Téa bounced through Kaiba Corp. headquarters' doors, the bag of food still hot in her hand. Her face was practically beaming, and she kept greeting everyone that happened to walk by. Being surrounded by a bunch of corporate workers, she got a few odd looks, but she ignored them.

Téa pranced up to the front desk and was about to ask to see Kaiba when she suddenly stopped. He was the President of the company. He was probably way too busy to see her and if she asked for him, they'd probably just throw her out. This was a terrible idea.

"Can I help you?" the receptionist was giving her an impatient look. Probably because she had been standing here for a solid minute just staring at her.

"Um," Téa started, "I, well, I-"

"Ms. Gardner?" Téa snapped around to see Roland, carrying a briefcase. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, hi Roland. I actually, well I was hoping to see Kaiba. I brought him a lunch as a 'thank you' but I'm sure he's busy, so if you don't mind you could, I mean I'd really appreciate it-"

"I'll take you up to see him."

"Oh, I mean that's ok, he-"

"Denise, no need to call up. I'll escort her myself."

Roland gestured for her to follow him as he went through the security. Two men approached her with metal detectors, but Roland waved them off.

"Wow security is tight around here."

"With everything that happened with Dartz and then Zigfried, Mr. Kaiba can't be too careful. There are plenty of other enemies still out there." Roland walked toward the end elevator and then waved, what Téa assumed was his ID card.

"I suppose you're right."

The elevator dinged and they stepped inside. Roland pressed for the top floor.

"So, how long have you worked for Kaiba?" She had only spoken to Roland a couple of times. Mostly in life-or-death situations. Including after her sleepover at the Kaiba mansion.

"I was initially assigned as Mr. Kaiba's security by the late Mr. Kaiba. I've known him since he was a boy."

"Wow, that's a long time. Do you like working for him?"

"Mr. Kaiba is the best boss. He has a certain…reputation but he is the most reliable person I have ever known."

Wow, that was high praise. Kaiba certainly had a reputation as a ruthless business shark. But, if he had been able to keep his most trusted employees for all these years, it definitely said something about him. Especially considering all the mystical stuff Kaiba and his men got dragged into during their high school years.

The elevator dinged and they both stepped out. Roland nodded to a kindly looking woman in front of what she assumed was Kaiba's office.

"Is he free?" Roland asked her.

"Is he ever? He's wrapping up a call. Oh, hello. Are you a friend of Mr. Kaiba's?" the woman directed at Téa.

"Hi, I'm Téa," she greeted. "And, uh yea we're…friendly."

The woman raised a brow at her unsure response. "I'm Jessica, Mr. Kaiba's secretary. It's nice to meet you. Roland can show you in."

Téa followed Roland as he knocked on Kaiba's door. The whole wall was black glass surrounding Kaiba's door which she thought was an odd choice, but she supposed billionaires had their eccentricities. There wasn't a response, but Roland went in anyway which she wasn't totally sure was wise.

She heard Kaiba's distinct voice coming from the office as Roland opened the door.

"Look, I specifically wanted this provision in the contract. If we don't, we'll be carrying serious liability. Call their lawyers back and get them to agree."

Her stomach tightened slightly at the sound of him, the memory of his voice rolling over her as he explained Duel Monsters moves in her apartment. She wrote off their brief moment as a result of too much wine. She had definitely been reading it wrong. Not like Kaiba would ever be interested in the likes of her.

Roland gestured for her to wait a second as she heard the click of Kaiba's phone. "What is it?"

"There's someone here to see you, sir." Roland answered stoically.

"Roland-"

Téa stepped forward and poked her head through the door. "Uh, hi."

Kaiba was sitting behind his desk and for a second looked stunned. "Gardner," he said getting up, tugging on his suit jacket. "What are you doing here?"

"Um," she stepped hesitantly into the office and held up the bag. "I brought you lunch?"

"Lunch?"

Roland nudged her forward and then quickly shut the door, leaving her alone with Kaiba. Traitor.

"Yea, lunch" she tried with more confidence. "As a thank you. For being my Duel Monsters tutor. I'm sure you're busy so I was just going to drop it off, but Roland insisted."

Kaiba's eyes narrowed. "He did, did he?"

"But now I get to see your office!" she backtracked. "Which is," she started looking around the room, "really nice by the way." She realized that while the black glass was on the other side of the wall, it was actually clear on Kaiba's, like a double mirror. She could see Jessica shuffling papers while Roland chatted with her.

