~~~
January 2 (New Year!),
No one could have felt better coming back to this school than I. Today, my plane landed back on Duel Academy Island. Everything was familiar, the volcano, the grass, even the cockroaches I had to love. It was a tropical island, nothing like snowy Quebec nothing to remind me of Jesse, the biggest dueling troll of them all, and with Phoenix in the running that was seriously saying something...
Aster still has yet to respond to my latest e-mail. I tried to explain myself as politely as I could. I hope he'll feel the sympathy (yes I'll take his mercy) and reply back to me.
The plane ride here gave me a lot of time to think about everything that's happened there. I have to say, I feel really... bad. Maybe I completely overreacted... I said to myself again and again that there wasn't anything I could have done. The loss had to be accepted, not only by me, but by Aster and Sartorius as well. I was no Pro. Maybe I'll never be a Pro, but let's not touch that subject.
BUT ANDERSEN SHOULDN'T HAVE GONE EASY ON ME!
O.k. I had to get that out of me. But he really shouldn't have. Now I feel bad and stupid. Maybe he was just trying to help...
BUT HE STILL SHOULD HAVE GIVEN IT HIS ALL!
On a livelier note, I have gifts for everyone. School starts on the 4th. I'll give everyone their gifts tomorrow, the 3rd, when the main plane lands. Hopefully, Alexis will have slept off that anger she felt for me before she left... I have brought peace offerings, if you will. I spent quite a bit of money and time to think up of what she and Mindy and Jasmine would like.
Wow, that fells like such a darn long time ago.
By the way, my birthday is the 5th... I hope Aster will get some sense and call me. Otherwise, I really think I'll get over there and slap him.
It feels good to be thinking of something normal. I have to see Jaden tomorrow. He'll know how to make me laugh...
There goes that craze. I really think I like Jaden.
O.k. I need sleep. Look where I'm going!
Good night,
Alexandria Kingston
~~~
I woke up bright and early. My sleep hadn't been well; I was too busy contemplating (worrying) about how everyone would accept my late presents. Another thought that kept reappearing in my mind was how to even present the gifts. I had an icky feeling that Alexis still wasn't one hundred percent happy with me.
I stepped out of bed, feeling a sudden burst of bliss. Thinking about these trivial kinds of things again felt much better that thinking about the tournament...
I walked over to the Slifer Dorms first, thinking I really needed some of Jaden's drivel to pull me fully back to Academy life. I felt as if I had strayed too far. In my hands, I held a bag. Truthfully, I wasn't too sure what to buy Jaden or Syrus or Chumley. In fact, I never had an idea of what to buy guys. 'Would that seem too intimate or too average? Would they really like this?'
The most problems when shopping arose with Jaden, just as I had feared. In the end, I had settled for something I knew he would like. Common, yes. Average, yes. Jaden-ish, definitely.
The path to the Slifer Dorms was familiar – soothing. The Slifer Dorms themselves looked like a home out of an old dream. A thought came to me that I should have never accepted Aster's job to duel in the tournament. That way, I would have at least had more fun over my course of winter break!
I walked up the stairs, almost reverently, relishing every second I had here. Everything around me led to an almost... unmatched, strange feeling. I clung onto this strange, new feeling; accepting it in all its uncertainty and unfamiliarity. A fleeting worry crossed my mind. What if they weren't here right now? What if they left for Winter Break and wouldn't be back until tomorrow?
However, that worry ceased quickly when I heard their voices upon reaching the second floor landing. "There's your win... again Jay. Can we stop dueling now? I'm getting a headache." That voice must have been Syrus.
"Aww... no stamina at all Syrus. Where's the dueling spirit?!" That voice was Jaden, no doubt about it. I felt a calming sensation in my heart, and I knew it was his voice that I wanted to hear, especially after that tourn-
O.k. I'm going to stop thinking about it!
I rounded the bend and peeked in the open door, my hand reaching out to knock.
They were in their usual spots. Jaden and Syrus were sitting cross-legged on the rug, their cards spread before them. Chumley occupied the top bunk, looking down on them. I was able to get my hand to the door before Jaden spotted me.
"Um... hello." I said.
"Hey! Lex! You're back!" Jaden exclaimed.
