Disclaimer: As much as I'd LIKE to, I don't own Yugioh or Jounouchi or any other characters.

Just Like You

Chapter 1

A quick glance to the clock gave Jounouchi a sinking feeling in his gut. It was nearly four-o'clock. 'Daddy' would be home soon. Great. If there was one thing Jou didn't need while trying to do his math work, it was his father's booming voice ringing through his ears. But Jou had gotten used to their little dance that took place at this time everyday of the week.

After 6 years, anyone would.

Damn quadratics, he thought, his mind wandering back to his schoolwork.

Now, Jou didn't hate his father. He certainly didn't like him, but he could never disregard his father as a useless human being. His father wasn't an outrageous, abusive alcoholic. While there was the occasional whack in the head or thrown beer bottle, his father rarely inflicted serious pain or bodily harm on his son. He was just an overworked, lonely man trying to make ends meet. Jounouchi understood that. What he didn't understand was why his father blew the little money he earned at the racetrack or liquor store.

After so many years, Jou just found it easier to live for himself and have as little contact with the old man as he could get away with. That's why he worked to pay his own tuition. That's why he never spoke up.

Why bother?

I hate math, his thoughts continued.

They were disrupted by the sound of the front door sliding open and heavy footsteps trudging inside. Jounouchi didn't even bother looking up. He knew what was happening simply by the sounds. A husky grunt from across the room signified that Jounouchi's presence was acknowledged. The approaching footsteps said Dad was headed to the fridge for a beer, and their inconsistent rhythm told Jou that this wouldn't be his first drink of the day.

Surprise, surprise, Jou thought as he privately rolled his eyes.

The refrigerator door popped open, and a faint gust of cold air hit Jounouchi's cheek. The all too familiar hiss of the bottle cap being removed filled the small room. Out of the corner of his eye, Jou could see his father take the first sip and kick the fridge door close. Unfazed, Jounouchi returned to his work.

It wasn't long until his father's gruff voice broke Jou's concentration. "This place is a dump. Why didn't you clean it like I told you?" His speech was slightly slurred.

The teen didn't even look up. "I'm doing my homework, Dad," Jou answered apathetically. "I'll clean later."

He felt his father's harsh gaze upon him. It was nothing new to the boy. After 16 years of living with the old man, Jou doubted his father could look at him with any other expression.

"Hmph," the man snorted. He threw his head back, taking another swig of booze. "Still wasting time in that school? Why don't you make yourself useful and get a job? Help pay the rent?"

"I have a job, Dad."

"Then why the hell are you still in school! Your grades are horrible! You're just wasting my money…"
Jou released an exasperated sigh. "It's a part time job, Dad. And I pay for school with the money I earn. I figured you didn't care about my education." And I was right.

"What education?" his father scoffed. "You're dumb as dirt, kid." Another drink. "Besides, I never finished high school, and look at me."

That was disturbingly amusing to Jounouchi. "Great example, Dad. By the way, you spilt beer on your shirt." He still hadn't looked up, but he figure his father's intoxicated mind wouldn't figure out that Jou was just provoking him.

And it didn't. The old man examined his shirt, but he found no stain. Jounouchi resisted the urge to laugh and yell 'PSYCHE!' He settled for a small snicker, though.

That slight chuckle at his expense did not sit well with Jou's father. A day of frustration and degradation had drained the tired man of his sense of humor. Trying to overcome his humiliation, the man slammed his frosted bottle onto his son's homework. A few drops bounced out of the bottle's mouth and stained the white paper a pale yellow.

Great, Jou thought as he stared at the blotches. Now I'll have to explain why my math homework smells like beer.

"Don't get smart with me, you brat," he father growled, his speech pattern getting less and less consistent. Jou could just smell the reeking stench of alcohol on the old man's breath, and it made him nauseated.

Normally in this situation, Jou would just apologize insincerely, then his dad would be happy and let him get back to work. However, Jounouchi didn't feel too civil today. Everyday he went through this routine, and he was growing tired of it. He never took crap from anyone, not even the richest man in town, Kaiba Seto. So why should he from his own flesh and blood?

This little act of theirs happened every damn day. The routine was always the same. But today, Jou wanted to know what it was like to fight back against his father.

"According to you, I can't," the boy replied dryly.

