Kaiba hadn't realized he'd fallen asleep until he woke the next morning twisted in his brother's sheets. He felt groggy, and his hands were stiff from clutching his phone the entire night. Tossing the phone aside, Kaiba flexed his sore hands, stretching out the tendons and working movement back into his joints. He felt sleep-drunk, but he had finally gotten a hold of Mokuba.
He had, hadn't he? Kaiba bolted upright, rummaging through the sheets for his phone. He couldn't have just dreamed it. Flipping his phone open, Kaiba scrolled through the call logs and sighed. It really had happened. All six minutes and forty-two seconds of it. It had probably been the longest call he'd ever made outside of work—Kaiba didn't even remember clearly what he'd even said outside of a rambling apology.
But his brother was finally coming home—would arrive at Haneda airport the next day.
It didn't give him much time to prepare mentally. Kaiba had finally gotten what he wanted, but it also entailed the brothers working through their problems. And with everything happening with Jonouchi… Kaiba was beginning to second-guess whether adding Mokuba into the whole mix was a good idea.
It was out of his hands. His brother was currently en route, and the little remaining time Kaiba had by himself before his brother's plane touched down was dwindling. He would have to make an attempt, at least, to not look so completely miserable—at least on the outside. Mokuba would more than likely be able to see right through it, but Kaiba's pride wouldn't stand for him looking like a total mess.
Kaiba sighed, rolling onto his back. He couldn't tell what time it was due to Mokuba's blackout curtains, and the kid never kept a functioning alarm clock, anyway. He ruefully snapped his phone open again, squinting painfully at its bright light. It was only quarter-till five in the morning. Kaiba quickly fired off an email to take the day off, powered his phone down, and sighed. Although he'd slept a long time, he didn't feel rested. Maybe knowing that his brother would be back soon would allow him some decent sleep.
Picking himself up off the bed, Kaiba threw the sheets back and stumbled over to his room. Collapsing on his own bed, Kaiba burrowed into the sheets and inhaled deeply. They still smelled like Jonouchi. He closed his eyes and immediately fell back asleep.
He kept checking his watch. It was ridiculous—the plane wasn't even late, but the seconds seemed to stretch on. Kaiba had arrived at the airport early—perhaps too early—and now had to suffer the slow, agonizing wait for his brother's arrival. He could've easily just sent a driver over to pick the kid up, but the closer Mokuba got back to Japan, the more Kaiba found that he wanted to see him.
He'd even taken the day off from work. Three whole days missed—Kaiba was hoping this wasn't becoming a habit. His executive assistant had seemed completely unfazed, bold enough to even mother him a bit about his health, but Kaiba was still apprehensive. He rarely took vacation or sick days, but lately it seemed as though he was cashing in on them all the time. Ever since Jonouchi had re-entered his life, really.
No, Kaiba wasn't going to think about him today. Today would be about his brother.
Kaiba stood at the back of the arrivals crowd, Isono keeping watch behind him. He had almost started to check his watch again when the glass doors separating the waiting area opened, and a steady stream of people came spilling out. The volume in the room picked up suddenly, family members excitedly greeting their relatives and high-pitched shrieks from a large gaggle of teenaged girls and older women trying to get a glimpse of some celebrity.
And just when the anxiety had started to creep up his chest into his throat, Kaiba caught sight of the wild mop of dark hair. It was strange—Mokuba had only been gone a couple of months, but it seemed like he had changed somehow in that short period of time. He looked different, but Kaiba couldn't pinpoint what that difference exactly was—maybe in the way his brother carried himself.
Well, Mokuba had had a birthday while in America. The first birthday they had ever been apart. Kaiba felt a sharp pang in his chest.
"Hey, Seto," Mokuba greeted a tad bit shyly, "I hope you didn't miss me too much while I was away."
Kaiba opened his mouth, but the words wouldn't come out. He approached his brother instead, bending down slightly to wrap him in a tense hug. The kid wasn't that much shorter now than Kaiba—perhaps just an inch under his shoulders. When had he gotten so big? He felt Mokuba still before the embrace was returned. Kaiba broke away after a few seconds, "I'm glad you're back."
"I'm glad, too, Nii-sama," answered Mokuba as he wrapped his arms around Kaiba's chest, "but if you hold me any harder, I might die right here in this terminal."
Kaiba quickly stepped back, running an uneasy hand through his hair. "Is there anywhere you want to go before we head back home?"
