Chapter 14 :

Katsuya grinned from his hiding spot, confident that he wouldn't be found by Kaiba.

Mokuba had convinced the pair to play hide-and-seek with him. They were on their fifth round now. Mokuba had offered to be 'it' first and found Jounouchi almost right away - much to the blond's embarrassment. They had set boundaries to limit the area that needed to be searched, but it had still taken both of them a long time working together to find the burnet. The CEO had merely stood behind a door, silent as usual. Second round, Katsuya became the seeker. He found Mokuba in a kitchen cabinet in about five minutes. Again, they didn't find Seto for ten minutes. This time he had been standing behind some curtains in the piano room. Third round, Mokuba was it. Fourth, Jounouchi. The blond had been determined to find the overconfident businessman. He got lucky. The CEO had grown bored. The burnet had merely waited for Katsuya to find him, sitting on a couch in the living room with arms crossed over his chest and one leg over the other. This was much more intimidating than it sounded since they were playing in the dark. It was a poor win, but still a win in his book! As such, round five, Seto was 'it.' Scary concept. Jounouchi was just glad that it was just a game.

It had been a few weeks since the blond had been formally hired as a chef for the Kaiba household. He had been working extra hard to provide what he considered necessary for both of the rich dark-haired brothers. He had them as one of his highest priorities. After his morning shift at the cafe, he would drop by his house to work out and shower then immediately head to the mansion to prepare lunch for both himself and the CEO. He would quickly eat his portion before going to deliver what he thought the young businessman would be able to handle at Kaiba Corp, greeting Emiko and speaking to her whenever the chance provided itself - as long as it didn't interfere with her duties. He would return to the mansion and basically wander until he heard Mokuba loudly announce his "I'm home!" He was getting comfortable with the layout of the place - although he didn't chance going too far from the main entrance… because you know… ghosts and all that. He ended up spending most of his time with Mokuba, Seto joining when asked by his rambunctious brother or when he seemed inclined. It made Katsuya feel good. His feeling of loneliness no longer plagued him as often as before. The stoic burnet always sent the teen off to do his homework when it was the time that the blond set particularly for preparing dinner. Seto would do his own thing, whether it was watch Jounouchi with his piercing eyes - his gaze as intense and sharp as a hawks - or whatever else it was that he enjoyed doing. He hadn't played the piano since, not that Katsuya noticed at least. After dinner, the blond would prepare breakfast for the Kaiba brothers and leave it for them for the next morning. He would clean, say his good-byes, and then leave. It was a routine now. He was really enjoying himself actually.

It had also been nice to have the winter coat and gloves that Mokuba gave him as a 'gift.' They kept him warmer than he expected - much warmer than he had been without them. He was putting them to good use, which wasn't surprising when in the middle of winter. At first, Katsuya had been embarrassed and surprised to discover a scent layered into the coat. The most reasonable explanation seemed to be that it was the cologne of Kaiba, who had been the previous owner. Over time, he grew accustomed to it, and if anything now missed it… since the scent had faded away.

He shook free of his reminiscence. It was weird enough playing games with his arch rival, no need to think of him enjoying the other's… scent. Haha, he never thought it would happen but things were changing between them, and hopefully for the better. Maybe we could be friends. Katsuya mused to himself but chuckled. I don't imagine Kaiba would ever even consider that possibility. Very unlikely. He thought with a sigh, head down. Apparently he did wanted a good... mutual... relationship between them more seriously than he would've considered before.

Anyways, back to the game. Kaiba was taking a lot longer than he expected. Jounouchi found this surprising but was pleased, happy that his hiding spot was proving to be as good as he hoped.

Seto Kaiba frowned.

How bothersome, he thought to himself. When will this childish game be put to an end? The question was how to end it without being forward… Well, as forward as usual. He just knew from past experience that Mokuba would be more than a little upset with him for the rest of the day if he was the reason that the teen's fun was cut short - especially with the blond involved.

Lately, his brother seemed to enjoy more time with the pest than himself. He didn't let it show, but it hurt more than he thought. It was earlier than he had expected. Eventually, Mokuba would find a girl. A girl he would love more than him and marry… after the CEO himself approved, of course. He was - would be! - prepared for that day. But he never imagined that a 'friendship,' especially to someone like that mutt, would make him question his standing with his younger brother. It grated on his nerves. Nowadays, he had chosen to interact with silence when possible when the three of them were together. Any seeming harsh comments he would direct to the blond resulted in Mokuba throwing a fit over how he was treating his 'friend.' He would grind his teeth and withhold his snide comments until him and Katsuya were alone.

