Summary: Post YGOTAS Timeline; Ryou has been sent to a faraway boarding school, only to find that the entire school is being experimented on by some government group. Just as he's about to give into despair that his life is ruined, he makes an unlikely partnership with the last person he ever expected to see.

WARNING: This story is rated M for mature themes involving scientific experimentation, sexual themes, sensual biting, violence, adventure, suspense, humor, plot development, and steamy lemons. Not all at once, and not over the top, but definitely in there. Please read with discretion.

Disclaimer: Yu-Gi-Oh! and all of its characters © Kazuki Takahashi. This is a fan fiction, and no money is being made off of this story. Please support the original artist.

-o-

Chapter Five

-o-

Ryou looked for Melvin in class after that, and never once saw him. He could never find which classes he was in, and never saw him in the cafeteria either. The few times he went to knock on his door in the days that followed, he received nothing but silence, and was forced to return to his own room alone. School continued as if the experiment never happened, and not one of the students talked about it. It was like a silent taboo, and having no friends to speak of, Ryou couldn't ask anyone.

It was almost a week later that the second experiment occurred, and this time, the second Ryou heard the five tone bell chime, he stuffed his books in his bag and bolted for his room. It was the safe zone, and without Melvin around to talk to he had no other security in case something happened.

He was almost there, just two turns from his hallway, when a thought occurred to him, and he slowed to a stop. It was another experiment, Melvin's chance to hurt other people without consequence. Maybe… he was out there?

"I can't seriously be thinking of looking for him," he murmured out loud, trying to laugh, even as he turned on his heels and began to walk toward Melvin's room. It was on the other side of the school. "I mean it's crazy, right? He'll just hurt me again."

The air around him smelled strange, almost like honey and flowers mixed together. It made him feel light-headed and heavy all at once, and a feeling of courage surged up within him. Maybe it was the environment that the scientists were messing with that made him feel like the embodiment of reckless abandon, but Ryou felt like he could do anything. That he should just do anything.

I want to find Melvin. I have to. He's the only thing I can hold onto here, and I'll go crazy if I can't see him again.

A determined smile spreading across his face, he hurried the rest of the way to Melvin's door. This time, instead of just knocking, he pounded on it with his fist, over and over, until his hand went numb. Even then he didn't stop, because he didn't know what else to do. This door was all he had, and if Melvin wasn't behind it, then he might never see him again.

"Melvin," Ryou called, his hand banging harder. The smell of honey filled his nose, he felt drowsy, confused, invigorated. "Melvin," he called louder, kicking the door now. Please be in there… please hear me, wherever you are! "MELVIN!"

The hand he intended to smash against the door was suddenly snatched by a strong grip, and Ryou struggled against it angrily. He turned, about to yell at whoever was stopping him, and found himself looking up into none other but Melvin's face.

His eyes were cold, flat, studying him without blinking. There was no humor in his expression, no grin, nothing but coldness. Even so, just the sight of his face made Ryou feel relief.

He wasn't crazy. Melvin was real! He was real, and he was here! "Oh thank God," Ryou sighed, turning his back to Melvin's door and leaning against it, not bothering to try and get his arm out of the other's grip. "I thought… maybe I'd dreamed it, and you weren't real after all."

Melvin blinked once, slowly, and a dark anger swirled in his eyes for a brief moment. His grip tightened, so much so that Ryou could feel his skin bruising under his fingers, and cringed as the pressure threatened to snap his bones. "What do you want?" Melvin asked. No taunting, humor, or desire to hurt for pleasure. There was only coldness, and anger.

Ryou winced, his arm squirming above his head where Melvin held it. "What's wrong with you?" he asked, worry leaking into his thoughts. Something wasn't right…he wasn't acting like himself. I thought that last time too, but now it's worse. He's… there's something wrong. I can tell. "Did something happen?"

Melvin's breath hitched, and then he yanked Ryou away from the door, grabbed him by the throat, and slammed him right back against it so hard, he knocked the wind right out of him. "Something?" he hissed. "What the fuck do you think happened?"

