Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Crimson November ❯ first night blues ( Chapter 3 )

The first night.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

*************************************************************** *********

The first night at Seto Kaiba's mansion was something to be remembered for years to come. Not only did the house have four floors, it had over ten bathrooms, three living rooms lined with every type of video game in existence and a kitchen so big, Joey could only hope that he would be able to find his way out of it once he got in.

They arrived in style, despite Kaiba's best efforts to not be seen, as a "safety precaution".

A long black limo had picked them up a few blocks away from the hospital, and from there, they had driven to the "mansion" where they were let out to gasp at the large, heavily secured house. Even Yami Bakura seemed excited by the hubbub. Though both Bakura and Joey figured it was because he was excited to learn how to break into new computer equipment, most likely trying to upgrade his thieving skills.

Kaiba stiffly led them to the living room, where they all sat down on the sofa and were explained the rules.

" Rule one, never harass or annoy Mokuba. Rule two, don't go in my room. Rule three, touch nothing that has anything to do with Kaiba corporation. And lastly, don't talk to me unless I'm not doing anything important, and since I'm always doing something important, don't talk to me at all. I'll see you all at supper." Kaiba stood up, grimacing and then turned to leave, when Joey grabbed his hand.

" You're just going to leave us here, alone?"

Joey raised an eyebrow, tugging lightly on Kaiba's arm.

Kaiba glared down at him, yanking free from the grasp.

" Look Wheeler, just because I saved your life in school doesn't mean I'm going to make anything of it. You make me sick mutt." He growled, stalking off, slamming the sliding door behind him.

Joey stared in disbelief at the door, jaw hanging open, and eyes wide with amazement.

Yami Bakura smirked, crossing his arms.

" Did you really think that he would just run to you with open arms Wheeler? He probably thought that he was going to die, and you were the only one who was still alive, so he just jumped into your arms and pretended that he liked you. It's not unusual for someone to do that, when people think they're going to die, they do the strangest things." He leaned back into the soft couch cushions and chuckled as Joey's face fell.

Bakura reached out and felt his way across the couch, pulling himself towards his Yami, who blinked at him in surprise. Bakura smiled, raised his hands and slapped him across the face, the noise so loud that the sound seemed to echo through the room.

Yami Bakura's eyes shot open with surprise at the harshness of the contact. He reached up and touched his face with his hand, shock radiating from his being. He could feel the stinging coursing through his cheek, like a fierce electric shock. He looked across the couch at Bakura who stared fiercely at him, disapproval throbbing like an angry swelling in his eyes.

" You shouldn't have said that." He said quietly, hand still held outstretched.

Yami Bakura sneered and reached out, grabbing Bakura by the bandaged side of his face, yanking as hard as he could, sending Bakura forward toward the edge of the coffee table.

At the last second, just before he was about to hit the table, Yami Bakura pulled back and pulled Bakura into his arms, sighing exasperatedly.

" Your lucky I can still control my anger Ryou, or else you'd be meeting the sharp end of the coffee table right about now." He grumbled.

Bakura swatted him again, but this time it was more playful, and not ment to cause as much pain.

But to Joey, nothing else seemed to matter. It was as if his world had done a nosedive that was rapidly changing into a death crash.

So Kaiba had only been faking it. He hadn't ment a damned thing about what he had done.

He didn't want to talk to anyone. He didn't want to be near anyone.

He rose from the couch, feeling his head scramble his mind into a runny paste, and stalked from the room, sliding open the door Kaiba had slammed shut. He slid it shut from behind him and then slunk down the hall, finding himself suddenly overwhelmed in the complexity of the house.

*************************************************************** *********

It was like a bloody maze with never ending walls. Horrified, he decided the best course of action was to just find a wall and to sit down beside it.

He found his wall. It was green in colour and had a strangely floral wallpaper bordering its top half. The hall itself was lined with a small table with a black vase of plastic flowers on it. All that was in the hall other then that was lines of doors, at least three doors that didn't go anywhere.

Sighing to himself, he slid down the wall, ripping his bloodied school uniform off, throwing it with disgust to the floor. He stretched out, resting his head on the smooth wall, feeling the cold of it penetrating his every pore.

