Jonouchi woke up with one of the worst hangovers he'd ever had. His head was pounding while his ears rang and his eyes were leaky and puffy. He felt almost as if he had a cold. He remembered the night before far better than he would have liked to, and the moment he sat up to try washing out his mouth in the bathroom, he felt nauseous.
He didn't end up vomiting since his stomach wasn't that delicate, but the constant churning feeling was almost unbearable. Jonouchi washed his mouth out and then tried drinking water from the tap to rehydrate. Practically falling to the floor as it was, he hoped that getting some liquid back into his system would be enough to help him pull it together.
He splashed water on his face and tried to massage the pain away from his eyes, but it didn't do much good. Giving up on it, Jonouchi tried to flatten his hair out with his fingers. He stopped caring after a few seconds' effort and stumbled back to the bedroom. The walls were closing in, making him feel extremely uncomfortable and he couldn't deal with being there any longer.
Jonouchi thought about taking a shower, but when he looked back toward the bathroom, he just felt sick. Walking stiffly toward the bedroom door, he hoped that Kaiba wasn't awake yet. He needed to get out of the mansion as soon as humanly possible. Hopefully, he wouldn't be detained by security.
The sun was barely up when he looked out a window while phoning a tax. He didn't want to use Kaiba's driver since he was going to be ditching him unexpectedly. It occurred to Jonouchi to leave a note, but he didn't have any explanation, and he didn't want to risk going into Kaiba's room. It took him so long to dizzily navigate to the front gates where the taxi had arrived very promptly. The security guards on duty didn't react to his leaving, fortunately, so Jonouchi got into the car and sighed when he sat down. He didn't want to stand for the rest of the day if he could help it.
The sun was now rising to the top of the sky, and Jonouchi checked the clock on his phone and saw that it was just after seven. He couldn't think what he should do with himself, aside from sleep off his hangover and maybe find somewhere to buy Gatorade. He needed something to keep his mind off of Kaiba, and hopefully ease his headache.
He jumped a little and then rubbed his head when his phone vibrated obnoxiously. Answering the phone, Jonouchi was surprised to hear Honda's voice on the other end. His eyes had been too disoriented for him to read the caller ID.
"Jonouchi!" Honda greeted, sounding overjoyed to hear his voice. "Why haven't we been hanging out lately, man? It's been forever!"
"Uh, because every time I tried to hook up, you were busy?" Jonouchi replied, his voice sounding as tired as he felt. "When you want to hang out, feel free to ask."
"Well, I'm asking now. I actually wasn't sure you'd be awake yet..."
"Why are you awake?" asked Jonouchi, surprised that he was awake enough to be smart about it. He felt depressed and half-dead, and certainly not in a right state for company but Honda would understand. He could depend on his best buddy not to bug him continuously for being hung over. "Since when do you get up before ten without your mom's help?"
"Since I passed out really early last night and live alone. What happened to you?" stressed Honda's voice, a mix of both amusement and concern. " You sound like you got the beating of your life. Or you're hung over. Were you partying without me?" Honda's tone was now one of mock dejection.
"Something like that. I'm pretty fucked up right now."
"Well, why not come over here and crash?" suggested Honda. "I'll help you sober up and we can play video games or something."
"That sounds great, actually," Jonouchi sighed, looking forward to some time at Honda's place. Just like the good old days. Except now, Honda was on his own. Kind of. He had a roommate, apparently, but the guy was never in. Honda suspected that he worked for the government since he was evidently doing well and too busy to stop by. "You wouldn't happen to have anything to eat, would you?"
"Sure I do," Honda sounded as if he thought Jonouchi was asking a dumb question, "Only the best convenience store junk in my pantry, just the way you like it."
"I'll be there soon," Jonouchi looked out the window and saw that they were nearing the city. Honda lived in central, near where Anzu's place had been. She probably lived there again now that she was in town, actually. It occurred to him that he should try rooming with her. He wouldn't have to pay excessive deposit fees, and splitting rent was easier than living alone in a nice place. Not to mention, Anzu already knew his big secret...
Oh god. Honda didn't know. Jonouchi realized he'd have to be careful about what he said and hope he didn't pass out and talk in his sleep. He didn't even know how Honda would react if he knew. He'd always seemed fairly indifferent about homosexuals, but if he encountered them he was anywhere from uncomfortable to openly disgusted. Depending on whether or not he was getting hit on. That was disregarding his sometimes rude comments on the subject of homosexuality in general, too...
When Jonouchi reached Honda's apartment, he paid the cabbie and wandered up the stairs to his building. The door opened just seconds after he rang, and Honda grinned at the sight of him.
"You look like shit, as usual," he laughed, letting Jonouchi walk inside. Jonouchi snorted, slipping his feet out of his shoes and crossing his arms in mock offense.
"What about you, asshole? Still got that dumb fauxhawk? I thought you'd figured out after high school that it does you no favors."
Not that it was a very extreme haircut; the "spike" was only a couple inches high at the front, and Honda didn't look terrible with it, but it didn't suit him, in Jonouchi's opinion. He had avoided picking too much about it, though. It wasn't normal for two men to bicker about hair, of all things.
