Disclaimer: We don't own Yugioh GX.

Judai's POV

What I saw was the four Monarchs from my field trip in Domino City. They'd had this island circled for the past two weeks, keeping me trapped here. Worse, three of them were getting up and closing in. The only one that wasn't moving was already where Ai wanted it—near the resort's beach. With the other three moving toward the beach, I knew exactly what the plan was. Trapping me on the beach wasn't just a threat anymore—Ai wanted to make it a reality.

On the plus side, the barrier couldn't be maintained when they were moving, apparently. I swear I saw the barrier fizzle for a second as it disappeared.

I had until they settled into their new positions to get away. If I could just get past them, I'd be out of the barrier's range, and Ai wouldn't be able to keep me here anymore.

Needless to say, I ran for it, heading straight for the oncoming Monarchs.

Manjoume's gaze shot up, too, as his eyes widened. "Oh, crap. Hey! Hurry up over there! You're running out of time!" he called to me.

As if I couldn't see that!

Yeah, thanks for the update, Manjoume!

If I hadn't needed all my breath for running, I might have said that out loud.

I ran off the beach just as the Monarchs reached it, so I was running straight between two of them as they reached their destination. Standing on the road on the other side, I watched Thestalos and Mobius settle into their new spots, trapping nobody this time.

I was free. And I didn't even need to get a stupid girlfriend. Good. Girls were nothing but trouble, if Ai and Asuka were any indication. Granted, ships typically docked at the resort, which I couldn't get to, and the airport seemed to be a part of their new enclosure, so I couldn't just catch a plane out of here.

Guess it was a good thing that so many of my friends were rich and had their own private helicopters, yachts, and jets.

Manjoume caught up to me as I was catching my breath. "Geez…" he breathed. "That…was close…" He straightened up and crossed his arms, adding, "I swear. That girl's just plain cruel sometimes."

"Yeah…" I said.

"So, now what? The barrier's in the wrong place to trap you, so you should be able to get away now, right?"

"Yeah, if I can find transportation or wanna swim for it."

Seriously, if nobody could get me a ride that day, I'd gladly start swimming.

Manjoume gave me a lame look. Made sense, I guess, since I'd just made it sound like that would be tough. I mean, he was one of the guys with his own private jet, helicopter, yacht, and probably even a spaceship, for all I knew.

"Really, Judai? You seriously think that's gonna be a problem? Surely you didn't forget how rich some of us are, now, did you?"

Well… Okay, yeah. At the time, I admit, I forgot.

"If that's the case, then get me out of here!" I said, turning to him.

"Uh, Judai? I…don't think that's gonna work…" Yubel said, looking up again. Her eyes were the size of pinheads.

Ugh, seriously? What was going on now? And why!?

Ai's POV

To answer Judai's question, I had opened my door after moving the barrier and found Kenzan right outside, with his phone in hand. I was going to go get Judai, but Kenzan's presence, worried expression, and hasty hiding of his phone told me he'd probably just reported something to Judai.

Obviously I needed to do something, just in case I'd somehow lost my target.

I called for my guards, telling them to teach this "peeping tom" a lesson. Part of the reason was to get revenge on him for interfering. The other part was to stop him from warning Judai about what I was about to do.

Just in case he'd gotten away, I decided I needed to expand the barrier again. I did the math, calculating exactly how far Judai could have gotten in the time since I'd started working on moving the barrier. After a moment, I was sure of just how far he could have gone. I didn't need to expand the barrier to cover the entire island again. He couldn't have gotten to the other side by now, even if he was still on the move. I expanded the barrier just enough to trap him in the nearer locations, certain that would be enough.

Honestly, his friends were making this much more difficult.

Judai's POV

Manjoume and I both looked up slowly. The Monarchs were getting up again, spreading out some. Great. Had she found Kenzan?

Thestalos and Mobius were heading my way again as the barrier extended.

"…Move. Now," Manjoume said.

I didn't need to be told twice. I ran for it, but the Monarchs were faster. They were passing me before I knew it.

"Summon Neos!" Yubel suggested. "Hurry before those guys up ahead settle in!"

By this point, those Monarchs were about two American football fields away, nearing the edge of town.

Well, Neos wouldn't be much help if Ai was planning on surrounding the whole island again, but I summoned him, anyway. I mean, maybe I could still get out of here.

Any fears that they were going for the whole island vanished as soon as I saw them start settling in at the edge of town. Great, so I wasn't even going to get the chance to go to town? That wasn't much better than being trapped on the beach!

