Kim Nanoha: Thank you for reviewing, here's the next chapter!
I'm sorry for the long wait, but life's got busier than before in last few months. I'll try to update whenever I can, but if there aren't often updates, just keep in mind that I have a lot going on in my life. That doesn't mean I'll stop writing though. I'll grab every free chance for it, it just may be not as frequent as before. Hope you understand.
Here's the next chapter!
I only own my OC's!
Serena's POV
Needless to say, spending time in this place would remind me of how much I hated hospitals. Luckily for me though, I wasn't doomed to spend all that time on my own. Ben and Jaden were my most frequent visitors. They would spend a few hours keeping me company during those two days.
I decided to listen to my cousin's advice and just not argue with Jaden about how I didn't want to stay here. In the meantime, he acted like our little argument from that day didn't happen at all. In fact, he didn't look so upset anymore. He would grin from ear to ear from the moment he came in, until the moment he walked out of the hospital wing.
I figured it would be better if I didn't ask him what the reason behind his weird behavior had been. Firstly, because it thankfully stopped, and secondly… Because Ben was most probably right. Jaden just didn't like hospitals. I completely understood and shared that sentiment.
Staying inside and being treated for your problems just indicated there was something wrong with you in the first place. No one needed, nor wanted that in their lives.
Aside from those two, Bastion and Hassleberry came once to see how I was doing. Aunt Maria hadn't woken up yet… Mrs. Fontaine commented her breathing was stable by now though. She also claimed it was a matter of time when she woke up.
That morning, Mrs. Fontaine was checking my ribs to see in what state they were. "Does it hurt?" She asked while touching one part with her right hand. I flinched a bit at her touch, causing her to pull the hand away.
She then looked up at me. "I take it that meant 'yes'?" I nodded. "A bit less than yesterday, though." I then added. "That's a good sign." A small smile appeared on the woman's face. She then offered me the ointment to put it on my ribs.
At that moment, the door burst open. "Good morning, Mrs. Fontaine." Ben greeted as he and Jaden ran inside. "Good morning to you as well." The woman nodded. She then walked to her cupboard. "Morning." I greeted back, just as two of them walked up to my bed.
"How are you feeling today?" Jaden asked and sat down on the edge of right side of the bed. Ben, on the other hand, sat on a chair next to him. "Still hurts, but less." I grimaced while opening ointment. Once I put it on wounded part of my body, I closed the ointment and brushed my hands with a nearby paper.
"Here you go." Jaden offered me a wrapped sandwich. "How much do I owe you?" I asked while reaching for my wallet near the bed. "You don't owe me anything." He tried to wave it off. "But…" "Just take it and eat." At that moment, my stomach started growling yet again. "Fine. Grazie." I took it from him with a smile and unwrapped it.
Ben was eyeing me as I started eating my breakfast. "Do you think you'll be getting out in few days?" He finally asked after a few moments. I shrugged my shoulders while chewing on the ham and egg sandwich. Another few moments of quiet were in the room. And then…
"Do you two ever stop eating?" Ben finally asked somewhat incredulously. I raised an eyebrow while Jaden glanced at him in confusion. "Is there a problem with me eating my breakfast?" I demanded a bit annoyed once I finally swallowed the sandwich's content. "No, but you two always eating something instead of answering properly is becoming a bit nerve-racking." He frowned.
"So me starving to death seems like a better option to calm your nerves?" "No, but…" "Just chill out." Jaden cut him off with a sheepish grin. "Thank you." I nodded in his direction with a smirk, earning a smile from him. Ben looked at us back and forth before letting out a groan. "Fine, you win."
Once he heard that, Jaden offered me a 'hi five' which I returned with a smile. "We got him, alright." "We did." He let out a laugh.
"I see you find all of this amusing." Ben noted, folding his arms. "Anything is more amusing than spending time here all alone. Even if it means getting happy over winning an argument with you." I told him honestly. "A little help here, Jay?" He looked at him hopefully. "Give her a break." Jaden shook his head, chuckling. He then moved to where I was sitting.
