A/N: Guys. I did a thing. I finally got Chapter Two written! I finally got my ass in gear after a certain review I got that kinda ripped my ass about not updating, so I would like to thank that reviewer for that!

I do hope that this chapter is satisfactory since it's hella late. It's quite long and digs a little deeper into Téa's life and kinda what's happening and there's a cool cameo! He's a little out of character, but he is so hard keep in character and I kinda need him to be a little mushy in this story. Not like, super mushy and stuff, but - you'll get it. Hopefully.

So anyway.

Show Me, Don't Tell Me

Chapter 2: Do The Tears Ever Stop?

Knock, Knock

"Téa?"

Knock, Knock

"Téa…?"

KNOCK, KNOCK

"Girl, now I know you never sleep in this late, so open this damned door before I open a can of sparkly, gay rage on your ass!"

From way in her room in the apartment, Téa started to laugh into her pillow before she ruggedly started making her way out of her comfy bed. She groggily rubbed her eyes hard and sniffed before hauling her body up to grab her white, plushy robe from her floor. As she wrapped the long garment around her body, she took a quick glance at her alarm clock and scoffed in exasperation. 7:54 A.M.

"Quinton, you are a dead man when I get ahold of you…" she growled lowly to herself as she trudged down the hallway. "Late my ass." Upon reaching the door, she quickly unchained the lock, gripped the handle hard, and yanked the door open just as the man on the other side of the door was about to start another round of obnoxious knocking.

"Té-! Oh, hey! There's my favorite ray of brown-haired, blue-eyed sunshine! Look! I brought you your favorite coffee straight from Boondocks, your favorite little café and I got you that weird scone thing you adore so much and…" The man, Quinton, started to prattle off as he gently made his way around her into the apartment, completely ignoring the ice daggers she threw at him. Téa rolled her eyes and dramatically slammed the door closed. Turning back around, she followed the platinum haired, sharp dressed man into her kitchen as he continued to chat about the caffeine infused cup of heaven he brought her.

"…and oh my goodness, girl, lemme tell you; the cashier that served me was hot! Like, 'just taken out of the oven, all golden and delicious' hot!" Quinton then did some weird, dramatic fashion of a fan girl scream before snapping back into character and placed the large cup of coffee and 'weird scone thing' on the breakfast bar as she sat down.

Téa couldn't hold in the laugh that had been bubbling up since he walked though the door.

"What the heck, Quinton?" she giggled before taking a large sip from the mug. She groaned in euphoria. White chocolate caramel mocha. O-M-to the G.

Quinton beamed and handed her a napkin for her scone. "What? Am I not allowed to do something incredibly nice for my best friend in the whole entire Hell-filled world? You can pay me back by getting me that guy's number." He winked at her before striding out of the room. "Where's my Belle?" he almost whined from the hallway.

"In bed sleeping like I was, until your obnoxious self decided to wake me up." Téa called back at him. She blanched. "Wait, so you got me coffee and my blueberry scone from my favorite café out of the kindness of your heart and I have to pay you back? What the hell is that, Quinton?" she laughed. She was met with a moment's silence until a happy shriek sounded from down the hall. Téa's lips turned up in a gentle smile as Quinton came back from the hall carrying Isabelle over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes, the little girl giggling all the way.

"Kinton!" Isabelle yelped happily as he flipped her right-side-up and set her gently on the counter.

Quinton mock glared at her. "What have I told you? It's Quinton. Kwuh-in-ton. Kwuh. Not Kinton. Come on, babes! I taught you this! You're gonna make me cry…!" Quinton dramatically threw his body half onto the counter and buried his face into his arm, making fake sobbing sounds. Isabelle, being the sweetheart that she was, dropped her gleeful smile and threw her arms around Quinton as best she could in a hug to 'cheer him up'. Téa just sat back and watched the show in amusement.

Quinton then started to laugh. "Aw, Belle!" he leaned back up and gently grabbed Isabelle's face in his hands. "You know I can never be mad at you for long. You try so hard!" He leaned in and placed a kiss on her forehead. Issie giggled then spun a 180 on the counter top to face her mom.

"Hi mom!" she gleefully exclaimed before scooting across the counter top to get closer. Téa's smile expanded and she laughed before moving aside the coffee and scone to allow Isabelle to fall into her lap. Téa wrapped her arms around her daughter and pressed a kiss to her hair.

