At first, Light Yagami barely paid any attention to you. His mind was occupied by far more important things—criminals to judge, plans to perfect, and a world to reshape. You were simply another face in the crowd.

Or so he thought.

The more he saw you, the more difficult it became to ignore you. You were intelligent, observant, and surprisingly quick to understand things that most people missed. Unlike the people who constantly surrounded him, you didn't blindly admire him, nor did you annoy him with endless attention.

You intrigued him.

And, if he was being honest with himself, you were beautiful too.

Light began imagining possibilities. If someone like you stood beside him, you could be an incredible ally. Together, you could outsmart anyone—even L. The thought lingered in his mind far longer than it should have.

But there was a problem.

You were kind.

Painfully kind.

The type of person who apologized after bumping into someone. The type who stayed behind to help strangers. The type who couldn't even bring yourself to hurt a fly.

At first, Light found it frustrating. Someone so intelligent should understand his vision, shouldn't they? Yet the more he watched you, the more he realized that your kindness wasn't weakness—it was simply who you were.

Perhaps involving you in his plans wasn't possible.

Perhaps it was enough just to be close to you.

For now, at least.

Light glanced up from his notebook and offered a calm, practiced smile. The kind that made him seem completely harmless.

"Do you want to work on this project together?"

His tone was casual, but his eyes never left yours as he waited for your answer.