"Earlier than expected, too." Chumley added on.
Jaden jumped off the rug and motioned for me to come in. I did so, leaving my shoes at the door (although it wasn't like the carpet here could get any worse...). Jaden closed the door behind me. "So how was your vacation?" Jaden asked.
I never told them that it was a dueling tournament I went to, so I figured now wasn't the time to tell them that it was fruitless. "Alright, nothing special." I answered, which was the truth. It wasn't anything special. "But I have something for all of you. Call it a late gift."
"Gifts?" They all asked in unison.
"Yeah..." I balanced the bag in one hand and proceeded to pull some items out for them. "Let's see..."
"You really didn't have too..." The classic response came at me from all corners.
"Really, I had nothing else to do." That was my classic reply.
The next several minutes were used distributing the gifts. For Chumley, I got him an alarm clock. ("Haha, very funny, Alexandria.") Well, at least now he could wake up and attempt to pass his classes and move out of Slifer. The alarm would only benefit him and he knew it.
For Syrus, I got him a watch. ("Now you don't have to worry about being late, Truesdale.")
Yup, I pretty much spoofed their gifts. But it was all a good laugh. Syrus actually enjoyed hi new watch. After all, I figured he would need one if he was with Jaden Yuki all the time.
"And here's... yours." I finally pulled out Jaden's gift. "A ton of new cards and a whole load of Belgian chocolate and French truffles."
I saw Jaden's face instantly light up and I was relieved that he, too, enjoyed his gift, lack of planning and all. "New cards and food? Thanks!!! You really know what the best is!" Jaden exclaimed, taking the whole booster box of cards. "Whadya say we have a card opening feast right now? You know I can't leave card packs unopened! Come on!"
Jaden shook the booster box and then inhaled deeply. "Ahh, I can just smell them now..." He stated in a dreamy voice.
I grinned, unable to hold back that giddiness inside. Subconsciously, I was already pulling out my deck. Academy life was sure coming back strong and fast.
*****
Of course, as all things go, good things must balance out with the not so good.
I left the Slifer Dorm after eating three of my own truffles, one piece of chocolate, two booster packs, a customization period, and three duels with Yuki. (I ended up losing two of them.) The ebullience followed me back to the Obelisk dorm, where I collected my gifts for Alexis, and then down to the Obelisk lobby, where I decided to wait for her. I noticed that the effervescent mood was ebbing away the entire time...
I knew that the boats and shipped arrived in the hour I was away at the Slifer Dorms. I also knew that Alexis would probably come back to the lobby after unpacking her things. In fact, it was this 'I know that you know that I know' concept.
So I didn't have to wait long before she did show up. She walked down the stairs calmly, smoothly; here eyes wandered about. Was she looking for me?
"Alexis!" I called.
Unlike the previous time, she actually looked. And smiled. Great. That was a good start. She weaved her way through the collecting crowd of classmates looking for classmates to me. "Hello Alexandria." She stated, calmly, but a little coolly at the same time. Was that like her?
"Hey! How was your vacation?" I asked.
"Not bad. Want to take a walk? It's getting kind of stuffy in here." Alexis suggested. Good, that was like her.
"Alright," I answered. We walked silently outside, and it wasn't until we were walking the path around the lake that she continued.
"I didn't do anything special. Feast with the family... open gifts... you know, the normal. What did you do?"
"We went up North for a while. Sight-seeing in Quebec and that area." I failed to mention anything about the tournament. She didn't need to know.
"Oh, sounds nice." She commented.
"It was nice, except for the constant snow! By the way, I got you something." I offered a smile at the same time I offered the bag of goodies.
"What is it?" Alexis asked, unable to keep the human reaction of surprise out of her voice. "Wow... there's a lot of stuff in here..." She peeked into the bag of items. "Can I check it out now?"
"No, wait until you get back to your room. There's a lot in there, and I wouldn't want any of it to get lost. It's a bunch of little things I saw around Quebec. You know, traditional French style items. But no peeking!"
"Oh alright." Alexis grumbled. Then, a smile came to her face again. "So then how about we wander back to our dorm? Dinner's coming and I wouldn't want to carry all these things around the lake."
