Say Goodnight and Go - Chapter 01 (rewrite)
So. Several years ago I started this fic. It was my attempt at writing a high-quality Yu-Gi-Oh! fanfic, specifically of the Kaiba/Jounouchi variety. It was good, but then I abandoned it for a long time.
Fast forward.
Recently, I got back into Yu-Gi-Oh!, and instead of starting on something new, I decided to edit, rewrite and revamp this fic, in the hope of someday actually finishing it. I started in on the project, and this chapter is part of the fruits of that labor.
It hasn't gone to a beta, though I've gone over it personally more times than I can count. Still, I've likely missed something, so feel free to nitpick. This is only being posted to my fic journal for now, though I plan to post it to jou_loves_kaiba when I've got it finished (since I hate waiting for WIPs, and I don't want to be guilty of posting one).
Anyway, enjoy. I should have more (at least a couple more chapters) within the next week or so. Also, if you happen to be familiar with the original version of Say Goodnight and Go on FF.net, you will notice that this chapter is much shorter than the original first chapter. This is because that chapter has been divided into two parts, so that the chapter lengths throughout the story will be more even. The second part will be the next thing uploaded.
~*SC
Chapter 1
000ooo000ooo000ooo000ooo000ooo000ooo000
It was late August and a heat wave had hit Domino City with a vengeance. Students wilted in their sweltering classrooms, the air shimmered above heated pavement and even the cicadas' buzzing seemed flattened by the oppressive heat. The few people on the streets moved efficiently from one air-conditioned building to another, spending as little time in the heat as possible.
Kaiba Seto was not one of these people.
He was seated at a street cafe, his laptop sharing space on the little table under the awning with a large glass of iced lemon soda. He had made some small concessions to the heat -- his suit jacket hung off the back of his chair, his tie was loosened, his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and the top button of his shirt was undone. An occasional breeze made its way past his location, but it still wasn't the most comfortable place to work. Nevertheless, he was enjoying himself immensely. Not only was the soda perfect, but he was actually getting some work done. None of his employees were willing to brave the two block walk from the Kaiba Corp building in this heat, so the only interruption he had had that afternoon was when a waitress had come to refill his drink and offer him a sandwich.
Now the sandwich was long since eaten, he was further in the coding of his newest game than he had hoped to be by the end of the month, and he had received word that Mokuba had gone to the arcade with his friends after school and wouldn't need to be picked up for some time. Given his reputation, it might have been surprising that Kaiba Seto was willing to simply sit back and relax, but Kaiba Corp's newest release was selling well, his work was ahead of schedule, Mokuba was happily occupied, and there were no pressing issues that he needed to attend to. He was content, and he couldn't imagine that the day could improve.
That was, until he caught sight of a very familiar mop of blond hair.
Seto couldn't remember exactly when he'd last seen Jounouchi Katsuya. He guessed that it would have been several months before, at their graduation ceremony. Seto hadn't planned to attend the event, which he regarded as a complete waste of time, but Mokuba had insisted that it was important and everyone knew that Seto could never refuse his brother anything. In the end, Mokuba had spent most of the time celebrating with Yugi and his friends, and Seto found himself forced into several group pictures. Jounouchi had been jubilant that day, despite the fact that he had barely scraped by with a D-plus average. Seto had kept only one of the pictures Mokuba had taken. He was standing at the back, slightly apart from the group, but Jounouchi was right in the thick of it, one arm looped over Yugi's shoulders and the other holding Honda in a friendly headlock. The blond was positively beaming, and Seto had felt something curl around his heart when he saw the picture. He was sure Mokuba knew he had it, but he didn't care. He hadn't been sure when he would see Jounouchi again, and he had... missed him. Their ridiculous arguments and stupid insults had been excellent stress relief, and beyond that, he'd enjoyed being the focus of Jou's fiery personality.
Not that he would ever admit that to anyone other than himself. And then only occasionally. Under duress.
Now, here was the puppy, walking down the street looking like something out of a Calvin Klein ad. He was dressed simply; a white, wife-beater-style tank top and jeans. Jou, who had always been skinny (and, in Seto's opinion, maybe even a bit malnourished), had finally put on some muscle; it filled out his shoulders, chest and arms quite nicely. He had obviously been out in the sun, and every inch of golden skin was glistening with a light sheen of sweat. He was striking, and Seto wondered when, in the months since he had seen Jounouchi, had the boy grown from a gangly teenager into a man?
...A man who didn't seem to notice Seto, hiding away in his shady corner.
"Minoru!" He called out in that familiar voice as he approached the very cafe where Seto was sitting. He waved, and one of the waiters -- probably Minoru, Seto deduced -- waved back.
