A/N: So I lied. I realize that.

And I feel bad. Life gets in the way of my plans. I actually had most of this written before the little five day period I said. But I sorta...had some serious junk go on with some family and I just...meh. Anways! This chapter is probably one of the reasons this story is rated M. Other than potty mouths.

So I hope you enjoy :3

Chapter 22.

As the car drove up on the Domino police station, Jou realized that the day's surprises weren't quite over with yet. The area surrounding the police station was covered in people, and he could clearly make out the markings of local news stations' vans parked in the vicinity.

Jou pushed forward, his nose nearly to the grate separation in the police cruiser, and looked for the cause of the commotion. Did they catch a murderer? A yazuka member? There had to be some reason, because Domino was, for the most part, a fairly hum-drum little place as far as crime was involved.

The car rode around the mess, pulling up in the back of the station and parking. When the officer opened the door, Jou could hear them. They all tried to talk at the same time, as if they were the reporters that thrust their microphones towards a politician, demanding answers for some transgression.

His elbow was held tight and he was led through the back door despite his attempts to get a better look. "That isn't anything," the officer near barked. Once he was inside, the commotion died to quiet. Back to the cell; back to waiting for there to be some absolution. He was yanked along the back halls and into the hold cell area. There was another officer, clearly more than just the average cop.

"Ahh, I've been waiting for you," he said, looking between Jou and the officer. "Apparently word didn't make it on time."

"What's that, chief?" The officer asked. His grip seemed to tighten on Jou's elbow.

"Kaiba Mokuba has…shown up," said the chief. "As has Kaiba-san, asking for Jounouchi's release."

The grip seemed to waver in intensity and then grip again, like the officer was getting angry. "I see. Well…."

The police chief came over to Jou, digging keys out of his pocket, unlatching the cuffs on Jou's wrists. His arms flattened by his sides. All of this seemed sudden and confusing. He was looking around, expecting Kaiba to be lurking in some corner and watching as all this went on. "I'll take him up front; we'll make the paperwork quick," said the chief. His hand rested on Jou's back. He ushered Jou forward, but there was no hesitation in the blond. If he knew the route better, he would have run to the front of the station. Escape, if it could so be called.

But at the end of the hall into the lobby, Jou was stalled. He saw Kaiba standing on the other side of a window, Mokuba behind him. The mob of people was all on him; Kaiba's head was bowed, shied away from speaking to the collective.

A gentle push from the chief made Jou stumble forward. That was when he saw Mai, on the other side of a wall, with her arms crossed. Her lips were curved upward in amusement. She flinched, looking over where she heard Jou. Her eyes widened.

"I can't believe it worked."

"What? Kaib' gettin' what he wants?" Jou's voice was deflated.

Mai turned when she was addressed. "Hun, what happened to your face?"

"I don't wanna talk about it," Jou shook his head. "Who brought Mokuba back?"

"Who do you think?" Mai rolled her eyes. "I think he just…asked and she was more than happy to oblige."

The closer he walked to the window, the slower he got. Jou didn't want to have to confront all the madness. He wasn't made for it like Kaiba was. He wasn't able to keep them contained without saying a word. The media was in Kaiba's pocket for as long as he needed them; Jou doubted that this was Kaiba's plan. They likely showed up all on their own. "Why are they here?"

"Mokuba's back. Kaiba's out of the hospital," Mai shrugged. "Why not?"

Jou's lips pursed and fear hit him in the gut. How was he going to go out there? His first reaction to being beside Kaiba was that he wanted to grab Kaiba's hand and hope the CEO reciprocated. Everything Jou wanted was meant for private, in the sanctity of quiet room and behind a locked door. It made him sweat just thinking about it.

"You alright?" asked Mai.

"Yeah, yeah."

Jou clenched his guts and opened the door. Amidst the noise, the motion wasn't lost on Kaiba and he raised his head, looking to Jou out of the corner of his eye. Mokuba was flagrant, turning and grabbing Jou and hugging him tightly. Cameras were flashing.

"Hey, Mokie…"Jou hugged back. "How long you all been standin' out here?"

"Not long," Mokuba said. "You got here just in time."

"Yeah well….I kinda wanna go back inside," Jou laughed nervously. "Away from these vultures."