This was probably the only time he had felt so totally empty and devoid of emotion. Even when his father had beaten him, nearly to death, he hadn't ever felt that bad. Sure, it had made him feel worthless, but this… this made him feel like absolutely nothing. It took a lot to make him feel absolutely like nothing, and there was one thing that Joey Wheeler absolutely hated to feel, and that was hopeless.

He'd been in situations that people wouldn't have even believed, he'd seen things that people like Kaiba could have nightmares about, and that was with the school murder included. And suddenly, it was like nothing really mattered. Nothing at all mattered in his life anymore. He had no sisiter to watch out for, he had not father or mother to deal with, he had no friends to talk to or play with… hell, he didn't even have a cent to his name… he was dirt poor, just like Kaiba had said before. He would never buy an alarm clock again; he would never have his own room in his own family house. All he had now was what other people gave him, what other people didn't want. What other people didn't care about. Even Yami Bakura wouldn't have let himself get into that kind of situation. It was disgraceful. Almost as disgraceful as being lost in the biggest house he'd ever had the chance to be near.

He banged a fist on the floor in frustration.

This was great.

Just peachy.

Not only did he have no one to talk to, he was trapped in a house that he couldn't escape, with people that most likely didn't like him, and all he had in the world outside the mansion was a blood thirsty maniac who wanted to finish him and every other human being off. Things were fine and dandy as far as he was concerned. He had two choices. one, he could go out there and die without anyone, or he could die here in the hallway alone and angry at the world, leaving no one behind.

He smiled sadly to himself.

Wasn't that his luck? The moment he chose to die, he wouldn't be mourned… heck, he doubted if he would even be buried in a proper funeral. No one had the money to burry a nameless homeless kid, who didn't' have a cent to his name. On the up side, no one would be saddled with grief on his passing.

Didn't the world just suck like eggs? Things never went his way. First, his little sister had needed an operation and he had provided it, getting the money from Yuugi, who'd saved him more times, then anyone else had. Then, he had tried to pay back Yuugi by beating Merick in a duel, and he'd failed that too. And now, Yuugi was dead, serenity was dead… they were all dead, and he was left here to mope and moan about what would be best for him. Who cared about that? He certainly didn't. of course… he'd been so cowardly, he hadn't even had the guts to let Tristan kill him. And what a schmuck he was. He'd taken Seto Kaiba's protection of his life as something meaningful. What was he? Some sort of chump who believed everything that he was told?

Friendship was nothing. You couldn't count on dead friends any more then he could count on the people he was stuck with now.

Before he could get another thought out of his mind, he put his head in his hands and let his tears fall free. For the thirteenth time that day, he wished he was dead.

*************************************************************** *********

Seto Kaiba had never been good at telling people how he felt about them. He had never been able to open up to his brother, and of course he'd never been able to reveal to Joey that he liked him. All he'd managed to spit out was " don't come near me." And " Look Wheeler, just because I saved your life in school doesn't mean I'm going to make anything of it. You make me sick mutt."

God, was that what he'd said?

It wasn't Joey who made him sick, it was himself above all.

Sighing, he slumped into the back of his chair, staring blankly at the computer screen that was blinking before him.

Maybe he shouldn't have said it.

Maybe he should have just smiled and told Joey that he would have loved to spend all of his time forever with him. But no… al he'd said was, " you make me sick". Boy, he felt smart now.

It had to have been the most embarrassing moment in his life. He probably had just ruined the only chance he'd ever have with Joey. All he had to say was " ok", or even a simple grunt, but all he'd said was " you make me sick.".

Why did he have to keep doing such stupid things! Every time he had a perfectly fine chance to tell Joey his feelings, he'd mess it up and end up telling Joey how stupid he was, or that he was a mutt, or how annoying he was.

Ahhh! If only he could just get his head clear and empty. If he could jut rip his brain out and show Joey what he'd MENT to say, things would be hunky-dory. He'd have been sleeping his day away in the arms of the one person he loved more in the world then Mokuba.

He picked up a notepad from his table and smacked himself roughly in the head, banging it again and again into his temple with loud pronounced slapping noises.

He wanted to scream, but he didn't have a room sound proofed enough to encase his rage at himself.

Instead, he moved the keyboard from in front of him and slammed his head into the smooth wood surface with a satisfying thud.

Why!? Why?! Why did he have to be so damned arrogant and stupid!

