Something warm and soft tickled my heel. I registered it as Diabound right away because she was the kitten out of the bunch that loved curling by feet. The loud thrum near my tailbone was obviously Ducati, although one of the other two was balled up near my shoulders as well. Bakura was curled against my chest, which was a pretty common thing to feel as I woke up each morning. My fingers reached out to comb his hair, but… it was too long.
That record scratch moment was when I fully woke up and remembered the night before. It was Bakura in my arms, just not my thief. I opened my eyes and looked down at Ryou. My fingers continued toying with his hair. Bakura lay beside him, spread eagle with his legs flung over both Ryou and Kek. All I could really see of Kek was a hedge of hair poking out from the blanket. I grinned at them, imagining all the mornings they must have woken up like this- piled together like this. No wonder they were so sad when Bakura left. No one in their right mind would give this up. And the fact that Bakura had been willing to for me said a lot.
It was like having a security blanket. No, it was like having three security blankets, one layered on top of the other, a nest of contentment filled with kittens. It was honestly one of the most comfortable moments of my life. By the light coming through the window, it felt like we'd slept in quite a bit. I thought about getting up and checking the time, but I didn't want to move quite yet. Instead, I closed my eyes again and allowed my thoughts to wander to the last few months. How everything felt flipped upside down, but at the same time, I wanted it to stay that way.
One of the cats shouted from the other side of the bed. I opened my eyes again and saw Hamyaa batting at Kek's spikes. Kek brushed the kitten away and he yelled for attention again.
"I'll feed you in a few minutes," he grumbled under his blanket.
That didn't stop Hamyaa, and after the third exchange, Kek grabbed him and pulled him below the covers to rub his neck and quiet him. His purrs weren't as loud as Ducati, but loud enough to carry throughout the room.
"Hungover?" I asked.
"No. A little tired still." He sat up, careful not to startle the orange kitten in his arms. "You don't think this was some drunk thing, do you?"
"Of course not." I rolled my eyes. Ryou was laying in my freaking arms, why would he worry about that?
"Okay." Kek exhaled. "Guess this just seems too good to be true."
"We're not even doing anything." I chuckled.
"Aren't we? We're doing exactly what I've wanted to be doing for a long time now."
"Laying in bed like bums?"
"It's quality time, you fool." Kek gave me an unimpressed stare.
I only laughed harder for it. He wasn't nearly as fun to tease as Bakura though. Bakura would be screaming by now. Speaking of the devil, Bakura groaned, and stretched, and sat up while blinking his eyes.
"This… isn't hungover…" he mumbled.
"No. This is the bedroom." I shot him with my finger in personation of him.
"Cute." His hair was a little storm swirling over his head, and his sleepy confusion made him a tempting target to kiss, but Ryou was nestled too sweetly in between us for me to attack him.
"Bakura? Are you still drunk?" Kek asked.
"Holy fuck, I think I am. Damn. I need pancakes." Bakura tossed his head back and laughed.
He crawled out of bed and the cats scattered, following him as he stumbled toward the bathroom.
"Feed them!" Kek shouted.
"Yeah! Yeah! Let me piss!"
"Five more minutes and I'll make some pancakes." Ryou sighed, curling closer to me.
"He's lying, isn't he?" I grinned down at him.
"Never trust Ryou's concept of five minutes" Kek shook his head.
"Oh… this wasn't a dream." Ryou opened his eyes, staring at my chest and blushing.
"No. It's not a dream. Bakura is really pissing in your toilet right now. Probably splattering all around the seat as we speak."
"Fuck you! I can hear you, Kek!" Bakura shouted from down the hall before we could hear the toilet flushing and then the sink going.
"Oh gods, you kissed me last night!" Ryou jerked up to sitting, holding his reddening cheeks. "Oh gods, so… is this a thing now? Is- was it a mistake? Or- how do you feel about it this morning, Marik?"
Instead of answering- I was starting to get how Ryou worked- I reached out and grabbed the lapel of his pajama top. I dragged him back down to the bed so that we faced each other while laying on our sides. His eyes were dark and round as I leaned forward and kissed his forehead.
"Okay. That works." All the tension melted from Ryou's body as he settled back into the mattress.
