Painted Sky
Not much for me to say, although I apologize for the wait. But as I mentioned, I figured that the last chapter was the least cliff-hangy of all the upcoming chapters, and I needed a bit of relax period (a relax period as I study for finals… isn't that a contradiction in some way?).
Information for this chapter… it takes place on Friday, and I think that's all I need to say in regard to this, at least.
At this point, I will like to thank Cairnsy for giving me the most effective wake-up call that I have ever had in my life. I don't know where this story would have gone without you… it sounds odd because I would have continued it, of course, but I don't think it would have been the same. I don't think I would have enjoyed it as much, and I doubt it would have been as good as it can be. So for that, thanks. This chapter is for you.
*pauses again*
Ahhh! PM is such a sap person. X.x;;
Anyhow, again, many thanks to everyone for being so patient with me. I know it took me a while, and I really appreciate how nobody came after me. I was having problems with writing, and I really just needed some time to myself. So thanks to rayemars-san for beta-ing and to the reviewers: Cairnsy (I think you have reviewed before… it was an earlier chapter, I think. Wah, your review was so nice. @.@ I really appreciate it, although I feel a little bad because I don't know if I will answer all your questions. X.x Maybe the sequel which is bothering me happily….), MarmaladeGirl (oO;; Chama? Is that supposed to be a mix between –sama and –chan? ^~ Well, I didn't think this chapter was very cliffhangy. That might just be me though, since I know what is going to happen! XD Well, at least compared with this chapter, I'm pretty sure it was not at all cliffhangy), Dead Insomniac (XD Yes, Ryuuji's face really is perfection… Seto agrees, right? *purr*), Rowan and Sakura (Eep, is it that confusing? Gomeeeeeeen. @.@), Tuulikki (*feels loved… glomp* Sankyuu for always reviewing. *maul*), Pastbyer (I should put a disclaimer then that I don't replace keyboards ^~ Thanks for reviewing! Tis always appreciated! XD), Alana Hikari-chan (Well, Freud probably got the ideas from his own experience… which is pretty freaky if you think about it. P), Blackmoonlight (every 2 weeks unless there's problems… this time it was writer's block and finals, unfortunately. X.x), kkkkkkkkkkkkk (*wail* No! Too many ideas! No Jack Sparrow/Otogi Ryuuji romances! Bad PM bad! *sweatdrop* Heehee, the conversation between Seto and Yuriko should go like this – Seto: I'm in love with Ryuuji. Yuriko: Can I videotape it? XD Well, that's what I would say at least….), Eternal Kelpie (Ambitiously lazy? Oh, teach me your ways! Although that means I'll write less… XD Sorry for the wait, but hopefully it won't happen again. I'm glad you liked the other fics, and hope to see you again later. ^~), Lady Shirannan Santrea (Ah, my rambly livejournal. I hope it hasn't traumatized you too much. As for the time frame… *checks her outline* I think it's been two weeks, actually. Nearly three weeks by this chapter.), Anime Girl Sasami (*falls over* Ahhh! I think you've outdone yourself! ;-; Wah, I feel so loved in that you write this at school… *mauls* Loved your poem, by the way! Anyhow, as to answer your question about him being sober and in the middle of a mental breakdown… I thought it was kind of him being drunk and making his tongue a little more wraggly than usual, you know? Helped by that mental breakdown, at least. I liked your version of it… I wish I could think of things like that. *sniffle*), and fenne (Sorry about the overdoing Ryuuji's PMSing… but sometimes you run out of things to say and for some reason, that's what keeps coming back. X_X I have no idea why… but I'll work at it and try to convert you all the way. *noddu*). Arigatou gozaimasu, mina-san!
~ Uchi ni Kuru (Come Home) ~
A homecoming is supposed to be a wondrous event involving hugs, kisses, and a great deal of romantic whatnot that provided a great deal of annoyance for those hapless souls who tried to slip by unnoticed. It would have been, simply put, the perfect moment for Seto to show up at the airport with an armload of roses to greet his more or less unacknowledged true love and finally confess what was just waiting at the tip of his tongue to be said.
