Hellowe! We're back.

Someone suggested, we should go kill ourselves, but before we do that, let's annoy the troll with the second chapter of Heart to Beat!

Enjoy!

Chapter 2

Maya stared at the closed door in front of her. She sighed and turned around. "I better get going then, before Rex shows up and sees me here."

"Good idea!", Rose replied from behind the door.

Maya decided to immediately start her search for Seto Kaiba's room, even though she had no idea what she was going to do once she found it. She'd worry about that later. Now, luxurious rooms shouldn't be that difficult to find, right? She started above deck because Rose had once told her that's where the expensive rooms are on cruise ships. However, after a while she realized it wasn't going to be that easy. Everything looked similar to her. Moreover, nobody else seemed to be outside, so there was no one to ask for directions. Not that she would do so if there was, at least not to Kaiba's room. That would definitely be suspicious.

"...I think I'm lost...", she whispered to herself after about half an hour. She decided to look below deck but that was even more confusing. She sighed to herself after turning a corner for the umpteenth time.

"I wonder how late it is...oh right, I have a watch!" She checked the time. "Oh! Only 5 minutes until the sun sets!" She ran to the nearest stairs. Above deck she looked at the sky to determine where the west was. "Ah, there!" Not wanting to miss such a beautiful display of nature, she ran across the deck towards the sun. However, the deck was slippery and when she neared the corner she couldn't stop anymore. Just as she was losing her balance she bumped into a tall person. Maya felt herself falling backward, but the ground never came. She opened her eyes and saw that she was being held upright by none other than Seto Kaiba. Quickly getting back on her feet, she did her utmost best not to blush.

"Euhm, thank you.", Maya said shyly.

"Humph! Can't you read?", he asked somewhat annoyed.

"Huh? What do you mean?", Maya asked confused.

Kaiba pointed behind her and she looked in surprise as she saw a sign which read 'No running on deck'. She turned back to Kaiba.

"Oh, that! I thought it was referring to the cards!", Maya replied, laughing a bit. Kaiba stared at her and smiled very very slightly.

"Oh! Did you come here to watch it as well?", Maya asked excitedly, ignoring the previous subject.

"It?"

"The sunset! Quickly!", she grabbed Kaiba and turned him towards the sun. "It has already started!", she yelled as she ran to the edge of the ship, utterly ignoring the sign's warning. Kaiba followed behind, a bit confused. It was a beautiful sunset. Maya stared at it in awe. Kaiba looked from the sun to Maya, noting that she was completely absorbed by it. Much to Maya's disappointment, it didn't last long. She sighed, still staring at the horizon.

"I really don't get why nobody else is out here. How can they just stay inside when such an amazing event is happening?", she wondered out loud.

"I can't believe you came out here just to watch this instead of preparing or sleeping."

Maya turned around, grabbing the railing for support. She didn't like standing with her back to edges. "Well, you're here too, aren't you?"

"I was just on my way back to my room.", Kaiba explained.

"But you stayed."

"...", Kaiba closed his eyes for a moment, but didn't reply. Maya grinned at her victory, but it fell as Kaiba walked away without saying another word. She watched him walk away and contemplated following him. That way she would know where his room was. However, he would probably notice it and she didn't want to look like some sort of stalker. Go to that bar then? Wherever that may be. An idea hit her and she decided to ask Kaiba for directions to the bar. By the time she had made up her mind, Kaiba was already on the other side of the deck. She ran after him as fast as she could. This, of course, wasn't very smart. The slippery deck worked its magic again and Maya skated across. When she nearly fell a small scream escaped her. Kaiba turned around at the sound. Maya crashed against him again and out of reflex he stopped her from falling again. Maya quickly jumped to her feet again.

"Euhm...Thanks! ...Again."

"You're not a fast learner, are you?", Kaiba said with a mixture of annoyance and amusement.

"Blegh, I've already learned more than enough in my life."

"...I know the feeling...", Kaiba mumbled under his breath.

"Huh?"

"Nothing.", he dead-panned, making himself clear not to push the subject.

"Okay...", Maya answered slowly, not really sure how to reply.

"Is there a reason you keep crashing into me or do you simply enjoy doing it?"

"Right! Yes, I wanted to ask you if there is a bar somewhere on this ship. I think I'm a little bit very much lost, you see..." It was an understatement.

"A bar is no place for a small child you know.", Kaiba said strictly, in an almost scolding tone. Maya blinked incredulously. "S-small child? I'll have you know I'm 19 years old!", she replied defiantly with a huff, putting her hands on her hips.

"...you're a year older than me?", Kaiba asked astonished.

"YES! So will you please tell me where the bar is so I can go drink some hot chocolate!"

"...hot chocolate?"

"Well, yes, it's good, isn't it? Besides, I don't think coffee is a good idea at this late hour."

"I don't think they have hot chocolate."