Without any command, Neos picked me up and flew full-speed at the Monarchs, trying to get there before the barrier reformed.

We almost made it. In fact, we were so close that we got stuck halfway through the barrier. It started trying to suck us back inside as Neos kept fighting to get through. Unfortunately the barrier must have been tougher because it pulled us back in. It probably didn't help that I was using my powers at the time, so my Duel Monster half was more dominant just then. So, in the end, we both got sucked back in. The force threw us back toward the beach, sending us flying through the air.

The landing…wasn't going to be fun.

Manjoume's POV

As I watched, Judai and Neos were sucked back inside and flung toward the beach. I followed their flight path with my eyes, watching them arc over my head before they crash-landed on the beach.

I ran over, worried. I mean, a trip like that could break a person's bones easily! And we wouldn't even be able to get the guy to a hospital, thanks to that Ai! Damn it!

When I got there, Judai was sitting up, which was a good sign. After all, he could move. What wasn't good was that he was attracting a crowd. I mean, obviously! A guy flying through the air with a Duel Monster? Not exactly something these people saw every day. From the looks on their faces, those people were confused and concerned, but who knew what else they were thinking. Hopefully his reputation as a traveling hero would help Judai out a bit with this. That or Sho's dumb books about our adventures at Duel Academy.

Yeah, after graduation, Sho wrote books about our adventures! No joke! Just like Sugoroku Muto had written a book about his grandson's adventures. Did every dueling hero need a book? First we had a guy with an ancient Egyptian pharaoh and some 10,000-year-old evil, then our adventures in other dimensions. What was next, a book by some third-rate reporter about motorcycle-riding duelists fighting the dead and people from the future?

Judai was rubbing his head, and Yubel was leaning over him, looking concerned. Just concerned? What the hell was that guy made of!?

"Judai? You okay?" she asked.

A damn good question. And, if the answer was yes, then the next question was how!?

Judai's POV

Okay, that hurt. A lot. It probably would have been worse if not for that fusion—fusing with Yubel had made me stronger, physically, but it had also made it so that I could take more of a beating before any serious damage was done.

Granted, it still hurt bad enough to knock the sense out of me for a second.

Yeah, I think, I answered Yubel's question. "Ugh…"

She pointed back toward town and said, "Judai. Look…"

I seriously didn't think I wanted to, but I did anyway. Sure enough, I didn't want to. The Monarchs were sitting on the edge of town, keeping me from going anywhere farther than a little over 200 meters from the beach. There was no way I'd be getting back to the Tenjoins' villa now.

"…Crap…"

Now I was stuck with either the resort hotel for shelter…or maybe a cave somewhere in the cliffs, if I was lucky. Hmm… Dry and near Ai, or wet and safe?

Easy choice.

Manjoume's POV

I reached Judai, getting down in front of him and holding up four fingers. At first glance, he looked fine. Dusty, but unharmed. But that couldn't be! I mean, at the very least, he had to have hit his head pretty hard, right? At least gotten a concussion.

"Hey, you alright? How many fingers do you see?" I asked.

Judai looked at my hand for a second, then answered, "Four?"

I crossed my arms, totally lost. Apparently injuring Judai was impossible now! Guess he probably preferred that to getting stuck in the infirmary for days after one fierce duel. Why, I bet even getting blasted into a wall by a live dragon wouldn't hurt him!

"Good," I said. "No injuries. One second." I glared at the crowd, thinking that the last thing we needed was some fool calling and reporting this in. "Okay! Nothing to see here! Move along! Unless, of course, you want sued by the Manjoume Thunder, that is."

Clearly they weren't brainless because the crowd dispersed. They must have known that my threats meant something. Besides, I could cover up anything. There's nothing that can't be explained with the right amount of money, after all.

For the record, the world found that out when somebody reported that Kenzan was a mutant after he'd fought some mugger with his dinosaur strength. I guess his eyes changed in the middle of it, and this guy was freaked out. However, in the end, Kenzan was proven to be completely normal, and the guy who reported him to the authorities was sued for all he was worth.

If you're wondering how I do it, O'Brien comes in handy. So do Akiko and Fuyuko, who I met awhile back and started using to dig up dirt on my enemies.

Anyway, since that matter was handled, I turned my attention back to Judai and said, "So what was that all about, anyway? I thought you had it that time."

"Guess not," Judai said, getting to his feet.

