Middle of the Summer

Chapter: 36

Title: Trying to Find the Magic

Fiction Rated: R for language, mature themes, adult humour and just stuff that tiny little people should not be reading about.

Disclaimer: I own only the characters that I create, and have no desire to kidnap those which I do not. I haven't the time (or the money) to organize such an event. Yu-Gi-Oh! Is credited to its respective owner— Takahashi Kazuki, I am simply borrowing his creations to carry out my biddings. Any songs that are mentioned in the duration of this story belong to (unless otherwise stated) the original composers. So ch'yeah! Keep your lawsuits in your pocket!

Summary: The two of them were nothing alike, and would probably have never become involved in each other's lives by choice. However, Mokuba's aspirations forced them to put up with each other, and much to their dismay- even enjoy it from time-to-time.

Ali's eyes fluttered open, the room she was in was flooded with the sun's early rays. She was lying on the edge of a bed, facing toward a huge bay window, looking out on the street she knew so well as Fifth Avenue. It took barely a second for everything that had happened the previous night to filter back into her memory.

She rolled over, carefully, and her eyes rested on the back of a sleeping figure—of course, she knew exactly who it was. Seto's thin back was covered by a white satin sheet, and Ali realized that all of the blankets must have been tossed off the bed the night before.

She blushed and bit down on her lip, for a self-centered prick, the CEO hadn't been nearly as terrible as she had predicted between the sheets. Or on the floor. Or over the edge of the bed. Or up against the wall, if she was remembering properly. She smirked to herself and scooted over to twirl a lock of his hair between her fingers.

"Uh… morning." She muttered, knowing full well that he was already awake.

"You're up." Seto stated, his voice was clear unlike her groggy morning pipes. Of course, with all the noise she had been making the night before, a sore throat was expected.

"Yeah. What time is it?"

"Eight."

There was a long silence; Ali studied the back of the CEO's head. She had succeeded in messing is hair up, if nothing else. Beginning to feel slightly awkward, the blonde draped an arm over Seto's waist and ran her fingers over his stomach.

"I take back everything I said about you being useless for anything but making money." She murmured, stroking the soft, tight skin of his abdomen. When she didn't a response, she spoke again, "Do you need to do anything today?"

"I should probably go check in on the company." He said slowly.

"But you don't need to?" Ali probed. To make her point she left her fingers dip a little further down.

"Aldorina…" Seto sighed, grasping her hand and pulling it away. He rolled over to look her in the eyes. But the second he laid eyes on her, he stopped.

Ali's hair was tangled, her lips looked swollen and her bare shoulders peeking out from under the sheet displayed small, light bite marks. He held his tongue, unable to deny anymore what they had done last night.

"What?" she prompted, "Am I in trouble?" her brown eyes opened widely as she gave her best interpretation of a kicked puppy.

"You look ridiculous." Seto rolled his eyes, "I was just going to say that I can't very well spend all day in bed with you."

Ali smirked, "If someone had told me months ago that I would be having this conversation with you—I'd probably laugh in their face."

"I agree."

"But really," she propped herself up on an elbow, "You never have any fun, you spend all day with forty-year-old rich guys. Can't you just take a day? It's not like anyone needs you there."

Seto sighed and pulled himself out of the bed to search for his jacket. He didn't fail to notice Ali's breathing quicken when he stepped out, naked. Her eyes were practically burning unto his back.

He lifted his jacket from the floor and pulled out his cell phone and dialled. When he turned around with the phone to his ear, he saw Ali give a sad frown. It was obvious that she though he was calling his driver.

"Hello, this is Seto Kaiba. I'm going to need breakfast here. No eggs." He quipped into the phone and hung up. When he tossed his phone onto an end table by the door, he saw Ali grin at him.

"You remembered that I hate eggs." She smiled.

"With all the fits you throw every time you see an egg, I'd have to be an idiot to forget." He opened a dresser drawer and pulled out a white dress shirt and a pair of black slacks. Even if he rarely visited the apartment, he liked to have clean clothes there at all times.

"Hey, why are you getting dressed?" Ali protested, jumping out of bed. For a split second, the CEO allowed himself to look her over. The phoenix tattoo with the piercing blue eyes, the way her knotted hair fell just past her shoulders, and everything else there was to look at.

"I can't answer the door naked." Seto rolled his eyes and turned around to slip into his clothes. He didn't make it, though; before Ali's hands rest on his hips and she let her teeth graze against the base of his neck.

"I'm sure no one will mind."

"That gets to the presses and Mokuba reads that I was answering doors, naked in my apartment with a mysterious blonde?" he drawled, using the terms he was sure the papers would.

"Hm…" Ali hummed into his back before dancing out in front of him and leaning against the dressed, "Who's the mysterious blonde? She sounds hot."

Seto rolled his eyes and tossed a white dress shirt at her. Grudgingly, she pulled it on and buttoned it. The shirt fell to her knees and made her look like a young child. She skipped back to the bed where she rolled onto her stomach and watched, with her hands propping in her head up, as Seto dressed.

