"Come on, Seto, the sun is lovely. You'll like it." Seth was trying to coax the CEO out onto the beach of their private Caribbean island, but Seto looked sour about the idea as he stood in the shade of their cabin's porch awning. Seth was wearing naught but his shenti, still preferring his Egyptian attire to modern clothing, while Seto wore a linen shirt and board shorts, both blue, of course.
"I'll get burned," he said stubbornly.
"Oh, you don't know that," Seth said dismissively with a wave of his hand, tucking the two towels he was carrying under his arm and putting on his sunglasses as the cloud cover shifted and the sun beat down on him once more.
"I do indeed know that," Seto insisted. "I always get sunburned at the beach." And in the desert, he added to himself.
"Then why did you buy a private island in the Caribbean?"
"It was going to be a present for Mokuba's eighteenth birthday," Seto admitted grudgingly. "I was going to get a Mediterranean island for myself, I just hadn't gotten around to it yet."
"That sounds like a lovely idea, but until then, we're here on a Caribbean island," Seth said good-humoredly. "So we should enjoy the time we have here relaxing on the beach. We don't have a beach back home, you know, just that cliff by the sea."
"Yes, I'm quite well aware of that," Seto growled, crossing his arms over his chest. "I've been living there much longer than you."
"If you're afraid of getting sunburnt, then you can bring the umbrella and the sunscreen, now come on."
When Seto hesitated, looking unsure of himself, Seth marched back up to him, grabbed the aforementioned items and Seto's hand, then started dragging him down the path towards the beach. The shack they shared was tucked into a copse of tropical foliage, but just barely. It was in full view of the ocean, as you'd expect on a private island. Seto stumbled after Seth, who was irritatingly eager about it all. He dropped the towels and sunscreen on the sand and opened the large umbrella before driving it deep into the sand.
"There we go! Shade for you and sun for me," he declared with satisfaction, Seto picking up a towel and shaking the sand out of it. He spread it out flat in the shade of the umbrella and sat on it reluctantly as Seth lay out his own towel in the sand nearest the shade. "You really should be trying to enjoy yourself," Seth scolded, picking up the sunscreen and crawling over to his partner. "We're here for you, after all. Doctor's orders, and whatnot." Seto grunted vaguely, and at Seth's insistent tugging, took off his shirt. Seth squirted the sunscreen into his palm, rubbed it between his hands, then began to spread it over Seto's back, massaging it into his skin indulgently.
"Hmmm..." The brunette hummed appreciatively, despite himself. "Was this just an excuse to touch me?" Seto muttered, his eyelids drooping as the heat of the day made him drowsy.
"Yes." Seth sounded smug about it too, and pressed a kiss to the back of Seto's neck. "You're awful picky about foreplay, you know." When Seto started to growl, Seth quickly added, "Not that there's a problem with that. It makes you interesting, and something of a challenge. I always love a challenge." Seto seemed hesitantly content with that explanation, and let himself relax under Seth's hands.
"I should call Mokuba this evening to check on him," Seto murmured as Seth made him lie down on the towel, Seth still sitting behind him. He added more sunscreen to his hands and started massaging it up and down Seto's arm.
"I'm sure he's fine. Yugi and the staff are taking good care of him. Was it really necessary to tell Yugi that you'd withhold his pay if your brother was kidnapped while we were gone?"
"Yes." Seto smirked a little, pleased with that particular memory. "I find that it's quite motivating to my employees when they know they won't be compensated if they fail."
"Yugi's not an employee, though," Seth pointed out, moving to Seto's other arm with more sunscreen.
"As such, he should thank his lucky stars that I'm paying him at all."
"He's an independent contractor, not an employee."
"You're proud of yourself for catching up on professional jargon, aren't you?"
"Quite." Seth leaned down and kissed Seto upside-down. Seto's hand cupped the back of Seth's head as they kissed, curling his fingers into his rich, red hair. "Would you like to go for a swim?"
Seto frowned at that, though not as sourly as he'd been frowning when standing on the porch earlier. "You're not done with the sunscreen," he said pointedly.
"Ah yes, thank you for reminding me." Seth resumed coating his lover with sunblock, running his hands down Seto's chest and abdomen, and rubbing it into his sides at Seto's insistence. "One would think that you were allergic to the sun, the way you carry on about it."
