Happy Fourth of July everyone! I didn't intend on doing a oneshot today, but I came up with this about an hour ago. :D Hope you all like it.
I'm sorry for any OOC-ness and errors. I was in a hurry to get this up.
Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh or Steal My Heart by Augustana.
Joey was carrying various plastic bags out of his car and into the house for Serenity. For some reason, she wanted him to go out to Walmart and buy all sorts of vegetables, dips, chips and other things. He swore silently when he realised that he had to open the door. Carefully maneuvering the bags into his left hand, he fished his house keys out of his pocket and slipped it into the lock. He swung the door shut with his foot and set the bags down on the kitchen counter.
"Ren!" he called. "I got the stuff ya wanted!"
His auburn haired sister flew down the stairs. He smiled at the sight. Sixteen years old and already taking charge of the yearly Fourth of July barbecue they always had. He was a bit worried though. Ever since the eye surgery she had two years ago, he wasn't all that comfortable with her being in the kitchen. What if she accidentally cut her finger? What if she got burned? Serenity was able to prove her older brother wrong within a few short weeks in the kitchen.
"Thanks, Joey!" she said happily. She pulled the different vegetables out of the bags and began washing them. "Could you get all of the vegetables out for me?"
He smiled. "Sure." Once all of the vegetables were out, he awkwardly stood in front of them, wondering what he should do.
Luckily, Serenity turned around and took the vegetables and washed them. She brought out a small cutting board and began chopping them. He winced when she pulled the knife out. Hearing his wince, she turned around. "Joey, I will be perfectly fine," she assured. "My vision is near perfect now."
He hesitated for a minute. Hesitating wasn't the best choice. Serenity had sensed his hesitation and put on her best puppy dog face. One look and he knew that he'd lost. "Fine. Go ahead." He ran a hand through his blonde hair. It was pretty hot today. He decided to take a shower before helping out with all of the preparations. "Serenity, I'll be back in about twenty minutes," he said making his way toward the stairs.
She grinned at her older brother. "What? Are you gonna go get dolled up for Mai?"
He nearly tripped on the first stair. He spun around. "M-M-Mai's coming?" It was no secret that he had a crush on the older blonde. Everyone taunted and teased him about it until he'd stalked out of the room, embarrassed. Oh god…If Mai was coming today…Shit fuck balls. Thoughts were swirling in his mind. He didn't even notice Serenity waving her hand in his face.
"Earth to Joey," she called. She smiled at her brother's flushed face. "Calm down, Joey. It's not like she's repulsed by you. She likes you a lot."
His heart flipped. "She does?" he asked. He was confused when she suddenly burst out laughing. Does that mean that she was lying about Mai liking me? His blood began to boil. "Why are you laughing?" he demanded.
She doubled over. "Joey, your voice cracked!" she said in between laughs.
He blushed furiously. He felt ashamed that his voice cracked at the very thought of Mai. Why did she have such an effect on him? Why did his blood rush to his face whenever he heard her speak? Why? He turned on his heel and rushed up the stairs for an ice cold shower.
Serenity retired to the kitchen, still smiling. "Joey, the truth is, Mai loves you very much."
Joey stomped down the stairs about a half hour later with his favourite blue and white Tshirt and a pair of jeans. He was still furious about how his voice cracked. He was silently berating himself as he walked into the kitchen. He stopped short when he saw all of the dishes Serenity had prepared in the half hour he was gone. The entire table was covered. He gaped at the sides when he was suddenly elbowed.
"Sorry," apologised Serenity. She was holding a bowl of German potato salad. She picked up a jar of mayonnaise from the table and added a couple tablespoons to the already creamy salad.
"Ren, you did all of this?" Joey asked incredulously.
"Mmhmm." She put the bowl down and got some plastic wrap out of one of the cabinets. "Can you do me a favour and cover all of these sides?"
He took the plastic wrap out of her hands and slowly tore a piece off. "So, Mai's really coming here."
"Yes," she said exasperatedly. She loved the fact that her brother liked one of her best friends, but her patience was wearing thin. She wanted him to get off his ass and finally ask her out. It was only seven words. Why couldn't he do it? Joey could do all sorts of things. Why not ask Mai out? "I'm going upstairs to get dressed. Take all the food to the backyard and set them out on the table. Tristan, Duke, Yami and Yugi are out back setting up."
"Tea and Almira didn't come?" he asked balancing several bowls in his hands.
She pulled the hair tie out of her hair and ran a hand through it. "Not yet. They're coming together along with Mai."
Joey was making his way to the backyard when he stopped short. "Kaiba's not coming is he?"
