Chapter 36 : Aftermath

Even with all his pain medication, his head still pounded. He groaned and placed his head in his hand. "Mokuba, can you tell whoever is using the jackhammer against my skull to knock it off?"

"Just relax, Seto," Mokuba scolded. "You've had a long night."

"Yeah, and it has yet to end." Letting his hand fall to his lap, he took a sip of the hot tea laced with honey and glanced up at the main foyer. Yugi and Anzu were in the dining room talking, while he and Mokuba were sitting in the main living room. Their usual platter of tea, along with three bottles of pain medication, was set on the glass coffee table, and Mokuba had done Seto a favor by plugging in his favorite ambient CD, filling the room with some background noise that seemed to be helping Seto's headache. He shifted slightly in the recliner. His legs were propped up, and Seto could feel the leg throbbing, even though the pain medication was keeping him from feeling the full toll of his exertion. He had taken off his trenchcoat, shoes, and belt buckles in order to lighten the load on his body, and it made him feel like he could sink into the recliner. He still felt disgusting from his dive into the river, but he wanted to wait and make sure Anzu was okay before going upstairs.

"What…do you think they're talking about?" Mokuba asked, glancing over his cup of tea at his brother. He was sitting on the sofa, a NintendoDS in his spare hand.

"Probably about how Yugi has been a total prick to her when Yami told him years ago to knock it off." Even he was surprised by the harshness of his tone of voice. He was so exhausted…he just wanted to go to bed. The clock on the wall read that it was nearing eleven thirty, but it felt like three in the morning.

"Seto…"

He sighed and leaned back into the chair. "I know… I'm trying, Mokuba. I'm trying to be patient." It was so much to take in. He didn't know what to make of what happened. Half of him told him to not even bother trying to figure it out. It was Yugi's problem, at the end of the day. All Seto cared about was the fact that he seemed to want to make amends. The spikey-haired duelist apologized for everything and then some the whole ride back to the manor, then broke down in tears in the main foyer upon seeing Anzu. Emotions were high for everyone, and Seto wasn't good with emotions. Now he was dealing with them with his rival, his girlfriend, his brother, a massive headache, and three bottles of medication.

And he wondered why his patience was wearing thin.

"You planning to go into work tomorrow?"

Seto shrugged. "Depends on how I feel when I wake up."

"I'd give your leg a rest, if I were you."

"We'll see…" He had already missed enough work as it was, but if his leg was aching even with medication, he couldn't imagine how stiff he was going to be tomorrow morning. He slowly closed his eyes. He didn't want to think right now. He just wanted to sleep. He listened as Mokuba set his cup of tea down on the coffee table and peeked over to watch his brother lie down on the sofa. A meow echoed in the distance, and he smirked and turned to see Yuki approach his seat. She jumped up and crawled into his lap, placing her paws on his chest before resting. He chuckled and scratched behind her ears, listening to her soft purring. He then closed his eyes once more, listening to the ambient music pouring out of the speakers.

He nearly fell asleep, but the sound of footsteps soon caught his attention, and he glanced up to see both Anzu and Yugi approach the entrance to the living room. For a long moment, no one said a word. Everyone just stared at each other. Seto looked primarily at Anzu. She looked tired, but there was a smile on her face. "That's all that matters."

"Everything okay?" Mokuba asked.

Yugi and Anzu nodded. "Everything's okay," Anzu answered. "We're going to talk a bit more in the future about it, but everyone's tired right now. We all need some rest."

Seto could not help but agree with her. He watched as Yugi slowly walked towards him and nodded. "Kaiba, I… I just want to thank you…for saving me and giving me this second chance."

Seto waved his hand to brush off the comment. Making sure his tone was mild, he said, "Just don't get it in your head to pull that stunt again. I can't be around all the time to save you."

"I understand. I won't. I… I gotta make sure Yami is proud of me."

"Whatever it takes to convince you to stop being a dumbass." He watched Yugi turn and leave through the main foyer. The sound of the front door opening and closing reached his ears, and he sighed heavily once he knew the three of them were indeed alone. Mokuba pushed himself up off the sofa and turned to face Seto.

"Do you need help getting upstairs, Seto?"

"I'll help him up," Anzu stated before Seto could answer. Mokuba nodded and smiled.

"Okay. I'm going to head to bed, then. Good night, you two. And think about taking off tomorrow, Seto."

Seto nodded, and the two watched as Mokuba walked through the main foyer. He listened to his brother's footsteps as he climbed up the stairs and walked down the hallway. Soon the footsteps faded away, and all that he could hear was the music and Yuki's purring. Anzu smiled warmly and swiftly approached him. She leaned down and placed a light kiss against his forehead. "Thank you so much for rescuing him," she whispered, moving a few bangs aside.

He shook his head. "Don't worry about it."

"I think it was the wake-up call he needed, at any rate. He seems like the old Yugi again…the one before Yami left. I can see it again, at any rate. It'll take some time, but I think he'll be okay."

"How are you feeling?" he asked. "Did he apologize to you?"

She chuckled. "Only about a million times. I told him he had nine hundred million more apologies to go, but I think he knows I was jesting with him. Still, I told him to call Jounouchi and the others tonight. We're all going to get together tomorrow to discuss what happened so that we're all on the same page."

He nodded in understanding. "Finally, an end to this headache."

"Now it's my turn to ask. How are you feeling?"

"Tired." He slowly pushed himself up, smirking when Yuki jumped back in surprise.

"You want to go upstairs?"

"Yeah. I need a really hot bath."

