Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Tell Everybody I'm On My Way ❯ Scouting ( Chapter 5 )

Yugi rolled over in bed and stared at the ceiling. After he realized that it wasn't his ceiling that he was staring at, it took him a few minutes to remember where he was. Where in the world?…Oh yeah, I remember! Me an' Samantha got off the plane in Sacramento and found a hotel. Which means that she should be somewhere… He rolled over and looked at the bed beside his. The blankets were all over the bed, so he knew that she'd been here until recently. He rolled over to the other side of the bed, too warm and comfortable to get up, and looked out the window. It was still dark outside.

“G'morning.” Yugi turned back toward Samantha's bed. She was standing in the doorway of the bathroom, wearing nothing but a towel and a smile. Yugi blushed and looked away.

“Morning.” He answered. “What time is it?”

“About 4:30 AM.” She said, crouching down beside her luggage and digging around in a duffle bag. “D'you want the shower?”

“Yeah, thanks.” Yugi climbed out of bed and went to shower. Once he'd closed the bathroom door, he allowed himself to relax. He'd done it! He'd gotten away from everything that had hurt, and he'd already found a friend. It had been a little weird to see her like that, just wearing a towel, but…he didn't mind too much.

When he got out of the shower, he found Samantha lying on her stomach on her bed, watching a movie.

“Care to join me?” she asked, gesturing at the TV.

“Sure. What are you watching?”

“Fantastic Four. There're some other movies on, if you want to switch it.”

“This is fine.” Yugi said, sitting on the bed beside her and starting to comb his hair. They watched in silence for a while, until a commercial break came on. Then Sam rolled over to face him.

“So, why did you pick Sacramento?”

“What?”

“There are thousands of places to go on this planet, and hundreds of them are here in the US. Why did you pick Sacramento? Why not Alaska, or Wyoming, or Canada, or Mexico? Why not Russia, England, or Africa? Why here?”

“Because they won't think to look for me here. Whenever we talked about places we wanted to see…I picked somewhere that none of us ever mentioned.”

“Who's they?”

“Everybody.” Yugi mumbled, suddenly becoming fascinated with the carpet. “All of them.”

“Parents?”

“No. Grandpa, and Tea and the others. My parents are dead.”

“I see. I'm sorry Yugi. I know what it's like to lose parents.”

“Sorry.”

“It's okay. Just remember…I'll listen when you feel like talking.”

“Thanks.” Silence reigned through the next segment of movie, and then Yugi spoke up again. “So…what's the plan?”

“Plan?”

“We're here, and we're going to be starting at San Juan High next Monday. Other than that, what are we doing? We certainly can't stay in a hotel until we graduate.”

“House hunting. Or apartment hunting. Whatever. We've got eight days to find a place, even if it's only a temporary base `til we find a permanent home.”

“Any particular places in mind?”

“Somewhere relatively close to the school. Somewhere along a bus route, if possible. How does that sound?”

“Good. Where do we start?”

“We wait until about 7:30, get breakfast, and check the phone book for real estate agents. After that, we get a list of places that fit our needs, and get looking.”

“Sounds fine.” The rest of the movie was watched in companionable silence. Samantha produced a couple of granola bars and a bag of gummy bears from her luggage, and those served as a snack before breakfast. (Remember, they're up at 4:30!)

 

/Three and a half hours and two orders of pancakes later/ Sam and Yugi were back upstairs, browsing through the phone book, an open map spread out beside them. They'd compiled a list of real estate agents they wanted to check out, complete with addresses, phone numbers, and hours of business.

The next thing they did was head for the rental car, equipped with a map and the list. Operation New Home was underway.