"I think nii-sama does too," Mokuba said, but looked up to his brother. Kaiba's expression hadn't changed. It was hardly placid. His eyes were stormy and his brow wrinkled. He was pensively gathering words.

"Kaib'…"

"There's a back door," Kaiba said, turning away from then despite having stood, for several moments, holding them off as if he were going to offer the words of a prophet. Without any thank yous or good-byes, Kaiba turned and went inside to dissuade the crowd from staying. Mokuba and Jou were just behind.

The three of them corralled in a small area of the police station, away from seething public mass just out front. The officers, realizing the growing number, went outside to dissolve the mess. All the while, Kaiba was looking to the group, especially to Mai, which hungry eyes.

"What?" Mai asked. "Got something to tell me, then tell me hotshot."

Kaiba smirked. "Your results were unexpected," said Kaiba, referring to an earlier conversation, "but valued. Thank you."

"Don't," Mai shook her head. "Thank Shizuka, for keeping Mokuba safe and bringing him back. Or Jou, for sticking his neck out. I didn't do anything."

Kaiba's smirk faded into a stoic façade, betraying none of his emotions as his eyes swept over the group. The quiet was loaded with questions and answers, all held back behind the teeth of the group. "So uh…"Jou said, breaking the uncomfortable silence. "How do we get back?"

"I seem to be the only one with a car," Mai said.

Kaiba pulled out his cell and dialed, pressing it to his ear. Mai rolled her eyes, feeling a little ignorant for not thinking that Kaiba would have someone on speed-dial for moments like these. All the while, Jou was hovering over Kaiba as if he were expecting the elder to fall over from not being able to support his own weight against just a single crutch.

Before Jou knew it, he was walking in strides behind Kaiba, nearly shoulder to shoulder with Mokuba. A driver opened the door for Kaiba to climb in. It was caught between Mokuba and Jou to wonder who was going to sit beside Kaiba in the backseat and who was going to take the front. It didn't take long for Jou to decide that he was the one that was going to sit in the front seat.

"Take me to headquarters," Kaiba said. Jou looked back.

Mokuba grabbed his brother's arm. "Nii-sama… don't jump back into work."

Kaiba didn't answer either of the looks, and the car drove towards the building, pulling into the parking garage and letting Kaiba out. He didn't beckon either Mokuba or Jou to follow him, but Mokuba did nonetheless, as if he were compelled. Jou didn't feel as compelled. In fact, sitting in the car, in the parking garage of KaibaCorp., he felt out of place even if he had been there before in the past. Now that Kaiba was back, he expected everything to be back to normal, and for him to feel right because for a long while, everything had felt so wrong.

But it didn't come. He didn't feel it deep in his chest like he expected himself to. He looked to the doors that Kaiba had disappeared behind, knowing that there were so many floors beyond that. He didn't know how long they would be waiting, but he hoped it was shortly with the way that the car was idling in the parking lot. After some time, it shut off all on its own. In the time, Jou lulled off, his eyes closing at the pain behind his eyes fading away.

Eventually, he was stirred away as the car was jostled, but he realized that he wasn't in the parking garage anymore. They were going down the ever familiar road to the estate, making the final turn and waiting for the gates to fully open. When the car pulled up, Kaiba got out first, steadying himself. Jou opened the door. Was this home? He had lived in it for long enough, but that was without Kaiba. That was taking care of Kaiba, making sure that Mokuba was okay.

Against the dapple gray sky, it looked like just any other home. It was a large home, but a home nonetheless.

As Jou stood in semi-awe at everything, as he stayed behind and tried to gather himself after all that they had both gone through, it added insult to injury that Kaiba didn't beckon him, or even spare a glance for Jou to follow him inside. Was Kaiba intentionally being cold, or were there still lingering problems, lingering emotions, that Kaiba had yet to mentally work his way out of? He hadn't even said a word to Jou since they were reunited.

As he strode through the house, listless in his walk, Jou wondered how it was he was supposed to reapproach Kaiba. Now, he was anticipating reprimand. Eventually, he drifted into the kitchen and grabbed a handful of ice and a rag, wadding the ice up in it and pressing it to his face. He winced.