Anzu chuckled. She walked over to the speakers, and Seto watched as she turned the music off before returning to his side. Reaching around and underneath his arms, she snaked her own arm around his torso, helping him stand. He felt like dead weight and did his best to support himself. "Where is my cane?"

"Over there. I'll come back to get it."

He shook his head. "Let me have it. I don't want—"

"You're not a burden, Seto. Now come on."

He sighed in defeat. The two managed to make their way to the stairwell, and Seto used the banister in order to reach the second floor. Making it to the top, he took a moment to catch his breath before they continued down the hallway, turning right and walking to the entrance of his bedroom. Anzu opened the door for him, and he practically lunged forward onto the bed, sighing heavily at the sensation of the covers.

"Want me to start up the hot water, Seto?"

He shook his head. While lying on the bed sounded heavenly, he needed a bath after that dive into the river. Pushing himself up, he muttered, "No, I'll get it. If I don't, I'll fall asleep right here." She nodded and again assisted him to his private bathroom. He grabbed onto the countertop for support, and she swiftly let him go before reaching up to kiss his cheek. He smiled.

"I'll go get your things," she whispered. She first, however, walked over to the tub, which lined the eastern wall, and turned the hot water on. She smirked at his expression of surprise before turning and sauntering back into the bedroom, closing the door shut behind her in the process. He sighed heavily and slid out of his black shirt and pants. His boxers were the last to go, and he carefully used the counter, which took up nearly the whole northern wall with its spacious cupboards and long mirror above, to reach the bath tub. He lifted and dipped his feet one at a time in, sighing in utter relief at the sensation of the hot water. Grabbing a nearby bottle of vanilla-scented bubble bath, he poured two cups in and slowly mixed it with the water, creating a bubbly film. The smell filled his nose, and he smiled as he leaned back against the adjacent wall.

The knock at the door startled him, and he quickly sat upright. "It's me," Anzu called back. "I have your pajamas."

"Okay." He swiftly pulled the curtain halfway across, covering his lower section, and crossed his arms, placing them on the thick rim of the tub. His smile widened when she entered, and he watched as she set his pjs onto the counter. She smiled back and approached the tub, taking her seat next to it. Placing a hand on his arms, she smiled widely and leaned forward to lightly kiss his cheek again.

"So you and Yugi are fine now?" he asked, blushing slightly at the kiss.

"For now," she answered. "I don't know, it's a lot to take in. He told me how Yami warned him of all this and how the news of us eventually being together just tore him up. He thought you were the same person you were in high school, but after you rescued him… I think it woke him up. He saw that you have changed."

Seto scoffed. "Did he really think I would just let him drown?"

"I don't know, but it changed his mind about you. I don't think he's happy for us, yet he seems to want forgiveness."

Seto nodded in understanding. "So…now what?"

"Now I'm just going to wait until tomorrow and see what happens."

He again nodded. Reaching over, he turned the water faucet off, and the room filled with a heavy silence. He leaned back into the water and sighed heavily. "I'm just going to lie here for a bit," Seto stated. He turned his head and smirked over at her. "If you want to go to bed, that's fine."

She chuckled and dipped the tips of her fingers into the water. "I'm honestly kind of worried you're going to fall asleep and drown in here. You look so tired."

"Yeah, well, it's not every day I save an idiot from killing himself."

She giggled and lifted her hand. A few bubbles remained on her fingertips, and she laughed before reaching forward to tap Seto's face. He went to dodge, but she managed to get the bubbles in his hair. He growled playfully and flicked a few drops of water at her. She cried out in surprise and fell backwards, landing on her butt. She jumped back up and placed her hands on her hips. "Well someone doesn't want my company!"

He laughed at her gesture and shook his head before patting the rim of the tub. She smiled, rolled her eyes, but did retake her seat. Dipping her fingers into the water once more, she began running a hand through his hair, placing several wet strands behind his ear. "You're going to put me to sleep if you keep doing that," he warned, feeling his eyelids automatically get heavy.

"Then I'll just have to wake you up."

He smirked and shook his head. "I have a better idea. You sit here and keep me awake."

"And how am I supposed to do that when I want to run my hand through your soft hair?"

His smirk widened. "What's the deal with Natsumi?"

It took every ounce of willpower to keep from bursting out laughing as Anzu's eyes flared open. "Oh, that bitch!" she exclaimed. Seto could only watch in amusement as she ranted and raved for nearly fifteen minutes about Natsumi's scheduling plans (and how the rest of the girls flat-out refused to follow it). It reminded him of her gamer rage whenever she died playing games.

"She's so cute when she's angry." He was too tired to argue with himself on that point. It was true, after all. But soon she calmed down, and he said it was time to get out, as the water was starting to get cold. He waited until she left before getting up and turning the drain on. He dried himself off as quickly as possible, feeling the tension of today weighing upon him, threatening to have him fall asleep at any second. He put on his clothes, only doing a few of the buttons on his pajama shirt, and limped his way back into the bedroom and to his bed, where Anzu was already lying and waiting for him. He crawled onto the bed and lied down next to her, wrapping an arm around her waist and planting a light kiss on her lips.

"Good night, Seto," she whispered. She began playing with his slightly wet hair again, and he brought himself closer to her, placing his head against her shoulder. He loved having her next to him, her soft caresses, her caring tone of voice. Yugi was right. He loved her. He never wanted her to leave him. Ever. "Thanks again for everything today. Get some rest, okay?"

He nodded, closed his eyes, and immediately fell asleep.