LIN NOTES: Whew, this one is massive. I was going to cut it in two, but figured go big or go home.
So a few notes. First of all, there have been some concerns about cliches. Yes, there are a few intentional ones. I think cliches are a great starting point for a character, because they're there for a reason - because often, that's the way the character behaves in the series. However, I like to take those cliches and build on them, and develop the characters in a way that I hope they would've naturally grown had then been thrust into this situation.
That being said, I can actually promise that we are going to get an original twist very, very soon. ;)
In other news, and for any readers of Maelstrom, a new chapter is in the works. Pulled, as a rule, is easier to write because it's currently less complex. Maelstrom, on the other hand, has a ton of plot intricacies that I need to write correctly, or else they're not going to play out properly later on. SO - the point is, you'll see an update soon, but Pulled as a whole will likely be updated more frequently.
Finally, thank you to my readers and reviewers. I'm looking forward to hearing what you have to say as Pulled progresses some more!
-Pulled-
Chapter Two: Water Fall
To say that the week had crawled by would the biggest understatement of the century; other than the brief ten minutes before Wednesday's gym class that Yuugi had spent pointlessly worrying about Malik's retribution - that never came - the seventeen year old had thought of Friday's impending field trip... and nothing else. Every time he replayed Tuesday's successful conversation with Mr. Atemu in his mind, he felt butterflies dance around in his stomach - and though the rational pat of his brain recognized that crushing on his teacher was just about the most common right-of-passage-that-never-comes-to-pass ever, he decided to relish the feeling while it lasted.
I know that I'll back on this in about ten years and laugh, he thought as he approached his customary morning spot near the school gate, to wait for Ryou and Tea. But honestly, who cares? Crushing on someone is just... fun! And it was fun and thrilling and wonderful - though admittedly his appetite was a little less robust than usual, but what the hell?
"Morning sweetums!" Tea chirped, dressed, for once, in her school uniform rather than her cheerleading one. The brunette was balancing a tray of coffee in one manicured hand, and was gripping three paper bags tightly in the other. "Practice got canceled this morning, but I was already awake... so I picked us up some breakfast along away. The front coffee is yours - two milks and three sugars," she reported happily, jutting her nose out playfully in front of her to indicate which was Yuugi's cup.
"Thanks Tea," Yuugi replied in amusement, though he took the entire coffee tray from her hands, sensing that she was about to lose it. Tea sighed in relief and transferred one of the paper bags to her free hand. "What's in the bags?" Yuugi inquired curiously.
"Danishes!" Tea exclaimed. "I figured, knowing you, that you didn't eat this morning... but we've got a big day ahead of us and you need to give your brain a head start."
"Keh, how did you know?" Yuugi replied sheepishly. He unconsciously made to run a hand through his spiky hair, one of his 'caught in the act' mannerisms, but quickly realized that it would be unwise, given the three scalding hot coffees still inhabiting the tray in his hand. He settled for crinkling his nose.
"Oh you can stop the 'Yuugi's-embarrassed-nose-crinkle'," Tea said playfully, cocking her thin eyebrow mischievously. "I've known you since you were four, and I know how you get when you have a crush. You eat like a mouse."
"Maybe I'm just on one of your crazy diets?" Yuugi tried innocently, causing Tea to scowl.
"Eat your croissant Yuugi," Tea deadpanned, and chuckling, Yuugi did as she bid.
"Coffee - oh thank God," Ryou's ragged voice interjected from behind Tea. The pale boy had noticeably large, purple bags under his chocolate eyes and looked like death warmed up. His uniform was characteristically rumpled, but his two best friends had learned long ago that it was futile to fix it... and now they just treated it as part of his eccentric genius charm. "Which one's mine?" he asked pointlessly, as he was already snatching the nearest cup from the tray and bringing it to his lips.
"Holy TERROR!" he screeched after taking a swig, and instantly the light brown liquid spewed from his mouth onto the ground. Tea and Yuugi cackled at his dramatic performance, nearly doubling over as he retched twice and hissed, "That's vile - Yuugi would you care to try some coffee with your sugar?"
"We-ell if you'd been more patient, I could've told you which one was yours," Yuugi replied fairly, expertly passing the tray to Ryou while simultaneously grabbing his half empty cup from Ryou's pale grip. "If anyone should be mad it's me... you dumped more than half of it!"
