Disclaimer: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh.
Because Things Change
Chapter Three
Dinner was so uncomfortable that Mai wished she could have feigned a raging fever and throbbing headache just to get out of it.
But she'd been legitimately ill just two weeks ago. Joey had heard her hurl all the contents of her stomach into the bathroom sink for three days straight, then watched her sink to the floor with her chest resting against the cool wood of cabinets. He took it upon himself to bring her water and wipe her face clean, then carry her into their bedroom, where he tucked her in and patted her stomach gently. Before she drifted off into sleep, she'd caught the fear in his eyes.
The doctor had said it was a bout of food poisoning, probably from the sushi they'd gotten a few nights before, and it was hard to say who was more relieved.
Mai forked a pasta noodle and put it in her mouth. Using sickness as an excuse wasn't going to work this time. She didn't need Joey freaking out at the dinner table over something nonexistent in her stomach.
So, for the moment, the four of them would just have to endure the most awkward dinner ever in complete silence. The only audible sound was the silverware clinking against plates and methodical chewing. Mai was beginning to think that she should have made a pureed soup with that super-powered blender she'd gotten as a wedding gift, just so that they could have slurped their dinner without a thought to etiquette, and then gone their merry ways.
"So." Valon's voice punctured the silence deliberately. His attempt to be cordial was marred by a soft cough. "How's the weather been lately?"
Clearly, he was the only one brave enough to do anything about the silence.
"Stormy," said Mai, just as Joey grumbled, "Fine."
Valon raised an eyebrow. Mai stabbed another swirly pasta noodle with her fork, moody. Did her husband have to be…well, such a prick?
Serenity poked her head up. "It was beautiful today," she pointed out hopefully. "Sunny."
Her brother's eyes narrowed. "You just got lucky," he said, his tone sharp. "We'll see if it lasts."
From Joey's unforgiving and unwavering tone, it was made clear that there was to be no more discussion at this meal. Serenity's head dropped like a wilting plant, her vividly red hair falling into her pasta.
Mai exhaled inaudibly, glancing down at her unappetizing meal. They should have eaten in front of the television. A situation as difficult as this one definitely deserved to break a rule she so avidly enforced in her own home.
Still, even her patience had an end. She rose abruptly from the table, without even glancing at the other people sitting around as she gathered her utensils and headed back into the kitchen. She dropped it into the sink, beside all the other things that would just have to be cleaned later.
She leaned her arms against the edge of the counter, glancing out of the window and savoring a silence that stemmed from peace, not tension. She closed her eyes, trying to make herself breathe and come up with her next course of action.
That could easily be done, she realized as she opened her eyes and turned so that her back rested against the countertop, by getting out of this house, away from the conflict. Her eyes fell onto her car keys.
She crossed the kitchen swiftly, snatching up her clutch and keys, and then tied up her hair into a messy bun. She was already halfway out the door when-
"Is someone on their way out?"
It was jarring to be stopped. Mai glanced over her shoulder, irritated.
"Just for a little bit," she said. "Why?"
"Curious," said Valon, as he dumped three bowls and forks into the sink. He'd cleared the table, Mai realized, while the other two Wheelers were off doing God-knows-what. What a gentleman. Mai tried not to be impressed. "Where are you off to?"
"Errands," she said with a shrug of her shoulders. She had no idea where she was headed, she just wanted to get out.
"Remain vague. I'm cool with that."
She held back a frustrated sigh. "What, did you want to come along?" The words blurted themselves out of her mouth before she could take them back. Damn.
A cheeky smile flashed on his lips. "Are you offering? Because I'll take any excuse to get out of here."
Mai crossed her arms. "Aren't you tired? You just got off an international flight."
He raised one eyebrow. "Your point?"
"None," she said with a shrug, hiding an amused smile. "Just give me a second."
If only leaving were as easy as declaring it. If she had been by herself, Mai would have just thrown herself into her car and drove until she'd used up half the tank. But she was married now, to a man who had serious issues with the passenger in her car, and so it was necessary to traipse up the stairs and find Joey.
Apparently, societal expectations demanded that of married couples.
He'd been pacing up and down the floor of their bedroom, muttering nonsensical nothings under his breath. She opened the door gently, and poked her head in to inform him that she was leaving and taken Valon with her.
"What? Where? You guys are leaving?" His eyes flashed upon her and his strides were ungainly with his still simmering anger. He proceeded to unleash a barrel of explanations why she couldn't go, why his so-called "instinctual gut feeling" told him that Valon had a secret plan to use old powers and maul her on the way to the store, leaving her to be roadkill.