"Jou! Off work already?" The waiter, a slight thing with short brown hair, checked his watch. Jou laughed as he approached and took a glass of soda from his friend.
"Yeah. It's this heat. One of the welders collapsed, so they let us off for the rest of the day."
Minoru let out a low whistle. "I can't believe it didn't happen before. This week has been horrible." He fanned himself with his now-empty tray. Jou nodded, sipping his drink.
"I could use the hours though." He said, almost disappointed. Minoru abruptly stopped his fanning and smacked Jou on the shoulder with the tray.
"Don't complain! You make twice what I do." He sighed. "Just because I can't bench-press a truck..."
"Oh, ha ha." Jou rolled his eyes. "At least you get to work in the shade. And your boss isn't a slave driver."
"Well, you're free now." Minoru swatted him lightly. "Go grab a table. I'll get you a sandwich and a refill." With that, Minoru took Jou's now-empty glass and disappeared.
Seto watched as Jou walked over to the tables out in the sun. It looked as though he would be sitting there, until he touched the metal back of one of the chairs. The blond pulled his hand back as though it had been burned (which, truthfully, it probably had been). Apparently deciding he didn't want to be branded, he made his way toward the awning instead.
There was nothing unusual about this sequence of events; Seto likely could have predicted the scenario. What was unusual was the strange fluttering feeling under his ribs that began when Jou turned in his direction.
000ooo000ooo000ooo000ooo000
Jou, meanwhile, couldn't believe his eyes. There was absolutely no way that Kaiba was here of all places, especially in the middle of a work day. He could imagine Kaiba dealing quite well with the heat (after all, he probably had ice flowing through his veins anyway), but with as much money and power as he had you would think he would be somewhere with central air. Instead, he was sitting at a table at one of Jou's favorite cafés and watching... Jou. Oh.
"Kaiba? Is that you?" He paced over to Kaiba's corner table, his long legs covering the distance in only a few strides. Seto found himself with a choice to make. As much fun as it would be to fight with Jou, he had a nagging sense that to do so would ensure that he would never see the blond again. That was something he suddenly realized he didn't want to happen, and when Seto didn't want something to happen, it usually didn't.
"I don't see who else it would be." Seto responded dryly, snapping his laptop shut. He looked up at Jou, who seemed almost apprehensive; shuffling his feet and fidgeting. It was endearing. "Well, pup?" Seto arched an eyebrow as Jou's eyes flickered with the beginnings of anger, "Are you planning to sit down or not?"
Jounouchi was taken aback. Yes, he was angry about the insult, but somehow it hadn't felt like an insult when Kaiba said it the way he had just then. More like... like a friendly nickname, or even a pet name. And then he was invited to sit down.
With Kaiba. Kaiba never sat with anyone. All through high school, the space around Kaiba was like a no-fly zone, and now, without warning, he was being invited in.
He sat.
A slightly uncomfortable silence fell over them. Seto abruptly realized that he had very little experience actually carrying on a conversation with anyone other than Mokuba; especially not with Jounouchi. Jou, for his part, didn't quite know what to say either. One faux pas would probably end this truce-like thing they had going, and even if it was spent in uncomfortable silence Jou didn't want to ruin it.
"Ah! There you are!" Minoru appeared again, carrying the promised sandwich and another glass of soda for Jou. He had already reached the table when he realized Kaiba was there as well, and he cleared his throat awkwardly. "Kaiba-san," he acknowledged with a polite sort of nod. Seto nodded back, not unaccustomed to strangers recognizing him on sight. It wasn't as if he was unknown. Minoru served Jou his items with a smile, then politely excused himself to check on the few other customers of the cafe. Once he was gone, Seto noticed that Jou was looking at him oddly.
"You have no idea who he is, do you?" Jou accused, taking a bite out of his sandwich and giving Seto a lopsided smile as he chewed, softening a statement that easily could have sparked a fight. Seto wracked his brain for a moment. The waiter had looked vaguely familiar, but then again, Seto had seen and spoken to quite a lot of people in his life. Normally, he wouldn't have cared if he was supposed to know some random waiter, but the way Jou was looking at him was making him almost self-conscious. He wasn't sure if he liked that sort of feeling.
"No." He admitted finally. "Should I?"
Jou rolled his eyes. "He was only our class rep for two years," he snorted.
Seto tried to remember if he had ever noticed or even cared who their class rep was. He could barely recall a plain boy who occasionally stood up to tell the class about school festival preparations and so on. He supposed that had been the same boy who was now serving sandwiches. That seemed odd.
"Why isn't he in college?" Seto wondered aloud before he quite realized he was saying anything at all. Jou settled himself, leaning back in his chair.
