Summary: When the ever popular Yami, Marik and Bakura accidentally meet the Outkasts (a.k.a. Yugi, Ryou and Malik) they get into a very rocky start. But as fate decided it, coincidences keep happening...
Disclaimers: Don't own, don't sue. Duh.
VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
Chapter Nine: Unwanted AffectionVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
Ryou sighed as he sat on his chair the following morning, staring at his Chemistry book, trying to study for the test, but not really processing anything, because he was thinking of something else. He couldn't help but remember yesterday—more specifically, last night. After meeting up with the three Jocks, Malik had been quiet the entire day, but when they were going to sleep, the blonde burst into tears.
"I don't understand anything anymore! I know I can't love him, I know I shouldn't love him…but I can't stop what I'm feeling!"
The albino himself felt scared, frightened, distressed…seeing his normally confident, in-control and self-possessed friend breaking, crying, over a silly dumb Jock, was almost moroe than he could take.
I suppose you couldn't know pain if you didn't know pleasure…Malik had a taste of what it was to love someone, and that person had completely broken his trust. Now the blonde was so afraid to love again…yet he wanted it too…
Ryou sighed again. Of all the people, why did it have to be that Jock? The chocolate-eyed boy was quite certain that Marik would not be able to deal with Malik's attraction smoothly. He was even afraid that the Jock would hurt his friend.
He's not that bad, his mind reminded him. Malik must have seen something nice in him to fall in love.
Ryou rolled his eyes. He wasn't holding his breath for THAT probability.
And neither is your Jock, the voice continued. He's okay when you get used to him. And he's pretty hot. Most of the girls in school like him.
Were they still talking about the same person? Because Ryou could not imagine liking his Jock. No way. He felt himself shudder in horror at the thought.
Wasn't he nice to you when you were doing the Art project?
They were sooo not talking about the same person anymore.
He tried to distract himself from these annoying voices nagging him—goodness me, if that…thing…talking to him was his conscience, he would give up and ignore the evil thing—but, ironically, the first thing his eye fell to was a certain taller albino who looked too much like him. Damn.
More ironically, the only chair that was unoccupied was the one behind him, and the Jock sauntered up to him, offered a smirk (smile? No way…) then sat behind him. "Hey," he greeted softly.
Ryou was wondering if he should return the greeting or raise his eyebrow, when their Chemistry teacher entered the room. "All right, class, pop quiz time!" she announced cheerfully. A collective groan came from the class, and Ryou couldn't help but rolling his eyes. As if it wasn't announced. For goodness sakes, they had already known a quiz was coming up, yet they didn't study!
The teacher ignored their complaints and started handing out the papers, and they began answering the test. It was silent as the students answered.
The class was already a few minutes into the test, when somebody knocked at the door. "Excuse me?" A tall senior was outside the door, and their teacher hurried to talk to her. Several students took the time to casually compare their answers with their neighbors.
Bakura stared with distaste at the students who were quietly comparing answers—more locally known as cheating. He may be stupid, but he had a great amount of pride in knowing he never stooped down to their level. He frowned at the test—he didn't know half the things in it, but he was pretty sure he could wing it. After a few minutes of guesswork, he looked up and saw the teacher was still not done talking to the student outside the classroom.
He looked in front of him; the little Outkast was seemingly absorbed in answering the test. Bakura smirked. Time for a little distraction. He tore a piece of paper from his notebook, scribbled something at it, and then crumpled it into a ball. Then he casually dropped it on top of the test paper his counterpart was writing on.
Ryou frowned as a crumpled piece of paper fell onto his test paper. What the—? He turned to look behind him, and Bakura winked at him. Figures. After stealing a glance to see if the teacher was not looking, he slowly unfolded the piece of paper and read the message.
We're still meeting for the Art project today, right?
He rolled his eyes. Geez, was the guy getting Alzheimer's disease or something? He had just told him yesterday that they were meeting.
