Chapter 30 – I'm Ready

The pool was one of the most beautiful pools she had ever seen in her life. It was in the shape of a diamond with a little fountain in the center that shot water out at the swimmers from time to time. Light brown tiles were placed all around the pool and formed a little square patio that connected to the mansion. There were two diving boards on one side of the diamond, showing the separation between the shallow end and the deep end. There was also a large tree in the back near the patio, allowing a bit of shade for comfort to the three.

Tea jumped into the pool and giggled like a little girl; it had been so long since she last had gone swimming, and the bathing suit felt very comfortable. The cold water quickly hit her system, and she shivered slightly as she watched the younger Kaiba slowly step into the pool. "Geez, Tea, how did you just jump in like that?" he asked, shivering intensely just from getting his feet wet. He was wearing plain, light green trunks.

"She's not a chicken like somebody is," his brother stated, smirking over at the boy before placing his sunglasses on a nearby glass table and walking over to the edge of the pool. Seto was decked out in black trunks that had two large, red stripes down the sides, giving Tea the perfect view of his very toned body. It took a lot of self-control not to drool at the sight.

She watched Mokuba stick his tongue out at his older brother before he cautiously entered the pool, placing his arms out in front of him to push him off. "There, happy?" he asked playfully, smiling at the two.

"Yes I am," Seto answered defiantly as he sat down on the edge, letting his legs dangle in the water. Sliding himself in, he walked over to the two and let out a sigh. "I can't remember the last time we went swimming like this."

"I have to ask," Tea replied as she scanned the rest of the pool. "Whose idea was it to place the fountain shooter in the center here?"

"That was all Seto's idea!" Mokuba exclaimed as Seto went to open his mouth. "He'll deny it, but it was his plan."

"Oh really?" she asked, seeing a slight blush creep up on Seto's face. "And why does he deny it?"

"Because this little brat over here wouldn't shut up about getting something for the pool," Seto stated before his brother could get another word in. "Two diving boards is obviously not enough, so I decided to play a prank on him. I bought the fountain without him knowing what it did and placed it where it is now. He was so angry that I bought it, thinking that I didn't understand what he really wanted, that he started swimming and making fun of it. So I turned the thing on and scared the living crap out of him." Chuckling, Seto said, "You should have seen his face when it shot him."

"And God forbid Seto plays a prank on anybody. That wasn't funny, though." Mokuba glared at his older brother.

"Oh, but it was."

Tea laughed at the image of Mokuba terrified of the fountain as she slowly pushed backwards and began swimming on her back. She watched as the CEO began swimming in the opposite direction around the pool. "So how long have you known how to swim?" she asked, trying to strike up a conversation.

"We used to swim all the time," Seto stated after swimming a lap around the fountain. "Remember that place I showed you? There's a little beach nearby that doesn't have the rocks and stuff everywhere. We used to go and swim there from time to time."

"You showed her our secret spot?" Mokuba asked, his eyes wide at this revelation.

"Yeah, but we didn't stay long. I just showed her the area with all the rocks."

"So you've basically known how to swim all your lives?" Tea asked, looking back and forth between the two.

"Sort of. Mokuba was always afraid of the water when he was little, but he eventually grew out of it. Sophie was the one who taught me how to swim." Tea noticed Mokuba blink several times, as if in shock that his brother mentioned her name, but acted as though she saw nothing. "What about you? When did you learn how to swim?"

"Oh, well, when Mom and Dad lived together, we had a pretty decent income, so we could afford having our own pool. Dad taught me how to swim when Mom was away at work and stuff. She didn't like the idea of me swimming at such a young age. She thought that I would get reckless and drown myself."

"I don't think you would be that stupid," Seto replied. "Even a little kid knows when Death is near…"

"I guess."

"Hey Seto, I'm going to go inside real quick and get my goggles," Mokuba suddenly stated, making the two turn around to face him. Tea watched as he walked out of the pool and smiled over at them. "I'll be right back, okay?"

"Alright," Seto stated as he watched his little brother run back inside. Once the screen door shut, he sighed and whispered, "Maybe I shouldn't have mentioned Sophie…"

"He just said he was getting his goggles, Seto."

"Yeah, but you could tell he was kind of uncomfortable. I know he was fond of her as well, so thinking about her…is kinda hard for him too."

"I'm sorry. But hey, that's all in the past now. Let's just enjoy today."

Seeing a genuine smile appear on the CEO's face made Tea's heart beat slightly faster. He suddenly looked entirely different, like the teenager that he truly was. He looked younger, and his eyes suddenly held a glint of light in them that she had never seen before. "Yeah, I agree. I don't feel like thinking about that right now."

She watched him dive back into the water before coming up for air, making his brown hair stick to his skin. She smirked and looked around the pool once more before glancing over at the CEO. "Hey, how about we have ourselves a race?" she asked, slowly swimming over to Seto. "One lap around the pool."

"And why would we do something like that?" he asked, eyeing her suspiciously.

"Just to have fun."

He chuckled and rolled his eyes. "I don't do any competition unless there's a prize."

Frowning, she stood up and folded her arms over her chest. "You're no fun…"

"Nope."

Splashing him playfully, she giggled and said, "Mr. No-Fun-CEO can't have—" A sudden splash of water hit her face, however, and cut her sentence short. Quickly wiping her eyes, she laughed as Seto went to splash her again. She dived down into the water only to come back up and splash him with as much force as she could muster. She smiled at the sight of Seto taken off guard; he blinked the water out of his eyes before smirking at her.