I laughed at that one. "Sure. But you could just say that you're itching to open those gifts!"
Alexis laughed along with me. "But I have something for you, too, that I left in the room. Come on, you have to admit you'll be curious as well!"
*****
I could say that the day ended off alright. Jaden accepted his gift. Alexis accepted her gift as well. Alexis' gift for me was nice; a beautiful set of little stone bookend dragons. I had them on my shelves right away.
The only one I didn't see was Zane. He wasn't at the light-house when I slipped away right after dinner. Maybe there wasn't anything about his winter break to ponder.
So Alexis didn't hate me. That was an improvement. But there was some... ice there that I could feel. Hopefully, it would melt when classes begun again...
But I knew that was truly wishful thinking. The next day's classes only confirmed that. "Alright, class!" Crowler announced as soon as everyone settled in for first period. "I hope you all had an excellent Winter Break... full of resting and sleeping, right? If I catch anyone dozing off in my classes, it will be an automatic referral to the principal's office... YUKI." Crowler spat the last word as if a fly had just landed in his mouth. I felt sorry for the poor Slifers directly in front of him at that time. They probably got enough spittle to keep them moist until the next winter break.
Jaden bolted up. "Yes Professor Crowler the answer is C!" He exclaimed.
Several Obelisks snickered; their favorite past-time of watching Slifers being berated by Crowler was back. I couldn't help a smile come to my own face, however. How could Jaden sleep on this first day of class anyways? It was only the first period! He could rival a koala in sleeping time!
Crowler shook his head. "I'm sorry, Mr Yuki. But you answered incorrectly..." He talked as if Jaden was a three year old who was just caught stealing from a cookie jar. "The correct answer was, 'I will not sleep in class AGAIN!'" His voice rose at the end to an almost unbearable screech. "WRITE THAT ONE HUNDRED TIMES BEFORE YOU LEAVE THE CLASS!" More spittle came flying. Maybe Crowler should have painted the back of his first five rows of seats with the words 'Wet Zone', like how they do it at SeaWorld. That way, at least his students would have the warning that they should bring a change of clothing after the performance.
"One hundred times! But-"
"NO! Now on to the next order of business." Crowler spun suddenly, and continued addressing the rest of the class as if nothing else had occurred. Crowler reminded me of that strange case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Jaden started mumbling something inaudible. "Your midterm scores are out today. I will be handing them back to you shortly..." His voice had an eerie calm and sweet tone in it.
Several minutes later, Alexis and I held our results, comparing them. "Oh wow, your top score is in history." Alexis complimented. "A 488! You only missed a few questions!"
"Yeah, but you scored the best in 'Knowledge of the Obscure Cards'. A 490!" I replied back. We cast wary, but critical glances over the other's test results, comparing... seeing who was better. "I only got a 460!"
"Out of 500. That isn't bad." Alexis consoled.
"To your 490, that's pretty bad. Good job with that! I remember that test was incredibly hard." I continued eyeing her paper. She got the better score in sciences as well, but I excelled in the duel strategies...
"Wow a 483 in Tactics for the Tag. I guess you should have been Jaden's partner. Help him out a bit, will you?" Alexis' voice tried reflecting some joking manner, but she failed at it. Again, I could detect that ice. It always came up on this subject.
"Heh, yeah. Jaden sure is the smart one, isn't he?" I answered. Both aware of the other, our eyes wandered down a few rows to the Slifers. Jaden was there, dozing off already, getting a bit of drool on his own exam results sheet.
*****
I was glad when that class was over. However, as things tend to go, I had most of the rest of my classes with Alexis and Jaden as well. So it was a relief when I wandered into fifth period after lunch. Alexis wasn't in that class; I could breathe again.
"How was your break?" I asked the classic question to the navy-blue haired boy sitting beside me. It was the first time today I saw him. Then again, this was the only class I had with him. He looked the same; bored and lively as a statue.
"Fine." His curt, but classic reply.
"Did you do anything special?"
"No."
Since it was the first day back from Winter break, the math class ended ten minutes early. The professor called it an 'easy day to lapse back into thinking mode'. I didn't mind. Who felt like thinking about trigonometric inverses anyways?
