By animeninjaNIPPON

Damn that Jonouchi. Of the six billion people on this planet, he was the last person whom I wanted to know about my relationship with Haga. Not only did I hate his guts, but he was a notorious rumormonger, or so it seemed.

I picked up an empty sake bottle by the neck and smashed it against the wall. "What the Hell are you doing back here?" I demanded, wagging the broken bottle end at him. He backed up against the other wall.

"I should put that question back to you," he shot back. "And with him…"

Haga got up, adjusted his clothes, and came over to where I'd cornered Jonouchi. "You'd better explain yourself," he growled.

"I just came back here to take a leak, that's all," Jonouchi assured us with his hands in the air.

I pushed the broken bottle up to his face, millimeters from his nose. "You couldn't wait until you got home?"

"My apartment's in that direction," he said, pointing over the fence. "It's still a long way to go from here."

Haga cut to the chase. "Listen up, you little upstart – you better not tell anyone about what you saw back here, or else."

"Yeah," I agreed, trying to hold back a smile at Haga's use of the term "upstart." "As far as anyone's concerned, you never saw us. Got it?"

Jonouchi winced nervously. "Hey, take it easy. I didn't know you two were like that. I mean, you were together a lot, but I thought you were just friends."

I lowered the broken bottle and glared at him. "You never saw us," I repeated. He nodded, mortified. I dropped the bottle and let him pass. He hopped over the fence and disappeared into the darkness.

I sighed, sinking to the ground. Clearly, my rarest card and spot in the championship weren't enough for the arrogant jerk – he had to take away my dignity as well. I loved Haga, but I didn't want the whole world privy to my personal life.

My concentration was broken by Haga's arm around my shoulders. "Don't worry about that idiot," he said.

I yawned again. "I'm tired."

"Here." He propped himself up against the wall, then put his other arm around me. "I'll wake you up in an hour."

I put my head on his shoulder and closed my eyes…

End of part eleven