"Great. So now what? I hear it's supposed to be cold tonight. Can you get anywhere warm to sleep?"

Judai looked around, saying, "I'm sure I can find somewhere…"

Not reassuring. Knowing Judai, that could easily mean he'd be lying on the beach in plain view of Ai and exposed to the elements. Guess I had no choice but to help him.

"What's off in that direction?" I asked, pointing toward the cliffs.

"Cliffs."

Well, no duh! I could see that, you idiot! Seriously, how dumb was this guy? Did he not know what else might have been there?

I gave him a lame look, sarcastically asking, "And is there a cave over there, too? I know some places like that have at least one."

Knowing Judai, he probably didn't know that. Even though anybody else in the world would have given me a more intelligent answer than "cliffs."

"I dunno. Let's go check!" Judai answered, running off.

I followed, still a bit annoyed with the idiot. Seriously, if you want to hide from Ai, you have to look everywhere. I'd hidden in dumpsters and drain pipes to escape her before! Hell, one time, I went into a beauty parlor dressed as a woman! So why had Judai avoided the cliffs if he'd been here alone with her for two weeks? Was he really that stupid?

Ai's POV

As I scanned the beach, hoping that Judai hadn't escaped me, I thought about just how big of a nuisance those friends of his were becoming. Surely they were the reason that he'd disappeared earlier. One of them must have been hiding him! Well, with any luck, shrinking the barrier had dealt with that little issue, at least.

I saw him and Manjoume, and I was immensely relieved. I hadn't lost him!

I ran over, calling his name as I did.

Manjoume turned to face me, annoyed. Like he needed to be—I wasn't interested in him. "Oh, not you again," he said.

"Yes, me again!" I said. "What, you thought you could lose me?" I asked Judai as I stepped between him and Manjoume. "Silly, Judai! You're my one and only! We're meant to be together, and we will be!"

When I moved between them, Manjoume stepped back in surprise. Then he crossed his arms, annoyed.

"Oh, just go away, Ai!" Judai snapped.

Like I was doing that.

"Judai, you are coming with me. Now," I said firmly.

"I'd rather not, thanks very much."

"Then we have a problem. Because I won't accept that!"

I grabbed him by the arm. Manjoume's eyes widened, and he moved forward as if to grab me.

"Let's go!" I said.

"Let go!" Judai countered, pulling away from me.

I held on tight. "Not happening, Judai! Quit being so stubborn!"

Suddenly a very familiar thing happened—Manjoume whacked me over the head. He did that every time I touched him, and now he was doing it when I touched Judai? Really?

While I was still dazed, he grabbed Judai's shoulders and pulled him to his other side, away from me. He was still glaring at me, and the way he was still holding Judai made him look quite a bit like a child hogging their toy.

"See, this is why I like Haruko better!" he snapped. "She's not a low-down slime ball like you! Come on, Judai! Let's get out of here!" He started pushing Judai away, watching me over his shoulder.

"Oh… I'll have you yet, Judai!" I said, clutching my sore head.

"Yeah, yeah," Manjoume said as he kept going with Judai. Mumbling, he added, "When all hell freezes over."

Oh, I'd have him before then, Manjoume. You couldn't stop me. After all, you weren't about to become his lover.

Judai's POV

Well, Manjoume had gotten Ai off me. Even if the way he did it did make me wonder how many times he'd done that.

"Thanks, Manjoume," I said as he kept pushing me away from her.

"Yeah, yeah. Shut it. I'm only doing it 'cause it's Ai, and nobody deserves to suffer at her hands. Not even you."

Before all of this, I might have taken that the wrong way. But this was Manjoume we were talking about! He'd shown up to help, and he wouldn't have if he didn't care. He just never liked to admit that to anyone. Sometimes I wonder if he even admitted it to himself.

"Thanks," I repeated after translating that statement.

Just then Kenzan came running over, covered from head to toe in bruises and cuts. His clothes were torn up and bloody, too. But the way he was acting, you'd think he was totally fine. Was he seriously so worried about me that he was ignoring his own well-being? Man, that's twice in one day these guys had shown me how much they cared.

But…that didn't tell me who had done this to him. I mean, Ai wasn't capable of beating somebody up like that! Unless she really was royalty and had some guards beat him up… Oh, man! That would mean Manjoume would be seriously in trouble for hitting her, even if it was in self-defense! Okay, he was defending me, but still! Why wasn't he worried about that!?

"Aniki! You okay!?" Kenzan asked.

