by Lethe
Chapter Thirteen: Celebrating
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Well, seeing as thirteen is the unlucky number (actually, it's my lucky number, but hey…), I figured something really interesting should happen. Or, at least, more interesting. So I tried, and this is what I came up with… Please review! ^__^
Personal cause for celebration: This chapter actually made three pages! All riiiight!
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"Mokuba, stop."
"What is it?" said Mokuba, halting mid-tickle.
"I thought I heard the phone ring," said Kaiba.
And, sure enough, the phone rang again. Kaiba scrambled ungracefully off of the couch and ran into the kitchen, where the nearest telephone was.
"Hello?"
"Hi, may I speak to Seto Kaiba?"
"This is he," said Kaiba apprehensively. The voice sounded familiar.
"Oh! I'm glad I could catch you," said the girl. "This is Shizuka, Jou's sister."
"Yes, I remember you. What is it?"
"It's something I thought you should know – I didn't think he'd tell you…"
"Go on…"
**
"Good morning!"
"Good morning," replied Jonouchi, with his standard yawn.
"Did you do your homework?" accused Anzu.
"As a matter of fact, I did!" said Jou proudly.
"That's a first," said Yugi with a laugh. "Sleep well?"
"Yeah."
"So, does it feel any different?"
Jonouchi blinked, then understood what the boy was referring to. "Nah. Never does."
"Every time, I wish I'll get taller…" sighed Yugi.
"Aw, you're so cute!" exclaimed Anzu immediately, hugging him like she would a bright pink plush doll. "Don't worry, Yugi, I love you just the way you are!"
Yugi blushed a bright shade of crimson as Jonouchi grinned at him. "It would be easier to help out at Grandpa's shop, though."
"No kidding," agreed Jonouchi, thinking of all the tall shelves. "Which reminds me, I haven't bought any new cards for a while…"
"You mean, put them on your tab," laughed Anzu.
Jonouchi uttered a small snort of displeasure. "Hey, we'd better hurry up, or we'll be late for school."
Anzu grabbed Yugi's hand and glanced at his watch. "You're right!" she said in surprise. "Come on!"
And on she raced, Jonouchi following at a slightly slower pace, while poor Yugi winced at her grip on his arm.
**
The school day had finally ended, much to Jonouchi's relief. It had been very long and dull. The other students were already gone, for which he was thankful; he didn't much like pushing through crowds. He reached his locker and opened it absentmindedly.
Suddenly, there was a soft touch on his shoulder, followed by a hand brushing lightly through his hair. "Good afternoon, Jou," whispered Seto, almost – almost! - closely enough that Jonouchi could feel the boy's lips on his neck.
"Hiya," replied Jonouchi, turning and kissing Seto's cheek. "How was your day?"
"Reasonable," said Seto. "I'm walking with you."
"I was hoping you would," said Jonouchi with a smile.
"Shall we go?"
"Yeah."
"Wait," said Jonouchi abruptly. "Why are we turning this way? This isn't the way home."
Kaiba smiled. "I thought you would like to go to the café with me." He took Jou's hand and squeezed it gently. "Come on."
"Well, all right," said Jonouchi. Although he was confused, at this moment he was soaring above the clouds. Seto's hand! Yess! He returned Kaiba's squeeze.
They looked at each other happily for a moment, before another conversation started up. And they were both content.
**
Seto walked back and sat down.
"What was that about?" said Jou curiously. The brown-haired boy had just been conferring in whispers with the waitress, far enough away that Jonouchi couldn't hear.
"You'll see," said Seto mysteriously. He smiled quickly. "So, how was your day?"
"Boring," said Jonouchi. "But there was this one funny part… Do you remember the teacher who told me and Honda off yesterday?"
"Yes," said Kaiba. "What happened?"
"Well, she…whoa…" Jonouchi trailed off. "That is huge," he commented. "Who d'you think that's for? I would probably only be able to eat half of it, that's how big it is…"
Kaiba laughed. "You only have to eat half of it. I'm sharing it with you."
Jou stared at Seto, dumbstruck. "W-wow."
The waitress came to their table and, before leaving, set down the biggest banana split Jonouchi had ever seen. He stared at it lovingly. "That is so beautiful."
Then he noticed the chocolate syrup on the top. How it looped and joined in such a way as to form letters… words…
He looked up at Kaiba in surprise. "How did you-"
Seto smiled. "Happy birthday, Jou."
Jonouchi grinned and grabbed his spoon. "Well? Let's eat!"
"I thought you said you wouldn't be able to eat anything for a week?" joked Jonouchi afterwards, head resting on Seto's shoulder. Somehow, they had ended up in a park near the café.
"All right, I was wrong," said Kaiba. "That was delicious."
"Wait. Say that again?"
"'That was delicious'?"
"No, the part before that," persisted Jonouchi.
Seto sighed. "I was wrong. Is that so hard to believe?"
"Yeah," said Jonouchi sleepily, snuggling closer to him. "As long as it was a good wrong, though, you're okay."
"I see…"
And that was how Seto Kaiba found himself sitting on a park bench at dusk, cradling Katsuya Jonouchi's head in his lap.
Of course, being a perfectly healthy teenager, he also found himself having a very hard time keeping from doing rather intimate things to that innocent head.
And, being of the sort who always followed through on his whims, he found himself leaning down and kissing Jou tenderly.
That was when Seto found out that Jou, returning his kisses furiously, hadn't been quite as asleep as he had seemed.