viii. eight;
The next day, clad in a casual dress, Asuka exits her room to go find her boots. She had been informed via her email that the order she made on a new book came in and she needed to pick it up at the bookstore. She finds her shoes at the shoe rack by the front door and slips into them, getting her purse and checking for her wallet.
"Are you going somewhere?" she hears Judai inquire behind her somewhere in the living room. He had been there for the past hour trying to watch one of Edo's pro-duels on her television while absently flipping through his deck during commercials. Pharaoh is napping next to him, curled up cozily.
Finding her purse and noting the amount of money she has, Asuka nods absently. "The bookstore; I'm picking up a book I ordered." This should be the right amount of money to cover both the book and the tax price, and there should be enough for another book or two if she decides to stay and browse. It'd be wonderful if she could find another series to read about for another time; perhaps note it for her wishlist—
Casually, Judai asks, "Can I come too?"
She is wide-eyed and freezes with her wallet in hand. "Could you repeat that…?"
He wants to go to a bookstore? Him?
He rolls his eyes, placing the television remote down with patience. It's like he expected her reaction, which means he's aware that he's being unusually uncharacteristic of himself. Which also, in turn, confuses her. For roommates, Junko and Momoe never confused her like this. She wonders how Sho and Hayato could handle him back then. "I asked if I could come along with you to the bookstore."
"Are you feeling okay? Do you have a fever?" she frets from her spot by the door, narrowing her eyes at him like the apocalypse is near once more. It can't be Yubel playing a prank on her because his eyes are normal and Yubel probably doesn't like pranks anyway, given who they're connected to. "Did you slip and fall again?"
"Now you're acting like Manjoume!" he whines dramatically, covering his eyes with a hand. He leans his head further back against the couch. "I'm fine, Asuka!" he insists, speaking with a tone that's a mix of You're-making-a-big-deal-over-nothing and This-is-embarrassing-please-stop.
"But Judai!" she argues back with an I-need-to-make-sure-you're-not-crazy tone. "You said you don't go into bookstores!" She's still not sure if he has ever actually read and finished a whole book before. Back at Duel Academia, he either slept through class or skipped. Even after enduring everything in the other dimension, it still did absolutely nothing to affect his work ethic in school. Can't blame her for being worried! She should've asked Yubel yesterday what Judai's thought process was! Now she'll never know what happens in his head.
He patiently says, "Yeah, I did. But I figured I'd ask anyway."
"There's nothing wrong with that, but why the sudden change of heart?" Asuka puts her wallet back and zips her purse up.
Fifteen year old Judai would've just made a face the moment she said 'bookstore' and would probably never even ask to come along, preferably going off to duel someone or go take a nap. (Surreal.)
Awkwardly, he doesn't look at her. "I told you I would go through some books if it'll make you happy, remember?" A pause, then: "I'm leaving in a few days, after all!"
Of course, she remembers. He had told her he would do that 'someday,' but she didn't know that 'someday' would be so soon. She had thought maybe he meant after a few months because he sometimes spans out his visits—not days. He likes taking things slow. Does this have anything to do with yesterday's conversation? She can't see how the bookstore would tie into that conversation?
But maybe she should just let him come anyway? It's not everyday he'd be so enthusiastic to offer his company for a bookstore trip, no matter how surreal it can feel. This is definitely reality. The bookstore is a thing from her world, not his, so maybe she can show him a bit of her own life while they're at it. It's fair, right? (She's happy with what she can get, and this does make her inexplicably happy.)
"Okay, you can come along… But you're not allowed to complain if it's boring. I warned you."
"Aye, aye," he salutes her mockingly, turning off the television with something like a victory in his smile. (Maybe he and Yubel were arguing over something?)
.
.
They walk side-by-side when they exit her apartment and after she locks the door and he grabs his olive-green jacket. Asuka quietly holds the shoulder strap of her purse with both hands while Judai keeps his hands in his pockets. There is a tension in the air, but it's a different kind. Asuka doesn't know if it's identifiable.