"Totally worth it!" Tea giggled, "I'd give up coffee for a week to see that expression on Ryou's face again!" Said boy, pale features still pinched in ill-concealed disgust, scowled playfully, and shoved his female friend gently with his shoulder. With a reluctant smile, the pale teen then carefully sniffed the remaining two coffee cups on the tray, and selected the one that smelled the strongest.
"Barbarians," he muttered, though the effect was lost in the next instant, as he brought his cup to his mouth and sighed in utter bliss.
-o-
After dropping Ryou off at his Intermediate Law class, Tea and Yuugi made their way across the neatly groomed courtyard to the staff parking lot, where Mr. Atemu had requested that the class assemble before loading onto the school buses. As they neared the large group of students already gathered, Yuugi felt his heart tighten in happy apprehension, and he began consciously scanning the crowd for Mr. Atemu's signature black hair. It didn't take long to spot the man, who, at the moment, was chatting animatedly to the bus driver. As Yuugi's violet eyes examined the man from head to toe, Yuugi heard, rather than felt, his own intake of breath.
Mr. Atemu was dressed in a way that could only be described as casually modelesque. Unlike most days when the young teacher wore some combination of slacks, a blazer, and a button down shirt, today he was dressed in figure-hugging dark wash jeans and a form-fitting navy, long sleeved shirt. He looked gorgeous as always, was Yuugi's first thought, followed by a snide, dressing like that should be made illegal.
"Man," Tea hissed quietly into Yuugi's ear, as the pair approached the Ancient History teacher. "I don't know how he expects us to pay attention to the architecture if he's going to show up looking like that!" There was no need for Yuugi to ask clarification about who she was talking about.
"I guess teachers are allowed to dress down on field-trips?" Yuugi replied with a shrug, though his eyes never left Mr. Atemu. The teacher turned his back to them to speak with another student, and Yuugi's gaze slipped lower and lower until... suddenly it was very hot outside. "It'd be great if we got to wear normal clothes too," Yuugi added quickly, unconsciously reaching up to tug his collar away from his neck, "it's still way too warm to wear this stupid blazer..."
"It's October," Tea added skeptically, holding her skirt primly as a cool breeze brushed passed them. Traitor, Yuugi's mental voice pouted immaturely at the wind. "Maybe if, you know, you stopped blushing, you wouldn't be so warm?" Tea mentioned casually.
Yuugi could feel his face darken even further, if that was possible, and he diverted his eyes down to glare at the ground. "You just can't feel the heat because you get to wear a skirt," he mumbled, suddenly fascinated by the individual blades of grass beneath his feet.
"Yuugi," Tea replied solemnly, which was never a good sign, "Domino High is all about equality. I'm sure we could talk to Principal Figgins about fitting you for a skirt, if you'd really like one."
"Gee, thanks Tea," Yuugi bit back acidly, with a little more volume than necessary.
"For what it's worth," she said with a smirk, "I think you would look beautiful. Your legs really are one of your best features, you should show them off more often..."
"Tea!" Yuugi growled, scowling darkly as she burst into giggles.
"And good morning to you as well, Sunshine," a deep voice greeted warmly, washing over Yuugi like a river of hot chocolate. Yuugi's head popped up, and suddenly, the sleepy butterflies in his stomach woke up and began flittering around brilliantly. "How are you this morning, Yuugi?" Mr. Atemu asked sincerely, his crimson eyes twinkling. Yuugi felt his brain flatline.
Tea loyally waited for a moment, giving Yuugi his chance to answer, and then equally loyally came to his rescue when she realized that at this point, even if he did manage to get a sound past his lips, it would probably sound like he was speaking a foreign language. "We're great!" she fumbled awkwardly, "just um, discussing uniform options!"
"Yeah I'm going to wear a skirt," Yuugi added dumbly, even as his conscience gaped inwardly at the sudden disconnect between his mind and his mouth. What the fuck did you just say?
"That would... certainly be making a statement," Mr. Atemu replied diplomatically, though his eyes showed obvious confusion and curiosity. Yuugi mentally prepared his funeral instructions - hopefully he would have time to pass them off to Tea and Ryou before he died of mortification.
"Oh you know Yuugi, always cracking jokes on Friday mornings," Tea chirped, holding her closed hand out to fist bump her smaller friend, who only just managed to return it in time. "It's been a long week - so his humor's a little dry at this point."
