Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh! nor it's characters. I also do not profit from this work of fiction.


A/N: See you next week or something like that.


Chapter Summary: Bakura objects to Yuugi's date, but finds he's overruled.


Warning: Language, Violence, Blood


Chapter 2: Notice Me, Kouhai


Later that day found Yuugi in his bathroom, carefully brushing his hair and humming. He was preparing for his date; he had agreed to go out with his neighbor and, soon, the man would be coming to his front door. Wanting to look nothing but his best, Yuugi showered, shaved, and while he would deny it to hell and back, had even trimmed his personal area. He was not looking to get laid on his first date, but anxiety and nerves had persuaded Yuugi into being presentable on all accounts. In any case, he could not go wrong with the extra boost of self-confidence. After, he had dressed in a ruby red button-up, dark-wash jeans, and his nicest pair of black boots.

At the sound of footsteps, Yuugi knew Ryou had entered his bedroom. Without pausing, he continued to tame his wild hair. A sigh came from his room and Yuugi used the mirror to look into his bedroom to meet his friend's gaze. Yuugi halted in his brushing. There was a large grin on Ryou's pale face. His friend had not stopped smiling in his glee for Yuugi. And while Yuugi was pleased that Ryou was happy for him, he was also starting to feel a little embarrassed by the obvious joy. Ryou came to stand in the doorway to the bathroom and leaned against the doorjamb with his grin still plastered to his face.

"I smell cologne," Ryou sang and Yuugi blushed to the tips of his ears. He chose to ignore the comment.

"Stop smiling already," Yuugi pouted, continuing his task. Ryou's grin only widened, though it turned sheepish.

"I'm sorry, Yuugi. I'm just really happy that you've got a date," Ryou commented, "now Bakura can stop worrying about you."

Putting down his brush, Yuugi turned to look at his friend with a cocked eyebrow.

"Bakura's been worrying about me?" he asked with surprise, "Why?"

"Oops," Ryou said. Dropping his smile, his brown eyes widened and, all of a sudden, he looked guilty.

"Spill," Yuugi demanded.

Cringing, Ryou sighed. He entered the bathroom and seated himself on the counter, effectively dropping Yuugi's shaving cream into the sink. Ryou picked it up and set it aside before sighing again.

"Bakura's been a little worried that you wouldn't find anyone –"

"Has it really been that long?" Yuugi interrupted, frowning to himself.

"Yuugi, the last time you went out with someone was like two years ago," Ryou deadpanned with a pointed look.

"Well, what about that time I went out with that asshole with the pink hair?" Yuugi asked.

"Yuugi," Ryou stressed, "that was two years ago."

Yuugi paled.

"Oh, my god," Yuugi said as realization dawned on him, "I'm out of practice. What if I make a fool out of myself? What's new in dating? Ryou, help me." Yuugi clasped his hands together in a pleading fashion and Ryou laughed before waving his worries away with a hand.

"Calm down, dating is the same as it's always been," Ryou shrugged lightheartedly and Yuugi gave him a pained look. Tilting his head to the side, Ryou smiled wryly and decided to have mercy on his friend. "The first date is always awkward, but not overbearingly so. It's the date when neither of you will be able to do anything right and will be too distracted by your own insecurities to notice the other's mistakes … wait, that was high school."

Ryou looked to the shower pensively, tapping his chin as he tried to think. "It can't be that different from high school. You'll do fine," he decided and Yuugi let out a whine before letting his head drop in defeat.

"I'm going to make an ass out of myself," Yuugi bemoaned.

"Just let him see your ass and you're good to go," Ryou winked and Yuugi blushed two shades of red past embarrassed.

"Ryou! I'm not going to sleep with him on the first date!" Yuugi protested.

"I never said that," Ryou said calmly, "I only said to show him your cute butt and he'll be putty in your hand –"

A sudden slam cut Ryou off and both men jumped at the sound.

"...What was that?" asked Ryou.

"I think it came from the front door," Yuugi said thoughtfully and both men glanced out of the bathroom uncertainly, straining their ears.

Sounds of a scuffle reached them and the two friends looked to each other with wide eyes before hurrying over to the source at the front door. Grunts and growls could be heard then and Yuugi looked to a worried Ryou before opening the door.

