Jounouchi Interlude
Part 2
Before Jounouchi had a chance to figure out his thoughts regarding Kaiba, they had fell into a very steady routine. They started eating dinner together at 8pm, and when Kaiba's work ran past that, he would text Jounouchi to meet him at 10 pm. Then it was 12 pm. Then Jounouchi was in bed when he woke up because his phone rang. It was Kaiba, and it was 3am. But it didn't matter what time it was. By that point they were meeting every night. No matter how late, Jounouchi would drag himself out of bed, throw up a jacket, and meet Kaiba outside his apartment. Sometimes Kaiba had his driver with him, sometimes he drove himself. Kaiba didn't seem to mind if Jounouchi fell asleep during the ride, just like Jounouchi didn't mind how late it was or if Kaiba complained about work the entire time.
Sometimes they would talk about work until Kaiba fell asleep. Sometimes Kaiba would talk about Mokuba, and Jounouchi would talk about Shizuka. Sometimes they would talk about family, and Kaiba would open up about Gozaburo and his childhood. Sometimes Jounouchi would talk about his father and point out the scars or bruises his father had left on him, either with his hands or his alcohol bottles.
Every night ended with the two of them in a hotel room. Kaiba refused to visit love motels. They were disgusting, he said, and you couldn't trust a bystander, or an employee wouldn't sell you to the press or paparazzi to make a quick buck. Rich people used fancy hotels to do the same thing anyway. Jounouchi wasn't sure if the expensive hotels were any better at cleaning up bodily fluids, but he trusted Kaiba about the paparazzi. It's not a problem he had ever had to deal with, even has he started making a name for himself as a pro duelist.
It still didn't feel real to Jounouchi, but it was starting to feel real. Jounouchi began to feel comfortable in this new life.
Kaiba usually worked Saturdays too, and even when Mokuba tried very hard to stop him, he would still work the mornings. Which was why it was such a surprise when Kaiba suddenly showed up early Saturday morning at Jounouchi's apartment, banging on the front door. Jounouchi had flown back home Friday night, exhausted from the last tournament and disappointed by the results. He had made it to the finals, only to finish second to his opponent. Jounouchi had gotten so close to winning, and the loss hurt.
Jounouchi dragged himself out of bed at the sound of someone banging on the door. He had barely open it and gotten a look at his rude visitor before Kaiba slammed his briefcase into Jounouchi's chest and muscled his way into the apartment.
"Kaiba! What are you doing here?"
"What? I can't be here? Got something to hide?" Kaiba asked.
"No, of course not – don't you usually work Saturdays?" Jounouchi asked.
"There's a more pressing matter to deal with."
"Like what?"
"Your dismal performance in the final round."
Jounouchi was about to start making coffee, but he had to turn back around to look at Kaiba. "Sorry, did I hear right? Are you complaining about the last time we had sex?"
Kaiba turned red. "No! I mean your duel on Friday. It was the final round! You shouldn't have lost to that newbie."
Jounouchi groaned and looked at the clock. It was 7 am. "Kaiba, I barely got any sleep on that plane, I'm not going to think about Duel Monsters until I've gotten eight hours of sleep. I'll visit Yugi tonight or tomorrow to work on my deck and talk strategy."
Kaiba looked furious. "You're going to slack off and sleep instead of going over that last duel? After eight hours, you're going to forget everything! That's not acceptable! You're a better duelist than that guy and you have more experience! You should be ashamed that you lost to him!"
"Yeah, I lost! So what? There's always another tournament! There's nothing I can do about it now, so why shouldn't I sleep?" Jounouchi protested.
"Get your deck out right now," Kaiba ordered. "I can't let you represent KaibaCorp with that kind of performance. If we don't get to the bottom of this and fix your deck up, don't even think about sleeping for three days!"
Jounouchi groaned in frustration and then stood up to do just that. When he returned with his deck, Kaiba had his briefcase open and was flipping through cards.
Jounouchi had hardly sat down before Kaiba was talking again. "You need to stop relying on luck and just one or two strategies in your deck. At your level, your deck needs to have multiple strategies and card combos so you can have better chances of pulling your combo before your opponent and winning. Ideally you should also have strategies to counter the most popular deck strategies right now, but I doubt you could pull it off even if I gave you the cards, so there's no point. Give me your deck."
Jounouchi handed his deck over and Kaiba snatched it away. He started flipping through the deck and laying them out. When Kaiba didn't say anything more, Jounouchi lay down on the couch and closed his eyes.
"I remember doing this with Mai once."
The sound of cards shuffling stopped. "Don't you know it's bad manners to bring up your ex?" Kaiba asked.
"I didn't mean it like that. I just mean you kind of remind me of her sometimes. Ice king and queen, with all that baggage and emotional scars inside. Both of you act so tough and cold, but really you both care a lot about people. You're a nice person Seto."
"Or maybe you're such a bad duelist that it hurts us to look at you," Kaiba snipped. Jounouchi smiled.
When Jounouchi woke up, the afternoon sun was shining in, there was a blanket on him, and his deck was sitting on the coffee table, waiting for him. Kaiba was nowhere to be seen. Jounouchi smiled, texted Kaiba thank you, and then called Yugi.
"Yugi! I'm back from my tournament. Do you want to get dinner and go over the duels with me?"
"Jounouchi-kun! I'm free anytime! I was thinking of ordering katsudon for tonight. Why don't you come over now?"
When Jounouchi was stuffing his face with rice and katsudon, Yugi already had his last duel open on the tv screen. Yugi flipped through his cards quietly, a thoughtful expression on his face.
"Are these new cards, Jounouchi-kun?"
"Oh, sorry. Kaiba came over this morning and made me hand over his deck. I think he swapped a lot of cards out. I have no idea what he did with my other cards."
Yugi flipped through them again. "Looks like you don't need my help, Jounouchi-kun. This deck is in good shape. You just need to learn how to use them."
"Yugi, I do need your help! I need you to explain them to me!"
"Can't you ask Kaiba-kun directly?"
"He didn't leave me any instructions. Knowing him, if I ask, he's going to get mad and call me stupid and yell about how I should figure it out myself!"
"Hmmm," Yugi wondered. "You and Kaiba-kun are close now, huh? I'm glad to hear that." Jounouchi felt a cold sweat break out on his back. Kaiba had asked him not to tell Yugi and his friends about their relationship. He felt weird about it, since he had never kept things from his friends before, and it wasn't like Jounouchi and Kaiba weren't seen together in public around other people.