"Not really. I'm really tired." Mokuba glanced behind Kaiba's figure, spotting Isono in the background. He waved before looking back up toward his brother. "They fed us on the plane, and it was crappy food, but I really just want to chill out for the rest of the day, if you don't mind.
"Besides, since when do you even like going out and doing stuff?" Mokuba asked jokingly.
"You've been away for a while; I didn't know if there was anything you missed," Kaiba answered, turning towards the exit. Isono immediately filed in by Kaiba's side, taking Mokuba's suitcases from him.
"So did I miss anything while I was gone," Mokuba started, taking long strides to keep up with his older brother's pace, "well, besides the Americans coming over. I'm sure more exciting things have been happening at home, though, right? Something is always going on, at least on your end, since you hate excitement so much."
Kaiba could feel the frown tugging at the edges of his mouth and fought to keep it at bay. He knew he would have to tell Mokuba about Jonouchi eventually, and if he skirted the issue now, it would only make Mokuba mad later. "Jonouchi now works for KaibaCorp."
"Wait, Jonouchi Katsuya?" Mokuba paused for a moment, clearly in disbelief, before he snapped out of it and began walking again. "Why? How? Since when? I thought you wouldn't even allow that to happen, since you, I don't know, hate him for no entirely good reason..."
Isono brought the car around, and Kaiba waited to reply until they had both piled into the back seat. "Not for long—just shortly after you left. He's...a much better Duelist than he was before. So I offered him a sponsorship, and he accepted. It's as simple as that."
Or not, but Mokuba didn't need to know about that just yet...
"It's never that simple, but whatever you say, Nii-sama..."
Quieting, Mokuba didn't ask any more questions. Kaiba didn't like being pressured, and they knew each other well enough to sense when to stop pushing the other. He took out his phone to entertain himself, clearly busy texting someone while the car drove back towards Domino City.
"I'm glad you changed your mind about him, though," Mokuba added after a few minutes of silence, "He might be a knucklehead, but Jonouchi deserves a break."
"Hmm…" Kaiba crossed his arms over his chest as he stared out the window, watching the scenery pass by. "He's adapted to corporate life much better than I had anticipated, but he could still use some refining."
"That's not a big deal."
Kaiba never had to really learn how to play Duel Monsters. It had all come naturally to him, like chess had when he had been much younger. Mokuba had known this, along with Kaiba himself. It made it harder for him to sympathize with players like Jonouchi, who struggled through the game and didn't immediately understand all the rules at once.
Mokuba was probably right. It wasn't as big of a deal as he was making it.
When Kaiba looked over again, the kid had passed out. He stared at his brother's face for a long time—Mokuba was beginning to resemble their father. He'd always had—at least more than Kaiba—but now that his face had thinned somewhat (another growth spurt?), his cheekbones were becoming more prominent and the resemblance much more evident. Where his unruly head of hair had come from, Kaiba still didn't have a clue.
They arrived back at the mansion after a short time. Kaiba had had to nudge Mokuba awake, and the latter had allowed himself to be shuffled up to his bedroom, even whining to be tucked in. Kaiba had managed to keep back his amusement at the childish request, but it had made him feel warm, all the same. A warmth he hadn't felt in a very long time.
It was still early in the day, and Mokuba would no doubt be knocked out for the remainder. He had always been more susceptible to jet lag than Kaiba had ever been, needing ample sleep and drifting through the subsequent handful of days largely in a daze. Kaiba sighed, looking down at the sleeping figure of his brother. He had taken the whole day off, but now he didn't know what to do with himself. He honestly didn't like being away from work for so long—idling away his time just wasn't in his nature.
He needed to do something. Kaiba supposed that showing up to work unexpectedly might not be such a bad thing. At the very least, it would keep his workers on their toes. Finding a mischievous pleasure from that thought, Kaiba collected his briefcase from his office (which had since been cleaned and no longer reeked of cheap beer, Kaiba noted) and made his way to the garage.
Kaiba had just sat down with Eguchi and Nakahara when Jonouchi strolled through the door, distracted.
"Hey Nakahara, can you tell me-" Jonouchi stopped short when he noticed Kaiba and the intern hovering over the executive assistant's desk. "Ah, never mind, I'll just catch you later, since you're busy right now."