"He should be. He could've gotten in almost anywhere, but he wants to go to Todai." He shrugged, as if it didn't matter. Which, Seto realized, it probably didn't to him. There was no way that Jounouchi would have gotten into college. "He didn't pass the entrance exam the first time around, so he's doing a ronin year and then he's gonna try again."
Seto nodded. He hadn't been very interested in going to college -- as far as he was concerned, even high school was a waste of time -- but he was well aware of the importance some people placed on getting into the correct university.
"You goin' to school?" Jou inquired, sounding genuinely interested.
"No." Seto replied, before realizing that he was probably required to put more effort into the conversation than that. "I didn't even want to go to high school, but it was required of me if I wanted to keep custody of Mokuba." Jou had been nodding along in agreement with the not-wanting-to-go-to-high-school part, but when the conversation turned to Mokuba he grinned.
"Hey, how is the kid, anyway?" Jou leaned further back in his chair and stretched his long legs out, getting comfortable even as his feet threatened to tangle with Kaiba's.
"Mokuba is fine." Seto smiled a little, something he tended to do far more than usual when it came to Mokuba. He really couldn't help it, he doted on his brother. He knew, too, that Mokuba had really grown attached to Jou. "I actually have to pick him up in a bit. If you don't have anything to do, I'm sure he'd like to see you." He left the other half of the offer -- I like seeing you, too -- unsaid. Somehow, saying it would simply have been too much, and Seto already felt as if he was walking along a razor's edge.
Jou couldn't really believe that Kaiba had actually invited him to spend more time in his company. But then, they had been sitting there chatting for a while now, and neither had tried to kill the other. In other words, they had gotten further than he had ever expected his relationship with Kaiba to develop. He grinned, a wide, toothy thing that gave him just the faintest trace of dimples.
"Hell yeah! That'd be great!" Both parts, his brain filled in. He could feel the slight flush on his cheeks, and was thankful for the heat that disguised it.
Seto nodded. Jounouchi would be remaining in his company, at least for a while longer. For some reason, that brought forth a wave of satisfaction in him. With that settled, he turned his mind back to the concept of conversation with the pup. He couldn't think of much that would be interesting to Jounouchi. Ah, but there was one thing that had caught his attention.
"You're working now?" He inquired, leaning back slightly in his own chair.
Jou grinned and nodded proudly. "Yup! At least for the summer, anyway. With Hayaku Construction?" He tagged the sentence with a question mark, pausing afterward. Seto thought briefly. The name did sound familiar, but he couldn't place it. He shook his head slightly, indicating for Jou to continue. He seemed a bit deflated that Seto didn't recognize it, but perked up again as he continued talking. "They're building that new hi-rise in the 6th district; it's only about a two block walk from here, over that way." He pointed in the opposite direction from the Kaiba Corp building.
The metaphorical light bulb over Seto's head suddenly clicked on. "The Kiyomi Group's new headquarters?"
It was almost obscene how much Jou brightened at his correct identification of the building.
"That's the one! But I don't know if I'm gonna stay on with Hayaku after the construction season is over or not. I might have to find something to do for the winter and sign back on next spring." Jou seemed saddened by this. He had been looking away, sort of aimlessly, but he returned his gaze to Kaiba as he continued. "The work's pretty tough, but the guys are great and the pay's not bad either. Especially for working on the hi-rise; higher risk, higher pay, you know?" Seto nodded. He did know. Kaiba Corp had done many building and renovation projects since he had become CEO, and he was well aware of the cost involved in hiring high-risk labor.
"So you're still at home, then." Seto assumed that to be the case, but it seemed a logical step to take in the conversation. So far, he felt he was succeeding at this strangely unfamiliar aspect of socializing. The look Jou gave him was surprising, though. Something between pride and anger and sadness and joy all mixed together. It was ... odd.
"Nope. I actually got my own place!" Jou's expression seemed to have settled on pride, for the time being. He practically radiated it. "I mean, it's nothin' special," he blushed a little, realizing how silly he must sound to someone like Kaiba, who lived in a huge mansion and would probably use an apartment like Jou's just to keep his Duel Monsters cards in. "It's just a 6-mat apartment, but I like livin' on my own. At first, I was gonna share a place with Honda, but then he got into Tsukuba so he moved out there. Then Yugi was talkin' about moving out, but his grandpa really needs him at the game shop. Plus, his house is already closer to Dodai than any place we woulda been able to find, and it's a lot cheaper for him to live at home, too. So, it's just me. It's a pretty good size place for one ... I'm still not that good at cooking for myself, though." Jou laughed, though it was something closer to a nervous chuckle. "Pop always used to just order in pizza and stuff, but it gets kinda expensive. I eat a lot of ramen."
