Beginning A/N: Ack...I'm tired. I had to work really hard on this chapter. I'm glad it's done.

As always, 'italics=thoughts'

The day of truth came. Jou could feel a shiver in his bones when he awoke on the dreary morning. The sky was a light gray color and it threatened rain; the humidity made breathing slightly difficult.

'Great day for a date. God must have a sense of humor,' Jou thought groggily as he rolled out his bed. 'In fact, I'll bet he does have a sense of humor, and laughs at me every time I screw this Kaiba thing over even further.' He washed his face and tried to straighten his hair. 'Today could make or break me, so everything has to be perfect. I can't control the weather,' he scowled as he looked at the turbulent sky, 'but I can control me.'

With this firm resolve, Jou continued to prepare himself for school.

Conversely, Kaiba was already up and ready, checking his appearance in his mirror. Having made a schedule of events for the day, he decided to treat his "date" with Jou like a regular business encounter.

Why had he agreed to Jou's date anyway? His strange fantasies always focused on passion and sex, never on love. He had no desire whatsoever to be in a relationship with anyone, let alone a certain ignorant blonde. Indeed, he often questioned why this boy plagued his thoughts. Jounouchi represented everything Kaiba hated: he was loud, brash, arrogant, caring, and loyal. Perhaps what Kaiba hated most was the fact that Jou was not only his exact opposite, but he was also his mirror image. Whereas Jou was loud and impulsive, Kaiba knew he was quiet and calculating. However, Kaiba also knew that he was arrogant ('though' he thought 'not without reason'). He could be caring, even if it was only to Mokuba. Loyal? Well, he was loyal to Kaiba Corp. He'd yet to find anyone worthy of his complete loyalty. Trust and dedication were not values that he easily gave away.

Yet all of these were reasons why he should have said "no" not "yes" to Jounouchi's request. What could have possessed him to answer so quickly?

'We don't have a school project and we're not friends. And I know I don't have feelings for Jou. So why…'

Jou was nothing special; he was common, idiotic, impulsive…

'Just keep telling yourself that, Seto. There is absolutely nothing to anticipate. Put on your straight face and deal with him.'

"Big brother?" a questioning voice called. Kaiba looked up from his mirror to see his little brother staring at him.

"What is it, Mokuba?" he asked, straining cheerfulness. His little brother had been through some tough times, some of it at the hands of Seto Kaiba himself. Yugi Motou and his friends hadn't made the situation any better. Kaiba tried his best to make his brother happy now; he'd caused him enough pain in the past.

"Well, I wanted to know if you were going to come and eat breakfast with me. I've been waiting, but you've been in front of that mirror for ten minutes."

Kaiba had to fight down a blush. He never spent this much time looking at himself. 'Jounouchi couldn't be the cause of this. That damned date isn't until tonight. I'll have plenty of time to prepare after school…so why am I so worried now?'

"I'm coming, Mokuba," Kaiba said as he turned away from his reflection. 'Teenage hormones are a curse from God, I'm sure of that now.' he thought cynically.

At school, neither boy would look at the other. Kaiba was determined to ignore Jou until later that night, and even then he planned to stay distant. The Jou of his fantasies was a plaything, an object of passion and desire, not of love. Even his brother, who he loved dearly, could sometimes be a taxing burden. Keeping to the shadows, he went to his classes without a word or a glance at anyone.

"Jou," Yugi piped up as he walked with the blonde to the gym. "You've been awfully quiet all day. Is anything wrong?" The small boy's large eyes looked fearful and worried.

Jou had to smile at his friend's concern. "Nothing's wrong, buddy. I just have an interview for a job later tonight, and I'm a bit nervous about it." His expression turned serious. "If I don't get this job, everything's ruined…" he trailed off, his eyes going blank.

Yugi smirked. "Oh Jou, the camping trip isn't that important. We can do something else if you can't pay."

"Huh?" Jou blurted. "Oh, the camping trip. Right."

"Are you sure you're okay?" Yugi poked at his friend teasingly.

"Yeah, sure I am!" Jou cried playfully as he pulled Yugi into a headlock. "I'll find a way to pay for this trip, you wait and see. Until then, you poke at me and you'll get a noogie!" The two boys laughed their way to the gym.

Finally the school day ended. Kaiba headed straight for his limousine. He wanted to get a little work done before he was to meet with the object of all his sufferings. However, Fate was not so kind.

"Hey Kaiba, wait up!" came a loud voice from across the school courtyard. A grimace flashed on the brunette's face, and he had no problems keeping it there as he turned to confront Jou.

Inside, Jou cringed at the hateful look of Kaiba's countenance, but he gave no outward indication of this. 'Now's not the time to be lookin' weak. Kaiba's such a confident person; he'll probably only hire people like him. Be brave, Jounouchi.'

