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Chapter 12

       “Mr. Kaiba.”  Kaiba looked up from his desk, though it really wasn’t necessary.  After all, his secretary wasn’t actually in the room, she was only speaking over the intercom.  She continued without waiting for a response.  “Ms. Hagarthy is on line one.”

       He resisted the urge to growl, reaching out to cue the intercom and tell Ms. Jacobs to make his excuses.  He paused mid motion remembering his decision in Egypt.  He wasn’t going to be able to avoid her forever, it was only a matter of time before she tracked him down, and he had known it.  Still, he had hoped for more than one day of peace.

       Sighing he steeled himself for what promised to be a torturous conversation.

       “Put her through.” He told his secretary.

       There was a moment of stunned silence at the other end of the intercom.

       “Ms. Jacobs?”

       “Oh, um… yes, sir.” She said hastily.  He heard a click and then the light on his phone glowed red.

       Smiling ruefully he picked up the phone.  She had every right to be surprised by his request.  He’d been avoiding Cynthia Hagarthy for nearly two months now.

       “Seto Kaiba.” He said coolly once he heard the phone connect.

       “Seto,” her tone fairly dripped with sweetness and he grimaced, “It’s Cynthia.  I’m so glad you made it back from Egypt safely.”

       “Thank you.” He managed to say politely.

       “I trust your expedition went well?”

       He grit his teeth, “as well as could be expected.”

       “Good.”  She spoke far too quickly, almost on top of his own sentences, as though she wasn’t listening to anything he said – which she probably wasn’t –  and all the while she used this low, sultry tone.  She couldn’t possibly use that tone all the time could she?  He hoped not.

       “Now that you’re home,” she continued, “I’m sure you’ll have much more free time.  I was wondering if you’d care to join me for dinner at Tier Three on Tuesday.”

       He sucked in a breath, he had known it would come around to this.  Time to set their relationship straight.  “Look, Ms. Hagarthy I think-”

       “As business associates of course,” she inserted quickly.  “I have a proposition I believe you’ll find most intriguing.”

       This made Seto pause.  <A business proposition> he thought skeptically.  This didn’t sound like a business call.  Then again, she was a business woman so it was a possibility.  If nothing else it would give him a chance to talk to her in person, and in a more formal setting.  Clearly she wasn’t the kind to take the hint over the phone.  He and Yugi had plans, but they could reschedule.

       “I suppose I could spare a couple of hours.” He said casually.

       “Wonderful!” he cringed, “I’ll have my secretary iron out the details with yours.” Her voice lowered once more to an intimate tone, causing him to wonder once more about her intent, “I’ll see you in two days.” And then she hung up.

       “Two days” he moaned, running a hand over his face.  <Two days too soon> conversing with that woman was just draining.  He stared at the phone.  He should let Ms. Jacobs know to expect that call.  And he should probably have her call Yugi as well.  Of course he would call Yugi himself that evening, but advanced warning was always nice.

       With resign he keyed the intercom.  “Ms. Jacobs…” 

***    

       The welcome home get-together – it really couldn’t be called a party – was breaking up.  Mai had thrown it together at the last minute and it had come off incredibly well.  Tea found herself reluctant to leave.  Bakura kept looking at her, and she knew he wanted to talk to her , but he was too much of a gentleman to say anything about her personal affairs in front of the others.  It wouldn’t have mattered anyway, she still didn’t have an answer for him.  Her thoughts just seemed to run around in circles whenever it came to Seto Kaiba.

       Thinking of Kaiba made her frown.  He hadn’t come today, but had sent his apologies with Yugi and Yami.  He had a lot of work to catch up on as he had been gone for over six weeks.  She understood, but she still felt a little hurt.  It was illogical and irrational, but it was the truth.  Actually, she had been feeling that way a lot when it came to Kaiba recently.  A nagging voice in her head told her that was because Bakura was right.  She quieted it, assuring herself that she would feel the same if any of her friends seemed to be ignoring her.

       “Hey, Tea?” Yugi’s voice behind her startled her out of her gloomy contemplation.  She tucked her hair behind her ear, turning to face him.

       “Can I walk you home?”  They had met in the park because it was a centralized location, within walking distance for all of them.  Tristan and Serenity had still ridden his motorcycle of course.  But Tea had her own suspicions as to the reason behind that.