"Morning baby. How'd you sleep?" Téa leaned back to gently move aside the hair that covered Isabelle's face. Isabelle's face scrunched up before she smiled again.

"Good! My teddy kept me safe! The storm was scary though…" she trailed off and she laid her head on her mom's chest. Téa sighed and rocked her child comfortably.

"Yeah, it was, wasn't it?" Isabelle vigorously shook her head.

"Oh yeah! That storm was wicked! What the hell, right?" Quipped Quinton. Téa shot him a deathly glare. Realizing his mistake, Quinton quickly tried to make amends. "Hooey. What the hooey. That's what I meant. Bad words are bad." He wagged a finger at Isabelle Téa winked at him while Isabelle stuck out her tongue.

Quinton chuckled. "So Issie, why don't you go get dressed? You, me, and your momma are gonna go shopping today. Sound like a plan to you?" He completely ignored Téa's confused glare that she shot him and watched as Isabelle tumbled from her mother's arms with an excited squeal.

"Okay!" was all that was heard from her as she bounded down the hallway to her room.

Téa was still confused. "What? Why are we going shopping? I have to work today, remember Boss Man? We have a job to do."

"Girl, I own the dance studio. I get to tell you when to work. Today, you are not working. We are gonna shop, we're gonna eat good food, and we're gonna scout for hot men." He dropped his joking smile before getting serious and lowered his voice. "I know for a fact that today, you cannot be alone. You can't hold yourself up here in this apartment, however fancy it is, and wallow in your sadness. I won't allow it." He reached across the island and gently enfolded her hands in his. "I know that everything still hurts, everything that's happened to you and Issie. I know what today is and I know you know what today is." Téa shook her head in affirmative.

'Today would have been our sixth wedding anniversary.'

Quinton gave a sad smile and patted her hands. "I can't let you be lonely today. That's a dark chapter of your life that is always going to be there, but now you just need to embrace it and accept it in order to move on." He brought her hands up to his mouth and kissed them. "It's not going to be easy, but you've got me. You've got Issie. You've got all those crazy crack shows at the studio." Téa let out a small giggle. Quinton smiled. "See? You're never alone. Whoever all those 'friends' you had were, they obviously weren't the real deal if they just dropped you after what happened. Plus," he said, straightening up and striking a ridiculous pose. "Who needs them when you've got a hansom and down to earth gay man like myself?"

Téa couldn't contain her laugh. She put her forehead in the palm of her hand and closed her eyes as she continued to laugh.

"Where would I be without you, Quinton?" she asked, wiping away a few tears that leaked from her eyes from her laughing fit.

Quinton snorted. "Probably working at a Subway or something mainstream. How incredibly lame. But, you need to go get dressed too, doll. This is New York, if you haven't noticed. Gotta look like a model every waking moment. Now go!" he shooed.

Téa scoffed. "Yes, Glitterbaby."

She had to laugh again at Quinton's incredulous 'What?!' as she made her way down the hallway to her room.

"You know, I've been thinking of coloring my hair black. What do you think?"

Téa quirked an eyebrow at him over the clothing racks. "Now why would you do that?"

Quinton shrugged. "Just thinking. Then I could go get some crazy blingy clothes and totally pull off Adam Lambert." He plucked off a random sparkly top from the rack and held it up against him. "What do you think? Does this color make me look fat?"

She shook her head in mock exasperation. "You look fabulous, Quint. You always do. Plus, you look better as a blonde. Black hair wouldn't suit you."

Quinton pursed his lips. "You so mean."

"But I'm right and you know it." Téa giggled. Quinton made a face at her. He leaned down and picked up Isabelle from her spot next to his Armani dress shoes.

"Your momma's supper sassy, you know that Belle?" he said to her, shooting Téa a smirk.

Isabelle puffed out her cheeks. "So are you, Kinton."

Téa's eyes bugged before she burst into laughter while Quinton was wide-eyed and placed the unoccupied hand over his heart.

"Ouch! Babes, why must you wound me so? First you call me by the wrong name, then you call me sassy?" He theatrically threw his head back and placed the back of his hand on his forehead, doing the classic 'Woe is me!' move. Isabelle fell into a giggling fit.

He snapped his head back and playfully glared at the little girl. "I will have you know that I am flamboyant and I am allowed to be. It all comes in a benefit package of being gay. Your mother just wishes she could pull it off as well as I do." Téa playfully sneered at him while he winked.