Jonouchi did a quick one-eighty, turning heel and strolling right out of the office before any of them could say a word. From what Kaiba could catch of his face before Jonouchi ran off, he looked startled, his eyes widening a little before something in his brain clicked to take off and retreat away.
Again.
Kaiba wasn't going to allow that to happen this time, though. He was of the mind to take on challenges head-on instead of avoiding whatever made him uncomfortable.
"If you'll excuse me, just a moment," Kaiba said to his assistants and promptly marched after Jonouchi. The other had almost made it to the elevators, but Kaiba wasn't about to let him escape so easily. He picked up his stride, catching the doors before they closed. And since that particular elevator led to the executive suite, it would be making no stops for at least fifteen floors.
Leaning against one of the walls of the elevator, Kaiba used his code to override Jonouchi's floor selection, choosing the last floor before the lobby. He crossed his arms against his chest and gave Jonouchi a cool look. "You were running again."
"So you decided to trap me in an elevator? Wow, Kaiba, you really have your social skills down, I see..."
Jonouchi stood away with his arms folded across his chest and scowled at the carpeted floor. His eyes could have bore holes, he looked so angry, but he managed not to blow up like Kaiba would have predicted. Mostly, his body language screamed "uncomfortable." Unfortunately for Jonouchi, though, Kaiba didn't really care about that.
"Tell me then, since when did constant evasion rank highly on proper form?" Kaiba bit back sarcastically. "I wouldn't have to chase you down if you didn't keep running away."
"Take a social cue for once and leave me alone, then."
"I want to talk with you," Kaiba said, his voice softening marginally.
"There's nothing to talk about," Jonouchi replied a bit spitefully, "At least not in this place. I'm at work. And so are you."
Kaiba looked away, staring at the monitor in the corner of the elevator as it scrolled through the latest stock reports and weather, not really paying attention. "Then you would be amenable to talking outside of work?" he asked quietly.
Jonouchi sighed loudly, slumping against the wall before looking at his shoes.
"Do I have to?"
"I believe it would be…" What was the word Isono had used? "...prudent," Kaiba finished.
Making a face, Jonouchi clearly didn't understand what that even meant. His face bunched up in a slightly amusing but mostly just irritating way before he turned away to stare at his feet some more.
They grew silent, the floors ticking by. Kaiba knew he didn't have much time before the doors would open and Jonouchi would undoubtedly race off again. "...How much time do you need?"
"For what?" Jonouchi asked.
"Before you're ready to talk about this. I realize you aren't so inclined just yet, but I want an expectation set." Mokuba had closed off communication with Kaiba for months. He wasn't willing to go through that kind of treatment again.
"Kaiba, there's nothing to talk about. Why do we need to talk about something that was a drunken mistake? Just leave it alone, already. It's not like we're going to go and let that happen again...
"I don't need that kind of drama in my life, okay? I have enough of it thanks to family, without adding you to the mix," sighed Jonouchi, "Not that you'd understand or even care about any of that."
Kaiba could feel his blood pressure rising. Of all people to become involved with, why did he have to go and pick one of the most obstinate? "That's bullshit, Jonouchi—you can't just blame everything on the-"
The elevator dinged, the doors opening as the car came to a stop. Kaiba's mouth snapped shut, his words lost as Jonouchi quickly darted out and away, not even sparing a glance back. He watched Jonouchi retreat until the doors slid closed again, the car entirely still until Kaiba forcefully punched the button back to the executive suite.
He didn't fucking understand Jonouchi at all. Why was he throwing hissy fits over something he had clearly enjoyed and had allowed to happen? He'd fucking encouraged it, and now he wanted to act like it was some colossal mistake—that everything that had happened between them was solely the fault of the alcohol.
That Jonouchi refused to acknowledge anything about it was just so insulting. Kaiba knew it was wrong of him to have cornered Jonouchi like that, but what other option did he have? Jonouchi was back to actively avoiding him, making everything so much worse.
Kaiba could take rejection, if it was honest. If the both of them hadn't enjoyed it, if it hadn't turned into whatever that night had been, and if they both had regretted it after. But Jonouchi didn't seem to reject Kaiba so much as just deny the event entirely.
And that burned at Kaiba more than any rejection could have. Because he'd felt so much, and surely Jonouchi would be lying if he'd claimed the opposite.
