Does anyone really think I´m claiming any rights on the characters or themes of Yu-Gi-Oh! ?

Well, just in case someone DOES, I´m not. They all belong to whoever owns the particular rights.

This chapter has been beta-read and approved of by SaphiresBlueTopaz to maximize your reading pleasure. Enjoy!


"Hey. Wow, you really came."

That was without doubt the most pointless remark in the history of pointless remarks, of course he came. Would he be here trying to get all that snow off of his coat if he hadn't come?

"Mokuba kept telling me I don't have enough friends to let one of them go without a farewell party."

Personally, he preferred the version that said he didn't have anything else to do tonight and might as well attend a "normal" party for once. After all, they had all graduated and there probably wouldn't be much more opportunities.

"Whatever. I'm glad you could make it."

Well, that was new. No partly mocking, partly friendly answer, no cheeky retort? Even Anzu seemed to be sobered by her upcoming departure from Domino, if she didn't have anything of that sort in store for him.

--

He didn't feel at all comfortable in here, much less, than say, in his home office. But that was just him, it seemed. Everyone else was in the best of moods. Maybe it was just the fact that he was Seto Kaiba and he wasn't exactly born to party, or that there were at least fifty people in this room, of which he knew hardly more than ten. If he was to count the ones he actually liked, he wouldn't even need one hand to show the number. No surprise that he found himself sitting in a lonely corner as soon as the first few minutes of greeting and looking around were over.

"Why don't you join us? We could use some backup."

He frowned. This woman had made him abandon all principles and attend a post-high-school party. What more did she want? Making a fool of himself was not an option, not even – no, wait, especially not – if it was Anzu Mazaki who asked him to do it.

"Play SingStar? No, thanks. I think I prefer this."

She didn't object. Strange, wasn't that one of her favorite pastimes?

But she just flopped down beside him and snatched some Popcorn from a bowl on the table nearby. "Very well. I'll join you, then. I've had enough of singing for the next few months."

Now that she said it, why did he feel so uncomfortable at the thought of her stepping on that plane to America tomorrow? To start a career primarily financed by summer jobs in his company?

Damn his memory. Sometimes it was a curse he was able to remember every little detail, however irrelevant.

--

"Was that all you wanted?"

She hated the way her heart skipped a beat at that languid question, like it did every time he caught her offhand. How could it possibly be that hard to say something she had wanted to say for weeks now? It wasn't like this was the first time she was in love. And she was sure that he, in some way, liked her too. He wouldn't be here if he didn't, would he? So he wouldn't kill her or anything.

And whatever his answer would be, she would be gone in a few hours, anyway. She wouldn't have to see him for a long time, maybe never again. You couldn't expect Seto Kaiba to keep in touch just for the sake of some old friendship. She took her courage in both hands and blurted out in one breath what she had prepared in so many careful words.

"No, it wasn't. I figured it might be… good if I told you how much I cared for you, you know, before I'm gone and everything. I think I'm in love with you."

What kind of a confession was that?

Had anyone ever heard of something that stupid, embarrassing, awkward, or, to put it in a nutshell – unromantic?

It was a true miracle of anatomy that her cheeks managed to get hot in the few seconds it had taken her to say that.

--

Oh, come on, you can do better. Why was he so disappointed? Why would he even care what kind of a proposal he had to turn down? And he had suspected, of course, she would say something like that, sooner or later.

In love. Ridiculous. She knew he didn't want to have anything to do with that. And even if he wanted, he wouldn't be stupid enough to set his heart on a girl who was preparing to run off to New York. Who could tell what she would think of next? If there was any kind of love he believed in, it was one that had a lot to do with trust and reliability and emotional safety. Not with a flight around the globe.

Then why did it take him so long to answer?

Probably because, for some stupid, twisted reason he liked her, platonically, of course, and he didn't just want to laugh her in the face the way he would have done with any other admirer.

His answer was as sensitive as usual, "But we both know that's nothing mutual, right?"

For once, he almost instantly regretted that he had been so cold. Awkwardly he added, "And, besides, I don't want to be the one you ruin your career for, just because it's complicated to keep up a long-distance relationship."

Obviously, that didn't quite suffice to cheer her up. Anzu only gave him a forced grin and got up. "Yeah… sure. Of course. You're right. Well… enjoy the party and… good bye. I don't think we'll see each other again before I'm off."

She was brave, he had to admit that. And it wasn't her fault that he lacked the talent of expressing inconvenient truths more agreeable than they were. So Seto accepted her hug quietly – really, he probably just imagined it lasted a second or two longer than the one she would give each of her friends at the airport tomorrow – and watched her cross the room, trying to seem light-hearted, but not completely managing to do so. "Coke anyone?"

Any other girl would have shut herself up in her room and cried her heart out, and rightly so, but not Anzu. She'd become so much of a cheerleader that now she could return to her party and act like everything was normal, when her heart had just broken inside her.

For a moment, Seto almost forgot that he had been the reason for that, and became quiet, an admiring spectator of a show no one else recognized as being one. She would make a good actress, no doubt, it came to her naturally. And while he had only sneered at her earlier, now he had to admit that her constant smile was quite an art in itself. She had just as many troubles to face as the other man, but instead of letting everyone know or hide behind an artificial cold-heartedness the way Seto did, she tried to act the way she did so she didn't hurt any more people.

He doubted whether that was always the best way for herself, but it was certainly an admirable accomplishment.