Luckily, the bookstore is very close, about two blocks away, and it's there when she turns a corner a few minutes later and Judai follows her. As soon as the automatic door opens, Asuka beams a very sunlit smile and feels cozy when she steps inside and gazes at the hundreds of books on the shelves. Bright-eyed, she dips into her rapidly-approaching daydreams of which aisle she should go through first because all these books look brand new and they never released the catalogue for these new shipments, which means she might find something good if she browses for a bit—
Someone clears their throat next to her.
The thought bubble she envisioned her books within immediately pops; deflates, vanishes, bursts into hundreds of unrevivable pieces. Asuka blankly looks in the offending direction, but starts feeling regret for doing so.
She's never seen Judai look so amused before. And at her too.
Suddenly, everything comes back to her head: she is here on a mission to pick up her book and he came along to go through books for her. She is here to pick up her book, and not daydream about other books.
She's here to pick up a book.
A book; singular. Not books; plural.
Tensing, her face feels very hot as she frowns at herself for losing focus. Ever since she began her career in teaching, she mostly reads to spend her time when she isn't buried alive in grading. She only duels during school hours nowadays for practice sessions or for demonstration purposes since she can't really duel by herself at her apartment in her spare time. So, sometimes the reading gets a bit out of hand. (Not to mention, she has to read anyway for school purposes to help add supplementary information to her lectures or demonstrations.)
Embarrassedly, Asuka curtly mumbles, "I-I will be at the counter to pick up my book." Swiftly turning, she tries to walk off to salvage herself from her daydream blunder, but he follows her and she refuses to look at him with what temperature she feels her face being right now.
"I'll come too. It's not like I have another reason to be here anyway," he says, nonchalant.
At those words, she blinks and wonders if he even realizes what he just said. Not wanting to ask, Asuka weakly concedes, "Do what you want…" With that said, he doesn't really stray from her. He sticks around sort of like ducklings following their mother, or an obedient puppy, or like Pharaoh when she's setting up his lunch. It stays that way until they reach the counter.
After spending a bit of time asking the clerk about her order, Asuka is now holding it in her possession—it's hardcover, and she thinks it's of stunning quality. The clerk also gives her a free bag with it and she accepts with polite gratitude.
"I want to look around a bit…" she murmurs to Judai as they walk away from the counter, eyeing the shelves again with great fascination. Maybe she can find some interesting historical texts to take with her to school, or maybe a simple slice-of-life novel for winding down. Maybe there's a new book about dueling—
Judai takes one simple look at her and stifles his laughter. "Go ahead," he smiles, indulgently.
Instantaneously, Asuka strides to an aisle, a fraction of a bounce in her footsteps and the corners of her lips upped. He follows goodnaturedly with a lazy smile.
.
.
"Are you sure you're not bored?" Asuka inquires, a little self-consciously, after flipping through the fifth novel that caught her attention. If she had thought she came off as boring for bringing one book with her when they went fishing, then perhaps it might be overkill to have him stay in a bookstore with her for a few hours.
He had been following her this whole time and kept his word to not complain about anything. She wonders how he really feels about being here if all he does is trail after her and watch her flip through books like some fanatic.
He had glanced at some covers, but didn't pick up any books yet. But that's okay because they had been through aisles A through E so far. Currently, they are in aisle F. All the books with titles that begin with the letter F should be here. She had been mildly disappointed she didn't find much so far from the other aisles, especially aisle D because she didn't find new dueling books like she had been anticipating. Perhaps aisle R would make up for it to her if they have books about Ritual Summoning in stock this month.
Shrugging, Judai whimsically replies, "Your reactions are entertaining enough to me."
Goodness, he might as well compare her to something on the discovery channel with how he said that. He's probably observing how she reacts in her natural habitat or whatever it is those discovery channels talk about all day. He watches pro-duels at her place, but she's seen the occasional cartoons if he is really that bored. Maybe she's one of those stuck-up animal librarians instead.
