Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh!
CHAPTER 18: First Kiss
Mai and Téa gulped as Serenity absentmindedly placed a bowl of "salad" in front of each of them. If they hadn't been too befuddled with Serenity's behavior, they would have punished her so harshly she wouldn't be able to see the light of day for weeks. But, watching their usually expert of a cook stepsister put interesting ingredients into salad, they were quite confused. Serenity placed the last bowl in front of her own seat, grabbed her fork, and started eating. Mai and Téa gaped.
"Should we tell her or should we eat it?" Mai asked carefully, eyeing Serenity. The girl didn't seem to notice she was putting turnips and cottage cheese in her mouth drenched in cooking oil.
"Um…it can't be that bad… of course… I wouldn't have turnips if you paid me… but, I can eat the other things. And cheese is good for bones… that's good for dancing." Mai nodded reluctantly and grabbed the fork like it was a time bomb. Tea did the same. Serenity kept eating like she was a preprogrammed machine.
You entered the contest for the sole purpose of just wanting to rub it in his face that you won, and now you've toyed with so many lives.
Four, it was just four.
That's a lot… compared the number of people you know…
I don't know them that well…
See… that's another reason… he's the prince for goodness sakes.
So, what do you want me to do? Huh?
Apologize. The more you try to keep it a secret, the worse you are going to make it. At least… you can rub it in his face? Tell the truth…
That'll make it worse! Right now his heart is broken because he thinks that girl is gone, but then I'll break his heart because he'll know she doesn't exist…
…and… you can prove he fell in love with a simple Deck of cards. Either way, it is in your best interest.
So… you want me to go to the castle, ring the bell, and just walk in like I'm a welcome guest.
My dear Serenity… have you learned nothing? How many times have you accidentally or intentionally bumped into Seto in your lifetime?
A lot more times than necessary…
Exactly. You'll bump into him again, in all likelihood, so just apologize.
All right… Suddenly, the mental conversation stopped and Serenity came out of her reverie. For a moment, she reminded herself on what she had to do. Before she could piece together anything else, a strangely bitter yet sour and highly rancid taste filled her mouth. She coughed and sputtered and choked. It felt like she had been hit by a truck and was coughing up blood… it even tasted like blood.
"You're alive!" Téa said sarcastically. She was in a very bad mood. Next to her, Mai was drinking her fifth glass of water to wash out the horrible taste on her tongue, but it still was faintly there. Serenity raked through the contents of her "salad" and raised her eyebrows.
"How many spices did I empty in here? Why are there turnips… for goodness sake, these eggs aren't cooked!" Serenity looked up at Mai and Téa with a horrified expression. The look they gave her back sealed her fate.
………
"Don't even think about coming back into this house until morning, you hear? You are sleeping outside for the next five days!" Serenity winced as the back door literally slammed shut on her face. After listening to their yelling and screaming and any other negative things, Serenity had been put to work so hard that even the mop, duster, and the broom complained when she was done. Then, after not being allowed dinner – poor Serenity, not having proper food for over twenty-four hours – she had been thrown out of the house for the night.
Serenity didn't blame her sisters. She blamed herself. It had been her foolish decision to act like a child and go to a Tournament for the pleasure of defeating Seto while still expecting to escape the consequences without hurting the world. Then, she had even assumed she would get away with hurting somebody and not telling the truth. All for the pleasure of victory… winning wasn't everything…
But… I wasn't "pleasured" while defeating Seto… I suffered… Serenity had tried to convince herself that way, but it hadn't worked. So did Seto… remember? But you, on the other hand, came out victorious and that made your situation much better… Maybe Serenity's conscience was a lawyer… it always had a way to counter any attempt Serenity made.
Serenity wrapped her arms around herself and walked around. It was pretty cold, and the thin cotton dress wasn't helping much. It had elbow-length sleeves and extended way past her toes. Plus, its pitch-black color made her blend in with the night sky.
After spending a few minutes randomly walking around the backyard, Serenity proceeded to leave her property entirely and walk to the park. She had been to the park several times as a child, before her parents had died and she had gone to live with the Kaibas. The only real memories she had of her childhood were the few park trips. None of the other memories were really worth being fond of. Her parents had always been fighting, and even though they always ended up patching up for a few days, another big disagreement would start up.
Serenity tried not to depress herself, but she didn't need to worry because she was already depressed about hurting Seto. Serenity's childhood wasn't the happiest story in the world. At least once a week, her parents got into a fight. Often, her mother left for a few weeks and didn't come back until a while. Then, they would get over it and go on until the next argument.
Even though Serenity never felt quite able to spend time with them, she still loved her parents. Unfortunately, they had been snatched from her in a terrible accident she had dreamed. It was still entirely vivid in her mind.
A streak of lightning suddenly hit the tree nearest to them. Thunder roared and the horses whinnied. Blindly, they dashed about.
"AH!" Mrs. Wheeler screamed. The driver couldn't stop the horses. Her husband wrapped his arms around her. Suddenly, the bar holding the horses snapped. One side fell and the other followed. The carriage bounced off the road and tumbled down the steep side. The carriage turned over several times. Mrs. Wheeler fell out of it somehow and came to a stop as she hit a boulder. Mr. Wheeler and the carriage kept going until they finally fell into the river.