"Okay, now you asked for it." Taking his arm, he swung it through the water, creating a small wave that hit Tea square in the face. She, in turn, went onto her back and began kicking water in Seto's direction until she finally ran out of energy and went back to standing. Seeing no sign of him, she sighed and went to turn around when she felt a sudden splash behind her, pushing her slightly forward. She laughed as she turned around to see him walking over to the very shallow end and sitting down against the wall. Following him, she sat down next to him and let out a sigh.

"I'll take that back," she stated. "You're kind of fun."

"Oh, but that can't be right," he replied sarcastically. "I'm a cold, heartless bastard, remember?"

"No you're not," she stated slowly and in a playful tone, smiling up at him. "You're a nice guy that just hides it from the rest of the world."

She watched a small smile grace his lips as he said, "Now you're understanding me. But… Tea… I have a serious question." This made her smile disappear as she parted her lips and frowned slightly.

"What's wrong?"

"What…do you think of our relationship?"

Wow, did that take her off-guard. "Wh-What do you mean?"

"What do you think of our relationship?" he repeated, looking over at her. "I mean, is it a friendship, is it just an acquaintance thing, or is it...?"

She knew what he was trying to say and let out a sigh. "It is whatever you want it to be," she answered truthfully, looking down into the water.

"Whatever I want it to be…?" he asked, and she could see his reflection in the water frowning at this. "And what does that mean?"

"It means that if you want it to be a friendship, it can be a friendship. If you want us to merely be acquaintances, then that's all it needs to be. And…if you want something more…it can be that too."

Closing her eyes, she suddenly felt a hand caress her cheek, and she looked over to see him smiling at her. "You love me, don't you Tea?"

Glancing back down at the water, she let out another sigh and said, "Well, kinda… Yes, yes I do. But I understand if you just want to be friends. I mean, you have a hectic life as it is, and I know you still have some problems you need to work out, so if you don't—" Her little speech was cut off, however, when she felt the hand caressing her cheek move down below her chin and tilted her head so that she was facing him. Before it could even register, the CEO's lips were on hers, his eyes closed.

All thoughts went out the window, and the only thing that mattered was making this moment last as long as it possibly could. It didn't even register that the two were kissing; it just felt natural. She quickly put her hands around Seto's neck, bringing the two closer together, as Seto's hands wrapped around her torso. The two stayed like this for awhile, letting their lips do all the talking, before she felt Seto back up slightly. He stared intently into her eyes as he grasped one of her hands in the water and smiled.

"I…I don't know if I'm comfortable enough for a serious commitment," Seto stated, looking down at her hand that he was holding. "I mean, I'm still trying to figure out how I fell in love with you. I just feel as though…as though I can trust you. But…if you want this to be a relationship, I have no problem with it."

She smiled widely at him and slowly nodded her head. "Only if you're ready for it."

Smirking, he looked back up at her and said, "If I wasn't ready for it, I wouldn't have kissed you. So…is this what you want?"

Instead of saying yes, she opted to leaning forward and kissing him once more, the feeling of his soft lips against hers making her feel like she could take on the world. There were so many secrets and problems behind those lips, but it didn't matter. Seto loved her, and she loved him. She wanted to show him that she truly cared about him, that not everyone in the world was out to get him. And, as she felt his lips begin fighting hers, she knew that he wanted somebody to love and care for as well.

"Uh-huh, suuuure you don't like her," a sudden voice mocked, interrupting the two's 'conversation'. Both stopped and looked up to see Mokuba smiling wickedly at them, his purple goggles covering his large eyes. "Seto, next time you say something like that, I'm not going to believe you for a second."

"Oh really?" he asked slyly, looking over at his brother before returning his gaze to Tea. "I'll grab him, and you splash him," he whispered, making her wink at him.

"What was that, Seto?" Mokuba asked. "Don't tell me you're—" Seeing his brother slowly coming forward, Mokuba grinned and quickly ran into the water, shouting, "You'll never take me alive!"

Both Tea and Seto sprinted forward, and before Mokuba could reach the deep end, Seto grabbed him around the waist and held him as still as possible. "Okay Tea, go!" he shouted, giving Tea the cue as she began violently splashing the younger boy. "See Mokuba? You tell anyone about this, and this is your punishment. Got it?"

"I…I go…Got it!" he shouted between splashes, laughing so hard that Tea was surprised he could even breath. Letting go of the small child, Seto smirked down at him and watched Mokuba scramble away. "I got it. I won't tell anyone that you two are absolutely in loooove with each other."

Tea watched Mokuba as he began swimming away from his older brother, who was panting slightly from the energy wasted on holding his energetic brother still. She walked over to him and smiled. "We'll keep this to whole thing to ourselves for now," Seto stated, grinning back over at her. "I don't want the tabloids getting any ideas or interrupting your private life." Nodding her head in agreement, the two sealed the deal with a quick kiss before going back to their swimming.

Author's Note: Okay, okay, I know it took a long time for these two to finally become a couple, and I'm sure most of you guys are thinking "About damn time!" Just know that I did it to make the fanfic much more realistic. I don't like those that just have the two suddenly in love with each other. This is NOT the end of this fanfic, however! After all, I wouldn't leave you guys hanging with the mystery of Sophie and so much more to come! That would just be cruel :P