[*CLEARS THROAT* This is the chapter you have all been wating for:Celeste
finally reveals the secrect!]
DRUM ROLL
* Seto looked around the room. He had just finished cleaning up the mess on the floor and packing it into the closet. "Wow." he thought," This room looks so empty when its actually clean." [Yeah, like mine.]
His father walked in. "Seto, I know you have a little friend coming over but can you please take care of Mokuba for me." he said quickly," I have to go back to the office for a little while. I'll be back soon. I'm sure your friend won't mind."
"But dad...." Seto started," Can't you bring him with you or something?"
His father looked at him." You know I can't. I'm really sorry about this, Seto."
"Fine," he grumbled.
"Great. Call me if there's an emergency. Bye." Mr. Tasashi said. He went to get the keys and his jacket. Seto followed him and locked the door tightly after him.
He went to the window to watch Mr. Tasashi drive down the street. Seto sighed and went to check on his brother. Mokuba was playing on the floor with a few toy cars surrounding him.
"Hey kid," said Seto playfully, sitting near the toddler. Mokuba grinned and handed Seto a car. Seto took it and rolled it towards him. Seto watched as he caught it and began biting the hood.
The doorbell rang. Seto reached the door by the third ring. "Who is it?"
"Who do you think?" said a sarcastic voice. Seto rolled his eyes and opened the door. "Hey Celeste."
Celeste still wore her jacket. She wore a pair of faded jeans and an oversized T-shirt that said 'Girl Power' across the chest in bright blue printing. She brought her book bag and held a book in one of her arms.
"Are your parents home?" she asked him, noticing the silence of the house. "No." he answered," My dad left for work a little while ago and my mom...she died about 2 years ago."
Celeste looked at him suddenly."Oh.I'm really sorry. I didn't know. I the..."
"Its okay," he stated, ignoring the full sympathy of her voice," It was a long time ago."
She went to the living room. Seto followed her. Celeste noticed Mokuba on the floor and quickly kneeled down to watch the toddler." Is he your brother?" she asked him. She set her book bag and the book beside her. "What's his name?"
"Yeah, His name's Mokuba." Seto went to his room to get his stuff for the project. He heard Celeste cooing Mokuba's name and imitating baby sounds.
He opened the closet and managed to avoid the avalanche of junk that spilled out. He sifted through the stuff and found his book bag and a pack of art supplies. He heard crying and ran out to see what happened.
Celeste sat on the floor with Mokuba. He had started to cry in front of the stranger and Celeste tried desperately to make him stop. She tried to pick him up but the baby thrashed around, making it hard to keep him still long enough.
"Make him stop!" Celeste said when she saw Seto.
Seto smirked." Why?"
Celeste narrowed her eyes at him." He's YOUR brother!"
"Fine." he said, still smiling. He sat next to Mokuba. Mokuba stopped crying instantly and gurgled. He raised his arms and allowed Seto to pick him up. Celeste had her mouth opened slightly in a sign of surprise.
"How come he likes you?" she sputtered.
"Maybe because I'm nicer than you?" answered Seto as he put Mokuba down and handed him a ball. He waited for Celeste's insult.
Instead, Celeste just gave him a glare and turned to her book bag. "I brought a book I had about the Komodo Dragon. It has a lot of information in it and the pictures are really great." She handed him the book.
He flipped through the pages. It seemed to be a good resource. "What are we going to do about the visual aide part?"
"I brought some drawing paper. We can do a drawing and color it for that part."
Seto shook his head." It wouldn't work. I can't draw."
Celeste rolled her eyes at Seto. "In case you haven't noticed, you're not the only one who's doing this project."
"Does this mean you want to do it? Can you draw?"
"Have you seen me in Art class? Just give me paper and pencil and I can draw anything!" Celeste beamed. It was true. Seto had seen the entire class peering over her shoulder and the teacher complimenting her all the time.
"Fine. How about I do the report and you do the visual aide?" Seto compromised.
Celeste didn't answer but was already digging into her book bag. "Do you have any crayons?colored pencils?" she said, not looking up. He pointed to the counter where he left his book bag and art supplies.
Mokuba didn't like to be ignored. He dropped the ball Seto had given him and started to cry. Seto walked over to comfort him but Celeste took something out and gave it to him.