In the hallway, two dark-skinned men were wrestling with each other. A man with red hair and blonde highlights was trying his hardest to place the other man, one with wild, white hair, into a headlock. Said white-haired man was doing his best to elbow the first in the face. Both men looked like angry five-year-olds fighting over a toy. At their feet, was a bouquet of roses in danger of being trodden.

The red-haired man succeeded in putting the white-haired man into a headlock.

"That was a cheap fucking shot, you coward," the man growled and the white-haired man reached up to yank on the man's hair harshly before elbowing him in the stomach and forcing the other to release him.

"Yeah, well, fuck you!" the man snarled before turning and leaping at the red-haired man, shoving him into the opposite wall and swinging a fist at his face. Right before it struck his jaw, the other man caught his fist and twisted it.

Ryou and Yuugi stood gawking in the doorway before they finally came to their senses and shouted at the same time.

"Bakura!"

"Atemu?!"

x x x

From Ryou:

Yuugi has a daaate!

.

"Date?" Bakura asked himself, "what fucking date?" The white-haired man rubbed at his nose as he passed the flower vendor. Sneezing harshly, he glared at the owner of the stall before walking on. He hated flowers. He hated anything that carried pollen. That shit made him sneeze like no tomorrow. He sneezed again and cursed. Allergies sucked ass. At the end of the street, he stopped, waiting for the light to signal the okay to proceed. Looking back to his phone, he sent a reply.

.

To Ryou:

Wut fkng date? Who told dat pipsqueak
he culd date? Wut stpd mudrfkr axd
him out w/o chkng w/ me?

.

Just as the light changed, he looked up. He glanced around before going on to cross the street. His phone buzzed in his hand and he checked his message while keeping one eye on the path before him.

.

From Ryou:

If it were up to you, no one would be
good enough for him.

.

That's because no one is good enough, Bakura scoffed and his phone buzzed with another message.

.

From Ryou:

Be happy he has a date! It's been two
years, the guy is hot, and he didn't hit
on me first.

.

Bakura's eyes narrowed dangerously at that. He sent back a reply and entered the building.

.

To Ryou:

O, u thnk he hot?

.

Tucking his phone into his pocket, he headed over to the elevator. Entering it, he jabbed at the seven and not-so-patiently waited for the doors to close.

"Hold the elevator please," called a baritone voice and Bakura frowned before jabbing at the button to close the doors faster. He was not one to share anything, much less an elevator if he could help it. Close quarters with any single person was a nightmare and an elevator was the worst place to be trapped with strangers. Strange odors, awkward standing, uncomfortable silence; Bakura absolutely detested it. Like hell he would ever willingly subject himself to sharing an elevator. The doors began to close and Bakura willed them to go faster. He could hear footsteps rushing over and grinned when the doors were almost shut.

"No, thanks," he called back with a smirk. Bakura thought he saw a flash of a brown hand right before the doors closed completely. Smug over his little victory, Bakura leaned against the wall and waited as the elevator sputtered to life and slowly climbed up to the seventh floor. When he arrived there, he pressed every button to stall the elevator on every floor, just to be an asshole. He took his sweet time with it too, enjoying the punch of each and every button, keeping his foot out the door to stop it from closing and trapping him inside. Once done, he made his way down the hall and to the flat of his best friend. He was about to knock when a growl interrupted his action.

"Of course it's you," said the voice from before, slightly breathless, "who else would be such an asshole." It did not sound like a question.

Bakura turned to see a short man at the end of the hall with dark ochre skin and a frown on his face, violet-red eyes narrowed into a glare. Although he was breathing faster than normal, he did not appear winded. He was wearing a pressed white shirt, top buttons undone to show off a sliver of his attractive flesh, his legs wrapped in dark, denim pants, and in his hand was a bouquet of roses. Clenching his fists, Bakura scowled at him.

"So you're the one who asked me to hold the elevator?" Bakura sneered, "Ha! Good. Serves you right, you fucking prick. How the fuck did you even get up here so fast?"

"I took the stairs, numbnuts. Ever heard of them?" the redhead retorted, "I'd say not considering all the huffing you do on the treadmill. I'm not going to be late just because some asshole decided to screw with me. But now that I know it was you, I'm not surprised." He huffed irately as he approached, his walk steady and his shoulders stiff.