"What do you want, Jou-nou-chi?" Kaiba drawled out mockingly. Jou could tell that Kaiba obviously didn't want to talk to him, but he had to continue with the conversation.

"Well, um…I wanted to know if you were going to your Kaiba Corp. office today…" Again, Jou's speech was rushed. 'Why do I keep fumbling in front of this guy?'

Kaiba looked at Jou quizzically. 'Why would he want to know something like that? What could possibly be his motivation for asking about my plans? Maybe he thinks I'll be a no-show for our "date" tonight.' He smirked mentally. 'I love having the upper hand. Perhaps I should toy with him a bit…'

"Why is that important to you, Jou-nou-chi?" Kaiba asked, a small smile creeping onto his lips. Might as well enjoy himself…

Jounouchi resisted taking a step away from Kaiba. The CEO's sudden change in attitude scared him, and he wondered if this smiling person in front of him was the same bastard Kaiba that he always knew. Still, the job…his job was on the line. He had to keep talking.

"Be-be-because…uh, you could come to the restaurant in your business suit. I mean, I'm already inconveniencing you enough…"

"Got that right," Kaiba mumbled under his breath. This humble, respectful Jounouchi was not the one he wanted to bring out. He had hoped that his taunting would make Jou return to his old ways. He felt like he needed someone to help him vent his frustrations, someone to be his sole focus in a battle, even if is was only for a short period of time. Fighting, being witty and arrogant, constantly challenging a single person and always winning…that was how Seto Kaiba got off. To a growing teenager such as himself, Kaiba needed Jounouchi to be his release, even if their "playtime" didn't fit the traditional definition of the word.

Jou kept up their discussion; he was afraid he would lose his determination if he paused. "It's sort of an informal meeting, really. Just a nice chat between the two of us. I wouldn't want for you to come in a stuffy tuxedo or something…"

Kaiba retorted, unable to hold himself back. "Why, because I'd outshine you? What, are you too poor to afford some dressy clothes? Do you want me to come to the restaurant looking like a bum so you won't seem out of place?" He laughed condescendingly. "I'm not sure I can accommodate that request."

Jou felt the anger building up inside him. 'This is bullshit. No job is worth this kind of torture.' He'd just have to find another way to make money.

"Now listen here, you rich bitch. I was trying to be nice to you, treating you to dinner and making sure you were comfortable, but you don't appreciate anything! You can take your fucking job and shove it up your ass." He turned to stomp off.

Shooting out a hand, Kaiba barely caught Jou's forearm. "What did you say?" his voice holding a tinge of shock. 'What kind of "date" did he have planned?'

Jou snorted as he faced Kaiba again. He moved to cross his arms as he spat out "I said you can take your job and shove it. Or are you too high and mighty to understand the speech of us commoners?"

Kaiba let Jou's arm fall. 'So, it wasn't that kind of date after all…' He didn't know why he felt a sudden pang of sadness in his chest, but he still wanted to make the best of the situation. He could still come out on top.

"So you wanted that mailroom job, eh? And you thought that you could sneak in an interview if you took me to dinner, right? Well, I must say I'm impressed Jounouchi. That took quite a bit of calculating and planning on your part."

Now Jou looked stunned. Had Kaiba just complimented him? He took a quick glance skyward. 'No, the pigs aren't flying today. Why the hell is he doing this? What the hell is he doing, changing his attitudes so quickly? Someone could think he's schizophrenic if he keeps this up.'

"How about we still go for that dinner? My treat this time. Business casual, to make things even better. I might still have something for you to do at Kaiba Corp." A grin crossed his features, one that made Jou quiver, almost frightened. 'Kaiba is one scary bastard. I'd make sure not to get on his bad side, but I think I'm there already. I just hope he doesn't plan to kidnap me and torture me slowly or somethin'…'

"Um, okay," was all he could muster. He was seriously confused, and Kaiba's strange change wasn't helping. He needed time to think; he was treading in dangerous waters, and he knew it. This dinner did not call for foolhardy statements and reckless actions; he had to be wary and alert, or else Kaiba might kill him for sure.

"Great. How about I pick you up at seven? It's much better than walking, I assure you." Jou knew not to disagree lest he incur Kaiba's hidden wrath, so he simply nodded his head. "I'll see you then," Kaiba said as he stepped into his waiting limousine. "Don't be late," he added with a mock threatening tone…one that scared Jou out of his wits.

As he watched the car pull off, Jou mumbled to himself. 'What the hell have I gotten myself into this time? I'm dead for sure. With gangs, I could fight my way out. But how do I fight someone who's stronger than me, both physically and mentally?' Jou sighed as he slumped to the ground. 'I am so screwed…'

A/N: Another chapter successfully completed. This one took me a while because there were two versions. BUT, with the help of my lovely beta readers, I was able to combine the best parts from each version and come up with this little baby. I'm quite proud of it myself.

Thanks to the betas, Snarky and Deepsense! I lurve you girls....