Author's Note: Holy cow, it's been awhile since I posted here. I hit a bump while writing this and ended up working on my novel instead, but I've come up with a solid ending for this fanfic, so I wanted to return. Sorry to all who have been waiting patiently for updates. I hope this chapter lives up to your expectations. :)

Chapter 13:

"Dude, how in the-?!" Jounouchi groaned loudly as Kaiba tapped his golf ball [a blue one, of course] into the hole for another score of two. Pulling the scorecard out of his pocket, Jou read aloud with great frustration, "Two, two, two, one, two, one, two. Kaiba, kiss my ass, man. Mokuba, we're playing by ourselves. This asshole cheats."

Mokuba was leaning against the side of a small pirate ship prop, holding his sides and laughing hysterically. Kaiba, in the meantime, had leaned down to pluck the ball from the hole and stuffed it in his pocket. "Watch the language, Jou," Kaiba warned, his gaze hidden behind his sunglasses. "There's kids around."

"Yeah, and they're gonna be more scarred by your scores than my language," Jou countered, feeling his blood boiling. He wasn't doing half bad himself, but a five near the beginning had thrown Jou's entire score off. Kaiba's consistent close victories were quickly going from amusing to downright grating.

"How far behind is Mokuba from me? Not terribly far."

"Far enough, man!" Pointing at Kaiba, Jou shouted, "Just what the hell. You sit in a boardroom all day. Just how are you so good at every freakin' game?"

Dropping his yellow ball down on the green makeshift turf, Jou didn't even bother lining up his shot but whacked the ball across the small course. It hit smack dab in the middle of a pillar and bounced back, landing not two feet in front of him.

Mokuba let the club fall from his hands as he nearly fell over from laughter, and even Kaiba, who had remained stoic this whole time, let a chuckle escape his lips. Growling, Jou hit it again, taking a mere two seconds to make sure he wouldn't hit the same pillar twice, and watched as it rounded the brick-enclosed space and landed in the hole. "See, you earned a two on this one after all that complaining," observed Kaiba, whose arms were crossed over his chest. "And you have half the course to catch up."

"Yeah, only if you make a damn mistake," Jou muttered as he reached down and snatched his ball. "But it's clear that's only for amateurs like me and Mokuba."

"I don't know. Mokuba doesn't seem to have a five on the card yet…"

Jou shot a hard look at Kaiba, who turned his head to look directly at the blonde. Pointing at the brunette, he said, "I'm gonna remember this tonight when we all sit down and play video games again."

"Hmph. Maybe we can play a game of golf on the Switch. That should up your chances of victory."

"Alright, alright," Mokuba interrupted, showing the purple golf ball in his hand. "I got a three, Jou. Can you mark it down?"

"Sure thing, kiddo," Jou replied, pulling the sheet from his pocket and writing it down. "Should I just fill in 1s and 2s for Kaiba the rest of the game and call it done?"

"Don't be such a crybaby," retorted Kaiba, who had moved onto the next hole and set his ball down on the makeshift turf. "Just get better at it."

"Oh? And how should I do that?"

Kaiba turned his head and smirked directly at Jou. "Why, by watching someone better than you."

The reminder that there were children around was the only thing that kept Jou from screaming at the smug bastard's face.

The remainder of the holes on the course were much of the same: Jounouchi landing 2-3s and doing well but trailing behind Kaiba's constant holes in one or two. Mokuba, for the first time during vacation, seemed to honestly be trying his hardest to beat them at a game, and he managed to slide past Jou to end in second place. The icing on the cake was when Kaiba scored a hole in one on the free round course, earning them a free round of mini-golf at the site.

As they exited the course and walked back out onto the boardwalk, Jounouchi sighed and shook his head. "Man, now I'm depressed," he noted, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I can't help it you have yet to truly beat me at a game," countered Kaiba, who took a step in front of the blonde in order to face him. Mokuba came up behind, stuffing the free round slip in the pocket of his shorts.

"I take it another round of golf is out of the question?" inquired Mokuba, looking up at the two.

Kaiba shrugged. "I can be up for another round."

"Yeah, I'm sure," Jou shot back. Checking himself, he cleared his throat and quickly added, "But seriously, I'm down for whatever. It was honestly fun to play again. Haven't played mini-golf in years."

Mokuba smiled. "How about we do one more round of golf, then head back and get ready for dinner?"

"I can be down for that," Jou stated.

Kaiba nodded in agreement.

