Dedications: This Chapter is dedicated to my Nan, like a final goodbye sort of thing. And also to all my friends for being there for me and all my tears lol thank you so, much I love you!!!
Disclaimer: Maybe this one will go better than my last…Taps chin Right. Hold on tight…It's a good one! Yeah, it really is. The best you'll ever hear! Really…I don't know who owns Yu-Gi-Oh, but it's not me… Hangs head in shame Yes, that's it…
A/N: Yey! This chapter is finally up. I love this one because I put some more fluff in it and I dunno, I just think its pretty good 'coz all my others are so crap. I hope you like it as much as I do but you might not see why I like it lol. And yes, this is a pretty long chappie! Well ENJOY! X PS Sorry it took so long for those of you who still actually care about it, I had trouble with my proof readers and I have been busy and just shit like that so yeah, sorry!!!
One Door Closes, Another Opens
No Weddings And A Funeral
Beep Beep Beep
Tèa's alarm went off early on Saturday Morning and she stirred, the demonic ringing already pissing off her sub-conscious self.
Beep Beep Beep
"Urgh…Too early" She complained groggily, slapping the top of it to make the dreadful noise stop. She let out a sleepy sigh and allowed her vision to focus before reading the digits on the clock. 6:31 a.m.
Her feet seemed to automatically pull from under the quilt and on to the floor, whether she really wanted to get up or not. Really, either way, it didn't matter. She knew she had to. Today at least. She somehow managed to get to the bathroom in one piece, with her eyes more or less closed. Well, she thought she had;
Bang
Tèa had over estimated the size of the door and walked straight into the frame.
"Ohh…Ow ow ow." She rubbed her head, but at least her little bump had woken her up a bit.
She undressed from her silky chemise and climbed into the cool shower. The water gradually wet her hair and poured down her slim figure. A little while later, she heard a noise from her bedroom. It was the sound of the door opening…Or closing. She couldn't quite tell.
"Hello?" She called, her voice echoing in the over-sized bathroom. No answer.
She carried on with her shower, a little unnerved, when she heard the noise again, obviously this time the door was shutting. She quickly rinsed the remaining conditioner out of her wet, brown locks that were currently a few inches below her shoulder's and climbed out of the cubical with great difficulty, nearly slipping several times on her way to the surface her towel was lying on.
"What on earth to do you need a bathroom this big for?" She muttered to herself whilst drying her soles and so preventing any further slipping.
Why did today have to come? She had been dreading it for nearly a week and now it had so suddenly arrived. And thinking of fear, it brought her thoughts back to the suspicious noise she heard in her room. She tentatively and slowly walked in, her lilac towel wrapped around her slim body and her brown locks, that she was currently growing, dripping water down her back.
She looked around the large cream room but there was no sign that anyone was or had been there. Apart from;
Tèa walked toward her wardrobe and picked up the coat hanger resting on the handle. On it, hung a beautiful, knee length, fitted black dress, the tiniest of diamantes decorating the thin straps. She slowly dried herself down, still amazed by the beauty of the formal dress, and slipped it down her figure. It fit her perfectly and hugged her dancer's curves. The material was loose enough round the chest area to droop slightly and show the top of her cleavage. It gave the dress a sexy but polite, formal look. Below where the dress hung, were a pair of black pointed shoes with a decent heal. She put her feet into them gently and carefully and smiled to herself, tears building up behind her eyes. She knew just why the outfit was there and who put them there.
……
Seto looked at his watch.
"Its half nine…I thought she'd be down by now…" He mumbled to himself, thinking that he was the only person in the room.
"Go check on her then" A younger voice spoke casually, stuffing coco pops into his mouth.
Seto spun around in his chair, leaving the paper on the breakfast bar and looked at Mokuba's beaming and over-stuffed face.
"Mokuba wha-?"
"Seto, don't give me all that" He finished his mouthful and set the spoon down in the dish. "You've been checking your watch every ten minutes for the past hour, now if you don't go up and check on her then Im-a-gonna-" Seto cut him off
"Then you're gonna what?" He asked, raising an eyebrow and smirking victoriously.