"Uh, yeah, he's been supporting my pro duelist career. I'm sure there's a catch later on, you know Kaiba never gives things out for free." Jounouchi laughed awkwardly.
"He's never given me cards before," Yugi added, his face carefully blank.
"R-Really? Not you, not – Atem?"
"Nope. Kaiba never gave either of us a single card, not without getting something out of it."
"You see, there you go, I'm sure he will come collecting sooner or later! He doesn't do things for free. Or I'm such a sad case there's nothing of value he can get out of me, so why bother?" Jounouchi fake laughed again. He was starting to feel sick to his stomach.
Yugi shook his head. "Kaiba isn't a bad person. He's kind, deep down." Jounouchi relaxed a little.
"I always thought you two would get along well if you both stopped being stubborn and arguing all the time," Yugi continued. "You two are similar in some ways; you both care a lot about family and you both had difficult childhoods…not to mention your dads…"
"He always got under my skin," Jounouchi admitted.
"Jounouchi-kun, take care of Kaiba-kun. He needs more people that care about him as a person. If you can get him to accept your help, that would be amazing. It would prove he truly cares about you and values your relationship with him."
Nothing Yugi said sounded suspicious, but Yugi looked straight into his eyes as he spoke, and Jounouchi felt like Yugi could look clear through his body into his heart, his soul.
"I'll try," Jounouchi said.
The afterlife wasn't what Yugi, or his friends imagined it was like. It wasn't Atem reigning over the world while standing side by side with the Egyptian gods. It also wasn't Atem sitting on the throne of the palace he reigned over in life, holding court with his loyal priests standing beside him. The truth was a lot simpler than that. The afterlife was a lotus pond.
In fact, all forms of the afterlife involve lotuses. In life, in death, in the afterlife, there is a gently moving body of water, there are lotus pads, and finally there are lotus flowers, their stems growing out of muddy water until they face the clear blue sky. Every morning at dawn, the lotus flowers open as the sun rises, and close as the sun sets in the evening.
When Kaiba used AI technology to recreate Atem in Yugi's body, Atem was not there. When Kaiba shot himself into the afterlife using a Frankenstein-esque combination of Aigami's cube and his own technology, Atem was not there. When Kaiba walked into Atem's palace to battle him in the throne room, Atem was not there. When Yugi summoned Atem's soul back into his body to give himself one last burst of strength and defeat Diva, Atem was not there, not really. Atem was here all along, floating in the lotus pond.
Atem's soul was solid here, like a mortal body, and his form floated gently in the shallow waters of the lotus pond. His eyes were closed, and he looked like he was sleeping peacefully. Occasionally his body would bump into a lotus pad. Occasionally his face would brush against a lotus flower and the lotuses' gentle fragrance would diffuse into the air and sink into his skin.
But Atem wasn't sleeping peacefully. He dreamt disturbing dreams, he slept in fits and starts, his body and mind moved restlessly as he did so. His limbs would jerk in his sleep, and his empty fists would clench and unclench as if it was searching for a weapon that was no longer there.
He dreamt of his memories of his past life as a Pharaoh in Ancient Egypt. He dreamt of his modern life in Japan. Some memories were unhappy, like his father dying. Some memories were stressful and painful, like battling Zorc. Some memories were happy. He dreamt of his friends, his other half.
He dreamt about Yugi a lot. In his dreams he saw Yugi sleeping, Yugi going to school, Yugi working in the Game Shop, Yugi hanging out with his friends or talking to his grandpa, Yugi talking to Atem when he thought no one was watching or listening to him. Sometimes it was a memory, and Atem happily relived the times where he was an invisible spirit attached to Yugi, and they could talk to each other uninterrupted. Sometimes it wasn't a memory, and Atem could only watch as Yugi stumbled through his day, always smiling when someone was looking at him, pretending that he had moved on and everything was fine. Then Yugi would be alone, and he would forget, or talk anyway, and Atem could listen, but Yugi didn't know that. Atem couldn't respond anyway. Meanwhile, the ache in his chest grew stronger and stronger, until the heartache and yearning were too strong and Atem could no longer sleep. He opened his eyes.
He sat up slowly. The water droplets ran down his arms and skin until they disappeared into the waterlogged clothes. He could see a blue sky above his head, and lotuses as far as the eye could see, far past the horizon. He could hear the gentle wind, the sounds of his own breathing, the gentle ripples of water as it bumped into things. But something had changed the rhythm. Atem could feel in the water that something else was here, disrupting the natural flow. He stood up and saw just a few feet away, the unconscious form of Seto Kaiba floating in the water.
Kaiba wasn't all there. He was somewhat transparent, and half of his body was hidden, buried deep in the mud. Atem raised his leg and began wading through the water and lotuses towards him. His feet stood firmly on top of the mud, unlike Kaiba.
The moment Atem touched Kaiba, the lotus pond disappeared, leaving both of them stranded in the darkness.
Jounouchi was too nervous to wait in the lobby, so he sat at the bus stop instead. He waited until nightfall, watching each KaibaCorp employee leave for the day. As time passed, the lights on every floor of the KaibaCorp building slowly blinked out one by one until only the top floor was still lit.
Jounouchi finally stood up and walked across the street. There were security guards at the door, ready for the night shift. Jounouchi flashed his special pass card that Kaiba had given him, and they let him through. He immediately headed straight for the elevator and hit the top floor button.
The hallways were lit, but Kaiba's office was not, save for a single desk lamp. The window blinds, however, were still open, and the city lights below twinkled like the stars in the galaxy. It looked Kaiba had worked all day under the sunlight, but when the sun went down, he kept working, forgetting to leave his desk even for a moment to close the blinds or turn on any other lights. The desk lamp and the light from Kaiba's monitor illuminated his tired expression and the eyebags on his face. Jounouchi closed the door behind him with a click but Kaiba didn't even look up. His eyes were still glued to his laptop screen.
Jounouchi lightly rapped his knuckles on Kaiba's desk and Kaiba sat up straight with a start. He blinked his eyes rapidly and then looked up at Jounouchi.
"I told you not to visit me at work," Kaiba said, but there was not heat to it.
"Why did you give me this pass card then?" Jounouchi asked. He waved it in Kaiba's face, and then put it back in his wallet before Kaiba could get angry and snatch it back.