"Where are you guys even going?" demanded Joey. Mai stepped into the room and shut the door firmly behind her, crossing her arms.
"You need to stop acting like a child," she snapped. "He's a guest in our house, and he can hear absolutely everything you're saying."
"Mai," complained Joey. "He's a known criminal and—"
"Joey, if he's a known criminal, then I should already be behind bars, don't you think?"
Her husband threw her hands up in the air. "Really? Are you going to defend him? You know what he's capable of—"
"What he was capable of," insisted Mai. "Times have changed, okay? And we'll talk about this later. I don't want to face you like this right now."
"Mai," said Joey, and she knew he hadn't heard a single word she said. "I don't trust him. I really don't trust him. He might—"
"Nothing is going to happen," she said angrily, already halfway out the door. This wasn't a conversation she was willing to get into at the moment. "Good-bye, Joey. We'll talk later when I get back—"
"Mai." Joey grabbed a hold of her arm before she could leave. She whirled to face him, half ready to slap the living daylights out of him for manhandling her, but when she caught the sudden upset glance of his eyes, she relented.
"Just…okay," Joey fumbled over his words, and then let go of her. "This is hard for me, all right? I just need some time. Can you please not go out tonight?"
This was the thing about being married, Mai had learned. Sometimes, it was just better not to ask for reasons. Sometimes, it was just better to listen.
And when she looked into Joey's sad, sad eyes, one little piece of her heart started to give way.
"Okay," she said with a sigh. "Fine. I won't go out."
His face relaxed. "Thanks, Mai," he said. She had already turned to the door, loosening the bun so that her hair fell into her face, obscuring her expression. He didn't need to see her irritation-he could know it by the way she slammed the door shut.
"We're not going," announced Mai when she walked down the stairs to the foyer. Valon was waiting in front of the door. He'd already thrown on his trademark red biker jacket, one that Mai couldn't believe he still owned. Hers was in her closet...somewhere. It was a little hard to fit into her life now.
"What?" asked Valon, his eyes widening. "Are you serious? Why not?"
Because Joey doesn't want me to sounded weak and prissy, even to her own ears, so Mai sighed. "It's just not a good time. Maybe tomorrow."
Valon's shoulders slumped, and he sighed, ruffling a heavy hand through his brown hair as he turned halfway to the door, probably imagining what was beyond it.
"Look," said Mai, feeling guilty. He had clearly wanted this as much as she did. "I'll make it up to you. Let me get you a drink."
"You still do that?" asked Valon, and there was a sting in his words that she hadn't heard before. She had half a mind to be insulted, but with all that happened today, maybe this was one thing she could let pass.
Her own patience today was astounding even her.
"Yeah," said Mai evenly, as she headed into the kitchen, Valon trailing behind her. "There's still some remnants of the good ol' days in this body."
"So what have we got?" asked Valon as he threw himself into the stool at the island counter, his hands clasped together like a diligent schoolchild. "Some super classy white wine from California? Or do you keep a stash of French stuff from your cruise ship days?"
She ignored his remarks and turned to open the fridge, surveying its contents for the two bottles on the shelf. "How about this?" she said, reaching for the two and turning around to show him.
His mouth dropped open. That smug satisfaction she got from seeing his shock was more than enough compensation for her godly perseverance today.
"Seriously?" asked Valon, after Mai had uncorked the bottle and slid it to him. His hand curled around the neck of the bottle so that he could glance at the label. "You still have this stuff? Man, we used to drink this all the time, back when Dartz—"
"Yeah, I know," said Mai, cutting him off. She didn't need to be reminded of her earlier duplicity with Serenity.
"Wow," laughed Valon as he took a swig. "I haven't had this in ages. It's just as good as I remember."
"Glad to hear it." Mai took some for herself, savoring the chill in her mouth. She waited for the alcohol to kick in and relax her nerves, and when it did, she sighed, content. She'd always preferred this over the classy stuff.
"Seriously," said Valon, still stuck on the fact that he was drinking the same beer he'd had almost every night in another lifetime. "Serenity told me about their dad's drinking problem. How does Joey even condone this in the house?"
She shrugged. "I buy it by the bottle," she explained. "More expensive but…it keeps him off my back. He might be sober, but I still need it…once in a while, anyway. We don't drink it often."
He raised one eyebrow. "You mean you don't drink often."
She raised the bottle to her lips to delay answering. "Something like that."
They way he looked at her, something like a mix of shock and apprehension, unnerved her. Even through the slight haze of her drink, Mai was unnerved.
"What?" she snapped, defensive. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
There was a slight grin at the corner of his lips as he turned his head, taking a drink from the bottle. "Nothing, nothing," he said, waving a careless hand.
