Author's Note: I'm going to be toning down Jounouchi's accent just a bit, as I think I had it a bit harsh in the earlier chapters. So if you notice a difference, that's on purpose.

Chapter 5:

Feeling sunlight across his face, Kaiba groaned and slowly rolled over in bed. His back cracked twice, and he groaned a second time before pushing himself up to a sitting position. Running a hand through his hair, he grabbed his phone and unplugged it, checking the time.

7:30am. To most, that would have been their normal time to wake up, perhaps even early. But for Kaiba, he had slept in almost 3 hours.

It was the first time in months he woke up feeling so refreshed.

Mokuba was still sound asleep, one arm over his face and the other dangling over the edge of the bed. Being as quiet as he could be, Kaiba crawled out of bed and walked into the bathroom, checking his swimwear. Completely dry, he noted, happy to have thought to throw them into the dryer before heading to bed. He swiftly changed into the same swim trunks and rash guard t-shirt as before, then stepped out into the combined living room and kitchen.

He popped open the refrigerator door and examined its contents. Within seconds, he formulated his plan, and he quickly took out some eggs and bacon. He double-checked the cabinets for rice, found a bag, and pulled it down.

It's been so long since I had a decent, large breakfast, he reflected as he washed the rice and set it in the rice cooker, which he found underneath the sink. He then took out two pans and set the bacon in, being careful to avoid splashing oil and fat. Then the eggs. He pulled out two, then remembered Jounouchi also needed to eat and added a third.

When was the last time I cooked for anyone? he thought as he cracked the eggs open. It's not that I don't know how to do it. I simply never have the time. Hearing the eggs sizzle, he sighed and wondered, For how early I always wake up, I never have time to make even breakfast.

Hearing footsteps, he called back, "Mokuba, how do you want your eggs?"

"Uh, scrambled?"

Kaiba's eyes widened, and he turned to see Jounouchi yawning and stretching his arms above his head. Seeing Kaiba's shocked expression, he laughed and slid into one of the island seats. "I, uh, think Mokuba's still asleep."

Kaiba returned his gaze to the food, making sure to flip the bacon.

"But damn, man, the beds here are soooooo soft," Jounouchi continued, yawning a second time. Without thinking, Kaiba pointed at the coffee maker.

"Start preparing a pot if you're going to keep yawning."

"Don't have to tell me twice." Jounouchi bounced out of his seat and walked over to the cabinets, which were right next to Kaiba. Immediate regret filled the CEO as the blonde struggled to stay out of Kaiba's way, but as though sensing he was a nuisance, Jounouchi rapidly filled the new filter and turned the machine on before backing out and returning to his seat. He inhaled and slowly exhaled, smiling at Kaiba and resting his cheek against his hand. "Didn't take you to be one of them iron chefs, Kaiba."

"It's breakfast, Jounouchi. Not that terribly difficult of a meal to make."

"You definitely haven't had Yuug's cooking, then. He's tried to make us dinner so many times that we've memorized the local ramen shop's number."

"You know, Jounouchi, I really could not care less about Yuugi Motou's cooking habits."

"A'ight, a'ight, just trying to be polite, man."

The smell of coffee suddenly filled the room, and Kaiba slowly inhaled the fresh scent. At the same time, the rice cooker beeped, signalling the full meal was ready. Realizing that Jounouchi was indeed behaving, he muttered a small, "Forget it," and turned once more. "You said scrambled eggs for you?"

Jou's eyes widened. "Yeah."

"You aren't allergic to pork, are you?"

"I'll eat as much bacon as you put in front of me."

"Three slices each."

"Sounds good."

Pulling plates out, Kaiba quickly scooped some scrambled eggs and rice on the plate, then set three slices of bacon. He slid it across the island to Jounouchi, then pulled out enough silverware for all three of them. He watched as Jou leaned forward and inhaled the steam floating up from the food. "Mmm, Kaiba, this smells delicious." Kaiba himself felt his stomach rumble, and he quickly filled his own plate and placed it in front of the seat next to Jounouchi. He then turned, grabbed two cups from the previous evening, and filled them with coffee, setting them in front of each plate. By now, Jounouchi was already a quarter of the way through his meal. He pointed down at his plate as Kaiba finally took his seat to begin eating. "Who knew you could be such a good host?" Jounouchi remarked, taking a large bite of bacon. "This is seriously good, man. Like, seriously good."