I slid my arm under his and leaned my head against his left shoulder. "No help. Even he knows I'm bored." I responded as if it was obvious. "Does that mean you'll allow me to get my hands on your hair?" He gave me a somewhat mischievous look.
I straightened up and looked back at him for a few seconds. "Go ahead. My hair's always a mess anyway." I then leaned my head against him once more, this time closer to his neck. I could feel his fingers running through my red strands. The next thing I knew was that hair was all over my eyes.
"I thought you hated when I did that." I could hear Ben saying while Jaden was still messing with my hair. "I do, but Jaden has a well-known reputation for it." "So do you." I could hear his voice replying back immediately. By now, his fingers moved to the part near my forehead.
I didn't mind it at all though. In fact, it was funny… Since we did that to each other for sake of teasing, I grew used to it. But this one felt rather different… I couldn't put it exactly why, but I didn't mind it either. In fact, I found it somewhat enjoyable…
"Fair enough. But the point is, he lets me rest my head here, I ought to give something back in exchange." I responded. "You could give him the 'polymerization' lecture." Ben pointed out in amusement. "That one didn't end up well first time." I reminded. "You remember what happened yesterday."
At that moment, Jaden stopped running fingers through my hair and let out a sigh. I quickly got hair off my face to see him looking at Ben and me with a firm look. "You have your polymerization," He turned his head to me. "I have mine." He finished, wanting to make it clear.
When he wanted to know why I didn't like that card so much, I pretty much blatantly told him the whole truth about what polymerization was when it came to biology. The end result? Not a good one, since he was still trying to set it clear he didn't care about the biology thing at all. Expected, but rather fun too. He was so shocked when he heard that was why I couldn't take it seriously… To add insult to that injury, fusion monsters were pretty much his whole deck. A big ouch.
"But they are pretty similar." I pointed out sheepishly. "That, I can agree on." Jaden said after few moments of quiet. "Still, don't go messing it with Duel Monsters." He pleaded. "Fine, fine." I face palmed. Ben burst into laughter by now. "Only you can do this to him without angering him when his cards are insulted." He was holding for his stomach.
My eyes landed on Jaden for a few moments. He was looking at Ben a bit surprised. Then he looked at me. I quickly turned my head away in a bit of embarrassment. I could feel something tightening in my chest.
Ben saying how only I could upset him with something like this without actually insulting his cards wasn't helping… It wasn't even my intention to upset him so much!
"That wasn't my intention. I was just kidding." I said quietly. "Cuzo, don't tell me you're taking this seriously?!" I looked up to see Ben staring at me in disbelief. "We're kidding too." Jaden punched my shoulder lightly. "If you say so." I said simply, rubbing it with my right hand.
However, that tightening feeling from my chest disappeared right after those words. I wasn't sure where it even came from, it was weird…
"Anyway, Jay and I were thinking about something…" Ben spoke up. I looked up at him yet again. "You need more contact with people, cuzo." A frown crossed my face. "I have you two." I defended. "And whenever we leave, you're left alone." He pointed out. "Mrs. Fontaine usually keeps me company." I countered with my arms folded. "She's a professor and a nurse. That's her job." Jaden noted.
I looked at him and Ben back and forth for a few moments. "Where are you going with this?" I finally asked. "We think it would be better if you had more contact with other people that aren't Jay or me." My cousin elaborated.
"I do talk to other people from time to time." I pointed out. "It's only because you're with two of us, or to be polite." Jaden shook his head. "But I…" "I know you, Serena. You don't have many social interactions, nor you're good at them." Ben spoke up with an even bigger frown. "It's not like I don't talk to anyone." I spoke up somewhat offended. "Do you know them more than that? Like what's their favorite color, or activity?" "No…" I sweat dropped.