Kaiba didn't react. He reached for his coffee mug and raised it to his lips, before realizing it was empty. He sighed as he put it back down, and then he stared at it as if willing it to refill with coffee by itself.
"I don't know how many cups I've drank today," he said sadly. Then he shuffled the papers on his desk absentmindedly, and then stared at his monitor. His eyes stayed fixed on the same spot.
Jounouchi sighed. "Kaiba, did you eat dinner? Let's get some food and then go to sleep. There's no way you can get any more work done today."
"No, I can do it," Kaiba said stubbornly. He shuffled the papers on his desk again. "I have an important meeting tomorrow, and I need to finish preparing these reports and then practice my presentation." Kaiba rubbed his eyes.
"Kaiba, there's no point. You're out of energy and you need food and rest. You can do the rest tomorrow." But Kaiba shook his head; he would not be persuaded.
Jounouchi had seen Kaiba enough times by now that it was a lost cause. Kaiba was like a baby that had stayed up past the point of exhaustion and now was too tired to accept logic and reason. He would have to knock him out somehow.
Kaiba stood up from his chair and began rifling through the papers and binders on his desk, searching for something. Jounouchi slipped behind him and sat down on his chair. When Kaiba sat back down again, he jumped back up almost immediately.
"Get out of my seat," Kaiba ordered.
"What? I'm not in your seat," Jounouchi said innocently.
"You're sitting in my chair. That's my seat," Kaiba growled.
"Oh, this chair? It didn't look like it belonged to anyone, so I sat down. Guess it's my seat now," Jounouchi smiled.
"Then where is my seat?" Kaiba asked. Jounouchi patted his thighs and Kaiba froze.
"I'm not sitting in your lap."
"Why not? No one is here anymore, because the only workaholic here is you." Jounouchi patted his legs again. "Unless you don't want to sit on my lap? I can think of another thing for you to sit on – "
"Don't say it," Kaiba was blushing now. He sighed and then slowly lowered himself until he was perched on Jounouchi's knees. Jounouchi gave him a shit-eating grin. He put his arms around Kaiba's slender waist and pulled him closer until Kaiba's ass was plastered to Jounouchi's front.
Jounouchi's hands began fiddling with his belt. "What are you doing?" Kaiba asked.
"Don't worry about me. You just keep working. Remember, you need to focus! You have an important meeting tomorrow," Jounouchi said. Kaiba sucked in a breath when he heard the sound of a zipper going down and fabric rustling. Then he felt Jounouchi's hands on his belt too, unclasping it before pulling pants and underwear down his legs.
"Jounouchi, we're in my office," Kaiba hissed.
"No one's here. Just stay quiet and the security won't be alerted," Jounouchi said calmly. Kaiba felt his hands on his ass and a finger prodding at his entrance. He forced himself to relax and went back to staring at his laptop.
Jounouchi had a lot of experience now, and he knew how to make Kaiba feel good. With one hand gently working him open, his other hand was opening the cap on a bottle of lube. He squeezed it over Kaiba's entrance and increased the pace of his fingers. When he added another finger, Kaiba gasped. His knees and hands were shaking as he quickly saved his work and pushed his laptop away.
Kaiba felt arms around his waist again as Jounouchi grabbed his hips and pulled him down, until Kaiba was impaled on his cock. Kaiba braced his arms on his desk and bit his lip, desperately trying to stay composed. Jounouchi was strong however and moved Kaiba's hips up and down so that Kaiba was fucking himself. Kaiba gasped and his hands crinkled a page. He pushed the papers off his desk.
Jounouchi stood up and lifted Kaiba's hips higher to gain leverage. Then he started fucking him earnestly, his hips thrusting rapidly. The sounds of skin slapping together and Kaiba's agonized moans grew louder and louder, and the desk started to rattle. Jounouchi would thrust forward and pull Kaiba's hips harshly back to meet him, slamming them together. Kaiba's hands kept skittering across his desk, looking for something to grab to hold himself upright.
"Jounouchi…" Kaiba groaned.
Jounouchi reached down and locked his arms under Kaiba's legs before lifting him up into the air. He turned around, Kaiba still sitting on his dick, and headed for the window.
"Jounouchi, no – the windows are open!" Kaiba gasped. His hands reached back to grab at Jounouchi's shoulders, his clothes, anything, but Jounouchi pinned Kaiba against the window, exposing him to the dark night sky.
"Don't worry," Jounouchi whispered, and the sound made Kaiba shudder. "No one can see you. I just want to enjoy the view while we do this." Jounouchi started bouncing Kaiba against the window and when his arms got tired, he let Kaiba down and positioned Kaiba's hands against the window. Then he kept going and didn't stop until he spilled inside Kaiba and Kaiba painted the window with the evidence of his desires.
Jounouchi caught Kaiba in his arms before his legs buckled and Kaiba tumbled to the ground. He carried him back to his chair and pulled out slowly. Jounouchi watched as his seed spilled out of Kaiba and onto the chair.
"You bastard," Kaiba croaked as his hand reached out to gently touch Jounouchi's wrist. His eyelids were already getting too heavy to stay open.
"Go to sleep, Seto." Jounouchi kissed him on the forehead. "I'll take you home, don't worry. Just relax." In an instant, Kaiba was out like a light. Jounouchi quietly dressed them both, and then pulled out his cell phone to call Kaiba's chauffeur.
Jounouchi had snuck Kaiba home somehow, through the secret elevator down to the bottom of the KaibaCorp headquarters building and then lugged Kaiba to the side of the street where the car was waiting. Even though the chauffeur had driven Jounouchi and Kaiba together so many times, Jounouchi still pulled the privacy screen up. It felt weird somehow, to let other people see Kaiba so vulnerable.
Jounouchi took Kaiba home. He fished out the keys from Kaiba's jacket and carried him in. It was a little cumbersome, carrying Kaiba in his arms while carrying Kaiba's heavy laptop and papers in a bag slung across his bag, but he made it anyway. Mokuba had already gone to bed, so the butler directed Jounouchi to Kaiba's bedroom. Jounouchi dumped Kaiba on the bed and then set down the laptop bag. He knelt down and started taking off Kaiba's clothes. After helping him undress, he searched in Kaiba's drawers until he found a pair of fresh underwear and clothes that felt soft enough to sleep in. When he finished, he wiped his brow and was about to leave, but Kaiba grabbed his wrist.
