Picture Perfect


Chapter Four: Flashback

Jounouchi was concentrating on the slowly emerging picture in front of him, so it was a surprise when he heard someone speak.

"Wow. These are really good, Jou."

He didn't jump. Not at all. Why would he be jumpy, working all alone in the dull red glow of the darkroom after school? Certainly not because he'd watched this really killer horror movie last night instead of doing his English homework and there was this scene where the girl alone in the highschool gets chased and man does that blood make a pretty splash on the - Jounouchi shook his head.

"Geez, Yuug - I prefer it when you're wearing boots. At least they make more noise than your sneakers."

Yuugi laughed lightly. "Seriously, these are excellent!"

Jou lifted his newly-formed picture out of the acrid, vinegar-smelling developer with some metal tongs, and placed it into the adjacent tray of chemicals. He glanced at the clock to note the time.

"Yeah, 'cause you're such a photography expert, Yugi."

Yugi didn't take the brush-off personally. "...Okay, so what did Mr Kitano say about them?"

Out of the stop chemical, Jou carefully let the remaining drips fall off the photographic paper, before transferring it to the third tray of chemical fixer. Eventually he sighed, feeling somewhat defeated.

"He said he's going to write me a recommendation for arts school."

"That's fantastic!"

Jounouchi shrugged non-commitally, looking on as Yugi continued to inspect the photographs he'd hung across the line to dry.

"He also said he wants them to go in the yearbook."

Yugi frowned. "...These ones?"

"Yep."

"These exact photographs here."

"Yep."

"...Oh."

Obviously they were good. Even in the bland colours of the darkroom, they were really good. The colour contrast was sharp, the lines were clear, the composition was good, shadowing excellent.

It was the subject matter that was the problem.

"I mean, you can put it in the ones of us, right?"

"I guess so."

Jou's eyes followed the developing narrative across the fishing line - in the first fewYugi and Honda and Anzu were in the schoolyard, laughing, eating lunch, playing around. Jou was silent for a few more moments.

"It kind of screws up the whole thing, though. You know - the meaning."

Yugi scuffed the two of his sneaker against the shadowy linoleum floor. It was unlike Jounouchi to admit that he'd ever think about 'the meaning' of anything that much. Maybe about how to get his biology teacher to let him study the effects of chocolate on adolescents (ie, himself), or how to convince Honda that Shizuka was actually already engaged to someone whose hair didn't look like boyscouts were camping under it.

But not about ART.

"...Still, the recommendation is good; I heard it was hard to get into that kind of school without one." Yugi was always one to focus on the silver lining, and miss the hulking purple storm cloud.

The sound of gushing water filled the otherwise empty darkroom as Jou slid his photo into the sink to let the chemicals rinse off.

"I'm not sure I'll go."

"What? But Jou - "

"Come on, Yuug, art school is a little... You know I always figured I'd just get a job somewhere after school."

"I know, but - "

"And I have stuff here. Like Shizuka, and you and the guys. I don't want to leave Domino. Plus, my favourite pizza place is just one block from my apartment." Jou cracked a smile.

Yugi smiled back automatically. "I know... Leaving Domino for university is going to be hard for everyone, Jou."

Jounouchi switched off the tap and stared at the photo he pinned last on the line.

Yugi spoke from behind him, again. "...He might put them in?"

Jounouchi laughed. "Come on, Yuug, you know the yearbook was Kaiba's one mandatory extracurricular. He runs that thing with an iron... Duelling glove."

A line of Kaibas stared back at him from the photographs on the line.

"Come on, it's nearly dinner time - let's get outta here, hey?"

"Okay..." Yuugi picked his bag up off the floor as Jounouchi haphazardly scooped his camera, film and other miscellaneous items into his own backpack.

Jou paused in the doorway, wincing at the bright light of the outside world. For a moment, Yugi hesitated as they exited. "Hey, Jou?"

"...Yeah?"

"Just... Well... " Yugi sighed. "When you say you have 'stuff here' - if that stuff is - you know, if it - "

Jounouchi shook his head. "Spit it out, or I'll collapse away from hunger!"

Yugi rolled his eyes. Jou's stomach had been fine until he'd stopped concentrating on his photographs. "Well, if that 'stuff' is... One person in particular... You shouldn't let it hold you back."

