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Ambivalence	By : PupshitDesu Category: Yu-Gi-Oh > Yaoi - Male/Male Views: 4882 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
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Chapter List
- 6
- 7
- 8
A Week Later

Kaiba sat in his office at home feeling utterly fooled. Mokuba had somehow managed to make him promise to go out with him that day, which was fine, but now the kid wanted to bring a friend. And becoming slightly irritable over it, Kaiba was under the impression that they'd be going out alone as brothers, but of course, Mokuba had other ideas.
That was fine, since Kaiba worked on his birthday that July and he was looking for a way to make it up to him. He felt shitty about the situation, so just dealing with the situation the best he could, Kaiba agreed to be civil with another person hanging around them, as long as they weren't gonna beg for his autograph all night or whatever shit fans sometimes did.
Unfortunately, Mokuba wasn't thinking to bring anyone his own age. Kaiba should have realized that, since he knew his kid brother didn't really socialize much in his own age group, but he was hopeful. And a tad out of touch. Typing away at his computer, he could hear a masculine voice echoing the hallway alongside Mokuba's, one far too familiar and dually unwanted.
Jonouchi Katsuya.
He couldn't believe Mokuba tricked him into hanging around that idiot, but what could he do? Kaiba already promised, and gritting his teeth as he heard the two of them pass by, he tried to remind himself that it was going to be only for one night. And he could handle that.
Afterwards, he wouldn't have to play nice. He only promised for one night.
Thankfully the two went inside the kid's room, he could hear Mokuba slamming the door behind him probably to play video games until dinner time. That didn't bother Kaiba in the least, he had work he was finishing up that Sunday night, before going back to the office in the morning, and the longer he had before being interrupted, the better.
There were pet projects he needed to work on without interruption, and he got himself to work taking one duel disk and working through the parts to make it lighter. Sigfried was right about the weight, it was a bit too much, especially for some female players. They could be more light weight if he worked on finding a replacement metal that could still work, but that meant fooling around with ideas until something latched.
And until he found something that would be suitable, Kaiba was going to keep his adjustment plans to himself.
Jonouchi still couldn't believe he was in Kaiba's house. Last time he checked, he was only barely allowed anywhere that Kaiba considered to be his property. Mokuba seemed to think it was fine, though, so Jonouchi didn't press. Maybe the kid blackmailed him into it or something.
They were going to a festival that night. Jonouchi hadn't been to one in a while, since he didn't have the time for the most part. He worked almost every day, and his day off was normally spent sleeping or resting up. Tonight he'd been motivated to leave the house by Mokuba's offer, and he knew he'd be more exhausted for it in the morning, but it was worth it. He had to take time out for fun, right? It was good for the soul.
"So," Jonouchi looked around Mokuba's room. It looked like a pretty normal bedroom for a boy his age, in contrast to the rest of the mansion. It didn't really seem like Kaiba's style, what with all the Victorian decor and architecture. There were so many valuables everywhere that Jonouchi was almost afraid to breathe too hard. "Are you sure you're brother's cool with me being here? Because no offense, Mokuba, but I don't want you throwing me under the bus..."
Mokuba wasn't a bad kid, but he was still a kid. At the tender age of fourteen, it was unlikely that he had the emotional maturity not to push the envelope maybe more than he should. If Kaiba wasn't quite okay with Jonouchi being in the mansion, then Jonouchi would be getting the flack for it. Mokuba was relatively safe.
"He knew you were coming and didn't say anything about it. I don't think he really cares, he just wants you gone by tomorrow morning. I don't quite get why you two even fight so much, I mean I can't remember anyone he dislikes as much as you, and then all you two do is bicker... I hope you guys won't do that tonight," said Mokuba, frowning as he jumped onto his bed, "I made him promise to behave, and Nii-sama doesn't lie."
"To be fair, I didn't start it," Jonouchi defended himself half-heartedly. It was only partly true, he supposed. He'd been friendly to Kaiba at first meeting, but Kaiba had made an immediate bad impression. After that, Jonouchi had been quick to accuse him and get in his face about everything. That said, he'd never been all that insulting. His recent behavior with Kaiba wasn't the same as it had been when they were in high school.
"He insults me for no reason, and I won't roll over and take it. So we fight."
Jonouchi had been snide and a little scathing in their recent conversations, but it had been after either insults or hostility. He didn't have the temperament to put up with that kind of thing gracefully. Yugi probably would try reasoning and appealing to the assailant's good side. Jonouchi was more inclined to return the attacks in kind.
"Half the things Nii-sama says to people is to get a rise, you shouldn't get so caught up in it," advised Mokuba, shaking his head, "But whatever. I want to have a good time with you both, so please... Don't mess with him."
Because Jonouchi was rather good at making a bad situation worse, and Mokuba didn't want to watch them tear each other apart over something stupid like just looking at each other the wrong way...
"I'm gonna get Nii-sama so we can leave, I just wanted you to see my room," and running out the door, Mokuba bounded off to go grab his brother.
Jonouchi stood and followed Mokuba, wondering if he'd actually be able to do as he asked. He didn't exactly enjoy fighting with Kaiba. Jonouchi was never one for verbal debates. He preferred more straightforward methods if he had to engage in a conflict. Maybe if he just didn't talk to Kaiba, the evening would run smoothly.
Yeah, right. He didn't have to talk to Kaiba to get him pissed off. Kaiba would come after him if he felt like it, which he might on this particular evening. Somehow, Jonouchi was skeptical of Mokuba's claim of Kaiba being sunshine and flowers about this outing.
By the time he caught up to Mokuba, he was emerging from some room with Kaiba in tow. Maybe it was his home office. When Jonouchi approached them, he gave Kaiba a brief wave.
"Hey," he greeted, and that was it. He didn't need to debate with Kaiba whether or not asking after his well-being was sincerity.
Kaiba looked at him briefly, stopping in his tracks as if slightly startled from being interrupted from his thoughts before exhaling and walking away. He didn't wave or nod or do anything back, but he didn't glare either. Just went down the staircase, leaving Mokuba and Jonouchi to catch up as he went outside to get the car started before traffic got too insane to deal with getting downtown.
"That went pretty well, all things considered," Jonouchi snorted, walking with Mokuba in the direction Kaiba had gone. He'd been expecting something snippy, or maybe just a silent glare. Being half-regarded wasn't bad, comparatively, and he was hardly unused to Kaiba whisking away in a huff.
"I told you he'd behave," Mokuba chided, "You should believe me more often."
"You got to admit that Kaiba "behaving" is a hard pill to swallow," Jonouchi muttered, "I wasn't expecting much, to be honest."
Still, expecting the worst made getting something better even more enjoyable. If he could keep Kaiba off his back all night, he might not have his mood spoiled. He let Mokuba lead him to the car, since he still had no idea how to get around the mansion. He had a pretty good sense of direction, but he still couldn't figure out how the house worked. It was like the house was wrapped around something, like maybe a courtyard. It hadn't appeared so from the outside, and it was disorienting.
He didn't say anything when he got in the car. He wasn't sure exactly what a car trip with the Kaiba brothers was actually like. Kaiba didn't really seem like the type to have fun in the car, even if Mokuba was a little more light-hearted. With Jonouchi's friends, on the rare occasion that they were on a long drive, they tried to liven up the experience.
Kaiba was entirely focused on driving. He didn't pay either male any attention while navigating the road, watching as he passed by cars, speeding a bit more than he had any right to. However, he was driving a sporty black car, and most of the cops didn't bother messing with him since he owned nearly half the city.
It would just be a dumb thing to do.
Mokuba was excited, chatting Jonouchi up and sitting half turned around in his seat so he could watch him in the back. He didn't often get a friend he could really do anything with, or felt comfortable introducing his brother to. Not that kids were frightened of Kaiba, but Kaiba was still Kaiba and people acted funny around him.
Also, unfortunately, Mokuba was afraid of being used and just shied away from the other kids. He couldn't connect with them like he could Yugi and Anzu, and having Jonouchi around just made everything so much better. It was like having that fun older brother who didn't scare away all the kids from hanging out. Grinning, he started getting more excited when he thought about the Kaiba Corp Convention coming up, where he'd play a major part.
"Do you think you'll come?" He asked, "I can get you passes."
"If you can get me in, I'll definitely be there," Jonouchi grinned, "Sometimes I forget you like abusing your authority."
He still remembered Mokuba doing that on rare occasions, but he always looked pretty self-satisfied while he did it. Especially when the people around him were awed by his capabilities. He made no effort to hide his show-off nature, unlike how Kaiba did.
"So you're doing what at the con, exactly?"
"Everything."