"Have you ever drank juice through your nose?" she asked, still staring at the brunette.

"That's the most ridiculous question anyone has ever asked me."

"Not even as a child?"

"No."

Ali sighed and rolled onto her back and stared at the ceiling. She was trying to untangle her hair with her fingers when Seto's face appeared over her. She opened her mouth to make another statement about the oddity that was a child who never drank through his nose, but Seto leaned down and caught her lips before she could. She used one hand to hang onto his face and the other to pull him onto the bed by his back. He made a small grunt in protest, but gave up when Ali rolled him over and let her teeth graze his earlobe.

"Breakfast will be here in a few minutes." He sighed, but made no physical effort to stop her.

"They can watch."

"Ali, I don't think you understand what a delicate position I'm in."

Ali pulled her head up from sucking on the CEO's neck, "What position? What's the worst that could happen? Someone comes and drops off breakfast, catches a glimpse you being completely human and life goes on. It's not like we're having a scandalous relationship or anything."

Seto blinked, although she had a valid point, it raised another question completely. Scandalous or not, were they having a relationship? Or was it just all the benefits of a relationship with a less-than-friendship understanding?

Either way, when her small hands snuck under his shirt and her fingers grazed against his stomach, it didn't really matter what kind of relationship they were having.

Unfortunately, just as Ali's hands were becoming reintroduced to the zipper of his pants, there was a knock at the door. The Russian groaned loudly.

"I'll go get it," she sighed and hopped up before the CEO could object. She turned to smirk evilly at him just before she yanked the door open.

"You have got to be fucking me." Ali said loudly. Her eyes were trained on the man in the hall.

"Well I'm not, but it looks like you have that base covered." Mikhail sneered, raking his eyes over Seto's shirt that was still covering half of her body. He didn't wait for an invitation in—knowing that there wouldn't be one—but stepped straight past Ali.

Seto who had heard the commotion was half way across the room already. Mikhail was frowning deeply, when their eyes met. The lawyer's hair was mussed from the wind outside and his coat still had a few water droplets where snow had melted on it.

"You sure think you're clever, don't you Mister Kaiba?" he snapped.

"Get out." Seto snapped back.

Ali looked terribly confused as she watched the two men stare each other down. "What are you doing here, Mikhail?"

"Why don't you ask your boyfriend?" he sneered at her, motioning to Seto. Ali would have quickly insisted that she and the CEO were not in a relationship, but it didn't seem to be the time. Instead her eyes flickered to Seto.

Seto didn't look at her, but continued to stare at Mikhail.

"We had a deal, Kaiba. I held up my end, and now you do this?"

"I held up my end, too." Seto said lowly. His fists were clenched at his sides and although Ali had never seen him strike anyone, she wasn't confident in assuming there was no chance of such a thing happening in this situation.

"What are you guys talking about?" Ali stepped forward so that she was next to Seto, "What deal?"

Mikhail flashed his signature menacing smirk at her and reached a hand out to flick at the collar of the shirt Seto had given her.

"This is a good look on you. Why don't you go shower and let the adults talk, Ali." He kept the patronizing grin on his face, even as Ali swatted his hand away.

"Spit it out or leave, Mikhail, we're busy." She bit back.

"I'm sure you are," the lawyer chuckled, "Seto, why don't you tell Ali about the agreement we had. I'm guessing you haven't already."

Ali's eyes turned to Seto, "Mikhail is a liar, I know you didn't plan anything with him." She said as she reached out to brush his hand with her fingers. He moved his hand the second he felt her touch.

The Russian bit her lip in frustration, "If somebody doesn't tell me what's going on I'm going to put a beating on both your asses." She promised though clenched teeth. Seto remained silent, but Mikhail laughed.

"Seto and I have been in contact for some time now," he started, "as soon as I quit your case with Kanata, he called me."

Seto tried to avoid Ali's eyes, but she stared at him for so long he had to meet her gaze. Without words, she begged him to object.

He didn't. So she turned back to Mikhail.

"Mr. Kaiba asked me to find Kanata and bring him to your trial so that you wouldn't lose. God knows you had no chance." He chuckled again.

"I don't understand how this is a bad thing." She coughed, trying to keep the betrayal that she was feeling from creeping into her voice. If Seto had been hiding it, there had to be more, Seto never hid anything unless he was ashamed of it.

"Well, as you know, Ali, I didn't need the money he offered. Especially not when there was such a better payment." He grinned evilly.

"What are you talking about…?"

"He's talking about you." Seto finally broke in. Ali stared from the CEO to the lawyer in bewilderment. Seto's eyes were blank, but the way he clenched his jaw heavily indicated that he was less than proud of what was going to be revealed. Mikhail's green eyes were unmoving from her face, his smirk resonated victory.

"Kaiba and I agreed that if I could keep you from going to prison and get Kanata to a safe place, I could have you."

