Chapter 8: The Flickering Light

Wow. It has been eight months since I updated this story. Bad Sparky. No cookies for you. Well, apologies. Here's the next chapter

Jounouchi was really pleased with himself. That he was able to find that magic store was a stroke of luck. But, then again, he was pretty lucky himself. In many of his duels, he was the victor due to luck. That potion from Jack Flash really did the trick. He didn't feel anything when talking to Kaiba, neither love nor hate. It was amazing. It was well worth the money.

He didn't feel the conflicting that he did a couple of days ago. In fact, if it was for the potion, he would have never accepted the offer to be tutored by Kaiba.

His thoughts turned to Kaiba. Jounouchi wondered how Kaiba felt about the new Jounouchi Katsuya. He wondered if Kaiba was confused. Not that it really mattered to him anymore. The blond, when he still had his feelings of love, wanted Kaiba's approval more than anything. He knew that it was given to Yuugi after the short duelist bested him several time, but never to him. He was called a third-rate duelist by him and wasn't given the time of day.

Well, now it didn't matter. Jounouchi didn't care whether or not Kaiba had any feelings for him. He was happy. And it was all due to the magic potion. Jounouchi looked at the now empty bottle on his dresser and smiled. "Thank you so much, magic potion." He spoke to the empty bottle, content in its presence.

Kaiba was perturbed by Jounouchi today. This wasn't the same Jounouchi Katsuya that he had come to know. If yesterday was the first day that he had known Jounouchi, Kaiba would have chalked it up to personality quirks. But the teen knew that the blond was a hothead. Today, Jounouchi showed none of that.

Besides the fact that somehow the blond had changed, there was something else that was bugging him. Yami told Kaiba that Jounouchi liked him. Of course, he had always suspected as much. That idiot was an easy read. But to hear it being confirmed was something else entirely. Today, he saw nothing of his former feelings. Was Jounouchi sick or something? Was he involved with someone else?

Despite being a genius, Kaiba had no explanation for this. However, tomorrow he will get the answer. But first, a stop at the florist.

Jounouchi woke up the next morning and began his morning rituals: showering, dressing and eating. He felt great. The blond didn't feel bad with going to school like he used to when he did like Kaiba.

That got him to thinking. Jounouchi did want to find love. Now that he was free from that destructive love, the blond was free to find someone else. Who that person was, he had no idea. But it was irrelevant. When that person came, he would know. His heart would tell him and not lead him astray. He believed that so.

"Well, time for school." He told himself. After taking one last look at the empty bottle that once contained the potion that made his love disappear, Jounouchi left his room and headed to school.

His walk to school was uneventful. Jounouchi and Shizuka talked about what had happened to each of them yesterday. Shizuka was continuing her relationship with Mokuba. He was happy for her. The blond made a mental note to have THE TALK with her. He would also have to talk to Mokuba. Jounouchi knew that the little imp would treat his sister with respect. But, having a healthy fear of Jounouchi Katsuya couldn't hurt either.

Jounouchi met his friends outside the school. Apparently, he was early again. Before, when his heart was in disarray, it translated into disarray in his life. Now that his heart was cleared of all of its conflicting feelings, first his love of Yuugi and now his love of Kaiba, he could start over again. He looked forward to that.

Yuugi was looking at Jounouchi curiously. He looked happy. Well, happier would be a better adjective. There was this joyful aura surrounding the blond. It was hard not to be happy in his presence. He wondered if it had something to do with Kaiba. Yami had told him about what Kaiba related to him. Jounouchi didn't respond or rise up to the other teen's goading. Yuugi wouldn't blame it on sickness. After all, he looked fine. Offhandedly, he wondered what it was.

Yuugi felt a familiar presence behind him. He instantly knew it to be his now boyfriend Yami.

"Jounouchi looks really happy." Yami stated.

"It looks that way, doesn't it?" Yuugi retorted.

"You don't think so?"

Yuugi looked at his friend with a wan look on his face. "It seems as though he's kind of distant."

Yami thought it over. "Well, you know Jounouchi better than I do."

Yuugi frowned. "I hope I'm wrong."

The school bell rang. It was time to head to homeroom.