"A…h…" Ryou wheezed, blinking away stars as he tried to find his breath again. Bugger, that hurt… "W-hat… do you… mean?" Another sharp cry of pain escaped his lips when Melvin smashed his fist into Ryou's gut, three times, and then tossed him on the ground.

"Get out of my way," Melvin growled, kicking him aside once he was on the ground, and tearing his key out of his pocket to shove it into his doorknob.

Behind him, Ryou curled up in the fetal position, choking on his breaths. That bloody hurt… that wasn't like last time at all. He isn't just trying to hurt me, he wants to disable me. This is… different. He had to struggle to get up to his feet, but he forced himself to do so, anxious to catch Melvin before he locked himself in his room. "Wait," he blurted, stumbling forward and catching hold of Melvin's shirt with both hands. "Please… tell me what's wrong!"

"Get off of me," Melvin snapped, unlocking his door and throwing it open. He whirled around, catching hold of Ryou's neck and gripping it tight.

Ryou gritted his teeth and held on tighter. "No, I won't! Melvin please, you're all I've got here, don't shut me out. What happened? Just tell me."

In reply, Melvin started to squeeze, eyes narrowing as he watched Ryou struggle for air. There was no compassion in his eyes, only anger.

"Even if you do this," Ryou choked out, keeping his eyes fixed on Melvin's face, "I won't leave. I'll stay outside your door until you talk to me."

The pressure tightened, and Ryou felt his throat crush with a jarring shock of pain. He struggled with wild spasms, real fear crossing his face as he realized… Melvin was not going to let go. He was crushing him… depriving him of air, of the ability to speak, until he passed out.

Or died.

Staring up into those cold lavender eyes, two thoughts crossed Ryou's mind before consciousness left him in darkness. First, that even if the last thing he ever saw was Melvin's face, then at least he knew he wouldn't die alone. And second… that the color of those eyes was not lavender. They were the exact shade of the bergamot flower.

"My favorite," he mouthed in a delirium of surprise, no sound coming from his throat.

When unconsciousness claimed him, it took the pain with it, and all he knew was darkness.

-o-

"Didn't think you were that stupid. I guess some people really don't have any self preservation," a voice said to him in the darkness. It was quiet, deep, and unbearably sad. "But you can't stay here. You can't stay around me.

"If you do, I really might kill you next time."

Ryou opened his eyes slowly, the words seeming to come to him out of a dream. All he knew was that his head was aching, and his throat felt so crushed that even the idea of swallowing made him want to writhe in agony. He sat up, looking around the room in a state of confusion.

It was Melvin's room.

Immediately, Ryou bolted upright and looked around the tiny room, a hand flying to his crushed throat as if to protect it when he gasped in a breath of air. Sure enough, it hurt like hell. But that didn't matter. Melvin was standing at the door, staring at him blankly, leaning against his only way out as if to keep him from escaping.

But that was the last thing Ryou wanted to do.

"Mel…." he tried to speak, and then coughed painfully, tears brimming at the corner of his eyes. Okay yes… that was incredibly uncomfortable. Speaking was out of the question right now.

Watching him coldly, Melvin let out a sigh, as if disappointed. "I really don't get you," he said, his voice dry and expressionless. "I just crushed your windpipe, nearly killed you, and yet you look so fucking excited to see me. Are there some screws loose in there or something? What's with you?" A hint of anger began to seep into his tone, and into his eyes. "Why did you come back here?"

Ryou glared at him, as if trying to convey how stupid the question was. Didn't he get it? Hadn't Ryou mentioned it before? Melvin was the only thing he knew from his previous life before this horrible school, the only thing he could hold onto. In lieu of speaking, he simply pointed at Melvin emphatically. You, he thought in frustration. You're the reason I came back.

Melvin's eyes narrowed further, unimpressed. "You know, seeing the look in your eyes while I crushed your neck was satisfying in more ways than I care to admit, but now I wish I hadn't done it," he complained. He sighed, eyes never leaving Ryou's face. "You're almost more annoying when you don't answer my fucking questions."

As it was pointless to even try to respond, Ryou crossed his arms and looked back at him defiantly. Something was different today. Something had happened, and he was not moving from this spot until Melvin told him what it was.