"Stay," Kaiba croaked. "Don't leave."
"You want me to sleep here? In your room?"
"Yes."
"Ok," Jounouchi whispered. He began changing too and found himself a pair of underwear as well. He didn't bother with anything else, because he didn't want to stretch Kaiba's undoubtedly expensive clothes out of shape. He put on a fluffy robe instead, oversized just enough for Jounouchi to fit in. Right as Jounouchi opened the door to grab a cup of water from the kitchen, he was met with the sight of Mokuba on the other side.
Mokuba had his hand raised like he was about to knock. When the door opened his hand dropped and so did his jaw.
"Jounouchi-kun, what are you doing here? Is that my brother's robe?"
"I – I can explain," Jounouchi stammered.
"Why are you wearing my brother's clothes? I thought he was working late."
"Yeah, I went to see him, and I brought him home," Jounouchi said.
Mokuba was even more astonished. "You went to see him at his office, and he let you interrupt his work? You told him to stop working and he let you?"
Jounouchi took a breath. "Uh…yes?"
"Is my brother in love with you?" Mokuba asked.
"No! No! Nothing like that – at least, I don't think so? I mean, no, definitely!" Jounouchi stuttered.
"Then what is your relationship?" Mokuba asked. "Don't tell me just friends."
Jounouchi grabbed the door handle behind him to try and close it. He didn't want their conversation to wake up Kaiba. However, before he could close it or figure out how to answer Mokuba, the door was pulled open by a very sleepy Kaiba.
"Mokuba, go to sleep," Kaiba said. "I'll talk to you tomorrow."
Mokuba gave them both a look. "Ok, goodnight big brother."
"Goodnight," Kaiba answered. Mokuba watched Kaiba pull Jounouchi back into the room and close the door.
Jounouchi never did hear what Kaiba said to Mokuba, and Mokuba never brought it up to Jounouchi himself. Mokuba acted like everything was normal, so Jounouchi did too. However, Mokuba started giving him very pointed stares every time they met, but Jounouchi couldn't blame him. He was protective about his sister too. Mokuba never said he disapproved either.
Jounouchi thought that was the end of it, until he got kidnapped. It all started one night when Kaiba and Jounouchi met again at a bar. Kaiba seemed to be in a good mood when he picked him up, although there was an undercurrent of restlessness and nervous jitters in his hands when he touched Jounouchi.
It wasn't a fancy, western-style bar like before, but a very old, traditional Japanese bar, an izakaya. The last time Jounouchi went to an izakaya it was with his father. His old man wanted alcohol and Jounouchi wasn't even ten years old and falling asleep in his dad's arms. His dad took him anyway, and Jounouchi remembers drifting in and out of sleep to the peaceful sounds of his father and other customers eating and drinking into the wee hours of night. It turned out to be one of the few positive memories Jounouchi had of his dad.
The izakaya was at the edge of town, and it was packed with its usual customers. There were blue collar workers drinking away their exhaustion, aging ex-yakuza members reminiscing about their younger days over their drinks. Suddenly Kaiba stiffened and Jounouchi looked ahead too.
The customers had pushed two tables together and grabbed extra chairs, but it still wasn't enough to squeeze in everyone. It was a huge group of men, all dressed in business suits, and the undisputable head of this group was a large, smiling man sitting in the middle. He had a gold watch on, and both his hair and beard were slicked with oil, so they stayed exactly in place. He was the only one sitting comfortably in his seat.
"We're leaving," Kaiba whispered to Jounouchi urgently. But as they were turning around to leave, the man called out to them.
"Kaiba Seto! What are you doing here?" The man waved him over. Kaiba reluctantly turned around and approached him. He gave him a cold look.
"Oshita. What are you doing here?" Kaiba asked.
Oshita smiled. "Eating here, of course! Celebrating a day's good work and success."
Kaiba huffed. "As I recall, I didn't agree to any of your terms. You aren't getting what you want, so what are you celebrating?"
"I'm patient. You'll give in sooner or later."
"I'm not Gozaburo," Kaiba replied. "I'm not going to give you business just for personal connections." Oshita's expression darkened.
"Your father had a good understanding of the importance of having friends, Kaiba-kun. You need to learn that lesson too." Oshita scolded. Then he noticed Jounouchi.
"Who are you with, Kaiba-kun?" Oshita asked. Jounouchi stepped forward a step but Kaiba pushed him behind him.
"None of your business," Kaiba snarled.
Oshita stood up. "Don't be so cold. Shouldn't you introduce your friend to your other friends?"
"You're not my friend. You're a dinosaur relic from my father's time." Kaiba said. It seemed like he had finally crossed the line. Oshita's men all stood up at once to surround the pair. Jounouchi felt all the blood rush to his head and his hands curled into fists. He got ready to fight, but then Kaiba grabbed the back of his head and shoved it down so that people couldn't see his face clearly. He kept his arm around Jounouchi's head to further hide his face.
"Customers, your table is ready. If anyone wants to have an argument, you can have it outside my shop," The elderly gentleman at the bar spoke up. Kaiba pulled Jounouchi by the arm away from them and left the izakaya.
"That old bastard. I hate him and all of Gozaburo's old cronies. I can't wait for them all to die," Kaiba growled as they left the izakaya. Kaiba's appetite was gone by then, and so was his good mood, so they ate convenient store food instead and went to sleep.
A week later, Jounouchi was exiting his apartment when he got kidnapped. He had just stepped out his door to get some food but there were black cars waiting outside his door and he hadn't noticed until the door closed behind him. Six men in suits stepped out of their cars and walked towards Jounouchi.
The door closed behind him and Jounouchi grabbed the handle and tried to go back inside, but two men lunged forwards and pulled his arms behind his back.
Jounouchi smiled at them. "Gentlemen, I'm sure we can be civil and talk out any issues?" He twisted his shoulders a few times, but the men held fast to them.
"Jounouchi Katsuya. Pro duelist." One of the men said.
"No, you have the wrong person. That's my cousin; I'm Jounouchi Katsu…ki." Jounouchi said, but a third man was already rifling through his pockets. Jounouchi cringed as he successfully brought out his wallet. That man handed his wallet over to the ringleader.
"Nice try, Jounouchi Katsuya. But we have researched your life and followed you for the past week. We will not be easily tricked."
"Who sent you? Why are you interested in me?" Jounouchi asked.
