…KONNICHIWAAAAAA!!!! Yes, I know, sue me for taking so long to update. GOOOOOMEEEEEEN!!!!!!!!!!! I'm hyper. I've been annoying JT with my hyperness. Then again, she's happily occupied with Devil May Cry 2… "AHH!! Don't do that! I'M GONNA DIIIIIIEEEE!!!!… Woo, he's hot…" She has a short attention span when it comes to her favorite bishouen. Dante is one of them.

ANYWAY!!! Onward to the story!!! Sorry, but I'm lazy, and don't feel like listing all the ppl who reviewed. You know who you are, and you are loved!!!!

Teian no Kokoro: Chapter Four- Face Off

'Hm… Friends with the Mutt…' Kaiba thought, sitting back in his chair with his long legs crossed and propped up on the corner of his desk. 'I can't stop thinking about it. The Mutt, my friend… Hm.'

A desk intercom beeped, and a woman's voice started talking. "Sir, Joey Wheeler is here to see you. Should I send him away?"

"No," Kaiba answered, "Send him up."

"Sir?"

Kaiba scowled. "You heard me."

He didn't have to wait long, for the door opened a minute later. He watched Joey stick his head in. "You in here?" Upon seeing Kaiba, he smiled and proceeded in. "Hey man!" He greeted.

Kaiba cocked an eyebrow. "'Man'? Whatever. What is it that you want?"

"What…? Can't I spend time with you?" asked Joey. "Seems okay with you, since you let me up here in the first place. Plus, it doesn't look like you're busy or anything. If you were, you'd be typing, writing, or whatever it is that you CEO people do."

Kaiba sighed, placing his legs beneath his desk. "Good eye, Mutt. Would you like a bone?"

Joey showed him a clenched fist. "You shut up, Kaiba! I'm not a Mutt!"

"Fine, Pig," he said, getting up. "Shall we go?"

Joey blinked, watching him walk around the desk. "Huh? Where go?"

Kaiba proceeded to walk past him and headed for the door. "Somewhere other than here, obviously. Should I start calling you a Neanderthal? Because it seems as if your brain works like one."

The blonde went to catch up. "You shouldn't talk, Belt Boy…"

Both teenage boys walked into the elevator. The metal double doors shut behind them, Kaiba pressing a button which held the number 1 on it. "Oh please," he said, leaning on the side wall, "Here I am, thinking of so many more things to call you, and you're still stuck on Belt Boy! Really, Wheeler, it's getting old fast."

Joey glared at him. "I'll probably think of more by the end of the day…"

Kaiba smirked. "I highly doubt that your Neanderthal mind can process anything of the sort. Hmm…" he said, starting to stroke his chin, "Maybe I should draw another picture of you. You'll have a highly amusing scowl, and you'll be wearing a very nice loincloth that you most likely stole. Oh!" He couldn't help but smile as he watched Joey get slowly angrier. "And I'll make you carry around this pathetic stick, and I'll make you ran ton about how it's a weapon of mass destruction, and that you've killed hundreds of your fellow cavemen with it."

'Heh… No more civil conversations with him now…'

They stared at each other, Joey glaring, Kaiba smirking. A moment later, joey burst out laughing, taking the CEO by surprise. He blinked, clearly dumbfounded. Joey continued laughing when he saw his expression.

"That's good, Kaiba!" he laughed. "You should become a comedian with that stuff!"

Kaiba let a true smile come to his lips, one without sarcasm or trickery. 'Hm… This may turn out better than I thought.'

The elevator dinged, the doors opening to let them out. Ahead of them were quite a few glass doors and windows. Off to the right was a desk, where a woman sat, staring at the computer screen.

"Are you going out again, sir?" she inquired as the teens walked past her.

"Yes," Kaiba answered. "Take all calls and transfer the messages to my desk. I'll be gone a while."

The secretary bowed her head respectfully. "Yes, sir."

Both boys went out the front doors, letting the early morning sunlight drench them. Joey turned his head to Kaiba as they went on. "So where to?"

Kaiba shrugged. "Anywhere, I guess. Any place in mind?"

Joey grinned. "How 'bout a strip club?"

Kaiba glared. "We're underage, baka. Plus, I doubt any are open this early." He led them down a less busier street. "Also, I would never set foot in such a place. They're only for low-lifes and thugs. You-" He looked beside him at the blonde who was walking in stride with him, "I notice are a wanna be thug, so no wonder why you ever suggested such a thing."

"What the hell makes you think that?" Joey outburst.

Kaiba smirked. "I've seen you in school, hanging out with the group that consists of bullies that pick on every person smaller than them. All of you live for the thrill of beating up people. Plus, one could easily tell that you are one just from the way you talk. The accent gives it wawy. Oh! And I remember the days when you and your unicorn buddy always had Yugi as your target. Ironic how you're so close now…"

Joey squinted darkly at him. "Isn't it ironic how even though you're attempting to put me down, I'm still with you?"

