Chapter 29 – How Will I Tell Them?
"Girl, you need to find the sexiest one you can lay your hands on!" Mai exclaimed as she roamed through the aisles in the store. Tea had invited her along to go shopping for a swimsuit. After all, the woman was a top model; she must know what would look good on a person. It was kind of part of her job. Besides, the girl liked to shop, and she hadn't spent any time at all with her since the two discussed Tea's crush in the café. So the two planned to go shopping Saturday, which had come faster than Tea thought it would.
"Well then you need to help me find it," Tea stated, smiling over at her friend before turning back to the rack of bikinis. Mai insisted she wore one, but Tea didn't really know if that was such a good idea. She didn't want to show up looking like a porn star to the Kaiba mansion. Not that wearing a bikini was bad, but…she just didn't know what she wanted. "Of course my old swimsuit had to become about five sizes too small…" Tea thought bitterly. "I should have expected that, though. It's been years since I went swimming."
"How about this?" Mai asked as she held up a bikini two aisles over. Looking up, Tea saw a red-and-white-striped bikini in her hand. She frowned and shook her head at it.
"No, that doesn't look very good," Tea stated. "I was looking for something that was just one color."
"Well then a bright color would be best for you," Mai replied, placing the bikini back on the rack. Tea nodded her head in agreement and continued looking at the bikinis before Mai asked, "So what did you do to get invited over to the Kaiba mansion to swim?"
"Nothing, really. I just hung out with Mokuba Wednesday, and he made it very obvious that he wants his brother and me to hang out more often. He's the one that came up with the idea for all of us to go swimming tomorrow."
"I see…" Holding up a bright red bikini with a green flower on the right breast, she asked, "How about this one?"
Tea shrugged her shoulders and said, "I'm looking for something either light blue or yellow."
"You could have said that earlier, you know?" she jokingly remarked, winking at the girl.
"Sorry…"
"Are you are Kaiba friends now or what? What is your relationship status?"
"He said I'm welcome whenever at his house, so I guess I'm considered a very good friend in his eyes."
"What do you mean, you're 'welcome' whenever?"
"I can visit them whenever I feel like it."
"Wow…that's gotta be worth something. Do you think he loves you?"
"Not sure. All I know is my feelings for him."
"Which is definitely love."
Tea sighed and nodded her head. "What do you think of this?" she asked, holding up a light blue bikini with dark blue strings. The bottom had thicker straps around her hips and seemed to almost be shorts.
"That doesn't look bad," Mai answered, quickly looking it up and down. "Go try it on. I want to see what it looks like on you." Tea nodded her head and headed towards the back of the store where the changing rooms were. Finding all the stalls to be empty, she smiled and walked into one, closing the door behind her. As she began stripping out of her clothing, she heard someone else walk in. "Is Kaiba really nice to you?" Mai asked through the door.
"Yeah… I mean, he's a lot nicer than normal," Tea answered, taking her shirt and bra off and beginning to put the top on.
"That's not saying much."
"Good point."
"So Mokuba wants you two hanging out more often?"
"He seems dead set on getting us to be a couple."
"I'm glad to see there's someone pushing Kaiba on his side. You got me on yours, but it seemed like there was nobody really helping him get closer to you."
"I think Mokuba just wants him to be happy," she stated as she began pulling her shorts down to change into the bottom of the bikini.
"At least he's nice to you. That shows that you're getting somewhere. What do the others think about this new relationship?"
"Others?"
"You know, Yugi and them all."
Tea gulped and whispered, "I…I haven't told them yet."
A moment of silence passed between the two as Tea finished changing into the bikini. Opening the door, she walked out and looked at herself in the full-length mirror placed against the wall. It looked really nice on her and seemed to fit her perfectly. Turning around, she went to ask what Mai thought of it only to see Mai's shocked expression. "You haven't told them yet?" the model repeated.
Sighing, Tea said, "I don't know how they're going to take it. I know I shouldn't put it off, but I'm afraid of their reaction. Especially Joey. You know how those two constantly bicker. The fact that I'm falling for a rival could make things rather bad."
"It's better to tell them than to just let it go," Mai scolded, placing her hands on her hips. "And the bikini looks really good on you. I'd say that's the one." Tea nodded her head and walked back into the stall, preparing to change back into her clothing. "When did you plan on telling them? After you two were dating?"
"I… I don't know."
"I would tell them soon. The longer you wait, the worse the blow is."
"But how am I going to tell them that I'm love with Seto Kaiba?"
"Yugi would be okay with it, and I think Tristan would too once the initial shock rolls over. But Joey… Just don't worry about him. Tell them how you feel and hope for the best. You can't change your feelings for your friends, girl."
