Title: Intoxication
Part: Chapter 2
Author: Svelte Rose
Comments: I should probably stop making author's notes since they're against the FF.net rules but ah well. They can stop me from thanking all the great people who actually took time to review this fic. You guys kick butt! I don't own YGO.
"All right. One, two three, and up!"
Ryou's arms strained as he lifted Asahi high above his head, cursing the day he ever accepted Anzu's request to join as part of the extras on Domino High's spring drama. He had believed that she would be his partner but due to his luck (or lack thereof), he ended up with Asahi. Anzu had convinced him (quite influentially with her large azure eyes turned puppy-like) that they needed everyone they could find for one of the dance scenes. It wasn't big, he wasn't required to act, he did not need to work very much. . .
Or so he thought.
"Let's call for a break, you guys look like you're about to drop," The choreographer announced as the students actually dropped to the floor in relief.
Anzu quickly skipped over to her white-haired friend and ruffled the top of his head. "Thank you Ryou, we needed more guys,"
He grunted as he rubbed his sore arms after Asahi had run off to her group who had joined the spring drama immediately after she had joined. Clones. "Aren't these dance moves a bit advanced for high school students?"
Anzu shrugged as she drank from a water bottle she had some how produced from her skin-tight leotard.
Or. . .maybe it was just that she had it and he was too much in pain to notice.
Tossing the bottle to him, she wiped the droplets, that had leaked from her mouth, with the towel around her neck, "It wasn't that hard,"
Ryou guzzled the water down. He figured he must've at least lost half his body's water supply.
And sure, he could be exaggerating but at least it got his point across – which really did not currently matter.
"Of course it isn't hard for you, you've been dancing your whole life," he grumbled after he'd swallowed. "I didn't think you could manipulate your spine like that.
Anzu grabbed the bottle from him before he could take another swig. Giggling, she smiled and hugged him briefly, before going back to her position on the stage, "Only one more hour!" She called out.
He struggled against the urge to. . . blow a raspberry. "You owe me a big cup of tea at Starbucks," He shouted right back.
The brunette's eyes bugged out, "Are you kidding me?! They cost a fortune!"
"This is going to cost me a lung!" He retorted before the choreographer called for attention. Biting his lip to keep from groaning at the prospect, he smiled – albeit painfully – at the beaming Asahi.
It was just his luck he got stuck with someone that searched for reasons just so she could touch him. Ryou felt violated.
Ohhhhh yeah, it would be a big cup of tea, yes it will be.
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After much grumbling and complaining, Anzu paid for his drink (which he happily attacked) and her own drink.
"I'm very happy," Ryou commented while she struggled with stirring of sugar in her iced latté. He wanted to tell her that sugar didn't dissolve very well in cold drinks and it as the heat of the hot drinks that usually broke the bonds of sugar molecule.
However, it wasn't school, and she did laugh when Asahi fell on him during practice.
Ryou sniggered as she protested at another runaway ice cube that went skipping out of her cup, across the counter, and onto the floor.
Anzu did the only thing befitting her age. Something that was very adult, very mature, and very, very poised.
She stuck her tongue out and blew a loud, slobbery raspberry.
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Mokuba watched the whole scene with amusement and chuckled but stopped when he heard Seto scoffing from across the table.
"How mature," The older Kaiba snorted before turning his attention back to his laptop.
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Mrs. Mazaki, known by Anzu's friends as Mommy Mazaki, winced as she entered the currently crooning teenage girl's room. For someone who was into the art of dancing and the music that went with the dancing, her daughter sure could not carry a tune to save her life. Thank the heavens the shower door muffled some of the sound. Searching through the duffle bag (as she did every night), the elder female Mazaki fished out several items of clothing and blinked when a pink letter fell out.
The shower door opened while the occupant came out with a rosy glow to her cheeks, still humming an off-key tune. "Hey mom," She greeted as her eyes went to the clothes currently occupying her mother's arms. "I was going to get those after I got out," the brunette offered sheepishly.
Mrs. Mazaki chuckled, "And if you forgot?"
Anzu shuddered the last time she forgot. The last time she'd forgotten sweaty gym clothes, her mother had found it in the trunk of their car a month later, opened it up only to be greeted by a peanut butter sandwich mold colony and the worst smell ever.