"Now, I don't know what it was like back when we were kids, but…" The moment he said those words, they started fading away as thoughts filled my head.
Now that he brought it up, even if it was a bit misty… I didn't have many friends before I had moved away from Domino City. If I remembered correctly… I talked to few girls from my class, but that pretty much remained it…
"What's your name?" A small girl with hair in pigtails spoke up. "Serena." I replied with a grin. The girl smiled and introduced herself to me along with her other two friends. They then started telling me names of everyone in class.
At that moment, something caught my eye. Someone was sitting further away from everyone in class. It was… A boy. He had his head buried in arms on the desk. He wasn't talking to anyone, and no one was near him either.
"Who's that?" I asked the girl with pigtails. "Who?" She glanced at me a bit confused. "The boy with his head on the desk." I pointed at him. The girl frowned. "No one you should bother with." "Why?" I asked in surprise. "He's weird. No one wants to talk to him, for their safety." "For their safety?" My eyes widened. "It doesn't matter. Just avoid him. He has no friends here anyway."
At that moment, I made my decision. Just looking at the poor boy's posture and hearing he had no friends was so sad…
"He can't be that bad." I spoke up. Then I started walking to his desk, ignoring girls telling me to come back.
Those girls were pretty much the ones who introduced me to the entire class… Except to Jaden. The whole class used to act like he didn't exist back then. Now, I couldn't remember why exactly… It made me realize how much more experience Jaden had with people than I did.
While I didn't know what it was like for him at school later on, it was surprising to see how friendly he was with everyone. It was a complete contrast to his younger self. Heck, he still kept going after me when I had wanted nothing to do with him…
"Are you listening to me?" Ben's somewhat angry voice broke my train of thoughts. I yelped and looked up in surprise to see him glaring at me. Jaden, on the other hand, was looking between us back and forth quietly. "I am." I quickly said. "Then what was the last thing I had told you?" He tilted his head up in an indignant manner.
"That you don't know what it was like for me when we were kids?" I asked, trying not to show I was a bit lost on what he had last said. Ben let out a sigh of annoyance. "That wasn't it." "I didn't have many friends anyway. I had Jaden, and I occasionally talked to some girls." I quickly spoke up before he could start reprimanding me. "As for when I moved away… You know I had none."
Ben and Jaden exchanged glances before turning their heads back to me. "I don't know what Uncle Roberto and Aunt Chiara's problem was, but that was the most stupid decision they could ever make." The former spoke up. "First you defended my parents, and now you're talking smack about them? What's your deal?" I gave him a questioning look.
"I'm not talking smack about them." Ben facepalmed. "Look, while I usually think your parents have best intentions, the decision to isolate you was stupid." "That's called 'talking smack'..." "About their actions. Not them." He corrected me. "Just because they did that, it doesn't mean you should keep doing it." Both of us turned our heads in Jaden's direction.
"Not having anyone is never good." There was this unusual look in his eyes as he spoke… I could tell he meant what he said, but at the same time… It was as if it was something he didn't like to mention.
I looked at him and Ben back and forth. I wanted to ask why he was saying those things, but Ben was there…
"Could you give us five minutes of privacy?" I asked my cousin. "Why?" He responded a bit surprised. "It's something… Personal I want to discuss." I uttered out. "But I'm your cou…" "Five minutes, prego." I repeated firmly, cutting him off in process. "Bene. I'm doing this only because you asked me to." He stood up from his chair with a frown.
Jaden looked at us back and forth a bit perplexed. The moment Ben was out of the room, I turned my attention back to him.
"What was that look for?" I asked. He just looked at me, apparently still not getting the idea. "When you told me not having anyone isn't good… Something happened that you're not saying." I elaborated, observing his face for a reaction. And that was what I got. "How do you know?" He was staring at me in surprise.