Throwing himself back into work, Kaiba mulled over the night with Jonouchi, picking it apart and studying it from varying angles, eventually analyzing their interactions all the way back to their first meeting. None of it made sense. But somehow, the two of them always seemed to circle each other, caught in some weird kind of gravitational pull.
By the end of the day, Kaiba had a large stack in his outbox and his thoughts had been consumed by the idiot. He needed to speak to Jonouchi, before he went crazy. Crazier than he already admittedly was.
It was almost six o'clock—Jonouchi would have already left for the day. Perhaps if he caught Jonouchi at home, Kaiba could persuade him into going out for dinner. Or maybe he could be proactive and bring food over. It would be a rather weak peace offering, but Jonouchi was a glutton when the food wasn't on his tab, so maybe it would work.
Pulling up along the alley behind Jonouchi's apartment building, Kaiba breathed in deeply before he grabbed the bag of takeout and locked the doors. He climbed the stairs to Jonouchi's floor warily, careful not to touch the rusting railing. He almost tripped over the uneven cement steps, and silently cursing, Kaiba made his way through the dim open hallway, until he was face-to-face with the door to Jonouchi's apartment. His stomach did little flips as he raised his hand to knock.
Three sharp raps, and then waiting. The flips in his stomach increased.
Jonouchi opened the door, the chain still attached as he peeked through. His face fell, eyes creasing before finally speaking through the crack. Unlike how Kaiba had predicted, Jonouchi didn't immediately invite him inside.
"What are you doing here? Stalking me now? God, Kaiba, you are a freak..."
Ignoring Jonouchi's snide commentary, Kaiba held up the bag in front of him. "I brought food; can we talk?"
Pausing, Jonouchi stared at the bag, seemingly distracted. "What kind of food did you bring to bribe me with?"
"Katsudon—I thought it would probably travel better than other foods…" It wasn't something Kaiba normally ate, but it was filling and he hadn't eaten all day. "Are you going to let me in, or am I just going to stand here while the food gets cold?"
"Okay fine, just wait a minute."
Jonouchi unchained the lock and opened the door while moving out of the way, his eyes immediately trailing towards the floor as Kaiba stepped through the doorway. Once he was clear, Jonouchi quickly closed and locked the door again, pausing once the dead bolt had clicked and resting his forehead against the wood as he groaned aloud.
"What?" Kaiba said as he stepped out of his shoes and set them aside. He chanced a glance around while Jonouchi recovered from whatever mental hardship he was experiencing. The place was small but surprisingly clean. The kitchen—if it would really be called that—was tiny, with a medium-sized refrigerator and a two-burner stove. Beyond it was what Kaiba assumed to be the living room, which was empty save for an ancient television set propped atop milk crates, a sofa that had surely seen better days, and a small wooden coffee table. A door to the left, and then two doors to the right, all shut tightly, one on the right having a large split along the edge, arcing outward.
"I never thought for a million years you'd just show up here like this, in the bad side of town," mumbled Jonouchi, "You're more crazy than I first thought."
Begrudgingly, he put himself to work getting tea ready, although it wasn't the good kind Kaiba was used to. It was cheap and the taste wasn't as strong, and Jonouchi apparently didn't care since it was probably all he could afford for the longest time. He didn't say anything as he got the kettle to boiling, pulling out two pairs of chopsticks from his utensil drawer and balancing them atop the hot cups before finally joining Kaiba to sit across from him on the floor.
"I'm not accustomed to having money yet," spoke Jonouchi as he brought his cup up to his mouth, "You don't have to drink it if you don't like the taste."
"It's fine," Kaiba said as he emptied the bag, placing the bowls between them and uncovering them. The steam was visible as it wafted up and away. "They didn't serve gourmet at the orphanage."
Jonouchi said nothing in response. His eyes just went downcast as he started fiddling with his food.
They sat in heavy silence, Jonouchi stabbing at his rice with his chopsticks while Kaiba blew at his tea. The uncomfortable feeling in his stomach had never gone away.
"You don't have to keep avoiding me, you know."
"Yeah, and why shouldn't I? You avoided having anything to do with me for years, Kaiba..."
Shoveling food into his mouth, Jonouchi only briefly looked up at Kaiba's face before glancing back down again. His eyes were dark yet still warm, the color something like hazel but not quite.
Kaiba sighed, picking up his own bowl and swirling the food around with his chopsticks. "I don't want the next two years to be like this, Jonouchi. At the very least, I would like it if we could be civil...or even friendly...with each other." He quickly turned his gaze down, staring at his food.
