A/N: Welp, about time for chapter 4 wouldn't you say? I guess here we go...its also a little large.

Chapter 4

It was late at night on the same night of the bathroom incident. Jou had been having a hard time going to sleep and envied Kaiba for being able to doze off so quickly. He considered that with the mix of meds that Kaiba could have been tranquilized for an entire day. He smiled at the thought, but he couldn't bring himself to laugh.

"You okay Jou?" Mokuba asked, walking into the living room where Jou had made himself comfortable. "It's almost midnight."

"Fine," he said, leaning his head back against the couch. "Jus' can't sleep too well t'night."

"Oh…I was getting a snack. You want something?"

Jou opted for that idea thinking maybe a little comfort food would help him doze right off. He followed Mokuba through the dimly lit halls into the kitchen. "What are you doin' up?" Jou asked. "Dontcha have school tomorrow?"

"Yeah. But I've been kinda busy lately, looking over some of the stuff at KaibaCorp., and it's been keeping me up."

"Sounds harsh."

"Not really. I'm not doing too much, I just want to make sure I'm reading stuff right. Nii-sama can read it in the blink of an eye and have it all done quick and I just sorta dilly-dally."

"It's alright. Ya want to know what yer gettin' into right?"

Mokuba nodded. They were both eating cereal, staring out the large paned window in the dining room. "How's Seto?"

"Good considering," Jou said. "He's takin' it all with stride I think."

Mokuba nodded again. "He's not being too mean or anything is he? 'Cause if he is then…"

"Mokuba, yer brother is always gonna be a prick, it's what suits him best. I can't blame him for bein' crabby though. If my leg looked like that I'd probably be pretty mean too."

"He doesn't take pain too well. I mean, he can take it, but…it's just weird…"

"I understand. It's what I'm here for. I'm tryin' to make sure he gets better."

"It's killing him not getting to go to the office," Mokuba said. His bowl was empty pretty fast, but he didn't seem to mind refilling it while Jou sort of mulled things over. "I'm boring you aren't I? Talking about Seto and all…"

"He's yer brother, I get it," Jou said. "Ya care about him, that's all that matters."

"I wish someone else would," Mokuba admitted. "Or, I wished he would care for someone else. He's always near me but, not a lot of other people. He sorta likes his privacy I guess." Mokuba chewed slowly. "I know he really doesn't trust people all that much. Except me. But then, with where he works and what he's been through, that makes sense."

"Sounds like yer piecing this together all of a sudden."

"Not really. I've always known this stuff I just never really said it aloud. It would mean that I have to accept that my nii-sama is going to be alone for the rest of his life."

"No he's not," Jou said. "He's got you to be around right? I know yer probably gonna move out on yer own when you get the chance, but it's not like you're gonna up an' abandon him."

"Of course not!" Mokuba said strongly. "If I was gone there'd be no one else left for him, and then I'd be scared of what would happen," the boy visibly shivered. "Sorry, I'm sort of unloading all this onto you. I probably sound nuts, I'm still half asleep," he said, trying to make up for everything he said and make it sound like it was all a joke. Jou could see that it wasn't, he could see what Mokuba was trying to say.

"Why dontcha get t' bed. Stop worryin' about everythin'. I got it covered, promise," Jou said, his hand at his heart. Mokuba nodded, picking up his bowl and taking it to the sink.

"Jou?"

"Huh?"

"Did you really walk out in front of him?" Mokuba asked. "When you weren't suppose to I mean."

Jou picked up his bowl and put it at his lips, internally sighing. "Of course not Mokuba," Jou said warmly. "It jus' happened is all, and I was jus' there to see it."

Mokuba's eyes were prodding him, the silver orbs sparkling in the moonlight. A passing cloud covered the moon, darkening the room and Mokuba's eyes. Jou nodded to himself. "I swear t' ya. I'm not that kind of guy..."

"I believe you Jou, I was just wondering," he said, and walked out of the kitchen. Jou sat the bowl back down on the table and stared into the milk, sighing. Did he walk out in front of Kaiba purposely? It was a good question that was for sure. He wasn't too sure if he did or didn't. He remembered seeing there to be a sign that he could walk...didn't he? It was almost two weeks ago, so could he really trust his memory?

