I still have no clues on what's going on. First I'm stuck in that trap, then I'm in a brightly-lit room. I think it's a hospital, but my memory of the outside world is still cloudy.
Is that really him? Is that really the little boy that used to stay by my side, even when I wasn't acting like a big brother should? How could Mokuba have grown up so much? It makes me think about how long I've actually been trapped.
It's her again. It's that girl that helped me and she's doing so again. What's her name? Kisara? I think that's what Mokuba called her. She's different then most of the people that I've know and remembered. She knows how I'm feeling even though I cannot say it out loud.
What will become of me? Only the days to come will tell. I'm so confused. Maybe she will tell me about all that I've missed in my absence.
"So he can come home tomorrow?"
"Yes he is ready to return home," answered the nurse. Mokuba's eyes lit up when he heard the good news.
"Finally!" exclaimed Mokuba as the nurse left the waiting room.
It had been five days since we brought Seto in. He's regained most of his strength and he's also regained his color. Everyone, even Joey, would come to the hospital each day to visit him after school and see how he's doing. Usually, it would be just Mokuba and me who would go and "talk" with him while the others would sit in the waiting room.
"It's about time," said Yugi. Everyone voiced his or her excitement about Seto's release, everyone but Joey. Ever since we found Seto, he's been quiet and distant which is so unlike him. I heard that he and Seto didn't like each other very much, but he should still be happy to know that he's alive.
"Joey, aren't you happy as well," I asked him. He was leaning over with his head in his hands, but he raised his head when I addressed him. He looked at me solemnly and his eyes weren't filled with hate, sadness or happiness, they were filled with guilt.
"Yeah I'm glad, it's just..." replied Joey, his voice drifting off before he could finish. Now everyone was paying attention to him.
"You don't have to be guilt about anything Joey," I said as I walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"But I do," growled Joey. He sounded as if he was mad at me, but I knew that wasn't the case.
"What do you mean," asked Yugi.
"When Kaiba first went missing, I said that he deserved it," replied Joey angrily. "No one deserves so much pain, no matter what they've done in the past. I'm ashamed to have said that."
"It's alright Joey," said Yugi, who had also walked over to Joey's side. "We know you didn't mean to say those things."
Joey sighed and didn't say anything in response. The room stayed silent except for the light sound of breathing. I broke the silence my voicing a question that had been eating at my mind for the past five days.
"Mokuba, do you think it's a good idea for Seto to go back to your mansion?"
"What do you mean Kisara?" asked Mokuba.
"I don't think the mansion is the best place for him to recover," I stated. "Word will spread about his return and the press will most likely be at your door 24/7."
"I guess your right," sighed Mokuba." Then where should he go?"
"He could come to the game shop," said Yugi.
"I shook my head and said, "People visit the game shop and someone might see him."
"Good point," replied Yugi.
"He needs to be with someone he trusts," said Tea.
"Then he should live with Kisara," said Mokuba.
I looked at him questioningly and asked, "With me?"
"Yes, he trusts you and you don't live in a large neighborhood. No one will guess that he's with you," said Yugi.
"Yeah, but..." I started, my voice lowering below that of a whisper.
"Your father would probably be alright with it if you just explain the situation to him," added Yugi.
"Dad's on a business trip so he won't mind," I said. "But what about school? I would need to keep an eye on him so I wouldn't be able to attend my classes."
"Don't worry," said Tea. "We'll get your work for you and tell the teachers that you are looking after a sick friend."
"Thank you," I said. "I guess I'll look after Seto."
"Great!" exclaimed Mokuba. "I'll bring some of him things over to your house. He doesn't' look like he's grown so his clothes should still fit him."
"Alright Mokuba," I said. He was about to respond when a loud knock on the door interrupted him.
"Come in," said Mokuba. The door opened slowly and a women whom I've never seen before entered the room. Her dark brown eyes were hard and serious while her thin light brown hair was tied up into a bun. Her skin was very tan and her expression gave off an air or superiority, making her a little intimidating.
"Good day Mr. Kaiba," said the women. She gave Mokuba a slight bow before continuing. "My name is Keri Alonzo. I wish to speak with you."
"What do you want to say?" asked Mokuba.
"I am a therapist and I'm here to talk about your brother's regime," replied Keri.
"What do you mean 'regime'?" asked Mokuba.
"I was asked by the officers who found your brother to help him recover from his traumatic experience," answered Keri.
"What do you plan on doing with him?" asked Mokuba.
"He will come and live with me and I will help him adjust to normal life again," she said.
"Will we be able to see him?" asked Mokuba.
"Visitors would be a distraction," said Keri, "Therefore no one can see him until he can speak again."
"You can't take him away from us like that," said Mokuba.
"Taking someone away is not the way to fix them," I added.