Kaiba took a bite of bacon. "Glad it won't be going to waste."

"You don't like eating the breakfast buffet stuff?"

"I don't need a heart attack by age 30. There's far too much grease used to make it appetizing for that type of food to be healthy for you."

"Since when did you care about personal health? I mean, sittin' in front of that computer can't be great for you."

"I do try to take an hour a day to jog on a treadmill," Kaiba stated, shocked by the fact that he felt he needed to defend himself.

"Really?!" Jou took a large swig of his coffee, then returned his surprised gaze to Kaiba. "Is that, like, a new thing, or have ya always done that?"

"Relatively new. Perhaps the past year?" Kaiba shrugged. "Becoming unhealthy would be a burden to Mokuba, and KaibaCorp wouldn't run smoothly under someone who's personally unfit, whether it be physical or mental."

"Damn, man. That's almost a sensitive thing ta think."

"What does that mean?"

"Just means you're caring about people and things other than yourself. Not a bad thing, just kind of a surprise."

Before he could respond, the sound of footsteps caught his ear, and he leaned forward to see Mokuba yawning and waving to the two. "Mornin'..." he muttered, causing Jounouchi to chuckle.

"Mornin' kid. Not a morning person, I take it?"

"That's all Seto there…"

Kaiba watched as Mokuba grabbed a plate and slowly piled food on it. He took a long look at the coffee maker, and Kaiba, smirking, noted, "You can have a cup this morning. You'll need the energy for the beach."

"Sweeeet…"

Jounouchi laughed as Mokuba barely managed to pour himself a cup without spilling it and took his seat next to Kaiba. Seto watched as he whispered a light 'itadakimasu' before digging into his food.

He felt his heart skip a beat, realizing he had cooked a proper meal for his younger brother for the first time in years, and quickly returned to his own meal.

"WE'RE AT THE BEACH!"

Jounouchi burst out laughing as Mokuba sprinted towards the water only to shrivel back with a shout, "HOLY HELL IT'S COLD!"

Hearing Kaiba sigh behind him merely added to the situation, and Jounouchi nearly dropped the bag containing snacks and water bottles as he pointed and laughed at Mokuba. "What did the kid think would happen?"

"Who knows?" Kaiba retorted, setting up the rented umbrella before lying two massive, comfy towels down over the sand. Grabbing the bag from Jounouchi, he set it down between the towels before tossing his flip flops off. Jounouchi himself took his sandals off, wiggling his toes and smiling widely at the feeling the warm sand. Fortunately he had already asked Mokuba to help him put sunscreen on, and he held his arms out as the sun's warm rays hit his back only for the ocean breeze to immediately cool his skin. He had gone with the black pair of trunks for today, and the idea of jumping into the water made him smile widely.

He was surprised, however, as he watched Kaiba put his sunglasses away and stand up from the towel. "What, you're getting in the water, too?"

"That is what one does at the beach, correct?"

Jounouchi slowly nodded, quickly turning to look away. And here I hoped Moneybags would just stay at the damn hotel, maybe sit up on the patio in those swim shorts. He watched Mokuba slowly wading out and walked up to the edge where the water lapped at the sand. This kid is gonna get it. He just had to know Kaiba would come outside with us. Wearing his sexy swim wear and looking hot as hell. And no wonder! Yeah, it's an hour a day on the treadmill, but dude...come on. Give me a break.

He glanced back to see Kaiba approaching him, piercing blue eyes scanning the water, brown locks of hair shifting in the breeze. Jounouchi turned back to Mokuba, who was already out far enough for the water to lap at his waist. And now I can add "makes a mean breakfast" to his list. Fuckin' hell, Kaiba, pick a side. You're either a douchebag or a sexy, caring guy. You don't get to be both, shithead.

"Don't zone out too long, or the sharks will get you."

"Ehhh?!" Jumping in shock only to realize how stupid he must've looked, Jounouchi glared and dipped his hand in the water, sending a small splash Kaiba's way. "Piss off, man. Sharks ain't cool to joke about."