He wandered seeming aimlessly, but was actually avoiding where he knew his brother was hiding himself this round. It was well worth finding the blond first. He just knew that his self-proclaimed rival would be upset with being found before Mokuba, but it also allowed him to put his newly formed plan into action.

Katsuya peered under the small crack of the desk that allowed him to see the half-opened door that granted entrance into the room. He had purposely opened all the doors up the stairs - in the area they designated okay to hide. That way, hopefully, he would buy himself time and be able to see when the businessman was coming.

Then, he sneezed… loudly. And hit his head against the desk in the process.

"Ow!" He said rubbing his head. It took less than a second for him to realize what happened. His eyes wide. Crud! I hope Kaiba didn't hear… any of that. He peered back under the desk, watching for what seemed a few minutes and sighed with relief. Guess he didn't! Lucky me!

Seto Kaiba smirked as he heard three revealing sounds come from his study. A sneeze. A slight thud. And a short outburst of pain. It gave him evidence of the location of the blond he had already assumed would hide in his study room.

He walked normally toward the door. He wasn't worried about being heard, and, if he was, it would add to the effect of what he was about to do. He leaned against the wall beside where the door should be closed. His smirk lengthened as he prepared to begin.

Katsuya yawned. Kaiba comin' or not? he wondered in boredom. His adrenaline had faded and he suddenly felt tired.

He yawned again. Then he heard a creak - to which he tensed immediately. But he saw nothing. He continued to watch intently. He heard what sounded like a whisper. The tension he felt increased, all subconsciously. And he froze. Suddenly, a light knock sounded from somewhere in the room. He looked behind him, peering along both sides of the back of the desk. He couldn't pinpoint where it came from. The whispering seemed to get louder. He tightened himself into a ball, pulling his knees against his chest with his arms and kept them there. He buried his face into the crevice that was formed by this action. His breathing was short.

He pulled tighter as he heard footsteps enter the room and the door creak.

Kaiba waited. Nothing. No reaction - or at least not the one he was expecting. He didn't really know what else to do. It didn't seem like his plan worked as well as he thought it would. He was convinced that his quiet whispers and sounds would make the blond think there was a ghost and run out screaming. He had hoped this would encourage the blond from wanting to play hide-and-seek any longer. He didn't want to be louder. If he was, he was sure that the shorter duelist would recognize his voice and be pissed - which would upset Mokuba in turn.

He frowned. Guess he was stuck playing the game normally and just waiting for the two other participants to finally decide for themselves to be done. He walked into his study room, pushing the door open more, out of habit more than anything else. He went around to the back side of his desk and crouched down, peering into the opening underneath.

What he found surprised him. Katsuya was wrapped into a ball, tucked into the farthest left corner. The blond didn't seem comfortable, by any meaning of the word.

The CEO looked closer. The shorter duelist was shaking - slightly but shaking nonetheless. The burent stretched forth his hand, about to touch the shoulder of the blond. But froze when Katsuya raised his head, just enough for his eyes to be seen over his arms. Those normally warm, caramel-gold eyes were dark and empty.

Seto slowly pulled back his hand. And meet that gaze with his own. He fought to put a smirk on his face, but found that he couldn't. This had been a result of his actions - a different result but a result just the same. It seemed to surely put the blond out of the mood to play. He should be happy that his ploy seemed to work. He hadn't realized the effect it would have on the blond though. This reaction was the last he expected of the fiery duelist. Jounouchi was enthusiastic, a fighter and, although he had his faults, was strong. Seto never thought of him as weak. This is not the blond that he came to know and… expect.

"The ghost got your tongue, pup?" the CEO asked quietly and waited.

Over the course of the next few minutes, Seto, eyes sharp with focus, watched as the blond slowly showed signs of life, seeming to relax and breathing return to normal. Katsuya's eyes had never left the burnet's face, seeming to find solace there. Finally, the blond gave the businessman a hesitant and sheepish grin. It seemed forced but it was enough. The CEO extended a hand out to the shorter duelist. Jounouchi looked reluctantly at the offer but, regardless, seemed to appreciate it and took it. Seto gripped softly but firmly and led the blond out of his hiding spot, only releasing his grasp when Katsuya was fully standing in front of him. His gaze had not left the other's face over the course of their interaction. "I found you."

Seto blinked slowly, looking down slightly at the ground, before nodding and striding out of the room.

