APRIL:
Dear Amane,
Statistics of Social Sciences remains my most difficult class of the semester; too often I think I've got it all figured out, only to get my homework back and see that I was all wrong about it. I love studying psychology and I want to make a career of it, but I don't think I want to be a researcher or professor. I can understand the statistics when I read published studies, but I don't want to be the one crunching the numbers. At the same time, there are some correlations that I'm curious about and that I would like for someone to conduct a study about. I have plenty of time to make up my mind, I suppose.
Even so, I still find myself plagued with an interest in ancient civilizations, especially in the Mediterranean and Mesopatamian areas: Greeks, Trojans, Romans, Latins, Etruscans, Carthaginians, Egyptians, Macedonians, Babylonians, Persians, Canaanites, and all the rest. It's fascinating. Maybe I'll look into getting an archaeology degree too. Is there a way for Archaeology and Psychology to work together? I hope so.
Duke is still as charming as ever, achingly so. I'm not sure if I can go on like this for much longer. He's too much of a temptation; it hurts to be so close to something you want, but can't have. If he keeps walking around the apartment shirtless, I'll have to start hiding in my room all the time. He was a heartthrob back in high-school too, except back then he wasn't my heartthrob.
Kaiba seems so different now than he used to be. I don't think anyone ever gives him a fair chance; he can be so kind if only people wouldn't write him off as being awful. He's changed, Amane. I never believed him to be a bad person; he put his own soul at stake in Duelist Kingdom for the sake of his little brother, and that has to count for something. There was always goodness in him, but he's gentle now, too. Mokuba agrees with me that his brother's doing better than ever. I'm so glad to know that, and I'm glad that I can help him too. We all need help every now and then.
Spring is in full swing and the weather is lovely, though still a little chilly every now and then. The cherry blossoms are out, and I've taken lots of nice pictures for you. I know you wanted to see them yourself one day in person. I'm sorry you never had the chance.
I still love you dearly and wish you were here. You're in a better place now, though, so I wouldn't dare try to pull you back out of heaven. Rest in peace.
Love your big brother,
Ryou Bakura
Ryou carefully folded his letter and slid it into the envelope, sealing it as usual before writing his name and address in the top left-hand corner on the back of the envelope, accompanied by today's date. Then he sighed a little and placed the letter in a shoebox holding some of his other, recent letters. He'd been writing his little sister letters for years now, and maybe it was childish for him to continue, but he missed her too much to stop. Writing them made him feel better, if nothing else.
MAY:
"How was therapy today?" Duke asked as he removed ingredients from the fridge and placed them on the counter behind him. Then he knelt down to get the large skillet from the cabinet.
"Oh, um, I didn't go." Ryou looked oddly pleased as he said that, and his next words explained why. "Last week was my last one."
"Really? That's great!" Duke's enthusiasm made Ryou blush. "Why didn't you tell me? This is cause for celebration!"
"It's not that big a deal," Ryou murmured bashfully, fidgeting with the corner of his textbook.
"Once I get the stir-fry cooking, I'm going to dash out and buy you a surprise."
"You don't need to do that—" Ryou interrupted hastily, not wanting to cause a fuss.
"You don't mind watching the stove while I'm out, do you?" Duke continued with a calm smile. He wouldn't let Ryou play it off as no big deal. Achieving a state of steady, calm contentment after spending so much of his life anxious and unhappy was a milestone and worth the attention Duke wanted to give it.
"Of course not." Ryou smiled gratefully, the expression looking quite at home on him.
A half hour later, Duke was serving dinner—teriyaki stir-fry over rice—for both of them, his surprise in the fridge. After dinner, Ryou insisted doing the dishes, and Duke prepared a pyramid of cream puffs for the both of them. He warmed some chocolate fudge sauce in a small pot, then transferred it to a wide bowl for dipping after drizzling some over the mound of profiteroles. He set down the canister of whipped cream next to them as well, and just as Ryou was drying his hands on a towel next to the sink, Duke clapped his hand over Ryou's eyes.
"Hey!"
"Are you ready for your surprise?" Duke asked eagerly, his voice sending a little thrill down Ryou's spine all the way to his toes.
"Yes."
Duke guided Ryou over to the kitchen island, then uncovered his eyes.
"Surprise!" he exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air as Ryou gasped with pleasure and clasped his hands together before his chest, taking such plain delight in something so simple.
"They're shaped like a tetrahedron," Ryou observed with starry eyes. "I love tetrahedrons!" Duke burst out laughing and threw his arms around his flatmate.
