Lu: Hello again! Next chappie is coming up! Isn't this fun?
Yami Lu: Err... no.
Lu: Well, you don't count. Anyway, read!
Chapter 9 – Mai or Mum?
They were soon at the hospital, and Joey was taken off with Serenity. "Cause?" asked one doctor.
"Umm... a fall," lied Serenity.
"OK, we'll see what we can do," said the doctor. Serenity nodded, and returned to the waiting room where Yugi and Mai were sitting patiently, and Kaiba leaning against the wall with his arms crossed and an 'I-really- couldn't-care-less' look on his face. Yugi stood up and went to Serenity.
"How is he?" he asked.
"Not too good," she said sadly. "The doctor says they'll have to keep him overnight."
"Hey, did you notice how he looked like he was lying when he said he didn't know how he got to Kaiba's house?" said Yugi quietly.
"Yeah. I reckon he knows exactly how he got back, he just doesn't want to tell us," whispered Serenity.
"OK, I'll ask him later," said Yugi. Serenity nodded. Kaiba approached them.
"Umm... Serenity, umm... I was wondering if you would like to spend the night... 'cause, you know, my house is closest to here and all..." he said, his cheeks burning. Serenity smiled.
"That would be nice," she said. Yugi looked from Kaiba to Serenity, and walked off to join Mai. He felt he wasn't needed in that conversation anymore. Serenity and Kaiba didn't notice. They simply stared at each other with small smiles on their faces.
"I don't know what's going on between those two, so I think it's best if I step away," he sighed, plonking himself on the seat next to Mai. Mai nodded.
"I'm really sorry, Yugi, I've got to go. I promised my mum I'd be back an hour ago," she said, standing up. Yugi stood up with her.
"I better ring Grandpa and tell him where I am," he said. "Bye Mai."
"Say sorry to Joey for me!" she called as she walked out the door. Yugi rang his grandfather, and then went back to sitting patiently. A doctor came out of the ward.
"How is he?" asked Yugi.
"We'll have to keep him overnight, and he'll have to have stitches on his leg. He'll probably have crutches for a week," said the doctor.
"Can we go and see him?" asked Yugi.
"Anytime," said the doctor cheerfully. Yugi disturbed Serenity and Kaiba, who were still staring at each other.
"The doctor says we can say hello to Joey now," he said.
"Huh?" said Serenity, tearing her eyes away from Kaiba.
"You can say hi to your brother," said Yugi shortly. Serenity's smile widened. She entered the ward, steps light. Joey was staring blankly off into space, but smiled as he saw her.
"Hey sis," he said.
"How are you? What did the doctors say about everything?" she asked anxiously.
"I'm OK. The doctors said dat I have to stay here overnight, and I have to have stitches in my legs. So I'll be on crutches for a little bit of next week," he said, sighing.
"Well, it's better than people asking questions," said Serenity. Joey nodded.
"Hey, Joey, I've gotta ask you something. How did you get from our house to Kaiba's mansion? And don't say I don't know. I know you do," she said as Joey opened his mouth. He closed it again, thought for a moment and then sighed.
"Fine. He didn't actually hurt my leg at home. He did hurt my face, but not my leg. I went back to de mansion. And den, while you and Kaiba and Mokuba were out, he came. I think he told de security dat he was pickin' us up. He came in, found me sleepin', and den he started shoutin' at me. He asked me what I was doin' dere. I told him I was at a friend's house. He said dat I was weak to have friends. I said friends are what give me my strength. He said you only need yourself to be strong. I asked him why he married mum den. He... he said he did it for de money. I said women are more dan dat. He said dat women are dere to marry, take their money and divorce. I started shouting at him saying dat Mai's more dan dat... I mean, mum's more dan dat. He grabbed de closest thing at threw it at me. I shut up. He continued to chuck stuff at me, taking it randomly out of de drawers. Eventually he found a knife in one of de drawers, and started advancin' on me. I tried to kick it, but he managed to cut my leg. Den one of de security guards came in, wonderin' what all de shoutin' was about. He stopped dad, and escorted him off de grounds. I thanked him, and pleaded with him not to tell anyone. Happy now?" he said. Serenity stared wide-eyed at him.
"Why did you say Mai instead of mum?" she said suddenly, in a curious voice.
"Well... Mai kinda entered the conversation at one point," he said evasively.
"You like Mai don't you?" Serenity said, a small smile spreading across her face.
"No!" he said quickly. Yugi came in, followed by Kaiba.
"Hey Joey! How are you?" said Yugi in a falsely cheerful voice. Serenity turned around, and Joey mouthed 'Thanks Yuge'.
"OK," he said out loud. Kaiba cleared his throat.
"We heard the whole conversation. I apologise for the lack of security at the mansion. I shall see to it that we get upgrades. And also, it is fairly obvious you like Mai, so don't deny it," he said with a smirk. Joey blushed furiously.
"Is it really dat obvious?" he said desperately. Everyone nodded. Joey groaned.
"It's pretty obvious she likes you too though," said Yugi.
"You think so?" said Joey thoughtfully.
"Joey, you need only look at today to see that. The moment she saw you were hurt it was all 'Do this' and 'Do that'. She wouldn't even let your own sister sit with you, because she wanted to. She's never like that unless you're hurt. Remember when she had the Shadow Duel with Marik, and she lost her memories? She was depressed when she lost Tea's memory, but she was in tears when she lost you," said Yugi.
"And then, when Marik paralysed you, she immediately asked what he did to you, rather than try and protect herself. She cares about you a lot, Joey," said Serenity. Everyone looked at Kaiba. He remained silent, wondering what the hell they were looking at him for.
"Serenity, we better get moving. I don't trust Ryou, Tristan and Tea at my house," he said. Joey looked from Kaiba to Serenity.
"You're goin' home with him?" he asked. Serenity nodded.
"It's better than going home, plus, it's the closest to the hospital," she said.
Joey grunted. "Whatever." Serenity waved goodbye and ran over to Kaiba. They walked out side by side. Yugi stared after them.
"What is it with those two?" he asked.
"What do you mean?" said Joey suspiciously. Yugi realised what he'd said.
"Nothing," he said quickly. "Anyway, I better get home to Grandpa. I told him I'd be back soon. I'll come and see you tomorrow after school."
"Wait, Yuge!" shouted Joey. Yugi turned around. "Thanks for everythin'. And if you see Kaiba, thank him too. Thank everyone. I know it must be really irritatin' for everyone, havin' me and Serenity around all de time. But we really appreciate it. I don't believe what my dad said. Friends are all dat I have worth livin' for," he said bitterly. Yugi approached him.
"There are plenty of things worth living for, Joey. Your sister. Yes, your friends. What about Mai? What would she have done if you hadn't protected her?" he said sternly, grabbing Joey by the shoulders. Joey stared at him.
"I... I don't know," he stammered.
"Joey, you have lots of things worth living for. Don't forget it," said Yugi, smiling slightly. Joey nodded. Yugi turned around and walked out, leaving Joey to think about everything that had happened.
Lu: I'm running out of things to write. Oh well!
Yami Lu: You're sad. Really sad.
Lu: Whatever. Review!