Jounouchi headed to his locker. After dialing in the combination, he opened it. Inside, there was something that surprised him. It was a single pink carnation with a note attached to its stem. The blond took the flower and read the note:

To the one who caught my eye

Jounouchi smiled. This was the first time someone has ever done this to him. He had never been romanced before, from either sex. It was exhilarating. Offhandedly, he wondered who put the rose in his locker and how that person got his combination.

After retrieving his books for homeroom, he closed his locker, still remembering the touch and feel of the carnation.

Kaiba, from a hidden viewpoint, watched Jounouchi as he saw the flower for the first time. The brunet caught the smile. He was beginning to become hooked. Yesterday threw a wrench in his plans but he was getting back on track. Kaiba smirked. It's starting to fall into place. Jounouchi would be his very soon. He licked his lips, imagining the taste of the blond boy on his lips already.

The day was uneventful for both Kaiba and Jounouchi. Kaiba did try to goad the blond but he was unresponsive. Well, unresponsive was not the correct choice of words. The blond did respond but only in a smile and a dismissal. The brunet wondered if Jounouchi was getting comfortable in his presence. Is that why he wasn't answering back with an insult or an indignant response?

Now he was having second thoughts about taking the bet. Oh, he still wanted the blond. In fact, he wanted to do many sinful things to the teen with those luscious chocolate eyes. But the bet wasn't really that big of a challenge now. He figured by tomorrow, Jounouchi Katsuya would be his. And although that was what he wanted, it was just too easy. Kaiba thought that this was going to be difficult to seduce and romance him but the Jounouchi Katsuya before him was...

The final bell rang. Now part two can finally begin.

Jounouchi heard the bell rang and smiled wistfully. It was time for Kaiba to tutor him. Back when he was still in love with the asshole, he sometimes hoped for a situation like this. Kaiba would, out of the blue, tutor him, perhaps being forced by a teacher or taking it on himself to do so. It didn't matter either way. But, after one of these tutoring sessions, it would start to get hot and heavy and then ...

But now, it didn't matter. He's gotten rid of these feelings. So now he is no longer plagued by this. It's too bad though. This was exactly what he wanted and now he didn't want it anymore.

Kaiba saw Jounouchi at his locker, packing his books. He saw him caressing the flower and Kaiba had to smirk. It seems as though the carnation hit the spot. Jounouchi was so engrossed by the flower that he didn't notice Kaiba was behind him.

"So who gave you the flower, mutt?" Kaiba purred into Jounouchi's ear, making sure that his breath tickled the hanging lobe.

Kaiba expected the blond to jump or stagger forward into the locker. At the very least, he expected a shiver. What he didn't expect was Jounouchi turning around and smiling. That damn smile.... It was getting on his nerves. It's like nothing that Kaiba did affected him.

"Oh, hello Kaiba." That stupid blond smiled at him like Kaiba didn't affect his personal space at all. "Oh, the flower? I have no idea who gave that to me."

Kaiba was getting annoyed. Where was the guy who, not two days ago, would try and challenge him, who was filled with so many reactions to the stimuli that he presented? This Jounouchi Katsuya was boring and annoying in a different way than the former.

"So you just keep it in your locker? That's not like you."

"Well, I wouldn't want to hurt the person's feelings. I'm sure that it took a lot of courage to put it in my locker. It would be rude to throw it out like that."

Courage? Kaiba had to scoff. It didn't take him any courage to do that. But that Jounouchi didn't throw it out did soften the big bad CEO a bit. It meant that all of his work wasn't in vain.

"It's time for the tutoring session." Kaiba deadpanned, revealing nothing of what he was feeling.

Jounouchi smiled and Kaiba could discern the reason. Before, the blond was an easy read. Kaiba let it go. He'll break this Jounouchi soon enough.

"So where are we going to have the session?" The blond asked.

Kaiba smirked. "At my place, mutt." Kaiba looked at the blond for any visual clue: nervousness, confussion, lust. However, the person in question just smiled.

"I keep telling you, Kaiba. My name is not mutt. It's Jounouchi." The blond smiled.

Kaiba frowned. Again, this wasn't the reaction he was looking for and that irked him. Whatever. Jounouchi wanted to do this the hard way, Kaiba was willing to play.

