Have the latest chapter ready. Feedback would be appreciated, and apologies if events seem somewhat slow. It's been a bit difficult coming up with new chapter ideas, but any constructive suggestions would be appreciated. ^^
Chapter 36
The weekend was over, so Alex, Kaiba, and everyone else returned to school on Monday. Over the weekend, Alex and Kaiba talked about how they would approach Max, and now the bell just rang, signaling the end of morning classes. Kaiba left the classroom immediately although Alex stayed behind.
Meanwhile, Yugi and the others were getting their things, ready to go up to the roof to have lunch as usual. Alex saw Max getting ready as well and after taking a breath, she approached him and said,
"Hey, Max. I know this is sudden, but if you have a bit of spare time, I'd like to talk to you alone? I promise it won't take long."
Max was surprised that Alex approached him, but at the same time, he was happy, not bothering to hide his excitement. He wanted the opportunity to talk to Alex alone, but he had trouble doing so since Kaiba always seemed to be around her. However, this was a rare opportunity, and Max didn't want to waste it. So nodding, he replied,
"Sure, I'd like that."
He turned to Tea, who was standing next to him, and he said, "You should go on ahead with the others. I'll join you soon, ok?"
Tea nodded although she couldn't help giving a sad glance before leaving the classroom. Meanwhile, the female students who remained in the classroom gave jealous looks towards Alex, thinking it was bold of her to approach Max like that. However, Alex ignored the looks and smiling at Max, she said,
"Follow me."
Max nodded, taking the hint that Alex wanted some privacy. He got his things and then followed Alex as they left the classroom. Alex led the way down the hallway, passing by a few classrooms until she approached a door. She opened it and then led the way inside, gesturing Max to follow her. Max did so, and although the classroom was mostly empty, there was someone he didn't expect to see. He looked questioningly at Alex and said,
"I thought you wanted to talk to me alone?"
Alex smiled apologetically and replied, "I'm sorry, but I thought you wouldn't have agreed if I had told you that we wanted to talk to you alone. But I will keep my word that this won't take long."
She walked beside Kaiba, and Kaiba held Alex's hand tenderly in his own. Kaiba then looked at Max and said,
"We won't take up much of your time, but we wanted to make something clear. And before you ask how we know, let's just say that we have our ways."
Max looked confused but didn't say anything, more curious than anything else to hear what Alex and Kaiba had to tell him.
Kaiba then continued, "I don't know what your intentions are, but I want to make this clear before you assume something you shouldn't."
Alex nodded and then added, "I hope we just misunderstood, but in case we didn't, we wanted to tell you in private about me and Seto. You might have figured it out, but Seto is my boyfriend."
Max was surprised to hear Alex call Kaiba by his first name although he didn't comment on it. He was even more surprised (although part of him had been prepared to hear it) that Alex openly told him about them. Meanwhile, Kaiba observed Max's reaction. Although part of him felt like throwing it in Max's face, Kaiba knew that he had to stay with the plan that he and Alex had come up with. So he said,
"That's right. It should be obvious as to why we haven't made our relationship public. But if it isn't, it's to protect Alex. She values her privacy, and we are aware that any public announcement will automatically make her a target. Of course, I know that she's more than capable of looking after herself, but I do not wish to be the cause of any trouble for her."
Alex smiled fondly at Kaiba before turning her attention back to Max, and she said,
"Yes, that's right. I trust that you won't say anything about this to others, but we wanted to tell you this and hopefully, you understand. Of course, we can be friends, if that's what you wish."
Max nodded although he couldn't help feeling troubled and uncomfortable. However, he did his best to hide his true feelings, and he replied,
"I understand. Listen, if I did anything inappropriate, I wish to apologize."
Alex shook her head and replied, "It's ok. We just wanted to tell you before things got to a point where they might get out of control. Anyway, it looks like you're really popular, so I'm sure you won't have any trouble with dating or whatnot."
Max smiled a bit and replied, "That's true."
Kaiba added, "That's all we wanted to say. Alex and I will get out of here now and have lunch."