The rest of the office was all windows that looked down on Domino. There was a large conference table that Téa walked over and put the bag down on. She could tell everything from the plush leather chairs to the engraved side tables were all high quality.

"Uh, just give me a second." She had been busy looking out the window, but at Kaiba's voice she turned to look at him. He almost seemed…uncomfortable? Should she not have come? Was this weird? They had been getting along but maybe she crossed the line. It wasn't like they were besties.

"I'm sorry,-" she started, but Kaiba pressed a button on his phone.

"Jessica, I'm taking my lunch. Send all my calls to voicemail."

Jessica's voice came back through the buzzer, which was odd because she could see Jessica smirking at Roland through the glass. "I'm sorry, sir, I think I misheard you. Did you say you're taking your lunch?"

"Yes, Jessica." Kaiba gritted out. "I'm taking my lunch."

"Yes, sir." She sounded a little amused.

He pressed on some control panel on his desk and the glass overlooking Jessica's desk and the foyer darkened, cutting off her view of them.

"Cool," she muttered.

Kaiba strolled over, tugging again on his jacket. "So, what did you bring?"

"Well," she dashed over to the bag before he could reach it, "Mokuba told me that you liked the bowls from the noodle shop down the street. So, I went there. But then I realized I had no idea what you actually liked from there. So, I grabbed like six different kinds of bowls." She started pulling them out and the dumplings she had gotten as well. "I figured there would be something that you liked. And anything else you could give out or throw-" She pulled the waters out as well but refused to meet his eyes, wondering why the hell she had thought that this was a good idea.

"The soba," he said, cutting her off.

She stared blankly at him. "What?" He gestured to the bowl she had just put down.

"I get their soba. If you want," he said, peering at her other orders, "you can take the chicken rice bowl to Roland and the sushi to Jessica."

"Oh, yea here." She thrust the bowl into his chest. "One second, let me give these to them."

Jessica thanked her profusely telling her she was "so sweet to bring Mr. Kaiba food." Roland looked happy but it was hard to tell sometimes with the sunglasses.

Kaiba was poking through the dumplings when she came back in, and she plopped down in the chair next to him.

"How did the test go?" he asked.

"Well, that's the other reason I dropped by. I got the highest score." Téa beamed at him as she uncovered her own chicken pho. "I've got other girls asking for my help to learn the game."

"Good. Don't forget those girls are still your competition though."

Téa laughed, "Classic Kaiba. Don't worry, I haven't. But once I've made the team, there's no reason not to help them expand their knowledge."

"You sound confident."

"Because I am. And not because I'm friends with Mai or your brother, but because I'm the best for the team."

"So, the test wasn't that bad?"

"It was pretty simple. I honestly over studied. I should've listened to Tristan because it was mostly the basics."

Kaiba's fumbled with the dumpling on his chopstick. "You're talking to the geeks?"

Téa let out a sigh. "Just Tristan. He came by last week and apologized. I haven't seen Yugi or Joey since your tournament. I told him about auditioning for your dance team and he seems supportive."

"You don't believe him?"

"No, I do. But he does think that this is going to make the whole making up thing harder. With Joey and Mai's history…."

"I get it. Does that mean you're dropping out?"

Téa scoffed, "Hell no. I want to be on this dance team. They'll get over it."

"Good."

The whole weirdness of this situation started hitting her as she took a slurped her noodles. She was sitting in Kaiba's office having lunch with him, auditioning for his company, and she wasn't speaking to two of her closest friends. If anyone told her that this would be her life, especially before New York, she would've told them to see a doctor.

Kaiba seemed so…different then what she remembered. He was still rude, condescending, and competitive, but he seemed…softer? No, not softer, maybe, "more open" was the better way to describe it. He was by no means wearing his heart on his sleeve, that would be suicide in his world, but not as unapproachable.

Was this really a good idea to work for this guy? I mean, sure, he's helped her out a few times, but he's still done some sketchy things. That whole thing with Yugi's grandpa, and then Duelist Kingdom. Although he had been trying to save his brother. There's been so many times when he could've helped them but didn't. But should she be judging him for that now? They were kids. She had definitely changed, but had Kaiba?

"Gardner, your staring is creeping me out."

