Disclaimer: Don't own YGO still.
A/N: Hello! I'm back with a new chapter to "A Fresh Start!" Sorry for the delay, I was...busy...*hides PS2*....yeah. ^_^' Anyway, sorry about the cliffhanger and the reappearance of Serenity. I know you are sick of her, heck...I'm sick of her! *_* I promise that she won't intrude anymore.
Chapter 10: Save Me
Today was not going well for Tea. She ran into Duke, found out about Joey's accident, and had to hitch a ride from Tristan because her car broke down. The scene in front of her just added to her misfortune. She couldn't believe he could just fall into Serenity's arms like this. Wait, she could. With Serenity in a vulnerable state, Yami could just feel sorry for her and become her shoulder to cry on. Men were too predictable. But, Yami's expression to the whole situation was not what she expected. He looked upset...as if he didn't want her to see Serenity and him together. Did he like her? No. That was her fantasy.
Yami couldn't take his eyes off of Tea. This whole situation was a nightmare to him. He hoped Tea didn't think that he was with Serenity now, especially since that would just blow his chances with Tea like dust on a countertop. He tried to relax and think positive, but the thought of not being with Tea nearly put his head through a tailspin. Wait. As he looked into Tea's eyes, Yami could see a hint of jealousy in them. Did she like him? No. That was his fantasy.
"Tea...." Yami said uneasily as Serenity let go of him. "I didn't-"
"Excuse me, but you all shouldn't be in this hallway like this.....it's a fire hazard." A stout woman with orange hair said to the group. "At least two of you will have to wait in the lobby." She said as she walked into Joey's room.
Tea sighed, trying to avoid eye contact with Yami. "I'll wait in the lobby."
"I'll go with you," Tristan said kindly, "I know you have been through a rough day."
"Thanks Tristan." Tea said as she gave him a warm smile.
"No problem, Tea." He said as he wrapped an arm around her shoulders.
'Hmph! Take that Yami.'
And take it he would. Yami couldn't bear to watch Tea with another guy, let alone, one of his good friends. But, then again, he wondered how Tea felt when Serenity was with him. Same story, different chapter. A chapter he would not get into at the moment. Besides, he had to figure out a way to be alone with Tea. Especially since he needed to clean up the mess with Serenity. After a moment of thinking, an idea popped into his head. He decided to play dirty with a little white lie.
"No Tristan, I was talking to Joey and he really wants to see you."
'Okay, so it wasn't that little, but it did get the job done.'
"Probably wants to see if I can steal some hospital food for him." Tristan said sarcastically.
Everyone let out a soft chuckle.
"So, who's going with Tea then?" Tristan looked at everyone. "Do we have to draw straws?"
Yami shook his head, patiently waiting for this opportunity. "I'll go since I did already see Joey."
'No! He probably wants to talk about Serenity.'
Tea's eyes lowered, until she heard Serenity call his name.
'What the heck did she want from him now?'
Tea tried to hear their conversation, but she couldn't make out anything. She started to get angry, until she realized that she was....jealous. Why was she jealous? It wasn't like Yami and her were going out or anything. I mean, they were spending time together and even had a few close encounters....but did that make them an item?
She grunted and whispered, "an item on retail maybe."
"What happened?" She heard Yami ask.
'Where did he come from?'
She tilted her head up to meet a pair of violet eyes. His eyes.
"Ohh...nothing..."
She looked away from him and made her way toward the elevator. Yami followed, ignoring Tea's cold shoulder. He knew she was mad at him, after all, she had every right to be. He told Tea countless times that it was over between Serenity and him, but each time he said it....Serenity came into the picture once again. It wasn't his fault that Serenity needed a friend sometimes, then again, it was his fault that he allowed her to take it to the next level.
Silence followed the two down the elevator and into the lobby, where they both seated themselves quietly by the window. Yami looked over to Tea who was looking out the window. He really wanted to talk to her. He had to tell her that....wait.....what could he really tell her?
'I wasn't hugging Serenity, I was just showing her how the Hitotsu-Me Giant crushes his enemy!'
Yami rolled his eyes and sat back in his chair. He wouldn't lie to Tea, it would just make matters worse if she found out the truth. Wait, why would he lie anyway? It wasn't like he had anything to hide. He just hugged Serenity for comfort. It wasn't anything romantic. No, he was over Serenity.
Tea looked away from the window to catch a glimpse of Yami staring at her. Yami looked away quickly and cursed himself for getting caught. He sighed heavily and decided to say something to her.
"Yugi told me that a drunk driver hit Joey. He even tried to flee the scene, but cops cuffed him three blocks from the accident. It's amazing what alcohol can make you do." Yami cleared his throat.
Tea turned to him. "That's horrible."
"Yeah, but at least Joey is okay." Yami said as Tea nodded slowly.
"When do you think he will get out of the hospital?" Tea asked as Yami shrugged his shoulders.
"I'm hoping a couple of days." Tea nodded again.
There was a silence again, that is, until Yami felt it was time to get what he was feeling off of his mind. "Tea, I know this is not the time or the place to really say this, but I want you to know that what you saw back there with Serenity was nothing more than......a friend helping another friend."
There was some truth to what Yami was saying, but Tea was not convinced. It must have been when he said, 'Don't worry. I always be there for you' to Serenity that literally made him so unbelievable. Why did he lie to her? Why didn't he just tell her that Serenity and him were back together? She kicked herself mentally for ever believing that he would get over Serenity.