"Like we would go to a beach that was prone to shark attacks." Jounouchi blinked, realizing Kaiba himself was wading out into the water, the waves lapping up to his knees. Jou wondered why the CEO chose to wear a shirt and shorts combo. It wasn't like he was going surfing or anything.

Then again, maybe it was for the best. Jou didn't think he could handle a shirtless CEO right now.

Stepping out in the cold water to divert his attention, Jounouchi smiled at the blend of warmth from the sun and sand mixed with the cold water. He quickly walked out, pushing against the waves, all the way out to Mokuba, the water reaching above his knees. "Hey kiddo, havin' fun?"

Mokuba turned and shivered. "It's sooo cold."

"Yeah, well, ocean water tends ta be like that."

"How does Seto even do it?"

"Huh?" Glancing back, Jou's eyes widened as he watched Kaiba kneel into the ocean, letting the water come up to his shoulders. His eyes were closed, and Jounouchi swore he saw the brunette's shoulders rise and fall with a large breath before he reopened his eyes, stood, and walked out into the water.

"Only way you get used to the cold," he explained, noticing both their shocked expressions.

Jounouchi slowly started to bend his knees, but he shivered and stood back up. "Uh, yeah, no thanks, dude."

"Hmph."

The condescension in that one syllable caused Jounouchi's eyes to flare. "A'ight, Kaiba, ya think you're so tough." Stepping further out into the water, Jounouchi flinched at a sudden wave but persevered, going out until the water was up to his stomach. He glanced over to see Kaiba standing next to him, smirking and shaking his head.

"Cold yet?"

Jou could feel his arms shaking slightly, but he shook his head. "Nah man. Feels great."

"Good. Then this wave shouldn't hurt."

"Wha-" Before he could respond, Jou felt the coldest, sharpest wave slap him in the shoulder, practically knocking him backwards. He dug his feet into the sand to stand his ground, but the water reached up to his ears, splashing his face. Spitting out the salty water, he coughed twice before looking up. "What the hell, Kaiba? What'd ya do that for?"

Kaiba had also clearly been hit, the tips of his brown hair now dark from the water. Rather than shivering, however, he stood tall, arms crossed over his chest and a smug smirk across his lips. "I did nothing, Jounouchi. That's nature for you."

"Grr…" Standing tall, Jounouchi went to respond when another large splash hit him in the back. Completely unexpected, it pushed Jou forward, his feet giving out from under him. He lunged forward, moving with the waves as his mother taught when he was young, and he brushed past Kaiba and Mokuba further inland.

Turning around once he felt the sand underneath, he saw that the wave had also pushed back the Kaiba brothers a bit. Mokuba was laughing heartily at Jou, while Kaiba turned and trudged back out into the ocean. Jounouchi stood and rushed back, smiling down at Mokuba as he did so. "Your brother is a jerk."

"I heard that," Kaiba called back. Jou looked up to see Kaiba be hit by a large wave, the water going over his head. Just as Jou had, Kaiba swam inland with the wave, letting the current take him towards the two. By now his hair was soaking wet, and Jou watched as the brunette wiped his eyes before standing. "I'm going farther out. Mokuba, don't go out above your shoulders."

"You got it, Seto."

Jou watched the two nod before Kaiba turned and continued out into the water. Feeling the adrenaline rush, Jou glanced down at Mokuba before asking, "Mind if I follow your brother?"

"If you like big waves, go for it."

Pushing against the ocean water, Jou wadded all the way out until the water reached his chest. Kaiba was treading water, his arms moving this way and that, eyes staring out and examining the incoming waves. He smirked upon seeing Jou and asked, "You think you're ready for these waves?"

"Hey man, I can handle myself."

"We shall see about that."

Bending his knees, Jou began to wade himself, letting the water carry him about. He peeked over to see Kaiba and smirked, mentally shaking his head. "Hey Kaiba?"

"Yes?"

"Thanks for breakfast."

Kaiba quickly turned to look, then shrugged. It may have been the sun, but for a split second, Jou thought he saw a blush rise to the CEO's cheeks.