Bakura sneered at him, ready to snap a comeback, before he registered the caramel-colored rectangular frames upon the bridge of the redhead's nose. Disconcerted with the lenses, Bakura pointed at his face.

"Since when do you use glasses?" he asked, caught off guard.

To his bewilderment, the man flushed in embarrassment, his entire being bristling. His jaw flexed irately.

"Since none of your goddamn business," the man gritted out.

"Your face looks fucking weird," Bakura jeered and the other man frowned severely.

"You know, I really don't get your fucking problem with me," he said with incredulity, "but your little grudge is childish." He came to a stop only a couple of feet away from Bakura, raising his head to glare at him. "Grow up, will you?"

"You ate my fucking Ho Ho," Bakura snarled, incensed, "I'll never forgive you for it!"

The man stared at Bakura for a long couple of seconds, confusion coming over his features. He lifted a hand, opening his mouth to retort, but closed it, frowning. Dropping the hand, he shook his head.

"The hell are you talking about?" he asked, his every feature marred with absolute bafflement.

"Fifth grade," Bakura snapped, "lunch time. I was minding my own fucking business and you came and ate my fucking Ho Ho."

The man stared at him again, though this time, his confusion was replaced with disbelief. He shook his head again in incredulity.

"You're insane, you know that? That was more than a fucking decade ago!" the man said in his exasperation, "How could you still be pissed about that?!"

"It was the last one I had!" Bakura barked.

"It was just a fucking snack!" the man snapped, "Thirteen years ago! Get over it!"

"It was my Ho Ho!" Bakura shouted before launching himself onto the man who immediately dropped the bouquet to the ground to engage him.

They tussled and wrestled, landing a punch here, a blow there. They cursed at each other and yanked hair. At one point, the other man's glasses fell from his face and he faltered, taking a second to kick them carefully away to safety. But his distraction cost him, and Bakura kneed him in the crotch. Wincing, the redhead shoved him into the wall before cupping himself and cursing. When Bakura came forth for another strike, the man shoved his pain aside to yank Bakura around, trying to force him into a headlock.

"That was a cheap fucking shot, you coward!" He shouted when he succeeded.

"Yeah, well, fuck you!" screamed Bakura before knocking the wind out of him.

And that was how Yuugi and Ryou found the pair. The two friends gaped before releasing identical shouts of alarm.

"Bakura!"

"Atemu?!"

Atemu froze as his head whipped around to see the two young men staring in shock and awe. His eyes met Yuugi's and he managed to register that it was his date staring at him, seeing him act like a goddamn caveman before Bakura landed a furious punch to his nose. Then Atemu felt only pain and he smacked his head on the wall with the force of the blow.

"Take that, you fucking Ho Ho thief!" Bakura cried in victory.

"Bakura!" shrieked an angry Ryou and Bakura turned.

He flinched at the sight of his angry boyfriend, looking caught and disgruntled.

"Ryou … oh, shit," Bakura said before Atemu punched him in the stomach, knocking the air out of him and sending him collapsing to the floor.

"Oh, my god, Atemu!" Yuugi shouted and Atemu turned, suddenly remembering their audience. He stilled and guilt overtook his features as Yuugi gawked. "You're bleeding!" Yuugi gasped and darted over to him, stepping over Bakura's prone, moaning form on the floor.

"I'm lying right here, you know," Bakura groaned, breathless and irate as Ryou glared down at him.

"Serves you right," Ryou hissed as he crouched beside him, "what the hell do you think you're doing?!" Helping him up, Ryou smacked him on the shoulder. "That's Atemu! Yuugi's date!"

Bakura was in the middle of wiping the blood from from his split lip, when his jaw went slack and his expression darkened significantly.

"The hell he is!" Bakura growled and Ryou smacked his arm again.

"Behave!" Ryou hissed and Bakura grit his teeth as Yuugi fussed over Atemu's bleeding nose.

"Atemu, your nose," Yuugi said worriedly and Atemu attempted to wave off his concerns.

"I'm fine," he mumbled and Yuugi shook his head as Atemu leaned down to grab the bouquet of roses and a pair of glasses that had miraculously survived their small brawl. Pulling on the glasses, he lifted the flowers to Yuugi's eye level, a gentle smile on his face. "I got you flowers," he said and Bakura sneezed with a curse.