It was small and made of plastic with a wide screen. There were buttons arranged on the bottom. "What is it?" Seto asked. "Its one of those old fashioned games." said Celeste. She turned it on and the screen came alive with flashing pictures of spaceships.
Mokuba reached out for the machine, wriggling his fingers. "He can have it. He'd probably be better playing at it then me. I don't really like it anyway. "
"Why do you carry it in your book bag then?"
Celeste shrugged. "I just play with it when I'm really bored."
"So you think I'm boring?"
Celeste smiled." Believe me Seto; I can describe you in a lot of words. But boring is not one of them. " Seto stared at her. She suddenly blushed and walked away quickly. Picking up a pencil, she bended down and started drawing. Realizing Seto still staring at her, she turned around. "Well? Aren't you going to start the report or not?!?"
Seto just shook his head. Mokuba was busy poking at the game Celeste had given him. He didn't know how to play it but the sounds were a curiosity to him.
Celeste and Seto worked in silence (except for the game) for half an hour. "Hey Seto." whispered Celeste from across the room.
Seto turned around and saw Celeste leaning over Mokuba. He was asleep. Celeste turned off the noisy machine next to him. Seto sighed and went over. "Shhhhh." He said to Celeste when he reached them. She watched him as he picked up the toddler, and then drops him because of the weight.
Celeste pulled a nearby blanket from off the couch. "Here, I get this side and you get the other." Seto looked at her. "Don't worry," she assured him," I won't drop him."
She laid the blanket next to Mokuba. Seto managed to carry Mokuba, laying him on top of the blanket. "One, Two, Three." Celeste said. Clutching the corners of the blanket tightly, the lifted up the blanket with the baby on it. Seto directed them into a nearby room and gently laid Mokuba on the bed. She watched as Seto pulled a thick blanket over the tiny body. Together, they silently closed the door behind him.
When they were back into the living room, Celeste dropped onto the couch. "I'm so glad I'm an only child." she mumbled into one of the cushions. Seto looked amused."Its not so bad."
Celeste faced him. "Are you kidding? I would go crazy by now. How do you do it?" Seto shrugged and sat down next to her.
"Why are you still wearing your jacket? Its not that cold." he noticed. Celeste suddenly sat up and clutched her jacket tighter. "I get cold easily." she responded in an icy tone. "We should get back to our project." she said and went to the drawing on the coffee table.
Half an hour passed as a silent atmosphere clouded the room. "Ow!" Seto turned around and saw Celeste holding up her finger. He rushed over to her and saw blood coming out from a small opening. "Paper cut."she said angrily. [Don't you hate getting one of those?]
Seto knew what to do. He returned from the kitchen with some tissues and started dabbing at the blood. "Go to the bathroom to clean it." he said. "What for?" she asked him curiously."Its just a little cut."
"I've read that you have to wash the cut so it won't be infected." Seto said. Celeste opened her mouth to retaliate but, instead, allowed him to direct her to the bathroom.
"I'll get the band-aids." offered Seto and went outside. Celeste struggled to wash the blood off but her jacket sleeve would get wet. She didn't want anyone to see her arms but she didn't want her jacket to get wet either. After closing the door and locking it, she took off her jacket and turned on the faucet.
Seto looked around the cabinet. "Where does dad keep them?" he asked himself. He moved the pencils and other junk over, revealing a familiar white box of band-aides.
He went to the bathroom and found it closed. Not thinking, he turned the doorknob and opened the door.
Seto's jaw dropped when he saw the bruises on her arms. Celeste was leaning over the sink when she realized Seto standing in the doorway. "Seto!" Celeste said in a shocked tone and quickly turned off the faucet. She grabbed her jacket and desperatly forced the frabic to cover her arms but Seto held onto her wrist.
"How did you get all of those bruises?"
"They're nothing! I just fall down alot. I'm really clumsy you kno- "
"Celeste,"interrupted Seto,"these didn't come from falling down alot. They look like....like..."
Celeste tried to change the subject."How did you get in here anyway? I was going to use the bathroom! I locked the door."
"The lock was broken a long time ago." Seto responded. "Celeste. Who did this to you?" He suddenly saw tears coming form her eyes. She slumbed down near the toilet.
"Do you promise not to tell?" She whispered, looking straight into his eyes. "If I tell you, do you promise never ever to tell anyone?"
"But Celeste-"
"Promise? I won't tell you unless you promise."
Seto didn't know what to do. He didn't have any choice. Slowly, he nodded his head."I promise."
