Title: Being Third

Author: Wodenschild

Rating: R

Pairing(s): Seto/Jou

Beta: CrossedScarsX

Spoilers: None

Disclaimer: If I owned Yu-gi-oh I wouldn't worry about my car insurance, since I do, I really don't own it.

Summary: After a year Jou gets sick of being third in Kaiba's life.

Being Third

Chapter 1

"A year," I spit out as I throw my jacket at the couch o what if it wrinkles? "A whole freaking year we've been together and what do I have to show for it? Nothing." I hadn't gotten him to stop spending so much time at Kaiba Corp, or to stop calling me degrading names, though I guess puppy is a step up from mutt.

"After all this time I still come in a distant third." I sigh, collapsing in my lounger. Still I knew this going in didn't I? Mokuba always will be first in his life and his company second. I know this, and most of the time it doesn't really bother me. My friends think it should, and are always shocked at how much I put up with. Honda even threatened to each that rich ass a lesson,' but it's just that they don't understand. In the whole world he only cares about three things, and I'm the third. If you think of it that way it's not so bad. When I told Yugi that, he gave me the saddest look I've ever seen him give me when I wasn't physically hurt.

Still, today it hurts. Today it bothers me. Why? Because today was our anniversary; the day that celebrated the phenomenal event of us dating for a whole year. I sigh again. I think I'll get drunk. Yeah that sounds good. So I raid the liquor cabinet, and think back to the beginning of this...thing. I sure as hell didn't think it'd last a year, not the way it started, and not the way we acted toward each other.

It started innocently enough, for us anyway. Yugi was trying to teach me this new dueling strategy he and his Yami figured out. Kaiba just had to add his two cents in and we started fighting grin, like we always do ut that day...maybe because it was so hot, or maybe it was something we ate? In any case first we're shouting, and then shoving, and before I knew it he had me up against the wall. God, the look in his eyes that day! The memory of it still makes me shiver. My mouth was dry, and my ears were ringing so much that I couldn't understand a word he was saying. Then before he knew it, I was plastered against him, mouth hot on his. It shocked me, how much I wanted it. It shocked him too. He broke away, and left without a word.

It took two weeks before we actually were alone to talk about it. Not that we ended up talking. No, we ended up naked, sweaty and sticky. I felt we were both much calmer afterwards; so much tension had built between us it was bound to explode. Then in true Kaiba fashion, he got dressed, turned to me and said, 'Coming mutt?' To which I had to answer, 'Thought I already had.' That caused him turn red and choke, which I think was totally worth it. Then I stretched and asked him where we go from here. He got this cute confused expression on his face, mostly cute because it appears so rarely, and said he didn't know.

I felt kind of guilty, Kaiba was always so sure of himself and I thought for a minute that I just destroyed his world view. So sighing I gave the guy a break, after all I didn't want him having a nervous breakdown. I said, 'Look, Kaiba, we obviously have something between us here, why don't we deal with it?'

He looked over at me still sprawled half naked on the floor and asked, 'how?' in this quiet voice I don't think he's ever used since.

I grinned really, I had to. 'We date, have sex, and whatever until this' I gestured between us, 'whatever it is goes away.' Mentally I think my libido was chanting 'yes, yes!' while doing the 'we got laid dance.'

He never really said yes, just sort of nodded before heading for the door again. Once there though, he stopped and like it just occurred to offhand said. 'I'll pick you up at eight.'

I must have sat on that floor grinning for a good fifteen minutes, before I was discovered by a wandering janitor. Man was THAT an interesting conversation. I learned more than I ever wanted to about what they do at night.

And so began our dating, if you can call it that. I give it to Kaiba though, on our first date he plainly stated that this, whatever, would not be his first priority and I totally understood that. I mean, who would really expect someone to choose their fuck-buddy over family? ause that's all we were at that point. I fully expected it to end in a couple of weeks, so I never told the guys. Why would I? The two of us would burn out long before telling them would be necessary. We were too hot, it couldn't last, but it did.

God, did it! I think it got even hotter, though I never thought it would be possible. Slowly, around the time we'd be 'dating' for a month and a half, I realized that it wasn't dying, it was growing. This occurred to me, the first night we spent where we didn't have sex; we just sort of cuddled and fell asleep. The next morning when I woke up in his bed, alone, still smelling him on the sheets and grinning like an idiot. Then I paled and groaned, 'oh shit!' This was so not supposed to happen. I wasn't supposed to be content with the smell of him, and the warmth of his bed, I was supposed to be uncomfortable! I was supposed to sneak out before Mokuba was awake!

So I did what I always do, went with my instincts. I told Yugi that same day. He was shocked, but supportive; the others had a harder time with it. Honda wouldn't speak to me for a week, though I think it was more for choosing Kaiba, than for being gay. Telling Shizuka was the hardest, mostly because she's the person whose opinion means the most to me. Honestly, if she had asked me to I would have stopped seeing Kaiba immediately. But my little sis, she's the best. Her only question was did he make me happy. God I love her for that, the pure acceptance, the unconditional love. Because I have her, I understand that for Kaiba, Mokuba would always come first. Shizuka comes first for me too, so turnabout is fair play right?

Still, I don't think I truly understood how much he came before me until much later. What made it clear one may ask? Well, I have to say it was the time the two of us were in the middle ell beginning middle f having sex and Mokuba called frantic because he left his Gameboy before heading over to his sleep over, and couldn't Seto just run it over so all four could play Crystal Chronicles? And you know what? He did. He left me hot and heavy to run a toy over to his brother. That pissed me off, mostly because I didn't get off. That caused one of our first major arguments. I mean, we always fought ith our personalities it was inevitable ut this one was different. Maybe it was because it was the first one to actually wound each other. But we made it through that, shouldn't that count for something? That we continued? That he continued?

If it was just his brother that he left me for, maybe I wouldn't feel so hurt now. Maybe. I'd like to think so. I look at a picture of us blurrily; this stuff is starting to really work. I remember that day; we had gone to the park. I smile, that was a good day. I've never been quite sure what I am to Kaiba, hell neither of us even calls each other by our first names, but that day I did learn that I am important to him. Yugi took that picture I think, right after. Maybe it was Mokuba, both were there, but Yugi is the one who gave it to me. I had convinced him to join us in the park for the day. It had taken much pleading, promises, and a liberal use of Mokuba. He didn't want to be there and it showed. He sat off to the side and scowled at everyone; most just scowled back. I got fed up with it and went for a walk. I ended up running into Otogi. I still don't really like that guy, but like Yugi's always saying: 'forgive and forget.' So we sat down and chatted for a while, Kaiba must have gotten nervous, or maybe he was just leaving, not sure which, but he walked right by us. He stopped and turned blazing eyes to face us. He stomped back and stood in front of me, reached out and pulled me up. Then in a sweet voice he very rarely uses, he said 'I was wondering where my puppy went off to, I was starting to miss him.' Then he kissed me in plain view in the park, tucked me into his side and glared at Otogi. Then he guided me back to the picnic and sat with me in his lap.

A nice day. I can count the number of times Kaiba was affectionate in public on one hand.

Later, when we were in bed I asked him why he'd acted like that, he said he didn't like the way Otogi had looked at me. It took me a while before I realized what he'd meant was he'd been jealous of him. If you're jealous, then you care enough to fear losing, so yeah, a nice day.

Unfortunately, you can't have all nice days.