Of course, that would be a rather impossible situation since – as duly noted in the previous paragraph – Seto did not want to think of Ryuuji as his missing half and better part of himself (in fact, Seto tended to think of Ryuuji as the worse part of himself since the raven-haired man did seem to embody most of the characteristics that he found unbearably annoying). The most likely situation involving Kaiba Seto with roses would have been that Seto was at the airport to pick up his girlfriend… not to greet an extremely distractive pest.
But since Yuriko was quite happily in Domino City at the moment, there was no point to fantasize about such things. And since this translated into Seto not having a reason to be there (well, a reason that he was willing to count as a reason… it was all very confusing, especially for him, but he did his best to unconfuse himself by completely ignoring the situation in the first place), he was not there.
It was a very simple concept to grasp, and Ryuuji never should have thought about it twice. In fact, he never should have entertained the thought of Seto being at the airport, and he didn't even know if he wanted the brunette to be at the airport. That would just be a little too much too fast… which was strange if one thought about it because with Ryuuji, it wasn't like he was the type of person who worried about too much too quickly.
No matter what he thought though, it didn't change the fact that when Ryuuji stepped off the plane and back onto Japan, Seto was not there to greet him. Luckily for the sake of everyone around them, Yuugi-tachi was still there so the grand homecoming could still continue – without the romantic overtones, of course. But for the first time for as long as he could remember, Otogi Ryuuji felt very lonely.
And he had no idea why that was.
~ * ~
The days between Ryuuji's rather rambunctious and decidedly disturbing phone call and return were relatively quiet, especially when compared to the previous weeks. There was, however, a minor incident where Yami no Yuugi and Yami no Bakura went through break-up number 529 (not that anybody was worried. There had been, after all, 528 break-ups prior to this one, and each time the two were to be found 'making up' in the most unexpected places. A brief list of such places included the game shop, Ryuuji's game shop, the post office, the first floor of Kaiba Corporation, the library, the park, the laundromat, the toy store (many small children were traumatized, but according to Yami no Bakura, that had been the point), and the police station. The last of these was due to being arrested for public indecency, although Yami no Bakura tended to pick the locks rather than stay any longer than it took to traumatize the other prisoners and guards). Yami no Bakura soon found himself sleeping at his omote's home again. Said omote, unfortunately, was not very pleased with this development. It mainly had to do with the fact that the one day his boyfriend was over for the night, the two found themselves baby-sitting a very sulky and very bitchy Egyptian spirit who seemed to spend most of his time spying on the poor couple. Needless to say, not much was done that night… and Ryou was quite ready to throw Yami no Bakura out if it wasn't for the tiny fact that Yami no Bakura was a bit of a psychopath and there was no telling what he would do when he was in such a pet mood. [1]
But as dramatic as that all was, Honda really thought that it couldn't compare to the interesting relationship (or lack thereof) between Kaiba Seto and Otogi Ryuuji.
In the past week that Ryuuji had been off having the time of his life in America (at least, that's what Honda thought… but he would find out differently quite quickly and rather painfully), Honda had been doing quite a bit of fantasizing when it came to the life (romantic one included) of his currently missing in action roommate. They were, of course, more than just roommates, so it wasn't that Honda was trying to get rid of Ryuuji. It honestly had nothing to do with that, despite the fact that Honda's life would become much easier without having to deal with a rather PMS-y individual living across the hallway. It was more of a big brother protectiveness that seemed so out of place with him. He had never been an older brother, only a younger, and yet it was almost like he felt an obligation to shove Ryuuji in the right direction.
Why that direction had to involve Seto was a bit of a different story. It was question that probably bothered him more than it bothered either Ryuuji or Seto, simply because he wasn't sure if he could even trust the billionaire. Nearly getting killed by a person could do that to a person, yet Honda still found himself trying to push them together.
Well, push them together wasn't exactly the right way to put it. They obviously liked each other… if only because they spent so much time denying it while simultaneously proving themselves wrong just by the looks they gave each other… and Honda could see that easily. Sure, he wasn't the relationship expert… but something as obvious as this was bound to make itself known.
