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Chapter 8

Despite Alex's best efforts to catch up on sleep, her nightmares continued to haunt her, not allowing her to rest properly. It affected her condition, ultimately leading up to her current predicament.

It was Wednesday during lunch period. Normally, Alex would have spent it with Joey, Yugi, and the others. However, she wanted to do a bit of studying in the library although she made sure to give Joey his lunch first. As she was studying, Alex noticed that Kaiba was sitting nearby, studying as well. Alex wasn't too surprised to see him there since she figured he was the studious type. However, Kaiba was surprised to see Alex although he didn't provoke her over why she wasn't hanging out with Joey. Instead, he would cast occasional glances at Alex, noticing that she was doing her best to stay awake while studying. He wondered if she still wasn't getting enough sleep but didn't know how to approach the topic without setting her off.

Alex soon finished up her studying and noticing the time, she quickly gathered her things. However, as she stood up to leave, her feet suddenly felt wobbly and it was like she was about to fall down. Suddenly, though, she felt two strong arms surround her and when Alex looked up to see who had prevented her from falling, she noticed Kaiba holding her. He had this scowl on his face and said,

"What's wrong with you, Ms. Lawrence?"

Alex glared at Kaiba and replied, "I'm fine. You can let go now. I don't need your help."

Kaiba ignored Alex's request and instead, he touched her forehead, which was hot. He frowned and replied,

"You're burning up. I'm taking you to the nurse's office."

Alex replied, "I said I'm fine, and we have classes."

Kaiba replied, "Classes can wait, and stop being stubborn. I'm taking you to the office, even if I have to carry you over my shoulder."

Alex's cheeks heated up over Kaiba's latter words and replied, "Ok, fine. No need to go through such extremes. But let go of me. I'm perfectly capable of walking."

Kaiba slowly let go of Alex and said, "I'm walking with you, just in case."

Alex nodded and got her bag. Then she walked with Kaiba as they left the library and headed to the nurse's office. As afternoon classes had just started, the hallways were empty. As the two of them walked, Kaiba quietly asked,

"Are you still not getting enough sleep?"

Although Alex would have preferred not to reply, at the moment, she felt too tired to put up any sort of resistance. Thus, she nodded and replied,

"Yeah, but it's not my fault. It just keeps happening, and I can't make them go away."

Kaiba replied, "What?"

Alex realized that she might have said too much and quickly replied, "Nothing."

Kaiba let out an exasperated sigh and replied, "Really? If you're worried I'm going to laugh at you, I won't. I can be a decent person at times."

Alex let out a bit of a smile and replied, "Yeah, I can see that." She took a breath and replied, "I'm having nightmares of losing Andy. That's it. Go ahead and tell me that's stupid to lose sleep over."

Kaiba stopped walking suddenly, which made Alex stop walking, too. He looked at her and said,

"That isn't stupid. Losing family is always hard. How long have you had those nightmares?"

Alex looked thoughtful and replied, "Ever since Andy died. They come and go. I've been having them recently again."

Kaiba nodded and he resumed walking, and Alex followed suit. As they continued to walk, Kaiba thought,

This is my fault, but I can fix it.

The two of them made it to the nurse's office, where the nurse on duty was sitting. She looked at the two of them and asked,

"What happened?"

Kaiba replied, "Ms. Lawrence nearly collapsed, and she has a fever. I think it's best that she go home for the day."

The nurse furrowed her eyebrows and after a moment, she replied, "Probably." She looked at Alex and asked,

"Are you experiencing any other unusual symptoms?"

Alex shook her head and replied, "No, ma'am. I've probably been pushing myself too much."

The nurse nodded and replied, "I understand. I agree with Mr. Kaiba. You should go home and get lots of rest. In the meantime, you can rest here."

She turned to Kaiba and said, "I'll let the teacher know about Ms. Lawrence's condition."

Kaiba nodded and replied, "Of course. I'll escort Ms. Lawrence back to her place myself."

The nurse nodded and then left the office. Meanwhile, Kaiba took out his phone to call for his driver to pick them up. After he was done, Alex said,

"There's no need for this. I can just take the bus."

Kaiba frowned and replied, "It's too late. Plus, I'm not leaving you to fend for yourself."