After scribbling down his reply (Yes, we are, you nitwit) and neatly folding it, he checked to see if the teacher wasn't watching, he turned around, and was about to drop it onto Bakura's desk, when the other boy took hold of his hand, fingering the letter.
Ryou felt the blood rush to his face at the warm hand pressing against his. He didn't know what to do…all he knew was he didn't want to let go. When Bakura slowly pulled away the letter from his hand, Ryou realized it would look extremely awkward if he held on and he pulled his hand away, blushing as he did so. He quickly turned his back on the Jock.
What the HECK just happened! He screamed into his mind. That did NOT just happen, tell me it didn't happen…
Oh, it did, his inner voice told him, a trace of amusement in his mind. And I think you liked it, too.
Ryou mentally glared at the voice, and tried to concentrate at the test again. Stupid Jock, holding his hand like that! Stupid, stupid Jock!
VVV
After Chemistry class was over, Bakura, despite himself, found himself waiting outside the classroom for the Outkast. The kid was taking so long, even actually neatly placing his things in his bag. Normally Bakura just stuffed his things and walked off. He smirked. He remembered how neat the other boy's part of the locker had been, while his part was a complete mess. After all, they were locker partners.
Ryou finally got out of the room, and he was very surprised to see his idiot Jock counterpart waiting (WAITING!) for him. Ryou looked back at the classroom—was there anybody else there? Because there was no way Bakura could be waiting for him…
"Are you looking for something?" The taller boy asked.
…So the guy was waiting for him…Ryou tried to ignore the warm (happy?) feeling that passed through him. "No, not really. What are you doing here?'
"…Waiting for you?" Bakura answered, raising his eyebrow. Duh. Who did he think he was waiting for, the TEACHER?
"Oh…" in a few minutes, the two of them were walking toward their locker, in companionable silence. Ryou was in shock. Could he actually last in this guy's presence without wanting to kill him or kill himself?
This was unbelievable.
They eventually reached their locker, and Ryou hesitantly opened it. Was the guy actually acting polite today? He must have eaten something wrong today…he winced as he saw Bakura's side of the locker. It was a mess. One day he would have to clean it…or maybe he'd just ask for a new locker partner. He placed his books into the locker, then moved away to let Bakura put in his books.
"So…" Bakura started casually as he stuffed his things into the locker, "do you mind waiting for me after my soccer practice?"
Ryou raised his eyebrow. "Why should I?"
"Oh, c'mon! It's only an hour!" Bakura exclaimed. "Besides, I bet you could do something while waiting…reading, or whatever you do." He closed the locker with a loud bang, and Ryou couldn't help but cringe at the sound. "You can stay at the bleachers. You don't even have to watch the practice. Just wait for an hour. Then we can go to my house and finish it."
Ooohh….finish what? His mind asked suggestively.
Ryou found himself wondering if his brain had been replaced by aliens why he had been sleeping. It was definitely out of order.
He sighed. "Okay, fine, whatever." He could do this. It was only an hour. Only an hour…
"All right!" Bakura grinned at him, gave him a friendly punch at the shoulder, then left.
Ryou groaned. He was NOT going to like this.
VVV
So that was how Ryou found himself sitting on one of the bleachers, doing his English essay and trying to ignore the stupid soccer practice at the field. He kept checking his watch—and he was annoyed to find out there was more than half an hour left.
You could watch the practice, you know, his mind suggested. Maybe time will go faster that way.
Yeah, right. Like he even ENJOYED soccer. He had been trying to get out of Physical Education classes since he entered high school, thank you very much.
And you can probably see it better if you sit over there! His mind mentally pointed. Ryou looked up; it was the other side of the soccer field, the one where there was a sidewalk. Ryou remembered walking there often.
…
That was also where he met Bakura.