Mokuba nodded and began heading down the boardwalk, and Kaiba quickly trailed behind. Jou followed suit, shoving his hands in his pockets, knowing that despite his frustration, he'd play games all day with the brunette if he could.

Kaiba pulled on his black, silk pajama shirt and pants and quickly dried out the rest of his hair. He could hear Mokuba and Jounouchi playing video games in the living room even from his position and chuckled to himself. Those two… It made him feel strange recalling the afternoon, how his brother had had a smile on his face all day, laughing at Kaiba and the blonde's antics. Mokuba seems to be having more fun watching me babysit Jounouchi than actually playing games with him. Though he did do surprisingly well at the mini-golf...perhaps he'll beat me at one game one day.

Combing his hair, he sighed, letting a light trace of a smile cross his lips. Tomorrow will be day four...already reaching the halfway mark of the vacation. On the one hand, Kaiba felt reinvigorated already to return to work. On the other, he knew he would miss this time spent with his younger brother. And the blonde, Kaiba thought, only to blink in shock at where his mind went. Shaking his head, he quickly reflected, The blonde is here for Mokuba's sake, not mine. Though I suppose...he hasn't been terrible to be around. Even if he throws a fit every time he loses a game of mini-golf.

Kaiba smirked, then chuckled at the memory of Jou cursing at Kaiba's scores. Sure it had been a mild temper tantrum on the blonde's part, but part of it was...

He quickly finished combing his hair, half afraid of where else his mind would take him, before stepping out into the bedroom. He quickly checked his phone, reading a short message from Isono confirming that the day went well and that the manor was being cleaned as scheduled. Hearing a cry of agony from the living room, Kaiba stepped out to see both Jou and Mokuba sitting on the sofa. Jounouchi was raising a fist in a show of victory while Mokuba tossed the controller to the side.

Kaiba chuckled, glancing around the corner at the television. "The same racing game?" he observed. "Don't we have more games than that?"

Jounouchi pointed at Mokuba. "Hey, don't blame me. It's what he wanted to play."

"And I'm sure you were so opposed," Kaiba replied sarcastically. He glanced back at the two, noting how Jounouchi was looking not so subtly at him. I guess he never saw me in my pajamas… Kaiba reasoned that was the answer, but he wasn't foolish or naive. Jounouchi had been looking at him during this vacation with an odd expression. A lot.

"Better than getting constantly beat by you," Jounouchi retorted, oblivious to Kaiba's inner thoughts. Mokuba had since stood up and walked over to the cabinet, and Kaiba blinked in shock as he pulled out a familiar item.

Mokuba smiled and held up the chess board. "I'm kinda over the video games," he stated. "Wanna play a quick round, Seto?"

Conflicted with his inner joy at the thought that Mokuba considered bringing it and the awkwardness at the fact that Jounouchi was still staring at him, Kaiba simply nodded, watching as Mokuba kneeled in front of the coffee table and began setting the game up. Sitting across from his little brother, Kaiba smiled, not even bothering to hide his happiness. It's been months...no, more than that, maybe a year, since we last played a round, he reflected, helping Mokuba take the pieces out. He really did think of everything for this trip.

Jounouchi yawned as he stood and stretched his arms above. "Anybody want something hot to drink?" he asked.

"I'll take some tea," Mokuba chimed up, finalizing setting up his side.

"A'ight. And you, Kaiba?"

Kaiba slowly nodded. "Sure… I'll have a cup of tea as well."

"Three cups of tea, comin' right up."

Placing his final piece in the correct spot, Kaiba nodded to Mokuba, letting a genuine smile cross his lips. Mokuba also smiled widely, clearly reading the happiness his brother was feeling. "You can go first, Mokuba," Kaiba muttered, nodding to his younger brother. Mokuba returned the nod before moving his first pawn.

Several minutes of the game passed, during which both brothers merely began to set up their strategies, when Jounouchi came over and placed their cups of tea on the coffee table. Without thinking, Kaiba nodded and whispered a small "thanks" before taking the cup in one hand, letting the steam and aroma fill his senses. He peeked out of the corner of his eye, watching as Jounouchi took his seat on the sofa, cupping his tea with both hands and staring intently at the board.

"You ever play, Jou?" asked Mokuba as he moved another piece.

Jounouchi shook his head. His eyes were wide, and he took a sip of his drink before leaning forward, setting both elbows on his knees. "Nah, but I'm curious to see this," he stated.