"No," insisted Mai. "You were going to say something. And you're going to tell me what it is."
"I was just going to comment," said Valon, slowly, carefully, his eyes never leaving her face, "that…it's funny how we're different now."
"We?" she challenged. "Or just me?"
"Uh…which one will seem less insulting?"
Mai's eyes flashed. "I hope you like the cold, Mr. Bentley, because that's where you're going to be spending your nights for these next five days."
"What? Mai!" exclaimed Valon. "Jeez, you think you're the only one who's changed? I'm not the same person either!"
The girl you're dating is great proof of that was what Mai wanted to lash out, but she kept her lips pressed together.
"Okay, okay, I'll make it up to you," continued Valon. "Watch me. Just watch me for the next few days, and then talk to me about your findings. Fair?"
It was Mai's turn to raise an eyebrow. "What, am I playing psychologist or something? You're not that difficult to understand, Valon."
"Hey!" he said, a hurt look on his face. "I thought you'd enjoy this!"
Mai laughed, the sound loud even to her own ears. "Are you kidding me? There are things I don't need to accomplish in life, and that's most definitely one of them."
"Come on," said Valon. "Give it a try."
He was so confident, so self-assured that Mai bit the inner part of her cheek and considered the situation for a moment.
"Is this going to be one of those things where there's a right and wrong answer?"
"Maybe."
She shook her head, taking another drink. "Then I'm not playing."
"Oh, come on. It'll be fun."
Mai twirled one strand of hair around her finger, thoughtful. "What's the prize?"
"What's this about prizes?"
Mai and Valon both glanced towards the other door that led to the dining room, where Serenity had just pushed her way through. Mai saw that she seemed to have already gotten ready for bed in a white tank and purple and white plaid pajamas. Her long hair had been twisted into a braided bun.
"We're seeing how far each of us is willing to go for something," said Valon, who Mai realized was still sober enough to know that their conversation wasn't exactly good fodder for his current girlfriend to hear.
"Yeah? Like the Klondike bar commercials?" asked Serenity, striding forward. She ran her slim fingers through Valon's hair as she stood beside him, pressing her lips to his cheek.
Mai took a gulp of beer. Man, this stuff was getting really weak or her tolerance had just gone off the chart.
"Yes! Exactly." Valon turned to Mai with his beer bottle raised in challenge. "Give me a suitable answer, and I will give you a Klondike Bar."
"Of all the things to do for a Klondike bar, I think that would make me the most ashamed."
Serenity looked like she wanted to laugh, but without knowing the context, she couldn't. She'd come too late into the conversation to keep up. "Is what you're telling her to do really that bad?" she asked, glancing down at Valon, who was still grinning at Mai.
"No," said Mai, setting down her bottle. "Can I help you, Serenity? Did you need something?"
"Oh, no," said Serenity, shaking her head quickly. "I just wanted...to see what was going on. I heard laughter...so I came down." She glanced down at her boyfriend, rather hopefully, Mai noticed. Valon finally gave her his attention with a smile.
"Yeah, I'm okay now." Just briefly, his eyes met Mai's, whose fingers itched for the bottle. But since she didn't really want to drink in front of Serenity, she drew her hands behind her, clasping them against the edge of the counter.
"Well, actually Mai, I did have something." Serenity's hands twisted together nervously. "You know what Joey saying...about Valon sleeping out in the yard...was it true?"
"Depends," said Mai, focusing her gaze back on Valon. "Didn't you say you like the outdoors?"
He scowled. "Yeah, I do. But I saw your backyard, and it doesn't even qualify as a yard. It's practically sticks of wood. I'll be sleeping on splinters tonight."
"It's under construction," she said, defensive.
"Well yeah, exactly. So there's no reason for me to even be out there." Valon clasped his hands in supplication. "Please Mai, if there's even a single bone of kindness in your body—"
She rolled her eyes. "Stop groveling, you little wimp. Joey and I already prepared the guest bedroom for you and Serenity. But I'm warning both of you—" she raised a finger at eye-level to both of them "—no screwing around. Literally. The walls are thin, and I'm not going to put up with that in my house."
Serenity's cheeks flamed redder than a fire truck. Valon let out a voracious laugh.
"Good one," he said, pretending to wipe a tear from his eye. "I'll keep that in mind while I sleep like a baby tonight. My girlfriend's sister-in-law thinks I'm a satyromaniac."
"Valon!" she whacked him on the shoulder, and then turned to her sister-in-law in disgust. "Mai! Really? Was that necessary?"