"LISTEN," Melvin said, drawling the word with a sneer on his face as though remembering something he preferred to scorn. "What makes you think I'm going to tell you anything you want to know? What makes you think I'm going to do anything but hurt you? Or don't you remember last time?"

I remember, Ryou thought, his scabbed cuts all over his chest and stomach itching and aching at the memory. It hurt a lot more than I thought it would, but none of them are lasting injuries, or will even leave a scar, so it's still better than what I've had to deal with most of my life.

"Today I have something else planned," Melvin said, his sneer growing dark, and anger showing behind his gaze. Anger and helplessness, as though he felt trapped with no way out. "I was going to leave you alone, you know. But you just had to come back. You have no self preservation, whatsoever."

"I don-" Ryou's attempt to reply was suddenly cut off by the pain in his throat, and he grabbed at it with a pained whimper, squirming in place. It hurts… it hurts!

Melvin watched him, the anger fading slightly as his pupils dilated, and the corners of his mouth pulled back wider into a smirk. "Mmmm," he sighed upon exhaling, the sound of desire in his tone. "Lovely."

Ryou had to struggle to hold still, and his eyes were watering when he made eye contact again. Heat washed over his face at Melvin's expression, though he wasn't sure why.

"I take it back. You're much better this way," the Egyptian youth said, pushing away from the door and walking closer. He leaned over Ryou, lifting his hand and touching two fingers to the hand-shaped bruise around Ryou's neck. "I do so enjoy seeing you writhe in pain."

The fingers against his skin made him shiver. His eyes are dark, Ryou thought, swallowing painfully. His heart raced at Melvin's proximity, and at the fear of more pain. I am afraid, he thought with a grimace. So why… am I excited?

"I gave you every chance to walk away," Melvin said, his voice lowering into something just above a whisper. It gave him a husky-sounding tone that, coupled with the look in his eyes, made Ryou's stomach twist into flurries and knots. "I gave you every chance to back out, but now that chance is gone. You brought this on yourself."

All he could do was nod, acknowledging the words.

"I won't be kind to you," Melvin warned, sounding pleased. He continued to trace his fingers over the bruising on Ryou's neck, watching him shiver in amusement. "I will hurt you. I will make you cry. I will try to make you scream. But you're going to come here all the same, every time they run tests. Aren't you?"

Again Ryou nodded, though the movement was slight, as if he was held captive by Melvin's gaze alone. His touch feels good, he thought with despair. I can't move. And what's worse, I don't think I want to.

"You really are a stupid little mouse," Melvin chuckled. He poked Ryou's throat harshly, the darkness in his eyes growing when Ryou whined in pain. "But you're doing me a favor, so I'll give you a reward just this once." He leaned closer, grinning when he heard Ryou's breath catch in his throat, and placed his lips against his captive's bruised neck. The kiss was gentle at first, a shocking and foreign feeling that caused a rippling sensation to cascade down Ryou's nerves. But in a few seconds Melvin opened his mouth, sinking his teeth harshly into the pale skin.

It didn't matter that making noise hurt like hell, Ryou couldn't help it. His eyes fluttered closed as a moan escaped his lips, heat and pleasure warring with the jarring pain that erupted in his throat from making sound. In a desperate attempt to keep still, he grasped at Melvin with both hands, squirming in place. I'm on fire! I'm… I'm dizzy… it hurts… oh fuck it feels good...

A growl rumbled in Melvin's chest, one that Ryou could feel as well as hear. It made his nerves hum with anticipation, and it took a minute for him to realize that he was attracted to the sound. The bite got harder, replacing pleasure with a sharp pain, and Ryou cried out again, louder this time. His eyes pricked with tears, and his legs jerked helplessly.

"H-h...urts…!" Ryou gasped. His nails clawed into Melvin's back, a defensive move he wasn't able to control.

The growl turned into a chuckle, and Melvin began to gnaw on his poor abused neck. He pressed him down onto the bed, pinning him in place as he assailed him with his teeth. With every sound Ryou made, Melvin bit hard and more urgently. And with every squirm, every tearing of his nails into Melvin's back, he pinned him down harder.