"Does it hurt bad, Jou?" Mokuba asked.

Jou flinched. "Naw. Jus'…flesh wounds." Jou leaned back against the counter.

"Was it…other inmates or…the police?"

"It don't matter," Jou said, and he could see where Mokuba was staring, worried. "Where's Kaib'?"

"In the parlor," Mokuba threw a thumb in the general direction. "I got him to sit down; I think you should talk to him."

"I don't think I'd do 'im much good." Jou said, lowering the ice. It gave Mokuba a good look at the mottled bruises around his eyes, and the swelling in his nose, along with a large cut in his lip. He also noticed some of the blood that was still lingering in crevices were it hadn't been wiped away.

Mokuba's face gave a 'seriously' face. A smile worked up onto Jou's face, and he walked back through into the parlor where Kaiba was sitting, his leg propped up on the Ottoman and his hands flattened over his stomach. He seemed contemplative, if not, at least a little bit bored.

Jou sat beside him, glancing over to him with pursed lips. He pressed the ice to his face again, lips parting to speak. His hand made a fist and then opened it again, fearful of just reaching over and taking Kaiba's hand. The distance was short, but it seemed like he was in a completely different country.

What Jou didn't understand was what was bringing up these emotions all of a sudden. Like he hadn't been there by Kaiba every day, making sure he was comfortable, making sure he was stable, doing basic grooming and spoon-feeding him. Now, holding his hand when he was (semi) stable seemed like it was completely impossible.

"I'm not even going to ask how you came by those bruises," said Kaiba. His head was leaned back, and he was catching Jou from an angle, at least before his eyes were closed.

"I wouldn't answer ya anyways," Jou replied. He shifted the ice to the other eye. "It happened. Simple's that."

A brief silence fell between them. As Jou finally managed the courage to reach his hand over, Kaiba thrust forward, balancing his elbows on his knees.

"You wouldn't still have those supplies like you had before?" Kaiba asked.

Jou was confused. "Maybe I'm concussed…what're ya talkin' about?"

Kaiba rolled his eyes. "Before the…the fight," Kaiba's voice had softened incrementally. When it registered in Jou's mind, he went to stand.

"Yeah. Yeah, I still got it."

With that insinuation, Jou got up and went to the room that he had been occupying, grabbing his backpack and coming back, setting it against the couch. In the time that he had been gone, Kaiba returned to the position with his head leaning against the back of the couch. He was relaxed; even meditating.

"I got 'em." Kaiba leaned forward, taking the bag and putting it in his lap, unzipping it and rifling through it. "What the hell are ya doin', Kaib'?"

Kaiba piled a few things beside him and then set the bag on the ground. As he pulled on a pair of rubber gloves tight, Jou was snickering under his breath. Then, Kaiba took a round cotton swab in one hand, and a small bottle in the other. He dabbed the cotton swab with the liquid before turning to Jou and grabbing his chin, leaning him in. Their eyes met briefly before Kaiba brushed up Jou's bangs and held them by his wrist. He started dabbing at the remnants of the caked on blood at his hair-line. Some small cuts were also being touched, and Jou flinched as they stung by the alcohol.

"Man…"Jou tried pulling away, but Kaiba's grip only worsened. Once the swab was used up, so Kaiba grabbed for another, dampening it, and moving down around Jou's nose and eyes. He was delicate when cleaning up the bruises and blemishes, taking off any of the blood around Jou's nostrils and around his lips. "I know I need a shower…you can stop," said Jou. He flinched as the cut on his lip was pulled.

But once the scrubbing was done, Kaiba reached over and grabbed a small bandage, once again lifting up Jou's bangs and covering what Jou guessed was a cut. Then, he did it again over a cut on the bridge of Jou's nose. The pressure made tears prickle in Jou's eyes. "Is it broken?" Kaiba asked, barely above a whisper.

"Yeah. I think so."

"I can hear it in your voice," Kaiba cleaned up the small mess that he had made before taking the gloves off. As Kaiba seemed distracted by tidying, Jou reached over, capturing his hand and squeezing. Kaiba paused, and color rose in his cheeks. He looked over, lips pinching.