"You're such a nerd," he teased, nuzzling into Ryou's neck—against his better judgment. The smell of Ryou's coconut milk shampoo tickled his nose and made him immediately think of tropical kisses and sex on the beach and dancing around campfires drinking rum until they got dizzy and fell down in the sand, incessantly quoting Pirates of the Caribbean until they talked themselves into oblivion. Duke swallowed hard and pulled away, trying to keep a clear head. He really needed to get his fantasies under control.
"These are so good!" Ryou exclaimed around the puff he was chewing. He'd used his fingers to pop one into his mouth, but now he was reaching for a fork so that he could impale one and dip it into the bowl of hot fudge. The dripping pastry went straight from the bowl to his mouth, a small stray lock of silvery white hair sticking to the chocolate-smothered ball for a moment as it brushed past. Ryou's mouth opened wide to eat it in one bite, and Duke couldn't help that he was staring as he did so. The tip of his tongue flicked out to catch a drop of chocolate on his lip before he resumed chewing his dessert. Ryou started when Duke's finger and thumb pinched a small strand of hair, gently pulling at it. He cast a sidelong glance at Duke, feeling acutely embarrassed.
"You had chocolate in your hair," Duke explained, his voice huskier than he wanted it to be. For a few moments, all they could do was stare at each other with flushed cheeks and shallow breaths. When had Duke moved so close to him? When had Ryou gotten so beautiful? It took all of Duke's self-control to not kiss him right there and then, and instead move away to get a fork for himself so he could share in the bountiful dessert.
"I'm done with my exams!" Ryou exclaimed as he burst into the apartment the next evening, looking utterly elated. It was past dinner-time—he'd eaten on campus with some of his classmates—so Duke had already eaten his own dinner of leftovers. "I almost didn't finish my last essay in time, but I did, and now everything's done!" He dropped his backpack to the floor and took off his shoes as Duke came out of his bedroom, dressed comfortably in skinny sweats and a loose t-shirt. His hair was down instead of in his usual ponytail. He opened his mouth to congratulate his friend when he stopped short.
"What happened?"
Ryou looked at Duke in confusion, then followed Duke's gaze to his jeans. His left pants-leg from the knee down was stained with a dark red, almost black, stripe. It was undoubtedly blood, but its presence there surprised Ryou as much as it did Duke.
"Oh, I didn't notice that."
"How do you not—Okay, nevermind." Duke had learned not to question things like that. "Come on, I'll help you clean up." Ryou sheepishly followed him to the bathroom. He started trying to roll up the pant of his jeans while Duke looked for the band-aids in the closet.
"I don't think I can roll these up far enough," Ryou fretted.
"Just take them off, then," Duke remarked casually, his face hidden from Ryou's view. "The sooner we can get them in some hot water, the better, or else they might be too stained to wear again."
Ryou hesitated, hands hovering over the button of his jeans before he gave in to common sense. He slipped out of his dark-wash jeans and turned on the sink tap, waiting a few moments for the hot water to start flowing before stopping the sink and stuffing the pant leg in under the flow of hot water, rubbing the fabric with his hands as the blood billowed in pink plumes from the denim.
"So, any idea how that happened?" Duke asked, still sounding calm as he dug around a black bin of medical supplies with a dissatisfied frown. He'd found the antibac, but where were the band-aids? Surely they still had some left?
"I do remember tripping over something on my way off campus, and I did fall and hit the ground kind of hard with my knees. I might have hit a rock or a sharp tree root or something." This wasn't Ryou's first time getting accidentally hurt and then not knowing what had caused the injury, but usually it was an annoying bruise on his elbow or paper-cut on his pinky that he couldn't explain, not something this significant.
"Try to be more careful, okay? I don't want you to get seriously hurt."
"I'll try." When the sink was full of hot water, Ryou turned off the tap and dried his hands, letting his pants soak and hoping that would be enough .
"I think we're out of band-aids," Duke sighed, closing the closet door. "So we'll have to use gauze." He tried hard not to let his eyes stray as Ryou sat reluctantly on the edge of the tub in his dark teal boxers and black button-down shirt with three-quarter sleeves. Duke put the bandages down on the floor by Ryou's feet, then wet a washcloth in the sink before kneeling in front of him and gently wiping away the blood that had stuck to his leg. He started with the smudges low on his shins and worked his way up to his knee, where the source of the blood awaited him in the form of a wide gash.
"You don't have to do that, you know," Ryou commented awkwardly after the long silence. "I could do it myself."
"It's fine; I like taking care of you." Duke smiled at Ryou to reassure him, but it only seemed to make him more uncomfortable.