He went into a whole thing going over it, Kaiba rolling his eyes as he drove on. Mokuba was trying to run the show, which he didn't care about too much. People liked him, more than they liked Kaiba, and he was okay with that. Not ignorant at all of his infamy, he decided it was in everyone's best interests to let Mokuba host the convention, and keep Kaiba in the side lines.
Or at least, not exposed to the public.
Sure, it was fun sometimes throwing a big dog and pony show, but he just didn't like people enough to deal with some of the unnecessary bullshit that tied to it. Like people asking him over his dueling career and other things that had nothing to do with his business. He was sick of people treating him like some over blown celebrity instead of a businessman, so he decided to distance himself, as much as he possibly could.
That wouldn't stop people from bothering him at the dinner party afterwards, but nothing was perfect and at least the biggest pain he usually had to deal with wasn't his responsibility. And Mokuba was more than ready to handle it.
Jonouchi couldn't really afford anything that the Kaiba brothers would be selling in the coming season, but he'd still go to the convention to look at everything. He'd enjoy the show, anyway, and trying out demos. Since Mokuba was getting him a pass, he didn't need to worry about blowing his spare cash on it.
They were getting close to the festival site. There was a larger one happening in the park tonight, one with multiple vendors and activities scattered about. There would probably be some shows, too, but since it was evening, they'd most likely be kabuki productions.
"What are we gonna do first?" Jonouchi asked, figuring he should let Mokuba choose. "Looks like there's a lot more out there than just a parade and some street food."
"I'm hungry," replied Mokuba, holding onto his growling stomach, "And then rollercoasters. Or maybe the Ferris Wheel. I'm not quite sure which one yet. I like heights."
"Sounds good," Jonouchi nodded, "If you aren't too scared, maybe we should try a fun house later on."
Those were his favorite parts of the festivals. He simultaneously loved and hated the thrill of fear he got from the experience, but that was what made it great. That said, he thoroughly enjoyed rollercoasters for the drops, and Ferris wheels were slow, but the view was nice.
He wondered what the fuck Kaiba was going to do to entertain himself. He didn't seem like he'd be that interested in rides, but maybe he'd surprise Jonouchi again. It wasn't likely, but there was a sliver of a chance. Even if not, Jonouchi wouldn't complain about having fun with Mokuba and Kaiba staying out of his hair. He'd probably stand somewhere leaning against something and perfecting his ability to be aloof and smouldering at the same time.
Corny festivals didn't actually interest Kaiba. None of the rides were as good as the ones at his own parks, and a lot of times, they broke down. He didn't like paying for shitty thrills, but since his brother was a sucker for them, he wasn't going to complain or make a big deal out of it. He could deal with one night sitting out and watching Mokuba have his fun, and there was enough crap he could take care of from his phone.
Usually he wasn't that fun to hang around anyways. Kaiba knew he was boring, compared to most people. He liked reading, playing chess, and doing more intellectual pursuits that most people found too tedious to be stimulating. Although Mokuba was smart and clever, he liked being engaged, with video games and the like, and while Kaiba liked programming said games, he wasn't into actually gaming them as much. Not since he was a teenager.
Regardless, he was going to hang around the two until they ended up forgetting him at some bench. That was perfectly fine with him, and Kaiba found parking easily and got their tickets before they were set loose in the park. He watched Mokuba to follow behind around the different food stands and frowned at the shitty options, but didn't make a comment when the kid wanted crap food for dinner. Tonight, he was going to keep those comments to himself.
And it wasn't like Mokuba got to eat crappy Japanese tacos all that often either.
Jonouchi ran with Mokuba's choice of food and got fake tacos as well. He was hardly picky, and more than willing to indulge in crap. Fortunately, Mokuba wasn't as stuck-up about food as his brother, and the two of them were similarly excited by the junk they were eating. Jonouchi was sure Kaiba disapproved, even if he wasn't showing it, but that was fine. So long as he wasn't an ass about it.
He had yakisoba for himself. Jonouchi wondered what the point was, going to a festival, if he wasn't going to enjoy the food they offered. It wasn't like he couldn't get yakisoba from anywhere, including his own house. But Jonouchi didn't comment. Kaiba gazed at him briefly when he noticed that he was watching, his eyes strangely not hostile. Jonouchi's surprise probably showed on his face, and for a few seconds, he got sucked in by the image of Kaiba's eyes when they were normal, not glaring icily at him. It was almost like he didn't utterly despise his existence.
Jonouchi abruptly looked away. No point getting hopeful over it. Mokuba said he'd made Kaiba promise to behave, so he was probably just abiding by his brother's wishes. Jonouchi was grateful for it, but he wasn't going to let it go to his head.
Still. Kaiba was a lot nicer to look at when he wasn't acting like a crotchety old man. Jonouchi's eyes was drawn to him repeatedly, not just the difference in his face when he was more relaxed, but also his body. Which looked the same as ever, but for once, Jonouchi wasn't deterred from it by Kaiba's behavior. He would never claim the man wasn't good-looking. Certainly above average; more like something out of television than a real person.
He probably worked out. His muscles showed through the tight clothes he wore, and they were sculpted in such a way that he was probably aware of the best methods for his type. His posture was excellent, and even while he wasn't actively throwing his superiority on people, he carried himself with a demeanor of being a cut above.
Kaiba probably knew he was looking, too. Bastard soaked it up, more than likely, but Jonouchi still tried to keep himself under control. He didn't want to be offensive, especially while Kaiba was actually in relatively good humor. Well, not good humor. He was in neutral humor.
"I don't think I'm going to join you two on the rollercoasters," Kaiba said, breaking the silence as he played with his food, not quite interested in eating, "Or probably any of the rides. They don't do three person seating, and I don't mind sitting out."
Jonouchi was better suited for that sort of thing. Loud and over excited about everything, he'd get more of a kick out of the rides, and Mokuba wanted someone to get excited with. Kaiba was a rather boring playmate, and he was well aware of it, he lacked the personality for fun after everything that had happened to him. He was too damn serious about everything, or just disinterested, and watching Mokuba scarf down his food, he sighed before speaking up again.
"Unless we do a haunted house. I'll join you in that, since you," he said, looking down at Mokuba, "Have an affinity for getting lost. Or running away from me, I'm not quite sure which one it is."
"Getting lost," lied Mokuba, beaming, "I'd never try to purposely lose you, Nii-sama."
Jonouchi had a feeling that wasn't quite true. Mokuba could be a little brat, and it was entirely possible that he'd run off just to get Kaiba's panties in a knot. Or to make him chase. Either way, Jonouchi was wary of Kaiba coming with them. Jonouchi didn't want to embarrass himself when he inevitably got frightened by the suspense, and if Kaiba was there, then he wouldn't be able to get as caught up in the experience for fear of being humiliated.
He determined that he would have fun regardless, and not worry about what Kaiba thought. He seemed to be keeping whatever snide opinions he had to himself, so it was entirely possible that Jonouchi could be as much of a scaredy-cat as he wanted and not hear about it that night. He'd probably hear about it later on, but not that night.
The funhouse was lit by violet lights, and even then the lights were dim. There was mostly black space inside, which made almost every part of the place a dark alley, in Jonouchi's mind. There might be actors in there intended to scare him, and they could come from anywhere. He tried not to visibly tense up as they got further away from the light of the entrance, but he was probably obvious.
Nothing happened for a while. Mokuba was in front of him, seemingly unafraid of whatever might pop up. Jonouchi, on the other hand, was stepping lightly and quietly, listening in the hopes of hearing what waited inside before it appeared. He was getting wide-eyed and intense from the suspense when he heard a loud, startling noise from below him.
Jonouchi yelled in shock and jumped as high as he could, trying to evade whatever was making a ruckus at his feet. It turned out to be one of the simple air vent scares, which was a little embarrassing, but he tried to let it roll off his back. Barely inside, and already he was jumpy.
"Mokuba, stop running off ahead," Kaiba started chiding, speeding up as he tried ditching Jonouchi behind to scare himself again, hopefully wetting his pants, "I'm not going to chase after you in this dump."
"Nii-sama, I'm not going that fast, just try to catch up!"
Mokuba's voice was hardly audible behind all the noises of sound effects playing, and Kaiba sped up again, using his long legs to cut across the halls before he reached a dead end.
That wasn't right. Where the hell did the kid go?
"Damn."
It was probably a trick to get people lost. This was why he secretly didn't like haunted houses, but usually went along with them anyways. Now he was trapped with the blond idiot, who caught up quickly but still looked stupid startled over the air vent trick that occurred behind them.
"Mokuba's gone. We need to find him."
"I'm sure he's okay," Jonouchi replied, secretly relieved that Kaiba, at least, had stayed behind. He didn't really want to wander the place alone. "But we can try to catch up with him, if it makes you feel better."
