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Mokuba
"Mokuba, can you do me a favor?" I stopped in front of Niisama's den door, apple clenched between my teeth. He didn't even look up to confirm I was there before continuing, "Shizuka is coming over tonight, and I can't go get her – I need to finish this. Could you go with the driver to pick her up?"
"She doesn't want to be alone with our driver."
I nodded, taking a bite out of my apple before answering, "Sure. Right now?"
"The car should be waiting downstairs."
Despite my waiting ride, I ran up to my room to put on a nicer shirt, and I was bouncing down the front steps. The driver gave me the oddest look, but he didn't say anything; he just did his job and drove the car. I couldn't help it; I was excited. Tomorrow was… everything. Tomorrow was the day Shizuka and I told our boyfriends to go to hell while hoping our brothers understood. The more I thought about it, the more it made my stomach turn. I knew my brother. I knew that whether he understood or not, he wouldn't be angry with me – he'd be guilty that I had found out at all. And Jounouchi… I couldn't define him as a brother – I could barely define him as a boyfriend when I should've been able too. I didn't know how he'd treat Shizuka (or me) after all was said and done. I –
I hadn't realized the car had stopped until the door opened – and I wasn't at all prepared for what I saw. Shizuka was standing there, look of surprise on her face; I'm sure mine matched. My mouth went dry, and I damn near dropped my apple; it was pretty impressive, considering I was in the middle of taking a bite. "Jou would have a heart attack if he saw you wearing that," I said, looking her over to make sure I wasn't hallucinating. Her skirt was unremarkable, but that shirt clung to her, bringing out a shape that I hadn't quite realized she had, even when I first started noticing her chest, including a collar that dipped too low for my comfort. She nodded wordlessly to my comment, getting in the car and sitting beside me, pulling the door shut. Just before the open door light went off, I noticed she was blushing.
"So… You look great," I said, finally taking that bite out of my apple.
"Thanks," she muttered. I heard her take a deep breath before she continued, "I thought the whole thing should go out with something of a bang."
She was going a damn good job, if that was her plan. "Yeah." We rode in silence, and I glanced over at her every now and then. There were dim little lights on the doors, so I could just barely make out her shape. She had her hands clasped in her lap and her legs crossed, bouncing her foot idly. I swallowed, butterflies fluttering in my stomach. "Are you going to… uh…"
She looked over at me, and her hands seemed to tighten. "What?"
I was going to ask her if she was planning on thoroughly seducing Niisama, but on second thought, it didn't seem right. "Nothing." Silence again, and I stared out the window for the remainder of the ride. Tomorrow. Tomorrow things would be different.
"We're here," the driver announced; Shizuka moved to get the door, but I practically dove for it – it was the gentlemanly thing to do, after all, and I was feeling like being something of a gentleman right then.
"Allow me," I offered as something of an explanation, facing her only to see her looking at me with wide eyes. I blinked… twice… then finally realized what had happened. I had leaned over her, braced myself – and happened to be holding myself up with one hand right on her thigh. Our eyes were locked, like we were both waiting for the other to say something – but now that I noticed, heat seemed to come off her in waves. We were too close, overwhelmingly close, and my breath caught in my throat…
"Sir?"
"Oh!" I popped open the door, scurrying over her lap and jumping out of the car. As I ran up the stairs to the house, I called over my shoulder, "He's in his den. Good luck!"
Kaiba
It didn't take me long to notice that Shizuka was standing in my doorway. She looked the same as always – the smile that made her seem so naive, with the slight of her head… The only thing different about her was the way her arms were crossed in front of her stomach, like she was uncomfortable. Then again, if I had that much of my chest exposed, I'd be uncomfortable too. "Hi," I said, looking away deliberately. No one would really blame me if I wanted to look; I was a male, and could see pretty easily down her shirt. "Why don't you go figure out what you want to watch while I finish up?"
"Okay," she said, winking as she left. She smiled like her brother when she was being cocky – and somehow, I'd come to differentiate between her cocky smiles and her coy ones. It was all in her eyes; when she was being shy she looked away a lot, but when she was confident she held my gaze dead on. Noticing little things like that about her… unnerved me.