Before Jou knew, a heavy kiss was planted on him, and while Kaiba's hands never touched his face, the way Kaiba squeezed tightly was close enough. A small fire was flickering in Jou after so long, and he hardly wanted to pull away, but he wasn't about to push Kaiba any farther than he was willing to go.

"Heh…"Now it was Jou's turn to blush. "Well, that kinda hurt." But Jou was laughing at his hand went to his nose. Although there was no smile on Kaiba's face, Jou pretended that there was just because he wanted it to be that way for a moment. He wanted to see a wide, genuine smile out of the CEO.

Turning away and clearing his throat, Jou reached out for the boot on Kaiba's healing ankle and pulled on the Velcro straps. Kaiba's arms crossed, and his fingers dug into his arms. "I wanna see how the incision's doing."

And the more Jou was touching, the more he realized that he was causing panic in Kaiba. It wasn't as if he never noticed it before. He'd even acknowledged it, but when looking back at Kaiba and seeing the way that his fingers dug into the sleeves of his shirt, and the way that his shoulders shook, Jou lifted for a second.

"You a'right?"

"I'm perfectly well."

"Ya don't look well," said Jou. "I'm here if ya wanna talk about it."

The silence gave Jou the answer that he needed. He turned his attention back to the small incision that was on Kaiba's ankle. It wasn't as protruding or as prominent as Jou would have guessed. His fingertips hung over top of it, but he never actually touched it. "It's doin' okay. Does it hurt?"

"No. Very little," Kaiba replied.

"Kay. Ya better not be lyin' ta me." Jou pulled back up, and he was once again in Kaiba's face, eye to eye. The ice was almost melting against his lap, and he didn't notice that there was less looseness in his pants than before. Even more so, it made him recall the moment in jail where he was thinking about their one intimate moment. "So…I hafta ask, what are we?"

"What do you mean?"

"Us. What're we? What should we expect, ya know?"

Something in Kaiba's eyes lit up, if only for a second. He readjusted in his place and unfolded his arms now that he wasn't uncomfortable. "Why worry?"

"We ain't…stable. We ain't together all th' time. Yeah, yeah, I mean we got some things here an' some things there an'…I think we have feelin's but I haven't really. I don't know. I ain't good at talkin' 'bout this kind of thing."

"Speak slower, choose your words carefully, and then speak," Kaiba said. He looked at the mess made beside him. He grabbed the crutches and then picked up the mess, starting to toddle somewhere else.

"What does that mean?"

"It means what it means," Kaiba said, and he continued on until he was in the kitchen and able to throw away the supplies. When he turned back to go back, Jou was in his face. Part of Kaiba was forced to recalculate and get his grip again.

"I know how I feel, Kaib'," Jou said. "We did…stuff. An' neither of us can deny that. For a long time I've put myself out there. An' even more, I know what I am. I know that I ain't…I ain't denying that I like guys, an' I ain't gonna every cover that up."

Kaiba only arched a brow, and Jou could watch the boredom spread over his face. But it wasn't touching his eyes. There was intrigue; fascination. Even more, Jou saw that there was understanding, in some way or another. Then, as if something struck him, Kaiba's eyes half-lidded and it hid a certain storminess in himself. "Jou…"

"Kaib'…" Jou was firing up instead of getting down. "I'm jus' sayin' that I do love. I do love you, in fact, if ya wanna believe it. I wouldn't be here if I didn't."

"I see," Kaiba lowered his head. This was the moment that Jou expected out of Kaiba, and the moment he recalled thinking that Kaiba would be far too prideful for to announce.

"I think…we've…um…"but Kaiba shut Jou up, kissing Jou once again, taking Jou's hands and squeezing. Still, it hurt a little bit, despite the kiss, that Kaiba wasn't reciprocating saying that he loved Jou back. Even with it in his mind that Kaiba wasn't the kind that would say those sorts of things.

It made Jou's chest well up, and he bowed his head before Kaiba. He wanted to press his hands against Kaiba's chest, or press his forehead into Kaiba' throat and at least feel some kind of comfort against him. Before he could continue his silent weeping, Kaiba's arms went around Jou. They didn't envelope. They didn't press. They didn't squeeze.