"WHAT!", Maya exclaimed disbelieving. There was no way they wouldn't have chocolate milk. What kind of place would have no hot chocolate? "This is an outrage! ...now what am I going to do...?", she whispered the last part to herself.

"Go to sleep."

"I can't. Not as long as that duel is going on in my room.", she vaguely explained. Maya knew Rose probably wouldn't want her to tell anybody any details. Besides, she doubted Kaiba could care any less about it anyway.

"...follow me.", Kaiba simply ordered and began walking away again. Maya blinked confused, but it wasn't like she was going to refuse, so she did as she was told and followed him. They walked in silence. Maya realized once more she had absolutely no idea where she was and just hoped she would find her way back to her room. After a while Kaiba stopped in front of an ordinary door. There was nothing special about it, it looked just like all the other doors she had seen on the ship. Kaiba unlocked it and entered, signalling for Maya to follow. Once inside she realized this must be Kaiba's room, as it was very spacious and comfortable looking. He even had a small kitchen.

"That's why I couldn't find it! You don't even notice it's a luxurious room from the outside!", she thought as she looked around curiously.

"Sit.", Kaiba ordered again, before heading to his small kitchen. After closing the door, Maya did as told and sat down in one of the couches. They were beyond comfy. Even though she was curious as to what Kaiba was up to, she refrained from asking. She was comfortable anyway. It almost made her want to go ask Pegasus where he had bought it. Or maybe steal it? Nah, that wasn't really her style. It's not like she could carry it anyway. Maya's plans for acquiring a sofa were interrupted when Kaiba re-entered holding a cup. He blew the steam away and handed it to Maya, who took it, albeit somewhat taken aback.

"Milky?", she asked innocently as she stared at the steaming dark brown liquid. She hadn't expected Kaiba to actually make her some, let alone have any chocolate milk with him.

"Hot chocolate milk.", Kaiba stated, sitting down in the opposite couch.

"Euhm...yeah, that's what I meant.", she stirred it a bit and smiled, "Thanks!" Taking a spoonful, Maya eagerly tasted it. Her eyes closed and she nearly purred with happiness at the delicious taste. It was quiet as Maya continued to drink the milk, using the spoon, like she was eating some soup. Kaiba watched her bemused. He rested his head on his right hand as he observed her with a small smile.

"Are you sure you're 19 years old?", he asked after a while.

"...Of course I am! I just have a childish nature, is all."

"I noticed."

"You're the one carrying around cacao.", Maya retorted, "Not that I'm complaining.", she added as she continued drinking.

"It was actually meant for Mokuba, but in the end he insisted I let him stay behind to watch over Kaiba Corp.", he explained, not really sure why he felt the need to do so.

"Hmm-hmm", Maya hummed in a 'sure it was' tone.

"I can take it away again if you want, you know." Maya's eyes widened and she held the cup protectively against her chest, turning it away from Kaiba.

"Thought so.", Kaiba smirked. Deeming the delicious liquid no longer in danger, Maya shifted her position again and continued drinking whilst talking in between.

"Impressive though. Your brother I mean. He's still so young yet so responsible." Kaiba looked proud, so she carried on. "I mean I wouldn't be able to do it, not in a thousand years. You'd be bankrupt in mere seconds!", she laughed.

"It can't happen that fast."

"Oh, it can! I once went bankrupt 6 times in one hour time!", Maya stated, sounding strangely proud of herself. Kaiba stared at her surprised and sceptical. "...mah, in Railroad Tycoon II that is.", she added with a small laugh, making Kaiba shake his head and chuckle a little. A little later, Maya had finished her milk and checked the time. She frowned when she saw that it was already past 10 o'clock. Figuring the duel couldn't possible take much longer and knowing she still had to find her way back, Maya decided it was time to leave. She put the cup down and got up.

"Well, I better get going. That duel will probably end any minute now. Thanks for the hot chocolate Seto!" Kaiba blinked, taken aback by the use of his first name, but said nothing of it. "It was very pleasant. I hope to get the chance to duel you on the island."

"Then make sure you make it to round two.", Kaiba replied. Maya smiled broadly at those words as they implied that he wasn't averse to the idea of dueling her. After saying goodbye once more she happily exited the room.

After a while of wandering around, she finally came upon a place that looked somewhat familiar and eventually found her way back to her room. Seeing as she still hadn't received a message from Rose, she decided to wait in the vicinity. She waited and waited and waited...

"Did they start with 40 000 life points or something?", Maya muttered, already more than sick of waiting. She sighed and continued waiting. It's not like she had much of a choice. At last a familiar sound filled the darkness. Maya took out her cell phone and read the message. "Finally!", she exclaimed dramatically as she got up and went to the door. "Rose had better have a good reason to keep me waiting so long!", she thought as she entered the room.

Rose: See, I told you you would get lost.

Maya: Grlmbl.

Rose: Anyway, in the next chapter I will duel Rex!

Maya: And it will take ages.

Rose: It's just a very passionate duel!

Maya: ...