The Diamond Star
Chapter 20: Dilemmas
Disclaimer: gee whiz, if I owned this, I wouldn't be writing a disclaimer, now would I?
It was near Christmas, December 6 to be exact, and snow floated gently to the ground about the Kaiba mansion. The gang had gravitated there after an afternoon of snowball fights. They were currently sprawled around the living room with hot chocolate and toasted marshmallows, watching whatever happened to be on TV.
Seto and Seraphim were cuddled up next to each other on the couch. Yuugi and Jou were having a Duel Monsters match with Honda, Anzu, Lillian, and Ryou watching. Shizuka and Mokuba were toasting marshmallows. And Mai and Mary-Anne were planning the Christmas party the gang was going to have.
"Do you think he's ever going to propose?" asked Mai as she plotted out the decorations for the party.
"Who knows? They've been together for forever and still he hasn't done a thing like it," Mary-Anne shrugged.
"But that's the point. They've been together for over a year. They're obviously never going to find someone else. She would NEVER tell him 'no.' Why doesn't he just ask her? It's not like he can't afford the ring," Mai replied impatiently.
"Oh, try this instead," Mary-Anne wrote down a few suggestions for the cake design. "Yeah, but maybe he doesn't know she'd say 'yes.' I mean, maybe he's insecure."
"This is Seto we're talking about. Not some wimp. This is the 'do it or die trying' one, remember?" Mai pointed out.
Mary-Anne laughed. They had had a tug-of-war that summer. Those were Seto's exact words. It had been guys against girls and they were over a mud puddle. The girls had nearly died laughing at Seto when he played dead after they lost. Well...it had been funny afterwards. Seraphim almost had a heart attack when she thought he was really dead.
"True, true, okay, let's ask him about it later. We all know she's dying for him to propose," Mary-Anne giggled.
"Right, and that would complete the catering list," Mai finished with a flourish. "Come on, let's look into that proposing thing." Grabbing Mary-Anne, Mai dragged her off to talk to Seto.
As Seraphim had fallen asleep against Seto's chest, it was kind of hard for Mary-Anne and Mai to get him to stand up to talk to them. Eventually, however, with threats of blackmail, the duo got to have their chat with the CEO.
"So, Seto," Mai began speaking in a business-like tone, "When are you going to propose to Seraphim?"
The question caught Seto completely off guard. He thought they were going to ask him if they could have the party at his house or something. Not 'when was he going to propose.' "Um..."
"Have you even gone ring shopping?" Mary-Anne exclaimed quietly.
"Um..."
"You need help. We are going to help you. You DO want to propose someday right?" asked Mai.
"Well, yeah. But-" Seto was cut off.
"Okay, we're going ring shopping Monday," Mary-Anne stated firmly. "No if ands or buts!"
"Oh, by the way, these are the plans. You don't mind having the party at your house do you?" Mai asked sweetly.
"No," Seto sighed. "Not at all."
"Good. Come on Mary-Anne, let's go toast marshmallows and watch Jou get creamed by Yuugi," Mai grabbed Mar- Anne and they went to go watch the duel.
Seto sighed again as he sat down beside Seraphim's sleeping form and ran his hand through his hair. How was he ever going to PROPOSE to her? And...would she even say yes? Monday would be a very long day...a VERY long day.
All too soon for Seto, the ring-shopping day arrived. He didn't even know when he wanted to propose. He didn't even know how! But then again, blackmail from Mai and Mary-Anne was a bad thing. The last time they blackmailed Yuugi's Yami into paying them two hundred dollars because they got pictures of him using pink, bubble-gum scented bubble bath once. And pretty lavender-scented candles. And using a shower cap with little red hearts all over it. It was not a pretty sight when Yami found out they showed everyone the pictures because he gave them one hundred ninety-nine dollars instead of two hundred. He wouldn't come out of his soul room for two weeks.
Seto kissed Seraphim on the cheek, "I'm going out okay?"
"Where are you going?" Seraphim asked, blowing him a kiss.
"Out to buy something," Seto replied.
"Okay, have fun. Bye!"
Seto decided to take the jeep that day. It was candy apple red. Swinging by Mai and Mary-Anne's apartments, he picked the girls up and headed to the nearest mall.
"So what kind of ring are you going to buy?" asked Mai.
"Silver...gold...platinum band?" Mary-Anne suggested.
"And is it going to be a diamond? Or like...a diamond with some other stuff on it? Or..." Mai trailed off.
"Say something! Earth to Seto!" Mary-Anne waved a hand in front of Seto's face.
"I don't know. This was your idea. I'm just here," Seto replied.
When they finally got to the mall. Mai and Mary-Anne dragged Seto over to the jewelry store. Seto looked as if he wanted to run away.
"Hello, may I help you?" asked a nice elderly lady behind the counter. The three friends were the only ones in the shop.