"I just do." I shrugged. "Does this have anything to do with how you were treated in old school?" I then spoke up. "You remember it…" Jaden trailed off. "Not everything. It came to me today," I waved with my right hand. "And it's still foggy. But I remember the general things." "Do you remember why they were acting like that?" He suddenly asked.
I looked up into his chocolate brown eyes, staring at them for a few moments.
"I don't." I admitted. "Do you?" I then asked, seeing disappointment etched over his face. "Me neither." Jaden replied. "But it's not that. After you had moved away, for some reason, no one else from neighborhood wanted to be friends with me… I never understood why." His eyes showed confusion and brief sadness at the last part. "Not even when you moved away?" "No."
Suddenly, it was even clearer to me why Jaden was so good with people here. He wanted friends, after everyone treating him as if he was something abnormal for reasons unknown to me… He was supportive, could make your day brighter, cared about people… What more could you ask for in a friend?!
At that moment, I realized something both sad, and funny.
Because of my parents, I grew up mostly without friends. I used to treat everyone badly due to it. I also avoided them as much as I could.
Jaden grew up friendless too… He could have gone down the same route I have. He could have been as much of a jerk as I was towards people. But he didn't. He took the chance to befriend people, and not let isolation get to him… He took it much better than I ever could…
"Who needs those jerks," I grabbed both of his hands, much to his surprise. "When you have your friends and me?" I lifted both of our hands up with a small smile. He looked up at me slowly. "Jerks?" He asked. "You didn't deserve that treatment. No one deserves to be left alone." I gave both of his hands a light squeeze. "You didn't deserve what your parents did either." He noted.
I frowned. "I'd say I didn't deserve most of their unreasonable behavior… But at least I have you two here." "Having more friends would make it even easier." Jaden pointed out. I stared at him for a few moments, wondering what to say.
What he and Ben were implying wasn't far from truth… I did talk to some people, but it never went to anything more personal… I tried to talk to them. But for some reason, I kept coming back to both Ben and Jaden…
"I understand why you'd say that," I started, trying to keep my voice even. "And I tried before, but failed." "Who did you even talk to?" He asked. "Syrus. He was worried about his brother having bad reputation at Pro League." I replied.
A brief frown crossed Jaden's face. "Syrus is really worried about Zane these days. We've seen him beat Atticus, and now Syrus wants to duel him himself." He explained. "With such aggressive dueling?" I raised an eyebrow, earning a nod.
"Syrus is a good person. He's my best friend." He then stated. "I get that you're close with him…" I trailed off. "Aren't we close too?" He questioned a bit surprised. "We are, but there's a difference between friends and best friends." I responded evenly. "But yes. Syrus is my best friend, while you're my best girlfriend." He grinned.
Hearing the last part made me choke on my own spit out of shock. By now, I was desperately gasping for air, earning a yelp from Jaden. He started hitting me in the back. But then, something even worse happened.
"Is everything alright?!" Benjamin just had to run in and see what was going on. "She choked on something." I could hear Jaden saying, still hitting my back.
By now, I could finally breathe. "My own spit." I quickly said before they could start asking more questions. "Best girlfriend?" I then demanded in surprise. "Yeah, I said that?" Jaden was staring at me, with this innocent look on his face.
"What's this all about?"" Ben finally asked with his arms folded and a raised eyebrow. "I was just telling her how Syrus is my best friend while she's my best girlfriend…" He started explaining only to be cut off by my cousin. "Best girlfriend?!" He was gaping at him.
Jaden's eyes landed on him, before moving to me. "Why are you two acting so weird?" He asked slowly. "You know what that word means?" Ben questioned. "Well, yeah, a friend who's a girl…" He was looking at my cousin as if he were crazy.
"Oh…" Ben sighed in relief and facepalmed. I, on the other hand, looked at them back and forth.
He obviously wasn't aware of the word's full meaning…. Which was relieving.
'Relieving, huh?' A part of me thought with hint of something I couldn't decipher. 'Yes. Very.' I thought back. 'Just keep on fooling yourself, girlie.' That part thought, now sounding quite mocking.