After another two hours of shopping and shenanigans, the three ended up at a Hard Rock Café for lunch. After they settled and ordered a round of mango iced tea and water, Isabelle focused solely on her coloring book.

"Hey Quint?" Téa asked, a little tentative. Quinton looked up from Isabelle's picture of a purple turtle and smiled.

"Yeah? What up, babes?"

Téa fiddled with her straw for a moment. "I just wanted you to know, that, I really appreciate you being here. Like, all the time, with Issie and me. You're the father figure that she never got the chance to have. You stepped in and helped when you didn't even have to out of the kindness of your heart, and I honestly don't know what I would've done if it hadn't been for you." She finished with moist eyes and a choked throat.

"Oh, girl, don't be going all sentimental on me." He lightly laughed as he grabbed her hands. "You know that I won't leave you two, ever. You're my girls. And who was I to leave a pretty little heartbroken pregnant lady just sitting in JFK?" He reached up to gently pinch her cheek. She scrunched up her nose, but laughed anyway. "You won't be getting rid of me anytime soon, sweetheart."

"Oh no!" Isabelle suddenly exclaimed as she scrambled from the booth after her runaway crayon that rolled all the way across the room.

"How did she even…?" Quinton inquired, but left the question unfinished. He shook his head and chuckled.

"She must have been super angry with her turtle if that crayon flew all the way over there. She is a rather aggressive artist." Téa laughed. She watched as Isabelle scampered through half of the tables, finally ending her journey at the table of two finely dressed men. She couldn't make out their facial features seeing as how their backs were, for the most part, facing her, but she could make out that one of the men definitely had black hair and the other had either black or brown.

'Who the heck wears tailored suits to a restaurant like this?' she thought before taking a quick glance at the man across from her. 'I mean, besides Quinton?'

Quinton squinted at the men. "Both Armani, one pinstripe, one slim fit, both dark grey, and both incredibly hot!"

Téa peered at him incredulously. "You would notice that."

Quinton smirked. "Girl, I am the King of Armani. Don't doubt my keen eyes."

"That's not what I meant, but okay." She couldn't help but laugh at Quinton's obsession with Armani. Basically everything the man owned was from the designer company.

Téa refocused on the matter at hand; poor Isabelle still couldn't rack up enough courage to politely ask the man if she could retrieve her rebellious purple crayon. The two at the table haven't even noticed her yet because they seemed to be in a rather in-depth conversation. She sighed and was about to rise from her seat in the booth when Isabelle finally reached out her hand and tapped the black/brown haired man on the shoulder. The two men receded from their heated discussion and the man Isabelle tapped straightened his back and turned to look at the child. From this new angle, Téa could see that the man definitely had brown hair. From the looks of it, it was almost auburn.

Isabelle retracted her little hand from the man's shoulder and held her hands in front of her. She bowed her head slightly when the intimidating person turned his attention towards her. She cleared her throat before she spoke.

"E-Excuse me, mister?" she softly stuttered. She scrunched up her nose. She didn't like it when she did that.

The man relaxed his shoulders and his eyes softened at the little girl's obvious nervousness. He allowed a little smile to grace his normally stoic face.

"What is it, little one? Can I help you?" he asked, shifting so that his body mostly faced her.

Isabelle's eyes shot down to her shiny black dress shoes before she dared speak again.

"I accidently threw my crayon and it rolled under your table. M-May I have it back?" For extra measure, Isabelle looked up at the man –whose eyes were a pretty blue, she noticed- through her thick eyelashes. Even her mom couldn't resist this look.

The man had to physically stop himself from rearing back at the color of her eyes. They were a glittering purple, amethyst, he even described. A lot like his irritating cousin's. How intriguing…

However interesting the discovery was, he had to return to the matter at hand; the little girl asked for her crayon that she threw on accident, which is now under his table. He had to force himself not to chuckle, even though his companion didn't feel the need to do so.

"Why of course. I'll grab it for you."

"No need, Seto. I got it." His companion already held out the purple crayon.

"Oh. Thank you, Mokuba." Seto grabbed the purple wax before turning back to the little girl with the pretty purple eyes and brown hair.

"Here you are, sweetheart. Try to keep a closer eye on these, though. Crayons are terribly devious." He said to her, presenting her treasure.