Manjoume finally let go, crossing his arms. "Hmph. Yeah, he's okay. No thanks to Ai, that is."

He was glaring over his shoulder as he spoke, so he really wasn't worried. Okay, either Ai wasn't really a princess and something else had happened to Kenzan, or he just didn't think she'd get him in trouble for hitting her. Either way, if he wasn't worried, I figured I shouldn't be, either.

"Yeah," I said to Kenzan. "Don't worry, Kenzan. I'm fine."

He smiled, looking relieved. But the bruises on his face distorted it. Did he even realize he was a huge mess? Or did he seriously not care? "That's good. 'Cause, for a while there, I thought Ai's plan had succeeded. She tried shrinking the barrier again, you know."

Oh, yeah, I knew.

Manjoume turned away from both of us, confusing Kenzan.

"Yeah, I know," I said. "In fact, she, uh…did."

Kenzan's eyes popped out of his head. "What!?"

"I can't get back to Fubuki's now."

"W-what!? You—you mean she—"

"Uh-huh."

"Wow… You gonna be okay?" Kenzan asked, apparently feeling sorry for me.

To this day, I find it amazing that he didn't even seem to care that he looked like road kill.

"Yeah, I'll be fine," I assured him.

"Ha!" Asuka's voice said. "Yeah, sure you will. Serves you right, if you ask me. You're a disgrace to everyone you know! Right, Ai?"

I turned and saw her supporting Ai, who had a wet towel on her head.

And Asuka sounded furious.

What was going on here?

Asuka's POV

Wow, Judai. Way to lead into my part of the story.

What was going on was that I had been looking for the "flying man and monster" that were "under Manjoume Thunder's protection" that everybody on the island had been talking about. What I'd found instead was Ai with a nasty bump on her head. For the sake of my act, I had to pretend I cared, so my search for Judai had ended with Ai.

I asked her what had happened, and she told me about Kenzan spying on her, what she'd done with Judai (which easily explained the flying man and monster bit, given that he probably tried to get away), and about Manjoume clubbing her again.

Okay, with that in mind, I had to avoid all three of them when Ai was around. If I didn't, I'd either have to blow my cover or look like a traitor. Oh, well. The resort's beach was big enough that I figured I could easily avoid them. Especially since they weren't going to be heading back to the resort.

With that in mind, I borrowed a towel from somebody else on the beach, soaked it in the ocean, and told Ai to keep it on that bump. Then I helped her up and started back to the resort with her, thinking that Manjoume needed to stop doing this. Not that she didn't deserve it, but I had to take her side for the sake of this stupid act.

Of course, as you've already figured out, I couldn't avoid those three. Not only did I find one of them, I found all three of them just moments after finding Ai! Really, couldn't they have had the decency to have gotten as far away from her as possible after spying on her and hitting her?

This wasn't going to be pretty. Since Judai was talking, I decided to unleash my false rage on him first. He's already told you what I said, so I, fortunately, don't have to repeat it.

When I was speaking to Judai, my act sounded real, even to me. Then I switched over to a gentle tone when talking to Ai, smiling at her.

"Uh-huh…" she agreed.

I turned a glare back to Judai and saw him looking around, as if he thought there was somebody else I was talking to. "Are you talking to me?" he asked, looking confused.

Well, of course! Who else could I possibly have been talking to!? He was the only one who had said anything that could get such a reaction!

I let go of Ai and crossed my arms, giving Judai a look of pure hate. One thing was for sure—being mad at these guys was way too easy. "Well, duh. Who else would I be talking to, you idiot? It's not like there are any other properly punished creeps around here, right?"

The hurt in his eyes was clear, and I'd been expecting some degree of pain on his face after a remark like that. But he looked more like he'd just been stabbed in the back. Were my words really that mean?

"…What…?" he asked. His voice was barely audible, and there was way more pain in that one word than I really wanted to cause him.

Clearly it was time to lighten the blow. I mean, I hadn't expected that kind of intense reaction. Maybe getting on the other two would help. Manjoume should really stop hitting royalty, anyway! He could get himself thrown in jail for it one of these days! Or worse!

So, with that in mind, I turned my glare on Manjoume. Once again, this was way too easy. Was I just good at being mad…and was it at all related to why everyone thought I was mean? I decided that, yes, it was, and that I should work on that when we were done here.

"And, Manjoume, how dare you attack Ai like that! No wonder she keeps telling other girls you're no good for them! Why, with that in mind, I'd feel so much better if you left my poor friend Momoe alone. She doesn't need an abusing, trash-talking monster in her life, either!"

