Seto Kaiba stepped out from his limo, adjusting his eyes to the flash of cameras documenting his every move.
"Mr. Kaiba," a young reporter spoke, "it's incredibly inspiring that you'd take time from your busy schedule to visit with Domino's elderly community."
"Thank you," he nodded.
He passed through the doors of Domino Assisted Living Center and the facility erupted in applause. Tired old eyes gleamed with excitement. The wealthiest young man in the country was just within their reach. The residents shook his hand and showered him with praise. They thanked him for coming and told him stories of when they were his age, all while he pretended to care. As far as he was concerned, they were just pawns in a business plan.
One old man in particular seemed captivated by Kaiba's presence. Through the hours he peered at him from a distance with a tremble in his fingertips. Whether it was excitement or fear, Kaiba couldn't identify. All he knew is that the man's relentless gaze made him uneasy.
He chipped at the walls, fiddled with pillows, anything to avoid eye contact. Eventually, another hour had passed, marking Kaiba's time to leave. He respectfully said goodbye and was making his way to the exit when someone grabbed his wrist from behind. Bewildered, he spun around, only to be face to face with the strange old man from before. "Can I help you, sir?" Kaiba said, with a hint of annoyance in his voice.
"I challenge you to a game of chess."
"Sorry, old man, but I have to get back to running my company." Kaiba tugged his arm away but the old man refused to let him go.
"My name is Sora. And I have a wager you'd be interested in. If I win, you take me out of this place and let me stay in your mansion. If you win, I'll let you in on a secret."
Kaiba sneered. "What could you possibly know that's worth my time?"
Sora leaned forward, placing his chin on the young man's shoulder. The words he uttered at that moment sent a shock so powerful through the CEO's body that his only reaction was to stand there, dazed, staring out in front of him, not at the bare walls but through them.
Seconds felt like eternities and when Kaiba found it in him to speak again, his voice was nothing more than a demanding whisper. "How do you know my mother's name?" He glared into Sora's icy blue eyes. "Nobody, nobody, knows who I was before. Tell me who you are."
"If you win, I'll tell you everything you want to know."
"I accept your challenge."
A relieved expression formed on Sora's face. "Let's go to my room."
Kaiba nodded. He followed Sora to a small, neat bedroom. A table was placed in the corner, a chess board already set up on top. Kaiba took his place across from the old man, a little bit of apprehension in his stomach. He hasn't played chess in years. But he was Seto Kaiba, afterall. He'd never lose to anyone, except that geek Yugi, but that's beside the point. Twenty minutes into the game and he was already sweating. Underestimating Sora because of his age was a mistake. He was perceptive, watching Kaiba's every move like a wolf would watch a rabbit. Luckily, Seto Kaiba was no rabbit. A grueling two hours later, Kaiba managed to battle Sora into a corner.
"Sorry, old man, but I can't say I'm surprised." Kaiba's signature smirk tugged at his lips. "Checkmate." The CEO always liked to see the defeat on his opponents' faces but oddly enough, Sora seemed... almost happy to have lost.
"I've been waiting for our rematch," Sora said with a faint smile.
"Have we met before?"
Sora's eyes became strained with sadness. "A long time ago," he whispered.
Silence hung in the air. Neither man knew what to say or where to go from there. As much as Kaiba wanted to forget the past, this opportunity to clear any uncertainties might be the only one he'll ever get.
After all these years, he never thought this could happen- a reoccurrence of an ancient sadness he thought he killed long ago. Everyone knew Kaiba, the emotionless businessman. But nobody, except Mokuba, knew Seto, the devoted brother with a void his chest. The hurt youth whose wounds are bandaged by cloaks of pride.
Sora finally broke the silence. "Do you remember her?"
"What?"
"Do you remember your mother?"
Seto thought back to his childhood, something he's avoided doing since Gozaburo's death. In his mind, he turned back the pages of his life but the lines were becoming blurry. Everything was vague, he was three years old again sitting in the lap of a woman. He couldn't remember her face or her voice but he remembered that she was reading him a story about a dragon. And he was happy. But that's it. That's all he knew and this realization pained him though he'd never show it. "I... don't remember. How did you know her?"
Unlike the young man, Sora felt no need to hide his feelings. He expressed them with every aspect of his face from his frown to his red eyes and quivering lip. "Seto..." he dared to call him by first name and to his delight, Seto made no retort. "She's my daughter."
"Shut up."
"What?"