His eyes watered as pain blindsided him. Again, he wanted to scream.

His side screamed at him, burning as he moved to far to the left.

Snarling to himself, he hurled the notepad across the room hitting a picture frame, which toppled over and smashed on the floor like a broken saint.

A tentative knock on the door made him jerk his mind out of its downward spiral.

" Seto?"

Mokuba slowly opened the door, slipping inside, shuffling across the carpet, stopping with a hault at Kaiba's side, eyes wide and innocent.

" Mokuba? Is something wrong?" Kaiba sighed, resting his head on the desk once more.

Mokuba smiled sweetly at his older brother and then ran around the desk, grabbing his brother in a tight hug, making Kaiba wince from pain. Horrified by what he had done, Mokuba bowed his head in embarrassment. " sorry big brother. I just…" his lower lip trembled dangerously.

Kaiba jerked his head up and smiled patiently at his little brother, reaching out and putting a hand over his brother's head, patting him .

" don't worry about it Mokuba. I know you didn't mean it. I'm glad you came though." He drew Mokuba into another hug and held his brother close to his heart, feeling sadness fly away into the night.

Mokuba pulled free and hopped up onto the desk, dangling his feet over the edge.

" so, how was your day? Did you tell him you love him yet?" he asked promptly.

Kaiba's jaw dropped in amazement.

" how did you-"

" oh come on Seto. I'm a Kaiba just like you and I know how to read people. Besides, I'm your little brother. I always know what's on your mind." Mokuba smiled devilishly, stretching his arms up in the air.

Kaiba blushed and then sighed, wanting to bang his head on the table again when Mokuba flicked him in the nose.

" you know, you can still fix it. He's probably not as mad at you as you think. He's probably just frustrated that you yelled at him and told him he's a stupid mutt. I'm sure if you just tell him your sorry - or even if you just tell him that it's time for supper, he'd forgive you." Mokuba said, effortlessly breaking down Kaiba's wall of impossibilities.

" Mokuba, I don't think food's going to save me this time. And even if he did forgive me for yelling at him, it's not like I can just tell him I'm in love with him… not after I already told him I didn't care about him- " Kaiba broke off, putting his face in his hands.

Mokuba sighed and shook his head.

" Your making things too complicated. All you have to do is go find him and tell him you're sorry and that you didn't mean to say any of it. Tell him the truth. You're just nervous that he's in the house and you haven't had time to figure out what you should do."

Kaiba sighed.

" No. I can't. Not this time Mokuba. It's not going to work."

Mokuba hopped off the table and patted his brother patronizingly on the head, before walking to the door.

" Alright then, but it's your fault if things go bad if you don't even try to fix them."

Mokuba smirked to himself. If Seto wasn't going to fix this mistake, he would find a way to either make his brother fix it, or fix it himself.

*************************************************************** *********

Yami Bakura shook his head sadly as Joey left, taking a deep breath in , Bakura's head resting on his chest.

" Do you really think that Kaiba ment what he said?" Bakura murmuring into Yami Bakura's blue navy t-shirt.

Yami Bakura nodded. " I think he ment ever word he spoke… but that might not have been what he intended to say." He squeezed Bakura's shoulder, leaning back against the couch.

"What do you mean?"

Bakura looked up, his one visible eyes shining with unshed tears.

He clung to the soft folds of the t-shirt, as if using it to anchor himself to the world itself.

Yami Bakura chuckled, poking Bakura with light kindness, unnatural to him, on the nose.

" I mean, he didn't mean to say the things he said. He ment to say something else, but he couldn't quite get it out." He shrugged his shoulders mechanically, looking away from Bakura, who smiled, secret appreciation alive in his lips.

" and I'm guessing that you figured this out… how exactly?" he asked, drumming his fingers absent mindedly on his lap.

Yami Bakura shifted, nervousness radiating from his posture, uncomfortable.

" you pick things up when your two thousand years old…" he waved a hand in Bakura's direction, as if to dismiss some notion. He crossed his arms, a roguish glow taking place of the scared worried expression on his face.

Bakura chuckled like raindrops cascading on a looking glass.

" I wonder, if those two realize that they're in love with each other… do you think Kaiba realized the mistake he made, pushing Joey away like that?"