Yuugi bit his lip, torn between smiling and frantic concern as he gazed down at Atemu, more than a little surprised to find that Atemu was slightly shorter than him.

"Oh, Atemu," Yuugi said and a smile broke through, though his face was still creased with worry, "Look at yourself. What happened?" He took the flowers and tucked them into the crook of one arm as the other reached out to tentatively touch his nose. Atemu winced and Yuugi quickly apologized. Then Yuugi swiftly turned to glare at Bakura who was nonchalantly wiping blood onto his shirt.

"Bakura!" Yuugi snapped and Bakura paled. "Shame on you!"

"Shame on me!?" Bakura rasped, "I'm not the asshole who ate the last Ho Ho!"

"You know this guy?" Atemu voiced and Yuugi turned back to Atemu, face clear of anger and suddenly sheepish.

"Um, well, he's kind of my best friend," Yuugi mumbled and Atemu stared at him in shock.

"That guy is your best friend?" he said incredulously.

"Damn right I am," Bakura snapped.

Atemu stared at Yuugi, then at Bakura. He glanced between them several times with increasing bewilderment.

"Just – how?" he asked and Yuugi shrugged.

"Maybe we should talk about this inside," Yuugi said and took Atemu's hand, leading him into the apartment to Bakura's ultimate vexation.

"You're not going out with him!" Bakura shouted and Ryou elbowed him in the ribs. Bakura winced, rubbing at the spot with a betrayed look on his face.

"I'm very upset with you, Bakura," Ryou said severely.

"But, Ryou!" Bakura tried to defend himself.

"No buts!" Ryou grabbed him by the ear and pulled him into the apartment as well. Bakura cursed several times as he was yanked in. They entered the kitchen where Yuugi was cleaning Atemu up with napkins and making him tilt his head back. Bakura snickered at the sight, his own pain momentarily forgotten before Ryou gave him a tug. He cursed in protest.

"You're gonna yank my ear off, you psycho!" Bakura yelled and Ryou gave him an extra-hard tug for the insult.

"You're already in the doghouse. Are you sure you want to piss me off?" Ryou asked him sweetly and Bakura closed his mouth, mumbling an apology through his closed lips. With squinted eyes, Ryou gave him a skeptical look. "I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that."

"I'm sorry," Bakura growled and Ryou narrowed his honey-brown eyes at him. He waited for only a moment and finally released his ear.

"I don't believe you," Ryou sniffed and turned away from him. He was done with Bakura for the moment. Walking over to the man Yuugi was moving to a chair at the table, he asked, "Are you alright?"

"Who the fuck cares? What about me?" Bakura snarled and both friends turned to glare at him. Bakura wisely shut his mouth and rubbed at his sore ear. He glared at Atemu and sat across from him at the table.

"I'm fine," said Atemu thickly and waved a hand with nonchalance, "this is nothing. Don't worry."

Briefly moving away from the man, Yuugi grabbed two ice packs from the freezer and enveloped them in clean dishtowels. He pressed one to Atemu's nose and the man flinched. Yuugi hissed in empathy and apologized as he handed the other to Ryou.

"Sorry," Yuugi said gently and smiled.

"It's totally fine," said Atemu and he grinned back at Yuugi. His grin was wide and absolutely charming, even with an ice pack pressed to his nose. Blushing slightly, Yuugi was instantly smitten and his smile turned shy.

While the two smiled adoringly at each other, oblivious to their surroundings, Ryou turned to Bakura and pointed a finger at him. With a warning glare, he pressed the ice pack to Bakura's mouth. Bakura hissed at the pain and instantly closed his mouth, lowering his head to glower at the table.

"...Traitor," Bakura hissed under his breath and Ryou tossed him a displeased look, shutting him up once more.

But it was enough to distract the other two men from each other and Yuugi looked away from Atemu to raise an eyebrow at Bakura's sullen form.

"Alright," Yuugi said, "time for explanations."

"I didn't do nothing wrong," Bakura mumbled and Atemu scoffed lightly. Instantly, Bakura's eyes were on him, narrowed and angry. "You got something to say, four-eyes?"

"Bakura, are you serious?" Yuugi said in exasperation as Atemu glared at him.

"He had it coming!" Bakura said with conviction and Atemu waved a bemused hand, staring at him in incredulity.