       “I have the rest of the day free,” Yugi continued, “Kaiba said I deserved a break since I’ve been slaving away while he and Yami have been playing in a sand box for the last month and a half.” He winked.

       Tea smiled, though she felt that odd pang again at Kaiba’s name.  “Sure,” she looked over her shoulder at the man’s nearly identical housemate, “Is Yami coming?”

       Yugi shook his head, “No, he’s got lots of work back at the office.”

       “Oh, then I’ll just go say goodbye.” Yugi nodded and then waited patiently while she ran over to Yami and gave him a long hug.  The ancient Pharaoh returned it warmly. 

       Almost as an afterthought she turned to Bakurai and hugged him as well.  As usual he stiffened at first, but then, surprisingly, he brought his arms up and returned her hug.  Yami and Bakura exchanged approving glances, causing Yugi to wonder what exactly happened in Egypt.  He and Yami still hadn’t had much time to talk since the group had returned.

       Tea pulled back, smiling at them all, and then waved a final ‘goodbye’ before heading back to join Yugi.

       He fell into step beside her and they walked for a while in companionable silence.

       Tea admired the low sun and then looked down at her watch, startled by how late in the evening it was.

       “He has to be back at the office at six thirty in the evening?” she asked incredulously.

       Yugi smiled, “Well, he’s been gone for more than a month, and he did have most of the afternoon off.” He pointed out. “Work won’t wait.”

       Tea shook her head ruefully, rolling her eyes, “Slave driver.” She muttered playfully.

       “Who?” his eyes widened with mock innocence, ‘Kaiba, me, or Yami?”

       She put a finger to her lower lip, pretending to consider this, “All of you.” She stated decisively.  Then she sighed.

       He looked at her, concerned with her sudden change in attitude.  “What was that for?”

       She shifted uncomfortably, and he got the distinct impression she was deciding whether or not to answer him.  “He’s been home three days.” She finally admitted softly.

       His eyes widened in understanding, “Kaiba?” he asked.

       She gave the faintest of nods.  “He didn’t come today.  He hasn’t been to the Center either.”

       “He’s had a lot to do since he got back.  No matter how well organized a company is things get left undone when the CEO is gone.” He reminded her.

       “I know. But… he didn’t write me in Egypt either.” She held up a hand to stop him from speaking.  He closed his mouth.  “And before you say it, I know he was busy.  But he wrote to the rest of you.  And I thought he would at least check on the kids now that he’s back.  Their performance is only two weeks away.” She chewed on a piece of her hair and then blew it away, “Maybe I’m paranoid, but it just seems as though he’s avoiding me.” She looked at him with sorrow clouding her gaze, “I thought we were friends now.” She lowered her head, staring at the ground.  They had stopped walking now.

       “Tea,” he turned to face her, placing one hand on her shoulder and then other under her chin.  He pushed up gently forcing her to meet his gaze.  “Kaiba’s just dealing with a lot right now.  I’m sure he’ll be back to normal again soon.” He grinned, “Whatever that is.” She smiled weakly and he grew serious again.  “It’ll be alright.” 

       She nodded and looped her arm though his as they began to walk once more.

       She seemed fine, and Yugi was relieved.  He put on a confident front for her sake, but he was a bit confused as well.  And he had a growing suspicion that Kaiba was Tea’s mystery man.  That would be a good thing, since he knew Kaiba liked her, except that Kaiba had been acting so strangely recently.  Frankly, Yugi was a bit confused by the man’s behavior himself. Take today, for example, Yugi would have thought Kaiba would jump at the chance to see Tea again after so many weeks away from her, but he hadn’t.  True, he had been busy, preoccupied even, but Yugi knew he could have made it today – even with his appointment that evening.

       He remembered Kaiba’s phone call the day before.  He actually felt sorry for the man.  He didn’t know Cynthia Hagarthy, but she seemed like a pain in the neck.  He hoped Kaiba would get through to her tonight.

       This thought led him to an entirely new train of thought.

