Soooo I was going to wait to post this, but, I decided, that I would treat myself, and, therefore, my beloved readers. Also, this chapter spans several weeks of time. Just an FYI.
Chapter Six
Sugoroku Muto finally moved in two days later. He watched with solemn violet eyes as Yugi continued exploring the mansion. The rapid tapping of the support cane on furniture, walls, and the occasional human leg filled the room.
Kaiba glanced between them.
"He's learning quickly," Kaiba murmured. "He's nearly mastered the Braille alphabet."
A slight dip of that bearded chin. "That's good."
Tap, tap. Yugi hummed, barely audible from that side of the room.
"Thank you," Sugoroku said quietly. "I could lose all the objects in the world. But I couldn't handle losing Yugi."
Kaiba watched Yugi meander down a hallway. He was testing the width of the corridor and the spacing of the doorways.
"He won't ever be the same, but, maybe…" Sugoroku sighed and shook his head, but didn't continue.
Kaiba bit his tongue and turned to see Yugi bump into a small table in the hallway. Kaiba felt himself lurch forward.
But Yugi only laughed, traced the edges of the table with a studious hand before he continued on his way.
The sun was warm and bright on Yugi's face where he sat just outside the shadow of the veranda. Birds whistled and chirped in the trees, and their lilting songs carried on the wind sighing through the leaves. The cloying scent of lilacs hung to the air with a pleasant thickness, and Yugi's lungs heaved in great huffs in appreciation of it.
His fingers skimmed along the bumps on the paper. It was a simple book, close to a children's story, but he ate up each little character.
He could read again, even if it were only bare-minimum, but it was good enough for him.
The sliding door hissed open, and Yugi tilted his head. Long strides, the click of dress shoes on expensive tile.
"Kaiba," he greeted, paused, one finger still pressed to paper.
"Hn." A chair scraped, the click of something being set on the glass table. "You better not stay in the sun too long. You're going to burn."
Yugi lifted a shoulder. "I'll be fine."
"Hn, don't say I didn't warn you."
And then what Yugi most definitely recognized as the tapping of keys. Yugi let out a short breath, lip tilting up, but continued with his reading. He just basked in the scent of lilac and the sound of swift fingers on a keyboard.
"Mr. Muto, I'm going to touch your face," the make-up artist warned.
"Okay," Yugi replied, felt fingers touch his chin and tilt his face. "So just a photo shoot today?" There was a beat of silence (though it wasn't "silent" with all the commotion going on in the studio). "Kaiba?"
"Yes." His voice came from just in front of Yugi, to the left.
Yugi hummed.
"Mr. Muto, close your eyes for me." He complied, and the soft, ticklish sensation of the brush passing over his face made him twitch.
"It's for a duel disk, though?" He asked, barely moving his lips in fear of getting makeup in his mouth. Again.
"Yes. The Gold Edition on the newest version."
"Oh."
"I thought it would be fitting to have the 'King of Games' model for it," Kaiba commented.
"Yeah, it is, I guess."
He gave the photographers full permission to position his body just as they pleased. He might not have been able to see the people taking his pictures, but the flashing lights had spots of color dancing on the back of his eyelids.
"Amazing…" the photographer muttered as he showed Kaiba the prints. "He can't even see, and his eyes just pierce into you. I don't know how you managed to get him to do the shoot, but, damn, he was the perfect model."
Kaiba grunted. He lifted up one of the prints. Yugi stood, resolute, determination painted on every plane of his face.
Kaiba knew that look. From duels, from tough situations, from nights Yugi sat at the dining room table poring over sheets upon sheets of Braille. That look was all his own, with or without the Pharaoh.
Some of the shots were more candid. Yugi fiddling blindly with the duel disk, Yugi laughing at something someone had said, Yugi just standing there, waiting for further instructions.
Kaiba traced his finger along the glossy papers.
When no one was looking, Kaiba slipped one into his pocket.
