Kaiba was gay. It wasn't so much the realization of his sexuality that throws you for a loop, it was more so the act that Kaiba was capable of interest in another human being. Let alone affection. But here he is, walking into the gay bar that you just so happen to work it.
It's not that you're actually gay. The owner is drinking buddies with your father and the pay is good. Nobody asks how old you are and occasionally you get free booze. It's a decent set up.
He's almost unrecognizable, looking nervous and out of place. His hair is parted different and colored black with what is most certainly a temporary dye, because you'd seen him at school just that morning and his hair was still as brown as a chocolate fudge sundae. It's pulled messily pulled into a hat and you gawk because who would've thought you'd ever seen Kaiba in a hat and jeans, dressed so freaking normally for a change. If you hadn't spent the last two years of your life being harassed and emasculated by him you wouldn't have even noticed that it was him.
But you know those blue eyes. You've seen them before. This is definitely seto Kaiba, and you are definitely not mistaken. They're just as sharp and challenging as ever, and perhaps that's what's keeping the other patrons of the small little bar away from him.
And that's when it dawns on you. Kaiba is here to pick up dudes. Or get picked up by a dude. You weren't too sure. You acquired a pretty good gaydar after working at the bar for so long and you knew for a fact why Kaiba was standing in the little bar, looking lost and out of place.
You suddenly feel uncomfortable. What if he notices you? The guy used every possible flaw or weakness of yours to insult and humiliate you. Why would this be any different? You try to duck outside for some fresh air, but it's too late. He meets your eyes.
Maybe you can play it off? You wave and mutter a half hearted, "Hello, sir."
It falls on deaf ears. He is staring at you and he knows. He knows that you know. It catches him by surprise and for a brief second a look of complete shock washes over his face. But he schools his face back into a scowl and he stomps over to you with fierce determination.
"Jounouchi," he growls.
Fuck! You shake your head, causing your messy blonde hair to flop around your face, "Um, I'm sorry. Do I know you?"
That's right. Feign ignorance. He already thinks you're an idiot anyways. Keep calm. You've got this.
But the guy is a child genius and he sees right through your petty farce.
"Cut the crap. I know you know who I am."
"Alright, alright." You relent
You both stare at each other, sizing one another up. There's only one question on both of your minds.
"What are you doing here?" You blurt out at the same time.
His glare sharpens. He stands there, quiet and demanding, as if waiting for you to speak first.
"I work here," you mumble.
"You're not of age to be working at a bar."
"And you're not of age to be going to bars," you counter.
He frowns at you and you relish in this tiny victory. It wasn't often that you won. In fact, you never won. Kaiba was always cutting you down. It felt good to finally beat him at his own game. Your pride jumps up ten notches when another thought suddenly occurs to you.
Kaiba was gay. You can totally use this little fact against him! Okay, you're damned moral compass would probably stop you from doing that, but it's not like he knew that. For all he knew, you were some jackass just waiting to blackmail him. If anything, you can trade secrets with him to keep your job a secret.
Cause one, you're not old enough to be working in a bar, let alone handle alcohol. Two, you need this job. You and your father are barley holding on as it is, and you know you can't count on that drunk to hold onto the rent when the guys downstairs are always having poker tournaments. Three, your school has a policy against after school jobs. You can get expelled for this. I mean, let's be honest, you wouldn't be all that sad about not having to go to school anymore, but school is where your friends are. And if you have any hopes at all of getting out of the slums, you have to graduate.
And the fourth and final reason. You really, really don't want word getting out that you're a waiter at some gay bar. You'd have to deal with the mocking laughter and insults, not to mention if Hirutani and the gang found out you bet your ass they'd hand you yours. Not everyone was as understanding as Yugi.
Kaiba takes a step forward, dangerously and most out of character-y pushing up into your personal space. His voice is low and threatening, "I don't know what's going through that thick skull of yours, but if you have value your life you won't tell a soul about this."
You gulp nod vigorously, "I won't, as long as you don't tell anyone that I work here."
"As if I give a damn about you enough to spread petty rumors.
His voice and rough and full of malice. Okay. He probably hates your guts, but at least your secret is safe. Good to know. An awkward silence falls between the two of you. You're normally great at conversations, but sweet baby Ra this is weird.
Your mother always said you never thought before speaking, and Anzu said you were always oblivious. Before you can stop yourself you're already speaking.
"Hey Kaiba, ya know this bar is pretty much filled with old dudes. Ya might not have much luck here, unless you're into that."
You say it more to piss him off then to be helpful. The satisfaction is in your smile when he snarls at you.
"Get me a drink."