Kaiba's hands settled very carefully against Jou's hips, as if they were about to start dancing. Jou's hands fell against Kaiba's, knowing if it was the smallest thing that he could do, he would do it. And there they stood, with time ticking by, not caring that they were simply standing there as if in a strange impasse, both trying to think what the point of these gestures were. Both of them had already reached an ultimate goal, but that was months ago. Jou was longing, more than Kaiba understood, and he wasn't about to speak for Kaiba in the matter of desire.

"I uh…"Jou broke their gazing silence. "I need a shower, I think."

Kaiba's hands dropped and grabbed hold of the crutches. Wordlessly he turned, nodding his head in the direction of the bathroom as if Jou didn't know.

So Jou went to the bathroom, undressing, drawing water, and looking at the bruises and covered wounds on his face before getting in. Why let Kaiba's work go to waste? And from there, against his will, Jou fell asleep with his head laying back.

He had forgotten nightmares.

The clock ticked in Kaiba's ears, as it had been for the last few hours. Closing his eyes only meant that he has Yami dancing in his head. He understand that he had the perfect opportunity to use the media at the police station to say what he needed to say, yet he turned his back to them as if all that he went through—all that he was still going through—didn't matter.

He'd taken something for his insomnia. In the hospital, he got scant hours of sleep, waking up every few hours. Now, he was back in his own bed, in fresh clothes, and he was closing his eyes hoping for unconsciousness overcome him just so he didn't have to look at the scars travelling down his leg. After he had lain down, he didn't want to get back up again to put on long pants.

Maybe it didn't help that the light was still on.

When his door was knocked on, he closed his eyes. "Go away."

"It's jus' me," Jou said, pressing against the door. His hair was still wet, and his fingers were wrinkled from just sitting in the water. "I wanna make sure ya got everythin' 'fore I turn in." The door opened, and Jou offered a brief smile when coming in. Kaiba was still, staring at the ceiling. He was unconsciously rubbing his left leg. "You in pain?"

"Always."

"Have ya been takin' yer meds?" Jou asked. He saw the bottles on the nightstand, but he wasn't sure if they had been touched. "Or am I gonna hafta force feed'm to ya?"

Hey, I'm Jounouchi Katsuya. I think you're kinda cute. Want me to play naughty nurse.

A smile crossed Jou's face when thinking of what Shizuka had said to him not so long ago.

"Heh, maybe you do," Kaiba said. In that instant, Jou could feel the foreplay starting.

Foreplay…with Kaiba.

The nightmares were forgotten, and Jou went over to the nightstand, grabbing the bottles. He grabbed the hydrocodone, shaking the bottle, before taking on out and closing it in his fist. He kept giving sideways glances to his patient. He was slow and deliberate, going over to the bed and climbing in the opposite side, sitting beside Kaiba and pulling back the blanket.

The pill was pinched between his fingers. "Want it?" A smirk grew on Kaiba's face in a 'of course' expression. "Show me how much."

It was meant to be serious, but Jou bit his lip because laughter was ticking his throat. Even Kaiba wasn't impervious to the ridiculousness. He got up on his elbows, reaching over and going to kiss Jou. So Jou kissed him, nibbling on his lip and pulling on it before leaning away. Kaiba reached out for Jou's hand, but he moved it away. "Nah-uh."

"Playing hard to get with me, pup?"

Jou rolled his eyes. "Oh…I wouldn't call it that." Kaiba had reached over, grabbing the hem of Jou's shirt and yanking it up. He was careful enough not to brush against Jou's skin. There was something that he shivering in Kaiba, which was a mix of knowing what he was doing, and somewhere, deep down, he was excited.

When they kissed, Kaiba's arms were around him like before. Except his fingers were exploring, tracing up Jou's sides and along all the crevices just like Jou repeatedly imagined, time and time again. Even before anything started, he could feel sweat trying to break through his pores.

"Want me ta get the rubber gloves?" Jou laughed.

The paused in Kaiba made it seem less like a rhetorical question. Then he kissed Jou again. "Go and fetch," he said, his fingertips feather-light over Jou's breast.

