Chapter 28

Lindsey POV

What have I Done?

I am literally the definition of a train wreck. Why can't I get my emotions in order? I have a tournament to win! Well… hopefully this will be the last time I take the walk of shame…

A million thoughts were going through Lindsey's head as she carefully snuck out of Yami's hotel room. She had gotten dressed, and then carefully checked to see if he was still sleeping. He was in a deep sleep, so Lindsey used this as an escape opportunity. She tiptoed out of the room and quietly shut the door behind her. She practically sprinted to her hotel room, and quickly got inside.

She stood with her back against the door, and her eyes closed.

I can only imagine the consequences I'm going to face today. He'll tell all his friends… word will get around. Seto will hear…. Oh god…. Anyone but Seto!

A knock on the door stopped her negative thoughts. Lindsey took a deep breath, and then answered. Mai and Lyris stood outside her door and both girls had very serious looks on their faces. Lindsey already knew why they were here.

"Come in." She breathed. The two girls entered the suite like room and sat on the couch. They motioned for Lindsey to sit across from them on the bed. She did as they asked.

"How ya feeling sweetie?" Mai asked.

"Just spit out whatever you're here to tell me guys." Lindsey urged. "Might as well get it over with." Mai and Lyris looked sympathetic.

Lyris cleared her throat. "Well, we are a little worried about your emotional state." Lindsey raised a brow. She motioned for Lyris to continue talking. "And, we know what happened last night."

"Joey saw you and Yugi before you went into his room." Mai continued.

So… Yami didn't say anything… but how could he? He was dead asleep and I literally left his room not ten minutes ago. I'll have to kill Joey later.

Lindsey sighed. "Look, I didn't mean to. I had a million different emotions running through my head and I needed my mind off of things. This seemed like the easiest way to do so."

"Using Yami was your best solution?" Lyris questioned. "That's fucked up Linds."

"You don't even understand what I have been going through these last few months Lyris! Two people that I have loved very deeply have royally fucked me up to no return." Mai was about to interject but Lindsey continued to vent. "Seto literally could care less about me. He just wants to use me for his own personal gain. Some type of love that is! I mean yeah I just did the same thing to Yami, but I didn't claim to love him. I believed Seto's lies!"

"What did Kaiba do?" Mai asked. Lindsey ignored her question and continued on.

"And Yami. Ugh! FUCK YAMI!" The girl's eyes had widened. "I gave him everything! Literally everything! And that meant absolutely nothing to him! He threw everything we had away for some stupid box haired slut!"

"Lindsey…" Mai interrupted, but she was ignored.

"I should have known something would happen between those two. She only threw herself at him every 2 seconds!"

"Lindsey…" Lyris urged.

"And another thing! I put up with a lot of his shit! I have almost died several times because of him, and I still stayed around! Yet he still cheated on me with that spawn of Satan!"

"HE NEVER CHEATED ON YOU!" Both girls said forcefully in unison. The color drained from Lindsey's face as she stared at Mai and Lyris.

"What?" She said in a very small voice.

"You would know that if you hadn't been such a bitch for so long and ignored us!" Lyris stated.

"Little harsh Ly…" Mai commented.

"I'm sorry but this has gone on long enough." Lindsey blinked in disbelief. "All you do Lindsey is run from your problems rather than face them." Tears began to well in Lyris' eyes but she kept speaking with powerful words. "Just because you are a champion does not mean you can run around doing whatever. You are no god!" Mai was gaping as Lyris lectured her reflection. All three girls were tense and rigid. Lyris continued.

"You nearly destroyed several friendships and for what? Because you were dumb enough to believe Tea? Were you so insecure in your relationship that you had to go insane and throw away the one guy who loved and cherished you more than anything?"

Lindsey didn't answer. Silent tears began to roll down her cheeks.

"Answer!" Lyris said forcefully.

"I'm sorry!" Lindsey cried out. "It's all true. Everything. I'm just so sorry…" Mai moved next to her and put an arm around her in comfort. Lindsey stared straight at the floor.

"Don't tell me you're sorry." Lyris began. "Show it. Make things right." Lindsey lifted her head to meet her eyes. "Actions always speak louder than words."

Lindsey nodded in agreement. "You're right Ly." Lindsey stood up and wiped the tears away. "I'm going to make things right with Yami." Lyris and Mai gave her a wide smile. "and then, I'm gonna beat the ever loving shit out of Tea." She dashed out of the room before both girls could object.

"Fuck."

Lindsey knocked loudly on Yami's hotel room door. Little Yugi answered almost immediately. Without asking she entered the room and prompted for Yugi to close the door.

"Lindsey what are you doing here?" Yugi asked.

"Switch." She stated. Yugi didn't question it. His puzzle engulfed in light. Yami stood there with a concerned look on his face.

"Something wrong?" He asked.

"Lyris and Mai told me everything." Yami's eyes widened in surprise. "And," She bit her lip as she collected her thoughts. "I guess I'm here to apologize. I'm not here to say I forgive you because there's nothing to be forgiven. You did nothing wrong. I was the one who jumped to false conclusions." Yami gave a Lindsey a small smile.

"I was never mad at you, just a little disappointed in the lack of faith you had in our relationship." Lindsey looked down, refusing to meet his eyes. He cupped her chin and tilted her head back up. "But I forgive you." Lindsey's eyes glistened. "insecurities are normal. They are something we'll overcome together." He began to pull her into his arms but she stepped out of reach. A confused look formed on his face.

"Look I'm not about to jump back into a relationship. Last night happened for selfish reasons, and I have been so wrong to you these past few months. I still have incredibly strong feelings for you, but for the duration of this tournament I just need to focus on myself." Yami nodded understanding. "I am so glad we sorted things out and made peace, and I'm not completely closed off to being with you again, understand that. But as long as someone else stands in the way, it can't happen."

