A/N: … Well, I have no words. I have yet to figure out what the hell I am writing. Then I'll tell you. XP
As for now, I thank all the people who reviewed. I'm glad that this story is at least entertaining a few.
On the incest issue… it was actually a rather equal vote. So does that mean I get to decide? XD
Whatever Happens Here, Stays Here
Chapter 5: Of Family Ties
By LilPurplFlwr
With his cheek resting against his open palm, Atemu fingered the edge of his glass of water. He could only stand so much of the smoke-filled atmosphere and neon-flashing surroundings, accompanied with loud laughing and socializing. At the same time, he was just waiting to wipe the table with Seto Kaiba.
Unfortunately, it did not look like it would be happening.
Strangely enough, once seated and in the game, the brunette had lapsed into complete silence. His indications during the play were through hand gestures only, and at the end of each game, the CEO would send half of his winnings to Mai Kujaku as a tip, a sum that was much greater than the tacit standard of ten percent. Atemu himself was overly tipping Mai for her service and extra stress – she looked between impassive and anxious, which ended up giving her a rather torn expression across her pretty face.
It had to be hard on her. She was actually losing the casino's money (just several thousand at the moment) to Atemu and Seto. Though, the amount the other players were losing (quite cheerfully, actually) made up some of the difference, Mai was definitely not used to this defensive position.
And still, there was absolutely no suggestion that Seto Kaiba was going to fire her. She was an excellent dealer – it would be his loss. However, even stranger, the businessman kept his eyes on the table, now and then glancing at Atemu. It was enough to make even a rock uncomfortable.
The secretary beside him, paid absolutely no attention to the game, and had pulled out a pocket PC. It looked like she was making notes of some kind, the way she was rapidly writing and tapping the screen. Every twenty or so minutes, she would lean forward and confirm something with Seto, who always never answered but would nod faintly.
Business, obviously, Atemu thought to himself, I'd bet he has a meeting at 10:00 AM, another one at 11:30 AM, and two more before I even get out of bed tomorrow.
"So, Yami… how have you been?" Mai asked, as she shuffled the deck of cards, "You've been preoccupied for awhile now."
Seto, seeing all cards returned to the dealer's hands, relaxed and, with interest, turned to study the young man beside him as Atemu tried to explain his lack of attention.
"I'm fine… I don't think I've ever played Twenty-One for this long," Atemu said with a small laugh, ignoring the awkward stare he kept receiving from the brunette, "By now, I would have listened to Jou rant about – "
As Seto began to tune out, he could not help but think that this was strange. There was not anything particularly special about how Yami played, and Seto was beginning to wonder if it was just by amazing luck that Yami to accomplish the feat of appearing a 'game master'. It was highly unlikely that anyone knew how Seto played for Black Jack.
He simply counted cards.
Calculations that even included probability came easy to him – he was a child prodigy in his day, after all. He knew that Mai was using four sets of cards. With that knowledge, he knew the percent chance of what cards were available. In fact, most of the time, he would use logic. If thirty-two tens, including Jacks, Queens, and Kings were used up in the early point of the set, the chance of getting a ten is lower than if they were used up near the end of the set.
"Mr. Kaiba," Mai suddenly addressed, as she began to pass out the cards for another game, "What brings you to Vegas? It's such a far distance from Japan."
"Check-up," Seto replied smoothly.
"I see," Mai dealt in front of herself two cards, one flipped over, "Doing well, I hope."
"In a way."
Well, that was a cryptic answer, Atemu thought with a raised eyebrow. It was rather obviously that the hotel and casino was wildly popular, with its beautiful design, extravagant shops, luxurious pool and spa, exotic gardens, and exciting nightclub and shows. And not that Atemu would ever admit it, especially to the CEO, but he loved his suite and his platinum card. Speaking of which…
Atemu stood up casually, collecting the stack of chips before him. "I'm turning in for tonight, Mai. Tell Bakura I missed him."
Mai looked up with surprise evident, "… Oh, alright…" There was a hint of disappointment in her voice. It was either that she rather enjoyed his company or she did not want to be left alone with Seto Kaiba, who was obviously not a conversationalist. "Have a good night, Yami."
He nodded and turned to meet a narrowed blue stare. At this point, Atemu did not even have the energy to try, but his feelings manifested in his eyes.
No, I wasn't impressed, Kaiba. I'm going to take your title.
"I have a favor to ask, Jou."
The blonde, who was chatting with a group of college girls at his counter, glanced up uninterestedly towards the entrance of the lounge where he heard Bakura's voice.