It was just that… well, Honda wanted Ryuuji to be happy. He knew that he wouldn't be completely content if one of his friends kept pining after somebody, even if that particular friend was trying to pretend that he wasn't pining. No matter how many doubts and suspicions he might have of the blue-eyed brunette, he just couldn't question the validity of there being something between the two. The changes (sometimes positive and sometimes negative) inspired in the game inventor was more than proof of that; in the entire time Honda had known Ryuuji, he had never seen him act this way.
Although to be completely truthful, he wasn't quite sure how to define this way. It was something so inexplicable and unexplainable that Honda avoided trying to understand it, instead giving it a label and allowing himself to be content with that. Some people found it necessary to explain every single thing that happened, but Honda had long ago learned that sometimes it was just easiest to let things happen as they did rather than try to dissect the hidden meanings behind it. Why did it matter how something happened? Wasn't it more important to just acknowledge that particular something and then act upon it?
One of the things that he knew was that Ryuuji had never changed much when he was with Malik. But that had been a stupid little fling that both were surprised had lasted as long as it did. After that, there had been no more dates, although Honda had often found strange people stalking his roommate. Ryuuji tended to shrug it off, interspersing his explanations with little mind games that always lost Honda before they were finished, and he had long ago learned not to ask for any more specifics or risk completely losing his mind.
He had a feeling that that was the point.
When he had told Ryuuji that the little 'accident' he'd had with Seto might have been a hint that he needed to… well, get out more (not that he would ever repeat that, for fear of his life), he hadn't really meant it to be cruel or funny. Okay, so he could have been a little less blunt, but it wasn't like he was deliberately taunting his roommate. What he had said were things that he had truly meant, whether or not Ryuuji appreciated them or not. He wasn't out to get Ryuuji or to make his life miserable. A miserable Ryuuji usually meant a miserable Honda, and it wasn't like he particularly enjoyed being miserable. It had just been something that he had been wondering for a very long time, and he had simply chosen a very bad time to express it.
Jyounouchi would have a full on heart attack if he knew what kind of thoughts Honda was having right now. Not to imply that the blonde was close to the raven-haired man, but Jyounouchi could be pretty protective when it came to his friends, even ones who had completely messed around with his mind on their first meeting. And simply put, the blonde duelist had many more suspicions and problems with Kaiba Seto than Honda would ever have… most of it was prejudice, of course, but Jyounouchi did have a reason to be worried. After all, what about Ryou? During the duel between Yami no Yuugi and Yami no Bakura [2], Seto had been so willing to sacrifice the life of somebody else just to win a game. That didn't quite seem like the type of person that should be having relationships with anybody, with perhaps the exception of Mokuba.
In that case, Seto had been willing to sacrifice himself.
It was an odd situation, to say the least. No wonder Honda was having such fits about it. On one hand, Ryuuji genuinely seemed to be improving with the newfound presence of the blue-eyed CEO, and both of them seemed to be actively seeking each other out. Even though Ryuuji's last move had been solely to avoid Seto, the fact that he was willing to make such a dramatic move must have meant something.
But there were the nasty parts too. All relationships came with downfalls, of course, but this one seemed to be a bit more… dangerous. Even if the two got together, could Seto properly care for him? He wasn't thinking about this from the point of view from a mother who didn't want to let her baby chick fly away, but from an almost pragmatic standpoint where he didn't want to end up being a shoulder to cry on. Well, not to imply that Ryuuji would cry… that would ruin his eyeliner.
Stranger things had happened.
Such thoughts had been nagging him for quite a while, but he had never really stopped to think them through as thoroughly as he did now. There was just so much to think about that Honda was starting to wonder why he had ever gotten involved in the first place. Heh, if only Ryuuji could hear him now. He would probably have a field day with that information.
Speaking of Ryuuji, said dice-obsessed game inventor was currently strolling into the terminal from the airplane ramp, looking quite a bit ill for worse.
He never had been good on airplanes.
Honda had to hide his smirk behind his hand as he went with the others to greet their friend. Ryuuji, whose sixth sense of people having a laugh at his expense was heightened after airplane trips, noticed the smile immediately and scowled at him, causing them all to laugh as they started to walk out of the airport. Almost immediately, the two fell back from the rest of the group who continued on ahead chatting blithely.