"Stupid idiot, hitting me with a ball," he muttered, frowning at the memory. "Stupid, stupid Jock." That incident only happened a few weeks ago, didn't it? It felt like it had been forever since he met Bakura. His life just got turned completely upside-down.
"Bakura!" Out of instinct, Ryou looked up (it was his last name, you know!) and realized that, once again, it was not him they were calling.
Funny, I think I'm getting the déjà vu.
Yeah, he remembered. Just before the idiot hit him with a ball, he heard Bakura getting called by his name, which was incidentally also his last name.
Ironic, this life.
Ryou turned to look at how the soccer practice was going on—his Jock, surprisingly, was pretty good at it. He was not muscular or large, like most soccer players, but more of lithe, yet still strong. He couldn't help but admire his figure as he went and passed the ball to his teammate. It was almost elegant, the way he played…
Elegant?
Ryou frowned and shook his head. Something was still wrong with his brain.
Note to self: Get a check-up.
VVV
"Okay, team! Practice is over!" Their coach announced, and Bakura felt extremely grateful that the soccer practice was over. Who knew if the little Outkast wanted to strangle and kill him now? He looked up at the bleachers; he felt a strange feeling of disappointment at seeing the brown-eyed boy absorbed with whatever he was writing. Oh well—what did he expect, that the kid would watch him play?
As his other teammates started making their way to the locker rooms, Bakura realized he had another problem. Uh-oh. Ryou probably wouldn't like to wait any longer. So he trudged up the bleachers to inform the other about his shower.
Ryou was oblivious to everything. He was lost in the world of pink fluffy bunnies and rainbow cake and afterlife cupcakes when he felt something warm next to his ear.
"Hey…" a warm, husky voice whispered into his ear.
He involuntarily shivered as he looked up; he found himself getting lost in Bakura's beautiful brown eyes. He was practically drowning in their depths…he smelled a faint scent of the Jock's sweat, mixed with a bit of cologne. It was almost overpowering to be so near him…
Ryou shook himself awake, blushing intensely. What the heck was he thinking? "W-what?" he asked, trying to force the anger into his voice, and feeling that he had failed miserably.
Bakura blinked. Was the Outkast blushing…? "Uh…I just wanted to tell you I have to go get a shower first. Do you mind meeting up with me at the front gate?"
"J-just get going with that s-shower already," he stammered, pushing Bakura away. "You're starting to smell, do you know that?"
The taller albino frowned. Gee…did he have the nose of a dog, or what? "Okay. See you later." So he gave him a friendly pat before heading for the locker room.
Ryou let out a sigh of relief. Thank goodness Bakura was gone. He didn't know how long he could stay in control with him around…
What the hell is wrong with me!
VVV
Ryou was patiently waiting outside the front gate of the school, when someone put an arm around his shoulder. He abruptly turned, lost balance, and nearly fell into Bakura's arms.
"You okay?" the other one asked worriedly.
Ryou, blushing, nodded and steadied himself. "I'm fine," he said pointedly, trying to stop himself from turning red every time Bakura was near him. "Where's your car?"
"Oh, I'm waiting for the limousine," Bakura explained.
Ryou raised his eyebrow. "Limousine?"
He nodded. A few minutes later, a sleek, black limo stopped in front of them. The driver stepped out and bowed to Bakura and Ryou. "Master Bakura." He raised his eyebrow at Ryou, and then returned to his master. "Home?"
Bakura nodded curtly at him, and the chauffeur opened the door for them. Bakura got in, and Ryou hesitantly followed.
The drive to Bakura's house—er, mansion—was uneventful and quiet, for the most part, except when Ryou asked his question.
"Don't you have your own car? Why didn't you use it?" Ryou asked curiously, remembering the incident in which the Jock had nearly run him over; their second meeting. Noticing Bakura's wince, he could tell that the other boy's thoughts were on the same memory as he was.