He grinned, and Seto couldn't help but crack a smile. In a way, he found he felt proud of Jou, who seemed to be doing quite well for himself. Seto could almost picture him, signing his first lease, moving into his own apartment, going to work each day, coming home to his own place... Somehow, Seto found himself envious. Jou could do pretty much as he pleased; he didn't have to constantly work late, he wasn't bothered every time some underling couldn't figure out how to do his or her job.
"You sound happy." He observed succinctly. Jou's eyes widened slightly, then his eyelids lowered in contemplation.
"Yeah." He said thoughtfully, his lips quirking up into a half-smile that was doing funny things to Seto's stomach. "I guess I am." He looked up at Kaiba, smiling. "You must be pretty happy, too. Right? I heard your sales for the quarter are through the roof."
Seto was surprised by that. "You pay attention to Kaiba Corp's sales?" He raised an eyebrow incredulously (and far too elegantly, in Jou's opinion). It was hard to imagine Jounouchi reading the business section, and even harder to believe that he would be interested in Kaiba Corp.
Jou looked almost embarrassed. "Well, yeah. Sorta. I mean, they were talking about it on the news. NHK did that special?" Kaiba closed his eyes and rubbed his temple, warding off the memory of one of the worst headaches he had endured in years.
"I remember." He replied dryly. He certainly did remember; in fact, he wished he could forget. "That damn camera crew ran around for a week, distracting all of my employees and making a general mess of things. And then they had the nerve to interview me." Seto growled, a startlingly unprofessional thing for him to do, but he felt he was owed one moment of unprofessional conduct after that purely hellish experience.
Jou laughed. He had actually taped the interview, since he had had plans with Yugi the night it had aired. He probably wouldn't have bothered, but the previews they had been showing had been just too good to pass up. Jou was glad he had recorded it; it was the funniest thing he had ever seen. He had been tempted to send flowers to the poor reporter who got stuck with it, a pretty young woman named Takama Mayumi. The producers had probably thought that getting a girl to do the interview would soften Kaiba up. Boy, had they been wrong!
"You still didn't need to torture her like that." Jou pointed out, though any seriousness in the remark was completely eclipsed by the amused grin on his face.
"She was annoying." Kaiba grumbled, still looking a bit put-out.
"Like me, right?" Jou joked, grinning from ear to ear. There was a pause as Kaiba's expression turned thoughtful.
"No." He replied finally, his eyes meeting Jou's. Jou felt frozen under the weight of that gaze, as though he was being examined carefully, inch-by-inch. There was something sparking in it, tingling just below the surface, like the electricity a hair's breadth under the safe exterior of high-tension wires. "Not like you."
They sat silently, the slight tension undisturbed for a moment. Finally, Seto broke the contact, blinking hard and shaking his head almost imperceptibly. He glanced down at his watch. "It's about time to go get Mokuba." He looked up at Jou, leaving the question unasked.
Jou grinned. "Lead on!"
He stood and waited as Seto gathered his things, slipping his laptop into his briefcase and throwing his suit jacket over his arm instead of putting it back on properly (it was just too hot for it). Jou waved goodbye to a slightly shocked Minoru as Kaiba paid for both their tabs and they exited the cafe onto the nearly deserted street. As they made their way to the Kaiba Corp parking structure, Seto couldn't stop himself from smiling. He had gotten quite a bit of work done, Mokuba was sure to be thrilled (both with seeing Jou and being allowed to go to the arcade after school), and he had his puppy ambling along beside him, seemingly without a care in the world.
It was a day worth smiling for, in the life of Kaiba Seto.
000ooo000ooo000ooo000ooo000
Jou couldn't believe this was happening. The walk to the Kaiba Corp building was long enough to give him some time to think, and he certainly had a lot to think about. He had just had a friendly conversation with Kaiba Seto, the one person he had always thought was as likely to punch him as look at him. True, it was pretty much the standard, 'I haven't seen you, how have you been?', but it was still more than Jou ever thought was possible.
He had always done his best to ignore his attraction to Kaiba, mostly because he seemed to place Jounouchi's personal value somewhere between mold and dryer lint. Not anymore, it would seem. Jou was at least considered worthy to have lunch with Kaiba and not be insulted, which was another new thing. No insults. No trash-talking. It had been almost as though they were friends, or something like friends. Jou flushed as a warm, tingly sensation flooded him.
Kaiba Seto - billionaire CEO, brilliant game designer, and (according to poor Mayumi-chan from NHK) one of Japan's most attractive and most eligible bachelors - didn't hate him, and had just bought him lunch.