"It's a shame Kaiba couldn't make it, huh?" Honda asked casually, causing Ryuuji to look at him sharply. Or, he would have looked at his friend sharply if it wasn't for the fact that he was still feeling nauseous from the trip here, and so he settled on turning very slowly with an absolutely icy expression on his face that reminded the brunette quite strangely of a certain other brunette.
"Honda. I have just spent an entire week listening to a bunch of mindless idiots prattle on about mistakes that any person with half a brain could fix. I have sat through meetings that had no content, had every one of my decisions questioned repeatedly, and been recommended everything from restaurants and strip clubs to mental hospitals and funeral homes. I have just sat in an airplane for fifteen plus hours. I am jetlagged. I have also embarrassed myself in ways that I do not want to explain to you. So if you really want to die, I suggest you repeat that statement of yours right now."
And with those final words of greeting, Ryuuji turned and stalked away, leaving Honda there to stare after him. For a moment more, the brunette stared at his retreating form with mild interest before shrugging.
"Well hello to you too."
~ * ~
By the time the small group had reached the apartment, Ryuuji was starting to feel reasonably guilty about having snapped at Honda.
All of that went flying out the window when Jyounouchi opened his mouth before Ryuuji had even had time to put down his bags.
"You're in love with Kaiba?!"
And then the suitcases hit the floor with a loud bang as Ryuuji whipped around for the sole purpose of screaming out, "What the hell have you been telling everyone, Honda?!"
He had, on the plane trip here, promised himself that he would not scream no matter what happened. This was a very difficult resolution, but Ryuuji thought he might be able to manage it. Of course, he hadn't exactly counted on Honda telling the whole world about his business, so all those plans went out the window with a sickening splat.
"I didn't say anything!" Honda replied defensively, but then he found himself being fixated with one of Ryuuji's glares. Not just a glare, but a glare… one of those things that made you confess everything the person wanted to know, along with every wrong deed you had committed since that time you broke your mother's favorite glass vase and blamed it on your older sister as a lesson that your Super Death Killer Action Figure was not to be paired up with Barbie. Needless to say, that little act had not worked, and next thing he knew, his sister was getting revenge on him by making him baby-sit his darling new nephew who had from there proceeded to make his life a living hell. The nice thing about it was that he wasn't the only one irked by his sister's son – Anzu had discovered what it was like to be the subject of a crush of a perverted baby, as had Mai and Isis. Georgie [3] was currently (and quite disturbingly) fixated on none other than Otogi Ryuuji at the moment, which meant that Ryuuji was getting batches of roses for his birthday, New Year's, Christmas, Valentine's Day, White Day (never mind that on White Day, you were supposed to give a gift to somebody who gave you a gift on Valentine's Day), and July 4th (and never mind that Independence day was an American holiday). Honda had no idea how his sister could let her son buy flowers for somebody who was practically twice his age, but he figured that the little brat was conniving enough to tell her that it was gifts for teachers.
Anyhow, none of that had anything to do with the topic on hand, and if Honda didn't answer the question fast, he was going to be acting like the Wicked Witch of the West when she melted into a giant puddle.
"Err… maybe I said something?"
Before Ryuuji could reach over and try to strangle Honda, Anzu spoke up nervously, 'Ne, Otogi-kun… what Jyounouchi meant to say was…."
Her voice trailed off at this point. Basically, what Jyounouchi had said was exactly what they had all meant to say, except they would have tried to use a more gentle tone. When it came to Ryuuji, people tended to speak to him like he was a wild lion ready to bolt… or spring up and eat all of them.
"We… were just wondering how your relationship with Kaiba-kun developed so quickly," Yuugi supplied. It was a good answer, unless it was interpreted the wrong way. And since this was a large group involving two dead people, two possessed people, two loud people, two not-so-loud people, and one sometimes very psychopathic game inventor, somebody was bound to interpret it the wrong way.
Remembering his prior guilt at yelling at Honda was the only thing that kept Ryuuji from completely going off the rocker again. So instead of going into another fit, he just fixated his fearsome glare on Yuugi, who responded to it with an innocent smile. It might have worked if Ryuuji hadn't known Yuugi well enough to know that the shorter man was anything but innocent, but since Ryuuji did know, it was all a moot point.