"Of course," Mr. Atemu chuckled kindly, raising his hands in mock surrender. "Say no more. When I was a student, Fridays felt longer than eternity. I understand that you must be ready for the weekend Yuugi, however, do try to stay with us for a few more hours. I really do think that you, especially, will find this field-trip quite fascinating. The ancient Romans were quite remarkable, and really knew their stuff... in their prime, they were completely unmatched technologically."
"That, and there will probably be a pop quiz on it next Tuesday?" Yuugi asked slyly, having finally regained enough of his mental footing to put together a coherent thought.
Mr. Atemu winked, and then whispered conspiratorially: "There just might be. Now, if you two wouldn't mind getting on the bus," he added in his normal voice, clapping Yuugi lightly on the shoulder, "we can hopefully arrive at the Everest Springs before noon!"
"Sure!" Yuugi and Tea exclaimed simultaneously, earning them both a dazzling smile, before their teacher wandered off to finish rounding up the students. Tea made to walk towards the bus, but paused slightly when she realized that Yuugi hadn't moved it.
"Yuugi, what is it?" she asked curiously, resting her dainty hand on his shoulder, her touch a ghostly reminder of Mr. Atemu's.
"Please tell me that I just imagined telling Mr. Atemu that I wanted to start wearing a skirt?" Yuugi asked hopefully, his purple eyes slightly wild as he replayed the conversation in his mind.
"Uhhh nope," Tea replied with a slight shake of her head, her ponytail bouncing with the motion. "But for what it's worth, he probably thought it was cute!"
"Cute?" Yuugi asked in distaste. Oh that word was really starting to bug him...
"Oh come on," Tea said, rolling her expressive blue eyes, before she snatched his arm up in her hand and began dragging him onto the bus. "We need to move now or we aren't going to get a seat together!"
"Okay," Yuugi sighed, and he began following her out of his own free will. The two walked in amicable silence for a minute, hopping on the bus with a swift greeting to the driver, and then taking two seats near the front.
Yuugi could tell that Tea was deep in thought by the time that the bus had pulled out of the driveway - she hadn't said a word, she had only pressed a finger to her lips thoughtfully. "What is it?" he finally asked.
"I wonder how Mr. Atemu would look in a skirt?" was the reply, causing Yuugi to squawk loudly, then blush as the nearby passengers turned to stare at him curiously.
Still, that didn't stop the image of long, tanned legs from staying burned in his mind for the rest of the drive to the Everest Springs.
-o-
Mr. Atemu had been right, Yuugi finally admitted around mid-afternoon. Even though Yuugi knew that he'd listen to any lecture his favorite teacher gave, just to enjoy the sound of his voice, the teen found himself growing more and more enthralled by the content.
Even though the Everest Springs was just a replication of the great city of Bath, the builders had recreated the architecture flawlessly. The entire complex was made up of a series of temples, each artfully carved to match the original. The temples were about three stories high, and most had large, ornate balconies, supported by thick pillars of stone. The temples, however, were only the opening act to the main event, Yuugi realized, as he peered over the nearest balcony to the ground below.
Each temple surrounded what had come to be known as the Great Bath. The Great Bath was absolutely massive - about the length of an Olympic swimming pool - and was filled to the brim with stagnant water and no small amount of algae. Most remarkably, however, was the fact that the entire pool had once been heated.
"... by the Caldarium. which we saw earlier this morning," Mr. Atemu lectured animatedly, waving a tanned hand in the direction of the large bath below. "Furthermore, you may have noticed the statues of various Roman gods and goddesses surrounding the bath. The Romans were very religious, and even incorporated aspects of their beliefs into everyday rituals, such as eating and bathing. In fact, we will pass through the Museum on our way out, to view some genuine relics found during the expeditions of the bathhouse in England..."
Yuugi once again lost himself in the sound of Mr. Atemu's voice, allowing his legs to lean casually against the decorated balcony in front of him, supporting his weight. Gazing out at the complex, he allowed his violet eyes to cast around at the various aspects that Mr. Atemu highlighted, leaning forward to rest his elbow against the stone and propping up his forearm to support his chin.
"Careful, you don't want to fall in!" Tea joked with a mock-stern voice, coming up beside Yuugi, before mimicking his position like a true hypocrite. "This place is great eh?" she chirped, closing her eyes in relaxation as a ray of sunshine fell on her face, glinting off of her silky hair like a halo. "I mean, it's so beautiful. The Romans really had life figured out. It's all in the little things!"