"Um, yeah," Seto began. "I'm looking for an...um...engagement ring for...my...um...girlfriend." Seto looked at his feet. He didn't do this kind of thing! He didn't even know why he agreed to let Mai and Mary-Anne do this to him!
"Oh! Which of these nice young ladies is it?" asked the salesclerk.
"Oh, no. Neither of us is his girlfriend. We're his friends," Mai replied. "His girlfriend isn't here with us at the moment."
"Oh, I see." the clerk thought a moment. "Well, you can look around. Call me if you need anything." Turning around, she went into the back of the store.
"So, see anything nice Seto?" asked Mary-Anne.
Seto shook his head. He passed numerous cases filled with beautiful jewelry, but nothing seemed quite right. Seraphim didn't seem to fit gold, so he decided to look for silver or platinum. But what to get?
Then, he saw it. It was beautiful, just like Seraphim. It was a thin silver ring, tiny diamond hearts tinted pink circled the band. As he looked closer, Seto could see something engraved on the inside. It said "eternity" in loopy cursive. It was perfect. Seto knew, that was the ring.
"Mai, Marry-Anne, what do you think of this one?"
"Oh my god!" Mai squealed. "It's beautiful!!! Get it! You have to get it! It's just like her!"
"Yeah! It's wonderful! She'll love it!" Mary-Anne added.
"Found something you like?" the sales clerk was back.
"Um, yes. How much is that ring there?" Seto inquired, pointing at the ring.
"Oh, my. That one is very expensive. Are you sure?" the lady asked. She obviously did not know who she was talking to.
"Yes, I'm sure, can you ring it up now?" asked Seto.
"Of course," the woman smiled.
She wrapped the ring in a navy blue velvet box and tied it with a sliver-gray ribbon. Seto handed the lady his credit card and took the box. After signing and getting his card back, Seto, Mary-Anne, and Mai left the jewelry shop.
"She'll love it," Mai assured Seto.
"I hope so," Seto replied as Mai left.
After dropping Mary-Anne off at home, he went back to the mansion. 'How am I ever going to propose and get her to accept?' he wondered to himself.
"What did you buy?" asked Seraphim, sneaking up behind him.
"Oh...nothing. The store didn't have what I was looking for," Seto lied, startled.
"Oh, that's too bad," Seraphim kissed Seto. "Come and help me make dinner."
Following Seraphim, Seto tried to figure out just when he'd get up the guts to propose. 'Soon...or Mai and Mary-Anne will kill me...' he thought.
Whee...when will Seto propose??? Hehe...r&r please.
Chapter 20: Dilemmas
Disclaimer: gee whiz, if I owned this, I wouldn't be writing a disclaimer, now would I?
It was near Christmas, December 6 to be exact, and snow floated gently to the ground about the Kaiba mansion. The gang had gravitated there after an afternoon of snowball fights. They were currently sprawled around the living room with hot chocolate and toasted marshmallows, watching whatever happened to be on TV.
Seto and Seraphim were cuddled up next to each other on the couch. Yuugi and Jou were having a Duel Monsters match with Honda, Anzu, Lillian, and Ryou watching. Shizuka and Mokuba were toasting marshmallows. And Mai and Mary-Anne were planning the Christmas party the gang was going to have.
"Do you think he's ever going to propose?" asked Mai as she plotted out the decorations for the party.
"Who knows? They've been together for forever and still he hasn't done a thing like it," Mary-Anne shrugged.
"But that's the point. They've been together for over a year. They're obviously never going to find someone else. She would NEVER tell him 'no.' Why doesn't he just ask her? It's not like he can't afford the ring," Mai replied impatiently.
"Oh, try this instead," Mary-Anne wrote down a few suggestions for the cake design. "Yeah, but maybe he doesn't know she'd say 'yes.' I mean, maybe he's insecure."
"This is Seto we're talking about. Not some wimp. This is the 'do it or die trying' one, remember?" Mai pointed out.
Mary-Anne laughed. They had had a tug-of-war that summer. Those were Seto's exact words. It had been guys against girls and they were over a mud puddle. The girls had nearly died laughing at Seto when he played dead after they lost. Well...it had been funny afterwards. Seraphim almost had a heart attack when she thought he was really dead.
"True, true, okay, let's ask him about it later. We all know she's dying for him to propose," Mary-Anne giggled.
"Right, and that would complete the catering list," Mai finished with a flourish. "Come on, let's look into that proposing thing." Grabbing Mary-Anne, Mai dragged her off to talk to Seto.
As Seraphim had fallen asleep against Seto's chest, it was kind of hard for Mary-Anne and Mai to get him to stand up to talk to them. Eventually, however, with threats of blackmail, the duo got to have their chat with the CEO.
"So, Seto," Mai began speaking in a business-like tone, "When are you going to propose to Seraphim?"
The question caught Seto completely off guard. He thought they were going to ask him if they could have the party at his house or something. Not 'when was he going to propose.' "Um..."