"You're in love with Kaiba." It wasn't a question. Both Yami and Lindsey knew it.

"I don't know why. He treats me like garbage but then he treats me like a queen. He's wrong for me in everyway possible, but I still crave him in my life." Yami nodded solemnly. "But I crave you too. How messed am I? Be honest."

Yami chuckled. "You sound like an average hormonal teenager." They both laughed at that.

"Can I hug you now? Friend?"

Yami smiled. "Friend." He enveloped her into a tight embrace. Lindsey broke away quickly.

"Hate to cut this short, but I have one final thing to do."

"What would that be?" He raised a brow. "They're going to announce the first round duels soon."

"I just wanna talk to Tea." Lindsey smirked.

Tea was grabbing lunch with Serenity at the Blue Eyes Café. The first round duels were set to be announced in a few hours and the park was booming with excited fans. The girls were finishing up their burgers when the real excitement began. A fiery girl in a white trench outfit approached the two girls with rage painted across her face.

"Yo Gardner!" Tea looked in Lindsey's direction with wide eyes. Several spectators heard as well and began to circle around the trio. "If there is one thing in this world I can't stand, it's liars, and you happen to be a pretty experienced one."

The crowd gasped and "ooed" and Lindsey's remark. Serenity took small bites of her burger as she watched the scene in front of her. Close by, the entire gang fought its way through the crowd to monitor the drama.

"My only questions is, Why Tea? Why lie to break Yugi and I up? Clearly it didn't work out in your favor because he STILL DIDN'T WANT YOU!" Tea quickly stood up.

She opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out.

"You're pathetic. And just so you know, Yugi and I made up!"

"Alright!" A fan shouted. "She's back with the King! Yindsey forever!" Half the crowd wildly cheered while Lindsey smiled and rolled her eyes.

"NO! I am not back with Yugi guys! Sorry!"

"So that means she's with Kaiba!" another fan shouted. "KINDSEY!" The other half of the crowd cheered this time. Lindsey sighed.

"NO! I am not with Kaiba either! I am single!" Lindsey breathed a sigh of relief when the crowd silenced.

"Hell Yeah! Lindsey Walsh is single!" A male fan shouted. "May the best man win boys!" The male fan base erupted into cheers and claps. Lindsey just put her head in her hands as they celebrated her relationship status.

The cheers hadn't silenced. Lindsey stopped caring though, and began to finish what she came here to do. In one swift motion, she closed the gap between her and Tea, grabbed her drink off the table and showered her in the dark cola product. The crowd gasped as Tea wiped the pop out of her eyes. Mai and Lyris ran to throw themselves between the two girls.

"What the hell is going on?" A husky like voice boomed through the crowd. Lindsey turned to see the tall brunette coming at her with furious cobalt eyes. She smirked when she saw him. "Seriously? Why is it always you? Every time there is a scene, here you are."

Lindsey sweetly blinked her eyes. "Well since you're the cause of my emotional drama and distress I think you can answer that question yourself." The crowd was shocked that someone would say that to someone like Seto Kaiba.

Seto walked up to Lindsey and seized her wrist. She tried to pull away but she wasn't strong enough. "We're talking now." He stated. She tried to pull away again but she got the same result. He began to drag her away when his hand released her wrist. She was confused as to why when she noticed Seto holding his cheek and Yami standing furiously next to him, his knuckles red.

Holy shit… Yami just decked Seto….

Cameras were flashing and the crowd had their phones out recording the incident. Seto quickly recovered and had a look of murder in is eyes. Joey and Tristan ran out quickly to defend Yami but Seto threw them to side as if they were nothing. The crowd cheered encouraging the fight. Seto was about to return the favor to Yami when Lindsey ran in front of him. Seto froze, not wanting to hurt her.

"Bitch!" She shouted. She swiftly kicked him in the shin and he fell to the ground with a sharp pain. "And while you're down, this is for using me for your own personal gain!" She slapped him across the face. "Now do not speak to me! As of now I am erasing you from my life Seto Kaiba!" He looked stricken. He rose swiftly.

"Erasing me?" She nodded. " You're going to stand there and tell me you don't love me?" She sharply inhaled.

"Well you don't feel the same way back, so why should I waste my time?" Seto narrowed his eyes.

"And you think Yugi loves someone like you?" Seto taunted. Lindsey looked down without response.

"Unconditionally." A deep voice answered. Lindsey turned and gaped at the man who answered. Yami stood there, locking contact with Seto. Both men looked ready to fight again when Seto smirked.

"We all know I'll win in the end. I always do." Seto left the scene without another word.

Lindsey sighed in relief. She turned back to Yami. "You still love me?"

Yami smiled. "I never stopped." Lindsey bit her lip to keep a giddy smile from reaching her face.

"Umm…. I have a tournament to prepare for." She blushed as Yami smirked at her response.

"Uh! NO!" Tea interjected. "What did this entire scene accomplish Lindsey?"

"I don't know but it was fun." Lindsey laughed. "And you deserved it."

"I did not deserve this! I'm all sticky!" she huffed.

Lindsey snorted. "Just another casual Saturday night for you isn't it?" The crowd cheered a final time and Lindsey left the scene while Tea stood there fuming with anger.

Lindsey held her deck in her hand and stared at it with determination.

For 7 years this deck has never disappointed me. We've been through everything together. This is going to be our toughest tournament to come. But I've never been more ready. The moment has finally come. Time to head to the Kaiba Dome. I may love Yami still, but I won't let it stop me from becoming number one.

She smiled.

Seems like I have another chance to fulfill the real reason I first came to Domino. Only this time, the stakes are higher.

May the best duelist win.