Kaiba crossed his legs and shifted uncomfortably in the private booth. He cleared his throat and adjusted his tie.
"You're not eating. Is there something wrong?" He asked, as Salem checked her phone again.
They had only been seated for twenty minutes, she had checked her phone three times already.
Salem sighed and looked at Kaiba, pocketing her phone.
"Atem really needs to check his email more often. I CC'd him on a correspondence between Pegasus and I and he had the nerve to ask who his celebrity client was today. Just to teach him a lesson I told him I couldn't tell him." She explained, picking at her salad.
Kaiba clicked his tongue and shook his head,
"I don't want to talk about Atem." He said, taking a sip of his water.
Salem breathed out slowly and nodded,
"Right, then. What did you want to talk about?" She asked, still not eating her food.
Kaiba shrugged his shoulders,
"What do you mean?"
Salem shrugged her shoulders, mimicking Kaiba,
"What do I mean? Why did you ask me to lunch? I assumed it had something to do with the patent for the cosmetics line?" She said, putting her fork down on the table.
"Oh. No. This isn't a meeting." Kaiba said simply.
Salem furrowed her brow and blinked at the brown haired CEO.
"Then what is this?" She asked, gesturing at the untouched food on the table.
Kaiba gave her a calculated stare, examining her flawless skin and loose tendrils that framed her face,
"A date."
Salem laughed loudly, attracting the attention of the other guests having lunch at the upscale sushi restaurant.
Kaiba smiled at Salem and tilted his head,
"I don't know why you think that's funny, Ms. Wolf. Considering my public image is in jeopardy which means bad publicity for your cosmetics line." He hummed.
Salem was immediately silent.
"What are you saying?" She asked, not liking where the conversation was headed.
"You are to act as my significant other until this whole love triangle dilemma is cleared up. At least until it's become old news." Kaiba said, calling the waitress over.
Salem glared at the brunette as he ordered two lavender mimosas. She waited for the waitress to leave before speaking again.
"Atem isn't going to like this. He may be dealing with a lot but it's obvious he still has feelings for you." She explained.
"Atem has made his choice. Maybe he should have thought about how his actions would affect those around him. Don't worry, I'm still very much gay and have no intention of having sex with you." He said in a hushed voice.
"Well, I'm still asexual and have no intention of doing any of this make-believe nonsense with you." She said, crossing her arms.
"Then I guess we'll throw out your contract and Pegasus' permission to use any images or likeness of his life's work." Kaiba answered, narrowing his eyes.
Salem scoffed,
"You can't be serious."
"Oh, I'm very serious. You see, Ms. Wolf, you're incredibly smart, business-savvy, and not to mention extremely beautiful. Having something-"
"Something?" Salem huffed.
"Someone, like you by my side will make everything blow over in no time. If you're convincing enough, it'll go by quickly." He said, switching to German as the waitress approached the table with their drinks.
As the waitress left, Salem sighed.
"I guess I have to do this if I want my line launched, yes?" She asked, watching Kaiba take a sip of his drink.
"Oh, you don't really have a choice." He said.
Salem shook her and sighed again,
"Fine. But no touching." She said.
"No, that's happening. I'm going to have to touch you, hold you, and even kiss you in public if necessary. At no point will you ever have to take your clothes off or go passed 2nd base-Actually 3rd base. We may need to "get caught" being intimate so-"
"I'm not putting my mouth on your-"
"Relax, Ms. Wolf. Like I said, if you play the part well, it won't have to go that far." Kaiba said, taking another sip of his drink,
"Mmmn. You should really try this cocktail there's fresh lavender in here." He finished, relishing Salem's scowl.
"Cheer up, Pharaoh! I'm paying for everything!" Pegasus hummed, catching Atem's sour expression.
Atem rolled his eyes and stared at his phone again.
Salem: Check your email next time if you're so mad.
Salem: Also, Dipshit (Seto Kaiba) and I coming to join you two… It's going to be a strange evening..
He sighed and decided not to reply.
What would be the point.
