Yuma was an idiot.

But a sweet, heart-warming, idiot.

And she supposed that was exactly why she admired him so.

She admired his determination; his eagerness in any challenge. "Kattobingu" was his phrase, and Kotori found it extremely catchy. It was hard not to smile around him; after all, he was always so cheerful. And that was another factor that only made her like him more.

Standing on the sidelines… watching Yuma duel… for some reason, Kotori realized that she would rather do nothing else. Dueling was Yuma's passion, and that passion was almost palpable. She could see the energy radiating every second of any duel. The way he draws his cards… the energy with which he acts… The obvious light of joy that is so evident in his eyes.

Kotori understood him; understood his need to duel. But still… she worried… with increasing anxiety every day.

Since that fateful moment after school when Yuma had challenged Shark to a duel, the world had gone awry with the advent of a card.

With that single card, came another to Ryouga's hand. And since then it's been one event following another, and then another.

She worried about him, Kotori realized – more so than she had thought. But Yuma seemed also to know this, and was careful in his ventures.

She wondered then… could he know… that she liked him as more than friend?

Maybe he wasn't such an idiot after all.


Author's Note:

Just a drabble I wrote to avoid my ES102 assignment. xD

I hope you all enjoyed!

Best, Des

PS: to any disappointed XS fans, I'll be working on CotM as soon as my finals are done, promise! :)