Kaiba sucked his breath through his teeth while they walked to the back door of the studio.
Yugi froze at the sound, even with Kaiba's firm hand at the small of his back. "What's happening?"
"It's the fucking paparazzi," Kaiba hissed.
Yugi blanched, and, even though he couldn't see clearly, he most definitely felt vertigo. "Oh."
"It's okay. Just stick close to me and Roland and Michael will clear the way."
The door opened. Lights flashed and renewed the spots of color on the back of Yugi's eyelids. Voices and jostling, so many people, so many people that Yugi couldn't see, his breath was tight in his throat.
"Stand back!" Kaiba barked. "Lay a finger on either of us and I'll sue you for all you're worth, and then some!"
Yugi was all but tucked into Kaiba's side, and Yugi's fingers clenched into Kaiba's silky suit jacket to the point of pain.
They finally settled into the car, Kaiba's hand on Yugi's head to make sure he wouldn't bump himself getting in, and the car was lurching, horn blaring at the sea of people crowding the vehicle.
A couple of moments of tense silence, and then Yugi felt the tension drain from his body like puss from a wound. His fingers slipped from where they gripped Kaiba's jacket, and Yugi scooted back a little.
Kaiba hadn't said a thing about it.
Yugi's cheeks felt a little hot.
The posters were everywhere, in Domino City, all across the world. The ads popped up on every app, every website.
KaibaCorp's Duel Disk: Gold Edition
Spiky hair like a crown, duel disk gold and fanning like a wing on a crossed arm. A card held between two slender fingers, held up, covering one eye, the other resolute, determined, piercing all who dared to meet its gaze.
Duel like royalty.
Duel like a king.
Yugi had always been a very visual person. Most of his hobbies he needed his eyes for; video games, dueling, reading comic books, sketching thumbnail doodles of the many games he dreamed of designing.
With blindness, Yugi had to find new ways to occupy himself on his downtime. He'd always had music he'd enjoyed, but never had he really thought it to be a huge part of his experience as a human being.
Blindness changed that, all the way from the first few days in the hospital. Where his deck used to be tucked into his belt, he now had that raggedy MP3 player.
Music became one of the most sensual experiences he could find. It engaged his senses in ways few else could anymore. It was more intense than he ever remembered it being when he could see.
Some days, he would just lay in his room or bask in the sun on the lawn of the Kaiba manor and just listen to music for hours on end.
"What kind of music do you like, Yugi?" Mokuba had asked one Saturday afternoon. It was a rare day when all four of the house's occupants were home (both Kaibas and both Mutos).
Yugi shrugged. He was sitting at the peninsula in the family kitchen - there was another kitchen, industrial in size and make for use when the manor was entertaining parties of equal scale - and picking at his lunch. "I don't know. I don't really think my tastes follow any real genres right now. I've really been into instrumental stuff lately, though."
"Huh," Mokuba hummed. "I've never been into stuff without lyrics."
Yugi tapped his chin pensively. "I didn't, either. But… it amazes me. How much emotion a, say, a violinist can wring out of the instrument they play."
"I can understand how that would be appealing to you."
"It just… I really get caught up in it now."
Kaiba looked at the pair over the edge of his tablet.
Yugi had fallen silent, choosing instead to eat his salad. Mokuba had that thoughtful look on his face. The conversation seemed to have him contemplating his own choice in music. He probably didn't have such a deep reasoning behind his favorite songs and artists.
Kaiba stood, quietly walked from the room.
He padded up the stairs, down the hall and to his room. His closet was huge, filled with suits for any occasion he may happen across. But, on one shelf, only one object took up any space.
He didn't even have to reach to pull the case off its high shelf.
He set it atop a dresser. The latches popped open. He lifted the lid.
The burnished wood of his violin stared back on him.
He hated the damn thing.
Gozaburo had forced him to take lessons. The old git had wanted his dancing monkey to be able to play music, too.
Even after the old man died, he couldn't find it in himself to get rid of the damn thing.
