I don't particularly like this chapter, because I don't like seeing Jounouchi like this. Ah! Where is Seto at? Well, I don't own Yugioh or the characters within the series. I do hope you enjoy and tell me what you think of it. ^^;
Amnesiac Dreams
VIII. Lingering Anxieties
Shizuka gathered the dishes and took them to the kitchen, as she had mentioned it was her night to do the dishes. Jounouchi sort of sat there for a minute, not sure exactly what he was supposed to do. No one said anything through dinner, other than Shizuka going over her homework. He stood hesitantly and decided it would probably be best to just hide in his room for the remainder of the evening. His eyes met the time as it ticked quietly on the dining room wall, it was nearing seven-thirty.
'Otogi hasn't come by yet. Oh, I wonder if I should tell'em he's comin' over.' He stared over at his mother and Erio as they sat in the living area cuddling by a freshly started fire. They were talking amongst themselves, completely lost in their own world. 'I dunno… No phones after six… I wonder if the same applies to friends comin' over. Maybe I shoulda just told Otogi to stop by in the morning?' The blond sighed and decided to just remain quiet. A gentle hand landed on his shoulder. He turned to see Shizuka staring up at him expectantly. "What's up, big brother?" She asked quietly as to not alert the happy couple.
Jounouchi stepped away and shook his head. "Oh uh, Otogi had mentioned he'd be swinging by to drop off some things of mine." He muttered hesitantly.
Shizuka nodded in understanding. "Oh that's great. Wait, is he coming over tonight?" She questioned gravely.
The blond laughed weakly as he scratched his cheek idly. "Heh heh, yeah. Should be… Why is that a problem?" He asked innocently.
Shizuka glanced over his shoulder and sighed as the two hadn't heard any of their conversation. She returned her attention back to her brother and signaled for him to follow her into the kitchen. Once they were inside she began, "It's just that there's this rule about no phone calls after six and no visitors either… Unless you ask and they say it's okay." She sighed heavily. "I mean, I doubt they'd say anything to you especially since you didn't know, obviously. I should've told you, sorry. Mom's kind of a stickler for the rules." She explained with a roll of her eyes.
Jounouchi nodded. "Nah, I'm sorry. I shoulda said something. Uh… Maybe I can call'em or something an-" At that moment there was the sound of knocking at the door. Shizuka and Jounouchi gave each other mirrored looks of panic before rushing out of the kitchen. The pair nearly ran down Mina and Erio and the four exchanged varied glances. "Uhm. Listen, I…"
Another knock resounded and at that, Erio headed for the front door. Jounouchi followed a few steps behind. Once more he had messed up, hadn't he? Mina gave a questioning glance Shizuka's way and the young girl only shrugged with a cheesy smile. The door was opened slightly and over Erio's shoulder, Jounouchi could see Otogi standing there with bag thrown over his shoulder. "Oh uh, Hello Mr. Rowle sir." Otogi bowed somewhat, "Good evening, is Jounouchi here by chance?" He asked.
Erio studied the male for a moment before cracking a small smile and nod. "…Otogi, correct?" The dark-haired male stood straight and affirmed with a short nod of his own. "Yes. Please, come inside." He stepped back, Jounouchi as well, and the young DDM was allowed entrance. "He's right here. What brings you by this evening?" He asked as he stepped aside.
Instantly, and with deep relief rushing through the young game Creator's eyes spotted the blond-haired teen. "Oh uh, just bringing something over to Jounouchi." He replied and turned to said individual. He seemed to smile with a bit more sincerity as he faced the brown-eyed blond, "Here's that bag I was talking about." He tried to ignore it but everyone's eyes were on him. "Uhm… Okay, well guess I'll see you later, Jounouchi." He gave the blond male a wink, which earned him a small blush and nod from him. Erio watched but didn't say anything more.
Mina stepped forward and smiled gently. "Oh, please where are our manners? Katsuya, dear, your friend came all this way. At the very least, you should thank him. Otogi, dear, thank you for coming all this way. Why don't you stay for a slice of pie?" She offered. Shizuka stared dumbfounded for a moment. Mina turned to her, "Shizuka, honey, go grab a plate for our guest and prepare some hot tea too." She lightly commanded.
The young girl started, "M-Mom I don't think…"
Otogi raised his hands in front of him, "No, it's fine. It's really late. I'm sorry for intruding but I figured Jounouchi would want some things to help him with his amnesia and stuff. But I should really get going. It was good seeing you all again." He started nervously. "I'll be by tomorrow Jounouchi."
