A/N: I apologize to those who have been awaiting the next chapter. I know it's not fair that I take months and months before you hear from me again. Adult life is so hard to get a grip on and I don't have the luxury of free time like I did as a teen. Thank you all for being so understanding and I won't hold out on chapter four any longer! Thank you.

Chapter Four – Good Night

It was a little after dinner with his parents when Honda decided to take off. He had to make a promise that he would be back soon and would not take off again. He shook hands with his father in oath and squeezed his mother tight. He drove away knowing that he was going to be able to keep his word.

His final stop for the night was Yugi's. He felt like he owed it to the boy to personally announce his return before he found out through someone else. When the door opened, he was a little surprised to see Anzu snake around his arm.

"Honda!" Yugi cried in disbelief, flinging Anzu off as he embraced him, "Is it really you!"

"Hey, Yuge." Honda smiled, returning the hug. He looked over at Anzu and waved, "Hi, Anzu."

"Hello." she replied cooly before disappearing into the kitchen. Where she belongs, Honda thought to himself. He didn't understand why he felt so bitter. He has never had a problem with her before. However, there was something different about walking into the old game shop. It wasn't as warm as Ryou's. Honda felt... empty.

"Ah, sorry about that." Yugi said, smiling sheepishly, "She's not too happy with you right now."

"It's okay. I understand." Honda said, shoving his hands into his pocket, "How are you? Where is Yami?"

"Oh." Yugi shifted his eyes to the floor, "Yami doesn't live here anymore." he said in a small voice, "We're currently not speaking."

"What?" Honda gasped, "You and Yami? What happened?"

Yugi closed his eyes, looking as if the whole situation caused him great pain, "Not in front of Anzu." he smiled again, "Besides, it's not important. Where have you been? Are you alright? Are you home for good? Oh, sorry." he covered his mouth, "I'm being intrusive."

"No." Honda replied, "You deserve to know. Wanna go somewhere to talk?" he nodded toward the kitchen, "Since she doesn't want me here, I don't want to be rude."

"It's alright." Yugi said, "We can go into the livingroom. I hope you still know the way." he laughed.

"I think I can manage." Honda smirked and followed Yugi into the house.

They caught up on the same green sofa they used to waste days on. In fact, nothing about the old hang out had changed. Nothing except for the people. Yugi was the only one there, listening to Honda pour out the past year onto the same coffee table they would play Duel Monsters on.

Honda observed as Yugi tugged at fray threads and didn't always look Honda in the eyes. Something had changed about him. He was much more soft spoken and when Honda would ask about Yami, he would change the subject or brush it off. He vaguely reminded him of Ryou when they first met.

"Hey, Yuge." A thought had suddenly come back to Honda, "What happened to Shizuka?"

Yugi got very quiet. He shifted a little in his seat and after a long pause, he said, "She's gone."

"Yeah. I know, but where did she go?"

Yugi shook his head, "No one knows. She was gone the night you left and we haven't heard from her."

"No way." Honda breathed. He felt his face stiffen, "... I'm sorry. This is my fault."

Yugi shook his head, "No, Honda. No one blames you for any of it."

"I just feel like when I left, everything fell apart. I never thought it would be such a big impact on everyone."

Yugi placed a hand on Honda's shoulder, "We love you, Honda." Honda's mouth turned upwards at the present tense. "Of course we were all hurt when you left, but you had your reasons. We're just happy you're home. You'll always be a friend to us."

Honda nodded, "Thanks, Yuge."

They hadn't noticed that it was nearly midnight. Anzu, who had probably been eavesdropping the entire time, finally came in and said that it was time for Yugi to join her in bed. Yugi showed him out. They made plans later to meet up again before Honda started up his motorcycle and headed back to Ryou's.

The quickest way was a drive through the business district. It wasn't an ideal plan to Honda, but he was sure that Otogi and Ryou were worried sick due to the late hour. Honda realized he should have called while he was at Yugi's to check in, but it was past that point now. He passed a bakery and was reminded of Shizuka.

Where could she have gone? Honda wondered. It didn't seem completely irrational that Shizuka would run off after all that had happened to her, but that didn't comfort Honda in the slightest. He racked his brain, making an effort to think of where she could have possibly gone with little funds and no connections. Except...

A car horn honked. Honda had been so deep in thought, he didn't realize that he had gone through a red light. He nearly missed a jet black car before his bike toppled and he was dragged along the gritty asphalt.