"Yami, just forget about it. It's over and done with." She said, trying to control her temper.
Yami could feel the anger in her voice. "It doesn't seem like you're over it...."
Tea couldn't bottle up what she was feeling anymore.
"Does it matter, Yami?" She stood up and looked at him. "You will always choose Serenity in the end anyway! You will never be over her. Don't say things that you don't mean!"
Yami watched her walk toward the exit of the hospital. He couldn't believe what Tea said to him. How could she think that? He was over Serenity. Heck, Serenity even told him that she wishes him well with Tea. Was he sending off the wrong signals? Almost everyone knew that he was in love with Tea, except well, Tea! He needed to tell her! He wouldn't let her think that there was no place for her in his heart.
"Tea, no!" He whispered as he quickly walked out of the hospital. "TEA!"
He found her sitting on a bench, staring at an empty street. He sat next to her and looked at her. She only concentrated harder on the street. She didn't want to hear what he had to say.
"Tea, I'm over Serenity." Yami said honestly. "I only hugged her back there because her brother was in pain and she couldn't see him like that! I would have done the same thing for you if your brother was in there!"
Tea shook her head and frowned. "Yes, I know. I really don't know what came over me. It was wrong of me to interfere with your personal life. I guess I just don't want to see you get hurt again. You're my best friend, Yami. I would never want some girl to ever break your heart a second time. As a matter of fact, I would break her if she even thought about taking you for granted a second time!"
Yami laughed and put his hand out. "Friends forever?"
She smiled and clasped her hand with his. "Friends forever."
'Okay, so I didn't tell her how I feel....and now we are still friends. Well, at least Serenity is out of the picture for good. Maybe there is still a chance of making her mine....'
Yami smiled at his thought. Yes, Tea would be his next goal.
~Back in the Hospital~
"Hey! Where were you guys!?" Yugi asked as Tea and Yami walked up to him.
"Went for a walk," Yami said as Tea nodded.
Yugi smirked, knowing that they were lying. "Well, Joey is ready to see you."
"Okay, thanks Yugi." Tea said as she walked toward the elevator.
Yami looked at Yugi. "Did he say anything about me?"
"Yeah, he really wants to see you." Yugi said as he put a hand on Yami's shoulder.
Yami sighed. "I don't know if I can see him."
"Stop blaming yourself for the accident. It wasn't your fault." Yugi forced out.
Yami was shocked by Yugi's words. But, everything Yugi said was true. He did blame himself for the accident. Nothing seemed to alleviate the blame, even the drunk driver.
"Yami, go see him." Yugi said. "Trust me."
Yami nodded and headed for the elevator that Tea was patiently holding for them. Once up, Tea walked into Joey's room while Yami paced around the hallway, waiting for a chance to see his friend. Finally, Tea walked out and signaled Yami to go in. He swallowed hard and opened the door.
"Joey?" Yami asked as Joey looked up.
"Hey man," he said weakly.
Yami sat down next to him. "How are you feeling?"
"Crappy," Joey said as Yami smiled.
"You'll feel better in a couple of days." Yami promised.
"Sez you." Joey said sarcastically as he shifted his position in the bed.
"Ah, stop being a baby," Yami chuckled.
"Nah, I think I like the attention." Joey said as Yami rubbed his neck.
"You would."
"Eh! I'll stab you with this fork if you keep it up!" Joey pointed a fork at him.
"No, anything but that!" Yami said as they both laughed.
Once they stopped laughing, Joey smiled and said, "thanks for coming...."
Yami frowned. "I would have came sooner, but-"
"Yugi told me that you blame yourself for the accident." Joey interrupted. "Listen to me! Stop burdening yourself with other people's problems! You're going to go insane."
"But Joey-"
"It wasn't your fault." He paused. "We had a dispute about Serenity, but I realized that she dumped you. I shouldn't have blamed you like that. I guess it's just because I finally got a chance to be with my sister and then she had to leave me...again. I took my anger out on you. It's was a selfish act, but I want you to know that I am sorry."
"Forget about it." Yami said. "At least you know that I didn't drive your sister out of town."
Joey laughed. "I think you would find yourself six feet under by now."
"Or stuck with a fork...." Yami added.
They looked at each other and burst out laughing again.
"I love you, man!" Joey said as Yami nodded.
"Me too," Yami said as they high-fived each other.
"HEY!" Tristan yelled as him, Yugi, Serenity, Mai, and Tea walked in.
Joey smiled and sat up in bed. "AWW! Group hug!"
Everyone chuckled and huddled around Joey's bed. Tea looked over to see Yami looking over to her. He smiled and put an arm around her waist. Tea was surprised at first, but smiled and put her head on his shoulder.
'I think everything is going to be okay from now on....'
They both thought at the same time as they listened to Joey talk about how this hot nurse was about to give him a sponge bath when her shift was over and an old bag gave him one instead.
"Oooohhh! So did you get down and dirty with granny?" Tristan said as Joey threw a pillow at him.
"Don't make me stick you with a fork!" Joey yelled.
Everyone laughed and shook their heads at the two.
~To be continued.........~
I was inspired to write this chapter by the Smallville Soundtrack, hence the chapter title. *wink* Anyway, should the next chappie be the last? Just wondering!