"Then let's go."

Jounouchi followed Kaiba to a prepared limo. The chauffeur looked at the blond. He had never seen that one in his life. But before the hired help could say anything, Kaiba gave him a whithering look. It said "Don't ask questions. Just do your job." The chauffeur complied with the unspoken request.

The trip was silent and that irked Kaiba. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence. Rather it was a calm and serene one. Kaiba didn't see the blond fidget or try to make light conversation. He looked perfectly ... NORMAL. Kaiba was disgusted with normal. Kaiba was infatuated with the blond because he was different. He wasn't like anyone that Kaiba had ever known in his life. Jounouchi Katsuya was wild and strange and vibrant. But the person before him wasn't the same person worthy of his infatuation. This guy...

The limo stopped at his mansion. Jounouchi got out first and marveled at the sight of Kaiba's mansion. Kaiba got out just in time to see the look of pure awe on his face.

Normally, his face would be in anger or excitement. Recently his face had that fake smile that was starting to annoy him. But seeing the blond's face like this was awe-inspiring. His face was devoid of roughness and there was a smooth angular-ness to it. His honey-colored eyes were aglow. Kaiba didn't know any word to describe the sight before him. Beautiful fell short. It was in this instance he was reminded how much he liked that boy. No, it was beyond 'like' now. This was a full-on crush

And so Kaiba's mission, beyond the bet, was to see that face of his head-on, to witness it with his own eyes.

"Wow, your house is huge." Jounouchi remarked. "It's almost like you're trying to compensate for something."

In that instance, Jounouchi recoiled in horror. This was exactly the thing he was trying to avoid. He wanted to feel nothing next to Kaiba but the words slipped out of his mouth unbidden. The blond resolved himself to visit the magic shop after this session.

Kaiba caught the jibe. It seems as though it slipped the facade that the blond had created. The brunet smirked. That's the Jounouchi he knew. "Why do you say that? Are you trying to catch a peek?"

Jounouchi smiled. When Kaiba saw that, he frowned.

"Of course not." The blond remarked flippantly.

Kaiba made an uninterested noise but in actually, he was perturbed by the way that Jounouchi covered up that gaffe. Instead of rising to his insult, he pretended like it didn't bother him. Kaiba was getting sick of this.

Kaiba led him inside his mansion. His staff looked curiously at the visitor. No one had ever see this boy before and so, it was interesting. The master of the house glared at all of them and they all went about what they were suppose to do.

Kaiba appropriately brought Jounouchi to his study. Jounouchi gasped. Kaiba noted that the look on his face was similar to when he saw the mansion for the first time. However, this time it was much more restrained.

"It's like those studies on the TV." The blond smirked.

Kaiba didn't respond this time. He just looked at him. Why was it that he was acting like this?

The study session was unlike any normal session. Kaiba wasn't really focused on it at all. The original plan, when he decided to take this bet in the first place, was, after bringing Jounouchi to his place for a study session, he would force the blond into being comfortable in his presence. Bit by bit, he would tear down the wall that he helped build between them. However, now that Jounouchi was acting differently, a new course had to be taken. He did play the part of the tutor but his focus was on trying to make Jounouchi as uncomfortable as possible. All he wanted was to break that facade. Kaiba was sitting across from Jounouchi, looking him dead in the eyes the whole time. He just glowered at the guy. That blond's face didn't lose that annoying grin. Was he taking pleasure in this?

As for the math tutoring session itself, Jounouchi had no idea what he was doing. Of course, he had planned on that.

"Dummy, even a child knows that you are suppose to solve what's in parentheses first before you move on to anything else." Kaiba goaded.

Instead of the usual response, Jounouchi just said "Oops! You're right." And then he smiled.

That smile was getting on his nerves.

"I'm taking your pencil." Kaiba spat out tersely. He reached for the pencil, making sure to swipe his pinky across the blond's hand ever so innocuously. Looking at the teen across from him surreptitiously, he saw that his face didn't change a single bit. Kaiba was getting frustrated.