He watched as the little girls eyes lit up like Christmas lights and she gently, but swiftly took back her crayon.

"Thanks mister! I will, mister!" And with that, the girl scampered away, weaving through the tables back to her own. His cobalt eyes followed her to make sure she made it back to her parents.

"She threw the damn thing? What the heck?" Mokuba chortled as he replayed the situation in his head.

Seto couldn't contain his chuckle this time. "Maybe she's just an aggressive artist."

Mokuba shot him a look. "Way to be optimist, big bro. I'm proud!"

Seto rolled his eyes before setting his sight back on the little girl as she finally climbed back into her seat across the room. He nodded to himself and was about to turn back around in his seat when the woman the girl sat next to caught his attention.

She looked so familiar. With the brown hair and pretty facial features, he would dare to say that…

His eyes widened upon realization. "No way." He whispered.

Mokuba's eyes shot to look at his brother. His eyebrows knotted in confusion. "No way what, Seto?" He started to move his head back and forth trying to see what his brother saw. "I don't see anything, big bro."

Seto ignored his brother's inquiring as he slowly rose from his seat. His eyes were still set on the woman who shockingly gazed right back at him.

"Téa…" he whispered.

She couldn't believe what she was seeing.

Seto-freaking-Kaiba.

Seto Kaiba was staring right at her, his eyes just as wide as hers in astonishment.

'The hell is he doing here?!' She thought in a panic. 'And why now?'

Quinton –for once- wasn't aware of her stress and stood up. "I'mma go to the bathroom, 'kay? I'm gunna pee my expensive pants…!" He exclaimed as he briskly walked towards the restrooms. Isabelle ran after him with her loud voice saying, "Kinton, wait! I gotta go, too!" His distant laugh was heard after that, but Téa was barely paying any attention.

Her focus was on 6'3"-Armani suited-Seto-freaking-Kaiba who was striding up to her table with his usual stoic face back on, emotion nowhere to be seen.

'Fuck. Me.' Were her only thoughts before he slid gracefully into the booth seat across from her.

It took all she could to keep from hyperventilating.

For a few seconds, they just stared at each other, taking in the face of a person that they haven't seen in over three years.

While Seto was merely astounded (on the inside, of course), Téa was confused as ever. 'Why isn't he yelling at me? Why hasn't he publically humiliated me yet?'

He finally broke the progressing awkward silence.

"We-" he indicated with is finger."-need to talk."

She could only nod in agreement.

He balled up his right fist and pressed it up against his lips, taking a deep breath. He sat for a second before speaking again.

"When do you split with Adam Lambert Wanna-Be?" he spitefully asked, throwing his thumb in the direction of the restrooms.

Téa couldn't help the glare. "It's Quinton, and we'll probably be home around 3:30. Issie's going to crash after lunch."

His eyes widened a fraction and his eyebrow arched. "Is she his?"

She narrowed her eyes, confused. "As in Quinton's or-"

"You know who I mean." He interrupted, blue eyes eyes narrowing at her.

She sighed, suddenly very exhausted. "Yeah. Yeah, she is."

He nodded. "Will I have to deal with Adam Lam-" he rolled his eyes. "Quinton later, then?"

She shook her head, letting a small smile grace her face. "No. He's getting called into a last minute meeting around 3:45 and then he's got a dinner date after that." Seto rolled his eyes, but nodded in acknowledgement all the same.

"Alright. I'll see you at 3:30." That was all he said before sliding out of the booth and walking away.

"Wait! You don't even know where I live!" she shouted at his retreating back.

He stopped and put his hands in his pockets. He merely turned his head around to shoot her a smirk.

"Have you forgotten who I am?"

She rolled her eyes and scoffed. "As if you'd let me forget."

His irritating chuckle was what he left her with before finally leaving.

"Now who was that fine piece of work?" Quinton's voice suddenly pierced through her muddled head.

She shot him a look. "He's an ass. That's all you need to know." She quietly told him so that Isabelle wouldn't hear her now untamable potty mouth. That always seemed to happen when Kaiba was involved.

Quinton quirked an eyebrow and turned his head toward the direction Kaiba had made his exit with a look of appreciation on his face. He leaned across the table and whispered, "He's a fine piece of ass, if you ask me."

"Oh my God, Quinton!"