And had a double take.
Katsuya's amber eyes widened considerably. Clutching onto Bakura's left arm was a younger version of the Black Jack dealer, looking shyly at the bartender with curious dark-brown eyes.
With a gentle tug, Bakura led his little brother to the counter and pointed to an empty stool.
"Sit."
Obediently, Ryou hoisted himself onto the seat. Bakura's mouth twitched to what looked like a smile before it quickly disappeared when he turned back to Katsuya.
"Jou, I need to you to watch my little brother until I finish my shift. Can you do that?"
Katsuya was having a hard time finding his voice. Ryou gave him a tentative smile and waved. The blonde could not help but start to pick out differences between the two brothers. For one thing, Ryou looked a whole lot more approachable than Bakura, who looked just about ready to kill someone twenty-four hours a day.
"Quickly, Jou. I don't have all night," Bakura glared, his hand resting protectively on Ryou's shoulder, not looking quite ready to let go.
"… S-sure," Katsuya looked very uncertain as he glanced over Ryou's young appearance, "… by all means, Bakura, leave him with all this alcohol."
"Better alcohol than Malik." The other replied evenly. Katsuya winced in silent understanding.
With that, Bakura pressed a parting kiss on Ryou's forehead and murmured, "Be safe. I'll be back soon." And he swiftly left.
A giggle scattered through the group of girls, who all ended up exchanging names with Ryou (one even gushing about his beautiful hair and another about how adorable he looked) before they paid for their drinks and exited to gamble.
"Ah, so… I never knew… Bakura had such a… had a little brother," Katsuya started awkwardly, barely covering his slip-up.
Ryou was silent for a minute before saying carefully as he stared at the countertop, "… No one does, I guess…"
The blonde found no words to reply. He was suddenly struck with realization.
"Hey…" Katsuya began softly, reaching out and tilting Ryou's face up to meet his eyes, "Don't be like that. Your brother is not normally open about his family, that's all. He still loves you."
The seventeen-year-old's mouth curved upward faintly but the worried look still resided in his eyes, "I don't want to cause 'Kura trouble. I just wanted to surprise him."
"I'm sure he was ecstatic when he learned that you arrived."
"… Actually… not quite," Ryou fiddled with the hem of his shirt.
"If not under the circumstances," the blonde rephrased, chuckling.
"'Kura's never, ever talked about me?" Ryou asked again, suddenly.
Katsuya pulled away from the other regretfully, and went to clean up the drinks from the previous customers. "No. Thus, everyone has assumed his closest family is the Ishtars."
Ryou resumed his silence in what Katsuya guessed was self-abasement.
"Ryou is your name, isn't it?" Katsuya asked, as he washed the glasses. When he received the affirmative, Katsuya continued, "Ryou, your brother is very closed from the public. No one ever pressed for his life's details – this is Vegas after all."
Ryou stopped fidgeting, "Thanks."
"Do you want anything?" Katsuya offered, trying to break the tension, "Come to think of it, how old are you?"
"Seventeen."
There was a crash from behind the counter, accompanied with Katsuya's "Shit!"
Ryou furrowed his brows in worry, craning his head to survey the mess of broken glass in the sink, "What's wrong?"
"You aren't even legal, are you!" the blonde blinked rapidly at Ryou's face, "My god, I thought you had to be at least eighteen!"
A hurt look crossed Ryou's face, "I'll be eighteen in two months."
"I – damn… I never thought I'd be stuck with an under-aged teenager. In a bar, nonetheless."
"I could leave."
"NO!" Katsuya vehemently exclaimed, "I mean… no… stay… please." The blonde hit his head with the palm of his hand sighed. "I feel stupid."
A quick laugh escaped Ryou, making Katsuya lift his head momentarily to stare. The sound was nice. Seeing he had brought attention to himself, Ryou turned slightly pink.
"S-sorry, I didn't mean to laugh at you, honest! It's… that… I guess… I like you," Ryou amended lamely, turning a deeper pink.
"I like you too," Katsuya replied with a nervous chuckle as he picked up the broken pieces of glass, and attempting a sad job of changing the subject, asked, "So can I get you anything?"
"What does 'Kura get?"
"… Not water, I can assure you."
"'Kura… drinks alcohol?"
Jou gave a boyish grin, "Like a fish."
Sleep was being vexingly evasive, as Yuugi tossed and turned in boredom on the hotel bed. It was 3:24 AM and Yuugi was too excited to fall asleep.
