Chapter 8 :

Seto Kaiba had been captured. He had been drawn completely into the eyes of Katsuya Jonouchi.

Those eyes were brown. But they flared with sudden desire.

Those orbs of passionate light were… beautiful.

Not again, Kaiba thought to himself. It was the second time that he had described Katsuya's eyes in such a fashion.

Sure, those eyes usually flashed to reveal every emotion, especially negative ones that were directed toward the brunet. But those negative emotions also revealed the fear hidden beneath their spark. Katsuya was never able to conceal this feeling from the CEO. Although his blond rival was strong and could definitely handle himself, Kaiba could always see that terror appear in those eyes for a moment before it vanished. The problem was that he could never understand the reason for fear to be shown in such a discrete manner, especially considering Katsuya's personality. Nor did he wish to demand an explanation. He personally wouldn't want others to question the weaknesses within his own heart - not that he would admit to any weakness anyways, but he was empathetic. Therefore, he was resistant to do that to Katsuya. He probably wouldn't have refused to encourage an answer from anyone else though. He didn't dwell on the underlying meaning behind that fact.

Fear wasn't present in those brown eyes now though. Only pure desire.

That was what was confusing.

Naturally, Kaiba was acknowledged as Domino's most handsome and prosperous bachelor. Women and men sought after him. Although that usually was an annoyance, it had become a fact that he was proud of. He enjoyed becoming a topic of gossip, especially when it was about him getting together with another celebrity. These rumors he would willingly allow to spread to every source of media. As a result, interest toward him would grow in new potential consumers. Therefore, his rise in popularity would contribute to the sales of his company favorably.

Katsuya had never suggested in any way that the CEO was appealing. Nor would the blond ever admit to such thoughts either.

The look of desire suddenly faded from those amber eyes.

Another emotion seemed to fill its place...

Disappointment.

He couldn't understand the reason behind this change of feeling, occurring in just a manner of seconds. Kaiba felt a surge of anger, but he didn't know the reason for that either. He wasn't used to not having answers and it didn't please him in the slightest.

"Why are you here?"

Katsuya frowned and seemed to pause. This moment of hesitation might have been a result of noticing the displeasure within the brunet's voice, or because of something else. But the response was one of the expected replies.

"I'm here to make ya an easy snack and something to eat later for dinner."

"Of course you are." The brunet's reply could have indicated any eye-roll, but there was no such action. "Well, no need. You can leave."

Kaiba headed up the stairs. He moved his briefcase from his left hand to his right. His left hand felt numb. That was probably the outcome of him gripping the case's handle tightly as anger had consumed him. He forced himself to relax, even when annoyance threatened to take over once again as he heard steps following behind him. The CEO always went up the stairs one at a time. This was because he wished to appear without hast and with only purpose in his movement, giving him time to think as the stairs passed under foot. Unfortunately, that gave Katsuya the chance to reach his side quickly, even with the delay in his reaction, as he went up the stairs two at a time.

"Kaiba. I'm not leaving 'til ya let me do what I came here to do."

The brunet shot a sharp glare to where the blond matched his pace on the stairs and noticed the other's lips were drawn in a stubborn line and body stiff with determination.

Katsuya wasn't going to leave.

That was to be expected since the nuisance had always resisted following any orders that the CEO gave of him. Not to mention that Kaiba had already agreed to the terms - terms that he regretted accepting at all. Now he had to listen to those demands, and it definitely wasn't going to be a simple process to convince the younger duelist otherwise. Even breaking the terms between them wasn't an option that the brunet found acceptable. There was no way that he would willingly stoop so low to break his own word. He had agreed, so he had to follow through appropriately… no matter how much he knew that he'd despise the future interactions that would occur between the two of them. The blond hadn't kept his word, but Kaiba would... just to prove himself better than Katsuya.

He changed his facial features to one that was more passive. He had calmed and chose to look away, not commenting.