"What is it with you and bein' embarrassed about the bathroom?"

"I'm not embarrassed about the bathroom. I don't want you in the bathroom."

"Too bad, yer stuck with me," Jou knelt down next to the CEO sitting on the edge of the bathtub "You might want to take yer shirt off."

"Go away and I will."

"Yer real contradictory ya know?" Jou sat opposite the CEO on the toilet, his hands cupped together. "Yer wantin' me to help you with all sorts of things, but then ya won't...I don't get ya."

"It's called privacy, but I guess a dog wouldn't get that would he?" Kaiba lowered his head. "Play guard for a little bit, I can do this."

"Nope. Ya get what ya pay for," Jou snickered, pulling Kaiba's shirt up from the bottom and getting it nearly to come off. When he did, he was confronted with a set of healing bruises running up Kaiba's left side. "If that's what yer ashamed of, I've seen worse believe it or not."

Jou was caught off guard by Kaiba's foot shoving into his stomach. "Be a good dog, and obey your master."

The tub had a small bit of water pooling in the bottom of it, a trickle still coming from the faucet. Jou knew he was acting irrationally, but he was going to make Kaiba take a bath whether he liked it or not. All it did was take a small shove of the shoulders to off balance the CEO. He fell into a crab like position, Jou leaning over him, narrowly holding him by the waist so the bindings around his leg wouldn't get wet.

"What is your problem?"

"You kicked me! That's my problem!" Jou yelled. There was a wash rag setting on the side of the tub. Jou grabbed it, moving it closer to the two. Kaiba didn't seem to know how to get out of the sticky situation. He realized he was nearly pinned to the tub, Jou narrowly holding him up where he wasn't holding himself. To top it off, the water that was swirling around his hands was making it hard for him to keep balance.

Jou pulled him back onto the edge of the tub and pulled at it his shirt until it was fully off, revealing the skinny figure beneath. Maybe Jou hadn't really seen everything in perspective, but as he stared at Kaiba he realized that there had been more damage than he had perceived. There was a visible mark where the seatbelt had held Kaiba back, trailing from his left shoulder to his right hip. The array of colors that traced his chest was motley as some were healing and some seemed to want to hang around forever.

"Surprised? It's what happens when you get hit by a car," Kaiba sneered at the shocked look on Jou's face. After a moment Jou seemed to snap out of his haze, grabbing the rag and running it in the water. "Must hurt you worse though."

"Give it a rest already," he said, handing the rag over. "You're a broken record."

"It's seems to finally be sinking..."he shot his arm out, bracing himself against the wall. Jou lifted up, trying to get a look at his face where he was trying to hide it.

"Somethin' the matter?"

"Just...dizzy..."

"You nauseous?" Jou moved in closer. It was in that moment he was truly caught off guard. A metaphorical kick in the groin awoke him, but instead of pain there was a bit of pleasure. The lips of the two males had touched, and for a few seconds they seemed not to want to let go. Kaiba had his hands bracing Jou's shoulders, holding him in the embrace. Jou pulled back as fast as he could, backing into the opposite wall. His fingers wiped over his lips trying to rid himself of the saliva. "What the fuck was that?"

"What do you think?"

Jou feigned gagging. "That's a damn dirty trick. Damn you! Ya prick!"

A smile of victory crossed Kaiba's lips. He turned away from Jou, laughing under his breath. "Fuck you, I give up on this! Take me to court of whatever the hell you want, I'm not bein' insulted like that."

Jou stormed out leaving Kaiba's laughter behind.

It took over an hour for Jou to cool down, his fingers running over his lips the entire time. He would look over his shoulder, wondering what exactly Kaiba was thinking when he pressed his lips against Jou's. There was no way such a self righteous individual, in whatever way it could be said, would stoop to that level to try and win his fights.

No, Kaiba wasn't someone to stoop to that level. Jou lowered his head and considered the one thing that could be the truth: the medications that Kaiba was on were causing a strange lapse in his reality, and his reasoning. It was the only thing.