Katsuya was in a daze. He watched as the CEO left the room before following, maintaining a distance between them. He was more than a little out of it. And to be honest, he didn't want to think about it or anything for that matter.

He continued behind as the businessman entered the living room and opened a closet door. Dark hair could be seen poking out from between the coats. Seto separated the hangers from the obvious intruder in their midst.

The teen glanced up ruefully but shrugged with a laugh. "You found me, Seto!"

The brunet restrained himself from rolling his eyes at the teen. "Mokuba, you hide in the same place every time when I'm the seeker."

"I thought you'd think I always hid here and would decide to check somewhere else instead. Reverse psychology." The younger brother tapped his head with his pointer finger and stumbled his way out of the closet, tripping but catching himself on the mountain of clothes he seemed to knock down to help him hide earlier.

The CEO frowned. "Must you make such a mess in the process?"

Mokuba grinned. "Not all of us are as smooth as you, brother. I'm a bit clumsy if you haven't noticed."

The teen pushed the clothes into the closet and shut the door, much to the clear annoyance to his older sibling. Katsuya was amused by this, but not enough to break from his current mood.

The high schooler looked at the blond, concern quickly appearing on his face. "Jou, you good?"

"Ah, yeah buddy, just a bit tired." Katsuya forced a smile - which Mokuba was kind enough to not comment on.

"Alright. Fair enough," the teen commented with another shrug. "What's the plan now?"

"You have homework." The CEO shot a look at his younger brother.

"And plenty of time to do it." Mokuba beamed. Seto shook his head.

"I should probably prepare dinner soon." Katsuya chimed in quietly.

"So homework time," the brunet smirked.

"Ugh, fine." Mokuba groaned, but raced out of the room and up the stairs despite his obvious reluctance.

The blond took that as his cue to begin his dinner preparations. Seto merely watched the blond disappear around the corner.

Katsuya set himself to the task at hand, continuing to avoid processing the development that occurred in the room above him. Mokuba had brought his homework down to the kitchen island, working while complaining occasionally about it or commenting on something else that came to mind. The teen finished before the blond had finished making dinner. The lasagna only needed to be baked in the oven before it was ready though. The two maintained a conversation while waiting. The CEO was nowhere in sight.

"So what was the real reason that you were upset earlier?" Mokuba prodded gently, much to Jounouchi's chagrin.

The blond didn't know how to respond, not sure if he was prepared to discuss his innermost thoughts.

"Was it the ghosts?" the teen asked half-teasing but half-curious.

"Y-yeah." Katsuya was happy to take that reason on as his own for now, turning away with the excuse to check the timer on the oven.

"Hmmm. You know that I used to be scared of monsters myself."

"Oh, really?" the blond asked, surprised, turning back. It was shallow of him to think, but he didn't really think that the high schooler would be afraid of such a thing. It seemed so... normal.

"You wanna hear how Seto helped me get over it?"

"Sure," Katsuya wasn't sure how the young businessman would've consoled his brother. The blond could only imagine the snide comments Kaiba would make if he had brought up basically anything, let alone a fear.

"Seto told me that it's a matter of perspective. The real monsters are among us." Mokuba maintained eye contact with the blond for a moment before smiling. "I don't know how that would help you get over your fear of ghosts though."

Jounouchi agreed with a laugh, but it was half-heartedly. He had really connected with what Mokuba had quoted Seto on. He understood it. He had honestly felt in his younger days that the monster in his life had been his dad. He regretted that feeling. He knew that there were people out there that were what you considered evil but he had decided, convinced through his friend Yugi Muto, that everyone deserves a chance and a benefit of the doubt. He had even grown closer to Kaiba, if that was any indication.

He thought back to his reaction upstairs while Mokuba ranted about a new game that he began playing recently. Yes, he was scared of ghosts, but that wasn't the source of his fear at that moment. At that instant of Kaiba's trick, the whispering reminded him of his father's drunken mumbles. To when he had been left alone with him… since his mom and sister, Shizuka, had left. The mumbles would grow louder, indicating an outburst from his father in the night. The footsteps and door indicating the approach of his father's beatings. It was a harsh reminder that still reminded him of the times he was weak. This led to joining Hirutani's gang until he then met Yugi. That's right. He just had to remember the good. All that was in the past. Yes, he had ingrained reactions. He'd freeze or fight. That's just the natural then the trained instinct. And, he wasn't alone, not anymore. He smiled as Mokuba became more animated while speaking and the CEO entered the kitchen.

The oven beeped, indicating dinner was ready. And thus the night continued.

End of Chapter 14