"No, I think that's more of your own stupidity," Kaiba answered.

"You agreed that we'd try to be friends, and so far, I don't think it's working out too well," said Joey.

Kaiba's attention went to the ground, staying silent for a minute, letting thoughts come to his mind. "I apologize," he said quietly.

Joey almost stopped in his tracks in surprise. "You're… sorry?" He watched Kaiba slowly nod. "Wow… I wasn't expecting that…"

Kaiba grinned, then held up his right hand. His index and middle fingers were intertwined. "You really think I was serious there? HA! Like I'd apologize to the likes of you, Wheeler."

"Tch…" said Joey, looking away and folding his arms. "Typical Kaiba."

"Typical Mutt…" said Kaiba, struggling to hide his smile.

"Jerk," said Joey.

"Pig."

"Smart ass."

"Klutz."

"Belt Boy."

"Geek."

"… Belt Boy"

Kaiba laughed openly. "It figures! You're still stuck on Belt Boy, and I haven't even gotten started!"

Joey hunched his shoulders as he glared. "Shut up! Just… gimme a minute, I'll think of somethin'…"

"Neanderthal," Kaiba smirked.

"Umm…"

Kaiba's smirk grew. "I guess Belt Boy is the best you can come up with. Well, you know what? These belts could come in handy. I could easily take one off and whip you all around this city. Or, I could use two or three to belt you to a bed and torture you slowly." His eyes went to the sky, hand coming up to finger his chin. "Hmm… just thinking about that one makes me horny…"

Joey's eyes widened in horror, starting to side step away from Kaiba. "Eep…!" he squeaked.

Kaiba noticed his horrified expression and how he was further away. "I was KIDDING, Wheeler!" he shouted.

Joey stared at him, then coughed. "Yeah, uh… I knew that. 'Course you were just joking…"

Icy blue eyes rolled. "You really think I'd do such a thing to you? Ha. I would never, even if I was desperate."

"Same here!" said Joey.

They walked on in silence. The street they were on had more run down buildings than the busy ones, and not even other people were walking on the sidewalks. It was dead silent, other than the sound of their shoes hitting the concrete as they walked. Then out of the blue, they heard faint music. As they walked on, it continually got louder.

"What is that?" questioned Kaiba.

Joey concentrated, closing his eyes. They got closer, going up a hill. "I know I've heard that music from somewhere…" His eyes lit up. "I know now!"

Kaiba stopped on the top of the hill, looking down the street ahead of them. There stood Domino Pier, right on the vast ocean. On the main pier sat a busy carnival, live with people, music, and the scent of food. "So do I."

Joey looked at him. "Shall we?"

Kaiba smiled, another true one. "We shall."

'I had actually forgotten that the Domino Pier Carnival was up. I normally go every year! When me and Kaiba were walkin' around, we found it and decided to go. It was pretty damn fun! I coaxed him into riding a kiddy slide 3 times, making us both look like total idiots. We went on that spinning strawberry ride… I spun it so fast that I made Kaiba turn green. (Green isn't his color…) I bought us both some ice cream cones. Some got on the tip of his nose, and I didn't tell him about it. He went off on me royally for not telling him after it melted and went up his nose when he inhaled. It was absolutely hilarious. After that, we just walked around, looking at what else there was this year. At one booth, a lady tried to sell us crayons. That cracked both of us up.

'Anyways, it had ben fun. The day started off bad, 'cause he wouldn't stop criticizing me. (I have a new name- Neanderthal.) But we got along really well when we were at the carnival. I wonder why that is…

'I never noticed something until today. Then again, I normally try to shut out his voice, so I never pay attention. Anyway! I realized how… Kaiba's voice sounds so…seductive. It's all deep and husky, and seducing. I'll bet that he could get any girl he wanted with a voice like that. Hell, guys could probably fall for it, too. I just… can't get over it. Yeah, I made fun of it yesterday at lunch, but… damn…'

END CHAPTER FOUR

Was it worth the wait? In my mind, I don't think it was. But I swear to you, things are going to get good from this point on. I promise. Teh heh heh… I have this urge to put a preview, so here it is.

"Is something wrong?"

He shook his head and looked at Kaiba. "Nope. Just thinking. Why?"

"Just wondering."

'What was that look in his eyes…?'

"Are you sure, Joey?" Kaiba asked. Joey nodded silently, going back to watching the rain.

'…Since when have I called him by his name? I don't remember when I started…' He watched the teen put his elbow on the desk, resting the side of his head on his palm. 'It feels like… I wanna tell him something… But what?'

I think I'll stop there. There's more to that last paragraph, but anymore would give stuff away. I am a Jigoku for a reason! MUAHAHAHAHA!!! (See, JT? I DO have an evil laugh! HA! BURN!) Anyway, here is a quote from our wonderful Joey himself: " I'll warm you up AND wear you out!"

JT: …those dub peoples REALLY need to watch what they're translating…