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A/N: I seriously recommend visiting my fandom LJ--you're missing out on freebies. That is all. Also, Ryou will be referred to as Bakura in this fic, since that is what he's called by the others in the sub.
Beautiful
Chapter One - A Tender Daydream
On the radio: "Map of the Problematique" by Muse
-:i:-
He couldn't breathe. Struggling to find air, Jounouchi opened his mouth to receive some much needed oxygen, only to be disappointed upon finding none. He couldn't breathe. All around him he felt an unknown pressure squeezing and pushing down on him, suffocating him. He couldn't breathe. Jounouchi struggled against the invisible binds that held him down; He needed to get away. He couldn't breathe. A flash of blue, and Jounouchi found himself on his bedroom floor tangled within his blankets, shaking uncontrollably from the sudden impact of hitting the ground. At least, that was what he wanted to believe.
Eyes wide, Jounouchi picked himself up from the floor and returned his blankets to their rightful place, pausing to stare at them after he had neatly arranged them. Strange, he wondered why it was that looking at his blankets made him feel less tense. Perhaps it was because they were a form of reality, something that was more real than his dreams would ever be. It was ironic how a week ago he'd have given anything to lose himself in the world of dreams, and now it was quite the opposite. All those sleepless nights and the only thing he had gained was that dream. He could almost cry.
The first time he had that dream was the night school started, and since then, he'd been having the same dream every night. The dream wasn't what he considered to be a nightmare, but it certainly brought forth many unsettling feelings, and he didn't want to acknowledge what those feelings meant. On the brighter side, perhaps the dream was simply a manifestation of all the stress he'd been building up lately. Taking care of his father and being forced to plan out his future weren't exactly the easiest things to deal with in the world. After all, there was only a little over two months of school left, and Jounouchi still wasn't too sure about what he wanted to do with his life.
No, that wasn't true. He knew what he wanted, but there probably wasn't any way for him to acquire it… Jounouchi blinked and shook his head. What was he doing, thinking about such serious things in the morning. It was way too early. Scolding himself for allowing a mere dream to get to him, he turned away from his bed to look at his clock. 5:33. 'Great. Just great,' he thought. Not only had he had a terrible sleep, he had woken up at a ridiculously early time.
"Only a madman would wake up at this time," Jounouchi muttered. "Someone like Kaiba…"
Jounouchi smacked his forehead and groaned. Why? Why did it always have to be Kaiba? He had asked himself that question so many times and he still hadn't found the answer. Frowning, he looked outside his window, where the sky was still dark. Mesmerized by the beauty before him, he felt the need to walk over to his window to get a closer look. Jounouchi laughed softly, thinking how odd it was that looking out his window always seemed to comfort him.
And there it was again, in the same exact place as always: Kaiba Corp.
Sighing in exasperation, Jounouchi pushed Kaiba out of his thoughts and was forced to face the fact that despite how tired he felt, there was no way he was going to go back to sleep now. He wasn't going to experience that dream again; Once a day was more than enough. Moreover, he didn't want to stay in his room any longer. The air felt odd, almost as if it was trying to drain away his energy, not that he wasn't already feeling less than "okay". Besides, he was up unusually early so he thought that he should make the best of it and be productive.
With that thought in mind, Jounouchi made his way to the bathroom to freshen up and get ready, all the while singing an English song he had heard on the radio the previous day.
Thirty minutes later Jounouchi was dressed in his school uniform, his school bag packed and ready to go. He had also finished preparing breakfast, and with over an hour to spare, he decided to prepare himself a packed lunch. Normally he'd just buy food at school but today he felt like he deserved a treat, which happened to be his own cooking, the same one that his father often complimented.
It was a bit peculiar for a young man to know how to cook, but ever since his parents' divorce, Jounouchi had been forced to take care of not only himself, but his father as well, and that man couldn't even chop vegetables, much less cook. Chuckling softly at that thought, the blonde finished up with wrapping up his packed lunch. All he had left to do was leave a little note for his father, telling him that breakfast only needed to be warmed up, and at last he was finally done with everything.
