AN: What's this? Puppyshipping? I actually wrote about a couple that did not only not involve Yuugi & Yami/Atemu, but with no Yuugi at all? Holy bleep! Anyway, once again this is a story borne out of listening to music, in this case the song "Baby It's Cold Outside" (if you didn't guess from the title); if you're unfamiliar with the song it's a modern winter/Christmas song with a man and woman singing, the man trying to convince the woman to stay the night because it's cold out (as the song would suggest :P ) So instead of writing one of my many multi-chaps or doing my Business Law final (which is due tomorrow) I wrote this. Thank goodness winter break is coming fast, cause I need more time to write!

Anyway I don't own Yu Gi Oh! or its characters...if I did they'd be doing very naughty things.

Hope you enjoy! (reviews also appreciated as always!)


"I gotta go."

Jounouchi swung his bare legs over the side of the bed and pulled himself up.

"It's cold out."

"Gee, thanks Kaiba, I didn't realize." The sarcastic reply came out muffled as Jounouchi pulled his head through his tee shirt.

"Well, it wasn't clear if I had to worry about your powers of observation or your intelligence. Apparently I have to worry more about the latter," Kaiba's voice carried over from behind his back, just as sardonic as his own.

"Yeah, apparently, cause otherwise I would've left your place a long time ago," Jounouchi scoffed back as he grabbed his boxer shorts from the floor and roughly jerked them up to his hips.

Feathers thoroughly ruffled he stood and stalked to wear his jeans lay on the back of a chair, ripping them away and nearly pulling them on backwards before correcting, stabbing his leg through each appropriate opening.

As he was quickly zipping and buttoning with a curse and a frown, footsteps and warm arms joined him; wrapping around him and pulling his back against Kaiba's warm naked chest.

"Katsuya," low and soothingly semi-apologetic in his ear, "really, it's far too bad out there to walk home. Just stay here."

Jounouchi felt his body begin to relax against Kaiba's and nearly hummed with pleasure at the sensation of warm breath hitting his vulnerable neck as a head dipped down onto his shoulder. He suddenly felt very tired and very sleepy, and oh so very, very comfortable.

He was so very, very, very tempted to give into his boyfriend. Really, he wanted to; it would be such a better evening spent here in the warmth of the Kaiba mansion within Seto's arms, but there was the little matter of who would be waiting up for him at his own humble abode.

"I can't," he said sternly with an lace of remorse.

"Of course you can, Katsuya." Kaiba peppered firm kisses on the bare skin under the collar of his lover's shirt.

"Seto," Jounouchi whined, "I can't. Yuugi's gonna be waiting for me."

Kaiba snorted and did not cease his sly caresses. "He's your roommate, not your husband. I think he'll last one night without you."

Jounouchi grunted in return. "Yuugi's my best friend Kaiba, and he worries, you know that."

"And it's you, he knows you can handle yourself," Kaiba countered.

"He'll wonder where I was. He's gonna be suspicious."

"So, what's your point?"

Jounouchi shook his head. "You may not care Seto, but Yuugi and everyone else doesn't know yet and I wanna keep it that way. I don't want them to find out about us 'cause I stayed the night here."

Arms wrapped more tightly around Jounouchi's waist, keeping him close. "But it's so bad out there Katsuya," Kaiba murmured seductively, letting the use of Jounouchi's given name work its magic. "How could they have not noticed something by now anyway?"

"Seto," Jounouchi warned, then turned smug, "I've been very careful you know."

Kaiba made a noise of disbelief that reverberated through Jounouchi and sent a pleasurable shiver down his spine; wisely, however, Kaiba chose neither to insult Jounouchi or his friends further.

"Stay a little longer then. A few more minutes won't make a difference."

"...No...Really, I can't..." Jounouchi felt himself sinking back, snuggling into his lover's hot touch.

"It's horrible out there Katsuya. You'll freeze out there. Don't be foolish."

"It'd be stupid of me to stay here," he protested.

"It would be more stupid to leave in this weather."

"Yuugi'll think something happened to me."

"Call him then."

"...He'll wonder where I am."

"Let him think whatever he wants."

It was a do or die moment; Jounouchi's eyelids were beginning to slip to a state of half-liddedness under the ministrations of kisses and murmurs, and Kaiba's fingertips were starting to dance in a relentlessly tempting manner under his shirt.

With a groan he pulled himself away with extreme reluctance.

"No, I really gotta go Seto." The grimace on Jounouchi's face deepened when he saw the unhappy look on Kaiba's face as he turned to face him.

Kaiba's outreaching arms moved swiftly to cross over his bare chest, a displeased frown already settled on his brow. Even in just his boxers the man managed to stand rather tall and proud as he and his lover entered a battle of facial expressions.

Finally Kaiba broke the visual contact, looking to the side with a snort.

"Fine, Jounouchi, leave. Freeze to death," he said with a roll of his eyes.

"You know I'd stay if I could Seto" Jounouchi soothed the wounded ego. "I'll be back tomorrow."

Though Kaiba's mouth opened to spit out some rebuke, some derisive comment born out of hurt pride, his harsh words were halted when Jounouchi closed the small space between them and gathered him in embrace, pressing a sincere kiss to his lips. Kaiba's gaze softened and he sighed heavily.