It was... a beginning.
000ooo000ooo000ooo000ooo000
tbc.
Fast forward.
Recently, I got back into Yu-Gi-Oh!, and instead of starting on something new, I decided to edit, rewrite and revamp this fic, in the hope of someday actually finishing it. I started in on the project, and this chapter is part of the fruits of that labor.
It hasn't gone to a beta, though I've gone over it personally more times than I can count. Still, I've likely missed something, so feel free to nitpick. This is only being posted to my fic journal for now, though I plan to post it to jou_loves_kaiba when I've got it finished (since I hate waiting for WIPs, and I don't want to be guilty of posting one).
Anyway, enjoy. I should have more (at least a couple more chapters) within the next week or so. Also, if you happen to be familiar with the original version of Say Goodnight and Go on FF.net, you will notice that this chapter is much shorter than the original first chapter. This is because that chapter has been divided into two parts, so that the chapter lengths throughout the story will be more even. The second part will be the next thing uploaded.
~*SC
Chapter 1
000ooo000ooo000ooo000ooo000ooo000ooo000
It was late August and a heat wave had hit Domino City with a vengeance. Students wilted in their sweltering classrooms, the air shimmered above heated pavement and even the cicadas' buzzing seemed flattened by the oppressive heat. The few people on the streets moved efficiently from one air-conditioned building to another, spending as little time in the heat as possible.
Kaiba Seto was not one of these people.
He was seated at a street cafe, his laptop sharing space on the little table under the awning with a large glass of iced lemon soda. He had made some small concessions to the heat -- his suit jacket hung off the back of his chair, his tie was loosened, his sleeves were rolled up to his elbows and the top button of his shirt was undone. An occasional breeze made its way past his location, but it still wasn't the most comfortable place to work. Nevertheless, he was enjoying himself immensely. Not only was the soda perfect, but he was actually getting some work done. None of his employees were willing to brave the two block walk from the Kaiba Corp building in this heat, so the only interruption he had had that afternoon was when a waitress had come to refill his drink and offer him a sandwich.
Now the sandwich was long since eaten, he was further in the coding of his newest game than he had hoped to be by the end of the month, and he had received word that Mokuba had gone to the arcade with his friends after school and wouldn't need to be picked up for some time. Given his reputation, it might have been surprising that Kaiba Seto was willing to simply sit back and relax, but Kaiba Corp's newest release was selling well, his work was ahead of schedule, Mokuba was happily occupied, and there were no pressing issues that he needed to attend to. He was content, and he couldn't imagine that the day could improve.
That was, until he caught sight of a very familiar mop of blond hair.
Seto couldn't remember exactly when he'd last seen Jounouchi Katsuya. He guessed that it would have been several months before, at their graduation ceremony. Seto hadn't planned to attend the event, which he regarded as a complete waste of time, but Mokuba had insisted that it was important and everyone knew that Seto could never refuse his brother anything. In the end, Mokuba had spent most of the time celebrating with Yugi and his friends, and Seto found himself forced into several group pictures. Jounouchi had been jubilant that day, despite the fact that he had barely scraped by with a D-plus average. Seto had kept only one of the pictures Mokuba had taken. He was standing at the back, slightly apart from the group, but Jounouchi was right in the thick of it, one arm looped over Yugi's shoulders and the other holding Honda in a friendly headlock. The blond was positively beaming, and Seto had felt something curl around his heart when he saw the picture. He was sure Mokuba knew he had it, but he didn't care. He hadn't been sure when he would see Jounouchi again, and he had... missed him. Their ridiculous arguments and stupid insults had been excellent stress relief, and beyond that, he'd enjoyed being the focus of Jou's fiery personality.
Not that he would ever admit that to anyone other than himself. And then only occasionally. Under duress.
Now, here was the puppy, walking down the street looking like something out of a Calvin Klein ad. He was dressed simply; a white, wife-beater-style tank top and jeans. Jou, who had always been skinny (and, in Seto's opinion, maybe even a bit malnourished), had finally put on some muscle; it filled out his shoulders, chest and arms quite nicely. He had obviously been out in the sun, and every inch of golden skin was glistening with a light sheen of sweat. He was striking, and Seto wondered when, in the months since he had seen Jounouchi, had the boy grown from a gangly teenager into a man?
...A man who didn't seem to notice Seto, hiding away in his shady corner.
"Minoru!" He called out in that familiar voice as he approached the very cafe where Seto was sitting. He waved, and one of the waiters -- probably Minoru, Seto deduced -- waved back.
"Jou! Off work already?" The waiter, a slight thing with short brown hair, checked his watch. Jou laughed as he approached and took a glass of soda from his friend.