"How are you and little Yugi?" Pegasus asked with a smirk as he sipped his cocktail.
Atem glared and scoffed,
"That's really none of your business." He grumbled, refusing to drink his coconut rum drink.
Pegasus chuckled and set his cocktail on the table. He flipped his long silver hair and leaned in closer to Atem.
"I bet he's a little devil in bed, eh? Te'a once confided in me that little Yugi loves to be punished…" He purred, imagining what twisting things Yugi enjoyed.
"Shut up." Atem growled, finally deciding to take a gulp of his cocktail.
Pegasus gave Atem an innocent smile,
"It's only the truth, Pharaoh. If I was wrong you would have said so…" He trailed off, waving down the waitress.
Atem watched Pegasus order a bottle of wine before shooing the waitress away. He huffed and tossed his long maroon braids over his shoulder. He was done being tolerant for the evening.
He felt his blood boil when he saw Salem and Kaiba being escorted to their table. It looked like Salem had changed from her skin tight white dress and leather jacket to a short blush pink fit and flare dress with a white lace trim. Her white pumps clicked loudly as patrons of the bar stared at one thing.
Kaiba's arm around her waist.
Kaiba cleared his throat as he let Salem in the booth first, completely ignoring Pegasus' gaping mouth.
Atem fumed as Kaiba sat on the outer edge of the booth, the brunette immediately putting his arm around Salem's waist and pulling her uncomfortably close.
"My, my… You sure work fast, Kaiba-boy.." Pegasus said, licking his lips at Salem.
"Have some respect, you disgusting old man." Kaiba spat, ignoring Atem's glares from across the table.
"What? Ms. Wolf, you're simply stunning. How can I help myself?" Pegasus said, smirking at the waitress when she brought over a bottle of rose'.
As she poured the drinks, Salem smiled at Atem.
"This isn't real. Please don't be upset." She said to the ex pharaoh in Arabic.
Atem clicked his tongue,
"I know. Mokuba told me after the meeting. He's groping your hip right now. Are you okay with that? I can tell him to piss off." He answered in the same language, happy that he could communicate truthfully.
Salem shook her head and feigned a pleasant expression,
"If I say no to him in public, he'll rip up our contract...I don't think he would but I don't want to risk it." She said, shifting uncomfortably in Kaiba's vice like grip.
"Mokuba said something like that too… I'm sorry for all of this. He's just lashing out because I didn't answer him when he-"
Atem was interrupted by Salem wincing in pain. He looked at Kaiba and Pegasus who were glaring at the two beauty gurus. His eyes shifted down to Kaiba's hand, the fingers still pinching at the side of Salem's thigh.
He glared back at Kaiba,
"Do you want to let go of her now?" He seethed, seeing Salem's skin turn red where Kaiba's fingers were still latching on.
Kaiba chuckled evilly,
"Do you want to include us in your conversation?" He asked, squeezing Salem's skin harder.
"You're hurting me. Atem and I were just catching up." She yanking Kaiba hand off of her thigh, only to have the brown haired CEO keep his arm around her waist.
"Oh really?" Pegasus asked, raising an inquistive eyebrow.
"Yes. I was saying how nice your beat looks." Salem said, taking a large gulp of wine, hoping it would dull the pain in her thigh.
"I don't see why you had to say that in Arabic." Kaiba stated, knowing Salem was telling a lie.
"Oh so she can't speak her native language in a public place? What's next? A curfew?" Atem spat, wishing he could reach over the table and slap some sense into the tall brunette.
"That's a little dramatic, Pharaoh." Pegasus said with a chuckle.
"Pfft. See how unreasonable you're being, Atem? Pegasus is calling you dramatic." Kaiba smirked, pulling Salem closer when she tried to scoot closer to Atem.
"All of you actually. I thought we were celebrating! Now we have even more to celebrate with you and Ms. Wolf...together?" Pegasus said, raising his wine glass.
His toast was met with reluctance by the younger three, all of them rolling their eyes.