Kaiba was being unduly paranoid, in Jonouchi's opinion. Mokuba was a rather fearless fourteen-year-old, and he wasn't a moron. Not only that; the likelihood of something bad happening in the fun house was actually very low. Still, he wasn't going to argue, especially if it meant having company while he wove through the place. Mokuba had been a little traitor and zipped off on his own, which he was sure annoyed him differently than it did Kaiba.
"Does this always happen, then?" Jonouchi wondered out loud. Mokuba must have really enjoyed the opportunity to toy with his brother. Then again, who wouldn't? Mokuba just had the advantage of getting away with it. Constantly.
"Yes."
"So...did you start telling him to slow down before or after he started running off for the hell of it?"
Mokuba was probably a little mule like his big brother, and a command to stay in Kaiba's line of vision only made him more likely to bolt. Jonouchi found it hilarious, but he wondered which was the cause, and which the effect.
"If you didn't hear me yelling to slow down, then maybe you need to get your ears checked," Kaiba snapped, folding his arms and turning around to find another dark hallway path to follow, "He took off after I told him to slow down."
And left Jonouchi back with Kaiba too, which was not what he wanted, but oh well. At least now he wasn't compelled to be nice to him like before. Not that Kaiba was going to use him as a target for verbal abuse because he was frustrated, but he couldn't fake being polite now that he was stressing himself out.
"That little devil is always running off..."
"As you implied," Jonouchi sighed, "Which is what I was asking about. I just wondered if he runs off because you tell him not to, or he just started bolting when he felt like it and that's why you tell him to stop."
Kaiba seemed anxious. Not that it was surprising, but it made Jonouchi more cautious. He was more annoyed at Mokuba's disappearance than anything, but Kaiba seemed genuinely worried. He had good reason to be, considering things that had happened in the past.
"I'm sure he's all right, Kaiba. That brat isn't even scared."
"That's partly the problem."
Kaiba walked blindly into the darkness, fast enough to potentially leave Jonouchi behind if he didn't try to keep up. The noises of the music playing didn't bother him, and even when the strobe lights went off and a crowd of ghouls filled the hall trying to grab them, he just jumped a little, startled, before evading them and taking off down by himself.
Jonouchi could take care of himself, he didn't need his hand held in a stupid fun house.
Jonouchi had been overwhelmed by the seizure-inducing lights and sudden flood of people, and in his clumsy attempts to get away, he'd lost track of Kaiba. Bastard had probably woven his way through and skipped off. Once Jonouchi was over his fear from the actors grabbing at him, he started simmering. He could understand Kaiba abandoning him, of course. That was hardly unexpected. But while Mokuba had only just done the same? Both of them were assholes.
He stalked through the hallways, more frustrated than actually angry, but it melted his fear away. He felt like he'd probably growl at anything that tried to fuck with him for the remainder of his journey, and the actors watching from the darkness could likely tell. They didn't bother him anymore.
Jonouchi was stomping through the place with his hands in his pockets, trying to find the exit as soon as possible, when he smacked into something firm and fleshy in the dark. The collision force was enough that he fell over, and heard the other object doing the same. From the grunt he heard, he assumed it must be Kaiba. Jonouchi stood and grimaced at him. Not that it was visible.
"Since you're still charging around the place, I assume you didn't find Mokuba," he huffed. Served him right. He didn't get to have that kind of success after just ditching Jonouchi in a crowd of groping actors.
Kaiba just looked up at him a bit stunned for a while before he snapped out of it, getting up and dusting his pants. He was rather ticked off, that he was being asked such stupid questions when the answer was so clear, so instead of entertaining Jonouchi's baiting, he walked off again.
Although not fast enough to leave him behind.
Jonouchi was hanging close this time, not at all shy about invading Kaiba's personal space. Like hell if he was going to get ditched again. He was close enough that he could detect Kaiba's cologne, which smelled so expensive that it was probably made of money in liquid form. Jonouchi snorted, but he had to admit that the smell was nice. It pleased his senses without overwhelming them, unlike something cheap might do, and it seemed to suit Kaiba perfectly.
Jonouchi actually got caught up in how good Kaiba smelled and forgot that he was irate for a little while. He could worry about knocking in the Kaiba brothers' heads later. Hopefully Kaiba wouldn't just start sprinting in an attempt to lose him. He was always funny about keeping an arms-length bubble of personal space.
"I heard him go by a second ago," Kaiba interrupted, looking back and stopping for a moment while Jonouchi rammed into his shoulder. It was obvious he wasn't paying attention to where he was going, and Kaiba gritted his teeth at the pain. Jonouchi wasn't soft, at all.
"He's not that far away."
But before they could do anything more, the lights suddenly flashed on and they found themselves suddenly surrounded by men in black before they shut again, and Jonouchi predictably freaked the fuck out before tripping all over himself trying to get away. Kaiba couldn't lie, he was pretty disturbed, and grabbing Jonouchi's hand, he tried quickly leading him out of the maze
Jonouchi was embarrassed about being led out by the hand like a child, but at least Kaiba hadn't ditched him again. It wasn't as if he was going to get himself out anytime soon while he was flipping shit about the actors that had shown up. When they left the maze, Jonouchi heard the sound of ecstatic laughter, and easily identified the voice as Mokuba's. Of course.
"You little imp!" Jonouchi shouted, trying to look as threatening as he could as he went after the kid. Not that anything threatened Mokuba, but it was worth a shot. "What the hell was that, leaving me behind? I was all alone in the dark!"
Well, not the whole time. Kaiba had been there, technically, but he'd skip at the drop of a hat, too.
"You're fine; Nii-sama got you out."
"Yeah, well," Jonouchi lost track of whatever retort he might have made as he thought that over. It was true; Kaiba could easily have just left him behind again. Instead, he'd grabbed him and dragged him out. He'd been bitchy like a frustrated mother while he did it, but still.
Kaiba had been holding his hand that whole time?
Jonouchi stared at his hand for a few seconds in silence, wondering if he should be amused or disgusted. He settled for laughing it off and grinning at Kaiba, who looked like he was trying not to get sucked in.
"Thanks for that," he offered. He probably wouldn't get a response, but it was polite to make the gesture.
He got a grumble back with an eye roll.
"Where else are we going?" Asked Kaiba, breaking up the what could be bonding session over fright for something else, immediately losing interest in the haunted house as he looked out towards the other rides, "Mokuba?"
The kid shrugged, but smiled before taking off running, going towards a mess of rides where people were standing. Kaiba seemed to have paled when he did so, but didn't say anything, walking fast to catch up and leaving Jonouchi behind to stand there and wonder what was going on before he jogged over trying to keep up.
There was a Ferris wheel, but Kaiba was not going to get on that thing. Roller coasters didn't really interest him, he didn't like arcade games since the people who ran them cheated, and spinning rides gave him a headache. Looking around, he groaned at the buzzing sounds and blinking bright lights, following behind his brother from a little ways.
Jonouchi was rather pleased with the excitement, and was temporarily too overwhelmed to decide what he should do first. He set his sights on Mokuba and followed briskly, trying his best to keep up with the kid. It was like he had a mission statement or something.
"Where are we going?" Asked Jonouchi. He hoped it wouldn't be something that squished them all into too close a proximity, like the Ferris wheel. Jonouchi wasn't sure he could sit still through that right now anyway, and his twitchiness would just be annoying. Then again, maybe Kaiba wouldn't be coming for the rest of the tour around the park, and Jonouchi could act freely. Mokuba didn't mind his "childish" behavior half as much as his older brother.
Mokuba was leading them to the roller coaster, fortunately. Jonouchi waited in line behind him, bouncing excitedly for a few moments before forcing himself to stop. Kaiba stood off to the side, looking as if he had no intention of coming.
"Nii-sama!" Mokuba called out, turning around and gesturing for his brother to get in line with them, "You need to ride with us! There's enough room for three people, don't be such a party pooper."
He made a face, before going around and standing right behind Jonouchi with his arms folded and eyes looking away. It wasn't like he didn't enjoy thrill rides, but usually he liked more challenging things that made people potentially sick instead of being shot around up and down a few times before it ended. That wasn't really his thing, especially since most of the people in line for the ride were half his age.
"Don't look so excited!" teased Mokuba, laughing as he moved forward in line, "It's not that bad."
"Do you get nervous on rides, or something?" Asked Jonouchi. He was genuinely interested. Kaiba seemed like he might be the type to get paranoid about those theme park rides, even if he wasn't prissy about it like some of Jonouchi's friends were. Or maybe he was just nervous because Mokuba liked giving him grey hairs.
"I ride jets for fun, this crap here is child's play," Kaiba answered back, rolling his eyes, "I don't get nervous about anything."