"I said 'shut up'. You're a liar. Just a pathetic old man who wants to sponge off of the success I've made for myself. The only family I have left is my brother."
"But Seto-"
"Don't call me that."
"I've called you that name since you were born!" Sora yelled. His chest heaved in a frightening rage. Sora dashed to a nearby dresser and pulled out the top drawer. To Kaiba's shock, he dumped everything out on top of the bed. "Look at this," Sora pulled up a picture frame.
Kaiba averted his eyes.
"No, you don't believe me, Kaiba? Look and see! You're a coward. You're afraid of the truth. You're afraid that something might actually break that stone facade of yours."
Though Kaiba resisted, Sora took hold of his chin and turned it in the direction of the picture. Then he saw it. Sora with a young, beautiful woman. Her long chestnut hair was thick and wild, similar to Mokuba's and her eyes were the same shade of blue that adorned his own. He didn't need to remember her face to know that it looked just like his. There was no denying it anymore. Sora was telling the truth.
Small pieces of memory came back to Seto, disjointed like a puzzle. Him and Sora, who looked old but not as frail and withered as the man standing before him now. They were together... playing chess? The memory was so faint he couldn't tell if it was real or just a creation of his own mind.
"Why did you never come forward sooner?" he asked in a hoarse voice.
"I never wanted you to think that I wanted anything from you."
"But why now?"
"When I heard that you were coming here, I thought it must've been fate. A-and I knew that if I never told you now that I would never get the chance again. I'm so sorry, Seto," he sobbed.
Seto could barely force out any words. "For what?"
"I'm sorry for everything. I'm sorry I couldn't save you from your aunts and uncles. I'm sorry I couldn't keep them from taking everything your parents left for you and Mokuba. I was too ill to take care of you, too ill to even take care of myself ."
Sora threw his arms around Seto, letting the tears flow freely. "I've never forgiven myself for allowing them to steal your childhood from you. You used to smile and laugh but I let them take that all away. I'm proud of you, Seto. For giving Mokuba a wonderful life and never forgetting your promise to always protect him. I'm sorry I wasn't there to guide you through your heartache. I know you've spent so much time feeling alone and not being able to trust anyone but you don't need to do that anymore. I've thought about you and Mokuba every second of every day for the past twelve years. No matter what you believed, I need you to know that I loved you then and I love you now."
He pulled his head upward to look into Seto's bloodshot eyes. "When you boys left, my life became worthless. What did I have to live for? An abandoned old man like myself, no family, no friends. The only thing that made me give life a chance was you. I vowed to never abandon you and even if I never saw you again, I had to live. To make sure that even if you didn't feel it, you were cared for. " Sora brushed Seto's cheek with his frail hand. "You're all I have," he whispered.
Seto stood silently, his skin paler than moonlight. He bit down hard on his lip and stared up at the ceiling. No matter how he fought it, he was overcome by emotion. He closed his eyes tightly, not able to stop the tears from dripping down. One tear for every deceased loved one, for every betrayal, for every hardship he had to endure for the sake of his brother. Tears long denied. Tears not only for the wounds of the past but also for the present. Someone loved him, not because they depended on and admired him, but because they wanted to even though it caused them years of suffering.
He didn't need protection. He didn't need guidance. But Sora longed to give it to him and knowing that he meant to Sora what Mokuba meant to him made every pain he ever suffered bearable. "Sora-"
"Call me Grandfather. Please."
"...Grandfather," Kaiba said as he collected himself. "I would be honored to invite you to stay at Kaiba Manor."
Sora's eyes widened. "Really? But I lost the deal."
"Yes. I'll be back for you tomorrow."
"Thank you, Seto."
Kaiba nodded with a stoic expression. He walked to the door but stopped to turn back. "Thank you, Sora. Mokuba will be happy."
"You're a good brother for putting Mokuba's feelings first but you can't ignore your own. How do you feel?"
"... Pathetic. Like an infant."
"Why?"
"Because," Kaiba hesitated a few moments and looked Sora in the eye for the final time. "I'm a twenty-two year old man and I still want my mom." Embarrassed by his sentimental behavior, he cleared his throat and left.
It was a lot to contemplate on the ride home but Kaiba came to the conclusion that maybe the past didn't have to hurt. After all, what is the future without a past? For once his life seemed complete. And he knew it was because he confronted his demons after all these years.
A/N: Well there it is; I hope you enjoyed it! It was really fun for me to write in a way where Kaiba could be vulnerable yet still be his stubborn self. Feel free to let me know what you thought of it. Thanks for reading!