"Oh for the love of Ra!" Mokuba whined. "Seto just go!" he was now pulling his elder brother off the chair in the kitchen by the sleeve on his in-famous white trench coat.
"Fine, if it will shut you up" He replied, leaving the room and Mokuba.
"You know ya wanna" The young boy grinned.
Seto didn't reply, he only smirked to himself, glad Mokuba could not see the front of him.
He walked up the stairs and thought about his conversation with the ebony haired boy.
For the love of Ra? He thought. "For the love of Ra?" He repeated aloud. "Where the hell did that come from?"
He reached Tèa's bedroom door, his head still in the clouds, and opened it automatically.
"Aaaah!" Tèa screamed from inside. She pulled the towel off the bed and covered up her body.
She had just taken off the dress and was about to change into something more comfortable before the funeral.
"Ah…Eh…Oh my" Seto covered his eyes with one hand whilst trying to find the door handle with the other. (Why he didn't just turn round I dunno it just works better like this! Lol)
He managed to grab it (The door handle I mean, you dirty minded people!) and exited the room, stumbling slightly, shutting the door behind him. He removed his hand from his eyes and steadied his breathing.
"I'll…errr…wait downstairs for you then?" He asked rhetorically and headed for the stairs whilst hearing a faint;
"Okay" From Tèa. He made his way back down to the kitchen, ready to blow off Mokuba's head.
He entered the kitchen and looked around, but no Mokuba. He took a seat where he was sitting before and picked up the newspaper he was reading, prior to Mokuba's accusations. Lucy, the family maid, brought him a black coffee, the way he had had it for the last few years.
"So, how was Tèa?" Mokuba asked him innocently, jumping into a chair next to his big brother and drinking the juice Lucy had handed to him.
"She was…" He paused
Naked!
"She was fine"
"See, I told you going to see her would help!" He smiled, gulped down his drink and skipped out the kitchen.
Seto held his head in his hands. He had been trying to avoid his, yes he had to admit it, very beautiful female guest after there last little 'incident' but after everything she had been through and what she was about to go through today he just had to give her a little sympathy, to support her. So there he was, trying to be a bit more sociable and he ended up being a bit too social…and walked in on her naked.
Naked! He mentally slapped himself. "Oh man"
Light steps of bare feet could be faintly heard as the owner of them entered the kitchen and took a seat next to the distressed and still quite embarrassed teen. Kaiba had to admit it, he'd been getting embarrassed a lot lately…
"What's up?" Tèa smiled sweetly
Seto sharply pulled up his head and stared into her eyes.
"Nothing. Look, I…errr…I'm sorry about earlier. I assumed you were still in the shower and I…I went to check up on you to make sure you hadn't gone back to bed or anything and…" He trailed off apologetically, getting more and more embarrassed with each word.
Tèa smiled. He looked so sweet when he was worrying like that. "Sssh" She hushed him and placed her index finger on his lips. "It's okay"
Her bright blue eyes shone and a small droplet of water fell on to her hand from her still damp hair. Seto wiped it away with his thumb then removed her finger from his lips, never taking his eyes off hers, knowing full well where all this was about to lead.
"Seto I…" She began but he silenced her by pushing his strong lips against her cherry ones.
She hesitated a little before allowing his tongue to enter her mouth. He slid it inside, exploring the place he had met once before. After a few moments, Tèa closed her eyes and allowed herself to give into temptation and return the favor and her tongue made its way into his mouth. Her hands trailed up his back and into his hair. Her delicate fingers tangled in his soft, brown locks, her breathing in the scent of his cologne as she did so whilst Seto's hands ran down her back and onto her waist. He lifted her small body up with ease and gently placed her on his lap. He heard a slight moan come from the back of her throat and smiled against her lips, she smiled back and their tongues continued to entwine as a small, black haired boy exited the living room.