Jonouchi bit his tongue. He'd seen Kaiba sweat before, and he'd been at least anxious back in the fun house, but he chose not to mention it. If Kaiba wanted to boast, so be it. No reason to start a fight with him right before getting jammed into a roller coaster car with him. Hopefully Mokuba would be in the middle.
When their turn finally rolled around, Jonouchi got in first so he could be on the far end of the seat. They were fortunately near the back of the train of seats, so they would get the most momentum on drops. Jonouchi resisted bouncing his heel in anticipation. He'd been on a rollercoaster just recently at KaibaLand, but he still enjoyed the experience like it was brand-new every time. Before he started getting invited to spend time with Mokuba again, it had been ages since he was on theme park rides.
He thought Mokuba would get in next to him, but instead, the kid physically ushered his older brother into the middle before sitting at the opposite end. Jonouchi made a face at him, which Kaiba fortunately didn't notice since he was doing the same. They were squished together uncomfortably, especially to Jonouchi, who didn't really need the distraction of feeling Kaiba's body in that much detail.
"Uh, Mokuba," he spoke hesitantly, "I thought you were gonna sit next to me?"
"I don't want you throwing up on me," Mokuba replied back, giving forward so he could give Jonouchi a devilish grin, "Nii-sama isn't going to bite you or anything anyways."
"You say that, but I'm not that sure," Jonouchi joked. Kaiba didn't seem amused. Jonouchi wasn't either, really, but he didn't want to be an asshole about it. Mokuba didn't want to get barfed on. It made sense. But Kaiba probably didn't want to either. He seemed tense, and had himself as compact as was possible. It didn't do any good; Jonouchi was flush against him, and the car was small enough that their thighs and shoulders were pressing together. Kaiba was wearing leather pants for whatever reason, and through the soft, clingy material, Jonouchi could feel the outline of his leg ridiculously well.
Enough to have a mental image, actually. One he recalled from that night at the hotel, when he'd dragged Kaiba to his room. It was strange to think about. Back when he and Honda used to get up to those kinds of antics, it would be something like a bonding activity. Who could he trust more than the friend who dragged his drunk ass home? And of course there would be a lot of good-humored teasing about it the next day. That was just part of the fun.
With Kaiba, he was afraid to mention the occasion, and hesitant even to think about it near him like he could tell. Kaiba didn't seem happy about what had happened at all, or at least reluctant to discuss it. Maybe he was still embarrassed, or he thought Jonouchi had a bad opinion about it. That would be just like him, wouldn't it? Whatever the case, Jonouchi decided it was probably safest to keep the memory to himself for now.
The cars started rocking forward, and out of habit, Kaiba immediately grabbed the bar that kept them in their seats and pulled down hard enough to lock them before the safety worker came by to check, further squeezing them all together. He wasn't a fan of having Jonouchi all up against him, but he tried pushing his irritation to the back of his mind, forcing himself to relax as his knuckles turned white from holding onto the bar too tightly.
Mokuba was bouncing in his seat practically, and Kaiba gave him a sharp look to make him stop. He was much too big for that, he came up to Kaiba's shoulder already, and he was all over his personal space as well. Bratty kid knew he'd get more space at the edge than sitting in the middle, so he got the biggest one between all three of them to sit there...
"Stop being so grumpy Nii-sama, you love rides," said Mokuba, shoulder bumping him hard enough that Kaiba ended up hitting Jonouchi, who didn't look thrilled over the contact, "And Jonouchi isn't going to give you cooties or whatever."
"I wasn't worried about that," answered Kaiba, rolling his eyes and trying to lean back in the seat to get more comfortable.
"Jonouchi," Asked Mokuba, looking over at the blond before grinning and flashing all his teeth, "Are you going to give Nii-sama cooties or some shit?"
"Cooties? What are you, five?" Jonouchi snickered. "We're adults. We don't use the term "cooties" for it anymore."
"Fine, afraid Nii-sama will give you herpes?"
Kaiba flashed Mokuba a very hard look before ignoring them both, looking ahead and shaking his head.
Jonouchi laughed shamelessly at the thought. Someone as stuck-up and tight-assed as Kaiba was the least likely candidate for herpes, but the idea was hilarious. Jonouchi had actually been referring to the fact that what children called "cooties" magically changed into "arousal" after puberty, but Mokuba obviously had something else in mind. He was amazed that the kid could get away with saying something like that. Even with his friends, if Jonouchi had cracked a similar joke, he probably would have been smacked.
He stopped himself laughing as the carts continued to move. He didn't want to make Kaiba any more uncomfortable than he already was. At least he seemed to have given up on trying to make space between them and wasn't pressing his knees together like some girl. Jonouchi realized he was staring at Kaiba's lap and averted his eyes. Kaiba was much too easy to look at, in his opinion. It was probably just because he wasn't talking. And smelled nice. And was pretty comfortable to be squished against, actually, but Jonouchi would never tell.
It would be nice if Kaiba was like this all the time, if perhaps a bit more conversational. Jonouchi could handle him being a bit on the rude side (a lot on the rude side) and making his snide comments, and even the fact that he was a giant ice queen didn't bother Jonouchi all that much. But he didn't sit well with being insulted. That was his limit. The rest was just...grating. He could handle grating. This non-harassing and more docile Kaiba was more to his tastes.
What was that phrase he'd read? "Silence is golden, duct tape is silver". Maybe that was a good rule for Kaiba.
He glanced briefly at Kaiba, observing his face. His jaw was set, but not tense, and his eyes stared straight ahead as if he was trying to put all his focus into the track as they rode upward. Jonouchi ended up staring so he could see what Kaiba looked like when he blinked. His eyelashes looked even longer from the side.
Jonouchi raised his eyebrows when Kaiba turned and looked at him with the most accusing questioning face he'd ever seen. It almost made him feel bad for staring. But not really.
"What?" Jonouchi asked, wondering if he'd finally pissed Kaiba off with his overly-interested observing. Jonouchi tended to stare at people he liked anyway, since he was observant of their features, but Kaiba was a bit of a special case. In that he was the hottest person Jonouchi knew.
"Stop staring at me," was the answer he got back, Kaiba's voice lowered as he wasn't trying to get Mokuba's attention, "It's annoying."
"Oh," Jonouchi responded, somehow not quite embarrassed enough to look away, "Sorry. I'll stop."
Kaiba didn't even seem that pissed off about it. At least Jonouchi hadn't gotten himself into trouble. He felt the cart lurch, and before the situation got any more awkward, the rollercoaster started tipping downward. Jonouchi held the bar in front of him as they picked up speed, whooping excitedly when they finally started to drop. He loved that exhilaration. His stomach was almost unbearably ticklish as they fell, and the wind whipped his hair around until they finally slowed to a regular pace.
They got jostled around as the car ran through the tracks, going up and down, spiraling down and even making one corkscrew before they came at the end. Mokuba had a look of elation on his face, quick to get the bar off and taking off again to get on something else while Kaiba sat there for a moment, a little stunned, before getting out himself. He wasn't expecting so much, but it wasn't like anything he couldn't handle. The ride was still child's play.
He followed Mokuba from a ways, putting his hands into his pockets. It wasn't getting warm yet, and looking up at the sky, he immediately noticed just how dark it was. Mokuba was having too much fun still, and they hadn't really done enough to leave, but he was getting somewhat tired himself, from the busy week he was dealing with, and it came as a sort of relief when Mokuba ran into some girls he knew and took off with them.
At least now he could sit down and take a rest.
Although he'd be stuck with Jonouchi if he didn't feel like tagging after a bunch of high schoolers. He glanced at him, before taking out his phone and looking through his emails. His expression looked slightly scandalized, like he was surprised that he'd be abandoned for tits, but Kaiba was already used to it. Mokuba would probably be back in an hour, he was pretty good with the girls his age, unlike the males.
It figured.
Jonouchi made a face at Mokuba's back and then sat down beside Kaiba. Like hell if he was going to go be a third wheel while a bunch of fourteen-year-old girls gathered around Mokuba. It would be like running a field trip. Jonouchi sat, staring around, his eyes eventually settling on Kaiba's fingers as they erratically worked his multi-touch smartphone. He remembered again that he actually had one now. He was still getting used to it, and hadn't given his new number out to anyone yet. He probably wouldn't until his phone bill needed to be paid and the old brick got shut off.
Kaiba had long fingers. Jonouchi had never really noticed before. They were obviously upper-class, unlike Jonouchi's own that showed signs of calluses and rough treatment. Although they were getting almost soft now that he worked at the soba restaurant, since he had to wash the dishes at least once during any given shift, and the soap he had to use afterward was some girly moisturizing shit. He wasn't quite comfortable with losing that masculine quality.