"It's not personal between us. To be truthful, our boss has no interest in you. He is interested in who you know." The ringleader said as the men dragged Jounouchi into a black car.
"Our boss has business with Kaiba Seto, and he is being unreasonable. We have no choice but to force his hand." They wrestled Jounouchi into the car and tied his arms behind his back. Then they roughly grabbed his head and wrapped some cloth around to cover his eyes. Jounouchi started kicking at the doors and hollering until they tied his legs down too and stuffed a shirt in his mouth.
By the time Jounouchi was dragged out of the car, it felt like at least half an hour of time had gone by. He wished he had had the good sense to secretly call Kaiba on his cell phone or do something to alert Kaiba to what was happening. Instead, his old habits had kicked in and he had acted like a delinquent. It was a little embarrassing. He had to be smarter.
The men had dropped him into a chair and then closed the door. He was still tied up and blindfolded. He tried to move his hands a little, but he could feel the ropes tightening around his arms and he stopped. Without sight or the use of his arms, he was a sitting duck. Thankfully, the men had untied his legs so he could walk on his own.
Jounouchi carefully felt around the floor with his feet but he didn't find anything. Then he bent over and rubbed his face on his knees until the cloth covering his eyes rolled up his forehead and fell off.
The door opened just as Jounouchi was struggling with the ropes and Hirutani stepped in. Jounouchi gawked. He hadn't seen the delinquent since the beginning of high school, soon after he became friends with Yugi. He remembered running into Hirutani again on the streets, and getting persuaded slash forced back into his gang. He remembered Yugi and Honda trying to convince him to come back, confronting him and Hirutani one evening. He remembered watching them get beat up. Jounouchi had thrown himself into a fight against Hirutani, and genuinely wanted to kill him. As for Hirutani's gang, he had no idea what happened to them. He remembered saving Yugi, and Yugi saving him in return, before he ran off with the minions on his trail. Come to think of it, that might have been Atem, not Yugi. Jounouchi never thought about it before.
Hirutani didn't have his crazy hair color anymore. His hair was cut short, and he was dressed in a black business suit, but it wasn't just his physical appearance that had changed. There was a scar on his face, and a dead, expressionless look to his eyes. Every inch of him screamed he was part of the yakuza.
"Hirutani!" Jounouchi said.
Hirutani stared at him for a few seconds, and then he recognized him. "Jounouchi. What the hell are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same thing! What are you doing here? Don't tell me you joined the yakuza."
"What are you doing here?" Hirutani asked. "They told me I was supposed to be watching a rich businessman's whore."
Jounouchi refused to show anything on his face. "They just grabbed me out of nowhere! I don't know anyone rich, and I'm not anyone's whore! You gotta tell them, Hirutani, that they got the wrong person!"
Hirutani groaned. "I'll try to talk to them. Here, you want some water?" Hirutani grabbed a water bottle and opened the cap before offering the mouth to Jounouchi. Jounouchi opened his mouth and let Hirutani pour the water in his mouth.
"Did you lose a finger, Hirutani?" Jounouchi asked.
Hirutani looked scary. "Are you stupid or do you want to die? You fool, don't ask you idiot."
"Sorry," Jounouchi muttered.
Hirutani sighed. "You and your big mouth, you haven't changed at all. Can't believe I'd see you here." He headed for the door again. "Wait for me, I'll go talk to the boss."
Jounouchi's heart hammered like an army marching to war as Hirutani left the room. He didn't believe for a second Hirutani could get him out of this situation. He looked like a low-level grunt, not a high-ranking yakuza boss. Plus, if anyone so much as muttered Kaiba's name, he was going to be in big trouble.
But his hands and feet were still tied together, and those knots were not budging at all. He was afraid if he got out of the chair, he was going to fall on the ground like a worm. It would be so embarrassing.
Hirutani might have been gone for ten minutes, or maybe longer, but eventually he came back. Jounouchi wasn't sure what to do, but he tried to look as oblivious as possible.
"Well? What did your boss say?" Jounouchi asked the second Hirutani opened the door. "Did you tell him they had the wrong guy? Can I go?"
"Just hold on a second." Hirutani dragged a chair over and sat opposite of Jounouchi. He stared at him.
"They said the boss's rival is Kaiba Seto, the head of KaibaCorp, and the order came directly from that old man. You were seen with him?"
"That must be a mistake," Jounouchi started, but then realized flat out denial would also sound suspicious, so he changed tactics. "I know Kaiba, but we aren't close at all, ok? We aren't even friends. It just so happens that we both play Duel Monsters, and one time I ran into him. He was only with me out of politeness, or obligation."
"Kaiba Seto doesn't look like the kind of person who does anything out of politeness," Hirutani pointed out.
He was right. "My best friend is a very strong duelist, so he probably felt like he had to be courteous to me. It's really not what you think," Jounouchi argued.
Hirutani thought for a second, and then pulled out his phone. "I think I remember seeing you with this best friend of yours. He has crazy hair, right?" Hirutani searched on his phone until he found what he was looking for.
"Let me talk to the boss again." Hirutani walked out of the room again.
"Wait, Hirutani! Don't touch Yugi! You can't swap him for me! I'll have to come back and rescue him! You can't kidnap my friend!" Jounouchi yelled.
He slumped back in his chair with a groan. He still hadn't gotten untied yet. He had made no progress in figuring out how to escape. The appearance of Hirutani had complicated things a lot. Hirutani had certain impressions about Jounouchi that made it hard for him to think of Jounouchi as some "rich man's whore," but they had a lot of bad history between them so it was unlikely Hirutani would help him escape. Jounouchi wondered what the guy had been through all these years.
Ironic, to be reunited with his not-friend, his enemy, because of his enemy turned not-friends. Hirutani returned after only a few minutes, looking angrier. His shirt collar was distinctly wrinkled and bunched up like someone had grabbed Hirutani by his collar and shook him. Jounouchi decided to be smart for once and not say anything.
"The boss said it's definitely you. No question. I must guard you until the boss gets what he wants out of Kaiba Seto."
"Kaiba is not going to give you anything in exchange for me. I'm worthless to that guy," Jounouchi said casually.
"Either way, it's not up to either of us to question the boss."
Jounouchi groaned. "Yo, Hirutani, can you at least untie me?" Jounouchi asked instead.
"I can't let you escape," Hirutani said.