Yami Bakura shrugged, rolling his eyes, drooping an arm over Bakura's shoulder.

" Do you really think they know the air from the ground they walk on right now? They're both so high up in the clouds it's a mystery that they even realize that they're mad at each other. One thing is clear though. It's up to someone else to set things right, because those two idiots aren't in the shape to do anything other then mope."

*************************************************************** *********

Mokuba sighed and began to trek down the ninetieth hallway, annoyed and hassled to the max.

If only his brother hadn't made such a big mess of things! Now it was up to him to go and FIND Joey. If he ever could…

He always got lost in the mansion, even though he'd lived here for years and years.

He noticed a familiar foot sticking out from the underside of a side table.

" Joey?"

There was a startled squawk, and then Joey stuck his head out from under the table, looking miserable. His jacket was tucked under his head, and he looked as though he had just been sleeping.

Mokuba put his hands on his hips and shook his head.

" Were you sleeping under there? And how long have you been in this hallway!" he scolded, rolling his eyes in exhasperation.

Joey shrugged, ducking back under the table.

" so what if I was. It's not my fault this place is so god damned big." He growled, rolling over, his back to the boy.

Mokuba dropped to his knees and squiggled over the carpet to sit beside the table legs, prodding Joey in the back, between the shoulder blades.

" You know he didn't mean what he said to you, don't you?" the younger boy said, voice firm.

Joey rolled back over, taking interest in Mokuba. His eyes were hooded, the darkness of his soul bouncing around in their depths.

" You're kidding. And how did you know about that? You weren't in the room -"

Mokuba giggled, putting one hand in front of his mouth.

" did you really think that I wasn't just hiding behind the door? I have to do that sometimes to get Seto to pay attention to me. Sometimes, I hide for hours, and then he gets really worried and comes running down all the halls just to find me." He crossed his legs, stretching.

" Maybe, if you stay here long enough, Seto will come to rescue you, and he'll be able to tell you how much he loves you."

Joey raised one eyebrow, confused. " What do ya mean, he'll tell he how much he loves me- ten minutes ago he told me he thought I was a stupid mutt!" He rolled back over, harrumphing angrily.

Mokuba sighed patiently. " Joey, he's really complicated. It's hard for him to show affection… after what our adopted father did to him and all… I wouldn't bring that up with him though… it just makes him angry. He really likes you… but he's not really sure of himself when it comes to talking to people… you know he's not a people person. And anyway, you should have seen how gloomy he is right now. He thinks he's blown it all. He even started banging his head on his desk he was frustrated. If you want proof that he really loves you, it's got to be that. He doesn't bang his head on desks for just anyone you know."

Joey rolled over again, looking hopeful. " Really? You're not yankin' my chain?"

Mokuba nodded. " I'm not yanking your chain."

" Then prove it. Prove that he really likes me and isn't just being his normal self."

Joey reached out, grabbing Mokuba's foot.

" prove to me that he's not being a cruel heartless bastard like usual."

" you really think he'd have taken a bullet for you if he didn't like you?" Mokuba reasoned sternly.

Joey sighed. " alright. I'll trust you. but how are we going to get Kaiba to get off his lazy emotional deprived ass to say it in words that don't end in `stupid mutt'."

Mokuba smiled devilishly.

" I thought you'd never ask."

*************************************************************** ********

Kaiba looked up at the clock ticking with beats that would have rivaled a timpani. He scowled a scowl that would have made paint curl up and fall off the walls.

Why did his luck always have to be so poor? He always lost to Yuugi in dueling, he got his ass handed to him on a platter by Pegasus, and now it looked like even weevil

Underwood would have been better at courting someone then he was.

If only he'd just had the courage to say what he'd wanted say. If only he'd been fast enough to lie and say that he wasn't feeling well and needed to lay down…

But noo.. all he had done was throw around insults.

For all the smarts in his head, he'd have traded them all away just to be able to say what he really thought…

He banged his head as hard as he could on the table, almost sending himself plummeting into unconsciousness.

If he were lucky, he'd have a concussion by the end of the day…

Maybe if he'd cared more about Joey instead of about his stupid reputation he would have been smart enough to figure himself out of the mess he'd caused…

He'd been locked in his office for three hours now, brooding like some sort of caged animal, biding his time to collect himself for his inevitable encounter with Joey. He hoped he could prepare himself for it this time.

