He ran his fingers through her silky auburn hair. Serenity gave him a weak smile, and put a hand over his.

"Your lip needs some work," she observed. True, his tee shirt was now just a bloody as his lip. He was looking a little paler than usual.

"I have a first aid kit in the trunk of the car," he replied. "I can go get it."

"Really, it's fine. I will. Of course, I'll need the key," she added, standing up.

"Here you go. This one opens the trunk," he said, indicating a small key. The plastic top was emerald, matching the car perfectly.

As she walked to the nearby parking lot, she observed the key ring she held. One thing in particular really struck her eyes.

There was a small key ring picture. Anyone could get them made at a photographer, so they were fairly common. The family looked fairly average. The mother was very pretty. She had sparkling blue eyes and a long, shining black hair. The father had dark brown hair and bluish-gray eyes.

There was a boy in the picture. He couldn't be more than four years old. He had dark brown hair and clear blue eyes. She knew immediately who this boy was. It was Seto, about twelve years ago. This had to be his family, back before his parents died.

As she looked up from her thoughts regarding Seto's mysterious and shadowy past, she realized that she had reached the car. She put the designated key in the lock. After hearing a small click, the lid popped open.

She reached in and found what she was looking for. It was a white leather case full of bandages, gauze, you name it. Pulling it out, she closed the lid softly and walked back down the beach to where Seto sat. The sand crunched under her feet.

"Here are your keys," she said, returning the key ring. "If you'll just sit here for a minute or so, I can get your lip cleaned up."

"Thanks," he said.

She pulled out a bottle of iodine. Pouring a little onto a cotton swab, she cleaned the cut. Hopefully, it would heal up without infection.

"You're really good at that," Kaiba observed. "Where did you learn?"

"Guess whose job it was to patch Joey up preceding an after-school fight," she said with a wry smile.

"I get it," he replied.

"Are you ready to go back to the car?" he asked.

"I guess so. But it would be better if I you just dropped me off and I walked to the door by myself," Serenity replied, silently weighing the consequences.

"You have a point. Well, lets get the blanket up and go," he said, picking up one end. She took the other, and together they had it neatly folded in seconds.

When they got to the car, he threw it into the trunk and took his seat beside Serenity.

"I'm not sure where your house is, so you'll need to give me some directions," Seto replied, backing out of the parking lot.

"Sure. You know where Coastal Valley Road meets South Domino Boulevard?" she asked. He nodded. "Well, you just take a left. It's the third house on your right."

"Thanks. I think I can get there ok," he replied. Sure enough, they were there before either of them expected. He slowed to a stop in front of the driveway.

"Thanks for everything," she said, looking him in the eyes.

"The pleasure's all mine," he replied. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"See you," she said, stepping out of the car. As she walked up the driveway, he waited to make sure she got in okay, and everything was alright. She didn't seem to have a problem, so he drove off, wondering what Mokuba was going to say.

Serenity stepped into the house. Her mom still wasn't home; she had to work late. Good thing, too. It would have been pure torture to have to explain why she was just getting home at eleven o'clock p.m.

Walking down the hallway, she came to the door to Joey's room. 'So he did come home afterwards,' she thought to herself. The door was closed, and judging from the illuminated space under the door, the light was on inside. Taking a deep breath, she knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" a voice came from inside.

"It's me, Serenity," she replied, with sincere trepidation.

"Go away," he replied.

"Joey-" she started.

"Fine, come in. The door's unlocked," he said. Pushing the door open, she stepped inside.

Joey sat on his bed. His duel monsters deck was spread out in front of him, and he was making new combinations, obviously of lack of anything better to do.

"Oh Joey!" she said exasperatedly. "Your eye's awful!" Sure enough, there was a dark bluish-black ring surrounding his left eye, where Kaiba's fist had made full contact. Given anymore time without treatment, it could swell shut.

"So?" he replied, defiantly.

"I'll be right back," she sighed. In a few minutes she was back with an ice pack and a first aid kit. She sat down on the bed beside him and took out, once again, a bottle of iodine, and started on him. She'd get his eye last. For right now, she'd just deal with minor scratches.

"So, what was the deal with Kaiba?" he asked with genuine curiosity.

"I talked to Tristan, and it broke his heart. I felt so bad that I ran outside. Somebody asked me what was wrong, and I told them. Turns out it was Kaiba. He asked me if I wanted to cut school with him, and I . . . accepted," she finished, awaiting the coming wave of anger.

"Serenity," he started, sounding furious. However, he seemed to relax some before completing his question. "Why?"

"I don't know, Joey. You know I got those clothes to impress him. It's almost like . . . I have a crush on him, okay?" she said.

"What is it that you see in him, Serenity? I don't get it," Joey said.

"I see a different Seto than you do, Joey. I don't know how to describe it," she said with a sigh. "Okay, I have an example. Have you ever seen him with Mokuba? It's like he's a different person. He's so caring and gentle."

"I think I know what you mean. When they were reunited at the Duelist Kingdom . . . Yeah, I understand," Joey nodded. "He's like that with you?" Serenity nodded.

"Joey, I love that Seto. And . . . I think he loves me too." A new wave of tears rolled down her cheeks. Joey knew he didn't need words. Reaching out, she fell into his arms. They hugged for a while. Despite his former animosity, they shared an unbreakable bond. No matter what happened, they were brother and sister, and forced to be there for each other. Forever.

****

Extreme fuzziness! Sorry, I couldn't resist. So sweet! Not the end yet! Please review!