Then he got up from his seat and grabbed the chair. He placed it unceremoniously next to Jounouchi and sat in it. Making sure that he violated the blond's personal space as he did it, Kaiba showed Jounouchi what he was doing wrong. As he did so, the taller teen was looking for visual clues that the guy next to him was uncomfortable: rapid breathing, color loss, sweat. However, he got none of that.

Kaiba started to wonder if he had read Jounouchi wrong this entire time. Was the blond really in love with him? He only heard it from Yami that this guy had a crush on him. However, he knew that Yami wouldn't lie to him about that. Yami was a bastard and an asshole but he wasn't a liar.

The tutoring session ended. Kaiba had made no progress with Jounouchi. Although the CEO didn't want Jounouchi to leave yet, this session had force him to reevaluate how he was to go about winning Jounouchi's heart.

As Jounouchi was being escorted outside the mansion, for some reason, he lost his balance and tripped. As he was falling, the blond tried to grab on to Kaiba.

Thinking quickly, Kaiba allowed himself to fall as well. When the two boys fell, Jounouchi fell with his back against the floor. Kaiba used his hands to prop himself up and hover over Jounouchi.

Neither boy moved for a moment. Kaiba looked at Jounouchi's face. He saw that his pupils were dilated, his breathing increased and his breathing quickened. THIS was what he wanted. THIS was the face that he needed to see. A confused Jounouchi was what he wanted to see. This Jounouchi was filled with life. This Jounouchi was attractive. This Jounouchi was who he wanted. He smirked and raked his eyes over the body of the boy beneath him like a tiger stalks its prey.

Jounouchi noticed the awkward position that they were in and couldn't find it in himself to move or even say something.

"This isn't happening." He kept repeating in his mind. "This is just a dream. Why isn't he moving? What is he getting out of this? Why am I not moving? Why isn't the potion working?"

He was starting to feel for him again. This was bad. At this rate, all the work that he put into removing his feelings for the bastard will just crop up again.

Jounouchi mustered all of his will power to push Kaiba away, gently at that. He put on that smile that has been irritating Kaiba for the longest time. "Wow. Sorry about that, Kaiba." He chuckled weakly. It was a ploy and both of them knew it.

Kaiba smirked, not at all surprised at what the blond just did.

"We'll pick up what we started tomorrow." The double-entendre coated the sentence so well, Jounouchi had a hard time discerning what Kaiba meant with that. "Make sure to get home safely." He cooed. "I wouldn't want anything to happen to you."

Jounouchi smiled. "Of course." The blond got up from the floor and excused himself.

Kaiba's smirk widened. Now he knew that the blond was still in there. With that knowledge, he knew now that pursuing Jounouchi Katsuya wasn't a worthless cause, nor was it an easy challenge. Jounouchi Katsuya would be his and he would enjoy the chase.

"Jounouchi Katsuya, run. Run as much as you wish. You will only be tired when I finally catch you and make you mine."

Jounouchi ran to the magic shop. He needed another potion that will make him indifferent to Kaiba again. He needed to stop feeling this. It led him astray once before.... NEVER AGAIN.

TBC

This chapter was more introspective than I wanted it to be. For starters, I've been getting a lot of messages to continue this story but as I was updating my other stories and having ideas for them, I didn't know how to go about with this chapter. What would be effective here? What was the point I wanted to portray? If anyone deserves credit (besides me of course) for coming up with this chapter, it's my beta. He told me that sometimes you just have to use a chapter to set up a crescendo. I am setting up for something big. The next chapter, when I finally get that in, will show you where I am going.

Jou is using magic to make his love disappear and Kaiba's getting more aggressive in his pursuit of Jou. It's all leading to one point. So please bear with me.

Finally, please leave me a review. They make me happy to hear what people are thinking when reading this. Don't just leave an "omg luv it plz update kthxbai" review. That really doesn't help and it kind of turns me off of typing. Tell me. What do you like? What don't you like? I'll try and answer each and every one. Drop me a line. I will be happy.

Lastly, the order of updates

Only in My Dreams - Chapter 8: Where We Go From Here

Dearly Beloved - Chapter 10: Passion

Once More, With Feeling - Act V: Final Act (I will finish that story)

Young Hearts, Run Free - Chapter 9: Escalation

See you soon

Sparky