Keri looked directly at me and said, "I am the therapist, I know what I am doing. The officers have already given me the right to do what I must in order to help Mr. Kaiba recover."
"We won't let you take him away," I replied sternly.
"What can you do about it?" asked Keri. I could hear the tinge of annoyance in her voice. "Don't you want him to speak again?"
"Yes, but we can do it on our own," I replied.
"You don't actually think that you can do better than I can?" said Keri.
"I know I can," I relied. I sounded a little more confident then I actually was, but that didn't faze Keri.
"Then how about a challenge?" asked Keri.
"What kind?" I asked, my confusion evident on my face as well as in my voice.
"If you can somehow manage to perform a miracle and make Mr. Kaiba speak in two months, then I won't bother you anymore and he can stay. If you don't, then he stays with me for a year."
"Kisara can do it," said Mokuba. I looked around the room and the others all nodded in agreement with Mokuba.
"Do you accept?" asked Keri.
"Yes," I replied.
"Very well," said Keri as she spun on her heels and turned toward the door. "Your two months starts tomorrow." She opened the door and before she left, she turned back to me and said "Good luck." The sarcasm in her voice was poorly hidden, but that was probably done on purpose. With those last words of "encouragement", she left the room, leaving it in complete silence.
The silence was broken by a sigh escaping my lips. I cupped my head in my hands and said to no one in particular, "How am I going to do this?"
"I don't know," said Yugi, "But I know you'll find a way."
I smiled and replied, "Thanks Yugi."
"Don't worry," added Joey, "You're good with people."
"I guess so," I replied, though I wasn't so sure with myself.
"You just have to be confident," said Yugi.
"Alright," I replied, but I don't really know if I can be. I'm not, nor have I even been, a very confident person and I don't know if I can break that habit.
"Well, you have until tomorrow to think things through," said Mokuba.
I nodded and stood up. "I need some fresh air so I guess I'll see you all later," I said as I made my way towards the door.
"You're leaving," asked Joey.
"Yeah," I replied, "I need to be alone for a little while."
"Then we'll see you tomorrow," said Mokuba.
"Good-bye," I said as I smiled and left the stuffy room. The hallways of the hospital were quiet and the only noises I could hear were the footsteps of others.
I sighed a breath of relief when I exited the hospital and felt the air move around me. It's not that I don't like being in the hospital, but meeting with Keri today had really stressed my nerves. The others are counting on me and I don't want to let them down.
I was so deep in my thoughts that I didn't realize that I had sat down at an outdoor cafe. I don't think I would have noticed it if one of the waitresses hadn't pulled me from my daze.
"Excuse me ma'am, but would you like anything," she asked. She didn't sound annoyed but I could tell that this wasn't the first time that she had asked me that question.
"No thank you," I said in response. I knew that my voice gave away how I felt because the waitress didn't leave, but asked me something else.
"Is everything alright?" she asked.
I didn't really know if she was really concerned with me, but when I looked up into her eyes, I could see that she was sincere when asking the question. The waitress was an elderly woman, probably in her 40's, and her eyes gave off an air of kindness.
"You can tell me what's on your mind, I won't tell anyone else," said the waitress.
"It's a long story," I replied.
"Well, if you want to tell me, then I can ask my boss for an early break," said the woman.
"You don't have to do that," I replied.
She laughed and said, "Oh she won't mind. I'll go ask her now."
The woman left and I actually had doubts about if she would return or not. My doubts were settled when I saw her walking out of the cafe a few minutes later with two cups of what looked like tea.
"I'm back," she said as she sat down across from me and handed me one of the cups. I was right when I assumed that it was tea and I drank a bit of the warm liquid.
"So what do you have on your mind," she asked me after taking a sip from her own cup.
"Well, one of my friends has gone through a lot and my friends need me to help him recover from it, but I don't how."
"I don't a lot about your situation," said the woman, "But I do know that if you follow your heart then you can do what you need to do," replied the woman.
"What do you mean by follow my heart," I asked.
She laughed a bit and replied, "Do what you think is right. You may not know it now, but that is how you will fix your friends problem."
I smiled and said, "Thank you for the advice, it really helps."
"Of course my dear," she replied, "No why don't you run along and figure out what you need to do before tomorrow."
I thanked her once again and I started walking away, but then something occurred to me.
"Wait how did you know that..." I started, but then I saw that the woman was no where in sight.
Well here's another chapter and I'm sorry for the long wait. I've had writers block like a boss lately as well as a bad case of laziness, but I'm back and I promise the wait won't be so long. Also I want to say to those who think that Seto's thoughts at the begining are all over the place and confusing, that's on purpose. It's going to less confusing as the story goes on, but I think he would be confused and his thoughts would reflect that.