Even without his shirt on, Jou got out of bed and nearly ran out of the door, much to Kaiba's amusement. In the meanwhile, the CEO began mentally preparing himself as he stripped out of his nightshirt and shorts. In the dim light, he could see the scars and his smile was falling off his face. He tried to let it go, and he put his arms behind his head and leaned back, pulling up his good leg and waiting.

When Jou came back, he was stopped dead, and he bit his lower lip. The excitement on his face was hardly contained, and he went over to Kaiba, pulling on the gloves slowly before getting down and bracing against the CEO.

"Guess what I still got," Jou said, but he put the pill on the nightstand to free his hands.

His hand was going down Kaiba's leg, and he could feel his fingers dipping into the scars. There was one of his hip where they had to clean the bone; one against his thigh where the metal in the car had skewered through the meat of it; dotted incisions on the side of his knee; marks along the calf where the bones had to be surgically reset. Finally, there was the still healing incision against his ankle. They formed a dotted line, a place where Kaiba opened up and could tear away his skin to expose the inner parts.

Jou got close, his mouth to Kaiba's ear, his hand safely resting against Kaiba's stomach feeling where his breathing was touchy. "I like yer scars," Jou said. His hand moved down Kaiba's side, pulling down his underwear. "They're the reason this's happenin'."

After Jou got the underwear off, he was amused to see Kaiba turn his back to the blond, but took it as an advantage, putting his hand under Kaiba's injured leg and using his knee to keep him open. Kaiba's arm reached up, grabbing onto the back of Jou's neck, first in a gentle caress as Jou entered him. But as Jou thrust, slow as first, then getting faster as he went, that caress turned into a grab, yanking at the ends of Jou's hair, pulling Jou's head back until Jou's head was poised towards the ceiling.

The pulling made Jou's hands migrate from holding onto Kaiba's hips and go down, grabbing his skin around Kaiba's thighs. As he started prodding, poking, pulling, pinching, he realized that Kaiba's masochism was stimulated a little more and that there was more noise.

His hand went up to Kaiba's chest, turning the nipple; Kaiba's back stiffened the more Jou twisted, and then he arced his back into Jou. As much as he liked watching Kaiba writhe, getting so close to orgasm, he knew he couldn't hold it in much longer. Jou was surprised, feeling all the tension pent up over the months, that he held back at all.

So Jou let go, and he could feel Kaiba shudder beneath him, letting out a breathy moan. Jou knew what the brunet should sound like. Kaiba's moans could get higher, even if he was quieter than the usual participant. Jou leaned down and pulled out partially, kissing Kaiba's cheek. The CEO's hand had let go and was now close to himself, near his own erection, his body like a semi-circle where he was clenching up. Pulling Kaiba's leg up just a bit more, he re-entered, but moved Kaiba's hands and began moving up and down the shaft of Kaiba's erection.

Then, Kaiba assured what Jou was attempting. He let out a high pitched moan before clenching his jaw. It was like watching a bug complete uncurl, Kaiba's legs went to straightening, his back was nearly pressed against Jou. And, in Jou's amazement, even Kaiba's still healing ankle was straightened as it could be against the pain.

The sticky warmness could be felt even through the rubber gloves. AS Kaiba wound down from orgasm, Jou wondered if the abrasiveness was the kind of thing that Kaiba wanted down there. He never bothered to ask, but there didn't seem to be any objection.

The gloves went off, and Jou relaxed against the bed. He reached over Kaiba, still in his place, and grabbed the hydrocodone. Before Jou could say anything, or prod Kaiba for an answer, Kaiba took the pill and swallowed. He turned over and looked at Jou.

No smile, no sign of pleasure or amusement. At least, nowhere but the eyes. There was an extra flare in Kaiba's eyes.

Their breathing settled. They didn't say anything to one another, and Jou flattened on his stomach beside the CEO, yanking at the covers and pulling them over top their nakedness. The light went out, after several moments, and after several moments still, Jou was pulled to Kaiba, feeling the bumps of the CEO's spine against his stomach. He didn't hug Kaiba, but was comfortable laying so.

Before he knew it, he was asleep, having heard soft breathing where Kaiba's insomnia had been erased for the night.

And Jou had pleasant dreams until the next morn.

A/N: Yeah...X3 this needed this. Seriously. I just wonder what may happen next. Hm?

Till later, KenSan out!