Jounouchi blinked. "Of course it's not one person. Why would it be one person?"

Certainly not because he'd had spent the past two hours printing half a dozen somewhat stalker-esque photographs of that someone eating lunch.

"Kaiba, I understand your reluctance to put these forward - "

"There is no way in hell these are going in MY yearbook!" Kaiba glared up from his desk, refusing to stand to discuss the matter with the teacher.

" - MAY I remind you that 'your' yearbook is in fact subject to approval by the faculty?"

"Not by the photography department, Mizuki." Kaiba continued to stare at his monitor, proof-reading something.

"That's Mister Mizuki, and I realise that I can't force you to include this sequence, but I wish you would at least consider it." The arts teacher leaned forward over the desk.

"I already gave it a good half a second's thought, which is probably the only kind of thought Jounouchi has. He won't be crushed when they aren't there."

"Have it your way, though you underestimate him." Mr Mizuki made to retreat, rubbing his temples in exasperation. He hesistated. "Though if nothing else will persuade you, please recall that the only other options for the art spread are Mizuho's pictures of stuffed animals, and Sayaka's tasteful nude spread of... Himself." Mizuki pulled a face. "If the art pages are somewhat lacking, it'll be YOUR bad editorial decision."

Kaiba finally spared a glance for the teacher - or his retreating back, anyway. He knew the photographs were his best option. So sue him if he didn't want a beautiful selection of photos in there that began with the happy, laughing shots of the midget and his friends, and concluded with one lone Seto Kaiba eating in front of his laptop. He looked... Lonely. Pathetic.

Two words that no one should ever use to describe Seto Kaiba.

He also looked beautiful, but he heard that all the time from girls in the hall, murmured in shock before they swooned, got nosebleeds and passed out at his feet. In fact the only reason he didn't have a cheerleading section six times the size of that moron Otogi's was because he had a lot of lawyers, and a lot of restraining orders.

Lonely. Pah. It was impossible to be lonely when surrounded by lawyers, right?

Graduation came and went as it does for everyone. Somewhere aftering the coming, but before the going, the yearbook was released.

Specifically, somewhere after Kaiba's speech as valedictorian ("For most of us, highschool was a waste of time; I know it was for me. Enjoy wasting the next few years at university. And when your philosophy degree turns out to be useless, please don't phone me. I will not give you a job."). Even more specifically, it was also before Kaiba disappeared into his limousine, off into the distance, and out of the lives of most of the female members of the senior class, who later cried over his photo in the yearbook. (Gasp... "...Beautiful..." Sob...)

After the first page, but before the last - actually it was the large art spread somewhere close to the middle - was a sequence of photographs. There were the smiling faces of Yugi , Anzu and Honda. With great subtlety the focus shifted from their happy antics to the background figure of Seto Kaiba, isolated across the courtyard yet framed by other milling students... All of whom he was ignoring as the bright sunshine hit his face in just the right way to create shadows down one side. His lips were pursed and full as he stared at his laptop... Concentrating without passion, or frowning emotively? In one shot he was sipping a coke - eyes still on the screen.

In a few clicks of the shutter Jounouchi had managed to capture a few moments of isolation of terrible intimacy.

Thank you allso much again for your reviews. Reviews make me want to update; I'm sorry I don't currently have time to respond to all of them... I think I lost some of the humour in this (flashback) chapter. Not to mention there's no nookie. But! It'll be back very soon. The humour. Not the nookie - well, okay, probably some nookie, too. (And that's my official quota for the use of the word 'nookie' in one day.) Not too soon though, because... I'm off to Egypt on holiday! Like... In two days! I'm also going to Sydney, and I won't be home until the 2nd of May... So, sorry to deprive you of frequent updates but until then au revoir, my very beloved readers...

Excuse any typos, or if you don't think this chapter held up well... I've been very pressed for time.

Oh yeah, also, for anyone who is interested in jrock, mildly humurous article on my website: www. geocities. com / jojo(underscore)shady2 / jap. html over my recent troubling addiction to that, anime and fanfic. (Content may, and probably will offend, but hopefully in an endearing way.)

Peace out. Haha. Did I just say that?

Updated: April 05 2005.