"Fine, ya look like you could use one anyways. What'll ya have?" you ask, pulling out the notepad and pen from your apron.
From the way he squints at the menu, you can tell he has no idea what he's doing. Your satisfaction multiplies by ten. Not only is Kaiba Seto, the world's biggest prick, looking like a lost puppy a gay bar, but the guy doesn't even know how to order a drink. You have to give him some type of credit though, otherwise you'd get too smug. To be fair, he probably wasn't used to "commoner's drinks". He probably drank fancy wine and champagne.
You wrench the menu from his hands and smile, "Why don't ya let me pick?"
"I don't need your help," he spits.
"Oh come on," you say, tapping your pen against the pad, "You need to loosen up. I'll help."
He grunts in acknowledgement.
"Ya don't really look like a 'beer man'. So how's about we start ya off on something easy? I'm gonna get ya a Cherry Bomb. S'not too strong and it'll suit a first timer like you."
You must have looked a little to smug for his liking and he waves you off without looking at your face. You shrug. What else is there to really say? Your night has already been odd enough.
The two of you actively avoid each other the next day at school. The black dye has been washed out of his hair, and his casual clothing replaced with his crisp, immaculate school uniform. Kaiba ended up having three drinks of your recommendation, speaking to no one, and then being driven away in a shiny, fancy car. And surprisingly, he left you a rather generous tip.
You're trying your best to focus on math, but you can't fucking focus. Kaiba was gay. The thought kept coming back to your head and replacing all thoughts of polynomials and monomials. How was it possible? And why hadn't you noticed sooner?
It wasn't like anything fundamental about Kaiba had changed, but someone you just can't wrap your mind around the fact that Kaiba preferred the company of men. It's like not like you were hating on the guy's life choices or anything, but you don't know…you always kind of pegged Kaiba as a loner. He didn't look like the person to actively seek out the company of others. He always had a long drawn out monologue about how friendship sucked and how the entire Yugi-tachi could go die in a fire.
Love was a basic human need, sure, but Kaiba wasn't a basic human being. You couldn't imagine the frigid bastard snuggling up to another guy, or smiling as he went out dates. Kaiba always seemed suave, and cool. He had money out the ass and he could probably have any freaking girl he wanted. If he wasn't such an antisocial, grumpy asshole he could've been one hell of a playboy. Kaiba had the ability to get girls you could never even dream of having a chance with. Oh well. With Kaiba out of the game, more hunnies for you.
But now that you're really thinking about it, it kind of makes sense. Kaiba had an outrageous fashion sense. He was the only person of the male species who could pull of a plum colored trench coat. He had effeminate tendencies and he had no obvious interest in women. In fact, he had no interest in anybody unless they could beat him at Duel Monsters. You really didn't mind the fact that he was gay, but something just didn't sit well with you.
Whatever. To hell with Kaiba and his swishy trench coats. It's lunch, and with Kaiba's generous tip from last night, you can get afford to spoil yourself. Hello ramen, goodbye worries.
You meet up with the gang in the cafeteria and it eases your troubled mind. You talk about Duel Monsters with Yugi and scold Honda for asking you about your sister. It's so natural. You don't have to tip toe around anyone's feelings or walk on egg shells. You're pretty confident that these guys would still be friends with you if you happened to grow a second head tomorrow.
But no matter how good friends you were, there would always be things you couldn't tell the gang. Not because they wouldn't accept you, but because you had your pride as a man and you didn't need anyone trying to help you out of pity. For the most part though, you and the gang closer than a pair of asscheeks.
"Did you get your math test back, Jounouchi-kun?" Yugi asks you.
You take a long swig from your soda and shake your head, "I passed, just barely though."
"You'd do better if you focused more on school and less on porn," Honda snorts.
The two of you exchange playful punches and chuckle, "Who says I can't do both?"
As per usual, Anzu is the mother of the group. She frowns and turns her nose up at you and Honda, "The two of you are never going get girlfriends."
You give an indignant snort. You've had plenty of girlfriends. They stayed with you for a while, keeping you company on lonely nights, and eventually they'd all tossed you to the side. They'd wanted a boyfriend with money and a car. They'd wanted a boyfriend with more free time. So be it. Give it five years and you'd have all that and more. They'd regret dumping you.
Besides, you'd already got what you wanted, anyways. High school was about having fun, not finding a wife. Although you knew that, you wished Yugi would catch on. Anzu was great, but she was kind of a nag. Yugi could worry about trying to marry the girl after college.
Honda elbows you and raises a brow, "Jou, you didn't do something to piss Kaiba off, did you? He keeps looking over here."