Ryou wasn't sure when the pain started to bleed into pleasure, or how long the struggle went on, but by the time Melvin sat up, wiping blood from his mouth and grinning wildly down at him, Ryou was a complete and utter mess. His chest heaved with every breath, his throat burned from all of his cries and noises. Both arms twitched by his side, fingers grasping at the sheets under him as his back arched and twitched.

Relief… that Melvin had stopped.

Frustration… that Melvin had stopped.

He didn't know which feeling was stronger.

Melvin's tongue trailed across his lips, lapping up the drops of blood that remained. It would have worried Ryou to see it, if it didn't make him feel so aroused. "Every day might be hell," he said, his voice thick with a heaviness that matched the feeling in Ryou's stomach. "But I think... I can put up with it. If I have this to look forward to."

A weak groan was all Ryou could muster in reply. I'm dizzy. I feel hot. Fuck. I can't think.

"If they question you," Melvin added, going to his desk and opening the drawer. He pulled out a first aid kit and returned to the bed, smirking as he began to treat the bleeding bites around the side of Ryou's neck, "you're going to tell them that you begged me to do it to you. That you're a little slut for pain, and I'm the only one who will give it to you just the way you like it."

A fierce blush washed over Ryou's face. He wanted to retort, to tell him to go stuff it, but he couldn't bring himself to open his mouth. Instead, he turned his head away, letting the other tend to his neck begrudgingly.

"You know what will happen if you don't," Melvin murmured, dabbing a cotton ball with antiseptic over his wounds. He waited, as if expecting a reply, until he began to wrap bandage tape around Ryou's neck. "The same thing as last time," he finally finished, completing his bandage job at the same time.

Ryou turned back to look at him, wondering what he meant by that. What happened last time? He wanted to ask, though he simply lay there looking up at the other, questioning. I was right, wasn't I? Something DID happen to him. Something happened because of me.

"If you want to see me again, that is my condition," Melvin said, his face blank. There was no more desire, no more excitement or thrill in his eyes. It was like all the life had gone out of him.

"I do want to see you again," Ryou mouthed, wincing in pain even though he was hardly even whispering. But he had to say it. You're all I have. Even this, even the pain and the fear, it's nothing compared to what it's like out there alone. I'll go through anything, just… "Don't…" he gritted his teeth, eyes watering as he forced the words out. "...leave me… alone."

Heaving a sigh, Melvin covered his face with one hand. "Fucking hell," he whispered. For a long moment he just sat there, unable to say anything. And then he scooped Ryou up, tossed him over his shoulder, and breezed out the door.

If Ryou could speak, he'd be demanding to be put down, or at least to know where they were going. He couldn't speak though, and so with a flustered expression on his face, he held on to the back of Melvin's shirt, praying he didn't notice the uncomfortable bulge in his trousers. The bulge that just happened to be pressed up against Melvin's shoulder. When Melvin finally lifted him up and deposited him back on his feet, he only then realized where they were.

My room. He… he knew where my room was. Exactly where it was. Has he been here before to see me, and I didn't know? The thought made Ryou's heat flutter.

"You're going to be the death of me," Melvin growled under his breath. He glared down at Ryou's face, watching the emotions play across it. "That's why they call it deathshipping. Not because of me. Because of you. Stupid."

"What?" Ryou blurted, coughing with surprise at both the comment, and at the sharp jab in his throat that came with the word.

"I said," Melvin leaned closer, tiling Ryou's chin upward with his hand forcefully. He watched with a hint of amusement as Ryou shivered. "Stupid."

One second he was leaning in, as though he was going to kiss him. And then the next, he was gone, leaving Ryou standing in place before his door.

It took several minutes before Ryou found the strength to open his door and sink into bed. But it would be long hours of tossing and turning with thoughts and heart racing before he would ever get to sleep.

-o-

No one can deny there is such delicious chemistry between these two. I'm just doing my best to portray it.

And now, this is where things REALLY start to get interesting.

To be continued...