He knew Katsuya's schedule now. He had made it his business to know about every action that the blond took throughout each day. He had hired multiple private detectives to discover all relevant information on the younger duelist. He only had to deal with the shorter man for two hours before the unwelcome individual would be forced to leave for his evening shift at the supermarket. The only question was if he could tolerate the blond's company until then.

He reached the top of the stairs and strode down the hallway before turning right to head down another hall. Katsuya had to lightly jog to keep up with his long strides, a fact that Kaiba was pleased about. He glanced over at the blond enough times during their journey to notice that Katsuya kept looking back the way they came with his brow furrowed slightly in concentration. It seemed that the shorter individual was trying to keep track of where they had come from, probably for future reference or when he was in need of a quick escape.

A large smirk appeared on Kaiba's face as an idea formed in his mind.

This was going to be entertaining.

Katsuya grew more concerned with each turn they made.

He had been following Kaiba for what felt like forever. It even seemed like they were going in circles. And they might just have been. All of the hallways looked the same with doors and windows along most of the walls. Even trying to keep track of the directions they took was difficult. They had turned down so many hallways by now that he failed to remember the order.

He had been slow to notice the ever-growing smirk upon the brunet's face. But having focused more of his attention on the CEO, he realized that the grin would lengthen after every turn they made. He frowned, finally catching on to the scheme that Kaiba was pulling.

He reached for the businessman's arm and yanked him to a standstill. The smirk had disappeared at this point. He set himself in front of the taller individual with his arms across his chest, glaring up into those azure eyes.

"Yer doing this on purpose."

The accusation seemed to surprise the CEO, but Katsuya wasn't convinced. Kaiba was a good actor.

"What exactly are you accusing me of doing on purpose?"

"Leading me in circles."

"Why on earth would I want to do that?"

"It's so that I get lost and can't find my way out."

"Hmm…" The brunet seemed to ponder the remark.

"Admit it." Katsuya could feel the anger pouring into his words.

"Fine. But you could also say that I was trying to teach you a new trick, mutt." Kaiba directed a sly grin to the blond.

Katsuya found the look to be patronizing. He was about to respond when the businessman cut in.

"Just remember that you need my help if you want to leave in time for your evening shift."

The younger man decided that his glare would suffice. The CEO merely let the look roll off his shoulders and continued down the hall.

Seto Kaiba was indifferent to Katsuya silently fuming at his side as they continued on their way down the hall. The destination would be his study, which they reached fairly fast now that he decided the blond was thoroughly confused and lost without his help. The brunet approached his desk and set his briefcase upon its surface before turning back to his uninvited guest.

"Would you like me to escort you out properly or leave you to meet the ghosts of the manor?" His face showed disdain. Escort was a choice word. He merely decided that he should be partially courteous in order to convince the blond to leave.

"...Are you serious?" Katsuya's face seemed to pale considerably, his anger clearly forgotten for the time being.

"Regardless of which option you are referring to, I promise that I am deadly serious."

"Yer telling me that your mansion is… haunted?" The blond seemed to struggle to say the word.

Jounouchi was afraid... of ghosts.

A malevolent grin appeared on his face as he responded.

"Of course." The shorter individual looked about ready to pass out in horror. "They do seem to like playing jokes on my guests."

Suddenly, a loud bang could be heard from outside the study door. Kaiba merely ignored it, used to the noise caused by one of Mokuba's favorite video games. Katsuya, on the other hand, was not. The blond nearly jumped to the ceiling with a blood curdling scream then fainted.

Kaiba rolled his eyes. He glanced up from the motionless figure on the ground as he heard loud steps coming down the hallway and his study door being thrown open with a slam.

"Seto! What happened? I heard a scream." Mokuba stood in the doorway, eyes wide with anxiety.

"Nothing of importance. Well done, Mokuba." He said before slowly returning his gaze to the body that had fallen to the floor a moment earlier.

The younger brother followed the gaze of his older sibling and found Katsuya completely limp in front of him.

"Seto! What did you do?!" The youth glared up at Kaiba while the CEO held up his hands in defense.

"Not much. I believe it was you that dealt the final blow."

End of Chapter 8