"Sadly no. Seto had to go a meeting for his new dueling disk," she said nonchalantly.
He felt for his sister. He really did. He felt bad that she had to spend the fourth of July without her boyfriend, but he couldn't help but be a little happy about it. Every time he saw Kaiba…it just pissed him off. And the fact that he was seeing his kid sister didn't help. He pushed the door open and carried all of the bowls to the backyard. He could already see his two best friends' famous tri-coloured hair. "Yugi. Yami."
Everyone turned and grinned at the blonde. "Hey Joey," they chorused. Yugi raced over and took a few of the bowls out of Joey's hands and put them down on the table.
"Thanks." He saw that Tristan and Duke trying to work the grill. He sighed when he heard them have yet another argument about who could get Serenity to fall in love with them. He hit them both 'round the head. "What do you guys think you're doing?" he asked menacingly. "Don't you two know my kid sister is seeing someone?" At least Kaiba had one good purpose.
They both grinned apologetically. "Sorry Joey," mumbled Duke. Tristan silently turned to the grill and wiped the charcoal off.
Satisfied, Joey walked back to the house to get the rest of the dishes.
"Joey?" asked a soft musical voice.
Joey looked up and smiled at the young Persian woman making her way toward him. "Hey Almira. How're you doing?" Almira had grown on Joey. In a way, she was like his second kid sister. She and Serenity acted so similarly it was scary. Yami was truly a lucky guy.
"Oh I'm good. You don't look the same," she said. When she said that, Joey instantly looked away. Everyone avoided Almira and Yami's gaze when they were feeling bad. They both had the same intense, soul-searching stare. If only he looked away sooner.
"I'm fine," he lied. In reality, he was scared as hell. If Almira was here, surely that meant that Mai was here as well. It was only a matter of time before she made her appearance known.
"Joey," she called softly. "Don't be nervous about your feelings for Mai." When he looked up in shock, she sighed. "You're really transparent, just like Yami. I can't tell you how to go about this for obvious reasons, but I can tell you that the feeling is mutual."
His heart leapt at her words. If both Almira and Serenity are telling me that Mai likes me then it must be true! Almira laughed at his reaction. She ruffled his hair and proceeded toward the backyard. On his way back to the house, he ran into Tea and struck up a conversation with her before finally going into the house.
He grabbed the last remaining bowls when he nearly knocked someone over. "Shit," he muttered. When he regained his balance, he looked up to apologise to the person he'd almost knocked over. His heart was in his throat. Standing in front of him was Mai.
He instantly got lost in her violet eyes. He could stare at them forever. They were like amethysts. She seemed to be annoyed. "Jesus, Joseph! Watch where you're going!" she snapped. She turned on her heel and walked out to the backyard.
Joey sighed to himself. "Yup. The feeling is mutual."
Mai was walking out to the backyard as fast as she could. A light blush was dusting her cheeks and she wanted to get away from the person who'd caused the blush in the first place. Ever since she'd met Joey a Duelist Kingdom, he had a special place in her heart. She was unwilling to admit it, but she was starting to fall for the hot-tempered blonde.
Pushing the door open, she was starting to feel better. Here were all of the friends she'd made since Duelist Kingdom. Yugi, Yami, Tristan, Tea and Duke. She caught Almira's eye and smiled at her. She'd met the Persian right before the Battle City tournament. She strode over to everyone and greeted them.
"Hey Mai!" they all chorused.
She smiled at all of them. Suddenly, the door in the back opened and Serenity was trying to balance four bowls in her arms. Tristan and Duke dashed up to help her out when Joey came behind her and glared at the both of them. He took three of the bowls from Serenity so Duke and Tristan's assistance was no longer necessary. Mai glanced at Joey and that was when he happened to be glancing at her. His chocolate eyes met her amethyst ones before quickly looking away. This would be a long night for the both of them.
They were all sitting in front of empty bowls and plates. Joey and Tristan had eaten the bulk of the food. Everyone laughed at their eating habits before taking some food before the two boys inhaled it.
"I'm so full," sighed Serenity.
"Same," said Almira.
"That was delicious, Serenity," commented Tea.
The petite auburn blushed furiously before hiding her eyes behind her bangs. Joey gave her a reassuring look. "Seriously Ren. That was amazing."
"Thanks," she mumbled before blushing redder.
Duke and Tristan were about to vocalize their love for Serenity but were immediately threatened by Joey. Neither of them wanted to meet his fury. Then there was Kaiba to deal with.
It was seven pm and it was still so bright outside. Everyone was growing tired of the small talk. Yugi turned to Almira and smiled. "Yugi?" asked Almira. "What's with the creepy smile?"