Mokuba walked through the hallway and headed towards the kitchen. As he reached the door he stopped and looked up to see Tèa on his big brothers lap, her hands playing with his hair. The younger Kaiba's face lit up and he skipped back into the living room. When he got in there he shut the door behind him to make sure he was out of ear shot of the two older teens.
"Yes!" He shouted, clapping his hands. "Tèa's gonna be my big sister!" He jumped up and down on the sofa excitedly.
……
Seto opened his eyes and saw the pleasure on Tèa's face. He reluctantly pulled away, Parting their lips and so breaking the kiss.
"Seto I…" Tèa started
"Sssh, I know" He looked away. "I know it shouldn't have happened, you wish I'd stop doing it, right?"
"No, that's not it at all"
"Then what?" Seto was now confused.
"I…I…I really like you" Her cheeks turned a cute pink and she smiled, looking as if she'd wished she'd never said it.
"Don't look like that, you make me feel like I've done something wrong" Tèa looked up to see a very sexy smile on Seto's lips. "Look I-"
Dong…Dong…Dong
The large grandfather clock in the hallway broke off his speech. He was relieved really. He was just about to admit to Tèa that he really did like her too…Admit his feelings. But he knew, that all these emotions would only cause him pain in the long run.
"I really need to stop it doing that every hour" He said, dodging what he was really about to say. He looked at his watch to see what time the clock was signaling.
"God, its eleven 'o' clock, we better start getting ready" He mumbled and without another word, left Tèa alone in the kitchen.
"Oh Seto" Tèa sighed. "Even if you can't say it…I really hope you do like me…"
……
Tèa sat on her bed, staring at the beautiful black dress and sophisticated shoes next to it.
"Thanks Seto" She whispered.
A few tears rolled down her face and dropped gracefully onto her lap. She didn't try to fight them away this time. There was no need. She was allowed to cry, today at least. She changed out of her white sweats and tank top and slid the black number down her body and slender hips. She put on the shoes and brushed her hair before breathing in deeply and exiting the room, shutting the door behind her. As she turned around she saw a handsome looking Seto Kaiba waiting for her at the bottom of the stairs. She smiled weakly at him and he smiled back, holding out his hand for her to take.
"You look lovely, your Mother would have been proud"
"Thanks" She got goose bumps all over. She wasn't sure if it was because she was scared about what was about to happen soon…the final goodbye to her mum, or if it was because how Seto looked at her. "You scrub up pretty well yourself" She replied, trying to push all her pain away.
Tèa turned her head to look out the window as she saw a limo pull up outside behind the hearse containing the coffin her Mother lay in. A young man, only a few years older than her, in a top hat and tails stepped out of the limo and walked up to the gates of the Kaiba mansion.
"I see we better go then" Seto said cautiously
"Mmm Hmmm" She replied. A single tear drop rolled down her flawless skin. Seto kissed her cheek gently before releasing her hand and the headed for the door.
"Wait!" Mokuba shouted, running to them. He hugged Tèa as tight as he could, tears in his eyes. "Stay strong Tèa, I wanned to come but Seto wouldn't let me so I'll stay here and wait for you to come back, and remember, smile, it'll help" And with that he kissed her cheek too and released her from his hug.
"Seto's right, Mokuba. A funeral is defiantly no place for an eleven year old, just…don't be sad, yeah?" She said, seeing the tears in his eyes. He nodded and quickly wiped them away, not wanting to let them fall in front of Tèa or his brother. Tèa smiled at him and walked to the bottom of the drive, waiting.
Seto knelt down to his brother's height.
"Mokuba, stay here and make sure everything is okay for the wake, and don't let them do anything wrong. The cooks making the food but just…You know what I mean" He kissed Mokuba's forehead and joined Tèa as Mokuba shut the door.
……
"Seto I…Oh thanks" Tèa hugged him tight when she saw the limo at the bottom of the drive way.
