YUGIOH
Amnesia
Chapter 21.
It was later in the afternoon, when the doorbell rang. Mokuba came to the door and saw Serenity standing there, looking perfectly miserable. Her makeup was streaked or gone, her eyes were red and puffy, and she was standing in the rain, getting soaked........hardly the beauty his brother saw when he first laid eyes on her, in the street that day.
"What do you want? Haven't you done enough to my brother?" Mokuba said to her.
"Please, Mokuba.....I need to talk to him about this." Serenity said.
"He doesn't want to talk to anyone." Mokuba said, beginning to close the door.
Serenity came forward, pushing on the door. "I know why you're brother's miserable now. Please let me try and help him...."
"Why, so you can hurt him again?" Mokuba asked.
"I....I never meant to hurt him. I didn't even know I hurt him. Mokuba, please let me see him." Serenity begged.
Mokuba paused, unsure, but finally let her in, saying, "You wait here....I'll ask him. But if he doesn't want to see you, your leaving!" Serenity shivered there, as he walked away.
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"Seto?", Mokuba asked his brother quietly. He was still being strangely quiet. "Seto....that 'girl' is here to see you. I can tell her to leave if you don't want to see her."
More silence.
Mokuba turned, about to leave, when Kaiba suddenly answered, in his unusually calm tone, "Let her in."
"Seto, are you sure?" Mokuba asked. When no answer came again, he left back to see Serenity.
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"Come on, he's in the bedroom", Mokuba said. "You better not hurt my brother!" He warned her, as he brought her to the bedroom, where he calmly sat. Without another word, Mokuba left.
Serenity cautiously entered the room, and closed the door. She stood there not too far from the door, as she muttered, "Seto, I...."
Finally, the first time since practically all day, Kaiba rose from his chair, and turned sharply to face her. His eyes were like ice, that could chill her to the bone. "The name is Kaiba, and I expect you address me properly. So, why are you here, Wheeler? Come to beg for forgiveness.....too much for your pathetic conscience to handle? A little late for apologies, don't you think?"
"That's not what I came here for!", she cried out in grief. "It....it isn't what you think!"
Seto got it quick, and laughed a cold biting laugh, turning away. "So you came here to lie to me some more. That trick is getting old, Wheeler. Do you think you can honestly come in here, and try to tell me to my face that I 'didn't' see you and that piece of trash Devlin together? If that's the best you can think of, then don't waste my time."
"Damn it, will you just listen!" Serenity spat, , moving closer near him. "I was waiting for you that day, and he showed up. He told me he wanted to be with me, and to leave you. I told him no, but he didn't listen. Before I knew it, he...he kissed me. But I didn't want him to do that. I pushed him away, I wanted nothing to do with him!"
"You certainly didn't seem that uninterested from my view. Infact, you seemed quite content to just stand there." Kaiba accused.
"Well, then maybe if you stayed there an extra minute, you would have seen me push him off!" She cried.
"So how long was I supposed to stand there, seeing him do that to you? Maybe I should have made myself comfortable, and got myself some popcorn while I watched the show!" Kaiba snapped, glancing her way, though never turning around.
Serenity began to cry again, though trying not to. "I....I was surprised he did that, I didn't expect him to do that. So, I hesitated....I didn't know what to do. I never enjoyed one minute of it, I wanted you there, Seto. I...I...."
"Save it!" Kaiba said, turning away, watching out the window. "You're wasting my time."
"We had a date, Seto. You knew I was coming down. Does it make any sense to you that I would do that, knowing that you might show up and see me?" She asked.
"Well, you 'are' related to the mutt." Seto said, making a jab at her brother.
"Don't you talk about my brother that way! He cared for the world for you! You're the only person he ever felt worthy of allowing near his own sister. You have no idea how hurt he was, when he realized what you did. He was in tears, feeling betrayed by you! Does that make you feel better Kaiba, that you made my brother cry??" Serenity said, with some added strength, defending her brother.
Seto said nothing. He silently considered Joey for a moment, feeling a tinge of pain when he again remembered telling Joey that he would do all in his power to make sure not to loose the friends he cared for, no matter what he remembered. Serenity thought she saw a flash of pain show in Kaiba's face, but it quickly faded.
Serenity shook her head, whispering, "What happened to you, Seto? What happened to the man I fell in love with?"
"Oh, I'm sorry....you weren't actually looking for me, were you?" Kaiba suddenly asked, whirling back around at the woman standing before him, who was looking terribly helpless and slightly taken back. "No, you weren't. You were hoping for the naive mindless fool that you and your friends brainwashed some weeks ago. Well, I'm sorry to disappoint you, Wheeler....but I'm back. You're not going to find the same man recklessly throwing his heart in the street for everyone to kick around. Play time is over!", Kaiba replied harshly towards her.
"They were your friends....they all believed in you! There was no reason to take it out on them!" Serenity said.
There was a moment's paused, as Kaiba turned back around. He didn't answer that comment, instead crossing his arms, saying, "If you're finished, you can leave...."
"What can I do to convince you that the things I've been trying to tell you are the truth?" She asked.
"Nothing."
Serenity quieted for a moment, making it dead silent in there, only hearing the noise of the rain dropping down, which never let up all day. "So that's it, then?" She asked. "Instead of taking a chance to trust the people who care for you, you'd rather close your heart up and run away from everyone. I'll tell you something Seto Kaiba, if you think this is the way to be a strong person...you're wrong. Because I don't see a strong man in front of me. I see a man who's afraid....afraid of being hurt. And you're so afraid, you'd be willing to loose the people who really care about you! I love you, Seto....maybe that doesn't mean anything to you anymore, but I still love you." She said, her throat cracked, as she fought back the pain.
Kaiba's eyes twitched......Serenity's words reminding him of the conversation he had with Joey. It was similar to the words he used against Joey, and Joey said back to him. Joey didn't want to believe or trust him with his sister. And he pointed out that Joey was trying so hard not to trust him, that he was willing to throw away a good friend. Joey realized he was doing this out of fear, and took the chance to let him date Serenity, without fighting, and without loosing his friend. The wall cracked, and Serenity could visibly see the pain his eyes. She could barely hear the whisper come out of his mouth, as he said, "He was right...."
The realization that Joey was absolutely right about him hit hard. Joey knew what would be coming, but perhaps he didn't know just how extreme Kaiba's wrath would be. Either way, Joey was absolutely right about him, the reason he didn't want him to date Serenity, because he knew what he would become. 'I am a monster!' Kaiba realized. Even if he didn't push the button, even if he couldn't do it, he still threatened them all.
Serenity slowly got up, seeing the expression on Kaiba's face, hoping she got through to him. She walked around where he was facing, standing close to him, and begged, "Seto.....please don't shut me out."
His eyes slowly looked down at Serenity. He was trying to hide the pain, but no longer could. She approached closer, touching his chest, and he willingly move into her, as they embraced. Kaiba held her close, now shaking himself, as Serenity cried into his shirt. From the doorway, Mokuba opened it a crack, and saw them both together, while hoping she wasn't going to hurt him again.