       What if Kaiba really was too busy – and on top of that he had to deal with Cynthia Hagarthy?  What if he had put his feelings for Tea on hold while he dealt with everything else?  Maybe he had felt it wasn’t a good time to pursue a relationship and he couldn’t see her without having to deal with those emotions so he had avoided her?  And he certainly wouldn’t want to start a relationship with Tea while dealing with Cynthia.

       This seemed to make sense to him.  And if that were the case then after tonight everything should be fine.  The only way Tea was going to feel better was to deal with it.  That meant she had to talk to Kaiba, and why not tonight?  He’d probably be grateful for the interruption considering the lovely evening he had planned. And if he and Tea sorted everything out and scared off Cynthia that would be an added bonus.

       “Tea?”

       She looked up at him in question,

       “If you’re really concerned about it you should talk to him about it.  It’s probably not anything big, just a misunderstanding.”

       “I don’t-” she began uncertainly.

       “Why not?” he interrupted, “I’m sure that it will lay all your doubts to rest.”

       “Well…” she considered his suggestion.  He was probably right, and getting everything out into the open would certainly be a weight off her chest.  “Where is he?  At the office, at home?”

       Yugi shook his head, “He should be meeting an associate for dinner at seven.  But he always takes a walk on the pier after dinner, so at about eight thirty or so he should be down there.”

       She looked worried, “I don’t want to interrupt him or any-”

       “No no.” he cut her off loudly, “I’m sure he’d love to have you stop by! “ he flushed, “I mean, uh, you know how tedious business dinners can be.  Especially when the other person just won’t shut up and let you think.  He’d probably love an excuse to end the night.”

       Tea wasn’t sure, but then she remembered the business men at the ball and she found herself agreeing.

       “I don’t know…” she said noncommittally.

       He squeezed her hand.  “Just think about it.  You don’t have to tell me what you decide.”

       “Alright.” She promised, “I’ll think about it.”

       He smiled, “Great, if you decide to go, he’s at Tier Three.” She simply nodded in response.

*** 

       Kaiba smiled at something Cynthia Hagarthy said, and congratulated himself that it didn’t appear too forced.  He had had enough of her casual familiarity and subtle suggestive remarks.  To her credit she had presented a business proposal, but clearly that had not been the main intent of the invitation.  At least dinner was almost over.

       He thanked the waiter with a nod when the man brought their receipts.  Standing he headed toward the door, Cynthia close behind, still talking about something he wasn’t even bothering to try to pay attention to.  He walked out to the pier and stood facing the water, relaxing as the night sea breeze brushed against his face.  He loved the water.  He loved wind as well.  Here he was somehow able to tune Cynthia out entirely.  Soon though she stopped talking and simply stood beside him.

       She shifted closer to him, reminding him that he still had not settled things with her.  Now would be the best time.  They were alone, there was no one to overhear or add to the embarrassment of the personal situation.  And she seemed to be in a less… aggressive mood right now.   

       He turned toward her, looking past her, over her shoulder.

        “Cynthia, it’s time we-”

       He didn’t get to finish his sentence for her lips came against his without warning.  For a moment he was too shocked to respond.  Then his hands grasped her upper arms.  He pushed her away, all polite consideration forgotten. 

       “What do you think you’re doing?” he demanded coldly.

       Cynthia smiled seductively and moved toward him, reaching to touch his arm.  “Kaiba,”

       “Don’t.” he said harshly.  She stopped, taken aback by the look of pure disgust in his blue eyes.  He continued as though he hadn’t noticed her withdrawal. “I tried to be polite and protect your feelings, and your pride.  But you refused to take the hint.  So now I’ll be blunt.” He focused his sharp gaze on her, unfeelingly, “Nothing will ever happen between us Ms. Hagarthy.  I do not find you the least bit attractive and I have no desire to see you, or hear from you, ever again.  Is that clear?” he didn’t wait for a response. “Have a pleasant evening.”

       That said he walked away without a backward glance, leaving a very stunned Cynthia Hagarthy behind.

       That had been more… abrupt than he had planned.  But somehow he couldn’t find it in him to feel the least twinge of sympathy for her.

***

       Tea had thought about it and decided Yugi was right.  So she had headed down toward the pier.  She was going to find Kaiba.  Yugi had said he was having dinner with a business associate, but he had also said he would probably be done by eight thirty, it was a little later than that now. Maybe she could catch him on his way home.  She nearly ran the few blocks to the restaurant Yugi had named.  It was extremely expensive, right on the pier.  As she approached a familiar figure stepped out onto the pier.  Her heart almost stopped.