Checking the clock in the kitchen, he was shocked to see that it was only 6:30, meaning that he had two hours before school was officially in session. Estimating that it would only take him another thirty minutes to reach school by taking the bus, Jounouchi was happy to find out he had enough time for some dozing at school. Briefly, he thought of his friends, knowing that by the time he reached school, they'd probably just reached the bus stop.
On the other hand, he was quite sure that after ten minutes, they would most likely understand that he had gone to school on his own. Reassured that everything would be alright, Jounouchi picked up his school bag and walked over to the apartment door. Wary of his father waking up, Jounouchi grabbed the knob, twisting it and pulling the door open faster than necessary. He took a step forward and stopped.
Jounouchi gasped, fell short of breath and blinked rapidly as his vision blurred and swirled. Unable to recognize anything anymore, he lost awareness of his surroundings and balance, pitching dangerously forward. His mind was fuzzy; He couldn't feel his body. Something pulled at him, begged him to succumb to its soothing embrace and to forget everything. As tempting as it was, there was still a distinct sense of dread, that there was something terribly wrong with his current situation. And just like that, it vanished. Jolted by the abrupt return of his senses, Jounouchi grabbed a nearby rail to support himself, practically falling down to his knees in the process.
"Well," the blonde remarked, bemused. "That was strange…"
Gathering up his things, which had dropped out of his grasp, Jounouchi kicked his apartment door close, no longer caring whether his father woke up or not, and walked down the path to the stairs. It wasn't the first time he had felt like that, and he knew it wouldn't be the last. He was suddenly reminded of how crappy his day had begun.
"Fuck," he said, and ran a shaky hand through his hair.
On the other side of Domino City Kaiba was walking brusquely down a flight of stairs, his lips set in a grim line, not bothering to make a comment or a nod of acknowledgement when his maids greeted him at the bottom. He was in a bad mood, and taking it out on the maids wasn't going to improve his mood so he chose to simply ignore them. Unfortunately for him, one of his maids didn't know better and decided to approach him about his current displeasure.
"Seto-sama(1)," she said. "Are you feeling alright?" Kaiba felt like hurtling something at the door in front of him. Couldn't she tell that he wasn't feeling remotely "alright"?
He had woken up late--though it was still considerably early, but later than usual--and the day before, he had discovered a virus that had leaked into the Kaiba Corp mainframe. How that had happened, he had yet to find out, but he had had to restore several lost files, not to mention the blueprints for his new dueling technology had been completely wiped out.
To think, he had been hoping to finish the prototypes by the end of the month. Now, it looked like he would have to start all over again. The virus just had to have hit the day before he would actually start on the prototypes.
"Seto-sama…?" Kaiba stared blankly at the maid, bored. There was no point in relaying any of his thoughts to her, so he replied curtly, "I'm fine." Seemingly satisfied with her employer's answer, the maid left him alone to attend to the more important matters at hand, which was to reach school before the crowds came. Just as he was about to leave the mansion, though, a black blur went hurtling into him, startling him.
"Mokuba!"
"Nii-sama(2)! Have a safe trip!" Mokuba shouted happily. Kaiba sighed and extracted himself from Mokuba.
"Mokuba, be careful. You could have hurt yourself," the brunet reprimanded, looking down pointedly at Mokuba, who simply laughed it off and pushed his brother out the door.
"Leave, you grouchy man," the boy said. "You're scaring all the maids."
Mokuba handed Kaiba his briefcase and slammed the door on the elder's face. Kaiba shook his head and walked down the short steps to where his limo was parked and waiting. He was really glad he had Mokuba; His brother could always make his days better just by being himself, and had even helped in reminding him that a single virus wasn't worth his energy, especially since he had already gotten rid of it.
What really bothered him was how it had gotten there and who was responsible. There was also the matter of the lost information on his new dueling technology. That had to wait, though. Right now, he needed to concentrate on making it to school.