It was 3:24 when Téa and a sleepy Isabelle finally walked through the door. Isabelle had her face nuzzled in the junction of her mother's shoulder and throat and was making cute little snoring sounds.

Téa closed the door with her foot and dropped her purse on the counter before she proceeded to Isabelle's room to tuck her in for her nap. She smoothed the hair from her daughter's sleeping face and kissed her forehead before silently walking from the room and closing the door.

She had just finished prepping the coffee machine minutes later when the doorbell rang twice. She lazily glanced at the clock on her microwave and shook her head. 3:30 on the dot. 'Punctual as ever.'

In a very lethargic manner, Téa made her way over to the door and unlocked it before waking away and collapsing on the couch. Kaiba walked in without missing a beat.

Téa heaved a heavy breath. 'I don't wanna do this. It's going to end in tears and that really sucks.'

Whenever Kaiba was involved, she never knew how to prepare herself. He was always completely unpredictable, so when the sofa dipped next to her and gentle hands pulled her towards a solid body, all she could do was let his arms wrap her in a unexpectedly warm embrace. Téa felt her eyes begin to sting and cursed every God-like entity before she shakily wrapped her arms around his torso and fisted the back of his suit jacket. He surprisingly made no complaint even though he knew the jacket would now have prominent wrinkles on it.

"Why?" she whispered.

He brought a hand to the back of her head and pet her hair. "Why what?"

Her body convulsed in an attempt to stop a sob but she couldn't stop the tears from leaving her eyes.

"Why are you here? Why aren't you yelling at me? Why aren't you cursing at me and calling me every name in the book? I don't understand." She whispered, her voice coming out soft and unsteady. She shook her head and buried her face in his shoulder. Her body began to shake with sobs that she didn't dare let escape from her lips.

He tightened his grip on her shaking body and sighed. 'Damn you to fucking Hell, Atem.' He mentally growled.

"Because unlike a certain dumbass star-haired freak," he rubbed her back softly when her body shook with a particularly rough sob, "I don't believe you to be unfaithful."

She gave a shaky, sullen laugh. "Well, I'm glad you think so. Too bad the father of my child thinks otherwise."

He closed his pained blue eyes and shook his head. He leaned against the back of the sofa, bringing her with him and she instinctively curled against him, finally letting her sobs out.

It was some twenty minutes later when Téa's eyes had dried and her cries dwindled into nothing. They sat upon her sofa in complete silence for a few more minutes until she broke it.

"I ruined your jacket." She muttered, her throat sore and choked. She felt his chest vibrate in a silent chuckle.

"It doesn't matter. I have about five more just like it." He murmured back. She felt her lips crack in a tiny smile, but it soon vanished.

"Seto…?" she tentatively asked. His eyes widened a fraction at the use of his first name then relaxed once again. He rolled his head to look down at her hair and hummed in response.

Although her voice was quiet, he heard her perfectly clear. "What do I do?" She fisted the front of his jacket this time. She drew a shaky breath and let it out. "She needs to know her father and I want nothing more than for her to have a complete and happy family, but what if he doesn't want her? I don't even…" she trailed off as her throat began to close once again and tears pricked her eyes. Seto tightened his grip on her body once again and sighed.

"We'll just cross that bridge when we get there, alright? Until then, you need to stop your worrying." He placed a light kiss to the top of her head. "I promise, everything will work out in the end. I'll make sure of it."

Téa's brow scrunched up in mild confusion. She tried tilting her head up so that she could see his face, but he gently pushed her head back onto his shoulder.

"Whatever happened to the snarky Seto Kaiba that would have told anyone else to suck it up and move on?" she asked softly.

He smirked, but the expression lacked amusement and took on a more sullen appearance.

"I haven't been that Seto Kaiba with you since high school, you know that." He murmured.

Téa felt the tears return full force, but this time, she didn't even try holding them back nor did Seto complain about the waterworks. He just made sure to hold her tightly and keep her from falling apart.

To Be Continued…

It's finally done, thank God! Hope you enjoyed the chapter! :)

Also! I should probably mention that I totally changed the direction that I was initially going for in the original story. I've been thinking of incorporating a love triangle that I have no idea how I'm even gonna work out. Never thought I'd be one of those authors that does the whole love-triangle-shebang. God dammit. It'll probably be like a one-sided/past romance thing, but still.

Atem'll show up next chapter, so we get to see how he's holding up. Yay!

Thanks for reading!

-Lexicat