"So when do you two... You know, realize you-"
"During the vacation the Enoshima a couple of weeks ago." Kaiba interrupted Pegasus. He didn't have a full backstory on his fake relationship with Salem yet and he needed to make sure he didn't ruin everything before the press caught wind of his new beard.
"Ahhhh makes sense. I have to say everyone thought it was strange that Seto Kaiba just up and left Domino for a weekend beach getaway. Now it makes sense." Pegasus reasoned, taking a graceful sip of his wine.
Atem fumed silently.
Of course.
Of course Kaiba was using that awful weekend to his advantage.
Atem wondered what Pegasus would think if he found out that Salem and Kaiba's "relationship" was bogus. He knew that it was just decided today that Kaiba and Salem would parade around as a power couple. Meaning Kaiba didn't have time to learn anything about the curly haired tycoon.
"That was such a strange weekend. Too bad you didn't get to take Salem to her favorite restaurant near the beach, eh Kaiba? What was her favorite food again?" Atem questioned.
Kaiba smirked.
So Atem was going to play this game?
Okay then.
"Actually, Salem and I had a bit of an accident resulting in her ankle getting sprained. I decided it best that she rest, and I ordered an array of different seafood. Extra seared Salmon, of course. Didn't Salem show you our mukband video?" Kaiba glared at Atem.
"Nice try, Pharaoh. You're going to have to be smarter than that to catch me in a lie." Kaiba thought, trying to tune out the sound of Pegasus squealing.
"Oh my! A mukbang! How come I haven't seen this yet! Salem, you're holding out on content!" Pegasus was practically yelling.
Salem cleared her throat. She had been drinking the entire time Kaiba and Atem were talking and not eating during lunch was starting to take its toll.
"Oh. Um. Not on purpose. I needed Seto's consent to post the video. Now that I have it, it'll be posted by the end of the day tomorrow." She said, trying to sound as if she wasn't feeling the effects of the rose' on top of the earlier mimosa.
Atem felt steam shoot from his ears as Kaiba refilled Salem's glass. It was clear his friend was already tipsy, and Kaiba was taking advantage.
He watched as Kaiba drummed his fingers against Salem's waist and use his free hand to give Salem her now overly full glass of wine.
"My, my… Do you two lovebirds need a bigger booth?" Pegasus hummed, nudging Atem with a wink.
Atem rolled his eyes. He wasn't about to give up now.
"Pegasus, Salem would never. Not this early. They've only just gone public today." Atem said matter of factly, taking a small sip of his wine. He didn't want to get too drunk. He needed to stay alert.
There had to be a reason why Kaiba was trying to get Salem drunk.
He knew Kaiba would never try anything sexual so that wasn't it.
Pegasus looked at Kaiba,
"Oh, so you two haven't-"
"I hardly see how that's any of your business, pervert." Kaiba answered, not seeing Salem shake her head no at the silver haired CEO.
"Ah, you're so right. My apologies." Pegasus said with a chuckle, winking at Salem.
"Yes, Pegasus. How rude of you. I mean they probably don't even kiss in public yet. It's just too early." Atem said, egging Kaiba on.
"Early? I'd say two weeks is more than enough time to show the world your love!" Pegasus shouted, accidentally getting the attention of the other patrons of the restaurant.
Atem smirked.
"Your move, Kaiba."
"Would you lower your voice? Salem and I are dignified and would never-"
"A kiss on this lips isn't inappropriate when you're dating someone." Atem chimed in, earning a glare from Salem.
"What the hell are you doing?" She asked in Arabic.
"Calling his bluff." Atem answered quickly, not wanting Salem to be pinched again.
"I agree." Pegasus added, crossing his arms.
"If you two were really together, you would have no problem sharing a small kiss, right?" Pegasus finished, loving Salem's bright red cheeks.
"Salem and I aren't going to kiss so that you have something to masterbate to later, old man." Kaiba spat, standing up.
"Excuse me." Kaiba said, leaving the table and heading toward the restrooms.
Atem clicked his tongue and looked at Salem, who was completely fed up with the evening and too tipsy to do anything about it.