He wanted to talk to Kaiba just because, but he didn't have anything to say. Small talk would just annoy him, more than likely, and Jonouchi didn't want to be considered a menace while the evening was going so well. Kaiba was fun to tease, though. Especially when he took the stick out of his ass for a few minutes. Jonouchi decided to say something, figuring he might get a snappy remark or glare at the worst since Kaiba was "behaving" today.
"You know," he grinned, his tone facetious, "Even if you did have herpes, I'd still like you. I'm not biased."
Turning around and nearly dropping his phone from surprise, Kaiba just stared at Jonouchi for a minute, slightly scandalized. He didn't expect to be spoken to, nor having Jonouchi say something so stupid to him, but there it was. He didn't know just what to say to that, it was pretty out there, and trying to get his composure back, he snorted and rolled his eyes before continuing with his email.
"It's such a relief then, if that ever becomes the case. Good to know I'll still have options."
"Well, you know me. Always here to help."
For a fleeting moment, Jonouchi wondered how much Kaiba meant by that, but he brushed it off. He sincerely doubted he was being flirted with. At the moment, he was being tolerated at best.
"You're pretty popular. People are blowing up your phone and you've only ignored it for an hour or two," Jonouchi snorted. That would annoy the hell out of him. Maybe it was normal for Kaiba, but he'd dislike constant messages on his off time.
"I have a lot of things going on," replied Kaiba, "It's just how it goes sometimes."
He didn't really mind the messaging. It was nice to know what was going on when he wasn't around to take care of it. Sure, sometimes the minor shit got annoying when he told his staff he'd be busy and didn't want to be interrupted with crap, but since he wasn't at the moment, it wasn't a big deal answering shit from his employees who were still working, probably at home by now.
There were a lot of things going on. They had a convention to throw soon, and that was always a big stressing thing, for everyone. It wasn't like Kaiba planned out the entire function, and although Mokuba was taking on the bulk of the responsibility, there were still many things that had to be run into by Kaiba first. Like expense and budget, along with what inventions he was actually willing to show that year and what would be held off until spring.
"But I'm not actually that popular," mused Kaiba, pocketing his phone now that he was done, "Since if you haven't noticed, I hang out with a fourteen year old on my spare time."
Not that he minded, but it wasn't like most people wanted to talk to him. They were too timid. And Kaiba generally didn't like being bothered by people he didn't know, they were always trying to get something from him and he didn't find their company all that entertaining or stimulating. The best he ever got was the geeks down in Development at Kaiba Corp, but they worked for him. They weren't his friends.
"You're pretty popular, if the internet is any indication," Jonouchi chuckled, "And you can hardly be judged for hanging out with a fourteen-year-old, especially if he's cooler than you."
He was teasing, and he hoped it was obvious. He didn't see how Kaiba could think he was serious anyway, unless he genuinely had no sense of humor.
"Don't forget, you also hang out with a charming nineteen-year-old on occasion. Unless you were only referring to people you spend time with willingly."
"You consider yourself charming?" He asked, snorting, "That's funny."
"Keep in mind that I'm using you as a basis for comparison. If I was matched against him," Jonouchi gestured toward Mokuba, who still had girls flocked around him, "Then I'd just be embarrassing myself."
"I can be charming too, when I feel like it."
He just didn't feel like there was anyone worth impressing. Generally that wasn't hard for Kaiba to do; he could talk someone into liking him pretty easily. Just had to flash his eyes at someone and start talking smoothly before they'd get all flustered and blushing over the attention. But purposely distancing himself from people, that didn't happen often unless he wanted something from someone.
"Is that so?" Jonouchi gave Kaiba a skeptical expression. "I'll believe that when I see it."
He knew Kaiba could fake nice when he wanted to. He'd done it in the past. But even then, Jonouchi had figured there was something off, and he trusted his gut when it came to that kind of thing. Anyone could flash a smile. It wouldn't stop them from striking when he was lulled into a false sense of security. Especially after the incident with Marik, Jonouchi was convinced that his first instinct was the right one.
"Fine."
Taking that as a challenge, Kaiba moved closer into Jonouchi's personal space, putting his hand on the male's far shoulder and gently grasping it, the corners of his mouth rising a little as he allowed his eyes to relax.
"Tell me then," he asked, getting close enough that he could smell the tacos Jonouchi had eaten earlier that night, "That if I asked to take you out to dinner right now, that you'd say no. I know how you look at me, Jonouchi. I'm not stupid."
"I wouldn't say no," Jonouchi didn't even try to look apathetic. Kaiba was definitely attractive, and if he actually tried, he could be sultry. But Jonouchi still knew who he was. "It's gonna be a cold day in hell when I turn down free food, especially if it comes with a view."
"So you're actually gay then? Ha, that explains a lot."
He backed up, leaning against the bench and losing interest now that he got the response he wanted. It didn't really bother him too much, other men had shown interest in him before, and he just generally didn't care. Only a few people actually pissed him off, Kitamura being one, since he was always looking at him far away like he was a piece of meat on a sample tray, but it wasn't like he'd see him again anytime soon.
"I didn't know you were wondering," Jonouchi smirked, "You could have just asked. I probably would have lied, but still."
"But still what? You'd save face, I know how you are about that shit, the sort of things you said in high school," snorted Kaiba, rolling his eyes, "People's eyes don't lie. I'd rather see it for myself."
"You'd rather see me being gay than hear about it? I didn't know you were into that kind of shit, Kaiba."
Jonouchi snickered, though part of him wondered if that was what Kaiba had actually meant, in which case he might feel very uncomfortable shortly. He was still surprised that Kaiba had just let the abrupt "coming out" roll off his back and wasn't at least a little upset, but he wasn't going to complain about it. It occurred to him that Kaiba might be a little flexible himself, considering he'd been half-flirting a moment ago. People in Japan didn't just do that if they were straight. It wasn't considered "funny".
"I've already saw what I didn't know was you being gay," Kaiba replied, crossing his arms and closing his eyes, becoming a bit irritated by the conversation, "But I wasn't exactly sure what I'd seen. I thought you were desperate for money or some shit, not actually interested in sleeping with that guy..."
"So you thought it was more likely I was dating for pay than just trying to get laid?" Jonouchi's good humor faltered. He didn't like the sound of that at all. "Not gonna lie, that kind of bites."
"Business is business, I wasn't thinking too much about it anyways. I was drunk, and it surprised me. I'm not insulting you, honestly, I don't really care how you make money, as long as you don't do it in Mokuba's room again."
"Uh, I wasn't planning on it," Jonouchi blushed, "And don't assume there's money involved, Kaiba. That's a hundred different shades of rude."
"Well I apologize then," he said, scoffing a little while watching Mokuba from far aways, "But I knew Kitamura before you did, and he has a reputation."
"Reputation?" Jonouchi's eyes widened. This he wanted to hear. If Kitamura had a network or something, then he wasn't sure what he would do. Probably be pissed, for starters. And then he'd have to seriously reconsider doing anything with him in the future. "A reputation for what?"
"Getting what he wants using the thing everyone needs."
He didn't want to get into it. Kaiba was mostly going by rumors, but he'd seen some of it before, at parties. Just how Kitamura talked to people and flashed money around to attract attention. It was trashy. Sure, he wasn't the first to pay for sex, and that would never go away, but he could be far more discrete about it, and he always seemed to be going for people who weren't offering.
It was actually kind of insulting at times, since Japanese men didn't not appreciate being approached for it. Otogi had gotten upset, Kaiba had heard about that before, and it was a wonder that the two men were even still working together, but apparently Kitamura was a good investor. He had old money or some shit, Kaiba wasn't exactly sure.
"That doesn't sound very good," Jonouchi muttered, lost in thought for a few moments. If Kitamura was just fucking everything that would let him, then that really put Jonouchi in the position of being an over-glorified prostitute. More so in Kitamura's eyes than his own, most likely, but the fact remained. It made him feel deeply uncomfortable, and for a minute all his anxiety about the whole deal gripped him and made his chest constrict.
He forced himself to calm down. This was something he could think about later, when he was alone (and he would have to finally put some thought into it, he supposed). He didn't want to sit around breaking into a cold sweat while he was supposed to be on a friendly outing.
"I guess I can see why you assumed. Thanks for not being an asshole about it, anyway."
Kaiba wasn't quite sure if Jonouchi was being sarcastic or not, so he just glanced at him and said nothing. He didn't really care about what Jonouchi did and with whom, it wasn't his concern. Not like how Otogi freaked out that night, when the whole situation occurred, and Kaiba knew he probably would have been more concerned if he wasn't so drunk. But since he didn't like Jonouchi anyways, and was down half a bottle of sake, it was the last thing on his mind, trying to stop Jonouchi from having a tryst with a complete manwhore.
"It's not any of my business."
