"So you're getting married to Yusei?" Leo gobbled some more ramen from its cup, spewing droplets of the noodle all over the table.
"Well, it's good to see some things don't change," Akiza let out a giggle, as Luna rolled her eyes.
It was amazing. A pro turbo duelist still needed someone to wipe his face as he ate.
"Yeah, he's still got a bad case of sloppiness," Luna sighed, passing her brother a wet towel to clean the mess.
"It's not a problem. Crow tends to drop by every now and then. Lucky for you, Leo can handle his own mess," Akiza shook her head, exasperated just at the thought.
The three of them had gathered at Akiza's flat, a quaint apartment just a few blocks away from the hospital. It wasn't extravagant to the point of a complete and utter, socialite-like look, but the simplicity of mostly white and burgundy furniture was garnished with red lace and white cotton drapes, which led out on to a small patio. It was here, she could see the whole town of Neo Domino and, as the sun dipped behind the skyline, she smiled to herself.
Even abroad, the sights had never been so comforting, or beautiful.
"Oh, Akiza…" A voice rung out from the hall. She could recognize it off the bat- its coarse, annoying texture. Another thing that reminded her of her days- her original days in Neo Domino, "You didn't tell me you and Yusei decided to tie the knot." Crow strut in to the apartment, grinning the very grin that classified him as comic relief. Leo had one, too, but that was an entirely different matter.
"Good to see you, too, Crow," She shook her head. Somehow, Neo Domino felt much more full of life than it had before.
"Crow!" Leo smiled, his mouth still full of ramen, sliding down from his teeth.
"Twins!" Crow and Leo rammed at each other from opposite ends of the apartment, resulting in both being knocked down and Leo's ramen flying across the ceiling and all over her sofa and cushions.
Akiza's eyes got dim, "I'll get the mop."
It was practice she was fairly used to, as Crow made his way over to Neo Domino, every chance he got, but it still stunk. This is the reason she decided to become a doctor- not janitor, or so she would think every so often. Even abroad, he, Jack, and the twins would make occasional visits. She recalled others, too, visiting her in the little café off campus- Sherri, Lyndon, and plenty of others. Sometimes, on her break, she would return the gesture, but nothing beat Neo Domino. Akiza still couldn't wrap her head around the satisfaction of home.
"On the bright side, one twin down," Luna reassured her, grabbing another few towels and wetting them.
In all honesty, Akiza couldn't help, but smile. To think the class she fought for those many years ago would grow up so fast and so beautifully. And her own mentor in dueling sprawled out on the floor covered in ramen. It was almost yesterday, she could recall watching them vanish in the distance as their pathways split.
Even if she had been back for two years, the feeling of unity- or re-unity, rather clung in the air, making everything buzz.
"Dr. Izinski?" A small voice broke Akiza's thoughts as she was scrubbing the floors.
"Hm," Akiza whirred around, strands of her magenta colored hair spilling from her ponytail on to her face.
A young girl stood in the doorway of her apartment, perhaps fifteen years of age. She looked familiar- a soft face and her brunette hair pulled in to a messy bun. Her eyes were hidden in the glare of the light from her glasses.
"You are…" Akiza squinted her eyes as if to get a better memory.
"Sorata!" The girl smiled and tilted her head to the left, "Is Mr. Fudo here? He left the lab without his jacket and I though-"
"Oh, that's right! You're Yusei's assistant, right?" Akiza picked herself up, wiping her hands on her purple sweats. She held it out for the girl to shake.
Sorata stepped out of the doorway, meekly bowing to the woman, and shaking her hand.
"Hey, Ev-" Yusei stopped mid-sentence upon seeing the confusion. Crow was sprawled out on the floor covered in slippery noodles, Leo tugging, attempting to get him up. Luna was mopping ramen off the ceiling and as it fell back down to the floor it made a spluttering sound and splattered over the tiled floor. At Akiza's feet was a pile of wet rags and a bag to clean the noodles they managed to get down.
He stood in the door, as it was half open, holding a take-out bag.
"What happened?" He blurted out, without really thinking it through, still gawking at the muck of his fiancée's apartment.
"There was Leo. And Crow. Oh, and ramen. Definitely, ramen," Luna mumbled, mopping through the scene.
"Yeah, so I see…" Yusei shook his head, "Okay, everyone up! We've got a big dinner planned."
"Oh, so that's why he's holding the Lucky Duck bag. Because of a 'big dinner'." Crow laughed from on the floor.
He took the mop and tossed it to Sorata, "Help us out, will you? I need you to clean this… mess… up," He said, finding no other word to refer to the flat's current state.
Before Sorata could protest she caught the mop.
"I'll double your pay this week," He commented through groans, helping Leo drag Crow out the door.
"I think I broke something. You sure have gotten strong, little man," Crow mumbled.
"No, you just developed a bounce reflex from all your time getting smashed up at the turbo duels," Luna sniggered.
Crow quietly glared at her. His attempt at seriousness, at the moment, was feeble.
"Where are we going?" Akiza questioned. She hated leaving Sorata to clean up this big mess alone.
"Jack said he'd meet us at my place. I just came to get you guys. We have to decide… a lot?" Yusei scratched the back of his head, sheepishly.
"You mean the stuff for the wedding?" Leo and Yusei were half way past the hall, not very close to the door.
"Yeah, but he obviously has no idea how to go about it. That or he has no idea what he's deciding on," Luna followed the boys, kicking Crow every so often to speed up the process.
"Twenty bucks says both," Crow let out a squeal of pain as Leo raised his leg a little higher, "Watch it!"
"Aye-aye, Mr. Bullet," Leo mocked. Crow glared at him, unamused.
"Bullets have feelings too, you know?" Crow cursed the twenty-one-old beneath his breath.
"Yeah, but they shouldn't feel pain," Leo continued to drag him along on the rug.
"Well, we're actually working on that in the lab," Yusei began to explain, "Well, not bullets, but metal that can actually feel and memorize pain. That and memory metal. It retains memory of its original shape-"
"That's great, sweetie, but the last thing we'd want to do is keep Jack waiting," Akiza buttoned up her white trench coat, turning back to Sorata. The rest of the gang was out the door, "If it helps, there are some movies from where I studied and instant coffee in the cupboard to the right," She smiled, sorrowfully as she shut the door on the young girl with the mop in hand.
The young assistant through her hands up in defeat.
"They sure make a click together… and a bang… and boom," Sorata muttered to herself as she wiped the noodles off the bumpy white ceiling of the little flat.
A/N:
First of all, thank you all for the sweet comments. They, truly, made my day! All of you, there are no words to put how warm they made me feel. I know, it sucks, but I still have the compulsive need to post this.
Also, I'm kind of in a big decision. Who should Jack go to the wedding with? Mina (Mikage, ironic since I only watch the sub, but use the dub names) or Carly? Tell me if you had someone else in mind, do tell. I'd love to hear your ideas. Plus, tell what steps of the wedding you would like to see (Thank you, Delilah M, who said gown shopping and suit shopping).
I can't write- there I put it out there. As I will mention, again- it sucks, so if you are going to flame me, at least tell me what's wrong with it.
Sorry for the long author's note, I wish you all the best and have an awesome day!