"Seto-sama," his driver greeted with a bow, pulling the door open for him to enter. Kaiba got into the limo and sat down, setting his briefcase next to him before crossing his arms. Whoever it was that was responsible for the virus, he'd get that person in the end. He was about to think of ways to make that person pay when his thoughts were interrupted by the sounds of his cell phone. Pulling it out from his blazer pocket, he flipped the phone open and held it to his ear.
"NII-SAMA! The maids told me you didn't eat breakfast!"
Kaiba held the phone a bit further away from his ear before replying. "I'm sorry, Mokuba. I woke up late today so I had no time for breakfast."
"What!? You… you actually woke up late!?" Mokuba screeched through the phone.
"Yes."
"Um… uh… are you feeling okay, nii-sama?"
"I feel fine."
Knowing that his brother was probably too stunned to make a coherent thought, Kaiba thought it would be best to assure him that there was nothing to fret about. "Don't worry about me, Mokuba. The cook prepared a large lunch for me." A moment of silence passed and there was still no response. "Mokuba?"
"Huh! Oh, I'm still here, nii-sama. Um, well, have a nice day at school! Bye!" Click.
Kaiba sighed and put his phone away, leaning back in his seat. Another reason he was thankful for his little brother was that there was never a dull moment. He couldn't tell his brother about the new dueling technology; He wanted it to be a surprise for Mokuba since he was the inspiration.
Eyes flickering close, Kaiba relaxed, enjoying the peaceful silence, more than aware that it was only a matter of time before he was forced to endure the incessant babbling of the students at school. Without much to do, he envisioned illusive dancing shades of yellow. He smiled.
Not long after, Kaiba arrived at school, and right at the same time he normally did. Kaiba left the limo and headed straight for the school entrance, not wanting to be accosted by any of his devoted fan girls, the ones who were willing to get up early enough to arrive at school at the same time he did.
The only reason he was always early was because he liked to read in the morning, which helped to jump start his brain every day. Even though he could read at any time, any place, he still preferred to read in quiet. Since not many people enjoyed going to school early, the brunet fully took advantage of that.
Quickening his pace a little, but not enough to appear rushed and undignified, Kaiba walked up the stairs to the third floor and didn't waste time to switch into his school slippers like students were supposed to. Once on the third floor, he strode down the hall until he reached his homeroom, 3-B, and stood in front of the door. Sliding it open, he was about to enter the classroom when a body rammed into his. He cursed under his breath and turned around.
What he saw surprised him, but only slightly. It was Jounouchi.
Jounouchi and his group of friends were known for getting to school pretty early, but not as early as this. Furthermore, the blonde was all alone. Kaiba smirked. This seemed like a good opportunity for him to release some of his pent up anger from the other day, and who better to take it out on than Jounouchi. However, before he could even get a single word out, the blonde's actions prevented him from doing anything.
"I'm sorry," Jounouchi whispered, head downcast, and moved to the side to enter the classroom. Kaiba stared after him, taken aback by the other's abnormal behavior. From the doorway, he watched as Jounouchi took his seat and immediately went to sleep.
A disconcerting observation struck Kaiba. Jounouchi hadn't even noticed that it was him he had run into, thus the unexpected apology. Kaiba mentally shrugged and took his own seat in the back, a row to the left from where Jounouchi sat. He didn't know why he spent so much time thinking about the blonde, but if he wasn't going to let fan girls disturb his reading time, he certainly wasn't going make an exception for Jounouchi.
Determined to follow through with his plans, Kaiba pulled out a book and started to read. Nonetheless, he couldn't help but glance at the blonde's back every once in a while. Jounouchi's actions--or lack thereof--had really gotten under his skin, whether he had wanted them to or not. Frustrated with how much attention he was paying the blonde--who hadn't even noticed him at all--he turned his gaze into a glare.