Sighing, Asuka mutters indignantly, "I'm not a zoo animal," and puts the book back to scour further down the aisle while he offers an amused smile before catching up. She stops when she starts seeing book covers with pictures and drawings of fish. "Maybe you might like one of these," she offhandedly says as she picks up a random one just to skim through.
She sees diagrams depicting parts of a fish and parts of a fishing rod, and she starts feeling bewildered when she gets to the section advising what sorts of lakes are ideal to fish at during certain times of the day and other miscellaneous things like fish bait or lures. She's no expert, but she's certain that Judai is a casual fisher. He just simply likes to fish and she simply likes to see him enjoying it. He'd probably fish if he feels like fishing, he'd probably fish wherever he wants to if he knows there's fish there, and he'd probably still use the same lure for everything because he's probably too lazy to buy a new one anyway. Going with the flow seems to be his way to life these days.
A bit curious, he leans over her shoulder and lets his eyes skim a few sentences. Helpfully, she holds the book up for him. "I never knew some of this stuff," admits Judai, chin near her shoulder. "But I'd rather stick with what I already know. Easier to remember, in my opinion. I've done good on my own so far." It doesn't sound boastful coming from him, just an honest statement.
But regardless of his statements, he still has enough interest to take one of the other fish-related books and browse through it casually.
Watching from her periphery as she puts her own fishing book back, Asuka musters a smile. Finally he finds something here that he actually likes. It makes her happy to see him going through a book or two for her—
He suddenly leans over and shows her a two-page spread, snickering, "Look, I found a whole section dedicated to trouts."
It happens almost instantly: Asuka placidly takes his book, slams it shut, and inserts it back on the shelf with unnecessary force. The other books rattle from her strength, but none fell off the shelf from her inward long suffering. Maybe reality found her fish woes amusing, and she vaguely wonders if she really did have a past life like Judai that involved fish somehow.
Judai is stifling his laughter softly into his fist, shoulders shaking. He probably did that on purpose. That jerk.
"I think I'm done with this aisle now," she deadpans, marching away. They're not even close to the park today, for crying out loud.
The muffled laughter behind her is still respectfully low inside the store, but she can clearly hear it and she has to roll her eyes; the corners of her lips quirk upward when she turns a corner.
At least he flipped through some books for her, just like he had promised. She can't really stay mad at him anyway.
.
.
Judai trails behind her, still periodically laughing. "I said I was sorry!" She keeps walking. "Asuka!" She is still walking. "If I knew you were that triggered by trouts, I wouldn't have shown you!" he bellows with humor in his voice, an unerasable grin on his countenance.
He doesn't even sound sorry. Psh. "You still showed it anyway," she argues, feigning moodiness, as she slows her pace for him to catch up and they exit the bookstore.
After the accursed fish-book discoveries, Asuka immediately abandoned aisle F and flounced to aisle R. She found nothing worthy of her attention, which didn't sit well with her at all.
When she left that aisle, she still found Judai in aisle F with the fishing books. He'd been looking at something about fishing at lakes with interest—he actually looked like he was reading. When Asuka stepped next to him to take a peek at the book, he casually flipped to the next page and she thought reality hated her because the next page had a trout photo on it. Which looked like the same one from the lake. Judai did a genuine double-take when he saw her the moment he flipped that page because her jump startled him. He also spent a good solid minute laughing at her again as he consolingly closed the book and placed it back on the shelf for her while she rolled her eyes with a grimace. It's like he had planned it or something, honestly. He said he didn't, but she wouldn't be surprised at this point.
Trouts make her think about her unfortunate trout-stained clothes, and the one from the lake landing on her stomach and rudely splashing lake water in her face. Her favorite blouse will never be looked at in the same way again, and she'd have a hard time explaining to Junko and Momoe that she hardly wears it anymore because it spent a while making her apartment smell like fish and lake water. Not to mention, all the laundry detergent sacrificed for her and Judai's clothes! The money! Fishing is just not her calling at all.
