Hey all! Chapter 2 is here. Mild fluff ahead but don't worry - I have some drama coming soon for our two boys! :D
Thanks to everyone who read, reviewed, favorited, and followed! I really appreciate it :)
I hope you all enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do NOT own Yu-Gi-Oh or its characters! This story is just for fun and nothing more.
The silver Porsche pulled away from the garage parking lot, taking with it the devilishly handsome business man with skin as smooth and rich as a frothy cappuccino. Yugi replayed the image of the exotic man in his mind's eye. A single golden earring in the shape of a snake's fang dangled beneath his wild mane of hair. Scarlet eyes, the color of passion, burned with such vigor. Clearly, he was part of the untouchable elite – the upper-class social circle that few would ever glimpse. His movements and stance were almost regal; he carried himself with a confidence Yugi had never seen.
What would it be like to run my fingers along his warm skin, to feel his firm muscles tremble beneath my touch? He has to be a sex god; I wonder what it's like to make a prayer offering –
"You have a crush on him, don't you Yug?" Joey's voice shattered Yugi's dreamy thoughts. "I saw the way you looked at him. You were glowing like there was no tomorrow."
Yugi sighed. "Was it that obvious? He probably thinks I'm some creep, the way I couldn't stop staring at him."
"Nah, I could tell he liked you too," the blonde continued as he worked on the Mercedes. The two friends were silent for a moment, absorbed in their work, when he spoke again.
"So what are you going to do about it?"
Yugi snapped his head around to look at his friend. Had he heard him right? Joey grinned at him.
"You heard me, Yug. You like him, he likes you – what's the big deal?"
"Oh I don't know, Joey. Maybe it was the Armani shoes or the diamond encrusted watch or the solid gold pyramid pendant around his neck."
Joey stopped working and lifted his head, surprised at the minuscule details his friend remembered from just a two minute meeting. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means that he's way out of my league – unattainable. He's some gorgeous rich guy and I'm, well, filthy and covered in engine grease. Besides, he probably has a girlfriend anyway – "
"That's not what Seto told me," Joey said in a sing-song voice. "I was changing the oil in his Porsche last week and he told me a story of how his cousin 'always drags him to dance clubs and can't settle down with anyone.' He's single and ready to mingle. So go mingle already!"
Yugi laughed at his friend's corny joke. "Only you could come up with something that stupid, Joey."
"I'll tell you what isn't stupid, Yug – you're my best friend and you're one hell of a catch. You're funny, you're smart, and you know practically everything about cars, which you learned from your best buddy, of course! Besides, maybe he likes dirty boys." Joey winked a honeyed eye as his hands continued to work on the engine.
Yugi blushed from his friend's words. Sure, he was a good guy and all, but could he measure up to whatever Atem was expecting in a partner? Was he even willing to give Yugi a chance at his extravagant lifestyle? Wait a minute, what was he saying? Yugi didn't even know if Atem was interested in pursuing him! Heck, he wasn't even sure if the handsome business man…swung his way, for lack of a better term. Besides, if Atem was the kind of guy to go out to dance clubs all the time, would he treat Yugi like just another notch in his belt?
Seto sipped his iced coffee and continued to stare across the table at his cousin. They had gone to a nearby coffee shop in order to wait for the mechanics, but Atem hadn't touched his drink. Instead, he had been silently staring out the window with a soft, dopy smile on his face; his crimson eyes looked as glazed over as one of the donuts in the café's display case.
Seto rolled his ice-blue eyes. "You're thinking about him, aren't you?" Although Atem hadn't actually confessed to having a crush on the petite mechanic, Seto didn't need anyone to fill in the blanks for him.
"No," Atem lied, quickly plucking a different topic from his muddled brain. "I'm thinking about…the board members meeting tomorrow and how they want to get an inside look at the company – "
"Bullshit," Seto said, calling out his cousin. "You're thinking about your little angel-eyed mechanic." He emphasized the words with a fake swoon and laughed haughtily.
"His name is Yugi and he isn't mine." Atem's deep voice turned into a low growl. Was he protective of the little one already?
"That's right," Seto continued, getting under his cousin's skin. "You were too chicken to actually say anything to him."
"I didn't need to say anything," Atem said dryly, resting his hands behind his head and turning his nose in the air. "He had the car diagnosed in five seconds flat." Atem snapped his fingers to emphasize his point. "I'm sure his suspicions are accurate."
"How do you know? You don't know anything about cars," Seto snorted into his coffee.
"Just like you don't know anything about mergers and acquisitions?" Atem shot back. "And that's why you have to partner with your genius cousin in your own company?"
"A cousin so genius, he can't even talk to an attractive man anymore without getting completely tongue-tied. You've lost all of your game and you know it." Seto knew he was pushing Atem's buttons, but it was just so much fun to get his cousin riled up.
"I have game!" Atem said a bit too loudly, as he received curious stares from other patrons in the coffee shop.
"Oh yeah? Then prove it," Seto challenged, pointing his drink at the other and swishing around the ice inside. He knew Atem could never back down from a bet; he had long-since earned the title 'The King of Games' and for good reason – the man practically had gambling in his blood.
"How?" Atem lifted a defined eyebrow at his cousin. He was interested. Hook.
"Simple. You have to get Yugi to go out with you." Line.
"I'm not going to use him like that. He's more than just a pawn in your stupid game," Atem scoffed.
"Yes, I'd feel scared too if I knew I didn't have the balls to rise to a challenge." Sinker.
That did it. Seto his him where it hurt the most – his pride. "Alright, fine. I'll play your stupid game, but not because I want to prove you wrong – "
"No, of course not," Seto interrupted with a sarcastic tone.