"Yeah, yeah," Honda replied back, "Believe it or not, Jonouchi, I do get girls with this haircut."
"Since when?" Jonouchi snickered, falling onto the couch. "Did you get game since the last time I saw you?"
"You could say that," Honda replied, heading for his small kitchen and rifling through the pantry, "More like I started going after the right kind of girl."
"I did tell you-"
"Yeah, I know, shut up," Honda effectively punctuated this command by tossing a bag of chips at him. It hit him squarely in the face, which would have stunned him less if he was sober. He might even have caught the bag rather than lying on the couch looking scandalized as it fell to the floor.
"You're lucky I'm too hungover to smack you," he muttered, picking up the bag of chips and tugging it open. Honda brought him a bottled water and quickly got out of arm's reach before sitting at the nearby computer desk. Since his roommate was never in, Honda pretty much seemed to have taken over the living room for himself. That was just like him...
"Hey, you're the alcoholic who stumbled into my house and is eating all my food."
Jonouchi grumbled a little and drank down some water, feeling better immediately from it. He laid down after he was done drinking, lazily chewing on the potato chips. It was a small bag, and they were gone quickly, but it settled the twisting feeling in his stomach.
Sighing, Jonouchi relaxed and listened to Honda's fingers clacking away at his keyboard. It reminded him a little of listening to Kaiba type, only Honda's keyboard wasn't so mechanical, and his speed was significantly lower, if not more erratic.
"What have you been up to, Honda?"
"Jack shit," Honda snorted, "About the same as I was in high school, except now I pretend to be a college student and don't live with my parents. I have a cat somewhere around here too, but I'm not gonna go look for him. It's a Siamese, and if he isn't napping he won't shut the fuck up."
"You're fault for adopting it..."
"The cat adopted me," Honda defended, "He kept following me home from work, and one day he just strutted into my apartment and slept on the couch. It was like meeting you all over again."
"Shut up," Jonouchi laughed, "At least you aren't alone in this place. I wanna see the cat..."
He yawned, closing his eyes. His headache was easing away, and he detected a smell like sandalwood in the air. Honda must have burned incense. He wanted to comment and say he was trying to be romantic, but given the circumstances now, it would just make him feel stupid. And he knew that the incense was probably used to cover up the smell of several months' dirty laundry.
"You're terrible with cats. Always have been. If you want to see him, wait for him to come to you. His name is Thai, by the way."
Jonouchi snorted, clasping his hands and resting them on his chest. He felt like he was going to fall asleep, but he wanted to keep talking to Honda, and hopefully wait for the cat to come say hello to him. Jonouchi had always thought cats were interesting and hilarious, especially the one at Honda's parents' apartment that had been nasty unless it wanted to cuddle at night. Honda was right, though. He'd never been good with cats. He approached them like he did dogs, which Honda informed him was completely wrong, but Jonouchi hadn't cared much to change back then.
"What have you been up to?" Honda asked, his eyes still glued to his computer screen. Jonouchi had been almost asleep until he spoke. He was grateful that Honda wasn't smothering him. They hadn't seen one another for almost a year, but somehow they were able to pick up as if no time had passed at all.
"Nothing really," Jonouchi's heart skipped a beat when he realized exactly what he'd been doing lately. Which had been getting into a whole mess of trouble and having a lot of gay sex, "You know, the usual. Gettin' laid every day."
Honda actually burst into laughter, which was slightly obnoxious, but he didn't comment. They used to laugh at one another's inability to get tail constantly.
"Lately I've been working, trying to get out of my shitty place, the usual. My dad skipped, so I don't have that shit to deal with anymore. There's also a new gang from Rintama running around the neighborhood..."
"Nice," Honda snorted, "Let me know when they need a beating. You said your dad left? And you didn't tell me?"
"Nah, I was being a little bitch about it for a while, and after I pulled it together it didn't seem like a big deal."
"I'm just saying if I'd known I would have offered to room with you."
"I thought about asking," mumbled Jonouchi, "But I think you had someone else to room with by that time. It's fine, I've got a pretty good job now. Enough to pay for shit and still have money in my pocket afterwards."
"Then why are you mooching off of me, asshole?" Honda frowned at him, though Jonouchi knew he wasn't really that upset. "You should have bought food on your way over."
"I blew a bunch of my cash on a cab, though," Jonouchi defended, and he stiffened when Honda looked confused.
"A cab?" He repeated. "Where did you come here from?"
Jonouchi paled and was fortunately saved from answering when Honda turned toward the doorway to his roommate's bedroom and started shouting. Looking in that direction, Jonouchi saw a tan cat stretching in the doorway. He had deep blue eyes, like most Siamese, and his brown patches were a soft-looking chestnut color. He seemed healthy if a little chunky. Honda probably allowed the cat to run around outside whenever he pleased.
The cat made a beeline for the door, ignoring Honda's demand that he come say hello to Jonouchi, and it started scratching at the wood.
"Fuck no, I'm not letting you out," Honda snorted, "I don't want you tracking crap in. Besides, I'm sitting down."
The cat meowed at him insistently but gave up surprisingly quick. Jonouchi had a feeling he must have learned over time that Honda was not to be moved by the infamously persistent meowing of a Siamese cat.