"Yeah. It's this heat. One of the welders collapsed, so they let us off for the rest of the day."
Minoru let out a low whistle. "I can't believe it didn't happen before. This week has been horrible." He fanned himself with his now-empty tray. Jou nodded, sipping his drink.
"I could use the hours though." He said, almost disappointed. Minoru abruptly stopped his fanning and smacked Jou on the shoulder with the tray.
"Don't complain! You make twice what I do." He sighed. "Just because I can't bench-press a truck..."
"Oh, ha ha." Jou rolled his eyes. "At least you get to work in the shade. And your boss isn't a slave driver."
"Well, you're free now." Minoru swatted him lightly. "Go grab a table. I'll get you a sandwich and a refill." With that, Minoru took Jou's now-empty glass and disappeared.
Seto watched as Jou walked over to the tables out in the sun. It looked as though he would be sitting there, until he touched the metal back of one of the chairs. The blond pulled his hand back as though it had been burned (which, truthfully, it probably had been). Apparently deciding he didn't want to be branded, he made his way toward the awning instead.
There was nothing unusual about this sequence of events; Seto likely could have predicted the scenario. What was unusual was the strange fluttering feeling under his ribs that began when Jou turned in his direction.
000ooo000ooo000ooo000ooo000
Jou, meanwhile, couldn't believe his eyes. There was absolutely no way that Kaiba was here of all places, especially in the middle of a work day. He could imagine Kaiba dealing quite well with the heat (after all, he probably had ice flowing through his veins anyway), but with as much money and power as he had you would think he would be somewhere with central air. Instead, he was sitting at a table at one of Jou's favorite cafés and watching... Jou. Oh.
"Kaiba? Is that you?" He paced over to Kaiba's corner table, his long legs covering the distance in only a few strides. Seto found himself with a choice to make. As much fun as it would be to fight with Jou, he had a nagging sense that to do so would ensure that he would never see the blond again. That was something he suddenly realized he didn't want to happen, and when Seto didn't want something to happen, it usually didn't.
"I don't see who else it would be." Seto responded dryly, snapping his laptop shut. He looked up at Jou, who seemed almost apprehensive; shuffling his feet and fidgeting. It was endearing. "Well, pup?" Seto arched an eyebrow as Jou's eyes flickered with the beginnings of anger, "Are you planning to sit down or not?"
Jounouchi was taken aback. Yes, he was angry about the insult, but somehow it hadn't felt like an insult when Kaiba said it the way he had just then. More like... like a friendly nickname, or even a pet name. And then he was invited to sit down.
With Kaiba. Kaiba never sat with anyone. All through high school, the space around Kaiba was like a no-fly zone, and now, without warning, he was being invited in.
He sat.
A slightly uncomfortable silence fell over them. Seto abruptly realized that he had very little experience actually carrying on a conversation with anyone other than Mokuba; especially not with Jounouchi. Jou, for his part, didn't quite know what to say either. One faux pas would probably end this truce-like thing they had going, and even if it was spent in uncomfortable silence Jou didn't want to ruin it.
"Ah! There you are!" Minoru appeared again, carrying the promised sandwich and another glass of soda for Jou. He had already reached the table when he realized Kaiba was there as well, and he cleared his throat awkwardly. "Kaiba-san," he acknowledged with a polite sort of nod. Seto nodded back, not unaccustomed to strangers recognizing him on sight. It wasn't as if he was unknown. Minoru served Jou his items with a smile, then politely excused himself to check on the few other customers of the cafe. Once he was gone, Seto noticed that Jou was looking at him oddly.
"You have no idea who he is, do you?" Jou accused, taking a bite out of his sandwich and giving Seto a lopsided smile as he chewed, softening a statement that easily could have sparked a fight. Seto wracked his brain for a moment. The waiter had looked vaguely familiar, but then again, Seto had seen and spoken to quite a lot of people in his life. Normally, he wouldn't have cared if he was supposed to know some random waiter, but the way Jou was looking at him was making him almost self-conscious. He wasn't sure if he liked that sort of feeling.
"No." He admitted finally. "Should I?"
Jou rolled his eyes. "He was only our class rep for two years," he snorted.
Seto tried to remember if he had ever noticed or even cared who their class rep was. He could barely recall a plain boy who occasionally stood up to tell the class about school festival preparations and so on. He supposed that had been the same boy who was now serving sandwiches. That seemed odd.
"Why isn't he in college?" Seto wondered aloud before he quite realized he was saying anything at all. Jou settled himself, leaning back in his chair.