"I'm not going to run for it. On my honor as a man. But I'm losing blood circulation here." Jounouchi pointed out. Hirutani untied Jounouchi's legs and hands but kept one end of the rope tied around Jounouchi's wrist and the other end tied around the wooden chair Jounouchi was sitting on.
"Thanks," Jounouchi said as he shook his limbs out. "I guess we can catch up. What have you been up to these years?"
"I got kicked out of high school," Hirutani admitted. "Couldn't stop fighting. I tried to transfer to another school, but no one would accept me. My parents kicked me out after that."
"Hirutani," Jounouchi sighed.
"So, I started picking up odd jobs. Any job, any time. I had to eat. Eventually I started working for the yakuza."
"Hirutani, you bastard. Did you ever try to turn it around for yourself? Stop being a delinquent."
"You think I could? I have no education. I have a criminal record. What else could I do besides be a criminal?" Hirutani asked.
"You could have come ask me for help," Jounouchi said.
Hirutani scoffed. "Why would you help me?"
Jounouchi stared him down. "I hate you Hirutani. I genuinely hate you for what you did, what you made me do back in middle school. I hate what we did back then. But that doesn't mean I would turn you away," Jounouchi said gruffly.
If anything, that seemed to make Hirutani even angrier. "You got your friends and your support, ok? Not everyone has it lucky like you. A trash human being, a delinquent, getting to pretend to be the good guy in society now."
"I know. I know I'll always be that shitty little delinquent. But that's not all of me. There's a lot more to me as a person, and I bet there can be more to you too. But you must stop being a delinquent Hirutani. You have to stop acting like one and living like one." Jounouchi said.
"What are you, a Buddhist monk? I don't need you preaching at me."
"Help me out here Hirutani. Help me get out of here, and I'll help you out until you're on your feet," Jounouchi offered.
"Help me? With what? With your rich man's money?" Hirutani asked.
"Are you insane? Look at me! Do you think I look like the kind of guy who would attract some rich businessman? They may believe something crazy like that, but you know me Hirutani!" Jounouchi said.
Hirutani nodded. "It is crazy. The Jounouchi I know is a real man, not some effeminate gay pussy who takes it up the ass for a rich man." Jounouchi tried not to cringe when Hirutani spoke.
"I've earned some money being a pro duelist Hirutani, and I've got my own apartment," Jounouchi tried. "I can help you. Just me. Do you want to be yakuza for your whole life? Do you want to be a delinquent your whole life?"
Hirutani seemed to be considering it, but before anyone could say anything else the door opened again, and Oshita walked in. He was wearing another finely tailored suit, a silk scarf, gold jewelry. Behind him were a group of yakuza men, and one of them was clearly the leader. Hirutani jumped out of his seat when they walked in, and he bowed to the boss.
"Jounouchi Katsuya," Oshita said. He sat down in Hirutani's seat.
"Who's asking?" Jounouchi tried to not look nervous, but his heart was racing even faster now.
"Don't play dumb. There's no way you've forgotten my face. We saw each other at the izakaya the other night, didn't we?" Oshita said quietly, and every word was venom. "You were about to have a private dinner with Kaiba."
"Me? Why would I eat with Kaiba? I barely even know him!" Jounouchi laughed. "I'm just a regular guy."
"A regular guy, hmm? But you're wearing a very nice cashmere shirt, and a very nice suit. In fact, I know the brand of that suit is Kaiba Seto's favorite brand. He bought your clothes for you, didn't he?" Oshita asked.
"Jounouchi Katsuya. A mid-level pro duelist. Your main call to fame isn't your own win record, but instead it's the fact that you're friends with the top duelist in the world, Muto Yugi. And now, you have been seen for months now with Kaiba Seto." Oshita's smile got bigger and bigger as he spoke.
"My sources told me you have been seen around town almost every night with him. Sitting in his car. Eating at his table. Going into hotel rooms with him." Jounouchi could hear Hirutani choke on his own spit at the mention of hotel rooms. Jounouchi's face burned. It was something else, to hear his life spelled out like this by a man like Oshita. He felt dirty.
But Jounouchi had been a fighter all his life. He never gave up. Not now, not ever. So, he tried something a little risky. He laughed again.
Oshita stopped smiling, and the tension got thicker. Jounouchi felt like he was about to enter a den of lions. "You are all a bunch of perverted old men. Is that what gets you off, Oshita? Thinking about Kaiba Seto in hotel rooms?"
Oshita's face turned a funny color. "Kaiba and I just graduated high school. Do you like them young, Oshita? You look old enough to be someone's great grandpa," Jounouchi mocked.
Oshita stood up and slapped Jounouchi hard. Jounouchi laughed. "You said it yourself. I'm a pro duelist. Did you know Kaiba also duels?"
"Of course," Oshita said like Jounouchi was the dumbest person on earth.
"You stalk us around town for a few weeks and you come up with something crazy like this?" Jounouchi asked. "Did you ever think about the fact that we're both pro duelists? We're just meeting up to duel and talk strategy!"
Jounouchi's proclamation was met with silence. Quite a few of the yakuza members, Hirutani included, looked utterly dumbfounded. Oshita himself looked blindsided by the revelation.
"But…you meet at night."
Jounouchi gave him a face like Oshita was the dumbest person on earth. "Have you met Kaiba? That man doesn't sleep! He's a workaholic! That's the only free time he has."
"Then why did you buy you those clothes? And a watch!"
"He didn't buy them for me," Jounouchi bluffed. "KaibaCorp is supporting my career as a pro duelist. These were bought as a business expense. I have to pay it all back. It's not a gift."
Jounouchi took a deep breath. "Do you think Kaiba Seto would ever give someone a gift? Do you think Kaiba Seto would ever be interested in someone like me?"
Jounouchi laughed again, and he tried not to show how his own words were hurting his feelings. "Kaiba is a robot. Do you think he's going to allow a weakness like a romance? You don't know Kaiba at all." Jounouchi finished.
The seeds of doubt had been planted. "I tried to tell you, boss. I know Jounouchi. You've got the wrong guy," Hirutani said quietly.
Oshita ripped off his expensive blazer and chucked it on the floor in anger. "Are you telling me Kaiba doesn't give a shit about you?"
"You grabbed the wrong guy! I'm useless to you!" Jounouchi raised his voice. "You can't use me to get to that guy. If you killed me right now, Kaiba wouldn't care at all!"
Victory was so close. Of course, that was the exact moment when someone broke down the door and Kaiba strode in alone.