Finally, Zane decided to ask the question. "What did you do?"
"I went up to Quebec for a while." I answered. Just like with Alexis, I figured there was no need to emphasize on exactly what. I saw one of Zane's eyebrows raise slightly, as if another question had formed in his mind, but if one did, he did not speak it.
I took the second of silence to change the subject. "By the way, I bought you something."
Zane's look was mildly surprised; I took it that he could never be more so. This is Zane we're talking about.
"I saw it at an antique shop. Thought you might like it." I dug around in my bag, and then pulled out a little bag. Opening it, I showed him the little pendant I found. It glowed and sparkled under the lecture hall lights.
"How... interesting..." Zane commented. That was probably the best compliment I would get. I dropped the pendant and chain onto his hand, and he looked at it a bit more closely. "It looks like..." He ran a tentative finger over the pendant.
"A Cyber Dragon, huh? That's what I thought when I saw it!" I said. "The store clerk said it came from some small town up in the Tibetan mountains...."
Zane threw me a very strange glance then, sending a strange shiver down my spine. Did that fact hit something? "What else did he say?" Zane questioned.
"That was it... Well, he said there was some good value in the little thingy you have there, and that I should buy it before the sale ended... yeah, nothing special.... why?" I faltered here and there, wondering what it was that Zane was looking for. I had never seen such a look before.
"Nothing... It was just... strange that something from Tibet could have a Cyber Dragon image..." Zane trailed off. I stole a look at him and was glad that his face had returned to that original, Zane-statue look. "What's the Cyber Dragon made out of?" Even his voice had turned down a notch.
I could tell that he wanted to change the subject, and I was relieved. "White gold, I believe it was." I answered, hearing the relief in my own words. "So do you like it?"
"Yes, thanks." Zane said, and after another look at the pendant, pocketed it in his uniform. Zane lapsed then into silence, just as he always does, staring ahead as if a lecture was still going on. I shifted around in my seat. I stood up quickly when the bell finally rang.
*****
"I thought you'd like it, Alexis." I grinned. I offered her a towel, which she took with a sweaty gesture of thanks.
"The photo-frame is especially nice." Alexis answered. "Now I just have to dig around to find something to actually put in it!"
"I could help you, if you'd like." I opened my bottle of water, and took a gulp. Alexis did the same beside me. "Whew, tennis practice can get tiring!"
"And it was only for thirty minutes!" Alexis added on. "Guess we're just out of shape."
"Winter Break can do that to you."
After the little pointless conversation, we both looked around the rest of the courts. There were a total of twelve courts; six were for the girls and six were for the boys. A median of trees and shrubs divided the two sets of courts.
Alexis and I had a fast set. The ending score was 6-4 with me barely pulling the win. I play tennis with Aster a lot, and I was sure Alexis had played tennis sometime before too. Her form was near perfect. But then again, Phoenix hired me a coach, which was probably why I was able to pull off the win. I didn't want to linger on the thought for long, but I could not think of an interesting topic. Luckily, Mindy and Jasmine came jogging over, a towel slung over their shoulders and a water bottle in hand. I greeted them quickly.
"You girls don't look the least bit tired." Alexis commented.
Jasmine laughed. "Nah, we can't play tennis anyways, so we'll pretend we finished-"
"We'll say I won," Mindy chirped in.
"The coach said we could have free-time after one set anyways." Jasmine continued.
"And we were wondering if you two would like to go check out the guys on the next court over!" Mindy finished proudly, looking from me to Alexis.
I blinked. They sounded like twins! Or perhaps they've just rehearsed before coming up to us. "Check out the guys?" I asked, a queasy feeling starting to bubble in my stomach. "Which one do you two have in mind?"
"Are you kidding? Mindy thinks half the boys on this campus are boyfriend material!" Jasmine grumbled.
"No joke." Alexis added on.
"Oh come on!" Mindy cried, exasperated. "There's nothing else to do now anyways! Besides, the boys are much better tennis players and we can learn by watching them!"
"Checking them out, you might as well say." Alexis corrected.
