Authors' Note: Hello! Yes, it's Brisco and Logan, back again with another chapter. Don't expect us to update all the time with such freakish speed, but the first chapter was rather short, and we've got more written already, not to mention that Brisco is something of an impatient individual. Sooo… enjoy the chapter! Thanks so much to all who read the first one!
Teb Teb: Thanks! We definitely will! We've got plenty more ahead!
No Name: So glad that you think so! Hopefully this chapter doesn't disappoint you, as we start getting right down to the plot now.
fani90: It'll be lots of fun! You should have several chapters to look forward to by the time you get back. Thanks so much for reading it while you still had computer access!
Shamanic Guardian Lena: Oh, a challenge! Lucky for you, Logan (PM) is an expert at brainwashing. Hehehe… Well, hopefully you can stick around for a few chapters and see if the Honda/Ryuuji grows on you. And starting in the next chapter, Seto will make his appearance, so then you'll have some Seto/Ryou interaction to help tide you over, hopefully! Thank you so much for reading!
Disclaimer: YGO belongs to the great and glorious Takahashi Kazuki. We bow to his greatness… *grin*
Chapter 2
Fairy Tale Ending
"I... I had a really fun time, Hiroto," Ryou smiled, his pale cheeks a slight crimson. Personally, he thought that what he had just said sounded... well, pretty lame. Sometimes, he couldn't help but wonder how anyone managed to stick around with him, especially someone as nice as Honda. Unless that was why he did it? Because he was trying to be nice? Oh Kami-sama, why was he always second-guessing himself like this? He should just... just be happy with what he had.
"Mmm," Honda mumbled, still looking at his white-haired koi. Ryou couldn't help but blush again, and he would have ducked his head away if he wasn't feeling somewhat frozen. Why was Honda staring at him like that anyway? It made him slightly uncomfortable, being under the scrutiny of... well, anybody.
Even if he was under the constant scrutiny of Yami no Bakura....
He looks so amazing in the moonlight... Honda let a soft smile form on his lips, as he drew closer to Ryou. His hazel eyes were filled with warm affection, and he simply studied Ryou's features for a long moment. Honda let a hand find one of Ryou's heated cheeks, marveling at the sensation of such smooth skin under his fingers, before he tilted his head inward and let his lips brush gently against Ryou's. For a moment, Honda lingered there, feeling an internal urge to kiss the silver-haired boy a bit more deeply this time. And yet... he could not... Not without knowing that Ryou was ready for more. With a hint of reluctance, the brunette drew back.
Ryou's breath had seemed to catch in his throat at the moment that kiss found his lips. He knew that he should be more used to it by now, but he truly wasn't. Perhaps it was his lingering fear that this would all evaporate suddenly that always made it impossible for him to grow accustomed to being kissed. When Honda did kiss him, though, Ryou's eyes slid slowly shut, and he let himself lean into the warm sensation. It felt wonderful to lose himself in a moment of closeness with the brunette... To feel wanted... cared for... Ryou truly needed that. As Honda broke the kiss, Ryou drew back breathlessly, his cheeks burning a bit more brightly now, as he shyly looked away.
"Ryou..." There was something... strange about his expression, Ryou thought to himself. He didn't know what it was, but there was something that he hadn't seen before. He wasn't sure what it was or what it meant, but there was just something.... "Do you want me to come in with you?"
What? Ryou couldn't help but blink at the question, which he didn't understand. Did he say something or do something that implied Honda needing to come in with him? Did he do something wrong again? What could he have done this time to warrant such an odd question? "Um... I don't think so? Why?"
The words were carefully spoken; he didn't want to hurt Honda's feelings, but he didn't quite understand what the brunette was trying to say to him. He couldn't help but feel embarrassed and rather stupid. Why was he always seemingly in the dark about these types of things?
There was a silence before Honda finally just shrugged, planting a gentle kiss on Ryou's forehead. "Never mind, Ryou. It wasn't that important."
Ryou couldn't help but bite his lip as he nodded, still unable to get rid of those nagging questions in the back of his mind. And foremost among those thoughts was the knowledge that whatever Honda was talking about, it wasn't mere words. It was important to the brunette, but he had not been able to understand and still could not. And in doing so, he had apparently hurt Honda...