Honda staggered to his hands and knees. He attempted to put pressure on one and winced. He looked down. Sure enough, the leg of his jeans was torn open and hot blood seeped out of a gash.

He removed his helmet. Other than that, he seemed fine. He blinked a few times before inspecting the scene. The car was still there, pulled over on the side of the road with its hazard lights on. It seemed as if the driver was still in it. Honda couldn't make out anyone from the tinted windows. People who had been passing by stopped to stare. One asked if Honda was alright. He replied by waving and telling everyone to go about their business. They did so with no hesitation.

He stood, clenching his jaw in mild pain caused from his knee. He was going to be able to get back home, but he would have to bandage his wound when he got there. He hoped that Bakura would be the only one awake and would not question him.

As Honda picked up his bike, he had turned his back on the car that was involved. He heard the door open and slam shut. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath to collect his thoughts before he received the verbal whiplash that was coming to him.

He faked the most sincere smile he could. As he turned around, he said, "I'm so sorry!"

"You had fucking better be."

Honda's eyes became wide. He dropped his helmet and staggered backward. His entire body began to shake and he felt his throat tighten in fear. Those piercing blue eyes, that strong stance, an intimidating tone, "Kaiba."

He was not the only who was stunned. It seemed as if Kaiba had subconsciously been snide. Now, as Honda openly stared, Kaiba also stood frozen, his eyes wide in surprise and his mouth open to catch the raindrops that had began to fall sparingly from the sky. Honda wasn't sure if it was the rain or his own tears silently sliding down his cheeks. To be honest, he wasn't sure about anything at the moment. If he had to guess, he would believe that time had abruptly stopped still.

Kaiba was the one to gather his wits first. He closed his mouth to form a thin line that was neither a smile or frown. His eyes blinked and were back to their usual frigid state. He reached up and touched a device built into the collar of his jacket. "Kaiba." he said, "I need a pick up. Silver motorcycle. One block east." he balled his hand into a fist as he lowered it to his side. He went over to his car and opened the door. He looked back at Honda from the corner of his eye, "Get in." His voice carried with no emotion.

The voice had gotten through the static that had been cluttering Honda's head. He cleared his throat in an attempt to loosen the tension. He made no effort to get into Kaiba's passenger seat.

"No." Honda heard his own voice come from his mouth, but it sounded so far away. Kaiba's brow knit together. He didn't speak, but his stance was prepped for battle. He cleared his throat and tried again, "Stay away from me."

Kaiba slammed the door. The raindrops exploded from the exterior. He advanced toward him. Honda took a step back, wondering if he should climb on his bike and make a run for it.

Before he could act, Kaiba had his arms around him and Honda inhaled the smell of the rain mingling with the aroma that had always been Kaiba. The fragrance of expensive cologne and musk made Honda's insides flutter. Completely out of impulse, Honda leaned up and he crushed his lips against Kaiba's. He groaned and clung to Kaiba's quickly dampening jacket. His mind was in the thickest of hazes. Everything he had worked so hard to forget immediately came back to him.

When they pulled apart, Kaiba went over and opened the car door and repeated, "Get in." This time, Honda silently obeyed.

Kaiba started the car and Honda's brain seemed to work again. He smacked his hands into his face and placed his forehead against his knees. He started to shudder and immediately regret what he had done.

"I didn't feel the need to respect the wishes of someone who doesn't deserve it." Kaiba had yet to put the vehicle into drive. Through the tinted windshield, he watched as a Kaibacorp van pulled up and started to load Honda's bike into it. He breathed heavily through his nose, "You don't deserve to get what you want anymore. You have been selfish for way too long, Hiroto."

"Selfish?" Honda asked, lifting his face from his lap to stare at Kaiba in bewilderment.

"Yes, selfish!" Kaiba snapped harshly. He gripped the steering wheel tightly, "You always think about yourself! You wallow in your own self loathing because you can't have what you want! You use this fucked up justification in your head to feel as if you deserve to steal it, like you're some underdog hero. In actuality, you're really skulking around behind people's backs and ruining the trust between you and your best friend! You prove your cowardice by taking off without a damn clue as to where you're going or when you'll come back!" his voice became a low, vehemence hiss, "You destroyed a man who had already felt like he'd lost everything in this world by taking away the one thing he felt was worth having. Yes, Hiroto, you are the most selfish mother fucker I have ever met. I was perfectly content with never seeing you again." His chest heaved rapidly as he attempted to catch his breath through his nose.