It was a shiny black with a gold bumper. The limo was perfectly refined and looked expensive. Even though Seto's were expensive, this was different. It wasn't Seto's. He had specifically hired the cars, people and anyone involved rather than using his own and he had gone to a lot of trouble to get them and she knew and appreciated it.
"You didn't have to go through all this trouble. A black car or just one of your limos would have been fine!" Even more tears fell from her cobalt eyes.
"Yes I did and no it wouldn't. I owed it to you and your Mum deserved to say goodbye in style"
"And you made that possible" She croaked, her voice ready to break at any moment.
They climbed into the limo and set off for the church, passers by paying there respects as they drove past, in the wake of the hearse.
……
Joey Wheeler looked at his watch. 11:55 a.m.
"She'll be here soon" He told Serenity, Tristan Duke and Ryou.
"She's had it real tough lately, not just with her Mum but other stuff too…" Duke trailed off sympathetically.
Yeah, more than you could imagine! Joey thought. Living with Money bags…
"I feel awful, I can't stay for the wake, Dads going out of town for a while and I have to go and see him before he goes" Ryou said, hanging his head, his English accent very distinguishable.
"Hey, don't fret dude. She'll understand. That's what Tèa's like" Tristan reassured the pale boy.
Silence fell upon the group until Serenity spoke up.
"So…Does anyone know where we've got to go afterwards?"
"No, she didn't actually say where the wake was but I assume she'll let us know soon" Tristan spoke again.
He looked at Joey who looked back at him. They thought were the only ones who knew what had happened to Tèa's house and who she was staying with but Ryou also knew. It killed him to have them think they knew something he didn't but he was sworn to secrecy by Tèa. Tristan and Joey assumed her to have the wake at the same place:
Kaiba's They thought in unison.
All five of them stared at the road, in silence once again. About a dozen of Heather Gardner's workmates had showed up over the last 10 minutes.
A black and gold, polished limo stopped in front of the church and a young man in tails opened the door for Tèa. She put one leg out before the other, the black shoes all the group could see, even though they knew it was her. She stepped out elegantly and looked down at the grey concrete.
"Stylish" Duke admired the car and the others nodded.
"Almost reminds me of…" Ryou stopped at the sight of the man who climbed out the other side of the limo and walked round to stand by Tèa and put his hand comfortingly on her shoulder.
"Kaiba?!?" Ryou, Duke and Serenity exclaimed.
Joey and Tristan raised their heads and smiled weakly at Tèa. She looked pleadingly into their eyes then up and Seto and, even though they weren't so bright, Joey and Tristan got what she was saying and if Seto did, he made no indication.
"What the, hell, are you doing here?!?" Duke spat, heading towards Kaiba.
"Duke, don't… She doesn't need it, not today" Tristan grabbed the dungeon dice monsters creator by his arm and stopped him from getting any further.
Joey approached Tèa, glancing at the silent CEO as he did so.
"Kaiba"
"Joey" Seto replied politely.
Tristan and the others gaped in shock at what had just gone on between Kaiba, their rival, and Joey, their best friend. Seto usually referred to him as 'mutt' and maybe even 'Wheeler' but never had he spoken his real name before.
"Hey Tèa"
"Hey Joey, guys. Thanks for coming" The cerulean eyed female replied.
"Yeah well, couldn't not. Wouldn't wanna leave you on your own…" He glared threateningly at Kaiba.
"Don't. Start. Wheeler. Not now" Seto hissed back.
"Since when did you care, rich boi?" Joey tried to keep his voice down.
"Believe it or not Wheeler, I do care, today at least. She really doesn't need your childish antics making today any worse"
"Yeah well-"
Tèa cut Joey off.
"Please, you two! Se-…Kaiba, calm down, Joey, go and tell the guys what's going on…everything" Joey opened his mouth to speak and she slowly closed her eyes, sighing. "Yes, even about where Im staying…but please make sure it stays with them…now just go"
She looked at the scowls on both Joey and Kaiba's faces.