Thanks a lot, Hon. It's not like you hadn't noticed. You didn't want to notice. Kaiba had been on your brain all damn day and it irritated you to no end. You were nothing more than a speck of dust to him who just so happened to find out about his little secret. The two of you hated each other, and definitely didn't trust one another. He was probably making sure you were upholding your end of the bargain.
Loose lips sink ships. If word got out that Kaiba Seto, CEO of Kaiba Corp was a fruitcake, the guy would be ruined. He'd have reporters all up his butt and people might stop buying Kaiba Corp products. It was a sad, but inevitable fact. You had unwittingly stumbled into what could quite possibly be a very dangerous weapon. In the back of your mind, you kind of wished you'd asked him for money, but there was no way in hell you'd take a hand out from that jackass, or a hand out in general. You're way too proud, and way too stubborn for your own good.
You sleep on a park bench one night when your dad was too drunk to unlock the front door for you once. You contemplated asking a friend for help, but that would mean telling them about your shitty situation and that was really not what you wanted to do.
"I don't know what you're talking about, Hon," you say in a nonchalant tone.
Anzu may not have been as smart as Kaiba, but she sees through your bluff. Man, you're kind of a shitty liar.
"I know you're hiding something, Jounouchi."
Damn that nosy woman and damn that oblivious Honda. You would rather die than tell your friends about what happened last night. The verbal contract you signed with Kaiba prevented you from saying anything at all anyways.
"Look, don't worry about it. S'not anything serious," you say. You stuff your mouth with ramen before Anzu gets a chance to press you futher.
Instead Yugi says and tries to play peacemaker, "You shouldn't fight with Kaiba-kun so much. He isn't that bad, Jounouchi-kun. I'm sure that if we got to know him we could all be friends."
You don't want to get to know him, your brain screams. You already know enough. If you found out any more comprising and secretive facts about Kaiba he might have to kill you. He was a grade A asshole. You pitied the poor fool who would end up with him.
"Alright Yuug," you sigh, not wanting to upset your best pal, "I'll try to get along with him."
Yugi smiles and it's bright enough to rival the sun, "Good! You're a good friend, Jounouchi-kun."
You smile back and eat the rest of your lunch in silence. Kaiba's persistent stare hangs over you like a black cloud.
When school ends that day you're approached by tall men in suits and thrown into the back of Kaiba's limo. They slam the door in your face before you get a chance to protest and suddenly you're stuck in a small, confined face with the one guy you wanted to avoid.
"Did you tell anybody about last night?" he demands.
You shoot him an angry look and rub your sore backside. You're fine, thanks for asking jackass.
"No, I don't have a death wish."
He nods slowly. He's probably still skeptical about you but he says a firm, "Alright."
Your eyes dart around the car. You refuse to make eye contact with him. It'd be too weird.
"So um, can I go now?"
Kaiba completely disregards your question. He crosses his legs and commands his driver to start the car. You scramble into the seat next to him and buckle your seat belt. Was he trying to kill you?
"Are you going to be working tonight?" he asks.
The confusion on your face had to be evident. That was completely random. Kaiba practically kidnaps you just to know your work schedule? What the hell?
"Yeah," you say slowly and you hug your school bag to your chest, "Why?"
He blatantly ignores you, once again. He is perfectly calm, and perfectly still, unlike yourself, who is a nervous wreck. You cough into your hand and bounce your knee.
The silence was deafening.
"Where are you taking me?" you ask.
He snorts and stares at you with his bright, blue eyes, "To your home. No need to act like a frightened dog with his tail between his legs."
"Um, how do you know where I live?"
"I have power and money, Bonkotsu. I do business in more than seven different foreign languages and I can fly planes. Finding something as simple as your address is child's play."
You nod your head, and bite back at retort to his insult. If he really was driving you home, you didn't want to piss him off and have him ditch you on the side of the road. Still, the fact that he knows where you live is kind of creepy, and in all honesty you don't know if he's actually driving you out to the middle of nowhere so he can kill you and keep his secret safe. Kaiba was kind of crazy and you were pretty sure he wasn't above murder, especially when it was someone he disliked as much as you.
The rest of the ride is silent and you have to mentally play music in your head to keep you sane. You recognize the houses and buildings, and are fairly competent that Kaiba isn't out to murder you (at least not today). He has his driver go right into the slums without ever missing a beat, and he even has the car stop right outside your apartment building.
You don't know why the hell he's doing all this, but best not to look a gift horse in the mouth. You open the door and scramble out, muttering a frantic thank you and goodbye.
He stops you right before you slam the door closed and his eyes meet yours, "See you tonight."