Alex suddenly thought of something and asked, "What about our work?"

Kaiba laughed at that and replied, "Really? You're worried about our group project at a time like this?"

Alex shrugged and replied, "If nothing else, I'd like to think I'm a good student."

Kaiba shook his head and replied, "I'll take care of it."

Alex replied, "I'm sorry. I know you didn't want to have to deal with it, and then I had to get myself sick."

Kaiba replied, "I don't blame you. These things happen."

Alex was surprised to hear that, rather expecting a reply over how inconvenienced Kaiba would be. However, she didn't say anything, deciding to rest up. After several more minutes passed, the nurse returned and said,

"I've let the teacher know the situation although Mr. Wheeler put up quite a fuss."

Kaiba smirked over hearing Joey's name mentioned while Alex couldn't help sighing. She noticed how protective Joey was over her yesterday, and when she asked him about it, he only said that he thought Kaiba was up to no good and it couldn't hurt to have another pair of eyes on the lookout. A couple of minutes later, Kaiba's phone rang and Kaiba picked it up. It was the driver, who was waiting outside. Kaiba turned to Alex and said,

"Our ride's here. I assume you can walk."

Alex nodded and replied, "Of course."

As if to prove her words, Alex got to her feet and took her bag. She turned to the nurse and said,

"Thank you for letting me rest here."

The nurse smiled and replied, "Get better soon."

Together, Alex and Kaiba left the nurse's office and headed towards the entrance. Alex remained silent although normally, she would have put up some resistance over Kaiba taking her back. Kaiba realized this and said,

"You must really be unwell."

Alex replied, "Obviously, but I'll get better soon. I never go down without a fight."

Kaiba smirked and replied, "Obviously."

The two of them reached the entrance and there, the driver was waiting. Once they reached the limo, Kaiba held open the door for Alex, and she slid in, with Kaiba following. Kaiba then told the driver to head towards Alex's place, and the driver nodded. During the ride, Alex yawned and had trouble staying awake. She felt herself about to fall to the side at one point, but Kaiba noticed and quickly held Alex so that her head was resting on his shoulder. It felt warm and comfortable, and Alex found herself soon falling asleep.

As Kaiba held Alex and felt her sleeping by his shoulder, he looked at her and thought,

Remarkable. She looks so beautiful asleep… Ok, what am I thinking?

As there wasn't much traffic at that time of day, the driver soon reached the building to Alex's apartment. Alex began to slowly wake up, unaware of how she had slept although she did feel slightly better. She looked outside and said,

"Oh, we're here."

Kaiba nodded and after telling the driver to wait for him, Kaiba got out of the limo first. Alex followed after. As she was about to go up the stairs, though, Kaiba suddenly scooped her up in his arms. Alex couldn't help glaring at Kaiba and asked,

"What are you doing?"

Kaiba replied, "What does it look like? You're going to trip on those stairs in your condition, so I'm carrying you."

Alex angrily replied, "I'm not some damsel-in-distress. I just didn't get enough sleep."

Kaiba replied, "I know. If you were a damsel, that would make me your prince, and I'm not your prince." He quietly added, "At least, not yet."

Alex couldn't hear Kaiba's latter words and asked, "What?"

Kaiba quickly replied, "Nothing."

He continued to carry Alex until they reached the door to her apartment. Alex then reached into her bag to take out her keys and unlocked the door. Kaiba then opened it and carried her inside, placing her on the sofa. Once Alex was comfortably situated, she looked at Kaiba and said,

"Thank you. I hope I wasn't too heavy for you."

Kaiba smirked and replied, "Light as a feather, or maybe I'm just incredibly strong."

Alex rolled her eyes and replied, "Of course you'd say that."

Kaiba then asked, "Are you going to be ok?"

Alex replied, "No worries. I'll have to figure out a way to catch up on some sleep although I do feel a little bit better than earlier. I wonder why."

Kaiba replied, "I'll go then. I'll have Mokuba drop by later to check up on you."

Alex smiled a bit upon hearing Mokuba being mentioned and replied, "I'd like that."

Kaiba replied, "Get some sleep and make sure to lock the door."