It took them a week to remove the smell from the duffle bag and several washings to get the smell out of her clothing.
"Here, I found this in your bag," The elder Mazaki female handed a pink envelope to her daughter. "It was hiding in your duffle bag. . . smells nice. Is it a secret admirer?" Mrs. Mazaki was never one to beat around the bush.
Thank god for the rosy blush that adorned her cheeks from the hot shower – otherwise, her mother would be able to tell, without any problem, that she hit the target right on.
"Nooooo! Just something Yuugi probably gave me,"
Mrs. Mazaki rolled her eyes and turned around, "You are the worst liar imaginable," She critiqued before leaving the room.
Her second raspberry for that day, went to her mother.
And surprisingly. . . "Get that tongue back in your mouth, girl!" Mrs. Mazaki's fading voice called out from a ways down the hall.
Jumping slightly, the brunette called out her apologies before ripping the pink envelope open and quickly reading the contents.
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"Well?" Anzu prompted during their science lab as Ryou examined the contents of the letter with a satisfied expression.
Ryou folded the envelope up and gave it back to the brunette. "Your secret admirer has good taste. That's the famous poem, 'How Shall I Love Thee?' by Elizabeth Browning,"
"Whassat?" The familiar Brooklyn accent greeted the surprised pair, his quick hands snatching the white card from her.
"A poem," Anzu answered shortly.
Yuugi popped up from behind the blond and started reading, "'How shall I love thee? Let me count the ways –'"
Anzu yanked it from Joey, "It's for English class,"
The pair looked at her with eyebrows raised.
"I don't remember that poem from English class," Yuugi commented only to be painfully pinched by the white-haired European. "Of course, I could be wrong," he gasped out while watching Ryou out of the corner of his eye.
Jounouchi shrugged. "I wouldn't know, I sleep tru dat class,"
"We know," The three of them chorused, dryly.
"So lemme read it Anzu!" The blond whined effectively.
Anzu surrendered the card.
Jounouchi started to read loudly but started to quiet down as he stumbled over the words and stopped completely after the fifth line. He gave the card back to her and asked, "So what's dat for?"
"English class," Anzu, Yuugi, and Ryou chorused to the dazed blond.
He blinked wildly, "Dat was so synchronized," Jou muttered to himself before he returned to his own lab; Yuugi following shortly thereafter.
Once they were out of hearing distance, Anzu turned to Ryou and arched an eyebrow, "Yuugi knows something's up doesn't he?"
"Well, the pinch I gave him was very subtle; I don't really think he knows – ow!" He yelped when she gave him a quick pinch. "Yeah, he knows something's up,"
The brunette looked expectantly at him, her arms crossed and foot tapping, "So. . .what am I going to tell him?"
"The truth?" He offered meekly.
She shook her head wildly, "Absolutely not! This stays between you and I,"
Ryou backed up, palms up in defense, "Alright, alright!"
Happy to have gotten her point across, Anzu settled down and started to formulate the excuse she would have to give to her best friend.
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She was never the best liar.
But for once, she actually had him fooled.
Or maybe it was the fact that he was Yuugi and never pushed anything.
Her explanation was far fetched.
"Alright," he said afterwards, still eyeing her suspiciously.
That was it. She would leave it at that. Yuugi wouldn't push it, Anzu knew he wouldn't push it. Neither would she.
"How about some ice cream?" He asked after an extremely awkward moment of silence.
"Sure!" she chirped shortly thereafter.
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Placing a seal on the pink envelope, he fanned it slowly so as to not disturb the wet ink still on the front letter of which 'Anzu Mazaki' had been elegantly in scripted. He'd been satisfied with her reaction to both letters – it was only fitting he send a third one.
Of course, the simple question of when he would stop, arose. When would he stop?
He shrugged and quietly murmured to himself, "Until she finds out, I suppose."
And he had already made sure she had no clues as to who he was. Everything from the paper and ink used, to the placement of the letters – he had made sure they could never be traced and that there were no witnesses.
No, Anzu Mazaki would never find out who he was.
Somehow, that thought seemed disheartening.
Ending Notes: So. . .you guys like? I can't believe I typed this up in one night but I guess I was so happy when the last of my APs ended. No more late night studying, no more cram sessions. . .now I can concentrate on my fics. XD