He turned his gaze on Jonouchi, who started making kissing noises with his mouth in an attempt to arouse its curiosity. The cat did approach, meowing loudly at him and holding his tail high like a flag. Jonouchi extended his fingers, and rather than being startled by the movement, the cat head-butted his hand to let him pet him. He heard Honda snort and stuck his tongue out at him. He finally found a cat that liked him. Honda could piss off.
"Hey kitty," Jonouchi had barely uttered the words before the cat made a murmuring sound in his throat and suddenly leaped on top of him. The weight of his paws jamming into his ribs was uncomfortable, but he settled quickly and finally shut up as he lay on his chest.
"Well, you two seem to be hitting it off," Honda muttered. Jonouchi wanted to laugh; he seemed almost jealous, though it was doubtful that "Thai" treated him with any less affection. Honda had always been good with cats. "I'll let you sleep, Jonouchi. You seem pretty out of it, and we can always talk more later."
"Thanks," Jonouchi replied as Honda put on a pair of headphones. It looked like he was playing Starcraft again.
Once Honda was no longer paying attention, Jonouchi tiredly lifted one hand and stroked the cat from head to haunches, finding the action surprisingly therapeutic. The cat had the most ridiculously loud purr he'd ever encountered, enough that he felt it rhythmically rumble through his chest.
"You seem not that bad," Jonouchi commented, his words slurring. The cat's blue eyes peeked lazily at him, and he was reminded rather painfully of Kaiba. He sighed, and the cat seemed more attentive, moving one paw and resting it at the base of his neck.
"You remind me of someone."
He was talking to a cat. At least the cat appeared to be listening, his ears perked. As if he could hear Jonouchi over that rumbling purr.
"To be honest, you'd probably understand him better than I do," Jonouchi smirked, amused by the thought, "He's more like a cat than a person sometimes. Always pissy and usually focused on his own business. Only likes being cuddled on his own terms."
The cat looked at him cross-eyed like he was confused. He probably was. Thai seemed decent enough to let Jonouchi pet him and come to sleep with him. He was a bit of a loud mouth, though.
"I like him a lot. I guess a cat wouldn't understand, but I'm pretty much in love with this guy. I just don't know how to get him to love me back. He doesn't seem to like or want me nearly as much as I do him," Jonouchi lamented, scratching the cat's head. He closed one eye, tilting his face to direct his fingers to his cheekbone. Apparently, he liked it.
"What should I do? I've never been good with cats. He's half-skittish and half-full of it. Doesn't help that I'm pretty trashy and fucking retarded. Maybe I'm just wasting my time... What do you think?"
Why did he bother asking? Thai responded with a trilling "mow" and returned to his purring, kneading his paws gently against Jonouchi's chest. The "massage" was nice, and he appreciated that he was getting some kind of return for the head-scratching he delivered, but it wasn't an answer.
"Why am I asking you? You're a cat. You probably don't even understand what I'm saying."
Thai appeared offended by this and pressed his paws enough that his claws were on display, one of his ears tilting to the side as he meowed more forcefully. Honda told him to shut up. Apparently, he could hear the cat even through his game music.
"Well, if you understand, you could try giving me advice outside of gorogoro and "meow". It's cute and all, but not really helpful."
He was scratching Thai's chin now. He'd ended up just following with whatever the cat directed him to do, since resisting just led to having his wrist clumsily directed by a brown paw.
"Maybe I need to learn to approach him better. You don't seem to be afraid of anything. I kind of wish I could take you home with me, but Honda would never allow it. I guess it's for the best... someone would steal you and sell you to the Chinese restaurant if they found you in my neighborhood."
Thai peeked at him, cracking open one of his deep blue eyes as his ears flattened against his head, and he sighed, pulling himself closer to Jonouchi's face. Jonouchi protested, but something about cats made him want to let them have their way when they were being friendly. Thai lay spread out over his torso, nuzzling his neck with the side of his face and tickling him with his whiskers.
"Stop it," Jonouchi chuckled, though he found the action endearing. He wasn't a big fan of getting tickled, even if it wasn't on purpose. "Is it even natural for a cat to be as friendly as you?"
He jumped slightly when he felt a nip at his earlobe. That was weird, was the cat trying to chew on him? Honda could have warned him if Thai was going to try taking chunks out of him. Even if he wasn't getting nibbled, he wasn't too comfortable with the cat doing shit to him that Kaiba had done in the past. That was just too weird, especially since they had the same pair of eyes.
Jonouchi decided he'd had enough when Thai was quite evidently licking and sucking affectionately on his ear, and picked him up, placing him on his chest where he wouldn't be able to reach his face.
"How about you just stay there, you little molester?"
Thai responded with a pointed "meow" before lying down in a sphinx position, blinking lazily at him. Jonouchi started stroking his fur again without thinking about it. He was tired, and the cat was about as useful to talk to as a wall. At least he was nice and didn't judge his homosexuality. If anything, Thai seemed too comfortable with him. Was that what it was like for Kaiba when Jonouchi came after him? He certainly never seemed that bothered by it...