The yakuza stared dumbly at Kaiba. Oshita stared dumbly at Kaiba. Stunned, Jounouchi stared at Kaiba.
Seto stared at Jounouchi, eyes glued to him and burning fiercely. "Shit," Jounouchi muttered. He grabbed the chair he was still tied to and swung it at the nearest yakuza member. He went down like a sack of rocks.
All hell broke loose. "Grab them!" Oshita shrieked, but Jounouchi's next target was him, and Oshita barely jumped out of the way of Jounouchi's fierce chair swing. Oshita ran for the door as yakuza members surrounded Jounouchi and his chair. On the other side of the room, Kaiba was already fighting off two guys. Jounouchi knocked the wind out of one guy and the legs out from another, but then he had to hold off two men with his chair and then a third. He was cornered.
"Damn it! Hirutani, don't just stand there!" Jounouchi yelled. Hirutani was indeed frozen in the corner, looking at Jounouchi and then at his fellow yakuza members. He didn't know what to do.
The stand-off did not last long, however. Kaiba had not come wholly unprepared after all. He knocked out two guys with a few kicks and then his men came rushing in, all wearing KaibaCorp badges. Jounouchi dodged out of the way while Kaiba's bodyguards engaged the yakuza members in battle, leaving Kaiba free to run to Jounouchi's side and untie his wrist. Kaiba then reached out to grab Jounouchi's hand, but Jounouchi snatched his hand away and ran to Hirutani.
"Let's go!" Jounouchi yelled. He pushed Hirutani out of the room. Together, the three of them dodged past the fighting and ran out of the building.
"Hirutani, how do we leave this place?" Jounouchi asked, and Hirutani showed him the way.
"We gotta catch that Oshita guy," Jounouchi said and Hirutani gave him a look for that. Jounouchi ignored it. He didn't want to hear Hirutani talk about "rich men's whores" right now. He skidded to a stop in front of the staircase and started racing down. Hirutani ran after him, but Kaiba suddenly overtook him with a burst of speed, leaving Hirutani staring after his white coat.
A couple of floors down and they were out. Jounouchi burst out of the metal door, adrenaline carrying him past exhaustion, just in time to see the yakuza leader helping Oshita into his car. Jounouchi went straight for the yakuza leader and shoved him out of the way. Then he grabbed Oshita by the collar and started dragging him out of the car, squealing and kicking.
"Let go of me!" Oshita screamed.
"No!" Jounouchi yelled back. "I'm not letting you escape!" He threw a punch and it connected satisfying into Oshita's face. Oshita fell on the ground and tried to get up, but Kaiba was suddenly there, punching him like a madman. Oshita started screaming. He tried to cover his face with his arms, but it was no use. Kaiba lifted him up and slammed him on the ground. Oshita's head bounced off the concrete.
Kaiba stood up and stomped on Oshita's torso a few times until Oshita was cowering and gasping for breath.
"You bastard," Kaiba was out of breath too. "You worthless vermin, I'm going to kill you just like – "but Jounouchi was pulling Kaiba off of Oshita. He grabbed his arms before Kaiba could finish the job.
Kaiba's men had also descended the staircase and two of them grabbed Oshita and handcuffed his arms behind his back. The yakuza leader was also lying on the ground in surrender, arms cuffed behind his back. Of the yakuza members, there was no one left standing except for Hirutani.
Kaiba finally turned to Jounouchi. "Are you alright?" He grabbed Jounouchi's arms to look at him.
Jounouchi shoved him off. "I'm fine," he said, trying to pretend they weren't close. Jounouchi saw a flash of hurt in Kaiba's eyes before the mask went back up and he was once again the cold, unfeeling businessman.
"Take them all away. I want Oshita and all his men locked up in KaibaCorp. I'll take care of them later," Kaiba said, his voice promising retribution.
"How did you find me?" Jounouchi asked, unable to control his curiosity. "Did anyone even have time to ask you for a ransom?"
Kaiba met his eyes and then looked away. "Oshita couldn't resist texting me, saying he had someone important to me. The GPS trackers I put in your shoes and watch told me your location."
"Oh," Jounouchi said. Unfortunately, Oshita, the yakuza leader, and Hirutani heard this too.
"You lied to me!" Oshita yelled. "You are his lover! His whore! What kind of maniac puts GPS trackers on his employee?"
Jounouchi looked at Oshita coldly, and then he leaned down. "Oshita, you don't know anything about me," Jounouchi taunted. "I'm Jounouchi Katsuya! I'm a fighter! I would have gotten out of here by myself with just a chair! You could have asked Hirutani what kind of person I am! Right, Hirutani?" Jounouchi asked.
"You lied to me," Hirutani said. "I don't know you at all."
Jounouchi stopped smiling. "Hirutani," He warned. His hands balled immediately into fists.
"You bastard," Hirutani growled. "You lied to me. Is that what you are now? You're like a woman, opening up your legs for a man?"
"Jounouchi," Kaiba said but Jounouchi waved him back. "I'll handle this."
"Hirutani, you can say whatever you want but it won't work. I'm not the same delinquent I was in middle school," Jounouchi said.
"You've beaten up my brothers," Hirutani was furious. "You and your pretty boy rich boyfriend. Is that what they call it now? Dueling? In hotel rooms?"
"Come on Hirutani," Jounouchi said, refusing to rise to his bait. "You want to fight? Is that all? Come on, then. I can handle you."
Hirutani walked towards Jounouchi until they were only a few inches apart. Then he punched him.
Jounouchi ducked as hard as he could, but the punch still grazed him. Jounouchi righted himself, squatted down into the right stance, and punched Hirutani hard in the stomach. The taller man doubled over in pain and Jounouchi brought his knee up straight into Hirutani's face.
Hirutani went down. Next thing he knew, Jounouchi was straddling over him and punching his face, one time, two times, three times. He forced himself back on his feet and stumbled backwards a few times.
Hirutani sat up groaning. "You broke my nose you punk."
Jounouchi pointed at him shakily. "You broke my nose in middle school. Now we're even."
Everyone was looking at him with a mixture of terror and awe. Jounouchi knew what he looked like; a crazy delinquent, reckless, hair going everywhere, and a savage look in his eyes. But it was important to him he could defend himself. It was important that he be tough.
"Hirutani, get your life together." Jounouchi said seriously. "Time to stop being a delinquent. Time to make something of yourself and be a real man. Or I'll never forgive you, Hirutani!"