"Okay, fine. Talk away. I'm listening..."
"The other night happened. I don't think either of us can ignore that fact," Kaiba began as he bit into a chunk of pork, chewing slowly. "And I don't think either of us can say that we didn't like it, either."
Jonouchi snorted. "So?" He ate more slowly than Kaiba, picking at his food more so than actually eating it. Maybe it was nerves. It was clear to Kaiba, from where he was sitting, that the blond was in no way, shape, or form relaxed sitting in the living room with him there.
"You tell me, Jonouchi. I stopped. Why did you let it continue if it would bother you so much after?"
Pausing for a moment, Jonouchi turned his gaze away before speaking up again. "I don't know," he began, shaking his head and dumping his chin into the palm of his hand, "I was drunk. It felt good at the time. I wasn't thinking clearly. I don't have a great track record at decision-making, you know.
"And I didn't really mean half of those ugly things I said to you. I was just really, really angry..."
Kaiba picked up his teacup, its contents finally cool enough to drink. "I still don't know why you were in my office to begin with that night…"
"I needed to get out of this place. Yours was the first thing that came to mind..."
"That doesn't make any sense," Kaiba reasoned, the tea acrid against his tongue. "You've claimed not to like me, yet you came to my residence instead of going to a friend's?"
"I'm not a logical person, Kaiba. There was no sense in any of it. You pissed me off at the photoshoot; I felt lost when I got home. My dad left a bunch of booze here, so I decided to get drunk at your place and start a fight with you. I didn't think it would end up with us sleeping together... Are you actually complaining over it?" snorted Jonouchi, "You got the better deal than I did."
Kaiba snorted, unable to contain his reaction. He jabbed at his food with more force than necessary. "You were hardly complaining while it was happening. And if I recall correctly, you were the one undressing me first." His thoughts raced back to Jonouchi's hands running across his chest—it had felt like fire.
"Whatever. You weren't the one waking up in the morning feeling like someone had rammed a rod up their ass... Did you want to talk to me or just continue going on with this patronizing bullshit of yours?"
Setting aside his bowl of half-eaten katsudon, Kaiba stared at Jonouchi, wondering just what it was about the other man that he felt drawn to. They weren't going anywhere with this talk, and Jonouchi was just growing more defensive by the minute. "Fine. I'll be honest, then. I felt something that night, but if it really meant nothing to you, then there's no reason why we can't act like adults. You don't have to play this avoidance game. Things are a little weird now, but it'll pass. It's not like I'm some predator, so you can stop looking like a deer trapped in headlights every time we run into each other. But things as they are now just aren't working."
Kaiba knew he was lying to himself—he didn't want things to return to normal between them, but normal would be better than the cold, distant treatment he was currently getting.
"Is that all you want, then?" asked Jonouchi tentatively, his eyes lifting up finally and actually looking Kaiba in the eyes longer than three seconds before glancing away again, "I can try to ignore the awkwardness."
"Yes," Kaiba replied, swallowing the lump in his throat. "It will be a long two years if things continue down the same path we're on."
"Yeah," Jonouchi agreed, "I don't need anymore complications in my life, anyways..."
"I don't...hate you, Jonouchi," Kaiba said, reaching for his tea and surprised at the truth of the words.
"Well good," laughed Jonouchi as he fought back a small smile, "because I don't hate you, either. Not since a long time ago. Are we done talking now? I'm starved, I can't do two things at once—I need to allow myself to feed!"
"Mm," Kaiba murmured as he picked his own food back up again. He watched as Jonouchi scarfed down his dinner enthusiastically, his demeanor drastically more relaxed since Kaiba had arrived. They ate in an easy silence, and Kaiba tried to ignore the steadily-growing stabbing feeling in his chest. "Do you want to hang out sometime? I have a media room at the mansion; you don't have to hole up in my office the next time you want someplace to go."
Jonouchi paused for a moment, mouth full of food before he swallowed. At first he looked apprehensive over the question, but it quickly melted away, "Sure, I guess. I wouldn't mind seeing more of your place. I've always been curious to look around, you know? It's like the size of my apartment complex, if not larger."
"Too big, sometimes," Kaiba allowed himself to laugh a little. "I don't have any work this weekend. Mokuba's home, but I suspect he'll want to catch up with his school friends. He'll be passed out until the weekend, anyway…"
"Okay," agreed Jonouchi, "We can try this whole hanging-out deal and not being too awkward plan, then. I'd like that."