"Stupid bonkotsu(3)," he stated aloud, and smirked smugly at the slight twitch of Jounouchi's body.
It was then that students started to file into the classroom. Amongst the few early arrivers were Jounouchi's friends, who spotted him instantly and rushed over to his seat. Yuugi was the first to do anything.
He gently shook Jounouchi's shoulder to try and wake him up. "Jounouchi-kun(4), wake up." A few more shakes followed, but still Jounouchi refused to wake, and Yuugi grew more desperate, so he raised his voice louder. "Jounouchi-kun!" At this Jounouchi's head sprung up, barely missing Yuugi's chin. Kaiba saw this and would have laughed out loud, had it not been for the fact he was at school.
"Yuugi!" the blonde exclaimed, slightly flustered, disoriented, and a bit unsure of where he was.
"Jounouchi-kun, you're finally awake!" Yuugi grinned, happy that his efforts had finally paid off, then frowned. "Jounouchi-kun, where were you this morning?"
Jounouchi scratched his head sheepishly and released a wide yawn; He was still somewhat sleepy. "Oh, nowhere," he mumbled. Yuugi's lip twitched, but before he could utter a word, Jounouchi stopped him. "Don't worry about me, Yuugi. I just woke up earlier than normal, that's all." Anzu and Honda glanced at him in mild humor, while Yuugi scrutinized him closely, looking for anything that told him otherwise. At this point, Kaiba no longer felt the need to watch Jounouchi, returning to his book so as to ignore the rest of class.
When Yuugi noticed nothing off, he smiled brightly, hugged the blonde and proceeded to drag him off to his seat three rows to the left, next to the windows. He had so much to tell Jounouchi, or rather, he had noticed how lately his friend had been less lively than normal and wanted to do something for the blonde. Of course Jounouchi was still the same, just not all there sometimes, and Yuugi was starting to worry.
The blonde had always been there for him and cared about him a lot. Naturally, Yuugi felt the same and he honestly wanted to be there for Jounouchi, much like the time he had been there for him when Atemu left for the afterlife…
"It'll be okay, Yuugi."
"How?"
"Think of it this way. You've already met Atemu, right?"
"Yeah…"
"Since you've met him once already that means he's now connected to you, right?"
"I don't understand, Jounouchi-kun."
"It means that you'll meet each other again, doesn't it? I mean, I may not be that smart--"
"Jounouchi-kun, that's not true!"
"It's rude to interrupt, Yuugi. Anyway, I may not be that smart, but I know that as long as you really want to meet that person again then you definitely will."
"Jounouchi-kun…"
"So cheer up, okay? I'm sure you'll meet him again. When you do, don't you want to greet him with a smile?"
'Jounouchi-kun,' Yuugi thought. 'Thank you.'
"For what?" Yuugi blinked, then blushed, realizing he had said that last part of his thoughts out loud. Laughing nervously, he said, "Oh, nothing…"
"Right," Jounouchi frowned, but let it go. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"
"Oh! You see--"
The chime of the school bell sounded, stopping Yuugi in his tracks before he could go any further. He let out a deep sigh of resignation and glanced up at Jounouchi. "I'll talk to you later, okay?" Nodding numbly and still dazed from his earlier nap, the blonde made his way back to his seat. "And don't you dare forget!" Yuugi yelled after him.
Jounouchi grinned. "Sure, sure, Yuugi."
It was currently history class, the last class before lunch, and Mizuki-sensei was busy lecturing about the end of the Meiji period. It was a review, so Jounouchi didn't feel inclined to pay attention, not since he had already memorized all there was to know about the Meiji period. Instead, he chose to direct his attention on his table. He watched blankly as his vision came in and out of focus and the table's lines warped into images that resembled Duel Monsters. He smiled a little when he saw the Red Eyes Black Dragon fly across his table…
Wishing that he had Yuugi's seat, Jounouchi gazed at his friend out of the corner of his eye. Where Yuugi sat he was right next to the windows and could easily gaze outside at any point. How he wished that he could be looking out the windows now. At least with windows, he could feel breezes as they came and went, as opposed to sitting at the front of class and pretending to pay attention. Jounouchi leaned back against his chair, eyes half lidded and droopy with sleep.