Alex nodded, and Kaiba then left the apartment. Alex got up and made sure to lock the door afterwards. She then returned to the sofa and closed her eyes, hoping to get a little sleep.

Meanwhile, Kaiba got back to the limo and told the driver to head to Kaiba Corp, figuring that there was no point in returning to school for the day. He had an idea of how Alex could regain some sleep although a part of him wondered why he was so concerned about her.

It's probably just guilt. She started having those nightmares shortly after I brought up her brother. But urgh. Wanting to be her prince? How ridiculous is that?

A couple of hours later, Alex woke up, feeling a little better and more refreshed than earlier. When Alex had fallen asleep earlier, she thought about Kaiba and how he had gone out of his way to look after her. Then, her sleep was peaceful and undisturbed. Alex wondered why she was able to sleep better although she didn't question it too much, just grateful to have gotten any.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Remembering what Kaiba told her about Mokuba dropping by, Alex thought that it might be him. However, once she reached the door, unlocked and opened it, she was surprised to see Joey standing outside. He looked like he had run all the way over, and concern etched all over her face, Alex asked,

"Joey, what happened? Are you ok?"

She stepped aside to let him in, and Joey immediately entered. He looked frantically around the apartment and asked, "Where is he? If he's hurt you in any way, I'll-"

Alex interrupted, "Joey, slow down. I assume you're talking about Kaiba. He's not here. He dropped me off and then left. He didn't hurt me."

Alex decided to not tell Joey about how Kaiba had carried her. She didn't want him any more upset than he already was. She smiled and asked,

"Were you really that worried about me?"

Joey looked at Alex and replied, "Of course. When you weren't in class, I knew something must have happened, and then the nurse mentioned about you being with Kaiba and… Yeah, I freaked out."

Alex smiled apologetically and replied, "I'm sorry. I hope you know I wouldn't have willingly gone with him. He was just so insistent and I was feeling too out of it to fight back much."

Joey calmed down and replied, "I know. There's no way you'd want to hang out with him."

Alex laughed a bit and replied, "Yeah. I'm sorry to trouble you like this."

Joey shook his head and replied, "Nah, you have nothing to be sorry for. I just wish I'd known how bad it was. Maybe I can stay with ya and make sure you get better?"

Alex replied, "You don't have to do that. I feel a little better than earlier. I was able to catch up on a bit of sleep. Oh, but I am a little concerned about our project. I feel bad for leaving you to deal with it."

Joey replied, "It's not your fault. We finished up all the questions, so it's only the scene stuff left. You are gonna be better in time to do that, right? I mean, I don't want to have to do that scene with moneybags."

Alex laughed as she imagined the scene that Joey was referring to. She teased, "I wonder who'd end up being Juliet. I can't believe you two are still arguing over that role, though. It's so silly. Of course, I could just do a one-person play and that would settle things."

Joey frowned and replied, "No way. That isn't fair on you. But I don't get why Kaiba's making a big deal over it. He's never been concerned about grades."

Alex shrugged and replied, "Beats me. I hope I can return to school tomorrow and then we can get that settled. We need time to rehearse that scene, and the more time we waste arguing over roles, the less time we have to practice."

Joey sighed and replied, "Yeah. I'm sorry if I'm making things more difficult, but I don't want moneybags near you. I know you can take care of yourself, but I feel like he's up to no good."

Alex decided that it was time to change topics, so she asked, "Anyway, how goes your dueling strategy?"

Joey grinned and replied, "I'm all done. I'm ready to put phase two of our plan in action. We should do it tomorrow during lunch. Of course, that's assuming you're all better."

Alex smiled and replied, "Don't worry. I'll be back tomorrow, and I can't wait to see you duel."

Joey replied, "I promise you that I'm going to wipe the floor with moneybags."

Alex laughed and replied, "I'm looking forward to it."

Joey got up and said, "If you really don't need me to help out, I'll go. Heh, I got here all worked up, but you cheered me up. You're amazing, Alex."

Alex blushed and replied, "Thanks, Joey. I don't want to keep you, but I'll see you tomorrow. Of course, I'll call if anything comes up."