"She just wants to go watch Harrington Rosewood." Jasmine spoke the unsaid obvious. We all groaned, nonetheless. The 3rd year Obelisk tennis star could get on one's nerves easily. Ever since tennis practices started, the 'star' only got more annoying, constantly pestering Alexis and me. In fact, at one point, I bet with Alexis twenty dollars that Harrington actually liked her more that me, and that he was only trying to flatter me so he could get closer to Alexis. Alexis agreed to the terms, saying that he'd never favor one of his "Obelisk pixies" over the rest.
Even with the bet, I hoped dearly that maybe he could be struck by Cupid while facing Mindy, but sadly, that hasn't occurred yet. It would have done them both some good. (They would be a cute couple.)
"O.k. yeah... You girls got me." Mindy mumbled and we all shared a good laugh. "I admit that I think Harrington is a hot guy."
"If you stood here and admitted your infatuation for every boy, we'd be here until summer break!" I said, and several more laughs rang out.
"Then I guess we can grant her that one wish," Alexis finally agreed, "since she's so candid about it." Her eyes caught mine. "Let's hope he won't see us."
"Wishful thinking, my Obelisk pixie." Jasmine tried imitating the way Harrington talked by emphasizing on the word pixie. It was a good try and several more giggles erupted.
We arrived at the boys' tennis courts quickly as Mindy was the one leading. "Ohh, there he is!" Mindy squealed. She clung onto Jasmine, as if seeing the boy turned her legs to rubber and she could no longer stand.
"Is that tennis star playing with... Jaden?" I asked bluntly. Jaden wasn't the best at tennis to say the least. I watched the Slifer run back and forth, just barely making the returns. I also had to note that Jaden's tennis form wasn't the best either.
"I guess he just wanted a warm-up." Jasmine suggested.
"I think he just wants to torment the poor guy," I muttered. I shielded my eyes from the sun, and examined the bleachers beside these courts. Some boys were fooling around, some (Obelisks) sitting around watching Jaden get pummeled. Suddenly, something clicked in my mind and I noticed something that had been bugging me before. "Hey, that one spiky haired kid isn't here anymore... what's his name?"
"Chazz Princeton?" Alexis asked.
"Yeah, the one that always had his eyes on you. Where did he go? I haven't seen him since... well... a long time ago! I think it was right after that demotion duel he had with Bastion Misawa."
"Guess like he couldn't stand being a Ra." Jasmine added on.
Alexis shrugged and glanced around the bleachers, as if Chazz maybe was still here. "Well, I noticed he left, but I thought that maybe he just left early for Winter Break. But... now that you mention it...I did hear someone mention that they saw Chazz that one day..."
"Maybe we should go walk around after school's out, just to check if he's still on the island." Mindy suggested.
"What, you like him, too?!" Jasmine accused her friend.
"Well, no! I mean, he's hot and all, but too much of a snob!"
"And you don't think Harrington's a snob?" Alexis and I said that in unison.
"Well, no!" Jasmine cried indignantly. I attempted to keep a snort down and turned back to the courts so that I was following the game that Jaden was having with Harrington. "That's not what I meant. I was saying that Chazz is a snob; much more so than my Harrington-"
At that instant, I saw Jaden desperately trying to return a deep shot. He ended up shanking the ball, sending it flying to where we were standing. The fast tennis ball coming towards us translated into a shriek from Mindy and Jasmine.
"Alexys! I'll save you!" A voice boomed out. I could feel the breeze as someone dove in front of us, cradling the ball with his racket. The next instant, Mr. Harrington Rosewood was standing before us, his hair still perfect. No stand was undone from his 'heroic' dive over here. "Are you girls alright?" He asked.
"Yes, thank you so much!" Mindy gawked at the boy before her. "You're the best, Harrington!"
The boy flashed his dazzling smile, sending Mindy back into paradise. I tried not to roll my eyes. Suddenly, he was in front of Alexis and me. "By the way, I saw your latest set. You two were gorgeous!"
"Thanks," Alexis and I grumbled in almost unison. At the same time, we were both looking for a way to get away from the guy.