Kaiba took a sip of his own cup of tea before smirking at Jou. "Even I will admit this game requires a bit more than watching someone to learn," he noted. "But perhaps you'll pick up something."

"And that is checkmate," Kaiba observed, hiding a yawn with the back of his hand as he looked up at Mokuba. Mokuba was looking at the board from various angles, clearly trying to find a way out of the situation, before he sighed heavily.

"Yep, looks that way."

"You've definitely improved your skills, though," he noted, moving the pieces of the board to begin packing the game away. "Who have you been practicing with?"

Mokuba blushed. "Just a few friends at school. During homeroom, there's not many other kids who play Duel Monsters, but our chess club is pretty big."

"Hmm." Setting the board aside, he smiled over at his younger brother. "Thank you...for bringing that along."

"It's been so long since we played a round, I figured we'd find some time." Glancing over at the sofa, Mokuba chuckled and added, "Apparently we weren't very entertaining, though." Kaiba followed Mokuba's gaze and smirked. Jounouchi was lying sideways on the sofa, his mouth open and eyes closed. "Jouuuu…" Mokuba trailed off, shrugging at Kaiba when it was evident Jounouchi was fast asleep.

Kaiba put the board aside and stood, stretching his arms and letting another yawn escape. It was only 23:00, not very late by his standards, but the difference of walking all day, being outside, and spending the majority of his time around strangers was starting to catch up to him. Cracking his neck, he could already feel his body telling him it was time for bed. He watched as Mokuba pulled a light blanket out and laid it over Jou, who shifted ever so slightly but remained asleep. He then followed Kaiba to their shared bedroom, and Kaiba plopped down in bed as Mokuba entered the bathroom to brush his teeth. As his brother turned the corner, he quickly pulled out his phone, checking for any new messages from Isono. There were none, which satisfied the CEO, who set the phone back down on the small, wooden nightstand.

"Hey...Seto…"

Kaiba glanced over in the direction of the bathroom. "Yes, Mokuba?"

"Jounouchi hasn't been bugging you too much, has he?"

Blinking in surprise at the question, Kaiba shrugged and pulled the blankets over him, feeling his eyelids becoming heavy. "Not terribly," he admitted.

"Okay."

"It's just weird… I, for one, thought he was your friend."

Mokuba's giggle floated out from the bathroom. "I'm just happy he's feeling better than he was this morning." Mokuba soon exited the bathroom and plopped down on his bed, pulling the pillows close to him but still looking at Kaiba. "And...I'm happy you talked to him."

Kaiba shrugged. "It wasn't that difficult… He just misinterpreted something I said."

"Yeah, but… You usually don't reach out to people when that's the problem."

Kaiba frowned. "What does that mean?"

Mokuba's chuckle was soft in the darkness of the bedroom. "I mean, there have been plenty of times someone misinterpreted what you said, but you didn't bother to pull them aside and carefully explain your side of it. At least, that's what I assume happened."

"I didn't want him throwing a temper tantrum and ruining your day."

"Still… It was really kind of you, Seto."

Kaiba again shrugged, though he was sure Mokuba couldn't see it. "I just did what I thought was the right thing to do. Nothing 'kind' about that."

"For a normal, social person, maybe. For you, though, and this is a 'no offense' kind of thing, but for you, it said a lot. I'm really, really happy that it seems we're all having fun."

"You expected the worst?"

"Given how you two used to fight all the time, kinda."

"I'm not going to start fights while on vacation."

"I know. And I know he isn't going to, either. But it just seems… I don't know."

"Something wrong?"

"Huh? Oh, nothing's wrong."

"Then why do you sound worried?"

"I'm not, Seto. I promise. I just… Can I ask you a question?"

"Always, Mokuba."

"Would you consider Jou to be a friend at this point?"

Kaiba frowned, and for a full minute, he let the question roll in his head. He hated how long it took to answer but chalked it up to the fact that he was, at this point, dozing in and out of sleep. He finally settled on the answer, "I wouldn't consider him to be an enemy."

"But not a friend?"

"I have only interacted with him in this manner for three days, at the beach, away from work. I wouldn't base much on this trip. Why?"

"Just curious." A moment of silence passed between the two before Mokuba whispered, "I'm just happy we're all having fun."

"We are. Thanks to you, Mokuba. Thanks to you planning this trip and taking the time out to organize everything."

"Anytime, Big Bro. Anytime."

Smiling, Kaiba sighed and let his body relax into the cushions. It only took a few seconds for sleep to take over.