"Oh yeah!" Suddenly, Honda felt a rage that had been laying dormant in his gut, "Then why not end it! Why didn't you just hit me with your car and kill me! Run over my head and then back up for good measure. Splatter the street with my brains for all I care!" he slammed his fists on the black dashboard, "SHIT! Someone just kill me!" he placed the heel of his hands onto his forehead. Leaning over his lap, he began to shake uncontrollably.

Kaiba spat, "Requesting that your life be over. Don't be so melodramatic. Be a fucking man."

"I am a faggot!" Honda declared, his eyes meeting Kaiba's for the first time, "It's because of you that I am this way!" this sudden realization made Honda see hot white light, "If I didn't fall in love with you, we would have still been friends! I could have been there for him! He would still be alive!"

A burning sensation throbbed on the left side of his face. He reached up and felt that he had been struck, Kaiba inspecting his hand for redness. Honda grit his teeth, "Don't you put your hands on me."

Kaiba leaned forward, his nose nearly tickling Honda's, "Are you even listening to yourself? You don't call the shots, Hiroto. I do and I say that you had been pipe down before you get me really angry." His stare made Honda tense up. Kaiba decided to take his silence as compliance. "Now, let's get one thing clear. I don't ever want to hear the term 'faggot' out of your mouth ever again. It makes you sound ignorant and what's more so is that you believe your coming out is all my fault." he smirked darkly, "I don't think so, Buddy. Let's try to recall the events here." he finally shifted the car into drive and they took off down the road. "I was perfectly content, hell I'd even dare say I was 'happy'." his eyes shifted over at Honda, who was now picking at the sides of his fingernails until they bled, "You strut your shit into my office, seduce me, and request that I leave all of my hard work and loyalty for you."

"I never asked for that!" Honda snapped in protest, his teeth stripping a large chunk of skin out of his thumb as he cocked his head to face the man behind the wheel. The pain was only a dull sensation in comparison to how dizzy his head felt.

"Shut up." He pressed lightly on the brake as he slowed for a stop light, "Let's continue." he sped up as soon as the light became green.

"I'm trying to juggle a company, a family, an affair, and still make it home in time to take care of my severely ill lover." Kaiba seemed to no longer be talking to anybody but himself. Honda focused his eyes on his thumb, pinching his wound to make the crimson run down his finger. It was his only distraction from hearing the harsh mouths pouring out of his mouth.

Kaiba continued as they rounded the corner, "He dies. Nothing will change the fact that he fucking dies, and there was no one to comfort me. I had to keep pressing on, acting as if he and I were complete strangers, let alone lovers. The only one I thought I would have is the man I almost gave it all up for." his eyes darted over to Honda, who had whimpered a little in hearing himself be mentioned. "But no, instead he invites himself into my bed, takes what he wants of me, which seems to only be my body, and takes off into the sunrise. No note, no call, and soon, there was no one there. I had to convince myself that you even goddamn existed." He turned left and Honda recognized that they were in front of KaibaCorp. "Then, a year later, just when I think I've got myself back on track. I have my company, my family, my lover..." Honda inhaled sharply in surprise, "and look who shows up, the bitch that's just as selfish as he was before he left."

Kaiba pulled into his parking space. He put car into a complete stop and flailed his hands as he mocked Honda, "'Someone kill me!'" he laughed darkly, throwing his head back in a maniacal manner, "Fuck you, Hiroto." he said as he met eyes again with the brunet in the passenger seat, "Seriously, go fuck yourself." he turned the keys out of the ignition and immediately pocketed them. He exited the vehicle, the slamming of the door was Honda's invitation to speak again.

Hastily, Honda unbuckled his seat belt and hoisted himself out of the car. He ran around the frame and stood a foot away from Kaiba, his eyes black and his mouth turned down. His fists were shaking, the blood from his thumb dripped a single drop onto the tar ground. He swallowed hard, for he had to choose his words with great care.

The rain had cleared and they were seeing each other in true light for the first time. Kaiba looked different than Honda recollected. There was something in his face. He looked older and his eyes had an emptiness in them. Honda missed that spark behind them, the intensity that had always made him weak in the knees.

He remembered the night that Kaiba had mentioned. The night his virginity was taken. He had held Honda's face in his hands, kissing each finger on his hand and he said it clear as day. He would never forget, "Back then," he said aloud, "that night, you said you lovedme."

