Hello, everyone! Welcome to another chapter! I'm so glad to see that everyone is enjoying this story! Thank you so much to everyone who is taking the time to give this story a chance! Luvs you all lots! This story is a gift to Jade546! I don't own rights to Yu-Gi-Oh! 5Ds but I do own this Fic! Enjoy!

Author's Warning: This chapter will be rated K+-M for adult themes and language! You have been warned!

Dangerous Intersection

"It's not midnight yet," Yusei murmured, unable to tear his eyes away from hers. "Akiza, I've been wanting to tell you this for a long time now." His hand rose and brushed her cheek with his fingers as he began to lean closer. Her eyes drifted closed as his lips lightly pressed against the small space between her eyes, sending a jolt of electricity through their bodies. He whispered her name as his nose brushed her own as he nuzzled her affectionately. Her hands rose from the bed and rested against his chest as he in turn pulled her closer. "I thought you were beautiful when I first met you, but damn, Aki, you took my breath away when you pulled up the other night. You are an amazing girl and I can't imagine my life without you."

"Yusei," she gasped as he gently kissed the tip of her nose. "I can't begin to tell you what you mean to me. You saved me from myself and I can't ever repay you enough." Her eyes opened as his hands cupped her face and he rested his forehead against her own. "You put your own life on the line in order to reach the true me during the tournament and then you put it on the line again when I came out of the coma like a raging storm. I just wish that we had met sooner on, before I joined the Arcadia Movement..." She leaned into his chest as her arms snaked around his neck and buried her face in his tee in an attempt to hide her watering eyes.

"But look at where we are right now." He tightened his hold around her briefly before holding her at arm's length. "You are a strong, independent woman who has grown to be the most beautiful rose in the world." A smile pulled at the corners of his lips as a pink tinge entered her cheeks, and he gently cupped her chin in his hand when she moved to turn away. "Akiza, please don't hide your face from me, from the one who lo-"

His words were cut off by a light tune of harp notes, causing Akiza's head to droop but not before a look of despair overcame her features. She internally cursed as she stood and walked to the bedroom door saying that she would be back in a moment then closed it. Star and Bullet appeared at her sides as she descended the staircase, sensing her tension. Her eyes darkened as she glanced through the peephole and spotted someone standing under the motion-activated light that illuminated the porch. "How many times do I have to tell you that 'No' means 'no'?" she huffed, opening the door and facing the man.

He was a couple inches taller than herself with golden blonde hair that was military length with a single thin braid at the back of his neck and a five-o'clock shadow. Dressed in black jeans and a dark purple button up shirt and a customized duel runner parked near the porch ramp, he was actually quite handsome while leaning against the banister. "Akiza, there you are," he flashed his perfect white teeth as she opened the door. His thick Russian accent often pulled people to him, but it seemed to repel the woman in front of him. "I was coming by to make sure that my precious rose was safe after what I've heard about a rogue duelist dueling any poor soul out at this hour."

"As you can see, Darwin, I'm not out and about." She crossed her arms, leaning against the door frame. Her tone was tight and dripped with distaste when his name left her lips. A tick mark appeared on her forehead as he proceeded to call her various flowers and such, and it didn't help that this man had interrupted her time with Yusei. Stepping out under the light, she gently closed the door behind her then spun to face him. "Cut to the chase. I have guests to entertain tomorrow, so if you don't mind me being frank I want you to tell me why you are here at such a late hour." She visibly stiffened as he suddenly drew her close, her nose filling with his suffocating menthol based cologne.

"Can't I stop by and see my girlfriend?"

She shoved him away, anger radiating from her being. "You know I never agreed to become your girlfriend, not when you asked me when I moved here four years ago and nothing has changed! My answer is still 'no'!"

His hand latched around her wrist, causing her to flinch. "Don't be such a stick in the mud, Rose." He sent her reeling towards the ramp with a quick tug and his lips lifted into a smirk as she collided with the banister. He smirked as anger and determination entered her caramel orbs, saying that he so enjoyed when she refused to bend under his will as his other toys had. His lips fell into a frown as hands grabbed him from behind and literally threw him over the banister. "Who the hell are you?!" he all but shouted at the three figures that had appeared and three pairs of eyes blazed brightly with anger.

Yusei and Crow were kneeling next to Akiza while Jack was standing next to Darwin's duel runner, their eyes darkening when Yusei discovered a growing lump on the back of her head and bruises began to appear on her wrist. "You've got a lot of nerve, treating Akiza like that," Crow smirked, glancing in the fallen man's direction. "That or you're just plain stupid."

Darwin stood and moved to shove past them to get to Akiza. "Who do you think you three are?!" He grunted as Jack and Crow grabbed him by his shirt. A string of Russian words sprung from his lips as he looked to each in turn, receiving confused expressions. "Do not keep me from what is rightfully mine!"

"She doesn't belong to anyone," Yusei growled, his jaw tighter than a guitar string. "and she'll never be with someone who is as self-centered and abusive as you!" Akiza's eyes widened at his words and protested as he instructed them to take her inside. His eyes briefly met hers before he handed her off to Crow then turned to face Darwin as Jack ushered the other two into that house.

"I'd say the bloke was looking to be put in his place." Jack snarled, narrowing his eyes as Darwin moved to stop them but fell back as Yusei grabbed his shoulder. "Yus, don't hold anything back."