"Excuse me for not being enamored with the great outdoors." Seto sat up again, allowing Seth to add sunscreen to his shoulders and neck. He reached for the bottle, but Seth pulled it away, holding it out of reach with a twinkle in his eye. "Seth, give it to me. I need to do my face."
"I can do it." Seth squirted a small puddle of it into his hand. "Come on, turn around to face me."
Reluctantly, Seto turned around, now kneeling in front of him. He normally didn't like other people touching his face. Seth was the only exception, and even then, Seto didn't like being touched by surprise. With careful fingers and eyes fixed on the paler one's face, Seth gently rubbed the sunscreen into his cheeks, his forehead, his nose, his chin. Seth bumped his nose against Seto's affectionately once he was done.
"Will you swim with me now?"
"No."
"Why on earth not, Seto?"
"Sharks."
Seth chuckled, making Seto glare at him.
"There are sharks in these waters, and plenty of them. Tiger sharks. And stingrays that could impale your ankle and drag you down into the water. If they don't drown you first, the venom will kill you. Then there are the lionfish, and the Portuguese man-o-war, and the—"
"You did research before this trip, didn't you?" Seth shook his head and tutted disapprovingly. "Live, Seto. Life has a lot to offer you if you're willing to take it."
"You swim. I'm perfectly fine right here."
"You made me slather all that sunscreen on you so that you can sit in the shade?"
"Yes. Just in case."
"Fine. Suit yourself." Seth pecked Seto's lips before standing and shedding his shenti.
"Good lord Seth, do you plan on swimming like that?"
"And tanning like that, too." Seth smirked at him as his glorious nude form was bathed in sunshine.
"You're practically glowing." Seto's compliment was pleasant in content only, his tone quite begrudging. Out of bitterness, he added, "There are fish that eat that, you know."
"Eat what?" Seth blinked at him in confusion.
"That." Seto pointed to the particular organ to which he was referring, making Seth break out into hearty laughter.
"You're afraid of... having your..." Seth tried to articulate the words between heavy laughter, but found it impossible. Seto was becoming increasingly indignant the more Seth laughed at him.
"Shut up!" He threw the sunblock at Seth, but it bounced off his shoulder harmlessly and landed in the sand with a thud. "When you have your penis bitten off by a fish, you'll wish you'd listened to me! And I'll say that I told you so!"
"Oh, goodness me, aha ha. Oh dear." Seth wiped a tear from his eye as he began to recover from his fit of humor. "My dear child, you are truly full of surprises."
"If you're just going to make fun of me, then I'm going back to the house." Seto stood angrily and turned, stomping back towards the shack.
"Wait, wait!" Seth ran back after Seto and grabbed his arm, pulling him to a halt. "I didn't mean to make fun of you! It's just that you said something very funny!"
"That's the very definition of making fun of someone!" Seto tried to pull out of Seth's hold, but Seth was just as stubborn as his lover. He wrapped one arm around Seto's shoulders and the other around his waist, pinning their greasy bodies together. Seto tried to push away, but Seth was too strong for him, and after several moments, he gave up and let Seth hold their bodies flush together, pressed close enough for Seto to feel Seth's heartbeat. As they embraced stiffly, Seto was reminded of the fact that he would never forgive Seth for being five inches taller than him.
Seth kissed Seto's forehead and whispered into his hair, "You need to stop being so sensitive. You know that I wouldn't dream of mocking you."
"That's exactly what you were just doing." Seto scrunched up his nose. "Your tanning oil smells awful."
"No it doesn't, you're just being moody. It smells like sandalwood, and you know it." Seth moved his hand from Seto's waist to stroke his hair reassuringly. "I love you, you know."
"Yes, you're quite fond of saying that." Seto took advantage of Seth's loosened grip to push away from him and return to the house. Seth sighed as he watched him go, annoyed that his attempt at reconciliation had been frustrated by Seto's pride.
Author Notes: I've had a spike of muse for Stoicshipping, so I've decided to go through the seven deadly sins with these two. Stay tuned for Lust, Gluttony, Avarice, and Envy.