Joey gave a thumbs up and then left Alex's apartment. As Alex was about to lock the door, there was another knock. Wondering if Joey had forgotten something, Alex opened the door again, only to see Mokuba outside with what appeared to be a huge box in his hands. Alex smiled and said,

"Hey, Mokuba. Come on in. Do you need any help?"

Mokuba entered the apartment and replied, "Hey, Alex. I'm good. Can I set this down anywhere?"

Alex replied, "The living room will be fine."

She led the way to the living room, and Mokuba set down the box on the floor. He then stretched his arms a bit and said,

"Seto told me what happened, and he asked me to drop by. How are you feeling?"

Alex replied, "Better. I was able to get a bit more sleep in."

Mokuba replied, "That's good. Oh, yeah. Seto asked me to give this to you as well."

He gestured towards the box and curious, Alex approached it and opened the lid. Inside, she noticed some candles as well as something else that surprised her. Mokuba commented,

"These should help you to sleep well, but Seto said that if you still can't sleep, he'll think of something else."

Alex replied, "Well, I understand about the candles. I heard that certain scents can lull a person to sleep well. Um, but this?"

She took out a medium-sized blue eyes white dragon plushie. Mokuba laughed a bit and replied,

"Yeah, I was wondering about that, too, but brother insisted. Is it too weird?"

Alex smiled and replied, "No. I love it, actually. I have a fondness for plushies, so I suppose it's perfect. Please thank him for me."

Mokuba happily replied, "I will. Oh, and a couple of people are going to drop by in a bit to deliver dinner for you. Seto insisted that you take it easy and get plenty of sleep tonight."

Alex blushed a bit and replied, "I see."

She didn't know what to make of all these gestures of kindness and fell silent. Mokuba wondered what Alex was thinking and asked,

"Is it too much?"

Alex quickly shook her head and replied, "That's not it. I suppose I'm just not used to all this, and umm…"

Mokuba asked, "Yeah?"

Alex replied, "Your brother isn't what I expected, and that has me confused."

Mokuba replied, "People misunderstand him, so I get it. But he's a great brother and a good person."

Alex nodded although she didn't say anything. Mokuba looked at her and asked, "Do you think you and Seto could be friends?"

Alex was surprised by the question. She didn't know how to answer him. Obviously, she didn't want to become friends with someone who's supposed to be her target. On the other hand, Kaiba had been nothing but kind to her lately, which was a sign that perhaps he wasn't an entirely bad person. As Alex didn't immediately reply, Mokuba added,

"Sorry if that came out of nowhere. I'd just really like it if you two could become friends."

Alex turned to Mokuba and smiling a bit, she replied, "I'm open to the possibility. I can't promise anything more beyond that for now."

Mokuba nodded, looking satisfied with Alex's reply. A little later, there was a knock at Alex's door and Mokuba went ahead and opened it, figuring that it was the catering service to deliver dinner for Alex. Indeed, there were a couple of people carrying pots and such, and Mokuba gestured for them to set dinner up in the kitchen. Alex waited in the living room, absorbed in her thoughts. Once the catering people finished setting up the table, they left. Mokuba approached Alex and said,

"Ok, dinner's all set. They said that you can store any leftovers in the fridge and you can put the empty pots outside the door and call them to let them know. They left their number."

Mokuba handed Alex a business card for the catering service. Alex nodded and replied, "Thanks. You should stay and have dinner with me."

Mokuba shook his head and replied, "Nah, I'm good. I should get back home, but you take it easy and get better. Oh, and I'll call you tomorrow to see how you're doing."

Alex smiled and replied, "I'd like that." She got up and saw Mokuba to the door. After Mokuba left, Alex turned her attention to the food laid out in the kitchen. There was some hot chicken soup along with some bread rolls and a few other side dishes. Alex smiled and feeling hungry, she went ahead and had dinner.

A few hours later, everything was all cleaned up, and Alex was ready to go to sleep. She had set up the candles in her room, and she held the blue eyes plushie in her arms. She was dressed in her sleepwear and was resting in bed. Although a part of her was still confused, at the moment, she decided that getting some sleep and getting better were more important. So she let go of any conflicting feelings for now and upon closing her eyes, her final thoughts before finally falling asleep were of Kaiba.