"Yeah," Yuugi said with a smile. "I think Rome would have been a great place to live, back then. I'm not sure what I would've done without the Internet though..."
"Spoken like a true addict," Tea teased, "there's programs for that you know. Ten steps and all of that..."
"Ha," Yuugi scoffed, "Nice try on the intervention - but until you find me glued to a chair, covered in week old stains and stroking a cat, I'm happy to live out my addiction in peace, thank you!"
Tea stuck out her tongue, and cuffed him lightly on the head, causing him to laugh quietly.
"Hey, hey, there ain't no need to get physical der," a rough voice said from behind them. Yuugi and Tea turned slightly to acknowledge the arrival of Joey Wheeler, as the tall blonde-haired boy strode over confidently to the two friends. Though Yuugi had thanked the other teen for intervening with Malik on his behalf, he still felt a little bit awkward whenever Joey was around, especially since the blonde seemed to have appointed himself as Yuugi's personal protector. "Lemme know if ya need me to teach her a lesson der Yuug'!" Joey exclaimed, reinforcing his position in Yuugi's mind.
"Ha, you? Take Tea?" Tristan Taylor said, having followed his best friend through the crowd of students and tourists. Casually, he stepped in front of Tea and Yuugi, nearly blocking Joey from their view. "Please, she'd kick your ass up and down the street all day long! She could take you without ruffling her skirt," he taunted, with a boisterous laugh. As the icing on the cake, Tristan leaned forward and flicked Joey playfully on the nose, causing the blonde to growl deep in his throat.
"Whaddaya mean? She's just a girl!" Joey near-shouted indignantly, gesturing in Tea's direction. Tea squeaked in outrage, and crossed her arms across her chest. Narrowing her blue eyes, she prepared to answer, before Tristan beat her to the punch.
"Yeah, and so's Serenity. I've seen her put you in your place, and she isn't even an athlete!" Tristan teased with a scoff.
As the two continued to bicker in way that Yuugi assumed was good-naturedly, the spiky haired teen rose onto his tippy toes to whisper into Tea's ear: "Man, they really like winding each other up. It's hard to believe that they're best friends!"
"Boys will be boys," Tea retorted, "though I'm surprised that Mr. Atemu hasn't noticed. They're getting pretty loud." At her words, the pair's attention returned back to the arguing boys, who were tossing insults back and forth like a volleyball. Clearly, the argument was heating up, though both of them were still glaring at each other with ill-concealed mirth.
"Dat's it, buddy! I've had it up ta here!" Joey exclaimed, with a sharp gesture to his forehead. "Prepare ta feel tha Wrath of Wheeler!" he shouted, diving at the brunette with a smirk, clearly intending to tackle him to the ground.
Three things happened at once: Tristan stepped back tauntingly to avoid his best friend's leap, Joey's momentum propelled him forward into the next available target, and Yuugi, off balance from his whispering to Tea, literally felt his world fall out from beneath him, as his body was propelled over the edge of the balcony and into the Great Bath below.
In the moments before he hit the water, Yuugi felt like he was falling in slow motion. He saw Joey's expression change from mock anger to real shock, he heard Tea's piercing scream... and unconsciously, his eyes searched out the pair that he most wanted to see...
... but before he had the chance to realize exactly whose eyes those were, Yuugi felt his body hit the water with a loud crack that distantly reminded him of a bulldozer hitting a street lamp, and he knew no more.
-o-
The world came back to Yuugi in pieces. The first thing that he was aware of was the fact that he was cold - no wait, he thought, not just cold. Wet. He was definitely wet. The question is, why am I wet? Did I fall asleep in the shower?
The next thing he realized was that his chest hurt. No, hurt wasn't a strong enough word for it. His chest burned, burned like someone had forced a hot poker down his throat and the damn thing had melted into a pool of molten metal and coated the inside of his lungs.
The final thing he realized was that it was still dark, and that he should probably open his eyes before he jumped to any more conclusions.
Gradually, Yuugi pried his eyes open, which was a lot harder than normal by the way, and he noticed one more thing. That thing happened to be a pair of wide, panicked, crimson eyes, less than a foot away from his face.