He contemplated that maybe, perhaps, it was the only thing of beauty his stepfather had ever bothered to give him.
He shook his head, slammed the lid shit, and stashed the case back up on that high shelf.
Yugi's dreams never made sense. They were always this amalgamation of experience and fantasy that ended up coming out like a metaphysical Frankenstein's monster.
More often than he'd like, they were nightmares.
He woke up gasping, shaking. Fire still raged through the planes of his imagination, contrasted oddly with shadows thick and choking and threatening to devour his soul. He rolled, clutching sweat-soaked sheets.
Everything was blurry.
His breaths were short and fast and painful. His chest was too tight. He was suffocating. The smoke and the shadows, they were killing him.
He stumbled out of bed, tripped when the sheet tangled around his foot. He caught himself on his hands and knees.
His legs were tangled. He whimpered, panic seizing every fiber of his being.
They had him, they had him.
He scrambled forward. His head thunked into the wall. He stood, kicked the sheet from his leg. He groped wildly for the door.
He had to get out. The walls were closing in on him. They were going to squeeze the air out of him. They were going to squeeze the life out of him.
Before he knew it, he was staggering down the hall.
Seto rubbed a hand over his eye. He shouldn't have stayed up that late again. But all that paperwork was behind, and at least he's about a week ahead of schedule now.
He walked slowly through the manor from the garage. He stepped into the kitchen, slowly drank a cup of water. It wasn't long before he was switching off the light and heading for the stairs.
He paused.
Halfway up, a small shape was hunched over, sitting on a step, clinging to the railing, shaking like a leaf.
"Yugi?" His voice cracked with confusion and exhaustion.
Yugi jolted, head whipping around, eyes wild, face stained with tears. "Kaiba?" the name was but a whimper.
Seto started up the stairs. "What happened?"
Yugi shrunk in on himself. "I don't know."
Seto was just a few steps away now. "You don't know?"
A hiccup, sniffling. "I… I had a bad dream. Th-the fire. And-" a wet, choking inhale "- and the Shadow Realm." This close, Seto could see in explicit detail the discoloration of Yugi's bare side from burn scars and skin grafts. "I… I panicked."
Seto knelt down, reached out. His fingertips brushed Yugi's stubbly chin. "Do you want me to help you back to your room?"
Yugi's face crumpled, anguished. "Yes."
Seto petted the wild hair, a little overgrown now. "Okay."
Yugi stood, hands trembling and white-knuckled on the railing. He reached out, small hand curling into the front of Seto's shirt. He carefully edged forward, nuzzled Seto's chest, sought out comfort.
Something in Seto's chest twisted and twinged.
"Can… can you hug me?" The question was small and trembling, expecting to be rejected.
Seto wrapped his arms around the quivering torso. Yugi's arms hesitantly looped around Seto's waist. Yugi's cheek was still on his chest, and Seto felt the tears soaking through his shirt, but he couldn't bring himself to care.
He stroked his hand through Yugi's hair, down his back, tried to ignore how soft Yugi's skin felt. "Th-thank you, Kaiba," Yugi said softly, deep voice wavering.
With Yugi one step higher, he was just high enough for Seto to set his chin on top of his head.
"Seto," he said quietly.
"What?"
"Call me Seto."
Yugi's breath huffed out, hitching, filtering through the material of Seto's shirt. "Seto…"
Seto stroked that wild dark hair one last time before he pulled away. "Let's get you to bed."
Yugi nodded, "Okay."
Seto took Yugi's hands, carefully guided him down the stairs.
"Last one," Seto said.
And then he shifted, set a hand on the small of Yugi's back and maneuvered him down the hallways.
It wasn't long before they were at Yugi's door. Yugi heard Kaiba - Seto - opened the door. He made a soft sound in his throat.
Seto stepped in, and, based on the rustling of fabric, was picking the scattered sheet and blankets off the floor.
Yugi's cheeks were hot with shame. "I'm sorry."