He sighed, deciding that his contemplation about how to approach a very large, moody, stuck-up potential boyfriend to be saved for later. Once his hangover had passed, and he'd had more sleep, he could ask Honda about cats and actually listen for once.
Opening his eyes, Jonouchi was a bit alarmed to find himself in Kaiba's bedroom but immediately calmed down once he realized he wasn't alone. Sleeping soundly, Kaiba was right next to him, eyes closed and breathing deeply. He seemed pretty out of it, laying on his side and not stirring, but Jonouchi still felt the need to talk to him.
There was a lot on his mind.
"Kaiba?" Jonouchi rested a hand on Kaiba's shoulder and tried to gently shake him awake. "Wake up. I need to talk to you."
It was getting to be late in the morning anyway. He was surprised Kaiba wasn't up already. Or maybe he was getting confused and it was earlier than he thought. He was too sleepy and somewhat dazed to think on it.
"What is it this time?"
Rolling onto his back, Kaiba fought back a yawn and pushed back the hair away from his forehead before gazing at Jonouchi briefly. It was late morning, but that didn't stop him from appearing sleepy. Jonouchi took comfort knowing it was at least the weekend, so Kaiba couldn't try running off avoiding a confrontation like usual.
"I'm really tired," Kaiba mumbled, "I slept poorly all night..."
He rolled back over on his side, pulling the covers over his face before Jonouchi could respond.
"Maybe you should try taking a nap," Jonouchi suggested, amusing himself at the thought."I just wonder," he asked, curling his fingers over the edge of the sheet and trying to pull it away from Kaiba's face, "Why are you so edgy? It's not like I'm going to do anything to you."
"I'm not," Kaiba stressed, his eyes narrowing just slightly. "I'm tired and you won't let me sleep."
Kaiba pulled back hard on the covers, grumbling in response to Jonouchi's pestering. He had his eyes closed, shoving his face into the pillow before snorting. Apparently, he didn't want to be messed with on his free day, but Jonouchi wasn't in the mood to let him get away with that. Not when he was trying to still figure out his situation over dating, why they couldn't be together, but still.
There he was lying half naked in his bed. How was that fine, but not dating? It didn't make any sense.
"I have a lot on my mind," Jonouchi muttered, grazing his fingers over Kaiba's back. He could feel that the muscle was firm, but his skin was soft. "You've got all day to sleep..."
He was being a little annoying. Kaiba didn't get sleep very easily, and certainly not in the middle of the day. Especially if he'd found some work to preoccupy himself with.
"I've been thinking a lot about us," Jonouchi stated boldly, oddly unanxious for once about the man next to him who was hiding his face in his pillow, "About how we are together, and that sort of thing. It just feels like we're being really intimate, but you say you don't want a relationship. I wondered if it's because you want the benefits without the responsibility, or if you're like me and aren't all right with that fact."
Probably the latter. Kaiba's feelings had always been subtle when not completely hidden. He certainly didn't display anything really positive without sufficient provocation, and that took extremes.
"You could have brought this up another time when I'm not trying to make up for four hours staring at the ceiling last night," sighed Kaiba, grumbling as he took the pillow off his head and tossed it at Jonouchi's face, "Why can't you just leave things alone?"
"Don't say that like I'm talking about something that happened a long time ago," Jonouchi protested, pushing the pillow away, "This is important to me. It would be nice if you'd stop avoiding the issue, you know."
He frowned. Kaiba hadn't even taken his emotions about the situation seriously until very recently, and even then it didn't seem to have much effect on him. He had no more consideration for what was happening between them than he had before. Or so it seemed. Jonouchi didn't know. He wasn't going to find out either if Kaiba wouldn't talk. Did he have to make things so difficult? Between his sometimes venomous denial and more common dismissal, Jonouchi had no real chance of getting any straight answers.
"Besides, if I ask later, you'll probably blow me off. I want to know what's going on with you, Kaiba," Jonouchi stressed, "Don't lie to me anymore. I may not be as bright as you, but I'm not that dense that I can't figure this out..."
"I'm not insinuating you're stupid, Jonouchi," replied Kaiba back sharply, flashing his blue eyes at Jonouchi before sighing and rolling them, "I'm just not in the mood to talk about all of that right now. You're always bringing up stuff, and I don't see why. Especially at this hour... We can talk about it once I wake up."
Then he rolled back over, hiding his face and grumbling again.
"You're never going to be in the mood," Jonouchi grumbled, lying down and scowling. He should have known the conversation would go something like that. "Whatever, Kaiba. Half the time I don't know why I try. It certainly doesn't seem to make a difference."
Jonouchi felt tired, his eyesight blurring and his eyes feeling painfully swollen as if he'd been drinking the night before. He rubbed the lids, trying to massage away the discomfort.
"Kaiba, I have a really simple question, and I think you should be able to answer this even if you're tired," he grumbled, turning onto his side and facing him, "Why does the idea of dating me bother you so much? I know it must, since your reasoning not to is bullshit and you avoid my questions like the plague, yet you're comfortable with acting like we're dating."
"Because," mumbled Kaiba, looking back at Jonouchi's face and catching his eyes, "I don't want to get hurt."
