CHAPTER FOUR
"Only the dead have seen the end of war." – Plato
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Once we're actually a good distance from the school, Kaiba pulls out his cell phone again. Flipping it open, he starts punching in a number I can't identify. Without even blinking, he starts speaking so professionally it's like he's been brainwashed, or something.
"Is this Domino High? Kaiba Seto speaking. I would like to request permission to return home for the rest of the day. Yugi Mutou will be joining me."
Woah. Like the nasty secretary Ms. Komogodo is gonna fall for that one.
"It's a family emergency. Yes, I am aware that Yugi Mutou is not a member of my immediate family, but this...concerns him also."
Concerns ME? Do I even wanna know why? Or is that some excuse for me to come along? With Kaiba, it could be anything.
"What do you mean 'what is the emergency'? You have no right to know!" He snaps at her, and then his lips press together and form a really thin line.
"Yes. Yes, I – I understand. We may or may not return tomorrow. It depends. Yes. Thank you." Kaiba then hangs up, and his lips un-press. He takes a really deep sigh as we round a corner onto the main road. We've been walking for twenty minutes already in the pouring rain, only it's not so bad now. Not so hard.
After several more intersections, Kaiba makes a right onto some street that I've never heard of. But he looks like he knows where he's going. I don't bother to question him. What's the point? I mean, if this is the Kaiba I've observed and heard about, no one questions him. No one. So we continue on in silence, finally ending up in one of the nice neighborhoods near Domino Park. Mr. Gloomy turns right onto another street, and we end up in a street full of relatively nice houses.
I know for a fact that this isn't where Kaiba lives.
After a minute of walking down suburbia, Kaiba suddenly stops in front of one of the houses. It looks like nobody is living in it, but the front lawn has been kept nice. Kaiba walks up to the front door and starts digging around in a small potted plant next to the door. He seems to be looking for something, but what he would need buried in potted plant topsoil is beyond me.
I stand there, feeling very awkward because I know this is personal and it's like I'm intruding.
Finally, after what seems like hours (but which is really only more like thirty seconds or so), Kaiba finds what he was looking for.
Turns out it was a key.
He takes the key and inserts it into the keyhole of the front door. Jerking it hard to the left so it goes all the way around in the lock, the lock clicks and the door opens.
Kaiba walks into the house and calls behind him,
"Old house. I lived here until I was about ten. Come in, I'll get dry clothes for us and then we need to head out."
I step in, and look around to see the saddest sight I've ever seen.
---
"Only the dead have seen the end of war." – Plato
---
Once we're actually a good distance from the school, Kaiba pulls out his cell phone again. Flipping it open, he starts punching in a number I can't identify. Without even blinking, he starts speaking so professionally it's like he's been brainwashed, or something.
"Is this Domino High? Kaiba Seto speaking. I would like to request permission to return home for the rest of the day. Yugi Mutou will be joining me."
Woah. Like the nasty secretary Ms. Komogodo is gonna fall for that one.
"It's a family emergency. Yes, I am aware that Yugi Mutou is not a member of my immediate family, but this...concerns him also."
Concerns ME? Do I even wanna know why? Or is that some excuse for me to come along? With Kaiba, it could be anything.
"What do you mean 'what is the emergency'? You have no right to know!" He snaps at her, and then his lips press together and form a really thin line.
"Yes. Yes, I – I understand. We may or may not return tomorrow. It depends. Yes. Thank you." Kaiba then hangs up, and his lips un-press. He takes a really deep sigh as we round a corner onto the main road. We've been walking for twenty minutes already in the pouring rain, only it's not so bad now. Not so hard.
After several more intersections, Kaiba makes a right onto some street that I've never heard of. But he looks like he knows where he's going. I don't bother to question him. What's the point? I mean, if this is the Kaiba I've observed and heard about, no one questions him. No one. So we continue on in silence, finally ending up in one of the nice neighborhoods near Domino Park. Mr. Gloomy turns right onto another street, and we end up in a street full of relatively nice houses.
I know for a fact that this isn't where Kaiba lives.
After a minute of walking down suburbia, Kaiba suddenly stops in front of one of the houses. It looks like nobody is living in it, but the front lawn has been kept nice. Kaiba walks up to the front door and starts digging around in a small potted plant next to the door. He seems to be looking for something, but what he would need buried in potted plant topsoil is beyond me.
I stand there, feeling very awkward because I know this is personal and it's like I'm intruding.
Finally, after what seems like hours (but which is really only more like thirty seconds or so), Kaiba finds what he was looking for.
Turns out it was a key.
He takes the key and inserts it into the keyhole of the front door. Jerking it hard to the left so it goes all the way around in the lock, the lock clicks and the door opens.
Kaiba walks into the house and calls behind him,
"Old house. I lived here until I was about ten. Come in, I'll get dry clothes for us and then we need to head out."
I step in, and look around to see the saddest sight I've ever seen.
---