Seto drove Noa's car to the back lot and parked it outside KC's rear exit. He entered through the back, an entrance typically only used by the delivery services bringing packages. He knelt down beside Noa, who had nothing to give him but a glare.
"I'm sorry, Noa," he whispered flatly. "I didn't mean for you to trip over my briefcase."
"Some days I wonder," he said sullenly.
Seto sneered and stood. "Don't be dramatic. I pulled the car around back. Let's go."
"What about Miss Valentine?"
"I think I've pacified her. But I'll come back after I've dropped you off and douse any remaining fires."
Seto backed the chair away that held up Noa's feet and eased them to the ground, Noa wincing throughout.
Daimon returned from the front, a skirt suit covered with a plastic garment bag in hand.
"Well done, Sir," he said, nodding in Seto's direction. "You do your father proud."
"I didn't say any of that to make the dead proud. I couldn't abide by her attitude at the cost of our time and money. Noa, lift your arms."
Seto wrapped an arm around his midsection and gingerly lifted Noa off his seat, keeping the pressure on his left leg.
"May the rest of you take a lesson from this," Seto addressed the shop. "I'm not always going to be present to clean up your mistakes. I expect you each to be able to hold your own against ill-mannered customers in regard to our policies. None of us are here to give anything away for free."
"Hold still, Seto! That hurts!"
"Now, we have something to tend to. I expect you're all capable of holding down the fort while we're out. I intend to return today, Noa likely will not. Daimon, I'm giving you precedence of authority to handle any other sensitive issues that may arise, or forward a call to my cell. The number's on the note board under the phone."
Seto realized as he was speaking that he sounded like he were giving Mokuba instructions if he were going out for an evening, reminding him to do his chores.
"They'll be fine," Noa groaned. "Can we go?"
"What happened to "I'm not going anywhere with you!"?"
"Just shut up and get me to the car."
"Atem," Seto called suddenly, as if he had surprised even himself. "I'm giving you the floor for the rest of the afternoon. Take calls, handle customers, take care of fittings."
"Him?" Noa complained. "I mean, no offense, Atem. You've made outstanding progress. But you're still green."
"I've made the decision, Noa. You need to accept that."
While glances were shared around the room, if there were concerns nobody voiced them.
Atem looked just as startled as Seto felt, but he nodded vigorously.
"I will not disappoint," Atem promised.
Seto dialed home while he waited at the hospital.
"Hey Seto. What's up?" Mokuba answered the phone while chewing on something.
"Hey kid. Having an early dinner?"
Seto heard Mokuba swallow over the line and grimaced.
"Just a snack. Why? Think you'll be home late again?"
"I don't know. Listen, I had to drive Noa to the hospital this afternoon."
"Is he okay?"
Seto heard the crunch of a chip and frowned. If Seto had been the injured one, Mokuba likely would have had more to say.
"He broke his ankle."
Mokuba winced. "Ouch. Hey, remember when I twisted mine and you had to help me with my paper route? That hurt, a lot. I bet he's in pain."
"Of course I remember. The nurse gave Noa some pain relievers to take the edge off, so he shouldn't be feeling too bad right now."
"How did it happen?"
"He tripped. I guess I should have found a better place to put my briefcase when I came in this afternoon."
"Maybe. Or he could have watched where he was going a little more carefully."
Seto couldn't help but chuckle. "Thanks. That's what I told him, but it just made him more angry."
"I bet. Ooh, how's he going to work with a broken ankle? Doesn't he kind of need both of his feet to sew and do fittings?"
"Of course, and it's the right side he broke. He won't be able to sew until it heals. And that means I'll have to drive him around everywhere until then, too," Seto said as he realized it.
"But isn't KC, like, buried in work right now?"
"We'll figure it out. Don't worry about that."
"Okay," Mokuba said, but the line stayed quiet a moment. "I was worried, though."
"It's just a broken bone, Mokuba. He'll be okay in a matter of weeks. In the meantime he'll have crutches, but he'll be—"
"That's not what I meant. When I heard you say 'hospital', I know you said you took Noa there, but I still got scared for a second."
"I'm sorry, Mokuba," he said, with more feeling than he'd given his apology to Noa. "I didn't mean to scare you. I suppose it's a good thing I didn't start off by telling you that I'm at the hospital."
"Yeah, but… still. There's so much going on lately, I guess I'm just waiting for the next thing to go wrong. If something happened to you, Seto, I… I don't know what I'd do."
"Don't think about that. Nothing's happened to me. I'm fine."
"And it's not that I don't care about Noa!"
"I never said you didn't, little brother."
"It's just that…"
"I get what you're trying to say."
"Good," he said. "Hey, do you think this might be a good opportunity for you to teach me how to drive? You know, since Noa won't be able to anymore?"
"Even if I had the time for that right now, you won't be able to learn and apply for your license in time to help Noa get around. He'll be back on his feet in a couple of months."
"Okay, yeah. But… I was kind of just thinking about how I would be able to borrow his car."
"Better his car than mine, I suppose. It's a good thing the engine died, or mine might have left you stranded on the side of the road somewhere."
"Yeah, you need to buy a new one. Well, maybe not new new, but newer. Anyway, what do you think?"
It would have been easy for Seto to restate that he didn't have the time. But the eagerness in Mokuba's voice, paired with the fact that he had been nearly begging Seto for months, made him cave.
"Okay, little one. We'll go out together this week. How does that sound?"
"Perfect! I'll have to start on my driving play list. Just a heads up, it's gonna be loud."
"No music."
"What?"
"No music. I won't have you driving distracted."
"Yeah, but if I learn how to drive distracted, won't I be better at it when I can drive better?"
"I don't know who's been teaching you what it's like to be an adult, but you need a new instructor."
"Okay, I'll tell my big brother you said that."
"Shut up, Mokuba. Go make yourself something to eat for dinner. In fact, why don't you figure out how to make something for all three of us?"
"Uh, goodnight, Seto. Tell Noa I hope he feels better." Mokuba hung up the phone before Seto could say another word.
A/N: I'm starting to wish I hadn't decided to forgo chapter titles. I suppose I didn't expect to write as many as I have saved up getting ready to be posted. But it's getting confusing for me to keep track of each chapter when they're only numbers. Maybe I'll go back through sometime and name them… but in reality I'll probably just struggle through. Who knows?
Thank you, everyone, for putting up with my empty promises regarding my posting schedule. Thank you for reading and all the other extra goodies you've given me this week—favorites and follows and the like—and I ask for your continued patience when I get too busy to post the day I say I will!
-omgagr