"That makes everything clear then." Ben's voice brought me back to the room before I could think more about what the hell was going through my head.
"Enough of that already!" It burst out of my mouth loudly, making both of the guys flinch. "Cuzo, what's got into you?" Ben questioned. "Let's just stop discussing stupid words like that one." I responded, trying to sound nonchalant. "Stupid? How's that…" "Enough!" I cut Jaden off bluntly.
He looked at me strangely. But he stayed quiet, thankfully complying with my request. Nothing but utter silence filled the room.
"Anyway, Serena, you should really try to make more friends." Ben spoke up, breaking what I thought was somewhat mounting tension. "You said you tried to talk to Syrus?" Jaden then asked. "Yeah. That one time." "From what I saw while we talked, Syrus doesn't think you're a bad person. It's just that you're not used to unknown people, which is why you subconsciously tend to pull away from communication after trying to do something." Ben voiced his thoughts aloud.
"Then how do you explain him shooting me looks every time I look in his direction?" I rolled my eyes. "I don't know what the deal with that is. But we did talk, and I can see he doesn't think of you as a bad person." "He told me that too during that little talk we had…" I admitted with a frown.
"I think you should start with him, and then see how the rest plays out with others." Ben stated. "I'm not sure…" I trailed off, still somewhat hesitant of the idea.
It definitely sounded like I didn't want any further communication than with ones I knew, but still…
"Come on, Serena," Jaden suddenly grabbed both of my hands, making me yelp. "Just try." A smile appeared on his face. I bit my lip, still looking in his eyes. "Trust me, it will help you."
Hearing those words made me feel a bit embarrassed. Here I was, trying to refuse the idea, and Jaden out of all people was trying to convince me? He had no problems with this, after being treated so badly at school! It made me feel even more stupid…
Even if it wasn't that, I couldn't say 'no' to those pleading eyes. Just looking at them right now made me feel completely frozen…
"Alright." I managed to say. His smile became even bigger. I could only stare back, not sure what else to say.
"How in the world did you manage to convince her?!" Ben's voice made me turn my head in his direction. "I just did." Jaden grinned. However, my cousin's jaw was still on the floor.
At that moment, the door slammed open. "Jay!" "Sarge!" Taking my hands out of Jaden's, I quickly looked up to see Hassleberry and Syrus running in. "What happened?" Ben asked curiously. "We just happened to come across Alexis, and she requested you to go see her immediately." The former explained. "She looked really weird…" The latter added a bit nervously.
"Wonder what this could be about." Jaden mused, standing up from his place on the bed. "We'd better go see." Ben frowned.
While I knew they obviously couldn't stay here all day, knowing they were about to get out still made me feel a bit bad…
"Then let's get going," "Wait." Ben stopped Jaden for a moment. "Sy," He suddenly turned his attention to the small guy. "Could you stay here and keep Serena company until we come back?" My eyes widened as I realized where this was going.
They wanted me to try to talk to him now. They sure weren't wasting any time…
"What?!" Syrus' eyes widened as well. "Until we come back." Ben repeated. Jaden opened his mouth to say something, only for Ben to stop him. "Why?" The short guy finally frowned. "It gets lonely in the hospital wing for her when we're absent."
Syrus' grey eyes moved from him, to Jaden, and then finally landed on me. They stayed on me for a few seconds, watching me intently. "If you want it so badly, then fine." He finally told my cousin with a frown. "Grazie, my friend!" Ben smiled and have him a brief hug. "Yeah, yeah." Syrus quickly pulled away after that.
Before the others left, I could have sworn I saw Ben and Jaden giving me encouraging looks.
As soon as they were out, Syrus sat on a nearby chair, not taking his eyes off me. I stared back, feeling a bit uncomfortable all of a sudden.
