Chapter 16

Alex was wearing a beautiful light blue dress that fell just to her knees along with black leggings underneath. She had styled her hair to have it fall just below her shoulders. She just put the finishing touches on her makeup and looked in the mirror to make sure that she had that natural look. She smiled and thought,

I hope it doesn't look like I tried too hard, but I'm really excited.

As she finished her thought, there was a knock at the front door. Knowing that it was Joey, Alex walked out of her bedroom and opened the front door. Indeed, Joey was standing right there, wearing a white t-shirt and blue jeans. He had the casual look going, which Alex liked. Alex smiled at him and said,

"Hey, Joey. I'm all done. I just need to get my jacket and purse, and then we can get going."

Joey smiled and replied, "Sure, and ya look wonderful, Alex."

Alex blushed and replied, "Thanks."

Alex grabbed a dark purple jacket from her coat closet along with her purse. Then she put on her shoes and left the apartment, making sure to lock the front door before doing so.

As she walked with Joey, Alex asked,

"So where are we going on our date?"

Joey grinned and replied, "I thought we'd go out for an early lunch first and then a movie after. Then maybe we can play it by ear."

Alex nodded happily and replied, "I like that plan."

The two of them walked side by side, talking and laughing happily as they headed towards a small Chinese restaurant that Joey thought would be good for their date. As they arrived, Joey said,

"I hope Chinese is ok."

Alex replied, "I'm a fan of Chinese food, so yup, all good with me."

Joey gave a thumbs up and holding Alex's hand, he led the way inside. Then, they were escorted to a booth by the window and given menus. The two of them were silent for a few minutes as they pondered over what to have.

A few minutes later, a waiter came by and placed two glasses of water on the table. He asked if they were ready to order, and Alex nodded, looking at Joey to see if he was ready. Joey was ready, too, and the couple gave their order to the waiter. After the waiter took the menus and left, Alex said,

"I'm happy you asked me out."

Alex then realized something and asked, "Oh, is that what you wanted to ask me yesterday when I had to rush out after classes?"

Joey grinned and scratching the back of his head, he replied, "Yeah. I mean, I know I could have just called ya later and asked. That's what Tea suggested, but I wanted to ask ya in person."

Alex blushed and replied, "I'm glad you did."

Joey's eyes shot up and he replied, "Speaking of yesterday, where did ya have to go?"

Alex knew that the question would eventually be asked although she hadn't expected it so soon. She took a breath and replied,

"Umm, well, do you promise not to freak out after I tell you?"

Joey looked confused, but he nodded and replied, "Yeah, I promise."

Alex smiled and then she explained that she was interning at Kaiba Corp and that yesterday was her first day, so she didn't want to be late.

After Alex was done, Joey replied, "I can't believe you're working for moneybags. Can't you get out of it?"

Alex replied, "It was all arranged way beforehand. Cas, my guardian, thought it was a good idea for me to apply for the internship since I'd be spending a year studying here. I was just lucky – or maybe, unlucky – to get it. And no, I can't get out of it."

Joey sighed and replied, "I guess she was only thinking about what's best, but ya need to be careful. I know better than anyone how moneybags can be."

Alex nodded and replied, "I understand, and I promise I'll be careful. You know I can take care of myself, right?"

Joey replied, "Of course. I just can't help but worry."

Alex replied, "I understand. But let's not talk about him anymore. Today is all about us."

She reached out to squeeze Joey's hand across the table and smiled sweetly at him. Joey smiled back and nodded happily.

Several minutes later, the waiter returned, placing their orders on the table. After the waiter left, Alex commented,

"This looks and smells great, and it's been a while since I had Chinese."

Joey grinned and replied, "Same here. Let's dig in."

Alex nodded happily and taking her fork, she began to eat happily. Indeed, the food was delicious, and Alex enjoyed it, along with Joey's company. The two of them talked about light-hearted topics, and Joey mentioned Serenity.

Joey commented, "I'd really like ya to meet her, and I know she'd like ya."

Alex replied, "I'd like that, too. She sounds wonderful, and she must be, to be your sister and all."

Joey replied, "Hehe, thanks. I'll let ya know when she comes for a visit, and the two of you can meet."

Alex nodded, and the two of them continued their meal, soon finishing up.

After Joey paid the bill, the two of them left the restaurant, walking towards the movie theater for the next part of their date. Curiously, Alex asked,

"What movie did you have in mind?"

Joey replied, "I know you like action movies, so I thought I'd pick one of them. What do ya think?"

Alex grinned and replied, "Totally works for me."

Joey smiled and the two of them continued walking towards the movie theater. Just as they reached it and entered, neither of them were aware that another pair of eyes had just spotted them.

Meanwhile, Kaiba was driving in his car, having just finished a business meeting. He was on his way back to Kaiba Corp when he saw Alex and Joey enter a movie theater together. He looked troubled and thought,

What are they doing together?

Although he still had work that needed to be done, there was no way Kaiba would be able to get either of them off his mind, so he took out his phone, dialed a number, and said,

"Cancel all my meetings for the rest of the day."

After a brief phone conversation, Kaiba then drove his car a few blocks away, parking it where he would have a good view of the movie theater entrance but where his car would remain in shadow.

A couple of hours later, Alex and Joey left the movie theater, and they were holding hands. Alex looked enthusiastic and said,

"Wow, I can't believe that ending. That was amazing, and all those explosions and stuff. Man, what a movie!"

Joey grinned and replied, "I know, right? Can I pick them or can I pick them?"

Alex nodded happily and replied, "You sure do have the best taste in movies."

Joey blushed and replied, "Thanks, Alex. We still have some time. Why don't ya pick where we go?"