Heaving a sigh, he righted himself up, sitting at the edge of his bed. Contemplating for a moment, Yuugi changed from his pajamas into his regular clothes. Scribbling a note, he checked his pocket for his cell phone. Right before he left the room, he slipped a room key into his wallet.
He was antsy as he rode the elevator down to the parking lot. He did not want to risk walking through the casino, for the security guards had already accosted him as he curiously watched people gamble when his grandfather was checking into the hotel.
Outside, there was a warm breeze blowing, and his excitement doubled as he cruised the strip. Las Vegas was amazing. Bright lights, sparkling decorations, and colorful flashes dazzled his eyes. From the front of the Sphinx that guarded the front of Luxor hotel, which had a white light shooting straight into the sky from the point of the pyramid, Yuugi could see the hotel, Mandalay Bay, in its gold-embossed glory. As he walked, there was Excalibur on his side, and the Tropicana across the street. Excalibur, he was excited to visit, with the kings, queens, knights, and entire medieval setting concentrated towards a child's fancy with a floor dedicated to shops and shows and another for games below the casino. New York – New York greeted Yuugi with a roller-coaster that stretched around the sky-scraper emulated hotel and the Statue of Liberty.
However, when he reached Pharaoh's Palace, which was a long trek, there was a glittering array of hotels left that looked endless.
Once he entered, Yuugi realized that he had no idea how to track down his brother. His instinct pulled him toward the help center. The woman at the desk stared benevolently at him and asked what she could help him with.
"I'm… sort of looking for my brother. He lives here, but he doesn't know I'm here… uhm…"
"The most I can do is call him in his room…" The woman offered, eyeing the young teen in front of her.
Yuugi beamed, "That would be fantastic! His name is Atemu Mutou."
The woman typed the name into the database and picked up the phone. As she pushed a series of numbers, Yuugi bounced nervously on the balls of his feet. He really hoped Atemu was in.
-
The phone was loud. There was no other way to describe it. Well, it could pass for annoying too, having first interrupted his sleep and then his shower later in the same day!
With a towel around his waist, and one hand rubbing a towel into his wet hair, Atemu picked up the offensive object.
"Hello," he stated none-too-happily into the phone.
"Mr. Mutou. You have a visitor down by the help center asking for you. Your brother perhaps?"
The phone slipped from Atemu's semi-wet and lax grasp, hitting the bed with a soft muffled thump. He scrambled for it for a moment.
"Yuugi! He – what? I mean… blond-bangs-red-highlights-purple-eyes-little-brother Yuugi!"
There was mild amusement from the other line, "That certainly sounds like him, Mr. Mutou."
"… I'll be right down. Thank you."
Atemu hung up and, in his haste, nearly left his room in his current attire. He only skidded to a stop when he realized that the chill was not from the air conditioning, but from his lack of clothes. With a string of grumpy curses, he opted for a hurriedly-buttoned shirt and slacks, because he was in no mood to attempt neither tight nor leather materials at the moment. There was absolutely no chance of getting his hair to its normal state, so Atemu grabbed his key and ran for the elevator.
"So here's the key for your lovely VIP self," Kisara passed the small paper envelope to Seto with a smile.
"I could have gotten this myself," Seto replied, taking the envelope and pulling out the plastic card and examining the design, "You might as well be my surrogate mother."
"I'm your secretary. I'm supposed to make your life easier."
"Are you planning to tuck me in too?" Seto asked sarcastically as he pressed the up-arrow for the elevator. "I wonder if Mokuba's paying you extra to annoy me."
"So you figured it out," she replied dryly, "I'll see you tomorrow at two."
She had pushed back all the meetings the next day, seeing as Seto was up rather late. Seto replied with a dismissive "Hn." Satisfied, she bowed and left with a "Good night."
A second later, the elevator in front of him gave a cheerful ding and the mechanical doors heaved open.
Seto Kaiba found himself face-to-face to a rather damp and tousled Yami.
Atemu blinked as he found himself running into Seto Kaiba for the second time of the night. Though this time was much less desirable.
"Well, if it isn't Yami," Seto said smoothly, recovering first from the astonish, "Why did you run off so quickly?"
Before he could stop his mouth, Atemu replied just as casually while running a hand through his slightly wet hair, "You aren't particularly favorable company."
Seto narrowed his eyes, "Likewise, coward."
Atemu was about to bite back with another nasty comment until he realized just what his real destination was. With a smoldering glare, he walked past the taller brunette, "We'll see about that, Kaiba."