"Gyah!" Yuugi exclaimed in surprise, shifting his body away instinctively. The pressure on his stomach, which his muddled brain had mistakenly catalogued as an injury but now identified as a hand, was instantly dislodged and the pain in Yuugi's chest instantly intensified. Oww, he cringed mentally, closing his eyes until the pain died back down to an annoying throb. It was only then that he realized that someone was calling his name... and that someone sounded frantic.
"Yuugi... Yuugi," the bodiless voice asked, growing more and more insistent. The voice was certainly familiar...
"Yuugi, please, I need you to say something," it begged with a ragged whisper. "I need to make sure that you can understand me. Please Yuugi."
Wait. He knew that voice. Though he'd never heard it sound quite like that before.
"Mister - Mister Atemu?" Yuugi croaked in groggy confusion, wincing at the rawness of his throat. Slowly, the world around Yuugi began to focus, and his ragged mind was able to piece together the last few moments into a semi-coherent picture. Oh right, I fell about three stories into a literal cesspool, he realized, that's a slightly major thing to just gloss over there...
"Oh thank goodness, Yuugi," Mr. Atemu's deep voice replied with relief, causing Yuugi to crack his eyes open again as the words were accompanied by a warm breath of air. With a start, Yuugi realized that he was lying down on the ground, and Mr. Atemu was kneeling over him, no more than inches away. One of the man's tanned hands was carefully supporting Yuugi's neck, while the other, the one that had originally been on Yuugi's stomach, was resting on the ground beside Yuugi's head, supporting the teacher's weight. "I was so very worried about you. How do you feel, Little One?"
Usually Yuugi would have bristled at being called 'little' - it was in the same league as 'cute' in his opinion - but he was far too tired to complain. "My... chest and th-throat really hurt," he reported hoarsely, using as few words as needed to communicate his injuries. "How... did I... get out?" he asked dazedly.
"Mr. Atemu, he - he pulled you out," Tea's voice sounded from nearby. She choked a little as she spoke, which Yuugi knew meant that she had been crying. As if to highlight his thoughts, she gave a little hiccough at the end of her sentence.
"D-don't cry Tea," he commanded gently, his eyes searching for her face until he saw her standing several feet in front of him. Her blue eyes were puffy and lined with red, and her skin was splotched with blotchy patches. She looked awful.
"I'm sorry," she said, biting her glossy pink lips to conceal a wail, "I was just so worried about you!"
"We all were," Mr. Atemu added gently, withdrawing the hand from behind Yuugi's neck and backing away to give the boy some more air.
"I-I'm fine, I promise," Yuugi replied, slowly trying to sit up. Instantly, he felt white-hot ribbons of pain snake through his chest, and he felt like his heart was being pulled in every direction. A sudden pressure on his stomach guided him back down to the ground, accompanied by a soft murmuring, and instantly he felt the aching subside again. Looking at his belly, he realized that Mr. Atemu's hand was resting on him protectively. Under any other circumstances, he would have been over the moon... however, there was no misinterpreting this gesture as anything other than deep concern.
Still, it was enough to finally draw Yuugi's attention back to his instructor, who had leaned back onto his knees to support himself. For the first time since he had awoken, Yuugi finally took a good look at the man.
Mr. Atemu was soaking wet, the water causing his navy shirt to cling to his chest, outlining every muscle. His dark hair framed his face in a wild halo, and some strands were still dripping, causing tiny rivulets of liquid to crawl down his chest, arms, and back. He was panting so very slightly, and his lips looked slightly plumper than normal, as if he had just spend the past ten minutes heatedly kissing someone. Yuugi realized that he must be all right if his brain was already sending him on those tangents again. Still, this was the closest he had ever actually been to the object of his affections, and a very small, traitorous part of him, was celebrating his brush with death enthusiastically.
"Yuugi, please don't try to sit up," Mr. Atemu requested gently. "An ambulance has just arrived, and I'd like to have the paramedics look you over first, to make sure that you haven't suffered a concussion. Can you do that?"
Yuugi hummed his assent, and watched his teacher smile gratefully.
"Thank you Yuugi," Mr. Atemu said, before using his free hand to motion someone over. Instantly, a tall, muscular man in a navy uniform appeared at his side. The man had long, chocolate brown hair that was tied into a sensible low ponytail, and kind green eyes.
"Now Yuugi, this is Mahado. Mahado is a paramedic and a good friend, he'll look after you," the instructor said reassuringly, before turning his attention to the dark skinned paramedic beside him.