For the next few moments, his eyes wandered around the room. Everyone seemed to be paying rapt attention; He guessed they really wanted to pass the upcoming exam. Even Honda, who usually slept through review lectures--much like he himself did--was rapidly jotting down notes. Curious to see if anyone else was taking notes, Jounouchi's eyes landed on the seat next to his, and he was glad to find Bakura free of any form of note taking.
He wondered what Kaiba was doing… It was too bad Kaiba sat all the way in the back, and there was no way he was going to risk turning around.
Scoffing, Jounouchi scrunched his eyes closed, leaning forward to rest his head on his table. Mizuki-sensei could yell at him later, but for now, all he wanted was to clear his mind. 'That's right!' he thought, and turned his head so that he could see the classroom's windows. Whilst watching the clouds move slowly apart and together, he began to feel the most relaxed he had been the whole day. He thought it to be a good time to rest his eyes so he closed them, but he didn't sleep.
Blue. Blue was the color he saw every time he closed his eyes. It was a comforting color, but it reminded him too much of…
Jounouchi shuddered as a chilling sensation ran up his spine, tickling his skin as it wrapped itself snugly around his frame. From the depths of his blue surroundings, ghostly hands came forward and caressed his face, tracing gently from the tips of his eyebrows down to his collarbone. There they lingered and tenderly pressed the soft skin beneath, simply to fade away, leaving behind a tingling trail of sensations…
"Jounouchi…"
And all he could see was blue, blue, blue.
"Jounouchi…"
It filled him up, squeezed him from the inside out and threatened to drown him in its hold.
"Jounouchi…"
"Jounouchi-kun!"
Jumping up in his seat, Jounouchi nearly knocked over his table and chair in the process. He faced the direction from which the voice came from--it was Bakura--and stared wide eyed down the white haired boy.
"Jounouchi-kun, it's lunch time," Bakura said. Blinking, Jounouchi realized he had somehow drifted off without his knowing. He quickly thanked Bakura, who gave him a small nod in return, and pulled out his packed lunch from under his table(5). Setting his bento box on his table, he slipped the top off and grabbed his chopsticks. After that strange dream just then, he was ready to eat his self prepared treat, but before he could Honda hopped over to his seat and grabbed him around the neck.
"Jounouchi! You have this delicious lunch and you're not going to share?" he teased. As an automatic response, the blonde hugged the bento box and tried to hide it from Honda's prying eyes. "Oh come on, Jounouchi, share with me."
"No," he stated firmly. Besides, wasn't it normally him who asked Honda for food, not the other way around?
"Why?"
"Because… because Shizuka made it for me!" Jounouchi smiled and gave himself a mental pat on the back for his save. Not only had he come up with a believable lie, but he had also hid his love for cooking from his friend, who would have definitely made fun of him for days had he found out. Despite this, his joy was cut short, for when Honda heard that Shizuka-chan had prepared the lunch, he made an automatic lunge for Jounouchi's bento box.
"Give it!" the brunet shouted.
"No!" Jounouchi jumped up and held his lunch close. Honda made another lunge, but Jounouchi simply leapt back and moved farther away.
"Oh, come on, Jounouchi! Just a small taste…" Honda whined pitifully, making another unsuccessful grab for the box. The blonde grinned, enjoying the torture he was giving his friend and took another step backward, this time holding his prized bento box above his head in a taunting manner.
"You'll just have to come and get it, Honda," he mocked with a wide grin. Honda glared, but reached for the box anyway, but before he could, the box dropped out the blonde's grasp and crashed to the floor. Acting at once, the burnet rushed to Jounouchi's side before he completely dropped to the floor with his now ruined lunch.
"Jounouchi!"