"It is not a relationship," he finally growled out, wondering if anybody would believe that lie. The only person he could think of who would be willing to give him that was Seto, but he wasn't here right now. What was even worse was the fact that he wanted Seto here right now, if only to back him up when reiterating that they had no relationship. Which was true, in a way. They spent too much time denying that they had a relationship to recognize that that was, in a twisted way, a relationship.
"Could have fooled me," Jyounouchi grumbled under his breath, although he practically made sure that everyone in the room could hear his words. This did not go well with any of the occupants – especially since most of them didn't want to witness a hissy fit – and before Ryuuji could even open his mouth, Mai was already smacking her husband on the head.
"Katsuya!" she snarled as she grabbed him by an ear and started to shake him dramatically, "Don't make this situation any worse than it already is!"
"Since when was my relationship a situation that you guys had to deal with?"
The sudden question threw them all off guard, and soon everyone was staring at him with more than a little bewilderment. Maybe it was because the words had been spoken so calmly… Ryuuji didn't exactly seem like the type of person who could demonstrate such calmness, especially in this particular moment.
Having caught their attention, Ryuuji shrugged slightly as he looked away, careful to never make eye contact with the small group, "I appreciate your concern, but even if there was a situation here, it's my problem to deal with. So I would appreciate it more if you all backed off and let me do that."
He paused here, to make room for a reply in case anybody had one to give. However, everyone seemed so dumbstruck that none of them could form a coherent sentence, although several of them tried to do so. The most they got was garbled words. Thus, deciding that nothing particularly pertinent or just plain understandable was going to be said in his immediate future, Ryuuji simply shrugged again.
"I'm going to take a nap."
With that he walked past them towards the hallway that led to his bedroom. He paused, momentarily, next to Honda – as if challenging the brunette to stop him. But nothing of the sort happened, so it wasn't a problem.
Depending on what one's definition of 'problem' is, at least. [4]
~ * ~
The last thing Kaiba Seto wanted to happen right now was for him to walk into the restaurant just as Otogi Ryuuji was walking out. This would, inevitably, cause some type of disturbance that he honestly did not need to deal with now, so it was reasonable that he would not want to be faced with.
But fate is such a fickle thing that enjoys the suffering of others, so it couldn't just leave Seto alone despite the fact that Ryuuji was busy being welcomed back into the country. So, instead, it decided to send an appropriate substitute.
And it was just as Seto was walking into the restaurant that said substitute was walking out, and the two somehow managed to slam right into each other. It wasn't anybody's fault – both had been preoccupied with their respective businesses. Seto, on one hand, had been busy rehearsing everything that he was going to say (despite the fact that he always seemed calm and collected, that trait mostly came from a combination of practice and a great deal of will power), while Yami no Yuugi had been so involved in the inventory list he had his eyes practically glued to that neither noticed the other until it was much too late for either to escape.
Fate was having a field day right about now.
"Urmph," Yami no Yuugi mumbled as he reached down to pick up the lists that had dropped onto the ground during the collision. Seto watched him dispassionately until the former pharaoh looked up at him, "You could have helped, you know."
"Hrm," was the only reply as Seto continued to watch him. "What are you doing here?"
It wasn't a nice question – Seto was obviously annoyed with his presence, and he was not about to do anything to hide his irritation. He had, after all, a lot going on in his mind, and the unwelcome company of his old crush was not something that he was going to be very receptive to.
The spirit didn't look at all disturbed by the question – instead, he just swung his backpack over so that it was resting on one shoulder and opened it so that he could stuff it with the papers he had just picked up off the ground. Seto couldn't help but twitch ever so slightly when he saw a familiar pair of glassy black eyes looking up at him from its depths, but before he could comment on it, Yami no Yuugi was finally answering his question.
"It's not like you own every building in Domino City, Kaiba. I have a right to be here too," he snapped as he turned to face the CEO. "Aibou had a problem with the suppliers, and since he was busy today, I offered to go sort it out for him."
Seto had to bite his tongue to keep from asking if Yami no Yuugi's idea of diplomacy involved subtle threats and punishment games.
"Anyhow, I stopped here for something to eat before I went back to the shop. I needed something relaxing lest I go back there and accidentally mind crush every idiot that I had to talk to."