He would do something about it then.
"Pegasus, let me out. I have to go to the bathroom as well. Will you keep Salem company?" Atem said, nudging Pegasus out of the booth.
"Oh it would be my pleasure!" The older male said as Atem started to walk toward the restroom.
Atem made his way through the bar and dining room like a predator on a hunt. He pushed the bathroom door open, seeing Kaiba standing at the sinks, on his phone.
"So, you and my roommate." Atem started, checking underneath the stalls to make sure they were alone.
Kaiba looked up from his screen and smirked.
Good.
He knew Atem would take the bait.
"So, you and Yugi." Kaiba answered, pocketing his phone crossing his arms.
He raised an eyebrow when the ex pharaoh turned and locked the bathroom door.
"Enough, Kaiba. You can do whatever you want to me, but you leave Salem out of your sick game." Atem threatened, pointing a finger into Kaiba's chest.
"My game? Who's the one trying to get me to kiss her in front of an audience?" Kaiba said, taking a step into Atem, causing the maroon haired vlogger to back up.
"I was calling your bluff. Enough of this, Kaiba. You're ruining her dream and that ruins my dream as well. You said you were going to be my friend. Instead you do things to me while I'm incapacitated and extort my roommate. Friends don't do things like that." Atem explained.
He knew trying to reason with Kaiba would most likely get him nowhere but it was worth a try.
"Oh really? I'm only doing what you did to Yugi…" Kaiba murmured, getting even closer to Atem.
"What are you talking about? I never did anyth-"
"Didn't he just want to be friends as well? Instead you get him drunk and get him to cheat on Te'a, another friend of yours. After he sets another boundary, you take him out of town to again, try and get in his pants. The only reason why Salem is now involved, is because of that little stunt you pulled on the beach." Kaiba growled, pushing Atem against the locked bathroom door.
Atem glared at Kaiba, trying to hold his ground.
"Oh? Are you sure it's not because you confessed your love for me in front of literally everyone?" He said, regretting following Kaiba into the bathroom.
His vision went white as he felt a large hand against his cheek. His face was hot and stinging. It took Atem a moment to register that Kaiba had just slapped him.
He opened his mouth to yell at the brunette only to have Kaiba grab his hands and pin them over his head.
Kaiba was breathing heavily. He was overwhelmed and didn't know how to explain himself or his feelings. He looked into Atem's eyes and saw confusion, hatred, and if he didn't know better, a longing to understand.
"Fuck it." He thought, crashing his lips against Atem's, trying to pour every single ounce of passion and love he felt for the ex king into the kiss.
Atem's eyes widened as he processed the familiar feeling of Kaiba's lips on his. His mind was telling him to yell, scream, or kick. Anything to get his ex lover off of him. But, he stayed still.
Something was different.
This kiss was different.
He closed his eyes and let his brain shut off as he felt Kaiba's tongue massage his own, communicating his need and want for Atem's affection.
Kaiba reluctantly pulled away, catching his breath. He let go of Atem's hands and stepped back, keeping his gaze on the ex pharaoh's confused expression.
He waited while Atem opened and closed his mouth, trying to find his words/
"I...I.." Atem stammered, not being able to think of anything to say that would express the intense emotions that the kiss had demonstrated.
Atem covered his mouth, his lips tingling from the loss of contact. He moved his hand from his mouth to his cheek, which stung from Kaiba's other display of passion.
Kaiba's heart fluttered.
Was the pharaoh about to return his feelings?
Had the kiss worked?
He watched as Atem reached behind himself to unlock the bathroom room door.
"I'm leaving." Atem finished, hurrying out of the bathroom as quickly as he could.
Kaiba's jaw dropped as he caught the ex pharaoh leaving the restaurant as the door closed.
"Way to blow it for the billionth time, asswipe."
Happy Birthday to Yugi Mutou!
I wanted to post small stories on my tumblr for puzzle june so make sure to follow me QueenBEWD to see those (I won't be posting them on A03 or ).