       <Seto> she didn’t even stop to analyze the strange feeling seeping through her.  All she knew was that she was glad to see him.

       Smiling she quickened her step.  But then she noticed a woman with him, walking very close.

       <His ‘associate’?> she wondered, eyeing them critically.

       The two headed out onto the pier, overlooking the water.  Tea followed at a safe distance, wondering why she was being so clandestine.  She had a right to be at the pier after all. 

       They stopped, and so did Tea.  They didn’t speak for quite some time; he wasn’t even facing the woman, though she appeared to be watching him intently.

       <What are they doing?>

       Then he turned toward her and said something.

       Mid-sentence she kissed him.

       And Tea’s world came to a crashing halt.

       Spinning around Tea ran as fast as she could, tears streaming down her face.

       <She kissed him…  He kissed her>

       Tea had no way of knowing that Kaiba did not welcome that kiss.  She had not stayed long enough to see him push the woman away.  To her it appeared the kiss had been mutual.

       Her thoughts were jumbled and she kept remembering bits of conversation.  Yugi couldn’t have known.  But it certainly laid all her doubts to rest.  He definitely had no interest in her.

       As she ran her rapid thoughts seemed to settle into one glaring point. It came to her with a sickening blow that the question Bakura had posed so long ago had finally been answered.  She loved Seto Kaiba.

       Now, when it was obviously too late, she finally managed to sort out her feelings.

       It had taken losing him to convince her that she wanted him.

       She could have laughed at the irony.

       No wonder he had seemed to be avoiding her recently.  He was taken.  He probably hadn’t wanted to hurt her feelings.

       How could she face him now?

       At least the performance was less than two weeks away.  When it was over her obligation to the center would end and she would never have to see Seto Kaiba again.

       The thought hurt more than it should have.

       Blindly, absorbed with her bitter and sorrowful thoughts, Tea ran through Domino City with no conscious thought.  Therefore it was little surprise that she soon ended up at the door of Yugi and Yami Moto.  Realizing where she was she pushed the door open and ran up the stairs of the apartment complex.  She banged unceremoniously on the door, choking on her sobs the whole while.

       In a few seconds the door opened and Yugi stepped out.

       Tea threw herself into his arms, sobbing.

       “T-tea?” he stuttered in surprise, focusing on the woman in his arms.  He hadn’t even got a good look at her face.  She didn’t respond.  Wrapping his arms around her he drew her inside and shut the door.

       “What’s wrong Tea?” it hurt him to see her in pain; she was one of his dearest friends.

       “He was with some woman!”  She sobbed.

       Yugi’s brow furrowed, “Who was?” was she talking about Kaiba?  He hadn’t thought she’d actually go see him.

       “The guy!” even in this state Tea remembered that she couldn’t tell Yugi.

       “The guy you weren’t sure whether or not you liked?” he asked in confusion.

       She nodded, burrowing her face deeper into his chest.  “He, he, kissed her!” she spat out.

       Now he was really confused.  Had she gone to see Kaiba?  Was he the guy? He had thought so.  But Seto was with Cynthia and he certainly wouldn’t have kissed her.  So had he been wrong and they guy was someone else?  Had she run into the other guy while going to see Kaiba?  Had she even gone to see Kaiba?

       Looking down at the sobbing girl in his arms he realized none of that was important right now.  She was his friend, and she was hurting, so he would comfort her and lay his own questions aside for the time being.

       “Shhh,” he soothed, rubbing her back, “It’s alright.  I know it’s hard.” He kissed the top of her head, “It’s alright.” Slowly he rocked back and forth and she became quieter, but her sobs were no less pronounced.

       “I, I did-dn’t know,” she was having trouble speaking because she was sobbing and hiccupping both now.  “I didn’t know I loved him until I saw.” She managed to say.

       Yugi tightened his arms around her.  He knew how hard that could be.  After all, he had loved her from afar for years.

       “Now I’m too late!” she wailed.

       Not knowing what else to do he simply held her and let her talk.  After long minutes she stopped speaking, but she continued to cry.