"MA'AM!" the driver cried as he raced to the woman's side. There was a deep gash on her head and the rain was starting to make the blood flow down the side of her head.
"Serenity…" she whispered "Joey…" She closed her eyes and breathed no more.
Serenity grimaced, remembering. That memory she could never quite get rid of. It was still fresh in her mind, and everything that had happened before and after was so hazy, as if that one dream had been cut out like a piece of pie. Serenity remembered she went to Gozaburo Kaiba's house, but before that she had been somewhere. Somewhere she felt she had went to recently, but couldn't quite remember.
Tripping over a large root, Serenity's thoughts were shattered. She had reached the park. As expected at ten in the night, it was empty, lamps still blanketing the area in yellow light. No… not empty… a person was sitting in one of the purple benches in the middle. A tall, very handsome person…
Leave it to destiny to somehow miraculously drag Seto out of his castle so he can be coincidentally wherever I am. Serenity's heart quickened a little. This was the perfect opportunity for her to tell the truth. She could finish everything tonight. She had been kicked out of her own house… nothing could get worse then that.
"Hello?" Seto turned and squinted at her. Serenity's heart fluttered with nervousness. She was actually going to tell him! In a matter of moments, it would all be over.
"What are you doing here?" he asked. Keep calm. I can't believe it! Just one day ago, I was at the ball so nervous that I might not beat Seto… and now I'm here so nervous because I did…
"Nothing much, I just messed up on cooking lunch and got kicked out for the night…" Seto smirked.
"Smart…"
"Totally…" Serenity walked over and sat next to Seto. They both sat straight ahead, not even looking at each other. Seto had an arm on the back of the bench, and Serenity could feel his hand almost touching her hair. She took a deep breath.
"I have to tell you something…"
"Hm? Funny… so do I…"
"You first…"
"You first…"
"Come on Seto…" A brief silence followed and a few crickets chirped.
"Okay… I just wanted to apologize." Serenity raised her eyebrows. He wants to apologize… wait… this isn't how it's supposed to work… "I realize I have been a bit of a jerk and all and it kind of made a rift between us. Hope you don't really hate me for it. After all, to tell you the truth, I don't really think I like that Shizuka girl. You're right. I don't even know her." Has he finally seen the light? What is up with him?
"Are you possessed?"
"Possessed? No, I'm obsessed."
"Obsessed?"
"Infatuated… smitten…besotted…" This is weird. I came here to apologize to him and he apologizes to me. And… he's saying weird things and I don't think he is in his proper, jerkish mind.
"With what?" Serenity looked at him with raised eyebrows. He looked down at her, glossing over her illuminated features and contrasting auburn hair. He grinned back… yes, grinned back. For once, he actually looked like a kid. Serenity had to admit he was really attractive when the light shined on him in a peculiar way… both spiritually and physically.
"Are you okay Se-" Serenity didn't get to finish her question because before she knew it, Seto had his arms around her waist and his lips over hers. Serenity was not expecting this, but she kissed him back anyways. No girl would ever miss this chance she had, even if they tried to convince themselves they hated him beyond description. Serenity didn't necessarily hate him any longer…
After a few minutes, Serenity finally pulled away. The shock of being kissed by him turned her words into jelly before she could quite process them.
"What was that for?" she asked incredulously. Smooth, Serenity, be smooth.
"I don't know Serenity," Seto replied sarcastically. For a few minutes, they sat staring at each other.
"That was too short…" Serenity remarked under her breath, but Seto heard. He smirked at her and she blushed.
"Anyway," she continued, jumping up from her seat. "I think I have to go home now. No doubt my sisters will wake me early, good night!"
"Good night." Seto took both her hands and pulled her down for another kiss. Even after a few seconds, he didn't let her pull away. Serenity gave up and sat back down on his knee, arms wrapped tightly around his waist, kissing him like the sun wouldn't come up the next day.
………
The sun did come up the next day, in fact. Serenity was the first to wake up, luckily before anyone came to the park and discover her lying on top of Prince Seto. She looked around and panicked. If her sisters found out…
"Seto!! Wake up!! Lazy head!" Serenity shook him until he moaned and his eyes fluttered open. "What the…" he trailed off as Serenity lightly kissed his lips.
"Good morning sweetie. Rise and shine cause the sun already did and we're in the middle of a park for goodness sakes! If anyone sees us we will have a hell of a time explaining ourselves…"
"Ow! My head hurts. That's what I get for not sleeping on a pillow…"
"You're as picky as Mai… Mai!" Serenity gasped. "She will kill me if I'm not home!" Serenity didn't wait for Seto to say anything. She dashed off towards her mansion.
"I guess my parents might be a little panicking by now. Nah… my mother wouldn't be that worried…" He tried to imagine what his mother might do…
………
"HE'S GONE!" A screech erupted from Seto's room. Pegasus and Mokuba hurried in to see Cecilia freaking out.
"What happened?"
"Seto's gone! Someone has kidnapped him!"
"OH NO! Hurry, we must send our soldiers!"
"Hurry! Before they do something horrible to him!"
"Send soldiers to all the neighboring kingdoms as well. Question every civilian! Make sure our dear Seto is safe and sound!"
………
"One the other hand…" Seto thought. "I'll just head home too…"