Jounouchi could feel his father's hand slam onto the back of his chair. The hand around the bottle grasped it tighter. "You ungrateful little…!" boomed his father's voice. "You'd better show me some respect before I kick you out of here for good!" he threatened.

"Whatever, Dad," Jou scowled, trying to pull his homework out from under the cold, wet bottle. "Could you move your drink? I'm busy."

His father paused for a long moment. "…Get up."

"What?"

"You heard me!" the man snapped, attempting to rip the chair out from under his son's body.

Jounouchi complied, rising to his feet. He didn't anticipate that his father would do anything more than get right in his face and yell random threats or profanities. That was usually what happened. But it seemed Jou wasn't the only one in the mood for a change in routine today.

The young boy blinked in shock as the back of his head hit the wall. When he looked forward with wild amber eyes, he saw the uncontrolled anger in the old man's face. His temper had reached its limit, and Jou immediately attributed that to the beer. Then Jounouchi noticed a strange pressure on his throat, and he couldn't move his head to look. All he could do was glance down and see his father's arm leading up to his neck. That's when he realized he couldn't breathe.

His own father… the man that gave him life… was choking him.

Quickly, Jou grabbed frantically at the arm holding him to the wall, but he couldn't budge it. He was stuck there, gasping for air while his father glared mercilessly at him.

"Don't you start thinking you're better than me, Katsuya," his father finally spoke, his tone dark and terrifying. "You're not, and you never will be." His grip around Jou's throat got tighter, and his own dull amber eyes flared with anger. "You may hate me. You may think that someday you're gonna have a perfect life with everything you want. But let me tell you something, boy. You won't. This is who you are. You're just like me. Just like me. That's why your mother didn't take you with her when she left. That's why she doesn't want anything to do with you. Bet you didn't know that," he scoffed.

The cruel words tore at Jou's mind, but he was too busy trying to free himself to worry about it. "…D-dad!…" he gasped, his head dizzy and his lungs aching for air. Grabbing at the sleeve of his father's shirt was becoming more and more difficult. "I-…I can't… breathe!…" he whispered in desperation.

The old man blinked, as though waking up from a trance. Then he ripped his hand away from Jounouchi's throat just a quickly as he had lunged for it. Jou collapsed onto the floor, his arms grasping the chair he had been sitting in. Sensation returned to him as he gasped for air, lightly clutching his chest. Once his breath was somewhat even, he looked up to the old man's glare. Jou wanted an explanation. He wanted to know why.

He didn't get an answer. His father simply scowled, and after a long pause he broke the silent tension. "I gotta get back to work," he slurred, stumbling away from the kitchen towards the door. "This place better be cleaned up when I get back, or you won't get off so easily." The man grabbed a jacket from the hook on the wall and disappeared out the front door. Jou heard it slam, and felt the floor shake a little as his father stormed away, leaving his son there on the floor.

Finally getting back to his feet, Jounouchi still had to use the table to support himself. His legs were trembling beneath him, and beads of sweat ran down his face as he gulped for air. He never felt so terrified in his whole life.

But it wasn't because of what had just happened. The choking didn't bother him. He'd been hurt much worse than that. His father's glare didn't phase him. It was those words.

"You're just like me."

His stomach churned as he heard his father scream that in his mind over and over again. It played like a broken record, and no mater what he tried, it wouldn't stop. His heart raced as the adrenaline coursed through his body.

I've gotta stop this! I have to make this voice stop!

His eyes fell on the bottle that his father had left on his homework. Before he could think, Jou had picked up the drink, clenched his eyes closed and threw back his head. The cold liquid made him want to gag, it tasted so awful. It was sour and nauseating. But the only thought in Jou's mind was to stop his father's voice. Not what he was doing.

After chugging the rest of the bottle, Jou gasped as he slammed it onto the table just as his father did before. His eyes were fixated on his math book while his vision blurred and focused randomly.

What's happening to me? he thought, finally studying the bottle in his hand.

…What have I done?

Frantically, Jou threw the bottle against the far wall and watched it shatter. The broken pieces fell against the wooden floor made a lulling melody. But the sound did not sooth Jou's panicked mind. He realized what he'd done. He just drank. He just picked up a beer out of instinct to clear his head. He'd never even wanted to know what it tasted like, and he just… chugged half a bottle or so.

He ran to the bathroom, tripping over a rug along the way. Jou had only one thought on his mind.

He had to get rid of that poison. He couldn't be like his dad.

What if it's too late?…