Alex added, "You should join Tea and the others before they wonder what's taking so long. And please tell them I say hi. I know I'm pretty busy nowadays, but I'll try to find time to hang out with them."
Max replied, "I'll pass along your message. I, um, guess I'll see you both later."
Max then quickly left the classroom. Alex and Kaiba then turned to each other, and Alex asked,
"Do you think that worked?"
Kaiba replied, "We'll have to wait and see. He seemed shaken up, anyway."
Max made his way up to the roof and joined Tea and the others, quietly apologizing for being late. Then, he took out his lunch and began to eat although he didn't have much of an appetite. Although most of the others didn't notice Max's unusual behavior, Tea did, so she quietly asked,
"Max, are you ok?"
Max looked up at Tea and smiling a bit, he replied, "Yeah, I'm fine."
Tea didn't look convinced, though, and asked, "Does it have anything to do with your talk with Alex? Did she say something hurtful?"
Max immediately shook his head and replied, "Nothing like that. She just wanted to ask how I was adjusting to school and all since she didn't have a chance to ask before."
Of course, Max lied since he was supposed to make it appear that he didn't know Alex. Tea nodded and replied,
"I see. But I can tell that something's troubling you. You're my friend, so I want to help if I can."
Max smiled and replied, "You're very kind, Tea. There is something bothering me, but I don't think we have enough time to talk about it now."
Tea looked thoughtful and replied, "Then how about after school? The two of us can just hang out. The others have their own things to do today."
Max nodded and replied, "That'll work, and I need to talk to a friend about this."
Tea smiled and reaching out to touch Max's hand, she replied, "I can tell, and you can count on me."
Meanwhile, Yugi watched the exchange between Max and Tea although he couldn't hear the details of their conversations. He couldn't help feeling sad as he watched the two of them like that. It was then that Yami communicated,
I wouldn't worry about it, Yugi. Let's stay with Alex's plan, ok?
Yugi agreed, but he couldn't help continuing to worry.
The rest of the afternoon classes passed by quickly, and once the bell rang to signal the end of the school day, Alex and Kaiba quickly packed up their things. Kaiba whispered something to Alex, and Alex nodded in agreement. The two of them got up and then approached Yugi. Alex smiled at him and asked,
"Yugi, do you want to get a ride with us to Kaiba Corp? It'll be faster than having to walk, and we can get things done quickly."
Yugi nodded happily and replied, "Yeah, I'd like that."
Joey, who had witnessed the conversation, looked at Yugi and asked, "What's going on?"
Yugi turned to Joey and replied, "I'll explain tomorrow, but I won't keep you in the dark."
He then turned to Alex and Kaiba, having quickly gotten his things, and said,
"Ok, I'm ready."
Yugi followed Alex and Kaiba as the three of them left the classroom. Joey turned to Tristan and the others and asked,
"What's going on with those three? It was bad enough when Kaiba took Alex away from us and now Yugi?"
Tristan replied, "Calm down, Joey. Yugi said he would explain tomorrow, so let's just wait until then. I want to get out of here."
Joey nodded, although he couldn't help but feel annoyed. He, Tristan, Bakura, and Duke all left the classroom, leaving just Tea and Max. Tea looked at Max and asked,
"How about we go to a nearby cafe? It'll be a good place to talk, and maybe tea or juice will help."
Max smiled and replied, "Sure, that sounds great."
He finished gathering his things and followed Tea out of the classroom and then out of the school building. The two of them chatted a bit while they headed to the cafe that Tea mentioned. Once they arrived, they were able to find a table, as there weren't too many customers. After they placed their orders, Tea looked to Max and said,
"Ok, tell me what's wrong."
Max replied, "I, um, I'm worried about a friend. I think she might be in danger."
Tea was surprised to hear about Max's problem but continuing to listen, she replied, "I see. Can you be more specific as to what the danger is?"
Before Max could reply, the waitress returned and placed their drinks on the table, along with the bill. Max waited until the waitress left before he said,
"I found out recently that she's with a guy, but I know the guy is no good for her."
Tea replied, "What do you mean? Is he a criminal or something?"