Jou stood up from the edge of his bed, his hand slipping off of the duffle bag handle. He had packed his things but couldn't bring himself to actually leave.

He wandered the halls slowly, his fingers brushing along the walls carefully. He passed by a few maids, smiling at them. They always gave a leery smile back to him, almost asking him why he was doing what he was doing and why he was putting up with their employer's crap.

Jou stood outside of Kaiba's door, peering into the room like a peeping Tom. The crack was just enough for him to see the sapphire sheets that hung of the bed, crumpled where it hadn't been made in a few days. He could clearly see there was an occupant of the bed, a soft breathing coming from the room. He stepped a little closer to the door, his breath hitching. There was a sharp moan coming from the room, causing Jou to step back.

"Are ya alright?" Jou asked slowly. He opened the door fully, taking short steps in. "Kai-?"

"What time is it?"

Jou brought his wrist up and looked at his watch. "It's past two."

"Eeernn…" Jou knew that it had been a while since Kaiba had had any medication.

"How bad is the pain?"

Kaiba didn't seem to be in his right mind to answer. He was rubbing his thigh in one continuous motion, acting as if that would soothe the pain. "Kaiba?" Jou was at his side, lying on the bed. He gently pressed two fingers against Kaiba's side. There was a mild flinch. "I'm not goin' anywhere," he said, guilt washing over him. "But don't think it's because of you! It's because of Mokuba." Which really didn't make sense, but he was sure that Kaiba wasn't really caring about logic at this point. Kaiba stretched a hand out, grabbing Jou's and squeezing it.

"I'm...I'm alright," he said, but his shaking voice negated those words. "I'll be okay..."He wasn't saying it to appease Jou or himself. Jou wasn't even sure he was really paying attention to what he was saying to the air. He lifted up, his hand still tangled in Jou's. There was a faint smell of fruit in the air.

"Lay down," Jou said calmly, pressing him back. "I'll be back here in a minute, just rest alright?"

Kaiba wouldn't let his hand go though. He held much tighter, forcing Jou to stay sitting next to him. "Stay..." his voice was shallow and riddled with pain. Jou tried to untie his hand from where Kaiba held tight, only to find that it felt almost wrong to let it go. "I don't want to beg you," Kaiba said, asserting himself a bit more.

Jou pressed a hand to Kaiba's shoulder, almost to force him down or give some reinforcement to try and get away from Kaiba's grip. That was when he caught the CEO's gaze. It was a mesmerizing yet hazy stare. It wasn't cold or hard or even strict. It was tired, a little lonely and riddled with pain and displeasure. The tighter his hand squeezed around Jou's the more Jou was forced to look in the dark blue eyes, as if he were looking for something deeper.

"Kaiba…"Jou trailed off. "Let me go Kaiba, I can help ya if ya let me go…"

There was a hesitance, but Kaiba finally let the nurse go, his head turning away. Jou pursed his lips, slowly rising from the bed and walking out of the room. He stopped in the hall, looked back, and then looked forward. Mokuba was going to be home late, he'd already made that apparent. Jou wasn't sure how much longer he could take Kaiba, at least in the doses he was taking him by. It wasn't that it was Kaiba that was getting to him either; he'd taken enough hell through high school with the man, but now it seemed different.

Jou had to lean against after a few corridors, stopping to catch his breath almost. There was a strange feeling in the pit of his gut, one he couldn't exactly explain. It was a sick feeling that was coming over him, almost like he was going to puke, but he wasn't. His hand gripped around his stomach, clenching the fabric of his shirt. He knew what it was, but he just didn't want to admit that he knew what it was.

He got sick not at anything gory or anything that you were suppose to get sick at. He got sick at feelings that he wasn't accustomed too. Feelings that seemed almost misused and hidden away. He nearly doubled over in the hallway but forced himself to move onward toward his bedroom where he nearly collapsed.

It was fear too, he had to admit. Fear of this unknown feeling. The problem about this feeling, mixed with the fear that he could identify, was that his heart was willing to understand it, but his mind was having a hard time wrapping around it.