"Your smashes were stunning, as always, Alexandria. And your backhand was amazing, Alexis. In fact, if you would like to practice with me today, we could all work out together. That would be great, wouldn't it? But then again, I'm not deserving of your time, so if you insist on not-"
Jaden suddenly poked into the conversation. He had finally gotten off his butt and walked over to where Harrington was inundating Alexis and me with the annoying talk. Honestly, I was very glad he did that. I couldn't stand Harrington for very long. "Hey, Lexys. Sorry about that shot. Are-"
"What are you doing?!" Harrington's voice rose by octaves. "Not only are you interrupting me, but a Slifer cannot be talking with my Obelisk pixies! First-round picks are so not meant for you. Get your foul breath away from both of them!"
"Geez," Jaden grumbled. "Can a guy not talk? I was just asking the Lexys-"
"Lexys?" Harrington's voice stayed on that loud note. "What is that? Some kind of pet name? What does it mean? What does it stand for? How'd they-" His words started jumbling together, and I could tell his anger was peaking. Honestly, my tolerance for him was also waning.
"Um... it means Alexandria and Alexis?" Jaden even looked bugged by now.
"You're friends with both of them?!" Harrington was growling by now.
"Geez, this guy is obsessive." I heard Jasmine mutter.
"Let him obsess... over me!" Mindy squealed. I suppressed another roll of the eyes. I would much rather have him obsessing over someone else.
"Why are you friends with both of them?" Harrington demanded again.
"Um... how am I supposed to answer that one, Sy?" Jaden asked softly behind his hand.
"O.k. now guys." Alexis stepped in finally. "If you'd like to argue, you can do it somewhere else, and about other matters."
"No wait, Alexis!" Harrington exclaimed boldly. "As much as I'd like to stop looking at this horrendous... benchwarmer, I have to teach him a lesson. Never hog up two Obelisk girls at the same time!" His voice started rising again, and I had to stifle a snort. He was the one talking about hogging up girls? "How about we settle this in a duel?" Harrington continued, grabbing a duel disk that rested by the net posts.
"Instead of tennis? What more could I ask for? I can't play the sport anyways!" Jaden answered, throwing his racket aside. I heard it clatter several times before lying still a good few yards away.
"So you aren't too much of a coward. That's good. Now for the stakes...Lets call it a fair shot at the lovely ladies. One for one, alright?" Harrington drew himself up to his full height and flashed that brilliant smile, with the sunlight glittering off his teeth.
"Say what?" Alexis stepped back once, as if the words had been a physical blow. One of my eyebrows had risen. What was Harrington getting at? "What kind of stakes-"
Harrington continued, staring at Jaden smugly. "If I win, then Alexis will be my fiancée and you can walk away with no one and your tail between your legs. On the other hand, if you win... you can take Alexandria as your fiancée and I'll cede Alexis to someone else more deserving."
"WHAT?" My voice rose with Alexis'. "You guys-"
Suddenly, I felt some hands pull me backwards, away from the courts. "Come on now girls. You have two hot contenders battling it out for your hands in marriage! What could be better?" Mindy squealed. "I'd love-"
"If it were possible, Mindy, I'd love it if you had my position," Alexis grumbled. "Is Yuki stupid enough to accept this duel?"
"Alright, I accept your challenge. Get your game on!" Jaden exclaimed, grabbing his own duel disk. I saw Alexis slap herself on the forehead.
"I guess Yuki really wants you," Jasmine grinned at me.
"Or maybe he really thinks Alexis and Harrington will make a cute couple." Mindy shot a teasing look at Alexis. "Will you ask me to come to your wedding? I'll help you with your wedding dress, and all the floras, and the decorations, and the cake..."
*****
Alexis walked to the pier. It was good thing Alexandria had decided to go write in her journal and take a nice long, warm bath. Alexis had things to think about, and it was best if the girl in question wasn't there.
Her footsteps were muted by the lulling sound of the sea, and soon, she stood by the lighthouse, half the lighthouse's circumference away from Zane.
"You haven't come down here in a while." Zane commented to the brunette. Alexis counted that as a greeting.
"I've been busy," Alexis replied laconically. She lapsed into silence. The 3rd year boy looked over his shoulder to the brunette. She wasn't very talkative, but today, she seemed too stony. Zane wasn't the best at deciphering things like this, but he wasn't stupid. He knew something was up. He also had a fairly good idea at exactly what was up. He'd heard whispers and rumors going around campus about the two Obelisk Queens. And again, he wasn't stupid.