"I can't wait," Seto replied, entering the elevator and hitting his floor with more force needed.
-
"Nii-chan!" Yuugi ran to his brother and hugged Atemu tightly once he had approached.
"Does jii-san know you're here?" Atemu demanded, embracing his little brother back, "Where are you staying? Why are you up so late!"
Yuugi giggled childishly, "I wrote jii-chan a note. We're staying at Luxor. I couldn't sleep – I was so excited to see you!" Yuugi replied in equally quick succession.
"What a surprise," Atemu noted, "I dropped the phone when I heard you were here."
"Mm… I missed you so much," Yuugi clutched onto his brother tighter. "Why did you have to move all the way out here?"
"Yuugi… you're causing unwanted attention," Atemu laughed softly, "Are you hyper again?" He pulled out of Yuugi's grasp, "Want to see my room?"
"Of course!" Yuugi dropped his voice as he followed Atemu to the elevators, "By the way, you haven't been up to no good, have you?"
"What does that mean?"
"I don't know. I figured you could fill me in," Yuugi replied, shrugging it off, "I bet you got yourself into all sorts of trouble in Las Vegas."
"… Like?"
Atemu did not have to wait long for an elevator to arrive for them. They stepped into it, and Atemu pressed the button for floor thirty-eight.
Yuugi sighed, "Oh, nii-chan, the whole works!"
"I don't know what you are referring to," Atemu gave his little brother a suspicious look.
"Drinking?"
"A little," Atemu admitted.
"Gambling?"
"Sometimes," Atemu chuckled to himself.
"Sex?"
At that point, thanks to Yuugi's question and the elevator's stop, Atemu's stomach rolled unpleasantly.
"No!"
"Oh," Yuugi dismissed it quickly, "I figured you ran off to the states to get yourself laid…"
"How old are you, Yuugi?" Atemu admonished, flushing slightly. "That's a horrible question to ask."
Yuugi shrugged, dutifully following his brother to his room, "Maybe it was the coffee on the plane?"
He received a groan from his older brother.
"They let you have coffee? No wonder then."
"Hey."
Sitting on his bed, Malik glanced at the doorway of his room where his twin was leaning against nonchalantly. As if he was ignoring the other, Malik looked the other way and leaned his head on his propped knees. Light footsteps approached his bed, which then shifted when extra weight was put on it.
"What's wrong?" Mariku asked, settling down beside his brother, "You should be sleeping."
"Can't I just wait up without you bothering me?" Malik snapped angrily, giving Mariku a glare for good measure.
"Are you threatened by Ryou?"
There was a stretch of silence.
"No."
Mariku smiled knowingly. He shifted, moving to sit behind his twin. Wrapping his arms around Malik's waist, Mariku hugged the other reassuringly.
"Good, because you shouldn't be," Mariku replied, playing along with Malik's obvious lie.
"… I don't want to lose him."
"Don't be possessive like that."
"Look who is talking."
Ignoring the retort, Mariku pulled his twin closer, "It's just a visit from his little brother."
"They're really close," Malik argued.
"We're really close."
"No, we aren't."
"Assuming we are."
"But we aren't."
A sigh. Mariku leaned and pressed his lips against the curve of his twin's neck. Pulling away, he leaned up until he could repeat the action behind the other's ear. "And this isn't close?"
"No."
"What is it?"
"It's abnormal."
"We do it all the time," Mariku pointed out, irritated at Malik's ever-so resolved answer.
"It's abnormal," Malik repeated mechanically, staring straight ahead of him.
"Yeah?" Mariku let one hand deliberately trail downward until it was between his twin's slightly opened legs. "That's what you always say."
"Because it's true."
"Then explain this," Mariku pressed his hand against the growing hardness beneath Malik's boxers.
Even though he was not in the position to see it, Mariku knew his twin had closed his eyes in shame. It was always like that. Always – like a unending cycle.
"I can't," Malik's words were half-true, if not half-rehearsed. And with some after thought, Malik added seriously, "I hate you."
"I know you do."
"You hate me too, right?"
"You're incorrigible if that accounts for hate."
Malik paused again before he spoke, "Fuck you."
"No, you mean the other way around."
"What are you going to do about it, Mariku?"
"Many sleepless nights started with that statement," the older twin warned.
"Well, what are we waiting for then?"
A/N: That has got to be… the crappiest thing I have ever written. O.O; I don't know what's wrong with me, but I needed to write something, anything. And it resulted in… this. U.U
I'd ask for your opinions… but I don't know if I'm strong enough to take it. TT.TT