"At least let me send you back in a car," he compromised in a grumble.

Jounouchi shook his head. "No, they'll know something is up for sure if I come back in a car, especially one of yours. I'm gonna walk."

"Katsuya that has to be one of the dumbest ideas you've ever had."

"Yeah, well next time I'll make sure to leave here a lot earlier."

Irritation rubbing off on one another Kaiba continued. "If you catch pneumonia and die I am not paying for your funeral," he stated flatly with a frown.

"If I catch pneumonia and die you're not gonna be invited to my funeral," Jounouchi rebutted as he strode to the bedroom door.

Before Kaiba could say another word Jounouchi opened and shut the bedroom door behind him, making his way to the stairs at a casual pace. He knew Kaiba wouldn't bother to follow him; such departures were not uncommon between them, infrequently heartfelt and generally harmless. Tomorrow, he knew, they would be as happy as ever to see each other when he came back over.

As he passed the mirror by the grand front doors and grabbed his coat Jounouchi ran his fingers through his hair in an attempt to right its disheveled appearance. His tries fixed it only minimally, but he accepted the result with a sigh and ventured outside.

Even before he had closed the door behind him Jounouchi gasped as the cold hit him full force. Bitter air filled his lungs, so frigid he was sure icicles were forming in his lungs. He was almost tempted to swallow his pride and go back inside, to at least take Kaiba up on his offer of a ride back, but 'almost' was the operative word. He was far too stubborn to let Kaiba know he was right. For someone who hadn't even managed to get outside that day Kaiba did have an odd, and annoying, awareness of such things.

Jounouchi hunched in on himself as he marched forward, a futile and desperate attempt to retain some warmth from the wind sucking it insistently away from him. He hissed as painful numbness hit his toes before he'd even made it to the Kaiba mansion gates, which echoed the groan he himself felt as they swung open for him.

The walk home was absolutely miserable. Jounouchi's hands burned, his toes were numb, his nose was about to fall off...the only thing he could be grateful for was that he and Kaiba had showered before they'd laid back in bed together, otherwise he was sure ice would have been forming on each strand of his dirty-blond mane.

Jounouchi knew for a fact that the walk back to the apartment he shared with Yuugi took only fifteen minutes, but tonight it might as well have been hours. Time dragged on as the chill made his joints ache and slowed his steps. He shivered and shook and cursed. Maybe it really was time to tell Yuugi about his relationship with Kaiba. At least that way he wouldn't have to worry about facing this kind of bad weather again when he could be safe and sound and, most importantly, warm under the covers of the most comfortable bed in the universe with the best man in the world.

By the time Jounouchi finally reached the apartment building he felt half-dead; and by the time he reached his door on the second floor his whole body ached and burned as it started to semi-thaw. His fingers shook as they stiffly turned the doorknob. As he pushed open the door he could hear the slight halting of chatter and laughter.

"Jounouchi! Come in, you're freezing!" Yuugi looked concerned as he hurriedly pulled his best friend and roommate through the door and to the seat closest to the heater. He helped the grimacing blond take off his coat before gently pushing him to sit back on the couch. "I'll go get you some tea and a blanket Jou, just stay here."

"Geez Jounouchi, you gonna make it?" Honda questioned. "Why the hell were you out there? Didn't you know how bad it was?"

"Really Jounouchi, you should be more careful," Anzu chimed in. "Yuugi insisted we stay the night because of the weather; you should have just stayed."

Jounouchi, lips blue and teeth still chattering, tried to form words but found his mouth stubbornly uncooperative.

"I'm surprised Kaiba even let you leave Jou," Yuugi joined back in as he returned from the kitchen with a steaming mug in one hand and a blanket draped over his other arm. "It doesn't seem like Kaiba to send you home with it so bad out. Did he have to leave on business or something?" he asked with a frown.

"W-what?" Jounouchi choked out.

"Yeah," Honda frowned as well, "I'd think he could at least afford to send you back in one of his cars."

"Oh Jounouchi, I hope you two didn't get into a fight. That isn't why you walked home, is it?" concern filled Anzu's voice.

"Wha-what? You, you guys know?" Jounouchi's brain felt frozen by something other than cold. "You-you know a-about me and...Kaiba?"

Yuugi, Honda, and Anzu shot a look of bemused worry between themselves. Finally Yuugi spoke.

"Um, yeah, Jou." Yuugi frowned. "Were we not supposed to?"

"I-I, but...how?"

Honda raised an eyebrow. "Jounouhi, how couldn't we?"

"Yuugi?" Jounouchi shot a look at his best friend, who coughed politely.

"Sorry Jou, you're not very good at being sneaky," he said with an apologetic smile.

Jounouchi slumped back in his seat, defeated.

"Jou?" Yuugi queried.

His three friends were watching him with cautious care, unsure of his despondent expression.

"It...It...It..."

"Yes?"

"It was so warm over there!" Jounouchi finally cried out with a groan, and buried his face in his hands.

Jounouchi ignored the laughter of his friends as it wafted to his ears, and resolutely made up his mind to not tell Kaiba about what had happened...

...and to stay within the secure warmth of his boyfriend's arms next time.


Thanks for reading everyone! Happy Holidays and good luck for those in school and facing exams! Give the gift of a review?