Weeks had passed since her return to the real world, and even though her body was physically present, her mind had never felt more disconnected from reality. She found herself frequently staring off, contemplating her more recent decisions. Her friends and family would ask her what was wrong, or if she wanted to share what was on her mind. She brushed it off as merely a recovery stage, telling them her mind wasn't used to being back in this realm just yet. They believed her, and she was silently thankful. She didn't want to tell them the real reason behind her social distance.
"Tea, are you all right?"
She snapped out of her daze. She tended to space out more than ever in the past few days than she had in prior weeks. Was it because of him? She shook her head, relieving herself of his memory. He would return to her though, her thoughts unrelenting with questions and scenarios she would never live out. Her path had been chosen, and she knew did what she had to do.
"Uh, yeah, I'm fine."
"Are you sure?"
Yugi was always asking her if she was well or if she needed anything. Out of all her friends, Yugi was the one who hovered. He was overly cautious, making sure Tea was constantly comfortable. She may have been out of the hospital, but unfortunately, she was still bound to her wheelchair. The days of rehab seemed endless, but the doctors assured her that her legs just needed time. And just like how her legs needed time, she needed to give Yugi her time now. Hopefully, as time passed, her yearning for him would rekindle. Was it even there to begin with?
"Yes, I'm sure." Tea picked up the drink menu from off the table. "Are you ordering something to drink? Maybe a sake?"
Yugi shook his head, "No, I think I'll stick with soda for tonight."
Usually, Tea would question his drink decision. Yugi always ordered sake when they came to this sushi restaurant. When they first began dating, Yugi had brought her here almost every Friday night, and she could've sworn he had tried every flavor of sake on the menu. But now, Tea didn't seem to care what Yugi did. There was only one person on her mind that she cared about, and his presence in her mind was like an unwelcomed guest you begged to leave, but never did.
Tea peeled her eyes away from the drink menu and stared off once again, trying to focus on the décor of the restaurant she used to love so much. The deep red hues of the round light fixtures brought back memories of when she was happy with Yugi. They'd talk for hours underneath these light fixtures. There never seemed to be a dull moment, but now they couldn't light up a conversation even if they were given matches.
Yugi had promised her he'd take her out to eat once she was out of the hospital so they could talk things through. She never imagined he'd bring her back here when they had a million things on their minds but nothing to say. It was like she was having a terrible bout of déjà vu with a horribly lurid twist.
After a few moments of silence, their waiter came by, "Anything to drink?"
"Soda for me."
The waiter nodded, "Thank you, sir," he turned to face Tea, "For you, miss?"
She needed something hard. "A Manhattan, please."
Yugi butted in before the waiter could write down her drink order, "Uh, Tea, are you sure you should be drinking? You just got released from the hospital and you're on various pain medications."
"What the doctor doesn't know won't kill him, or me for that matter." She looked back at the waiter, "A Manhattan. Straight."
He nodded with hesitation, "Yes, miss… I'll have to check with the bartender to see if he knows how to make it."
"That's fine."
"And your bourbon?"
"The strongest brand you've got."
The waiter scribbled on his notepad before leaving.
Yugi just stared at Tea in disbelief. She didn't know what to make of his shaken expression, but she supposed he didn't know what to make of her. She'd never been one to drink strong liquor. He probably wondered what had gotten into her, hell if she told him who it was…. literally.
"I'm shocked."
"I can tell." Her tone surprised her. It sounded sarcastically familiar.
Yugi grimaced, "Is something the matter?"
"Besides being wheelchair-bound? No," she lied, "why?"
He shook his head, "You're acting so strange all of a sudden."
"I'm fine, Yugi," she faked a smile, "really, I am."
"If tonight's not a good night to talk we can surely do it some other time."
"No! No!" Tea tried to sound like her old, enthusiastic self. It came out a little harsher than expected. "I want to get through this, I do. There's been a lot on my mind."
"Is it because of me?"
"No." This time she was actually telling the truth.
"Then what? You've been distant this entire time and now your behavior has changed. What's up?"
"I told you, my mind still isn't used to being back yet."
"Don't lie to me, Tea, I know you better than that."
Tea mentally cursed Yugi for being right even if she did just fess up to having a lot on her mind. Truthfully, she couldn't explain to him what was on her mind because it wasn't about him.
"Tea?" He raised an eyebrow, expecting an answer.