And he probably shouldn't have brought it up, it was kind of awkward now. Jonouchi was no longer speaking, and although his chattering was might annoying, it was at least normal. The unusual quiet was unsettling, like something was wrong, and it made Kaiba tense.
"Hmm?" Jonouchi was sucked out of his thoughts when Kaiba spoke again, and he faced him attentively. Kaiba seemed a little tense, and Jonouchi realized that he'd gone completely quiet and probably looked more intense than was warranted for the situation. He brushed off his rather serious personal thoughts and laughed. Everything felt better if he just laughed it off.
"Oh, don't worry about it," he grinned, "I'm not offended or anything. I just let my mind wander and lost focus."
He was talking a little too fast, and he made himself calm down before he got annoying. He could get to babbling when he was nervous. So he put on his cool face, letting himself slip back into his teasing mood.
"I was wondering, actually," he smirked, leaning toward Kaiba. He could see those blue eyes looking at him sideways. "What side of the fence are you sitting on, Kaiba? Because you don't seem very particular about hopping over to mine long enough to flirt."
He didn't get an answer back right away, just a very annoyed expression as Kaiba scoffed and rolled his eyes from the question. It wasn't really Jonouchi's business asking, and he didn't feel like exposing himself to anyone really, since it was so damn rude. What business was it of his, knowing who he wanted to sleep with? Not that Kaiba hadn't poked around, but at least he wasn't so damn abrasive over it.
"Why do you want to know?" He asked back, flashing his eyes at Jonouchi before closing them and smirking, "I'm not interested in sleeping with you, if that's what you're wondering. Keep dreaming on."
"Well that was straightforward," Jonouchi scoffed, "Thanks for stopping me from wasting my time, or whatever. But no, I was asking because you just flirted with me. Not to mention, you're probably the only person in this entire city who wouldn't be at least uncomfortable about me being gay."
"Don't make something out of nothing," Kaiba responded back, "I just wanted to mess with your head a little. I didn't think the dog jokes were working too well, anyways. Now I know something better to use on you."
Jonouchi's eyes went cold, and he stared at Kaiba for a few seconds before huffing and returning to his side of the bench, determinedly silent. Unsurprisingly, Kaiba was just as fucked in the head as he'd always been. What kind of person would flirt with someone of the same sex just to "mess with their head"? No one did that. If someone had caught them in that situation, Kaiba couldn't just make that excuse and have anyone believe it was the case. Did he think Jonouchi was stupid?
Well, he made it very clear that he thought that. But this was like taking it a step further. And really, he was just going to replace the dog insults with flirting? No, Jonouchi wasn't okay with that. He determined that if Kaiba did anything like that again, he was getting his nose broken. One punch, right in the middle of his face.
He stopped speaking entirely, knowing that he wasn't calm enough to play nice anymore. He hoped Mokuba would come back soon so he wouldn't have to feel Kaiba's presence bearing so heavily on him. He admitted, if only to himself, that he was hurt. But it was his fault. He'd been too lenient, joking with Kaiba like a friend rather than keeping him at a safe distance where he belonged.
Mokuba didn't return quickly enough for Jonouchi's patience, and he stood, walking briskly toward the food stalls. He was barely hungry, if at all, but he needed the walk to clear his head, and the food would probably make him feel a little better. Maybe he could find some mochi.
Kaiba returned to playing on his phone. He didn't think too much about Jonouchi's reaction, since it got him off his back and away. Which was what he wanted, instead of being pried at and getting asked questions he didn't feel like answering. Not that he wasn't comfortable with himself, but he didn't feel like everyone needed to know about his sexuality and what exactly he was and wasn't willing to do with another man or woman. That didn't concern anyone, as far as he was concerned, and crossing his leg and sighing, he finished his work, completing an email before turning it off and waiting.
Mokuba was taking his sweet time. He noticed a while ago that he'd taken off to go on the spinning rides with the girls before getting them to see the fun house with him and a few other things. It was nice seeing him with kids his own age, he mused, after Mokuba went so long without any sort of friends. Well, not friends his own age. He didn't really hang out with Yugi's gang, thankfully, and Kaiba tried pushing him towards his own age group.
But it didn't work. Mokuba would resist, he was just as introverted as Kaiba was, and he knew that. It just distressing to him, since he knew it wasn't healthy. He wasn't healthy, Kaiba knew that, and he didn't want to examine every little thing that was wrong with him, but if his brother could be better, well, that would be okay.
Well, he wouldn't complain next time Mokuba shut himself in his room to play video games. At least he went out and did something, with girls even. That made Kaiba grin a little.
Jonouchi did find his mochi, and after a few bites, his mood was already vastly improved. Being away from Kaiba was like finally getting fresh air after being trapped in a small room. Or maybe the closet where Kaiba was stuffing himself. Whichever, Jonouchi wasn't going to concern himself with it. Kaiba was an irreparable asshole, and Jonouchi didn't intend to waste his life on him. He had better things to do...
He looked toward the last place where he'd seen Mokuba. He was still with all those girls he'd picked up. Jonouchi was impressed, really, but he was upset about getting ditched. Mokuba wasn't even mature enough to know what to do with those girls, let alone dump his friend for them. Still, it was the nature of his age group. Jonouchi decided to let him have his fun and sent him a quick text saying to let him know when he was done "entertaining". In the meantime, Jonouchi was going to explore the festival.
He wasn't sure what to do though, really. He'd gone on all the rides he was interested in, aside from maybe the Ferris wheel, but he didn't want to be cooped up there with the thoughts that would be plaguing him later. That didn't leave much, unless he felt like being a giant pig and visiting every food vendor on the property. He decided to look for live shows instead. The music would distract him, hopefully long enough for Mokuba to get bored and seek him out. Assuming it was possible for a teenage boy to get bored with girls.
Maybe Jonouchi would be waiting for a while.
He found a kabuki drum show on a stage and sat down to watch the glowing masks and drumsticks with flowing trains. The actors were supposed to look like "spirits", two of them positioned on opposite ends of the stage and drumming to "summon" the boss monster. Only children really believed that kind of thing, but it was still fun to watch the show.
By the time that was over, Jonouchi was out of mochi and still hadn't heard from Mokuba. He checked his phone, and saw that he still hadn't been contacted, so he decided to return to the bench where he'd left Kaiba. Mokuba might have returned there first. And if Kaiba was gone, and he couldn't reach either of them, well...he'd probably been stood up.
Kaiba was still sitting when Jonouchi returned, fortunately. Mokuba was still off in the distance. Jonouchi was half amused and half frustrated with the situation. Kaiba seemed pleased, though; there was the tiniest smile visible on his face, and it made Jonouchi a little jealous. He didn't exactly have someone to be proud of (or someone to be proud of him) in that particular way. He sat at the edge of the bench, watching Mokuba.
"Is he trying to start a business over there, or what?" Jonouchi muttered, mostly talking out loud. It was an amusing thought, and since daydreaming was about all he could do to entertain himself at this point, he let that mental image wiggle into his brain.
"He's hanging out with friends from school," said Kaiba back, not looking away, "I didn't even think he had friends."
He never went out on dates or stayed over at people's houses. Not that Kaiba pushed him to, since he was a bit paranoid over that and liked knowing where and who Mokuba was with at all times, but he generally didn't see him take to people so well. It was nice to watch, and it gave him hope that maybe his brother wasn't as scarred as he was afraid he might have been. That was a relief.
He didn't want Mokuba being like him.
"He's pretty charming when he wants to be," Jonouchi snorted, recalling that Kaiba had said the same of himself earlier, "I think he just picks and chooses who he makes friends with. He's smarter than most high schoolers."
Jonouchi could hardly recall anyone who hadn't desperately sought a clique to belong with. There had been a few scattered introverts, like Yugi and some other kids in their class, but they were uncommon. Maybe Mokuba just wasn't as needy as most students.
"He's smarter than most people," Kaiba mused, not breaking his line of vision, "They think he's just my brother, but he's just as intelligent as I am. Just, no one pushed him into doing anything with it, and I don't plan to, since he should be deciding what he wants to do about it..."
He didn't know why he told Jonouchi that. Stopping for a second to ponder that, he pushed it to the back of his mind before going silent again, unable to stop from breaking into a more visible smile when Mokuba parted with the girls and returned to them, grinning over his success before purposely grabbing Kaiba's hand to haul him up.
"I'm almost done," he said, his face all lit up, "But I want to do one more thing before we leave... Sorry Jonouchi about leaving you behind with Nii-sama, but I couldn't just ignore them, you know?"
He was laughing when Jonouchi frowned, skipping off towards one last ride. Kaiba wasn't going to get on it, he hated the swirling apple things that made people want to puke and made a face.