Even as he spoke so frankly about destroying the minds of others, Yami no Yuugi was pulling Yuki out of the backpack so that the little white seal could rest in his arms. Eying Seto somewhat worriedly, he paused before handing the other man his precious stuffed animal.
Perhaps he was distracted and didn't really notice it until it was happening, or perhaps he had just completely lost his mind. But Seto found himself taking the little seal, whose fur was just as soft as he had ever imagined. As soft as Ryuuji's hair looked… and maybe a part of him could still remember stroking the silky hair during their drunken rendezvous. The feelings came up – not for long – and then the pharaoh had finished zipping his backpack and had taken Yuki back without even a word of thanks.
Yami no Yuugi was an enigma, and not because he was a 3,000 year old pharaoh who had been brought into the modern world by means of a gold trinket. It was more of the fact that he was a 3,000 year old man who acted like a sixteen year old. His fashion sense had not changed much over the years, as he was still clothed in overly flamboyant….
His thought seemed to trail off as soon as it came across the word 'flamboyant'. That word, of course, immediately brought up images of a certain someone else, and that was the last thing he wanted to think about. So he did his best to snap his attention back to the present, although it was more or less guaranteed that it wouldn't work in the long run.
"Still playing with toys, Yami? I doubt the suppliers were very impressed with that," he spoke coldly, giving Yuki a long look. Yuki gazed back defiantly, and if he was a real creature, Seto could have sworn that it had tried to snap and bare its teeth at him.
This was probably proof that he was becoming as bad as everyone else.
Instead of rising to the bait though, Yami no Yuugi just gave him an equally defiant look, "What I enjoy is none of your business, Kaiba. And I would appreciate it if you kept your comments to yourself."
Seto just rolled his eyes. It always amazed him how contradictory the pharaoh could be… on one hand so imposing, but at the same time he would be holding the delicate white seal and his image of strength would be somewhat diminished by such a childish action.
It annoyed him, frankly.
"Well. I would be lying if I said it was nice seeing you, so good-bye." His words were curt and to the point, as if he was deliberately trying to brush the game king away as he would do with a speck of dust. Unfortunately, Yami no Yuugi could be a total prick when he wanted to be, and a stubborn one at that.
"I saw your girlfriend in there before I left."
Seto paused midstep, cursing himself silently as he did. This was not a situation that he wanted to be caught in, but he reluctantly turned to face the shorter man, "So?"
Yami no Yuugi's brow was somewhat furrowed, as if he was deep in thought or simply confused, "What's been going on between you and Otogi, exactly?"
The CEO couldn't help but blink at that. Now where on earth had that come from? It wasn't exactly a small leap from an observation about his girlfriend to a sudden attempt at an in-depth conversation about somebody who he obviously did not like. And it was also something that he did not want to be reminded of. He spent so much time trying to distance himself, and yet in the most awkward situations, it would be brought up again. What was up with that?
"That is none of your business, Yami," he snapped, but the way he said his words more quickly than usual gave away that slight sense of panic he might have felt. Might have… perhaps should have. He wasn't sure anymore. When it came to Ryuuji, he could never be sure anymore.
"Do you like him? Does he like you? Anzu and Honda-kun seem convinced that there's something going on between you two, and they probably know the best," Yami no Yuugi was being blunt, and he knew it all too well. But he continued, nevertheless. "I'm just trying to figure out what is happening."
"There is nothing going on. And even if there was, it doesn't involve you in any way. So why don't you go back to playing with your stuffed animals?"
If he was expecting the spirit to get annoyed and walk away seething, he was sadly disappointed. Instead, Yami no Yuugi just continued to give him the same, expressionless look.
"He's my friend. I don't know what you're doing, and you're right. It probably isn't my business. But I don't want to see him get hurt. [5]"
Seto snorted, "I doubt he needs your help to prevent that."
The shorter man shrugged as he started to turn, "You'd be surprised."
He didn't have a reply to that. After all, everything that had happened since he had gotten the shock of his life when he woke up to discover an unwanted guest residing in his bed had more or less been a surprise, and he wouldn't really be astounded if there were similar shocks awaiting his presence. He was almost starting to get used to it, in an odd way.
"Are you finished?"