"What?" Ali hissed.

"That's not true," Seto said calmly, "he wanted you to come to New York. The decision to return or not would be yours to make."

"But you knew that I was to be the one who took her." Mikhail sneered.

"You never specified who would be--"

"It was more than obvious what my plans were!" Mikhail shouted, cutting Seto off.

"Wait…" Ali said quietly, turning both men's eyes on her, she was staring at her feet. "You two were making deals on who got to keep me?"

Seto's no and Mikhail's yes came in the same instance that Ali look up at the two.

"I knew that he would find a way to keep you here, so I made the trip with you." Seto stared at the blonde, but he could see in her eyes that it would take a miracle to change her mind from the conclusion she had come to.

"I wouldn't have even known she was here if not for seeing the two of you sucking face on the news this morning." Mikhail spat, "I knew you were a lot of things, Mr. Kaiba, but not a liar."

"You're getting married!" Ali shouted at Mikhail, "Why are you still fixating on me?!"

Another cocky grin, "Ali I know that Tiffany loves me, but she's a good girl from a good family. I'm still going to need some bad ass."

Ali blinked, "You're disgusting."

"And you're so much better?"

"Seto," Ali turned to the CEO, "why?"

Seto stared back, "I couldn't let you go to jail."

"Why didn't you tell me what this trip was really about?"

"Would you really have said no to him?" he nodded toward Mikhail whose face was glowing with pride.

Ali stared at both brunettes for a minute before she stepped toward Mikhail, she lifted a hand to his face and ran it down his cheek.

"You're right." She sighed. She stared in his vibrant green eyes from a moment before pulling back her hand and punching him squarely in the jaw. "I am bad." She stared at the trickled of blood dripping through his lips, "Believe me you can't handle it."

"You're going to wish you had me one day, and I won't be there." Mikhail hissed, he spat the blood at her feet before turning on his heels and slamming the door behind him.

Ali stood with her back to Seto for a moment before she turned around. She stared at him for a moment before lunging.

Her fingers yanked hard on his hair and she slapped him hard across the face, she attempted to kick him in the shin but in her bare feet there wasn't much of an impact.

"I am not a stock, you asshole! You can't buy and sell me!" she screamed, grabbing the closest object to her and throwing it. The object turned out to be his BlackBerry.

"Calm down, Shvakova." Seto said calmly, ignoring the shattered phone at his feet.

"Fuck you, you're no different." She growled, bending and pulling her clothes from the previous night into her hands. She yanked on her pants quickly and turned back to Seto.

"Why does it even matter where on Earth I am, I'm obviously just another fucking object to you." She yelled angrily.

Seto tried to calm her, "If you disappeared, Mokuba would be heartbroken."

Ali's eyes changed so quickly, it scared him. From anger, they turned to the most drunken rage he had ever seen her in.

"Of course!" she screamed so loudly everyone on the floor must have heard, "Because I sure as hell won't be missed by you, right?" her voice didn't quiet down, "It's always Mokuba, isn't it? Well Seto, it was you I was falling in love with, not Mokuba!" she turned and snatched her shoes off the floor, halfway out the door she turned and stared at him again. "And what a stupid idea that was."

The door slammed behind and Seto could still hear her storming down the hall, quieting only when she must have entered the elevator.

After a few minutes, Seto's eyes turned to the bay window where he saw her standing on the street trying to hail a cab. After a few failed attempts, she pulled her cell phone from her pocket, looking like she was about to call for help, but after staring down at the device she just tossed it into the middle of the road where it was immediately trampled by oncoming traffic.

Seto understood, it was the cell phone he had given her, and she didn't want him to contact her. Moments later a cab pulled over and she stepped into it, not even turning back to look up at the building she had just exited.

The brunette stared down at the bed which was still a wreck from the night before and Ali's words screamed through his ears again. She was just being dramatic, as usual; of course she couldn't have really been falling in love with him. Seto knew Ali, and he knew that it would take a lot to make her change a lifetime of fearing the concept of commitment, one night of drunken passion wouldn't do it.

Still, though, he couldn't help but feel that he could have changed the entire outcome of the situation by telling the truth. The truth that Mokuba wouldn't be the only one affected if she left. The truth that in the time he had gotten to know Ali, he'd begun to have feels that weren't hate toward her.

But thinking about it just made it clearer that this was yet another thing in life that was too late to repair. After all that the crazy girl had done, he would be the one to ruin everything in the end. And now he had to explain to his brother why the blonde was gone.

Seto turned and looked at the broken cell phone still on his floor. He stepped to the table where a desk phone sat, unharmed from Ali's rage. He lifted it and dialled quickly.

"Hello. This is Seto Kaiba, I need to book a flight from New York to Japan this afternoon."

The woman on the other line babbled for a few minutes, confirming the flight.

"You you'll need a first-class flight to Japan which leaves in exactly two hours. Was that just one ticket?"

"Yes, just one ticket."

TBC.