Oh, the words spewing from my mouth! That was worse than what I'd said to Judai! Granted, I'd been trying to make it look like I was angrier with Manjoume than Judai, like usual. After all, I'd always been nastier to Manjoume in school, so Judai should be feeling better if I did it again, right?

"Say what!?" Manjoume asked, and I was glad to hear that he seemed more confused and insulted than anything else. "Tenjoin-kun, she was—"

Well, that was one down. Now, if I just said the right things to Kenzan, that mysterious look of betrayal on Judai's face should leave. After all, I was yelling at all three of them for being jerks, so that should make it look like I just didn't like how they had treated Ai.

Well, okay, I'd only snapped at Judai because of that stupid cover story I had about hating him. The one that Ai actually believed. But he certainly didn't need to know about that. Not with the look he was already giving me.

That reminded me: I needed to talk to Kyle and Junko about that later so that they could join the act. Ugh, how did I get myself into this mess?

I cut Manjoume off, turning to Kenzan. "And, you, Dino-breath! What were you doing spying on her like that!? You should be ashamed."

"B-but I was just—"

I turned away with a scowl, crossing my arms.

Now for the final part of my act: Pretend I hated all men. That would make me yelling at three at once look like nothing. It wasn't like I hadn't had my fair share of jerks: Mitsuru, Kanda, Manjoume, Mitsuo, my brother and his new friend, and, of course, Judai Yuki. So at least I had an excuse to hate men.

"Save it," I said. "Ai was right about you guys. Can't live with them, and you most definitely can't begin to trust them. You're all the same. Heart-breaking, abusive, perverted jerks."

There. One harsh word for each. Kenzan's spying could look perverted if you ignored the fact that he was trying to help Judai. Manjoume's insistent need to hit royalty when they touched him did look abusive. And the heartbreaking… Well, it matched what I'd told Ai about him never acknowledging my feelings…ever.

I took hold of Ai again, scowling at those three men. This gave me the chance I needed to look at Judai and see if he'd cooled off any.

Kenzan looked shocked and confused, and Manjoume looked angry, confused, and offended.

But Judai…

The hurt and betrayal in his eyes hadn't gone anywhere. If anything, they'd intensified. He also looked insanely guilty. But that wasn't all. On top of all of that, there was something completely new on his face. Something I'd never seen, and never want to see again: A look as though his worst fears had been confirmed.

…What in the world was that look about? Was it that wrong for me to be mad at three jerks for mistreating my new "friend"? Honestly, ever since that whole thing with Yubel, that man made no sense!

Regardless of all of that, I had to deal with Ai first. When I was done with that, I'd have to get Kyle and Junko filled in on the story so they could keep themselves from blowing it. Then I could go track down Judai and ask him about it. Not that I expected him to give me an answer, but I still had to try.

"Come on, Ai," I said, closing my eyes and turning my nose up at those three as I dragged her off. "Let's get you looked at. Later, creeps. Hmph!"

Besides the fact that it looked nasty enough to complete my act, I'd closed my eyes because looking at Judai for too long right then could drive the world's happiest person to commit suicide. Seriously, what was he? The world's biggest drama queen? I'd been worse to Manjoume, for crying out loud!

Honestly, this whole thing had gotten totally out of control. I really wished Ai hadn't caught onto me after that one incident. Maybe I could have just gone home and forgotten about all of this if she hadn't. But, sadly, Ai was left with the impression that I'd be sticking around to keep an eye on her, so I had to stay.

Next time, I was coming up with a better cover story. Assuming, of course, that there would be a next time. You never could tell with Judai, after all.

Judai's POV

She hated me. That was all there was to it. Last time we talked, we wound up fighting with each other. Then, the next time I saw her, she was yelling at me, even though I hadn't done anything. Sure, she yelled at Manjoume, but he'd hit Ai. And, sure, she'd gotten on Kenzan, but he'd been spying. All I'd done was get found by my stalker! How did that deserve punishment!?

"Tenjoin-kun!" Manjoume called, still sounding insulted.

Yeah, he could take this lightly. She yelled at him all the time, after all.

He turned to Kenzan and me, demanding, "What the hell was that!?"

"Judai? You okay?" Yubel asked, sounding concerned.

Was I okay? Was I okay? How could I have been okay after that!?

"…Oh, yeah," I said. "Course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"

Even I wasn't convinced.