"Mahado, Yuugi fell from the second floor balcony into the pool," Mr. Atemu reported clinically, "He passed out on impact. I resuscitated him, but I'm worried that he may have a concussion. I-I can't tell if he hit his head or not. There was some confusion as he awoke, and his pupils are still quite dilated." Yuugi instantly felt self-conscious, and wished that there was mirror that he could look into, to examine his so-called dilated eyes.
"All right, thank you Yami," Mahado replied, and Yuugi instantly liked his voice. It was extremely soothing. "Yuugi, could you please look at me for a moment?"
Yuugi nearly whined as a bright light was shone into his eyes, and he felt Mr. Atemu's hand slip quietly away from his belly.
"Dilation is a little off, but over all, actually looks quite good," Mahado replied, his voice lilting in surprise. "Do you feel any pain, Yuugi?" he asked, as his careful hands gently prodded various areas on Yuugi's scalp, feeling for swelling.
"Not so much in my head," Yuugi replied quietly, "though my chest really hurts and my throat is a bit raw."
"Ah, unfortunately chest pain is a common side affect of nearly drowning," Mahado replied sympathetically, "you'll likely experience it for a few days - even for an entire week. And your throat is probably a result of coughing up water when you awoke - luckily, it should be gone by tomorrow morning."
Yuugi shrugged his shoulders. He didn't remember coughing up any water, but it made sense. As if sensing his thoughts, Mr. Atemu added, "You fainted again almost immediately afterwards. I wouldn't be surprised if you didn't remember." Yuugi nodded in acquiescence.
"Well if there are no head injuries, and you feel able to, then we should try and have you sit up. Slowly, no sudden movements," Mahado added, as he slipped a strong arm behind Yuugi's back and helped the teen up into a seated position. Yuugi's chest burned again at the motion, but it was no where near as intense as it had been earlier.
Immediately, Yuugi's purple eyes turned up to Mr. Atemu's crimson ones, and he said sincerely, "Thanks for saving me, Mr. Atemu."
Mr. Atemu rubbed his chest in what Yuugi imagined was slight embarrassment at having received praise. The instructor had always been extremely modest, and that modesty only grew when he performed something particularly noteworthy. "Any time Yuugi," his velvety replied gently, dismissing Mahado with a nod, "and I am so glad that you are all right." Reaching down, the young teacher helped Yuugi to his feet, steadying him when the teen swayed slightly. Tea instantly appeared at his other side.
"I'm going to take him home now, okay Mr. Atemu?" she asked worriedly, her hand reaching out and grasping Yuugi's shoulder comfortingly.
"Yes, I believe that this field trip is over," Mr. Atemu sighed sadly, releasing his hold on Yuugi completely.
"It was great up until I decided to go for a swim," Yuugi joked, causing Tea to shake her head.
"What did I tell you, sir?" she sighed dramatically. "He has a dry sense of humor on Fridays."
"Or a wet one," Mr. Atemu replied quietly, causing Yuugi to erupt in giggles.
"Good one," Yuugi snickered, earning a soft smile from his teacher.
"It warms my heart to see you laugh again," the man said genuinely, before turning to Tea and adding, "Please, call for a taxi and take him home. Charge it to me. I will call his Grandfather shortly and explain the situation to him. Oh and Yuugi," he continued quietly, "Joey was hoping to speak to you before you left. I understand if you are angry with him and do not wish to. However, I believe that he would like to apologize."
"Honestly sir," Yuugi replied, his eyes searching out Joey in the crowd. The blonde was standing next to Tristan, and both looked absolutely stricken. Yuugi felt a different ache in his chest as he watched the pair sadly. "It was an accident," Yuugi continued quietly.
"He should be tossed out of school on his ass!" Tea snarled, hugging Yuugi's body protectively to her chest. "He could've killed you!"
"No," Yuugi replied patiently, "it was just Joey being Joey. Don't punish him for it."
"He does need to learn to be more careful, at any rate," Mr. Atemu said thoughtfully. "However, as I agree that there was no malicious intent, I won't be forced to inflict anything too nasty. Now I'm going to go call your Grandfather, then I'll meet you both over by the taxi stand."