Jonouchi followed suit. He didn't have any qualms with spinning rides. They were some of the best, in his opinion, and he wanted to do something else before they left. It was too bad that the mere thought of the ride had wiped the smile off of Kaiba's face. Seeing it had almost made Jonouchi forget that he was the spawn of the devil, but it was probably for the best that it didn't slip his mind for too long.
It was interesting to get in on his thoughts, though. Hearing things like that from Kaiba really drove home that there was a real human in there. But Jonouchi only rarely caught glimpses of that, and only when Kaiba was impassioned. That only happened if he was raving about the Blue-Eyes White Dragon or something happened with Mokuba. With everything else, Kaiba preferred to show his ass to the world and felt perfectly justified in doing it.
What had the world done to him, exactly? Aside from made him rich and given him power and fame?
Sure, his childhood had sucked, but damn. Everyone had a shitty childhood. Jonouchi had to raise himself in the ghetto, and he didn't blame everyone for it. Shit happened. Even fucking Marik hadn't hated everyone. Just Atem, actually, but that had been...complicated.
He sat in one of the spinning apples with Mokuba. It looked like Kaiba planned to sit this one out, but he always looked like that was his plan. Mokuba had a funny way of changing them.
"You're gonna be glad you got on this with me," Jonouchi smirked at Mokuba, "I can turn this shit so fast. You better hope my mochi doesn't come back up."
Jonouchi had a strong stomach, and excepting the last time he saw Kitamura, he hadn't thrown up in years. Usually he had to get the flu for that to happen, in which case he could usually will his body to hold his food.
It didn't take too long before they finished, and Kaiba got up from sitting on the bench once they did. Mokuba looked about ready to pass out, probably from running everywhere, and it was really late. Too late to drop of Jonouchi, since Kaiba knew he didn't live anywhere decent, and they weren't any closer to the hotel than they were from the mansion. He'd have to let him stay in a guest room.
Which annoyed him, but there wasn't anything he could do about it.
Jonouchi was similarly tired. He'd been on the verge before, but turning the ride as fast as his arms would allow had taken out what was left. Still, he wasn't quite as exhausted as Mokuba, since he hadn't been flirting with a group of six girls for half the night. He was content, despite his little scuffle with Kaiba. He was beginning to reach the conclusion that he had been right, and there was a soft center somewhere inside Kaiba. He just hated Jonouchi. That wasn't exactly a great thought, but at least it made him feel less like an idiot.
When they got into the car to leave, Mokuba got in the backseat and practically lay down despite Kaiba telling him to sit properly and buckle up. It seemed that Mokuba was going to do whatever the fuck he wanted, and since Kaiba seemed to be a bit of a pushover for the kid, he wasn't going to get any flack for the little things.
Jonouchi took shotgun, since there wasn't really space in the back for him while Mokuba was sprawled out falling asleep. He felt awkward sitting with Kaiba, but he didn't get any comments about it, so he relaxed. The front seat was more comfortable, anyway. There was more room for his longer-than-average legs. Not as long as Kaiba's, by a long shot, but Jonouchi was above normal height.
They didn't have a short ride ahead of them. Kaiba wasn't looking forward to the drive, he was tired himself and he didn't want to be on the road for half an hour in the dark. Especially if Jonouchi got tired and fell asleep, it would be a bitch to stay awake and pay attention to the road, and probably the only time he hoped Jonouchi would actually chatter away to keep him from falling asleep.
He looked back after a good few minutes to find Mokuba passed out in the back, sprawled out. It made him shake his head, he didn't want him doing that, but he couldn't really yell at him or anything about it. Wouldn't be worth the trouble.
And Jonouchi seemed about to pass out too, and Kaiba was not going to deal with any snoring shit or whatever crap that might concur, so he decided to speak up, giving a side glance as he continued driving.
"Thanks for taking Mokuba out."
Jonouchi's head turned quickly toward Kaiba, and his eyes widened in surprise.
"Uh...you're welcome? I mean, it's not really a favor. I like Mokuba. I know he's younger and all, but it's not like I'm that mature," he laughed, "You don't have to thank me."
It was unexpected. He couldn't really read Kaiba's face to tell what made him feel compelled to say thanks. He'd thought, if anything, Kaiba would want to discourage further outings between the two of them.
"I'm the one who should be saying thanks. I'm just as confused about why he wants to hang out with me as you are."
Mokuba knew how much power and authority he had, and was perfectly happy to use it for his and Jonouchi's pleasure. It made Jonouchi feel treated, and very lucky, but he felt a little bad for mooching. Then again, he couldn't exactly afford all his own shit at the moment. Maybe he should just give up on having a life and get another job.
"I'm not confused as to why he hangs out with you, I was never confused over that."
It surprised Kaiba that Jonouchi wasn't aware of how much Mokuba alway liked him. Well, he was more attached to Anzu in the beginning, for fairly obvious reasons, but since she was gone now and no longer around, well, it only made sense that Mokuba would latch onto Jonouchi. They knew each other well enough, and despite the bumpy past between all of them, Mokuba probably felt comfortable with him.
"Oh," Jonouchi shrugged, looking toward the road again, "I just assumed, since...well, you don't really like us hanging around together, so I figured maybe you didn't understand the motivation."
"I don't dislike it, I just don't enjoy being a part of it," Kaiba explained, "There's a difference."
Jonouchi was giving Kaiba the side-eye from hell, his mind flooded with memories of any given occasion when he'd been with Mokuba and Kaiba had made some snide comment about him hanging out with "the dog", and he wasn't sure how offended he should be.
"Well," he settled for laughing about it. The car was a bad place to start an argument. "I don't know if it's better or worse that your reasoning was just not liking me, but it's fine. I like hanging out with Mokuba. I've always considered him a friend, even if I did get on his ass for being a little brat."
Mokuba had never been shy about talking back, either, and being quite obnoxious about it when the mood struck him, so Jonouchi didn't feel bad. It was just part of their relationship. They fucked around with each other, almost like how he tried to with Kaiba when he wasn't being completely repellent. Though that usually proved to be a mistake on Jonouchi's part.
Shit, could Kaiba really still hate him that much after five years?
"Jonouchi," Kaiba interrupted, changing the subject a little while giving him an almost amused look, "I don't like anyone."
It wasn't as personal as Jonouchi thought it was. Not really. Even Kaiba knew that, although he didn't really bother to explain his odd behavior to anyone since they didn't bother to ask. He assumed most people knew just how anti-social he was, when it came to personal relationships, and despite knowing how to get what he wanted from people, it didn't mean he enjoyed actually interacting with others on a fair playing field...
"Well, I know that much, but..." Jonouchi looked out the passenger-side window. He wasn't sure if he should explain himself. It would probably just give Kaiba more ammunition, more grounds on which to judge him poorly. But Jonouchi made himself speak up for the sake of that little sliver of a chance that Kaiba would be sincere with him for a moment.
"...But you don't talk to other people like you do to me. I'm not saying you're nice to anyone, but...I notice the difference."
Maybe it was Jonouchi's fault for getting Kaiba's attention, but that still didn't warrant what seemed like a personal mission to cause him as much psychological and emotional harm as possible. Kaiba had always been rude, arrogant, insulting, and most often apathetic to everyone. Sometimes he almost seemed like a sociopath (high-functioning, obviously) with the way he interacted with people. But he made Jonouchi feel like a target or some cruel plaything, which only served to make him more confused when they had almost-decent conversations.
"Most people have enough sense to leave me alone," Kaiba answered back, rolling his eyes, "And you don't. You're always coming back, so what exactly are you expecting? Certainly not friendship. I'm not interested, and I've expressed that to you and your group enough times that you should know..."
"I wouldn't expect anything if you weren't so confusing," Jonouchi huffed. Kaiba was stating the obvious, which made Jonouchi feel stupid. It wouldn't, if he hadn't half-forgotten those obvious things, but he blamed Kaiba regardless. "When you don't immediately start snapping at me, you can be amiable. You're a rude ass, but I am too, so I'm not gonna be a little bitch about that. So yeah, I get a little expectant until you start in on me again."
Either Kaiba was mentally screwed up, or he was a brilliant actor. Sometimes he seemed like he was just defensive and cautious, and a little easy to push to biting. Like a wounded animal. Other times, he seemed like some psycho who reveled in the misery of others.
"And we all got your "attention", most the time negatively. You may have been insulting back then, but I always seemed to be your favorite target. I guess I can't blame you, it's not like I'm easy to miss or hard to get riled up. Still. It's confusing."
"Then maybe you shouldn't come looking for attention from me," said Kaiba back, giving him an annoyed look and changing his mind about having Jonouchi fall asleep. He didn't want to argue in the car, it was too late for that kind of shit, and Mokuba was asleep. "I guess you should just consider yourself "special", you've made yourself an easy target for years and now it's like habit."
