Disclaimer:
checks ID Nope, still not Takahashi-sensei, and therefore can safely say this is nothing more than a derivative work. The characters belong to Takahashi-sensei. The plot bunny is entirely my fault. The plot ninjas can now be safely blamed on Chloe.
Author's Notes:
I'm sitting on a train to Portland right now. I must say, there is something rather alluring about the gentle rocking of a train, watching the gorgeous Pacific Northwest coastline go by while listening to Eric Stuart sing one of your favorite songs while you plot to do things to one of your favorite characters voiced by Mr. Stuart. Heh. I'm having a good morning, and the sun is barely above the horizon!
I think it's safe to say that my interest level in this story has returned, along with some fun little plot points. I blame Ki Wingz for that! I actually have a page of notes in my planner for this story now, thanks to her. Seriously, it's sitting on top of my backpack, ready to refresh my memory at a moment's notice! Again, not my fault. mischievous grin
At any rate, a brief recap for those (like me) who may not remember the basic story up to this point: Serenity has tranferred to Joey's school and taken a job at a local coffee shop. Kaiba has discovered that Joey's little sister is available for harrassment, but he didn't anticipate that she'd fight back. He's now intrigued and, in a rather out-of-characer manner, has started stalking poor Serenity. (Of course, he doesn't see it that way. He thinks he's just trying to be handy for any opportunity to give her grief.) Serentiy, for her part, is a bit scared, but still trying to stand her ground against Kaiba.
Also, please forgive my dramatic opening line. I've always wanted to start something this way, and it was a friend who suggested that I do it in this story. (He hasn't even read it yet! Maybe he read part of it, I honestly can't remember.)
Chapter 7
It was a dark and stormy night. Seto and Mokuba sat in the coffee shop, the younger Kaiba polishing off a few cocoas, as they waited for Serenity to get off work. Kaiba had been keeping a careful eye on the weather, waiting for it to let up, hoping it wouldn't. For reasons beyond his comprehension, he felt compelled to make sure Serenity would get home safely.
The weather had remained fairly stable over the course of the evening. The same couldn't have been said for the girl hard at work behind the counter. More than once, Kaiba had caught her eyes just long enough to watch her cheeks flush. As the evening wore on, he realized the flush wasn't going away, and if anything the teen seemed unusually tired. He realized he'd been right to stay longer at the coffee shop. There was no way she would be able to get home under her own power.
By the time she was finished cleaning everything and doing the prep for the morning crew, Serenity felt like she was going to fall over. Her lungs felt like they were on fire, and she couldn't remember being so tired. It wasn't being tired, though; it felt like she was moving through quicksand, every movement an effort for her. She gathered her belongings and wished Junko good night.
Her surpervisor looked at her, concerned. "Are you feeling all right, Serenity?"
"I'm fine. I just need some sleep."
Junko looked uncertain. "If you say so, dear. Good night."
The girl waved and headed toward the front of the coffee shop. She dutifully locked the door behind her and turned to face the pouring rain. Despite the fact she was certain the Kaiba brothers had left nearly half an hour earlier, she was certain she could see a familiar limo in front of her. As she started walking home, one of the limo doors opened.
"Get in," a gruff voice commanded. Serenity looked at him incredulously. He signed, almost angrily, "You'd do well to accept my hospitality. You're in no shape to make it home in this weather. Now, get in." At the repeated command, Kaiba stood aside, clearing the way for Serenity to do as he had now instructed her twice.
Drenched after only a couple of minutes in the rain, Serenity looked like a street urchin, tired and bedraggled. She was utterly baffled by the CEO's interest in seeing her out of the elements. He sighed once more, moving to block the path he had opened a minute earlier. Deciding that his offer was probably better than getting even more sick, trying to ignore the fact she was getting sick, she moved as quickly as she could toward the limo. Kaiba stepped aside again just long enough to let her crawl in and give her address to the driver, and then followed her into the car that blended with the night.
The drowned girl seated herself opposite her schoolmate, looking out the window for a few minutes before she fell asleep, unable to overcome her exhaustion. Mokuba was stretched out on the seat beside her already. The only one still awake, Kaiba contented himself to stare out the window, watching the rain, waiting for them to arrive at Serenity's home until another idea entered his head. He gave orders to the driver, and then settled back in his seat and watched the two sleeping children across from him.
Serenity woke up wrapped in a warm blanket. The last thing she remembered was Kaiba waving her into his limo. She couldn't remember arriving home or making her way to her bed. Then again, she realized that what she was lying on didn't feel like her bed. It didn't even feel like a bed. Her eyes opened quickly, searching for some clue of where she was. The room she was in was unfamiliar. Dark paneling intermingled with the occassional bookshelf. As she placed a hand on her makeshift bed to lift herself up, she realized she was lying on leather. She gasped as she sat up and took a good look around the room, her eyes stopping on the desk that matched the walls.
"You're awake. Good." The voice filled her with a sense of dread. The last thing she remembered involved Seto Kaiba, but she had assumed he would take her to her own home.
"Where am I?" she asked, guessing that she already knew the answer.
"This is my office in the mansion," he replied curtly, not looking up from his computer.
"Why am I here?"
"You were wet, sick, and asleep. I thought it might be easier to bring you here and let you recover from two of those conditions before you went home."
"You just didn't want to deal with Joey," Serenity shot back. She wondered if her brother even knew where she was.
"I don't feel the need to explain myself to Wheeler," Kaiba intoned threateningly. Serenity didn't shrink at the voice. She knew Kaiba hated her brother. Idly, she wondered if this was just one more attempt to get under Joey's skin.
Kaiba looked up from his computer, his eyes landing directly on her, concern filling his face. She blushed angrily and looked away. The worry in his voice only made her feel more self-conscious, "You're still sick. You should sleep." His concern didn't conceal the fact that he has just given her yet another order.
She didn't feel like complying. "I want to go home, Kaiba!"
"Are you under the impression that you're a prisoner here?" Her eyes widened. She hadn't actually meant to sound that way at all. The older teen smiled, a light that didn't touch his deep blue eyes, "Once you've had a chance to rest, I'll see to it you get home." He turned back to his work.
Serenity tried to process everything. Kaiba was being distantly polite to her. Joey didn't know where she was, and he had to be worried. She had to work today, too. In a sudden panic, she blurted out, "What time is it?"
"It's about 9:00am." She sighed, somewhat relieved. If Junko was also left wondering where she was, she'd feel just awful. Kaiba must have noticed something in the redhead's facial expression, "If you're worried about missing work, I've already called the coffee shop and told them you aren't coming in."
"You what?" she all but shrieked. "What gives you the right to-"
"Your supervisor seemed relieved to hear you were taking the day off. Apparently, she was quite concerned about you." Serenity couldn't help but notice a bit of a sneer edging his voice. It drove her crazy. She formed another response, but couldn't find the energy to lob it at her smug companion.
Chapter 8 was also mostly written on an unusually long train ride last night, but it won't be showing up for a while.