Kek scooted closer and slipped his arm around Ryou. He used his pointer finger to skim across my knuckles. A light shiver fluttered up my spine. We lay there for a moment. Kek and I played an unspoken game of running our fingers up and down Ryou's arm, and seeing how many times we could intentionally brush our hands together in the process. A rich, buttery smell floated into the room, and Kek sat up.
"Damn, that fool really did want pancakes. We probably shouldn't leave him unsupervised."
Kek kissed the back of Ryou's head before slipping away. I kissed Ryou's forehead before following him.
"Am I getting breakfast in bed again?" Ryou laughed.
"Do you want syrup on the sheets?" Kek asked.
"No, actually. I don't. Lube is bad enough." Ryou crawled out bed.
We all ended up in the kitchen, where a fresh pot of coffee greeted us. I closed my eyes and sucked in a deep breath. Bakura had added cinnamon to the coffee grounds and the rich mix of smells were heaven. My stomach rumbled, and I poured everyone a cup before brewing another batch for us to drink during breakfast.
"Bakura, should you be in front of a hot griddle?" I smirked at him as I sipped my coffee. The cinnamon was a nice touch to the flavor.
"First of all, fuck you. Second, I'm only a little loopy, not plastered. Third, fuck you."
"It's because you're so tiny." Kek laughed.
"Fuck you as well."
"Actually, this is a sexy look for you. You should be in the kitchen and cooking for me more often Bakura." I winked at him.
"I'm going to add pork belly to these damn pancakes just so you can't eat them."
"Add protein powder to mine." Kek yawned over his cup.
"Okay," Bakura siad. The jump from facetiousness to neutral was a little amazing to behold. Bakura reached into a cupboard and pulled out a bag of whey protein mix.
"How much did you feed the kittens?" Ryou frowned, leaning over to stare at them huddled against the back wall of the kitchen.
"Uh, well, they kept jumping on me, so I might have spilled some."
"Bakura, you're so irresponsible. They're going to get sick if they eat that much." Kek stood up and rushed to save his babies. And if watching Bakura cook was cute- watching Kek get overprotective of kittens was heart-skipping.
Bakura held Kek's shoulder to stop him. "They're fine, Kek. They'll eat their fill and then wander off to beg us for pancakes."
"I think they'll be okay, Kek," Ryou assured him.
"Fine." Kek crossed his arms for a moment before getting plates and forks while Bakura finished cooking. "But if they puke then you clean it up."
The pancakes were surprisingly good. I mean, Bakura made them, but they were delicious. Pancakes wasn't something I expected to be in Bakura's skill set. They seemed to sober him up, too, which meant he got even mouthier after we started eating. He was right about the kittens though. As soon as we started in on our plates, little crying furballs tried to circle around our ankles. Had I not watched them gorge themselves on kibble five minutes prior, I would have pitied them, but as it was I admired their manipulation skills.
"So what are you guys going to do all day?" I asked.
"Sleep." Ryou yawned, politely behind his hand.
"No more overtime," Kek growled into his coffee cup.
"I know… I know." Ryou flung back his head, groaning.
I wondered if he'd call in sick for a few days if I batted my eyelashes and used a flirty tone. Probably not. Ryou was too polite to inconvenience others, and as stubborn as Bakura when it came to principle. We still needed to do something. Bakura said his computer skills came from Ryou, so I couldn't imagine what Ryou was doing stocking styrofoam cones and modeling clay when he was smart and creative enough to do so much better.
He needed a vacation, I had decided- and since he wasn't the type to give himself one, I'd have to… help.
Bribery, manipulation, and fucking over society to get my way is perfectly moral when it's to help someone, right? I'm pretty sure Yugi would approve. After all, Ryou was one of his friends, and morality always seemed to move its own goal posts around if it were for the Pharaoh's whim, and anything that was Yugi's whim tended to be Atem's will.
All in all, I think the gods would forgive me for what I was planning to do.
"Since Bakura cooked, it's only fair that I do the dishes." Ryou yawned and stretched as he stood, and then shuffled over to the kitchen sink.
"Kek. Why don't you put Ryou to bed and then the rest of us can do the dishes?" I smirked.
"That's okay. I don't mind- Kek!" Ryou gasped as Kek scooped him bridal style into his arms and carried him out of the kitchen.
"You're planning something and I want in." Bakura leaned across the table, elbows planted on the surface like the rude, uncouth scoundrel he was.
