Summary: Things are not what they seem, and the strong are sometimes the weak. Jounouchi's life is not okay, though in his mind he's Superman. AU.
Pairing: Jounouchi/Yuugi friendship.
There Are Darker Places Than Home
by Mahayana
The supply closet was dark and cramped, with a solid steel door that no amount of kicking would open. Jounouchi didn't know where the light switch was, and he didn't have time to think about it. He could hear Shizuka crying on the other side of the door. Her small whimpers made it through the steel and wedged themselves straight into his heart. Fuck. He was her brother. He was supposed to protect her, and this was the best he could do? Jounouchi punched the door with one bruised fist, the dirt and grime of the warehouse's concrete floor grinding itself further into the knees of his jeans as he knelt there.
"Shizuka!" he yelled. "It'll be alright. Just keep calm and wait for mom to get the ransom note and call the police."
"QUIET IN THERE!" The metal door shook as the man on the other side kicked it hard. "ONE MORE WORD FROM YOU AND WE'LL START PUTTING HOLES IN YOUR SISTER TO SHUT YOU UP!"
Oh god. He could hear Shizuka crying harder. He could hear the man getting frustrated with her and the soft noises of a struggle. Jounouchi realized he had his cell phone. Before they shoved him in here, they hadn't had time to take anything away from him except for his knife. He clawed at his pants pocket with trembling fingers. He could make the call. He could tell the police where they were. His heart felt like lead in his throat when he flipped the phone open. "No signal." The struggle on the other side of the door continued. Shizuka's cries only got louder. He could hear the man grunt as he presumably held her down to do god knows what to her. Jounouchi felt sick. He looked down at the small, white rectangle of light of his phone's screen. He still couldn't make a call, but if he held the phone close to the bottom of the door, right by the crack between the steel and the concrete, the reception sign would occasionally flicker. He could try sending a text. His fingers shook and slipped on the plastic keys as he punched in the number of the first person he could think of. "Yuugi, I really hope you get this," he prayed as he hammered in the message and hit 'send'. Within fifteen seconds, his phone beeped to inform him that the message had gone through. Jounouchi slid down the steel door and let the tears fall, still hearing Shizuka struggle on the other side.
"LET HER GO YOU FUCKIN' BASTARD!" he shouted, not being able to listen to this anymore. "I'LL FUCKIN' KILL YOU ONCE I GET OUT OF HERE," Jounouchi punched the door again.
"What did I say about staying quiet!" the man growled. Jounouchi heard the safety of a gun click off. "Maybe this'll teach you to keep your bloody mouth shut!"
His eyes widened in horror. Shizuka's crying chocked off to a startled whimper. Jounouchi's heart froze mid-beat. There was a shout, a muffled grunt. The gun went off. He could feel the force of it reverberate through the door.
For a minute, nothing happened. He couldn't hear anything. No whimpers, no cries. Slowly Jounouchi felt something wet touch his fingers. He looked down where there was light seeping in from underneath the door. Light… and something else. He lifted up his hand to his face and smelled blood. Jounouchi screamed.
Yuugi hid a big yawn behind his hand. It was a sunny day outside, but not many people were out yet. It was going to be a slow morning at the Kame Bakery. He didn't mind. After all, anything they didn't sell by the end of the day he could eat. Yuugi smiled as he pillowed his head on his arms, sprawling lazily over the glass counter. He loved working at the bakery. Despite having to get up at four in the morning every day to bake bread and pastries and prepare the cakes, it wasn't bad. Once the big jobs were done, there was nothing to do but sit here and watch mothers and their children go by. Occasionally he would get a customer, but rush hour didn't start until the high school down the street let out. Yuugi closed his eyes in contentment. And then opened them again as something hit the display window, startling him out of his relaxed mood. Yuugi looked up just in time to see two men go down face-first onto the pavement, one right on top of the other, and start to brawl.
Yuugi swore under his breath as he ran around the counter and out of the store, grabbing the broom along the way.
"Hey!" he shouted and hit the man on top with the broom. "Hey, I said!" Yuugi hit him again. "Stop that!" The blonde man only looked up once Yuugi had shoved the hard bristles of the broom right into his face. The man sputtered, and spit out the fibers and dirt that got forced into his mouth.
"Quit it!" the blonde man drawled, and smashed his victim's face against the pavement without looking. "This guy deserves it!" The black haired man under him continued to struggle, so the blonde hit him again until he went quiet. Yuugi hit them both with the broom.
"If you don't stop this right now, I'm calling the police!" Yuugi yelled.
"There's an idea! Would you?" Yuugi was dumbstruck for a moment as the blonde man turned to look at him expectantly. Brawlers weren't supposed to like the thought of police officers marching them into holding cells. He narrowed his eyes, but the situation cleared up a moment later when a disheveled and sweating girl caught up to them, screaming for her purse.
