Was Light actually a friend to L?


I know L said Light was his first friend but did he mean it? Yes we know L is
a liar and knew Light was Kira the whole time but what if, during the time
Light lost his memories, L thought of Light as a genuine friend. It’s all very
confusing to me still so can someone answer?




Apparently, no.

So here's the thing, the author of _Death Note_ , Tsugumi Ohba put little
notes and other trivia in _Death Note 13: How to Read_. And some even asked if
L was genuine about him being friends with Kira. To which he answered "No" as
L was lying to catch Kira.

From [page 64 of the English
translation](https://i.stack.imgur.com/TYseWl.png):

> **L Has No Friends?**
>
> Nope. And when he says that Light is his first friend that's a big lie. He
> never considers him a friend. He probably secretly thinks really negative
> things about him.