Jonouchi opened his mouth to respond, but then he felt an odd sensation on his lips that made him shake his head. It didn't go away, and he felt disoriented, swiping at the air in front of his face until he realized that he was staring into the blue eyes of Honda's cat.
Thai was stroking his face with his paw as he lay sprawled out on his chest. Jonouchi blinked as he realized he'd been dreaming again, but this time it was actually a good one. Kaiba's response in the dream left him feeling strangely enlightened, even if it had just been his own subconscious. He was smart, so maybe his mind had figured the situation out for him.
Jonouchi grumbled, shoving the cat off of him so he could sit up. Thai landed on the floor, feet-first, of course, his ears and tail twitching irritably as he stood. Was that the cat version of being scandalized? No matter, he strode dejectedly to Honda, who was still on the computer but no longer in a game. He didn't so much as jump when the cat leaped onto the back of his chair, standing on the backrest and draping himself over Honda's shoulder. Honda rewarded this obnoxious behavior by scratching his head.
"How do you put up with that?" He asked, and Honda turned his head enough to look at him. There was light streaming into the place through cracks in the shutters, and he knew it must be noon or later. He'd been asleep for quite a while.
"He's just being affectionate," responded Honda. "Cats make their own rules about what a good touch is."
"Sounds retarded to me," Jonouchi muttered, settling back into the couch. He felt his phone pressing into his leg and took it out of his pocket. The screen showed that he'd missed several text messages and a call. What surprised him more than his sudden popularity was that they were all from Kaiba.
"It isn't that complicated, Jonouchi. Cats are very particular and reserved. You have to let them set the boundaries if you want to be friends with them-"
Honda cut off his chiding very suddenly with a yelp and swatted the cat away from his shoulder. Thai tumbled with hilarious clumsiness to the ground, and when he landed, crouching, his ears flat against his head, he immediately rolled over and started grinding his back into the wooden floor. Jonouchi snorted. Was he trying to act like he'd meant to be there?
"What happened to being friends?"
"Well, you still have to teach them that scratching isn't okay," Honda grumbled, tugging his shirt collar enough to check for punctures on his shoulder, "I never clip his claws, so sometimes he starts prickling me."
"Try clipping his claws, maybe?"
"Try buying me the clippers and a scratching post, maybe?" Honda replied sarcastically. Jonouchi rolled his eyes but didn't respond. He sat up, deciding he'd crashed long enough, and should probably get back to Kaiba on all those texts. Are you lost? Where are you? Are you in town? Did something happen? It sounded like he was actually worried, and Jonouchi felt guilty for being too stupid to even leave him a note. The only trail he'd left was an empty bottle of sake in the messed up guest bed and some security footage.
"Hey, I'm gonna have to get out of your hair," Jonouchi announced before gulping down the last of his water, "But we need to hang out again soon. Maybe we can actually go out somewhere."
"Out?" Honda echoed in mock horror. "But that would mean having to actually shower for once."
He was joking, of course. Honda wasn't nasty, by any means. He could get along well in a crowd and even enjoyed being surrounded by people he liked. He was just lazy.
Jonouchi was wondering if lazier people were just magnetically attracted to his energetic self.
"I know, right? But there's food, too. I'll try to convince you to go somewhere with me soon."
He headed for the door where he'd left his shoes, and Thai bounded after him, likely wanting to be let out. Honda swiveled his computer chair so he was facing him.
"I'll catch you later, then. It was nice seeing you again. Maybe next time you'll even be sober," he snickered. Jonouchi made a face at him, then grinned and opened the door before slipping out. Thai ran down the apartment stairs to the sidewalk in front of him, seeming overjoyed about being outside. Evidently, he wasn't a homebody like Honda.
Jonouchi dialed Kaiba's number, hoping that he wasn't overly concerned. Then he'd feel even worse about it. Not that he didn't pretty much deserve it, after drinking down a full bottle of his stash and skipping off at an ungodly hour. When Kaiba picked up, Jonouchi spoke rather timidly.
"Hey, Kaiba, it's me," he stated, as if it wouldn't be obvious from the caller ID, "I'm sorry I didn't answer you earlier. I was asleep for a while and I'm okay. I should have dropped you a note or something this morning when I had to left. I'm really am sorry about that."
He felt nervous and was trying not to babble too much. Apologizing was hard over the phone. He felt like it was somehow less sincere, or difficult to impart his meaning.
"Why the hell would you leave without saying anything in the first place?" chided Kaiba over the receiver, his tone noticeably irritated, if not close to actual anger. "You went through my stash, tore up my guest room, and just left without saying anything. I'm not running a fucking hotel, you asshole."
Then he hung up.
Jonouchi stood, side-eyeing his phone in shock as the call time flashed on the screen. Not that Kaiba didn't have every right to be so upset, but that hadn't been what he'd expected. He'd thought Kaiba would more likely be aggressively scolding or question him expecting answers. The way he sounded was more like a girlfriend who had been stood up the night before.
Groaning, Jonouchi sat up and ran his fingers through his hair. Once again, he'd been a giant imbecile. He'd been so caught up in his own disappointment the night before that he hadn't put much thought into Kaiba or his property. Of course, Kaiba would end up caring more than he let on. Jonouchi had hardly expected him to question his disappearance, except possibly out of curiosity and mild concern. He hadn't expected several somewhat strained text messages and the equivalent of a shafted lover rant.
