Guardians

Note: Okay, so, we've got a situation on our hands… Seto loves Karmina, Karmina loves Seto, and Karmina's staying at Joey's house, and Seto hates his guts… what's gonna come of it? For those of you who think Joey might end up being a seductive creep, I have to say that I'm one of his biggest fangirls, and wouldn't want that to happen, but I tend to get caught up in the story and the point of view of my chosen romancer. If this was a Joey romance, Kaiba'd be a seductive creep. I'm gonna try and keep a rein on this and make Joey more realistic. Review!

Chapter Twenty-Eight: Amusement Park

She took to the game amazingly well, earning the pride of Yugi, Yugi's grandpa, and Joey. They watched in awe as she went from not having a single clue to whooping Joey in less than five minutes.

"How da heck do ya learn dat fast?" Joey asked her, dumbstruck.

"I d-don't know…" she trailed, thinking hard. She knew that Seto liked this game, and she knew that he was very good. So, what did that make her feel? Nothing. She seemed to be numb.

"Ya beat me twenty times, and ya even beat Yugi!"

She gave a little shrug. Why was he still giving her that look? How did that make her feel? She did feel something; anger. But not at Joey, at Seto. And what would hurt him, if he still cared about her? Seeing her with Joey.

Yes, she was angry, and she was hostile. She wanted revenge. She didn't want to sink back into her old life. She wanted to have fun, to have a life. But the memory of Seto was holding her back, and she couldn't move on.

He never loved me… so why does it hurt so much, like I've lost him? And why can't I go back to liking Joey?

She heard Joey suggesting that they go and have lunch, and she nodded dumbly. She didn't really care what she ate, what she said, or what she did. Although it wouldn't be bad if it happened to hurt Seto in the process. He'd been mean to her, and she shouldn't sit back and take it. She was always sitting back and letting the world whisk her wherever it pleased, and it was getting annoying.

Joey was still talking, now asking her what she wanted from the restaurant. She didn't even look at the menu. "Just order me something," she snapped, suddenly feeling like a very bad girl.

He shrugged and ordered her a very large taco, which she barely even saw. Something inside her had finally snapped. Everything was catching up to her. She didn't have a home, and was living with Joey Wheeler, the nemesis of the one she loved, and who'd broken her heart. This situation wasn't one she'd have picked a week ago, sitting in the garden with Seto. Then, she'd have chosen to kiss him. And maybe, just maybe, if she had, things would be different.

She ate the taco in about three bites and resumed her undisturbed (except by Joey's constant talking) thought.

"Well, we've got da day to ourselves. Whaddaya wanna do?"

"I don't know." She heaved a deep sigh and tried to put the sudden thirst for revenge out of her mind. She didn't like the idea of being a cruel, vengeful person very much. "I h-haven't actually… been able… to d-do much of anything… ever," she told him truthfully.

He regarded her with a strange look on his usually carefree face, and then beamed. "Well, den, I don't have much ta beat, do I?"

She offered a wry smile. "No… no, I guess not…" She was taken back, yet again, to a fragrant garden just before an earthquake, where she was quite sure she'd almost gotten her first kiss.

He cocked his head, which even the broken hearted Karmina had to admit made him look cute, and grinned. "Theme park it is, den," he said, to her horror.

"Wh-what? Theme p-park?"

He grinned again and grabbed her arm. She turned pink, but didn't have a lot of time to dwell on it. In no time, they were walking down the street, towards a looming park full of rides. She had never before come anywhere near it.

"Um… aren't these th-things really expensive?" she tried nervously.

"I got a season pass, an' I get ta bring a guest free of charge."

"Oh… th-that's great…" Save me.

Joey waved and smiled at the blushing teen working the admissions booth (AN: I doubt this method would work in real life, unless booth worker in question was yours truly!) and the two of them walked in, though one of them was not a happy camper.

"Rolla Costas or da thrill rides first?"

She blinked at him. "D-does it r-really matter?"

He shrugged. "Well, not really… I just thought I'd ask."

She sighed and let him lead the way to a tall, foreboding rollercoaster that had many loop-de-loops and not even Joey could have tempted the author onto. With much joking, teasing, and actual pushing, he did manage to get Karmina onto the roller coaster known as Doom. (AN: Not sure if there are any roller coasters called doom, but if there are, I don't own them.)

She latched onto his arm and refused to let go the entire time, screaming her head off, but clearly excited and happy all the same. The author, meanwhile, sits at her computer unhappy that Joey could not tempt her onto the roller coaster, because she wants to grab his arm and never let go.

"Dat wasn't so bad, was it?"

"No! I kinda liked it!" Her cheeks were flushed from the nippy wind and her hair was strewn slightly haphazardly, but Joey thought she was, if possible, even more beautiful than usual. (AN: Need I add that the author is very jealous?)

"Karmina… I-"


Somehow sensing what he was about to say, she put her finger over his mouth, startling herself as well as him. "D-Don't. Not n-now. N-not after… after… th-that." And not ever.

He shrugged it off and didn't try to mention his feelings for her again, leading her to many rides, including a drop-zone (AN: don't own) like ride, which made her scream louder than Doom, and caused Joey's arm to be purple for two minutes from her cutting off the circulation. He even won her a plush pink bunny (AN: In case you've forgotten, there is an irony here. Got it now?) by ringing the bell on the strength tester. She tried not to think that Seto could probably ring the bell without seven consecutive attempts.

At the very end of the day, they got on the Ferris wheel and stargazed from the top, where they ended up stuck for an hour due to the person operating it falling asleep and nearly drowning in his large latte.

"So, eh… it was nice da first few minutes, but, what's goin' on?"

Karmina shrugged. "I don't know. I th-think the guy r-running it fell asleep and nearly d-drowned in that super huge latte we saw him with."

Joey laughed. "Dat's funny," he noted needlessly, his cheeks turning a light crimson.

She giggled and for a moment felt completely at ease, as if there was no Seto Kaiba, and as if she did not have a speech problem and or nervous habit. "Joey… why do you… like me?"

He jumped a little bit at such a straightforward question, but then grinned. "I thought we weren't gonna talk bout dat."

"Well… we're probably gonna be s-stuck up here for an hour, s-so, we can t-talk about it now."

He sat in silence for a while, presumably thinking, if you can stretch your mind that far. Finally, he opened his mouth to speak, but seemed to find it difficult. "You, eh, probably think dat I never knew who you were before dat day in da park, but I did. You were always so quiet dat everyone seemed ta overlook ya, but I thought your silence was sweet. I took ta watchin' ya from afar and sorta felt like I knew ya after a while. I know your favorite stuff to read is fantasy and romance, at least." He smiled as she turned pink and looked away, then gently pulled her face back to looking into his. "An after dat day, I just knew dat you were different… special, like. An I couldn't stop thinkin' about you… don' think I didn't try… I saw dat look you an' Kaiba exchanged, even in da early days, and I knew what it meant. But in da end, I just couldn't forget ya."

She stared at him, not knowing what to say. Avril was right, you know, everything is confusing. Yikes. And why do I feel so… warm inside? Oh… wow… it's kinda chilly up here… Don't shiver… don't- oh, drat it.

Joey slid even closer to her and put his arm around her. "Better?"

To her astonishment, she found herself saying "Yes" and leaning her head on his shoulder. She half rejoiced at the feeling of being loved, and then this other part of her said; If only Seto Kaiba could see me now, he'd be sorry.

End note: No complaints about the length; you're lucky to get a chapter at all, with the release of Half Blood Prince. I'm off to read! Review!