It was all that Kaiba could really ask for, or even hope, at the moment. Nodding, Kaiba finished his tea—now completely cold. His stomach had never stopped flipping.
That very weekend, Jonouchi ended up showing up at the door unannounced. The staff had allowed him in, so it came as a complete surprise to Kaiba when he crossed one of the hallways and found Jonouchi settled on the floor of the entertainment center playing a video game with his attention completely attuned to the character on the screen. His eyes never left as he pressed the buttons quickly, defeating enemies and cursing each time he took a hit.
Kaiba thought he would have called first, or at least said he was coming. It was late afternoon, and while he had given an open invitation, it would have been at least polite to ask...
But Jonouchi had never been polite, unless forced. It probably hadn't occurred to him to say anything.
Leaning against the door frame, Kaiba crossed his arms and smirked. "So, when were you going to tell me you were here?" He watched as Jonouchi's character suddenly stilled mid-battle.
"I didn't think we were going to suddenly become video game buddies just because you don't mind me crashing here," replied Jonouchi nonchalantly, "Besides, I'm not good at playing two-player."
"I believe the very definition of 'hanging out' involves spending time together," Kaiba drawled. He didn't mind Jonouchi being over—he'd suggested the whole matter, after all—but his house wasn't some public arcade. "Try using fire on that one."
"I wasn't asking for your input, Kaiba."
Jonouchi completely blew off Kaiba's advice, killing his character in the process and cursing afterward. It was clear that help was not appreciated. Kaiba should have known as much. Jonouchi had always had a stubborn streak and probably wanted to figure out Skyrim on his own. Any offers for assistance would not be appreciated.
"And I can't believe you're pouting because I didn't call you before showing up," Jonouchi added, sneaking a look over his shoulder and snorting before turning his attention back towards the giant television screen, "I know you said you wanted to spend time together so we could be civil towards each other, but I never thought Kaiba Seto of all people would actually suggest hanging out with one of the peasants..."
Rolling his eyes even though Jonouchi couldn't see it, Kaiba countered, "I'm not pouting; it's just basic manners. This is my house, after all—I do like to know who's lurking around it."
"Well, it's me. Surprise."
Jonouchi completely turned his attention back to the video game, not commenting anymore after that.
Kaiba watched Jonouchi's character regenerate once again before he left to collect his laptop and a file folder of documents. Just because it was the weekend didn't mean he still didn't have work to complete. He returned in a matter of minutes, ignoring Jonouchi's griping when he crossed in front of the TV to settle on the couch at Jonouchi's back. Lifting the screen, the sound of keystrokes soon joined with Jonouchi's button-mashing.
Jonouchi hadn't even bothered creating a new character, instead loading one of Kaiba's saves. "Try not to fuck up my character's stats too much."
"Calm down, big guy, I'm not going to even save the game. I just want to experiment."
Shrugging his shoulders and snorting, Jonouchi was clearly blowing off Kaiba's attempts at backseat driving again. He purposely tuned Kaiba out as he continued playing, leading his character astray and nearly getting killed half a dozen times before getting caught up in a fight with a dragon and losing his horse to the attack. Cursing, Jonouchi eventually figured out what to do, but his character had to walk through the woods on foot without a ride.
"Ugh, what a pain in the ass..."
He was also impatient and wouldn't use his stealth abilities properly. Jonouchi seemed like more of a fan of hack-and-slash methods instead of using his archery capabilities like someone who wanted to survive. It was mildly irritating to watch.
"Jonouchi, there's a whole arsenal of items and equipment other than that sword. Open the menu and use something else."
"I would if I wanted to, so shut it."
The room carried a steady soundtrack of rumblings and shrieks, and eventually guttural grunts as Jonouchi would progress and then die. Kaiba tried to tune it out as he paged through spreadsheets and progress reports, but when Jonouchi started to roll around the floor in aggravation, it started to be too much for Kaiba.
Jonouchi was stuck in a temple, getting pummeled by one of the dragon priests. None of his tactics were working (although, Kaiba noted with a dark sense of glee, Jonouchi had resorted to switching out weapons and trying out a few items from his stock), and Jonouchi was already on his twelfth attempt.
