Do You Really Love Me?
Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh GX. I also do not own the characters Caitlin and Lisa, but I am using them with permission.
A/N: The next few chapters will be a bit better for those of you who like me hate Jaden and Alexis being apart. I'm glad to be past the break up! I think the next few chapters will be much better than the previous two. There will even be a little bit humor! . Won't be much, but at least it will be enough to at least get us all to smile hopefully after all the heartache. Enjoy!
Chapter 4 – Advice, Please!
Caitlin, Lisa, Syrus, and Chumley made their way to Professor Banner's office to introduce them to Rachel McGregor, Professor Banner's teaching assistant and the head of the girls' wing at the Slifer Red dorm. They were at least thirty minutes early for class, so the foursome didn't have to fight their way through a huge crowd of their classmates. Sure enough, when they reached the good professor's office, they found the red-headed lady herself talking on the phone.
She motioned for them to come in and wait for her to finish the phone conversation. Who the young woman was talking to, they could only guess. They didn't have whole lot of time to contemplate who it might have been, however. After a minute or two she ended the phone conversation and hung up. With warm green eyes she turned to the students and greeted them, "Good morning! What can I do for you? Chumley, are you still having problems with your paper?"
Chumley shook his head, "No, Miss McGregor. Actually, Syrus and I just wanted to introduce you to your two new students, Caitlin and Lisa."
Rachel smiled as she came forward to shake hands with the two girls, "Girls, I have just one rule regarding the 'Miss McGregor.' One that Chumley, Syrus, and all the other students know well. During class or whenever another teacher or Chancellor Shepherd is around, call me 'Miss McGregor,' but at any other time, feel free to call me 'Rachel.'"
Lisa and Caitlin returned the TA's smile as the red-head continued, "If you need anything, my room is at the other end of the dormitory on the same floor as Professor Banner's."
Both girls nodded their thanks, but Caitlin spoke up after hearing the TA's willingness to help, "Actually there is something we wanted to ask you about regarding the length of our uniform skirts."
Lisa nodded, "We'd wanted to know if we could get modesty shorts to wear underneath."
The raven-haired Slifer cocked his head to the side as he looked the girls over, "I don't see anything wrong with the …"
Both girls plus Syrus narrowed their eyes at Chumley. "What?"
Then his three friends sighed at his ignorance while Rachel stifled a laugh. The TA turned to the girls, "Come this way, ladies. Let's see what we can do."
After the women had left, Sy turned to Chumley, "Did you say that to…?"
"I really don't see what the problem is. Alexis wears hers just as short and you don't hear her complaining."
The blue-haired Slifer shook his head.
A few minutes later Jaden walked in Professor Banner's office, much to Syrus's and Chumley's delight. The two had been afraid that the melancholy Slifer wasn't even bother going to class that day. Syrus with a questioning look on his face asked his best friend, "How are you this morning, Jay?"
If the brown-haired Slifer's appearance was any indication of how he was doing, then he wasn't good. The poor boy looked like he didn't get a wink of sleep last night. His eyes still exposed the broken heart that he carried deep inside. He didn't answer the shorter boy's question, but he did ask, "Where's Professor Banner?"
A female voice all too familiar to Jaden and his buddies answered him, "He's not here, Jaden. He had to catch a plane to Tokyo early this morning to take care of some business there on Chancellor Shepherd's behalf. Is there something I can do for you?"
Jaden turned to face the owner of the voice, Miss McGregor, as he thoughtfully responded, "I don't know. I needed some advice."
Rachel thought for a moment, "Well, if you want I can go get Dr. Crowler…"
"No! That's okay! I'll talk to you!"
The red head smiled, "Alright, Jaden. Sit down and we'll talk."
Chumley and Syrus took that as their cue to leave.
Once the two had gone, Rachel asked, "What do you need help with?"
Jaden was silent for a minute, and the TA took note of his exhausted appearance and took the opportunity to pour a cup of coffee. The brown-haired boy looked up when she offered him the steamy black beverage. "Thanks, Miss McGregor. I wanted to ask Professor Banner's advice on what to do when a girl breaks up with guy because she thinks that Duel Monsters is more important than her."