"Huh," she snapped out of her trance. "Sorry, I got lost in my thoughts I guess."

"And here I was thinking you were admiring my good looks."

"Well, that too." Kaiba looked up from his noodles,…blushing? She could feel her own heat in her cheeks. "Actually," she said quickly, "I was just thinking about how…different you seem."

"I'm really not."

"Kaiba, the two of us are sitting here having lunch that I brought you because you helped me study for a test."

"Just because I tolerate your company doesn't mean I've changed."

"I actually think you like my company."

"You're delusional."

"Now, I have two of your secrets," she smirked.

"What?"

"Yea, that you like my company and that you totally guessed in that duel against Zigfried."

"I'm going to blacklist you from the team."

"No, you won't. Because you like my company."

Kaiba's eyes rolled. "Think what you want, Gardner" he replied, snatching another dumpling from the tray.

"Do you like dumplings?"

"I'm eating them, aren't I?" he snarked.

Téa shrugged, unbothered by his sarcastic response. She was pretty sure it was his default setting. "Maybe you're just hungry. Maybe you actually secretly hate them but eat them as a punishment. Maybe you think dumplings are going to disappear from the Japanese food industry and want to eat them while they last. I don't know."

Kaiba let out an exaggerated sigh. "Yes, I like dumplings."

"See, was that so hard?" she teased.

"Believe it or not, my food preferences are not usually what people want to speak with me about," he replied, with a hint of bitterness.

She tilted her head, surprised. "Doesn't everyone want to talk to you about...you?"

Kaiba wiped his mouth with his napkin. "They want to talk about the company or dueling. They could care less about if I like my dumplings or not."

She wondered if that actually bothered him. She thought about how she would feel if everyone only ever cared about her dancing and only ever spoke to her about it. It would certainly make her feel used...and a bit lonely. Any kind of personal details about Kaiba were probably only known by Mokuba.

"It's best that way," Kaiba said shrugging, "keeps the stupid questions and conversations down to a minimum."

She huffed a laugh. "These are not stupid questions. What if we get pulled into a life or death questions game and one of them is 'Does Seto Kaiba like dumplings?' This information could be life-saving."

"I highly doubt that will ever happen."

"You probably said the same thing about Duel Monsters falling from the sky, but then Dartz happened."

He glowered at her a little. "Still a dumb question."

"What, because it's not some high-tech, deep, question about the inner workings of the universe? Normal people talk about mundane things. That's how people get to know each other. I ask a question. You answer. I make a comment. You make a comment. You ask a question. I answer."

"I'm not sure if the dumplings are worth this."

She snatched one. "These definitely are, actually. I'm glad Mokuba told me to go there. I'd never been. I don't really spend that much time in this area."

"In the corporate district?" Kaiba slurped some of the last of his soba. "That's hardly surprising."

"Got any other hidden gems up your sleeve?"

"A few."

"Well, I can go to those next time."

Kaiba's mouth parted slightly, looking slightly shocked. She wondered if anyone had ever brought him lunch before.

"Ok," he said, a bit hoarsely. Then, cleared his throat. "Do you like dumplings?"

Her heart soared at the question.

"Yea, I do."

Kaiba had barely taken two steps into his home when he knew that he was in for it. Mokuba, who probably heard his car pull up, was standing with his arms crossed, leaning against sitting room doorway, with a giant shit-eating grin on his face.

"Welcome home, big bro."

"Mokuba." Maybe if he just ignored him, he'd go away.

Kaiba dropped his briefcase and headed towards the staircase fully intending on hitting the gym. He felt restless and needed to expel some energy. It would also be a great excuse to avoid Mokuba's smirk.

"How was your day?" Mokuba asked, his tone casual.

"Fine." Kaiba loosened his tie.

"Just fine?"

"Yes, fine." He just needed to get to the stairs and then he could escape.

"I heard you had a lunch date."

Damn. Roland and his big fat mouth.

"It wasn't a date. Gardner was just…being her usual cheerleader self."

Mokuba's grin widened. "It doesn't surprise me that Téa did that. What's interesting is that you let her."

"Thank Roland for that. He ditched her in my office."

"Because you're not above just kicking her out?"

"Just get to the point, Mokuba." Kaiba snapped.

Mokuba had a nasty habit of circling the conversation before going for the jugular. He's not sure where he learned to do that, as Kaiba's strategy had always been more direct. He could feel his brother surrounding him, just waiting to pounce.