"We don't want the press to find out. If they do Kaiba and I will both get hell for it…him especially and then everything will just go wrong, okay? Both of you come into the church when your ready"
"Fine"
"Fine"
Kaiba breathed in deeply and Joey explained Tèa's accommodations to the guys. The six walked into the church, Kaiba a little ahead.
Seto stood next to Tèa and the others stood behind, Heathers workmates another row back. The undertakers carried her coffin and Tèa's crying got heavier as the song started.
When you walk
through a storm
Hold your head up high
And don't be afraid of
the dark.
At the end of the storm
There's a golden sky
And
the sweet silver
Song of a lark.
Tèa couldn't look at it. Her Mum was really gone and she didn't want to face the truth. Seto stared at her shaking form and listened carefully to the song lyrics. He had never really known Mrs. Gardner all that well but had met her at her work as the boss of the place she worked was under the control of Kaiba corp. She had always seemed such a pleasant woman and the song fit perfectly.
Walk on through
the wind
Walk on through the rain
Though your dreams
Be
tossed and blown.
Walk on
walk on
With hope in your
hearts
I And you'll never walk alone
You'll never walk
alone.
Walk on
walk on…
Seto was tempted to comfort the distraught Tèa, hold her like he had just a short hour ago but even if he had decided to, Joey beat him to it. He placed a hand on her shoulder and rubbed it, trying to calm her. The song finished and the small crowd of about twenty sang a hymn before sitting down and allowing the vicar to speak. He did a small speech before they sang another hymn. Once it was over he spoke up again.
"Tèa, Heathers precious daughter, has a little something she'd like to say"
Tèa stood up and made her way to the front. She wiped away her tears and took a deep breath.
"Mum…we'll all miss you. We saw it coming but never expected it. Your friends from work have come to say goodbye and so have Joey, Tristan and some of my friends…I wrote a poem for you…" She paused. "Don't grieve for me, for now I am free, I'm following the path god laid for me. I took his hand…" Her voice broke and tears chocked her throat. Her eyes continued to cry and she looked down. "I…I'm sorry…I can't…" She shook her head and broke down in tears.
"Tèa" Seto whispered softly.
Go help her you jerk! His head told him
He stood up but Joey pushed him back down.
"Don't even think about it. This is nothing to do with you, money bags" He said coldly to the CEO before running up to his female friend and hugging her tightly.
"Joey Im so sorry" She sobbed, hugging him back.
He led her back to her seat, cooing softly.
"Sssh, It's not your fault" He told her before sitting back next to Serenity.
……
Everyone dropped a handful of dirt onto Heather's coffin in the cemetery but Tèa threw in a single red rose.
"I love you Mum" She cried.
Before long, people started to leave the grave. Ryou had gone to his Dads and Duke and Serenity were standing next to Dukes car, waiting to go to the wake.
"You ready?" Kaiba asked. Tèa shook her head, more tears spilling from her eyes.
"C'mon Tèa, you gotta" Tristan told her.
"This will only make it worse" Seto took hold of her wrist in an attempt to get her away and ease her pain.
"No! Please! Just leave me alone! I don't wanna let go! She's not gone!" She pounded on Seto's chest with clenched fists. She stopped and looked into his eyes.
They were there usual dark blue but not cold. They looked welcoming and she wanted nothing more than to kiss him again, but she didn't. Heaven knows what reaction she would get from him considering Joey and Tristan were there. Seto looked down at her and her face looked desperate. She needed to be told it was going to be okay; Kaiba's plan was originally to not tell her that but maybe it was too harsh for her? She just wanted to be comforted.
She wrapped her arms around him and cried into his chest.
Hug her back, asshole! But what about mutt and Taylor? Forget about them! Hug her!
So he did. His strong arms embraced her and he held her tight.
"Its gonna be okay. Me and Mokuba are gonna take care of you" He said in a soothing tone.
Why is he hugging her, the jerk? It should be me, or Tristan or one of her friends! Not money bags… Joey cursed him.