Rachel eyes shown with compassion as she nodded, "What happened to make her think this?"
"He …missed a lot of their dates because so many people challenged him to duel. She says that she doesn't have a problem with him dueling, but rather the fact that he didn't tell the challengers that he had somewhere to be and post-pone the duel to a later time."
The TA nodded knowingly as she answered gently, "She feels neglected."
Jaden winced, "I hadn't thought about that. I thought that telling her that I love her would… And I didn't mean to miss our…"
Rachel reached out and placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, "Jaden, she needs to hear that you love her in your actions, not just your words. You said that you didn't mean to miss your dates. Did you miss them all because someone challenged you to a duel?"
Her student nodded, "The last one took longer than I thought it would, and I missed our lunch date."
The redhead had not heard the whole story, and she was waiting for the boy to finish when he surprised her by stating, "It seems that the only way I can prove to her that I love her more than dueling is by giving up dueling forever."
"Jaden, that's a pretty drastic move. I'm sure Alexis wants to know whether or not your top priority is dueling or her, but this isn't the answer."
The young man's brown eyes reflected his desperation to know what the best solution to his problem was as he looked up into Rachel's gentle green eyes as she continued, "There is no quick fix to your problem, Jaden. All you can do is start by rebuilding the trust that you lost."
Jaden sighed, "I had planned on singing her a song, one that Alexis and I both know."
Rachel shook her head as she smiled, "I like your style, Jaden, but I don't think that's what Alexis needs at the moment. You can try, but you probably need to talk it out before you break into song."
The brown-haired boy looked back up at the TA, "You really think that Alexis would be upset if I quit dueling?"
"Yes, I do. Talk to her about it, Jaden. She has a lot of hopes and dreams herself. Would you want her to give up her dreams because of you?"
"No."
The bell signaling the beginning of class rang as Rachel reached over to the desk and grabbed the role and her notes for the lecture. "If you want we can talk more later, but for right now what do you say we go to class?"
Jaden's expression was a look of wince and smile with a little bit of the old sparkle that had been in his eyes before he and Alexis broke up. Rachel laughed, "Okay, not the best remedy for a broken heart I know, but it's also not good to wallow in self-pity. That will only make it worse."
The student nodded, knowing that as much as he didn't want to go to class, Rachel was right. With that the twosome headed to the classroom to begin the day.
After class had started…
Syrus looked over at Jaden who was intensely focused on writing something down while Rachel was lecturing. Surely he wasn't taking notes! If he was then Syrus was going to insist that Jaden go to the nurse's office after class!
The blue-haired Slifer couldn't help but wonder what Alexis was going through. Alexis must be really ticked. I hope she forgives Jaden and they get back together. I've never seen Jaden like this before! Come to think of it, I don't think Alexis has seen him like this either. Or at least I don't think she has.
Syrus felt Caitlin, who was sitting next to him, slip something in his blazer pocket. He dug in his pocket until he found a piece of paper folded up. The blue-haired boy pulled it out and unfolded it found that it was a note that read,
"Syrus,
I know you and Chumley are both worried about Jaden. Lisa and I want to help Jaden get back together with Alexis. We feel like we owe him that much for standing up for us. I think after Jaden's talk with Rachel, Jay will be fine. For right now though the dude just needs to get some more sleep! We'll talk while Jaden goes to talk with Alexis. Okay?
- Caitlin"
Syrus looked over at Caitlin who smiled warmly at him as he nodded in response to her message. Lisa, Caitlin, Chumley, and himself had listened to most of Jaden and Rachel's conversation earlier, or at least up to the part where they heard Rachel suggest that Jaden go to class. Sy smiled at the thought of how the four of them were becoming such fast friends.
Over on the other side of the room Alexis smiled as she watched Syrus and Caitlin bond. They would make such a cute couple!