He glanced towards Akiza as her worried face appeared in the doorway briefly and sent her an assuring smile. His sapphire orbs found her caramel, softening slightly. "I can't just stand by as someone raises a hand to you. You are precious to me, Akiza, and I won't stand for anyone to treat you with anything less than the up-most respect." And the door closed. He turned his attention to Darwin as his hand was smacked away. "Listen, this can go one of two ways."

...

Akiza flinched as Crow applied medicine to the lump. "How about you tell us about that duelist," Jack sat on the bar stool next to her. "For instance, why was he here? And why was he treating you so poorly?"

"At first he just wanted to duel me," she sighed, running a hand through her hair. "and when I beat him, he insisted that we became a thing. I turned him down and he's been dropping by at late hours ever since. No matter how many times I turn him down, he always shows up again. I've threatened to call the police on him but he always told me that they would never listen to someone like me-" Her words halted as Crow suddenly grabbed her shoulders and forced her to look him in the eye.

His eyes were tight and angry. "You know that I work for Security! You could have just called me, or anyone one of us and we would have helped you out!"

"And drag you into this mess?! I didn't want any of you to get involved! I wanted to prove that I could handle things myself!" She shook him off and stood. "I'm not the same Akiza you knew, the one who needed to be protected and coddled like a glass rose. I'm not going to shatter at the slightest touch!"

"We never said that! We're friends though, and friends look out for each other, right?" Crow sighed, running his hands through his hair then took a deep breath. She blinked at the softer tone he used and was surprised to see Jack nod in agreement. "We care about you, Akiza, especially Yusei. If you expected him to not do anything while people like Darwin treat you like that then you might want to think back to how he saved you. To be honest, he saved us all. I think you've been so caught up in trying to become a stronger person that you never noticed the distance that you were putting between yourself and the people around you. We've all been worried about you and when you send vague emails or messages, what are we supposed to think?"

Her shoulders slumped as she fell back onto the bar stool, tears trickling down her cheeks. She had been trying so hard to deal with everything on her own that she had forgotten what it was like to have people behind her. Her parents loved and supported her, she knew that, but she couldn't remember the last time she had opened up and looked at herself. The sound of the door closing caught her attention and she raised her head as Yusei appeared next to her, asking if she was alright. She shook her head. "No, I'm not, and it's time that I told you everything that has happened in the past four years."

"You don't have to tell us things you don't want to," Yusei said as he sat on her other side and Crow nodded. "We won't pressure you into telling anything. We only want to help our friend."

"But I owe you explanations when I-"

"You don't owe us anything," Jack moved to stand before her, crossing his arms. "This is the only time I'm saying this so don't expect to hear this from me again: the next time you invite us up out of the blue after not talking to us for more than a month, we will decline. Understand?" Too dazed by his words, she could only nod. "Good, now I think it's time for some sleep." And with that, he turned and disappeared up the stairs.

"We care about you, Akiza," Crow whispered, hugging her briefly before following the blonde. "We just want you to know that we're here for you."

She hesitantly looked to Yusei, who wore a stoic expression. "Is that how you feel?"

He gently took her hands into his and rubbed them with his thumbs. "I just want you to know that I'm here for you, no matter what. Just promise me that next time something like this happens that you'll come to us, to me." His eyes widened as she leaned forward, her arms moving around his waist as she buried her face in his shirt. "Akiza?"

"I'm sorry..." she sniffed, squeezing him tightly. "I'm sorry that I didn't keep in touch, I'm sorry that I didn't tell you about Darwin, I'm sorry that I distanced myself from you all..." Her words faded into quiet sobs as he began to rub her back comfortingly and felt her body relax. After a few minutes, she pulled away and wiped her face clean with a tissue. "So what happened out there?" If she didn't know any better she would have said that Yusei smirked.

"Let's just say that I gave him a chance to walk away and he decided to do it the hard way," he scratched the back of his head as he glanced towards the front door. "Which reminds me, I will be fixing your front banister."

"You fought him?!" she gaped. Yusei had never envisioned him to be the physical type nor one to fight another for.

He shook his head. "In a fight, both parties are trying take out the other. He was just trying to get back inside while I was repaying him the damage he inflicted on you. I overheard you tell Jack and Crow that this has been going on since you moved here, so I decided to cash out in full."

"Who knew you could be so scary," she teased, shivering as he sent her a look that sent shivers down her spine. "I really am sorry for not telling you three about him, about everything..."

His fingers gently tilted her chin upward so that his orbs bore into her own. "Can you promise to not hide anything from us from now on?" She nodded and he engulfed her in a hug. "No more secrets, Akiza, at least between us." He kissed the top of her head before pulling away and standing, saying that they should try to get some sleep. A blush crept into his cheeks as she paused at the entrance to her room, asking about what he was going to say before they were interrupted. "Oh that..."

He unconsciously turned his head towards the side, but slowly turned to face her as she gently turned him so they were face to face. "Don't hide your face from me, Yusei," she winked, rising to her tiptoes so that her lips brushed his ear. "Not from the one who loves you."

His eyes widened at her words, suppressing a small groan at the feeling of her soft lips against his ear. Was she saying that she- "You know how I feel about you, Aki, so please tell me that you're serious" Yusei leaned against her door frame, desperation in his voice. "You know I love you."

Her face flushed a bright red at his words and the sound of the grandmother clock in the living room began to chime. "Would you look at that? I guess that means I win." She bit her lip as a look of disbelief overcame his features. "Since I win, I get to make a request. Yusei Fudo, I want you to ask me out on a date."

Well? What do you guys think? Let me know in the comments! Xoxxoxoxo!