Kawaii! Three reviews means I can post the next part! YAY! Alright, I warn you, this part is all angsty/romancy/generally icky-type stuff. You'll love it!! =D
Part Fifteen
The light traveled back to the pit/dueling arena and settled there. In a moment, it had morphed into a human shape. Then it faded away. In its place, a feminine figure lay on the ground. Though her back was to him, Seto could see her jet-black hair was sopping wet, and there was a band of cloth tied around her shoulder. His heart jumped into his throat. Anticipation coursed through him faster than his own blood could carry it. The black tank top she wore had a large, long rip on one side. Her pants were caked with mud all the way up to her calf. Exactly as she was imprinted on his memory, and exactly how he had seen her last. He remembered thinking how bad they had looked, muddy and drenched. Now, just as she was, he found that her appearance appealed to him more than any other woman he had ever seen.
As fast as his legs would carry him, he ran up to her and knelt down in front of her sleeping form.
"Delaney," he whispered.
Her eyes slowly opened. She looked up at him with a groggy look. "Seto...?" She sat up a little and looked around. He smiled at her, then turned away for a moment, to wipe away a single tear that streamed down his cheek before she saw it.
"Where are we?" she asked softly.
"You're here with me. Isn't that enough?" he replied.
Delaney smiled, and Seto leaned in and kissed her. Three days of love and loss flowed through him. To have her back with him...it was an emotion that he couldn't even comprehend, let alone try to begin to express. All he could do was kiss her, feel her warmth against his skin, her lips against his. She reached up and put her hand against his cheek. Her touch was so soft, so...reassuring. He almost couldn't stand it. He could hardly stand himself.
In the back of his mind, his automated response system was still trying to stop him. He still had the tiniest feelings that he shouldn't be doing this, that emotion shows weakness.
Weakness be damned. Finally, he pushed the thoughts from his mind entirely. He couldn't stand it any longer. Seto pushed himself on her a little more forcefully, and both of them sank to the ground. He pushed the strap of her tank top off the edge of her shoulder, and then lightly slid his fingers along her collarbone. Delaney drew in a sharp breath, and he felt her chest rise and fall beneath him. Her near presence stirred emotions and produced sensations he didn't even know existed before this. He took her in an embrace, and kept kissing her, with each passing moment more and more force and passion. More than just those three days, but suddenly it seemed as if a lifetime of bitterness was swept away. He could feel nothing- nothing in his mind or heart except the aching love he felt for her. He wanted her. He needed her to be with him.
They pulled apart momentarily, both of their breathing coming closer to panting, and their hearts racing, thundering in their ears.
"Delaney," Seto whispered softly, "there's something I need to tell you..."
Delaney put a finger over his mouth. "It's ok, you don't have to tell me anything."
"I want to tell you this," he said. She looked up at him, pure affections reflecting in her emerald eyes. He stared at her, completely captivated for a long moment. Her eyes, as green as the sea, could drown him in an instant, and he knew it. He had completely lost control of himself, of his mind. The most bizarre thing was that he didn't care. He willingly surrendered himself completely to her power, and he didn't mind in the least. He trusted her with his heart, as he had never done with anyone else. Not even his own brother had so successfully been able to break into the most tender parts of his heart. That privilege he now knew had been saved for the woman he loved, and no one else.
The woman...I love, he thought. But how could he tell her? No words could possibly express the care he held for her. There was no way to put into words what she had done to him. The one who had started as just another girl, had evolved into the one woman that his heart desired.
"Seto...?" Delaney said softly, breaking into his reverie. "You were...going to say something...?"
He gave her a smile warm enough to melt ice on contact. He shook his head. "Nevermind." He knew a better way. Something far more powerful than words. He took her into his arms and kissed her again. Their lips brushed softly at first, but once again the kiss grew in intensity. He could feel her fingers crawl up his side, and then start working out the buttons of his shirt. His hand moved instinctively to the tear in the side of her shirt, where it met with her bare skin. Then he kissed her neck. He could feel her breath catch. She ran her hand through his hair and kissed his cheek. Her touch fired a heat through his body that was a million times more intense than any fury he had ever mustered. His advances on her became more desperate, and he could feel her responses.
Game be damned. Seto knew that what he did then and there could never be forgotten. Though some may argue that it wasn't really his body that partook in such an action, it was all the same to him. The body is merely a vessel for the life force of the mind, and his mind processed every sense and every action. Another loss of self it became, in a certain sense, but it was a part of himself that he was quite willing to be rid of. It would be the last time he would ever remember not having his usual air of confidence and power. Everything he had built himself to be was stripped away in moments, leaving her to see him for the lonely, introverted, awkward teenage boy that he was. He felt himself undeserving of her. She too, seemed the lonely little girl, but to his eyes, to his heart, she was the epitome of beauty and elegance. A creature of angelic grace that had been sent to him from heaven.
Now she slept beside him, her body leaning against his and her head nestled easily in the crux of his shoulder. He was seated upright against the wall, still not quite sure how they had gotten over there. He chuckled a little at the thought. He brushed her hair out of her face and gazed at her. Even asleep, she could rival the splendor of the very stars. His heart soared. For all the magnificent being that she was, she had chosen to give her love to him. Through all his facades of the careless, insensitive, even cruel personas that others found in him, she loved him anyway. He knew it. And he loved her as well. It was a hard fact that could no longer be denied.
So sue me, he thought. He yawned a little. Seto had finally hit the lull after the rush of adrenaline and a cocktail of God-only-knows-how-many OTHER hormones. He put his arm around her and pulled her closer to him, then rested his head gently on top of hers. He could feel her chest rise and fall, and he could still feel the gentle thumping of his own heart. Their rhythms fell into synch with each other, and the rhythm lulled his mind into a deep sleep, but not one without its pleasant dreams of the woman he held at his side.