Alexis felt Mindy tap her on the shoulder as the brown-haired Obelisk handed her a note. The pretty blonde Obelisk had a hunch who it was from. When she opened it and started reading, her hunch was confirmed. Jaden had written her a simple message saying that he needed to talk to her during lunch. She sighed as she fought the urge to look his way. What could he possibly have to say? He's already apologized. But …
Alexis felt her guilt of trying to ignore him eat away at her. Finally, she caved and looked over in his direction to his pleading milk chocolate brown eyes staring directly at her. The ones that made her heart melt every time they gazed into hers. She sighed and nodded in his direction. Jaden smiled at her with eyes that shone with joy that she had agreed to talk with him. The blonde beauty then directed her gaze once again to the front of the classroom. She wasn't paying attention to Rachel's lecture, but she decided to at least make it look like she was. Her mind went down the list of all the possible things Jaden could possibly have to say to her, thinking that all he was going to do was beg her to get back with him. If she had the ability to read her ex-boyfriend's mind she would have been surprised at incorrect she was.
Later during lunch…
Jaden had asked Alexis to meet him outside the gate of the abandoned dorm. When the Queen of Obelisk Blue arrived she found her handsome ex-beau waiting for her. He even had a little surprise for her: a small picnic lunch that consisted of sandwiches, potato chips, and tea. The Slifer met her gaze as he stated, "I figured that this may take awhile so I put together at least a small lunch… I know it's not much, but…"
"I'm glad you thought of it, Jaden," Alexis told him sincerely.
Jaden motioned for her to have a seat. As the blonde did as he bid her, she held his gaze with eyes with a look that he couldn't quite interpret. It was a mixture of hope, sadness, anger, and other emotions that made it difficult to tell what she was thinking. The poor boy's heart was pounding with nervousness and excitement. For few minutes Jaden searched for the right words to say. A few more minutes passed in silence while he wrestled with his thoughts before Alexis broke his train of thought, "Jaden, if you're going to ask me to get back with you then you've wasted your time. Yes, the lunch is nice, but I …"
"That's not it, Alexis. I mean, yes, I do want you back, but …"
"But what," the beautiful blonde asked.
Jaden took a deep breath as he chose his words carefully, "You basically won't come back to me until I've proved that you're my top priority, right?"
Alexis nodded.
"At first the only way I thought I could do that was to give up dueling forever, but then someone told me that you wouldn't want that."
Alexis's mouth dropped open upon hearing Jaden's words, "Whoever told that was right! Jaden, I don't want you to give up your dreams!"
Jaden smiled as he dared to look directly at her. Her eyes reflected the disbelief and shock he had heard in her voice. "Don't worry, 'Lex. I'm not going to give up dueling, but I'm not going to give up on proving to you that I love you more than Duel Monsters either."
"How are you going to do that, Jaden?"
The Slifer's brown eyes were aglow with warmth, love, and even a hint of playfulness as he answered, "I'm going to rebuild your trust just one day at a time, Alexis."
The pretty blonde couldn't believe what she was hearing. "I thought that you were going to ask me to get back with you."
"I had originally thought of singing you song that had a message that had deal with that topic."
"Aw! How sweet, Jaden," Alexis said turning to smile at her ex-beau. It was a small smile, but a smile nonetheless.
His heart leapt with joy at seeing her smile. "What changed your mind?"
Jaden sighed, "The lyrics weren't quite appropriate."
"What makes you say that?"
"Well, there's one part that said, 'if I had two dozen roses and an old bottle of wine…'"
Alexis then realized why the song was inappropriate. Jaden smiled, "Do you want me to sing it?"
"No, that's okay."
For a moment there was silence. Finally Alexis asked, "So where do we go from here?"
"I say we eat, and then put this whole breakup behind us. We can be just friends if you want, Alexis, or we can get back together after I've proved how much you mean to me. I would love to get back with you right here and now to be honest. But I'd rather we do this on your terms. I want you to be sure of my love."
The Obelisk Blue carefully considered his words. It's good that he's being honest with me. Really no matter what we decide, he is right. My trust in him is going to have to be rebuilt.
Alexis turned to face Jaden as she answered him, "I suggest we do this: we date as friends."
"Until I prove that you're worth more to me than dueling?"
"Yes."
Jaden smile grew wider, "Alright!"
Alexis's eyes shown with contentment as motioned toward the untouched meal, "Um, shouldn't we eat before lunch is over?"
"Oh, right!"
For the rest of the lunch period the two ate and enjoyed each other's company.