Kaiba decided enough was enough when he found he'd read the same paragraph three times. "Here, give me that," he said as he shoved his laptop to the side.
"What? No, dude, I'll figure it out by myself-"
But before Jonouchi could finish, Kaiba snatched it from his hands and sat down next to him, completely concentrated on the game. Jonouchi scowled at him as Kaiba cleared through the boss monster, and after a few tense moments of brooding, he nearly leapt from his spot and jumped across Kaiba's lap, grabbing his controller back.
The controller tumbled from Kaiba's hands as Jonouchi's covered his. The contact, although small and fleeting, sent a jolting rush throughout Kaiba's body. His arms prickled, and he suddenly felt warm. And then a split-second later, Jonouchi's whole torso crashed into Kaiba as the momentum continued to pull him forward. Kaiba stared dumbly at the upended controller, frozen in place as Jonouchi scrambled to right himself.
He was heavy. Heavy and warm, and the familiar smell made Kaiba think back to-
No. No, no, no—not now. Finding his brain, Kaiba pushed away and backward. He couldn't put too much distance between them, lest Jonouchi pick up on Kaiba's momentary panic and get all weird again.
It took Kaiba a moment to find his voice again. "You're supposed to kill the things on the screen, not my game system. Or me, for that matter," he said, brushing his pants.
"Stop being such a girl about it," Jonouchi snipped back. He looked at Kaiba before reaching over him again, this time slowly, watching his reaction. Leaning over very carefully, he didn't touch Kaiba this time while retrieving the controller, and he shoved Kaiba hard with his shoulder once he had his balance back, as if trying to gain some lost dignity through throwing his weight around.
Jonouchi had always been a tactile person. He roughhoused with Honda and Yugi all the time throughout high school, nearly knocking them over with his excitement. Kaiba wasn't ready for that, at all. If he was at all honest with himself, he knew he wasn't capable of handling that kind of contact with Jonouchi, rough or otherwise.
Not after having sex with him.
Kaiba snorted, getting up from the floor and tucking himself back into the corner of the couch. He pulled his long legs up underneath him, reclaiming his laptop and getting back to his business.
"What, did I get your panties in a bunch now?" snickered Jonouchi as he turned around to peer at Kaiba.
Kaiba ignored the bait, slapping his folder thick with papers down on the cushion right next to Jonouchi's ear. Civil. They were trying to be civil to each other. "No, but that boss certainly had yours," he replied flatly.
"Oh whatever, I would have been fine before you decided to hijack my controller from me," responded Jonouchi a tad heatedly, "You're as bad as Honda, you know that. And a better player, but still. It's annoying. You don't just go and mess with another man's game."
Kaiba looked up pointedly from his screen, his fingers pausing on the keys, "Says the man who's playing on another man's save."
"That I'm not planning on saving, so there."
Eyebrows furrowing and face becoming strained from frustration, Jonouchi looked irritated and slightly tense. His whole body was rigid, his shoulders slumped and his legs crossed as he continued to sit on the floor and play, now in silence. He didn't speak for a while, just button-crushing as his game improved from actually using Kaiba's little pointers.
He didn't seem too happy about it, though. At one point, Kaiba saw Jonouchi biting his lip hard enough that he thought he'd make himself bleed.
"I have other games," Kaiba said as he rattled away on his laptop.
"I like this one."
"You're about to chew your lip off," Kaiba continued, his typing never faltering.
"Stop staring at my mouth, then, weirdo," Jonouchi shot back.
"If you haven't noticed, I'm quite occupied by my own screen. That was a simple, brief observation." It was getting to the point where Kaiba didn't even need to stare to detect such small behaviors. He was always overly observant, but now with Jonouchi, Kaiba found himself becoming hyper-aware of the other's actions: small fluctuations were like alarm bells on his internal radar.
He didn't know what to make of that.
They continued in silence again, until loud stomping sounded down the hallway. "Hey Nii-sama, is it okay if-" Mokuba bounded into the room, stopping mid-stride when he noticed that the room was occupied by more than just his brother. "Oh. I didn't know Jonouchi was over," Mokuba said slowly, raising an eyebrow at the two men.
"Don't worry, your brother didn't know I was over, either," added Jonouchi as he continued button-mashing, "I like showing up at places unannounced; it's part of my charm."
"Is that how you're marketing it now?" Mokuba said with a laugh. "I didn't know you guys...hung out," he continued, looking from Kaiba to Jonouchi and back again. The bewilderment was evident on his face.