"So… What's up?" I greeted awkwardly. He frowned at those words and I immediately regretted saying them. "I'm stuck with you. That's what's up." He replied curtly. "I'm stuck with you too, I guess…" I trailed off, trying to say at least something.
He kept frowning at me, and I was feeling even more uncomfortable.
"Why are you frowning at me so much?" I finally dared to ask, wanting to know what his deal with me was. "Why would you care?" The short guy demanded coldly. "Because it's making me rather uncomfortable, that's why." I responded and folded my arms. "Good." He replied a bit icily.
By now, I was really trying to figure out what on Earth I could have done to him to make him glad I was feeling like this…
"What did I do to you?" I asked slowly, meeting his eyes. "Why don't you ask your cousin or Jaden while you're at it?" He huffed. "But they don't know either." I admitted in confusion. "Surprising, since all you do is spend time with them, especially Jaden…" He trailed off with a glare.
I spent all the time with those two, true… Where was he going with this?
"Is there a problem with that?" I asked, at the same time wondering whether that question was a good idea. "When you steal people's best friends, yes, it is." Syrus retorted. "Steal?" I repeated in surprise.
He was accusing me of stealing friends? What for?
The growing frown on his face made it clear to me he was serious about this.
"Ever since you and Jaden got close, he mostly cares about you and spends time with you more." And with those words, I finally knew what his problem with me was, and why he was accusing me like that.
On one side, it sounded ridiculous to me, especially since Jaden had just told me how Syrus was his best friend. On the other hand, I could see his point… Jaden talked to everyone. I didn't. I talked to only him and Ben. They spent time with me not to make feel lonely, which probably looked to Syrus as if he cared about me more…
If I had talked to Syrus and others more, than maybe Jaden wouldn't have spent more time with me in order not to make me feel left out…
"It was never my intention to do so." I spoke up honestly. Syrus' gaze told me he clearly didn't believe it… "I mean it." I frowned.
Seeing he was still quiet, I let out a groan. "Listen, I'm really sorry if you felt left out or something because of me… It's just that… Jaden's…" "He's what?" The short guy spoke up, much to my surprise.
I didn't think I would have to spill my heart out like this, but he wouldn't understand it otherwise…
"Jaden's one of only friends I've ever had. He's also someone who means a lot to me. After I had moved away, I had no friends at all." I said softly, looking at my hand. "How come you never had any?" Syrus frowned. "My parents didn't allow me to." I admitted. "That's crazy." "Maybe it is, but it's true." I shrugged, not knowing what else to say to his statement. "And what did they do that for?" He demanded in clear disbelief.
"First they banned me from playing Duel Monsters, and then they forbade me to play with anyone who had them. Everyone had it, which left me with no one." I explained, unfortunate memories flashing through my mind in process.
What surprised me though, was that I had Syrus' full attention by now.
"Why?!" He asked with his eyes wide. "I never knew. It's been on my mind since then, and since they forced me to attend Academy too." I told him honestly. "That's why you never liked them?" "And that's pretty much why I've been a jerk to all of you for quite some time." I added with a nod. "But then why didn't you talk to me more after that day you walked up to me, or that day we did so instead?" He finally asked confused.
"I… Don't you see I'm not exactly good with people I don't already know? Jaden and Ben are only ones I've known here, and I guess I always slipped back to them since I'm not used to getting to know other people…" I told him blankly. "What would I even know, since half of my life had been about avoiding people?" I then said more to myself, realization hitting me.
My cousin and Jaden were right… Even though I found the latter and recovered some memories, I was still the same girl who avoided people and wasn't good with them… What good could I have in life with this?
Now, while I didn't like what my parents did, I respected them. Even when Sartorius started talking smack about them, I got angry right away. I may not have been close with them, but they were still my birth parents. I still thought I ought to have some respect for them…
For the first time ever, I cursed both of them. I cursed them for being terrible decision-makers, I cursed them for making my life miserable, and I cursed them for bringing me into this situation!