After leaving Ryou's house, Honda had begun to walk home. It truly was a beautiful night, but he just couldn't seem to enjoy it right now. He just felt so... torn... On the one hand, he truly did care about Ryou... but on the other... this was beginning to get a little frustrating. Honda wanted to say something, but at the same time, he knew how sensitive Ryou tended to be. What if I tell him that I want for us to go further, and he freaks out? Or what if it makes him feel like he's not enough for me, just as he is...? And with Ryou being as innocent as he is, I know that I'll never be able to go about this subtly... I almost think that the direct approach would be best... just try to take things further... but I just can't do that to Ryou without making sure that he's ready first... He really is the type of person who might go along with something because he thinks that if he doesn't, he'll lose me... Honda sighed to himself in frustration and put a hand to his forehead. He was so caught up in his in thoughts as he walked down the block towards his house that he didn't even seen the shadow of the figure lurking behind the large tree in front of his next-door neighbor's house.
Ryuuji hadn't meant for it to happen, he really hadn't. Okay, so maybe he was lying, but only a little! He knew deep down inside (it just happened to be very, very deep down inside to the point where he rarely listened) that what he was about to do was wrong and unfair not only to Honda, but also to Ryou. But at the same time... he wanted this very badly.
So, he threw caution to the wind and acted completely out of character by pouncing on Honda as he passed by. After all, if anybody ever questioned him (that 'anybody' being Honda, most likely), he could always blame it on a rabid squirrel.
"...." Honda couldn't help but stare at his 'attacker', who was currently looking as shocked as he was. "Otogi?!"
Ryuuji couldn't help but smile very, very weakly before trying to point at the tree, "There was a squirrel?"
At Ryuuji's words, Honda raised an eyebrow rather suspiciously and eyed the tree critically. "A squirrel?" he asked in clearly disbelieving fashion. "And how exactly was you jumping on top of me supposed to help...?" Honda asked, grinning in an amused fashion. "You nearly knocked me over, grabbing me like that."
For a moment, Ryuuji was rather nonplussed. It was so seldom that he acted in purely spontaneous fashion, and now he really had no other explanation to fall back on, save the truth... Oh, and his natural charm. Ryuuji laughed a bit nervously and shrugged. "So, perhaps there wasn't a squirrel..." He drew in a deep breath, summoning up his most charming of smiles. "I know that I might have knocked you over... and perhaps I wouldn't have minded... I just couldn't take it anymore, Honda-kun..." Ryuuji waited for the inevitable question to come, feeling his heart begin to race in his chest, even as he carefully controlled his external expression. He didn't want to drive Honda away before he even had a remote chance of coming out with it.
Honda had been waiting for an explanation, but he blinked at Ryuuji when one was finally offered. He might be fairly clueless much of the time, but that sounded like... well, it sounded rather suggestive, at the least... "Couldn't take what...?" Honda asked slowly, his hazel eyes locking on the jade ones belonging to Ryuuji that seemed to sparkle mysteriously up at him in the moonlight. Suddenly, Honda was aware of the closeness between them... the way Ryuuji's body seemed to still be pressed up against his a bit. Calm down, Hiroto... He's just a flirt... Think of Ryou... Gotta think about Ryou... Can't think that he means something by this...
Ryuuji let his features sober, and he offered Honda an almost sad smile for just a moment. "I can't take any of it..." The raven-haired teen shook his head. "Demo, that really isn't my excuse for what I just did... I wanted to talk to you, but when I saw you walking along like that, looking so upset, I just had to do something. You're so good at making people laugh, Honda-kun... You shouldn't have to be upset like that..." Ryuuji murmured, twining his arms around the brunette's waist now, before he leaned upwards to kiss him.
