Fade
Eyes protested from being open any longer. It was past two in the morning and with school only a few short hours again, sleep seemed nonexistent. Usually he would be up typing reports or calculating numbers for his company but tonight was different. He laid on his bed half awake. With his memory distant and his body restless, he felt as if the night dragged on endlessly. This night nagged at his tortured mind.
From the moment he opened his mouth to offer her a ride he knew he had done something he should have not done for his own sake. He knew the result would make him frown. As always, he was right in the end.
The ride was quiet. Anzu sat with her hands on her lip looking at out the window while Kaiba did the same on the opposite window. Neither had anything nice to say to opting to go with the old saying, they decided not to say anything at all.
Why had he actually given in to that tiny piece of humanity he knew he had inside and asked her if she wanted to ride with him? Just like the time before it was raining hard onto their lifeless empty city. No one dared go outside with the thunder and whipping rain. No one except for the girl who sat beside him now. The foolish girl was prideful enough to walk through the cold rain just to get to wherever she was headed towards. Brown hair laid wet against her pink tinted cheeks and around her slim long neck and her clothing stuck to her like a second skin when he noticed her. Before he consciously knew it, he asked his driver to go back towards the young girl.
“Yes?” The girl asked before Kaiba said anything. She looked nor annoyed or happy to see him. It was as if she was used to seeing him everywhere and no longer had an emotion when it came to him.
“It’s cold out there.“ He answered.
“It’s also raining. What’s your point?“ Her eyes blinked rapidly from the water dripping down her eyes and face.
“You’re not a genius but I know you have some brain cells. Why didn’t you wait for the rain to stop before you walked home?” Stiffening up from the comment, Anzu turned her body away from the limo.
“Because…” She walked away from the limo with her cheeks redder than before. Not understanding that even in the cold rain why Kaiba couldn’t be a bit more compassionate she tried to fight back the shiver creeping up before her. “Did he just stop to humiliate me?” She muttered to herself before stopping before a street. The rain seemed to stop because she didn’t feel anymore raindrops hit her already wet figure and warmth was starting to seep around her. As a car drove by she noticed that the car was being pelted by rain.
“Strangely enough, no. I stopped because if you got sick and had to stay home then I wouldn’t be able to make fun of you during school.” The voice behind her made her jump away from the figure behind her. Looking up she noticed that an umbrella had been protecting her from the cold rain.
“What are you doing?” she asked curiously. The limo parked beside her as Kaiba took her arm.
“Don’t ask me why just get inside.” shocked that Kaiba would actually do something nice for someone, she let him drag her towards the limo. Anzu told the driver directions to where she wanted to be dropped off before she got into the long black limousine.
“Thank you.. “ she softly said when they both got in the limo. The inside seemed to expensive with small televisions and bottles of champagne laid out around the mini fridge. “This is… wow.” She looked around the limo and suddenly felt like she was ruining the seats with her wet clothes. “Do you have anything to cover the seats? I’m completely drenching it with .. “
“You’ll have to deal with it.” He muttered without looking at her. He stared out the window with disinterest in anything in the limo, especially her. After a quiet ‘oh’, she looked out the window as well in silence.
“It’s beautiful when it rains. It’s seems like the world is crying for us. After it’s done crying it shows us all over again how alive this world is with the sun and the colors of the rainbow. It shows us that after the tears we can smile again. We can move on…” Pausing for a moment, she noticed Kaiba was looking at her and returned his gaze. “That’s why it’s so beautiful.”
“Are you saying that you want to get out?” Kaiba bluntly asked making Anzu laugh.
“No.” she shook her head. “I was explaining why I didn’t wait for the rain to stop. That’s why I was walking in the rain. I felt like being a kid again.”
“You were obviously not that bright as a kid then. You’re going to get sick from jumping around in the rain like some untrained toddler.” Biting her lip, Anzu looked away from Kaiba’s hard stare and played with the hem of her skirt.
“I was a child. I’m sure Mokuba did the same when he was younger. We weren’t unfortunate to be the kind of child you were. You never… “
“Enough.” Kaiba growled. “Don’t you dare go on like this. I don’t want to have another one of these meaningless talks. Don’t try to understand me because no one can. I’ll never talk to you about myself or ever let you even get to know me. If you want to continue walking in the rain then just tell my driver. If not then leave me alone.” Done with the conversation he opened up his laptop to show he no longer wished to talk. After a moment Anzu began scooting up the seat, sitting closer towards Kaiba.