"Wait for Kek to get back." I said as I gathered up the dishes and started loading the dishwasher.
A moment later Kek re-entered the kitchen. His gaze locked on to me. "You're planning something and I want in."
"I know you enjoy your job, but could you get a Friday off if you asked for it?"
Kek used a sponge to wipe down the counters after I loaded the dishwasher. He pursed his lips together and then, after thinking for a minute, nodded his head.
"Yeah, I don't think Kyubi would mind, and I can get Gakuya to look after the kids for a Friday."
"Good. Get Friday off. Ryou needs- at the very least- a three-day weekend."
"How are you going to get Ryou to take a extra day off?" Bakura raised an eyebrow.
"I'm going to bribe his manager to send him home."
"His manager is a vat of sewage." Kek scowled. "He shouldn't get rewarded for doing his own damn job for one day."
"No, he shouldn't, but Ryou won't call in, he won't quit even if I offered him enough money to make it worth his while, and if I bought out the craft store and fired him he'd probably get mad at me."
"He sure the fuck would." Bakura laughed.
"Uurgh, yeah, I guess your way is the simplest way to get Ryou off work." Kek rolled his eyes.
"We'll have more time if we leave Thursday night, but I want it to be a surprise, so we need to get Ryou out of the house while we pack him a bag and load the plane. Bakura, your job is to get Ryou out of the house and distract him for a few hours while Kek and I get everything set up."
"Got it. Take Ryou out on a date." Bakura shot me and Kek with his fingers both at once. "I'll go brush my teeth and work my magic right away."
Bakura left and Kek took the opportunity to lift me up- as if I were no heavier than Ryou- and let me down on the counter. He slipped his arms around my waist, teasing the writing on my lower back, and tilted his head up at me.
"I bet I can get half the packing down right under Ryou's nose without him even realizing it well before Thursday."
"Oh?" I grinned down at Kek. "Did you have an idea on how to spend the extra time?"
"I thought…" Kek stalled his answer by pressing deliberate, languid kisses up and down my sternum. "Maybe we could go on our own date."
"You have my attention. Ask me out." My hands both reached out. One toyed with his spikes of hair. The other slipped under his tank top to brush his top scars. "You're using the oils I gave you. I can feel the difference."
Kek turned away, although his arms didn't move. "Ryou gave me puppy eyes, so I couldn't very well say no."
"I'm glad. Gods, you two really need a few extra partners to make sure you take care of yourselves."
"What about your high maintenance ass?"
"I don't deny that. Weren't you going to ask me out?"
"I want to go to the zoo." Kek stabbed the linoleum with his toe, as if he needed the mock violence in order to deal with the innocence of his request.
I slipped down from the counter so we could stand face to face, leaning in and brushing our noses together before sealing the date proposal with a light kiss between our lips. Kek's mouth twisted into a crooked grin as he caressed my cheek.
"It's a date." I gave a little fist bump to his shoulder and then wandered to the bathroom to brush my teeth and change. The overnight bags we'd started leaving at their apartment were one of my better plans.
After I was ready, I went to check on Bakura to make sure he'd managed to talk Ryou into a Thursday afternoon date. At first I thought they were kissing. Bakura lay stacked on top of Ryou, and they had their fingers knotted into each other's hair. My stomach jolted with excitement and I stopped to admire them for a moment. Then I could hear Bakura whispered in a fast rush of words. He was lecturing Ryou about taking better care of himself. I exhaled, nodding to agree with Bakura although they couldn't see me.
Ryou muttered something back, but it was too quiet to hear. Bakura answered by sinking down and tugging on Ryou's bottom lip. I took it to mean their conversation was over, so I lay down beside them and dragged my fingers through Bakura's silvery hair.
"I'm taking Kek to the zoo Thursday," I said.
"What a coincidence. Ryou and I are going to an internet café as soon as he gets off work- on time." Bakura shot Ryou a look.
"On time." Ryou giggled.
"An internet cafe?" I wrinkled my face. "Take him someone better than that."
"It's Ryou. Going somewhere they can goof off on their computers while drinking coffee and eating dessert is the perfect date." Kek laughed from the doorway.
"Ryou, you're hopeless." I shook my head. "Next time we all go out, I'm going to make sure you get some sunshine."
"I look forward to it." Ryou's face beamed.
Little did he know that us being outside together would be much sooner than Ryou thought.