Still, he went through some books for her sake. She'll take what she can get, even if she did become a buttmonkey today.
"Because I thought trouts were, like, our inside joke or something," Judai laughingly tells her, far too amused for her liking. (Lies! He was there when it splashed her! He even helped her catch it! He should know that she hates that trout! She even told him once!) "You just had some bad timing earlier. I didn't even know you were there! That's what you get for peeking over my shoulder!"
Asuka sulks, "You'd be more believable if you weren't laughing." He's totally doing this on purpose and basking in her suffering.
"Aww, c'mon," he coaxes with an easygoing smile. "Since you got your book, why don't we walk around so you can forget about the trout, 'kay?"
She gives him a mundane look. "Okay, but I'm turning around and going back if you make one more fish or trout joke." Clutching at the bag that contains her book, Asuka looks around to idly observe her surroundings again.
"I'm no scout, but I give you my scout's honor anyway," he says jokingly with his Gotcha! pose. His lightheartedness makes her smile. "Since you got to go somewhere you like, can I pick this time?"
Asuka thinks that's fair and nods. "Do you have a place in mind?"
Brightly, Judai nods with childlike enthusiasm and gestures to a direction. She cants her head to the side with curiosity. "It's a place you'll like too, I promise!"
He begins to trot off, grabbing her wrist and gently tugging her along. With no real expectations, Asuka blindly follows him. She didn't realize a trip to the bookstore would turn into an outing.
.
.
Of course, she thinks, fondly. Of course, he'd pick a card shop.
Amusedly, Asuka lets him wander around with, with loud skips in his steps, while she goes to observe a nearby rack of new card packs to see if any of them offered new Cyber Angels or new magic cards for her to get. She is satisfied with how her deck is right now, but it can't hurt to consider a few more cards to swap around with. She had been thinking about inserting more monsters, but isn't completely solid on it yet. Faithful to her deck, Asuka decides not to buy a card pack, but she does go to the counter to see if there are particular individual cards that catch her interest rather than buy a blind pack.
Most of the cards are vaguely familiar, but she stops when she sees a card that is reminiscent of Cyber Tutu. [1] Her eyes squint at the nametag, "Cy—"
"—ber Tutubon?" Judai abruptly pops up next to her, making her jostle back. Obliviously, he leans to the counter and also idly observes the card. "You should get it; it looks like it would really suit your deck. Reminds me of Cyber Tutu, right down to the name."
She calms herself from the brief fright he gave her. "I was thinking the same thing, actually. I couldn't really find anything else that interested me." Asuka rereads the description for Cyber Tutubon and thinks it could serve her greatly since she has both Warriors and Light monsters in her deck. If it could be Special Summoned, that would mean she'd still be able to Normal Summon an additional monster as well. Nodding to herself, she smiles satisfyingly. "I think I will get this one after all," she decides, face glowing at the prospect of a new ally in her deck.
"Cool, I'll check out with you," he grins, showing her the two card packs he decided to get. She assumes they're both hero-related.
Five minutes later, Asuka is slipping Cyber Tutubon into her deck with a cordial smile. She deliberately places Cyber Tutubon and Cyber Tutu next to each other so she can compare the artworks, and notes that they could be sisters from the same branch of type their cards are from. Pleasantly, she slips her deck back into her purse.
Judai gives her purse a wistful glance. "Must be nice that one of us got something new."
Inquisitively, she raises an eyebrow. "Did you not get anything from those packs?"
"Just ones that I already have or the ones that aren't compatible with my deck," he complains, slipping the cards back inside the packaging and sulking. Briefly, she saw a Miracle Fusion card before he slipped it back in the pack envelope. "Too bad Johan's not here so I can give him these. Or anyone, honestly."