Maybe she could use him to turn the tides around on Yugi. "I'm a little upset that you didn't want to see me right away…. I mean, you went to go visit Kaiba before me."
"How did you know that?"
"Joey and Tristen told me," she fibbed.
Yugi looked away from her, guilt gracing his downcast gaze. "I'm sorry, Tea. Like I told you before, I was afraid to come see you because I didn't how you'd take my company. I went to Kaiba first because I wanted to thank him for rescuing you and maybe get an idea of how you felt about me…"
Her mouth parted as she inaudibly gasped, letting the air pass over her sensitive teeth, sending a numbing sensation throughout her mouth. She licked her lips and swallowed, using the extra few seconds to think of a reasonable reply.
She couldn't believe it took her so long to put the pieces together. Kaiba had come to her too late because he was the one who prompted Yugi to come see her first. Why would he do that? Why would he jeopardize his chances with her? Was he thinking the same way she was? Surely not. Kaiba wasn't the type of person to put others before himself, but with Yugi, he had….
"Why would you go to Kaiba for insight about me? That's a little strange don't you think?" The sentence was designed to come out casually, however, her nerves were creeping their way up her esophagus, making her sound edgy. Yugi probably knew something was up just from the sound of her voice.
"He rescued you. He uploaded his mind to save you. I guess I just assumed…"
"Well you assumed wrong!" She couldn't risk Yugi knowing the truth. To be honest, she felt like she was lying more to herself than anyone. She didn't want to be here with Yugi, she wanted to be here with him.
The guilt she felt over the proposal, the accident, the coma… it was all too much. She had caused enough pain and suffering for her friends and family, and there was no way she could jump into a relationship with Kaiba without there being backlash from her loved ones. It's not that she didn't want to be with Kaiba, she most certainly did, but it was just best if she pretended. Pretended to like Yugi, pretended everything was okay, pretended she didn't love Kaiba.
Love? Wait, was she? No. She couldn't possibly be. She couldn't base her reality off something she experienced in virtual reality. What she needed to do was focus on the present and the people who cared about her. Whether it was a twisted sense of self-righteousness, or her undying loyalty to her friends and family, she had to act as if nothing happened between her and Kaiba. She needed to keep the peace. Maybe this way she'd be able to mend the events of that fateful night that plunged her into unconsciousness…
"I didn't mean to hit a nerve," Yugi treaded cautiously, "I just didn't want to impose if you weren't ready to see me. The last thing you did before going into a coma was run away from me. How was I supposed to know how you felt?"
Tea sighed, "True. You're right. I'm sorry."
Yugi sent her with a smile, "It's all right. I understand. You're going through a lot. I didn't mean to upset you."
She shook her head, "You didn't." To be fair, she was the one who was frustrated with herself more than anyone else. If only she'd have sucked it up and said yes to Yugi when he'd proposed, then none of this would have happened.
Yugi's smile faded and he took a sharp breath. "I want to ask you something that's been eating away at me for over two years."
Tea had a feeling what he was about to ask, she didn't want to talk about it, but lacked the courage to tell him otherwise.
"Why did you say no? Why did you run away?"
Tea went with an easy response, the one she had given Kaiba while they were in the virtual world. "Because we'd only been dating for two months and I felt like getting engaged was too big of a step for us."
"Okay, so why run?" Yugi was interrogating her, but she couldn't blame him. He needed answers. He'd waited this long.
"I was embarrassed. We were in front of our friends and family. I felt ashamed."
"But why? If you loved me then you would've said yes."
"It's not that simple, Yugi."
"Yes, it is. Why were you ashamed of me?"
Tea didn't know what to say. Thankfully, the waiter returned with their drinks, setting them in front of the couple. Tea abruptly removed her Manhattan from the table and took a sizeable gulp, letting the alcohol burn her throat. Yugi watched her with an expression of betrayal and distaste.
"Are you two ready to order?" The waiter asked, flipping open his notepad.
"I'm fine. Thanks." Yugi didn't even glance at the waiter, he just glared at Tea who was still gulping down her beverage.
Tea wasn't even hungry but if this dinner was going to continue being as awkward as it was now, then she better order something to preoccupy her mouth. Maybe the food would give her time to think of new lies to tell Yugi.
"I'll have sake nigiri and kappa maki, please."
"Coming right up!" The waiter left to put in their order while Tea took one look at Yugi's irritated appearance and downed the rest of her drink.