"He should be. He could've gotten in almost anywhere, but he wants to go to Todai." He shrugged, as if it didn't matter. Which, Seto realized, it probably didn't to him. There was no way that Jounouchi would have gotten into college. "He didn't pass the entrance exam the first time around, so he's doing a ronin year and then he's gonna try again."
Seto nodded. He hadn't been very interested in going to college -- as far as he was concerned, even high school was a waste of time -- but he was well aware of the importance some people placed on getting into the correct university.
"You goin' to school?" Jou inquired, sounding genuinely interested.
"No." Seto replied, before realizing that he was probably required to put more effort into the conversation than that. "I didn't even want to go to high school, but it was required of me if I wanted to keep custody of Mokuba." Jou had been nodding along in agreement with the not-wanting-to-go-to-high-school part, but when the conversation turned to Mokuba he grinned.
"Hey, how is the kid, anyway?" Jou leaned further back in his chair and stretched his long legs out, getting comfortable even as his feet threatened to tangle with Kaiba's.
"Mokuba is fine." Seto smiled a little, something he tended to do far more than usual when it came to Mokuba. He really couldn't help it, he doted on his brother. He knew, too, that Mokuba had really grown attached to Jou. "I actually have to pick him up in a bit. If you don't have anything to do, I'm sure he'd like to see you." He left the other half of the offer -- I like seeing you, too -- unsaid. Somehow, saying it would simply have been too much, and Seto already felt as if he was walking along a razor's edge.
Jou couldn't really believe that Kaiba had actually invited him to spend more time in his company. But then, they had been sitting there chatting for a while now, and neither had tried to kill the other. In other words, they had gotten further than he had ever expected his relationship with Kaiba to develop. He grinned, a wide, toothy thing that gave him just the faintest trace of dimples.
"Hell yeah! That'd be great!" Both parts, his brain filled in. He could feel the slight flush on his cheeks, and was thankful for the heat that disguised it.
Seto nodded. Jounouchi would be remaining in his company, at least for a while longer. For some reason, that brought forth a wave of satisfaction in him. With that settled, he turned his mind back to the concept of conversation with the pup. He couldn't think of much that would be interesting to Jounouchi. Ah, but there was one thing that had caught his attention.
"You're working now?" He inquired, leaning back slightly in his own chair.
Jou grinned and nodded proudly. "Yup! At least for the summer, anyway. With Hayaku Construction?" He tagged the sentence with a question mark, pausing afterward. Seto thought briefly. The name did sound familiar, but he couldn't place it. He shook his head slightly, indicating for Jou to continue. He seemed a bit deflated that Seto didn't recognize it, but perked up again as he continued talking. "They're building that new hi-rise in the 6th district; it's only about a two block walk from here, over that way." He pointed in the opposite direction from the Kaiba Corp building.
The metaphorical light bulb over Seto's head suddenly clicked on. "The Kiyomi Group's new headquarters?"
It was almost obscene how much Jou brightened at his correct identification of the building.
"That's the one! But I don't know if I'm gonna stay on with Hayaku after the construction season is over or not. I might have to find something to do for the winter and sign back on next spring." Jou seemed saddened by this. He had been looking away, sort of aimlessly, but he returned his gaze to Kaiba as he continued. "The work's pretty tough, but the guys are great and the pay's not bad either. Especially for working on the hi-rise; higher risk, higher pay, you know?" Seto nodded. He did know. Kaiba Corp had done many building and renovation projects since he had become CEO, and he was well aware of the cost involved in hiring high-risk labor.
"So you're still at home, then." Seto assumed that to be the case, but it seemed a logical step to take in the conversation. So far, he felt he was succeeding at this strangely unfamiliar aspect of socializing. The look Jou gave him was surprising, though. Something between pride and anger and sadness and joy all mixed together. It was ... odd.
"Nope. I actually got my own place!" Jou's expression seemed to have settled on pride, for the time being. He practically radiated it. "I mean, it's nothin' special," he blushed a little, realizing how silly he must sound to someone like Kaiba, who lived in a huge mansion and would probably use an apartment like Jou's just to keep his Duel Monsters cards in. "It's just a 6-mat apartment, but I like livin' on my own. At first, I was gonna share a place with Honda, but then he got into Tsukuba so he moved out there. Then Yugi was talkin' about moving out, but his grandpa really needs him at the game shop. Plus, his house is already closer to Dodai than any place we woulda been able to find, and it's a lot cheaper for him to live at home, too. So, it's just me. It's a pretty good size place for one ... I'm still not that good at cooking for myself, though." Jou laughed, though it was something closer to a nervous chuckle. "Pop always used to just order in pizza and stuff, but it gets kinda expensive. I eat a lot of ramen."
