Hey there. Thanks for reading. I don't have a whole lot to say here, so...
Still having keyboard issues. I'm very sorry for any typos I missed.
OH! I do have one new note: I think I'm gonna be changing the name of this story in the next couple chapters. I'll tell you guys what the new name will be in the next chapter if I've thought of it by then.
YGO does not belong to me. Thank you, Kazuki Takahashi, for creating it.
Passion is a Prison
Chapter 5
Jonouchi woke with a start just before seven, nearly falling off the arm chair in which he had fallen asleep. One hand clenched tightly on the arm of the chair, the other clutching at his chest as he tried to catch his breath.
The nightmare was proving difficult to shake. Glimpses of it were still flashing through his mind, a rapid succession of horrible memories: the sight of Shizuka pressed against the back window of the car as their mother drove away; flashes of the abuse he suffered at his father's hands; the things Hirutani threatened to do to his friends if he refused to rejoin his old gang, watching the things his old "friends" did after having put that life behind him; having to leave Honda behind at Death-T, thinking he would never see his friend again; the pained look on Yugi's face as Marik forced them to duel on the pier, Yugi's motionless body falling below the surface as the anchor fell... Shizuka's screams from the previous night, shrieks of pain and terror that chilled him to the bone even now and made his heart seize up...
He sat there for a long while, eyes closed tight as he relived some of the most horrifying moments of his life. Finally he forced himself to push these thoughts from his mind. He drew several deep breaths and pried his hand off the arm of the chair; his fingers were cramped and sore from the hour they'd spent digging into the chair. He settled back into the cushions. It was just after eight. He had only finally managed to fall asleep around five. He was thoroughly exhausted; without the initial senseless panic the nightmare had brought, his vision grew hazy and his limbs felt heavier than usual. But knew that more sleep would be impossible after the nightmare he'd had. He looked around the room for Mai, but did not see her.
"Mai?" he called, sitting up. She re-entered the living room, smiling.
"Good morning," she said brightly. She swooped down to kiss him.
"You damn morning person," he mumbled around her lips.
"Are you okay?" Mai asked, concerned, perching herself on the arm of the chair. "You look...well, not okay, to be honest."
"M'alright," Jonouchi said groggily. "Just tired."
"Then go back to sleep."
"I can't," Jonouchi said, avoiding Mai's gaze.
"Having nightmares?"
Jonouchi stared at her. "How did you know?"
"You don't usually talk in your sleep, darlin," Mai said gently, taking his hand. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"Not particularly."
"Understandable."
"What did I say?"
"Names mostly. Nothing descriptive."
Jonouchi nodded, and then paused before asking, "How long have you been up, anyway?"
"Since about five thirty," she said. "But I fell asleep before you, didn't I? When did you finally fall asleep?"
"Five-ish. Woke up around seven."
"No wonder you're tired. Try to go back to sleep, love."
Jonouchi shook his head. Mai wrapped her arms around him and Jonouchi relaxed into the embrace. They remained this way for several minutes, drawing apart only when Jonouchi's cell phone started ringing.
I know that she will never be politically correct
"Damn," Jonouchi murmured sleepily. "Where the hell did I leave it?"
And I don't give a damn about my lack of etiquette
Mai sighed as she helped Jonouchi look for his phone. "You need to keep track of your things better, darlin."
As far as I'm concerned, the world could still be flat
"Damn ring tone," Jonouchi muttered. "Why's it gotta be so frickin loud?"
And if the thrill is gone, then it's time to take it back
If the thrill is gone, then it's time to take it back
"So you hear it?" Mai suggested, earning herself a thwack in the head with a pillow.
Who am I, Why am I here?
"Besides," Mai continued. "You like this song. So do I."
"That doesn't change the fact that it's loud."
Forget the questions, someone get me another beer
"The song is called Everything Louder than Everything Else; you expect it not to be loud?"
"Shut up."
"Great comeback."
What's the meaning of life, what's the meaning of it all?
"Here," Mai said, handing it to him when she spotted it on the couch.
"Thanks," he said. "I curse the day these things were invented."
You gotta learn to dance before you learn to crawl
You gotta learn to dance-
"Hello," he said into the phone. "Hey, Ryo," he said, his voice warming some through his grogginess.
Mai eyed him carefully as he spoke to his sister. There were dark, bruise-like circles under his eyes and he was very pale. She closed her eyes; she knew he must have gotten hardly any sleep the night before. He'd been so anxious, particularly after Mai suggested involving the police in this matter. Jonouchi's previously encounters with the police had been less than pleasant, as he was generally the one standing accused, and he was not looking forward to bringing this matter to their attention. More than that, he did not want to put Shizuka through the stress of a trial; he did not want her to be constantly reminded of this horrible ordeal. He felt it would be much more difficult for her to recover from it if she had to focus on it for hours at a time, answer questions for strangers about a man she would rather forget. Mai understood this, but the only real way to put this man away from them and out of Shizuka's life was to bring his cruelty to attention and put him behind bars. It had taken some persuasion, but she had managed to convince Jonouchi of this, too.
"Mai?" Jonouchi said, pulling her out of her thoughts. She looked at him. "That's the third time I've called you, Mai. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine," she said. "Just thinking about some stuff."
He eyed her suspiciously for a moment before continuing. "Ryo and Shizuka are on their way over," he said. "Apparently Bakura's home and Ryo wants to put some distance between him and Shizuka."
"Wait," Mai said. "Bakura, as in the Spirit of the Millennium Ring? As in the dude you guys got rid of in Egypt?"
"Fuck," Jonouchi said. "I haven't told you yet, I'm sorry. You were away when they came back-"
"'They'?"
"Bakura and Marik."
"Marik?" she said, her face going pale.
Jonouchi wrapped his arms around her as she started to cry. The tears were uncharacteristic of her, and frighteningly so. It was clear she remembered all too well the things of which Marik was capable. She clutched at his shirt, shaking with sobs. "Shhh," he whispered, awake and alert now. "Shh. Easy, Mai, it's okay."
After a few minutes Mai pulled away shakily, still hiccuping with tears. Jonouchi took her face in his hands, looking deep into her tear-filled eyes. "He won't hurt you again," he said. "I promise."
Mai nodded. Jonouchi wiped a stray tear from her eye before lowering his hands from her face. He noticed as he did so that his hands were trembling slightly.
"I'm sorry," he whispered. "I didn't mean to upset you."
He pulled Mai into his arms again, stroking her hair as she composed herself, and as he tried to compose himself as well. He himself remembered Marik's power with frightening clarity. Tears welled up in his eyes as the sights and sounds of Mai being tortured at Battle City played through his head. He fought hard to keep the tears at bay as he recalled his personal experience with Marik's power. The physical pain he suffered in his duel with Marik had been excruciating in its own way, but the duel with Yugi on the pier had been a whole other kind of agony, one that would never fade. He abruptly forced himself to hide these thoughts as Mai started to pull away again.
"Anyway," he said. "Shizuka and Ryo are on their way over."
"Okay," Mai said softly. "I can't wait to see her."
There was a certain emotion in Jonouchi's voice that even he could not identify as he said, "Me either."
I do not own the song Everything Louder than Everything Else by Meat Loaf (Jonouchi's ring tone).
I didn't mean for Mai to call people "darlin" instead of "darling," my keybaord decided that. But I decided I liked that batter anyway. So, thanks I guess, keyboard issues.
Anyway, thanks for reading. Reviews are appreciated.