"Er…well, I kinda woke up late today, and so I ended up using the limousine, then…" as Bakura fumbled with excuses, Ryou merely flashbacked to everything that had happened between him and the Jock. It was almost unnerving; he had memories of Bakura everywhere. It didn't help that they were in the street where they had their second meeting. Argh!
Ryou shook his head. Stupid, stupid Jock!
Bakura just stared as Ryou mentally started arguing with himself again.
Oh-kay…
VVV
When they had gone into Bakura's room and Ryou got started on their Art project, Bakura had begun to get bored. The other boy had told him as bluntly as he could that he was not to touch anything, not to do anything, not to say anything, nothing. And doing nothing was boring.
He was afraid to say so, though, in fear that the Outkast would bite his head off. So he simply stared as Ryou painted. He had to admit, Ryou was very good at painting. He was also very cute when he wasn't scowling, or frowning—he just looked happy and contented, painting there.
Bakura frowned. What the heck was he thinking! That Outkast? Cute? He shook his head. Something is wrong with me…
Ryou turned to Bakura unexpectedly. "Can you hand me the blue paint?" he asked.
Bakura started. "Oh…uh…yeah…" he grabbed the paint, and handed it Ryou, who accidentally ended up spilling the paint into Bakura's shirt.
Ryou stared in horror. Oh no! "Ohmygosh, I am so sorry!" he cried, grabbing fistfuls of tissues and trying desperately to get the paint out of the shirt. The very expensive shirt. Ryou was half-afraid of what exactly Bakura might make him do…hopefully not make him pay for it!
The other albino was in shock; from having paint spilled accidentally on his shirt, and having Ryou practically panicking all over it. Funny, when he dumped ice cream over his shirt before, he wasn't so panicked. Maybe because he was mad then, and also, because this was an accident. "You weren't like this when you dumped ice cream on me," he noted.
The Outkast flushed, stopping in the middle of cleaning Bakura's shirt. "I…uh…" he looked away, feeling embarrassed. He remembered that incident like it was yesterday; and he was so ashamed of himself to lose control of himself like that. Whenever he remembered it, he felt like throwing himself against a rock or something. Stupid, stupid, stupid!
"It's okay," Bakura reassured him, when he noticed that Ryou was avoiding his gaze. "The paint will probably wash off." He stood up, and went to the bathroom. He took off his shirt, and grimaced at it. The blue paint was all over his Lacoste shirt. Oh well. He had dozens of these, anyway.
He returned to his room, where Ryou was cleaning up the other spilled paint on the floor. He looked up when Bakura's footsteps announced his return, and he quickly looked away.
Wow…he's got a great body… his inner voice noted mischievously.
No he doesn't! Ryou argued, as the felt his cheeks heat up.
Yes, he does, the voice countered. (AN: Rivaling Damien, don't you think? )
Ryou tried to ignore his inner voice along with the shirtless Bakura. He could have at least put a shirt on! He thought furiously, as he scrubbed the paint out of the floor vigorously.
"You don't have to do that," Bakura suddenly said, dropping down and taking hold of Ryou's hand, stopping his cleaning frenzy. "I'll just go and call the maid to clean that."
Ryou, meanwhile, was still frozen as Bakura held his hand. Oh man oh man oh man…
Bakura blinked. The other boy was looking very red. "Are you okay?"
Ryou nodded, still blushing, and pushed Bakura away. "It's…just a little hot…" he lied.
Yeah! His body is on fire! His mind said enthusiastically.
"Oh yeah, the air conditioner isn't exactly working…" Bakura said, oblivious to the internal struggle going on in Ryou. "I'll go and get the maid. Wait here." And he left the room.
Ryou breathed a sigh of relief. Thank God he was gone. He wasn't sure how much of this he could take.
Damn! What's happening to me?
VVV
Okay, this is my apology for the super-long update. Long chapter, and lots of BR goodness. Yum yum…my fave pairing! I'll try to update at least once a month…I'm sorry for the long delay. Review!