Yugi's eyes followed her glass as she set it down onto the table with a light thud. He raised an eyebrow at her and she swallowed hard, attempting to wash away the alcohol burn.
"So?" He began, waiting for her to explain herself.
"So, what?" She countered him with a snarky bite.
"Why are you ashamed of me?"
"I'm not."
"Then why did you reject me?"
"I already told you."
"It's because you don't love me, isn't it?" Yugi looked hurt and determined at the same time. Tea knew he wanted answers but at the same time she knew Yugi well enough that sometimes he liked being sheltered from the truth.
Their waiter was just passing by their table as Tea reached for him, tapping his arm to gain his attention. "Waiter, another drink, please!"
Today had been Kaiba's first day back at Kaiba Corp. It was all so mundane, yet being back felt new somehow. Was it because he had missed out on so much work in the past six months or so? Kaiba Corp. really hadn't changed all that much. Stocks were normal, sales were just slightly below average, perfectly normal for this time of year. What was it that felt different?
He caught his reflection in the window as he paced the length of his office. He needed a haircut. Why hadn't he gotten one before coming back? He still looked malnourished and pale. His finger nails required a trimming and he was developing a slight five-o-clock shadow. Maybe Kaiba Corp. wasn't different, maybe it was him?
And no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't focus. His body had fully recovered, but his mind said otherwise. The doctors told him his brain would be a bit fuzzy for a while after returning from the virtual world, but he didn't know for how long. He wished he could overcome this minor slump and get back to his normal self.
But how can I go back to my normal self when all I can think about is her?
He punched the glass. Damn her!
There was a knock on the door and his assistant walked in. "Mr. Kaiba, the board is ready for you."
He looked up and stared into his reflection once again. His blue eyes were weary, but the color was identical to hers, and just like that she was back in his head. It was torture. Beautiful, unrelenting torture….
"Mr. Kaiba?"
"I'm coming…." He groaned and practically dragged himself across the floor. His usual proud prominence was now replaced with fatigue.
"I would ask if you want to reschedule, sir," his assistant said, her short stature making him look like a giant as they walked down the hall toward the conference room, "but it's the board I'm afraid…"
"What're you implying, Shana?"
"Well, you don't seem like your usual self."
"Thanks for the bode of confidence. You do realize you're supposed to assist me, not drag me down." He was trying to lighten his poor disposition, but he was just not feeling it. Shana was right, he was just not himself.
"You hired me for my brutal honesty, not my cheerleading skills."
Cheerleading. Out of all the words, she picked the one that reminds me of her…. that stupid cheerleader….
"I'm beginning to think that was a mistake," he complained, rubbing his temples to try and rid his mind of that cheerleader comment.
Shana laughed, tilting her head back slightly, her short blonde bob so patted down with hairspray that it didn't even move when the rest of her did. "Oh, please, you know I'm more efficient than you half the time. Speaking of efficient," she withdrew a stack of paper-clipped files from the binder she'd been carrying and began to flip through them, "I've organized your talking points, project progress, and all updates from the board that they required you to see. Here."
She handed him the stack of papers and he began to skim through them. There was one update from the board that caught his eye and he stopped before they were about to enter the conference room.
Shana noticed her boss wasn't walking with her and stopped just a few feet in front of him. "Sir?"
"Shana… I…"
"Mr. Kaiba, is something the matter?" She walked back toward him and glanced over the paper he was reading.
"Why didn't you tell me the board approved of the virtual world project?"
She smiled, "I called Mokuba and he and I both agreed for it to be left as a surprise for you when you returned."
"You weren't going to tell me before the meeting?"
"That would ruin the surprise, now wouldn't it? Don't make me regret handing you those papers early." She began walking toward the large conference room doors, "Now, let's go. We're already a few minutes late."
"Wait."
"What is it, sir?"
He wanted to crumple the pages. Hell, he wanted to burn them! He was fuming. How could they do this? He grit his teeth and silently seethed.
"What's the matter, sir?" Her voice more concerned this time.
Kaiba glared at her, rage igniting a dark flame in his eyes. "You didn't tell me what they named the project!"
A/N: GASP! What is the name of the virtual world project? Oh, you'll find out, I'm about to summon it… in the next chapter! Thanks for reading you guys! I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. Please drop a review to let me know how I'm doing. Your feedback is ALWAYS much appreciated. Thank you! Until next time!