"Kaiba..."he said in a sigh. He couldn't believe that either. His heart was forcing him to feel the emotions that he'd almost seemed to lack, at least beyond the familial love that he was use to with his sister, Shizuka.

What was worse, he figured, was that Kaiba had true feelings when looking at him. Those eyes were pure, even though he wanted to believe that they were drugged. They were unbiased and gave a direct look into the CEO's complicated mind.

Jou gagged a little. "He's not!" he said, fighting the truth. "He doesn't! Never!" And yet, his heart negated every word.

He picked up the bottle of hydrocodone and clutched in his hand. Maybe if he had Kaiba settled back into his right mind, without the pain where he was able to concentrate a little better, things would smooth out and they would just forget about the whole embarrassing scene.

Jou nodded. That sounded good. His stomach seemed to settle even though his heart was still pounding madly, almost skipping.

Jou made his way back to Kaiba's room with confidence, a small skip in his stride. He didn't want it to seem like all of this was hitting him like it actually was. When he walked into the room he wasn't surprised to see that Kaiba had dozed off again. Jou sat down on the edge of the bed, gazing at the CEO with mournful eyes when seeing that his suffering seemed to continue despite his lapse into the dream realm. Jou touched his hand, shaking it somewhat. Kaiba's eyes opened narrowly, but he didn't even seem too sure of where he was until he saw Jou sitting next to him. "Makin' sure you ain't passin' out on me or nothing," Jou said, forcing a smile on his face. "I got somethin' that can help," he said. Kaiba didn't seem so interested in what Jou had in his hand. He took hold of Jou's hand once more, this time almost pulling the blond onto him.

"You know, I never joke," he said, sounding somewhat drunk with his words. He was laughing at what he said, a smile on his face like one Jou hadn't seen before. Maybe it seemed sentimental, but that fact that he wasn't being arrogant or cocky with his smile proved to Jou that whatever was going through Kaiba's mind had nothing to do with him plotting a way to demean the nurse.

"I guess that's why you're so annoying," Jou replied, his head bowed.

"You liked it," Kaiba laughed, nodding. "I can just tell."

"You're so full of it." He laid one of the pills in the CEOs hand. Kaiba took it, looking over toward the bathroom.

"You won't admit it, but you did like it," he said. Jou took the glass of water off the nightstand and handed it to Kaiba. The CEO lifted up, the same strange smile on his face. He grabbed Jou by the collar and pulled him down. "Dogs always love their masters," he whispered, holding Jou as best he could. The nurse fought at first, but then stopped, staring into Kaiba's blue eyes again and feeling endeared.

Their lips touched again, this time without fierceness or pride getting in the way. Half of Jou wanted to pull away, while the other half wanted to keep plowing in. There was a certain cosmopolitan taste in Kaiba's mouth the longer they held out. Jou didn't fight it after some time had passed. He wasn't sure what had suddenly changed, maybe it was that taste. "C'mon puppy," Kaiba was trying to pull Jou right onto his person. "Indulge me."

It wasn't that Jou was trying to stay away from Kaiba; rather, he didn't want to get too close in fear of causing further harm to the CEO. Jou pressed his mouth to Kaiba's once again; hoping that simply shutting him up would suffice. He scooted closer though, bracing himself by putting one arm on the other side of Kaiba, hoping that too would suffice. "Kaib'..."

"Eh..?"

"Why are you..."but the words couldn't be completed. Kaiba's hands were tracing up Jou's sides, his fingertips tracing in every crevice. He was slowly pulling Jou's shirt up and the blond wasn't fighting it. "How far..."

"As far as I can," he said, being somewhat self centered in this. Jou caught his face to see the promiscuous smile crawl over his face. Jou was surprised at himself when he realized he'd finished what Kaiba started in pulling his shirt off. Kaiba had moved on, his hands already sinking into Jou's pants while his lips touched the nurse's neck tenderly.

"Why are you doin' all the work…"his breath was sharpened when he felt a pair of teeth sink into his shoulder. He pulled away from Kaiba after that, rubbing his shoulder tenderly. "What the hell was that?"