"Have you had any luck?" Zane asked again. That was his way of getting Alexis talking. If anyone was eavesdropping on this conversation, they would have concluded that the boy and girl were in on something together, not specifying anything.
"No..." Alexis sighed. Could so many things plague a human at once? Where was the room to breathe? "He's still... gone."
"You don't need to worry, Alexis. Things will work out; you just have to be patient." The boy stopped, but continued on another breath. "You always make everything work out." Without another word, the navy-blue haired boy looked back out into the sea. Alexis followed his gaze. Under the dim blanket of darkness, everything seemed surreal, almost eerie. The stars were out today, and a pale face of the moon looked out at her from the rippling water. She shivered and looked back at the silhouette of the boy. Did he know more about her than she knew about herself?
"You believe so?" Alexis asked.
"I know so."
Alexis turned her gaze once more to the ocean. However, after a few minutes' pondering, her eyes wandered over to the Obelisk dorm. "Good night Zane." She commented.
"Good night," He replied back.
You always make everything work out... She smiled to herself and began walking back to her dorm.
*****
Jaden yawned. He stretched out on his comfortable Slifer Dorm twin size bed, his feet hanging off the side. The dinner had been great, and for once, his stomach wasn't bothering him. It was time to get some good night's shut-eye...
"Oh Jaden..." Syrus' voice floated into his ears; his mind only half comprehending.
"Uh?" Jaden managed to confirm that he had heard his name.
"I can't believe you! Engaged to one of the best girls at the academy! A Kingston. Alexandria Kingston! What were you thinking of, getting into that duel?"
"Then again, they did sleep together that one night..." Chumley added on, lying on his top bunk. "Who knows what they were doing..."
"CHUMLEY!" Syrus exclaimed, exasperated. "Jaden would never-"
"Engaged? Since when was I..." Jaden finally cracked open one eye. Syrus was just talking way too loud. "Engaged?"
"Yeah! Alexandria Kingston is your fiancée!"
"Huh?" Jaden sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Sy, it's almost midnight. Why are you talking so loud, anyways?"
"Because you have a fiancée!" Syrus tried getting that thought into the boy's head. For some reason, it just wasn't sticking in Jaden's head like how it should.
"A fiancée is just a friend, isn't it?" Jaden muttered and plopped a pillow over his head. "That's what she said..."
"Forget it, Syrus." Chumley muttered something more that didn't quite reach Jaden's ears. However, as a result of that inaudible whispering, Syrus began giggling. Jaden heard that and he perked his ears and wished he heard the rest. He removed the pillow and let it fall beside him.
"What's up, Sy?" Jaden asked.
"Her birthday is tomorrow." Jaden figured that if he was looking at Syrus, there would be a big grin stretched disproportionately across his small face. "I heard it from some reliable source."
"Her what?" Jaden suddenly felt awake. "Birthday? Tomorrow? Where'd you hear that? She didn't say one word about that to us!"
"I don't think she's the kind to go around telling people," Chumley deducted. "Doesn't want people sucking up on her and all, you know?"
"No, I don't know, but..." Jaden sat up on his bed. The bright night-light that Syrus brought from home glared into his eyes. "Where'd you hear that, Sy?"
"Read, actually. Here." Syrus reached down a bunk and accidentally bonked Jaden in the head with a small device. "Sorry," He apologized. "No glasses right now."
"It's alright," Jaden grumbled, rubbing his head with one hand and receiving the PDA with the other.
"What's it say, Jaden?" Chumley asked.
"To the best man Sy, may you tell the husband that her birthday is tomorrow.
~Alexis"
Jaden stared at the little screen and then handed the PDA back to Syrus. What was with everyone calling him a husband? Alexandria was only a fiancée (friend)! And what was a best man, again? "Go back to sleep, Sy. It's been a long day." Jaden's head hit the pillow and he shut his eyes, the glow from the PDA screen imprinted on the back of his eye-lids and the message imprinted in his mind.
"Ohh Jaden." Syrus teased again. "Thinking of getting anything?" There was no response. A little confused, Syrus asked again. This time, it was Jaden's snoring that answered.