Jonouchi rubbed his forehead. It had been a while since he really felt completely and utterly stupid, and he hadn't missed the feeling. Unfortunately, it seemed he couldn't escape it. Damn his impulsiveness. And apparent neediness. And the inability to see what was right in front of him, if his dream held any weight.
He knew, even if it would never be stated or admitted, that he'd managed to hurt Kaiba at least a little, which was probably the worst outcome possible for him. He would have liked to be happy to know the guy cared so much if he didn't know he'd royally fucked up. The likelihood that he'd be able to talk to him anytime soon was low, too. Kaiba was good at avoiding people when he didn't want them around, and Jonouchi couldn't really force his attention if he was feeling bitter.
Jonouchi supposed all he could really do was wait. Figure out where he was going to sleep that night. It was almost fifteen hours, and if he was going to his apartment, he'd need to go soon. But he didn't want to go to his apartment. That shithole wasn't going to make his situation any better. He decided to head uptown to stay at the hotel instead, knowing that Mokuba probably wasn't pissed at him. If nothing else, he was probably amused. Great, he definitely wanted to deal with the little imp's snickering...
Jonouchi texted Anzu as he walked, skipping any casual conversation and opting to ask straight up if she needed a roommate. If she didn't yet, hopefully, she would soon. He realized after sending that she would probably assume he'd been evicted or was on the lam and needed a couch to crash on, so he sent a second message saying he wanted to move out of his place. He continued to walk as he waited for a response, and by the time Anzu replied, he was near the uptown metro station.
He almost laughed in joy and relief when she told him her roommate was moving out and she needed a new one as soon as possible. Jonouchi asked her about rent as he ran to the Kaiba Hotel, hoping that he'd be able to afford it. Probably not, honestly. He'd have to pick up a second job, most likely since apartments in Central were at least twice the cost of his place. Still, he knew Anzu wouldn't kick him out for being short on rent for the first payment, and he needed to get a new place.
He winced at the figure that would be his half of the rent as he entered the hotel lobby. Just about what he'd expected. It was more than he made in a month at work, certainly. With a second job (or, he dared to dream, a better paying job) he could cover it without much problem, but he wouldn't have any free time at all. Still better than living in some ratty place.
Jonouchi paused on his way to the elevator when he saw Mokuba in the lobby. What was he doing at the hotel? He wasn't sorry for his company, however, and Jonouchi approached, trying to smile.
"Fancy meeting you here," he teased, "Looks like we're heading the same way, stranger."
"Did Nii-sama kick you out?"
Mokuba was laughing and Jonouchi felt a little victimized.
"I'm bored, let's go up on the roof and use the pool. Nii-sama never wants to swim with me, and I bet he has his trunks still in his room if you want to use them... Among other things," teased Mokuba, "I know you like to drink."
He winked at Jonouchi before picking up his Gameboy and skipping off to the elevator.
Jonouchi followed, slightly miffed that Mokuba was so aware of everything, but it wasn't like he worked hard to keep it private, either. He probably deserved to be picked on.
"Swimming sounds fine. I doubt I'll fit into his trunks worth anything, though. And don't offer me alcohol, kid. You should be worried that you'll start looking less ugly to me when I put my beer goggles on."
Not that he'd be hitting on a teenager anytime soon, and definitely not Mokuba. Jonouchi was pleased to find liking men didn't mean he wanted to have sex with any and all of them. Just one in particular, since it actually occurred to him that it might be somewhat appealing. Mokuba was shaping up to be a pretty handsome guy too, but Jonouchi didn't think he'd ever see him as relationship material. Not someone he'd known since he was a kid, and definitely not the brother of his love interest...
Mokuba had pressed the button to the elevator and waited for Jonouchi to catch up before getting inside and going up to the top floor. He stuck his tongue out at his companion before leaning against the wall, cross his arms and legs impatiently, much like his older brother. Apparently Kaiba was nowhere to be seen or heard from, since Mokuba hadn't even said anything about where he was.
Probably drinking himself silly at home.
"I might be a tad worried if I didn't know already that you were crushing on Nii-sama," snickered Mokuba, taking off down the hallway once the door opened, "But until he breaks your heart, I'm sure I'll be safe from you!"
"Thanks for the vote of confidence, kid," Jonouchi rolled his eyes, feeling that Kaiba had pretty much chewed his heart up already, but he didn't comment. There was no need to be dramatic while he was still emotionally intact, more or less. "You're just as infuriating as he is, except it's harder to get you mad..."
He grumbled, contemplating briefly how he'd get Kaiba to talk to him again. Then he started to get a headache and figured there was no point worrying over it until he'd given him time to cool off.
"Nii-sama said I was born with a winning personality."
Pulling out a key card, Mokuba unlocked the door to the suite before stepping inside. No one was there to greet them, and dragging Jonouchi along, he led him into Kaiba's room before raiding the closet. He apparently knew where his older brother hid his shit and finding an old pair of swimming trunks, he threw them at Jonouchi's face before running off into his own room to change.