"You attacked me for no reason!" Atemu accused and Bakura huffed.

"I had a very good reason!" he objected and Ryou nudged him pointedly, silencing him with a look. Turning to Atemu, his stern glower turned into an apologetic smile.

"I'm really sorry my boyfriend ruined your date," Ryou said, "and your shirt … and your face."

Shrugging, Atemu was about to wave it off when his eyes widened. He stared at Ryou then, perplexed.

"Good," Bakura muttered and no one paid him any mind.

"You're dating that guy?" Atemu asked and Bakura made a sound like an angry cat. Before he could say anything, Ryou gave Bakura a sharp look that said: not for much longer.

That sewed Bakura's lips up tight.

"Yes," Ryou said with an edge to his tone that had nothing to do with Atemu and everything to do with Bakura's horrible personality, "the crazy man is my boyfriend."

Atemu blinked at him before swiveling his eyes over to Yuugi next.

"And he's your best friend?" Atemu asked.

Yuugi bit his lip and nodded.

"Uh, yeah," Yuugi said with a half-smile, "since high school."

It was then that Ryou took the flowers Yuugi had left on the table. He said, "I'll just put these in some water." When Yuugi nodded at him, Bakura sneezed, rubbing at his eyes, and Yuugi suddenly remembered his best friend's allergies.

"I have some Benadryl," he said to Bakura, "I'll get it." And after excusing himself, Yuugi left the room.

Instantly, Bakura turned to Atemu and narrowed his eyes at him.

"You're just full of bad luck, aren't you?" he snarled only to receive a pout from Ryou at his continued misbehavior.

"Bakura," Ryou breathed, exasperated, "can you not?"

"No, let him say what he wants to say," Atemu said, from behind his ice pack, "maybe once he vents all his anger, he'll finally stop."

"You're kidding, right?" came Yuugi's voice and Atemu tilted his head slightly to see Yuugi emerging from his room with small box of medicine. Yuugi handed Bakura the box and looked to Atemu with raised eyebrows. Ryou set a glass of water before Bakura and Bakura quickly took the pills.

"You obviously don't know Bakura," Yuugi said with a smile, "the guy knows how to hold a grudge. Like there was once this brat who stole his snack or something? In like the fourth or sixth grade and I swear to god, get him drunk and he'll go on about it for hours!" Laughing, Yuugi turned to Bakura who was staring at him stonily before looking to Atemu who had lost all semblance of expression.

"What is it?" Yuugi said and Atemu chuckled uncomfortably before Bakura snorted.

"Pipsqueak," Bakura said and Yuugi turned to him.

"What?" Yuugi insisted and Bakura curled a finger at him. When Yuugi leaned down, Bakura took a breath and calmly spoke.

"It was fifth grade and the asshole who took my Ho Ho?" Bakura pointed a finger at Atemu and scowled, "That's him."

Standing abruptly, Yuugi stared at Bakura with wide eyes before snapping his gaze onto Atemu who fidgeted in his chair. After a few moments of silence, Yuugi's face cracked and he burst into laughter.

"Amazing," Ryou said, eyebrows raised in wonder.

"You're the infamous Ho Ho thief?" Yuugi gasped, "Oh, my god. Is that what you were fighting about?" At Atemu's nod, Yuugi snorted. Covering his face with his hands, he gained control of his laughter. Shaking his head with disbelief, Yuugi looked to Atemu with a smile. "You know, I've been hearing about you since high school. This'll be fun. Do you still take desserts because I have to say that if you try taking mine, you'll have to fight me for it."

With a smile and a wink, Atemu shrugged.

"I guess you'll just have to wait and see," he said and Yuugi grinned wide, visibly ecstatic. Before he could respond, Bakura snapped.

"You're not going out with him! He's also the asshole at the gym who won't stop hogging the treadmill!" He protested and Yuugi rolled his eyes. Next to the counters, Ryou was covering his face with his hand. He looked just about done with everything.

"If you'd just ask for it," Atemu said with exasperation, "I wouldn't mind letting you have it. Also, I still don't understand why you can't just use another treadmill. There's ten of them!"

Bakura scrunched his nose up at Atemu and growled.

"That one is mine!" he said. He grabbed Yuugi's forearm and narrowed his eyes. "If you go out with him, you're a traitor. I won't forgive you."