"I think Almira should sing a song," he declared.
Everyone agreed with him. She blushed furiously and attempted to hide behind Yami. He smiled before taking her hands. "Your voice is beautiful, love. Don't be ashamed."
She hesitated before standing up. Everyone around her cheered. She smiled nervously before humming quietly. Everyone quieted down so they could hear her.
Meet me at the water
Where all your dreams come true
Tell your sisters and your brother
That I'll be waiting for you
Yami smiled at her when she met his eyes. Yugi reached for Tea's hand, making her smile. Serenity sighed, thinking about Kaiba. Duke and Tristan were quietly whispering. "Of course she chose that song," said Duke.
Tristan nodded. "It speaks to her and Yami's relationship."
And when all of this is over
When all your silver turn to gold
Say a prayer for each other
Someday I'm gonna steal your heart
Joey was thinking of Mai and Mai, Joey. Joey wanted nothing more than to hold Mai in his arms and be able to say, 'you stole my heart.' Mai wanted Joey's arms to be around her. She wanted him to whisper that he loved her. A part of her knew that he did, but another part was unsure and wanted to hear it for herself.
Now love is like an ocean
Take it down to the depths
Yeah I'm taking you with me
Taking every step to steal your heart
The lyrics usually never meant anything to Joey. They were just nice to hear along with the music. Today he actually took the time to listen to the words Almira was singing. Love was like an ocean. It was large and there were lots of uncertainties that he could easily see. What if Mai rejects me when I confess to her? Will I even be able to confess?
Life is like a shadow
It never stays in one place
I'm standing here anyway
However long it takes to steal your heart
Almira's right. I should just confess. Right here. Right now, thought Joey. Mai was quietly listening to Almira finish the song, but her thoughts were on Joey. Almira was on the last couple notes when she met Yami's gaze again and began blushing furiously. She finished the song and sat back down. He gently pulled her up and whispered a few things before they both said they were going for a walk.
"And Yami's going in for the kill," snickered Duke.
Yugi made a face. "You do realise you're talking about my brother and one of my closest friends, right?"
Tea rested her head on Yugi's shoulder. "They do. They just like to hear themselves talk."
Serenity was playing with the ring on her finger. Evidently, the redhead was bored without her special someone. Meanwhile Joey's heart was beating for it's life. He knew that he had to confess to Mai. It was now or never. He cleared his throat. "Uh Mai?" He waited until he had her attention. "Do you wanna go on a walk with me?"
Everyone was silent. The only thought on everyone's mind was, Does Joey finally have the balls to confess to Mai? Well it's about damn time! She blinked a couple times before silently rising. She walked toward the sidewalk and waited for him to follow.
As they were walking, the sun set lower and lower until it was pitch black outside. He nervously glanced at Mai's hand every now and then. It looked so small and soft. He desperately wanted to grab it and let their fingers intertwine. He refrained from doing so, in fear of scaring Mai and possibly driving her away.
The only sounds that they heard were the clicking of Mai's heels against the concrete and the occasional burst of fireworks through the air. They stopped every now and then to admire the shining lights before picking up their pace. His palms were growing sweaty. He needed to do this now. He abruptly stopped making her stop walking as well.
"Mai, we've known each other for a while, right?"
"Ever since Duelist Kingdom last year," she said softly.
He nodded. His heart was literally in his throat. Why was confessing so damn hard? "I just wanna say…That…"
Her heart nearly stopped. Was Joey confessing to me? Is that why he looks and sounds so nervous? "Spit it out, Joey," she snapped. She wanted to hear it from him. She wanted to know if her love for him was one sided.
He felt himself go red. He didn't know if he could speak a coherent sentence. A firework burst into the air and he did the only thing that was going through his mind. He grabbed her shoulders and kissed her. He didn't care if he'd get slapped across the face for this. He didn't care that she was older than him. It was worth feeling her soft pink lips against his. Her eyes widened in shock. Before she knew it, she'd wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back. It was like their own fireworks show for a while. When they pulled away, he rested his forehead against hers and smiled.
"Ren and Mira were right. It wasn't a one sided thing," he whispered. He loved seeing the dark blush on her cheeks. He liked knowing that he was the one who was responsible for having this effect over the usually rough blonde.
She nodded with twinkling eyes. He reached for her hand and they slowly walked back to the backyard. When they got back, Duke and Tristan noticed their intertwined hands. "Joey has a girlfriend," they both sang childishly.
Joey gave them both his signature grin. "Damn right I do."
نهاية