Honda had ceased his internal monologue when Ryuuji began to speak to him in such a serious fashion. Why does he seem almost... unhappy...? Everyone adores Otogi... what could possibly be bothering him this much...? As far as I know, he isn't having any problems... Of course, as Ryuuji went on, things began to become clearer. It was completely unbelievable to Honda... but what else could it be? Still, even though he'd begun to guess the truth, Honda hadn't seen the kiss coming until it was all but too late. The brunette's body stiffened as those arms wrapped around his waist, but before he could utter one word of protest, Ryuuji's lips were against his.
It was just a chaste kiss at first. Not one so very different from the way that he usually kissed Ryou... and yet... it felt entirely different. Ryuuji had this confidence to him, this fluid sensuality... This was a kiss that felt as if it would lead to something more. Oh, and much though he didn't want to, Honda couldn't help but respond to it.
For his part, Ryuuji was somewhat surprised that Honda hadn't outright pushed him away and punched him for attempting something like this. A thrill raced through his body as those lips were pressed against his. Just to have this little taste of Honda was more than he'd really hoped for. I'd say that I'm even better than I thought, but then, this is Honda... Whatever the reason, I hope it's not just physical... Just not this time... It felt good, being pressed up against the other's strong, muscular frame. Before he even knew he was doing it, Ryuuji was deepening the kiss, sliding his tongue along the other's lips and parting his to invite the other in.
Even though the shock that came from feeling a kiss from someone deepen like that for the first time should have snapped Honda out of it, he just couldn't help himself at all. He'd been longing for something like this for quite some time, and Ryuuji was just a very good kisser... Honda closed his eyes, and for a moment, there was just an intense entangling of tongues and lips. It was only when air began to become an issue that Honda realized exactly what he'd done. He slowly drew back from Ryuuji, wearing a rather stricken expression now. In the space of a moment, Honda had gone further with Ryuuji than he had with Ryou in the entire time that they'd been dating. "What was that...?" he asked breathlessly, half-speaking to himself and half-speaking to Ryuuji. Honda had no anger now, only shocked puzzlement and distress.
Ryuuji gazed up at Honda, unable to keep a rather affectionate smile from his lips. Even though Honda was upset, he just had this rather cute way of asking the most idiotic-sounding questions at times. "That was me kissing you..." Ryuuji murmured, sliding a finger up to Honda's lips to quiet him. "I only want a chance to tell you what I came here to tell you. Then, it's all up to you. If you want, we can pretend that this night never happened. I won't do anything to hurt you, Honda-kun."
Then Ryuuji drew in a deep breath, taking a step back from Honda and turning away. "What I can't take anymore... is seeing you with Bakura-kun. It's just been eating away at me, I guess... It isn't that I don't like him... or that I think that he's bad for you... it's just... I don't like seeing you with him... because I want to be with you myself..." Ryuuji admitted quietly, turning to gaze over at Honda with a rather intense expression fixed on his features, green eyes dark and clear at the same moment.
"Is this a joke?" Honda's words seemed to stumble out like a miniature cascade without any prompting from himself. "You... You have to be kidding me."
"Honda...."
"I mean... I'm with Ryou now!" he was starting to rant, but he couldn't help it. In the back of his mind, something managed to register the lack of an honorific when Ryuuji said his name, but that didn't matter at the moment. This was just crazy! "And you... half the school is in love with you! Did somebody put you up to this? Maybe Jyounouchi? This sounds like Jyounouchi's doing... wait until I strangle that stupid..."
"Hiroto!" Ryuuji practically screamed in frustration. Honda couldn't help but stare again... suddenly, the calm, annoyingly confident facade that the green-eyed teen always put up was gone, leaving behind... this.
What was 'this', exactly?
"What?!" Honda was fair close to screeching himself. This was just... just so wrong! After all, there was still Ryou. Ryou! He had to remember Ryou, he couldn't hurt Ryou... not for this stupid prank because it was a prank and nothing more than a prank. Right?
"I'm baring my soul to you, and you think it's just some joke!"
"Cause it is... isn't it?!"