Contemplatively, Asuka reaches out her hand and beckons for the cards. "I could take them."
"I thought you were satisfied with your deck?"
"I could take them so I can bring them to my class when school starts. Maybe a student of mine might want them. If not, I know other teachers I could pass them along to."
"This reminds me..." says Judai as he gratefully hands the packs over to her. "How was school this year?
Tucking the packs into her purse, she bemusedly asks, "Why?" He doesn't normally ask about this, but she knows he would take it the wrong way again if she points it out.
Not wanting to linger outside the card shop, she begins to walk again to nowhere in particular and he follows.
"I hardly ask you about it," he comments. "I've always talked about my travels, but you never get to talk about your life at school."
"Well," she awkwardly replies, not really knowing what to say at the sudden generosity. (Maybe he wants to understand her?) "I thought it'd be boring. You experience new things every time whenever you're out there, but I'm always following the same routine everyday until the school year is over." A brief pause. "I'm not saying that's boring for me; I love all the kids in my classes," she admits, fond. "But from an outsider's perspective, I feel like it's a little boring." Because not a lot of people like school, right? Once a student herself, she knows both sides.
Casually, he tells her, "If I thought it was boring, then I wouldn't have asked."
Asuka's fingers play with her bag as she quietly gathers her thoughts, feeling touched. He, of all people, is interested in hearing about what she does at school. "My classes here are nothing like ours back when we were still in school." Teasingly, she adds, "No one sleeps during my classes, or skips."
Faking an offended cough, he sulks. "Don't push your luck." She smiles.
Showing some mercy, she approaches a better topic: "Everyone seems to look content during my class, so I guess I'm doing a good job with how I teach. I do catch an occasional yawn sometimes, if it makes you feel better." He rolls his eyes. "I teach about Fusion Summoning," she tries again, and he perks a bit. "We have sessions where we practice Fusion Summoning different fusion monsters for practice duels. Sometimes I help give out lectures about Ritual Summoning since we don't have enough teachers for that. I prefer to teach Ritual Summoning more since that's what my deck is about, but it doesn't seem to be that popular of a subject. So, I mainly teach about Fusion Summoning." Asuka simpers at him knowingly, "That's your favorite, isn't it?"
Judai nods, tucking his hands in his pockets. "Guilty as charged," he offers to boost her ego. She beams in response. "I didn't know you taught that." He looks contemplative. "It makes me wanna see what your class is like in person."
She suggests, "You have a lot of Fusion monsters in your deck, so I could invite you if you ever feel like visiting. Why just see the class when you could participate?" She pauses, positively glowing. "Sometimes, they ask me to help test out new trial decks. We could even have a duel while we're at it!"
"As long as you ask me first, I'll see if I can make time for it," he agrees openly, nodding. Lazily, Judai grins. "Finally, I can see No-Nonsense Asuka-sensei in her natural habitat. Chronos-sensei should take notes."
"Don't push your luck," she sighs in mock exasperation, a smile breaking out on her countenance. He laughs.
Her students would like him.
.
.
They are walking through a semi-busy street, idly passing time. It's past midnoon with the plaza clock ticking at five o'clock. She remembers they both went to the bookstore at around two o'clock, a bit after lunch.
"Where are you going when you leave this time?" she quietly asks Judai, eating a crepe she had bought when they passed a crepe truck. Holding her crepe with one hand, Asuka brings her bag—that carries her purchased book—to the crook of her elbow securely.
Judai swallows a bite, pondering, "I was thinking south this time. I've never really gone there before. Maybe I could help someone there. Not to mention, I think Jim and Johan are pretty tired of me crashing with them!" He laughs to himself, finding it hilarious. Briefly, she feels pity for Jim and Johan. Mostly Jim, because Judai and Johan are often a terror duo and one can stop them. Poor Jim. "I want to see if I can bump into Sho or Manjoume while I'm at it. Or Edo, wherever he is. Or even Kaiser! Haven't really seen them in a while, except on the news."