       When Yami came home they were still sitting on the couch, arms wrapped around one another.  Yami looked at Yugi in question and the other man shook his head lightly, trying not to disturb Tea as she seemed to be nearly asleep.  With a nod of understanding Yami quietly headed upstairs.   

*** 

       Seto needed to talk to someone – and Mokuba didn’t strike him as the right person.  Slipping quietly into the mansion he headed toward his office  and locked the door behind him.  Sinking into the desk chair he stared sulkily at the phone letting his thoughts flow freely.

       He was upset.  Disgusted even.  Upset with Cynthia Hagarthy for kissing him – for asking him to dinner under false pretenses.  Disgusted with the memory of her lips pressing against his hungrily.  Disgusted with himself for accepting her invitation when he should have known something like this would happen.

       And he was depressed because the whole incident made him wish he could have spent the evening with Tea instead.  A moonlight stroll along the wharf with her would have been romantic…

       On the bright side he probably wouldn’t have to deal with Cynthia anymore.  The look on her face when he’d left her standing on the pier pretty well assured him of that.

       Maybe he could call Yugi.  After all, Yugi was the only one who had known he was meeting Cynthia.  Surely Yugi would understand.

       Heaving a sigh he picked up the phone.

       After three rings it was picked up.

       “Hello?” a deep voice inquired.

       “Yami?  May I speak to Yugi?”

       “Kaiba?” There was the faintest hint of surprise in the other man’s voice, and if he hadn’t been so upset Seto would have smirked.  To his credit he quickly recovered, “Just a moment.”

       A second or so later a new voice came through the line.  “Kaiba?”

       “Hello Yugi.”

       “What’s up?” Yugi sounded baffled and a little concerned.

       Kaiba leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes.  He wasn’t certain where to begin so he decided just to dive in.  “I needed someone to talk to.  About tonight.” He said shortly.

       “Uh, oh. Didn’t go as well as you had hoped with Cynthia.”

       Kaiba growled, “Hardly.” There was a brief pause before he blurted, “She kissed me!”

       “What?!”

       Glancing at the door and lowering his voice Seto continued, “Yes, right on the pier.  We ate dinner; she presented a proposal to use some of their software with our virtual hardware; then we went out to the pier and… she kissed me.”

       “I see.” Yugi said quietly, and Seto was pretty sure he’d missed something, but he didn’t really care at the moment.

       “I’m so angry.” He confessed.  “At her, and at myself.  I knew she’d pull something.  Meeting with her was just stupid.”

       “Possibly.” Yugi agreed, “But at some point you had to confront her.” He stopped and when he spoke he sounded a little uncomfortable, “I mean, it’s not like you kissed her back or anything – right?”

       “No!” Kaiba’s shout startled them both and he quickly dropped his voice back down, “No, of course not.” He said in irritation.  “Why would I kiss her back?  I can’t stand her.”

       “I was just wondering.” Yugi said.

       “Well, don’t.”

       “Sorry.”

       Seto sighed, “I just don’t know what to do.”

       “My advice?” Yugi asked, “Forget about it.  You accomplished your goal and she’s out of your life.  You can focus on more important things now.” He put emphasis on ‘important things’ thinking of Tea, but he was pretty sure Kaiba wouldn’t get it.  He was right.

       “I guess you’re right.” Kaiba looked at the clock.  It wasn’t too late, but he had an early appointment, “Well, thanks.  I just needed to vent to someone I guess.  I’ll see you tomorrow night?”

       “Sure.” Yugi agreed.

       “Great. Bye.” Seto hung up the phone and stared at the wall blankly for several minutes.

       Why couldn’t it have been Tea kissing him on the pier?  And then bitterly he thought that he already knew why.  Did love make everyone such a fool? 

***

       Yugi hung up the phone and shook his head sorrowfully.  Well, that answered the question about Tea’s mystery man.  It was definitely Kaiba. Unfortunately she had misinterpreted what she had seen.  If she knew it might change things.  Then again, maybe not.  He still didn’t know why Seto seemed to be avoiding her.  That was probably some sort of misunderstanding.  All he knew was that Kaiba loved Tea, and Tea loved Kaiba, and neither one had a clue. Too bad he couldn’t do a thing about it.