Yami no Yuugi didn't even bother to reply to that. Instead, he just started to walk away, which in a way was turning the tables on Seto. He was usually the one doing the walking away, and he didn't quite like the feeling of being abandoned. It felt rather… strange.
"I don't want to see you hurt either."
The words were so casually thrown out, as if they weren't supposed to mean everything that they did. Seto almost couldn't believe that he heard them correctly, except for the fact that he tended not to second-guess himself on these types of things. But even then, he couldn't believe that Yami no Yuugi would say such a thing, as if he actually acknowledged the presence of those who were not part of his brainless cheerleader crowd.
And as he stared at the receding figure, trying to think of something to throw back so that he would not completely lose face, the only thing he could see was a pair of glassy black eyes, staring at him balefully until they, along with their owner, disappeared into a sea of faces that cared nothing of his thoughts [6].
~ * ~
Reunions, like homecomings, are supposed to be wondrous events involving hugs, kisses, and a great deal of romantic whatnot that provided a great deal of annoyance for those hapless souls who had to endure bearing witness to the situation. And since it had been a while since Yuriko had seen Seto, it might have been labeled a reunion by more dreamy individuals who probably knew nothing of the couple.
But since this was Kaiba Seto, Yuriko knew what to expect. Or really, what not to expect.
Her mind wandered back to the e-mail that had been so suddenly sent to her computer. Although the words had not seemed too out of character for her boyfriend, there was still something about them that made her a little more worried than usual. After all, even if they didn't always act like it, she did care for him and could read him better than most could. And even if they had only been words, she was still bothered by them even if she shouldn't have been. It wasn't something she could really explain – she just accepted it and chose to deal with it when the appropriate time came.
That time was fast approaching, in her opinion.
She wasn't sure how long had passed since she had arrived before Seto came, but suddenly she found herself blinking at her boyfriend, almost as if he was some type of specter that had come to haunt her. "Hey."
"I'm sorry I'm late. I ran into someone," he replied simply as he eased into his seat across from her, intense blue eyes staring directly at her. "I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long."
It was almost like some age old dance, where they would avoid the real topic at hand. He wasn't that late, and she hadn't been waiting that long. And it wasn't as if he was so polite that he had to apologize just for being a couple seconds late. It was really just a ploy so that they wouldn't have to talk about whatever he had asked her here to discuss in the first place.
Strange that people tended to avoid what they never could. They tried as much as they want, but in the end, it was always there waiting for them. Perhaps it was better to just get to the point instead of playing these games, but then what would be the point of life?
Still, despite such thoughts, she fixed him with one of her concerned looks. "Seto?"
Seto had, in a way, hated those looks so much, although he was much too polite to say so. It made him feel like he was pathetic and in need of sympathy, and that was certainly something he didn't like very much. He should tell her as much, but he didn't want to say anything.
Was that why Ryuuji interested him so? He never felt this way around the raven-haired man, with those mischievous green eyes that always seemed to be coming up with new ideas to mess with his mind. And wasn't he the same, with the way he acted? It was as if he had found somebody who was so similar to him, yet with enough differences to make them oceans apart. It was difficult to understand, really, which was why he didn't like to think about such things.
Besides, this wasn't about him. This was about her. The person he loved. The person he was supposed to want to spend the rest of his life with, otherwise he wouldn't be doing this.
Right?
But as he looked into her dark blue eyes, he really had to wonder.
"… Seto?" she repeated, albeit more hesitantly. He blinked, mentally cursing himself for his lapse of concentration as he tried to look as cool and collected as possible.
"Yes?"
"Daijoubu ka? [7]"
"I'm fine," he replied a bit more impatiently then he meant to, and he couldn't help but be relieved when she just sat back instead of continuing her line of questioning or looking hurt. He wasn't sure what to do if something like that had happened. "I'm sorry. It's just been rough lately."
She didn't reply, but she usually didn't. The expression on her face clearly said that she didn't believe him though.
But she didn't say anything either.
Ryuuji would have said something. Ryuuji was perceptive and he would have said something… probably along the lines of 'Do I look like I'm a complete idiot?' or 'We're not all so blinded by our adoration of you, you know.' Something that would be inconceivably rude and annoying but amazingly perceptive at the same time. Something that would drive him absolutely crazy but something that he couldn't quite live without either.