Panicked shouts and murmurs rang throughout the classroom. Upon seeing the blonde's sudden lurch, Anzu and Yuugi had rushed over to where Honda and Jounouchi were. Yuugi worriedly looked down at his friend's pale face. "Jounouchi-kun!"
"Y-Yuugi…" Jounouchi rasped, rising from his position on the floor.
"Jounouchi-kun!" Yuugi hugged him. Feeling a bit awkward from all the unwanted attention he was getting, Jounouchi softly patted the shorter teen's back in a reassuring manner.
"Don't worry, Yuugi. I just tripped, that's all."
Yuugi felt like smacking Jounouchi--as if he would believe that the blonde has just tripped. Jounouchi knew Yuugi didn't believe him. Of course he didn't; He wouldn't have believed it himself. Still, he didn't need Yuugi to scold him then, considering he felt like a three ton truck had just run him over for the fun of it. So, he calmly pried Yuugi from him and stood straight up.
"See, Yuugi?" he asked. "I'm fine."
"Jounou--" Jounouchi cut him off.
"Hey, I'm feeling a little bit miffed so I'm going to go wash up, okay? You guys just go on with eating lunch without me." The blonde flashed his friend a winning smile and left, all the while completely oblivious to the worried stares directed at his departing form.
"Jounouchi-kun…"
Once outside the classroom and with the door securely closed behind him, Jounouchi slid down a wall and clutched his head. "Shit." Of all the times for him to have another round of what had occurred in the morning it just had to be during school where everyone saw. Dragging himself up from the floor, Jounouchi made his way down the hall, completely ignoring the questioning glances sent his way and the annoying buzzing in his head.
After what seemed like forever to Jounouchi, he was finally at the stairs; Now all he had to do was make it down those stairs and walk a little more until he reached the boys' restroom. If only he could see those stairs, but his vision had chose today of all days to play tricks with him, making it so that all he could see were blurred shades of blue.
Squinting a little, Jounouchi took a small and hesitant step forward, totally missing the solid ground and falling forward. 'I've been doing that an awful lot lately,' he thought. In front of him, all he could see was a shining, brilliant blue surrounded by a world of black, but before the black enveloped him with the blue, he heard someone shout something.
"Bonkotsu!"
Jounouchi smiled. The voice had sounded strangely like that of a certain blue eyed, brown haired CEO he had been thinking of so much. It even talked like him…
"Bonkotsu, get a hold of yourself!" He wanted to laugh. His last thought before the black covered him was, 'What a weird dream.'
To Be Continued…
(1) Ehm… in the original Japanese version that is what Kaiba's employees call him by, believe it or not. Watch the subs.
(2) Nii-sama: A way to say older brother. Can be "honorable older brother".
(3) Bonkotsu: Translates into "mediocre". This is actually what Kaiba calls Jounouchi the most (if you watch the subs). Shirohane's translation is… "proletariat". I actually prefer his translation.
(4) This is what Yuugi and Yami (Atemu) call Jou in the subs. I don't believe anyone ever actually calls him "Jou".
(5) Yes, Japanese schools have those kind of tables where you can… put stuff (books and so on) under them…
Next time…
Chapter Two: Unbearable Silence
A/N: Blue and yellow… Anyways, I'll try to update as much as possible. I have about a month left until I enter university, so… But don't worry, I'll still write while I'm attending college, just that there won't be quick updates when that time comes.
More on Kaiba's new dueling technology in the next chapter, too. Pfft, actually it's mine. I'm just letting Kaiba borrow it since he can actually make it. :P (A lot more KaiJou moments in the next one…)
The seating arrangements are pretty much canon, from what I can tell by reading the manga and watching the anime. I made a little diagram… anyone who wishes to see it, just check my profile. There will be a link… (or just visit my fandom LJ; it's there too…)
Mmm.. I want to draw the window scene from the prologue, the sleeping scene in the classroom from this chapter, as well as Katsu-chan's last smile before the black surrounds him! I think I will!