"Knock on my door when you're ready, Jonouchi."
Jonouchi nodded and then looked around Kaiba's room a little whie feeling uncomfortable. It was strange being in there without him, even if it wasn't creepy like Kaiba Mansion. He pulled off his shirt, and then his pants and under-wear, then stripped off his socks before pulling on the swim trunks. They were a little snug at the hip, but they weren't hugging his ass and legs too much, so he felt fairly comfortable. It was just him and Mokuba, anyway. He didn't need to be too self-conscious.
When he left Kaiba's bedroom, he ran over to Mokuba's door to knock as instructed. He was actually really looking forward to getting into the pool. It was a warm day, and he hadn't gone swimming in ages.
"Mokuba?" He called, rapping on the door with his knuckles. "I'm done, twerp."
He opened the door quickly and threw a bunch of towels at Jonouchi before striding out. Grinning at Jonouchi, he walked out with the goggles and cell phone, going back through the hallway and up the elevator until they were at the roof, where the pool awaited them. It was a bit chilly up there, but not too cold, and the lights were on for them.
They could see the entire city from there. Especially Kaiba Corp Tower, it was close by and visible in the stark darkness of night.
"It's kinda cool being able to see the building wherever I go," said Mokuba, looking at Jonouchi, "It's like home never being too far away."
"Yeah," Jonouchi nodded, "It's kind of like a beacon. You can see the red dome at the top from most parts of the city. It's hard to get lost around here because of it."
The tower represented a lot more than just a directional landmark, though. It had generated a lot of fear and hatred before Kaiba Seto took it over, and now the very thought of the building was synonymous with Duel Monsters and children's games.
Jonouchi got into the pool, doing a cannonball in the deep end rather than wading in patiently. If the water was cold, then oh well. Fortunately, it seemed that the sun had warmed it during the day, and it wasn't chilled yet. The water was fairly tepid, comfortable and not extreme in either hot or cold.
"I haven't been in a pool since freshman year," Jonouchi floated on his back, staring up at the sky and hoping Mokuba wouldn't try to prank him by tugging him under the water. He actually wanted to relax for a moment. "I forgot how much fun it is."
"We have a pool at the mansion, you know. It's indoor."
Mokuba jumped in after Jonouchi, making sure to splash him before rising to the surface and just treading water before whipping his hair everywhere. Good thing it wasn't that long anymore, or he'd end up hitting Jonouchi all over with it.
"Hey," he asked, moving closer to the floating Jonouchi before getting on his back too, "Why do you like my brother so much?"
"Why wouldn't I?" Jonouchi asked, then realized that it was a stupid answer. He sighed. "It's complicated. I like that he's strong, and he's a good friend even if he likes messing with my head. You probably don't notice, but he's pretty damn good looking, too."
He wasn't going to go on a long spiel about Kaiba to Mokuba, of all people. Not to anyone, if he could help it.
There were a lot of reasons for Jonouchi feeling the way he did. Pretty much anything Kaiba did, he liked. Even when he was being a giant bitch to someone. As long as that 'someone' wasn't Jonouchi or one of his other friends, he found it amusing.
"Why do you ask? Are you trying to give me advice?" Jonouchi chuckled, though he was sure Mokuba had no intention of doing so.
"Hell no. I don't want anything to do with your romance drama. I'm just curious. You two were at each other's throats just months ago, and now you both just go on making eyes at each other. It's weird... I didn't think you were like Nii-sama, that took me a bit my surprise. I knew about him though probably before he did..."
"Kaiba doesn't make eyes at me," Jonouchi snorted, though he looked at Mokuba, slightly hopeful that he was right and Kaiba actually was making eyes. "I guess things did change a bit suddenly, but that's life. We're adults now. We can't be immature high schoolers forever."
He sighed. Mokuba's amusement with his 'romance' got on his nerves, but at least he didn't judge or get angry about it. Jonouchi could talk to him about his relationship without dealing with expressions of shock and overly personal questions. Like how they did it. Thank god Mokuba didn't seem to want to know about that.
"He doesn't look at you like he does most people, so I'll consider it him making eyes," sniffed Mokuba, splashing water in Jonouchi's general direction, "Besides the fact that he does like you. He just doesn't express it as much as you do, but that tends to happen with him. Like you said, he's pretty good looking. You just happen to be one of few people who likes the personality that goes along with it!" laughed Mokuba.
"It's not really a compliment to him, either," Jonouchi snickered, "Since I'm a dumbass and all. It's true that I actually like his personality. At least most of it. I just don't like being shunned or insulted by him."
The shunning was more frequent now than the insults,though. Jonouchi felt that it was almost just as bad. At least with insults, he could fight back. What could he do about shunning? Kaiba could choose whether he wanted to keep him in the dark about his feelings or not. More than that, it was his choice whether or not he opened up.
"He's a hard person to crack," Mokuba sympathized. "It took me a long time to understand him, so just be patient."
"It sounds like it'll be even harder than I thought if his own brother had to work on him," Jonouchi sighed, "But thanks. It's nice to know I have some kind of chance."