The girl panted and stared down at the blonde man, her hands braced on her knees as she fought for breath. "My purse… you…" She took a steadying breath and smiled like the sun. The blonde man ripped the purse strap out of the thief's grip and presented it to the girl like a prize. Yuugi thought he looked like a cat that brought home a chipmunk.
"Thank you," the girl put out a hand to help the blonde man up. "Thank you so much! You don't know what this means to me."
The blond man rubbed the back of his head, chagrinned. "Heh, no problem." He didn't really seem to know what to say beyond that, but his chest was puffed out with pride. Yuugi looked down at the unconscious man on the ground, smears of blood from his broken nose streaking the pavement. Maybe he should be calling an ambulance…
Yuugi was just turning to go back into the store to call the proper authorities, when he saw a flurry of motion out of the corner of his eye. The blonde man gave a blood-curdling scream and dropped to the ground, clutching his foot. The thief was on his feet the next instant, running for it for all he was worth. The blond man swore, and Yuugi saw why. There was a switchblade sticking out of his sneaker.
"Oh boy," Yuugi resisted the urge to rub at his eyes. "Oh boy. Okay. I'll call you an ambulance… and the police."
The blonde man's eyes widened in panic. "No, wait!" the man shouted, gripping Yuugi's shoulder to keep him from going any further with this plan. "I don't need an ambulance! Really!" his brown eyes stared pleadingly into Yuugi's. "Come on, man! I just need a first aid kit! The knife didn't even go all the way through my foot!" Oh yes, NOW the man had a problem with authority.
"I don't know… You were just stabbed in public," Yuugi looked at him skeptically, then slid his eyes over to the girl to see what she thought. Technically, this was all hers to deal with.
"I… I really think you should go get that looked at…" the girl stammered, clutching her purse like a lifeline. "What if there's actual damage… or it heals badly… oh damn." She rummaged through her purse and pulled out a notepad and a pen, writing furiously for a moment before tearing off the sheet and handing it to the blonde man. "Here, this is my name and phone number, and email just in case. I'll pay for your medical costs if you need to. Oh damn. Please be okay," the last part she whispered under her breath.
"Nah, it's okay. I'll be fine," the blonde man tried to reassure her, then winced. They all looked down at the man's foot, which still had the knife sticking out of it and was probably bleeding. Yuugi took a deep breath.
"Let's get you inside and get that looked at. I know some first aid," he slid his gaze to the girl. "You should go to the police and report that somebody tried to steal your purse. Give them a physical description and tell them he had a knife."
"Can you leave out the part where I got stabbed in the foot?" Yuugi stared incredulously at the man. "I mean, I just don't want this being any more trouble than it has to be… and I…" The blonde man looked away, uncomfortable with the subject.
"Okay, fine," Yuugi sighed, and turned to address the girl again. "Go to the police and tell them he pulled a knife on some guy who was trying to get your purse back, but you didn't know his name and he ran off before you could properly thank him."
She smiled. "It's close enough to the truth right now anyway."
"Just call me Superman," the blonde man bragged. Yuugi wanted to hit him with the broom again.
"So what's your name anyway?" Yuugi asked some time later, after the girl had left, and him and the blonde man were sitting in the back of the store. He'd propped up the man's foot on some empty cardboard boxes as he treated the wound.
"My name's Jounouchi," he grinned. "Jounouchi Katsuya. Nice to meet you."
Yuugi grinned back. "I'm Yuugi. Good job catching the purse thief out there. Although, I can't say I was impressed with violence being done right by my storefront."
"It was for a good cause!"
Yuugi rolled his eyes. "Yes, but you're not a superhero. What if he had a gun?"
"Then I would have punches his lights out before he could have used it," Jounouchi scoffed. It was simplistic thinking, and it had landed Jounouchi in Yuugi's backroom with a knife in his foot... Yuugi momentarily worried for Jounouchi's continued well being.
"I guess it's good that you did something. Most people would have sat by and left the girl to chase after the thief on her own."
Jounouchi's teeth flashed in a confident smile. "I may be failing all my classes, but if there's one thing I'm good at, it's beating people up!"
"Right. Here, try this out," Yuugi gave Jounouchi's bandaged foot a gentle tap. The knife really hadn't gone all the way through, probably stopped by some of the small bones in the appendage. Jounouchi put weight on his foot with a brief grimace.
"Not too bad," he admitted as he limped around the room. "It stings, but I can still walk on it."
Yuugi breathed a sigh of relief. Then something occurred to him. He cast a critical glance over Jounouchi, noting his school jacket, then checked the clock.
"Aren't you supposed to be in school right now? And where's your book bag?"
Jounouchi paused. "Ah, uh, the school's having some sort of staff meeting or whatever, so it was only a half day."
Yuugi looked skeptical, but decided to let it go. It was none of his business anyway.
"Hey, shouldn't YOU be in school?" Jounouchi shot back. "You don't look old enough to be out of high school."