As Atem leaned across the table, his burning crimson eyes targeted Seto. "I'm doing it because I genuinely like Yugi, okay?"
"Sure, whatever helps you sleep at night." Seto's ice-blue eyes were fixed in a frozen stare. He continued to sip his iced coffee through the straw, with the corners of his lips twitched upwards. Truthfully, he could care less about some foolish bet; what he really wanted was for Atem to stop dragging him out to night clubs and bars.
Impervious to his cousin's arrogant smirk, Atem leaned back in his seat. Would Yugi actually go out with him? Surely, a beautiful creature like him would already be taken? Atem was suddenly filled with frustration. He wasn't used to this new insecure attitude. He was the confident, egotistical, self-righteous bastard his cousin always made him out to be…and, until he'd met Yugi, this was all he ever wanted to be.
He'd had his fair share of one-night-stands, which usually ended with him sneaking out of a strange apartment building in the early morning, leaving his date for the evening to wake up alone in a cold, empty bed. He could never fathom doing something like that to the little mechanic; his heart wrenched at the thought of ever breaking Yugi's heart.
Already he knew Yugi was special. Who else could make him feel this way based solely on a brief encounter and gut-feeling? The last hour had left him confused, twisted, and second guessing his life choices. He was an uncommitted and unfaithful lover; Yugi deserved so much more from him. But would he even get the chance to prove himself to Yugi? Would Yugi be willing to see beyond his playboy past?
Meanwhile, Seto watched in mock-fascination as Atem's crimson eyes turned glassy. Again. Clearly, his cousin was lost in thought. Again.
I've never seen him like this before. Maybe he really has lost his backbone over that little shrimp, Seto grumbled to himself. It's borderline sickening. But maybe this is what he needs to get out of his pitiful downward spiral.
"Alright, it's been an hour!" Seto announced with a glance at his watch. He stood up and dragged his dopy cousin out of his daydreams and onto his unsteady feet. "Come on, loverboy, get a hold of yourself. Despite how much I want to see you make even more of an ass out of yourself, I actually have important things to do today."
As Seto's Porsche pulled into the garage parking lot, he honked his horn. Atem felt his stomach twist. He hardly recalled ever being this nervous, especially over something so trivial. It was just a date – wasn't it? All he had to do was ask a simple question.
At the sound of their arrival, Joey poked his blonde head out of the garage and bounded over to them over with a smile. "Well, Yugi was spot on – it was the head gasket alright. Not a pretty fix, but we can definitely do it for you. It'll be all set if you want to pick it up tomorrow."He leaned into the window of the Porsche and the blue-eyed man scowled when he noticed the grime on his hands.
"Get your filthy paws off my car, Wheeler."
Joey looked down and realized his mistake. "Whoops, sorry." He rubbed the grease spot with a corner of his sleeve, smudging it even more. Atem chuckled at Seto's furious grimace – he looked like he was about to burst into flames. The brief comical moment was enough to ease his nerves. For now.
Just then, Yugi stepped out of the garage and stood by Joey's side.
"Yes, that will be fine," Atem replied shakily. Why did Yugi's mere presence have such an effect on him?
"Great," said Joey. "How about you pick it up around 5? We should be all set by then."
"Sure," Atem was distracted by Yugi's bright smile, which was even more vivid in the sunlight.
"Alright, we'll see you tomorrow then!" Joey stepped back from the car and the two mechanics turned to walk back into the garage.
Atem's throat tightened. With each passing step Yugi took, his chance was slipping further away. Before he knew what he was doing, he bolted from the car and stumbled in front of Yugi, nearly out of breath from his sudden movement. When those beautiful amethyst eyes rounded on him and unleashed their hypnotizing powers, he knew there was no turning back from this moment.
It's now or never, he told himself as he took a deep breath to steady his voice.
"Hey," he croaked.
"Hey," Yugi replied, cheerful smile enveloping the business man.
"Ummm…what's up?" Atem nearly smacked himself for his idiocy. 'What's up?' Seriously?!
Yugi's smile beamed brighter now. He continued to stare directly into Atem's eyes. "Nothing," he giggled. A rosy blush dusted his cheeks. "What's up with you?"
Atem felt a calming sensation wash over him. Yugi was blushing! That could only mean one thing, right?
"Nothing I guess," Atem replied, matching Yugi's blush with his own. "Hey, ummm – "
"You said that already," Yugi joked in response. His face was now fully flushed and his wide smile showed off his pearly white teeth.
Atem smiled down on the mechanic. "I suppose I did, didn't I?" he said with a hearty laugh at his own awkwardness.
Come on, just do it already! Stop being a fucking goofball and get a grip!
"Willyougooutwithme?" Atem blurted out. The words tumbled out of his mouth as if they had a mind of their own; as if they were taking the initiative that Atem could not.
"What was that?" Yugi's eyes sparkled. He thought he heard right, but he wanted to make sure…
"Will you go out with me tomorrow night?" Atem's voice, to his surprise, came out as smooth as butter, unknowingly sending shivers up the mechanic's spine.
"Yes," Yugi said softly, not turning his dazzling eyes away from the business man.
Atem felt his heart swell. Yugi had just accepted his date! "Great," he said. "I'll see you tomorrow then."
"Yup, bye," Yugi squeaked cutely, running inside the garage.
Atem walked on clouds back to his cousin's waiting Porsche.
"Wow," Seto couldn't hold back his laughter. "You've won first place in the 'most pathetic attempt to ask someone out' contest." He held out his fist in front of Atem's mouth, as if it were a microphone. "Tell us, winner, how does it feel?"
Atem, grabbed his cousin's fist and spoke into it honestly, feeling lighter than air. "It feels absolutely amazing."