Kaiba smirked at him and leaned against his pillows, his eyes closing. The CEO crossed his arms and seemed to go aloof. Jou figured it was the pain medication kicking in and it was causing bit of rationality in Kaiba.

"I better not be bleedin'," he got off the bed and went into the bathroom, touching his shoulder where there were visible teeth marks, but nothing bleeding. He sighed, staring at Kaiba from the mirror. He turned around and walked back, sitting on the bed and crawling up toward the brunet.

"So…"Jou began, with no real reason for the words. He immediately began straddling Kaiba, the CEO flinching despite Jou's best attempts at not resting on his injured leg. "How is it you take it?" he asked, his lips pressing to Kaiba's out of his own will. Kaiba already began wrapping his arms around Jou's neck as he sank back into the bed. Jou didn't waste his time taking the CEO's shirt off, tossing it off the bed. His fingers ran down Kaiba's bruised side where he added pressure to the likely wounded ribs.

"I don't believe it," Jou muttered. Their foreheads were touching, his dark eyes staring right into Kaiba's now more coherent blue orbs. Despite Kaiba's initial reactions of pain, which were to be expected, there was a shiver that went through him as well; a smile coming to his face whenever Jou pulled his lips away. "You? A masochist?" He laughed. "Of all the things that I could learn, I would never have thought."

Kaiba rolled his eyes at Jou's words. His fingers pinched at the nape of Jou's neck pulling his face in. The race was on.

It was sweaty, it was harsh, but then Jou wasn't afraid to pinch or bite or even put pressure against Kaiba's wounded body. Eventually both lay in the bed, stark naked, Jou full of energy like any dog in heat should be, but Kaiba was worn. Jou had to give him credit when it came to taking pain. Anything that Jou did, while causing a ripple of pain, caused a ripple of pleasure, something that Jou found very intriguing and at the same time very alluring. He would have thought that, if anything, Kaiba would have been the sadist if it came down to it. And maybe, Jou thought, it was sadomasochism. It was obvious by the bite mark still on his shoulder.

The only thing that made Jou feel wrong (which he was surprised that all of it didn't) was when Kaiba finally removed his underwear (which wasn't an easy task considering his leg) and Jou saw more of what he was unaware of.

The cut that he'd seen in the bathroom was only a prelude. He didn't see anything wrong at first, but maybe that was because he didn't look. It caused a pause in his actions, actions that Kaiba made verbal, almost begging for Jou to continue. When Jou saw a minor tinge of blue and red surrounding the area, he was appalled. He could see a small bit of visible swelling throughout, yet Kaiba hadn't said a word or even complained that there was anything wrong with him other than the visible marks on his open flesh and his leg.

"Kaib?" Jou asked, touching his shoulder. Kaiba either didn't want to respond, which seemed possible, or was just too tired. "Kaib, wake up."

"You're a good one..."he trailed off absently. It seemed that Kaiba was finished and was pronouncing his finish as he searched for the covers of the bed. Jou, whose face was softening at the sight of Kaiba drifting off into dream land, grabbed the covers for the CEO and pulled them up to his shoulders.

There was apparent sweat on Kaiba's brow that Jou was hoping would subside. He was also hoping that no one would see that Kaiba was fully undressed. Jou didn't feel like rousing the man at the moment (he was just too serene) but he did plan on dressing him before Mokuba returned.

Jou stood up and gathered his clothes, dressing swiftly, and then walked out of the CEOs room closing the door on his way out. He was immediately met by a maid.

"Good afternoon Jounouchi-san," she said. "Is Kaiba-sama…?"

"He jus' went t' sleep. Couldja...clean the room or whatever later?"

"Oh," the maid looked at Jou head to toe and giggled. "Of course Jounouchi-san."

She walked away while Jou tried to retain some of his dignity. He was holding in his breath as tightly as he possibly could to keep from yelling at the woman. Still, he was sure that there was a visible blush on his cheeks.

A/N: Honestly I hope you don't feel gypped...I guess this is more prelude, even though it did actually happen between them...keep in mind that kaiba wasn't really there...in a sense...it becomes rather important later. Well, till next tme, KenSan out!