"Kaiba was the one who suggested it, not me."
It was just like Jonouchi to just throw Kaiba under the bus, so to speak. Still hunched over on the floor with his game controller, he briefly glanced at Kaiba from the corner of his eyes before turning back to the screen. Kaiba felt his skin prickle again when his eyes caught that glint of amber before Jonouchi turned quickly away. He scooted minutely deeper into the couch.
Mokuba's tone was incredulous, "I have a hard enough time getting Nii-sama to do anything non-work related, and in three months' time, you have him suggesting to hang out? Wow, I'm not sure if I should thank you, Jonouchi, or feel somewhat cheated…" His eyes narrowed slightly as they focused on Kaiba, looking him up and down before settling on Jonouchi again.
"What did you want, Mokuba?" Kaiba said, keeping his eyes focused on his laptop screen.
Snapping out of his suspicious glare, Mokuba announced, "I'm going out tonight. Probably won't be back until late, so don't wait up, okay?"
Kaiba flicked his gaze up to rest on his brother. "Who are you going out with?"
"My friends," Mokuba answered back. "I'll have my phone on me, don't worry." He shook his head before walking halfway out the door, "Don't have too much fun while I'm gone, Nii-sama."
He took off after that, not waiting for approval. Apparently he was giving it to himself these days. Asking was more of a courtesy than him asking for actual permission. Kaiba wasn't sure what to think of that. Mokuba was smarter, older, and wiser, but he was also still a teenager.
"-Too much fun doing office work, I don't see any threat of that happening tonight," Jonouchi mumbled under his breath just coherently enough that Kaiba could make him out from the couch.
"Don't criticize me for being productive. You said you don't do two-player games," Kaiba said, paging through a rather large report.
"Most normal people don't resort to work after hours, especially while under the age of thirty," replied Jonouchi cooly, "You could do like most young people do and just surf the internet and play games on there or something..."
Kaiba sighed, twisting around to stretch out across the couch, propping his head against an arm. "And most normal people aren't CEOs… I don't really have the luxury for shit like that." He flipped a page, creasing it along the staple before finally tossing the report aside. His eyes hurt.
"You thought it would be fun to hang out with me while looking over work, then? God, you can be so dull for someone so cool," said Jonouchi as he rolled his eyes dramatically, "or so I thought. I used to think you were hip, but now you're like some forty-year-old stuck in a young man's body."
"Sorry to break your illusion," Kaiba said with a hint of sarcasm as he ran a hand down his face. "You don't want to play video games together, so what do you suggest we do?"
"We can braid each other's hair, for starters," replied Jonouchi sarcastically, "and then when we're done, we'll paint each other's nails blue."
"What makes you think I'd like blue," Kaiba deadpanned. He knew Jonouchi was just trying to be an ass, but he didn't really feel keen on getting into an argument.
"Because it'll match your eyes so well," snickered Jonouchi. He was progressing in the game, finally. Kaiba couldn't tell if he was just bad at it or not really trying to begin with. Now he was killing enemies left and right and finally figured out the finer points of using a bow to kill his enemies instead of running into them head on. At least he was learning something...
"Whatever." Rolling onto his side and facing the back on the couch, Kaiba closed his eyes. He was beginning to feel tired, and Jonouchi was being contrary just for the sake of it.
It's not like Kaiba actively tried being cool or dull. He'd inherited and expanded a large, multibillion-yen corporation. It didn't just run itself. What kind of life did Jonouchi really expect him to have?
"I'll paint your toes, too, if you'd like," added Jonouchi after a few seconds of silence, winking when Kaiba looked up at him.
"I think I'll pass," Kaiba replied lazily, "I don't want to have to return the favor."
Kaiba awoke hours later, the room strangely silent. Dark shadows spilled across the walls, the room only lit by the abandoned television screen. He looked down and noticed Jonouchi passed out on the floor, curled up and snoring.
They hadn't ended up doing anything together, really, and Kaiba almost felt slightly upset at the realization. Although, he supposed it was somewhat of a success—albeit minor—that they'd both spent the majority of the day cooped up in the same room, and nothing of note had transpired. No fights, no misguided moments of passion.
Something like the return of normalcy.
Kaiba stared at Jonouchi's sleeping figure—hair tousled, arms balled up—for a while before turning back over on the couch and falling back asleep.