Erio stared at the tall teen intently. "You live pretty near by, don't you, Otogi." The statement caught the dice duelist off guard as he turned towards the man, "I appreciate everything you - as well as all of your friends - have done these past couple of weeks. I can tell, you all, really care about Katsuya's wellbeing." He smiled.
Mina second, "Shizuka has told me a lot about you. You've done a lot for my son as well as her." She added. "She told me the many times you've come to her aide in the past." She gushed in deep appreciation.
Otogi nodded. "Well, yes, of course. Honda and I will always be there for both Jounouchi and Shizuka. It's what friends are for." The male turned back to Jounouchi. "Hey, if you ever wanna talk, I'm here for ya. But I should get going, it's late and I have school and whatnot." After a few more attempts from Mina, Otogi was finally allowed to leave. Jounouchi held onto the bag in a death grip. He began to slink backwards as Shizuka returned with a slice of pie on a plate.
"Shizuka, what took so long?" Mina asked sharply.
The girl raised a brow, "What? M-mom, there's like three kinds of pie in there." She defended. "Besides, Otogi probably has a ton of work to do. It's Senior year for all of Katsuya's friends." Shizuka furthered.
Her mother sighed exasperatedly as she ran a gentle hand through the girl's hair. "There is no work so important to a man than a woman proper and always sweet." She hugged her close. "Otogi is a fine young man, sweetheart." Mina and Shizuka started passed Jounouchi and headed towards the kitchen. "Besides, didn't you used to have a crush on him a while back? What happened to that? He's a nice kid with a good head on his shoulders, dear."
"Eh? M-Mom please!" Jounouchi wanted to hear more to that conversation but, they were officially out of hearing range. The blond turned around and rolled over the whole scene that just occurred. But he didn't feel comfortable out here in the open… This place… It didn't feel… His eyes fell to the bag dangling yet sagging in his grip. He took a step forward, wanting, to be honest, to dash into his bedroom and lock the door. He wanted to try on whatever clothes were inside and just see himself for the first time. He smiled weakly. 'I sound like such an idiot, don't I?'
"Katsuya." The blond froze in place as a strong male voice broke through. He turned halfway, faced the tall male with an expressionless gaze, "Listen, I don't know if Mina or Shizuka mentioned so but…"
Jounouchi gave him a sheepish smile and lowered his gaze a little. "Uhm.. No visitors without permission after six, right?" The older offered a smile and sighed somewhat. "Sorry. Shizuka told me right before he came knockin'." He waved his hands in front of him and shook his head, "It won't happen again. I-"
Erio took a deep breath, "Listen Katsuya. It's alright. I'm not sure what's racing through that head of yours right now but it's alright. In a couple of days you'll be right on track and it won't be as bad or frustrating as it seems." He assured. "And… I know I come off perhaps a bit too strongly but… The truth is I…"
Jounouchi took a step closer as the other started to trail off a bit but before the older could continue, Mina returned and placed a gentle hand on the younger's shoulder. "Katsuya, honey, no more friends over so late, okay? I understand you didn't know but just as a reminder for next time, the phone rule applies to this as well." She smiled kindly. "Now then. Sometimes Shizuka can be a bit forgetful so she probably forgot to inform you about the rules around the place."
Erio approached and wrapped his arm around Mina, "Honey, don't overwhelm the poor boy. He's had more than enough excitement for a day. He has a busy week ahead of him, I'm sure this can wait until the morning." He suggested as he pulled her into his arms.
"I suppose you're right. Honey, I'm sorry." She turned to Jounouchi. "So, what's in the bag, Katsuya?" She asked in that suspicious/curious motherly way. The blond unconsciously tightened his hold on his bag. "It's pretty full." She noted as she eyed it carefully.
"Oh uh, this? Actually I'm not really sure." he lied. 'Crap. I can't tell'em they're clothes… How would I explain that? Oh, yeah, they're my REAL clothes 'cause I don't like the ones you guys spent so much money buying for me… I couldn't say that.' Jounouchi bit his lip nervously. "I… I called to just say hey and Honda mentioned he had a bag for me." The blond shrugged to try and show indifference.
Erio looked away as Mina's smile somewhat faded. "H-Honda?" She questioned.
Jounouchi nodded slowly. "Yeah… Honda had this for me but since Otogi was on his way back home… He decided to bring it to me as he passed through." He explained calmly.
"Oh. I see." Mina smiled but… 'I don't understand… What's going on..? Am I just imagining things..?' "Well, your friends I'm sure care a lot about you." She nodded as if thinking to herself. "Well, why don't we go through and see what's inside together, right now?" She offered with a smile and a tone full of excitement but Jounouchi couldn't feel just a little wary.