Another soft sound. "Don't apologize. You have nothing to apologize for."
Yugi rubbed his arms. His cheeks flushed hotter. He'd barely noticed that he wasn't wearing a shirt, but now he was all too aware.
Seto was touching him again, gently nudging him into bed. "C'mon. Get some sleep."
Yugi crawled onto the mattress, but when Seto turned to walk away, Yugi blindly reached out.
His fingers curled around Seto's elbow.
His breath and voice shook. "P-Please… st-stay with me…"
A beat of silence. No response. Yugi's arm fell, and he curled into himself. His eyes felt hot and stinging again.
Dear god, what was he thinking?
"I need to change," Seto rumbled. "I can't sleep in pants like this. They bug the shit out of me." His hand, warm and gentle, touched Yugi's face. "I'll be right back, okay?"
Yugi leaned into the touch. He felt his eyelashes catch on the edge of Seto's palm. "O-Okay."
And then he was gone, the door closing gently behind him.
Yugi shifted around, tucked himself into the sheets. He trembled with nerves.
What had he just done?
A lump of apprehension formed in his throat, and his fingers curled hard into the blankets. The door opened again, the light flicked off, and the door closed. He heard Seto's bare feet pad across the soft carpet, and then the other side of the bed dipped. Seto's clothing whispered against the sheets, and then his body settled into his mattress. He let out a tired sigh.
Yugi nuzzled his pillow, cheeks hot, hot, hotter.
It was so embarrassing… but Seto was so sweet. He felt a little twinge of jealousy when he realized that this was the Seto whom Mokuba always got to see.
Yugi's voice cracked the silence. "You know when you've been away from home from a really long time, and, you really just want to go home? You would give anything to go home?"
A beat of quiet. "Yes." On this big bed, Seto's voice sounded so close.
Yugi sniffed. "I feel that. All the time. But… it's not even for home. I mean, I miss the game shop, but…" he choked. "I miss the world I lived in. I-I miss seeing. This new world is so lonely. I'm still so lost."
The bed frame creaked as Seto rolled onto his side, and the weight of an arm settled over Yugi's waist. Yugi snuggled closer, and Seto tugged him right into his chest.
Seto was warm and comforting, and when Yugi slept, all he dreamed of was blue eyes.
When Seto woke up, Yugi was sleeping on his chest. His cheek was on Seto's sternum, a hand resting in a loose fist on Seto's stomach. Seto's own hand was resting right on the bare curve of Yugi's waist, below his ribs and above his hip. He felt each of Yugi's small, sleepy breaths.
Seto's cheeks got a little warm.
He stared at the ceiling, which glowed faintly with the gentle light of the early morning.
He blinked. That was the best he had slept in a while.
Yugi shifted, murmuring, and Seto's fingers stroked softly in response. A sleepy huff, and Yugi was settling back down, face angled upward this time. His face, angular, was soft, serene with sleep, lips slightly parted.
Seto wanted to kiss him.
The thought made his eyes shoot open wide, and his whole body tensed.
Yugi grumbled, dark eyebrow furrowing.
Seto began to draw away, slow enough that it shouldn't disturb Yugi. But still, Yugi reached out. "Seto…"
"I'm just going to the bathroom," Seto said softly, throat tight.
Yugi sighed, settled back into the mattress, nuzzled his face into Seto's pillow. Breath short, heart warm and aching, Seto backed away slowly. When he got to the bathroom he shut the door softly. He looked into the mirror.
His face was blotched with red, his eyes bright in comparison. He breathed raggedly, rubbed a hand over his hot cheek. He took a few minutes to collect himself before he relieved his bladder and washed his hands.
When he returned to the bed, Yugi, still mostly asleep, wrapped around him tightly.
It wasn't long before Seto was falling back to the warm abyss of slumber.
END PART
Eh? Ehhhh? *exaggerated elbow nudge*
I got some funny cute shit for the next chapter (as if I haven't been writing cute shit up until this point).