I took a bit to get to the living room; when I arrived she was sitting on the couch, her legs tucked under her and the remote control resting on her thigh. She turned to look at me, smiling wide. "There you are," she said.
"Sorry to keep you waiting," I said, taking a seat beside her. I didn't bother making a move; I already knew she was going to do that, so I just set one arm up behind her on the couch, leaving the invitation open… and it didn't take her long to take it; we were fifteen minutes into the movie when she turned to me, sitting up a little bit more on her knees and leaning in to kiss me. At least with her eyes closed, she didn't catch the quick second of uncertainty that I'm sure slipped past my guise. My hand moved to the back of her neck, which was some invitation in itself; she crawled right into my lap, her head tilting just a bit, such a perfect slant to invite me in… and like a good – or maybe bad – boyfriend, I took the opportunity.
Somehow I found myself wondering, just for a moment, if she would stop me if I were to push for more. She shifted into me so perfectly, and her movements were soft, teasingly compliant… She backed away for a second, breathing heavy… and for the first time, I wasn't so sure I was faking it as I leaned in to kiss her, tongue pushing past her lips, tasting and claiming the cavern of her mouth as my hands moved up her legs, starting just behind her knees and moving up to her thighs…
She caught me by the wrists, stalling my movements as she backed away again; I looked at her and remembered all of a sudden – she was a little sister, not something to claim, and I was a fraud. I had no right to her. Her eyes were wide, and she was breathing heavy, and I felt even worse as she opened her mouth, uttering a small, "I'm sorry, I – " She looked scared, almost guilty, and I shook my head, stopping the explanation as I moved my hand to frame her face; she leaned into my touch.
She looked surprised as I said the only completely honest thing she'd ever hear from me: "You don't owe me anything."
Shizuka
It was the last thing I had expected; I thought maybe he would be angry that I had led him on… Instead, he was sweet. I swallowed, nodding. "Okay," I said softly. "I… need to go use the bathroom." In turn he nodded; I kissed his cheek and tried not to rush off to the bathroom. On my way there I passed Mokuba; he was just leaving, dressed in different clothes than earlier and towelling his hair. "Took a shower?" I asked as he passed. He stopped dead in his tracks, and he looked back at me like I'd accused him of a crime. I hadn't realized it was such a personal question.
"Yeah," he said, smiling. "So, uh, taking a breather from Niisama?"
I nodded, leaning against the wall. 'Taking a breather' was a pretty accurate way to put it. He sat by my feet, and I slid down to sit beside him, making a conscious effort to keep my skirt decent. "I need one – my god, he'd never kissed me like that."
"You are dressed really… um…" Mokuba coughed weakly and cringed, "differently. Maybe he was just excited." I laughed, shoving him just a little.
"Pervert," I laughed. "I don't know, he's… You've got a great brother. Under different circumstances he probably wouldn't be a bad boyfriend." Mokuba didn't reply, but that was okay; I don't think I really wanted him to say anything. I just wanted to talk about it, wanted to remind myself that the circumstances WERE wrong – that we were dating for all the wrong reasons. It was a lot of work to remind myself that I'd rather give up a pretty lie than live it. I leaned over a little, leaning my head against Mokuba's. He smelled faintly of vanilla – it was a nice scent, and for a second, I just breathed.
"Are you sad?" he asked. I felt his deep breath more than heard it, and he continued, "Because we can probably call it all off, if you'd rather… well, try to work things out with Seto."
I started, sitting up straight. "I…" He was looking at me just like his brother had – so seriously, like my feelings mattered. It was a lot different from the boys I was used to – as a whole, the boys I knew seemed to be more interested in what they could get away with. "No. It's complicated, but…" I grinned. "Boys like our brothers don't learn lessons easy."
He nodded, laughing. "Right." He jumped up so quickly that I'd have thought something was wrong; then he yawned, stretching up so high he was on his tip-toes. "Well, I'm beat – I'll see you at the pool tomorrow, okay?"