"Ah yes," Yuugi got up and absently brushed off the front of his apron. "My grandfather owns this store. I'm being home schooled in the evenings so I can run the store in the mornings."
"Huh, that's weird."
The look Yuugi gave him was tired and strained. "There was nothing at school for me. I'm learning much better this way."
"I guess…"
"Hey, don't worry about it. Here, let's get you a reward, Big Hero."
Yuugi crooked his finger for Jounouchi to follow him back to the cake display. Jounouchi put his sneaker back on and obediently limped after him, curiosity clear on his face.
"Pick any one of these that you like. It's on the house," Yuugi swept a hand grandly over a pristine selection of small cakes. Strawberry and cream, mango mousse, green tea, chocolate. Jounouchi's eyes widened.
"Are you sure? Those things look expensive."
Yuugi patted his shoulder reassuringly. "They're not that expensive. Not for the store anyway. Just go ahead and pick one."
"Hmm…" Jounouchi eyed the strawberry cake. "I'll take that one. My sister loves strawberries."
"Oh? You have a sister?" Yuugi asked curiously as he removed the cake from the display and began boxing it.
"Yeah. She's in the hospital right now getting her eyes checked. I was gonna visit when I got distracted by the purse thief," Jounouchi laughed, embarrassed. "I guess I should have thought to bring a cake sooner. That's a pretty good idea."
Yuugi handed him the white box with a flourish. It had a gold sticker holding the lid closed. Jounouchi took it eagerly.
"Thanks man! This is gonna be awesome."
"No problem. You take care of yourself, okay?"
Jounouchi grinned and nodded. He clapped Yuugi on the shoulder. "Thanks for patching me up too. That was a big help."
Yuugi waved as Jounouchi made his way to the door.
"Hey… Jounouchi."
Jounouchi paused and turned, his hand already on the door handle.
"Come by again sometime. You're a good guy."
Jounouchi nodded, then grinned. "Can't get rid of a guy once you feed him cake," he winked and pulled the door open. The small bell above the door chimed as he left. Yuugi stood in the middle of the store and stared after him for a long time.
It had taken three months for Yuugi and Jounouchi to become friends. The bakery was on the way to the hospital, so Jounouchi had no reason not to drop by every now and then to pick up a cake for his sister. After Yuugi noticed that Jounouchi was still wearing the sneaker with the knife-hole in it, he'd started giving Jounouchi discounts under the pretense of friendship. Jounouchi was amiable enough, though he refused to be treated like a charity case. So Yuugi never let on about the things he'd noticed. Not the worn clothes, nor the bruised knuckles, nor the occasional cracked rib Jounouchi hid behind a vibrant laugh and a casual hunch. Yuugi knew the story. Jounouchi didn't have to tell him about his alcoholic father with a gambling addiction for Yuugi to know about it. A quiet search through his grandfather's casino attendance records had revealed a Jounouchi Masahiro readily enough, the man's sandy blonde hair on the security tapes erasing any doubts Yuugi might have had about the relation.
Yuugi narrowed his eyes as he watched the scene below unfold. Sound traveled cleanly up the warehouse walls. He could hear everything, and from his perch on the catwalk there was absolutely nothing obstructing his sight. A weary smile pulled at his mouth. He should have seen this coming. This was the usual fate of his grandfather's regular casino-goers. They gambled too much, they lost too much, they went to the loan shark. Jounouchi's father had bailed a few weeks ago already. Jounouchi had been living alone in his father's apartment for a while now, pretending everything was okay. That the loan sharks weren't going to come after him next, after his sister next, after their father's divorced wife with enough savings to send her daughter to a good hospital. Yuugi felt his cell phone vibrated and absently checked the message. Then he adjusted his grip on the sniper rifle. One red eye peered through the scope and found the head of the man currently trying to gag Shizuka with a scarf. He'd go out first. He'd decided that with a coin toss. The man wasn't going to live. Jounouchi deserved at least that much. After all, Jounouchi had made friends with the mafia boss's heir. And the mafia always took care of their own.
Author's Notes:
There is a lot of story that didn't make it into the fic above. Partially because it's 3am and I have a deadline, and partially because… it breaks my heart that I can't do it justice. In my head, Yuugi and Jounouchi are not friends, they are tentative boyfriends. Atem doesn't exist in this universe, so I'm playing with manga-Anzu's vague crack theory that "Atem" is just another aspect of Yuugi's personality, and that the real Yuugi lies somewhere in between the two. Hence, badass sniper Yuugi. (Let's face it, Yuugi's still too scrawny for REAL physical combat. lol)
Maybe I'll write more of this later… when I'm not brain dead.
btw. If you're wondering why Yuugi works at a bakery instead of a game store like in canon, it's for… money laundering purposes. :D; Being a casino-owning mafia, a game store would have been too obvious. haha
Constructive criticism appreciated.