"Have you even gone ring shopping?" Mary-Anne exclaimed quietly.
"Um..."
"You need help. We are going to help you. You DO want to propose someday right?" asked Mai.
"Well, yeah. But-" Seto was cut off.
"Okay, we're going ring shopping Monday," Mary-Anne stated firmly. "No if ands or buts!"
"Oh, by the way, these are the plans. You don't mind having the party at your house do you?" Mai asked sweetly.
"No," Seto sighed. "Not at all."
"Good. Come on Mary-Anne, let's go toast marshmallows and watch Jou get creamed by Yuugi," Mai grabbed Mar- Anne and they went to go watch the duel.
Seto sighed again as he sat down beside Seraphim's sleeping form and ran his hand through his hair. How was he ever going to PROPOSE to her? And...would she even say yes? Monday would be a very long day...a VERY long day.
All too soon for Seto, the ring-shopping day arrived. He didn't even know when he wanted to propose. He didn't even know how! But then again, blackmail from Mai and Mary-Anne was a bad thing. The last time they blackmailed Yuugi's Yami into paying them two hundred dollars because they got pictures of him using pink, bubble-gum scented bubble bath once. And pretty lavender-scented candles. And using a shower cap with little red hearts all over it. It was not a pretty sight when Yami found out they showed everyone the pictures because he gave them one hundred ninety-nine dollars instead of two hundred. He wouldn't come out of his soul room for two weeks.
Seto kissed Seraphim on the cheek, "I'm going out okay?"
"Where are you going?" Seraphim asked, blowing him a kiss.
"Out to buy something," Seto replied.
"Okay, have fun. Bye!"
Seto decided to take the jeep that day. It was candy apple red. Swinging by Mai and Mary-Anne's apartments, he picked the girls up and headed to the nearest mall.
"So what kind of ring are you going to buy?" asked Mai.
"Silver...gold...platinum band?" Mary-Anne suggested.
"And is it going to be a diamond? Or like...a diamond with some other stuff on it? Or..." Mai trailed off.
"Say something! Earth to Seto!" Mary-Anne waved a hand in front of Seto's face.
"I don't know. This was your idea. I'm just here," Seto replied.
When they finally got to the mall. Mai and Mary-Anne dragged Seto over to the jewelry store. Seto looked as if he wanted to run away.
"Hello, may I help you?" asked a nice elderly lady behind the counter. The three friends were the only ones in the shop.
"Um, yeah," Seto began. "I'm looking for an...um...engagement ring for...my...um...girlfriend." Seto looked at his feet. He didn't do this kind of thing! He didn't even know why he agreed to let Mai and Mary-Anne do this to him!
"Oh! Which of these nice young ladies is it?" asked the salesclerk.
"Oh, no. Neither of us is his girlfriend. We're his friends," Mai replied. "His girlfriend isn't here with us at the moment."
"Oh, I see." the clerk thought a moment. "Well, you can look around. Call me if you need anything." Turning around, she went into the back of the store.
"So, see anything nice Seto?" asked Mary-Anne.
Seto shook his head. He passed numerous cases filled with beautiful jewelry, but nothing seemed quite right. Seraphim didn't seem to fit gold, so he decided to look for silver or platinum. But what to get?
Then, he saw it. It was beautiful, just like Seraphim. It was a thin silver ring, tiny diamond hearts tinted pink circled the band. As he looked closer, Seto could see something engraved on the inside. It said "eternity" in loopy cursive. It was perfect. Seto knew, that was the ring.
"Mai, Marry-Anne, what do you think of this one?"
"Oh my god!" Mai squealed. "It's beautiful!!! Get it! You have to get it! It's just like her!"
"Yeah! It's wonderful! She'll love it!" Mary-Anne added.
"Found something you like?" the sales clerk was back.
"Um, yes. How much is that ring there?" Seto inquired, pointing at the ring.
"Oh, my. That one is very expensive. Are you sure?" the lady asked. She obviously did not know who she was talking to.
"Yes, I'm sure, can you ring it up now?" asked Seto.
"Of course," the woman smiled.
She wrapped the ring in a navy blue velvet box and tied it with a sliver-gray ribbon. Seto handed the lady his credit card and took the box. After signing and getting his card back, Seto, Mary-Anne, and Mai left the jewelry shop.
"She'll love it," Mai assured Seto.
"I hope so," Seto replied as Mai left.
After dropping Mary-Anne off at home, he went back to the mansion. 'How am I ever going to propose and get her to accept?' he wondered to himself.
"What did you buy?" asked Seraphim, sneaking up behind him.
"Oh...nothing. The store didn't have what I was looking for," Seto lied, startled.
"Oh, that's too bad," Seraphim kissed Seto. "Come and help me make dinner."
Following Seraphim, Seto tried to figure out just when he'd get up the guts to propose. 'Soon...or Mai and Mary-Anne will kill me...' he thought.
Whee...when will Seto propose??? Hehe...r&r please.