"Thank you," Yuugi said, and Mr. Atemu returned his sentiments with a distracted smile. The teacher expertly fished a surprisingly dry cell phone out of his pocket, and asked for Yuugi's home number. After receiving it, the teacher dialed it quickly, and walked several feet away to conduct the call in private.
Yuugi cast one last look at his teacher before turning his body to take a cautious step forward. Suddenly though, he felt... off balance. Looking down, he instantly realized why. "Where's my other shoe?" he asked Tea curiously, but she was gazing over his shoulder with a stormy expression on her face.
"Ehh, right here," Joey's voice answered unsurely, and Yuugi looked up to see that the blonde had made his way over. Sure enough, he held out his hand and presented Yuugi with his missing black shoe.
"Thanks Joey," Yuugi replied, happily taking the shoe and shoving it on his foot. "That's much better."
Joey was quiet for a moment, staring at Yuugi with sad hazel eyes. Finally, he broke down. "I'm so sorry," he began, but was instantly cut off by a furious Tea.
"Well you should be -" Tea began, but Yuugi quickly ended her tirade before she picked up speed.
"Tea, can you give us a moment?" he pleaded, widening his purple eyes in a way that he knew was completely irresistible. She looked ready to argue for a moment, but nodded her head jerkily.
"I guess I should call Ryou and let him know that you're all right now," she agreed quietly, causing Yuugi to yelp.
"You told Ryou?!" he nearly shrieked, causing Tea to roll her bright eyes.
"It's Ryou. He probably knew about the accident before I texted him. In fact, he probably knew about it before you hit the water," she reminded quietly, and at the same time, whipped her cell phone out of her purse.
"That's true," Yuugi agreed. Ryou just knew everything. There was no telling how or why, but he did. "He's just, probably... freaking out."
"Exactly," Tea replied, "and the longer he goes without hearing from us, the longer he'll be freaking out."
"Well, just let him know that I'm all right, okay?" Yuugi asked gently.
"Okay," she said, and with that, Tea walked off, dialing the number as she went, before putting the phone to her ear and speaking in hushed tones.
Satisfied that Tea wouldn't jump in again, Yuugi turned to Joey and waited for him to speak. When it became clear that Joey was waiting nervously for Yuugi to begin the conversation, Yuugi did what he did best, and obliged him.
"So... I know it was an accident, and I-I told Mr. Atemu that, and he said that you wouldn't get expelled or suspended or anything..." Yuugi rushed, all in one breath.
"I wasn't worried about me!" Joey exclaimed, trace amounts of his usual indignity surfacing in his voice, "I was worried about you! You coulda died! Gettin expelled was the least a' my worries."
Yuugi was shocked for a moment. "You were really that worried me about?" he asked curiously, after a moment.
"Yeah," Joey said quietly, shoving a hand in his pocket self-consciously.
"Why?"
"Umm..." Joey began unsurely. "Look I know dat I wasn't dat great to ya in Middle School. I was kinda jealous because everyone thought you were so nice and stuff, so yeah, I was a total jerk actually. Anyways I get it now. Why people like ya. Yer just so good ta people, y'know? But people aren't good to ya sometimes, and I wanted ta make sure dat no one treated ya like I did. Crap I'm no good at dis stuff," he rambled, though to Yuugi, it made an odd sort of sense.
"Wait, ya like riddles right?" Joey asked hopefully, his eyes slightly less dull than before.
"Y-yeah, riddles are great," Yuugi said, trailing off slightly. He wasn't quite sure what the blonde was getting at.
"Kay. So what's somethin' that ya can show but can't see?" Joey asked, unsure again.
"Umm," Yuugi pondered for a moment, before looking at Joey apologetically. "Can I get back to you on that one? My head's still a little fuzzy."
"It's friendship... and we're... friends," Joey finished jerkily, looking at Yuugi anxiously. "Right?"
Yuugi was quiet for a moment, before his face split into a big smile. "Okay!" he exclaimed happily, rushing forward to give Joey a hug.
"Wha?" Joey stuttered momentarily, before wrapping his arms unsurely around the tiny teenager. "Y-yer okay wit dat?"
"I'd love to be your friend, Joey," Yuugi replied sincerely, releasing the tall blonde from the embrace.
Joey's face broke into a huge smile, matching Yuugi. "All right!" he said, jumping cheerfully with his hand in the air. "Well den, as my first official act as yer friend, Tristan's havin' a party tonight and I want ya ta come!"