"Not for you," said Mai, keeping her eyes on the little rascal. "But boys need a reminder sometimes."
"Point taken," said Valon, downing the rest of his beer and setting the bottle back on the countertop. "Well, in that case, I better head off to shower and bed. Thanks for the drink, Mai. I'll see you in the morning."
"Mmhmm," said Mai, crossing her arms. Valon gave Serenity a quick kiss on the lips before heading out through the dining room entrance, leaving Mai alone with a very embarrassed sister-in-law.
"Really, Mai?" asked Serenity, her voice dangerously close to a whine. "Was that seriously necessary?"
"Serenity," said Mai. "It's all fun and games."
The girl cradled her face in her hands. "You are so embarrassing sometimes!"
"Please," said Mai, as she collected Valon's empty bottle and stashed it in the recycling beneath the sink. "You guys live together. If Joey and I were more conservative, you guys wouldn't even be sleeping on the same floor."
Her eyes widened. "You mean he'd really—"
"No, silly," said Mai with a shake of her head. "He'd take the couch downstairs."
"Oh." Serenity deflated.
"And besides," said Mai, stepping to the island counter so that she and Serenity were closer. "We needed a little laughter. After all that we've been through today, it's important to end on a good note."
"Yeah," she agreed. "I guess so." The smile on Serenity's face was back as she crossed over and gave Mai a hug. "Well, I'm off to bed then. See you in the morning?"
"Sleep as late as you want," said Mai as earnestly as she could. "We really don't have anything planned tomorrow."
"Awesome," said Serenity. "See you in the morning."
And then she was through the door, and Mai was alone in her kitchen.
Well, she wasn't technically alone. She still had that half-full bottle that was calling her name incessantly.
She drank a little bit, taking sips while her ears strained for any sound of movement. In the absolute silence of her kitchen, she could hear the faint sound of water running from one of the bathrooms, but that was all. She downed the rest of her drink and then made her way up the stairs slowly, sure that she would run into no one on her way into her bedroom. When she pushed open the door, Joey was just coming out of the shower.
"Hey Mai," said Joey, coming towards her with only a towel wrapped low on his hips. Her husband gave her a hug, one that she stiffened at initially, but she could sense something in his more calm attitude that made her soften. "I'm sorry."
"Just this once," said Mai as they drew apart, "I'm not going to ask you to elaborate."
He gave a small chuckle. "Is there a reason why?"
"Yup," she said, taking off her coat to throw it into the dresser. "Because you'll show tomorrow whether or not you meant it."
She thought he would whine, like his sister, but he was surprisingly calm. "Okay," he said. "That's fair."
"I know I am," said Mai over her shoulder as she closed the door behind her.
She placed her hands onto the sink and stared at her reflection in the mirror.
What the hell was wrong with her?
What was she thinking, asking that boy to share drinks with her? She hadn't meant for it to be such a conversation, hadn't thought that bantering with him would be as easy as breathing. But it was so, so long since she'd had someone who matched with her when it came to wits. Joey tried, but their conversations were more playful when they needed to be, and serious when they had to be.
She tried to keep her mind clear as she turned on the water, stripped off her clothes and stepped in. If only the scalding water would melt away her thoughts too, but she doubted that was going to happen. Going through the rest of her routine didn't help one bit, and so, when she finally climbed into bed beside Joey, she wasn't sure at all of where she stood.
"Mai," whispered Joey, one hand snaking around her waist. "I'll be better tomorrow."
"I hope you're keeping that promise." She closed her eyes, still keeping her back to him.
"Mmhmm." It was muffled into the pillow, but she heard it. She flipped to the other side, resting her forehead on his chest.
"Okay. That's good enough for me. Good night, Joey."
"Good night, Mai. I love you."
She had already fallen asleep before she could respond.
Author's Note: So...super funny thing about this chapter. Every time I tried to write it, I'd get stuck at this one part. It's why I had to put this story down for so long, but as you can see, it's been overcome! As for the next chapter, it's coming. Slowly. This particular story really isn't a priority for me even though I know the general direction just because...I only want to work on this story when I know I can write my very best. It's seriously close to my heart because of the challenge of storytelling it the right way, so I'm taking it easy.
Also: I'm looking for a beta! Really random and out of the blue, but if interested, please PM me! :)
Annndd...I try not to get personal, (and this is already a really long A/N), but it's my last day as a freshman in college so I wanted to get it out. I'm moving out in the morning and I'm really sad...gawd, I don't know what I'm going to do without my floormates... :'(
Thanks very much for reading this chapter! I sincerely appreciate it :) Please leave a review on your way out!