Celeste took a deep breath. "My dad." she whispered.
"What?" Seto said.
"It was my dad. He hits me sometimes, but only when he drinks." she said in a rush,"the rest of the time, he's pretty okay." Her voice was cracking.
Seto slumped down next to her."Does your mom know?"
Celeste shook her head."I don't know where she is. She ran away about a year ago." Tears continue to leave a trail on her cheeks.
Seto didn't know what to say. "Isn't your dad a police officer, though?"
She force a laugh."That's just it. He expects everybody to do everything he says. He's used to it." She looked at Seto. "And you know how I don't like to be bossed around...."
Seto comforted her by placing his hand on one of her arms. "You have to tell someone-"
She slowly shook her head. "My dad isn't that bad. He only hits me when hes drunk and I get in his way."
"But-"
"Seto," she started,"You promised not to tell anyone. I can take care of myself."
Their heads shot up. They heard sound of a car. "Thats my dad!" said Seto. Celeste wiped her tears and put on her jacket. Seto threw the box of band- aides into the tub and followed Celeste into the living room.
Mr. Tasashi opened the door and gave her a smile. "Hi, I'm Seto's father." Celeste smiled shyly. "I'm Celeste." She picked up her bookbag. "Excuse me, Mr. Tasashi, But I have to go home now."
Mr. Tasashi looked surprised at the sudden retreat but allowed her to pass. He turned to Seto."You didn't tell me your partner was a girl. Did you guys do anything?" Celeste stopped at the door and turned to look at him. Seto looked at Celeste then his father. "Nope. All we did was work on our project." Celeste gave him a grateful smile and walked out the door.
"Where's Mokuba?" asked Mr. Tasashi.
"He's in his bedroom, sleeping." answered Seto. He watched as Mr. Tasashi went towards the hallway to check up on the baby.
Seto started to clean up the mess around the living room. When he reached the coffee table, he stopped at Celeste's drawing. The picture of the Komodo Dragon was only halfway through but it looked great so far.
Seto bended down to take a closer look. He then noticed the tiniest dot of red at the side of the paper, from the paper cut.
*
(Will Seto tell anyone about the secrect? Or keep his promise to Celeste? Read the next chapter to find out! ^___^)
DRUM ROLL
* Seto looked around the room. He had just finished cleaning up the mess on the floor and packing it into the closet. "Wow." he thought," This room looks so empty when its actually clean." [Yeah, like mine.]
His father walked in. "Seto, I know you have a little friend coming over but can you please take care of Mokuba for me." he said quickly," I have to go back to the office for a little while. I'll be back soon. I'm sure your friend won't mind."
"But dad...." Seto started," Can't you bring him with you or something?"
His father looked at him." You know I can't. I'm really sorry about this, Seto."
"Fine," he grumbled.
"Great. Call me if there's an emergency. Bye." Mr. Tasashi said. He went to get the keys and his jacket. Seto followed him and locked the door tightly after him.
He went to the window to watch Mr. Tasashi drive down the street. Seto sighed and went to check on his brother. Mokuba was playing on the floor with a few toy cars surrounding him.
"Hey kid," said Seto playfully, sitting near the toddler. Mokuba grinned and handed Seto a car. Seto took it and rolled it towards him. Seto watched as he caught it and began biting the hood.
The doorbell rang. Seto reached the door by the third ring. "Who is it?"
"Who do you think?" said a sarcastic voice. Seto rolled his eyes and opened the door. "Hey Celeste."
Celeste still wore her jacket. She wore a pair of faded jeans and an oversized T-shirt that said 'Girl Power' across the chest in bright blue printing. She brought her book bag and held a book in one of her arms.
"Are your parents home?" she asked him, noticing the silence of the house. "No." he answered," My dad left for work a little while ago and my mom...she died about 2 years ago."
Celeste looked at him suddenly."Oh.I'm really sorry. I didn't know. I the..."
"Its okay," he stated, ignoring the full sympathy of her voice," It was a long time ago."
She went to the living room. Seto followed her. Celeste noticed Mokuba on the floor and quickly kneeled down to watch the toddler." Is he your brother?" she asked him. She set her book bag and the book beside her. "What's his name?"
"Yeah, His name's Mokuba." Seto went to his room to get his stuff for the project. He heard Celeste cooing Mokuba's name and imitating baby sounds.
