Chapter 11: Two Different Worlds

The dismissal bell rang and everyone jumped up and headed for the door. Walking down the hall, Seto saw Tea a few feet ahead of him and quickly caught up with her.

"Gardner." Seto nodded, without looking down at her.

"Kaiba." Tea replied, also without looking up at him.

"Where are you going in such a hurry? Going to see your stalker?" Seto teased as they walked down the front steps of the school together.

"Kaiba…......" Tea said before stopping in the middle of the street. Seto stopped too and looked back at her. Walking back in her direction, Seto almost laughed when he noticed the 'I-am-going-to-kill-you' look Tea was giving him. "Shut up."

"Fine, don't take my advice." Seto shrugged as he turned to walk away. "Just don't blame me if he turns out to be some homicidal maniac or serial criminal. Can't trust anyone these days, especially people you don't know very well."

"Kaiba!" Tea yelled in frustration as she ran to catch up with him. Pushing her way through the sea of pedestrians, She finally ran up to his side and began to walk with him. "Why are you being so rude and mean to Ryu? You don't know a single thing about him, so you really can't be talking."

"Ah! But you don't know anything about this Ryu, either! You're too trusting Gardner."

"I know more than you! Speaking of which, you're being a hypocrite! You accuse me of having too much confidence in people but here you are, trusting me enough to walk and talk with me, while the only thing you know about me is my name! Aren't you scared I'm going to jump and kill you any second now?"

"You? Jump me? Dream on." Seto sniffed. "Anyway, you're the one going around defending your stalker."

"HE'S NOT A STALKER!" Tea shouted. "He's my friend."

"Fine, so he's not your stalker. I still have my money on him being some sort of criminal." Seto shrugged, as he walked into the lobby of an office building.

"Uh, where are we exactly?" Tea asked softly as she looked around the large room.

"SETO!" A little voice screamed and a black fuzzball shot out of the elevator and rammed into Seto's stomach.

"Mokuba!" Seto groaned. "I thought you were sick."

"I was, but I spent about three hours up-chucking in the staff bathrooms and felt loads better."

"That was seriously way too much information, little brother." Seto laughed as he picked himself up off the floor and ruffled Mokuba's hair. "Where's the meeting going to be held?"

"It's going to be the Gozaburo conference room." Mokuba shrugged. "But you are a bit early. Even dad's not ready for the conference."

"Well, I'd best change my clothes anyway. Did mom…......"

"Mom brought your suit." Mokuba nodded, giggling slightly.

"Shut up. I don't like the suit either. Oh, excuse me. Gardner, this is Mokuba, my brother. Mokuba, this is Tea Gardner, a fellow student." Seto quickly introduced the two before turning to face Mokuba. "Mokuba, I have to go change now. Could you help me out and please take Gardner to one of the secretaries?"

"Ooooohh." Mokuba laughed. "Is she your kanojo?"

"What?!" Seto asked, before narrowing his eyes. "Mokuba! You little pervert!"

Laughing Mokuba ran off a safe distance to wait for Tea to follow him. Seto continued to glare at Mokuba for a minute before turning back to face a very confused Tea.

"Tell one of the secretary where you live and they will give you directions from here." Seto explained, before turning to leave. He began to walk over to the elevators, when he suddenly let out a small laugh and called over his shoulder, "And watch out for stalkers on your way home. I hear they're out in full force on Fridays."

"He's a friend!" Tea screamed after Seto as the elevator doors closed behind him.

"Excuse me, Ms. Gardner?" Mokuba asked, tugging on Tea's shirt. "Follow me?"

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"Hey." Seto whispered in Tea's ear. "Sorry I'm late."

"It's okay." Tea smiled, before finding his face and giving his a quick kiss on the lips.

"What was that for?"

"For saving me last week. I thought I'd be grateful, even if some people I know doubt your motives."

"Really? And who might these people be? A boyfriend? Concerned parents?" Seto asked as he guided her to an relatively deserted area where they could stand and talk without running the risk of being trampled.

"It's just some bastard from school who's going around saying things."

"Oh really? And what does this bastard say?"

"That you're a stalker…...... or a criminal. Silly, isn't it?"

"So your friend is worried that I'm a lawbreaker?" Seto asked before laughing. "That's rather funny. I've never been mistaken for a delinquent before."

"I never said he was a friend. He doesn't know you like I do, Ryu."

'If only you really knew Tea.' Seto thought to himself, before replying, "So tell me about this so-called bastard."

"Oh, he's the new boy at school, so I don't know much about him. I mean, sometimes he's really nice…...... like when he's with his brother. But whenever he's at school he's so rude. He's really smart though."

"What's his name?"

"Seto."

"Is he rude to everyone?"

"No…...... not really. He doesn't really talk to anyone more than necessary, but he seems to go out of his way to be rude to me."

"Maybe he just to shy to talk to you like a normal person. Or maybe he's a criminal himself. What I'd like to know why he thinks he can accuse me of being a criminal, when he doesn't know me." Seto smirked, mentally laughing at the irony of the situation. "OH! Good song. Let's dance.

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"Kaiba!" Tea shouted.

"Gardner." Seto nodded in reply as he handed the clerk a five. "Can I add a—what would you like, Gardner?"

"Oh, nothing. I'm fine."

"Okay, never mind." Seto told the clerk. "I'll just take my black coffee."

"What are you doing here?" Tea asked, when Seto had his change.

"Are you blind, Gardner? I'm getting coffee. I was sure that even someone with limited intelligence, like yourself, could perceive this. Now, are you sure you don't want any?"

"I'm sure. And I meant out here in Times Square on the weekend."

"Working. By the way, have you seen your criminal friend today? I keep wondering if the next mugger I see will be him."

"I saw him yesterday actually." Tea snapped, ignoring Seto's last comment. "And we talked about you."

"Really? What'd he say?"

"He wanted to know who you thought you were. And he rejected you accusation that he might be a criminal. In fact, he found it quite amusing."

"Ah, only a true criminal could laugh at the such an accusation." Seto sneered. "Maybe you should check through mug shots for his face."

"Actually," Tea admitted. "I don't know what he looks like."

"Why not? Are you truly blind?"

"No. The club is too dark and he asked me to keep my eyes closed when he's around."

"Suspicious if you ask me. I'd be asking him what he has to hide." Seto shrugged before waling off in the direction of KaibaCorp. Once he was out of sight, Seto groaned.

"I can't believe I just told her I was suspicious. I mean, not that I'm not. Hell, I am! But she's going to find out soon enough. I can't believe I've managed this stunt for almost a year! And damn, I'm really starting to like her. So why am I tempting fate?" Seto muttered. "I should tell her. But she'd be mad. Not only did I lie to her, but also I'm playing with her. Not good, Seto. But I should still tell her. She deserves to know. All right. I'll tell her tonight."

But that night came and went, and Seto never told Tea the truth. So he decided that he would tell Tea the next week, but it also passed with Tea unaware that Seto and Ryu were the same person. Each week passed with Seto determined to tell Tea the truth and never getting around to it.

Kanojo – Girlfriend; Sweetheart

AN: Chapter title by LL Cool J.