"Okay."
He was off in a flash, and I stood, looking in the direction of the living room. I had to go back; it wasn't as though I couldn't just watch the movie. But Seto wasn't in the living room when I returned; the movie was playing to an empty room. I wasn't complaining, though; it gave me some more time to sort things out. Looking back on it, Oniichan had been right; Seto was nothing but trouble, but not in the same sense – he bothered my thoughts more than anything else.
So did Mokuba.
I wasn't sure how long I sat there, still trying to get my bearings, but it was at least a little while when Seto sat down beside me, clearing his throat. "Sorry; I had some business to attend to."
"It's not problem," I said, leaning my head against his shoulder. He wrapped an arm around my shoulder, and… well, I didn't want to live a pretty lie, but it would be nice to pretend a little bit longer.
Jounouchi
"Shizuka!" I protested as Shizuka took off her jeans and t-shirt, revealing her swimsuit. Immediately I wrapped a towel around her barely-covered body. What did she think she was wearing? "Did Ma see you wearing that?"
"Yes," she said exasperatedly, trying to push my towel off; I wouldn't budge, keeping my arms firmly around her shoulders and keeping that blue little bikini where it belonged – not seen on my sister. "Katsuya, enough! I can't go swimming in a towel."
"Then… Then go home and get a different suit!"
She rolled her eyes and shoved me away; sadly, the towel went with me. "Get over it, Oniichan; I'm a big girl now, remember?"
"Yeah – the whole of the pool can see that!" I pouted as she jumped into the water. It was no use – she wasn't going to listen to me. I crossed my arms over my chest and looked over my shoulder at Kaiba. As expected, that dickhead was smirking.
"Yeah, I'll punch both your eyes shut if I catch you peeking," I muttered, looking back towards the pool. I didn't get him; he was wearing slacks and a t-shirt, and while it was the most relaxed I had ever seen him, it was hardly appropriate, considering the setting. While dozens of people around him were screaming, playing, laughing, and splashing, he was reading a book.
"Plug your nose!"
The words didn't register entirely until I was shoved over the edge of the pool. Immediately after being pulled under, I sort of lost focus – like being lost, only worse, because I couldn't breathe either. I thought I'd drown for about two seconds, then I remembered that I was only in five feet of water. Drowning there would be embarrassing.
"Don't do that!" I sputtered as I broke the surface of the water and clung to the side of the pool. Mokuba slid off the edge into the water and hung on my back, laughing – I guess he had been the one to push me in. "It's not funny," I said indignantly, holding his arms in place around my shoulders. It was hard not to laugh; Mokuba had an infectious laugh.
"Oh, believe me, it was," he replied, kissing my cheek and slipping off my back. I climbed out of the pool, and went back to my seat… next to Kaiba.
Yippee.
I knew it was stupid, but I had to reason with him; I had to stay calm, civil, and logical. I wasn't so sure I'd be able to pull it off, but it was worth the effort. I couldn't handle covering a relationship with Mokuba like I was anymore – I hated watching my hands, guarding my words. Stuff like that with him was becoming more of a hassle than a pleasure, and because of Shizuka's wise-ass comments at the park the previous weekend, I was forced to evaluate exactly WHY I was dating him to start with. Impulses never look good in hindsight.
"You complicate everything," I commented, standing instead of sitting. It was easier to talk to him if I got to look down at him while I was doing it. He didn't spare even a glance to me, eyes glued to his book.
"Do I?" he responded evenly.
"Yeah, you do. Look, there's got to be something we can do." I looked out to the pool again, watching Mokuba and Shizuka playing, perfectly content without me or Kaiba there. Maybe Shizuka wouldn't be devastated if Kaiba broke up with her – maybe if I just did it the right way –
"Stop wasting your breath now and save us both a headache," Kaiba said, flipping his page without looking up.
