Live and Let Go
He was sitting there… silently, calmly, typing away on his laptop like it mattered or he had something to do. His messy, brown hair stuck out in a way that would have made someone laugh if anyone had been around to see it. The dulled blue eyes opposite from the computer screen followed the typed out words as they were written, but it was clear the eyes could care less what it read.
Seto Kaiba could work this way. He was good at it; he had grown accustomed to it. It was how Seto got his work done at an efficient pace without having to expend too much energy in the process. The only problem with the way he was doing this was that it took out all the fun, or whatever joy Seto use to gain from doing work.
He was twenty-four years old now, but the way he had been working since he was a teenager made him feel like he was forty and ready to retire. Mokuba was nineteen at this point, he had moved onto college at this point, leaving their home; the Kaiba Mansion, dead and empty. When Mokuba left, he took with him Seto's joy in working. Without a family—his only brother—to support, Seto had found he had less and less interest in doing work and more interest in simply… Seto did not even know what he enjoyed doing anymore.
Seto continued moving his fingers across the keyboard gracefully but without effort, it was the easiest way to slip into his mind and thoughts. Seto could even close his eyes and trust he was still working at the level needed to complete whatever task needed. Seto had found himself day dreaming more and more these days.
Although his passion for work had died, this did not mean that Seto had lost the sense of responsibility he felt for running his company, Kaiba Corporation. The company was something he had overcome several obstacles to gain, and simply giving it up because of a loss in interest wasn't an option. So Seto kept his job for this reason and also because… it was something for him to do, to keep him busy, and to keep his mind from growing old with boredom. Everything seemed less pointless now, and thus the days rolled on endlessly with Seto slipping by in his dream world.
Suddenly there was a door slam, and Seto awoke from his thoughts, and his fingers on the keyboard stopped. There was a disturbance in the silence of the house, something that rarely happened. Seto heard the click of his bedroom door being opened as he twisted his chair around.
"Hey Bro, what's happening?" Seto sat there, staring blankly at the boy, or rather, the teenager, that stood across from him. The teen stood tall in the doorway, practically Seto's height if he were to stand up, but a couple inches shorter. He had gray eyes, but they were gleaming in the light of the room, even if they were void of color. There was a wide grin that was plastered across his face. His short bangs covered his forehead, accompanied with the ebony, black hair that framed his face. The energy in the room had completely changed upon the entry of this one person.
Seto slowly got to his feet, staring at his younger brother intently with amazement and disbelief. "Mokuba?" He asked quietly, almost as if he were asking himself if it were real or if he were seeing things. Mokuba's grin faded realizing that Seto did not seem convinced.
"Yep, that's me. Are you just going to stand there or will you give me a hug?" Mokuba did not wait for his brother's answer; he walked over to Seto and pulled him into a firm hug. Seto was still motionless from shock, he found it hard to respond to his brother's action before it was too late and Mokuba had pulled away. Mokuba looked up into his older brother's face with dissatisfaction.
"What's wrong with you? Aren't you happy to see me?" Seto looked away for a moment.
"Why are you here?" The question stood alone for a moment as the recipient tried to understand what it meant. In the end, Mokuba had become the surprised one, also becoming quite angry.
"What? You mean you don't want me back? Is that what you're saying?" Seto slowly shook his head. He spoke his next words with delicacy as if he were afraid the conversation was too fragile to speak in a normal tone.
"It's not that at all. I mean… why did you come back? You just took off one day and the next thing I knew… you were gone." Mokuba sighed. Seto might have been the older brother, but… in some ways; he still did not understand the facts of life. It was usually up to Mokuba to explain these things to him, and this situation proved to be no different.
"I didn't just 'take off one day.' I went to college. You know, where other 19 year olds go to live their life?" Seto was still unable to understand. Or rather… he did not know how to understand. Things had never been this way before between them; their relationship had never seemed so unbalanced. As a boy, Mokuba had been attached to him; never wanting to leave his side, always needing his older brother's guidance. Seto never had no doubt that things would ever change until high school came along.
When Mokuba started attending high school, he was home less and less. By the end of the teen's junior year, Seto expected to never see Mokuba home on the weekends. That was not the end, however, because the moment senior year started, talk of college began. Seto had assured his brother that he didn't have to go, that he could stay home, but Mokuba refused and so… he left. That was it. No questions asked. And Seto was left… alone. A state of being he never believed he would be in until it became a dark reality he couldn't escape.