Alex looked thoughtful and was silent for a couple of minutes. She glanced at the bracelet on her wrist, and getting an idea, she asked,

"If it's ok, can we go to the museum? I heard that the exhibits there are quite good, but I know that may not be your scene."

Joey replied, "I usually don't go there, but if that's where you want to go, I'd be more than happy to go with ya. Let's do it."

He squeezed Alex's hand and led the way towards the museum.

Meanwhile, Kaiba had watched the exchange. Although he couldn't make out their conversation because of the distance, he could clearly see that they were having fun. For some reason, that angered him. He took a few minutes to calm himself, and then starting up his car, he followed the couple, making sure to keep enough distance that it didn't look obvious that he was following them.

After a bit of walking, Alex and Joey made their way to the museum. Alex gazed at it from the outside and commented,

"Wow, this is awesome. I can't wait to check out the exhibits."

Joey replied, "The building looks big, so I'm sure there'll be lots to explore."

Alex grinned and replied, "Yup. Let's go!"

She pulled on Joey's hand and took the lead as they went inside the museum. There, they checked out the various exhibits, including the Egyptian exhibit. Joey commented,

"Ya know, I remember Yug mentioning it, but this is my first time seeing it."

Alex replied, "It's impressive and wow, there's so much history."

She looked at the various displays and noticed one that looked like Yami and Kaiba were engaged in a duel. She pointed to it and asked,

"Is it just me or does that look like…?"

Joey looked at the display that Alex pointed to and replied, "Yeah. That definitely looks like Yug's other half and moneybags. That's a coincidence."

Alex knew that it wasn't, as she was aware that Kaiba was the reincarnation of Priest Seto, who served under the pharaoh. However, it wasn't necessary to let Joey in on it, so she remained quiet.

She continued to look at the various displays, wondering if there was possibly any clue about her bracelet. However, she didn't find anything, so she had another idea in mind. She looked at Joey and asked,

"Can we look at the Greek exhibit next? I've always had a fascination for Greek mythology and all, so I want to see what's there."

Joey nodded and replied, "Sure."

The couple walked to the Greek exhibit next and there, Alex looked at the various displays. As she and Joey walked, Joey asked,

"So ya like Greek mythology, huh?"

Alex smiled, "Yup. I like learning about the different gods and all. My personal favorite is Artemis, goddess of the hunt. And she's a strong, independent woman to boot."

Joey grinned and replied, "I can see that. You're kind of like her, so I can see why she's your favorite."

Alex blushed and replied, "You flatter me, but thanks, Joey."

The two of them continued to look around, and then Alex's eyes were focused on a particular exhibit. It displayed a picture of a beautiful brown-haired lady wearing ancient Greek clothes. Alex noticed that she wore a bracelet, which looked hauntingly familiar to Alex's bracelet. Then she saw that there were symbols, which Alex somehow recognized but couldn't decipher their meaning. Joey looked curiously at Alex and asked,

"Something interesting about that display?"

Alex quickly turned to Joey and replied, "Oh, I just thought it curious how the historians who studied this have no idea of the meanings of these symbols. Strange, isn't it?"

Joey looked a little thoughtful and replied, "Yeah, I guess."

While Joey didn't think too much about it, Alex continued to ponder over what she saw. In the back of her mind, she made a note to herself to return here soon on her own, so she could study the displays more thoroughly undisturbed.

As it was starting to get late, Joey then said, "I don't want this day to end, but the sun's saying otherwise, so I should take ya back to your place."

Alex laughed a bit and replied, "Yeah, I understand. I don't want this to end, either, but we'll have plenty more dates. I mean, umm, if that's what you want."

Joey blushed and replied, "Of course. I'm already thinking about it."

Alex replied, "I can't wait."

Joey took Alex's hand and led the way out of the museum. Outside, the setting sun greeted them, and Alex took a moment to observe its beauty. Joey did the same, and the two of them enjoyed the peace of the day. However, it was just then that peace got disturbed when Kaiba approached them and said,

"Heh, what a coincidence running into you two."

Alex and Joey looked at Kaiba, and Alex couldn't help but be suspicious. She carefully asked,

"You weren't following us like last time, were you?"

Kaiba scoffed and replied, "I wasn't following you last time, and no, I didn't follow you this time. It is just a coincidence."

Alex was very skeptical although she chose not to say anything. Joey then glared at Kaiba and said,

"We don't want anything to do with ya, and we were just leaving."

Joey pulled on Alex's hand, wanting to get away from Kaiba as quickly as possible. However, Kaiba then said,

"I think it's only fair to warn Ms. Lawrence."

Alex narrowed her eyes and looking at Kaiba, she replied, "What do you mean?"

Kaiba replied, "Unless I'm mistaken, the two of you clearly look like you're on a date. But you should know that Wheeler is taken."

Joey looked like he was about to kill Kaiba and without looking at Alex, he said,

"Don't listen to him. He's clearly lying."

Kaiba scoffed and replied, "Am I? Then there's nothing between you and Mai Valentine? I'm sure she would have a few words with you."

Joey let go of Alex's hand and ran towards Kaiba, grabbing him by the collar. Meanwhile, Alex watched and was taken aback. She knew there was a possibility that Joey and Mai were supposed to be together in the future, and this made Alex wonder if she had messed that up, even though that wasn't her intention. All Alex wanted was a normal day, to feel like a regular teenager rather than an agent on a mission.

Alex began to walk backwards and quietly said, "I-I'm sorry."

She turned around and quickly ran off before either Joey or Kaiba could do anything. Alex ran for a little bit before eventually finding a taxi to take her back to her apartment.