"I'm not helpless, though," Ryou insisted, as if he felt like he needed to prove himself. "I do appreciate your help, but I—" He'd started to shift a little to make himself more comfortable on the narrow edge of the tub, but then he'd started to slip backwards. He was about to fall backwards into the tub, so he reached forward to grab onto Duke to steady himself. At the same time, Duke reached up to grab Ryou's waist with both hands.
"What did I tell you about being careful?" Duke teased, pulling Ryou forward a little so that he regained his balance.
"Er, right." Ryou averted his eyes as Duke patted his skin dry and started applying the antibacterial cream to the wound before pressing the gauze to it and fastening it with the medical tape. Ryou was trying to think about something to distract him from the way Duke's hands felt on his skin and the focused emerald gaze sparkling in his friend's eyes. He tried thinking about Kaiba first, but that didn't help at all. Those dazzling blue eyes... those ridiculously long limbs... those strong yet gentle hands...
No, thinking about Kaiba definitely wasn't helping.
"Thank you for your help," Ryou said politely as Duke finished taping the bandage onto his knee. Duke seemed uncharacteristically quiet tonight, as if he were deep in thought, so when he stopped his friend from standing up, Ryou was surprised, but not nearly as surprised as he was a moment later when Duke suddenly stripped off his loose t-shirt.
"Duke, what are you—"
A hand on the back of Ryou's head stopped him as those bright eyes filled his field of vision and warm lips pressed against his. Ryou's eyes fluttered closed with a self-conscious whimper as he leaned into the kiss, the battle already lost. He'd been holding back for so long, but he couldn't take it anymore. Apparently, neither could Duke, who was now sitting back on his heels, guiding Ryou into his lap so that their lips never needed to part. Ryou now knelt straddling Duke's waist, gripping his shoulders tightly.
"You've been driving me crazy, Ryou," Duke panted when they parted for air.
"This is a bad idea," the Brit murmured, even as he shifted closer, savoring the indirect friction of Duke's body on his quickly growing erection.
"Forbidden love is sexy," was Duke's playful reply before sucking Ryou into a heated kiss that had them grabbing at each other like the greedy teenagers they were.
Duke was less clumsy than Ryou, but he felt just as desperate as he hurried to unbutton Ryou's shirt. He'd wrestle the brown-eyed boy to the floor, where he lay on his back, trying to help Duke with the damnably small buttons on his black shirt.
"Screw it," Duke muttered, lifting Ryou up in his arms and standing up a little unsteadily.
Ryou clung to him as he was carried, then realized that he had prime access to Duke's neck, so he started nibbling tentatively at the skin. Encouraged by Duke's staccato moan, Ryou bit a little harder, then kissed the mark to soothe the sting. His lips were torn from the spot when Duke dropped him unceremoniously onto his bed. Ryou pushed himself into a sitting position and watched Duke devour him with his eyes: shirt only half undone, the black and teal fabrics making a lovely contrast against his paler skin, his hair a fluffed mess that fell around his shoulders in a glowing white halo.
"You're the single most beautiful person I've ever seen."
Ryou's heart stuttered. "I-I don't know what to say," he stammered honestly, his mind turned to putty by sexual instinct.
"That's okay." Duke cupped Ryou's cheek with one hand, smiling that sweet smile that made the girls back in high school swoon over him like he was sex incarnate. "You don't have to say anything at all." He kissed the corner of Ryou's mouth in an innocent gesture before pulling back again to push down his sweatpants and boxers at once. Ryou averted his eyes and straightened up a little to finish off his own shirt. He was just removing his arms from the sleeves when Duke started tugging at his boxers. Ryou braced his hands on the mattress and lifted up just enough for the fabric to slide away. Then his shirt was joining his boxers on the floor and Duke was climbing onto the bed and onto Ryou. Duke's face looked as red as Ryou's felt, and when he reached down to touch his sensitive erection, it twitched in his hand, and Ryou grabbed at him again, holding on for dear life.
From that point on, their pace resumed the feverish frantic speed they'd had when making out on the tiled floor. Their lovemaking was brief and desperate, yet so terribly gratifying that neither of them were even slightly disappointed. Duke was lucid enough to clean them both off before they fell dead asleep, curled together in Duke's bed with their clothes making a messy trail from the bathroom to the bed and the bathroom light still on.
Author Notes: Meanwhile, thousands of miles away, Kaiba's drinking himself to sleep crying, "Why does nobody love me~?"
I'm just kidding, he's fine. Working or sleeping or something. I'm sorry, that was a horrible joke. I just made myself sad. ;_;