He opened the closet and managed to avoid the avalanche of junk that spilled out. He sifted through the stuff and found his book bag and a pack of art supplies. He heard crying and ran out to see what happened.
Celeste sat on the floor with Mokuba. He had started to cry in front of the stranger and Celeste tried desperately to make him stop. She tried to pick him up but the baby thrashed around, making it hard to keep him still long enough.
"Make him stop!" Celeste said when she saw Seto.
Seto smirked." Why?"
Celeste narrowed her eyes at him." He's YOUR brother!"
"Fine." he said, still smiling. He sat next to Mokuba. Mokuba stopped crying instantly and gurgled. He raised his arms and allowed Seto to pick him up. Celeste had her mouth opened slightly in a sign of surprise.
"How come he likes you?" she sputtered.
"Maybe because I'm nicer than you?" answered Seto as he put Mokuba down and handed him a ball. He waited for Celeste's insult.
Instead, Celeste just gave him a glare and turned to her book bag. "I brought a book I had about the Komodo Dragon. It has a lot of information in it and the pictures are really great." She handed him the book.
He flipped through the pages. It seemed to be a good resource. "What are we going to do about the visual aide part?"
"I brought some drawing paper. We can do a drawing and color it for that part."
Seto shook his head." It wouldn't work. I can't draw."
Celeste rolled her eyes at Seto. "In case you haven't noticed, you're not the only one who's doing this project."
"Does this mean you want to do it? Can you draw?"
"Have you seen me in Art class? Just give me paper and pencil and I can draw anything!" Celeste beamed. It was true. Seto had seen the entire class peering over her shoulder and the teacher complimenting her all the time.
"Fine. How about I do the report and you do the visual aide?" Seto compromised.
Celeste didn't answer but was already digging into her book bag. "Do you have any crayons?colored pencils?" she said, not looking up. He pointed to the counter where he left his book bag and art supplies.
Mokuba didn't like to be ignored. He dropped the ball Seto had given him and started to cry. Seto walked over to comfort him but Celeste took something out and gave it to him.
It was small and made of plastic with a wide screen. There were buttons arranged on the bottom. "What is it?" Seto asked. "Its one of those old fashioned games." said Celeste. She turned it on and the screen came alive with flashing pictures of spaceships.
Mokuba reached out for the machine, wriggling his fingers. "He can have it. He'd probably be better playing at it then me. I don't really like it anyway. "
"Why do you carry it in your book bag then?"
Celeste shrugged. "I just play with it when I'm really bored."
"So you think I'm boring?"
Celeste smiled." Believe me Seto; I can describe you in a lot of words. But boring is not one of them. " Seto stared at her. She suddenly blushed and walked away quickly. Picking up a pencil, she bended down and started drawing. Realizing Seto still staring at her, she turned around. "Well? Aren't you going to start the report or not?!?"
Seto just shook his head. Mokuba was busy poking at the game Celeste had given him. He didn't know how to play it but the sounds were a curiosity to him.
Celeste and Seto worked in silence (except for the game) for half an hour. "Hey Seto." whispered Celeste from across the room.
Seto turned around and saw Celeste leaning over Mokuba. He was asleep. Celeste turned off the noisy machine next to him. Seto sighed and went over. "Shhhhh." He said to Celeste when he reached them. She watched him as he picked up the toddler, and then drops him because of the weight.
Celeste pulled a nearby blanket from off the couch. "Here, I get this side and you get the other." Seto looked at her. "Don't worry," she assured him," I won't drop him."
She laid the blanket next to Mokuba. Seto managed to carry Mokuba, laying him on top of the blanket. "One, Two, Three." Celeste said. Clutching the corners of the blanket tightly, the lifted up the blanket with the baby on it. Seto directed them into a nearby room and gently laid Mokuba on the bed. She watched as Seto pulled a thick blanket over the tiny body. Together, they silently closed the door behind him.
When they were back into the living room, Celeste dropped onto the couch. "I'm so glad I'm an only child." she mumbled into one of the cushions. Seto looked amused."Its not so bad."
Celeste faced him. "Are you kidding? I would go crazy by now. How do you do it?" Seto shrugged and sat down next to her.
"Why are you still wearing your jacket? Its not that cold." he noticed. Celeste suddenly sat up and clutched her jacket tighter. "I get cold easily." she responded in an icy tone. "We should get back to our project." she said and went to the drawing on the coffee table.