Fuck civility – if Kaiba was going to be a prick, then I was at least going to give him something to be pissed about. I was tired of dealing with his shit, of him accusing me of being something I wasn't – if he was going to hate me for something, it could at least be something I had done! "I don't get you," I replied acidly.
"Unfortunately for you, I don't think I know small enough words to explain myself."
My knuckles cracked, and I retorted, "Fine then – I'll play your game for once; be the bad boy, break the kid and then his head. I bet that'd make you fucking ecstatic."
Thwap! Right in the jaw – I didn't even see him get up. Then again, I did get him to look up from his damn book, and I had his attention; he had me by the hair, and if he didn't let go soon, I was going to kick his ass. He leaned closer, hissing, "If you so much as suggest something like that ever again…" He left the threat to my imagination.
Just then Mokuba clambered out of the pool, shouting, "Niisama, what the hell are you two doing?" Kaiba let me go and we both looked at him as he came between us, his back to me. Kaiba looked scandalized, and opened his mouth to say something, but Mokuba was already scolding him for fighting in public – sounded like a speech he'd probably learned straight from Kaiba, all about image and social shit I didn't give a damn about... Even better than that, Kaiba was listening obediently. Instead of listening to him, I looked right over his head and met Kaiba's eye. I mouthed 'whipped', mocking a whip-crack motion with my hand. It was worth it to see him turn even redder. Now I just had to hope that I would live to tell the tale.
"He insulted my honor," Kaiba interjected, and I cringed; I'd hoped he'd feel guilty enough to leave that out. Then again, I guess I'd been wrong to think Kaiba felt guilt. Mokuba stopped mid-word; the grey eyes that turned on me were burning.
Looking frantically from one to the other, I did what any guy who made a less-than-honest mistake would do – I tried to save my ass: "No, I –"
"Jounouchi Katsuya!" he shouted – much louder than he had been with Kaiba – and went off on another tirade; after three sentences, I wasn't even sure what he was talking about anymore; it just sounded like all his frustration was coming out at once, and it surprised the hell out of me. It didn't bug me that he was yelling at me – I guess I deserved it, making that comment; I'd certainly do no less if Kaiba had said something like it – and it didn't even bug me that people were starting to look at us. No, what bugged me was Kaiba, standing behind Mokuba, smirking and mouthing 'whipped' just like I had.
I really, really hated him.
"Mokuba, calm down!" Shizuka interrupted, pulling Mokuba out from between Kaiba and me and moving him to some chairs next to the ones Kaiba and I had just been arguing by. I caught the murmur of their voices, but not enough words to know what was being said. I just watched, waiting to see what would happen – maybe she had some way of calming him down.
"They're like kids," I heard Mokuba snap, and Shizuka put a hand on his shoulder, leaning in a little and saying something with a smile. He was quiet, and I guessed that was the all clear – that I could go talk to him and convince him not to be mad at me.
Then he lunged forward and kissed her. Not some friendly little peck on the cheek, or 'oops, I accidentally leaned forward too far' kiss, but a kiss with intent and want – and I didn't like it one bit. It only lasted a second before she pulled away. I was standing there next to Kaiba; he didn't look as angry as I felt, but I think we were both waiting for what she would say, what she would do. I was waiting for her to right a very odd and potentially ugly situation. I don't care how bad things were, kissing my sister… that just wasn't right. And Shizuka knew that – I was counting on her logic right then.
Instead, she kissed him.
notes
Thank you to elsalhir for being s00per cool beta! Best. Boss. Ever. heart!
This story has been the victim of my real life since it began -- so I apologize for taking so long to update again. Just when you think things calm down, they don't, eh? But I swear, the only thing that's going to stop it now is my untimely death, so don't worry; it won't go unfinished. smile In response to the reviewers who asked if I'd reconsider changing the end-pairings of the story, I'm sorry, but really, it is how it is, and it'd take something of an act of God to change it now.
Anyway, I loved that this chapter had all four POVs. Even if Jounouchi's didn't quite fit in with the rest, I decided it belonged in this chapter instead of the next one; I liked that ending line instead of handling all the aftermath in the same chapter. ;