"If you do, you can send my regards to them." As long as he doesn't get hurt, she'd like for him to see their friends again while he's away. He values all of his friendships, she knows.
He nods and takes another bite of his crepe.
When they pass by a clear area with benches near some tower viewer binoculars for tourists, she thinks it'd be a nice place to rest. They've walked a lot. "Are you tired? We can rest there." Her finger lightly points to the direction.
Quietly, Judai looks around idly, looking like he's observing. She can't exactly tell what could be so intriguing to look at around here aside from wandering couples and truck vendors still looming about the premises. Sometimes, it can be a little crowded here at sunset because this area is well-known for having a breathtaking vantage point. "It'd be nice to sit down for a while," he concedes. "Let's go."
When he reaches out for her this time, he takes her hand and not her wrist. Asuka feels like he's holding it differently with his fingers curled gently like that. She lets him, a bit bashful to remark about it and unable to gauge his reaction as he walks ahead of her. Maybe he just grabbed it like this by chance.
As they sit on a free bench, he does not let go.
Okay, so maybe it isn't by chance that he grabbed her hand like this.
Mildly anxious, she wonders if this means anything—if this means something to him. It makes her develop questions in her head, honestly. Awkwardly, Asuka tries to ignore what it makes her feel and busies herself with her crepe. Judai does the same.
She is disappointed to see that she already finished her crepe three minutes later. She says nothing for a while, sitting there with her hand captive and she tries not to fidget while looking at the faraway scenery. Then, all of a sudden, his grip absently loosens and in reflex, she nervously swipes her hand back and hops off the bench to approach one of the tower viewer binoculars in a hurry. The bag with her book rattles at the crook of her elbow as she walks briskly.
They've held hands before—for handshakes, for high fives—but this time, the pressure is taking a crack at her because they were not handshaking nor were they high-fiving this time. Given the clear rejection she got from him, she'd like to make sure things stay unfettered and behind the boundary line, and she doesn't particularly trust herself too much anymore after her confession blunder. He rejected her, and she will respect that. They're still friends, and she respects that there is a boundary between friends. (Not to mention, she's not sure if it'll be another 'problem' for Yubel to note.)
Asuka looks through the lenses with a hollow feeling echoing in her chest, feeling eyes on her back.
She doesn't look at anything in particular, just at the general mass of people below and the cluttered buildings, the mountains in the distance, and the ocean in the far horizon. Since it's getting late, the sky is a bit orangey and the binoculars make the clouds seem not so far away. She decides to zoom in on the clouds distractedly, thinking about how beautiful they look. She only really pays attention to clouds when she's watching the weather report. (It sort of makes her miss being at the lighthouse with Ryo when they looked out at the ocean with clouds drifting above them.) This is her first time looking through one of these tower viewers; she hadn't thought to use them prior since she isn't a tourist after living here for years.
Losing track of time, Asuka shakes her head briefly before going back to the bench and quietly sits.
"See anything?" Judai pipes up curiously as she absently balls up her forgotten crepe wrapper in her hands.
Had he really just sat here watching her the whole time? "The ocean looked beautiful from here," she says, eyes a bit far away, leaning her hands on either side of her. "Everyone looked small from up here too. But the clouds were the prettiest—I zoomed in on them."
He replies casually, "They are the prettiest during this time of day. I see them all the time when I'm outside."
"You must be used to seeing them since you're always outside then," she conversationally comments, eyes looking at the sky with quiet admiration.
"Yeah," he agrees. "But there's always something different when I look up. I don't really get bored looking at them since I can always use my imagination when cloud watching."
Asuka tilts her head to the side, eyeing some clouds passing by. "All right. What do you see right now when you look up?"