To make it even worse, I still didn't know the whole story behind their behavior. It wasn't something I could just ask them, and Aunt Maria was definitely not in state to talk…
"I thought you simply didn't care." Syrus spoke up. "You can thank my wonderful parents for that." I whispered bitterly. 'Just like I can thank them for every other damn thing they did to me.' I thought.
"Look, I get it now that your history with… People hasn't been the best." "That's got to be the biggest understatement I've ever heard." I gave him a deadpan look. "Well, what did you expect? For me to start saying how it's absolute worst?" Syrus facepalmed. "No, but your brutal honesty makes up for it." I stated.
He shook his head at my words and looked up. "And you're obviously not a bad person… How about we start anew, as if we just met?" He offered his hand. I stared at it for a few moments, realizing what this meant.
He was willing to try to get to know me… I promised to Jaden I'd try to get to know other people too. I just realized in how vulnerable position my parents left me. I couldn't afford to make such mistakes like before. I couldn't afford to keep going in circles, with no actual progression. I was in desperate need of this…
Reaching out, I took the hand slowly and shook it. "I'm Syrus Truesdale." "Serena Accardi." I greeted back, earning a small smile from the short guy. "Italian, like your cousin?" "Yeah… With only exception being our mothers' roots, I guess." I spoke up slowly.
"What do you like to do in free time?" "I… prefer walking around and picking all sort of flowers. I have a herbarium just for them." I quickly said. "Was that the thing you had hit my head with?" Syrus raised an eyebrow. "I thought we were pretending we had just met?" I voiced my confusion aloud. "We are, but I want to know nonetheless, since it really hurt."
I made a grimace at the last part. "Yeah, it was that…" I trailed off. "They ought to hire you for smacking people, since you're damn good at it." "Sorry, alright!" I exclaimed in embarrassment, making him start laughing. "Were some people also victims of your wrath?" He asked through laughter.
"Benjamin, all the time. And a few people who got bruises whenever I stomp on their feet." I replied with an eyeroll, my thoughts drifting back to how many times I smacked the back of my cousin's head. And sincerely hoping that Sartorius hadn't got any bruises from me for that time I tried to steal the damn satellite…
Third Person's POV
"How do you think they're doing back there?" Ben asked Jaden quietly while they were on their way to where Hassleberry said he had seen Alexis. "Good, I hope." The latter shrugged.
Ben let out a sigh. "At least you got her to promise to try… Do you have any idea how many times I tried to convince her to join us?" "She told me 'no' a few times earlier too." Jaden admitted with hands in pockets of his blazer. "Although I can't stop wondering how come her parents could do something like that to her…" He then trailed off.
"You met them?" The light-brown haired boy raised an eyebrow. "From what I can recall, they're nice people…" Jaden nodded. Ben frowned. "Si… Even though they're absent for most of the time, I really think that they usually have best intentions." He stated. "But everything they've done so far has been against her wishes." The brunet pointed out.
Ben's eyebrows furrowed. "I thought you were happy that she's here?" He demanded. "I am…" A small smile appeared on Jaden's face. The Italian guy studied his expression briefly, seeing a somewhat defined routine.
He may not have seen much because of the time when he was brainwashed, but what he had seen so far indicated something… He wasn't quite sure what to make of it yet.
Jaden was always known for his positive attitude and always smiling. Yet, Ben could swear, sometimes, that even brighter smiles were directed towards his cousin. That was surprising itself, since Ben thought he couldn't smile any brighter than that.
Then the way he reacted when she was carried into the hospital wing, completely unconscious… He looked really upset back then.
"Why did you react the way you did when Serena got to the hospital wing?" Ben spoke up carefully. Jaden's brown eyes landed on him slightly surprised at the question. Then he frowned for a moment. "I'm… I'm not quite sure. It's not something I could associate to. It just happened." He admitted.