Elsewhere…
Syrus, Caitlin, Lisa, and Chumley sat outside the cafeteria talking and plotting. They were brainstorming on how to get a certain blonde Obelisk blue and a Slifer red back together, but so far they had nothing. "Aw, man! How are we supposed to help them get back together if we can't come up with a plan?" Syrus groaned in frustration as he paced back and forth.
Caitlin watched him pace as her own frustration level was rising. Her frustration, however, was due to Sy's pacing. Chumley and Lisa weren't paying attention to Syrus's pacing. They were lost in thought trying to think of ideas to contribute to the group discussion as a whole. Chumley finally broke the silence, "Maybe a candlelit dinner with grilled cheese sandwiches as the main course…"
"No!" his three companions exclaimed.
The blacked haired boy sighed as he went back to his mental drawing board. Syrus continued pacing much to Caitlin's dismay. Finally, when decided she had had enough, she waited for him to walk directly in front of her, and then she grabbed him by the wrist. The blue-haired boy blushed when he realized who had stopped him. The dark blonde girl pointed to the seat on the ground next to her as she firmly commanded, "Sit down. You're making me nervous!"
Syrus did as he was told while his face turned an even deeper shade of red as he realized how close he was to Caitlin. He didn't dare look to see if she noticed.
Lisa smiled as she noticed the exchange between the two, but she forced herself back into plotting mode. While everyone was still brainstorming, a certain Ra Yellow came up behind the golden haired Slifer. None of the four Slifers realized he was there until his smooth British accent broke their train of thought, "If you are worried that Jaden and Alexis are not going to get back together then I've got a bit of news that might save you some time."
All four Slifers looked up to see none other than Bastian Misawa smiling a bright smile that made Lisa's heart began to race. The golden haired Slifer of course had to look directly up to see him. She silently hoped that he wouldn't notice her sitting position. When the dark-haired Ra Yellow saw four pairs of eyes on him, continued, "I just came back from a stroll in the woods and I saw Jaden and Alexis together having lunch together. They actually seemed to be having a good time."
Syrus's gray eyes lit up as jumped from his seat, "Yes!"
Caitlin smiled, "I'm so glad!"
Chumley beamed from ear to ear, "Really? So does this mean their back together?"
Bastian laughed softly, "No, I'm afraid that isn't the case. I didn't over-hear much of their conversation, but I heard enough to know that Jaden is going to work on rebuilding Alexis's trust. If you wish to know more than you're going to have to wait for one of them to tell you."
The blue-haired Slifer's eyes grew wide in disbelief, "You're going to tell us everything?"
Bastian's eyes shone with the laughter he was holding back, "Syrus, in truth that is all I know. That's why I won't tell you anything else."
Chumley groaned, "What kind of spy are you, Bastian?"
"Spying is such a strong word," the Ra Yellow said, pretending to be offended.
Lisa blushed as she gazed at the boy who towered over completely oblivious to anyone or anything else other than Bastian.
A few minutes later the bell signaling the end of lunch sounded. Bastian looked down directly at Lisa and smiled warmly at her as he offered her hand to help her get up. Once she was off the ground she smiled her thanks.
Syrus groaned, "Oh, well, back to class."
Caitlin patted him on the shoulder, "It's going to be alright, Sy. You'll make through the day."
Chumley snorted, "Well, come on you guys! Let's get to class. Me personally, I don't want Dr. Crowler to give us detention for being late."
With that the five friends headed back to the classroom for their not-so-favorite class of the day.
A/N: Just so ya'll know, this is the longest chapter I've ever written that I'm currently aware of. So you get this long chapter for being so patient! I kept on thinking that I should have ended the chapter sooner, but once I reached the five page mark, I decided I was going to try to make the seven page mark. It turned out to be eight pages instead of seven! Again thank you to those who gave me ideas. Emmanuel, I know you said to email you, but it won't let me send you anything to the email address provided. So, yeah, I'm not ignoring you or anything, it's just that my email won't let me send you anything at that address. Thank you, Raymanly73! You're such an awesome editor! - If I've left anyone out in thanking you for ideas or help in anyway, then please forgive me, and thank you. Until next update, peace out and God bless!