He vacantly watched the sky, thinking about the past couple of weeks. Kaiba had actually turned down fooling around that one morning at the hotel because of "all that had passed between them". Did that mean it really mattered to him, or was he just trying to keep Jonouchi from getting too close? It was easy to think his motivations were selfish, but considering that phone call today...
Maybe he was getting through. At least now he didn't have Kitamura dragging him down, and he could get into Anzu's place if he got another job. Jonouchi almost lost his floatation when a realization came to him.
"Mokuba, didn't you say you were going to hire me for promo work?"
"Yeah, are you still interested?"
Mokuba moved to sitting on the edge of the pool, lifting himself up before sitting down on the cement. He certainly seemed to think Jonouchi was advertising material. "I think you'd be great for it."
"Of course I am!" Jonouchi replied. "It isn't like I couldn't use the pay, and I'd love to be one of the best known faces in the game. It isn't a question of interest, I'm just wondering when I can start."
He looked at Mokuba, his eyes sparkling with excitement. The sooner he could begin, the better. He wouldn't have to pick up a second job, most likely, and that meant not being worn to the ground and making money doing something he liked. What more did he need, really? Except for Kaiba to forgive him.
But the facts remained. He could room with Anzu in a good part of town. He could get a job doing promos for Kaiba Corporation. It looked like things were going right, actually. Jonouchi planned to make it last.
"Well," Mokuba replied back, wiggling his toes in the water, "I have a party I have to go to on Friday, and I need a 'date' so to speak. Someone who will be with me for the pictures and can talk about the new duel disk. Nii-sama doesn't like getting in front of cameras too much when he can help it. The party is for Dungeon Dice, but you know how this town is... Everyone will really be there to see me!"
Jonouchi grinned at Mokuba's words. If Kaiba was going to be at the party, that meant a chance to talk to him, hopefully where he couldn't run away very easily.
"I'll definitely go with you."
The only downside was the chance of running into Kitamura, but if that happened... Well, Jonouchi could figure that out then. Worst case, he got bad press for beating up a sex offender. Hopefully he wouldn't do anything that resulted in diminishing Mokuba's rep.
"When is it, exactly?" He asked, joining Mokuba at the side of the pool. He felt excited, his body strangely light. It seemed like things were looking way up, and he was going to jump on it. He knew it would be a challenge getting Kaiba to like him again, but he'd done it before. He could do it again. Right?
"Friday around the same time as the dinner party Kaiba Corp had before. Just hang around the hotel and I'll pick you up. Wear something nice too, for the ladies. I want some good press for this, Jonouchi. If you don't have anything nice to wear, I can pick up something for you."
"I really don't," Jonouchi admitted, "Just t-shirts and jeans. If you can set something up, I'd be grateful."
"Yeah, don't worry about it."
Jonouchi sat at the edge of the pool, letting his feet dangle in the water. Friday wasn't far away, but hopefully by then he'd have planned what he'd say and do to win Kaiba over. Not that things ever went the way he planned them to with Kaiba. Still, it was a chance, and he'd have to seize it even if he did end up getting his ass handed to him.
"How mad is he, do you think?" asked Jonouchi, figuring Mokuba would be a good judge. "Your brother, I mean."
"He's not really that mad. Just annoyed. Woke up this morning and looked around the house for you, and when he couldn't find you, he shut himself in his office and I didn't see him after that. I wouldn't worry about it, I think he was just spun for a loop a little. You should say something before just flat out disappearing like that..."
Especially since Kaiba had a bad reaction to being just left, but Jonouchi should have known that.
"It's my fault for messing up," Jonouchi replied, "But he sounded more than annoyed when I talked to him on the phone today. I'm not sure what I should do to redeem myself. Do you think he'll let me talk to him after he cools off?"
Hopefully cooling off wouldn't just harden Kaiba's anger into a grudge. Assuming he hadn't already formed one.
"Stop fretting like a girl, Jonouchi, he'll get over it quickly."
"You say that like you don't know him," Jonouchi raised an eyebrow, "I've seen how he reacts to being slighted. But if you think I'm worrying too much, I'll take your word for it. I was just concerned, is all."
Mokuba certainly didn't seem to think much of it. He was probably used to his brother throwing fits like that, but unlike him, Jonouchi wasn't on the invulnerable side of the equation.
"You were a little more than just concerned..." mumbled Mokuba, "But it's not a big deal. Don't worry about him, I'm sure he'll forgive you for bedroom hopping once he gets lonely again."
It was usually like that with Kaiba. He could only turn away people for so long, and even when they fought with one another, Mokuba usually wore his brother out first. He couldn't deal well with being alone once he allowed someone into his inner circle, so to speak, and if Kaiba considered Jonouchi a friend, well, Jonouchi probably had little to worry about.
"I just wouldn't go calling him anytime soon. He'll let you know when he's forgiven you."
"Shit," Jonouchi groaned, tugging at his hair in mild frustration, "He really is like a damn cat. Looks like all I can do is wait, then."
He sighed, sitting quietly at the edge of the pool before feeling his hair drying and deciding to jump in again. There wasn't much he could do until Friday rolled around, so for now, he may as well just have fun. He had a pool at his disposal, Mokuba's company, and the hotel to stay in. It was shaping up to be a pretty good night...