Ben studied him for a few more seconds. Then, he let out a sigh. "Alright. Anyway, it is true. Sometimes, I feel like it's difficult to understand Uncle Roberto and Aunt Chiara." "What do they work so they're always absent anyway?" "Uncle Roberto is a lawyer. Aunt Chiara works as a doctor. Based on what I heard from Mum, anyway. Aunt Chiara tends to have appointments with psychologists too."
"What for?" Jaden asked. "My guess is on prescribing medicine for mentally ill people. It's not something Aunt Chiara talks about though." A frown crossed his features. "Both Uncle and Aunt don't talk about their jobs much. They just seem closed off from anyone who isn't Mum or Dad…" "Serena doesn't mention them much either." The brunet noted. "She doesn't." Ben agreed with a sigh.
"What they've done so far doesn't make sense to a normal person either…" He then admitted.
Jaden simply nodded to his words, his mind drifting to what he remembered about Serena's parents.
Roberto Accardi was a tall person, with hair just like Serena's. As far as Jaden knew, the man's been kind to him whenever he saw him…
Chiara Accardi was a shorter woman, with dirty blond hair and light blue eyes. She was also kind from what he could recall…
Jaden really couldn't make head or tails about this. How were so kind people able to do something so out of mind to their own child? How's it that not even Ben or Serena could fathom what was going through their minds?
And yet… There was something about the whole thing that just made him even more confused.
For some reason, there was something unclear at the back of his head. He could just remember furious expressions on both of their faces… Whatever happened back then, they were extremely angry with someone… He had never seen anyone that angered before.
"Have you ever seen them angry?" He decided to ask Ben. "From those times I saw them, only once." The Italian guy admitted. "When I tried to reason with Uncle Roberto how Serena didn't want to attend Duel Academy, he shouted at us not to discuss it anymore." He paused for a few moments. "Not even Dad wanted to tell me what the deal with him was."
None of them said anything after that, as they finally saw Hassleberry and Alexis talking to each other at the end of the corridor.
"Finally, you're here. I've been waiting for hours!" The blonde girl glared. Both of the guys' eyes widened once they looked at her better. "Now you see what we were talking about?" Hassleberry pointed out.
The girl's eyes were completely empty, just like Ben's from before…
"What happened to her?" Ben demanded alarmed. "The same thing that Sartorius had done to you, soldier." Hassleberry responded, making Ben look at him in shock.
"What are you here for, Alexis?" Jaden asked her. The girl narrowed her empty-looking eyes. "Master Sartorius wants back the key you have."
"Mister Pegasus, what brings you here so soon after last visit?" Chancellor Sheppard asked once he saw the creator of Duel Monsters getting out of the helicopter. The man walked up to the chancellor with a serious look on his face. "As the guard was about to put those cards in safe place, a masked person appeared and knocked him out. He took the cards."
Chancellor Sheppard's eyes widened in shock. "That's terrible…" "I'm sure the person is somewhere on this island." Pegasus' eye narrowed. "What makes you think he might be here out of all places?" The chancellor questioned.
"When the cards were first stolen, they appeared here. I don't know how Maria's niece managed to get her hands on them, but they were on this island for a reason. Maria appeared here too." Pegasus stated firmly. "You think this is all connected?" The chancellor was surprised.
The man nodded. "If I may ask, why are those cards so important?" Chancellor Sheppard frowned. "It'd be better if we didn't start that here, but somewhere private." Pegasus said. "In that case… We can head to my office." The chancellor nodded.
Both of them started walking in the direction of the chancellor's office.
As soon as both of them settled in on a sofa and a chair, Maximilion Pegasus looked up at Chancellor Sheppard.
"Now, Chancellor… What do you know about Akubaran?"
That would be the end of this chapter. While I know it's mostly filler, it brings up certain plot points that are to come eventually, and takes time to focus on Serena's character more. For the first time, she finally realizes how much her relationship with her parents is actually unhealthy.
In the meantime… We will finally get to know more about her family soon.
I hope you liked it and until next time! :)
