Nighttime is descending on Heartland City as a I walk, now relaxed from earlier events. I see Yuma and Tori up ahead. Yuma looks distressed. I approach and hear his sister's voice on the phone.
"Just do it, Yuma!!!"
"Okay!!"
"Now listen up. Once you see him, corner him; capture him; do not let 'im out of your sight!" She hangs up; a picture stays on the screen. Yuma looks at it gloomily.
"Why does my sister hate me?"
"Who's that, Yuma?" I ask, looking over his shoulder.
"Is this some friend of hers?" Tori asks.
"I dunno. But wait-- if I don't do what she says, it'll be morning noogies for a solid month!" I giggle.
"Hey, what do you guys think of this -- almost full." I show my Ruby heart piece out, four pieces out of five.
"Wow! Rose! That's so cool!" Tori smiles happily.
"Thanks Tor. I said I entered for fun, but now it's...different I think. I have something else to fight for. I'll never win, though."
"Oh come on, Rosie. I may want to win, but you have as much potential." Yuma encourages me, wholeheartedly.
"Thank you, Yuma."
Just then, we hear a commotion.
"Huh? Is that a duel?" Across the street, a cheering, yelling crowd is gathered.
"Come on guys!" I run to the duel, people letting me through.
"Next I activate Submersible Carrier Aero Shark's special ability! Here comes-- Torpedo Takedown!" Yuma squeezes to the front of the crowd, holding his arms out straight like the beginning of a breaststroke. Tori joins him without the funny motion.
"It's Shark!" I smile upon seeing my purple-haired friend. Aero Shark releases four shark-shaped missiles, which split into four smaller rockets each. Shark's opponent, a random guy in a grey-blue cargo vest over a yellow T-shirt, grey pants, and boots, is assailed with small explosions and hits the ground on his back.
"Whoa-a-a-a-a-a-a ugh!" His lifepoints fall from 1200 to 0; Shark just won the duel. The crowd's cheering as the gazervision decomposes.
"That's awesome!"
"Sweet victory!"
"Oh, wow! That was incredible!" Yuma says. Shark is jadedly pulling off his gazer; this victory didn't matter much to him.
"Does this mean what I think it means?!" Shark startles slightly.
"Yuma."
"You're competing in the World Duel Carnival!"
"Only for as long as I need to." Shark tells, bitterly
"Whaddaya mean?"
"As soon as I do what I gotta do: I'm out."
"What're you talking about?"
"The duelist I lost to at the Nationals is in the Carnival. I'm gonna settle the score."
"The Nationals?!...But I thought... you cheated, and then you got kicked out."
"That's just a portion of the true story."
"There's a lot more to that story than you know. For now, just stay outta my way." Shark states. "Rose? Can I talk to you for a minute?" He asks.
"Uh, sure. I gotta jet after." Shark walks away with me in tow.
"So, what was this word about?" I ask.
"Have you seen Quattro?" He asks, his arch-enemy's name rolling off of his tongue like poison.
"No. I haven't."
"Okay. Well, I was wondering if when the Carnival will have a break from it's preliminaries on Saturday...would you...would you like to go out somewhere with me?" Shark fumbles with his fingers, eyes focused to the sides.
"Me?" I ask, in shock.
"No, the flower in your hair, of course you!" He snaps, amused. I'm guessing he can see my nervousness.
"Wouldn't it be sorta like...a date?" He blinks. Once. Twice. And chuckles again.
"I guess."
"I'd love to." I reply. My Duel Gazer rings, showing Gray's contact.
"Oh, crud, I'm late! My brother's gonna kill me!"
"Wanna ride?" Shark asks.
"Yes, please."
The ride is short, but despite Shark confirming our outing as a date, there was no awkwardness in the air. Gray's house comes into view, and Shark skids up to the pavement.
"Thanks, Reginald." I kiss Shark's cheek quickly before running in.
"See you around, Reginald!"
Shark POV:
There's no doubt that my cheeks burst into flames as Rose runs into her home. Her brother walks out.
"You're Rio's older brother, right?" He asks.
"Uh, yes?" I ask, rather than state.
"Why don't you come in for a bit? Rose seems to have taken a liking to you." He smirks. I leave my runner, lock it and walk into the house. It's bright, and gives a happy family aura. There are pictures of Rose and her brother dotted around on the wall. My favourite is one of Gray running with a fishing net, dragging Rose behind him. She looks adorable.
"That's my favourite too." Gray spooks me.
"Rosie means everything to me. I've always had her and she's always had me. That's the way it'll always be." Gray states, stating lovingly at Rose's bedroom door.
"She means a lot to me too. And my sister."
"She seems to have taken quite the liking to you as well, Shark." He looks at me.
"Please, please look after her. I don't want her to get hurt anymore." Gray seems to be trusting in me to keep his sister safe.
"I can at least try. I promise." The bedroom door opens, showing Rose in a pair of blue short shorts and thin shirt.
"Reginald!! What're you doing here?" My friend asks, clearly shocked.
"Uh, your brother invited me in." I reply. Rose acknowledges him, sternly and smiles calmly.
"Alright then."
The rest of the night was fun, me and Rose duelling each other repeatedly. I found out more and more about each other.
Our worst fear, favourite colours, best memories, ideas on our lives...and it's nice. I know she'll always be there. And I'm grateful. Rose is one of the best things that's ever happened to me.
YOU ARE READING
Book One: Someone New (Reginald Kastle)
Romance{ALSO ON MY QUOTEV ACCOUNT} Rose Ashikaga has been the best friend of Rio Kastle for seven years. In those seven years, Rose has met Reginald (Shark) Kastle twice. After Yuma and Shark's duel, they start to become closer, but will Rose end up fallin...