Kenzan stared after Asuka and Ai as they disappeared in the crowd. He looked totally lost. Again, he could take this lightly—he hadn't given her any reason to hate him, after all.

"That was definitely weird," he said. "When did she change sides, anyway?"

Manjoume crossed his arms and scowled, his eyes closed.

I didn't have an answer for Kenzan.

"It's okay," Yubel said, sounding a bit gentler than usual. "It wasn't just you she yelled at. Look around. She was mad at all three of you, see?"

But why's she on Ai's side? I asked.

"Beats me. I don't have a clue," Yubel said, and I could practically see her shrugging.

That didn't make me feel any better.

"Well, come on, Kenzan," Manjoume said, sounding neutral. "We better go tell the others about this. Good luck, you idiot. Later."

He started walking off. Kenzan hesitated a bit, looking at me in concern before following. He looked like he didn't really want to leave, but…maybe he finally realized he needed to get those wounds of his treated. I mean, he looked worse than I did after getting blasted into a wall by dragons.

So, just like that, they left me there alone. I knew why they were doing it—to tell the others what was going on and to get Kenzan's wounds treated. I could understand those reasons…if that was really all they were doing. But I didn't give that anymore thought. After all, I didn't need abandoned by another of my friends for unknown reasons…even if I did deserve it, after everything I'd done to them…

I know I had already gotten plenty of hints that those two cared, but one time of hearing Asuka rip me to shreds had been enough to get me doubting the others, too. I mean, like them, Asuka had come all this way to help me. Yet she'd changed sides. If she would do that, who was to say the others wouldn't, too? Who was to say I wasn't reading too much into their coming to help me?

I stood there long enough to worry Winged Kuriboh, who appeared from my deck, looking at me in concern. "Kuri?"

I didn't say anything, which made Winged Kuriboh start waving around and kuriing frantically. He perched on my shoulder and rubbed against my face, trying to soothe the blow of being abandoned and betrayed by somebody who had every right to hate me.

It wasn't like I had a right to be upset. I mean, it was my fault, after all.

"Hey. It's okay. We're used to this, aren't we?" Yubel asked, sounding concerned. She was being gentle and gave me a sweet smile.

She was probably talking about sleeping outside. At the time, though, my mind was in other places, so I was thinking about how I was used to being abandoned by my friends. The guys I knew back home before Yubel scared them all off; O'Brien, Jim, and Sho in Dark World; and, of course, the way things ended in high school.

"…Yeah…"

Yubel gave me a lame look and sounded annoyed when she said, "It ended six years ago. And she hasn't seen you since. Why would she be—"

"So we even ended our friendship back then?" I asked.

She stared at me for a bit, then crossed her arms and closed her eyes. Scolding me, she said, "Well, you left, and—"

Scolding me? Right now!? Why!?

"But that note!" I cut her off, thinking of the piece of paper I'd found in my bag when I'd left Duel Academy. It had left me with the impression that the people who'd signed it still cared, after all. And Asuka was one of them. "How was I supposed to know this would happen!? That note made it seem like she still wanted to be friends!"

"Well, maybe she did when she wrote it."

I thought about that for a moment, then asked, "So what changed…?"

Yubel shrugged and said, "I don't know. But, maybe, that earlier argument you two had holds some clues."

Winged Kuriboh looked at me with concern again as I thought about that conversation.

"You didn't understand the word 'fiancé,' and any duels we had on the subject, you—"

She was angry and annoyed when she said that.

"Why'd you leave Duel Academy like that?"

She was upset, maybe even hurt, when she asked that.

"Not much. Staying out of trouble, for one thing."

She was accusatory and mad.

"What's Kyle got to do with this!? You don't even know him! And, besides, it's not our fault you love walking into people's traps like this!"

And that was defensive and accusatory, like she was just trying to find reasons to be mad at me after I'd been a jerk about her boyfriend, who was, apparently, a great guy.

Well, those were the clues. And they held one simple answer.

"…Yeah. She hates me…"

"Come on," Winged Kuriboh said. "That can't be true!"

"Then why is she acting like that?" I asked.

Yubel put a hand to her chin, looking thoughtful. "Hmm. Good point. Maybe it has something to do with her talk with Ai."

Well, that didn't make me feel any better, either.

I wound up just standing there on the beach for the longest time, too lost in thought to even consider moving. After an hour, Yubel gave up on trying to talk to me. Winged Kuriboh eventually let me be, too.

This day…had really sucked.