Venturing

Flickering on the light on the lamp, Jou began his duty of unpacking his clothes. He flung his duffel bag onto the spacious queen-sized bed and unzipped it to pull out his crumpled clothing. Jou tried to smooth some of this T-shirts out while pulling out his disheveled attire, but the stubborn cloth did not obey his wishes.

The blonde extracted a brown shirt with palm trees embroidered on its left side. He allowed a smile to creep onto his face as he recalled who gave it to him. Honda had blushed when he gave Jou the shirt a few years ago for Christmas, muttering how they were best friends and he needed a vacation shirt eventually.

Good call, Jou thought, fetching a hanger from the closet. He felt guilty about how thoughtful Honda had been to him for as long as he could remember, and he knew that crushing the relationship that Honda wanted to start seemed almost unforgivable. Fortunately, when the blonde met Honda about their so-called relationship, the brunette seemed unfazed by Jou's thoughts.

Jou stared at his beverage, hoping to dismay the feelings of guilt and fear running rampant through his body. He wanted to tell Honda, but then again, he didn't want to tell Honda. The blonde opened his mouth to attempt the words he wanted to utter so badly before closing it again. He desperately needed to tell his friend, sitting across from him as they sat outside their favorite burger joint in the sun. Jou opened his mouth again, and this time, three fries managed to wriggle their way into his mouth, making his amber eyes widen with shock.

Honda chuckled at his friend's reaction. "Hey, Jou, once you're finished with those fries" he called with a smile on his lips as Jou composed himself, one hand folded beneath his chin, "whatever you're thinking about, just say it already. It must be pretty important if you keep looking like a gapping fish."

A red blush painted Jou's cheeks as he finished the fries. He knew he had to say tell him. That's what friends did. Jou avoided Honda's attentive stare and gazed at his beverage again. Taking a deep breath, Jou allowed his thoughts to rush past his lips. "I know that this is kinda a date an' all, an' I know we kissed b'fore an' we're all lovey-dovey at times, an' then, da way ya feel 'bout me, but we can't go any more." Jou silently cursed himself at lapsing back into his horrible dialect.

Honda laughed, unperturbed by the blonde's speech. He patted Jou on the shoulder encouragingly, and only succeeded in deepening Jou's guilt. Why was he being so nice to him? Did he not understand him?

"It's ok," the brunette stated, amused somehow. He picked up another fry and popped it into his mouth. "Actually, I wanted to say something of the same thing. I was just waiting for a good time to tell you." Jou stared at his friend incredulously. "Well, I felt the same way, because you weren't sure and I wasn't sure either. After I thought about, I thought it was kind of awkward to be dating my best friend." Honda threw a french fry at Jou playfully, Jou managing to block its salty exterior from hitting his face. "I like you as a friend better, anyways."

Jou laughed, relieved. "That's true," he returned happily, smiling. "Since we're just friends, I know that there's someone interested in you."

Honda raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "Who?"

The blonde shook his head. "I can't tell you. He would kill me."

Honda narrowed his eyes at his friend, feigning disappointment. Jou flicked a piece of lettuce at him, breaking the brunette from the act. Honda brushed the lettuce from his chest and returned to the conversation. "Well, whoever it is, I'll just have to wait and find out, right?"

Jou just nodded, mysterious emotions bubbling up within him. He didn't understand why, but he felt a pang of solace at Honda's indifference. Still, he saw everything in his favor. His friend was still his friend.

Jou placed a hand on the thread of the embroidery, smiling softly at it as his recollections came to an end. He was relieved that Honda felt the same way, but he couldn't help and wonder why he felt so. Kaiba did not like Honda, and Jou wasn't certain if Honda liked Kaiba. In spite of his relief, Jou was haunted by a game of cat and mouse. Who liked who?

A knock on the door brought Jou out of his thoughts as he went and answered it. Aki stood in his doorway, a soft smile on his lips as he gazed at Jou. "Hey, handsome," the keeper purred seductively, making Jou stare at him longer than he should had. "I wanted to tell you that dinner will be almost ready. I have some time to kill before then." Before Jou could utter any disagreements, Aki entered his room and immediately seated himself on his bed. "My, your mess is even handsome."

Jou smiled at the comment. How could messes be handsome? He knew that anyone else would frown and reprimand him for allowing them the sight of uncleanness, especially a blue-eyed brunette that owned a company, but this man was quite a character.

The way Aki's long, black hair fell over his eyes in thin wisps and flowed from his head over his shoulders would make any girl jealous. His hazel eyes seemed to give Jou the feeling of being watched in the most seductive sense, yet, it also flickered with passion and life that Jou rarely saw in someone of his caliber. His skin, tanned from his occupation, contrasted with his emerald kimono. Aki, Jou decided, was handsome as well, and it mystified him why a man like himself would be interested in a rugged young man like himself.

The raven-haired keeper's smile curved wider as he realized Jou's observing stare. "Like what you see, kiddo?"

Jou's face flushed red at the inquiry. "Hey, I'm not a kid!"

Aki laughed. "Well, that's for sure," he replied, climbing to his feet. He approached Jou, something akin to seduction flashing over his handsome face. Jou gulped as Aki placed a leveled hand on the blonde's shoulder and whispered into his ear, "Then we can play as adults." With that, Aki exited the room, leaving the embarrassed Jou gapping after the keeper.

Chapter 15: Seto realizes why dinner is called late.