"Tonight?" Yuugi blanched.
Joey must have taken Yuugi's shock as indecision, because he quickly added, "Only if yer feelin' okay, buddy!"
"Yeah - yeah I should be fine. Can I bring Tea and Ryou too?" Yuugi asked loyally, sparing a glance for Tea. She had clearly just wrapped up her conversation with Ryou and had turned the full force of her glare on Joey once again.
"Ryou fer sure - and Tea too, if ya can promise she won't attack me," Joey replied with a shudder, as he looked at the fuming brunette.
"I'll talk to her," Yuugi giggled, as he turned and waved her over. "Tea, come here!"
Immediately she was at his side. "What?" she asked in concern, her eyes never leaving Joey's face, "did he say something bad to you?"
"Nope, but he wants us to come to his party tonight," Yuugi said with a toothy grin.
"Oh how sweet," Tea bit back, her eyes narrowing in Joey's direction. Joey withered slightly, but bravely stood his ground and nodded, his bushy hair bobbing at the motion.
"Yeah, I-I was gonna ask you guys anyways, dat's why I came over... before I knocked inta Yuug der..."
"Well we have plans," Tea hissed, grabbing Yuugi by the arm and pulling him away from the startled blonde. Yuugi cast an embarrassed look over his shoulder and mouthed 'I'll talk to her' in Joey's general direction. Joey must have understood, because he nodded happily before launching himself exuberantly in Tristan's direction.
"The nerve of that little..." Tea grumbled brokenly, "I mean... how could he... after he nearly killed you... and the way he treated you in Middle School... jerk..."
"I want to go," Yuugi said firmly, causing Tea to halt mid-step.
"You WHAT?" she gasped, her eyes wide.
"I want to go," Yuugi repeated stubbornly, but his resolve quickly broke as he watched his best friend's face darken in anger. "Look Tea... Joey feels really bad for what he did today. And he shouldn't, it wasn't on purpose. I hope maybe this'll help him feel less guilty. Besides, he said that he really wants to try being friends, and I like him and want to give him a chance. Everyone deserves a second chance, right?"
Tea was uncharacteristically silent for a moment, but suddenly she shook her head fondly. "Only you would want to go to a party after you basically drowned just to make someone else happy," she said quietly. "If it really means this much to you, I'll come too. I'm sure Ryou will as well."
"You guys are the best," Yuugi said, pulling her into his arms for a huge hug. He felt her arms wrap around him, and her warm breath tickle his forehead comfortingly. Suddenly, however, he was overcome with another thought that made his neck warm and his cheeks blush bright red.
"Tea..." Yuugi asked carefully, "what did Mr. Atemu mean when he said that he 'resuscitated me'?"
"Oh," Tea exhaled, a smile gracing her face for the first time since his accident... though truthfully, this was more of a smirk. "Nothing big. He just gave you mouth-to-mouth," she continued, shrugging her shoulders indifferently, though her cerulean eyes glowed brightly.
"WHAT?!" Yuugi exclaimed, leaping out of her embrace and staring at her with wide eyes.
"Now you heard the paramedics," Tea scolded jokingly, "no sudden movements."
"Mouth... to-mouth?" Yuugi asked dazedly.
"Yup."
"Huh."
"I know," Tea added sympathetically, "you finally get your chance to kiss him and you don't even remember it."
"Oh very funny," Yuugi scoffed, though inwardly he agreed with her one hundred percent.
"Well, next time we go down to the beach for a swim, I'll make sure we invite him," Tea giggled, as the pair began their trek to the taxi station, where Mr. Atemu had said that he would meet them. "Maybe we can get a repeat performance."
Yuugi toyed with the idea momentarily, but the pain in his chest flared up again in warning, making him discard the thought immediately. Not only was the plan completely insane, but he wouldn't want to put up with this stupid pain ever again if he could help it. It was already getting pretty old.
"Thanks Ms. Matchmaker," he drawled instead, looping his arm through hers amicably. "Now come on. We have a lot to do before this party tonight."
"Oh?"
"Yeah, we have to first convince my Grandpa that I'm not dead enough to spend the rest of the night in bed, we con him into giving us a bottle of wine, and then we have to get him to let me wear what I want to the party. You know how he is about my clothes."
"Ah, so we're doing leather tonight, are we?" Tea asked cheekily, already knowing the answer.
"You know it."
