who could it be? There's no criminal that can stand up to L, is there...?