He grinned, and Seto couldn't help but crack a smile. In a way, he found he felt proud of Jou, who seemed to be doing quite well for himself. Seto could almost picture him, signing his first lease, moving into his own apartment, going to work each day, coming home to his own place... Somehow, Seto found himself envious. Jou could do pretty much as he pleased; he didn't have to constantly work late, he wasn't bothered every time some underling couldn't figure out how to do his or her job.
"You sound happy." He observed succinctly. Jou's eyes widened slightly, then his eyelids lowered in contemplation.
"Yeah." He said thoughtfully, his lips quirking up into a half-smile that was doing funny things to Seto's stomach. "I guess I am." He looked up at Kaiba, smiling. "You must be pretty happy, too. Right? I heard your sales for the quarter are through the roof."
Seto was surprised by that. "You pay attention to Kaiba Corp's sales?" He raised an eyebrow incredulously (and far too elegantly, in Jou's opinion). It was hard to imagine Jounouchi reading the business section, and even harder to believe that he would be interested in Kaiba Corp.
Jou looked almost embarrassed. "Well, yeah. Sorta. I mean, they were talking about it on the news. NHK did that special?" Kaiba closed his eyes and rubbed his temple, warding off the memory of one of the worst headaches he had endured in years.
"I remember." He replied dryly. He certainly did remember; in fact, he wished he could forget. "That damn camera crew ran around for a week, distracting all of my employees and making a general mess of things. And then they had the nerve to interview me." Seto growled, a startlingly unprofessional thing for him to do, but he felt he was owed one moment of unprofessional conduct after that purely hellish experience.
Jou laughed. He had actually taped the interview, since he had had plans with Yugi the night it had aired. He probably wouldn't have bothered, but the previews they had been showing had been just too good to pass up. Jou was glad he had recorded it; it was the funniest thing he had ever seen. He had been tempted to send flowers to the poor reporter who got stuck with it, a pretty young woman named Takama Mayumi. The producers had probably thought that getting a girl to do the interview would soften Kaiba up. Boy, had they been wrong!
"You still didn't need to torture her like that." Jou pointed out, though any seriousness in the remark was completely eclipsed by the amused grin on his face.
"She was annoying." Kaiba grumbled, still looking a bit put-out.
"Like me, right?" Jou joked, grinning from ear to ear. There was a pause as Kaiba's expression turned thoughtful.
"No." He replied finally, his eyes meeting Jou's. Jou felt frozen under the weight of that gaze, as though he was being examined carefully, inch-by-inch. There was something sparking in it, tingling just below the surface, like the electricity a hair's breadth under the safe exterior of high-tension wires. "Not like you."
They sat silently, the slight tension undisturbed for a moment. Finally, Seto broke the contact, blinking hard and shaking his head almost imperceptibly. He glanced down at his watch. "It's about time to go get Mokuba." He looked up at Jou, leaving the question unasked.
Jou grinned. "Lead on!"
He stood and waited as Seto gathered his things, slipping his laptop into his briefcase and throwing his suit jacket over his arm instead of putting it back on properly (it was just too hot for it). Jou waved goodbye to a slightly shocked Minoru as Kaiba paid for both their tabs and they exited the cafe onto the nearly deserted street. As they made their way to the Kaiba Corp parking structure, Seto couldn't stop himself from smiling. He had gotten quite a bit of work done, Mokuba was sure to be thrilled (both with seeing Jou and being allowed to go to the arcade after school), and he had his puppy ambling along beside him, seemingly without a care in the world.
It was a day worth smiling for, in the life of Kaiba Seto.
000ooo000ooo000ooo000ooo000
Jou couldn't believe this was happening. The walk to the Kaiba Corp building was long enough to give him some time to think, and he certainly had a lot to think about. He had just had a friendly conversation with Kaiba Seto, the one person he had always thought was as likely to punch him as look at him. True, it was pretty much the standard, 'I haven't seen you, how have you been?', but it was still more than Jou ever thought was possible.
He had always done his best to ignore his attraction to Kaiba, mostly because he seemed to place Jounouchi's personal value somewhere between mold and dryer lint. Not anymore, it would seem. Jou was at least considered worthy to have lunch with Kaiba and not be insulted, which was another new thing. No insults. No trash-talking. It had been almost as though they were friends, or something like friends. Jou flushed as a warm, tingly sensation flooded him.
Kaiba Seto - billionaire CEO, brilliant game designer, and (according to poor Mayumi-chan from NHK) one of Japan's most attractive and most eligible bachelors - didn't hate him, and had just bought him lunch.
It was... a beginning.
000ooo000ooo000ooo000ooo000
tbc.