Sometimes crap just came out of Kaiba's mouth so fast, he couldn't stop himself. Not that he didn't do that sort of thing with other people, but usually he wasn't around people his own age to fuck with. And the people he was around, were in his employment. He couldn't go around harassing people and having them potentially sue him for it, so he tended not to use the people around him as chewing toys. He wasn't stupid.
"See, that's what I'm talking about," Jonouchi brushed off Kaiba's snappy response. He was used to it, and for the moment, he was too tired to get indignant and furious about it. "You say stuff like that, like you're just a bad person or something, but I know you aren't. So it's confusing. When you don't lash out and shit, you're really interesting and I like talking to you. Hell, even the rudeness is more part of the fun than anything..."
Jonouchi was probably just making the situation worse. He thought about sitting quietly and trying to pretend the conversation never happened, but he was in for the long haul now.
"Jonouchi, you barely know me."
"You aren't very subtle. I'm not saying I know you inside and out, but a bad person doesn't raise a kid like Mokuba. He didn't make himself that way. I see how you are with him, people can't just fake that kind of shit..."
He should know. His own mother made a pastime out of playing the part of an ideal parent. But her children were proof of her failure; a son abandoned with a deadbeat father, and a daughter who didn't have the confidence to speak half the time, much less express any personality.
"And that's not counting the stuff you've done for me and the gang," Jonouchi continued, smiling just slightly at the memories, "You've always been around when it mattered, so you can't be rotten at the core, can you?
It's more like a really angry and hateful shell around a really cool guy," he made an arc gesture with his hands in time with the analogy. Yeah, that seemed about right. Kaiba was multi-layered. Most people were, but with him it was more dramatic. It was like the really shitty outside layer had a bunch of cracks in it, and the good part was just barely visible sometimes. Unfortunately, it seemed to be a dangerous endeavor, trying to get under the bad bits.
Kaiba didn't say anything back. He went completely silent. Instead of replying to anything Jonouchi said, he tried mentally shutting it out, pushing it aside, and focused on the road. Getting another friendship speech from the loser his brother dragged around didn't interest him, and he gave out a frustrated expression as his knuckles turned white. It took everything in him not to grind his teeth, he was so irate over the entire thing, but he forced himself to relax his jaw.
Thankfully they arrived at the mansion shortly after. He wouldn't be stuck in the car with Jonouchi for much longer, and he was relieved by that, he wanted to leave him and just go to bed. Hopefully he'd be gone by morning, and Mokuba had school anyways. He'd have no reason to be around by tomorrow.
And after getting through security and parking in front of the driveway, he went to the back seat and woke up Mokuba, who nearly swiped and took off his face trying to bat him away. He wanted to hit the kid, for nearly punching him in the jaw, but gave him a hard shove instead. He wasn't going to carry his heavy fourteen year old punk ass up a flight of stairs, that was not happening.
"Mokuba, get up. I'm not carrying you. You're not ten anymore."
"Like that's going to stop me from trying," Mokuba grumbled, though he got up anyway. Kaiba didn't sound like he wanted to be trifled with, and he was awake enough as it was. He could get himself to his bedroom.
Jonouchi trailed behind the brothers, keeping a distance between him and Kaiba. He was in a better mood than he should be, not because Kaiba was upset, but because...
Because Kaiba was upset, actually. He was silently steaming like he always did when someone told him something true about himself that he didn't like. Jonouchi had done it twice in the past, which was minor compared to Atem's accomplishments, but he was still proud of himself. He'd figured something out, no matter how small. Maybe Kaiba would just hate him more for it, but his mind would be at rest. He had some small idea what he was dealing with, now. Nothing Kaiba did in the future would change that now, and they both knew it.
So Kaiba was mad. He could get glad in the same pair of pants for all Jonouchi cared. Poor him, he had to be confronted with the fact that he wasn't all bad. Why would that upset him? Maybe because it made his constant bitchiness less "excusable". As if it had ever been in the past. Perhaps in Kaiba's eyes.
He parted with Mokuba after they had ascended the stairs and wandered to an intersection in the hallways. What kind of house had fucking intersections in it? How did the two of them live in this place?
Kaiba led the way to...somewhere. Maybe out back where he'd be shot for discovering one of his secrets. That was unlikely, logically, but Kaiba seemed mad enough to do it if he were an even less rational man.
No, he was just leading Jonouchi to the guest quarters of the house. Kaiba's own room was closer to where Mokuba was, but he didn't trust just giving Jonouchi directions and assuming he'd figure out where to go. That would be a poor idea, getting woken up in the middle of the night by security because the blond idiot couldn't find his way through the house. He didn't want to deal with that.
"You can have the guest room," he said finally breaking the silence, opening the door and leaning against the door frame, "There's a full bathroom in there and everything's stocked. If you leave your clothes outside the door, the staff will take care of it. And don't worry about a ride home, that'll be taken care of tomorrow."
He immediately walked away without saying anything else afterwards, going back towards the family section of the hallway before disappearing into his own room.
Jonouchi didn't have a chance to say thanks. Kaiba probably didn't want any, lest it make him feel like he'd done something nice. Jonouchi chuckled, stretching. It was when he raised his arms that he realized just how tired he was. He felt a bit dizzy after closing his eyes, and it took genuine effort to lift his limbs. He made a beeline for the bathroom to clean up.
It was like a hotel, with all the single-serving stuff around. An unopened little toothbrush and toothpaste under the sink, tiny shampoo and conditioner in the shower. Jonouchi rinsed off. There was no need to make the bed all gross with whatever had stuck to him at the festival. The warm water was relaxing, anyway.
When he was finished cleaning himself up, he gratefully jumped into the incredibly comfortable bed. Knowing rich people was pretty fucking nice. He'd probably never be able to afford shit like this, unless he went to drastic measures. Or got a lot of help.
Despite being tired, his thoughts troubled him for a while before he slept. Even his amusement about Kaiba didn't stop him from getting anxious and a little pissed about Kitamura. That, and he felt almost horrified about his situation for the first time, but he didn't want to be. That was no rational way to deal with it. Still, it wasn't exactly good, was it? Getting paid to get fucked by some guy who would do the same with anyone else willing?
It wouldn't be bad if the sex didn't make him feel so used, probably. Maybe. But Kitamura made things so one-sided that he wasn't sure what to do about it. Was that just the way it was going to be? It certainly suited everything that had ever been made on the subject of "boys' love", but Jonouchi wasn't sure movies and eromanga were exactly reliable sources.
And Kaiba didn't seem to think it was normal (or good). Then again, he didn't have any qualms with flirting just to get to Jonouchi. It made his cheeks burn with humiliation. He wasn't sure who was worse-Kitamura trying to use his body, or Kaiba using everything else.
Then again, Kaiba seemed to be trying very hard to be mean. It appeared (and sounded) like Kitamura's nastiness came naturally, or at least with great ease. This deduction still didn't make one seem any better than the other, and Jonouchi felt his head start to hurt.
Well, Kitamura didn't really seem...gay. Or, he didn't seem like he liked men so much as he had a thing for fucking them. Whereas Kaiba was at least a little gay, even if he refused to say so. Some nerve, digging into Jonouchi's personal life and refusing to reveal something that simple! Simple in the context of Jonouchi being that way as well, anyway.
Ugh. Why did he get caught up with these psychos? Kitamura, who was like the world's most brazen man-whore, and Kaiba. Just. Kaiba. Jonouchi could keep himself up all night puzzling over that one. At least Kitamura was nice in a weird way. He was still a huge dick, but he didn't attack Jonouchi like Kaiba did. He didn't make him feel like he was worthless. Except after sex...
Jonouchi sighed in exasperation and flipped onto his stomach, shoving his face into the soft pillow under his head. He shouldn't even be thinking of them in the same terms. Just because he knew Kaiba was a little gay now didn't mean that he should be considered that way. Jonouchi didn't want him. Well, he did want him, for obvious reasons. But he didn't want him, not in the long run. He might fuck him for the hell of it, if he didn't know Kaiba would destroy him for it later and forever after.
Shit, at least Kitamura didn't make him feel bad for being a whore.
But Kitamura wasn't exactly a boyfriend, either. If he was, he was a terrible one. So odds were, their relationship was intended to be...business. Not that Jonouchi couldn't use the money, especially so much for so little effort, but it wasn't great for his psyche.
Fuck it all. He needed to sleep, and the rich bastards in his life weren't helping. He shut off the thoughts that were running through his head, postponing them yet again. He wasn't going to get anywhere doing compare and contrast. Hadn't he been trying to figure out what to do with Kitamura?
He forced himself to shut down and relax. He would need to rest if he was going to deal with all that crap, and he had a comfortable bed to do it in.

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Ambivalence