Mina stepped forward and reached for the bag and on… instinct, perhaps? Well, whatever it was, caused Jounouchi to jump back and bring the heavy bag to his chest in a protective manner. "No!" He shouted in a burst of sudden anger, almost like a panic, that startled both Erio and Mina. He instantly felt bad, "I'm sorry… I just… I'd rather, if I could… Look at it alone first." He felt like a little kid not wanting to share his toy with everyone else. It was foolish of him. They were family after all. 'I shouldn't feel like this.'
Mina stepped forward to reach out to him but Erio stopped her. She looked up at him uncertain but he only smiled assuring. His gaze turned to the confused amnesiac almost sympathetically, "Katsuya, why don't you settle into your room and finish putting your things away. Tomorrow's a big day, for you in particular, so don't stay up to late…" The teen blond nodded and quickly fled away. Mina wanted to go after him, but again, Erio stopped her.
Jounouchi shut the door to his room and brought the duffel bag to his bed. He stared down at it apprehensively. 'Thank's Otogi. I'm sorry about all that weirdness, she acted so strange… Even Shizuka seemed a little surprised by her actions.' He thought about how his mother really wanted Otogi to stay longer -the way Shizuka had talked about the rules he figured they were real sticklers. "But… She wanted him to stay." He fell back onto the bed but didn't take his eyes off of the bag. "Her and Shizuka were whispering about Shizuka liking him or something though… Liking..? Hm… What does she mean by that?" Jounouchi couldn't help but wonder about that. 'Is there anyone that I like?' He winced as a heavy pain began to gnaw at his mind. "These headaches…" He grumbled as it pounded relentlessly so. "I like Honda an' the others… But so does Shizuka." He frowned. "It's different though. Isn't it? The way she… The way Mom said it, she didn't mean it like how I like them."
The image of her and Erio on the sofa came to him then. And his eyes widened despite the pain from his headache, "Like that? Hm…" The blond rolled onto his side, the bag, no longer seen as he stared off distantly. "Is there anyone I like that way?" He closed his eyes to think, but the harder he thought about it, the more painful his headache became. "Why do I feel so empty? Why did I have to lose everything? Please…" Lazily, he reached over and unzipped the top of the bag and he reached for the first thing he could; it was a green jacket he realized as he opened it up and held in in the air to get a better look of it. "It's got a few holes in the sleeves here…" He mumbled off handedly, "And it's a little faded…" He added dejectedly, before throwing it over his head. His hand pulled out another article of clothing, it was a white t-shirt with blue short-sleeves and a blue rectangle on the chest. Jounouchi tried to concentrate on recalling the article but all it served was fueling the ache. He sat up and tossed the shirt over in the direction as the jacket. He stared at the bag for a moment. "There's nothing… Nothing even when I think so hard to remember…" Anger bubbled through his veins and he threw the bag to the ground in anger. "Why can't I remember anything?" He shouted in frustration. "This sucks!" He caught himself as he was about to throw the harmless alarm clock ticking softly now gripped in his hand. The blond stood to his feet and placed the small clock back onto the little nightstand. He fell to his knees beside the tossed duffel bag and pulled it towards him in a protective hug. Seconds ticked into minutes and he slumped against the side of the bed and for the first time that day, began to cry.
'What's wrong with me? Do I cry like this all the time?' Jounouchi gripped the bag closer. "Am I always hurting like this?" He questioned wishing someone could just bring back his memories. "ALL of them." He muttered. He wasn't sure how long he sat there, but he did so quietly as the tears streamed undisturbed. The last thing he wanted for them to come on and start looking at him like he was crazy. 'Even if they don't say it, I've been an inconvenience to them. Haven't I?' Slowly, the blond loosened his hold on the bag and gently placed it on the floor. He wiped the tears from his face and continued to pull clothes out. Unfortunately, nothing came to him as he studied each article of clothing. "With time… Just give it time…" He tried to assure himself.
Jounouchi brought the clothes to the dresser and began to pile them in there. He dragged the bag next to the dresser but left it on the floor. He made his way to the bed and plopped down on it. He stared up at the ceiling blankly. "Otogi owns a GameShop. Yugi owns… No, Yugi's Grandpa owns a GameShop too. Uh… Yugi helps him around the store, he's also the Duelist Champion… Uh… Anzu wants to be a… a dancer!" He closed his eyes and continued to speak aloud all the facts and tidbit's the others had mentioned earlier in the day. "Uh… Honda's my best friend, we grew up together, I uh… I'm the third best duelist in the world - whatever that's supposed to mean." He took a deep breath, "Shizuka is my sister, apparently she had really bad eyesight but I won some money an' she had an operation a while back…" He brought his hands up to his head and groaned. "I don't remember how… I oh right, those cards… a… tournament? Or something?" He recalled Yugi and Honda going on about something like that.