He hums thoughtfully, very contemplative. "Manjoume on a giraffe." She chokes momentarily. "Because over there—" Judai gestures up with an index finger, mockingly serious like he's some cloud watching connoisseur. "—those spikes you see poking out? That's his hair. That part flaring out is probably his coat. And that long part over there? That's the giraffe neck. Manjoume probably wasn't content with his dragons and cannons, so he found another new friend! The Ojama Brothers probably feel betrayed."
Asuka lets a chortle slip past her hand covering her lips, stomach hurting as she fights back more laughter. "He won't be too happy if he heard you say that."
Smiling lightheartedly, Judai says carefreely, "It's not like he'll find out anyway."
"The sun's starting to set," she mentions with another laugh, tossing the crepe wrappings at a garbage bin next to her. "Should we... go home now?" Ever since he had pointed out her habit of saying home, she feels very self-aware of it. But she finds no other words that could substitute it either. Saying let's go back doesn't seem to carry over the sentiments she feels about saying let's go home when she uses it with him.
He probably knows that too by now because he simply smiles and says, "Sure." Balling up his empty crepe wrapper, Judai tosses it like a basketball; it lands after hitting the rim. Asuka gives a silent awed look. He sees it and grins modestly. "I was pretty good at sports, y'know."
"Like tennis?" she wryly responds, remembering those old memories. Tennis was one of the sports at Duel Academia that allowed both girls and boys to play together, so it's one of the more memorable sports she could recall for them.
And of course, mentioning tennis also means remembering Ayanokouji. To Judai, the two are always a packaged duo and he's never happy about it. It's actually pretty funny.
Bemoaning, he stands up. She follows because of their hands. (When did he grab her hand again?) "Don't remind me," he groans, a little distastefully. This time, it's her who stifles her laughter. "That was torture. Who punishes someone by forcing them to join the tennis club and making them play tennis? Chronos-sensei was totally out for me back then, I swear. I wasn't even the one who hit the ball to his eye, and I said I was sorry so many times!" He rolls his eyes.
They start walking the road back to her apartment. Judai absentmindedly starts to swing their hands in the midst of his complaints. Not that he noticed, but Asuka does and it feels nice in a tingly sort of way. (If he holds her hand first, then does she take it away this time? Is that boundary line still here?)
"At least you survived it," she offers consolingly. Ironically, that ball almost hit her.
"Thank goodness," he grimaces. "I'd rather play softball with Misawa again than play tennis with that guy." She shakes her head amusedly. Judai's always been an open person and likes to befriend people most of the time during those old Duel Academia days, so it's a little funny to her that he would express such a dislike for Ayanokouji. (She can't really blame him, honestly.) "And for the record, I thought it was fun playing softball with Misawa. He had good sportsmanship! We were always trying to see who would outdo the other. Sho's my witness."
She smiles placatingly. "On the bright side, you haven't bumped into Ayanokouji-san ever since then." Asuka is also grateful for that because she can only handle so much sexism and nonsense from that guy.
"Psh," scoffs Judai, like tennis is the bane of his existence. "I wouldn't be surprised if I did." A pause. Then he rectifies, "Actually, I would be. But I will run the other way if he challenges me again to tennis."
"But not for a duel?"
Looking sheepish, he whines, "I thought we were past this, Asuka!"
"You reap what you sow, Judai," she wisely replies. That day with Ayanokouji will always be a prime example of Judai putting his foot where his mouth is.
"What does that even mean?"
"Figure it out yourself."
He harrumphs in a sulk. She smiles.
Neither say a thing about their hands.
They walk back like this for the rest of the way. She still doesn't ask about their hands. He doesn't bring it up either. Their fingers aren't intertwined. He's simply holding her hand and she is simply letting him, but she'd like to think this silence means something to him like how today means something to her. They're both here, surviving another day together. They're going home together today, and that's all that really matters right now.
.
.
She doesn't ask anything, but he already knows to let go of her hand the moment her door is in sight. Still unsure of why he held onto her in the first place, Asuka awkwardly digs through her purse for the keys quietly.