All these contradictions were really starting to screw up his life.
Something within him would not stop screaming about whether or not this was what he really wanted. Something within him would just not leave him alone to do what had to be done. It asked about that other person, the one he had tried to avoid thinking about when he had made this decision. It asked him if he was willing to make this mistake, if he was willing to give up that special somebody who would make the rest of his life a perfect bliss (although since this was Ryuuji, a hell as well).
And the rest of him was telling the little voice to shut it because it wasn't going to happen.
Yet no matter how much of him tried to silence that dissenting voice, it would not back down. It meant so much to it, apparently, that it refused to let go of a dream that was waiting to happen. This was a mistake, it kept reiterating. This is a mistake. Why are you doing this to yourself?
Why?
Why wouldn't it go away?
Clearing his throat, he let his mouth do the talking instead of his brain or his heart. Those two parts of him were too busy fighting each other to notice that he was barreling ahead despite whatever objections they might have, and he had to do this before he completely lost his nerve.
I don't want to see you hurt either.
What had he meant by that?
Mechanically, desperately, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small velvet ring box. Wordlessly, he slid it across the table with such precise aim that it came to a halt right before her.
When Takashi Yuriko was a little girl, she'd had the fantasy that many little girls have of their loved one getting down on his (or her's, depending on the individual) knees and taking her hands in his as they gazed lovingly into each other's eyes. And then he would say those words that supposedly everyone is waiting for as he would slip the ring onto her finger.
The ring was something that was indeed out of her fantasy life. The small black velvet box had opened to reveal a delicate silver ring with a small blue sapphire on each side of a diamond, and it really was quite beautiful [8]. Quite the thing that every little girl dreamed about, really.
And when she had been little, she had imagined that her reply would not really be words, per se, but she would instead throw herself onto her beloved and kiss him repeatedly. And then he would swing her into his arms and the two would depart, probably to either call all their friends with the good news or have wild bunny sex in the back of his car. Perhaps both, although probably not at the same exact time.
But since all little girls had to grow up, she instead did what the adult Takashi Yuriko would have done.
"Yes."
Commentary:
[1] I realize this is a rather useless and disturbing digression from the point on hand… but when I originally wrote it, I just couldn't throw it out. ^^;;
[2] Reference to the first Battle Ship duel, volumes 23 – 24.
[3] I think we had the discussion in this story about how his name is supposed to be spelled in English, and the translated Shounen Jump says 'Joh-ji'. ^.^ However, since I've just been so trained to think that it was Georgie ever since Kei-kun told me (and now insists upon ever since I casually mentioned it to her again) it was that (and she should know! Grr! Of course, this did come from the person who told me that Kaiba and YnYuugi's duel on Pegasus's castle would turn out a tie…), I'll just be keeping it at that. ^~
[4] When I finished this scene, I realized that Ryou never spoke. It's not very important, but he was there… I don't want to sound like I'm leaving him out, but there wasn't really anything for him to say. ^^;;
[5] Mention "Spider Web" and prepare to be whacked.
[6] Unless one of them was a tabloid reporter, at least.
[7] Are you okay?
[8] rayemars-san commented here about how the ring was kinda tasteless, and I was thinking about changing it. But then I thought about it a bit more and decided that Kaiba didn't have much taste anyway so it was okay (I mean, that purple outfit? What was *up* with those sleeves? It made him look like he had horns on his shoulders or something. Similar gripe with the Battle City outfit, although the turtleneck was just sexy. But those weird buckles on his arms… urmph). *ducks*
For those of you who have watched Sex and the City before, I was thinking about having Yuriko say 'Alrighty'. X.x;; Gotta stop watching TV, methinks…. P
Anyhow, sorry about the wait! I hope this chapter makes up for it… it's the first one in a while that I really enjoyed writing. Gah that sounds depressing. *looks ashamed*
You know, I was thinking about the engagement ring and wondering what it would be like if the conversation went something like this.
Seto: Do you like it? (Like he would ever care enough to say that!)
Yuriko: Well… I kinda wanted emeralds.
Seto: I know. But they reminded me too much of his eyes.
Yuriko: Oo;;
=(^.~)=
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