"I was wrong." Honda was taken back by the lack of hesitation in Kaiba's voice, "Just as I was wrong to say he was obsessive and possessive. It was before I knew..." he got quiet, "before I had realized he was sick." He somehow found a way to stand taller. Honda felt like a child. "I should have never ruined such a beautiful thing. I will regret you and I for the rest of my life." he turned to walk away, "Your bike should be waiting for you out front. Consider this closure. I meant it when I said I never want to see you again. Do you understand me? If you come anywhere near me, I can't be held responsible for what may happen to you."

Honda looked down at the ground. His head was swimming. There was still so much going through his mind. Closure? He was more confused than before. He could recall the feeling of Kaiba's desk against the back of his thighs, a hungry push from Kaiba so his body could be sprawled out across the surface. He remembered looking out the floor to ceiling windows upside down, his head falling over the edge as his emotions reached the brink. Night after night of lips touching every inch of soft skin. Honda felt the hot breath of Seto against his ear, hearing soft groans of protest when Honda had refused him farther than kisses. Seto. Honda looked up at the retreating figure. He had not been speaking to the same man he fell in love with.

"Seto!" Honda cried out, as if trying to reach somebody who wasn't there. He hadn't thought of what he'd follow it up with. He still wasn't even sure what he was doing, in the darkest hours of night, running towards the shadow of a man he used to devote his entire being to. All he knew was that he didn't know what he'd do if let it end like this.

Kaiba hadn't stopped walking. Even as he heard his name called out, he refused to let his strides slow. He was almost at the door, moments away from locking out the last of his past from ever reaching him again. He thought he had been over this.

"Seto!" Honda called again, his arm outstretched. He couldn't give up. He thought his feet couldn't carry him fast enough, but he was able to grip onto the man's sleeve and there, he refused to let go. With all he could, he wrapped himself around Kaiba's arm like a child who was being left alone for the first time. He squeezed his eyes shut and prayed to anyone who listened that he didn't look as pathetic as he felt.

Kaiba's hand had been on the handle of the door leading to KaibaCorp, the other holding a key in the lock. He lowered his arms and looked down at the boy who still had a long way to go. He sighed and demanded quietly, "Let go, Honda."

"Hiroto. Call me Hiroto. Please." Honda begged.

"Let go of me." Kaiba repeated, "I have nothing left to say to you."

"No!" Honda cried, "I let you go before! I won't ever do it again! Please!" he begged again, "Please don't tell me to go. I can't be without you again." his body was shivering from the cold the rain had left him with.

Kaiba was growing impatient. He spun and shoved Honda away, his hands balled up in case that hadn't been enough. He watched as Honda staggered, trying to regain his balance. Then, he spoke. "Get a hold of yourself. You're embarrassing. To think I could ever be with someone so pathetic." He opened the doors to KaibaCorp and turn to give him one last disapproving look. Instead, he let go of the door, letting it shut slowly. He shoved his hands into the pockets of his long trench coat. Honda was standing, ready to fight him though his body was trembling violently. Kaiba wasn't sure if it was because he was scared or cold. He shook his head and smirked, "That's the Honda I know. Ready to fight for what he wants until it gets too hard. Well, what do I need to do, Honda? What's your breaking point this time? How much longer do I need to stand out here in the middle of the night waiting for you to give up and run?" he leaned forward and whispered firmly, "Get out of my face."

This was getting painful and Honda knew it. If someone had been watching the whole thing unfold, they'd be yelling at Honda to throw in the towel, but Honda never prided himself for knowing when to call it quits. Life wasn't a perfectly timed episode. There were no correct ways to end a conversation. There was never a clean way to end a fight.

"You know what, Seto?" Honda said, using the last shred of courage he had, "It takes two to fuck! You claim that it was all on me but you need to take responsibility too, you know!" he stood up straighter and let his hands unclench.

He felt tears burning his eyes but he didn't dare cry. "It took me too long to realize my mistakes and I have been paying for it over and over again. I don't think you'll ever see where my pain comes from and it's because you're too busy being cold to take an interest but that's not my problem!" he lifted his arms and shrugged. He shook his head and sighed, "Nobody's fucking perfect. I thought you of all people would understand that." he added quietly, "I thought you would understand me."

Kaiba snorted, "You still don't get it, do you?" he reopened the door, "Goodbye, Honda." and before Honda could say another word, he had escaped.