Max laughed and replied, "Nothing like that. He's not a bad guy in that way. It has more to do with his personality."
He then went on to describe what he had heard and witnessed about Kaiba, although he was careful not to give away too many details since it would make it obvious whom Max was talking about. Tea listened carefully to Max, and once he was done, she said,
"I understand why you're concerned. But have you met him personally?"
Max replied, "I met him a couple of times, but I got bad vibes every time I even so much as looked at him. It was like he was warning me to stay away."
Tea looked thoughtful and then replied, "I just want to be sure, but you're not talking about anyone I know, right? Your friend is back in California, and that guy is, too?"
Max was worried that Tea might have gotten close to figuring out whom he was talking about, so he replied,
"Yeah, that's right. It isn't anyone you know."
Tea nodded and replied, "Ok. So I assume you found out about their relationship recently, but do you know if they've been together for a long time before you found out?"
Max replied, "I actually don't know. I only found out because my friend told me, but she didn't tell me how long she and the guy have been together."
Tea replied, "I see." She looked deep in thought and was quiet for a couple of minutes before continuing,
"Are you certain your friend is in danger? Like she might get physically hurt or something if she stays with him?"
Max shook his head and replied, "She's a tough girl, so she'd more likely beat him up. I'm more worried that he'll hurt her emotionally and then she'll never be able to trust anyone again."
Tea smiled sadly and replied, "You're very sweet to worry about her, Max. I hope your friend knows how lucky she is."
She was quiet for a few moments before she continued, "This might be difficult to resolve since you're here, but your friend and that guy are back in California."
Max replied, "That's true. But if they were here, what would you recommend that I do?"
Tea looked thoughtful and replied, "I'd try to find a chance to get alone with your friend and explain your worries to her. But she has to be the one to make her decisions in the end. You should be there as her friend and as a shoulder to depend on, if she needs you."
Max replied, "I feel like that wouldn't be enough, though. I want to get her away from that guy and get her to realize how wrong he is for her."
Max felt a little anger well up inside him, which didn't escape Tea's notice. She asked,
"Max, do you like this girl?"
Max blushed upon hearing Tea's question and sighing, he replied, "I guess there's no point in hiding it. Yeah, I like her a lot. I regret not telling her before I left. Maybe things would have been different if I had."
Although Tea was sad to hear Max's reply, she wanted to continue being Max's friend, so she replied,
"Then you need to do everything in your power to tell her that. You have to find a way to tell her that you like her and get her to see that you're the best for her. Then there's no way she'll stay with that guy. She'll only want you."
Max nodded, feeling a little cheered up, and replied, "That's a good idea, but how do I do that?"
Tea replied, "Bring up things like your friendship, the good memories you two have built together. Things like that. Relationships are more likely to be stronger and last if two people have known each other for a long time."
Although Max knew that Alex had lost her memories of their time together, he thought that perhaps Tea's idea was a good one. He'd have to find a way to get alone time with Alex and then bring up all their memories together. He felt that it would be his best chance of maybe getting Alex to remember who she was and then to leave Kaiba altogether. He smiled at Tea and replied,
"Thanks, Tea. I'm going to try that."
Tea smiled and replied, "Glad I could help, and you can talk to me whenever there's something on your mind."
Max returned her smile and replied, "Thanks, and the same goes for me."
He took a sip of his drink and then added, "You're a wonderful girl, Tea. I'm surprised you don't already have a boyfriend."
Tea blushed and replied, "You're very sweet, Max. I guess I haven't been lucky in that department. I hope things work out between you and your friend."
Max replied, "Thanks. We should do this more often, just the two of us hanging out."
Tea nodded happily and replied, "I'd like that a lot."
The two of them continued to chat about other topics until the sun was beginning to set, indicating that they'd have to part ways. As they walked in separate directions towards their respective homes, Max felt encouraged by Tea's advice although he'd have to figure out a way to get Alex alone. Meanwhile, Tea couldn't help feeling sad that Max's heart belonged to someone else, but she thought to herself,
I'll be there for him as a friend, no matter what.