He curled up on the bed and continued despite the pain. "…Yugi and I play a game called… Uh… Duel Monsters..? We're really good at it and… and…" Jounouchi sat up, "This is pointless. I can barely focus with this damn headache of mine!" He growled. "Maybe I should ask if there's anything I can take for it… Something…" He got off the bed slowly and made it to the door but as he began to open it, he could hear his mother and Erio talking - and it didn't sound too good. He brought his door to a crack and listened as best he could.
"Darling, I just don't think Honda is exactly the best influence we need for Katsuya. He's in a very vulnerable state right now and -" Mina stressed in a disapproving nature. 'H-Honda?' "Katsuya's a very impressionable young man between his Father and Honda, Katsuya has turned into quite the ruffian. I heard from Shizuka that him and Honda used to be bullies until Yugi came around and made them change their ways." She furthered.
Jounouchi's eyes widened some. "And you think this Otogi boy is any better for Shizuka?" He asked, almost in a humorous tone.
Mina scoffed. "Oh come on. Shizuka likes the boy and he owns his own store and attends school on top of that. I hear he also has ties to America and to that Pegasus J. Crawford man. At least he has built himself quite the reputation." She defended. "I'm just saying, Honda isn't someone I want courting my daughter."
Erio chuckled despite the seriousness in her tone. "Honey, Shizuka said she USED to have a crush on the boy. That boy, Otogi, has a lot going for him, I agree. But you can't force him to stay, you'll end up scaring him away. Besides, there's something a little off about him too. I'm not sure but I don't care for him spending too much time with Katsuya in particular." Mina made a sort of sound like protest but he continued, "In any case, Shizuka's going to fall for a ton of boys before she falls in love with one." He insisted and sighed. "As for Katsuya… You have to give him something. He had a big day today and I tried to ignore it but from the constant frown he was wearing and Shizuka's mentioning ofchim having a short conversation with Seto Kaiba, I don't think the shopping trip went as well as we hoped it would."
"What are you talking about? Those were some beautiful clothes you picked out. He looks so mature and sophisticated." Jounouchi rolled his eyes and frowned.
"I don't know. He's your son, dear. I just think, maybe we can break him in a little slower… Besides, he's bound to be utterly confused and anxious, if we crowd him too much-"
"Which is precisely why I don't want him having so many visitors at once. I think they wanted to come by tomorrow after school to see him." She relayed with a bit of negativity.
"Yes, that reminds me, I had a conversation over the phone with some young lady the other day asking about him."
"Oh? Was it the young girl with the brunet hair. Uh, what was her name again? Ms. Kanzaki- No, no, Mazaki." She said with a nod.
Erio shook his head in the negative. "No. I believe her name was Kujaku Mai. She said she was a friend of his." He explained.
Jounouchi mulled over the name. '…Kujaku Mai? Kujaku Mai?' The name didn't register to him either. 'But I bet Honda can-' "Ugh. No. That woman is nothing but a gold digger flirting like an ill-mannered tramp. She should be ashamed of herself, involving herself so indecently with my children." She shook her head disapprovingly. "She had Shizuka daring to think of her as an older sister." Jounouchi could almost feel his mother rolling her eyes.
"Well, I see. She's in America at the moment but wanted to offer her regards to him, he was still at the hospital at the time. When she gets the chance, she would like to come see him. But I'm guessing that's a no." He mused.
"Mm. A definite no. Well, it's getting pretty late and I'm sure the kids will be heading to sleep. I'm getting pretty tired too. How about we retire early?"
Jounouchi stepped away and shut the door as the conversation began to die down. He walked over to the desk and managed to find a note pad handy and a pen, "Kujaku… Mai." He whispered and wrote it down, "I'll ask them tomorrow when they come by." He frowned. "If they're allowed to." Jounouchi hesitated as their words crammed themselves in his already taxed mind. "…So I used to be a bully," The blond glared and shook his head. "No, I… I'm a good person. Shizuka's hero, right?" He nodded. "And Honda's a good person too. Does she really feel that way about Honda? Why didn't she mention it to me earlier? And what did he mean about Otogi?" He fell back onto the bed again, his pain hadn't lessened any, in fact, it only worsened. He curled in under the blankets and hoped for sleep to come but at the rate his mind was racing… It didn't seem likely.
