Once awake in the real world, the party agreed to meet and discuss the future of the Duel Links Club at school. If Josh had one good thing to say about their adventure, at least everyone united and finished with a bang. However, the ghost of Data Bakura haunted his thoughts.
Josh turned the corner to the last hallway before the classroom, where he found Christine with her back against the wall. His head was ready to dissolve into ashes; she did promise a response to his love confession after the shadow RPG.
"Hey," said Josh.
"Oh!" said Christine. When she gulped, Josh wished he knew what it meant. "Did you see how KaibaCorp suddenly canceled the Monster World event for emergency maintenance? I wonder why."
Josh smiled.
She grabbed her arm. "But I don't know if I still want to be Duel World Queen. I'm so afraid of Data Bakura."
Words and sentences formed and erased in Josh's mind. Why did it have to be like this?
"I don't think you'll give up on becoming the Duel World King."
"Yeah."
Christine took a deep breath. "I like you, but I'm so sorry; I need to stay away from Duel Links."
Josh grabbed his stomach as it churned. "I completely get your feelings."
She frowned. "Then why put yourself in danger?"
"Dueling is more than just winning or losing to me: it reminds me of the bonds I share with my friends."
"That's…" Her hug was warm and soft.
"What's wrong?"
"When I was in the hospital for heat stroke last summer, I figured you'd laugh at me with everyone else for overtraining. But you stayed with me during my recovery and taught me Duel Monsters. I was so happy. I wanted to tell you how much your gesture meant to me. But instead, I made it another feud."
Josh hugged her.
"You know what? Screw that jerk. I won't let him steal our happiness."
"Thank you."
After a minute, they separated. Christine sighed. "I don't know if the others have such deep feelings, though."
"Let's check."
Together, they walked into the Duel Links clubroom. Jess, Daniel, Andrew, and Hailey chatted inside.
"Looks promising," said Josh.
Daniel nodded. "We're sticking together."
"Our record's perfect," said Andrew. "The numbers say we'll defeat Data Bakura again."
Hailey jabbed him in the rib. "I didn't know you considered 'one out of one' to be statistically significant."
Everyone chuckled.
Jess waved at Josh and Christine. "I told my parents how important my friends in the Duel Links Club meant to me. They were irritated, but we reached an understanding."
That's great!" said Josh.
"By the way, is it my imagination, or are you two are standing closer than usual?"
"We're official."
"He asked."
"Oh! Yes…congratulations."
"Congrats," said Daniel.
"Within my calculations," said Andrew.
"Or plain sight," said Hailey. "Congrats!"
"Alright Josh," said Christine. "When we log into Duel Links, we're dueling. Loser pays for dinner. And don't think it'll be something cheap when I win."
"Too bad you're picking up my tab again."