Half an hour passed as a silent atmosphere clouded the room. "Ow!" Seto turned around and saw Celeste holding up her finger. He rushed over to her and saw blood coming out from a small opening. "Paper cut."she said angrily. [Don't you hate getting one of those?]
Seto knew what to do. He returned from the kitchen with some tissues and started dabbing at the blood. "Go to the bathroom to clean it." he said. "What for?" she asked him curiously."Its just a little cut."
"I've read that you have to wash the cut so it won't be infected." Seto said. Celeste opened her mouth to retaliate but, instead, allowed him to direct her to the bathroom.
"I'll get the band-aids." offered Seto and went outside. Celeste struggled to wash the blood off but her jacket sleeve would get wet. She didn't want anyone to see her arms but she didn't want her jacket to get wet either. After closing the door and locking it, she took off her jacket and turned on the faucet.
Seto looked around the cabinet. "Where does dad keep them?" he asked himself. He moved the pencils and other junk over, revealing a familiar white box of band-aides.
He went to the bathroom and found it closed. Not thinking, he turned the doorknob and opened the door.
Seto's jaw dropped when he saw the bruises on her arms. Celeste was leaning over the sink when she realized Seto standing in the doorway. "Seto!" Celeste said in a shocked tone and quickly turned off the faucet. She grabbed her jacket and desperatly forced the frabic to cover her arms but Seto held onto her wrist.
"How did you get all of those bruises?"
"They're nothing! I just fall down alot. I'm really clumsy you kno- "
"Celeste,"interrupted Seto,"these didn't come from falling down alot. They look like....like..."
Celeste tried to change the subject."How did you get in here anyway? I was going to use the bathroom! I locked the door."
"The lock was broken a long time ago." Seto responded. "Celeste. Who did this to you?" He suddenly saw tears coming form her eyes. She slumbed down near the toilet.
"Do you promise not to tell?" She whispered, looking straight into his eyes. "If I tell you, do you promise never ever to tell anyone?"
"But Celeste-"
"Promise? I won't tell you unless you promise."
Seto didn't know what to do. He didn't have any choice. Slowly, he nodded his head."I promise."
Celeste took a deep breath. "My dad." she whispered.
"What?" Seto said.
"It was my dad. He hits me sometimes, but only when he drinks." she said in a rush,"the rest of the time, he's pretty okay." Her voice was cracking.
Seto slumped down next to her."Does your mom know?"
Celeste shook her head."I don't know where she is. She ran away about a year ago." Tears continue to leave a trail on her cheeks.
Seto didn't know what to say. "Isn't your dad a police officer, though?"
She force a laugh."That's just it. He expects everybody to do everything he says. He's used to it." She looked at Seto. "And you know how I don't like to be bossed around...."
Seto comforted her by placing his hand on one of her arms. "You have to tell someone-"
She slowly shook her head. "My dad isn't that bad. He only hits me when hes drunk and I get in his way."
"But-"
"Seto," she started,"You promised not to tell anyone. I can take care of myself."
Their heads shot up. They heard sound of a car. "Thats my dad!" said Seto. Celeste wiped her tears and put on her jacket. Seto threw the box of band- aides into the tub and followed Celeste into the living room.
Mr. Tasashi opened the door and gave her a smile. "Hi, I'm Seto's father." Celeste smiled shyly. "I'm Celeste." She picked up her bookbag. "Excuse me, Mr. Tasashi, But I have to go home now."
Mr. Tasashi looked surprised at the sudden retreat but allowed her to pass. He turned to Seto."You didn't tell me your partner was a girl. Did you guys do anything?" Celeste stopped at the door and turned to look at him. Seto looked at Celeste then his father. "Nope. All we did was work on our project." Celeste gave him a grateful smile and walked out the door.
"Where's Mokuba?" asked Mr. Tasashi.
"He's in his bedroom, sleeping." answered Seto. He watched as Mr. Tasashi went towards the hallway to check up on the baby.
Seto started to clean up the mess around the living room. When he reached the coffee table, he stopped at Celeste's drawing. The picture of the Komodo Dragon was only halfway through but it looked great so far.
Seto bended down to take a closer look. He then noticed the tiniest dot of red at the side of the paper, from the paper cut.
*
(Will Seto tell anyone about the secrect? Or keep his promise to Celeste? Read the next chapter to find out! ^___^)