Kaiba pulled Jounouchi away as his men gathered up all the yakuza members and Oshita and threw them into black, unmarked vans. Kaiba led him to a different car, one of Kaiba's personal cars. In the driver's seat was Kaiba's chaperone, waiting all this time.
Kaiba shoved Jounouchi into the car and jumped in as well. He closed the privacy screen between them and the driver.
"I was pretty cool, huh?" Jounouchi asked. Kaiba said nothing as he leaned over Jounouchi to buckle him into his seat. Then Kaiba sat next to him and looked away.
"Kaiba, are you listening to me?" Jounouchi asked. "Man, I was surprised when you showed up. I almost had them all convinced you didn't care about me – "
"Why were you surprised I showed up?" Kaiba suddenly asked.
"What?"
"Why were you surprised I showed up? Did you think I wouldn't? Do you think I don't care?" Kaiba said. He was staring out the window, but he sounded angry.
"What – no! No, that's not why I was surprised. It was just…your timing! You just barged right in!" Jounouchi nudged Kaiba. "Were you worried about me? Thanks, but you didn't need to! I was about to escape on my own! Even if I didn't convince them, I could have fought my way out!" Jounouchi bragged.
"You fool," Kaiba muttered.
"Hey, I got myself out. I'm not a fool!" Jounouchi protested.
"Shut up."
"Why should I shut up? I'm not saying anything!"
"Shut up," Kaiba emphasized. His shoulders were shaking. Jounouchi touched him for just a moment, finally silent, and the dam broke. Kaiba leaned over and pulled Jounouchi into a hug. He squeezed Jounouchi tightly as he gasped against Jounouchi's shoulder.
Jounouchi leaned back against the seat and rubbed Kaiba's back gently. "I'm fine, Seto. I can take care of myself. I'm strong. You don't need to worry about me. I'm fine."
Jounouchi closed his eyes. Kaiba was heavy against him, and his knuckles hurt badly after his first fight in years. But he was proud of himself. He realized why it was important that he be strong. He was different from Hirutani for this exact reason. You needed strength to defend yourself, but Jounouchi noticed people were always stronger when they were fighting for other people.
It was Valentine's Day. Jounouchi hadn't seen Kaiba much these last few weeks, after the kidnapping incident. Kaiba was especially busy with work, and Jounouchi didn't push. He needed some distance too, needed to do some thinking. But it was Valentine's Day and Jounouchi wanted to do something. He wanted to see Kaiba.
He spent an hour dressing up in his best date outfit. Before he went to the KaibaCorp headquarters building, he stopped at a flower shop to pick up a bouquet. It wasn't much, but Kaiba wasn't someone who needed material gifts. It was the thought that counts, right?
Jounouchi timed his visit to coincide with lunch break, and slipped in while everyone was running around, thinking of where to eat and who to eat with. He had texted Mokuba the day before, and Mokuba had cleared Kaiba's schedule for him to make sure he had the afternoon free. When Jounouchi got to the top floor, it was empty save for Kaiba.
Kaiba looked at him in surprise when Jounouchi walked in. He looked tired but in a good mood, although it was hard to tell sometimes.
"Why are you here, Jounouchi?" Kaiba asked, almost gently.
Jounouchi handed him the bouquet. "It's Valentine's Day. I thought we could eat together. It's been a while since we met up."
Kaiba slowly turned red as he looked at the flowers in his arms. "It's – I didn't prepare anything." Kaiba said.
"I don't need a present," Jounouchi smiled. "I texted Mokuba, and he told me you're free this afternoon. You need a break."
Kaiba rifled around in his office until he found a decorative glass container. He stuck the flowers inside and poured in some water. Then he grabbed his coat.
"Let me take you to a restaurant," Kaiba said. Jounouchi grinned and let him lead the way.
They ended up at a weird spot for lunch. It was Valentine's Day, and Kaiba couldn't find a table. The local French restaurant was packed, as was the Italian restaurant. The sushi restaurants were full, the coffee shops were full. The cutesy dessert shops that always attracted countless girls with their aesthetic Instagram accounts were full too. Even the sleazy bars and love hotels were full of couples wanting to celebrate Valentine's Day in a less-than-innocent way.
In the end, they found themselves at a Chinese restaurant that served cheap food to laborers and salary workers every day, but there were private stalls, and the food was delicious. The menu even offered chocolate cake in honor of Valentine's Day, which Jounouchi ordered with a mischievous grin.
Kaiba was in a good mood, and so was Jounouchi, but he was also uncharacteristically nervous. They made awkward small talk until the food arrived, and then they ate silently. It wasn't until the chocolate slice was gone that Jounouchi gathered enough courage to speak.
"Kaiba…Seto. I've been thinking these past few weeks. I have something I want to tell you." Kaiba sat back in his seat and waited for him to speak.
"The past few months have been good, and I've been really happy. I'm grateful that I've gotten the chance to get to know you better. I just wanted to say thank you for taking care of me so far."
Jounouchi bowed his head and Kaiba bowed his head back. "Are you trying to end our arrangement?" He asked.
"No! Not like that. I – I think I can't do casual relationships." Jounouchi stammered. "Ah, this is hard to say."
Jounouchi pulled out something from his pocket and slid it over. Something lodged in Kaiba's throat as he reached over and grabbed it. It was a jewelry box, and when he opened it, there was a necklace inside.
"I didn't know what to get you, or what you would like, so I just picked something. I hope you don't hate it."
"What does this mean?" Kaiba asked. He stared at the necklace. There was a blue gem inside, the exact shade he liked.
"What I'm trying to say is, I think I have feelings for you," Jounouchi confessed. "I don't want to just have an arrangement. I want to be in a real relationship with you. I want to treat this seriously. Please give me a chance."
Kaiba was silent for a long time. He didn't move, he only stared at the necklace in his hands.
"You don't have to give me an answer now," Jounouchi finally said. He tried not to panic. "Think on it for a few days, maybe a week. After that, can you give me an answer?"
That finally snapped Kaiba out of his stupor. "I have to go back to work," Kaiba said. He gathered up his coat and stood up. The jewelry box was closed inside his hands, but he did not give it back.
"I'll wait for your answer," Jounouchi said.
Kaiba looked back at him for just a moment before he left. "I'll text you when I'm ready," He said.
That was the last time they spoke. After that, Kaiba ghosted him.