Sighing in frustration, she said, "I just wish they saw what I did. That way it wouldn't be so hard to have them understand my feelings."
"Hey, if it was that easy, it wouldn't be any fun."
"Fun wasn't the first word that came to mind."
"You have to remember that you've been friends with those guys for how long now? If your friendship is as strong as it should be at this point, I don't think you have anything to worry about. Like I said, once the initial shock is out of the way, I think they would be willing to accept the fact that you want a relationship with the CEO. After all, what girl doesn't?"
"You like my future husband?" Tea asked jokingly.
"Future husband, eh? You have your goals set pretty high there."
"Okay, maybe not future husband, but still—"
"Hey, I didn't say it was a bad thing. Just remember who you're dealing with here."
"So you think it will be alright?"
"I wouldn't worry that much. Tell them soon, though. If you guys start dating before you tell the others, it might be a bit more difficult."
"I'll keep that in mind," Tea stated as she walked back out of the stall wearing her normal attire, the bikini in her hand. "But let me ask you this; how am I going to bring this up in a conversation?"
"I don't know, sweetie. I would just come clean with it. You all sit together during lunch, right? Tell them then, when they're all together. I wouldn't approach each of them individually. Joey might throw a fit if Tristan and Yugi aren't there to hold him down."
"That's what I'm afraid of…"
"Listen, girl! There's nothing to worry about. You guys have all been friends for years. Just because you want to suddenly date their rival doesn't mean you're going to become their enemy. If anything, because you all are such good friends, they should be understanding of your decision. They aren't going to toss you aside because you fell in love with the CEO of KaibaCorp, alright?"
Slowly nodding her head, she smiled up at Mai and said, "Thanks. I don't know where I would be without you."
"Confused and alone. Now come on. Let's go pay for that bikini. I'm hungry, and if you're willing to go out to a fancy restaurant, I'll pay."
"Sounds good to me," Tea replied as the two walked out of the changing rooms. They strolled over to the cashier and paid for the swimsuit before leaving the store and walking through the parking lot towards Mai's silver, sleek car. Tossing the bag in the backseat, Tea entered the passenger side and slid into the front seat.
"Have you brought up the idea to Kaiba about you two hooking up?" Mai questioned as she placed the key in the ignition.
"Nope."
"I guess I could have figured that out. You just going to take this relationship slowly then?"
"Well… Seto has had a really bad past, so I don't want to push him into something he's uncomfortable with. I guess I'll just wait until I'm absolutely positive he would enjoy the relationship as much as I would."
"That's the spirit, girl. Caring for your man is the best way to grab his attention, and I think Kaiba would be the type to notice that. You aren't doing anything overly flirtatious with him, are you? I'm sure he's sick and tired of fake boobs with his reputation of being the most handsome man on this planet."
"I'm keeping it on the down-low for now."
Chuckling, Mai smirked over at her as she began pulling out of the parking lot. "Saving that for tomorrow, huh?"
Tea couldn't keep the smile from appearing on her face. "You could say that…"
"My advice for the day: protection does wonders."
"Oh, shut up!" she exclaimed, jokingly punching Mai in the arm.
"Hey, you make me crash this car, and you better hope you can score richboy! He'll be the only one who can afford to pay me back!"
Tea burst out laughing at this and rolled her eyes. "If I score Seto, I'll be sure to tell you all about it."
"Oh, Kaiba, please harder!" Mai exclaimed mockingly before receiving another punch from Tea. "What? I'm sure Kaiba's good in bed. He has the body for it, that's for sure."
Tea blushed at the idea of her and Seto having sex and quickly looked out the window. "God, we're not even together yet, and already you're making fun of me for having sex with him."
"Oh, has someone been a naughty girl?"
"That's not what I meant!"
Mai laughed and said, "I know. I just like getting on your nerves."
"So I've noticed…"
"Well, you'll have to tell me how this bathing suit works out," Mai stated as she pulled out onto the main road. "I want to know how the cold and collective CEO reacts to a hot girl like you in a bathing suit."
"Hey, you said it yourself. I'm sure he's seen breasts before."
"Yeah, but he never loved those breasts before."
"Excuse me?"
Smirking, Mai stated, "I personally think he loves you. I just think he wants to hide it for awhile. He doesn't seem one to be very in tune with his emotions, so he may not even know what he's feeling, but I believe he loves you."
"Me and my breasts?"
Laughing, Mai nodded her head. "Yes, you and your breasts."
Shaking her head, Tea smiled over at her and said, "Thanks for all your help with this, Mai. I'm very appreciative of it."
"No problem. Now let's get something to eat. A model has to eat, you know?" Laughing at her own comment, Mai stepped harder on the gas pedal, sending the two flying down the street.