The strangest thing to her is that he doesn't even look fazed.
"Oh," she says absently, looking inside of her purse. "I think I forgot the keys this time…" Her wallet is definitely there because she checked it earlier, and other small things like a notepad and pencil and phone are still inside. Wait, didn't she leave her keys next to her laptop today after she checked her email for her book order? She remembers now: she had left the keys this time because she thought Judai was staying inside while she went to pick up her book. She wonders if that promise about reading was really why he wanted to come along with her—
Judai stops staring at the wall to look at her. "So, we're locked out?"
Immediately kneeling down, she lifts up her mat. "No!" she sighs in relief, swiping the spare key. And to think, Fubuki wanted her to throw out her only mat because it didn't look 'cute' enough. "Luckily, I keep a spare set!" Standing back up, Asuka unlocks her door and pushes it open to step inside.
When he also comes in and shuts the door, he says lightly, "You should probably put it back if that's the only extra set."
"I'll do it in a bit." Placing her purse on the rack, Asuka replies, "Besides, I think the landlady has more copies just in case. She said she gets a lot of calls about lost keys." She stands at her dining table and places her gift bag on the surface, absently plucking her book out.
He plops himself at the couch after hanging up his jacket on the rack next to her purse. "Maybe you should ask for more spares since we could've ended up on the streets today, Asuka!" jokes Judai, like he actually wouldn't mind being on the streets for a day. Probably because he travels. Lucky. Would he even be able to sleep on the streets? How does Yubel handle him?
She's about to say that she only has one mat outside to hide spare keys under, but she stops and starts to contemplate: Ask for extra spares? Hm, maybe it wouldn't hurt…? Would he even take it? He'll be leaving in a few days, after all. What are the chances that he'd actually use it? He does spends months out there... Still, maybe it's better safe than sorry—
"Oh, look! Manjoume on a giraffe!"
Startled, Asuka looks up and blindly glances around her. "Huh?"
There is muffled laughter coming from her living room, and Asuka sees Judai crossing his arms over the back of the couch to look at her. His face is buried into his arms as he tries to stifle his laughter. "I didn't think that would work, honestly!" he chortles, like it's that fun to mess with her. Dully, she briefly contemplates throwing her new hardcover book at him, but he regains some composure. "You okay, though? You seemed like you were thinking about something." He rests his chin on his arms and looks at her, absently smiling.
That idea is still lingering in her mind, but she ultimately shakes her head. Now's not the time anyway. "Everything's fine." He looks like he's going to ask somethi— "Speaking of him, I think one of Manjoume-kun's pro-duels will be on tonight. Maybe you can watch it."
It looks like he forgets about his question, and he whips back to fetch the remote. "I didn't know that!"
"I saw it in the TV guide earlier. It should be in an hour, on the same channel you usually watch."
Thanking Manjoume inwardly, she hurriedly walks down the hallway to her room with her book while he's distracted. The moment she closes her door, she stares at her book and then at her fingers. She thinks about their hands; thinks about the whole day in general and then their hands again.
One moment, she's trying to settle with friendship, and the next moment, he holds her hand and she lets it happen. She can acknowledge that she's still in love with him, but she wonders how long she can keep this up because he's confusing her again. Maybe Yubel forgot that she's a Duel Monsters teacher, so it's not in her job description to understand love.
Sighing, Asuka wonders if Yubel would be willing to give her a hint about what her unresolved 'problem' is, because she thinks she keeps getting more 'problems' without knowing. It would be so easy if she could just see spirits. But of course, reality hates her.
.
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[footnote 1] — decided to insert some references to yugioh duel links; cyber tutubon is an actual card from the game during the alluring alexis/asuka event. i also learned this card was used by asuka in yugioh arc-v belatedly after writing this chapter (oops!), but i don't think that really matters since arc-v doesn't exist in this story lol.