This time would be different. This time he would tell Joey that he liked him. He would tell him that… that…

Maybe he could quote Shakespeare?

No.

That wouldn't work. Joey probably didn't know who Shakespeare was. He'd probably just think he was being made fun of…

Maybe he could quote some other poet? Or maybe he could make up his own poem… yeah. Right. Seto Kaiba? The poet? He couldn't write poetry to get himself out of a wet paper bag.

Maybe he should have taken Mokuba up on his offer to help…

It would be better then reading shoddy poetry and insulting nearly everything he stood for.

But then again… what if Joey hadn't ment what he had said in the way he thought. Maybe he'd only been arguing about Kaiba leaving them alone in a strange house… maybe that was it. Joey'd reached out and grabbed his arm in a futile attempt to find out where the kitchen was…

Gods… he hoped not. It would seem foolish if he were to spout poetry to someone who didn't even like him in the same way. Maybe he had been right. Maybe Joey didn't care at all. Maybe it had all been his brain playing a trick on him.

A cruel, un-amusing trick…

The door knob turned with a squeak and in marched Bakura, being led by his yami, who was grumbling in displeasure at the job he had to do.

Bakura wobbled woozily up to kaiba's desk and put his hands down with a loud bang on the wood, wincing as the movement shocked his hands with a painful sting.

His eyes watered for a moment, and then he regained his composure enough to begin his conversation.

" Kaiba, I have to tell you something."

Kaiba snorted loudly, turning his attention to his computer, opening his email to appear uninterested.

" Didn't I tell you I didn't want to be disturbed for any reason?" he growled, his emotional mask back up.

Bakura sighed. " It's about Joey."

" Well, talk to someone else then. I don't give a rats ass about that idiot."

Kaiba clicked on an icon on his desktop and then began to type hurriedly in html, eyes focused on the text, appearing aloof.

Bakura's shoulders slumped. He began to drum his fingers on the table top, inadvertently drawing Kaiba's full attention.

Feinting annoyance, Kaiba locked eyes with Bakura, a sneer plastered across his face.

" And what's wrong with the mutt now?"

Inwardly he cursed himself for using the word mutt again in conjunction to Joey.

He crossed his arms; trying to look as menacing as he could, but Bakura didn't seem to even notice.

" He's missing."

At that, Kaiba nearly dropped his entire emotional shield.

Joey was missing? When had that happened?

Bakura sighed, continuing. " He vanished shortly after you yelled at him. We're not sure where he's gone. It's possible he's gone off inside the mansion grounds, but its more likely that he's become so upset that he's decided to leave the grounds completely. I've never seen him look so completely crushed in my whole time of knowing him."

He sadly shook his head, eyes downcast.

" He has to be found. What if he's done something stupid, like trying to kill himself? You do realize that you may well have pushed him over the edge when you insulted him so badly. He really doesn't have anyone left… his sister and mother are dead at Tristan's hands no less, as is his father. He's completely alone now, and you had to go off and yell at him. I'm ashamed of you Seto Kaiba, I thought better of you. But now is not the time to scold. All I want now is to find him and make sure he's alright."

Bakura shook a finger in front of Kaiba's nose, looking down his nose at him, his wrath fully extended to envelope Kaiba.

Kaiba felt as if the pit of his stomach had been filled with unmeltable ice.

Joey was gone?

It was his total fault if anything were to happen to him.

His fault if Joey died.

Why!?

He should have thought more about he consequences of his actions! He should have paid more attention…

How could he have not known that Joey had no one left to count on? How could he have done such a horrible thing? Yelling at someone who could snap and go suicidal at a moments notice…

He wanted to bang his head on the desk. He really, really wanted to bang his head on the desk. But he couldn't. Not if he wanted to keep his composure. Taking a deep and calming breath, he collected himself up from the various places he'd exploded into and then began to issue orders.

" Alright. He can't have gone far. We'll start with a full-scale search of the mansion. No one goes in, no one goes out. I'll check with security to see if he's left and then if he has, we'll go on a search of the city. We'll bring him back, and he'll be fine. He will be fine." He said voice filled with emotion.

*************************************************************** *********

Will Kaiba find Joey?

To be continued