Ryuuji drew closer and planted both of his hands firmly on Honda's shoulders, locking his gaze on those dubious hazel eyes. "Hiroto, this is no joke. You're involved with Bakura. Do you really think that I'm the kind of person who would kiss someone who wasn't free like that if I didn't mean it? Do you really believe I'd go so far to tease you?" Then a charming smile formed on Ryuuji's lips. "You know, your unassuming nature is really very attractive... The way the thought of my wanting you is so unbelievable as to the point of being impossible for you to accept... It's quite flattering..." Ryuuji purred, almost wanting to just up and kiss Honda all over again. Still, he couldn't afford to leave Honda in doubt now. "Hiroto, listen to me... I've found myself becoming... drawn to you... There are so many reasons: your warmth, your humor, your good-naturedness. This isn't a joke. I'm telling you this because I can't take it any longer. What you do now is entirely up to you..."
When those hands caught his shoulders so smoothly, Honda's eyes widened a bit. It was then that the world seemed to slow, and all he could see were those vividly green eyes of Ryuuji's, burning into his own with such intensity. The truth of the matter shone in them with bright clarity. "Otogi..." Honda murmured, trying to absorb the other's words. It was just too much. He didn't see how this could have possibly happened... and yet, before Honda could even ask for reasons, Ryuuji was presenting them to him. "What am I supposed to do...?" he murmured softy, gazing up at the night sky. There was Ryou... and now... there was this...
Except 'this' happened to be an extremely insane, improbable, and dare he think unlikely situation that was too... too weird to be true, if anything. Certainly not too good to be true, because this wasn't what he would call a good situation. Although he supposed that some people would give an arm and leg to be in his place....That, though, had nothing to do with anything.
Ryuuji was not what one would call apprehensive, although a little part of his brain was suggesting that maybe it would be better if he was. After all, this was most likely not going to end the way he wanted it to... to be truthful though, he didn't really know how he wanted it to end. It would be absolutely wonderful if Honda suddenly grabbed his hand, tipped him over backwards like those fairy tale couples, and gave him a long, romantic kiss. However, since this was reality and reality was rarely that nice, it was rather doubtful that the before-imagined situation was going to happen.
He really did want it to, though. Wanted it to happen... But it wasn't like he could just flat out tell the brunette that. Could he?
"I don't know..." Ryuuji whispered. It wouldn't be right to steer Honda in a particular direction, per se... Though, he did lean in just slightly, unconsciously moistening his lips a little for a kiss that he'd already decided was never to come.
The way that Ryuuji was looking at him was more impossible than anything. The enticing look in those jade-hued eyes... the intensity... It's as if he wants me to kiss him again... That seemed impossible in Honda's mind, and yet, given what just had happened, Honda had to remind himself that it was utterly and completely possible, and even likely, in fact. The way those eyes bored into his seemed to slowly drive all of the other thoughts out of Honda's mind. As if by the pure magnetism of that gaze alone, Honda drew closer, catching Ryuuji's hand in his. Without thinking, his arm was wrapped around Ryuuji's back, and he leaned forward to catch him in an off-balance kiss. It didn't take long to deepen, and eventually, Honda's head was spinning from the contact to the point where it felt as if he were the one being tilted back.
It wasn't often that anyone caught Ryuuji by surprise, but to say that he was completely shocked by Honda's actions would be quite accurate. It was more than the fact that Honda had just suddenly decided to kiss him, which was rather out of character and a complete surprise in and of itself. It was that one moment, Ryuuji had been imagining a happy little fairy tale ending for himself, and the next, he was actually living it out. Though I'm sure that happily ever after is out of the question... I'll take it... Ryuuji thought, losing himself in the kiss. Really, even if Honda hadn't had as much practice as he had, Ryuuji would have to admit that Honda was quite a good kisser. When their lips finally parted, leaving both of them slightly breathless, Ryuuji smirked up at Honda, green eyes sparkling with amusement. "You read my mind, Honda-kun..."
"And what is that supposed to mean?" Honda asked as they both straightened.
"Exactly what I said," Ryuuji purred as he buried his head in Honda's shoulder, causing the brunette to smile slightly as he slowly, almost cautiously, embraced the black-haired teen.
And inside, not very far from the surface, a single question kept bouncing through his skull, searching desperately for an answer that nobody could give. What am I supposed to tell Ryou?