With a sigh, Yuugi rolled his eyes a second time and patted Bakura's hand. He said, "Yes, you will. You're incapable of staying mad at me. Also, Ryou will back me up and make you sleep on the couch until you forgive me." Grinning cheekily, Yuugi ruffled Bakura's hair and the man hissed at him, but did nothing to remove the hand. As Bakura gazed sullenly at Yuugi, Atemu stared at him as though he had grown another head.

"How the hell did you meet that jerk anyway?" Bakura asked Yuugi before casting Atemu an unpleasant grimace. Atemu simply raised his eyebrows at him and said nothing. Yuugi, though, had gone suspiciously quiet and when Bakura turned to look, he saw a blush had taken residence in Yuugi's cheeks.

"Um," Yuugi hesitated and Atemu looked at him with a grin that only made Yuugi's blush worsen. He fidgeted and Ryou was the one to speak up.

"Thanks to your gift, Yuugi and I found out Atemu was Yuugi's neighbor and we spied on him until he caught Yuugi," he said simply and Bakura looked thoroughly confused.

"My gift?" he questioned before directing a glare at a smiling Ryou, "You spied?" But Ryou only shrugged.

"A little," he said and Bakura huffed in betrayal.

"The binoculars," Yuugi muttered, embarrassed, and Bakura frowned at him.

"I don't understand," he said and Yuugi's brow creased.

"Those binoculars you bought me, remember? You said they were for birdwatching. Ryou saw Atemu working out and … um," Yuugi's face turned even more pink with shame and Atemu finished the story.

"Yuugi eventually came out onto the balcony and I asked him out. I live straight across from him."

"Wait," Yuugi said suspiciously, "you knew I was watching you?"

"He lives across the street?!" Bakura sputtered.

"Well, it wasn't hard to spot you," Atemu said to Yuugi with a grin, "you weren't exactly inconspicuous, pressed against the glass like that."

"Why the hell is this happening?" Bakura groaned to himself, dropping the ice pack to grab at his hair.

"So you were showing off?" Yuugi gawked, "I knew it!"

"To be completely honest," Atemu shrugged sheepishly, "I had noticed you about a month ago, when you were cleaning the balcony, but I didn't know how to get your attention … and I thought it'd be weird to just show up – what if you were straight? So I thought, maybe if I flashed some muscle, or stayed out on the balcony long enough, you'd notice me and come out again if you were interested. I didn't think it had worked until I caught you with those binoculars –"

"This needs to stop!" Bakura shouted.

All three men looked to Bakura, wary and Yuugi sighed. Bakura glared at him.

"First of all," he said, "how could you abuse my gift like that?!"

"It wasn't like you put much thought into it," Yuugi retorted, "you said it was for birdwatching, for crying out loud!"

"Yeah, so!" Bakura snapped, nonplussed.

"Do you not remember that I don't like birds, Bakura?" Yuugi sighed.

"That's why I got you those binoculars," Bakura said, "so you wouldn't have to get up close and personal with them. I'm not an idiot. I know they frighten you." Bakura huffed and he looked deeply wronged by the knowledge that his gift has been abused in such a way. "I thought that if you did some birdwatching, they would scare you less."

The room was silent then and Yuugi stared at Bakura before his brow creased and his bottom lip trembled.

"Oh, my god, Bakura," Yuugi said and his eyes were watery, "that's so sweet."

"Yeah well." Bakura shrugged and he looked extremely uncomfortable as he was faced with Yuugi's swell of emotion. He refused to look Yuugi in the eyes and he shifted in his chair. Without warning, Yuugi hugged him and Bakura looked to Ryou in panic, but Ryou was smiling. Yuugi sniffed and Bakura felt his face drain of color. "Are you crying?" he asked, alarmed.

"No," Yuugi denied, but he squeezed Bakura hard, "you're a good friend, Bakura. I'm sorry I doubted you."

"That'll teach ya, pipsqueak," Bakura mumbled and Yuugi laughed as he moved away.

"But I'm still going out with Atemu," he said and Bakura scowled at him.

"We're no longer friends," he growled and Yuugi only smiled at him.

"Of course," Yuugi replied with a patronizing pat to his shoulder, "whatever you say."


A/N: Do not ask for updates. Thank you.