Mokuba shrugged, unbothered by his brother's impatience. "Just making an observation."

"Fine." Now, to just get out of here.

"So, when are you going to ask her out?" Kaiba froze midstep. And so, his brother attacked.

"Never. What on Earth made you think I was interested in Yugi's head cheerleader?" he snarked, turning back to him.

Mokuba let out a belly-filled laugh. "Oh, come on, Seto. I know you've had thing for her since…forever."

"That is the dumbest thing that has ever come out of your mouth," Kaiba denied, eyes narrowed furiously.

Mokuba pushed off the doorway, stuffing his hands in his pockets. "I'm not blind, Seto. You went with me to see her show. Multiple times. What about, how I caught you checking out articles about her shows in New York. Or that you willingly helped her study for her test. Or all those times I caught you staring at her during tournaments when we were younger. And let's not forget that time you destroyed a helicopter saving her life ." Mokuba's eyes turned predatory. "You're into her."

"Mokuba, I swear–" Kaiba started.

"You can deny it all you want," Mokuba stopped him. "I won't make you admit anything. But I will say that I think that this would be good for you. And I think you should go for it."

"There's nothing going on between Gardner and me. I mean, seriously Mokuba, do you even hear yourself?" Kaiba barked.

"Seto," Mokuba's expression became serious, "you took a lunch. An hour lunch. I can barely get you to take the time to feed yourself," he said, sounding exasperated.

"Not this again," Kaiba muttered. He turned to escape to literally anywhere else, but Mokuba grabbed his arm.

"Yes, this again," he hissed. "You had to be put on bed rest last year for two weeks because of over-exhaustion. The doctors said you were at risk of a heart attack . You're not even thirty, Seto!"

"I've cut back on my hours," Kaiba protested.

"Barely. What? Instead of working till 11pm, you're now only working till 9pm? And don't think that I don't know that you stay up in your office some nights."

"I'm taking on less projects," Kaiba tried again.

"You let Mai handle one tournament. I see what gets sent to you. You've handed off a couple of little things and that's it." Mokuba paused. "I don't want to lose you, Seto," he confessed.

Kaiba tugged on his jacket. He didn't mean to make his brother worry so much. There was just always so much to do. This had been his life for years. Just work, dueling and his brother. Mokuba was growing up and finding his own life. He barely dueled anymore, and his social calendar had never exactly been full. Connecting with people wasn't his strong suit, even he could admit that. He was just at such a high intellectual level and his general demeanor intimated people. All he knew how to do was work.

"Look," Mokuba began, his tone significantly calmer, "I'm just saying that if you're interested in Téa, that you should give it a shot. She's funny, smart, and gorgeous. Who cares if she's friends with Yugi's crew? If anything, now is your chance because they're not there to talk her out of going out with you."

"That's a bit devious for you, Mokuba."

Mokuba shrugged. "All's fair in love and war. Besides," Mokuba smirked, "we already know that she finds you attractive."

Kaiba's face flushed remembering her roaming hands the night he found her at the bar. Her suggestive comments about using his sharp tongue.

"Just think about it, bro." Mokuba clapped him on the arm and took off up the stairs, leaving Kaiba alone. Kaiba immediately headed towards the gym. He needed to hit something.

He changed into his workout clothes and strapped on a pair of boxing gloves. The rhythmic "thump thump" as he began combinations was soothing as he thought about Mokuba's words.

Fine, he had a mild fascination with Gardner. She was attractive and he had been a teenage guy. He spent most of his time around sleezy businessmen and nerdy duelists. Of course, he was going to look.

Thump thump .

That didn't mean he was interested in her.

Thump .

Or that he wanted her.

Thump .

So, he had a few adult fantasies. It was perfectly normal.

Thump thump .

And he was looking at those articles out of boredom. Not interest.

Thump .

They just happened to appear in the news.

Thump thump thump .

So, he liked the show. It wasn't because she was in it.

Thump thump thump thump.

So, he helped her study. He just wanted to show her his superior knowledge.

Thump thump .

She was going to work for him.

Thump .

She was just another employee.

Thump thump .

Kaiba stopped the bag from swinging and took deep breaths. Mokuba was being ridiculous. She was just a silly cheerleader that thought it would be fun to make friends with the big, bad President. It didn't mean anything.

She was just another employee.