“You won’t hide forever. One day someone will break through.” Looking up from his laptop he opened his mouth to counteract her comment but instead stopped when he saw her. She sat quietly looking out the window with a sad smile. The limo stopped but she did not move. “I wish… “ she began without looking at anything but outside the window. “I wished I could be that person. I hoped you could let me in and.. “ Turning her head slightly, her eyes drifted towards his with the same sad smile. “.. who knows? Perhaps we could be friends.” After a beat she added. “I’m not the kind of person you think I am.” The limo door opened but Kaiba’s hand shot out and slammed the door closed.
“Leave us be for a moment.” He growled out. Coolly, Anzu straightened up in her seat and waited for Kaiba to speak. “If I ever spoke anything to you I’d end up being laughed at by one of your friends. You are part of them. For all I know you could have been convinced by the mutt to try and ‘ let you in’ just so he could have a laugh for Motou so that he could have some kind of advantage. So tell me, Mazaki why in the hell would I ever trust you?” Sighing to herself, she sat beside Kaiba next to the other limo door. With one hand on the door handle, her back faced his front.
“Because you’re my friend and my friends trust me.” Before she could lean forward and open the door, his hand stopped her. Laying down on her shoulder, she could feel him press his fingers down on her shoulder. He had nothing to say in response. The whole conversation was a yoyo that never had a different result. While she continued to say they were friends, he continued to deny this friendship. She went up while he kept going down, with no other result. There was nothing more he could say. The girl stuck to her guns and wouldn’t change her mind no matter how cold he treated her during school. Hearing nothing but the silence between them, Anzu turned around to look at Kaiba.
“We’re not.. “ Anzu cut him off. As much as he was tired of the endless argument, she was equally tired. Knowing full well that he would say what he would always respond she somehow turned her body around and wrapped her arms around his neck without him pushing her before she could do it.
Her lips left ghostly caresses against his before whispering beside his ear.
“W.. what are you.. “
“Please, forget for once that this world was cruel to you. Believe in someone who would never do anything to hurt you. Believe that I am that person.” Sitting back so that she could see his face, she saw something no one had ever had the chance to see. Kaiba stared back at her with confused etched across his features. Taking the chance she longed since she met up with them the day they spoke on the school rooftop, she cradled his head between her hands. “I’m sorry, Seto.” Kaiba didn’t need to wonder what she meant by apologizing after he felt her lips touch his. As quick as her timid kiss began, it ended, leaving Kaiba to see her already out of the car and running inside her apartment complex.
Hours later and he still laid in his bed with shock. The girl had to be possessed. When he looked out his window, she was already gone. The girl knew full well he would probably demand an explanation for her throwing herself at him. Though she didn’t seem the type to fall for just any guy. She always kept her group of male friends but there were never any rumors that she was actually dating anyone, let alone had a romantic interest in someone; not that Kaiba was into hearing gossip. Anzu Mazaki was foolish for her actions today but she was always independent, so the kiss had to come from another motive. Right?
Rolling to his side, Kaiba looked at the clock once more. Two more hours before school started. Two more hours before he saw the same blue eyed brunette who would not leave his mind. Growling, Kaiba sat up in his bed, ready to give up trying to sleep and head towards his study to get started on some work for the next day. Before he set his feet on his bedroom floor, he remembered her last words before she bolted out of his limo.
“Please, forget for once that this world was cruel to you. Believe in someone who would never do anything to hurt you. Believe that I am that person.”
Her words were almost cryptic. With her actions, she succeeded in making him forget. Just those few seconds he felt all the distrust he had harbored for so many years. All the distrust and paranoia towards Anzu Mazaki faded as her soft pink lips beckoned him to respond to her words. Even when she left he hadn’t thought about his past. Of course now he thought about it but it could it be because he was in his own room without smelling her soft perfume? Was it because there was no presence of the dancer? Slowly Kaiba realized that she had somehow done it. She made him forget just as she wished from him. Not only did she accomplish it but she used a trick only a harlot would use. There couldn’t have been a romantic purpose behind that kiss.
Smirking at himself for his weakness, he laid back down. Work could always wait for tomorrow. If the girl thought she would get to him, then she was wrong. No one told him to forget about the reality of the world. Because of the way he was, he got to be a successful business man. No one would take that away, no matter how much they could think they could ‘help’ him forget. There would be repercussions. If she had thought she got away then she was sadly mistaken. Seto let himself fall deep into sleep, knowing he needed the rest if he were to make Anzu Mazaki pay for her foolish actions.
Seto Kaiba would sleep for now, but the faded memories of his past were replaced with a gentle memory of a dancer who had hoped to make him forget… and with plausible results.