……
The limo pulled up in front of the Kaiba mansion, followed by Dukes car and then a few others with Heathers work mates inside. The guys weren't happy that the wake was being held at Kaiba's and Seto wasn't happy that the mutt and his cronies would be in his house but they planned on keeping away from each other, for Tèa's sake. Mokuba ran out of the house and hugged Seto tightly. When he pulled away from his big brothers embrace he looked at Tèa and she smiled weakly at the young boy. He could tell she had been crying badly. Joey, Tristan, Duke and Serenity climbed out the car in time to see Mokuba hug Tèa. Mokuba treated her just like he treated Seto, an older sibling. Someone to look up to and confide in and Tèa's friends noticed this. Mokuba let her go.
"Be brave" He smiled as she followed Seto toward the mansion.
"Hi guys" Mokuba waved at the three boys and the red head.
"Hey Mokuba" They spoke together.
"Don't just stand there, come in!" And so the group entered the Kaiba residence after Mokuba.
……
"Nice spread" Tèa told Seto as the chef opened the buffet table containing the usual foods along with a few Tèa had never seen before.
"All thanks to the chef" Seto replied, looking at the cook
Usually, Seto Kaiba thought very little of his employee's and would sack them without a second thought but his chef, Mike, was a loyal worker who had been hired by Seto's step father many years ago and had helped bring the young CEO up. Mike was neither scared nor intimidated by Kaiba as he had never been particularly angry enough with him to yell at him.
"Thank you Mr. Kaiba, anyway, I taught you how to cook most of this, so it can't be that difficult" Mike joked. Surprisingly, Seto also laughed a little at this.
"Well I better get back to the kitchen" He stated before leaving.
Tèa looked at Seto, Seto looked at Tèa. Their eyes met and she smiled awkwardly.
"Uhhh…Thanks for today…"
"Thanks for what?"
"For what?!? For everything! The limo, the food…And for letting me get mascara on your shirt" She smiled and tried to wipe it off using her thumb.
"You've made it worse!" Seto whined. "I'll go change it" And he left for his bedroom.
A pair of caramel, brown eyes had been watching them. Serenity's. She approached Tèa and giggled.
"So what's going on with you two then?"
"Us two? Me and Kaiba? Nothiiing!"
"Well you like him"
"Argh! You're the second person to say that, Serenity!"
"Well it must be true then! Anyway, you didn't deny it so you do" Serenity giggled again. Tèa blushed and turned to face her mothers work mates and Mokuba.
"Well, Joey, Tristan buffets open so dig in…Oh and everyone else, if you wanna eat you better get it now because they aren't gonna leave anything any time soon!" She smiled a little and her friends laughed.
Tèa turned back to Serenity as Joey and Tristan sprinted towards the table.
"So, do you like him?" She questioned the brunette
"Of course I don't"
"Of course you don't what?" A male voice spoke.
Tèa and Serenity spun round and smiled guiltily at the young CEO.
"Nothing" Tèa said nervously.
"Oh, we were just talking about-" The red head was cut off by Tèa's arm wrapping around her neck.
"Say a word and die!" She mumbled demandingly.
"We were just talking about…Joey"
"Right" Seto replied, slowly walking past them and over to Mokuba.
Girls…I'll never understand them He thought.
……
Tèa flopped on to the large couch and huffed.
"Ooooh, Im knackered" She rubbed her eyes cutely and fell sideways, asleep straight away.
Her body lifted up and down softly and tears still dripped off the side off her cheek and onto the seat; she was still crying.
A tall figure finished making sure the maids had started to clean up then entered the living room.
"Tèa, I think you should head to be-" Seto stopped and stared at his beautiful guest. She lay peacefully asleep on his couch in his house and all he wanted to do was hold her in his arms again. He walked over to where she lay and knelt down beside her sleeping form. He stared at her beautiful face and stunning body before wiping away her tears. It was then that Seto Kaiba; learnt you didn't have to be awake to cry.