"I don't understand why you're acting this way," Seto stated, finally finding the confidence to tell his brother what had been on his mind all along, "It seems like everything has suddenly changed between us in only the last couple years."
"Nii-sama, I'm in college now. Things have changed. I'm growing up."
"But I don't see why things have to be different. We're brothers, we'll always be brothers, no matter how grown you get. Think of everything we've been through in our past, we needed each other to survive." Mokuba shook his head.
"I don't want that anymore, the past is over. I'll always want you to be my brother, but I also want to be my own person. I want to grow up." The words were there; they made sense, but just as much as they made sense, every one of burned the interior of Seto's heart beyond repair. Seto winced with pain before he attempted to continue.
"But Mokuba…" Seto paused, "We're a family. Things don't have to change."
"But sometimes they need to… We can't keep falling back on the past or the way things were back then in order for our relationship to be the same. I'm older now. I can't be the 'baby brother' that blindly follows you wherever you go. That's not me anymore; I've found a life for myself outside of that."
"But I don't want things to change…"
"And I don't want to be held back… I'm sorry Nii-sama, but its time to move on." Mokuba shrugged and turned away. "Maybe I should go…" Mokuba was about to walk out when he felt a hand being placed on his shoulder. He twisted around to see Seto, smiling. In a way, it was a true smile, but also it was clear that it was masking the pain he felt inside. Mokuba waited for his brother to request that he stay at least for the night but instead his brother hugged him, a real hug this time.
Mokuba let his brother's arms cling to him for a moment before he hugged them back. Mokuba closed his eyes and let the moment live as it did. The two of them together, he didn't want to over think or analyze it. He just wanted it to be.
"When will I see you again?" Seto asked as he held Mokuba in his arms. Mokuba's eyes opened while remaining in Seto's arms.
"Not sure… I'll let you know next time I drop by." Mokuba expected his brother to demand a real date and time of when he would be back, but that didn't happen either. Seto broke away from the hug and ruffled Mokuba's hair the way he use to when Mokuba was half his size. Although Mokuba hadn't wanted to, he smiled in response.
"Alright then… well, I'll see you later kiddo." Mokuba, astonished, couldn't figure a way to respond like he had planned to.
"…You're going to let me go?" Mokuba asked, questioning his brother's words just as he had questioned Seto's earlier.
"I think it's about time… don't you agree?" Mokuba nodded.
"Yeah… see you around, Nii-sama." Mokuba playfully punched his brother's arm and walked out of the room. Seto watched Mokuba every step of the way; even going to the window to watch him drive away from the mansion and down the road. Afterwards Seto sat down at his desk and placed his fingers back onto the familiar keyboard.
Seto was in the same position that he was before, but he suddenly felt better about it. That he could do his work effectively and in a timely manner. That everything would be okay, even if it didn't feel that way. That this was the way things were supposed to be… that his next plan of action would be to just move on.
Although it hurt to think of all these things, he began his work regardless. This time, however, his mind did not drift and he finished a project within only an hour or so. Seto did not day dream but remained focused all the way through.
When it had been finalized, Seto stared at the completed work blankly. He felt a slight bit of satisfaction, something he hadn't gotten recently from his work, but it was enough to make him feel like it had all been worth it. Life didn't seem so pointless now.
At the end of the day, Seto shut down his computer and got into bed, many hours earlier than he usually did. As he closed his eyes, he thought back to Mokuba's short visit. Indeed it had been short and had gone by too quickly, but alas, when he thought of Mokuba's childhood, those many years seemed like just a five minute experience too. The passage of time had a way of slipping by, quickly and unexpectedly, but always changing things.
So the past was over and done with, never to be seen again; Mokuba was growing up and things would never be the same. Never the less, Seto somehow felt more meaning in his life. He began to think that maybe that it was part of the process; that this was an experience every parent felt. They learn to let go and they move on.
At least Mokuba was happy, that was what truly mattered. He had his own life and Seto only assumed that meant it was time for him to do the same. Through all the obstacles he would face in the future and the pain he would feel letting go; it wouldn't matter. It was all part of growing up.
A/N: And so ends my first one-shot in a long while. Wow, I'm actually not entirely sure what to say. It's been so long since I've published a one-shot. I guess I feel a great connection to this story because it was born from a dilemma I was having with a friend of mine. Another reason is probably related to the fact that I've started college and these issues tend to come up. I'm not sure what else to say about it now… I'm kind of tired. I suppose I just hope you enjoyed it and thank you for reading!