Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ El Lado Del Rio ❯ Chapter 3 ( Chapter 3 )

[ Y - Young Adult: Not suitable for readers under 16 ]

Chapter Three
 
Sitting motionless in his car, Seto Kaiba watched Jounouchi Katsuya walk up the stairs, turn a corner to go up another flight and disappear. Sighing softly, he ignited the engine and drove away. A year away from Japan seems to have changed nothing. Yet somehow, he knew that coming back had been the right thing to do, after all, Seto Kaiba was never wrong…never.
 
He knew perfectly well why he'd come back. He had been at Oxford University for barely a month before becoming terribly depressed. He knew it had nothing to do with England or its people, in fact, the people were very nice. They had been surprisingly pleasant and accepted him into their society without much pomp and circumstance. He'd even managed to make several friends who he grew close to.
 
Anyone who knew Kaiba from the beginning of high school was sure to be surprised. But what no one knew, not even Mokuba, was that Seto secretly wanted so very much to be like everyone else. He wanted to be around others and to be sociable. Even to find someone who he could love and who would love him in return. But after what Gozaburo did to him and his brother, survival instinct took over and it never seemed to go away. That is until he went to England and experience how hospitable people could be. But back to his depression, he knew it wasn't his brother, he made sure to call Mokuba nearly every day. It definitely wasn't the company, he called them every week. He didn't really know…
 
…alright, that's a lie. Seto knew perfectly well why he was so depressed. He had never really shared with anyone but he found his mood instantly brighten whenever he was around a certain person. Well, one may ask, wasn't it just because he enjoyed teasing and torturing the poor blond? Seto snorted softly to himself. He could tell the world all he wanted that that was the case. In fact, that was what he had been telling himself for years.
 
But the trip to England cleared his fogged view of himself. He didn't realize how much he needed Katsuya until he was 12,000 miles away from him. The only thing that darkened his mood now was to feel helpless. He hated that feeling of weakness, of not being able to take action, of not know how to take action. After all those years of teasing and mercilessly torturing, Seto was definitely not expecting for Jounouchi to just forgive him. He despaired at the thought of ever getting Jou to love him. It was near impossible, but the encounter at the park earlier had helped a little. The fact that Jou had stared at him so intensely with…well…he didn't know what emotion coupled with how Jou had also taken him up on his offer to drive Jou home, it was enough to convince Seto that maybe he had a chance at it.
 
Of course, little did Seto know, time had done all the work for him…
 
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Sunlight and early Sunday morning found Katsuya lying in bed asleep. His chocolate eyes slowly opened to see that he wasn't in his own bedroom. It couldn't have been, seeing as the bed he laid on was amazingly comfortable. The room itself was very contemporary. The lines seen in the furniture were sleek but not uncomfortable. For some odd reason, this didn't bother him much. As his senses slowly returned to him, Katsuya realized that there was a warm body pressed against his back.
 
He slowly turned over and glimpsed a brunette head before being pulled by a pair of strong arms against the warm body next to him.
 
“Mmm…don't move, it's too early…”
 
Katsuya found himself smiling at the comment mumbled by his sleepy companion. That is until, a movement further down made his breath catch in his chest.
 
Seto was moving closer and the movement was creating a grinding sensation in a certain area. Katsuya let out a small moan. The moan did little other than to cause Seto to continue moving, thus increasing the intensity of the grinding.
 
Katsuya let out another groan, this time louder.
 
Seto responded, “Sounds like you're enjoying it…so am I…”
 
Katsuya let out a strangled gasp, he could hear the smile in Seto's voice.
 
“You're…a-ah…doin'…nnn…that on…mmm…purpose.”
 
A voice purred silkly, “Mmm…of course I am. Let's just say the enjoyment is definitely mutual. I didn't get enough last night…”
 
Well, let's just say that got Katsuya's attention rather quickly…
 
A small moan escaped Jou's lips and his chocolate eyes opened. He blinked several times before realizing he was still in his own bed. Damnit! That was such a good dream…like it'll eva happen though…
 
He rolled over onto his back. This wasn't the first time his dreams of Seto had taken a slightly more adult nature and Jou was just about certain that it wasn't the last.
 
He felt sad yet glad that Kaiba didn't know about his dreams or his daydreams for that matter. He was sure whatever respect, if any, Kaiba had would vanish the instant he found out about Jou's feelings for him.
 
Sitting up slowly, he ran his hands through his hair. He glanced at the clock; it read 10:18. He decided that he might as well take his homework out to his favorite park and try to finish it. He got up and went to the dresser opposite of his bed.
 
He rummaged through the drawers and pulled out a pair of khakis and a blue t-shirt with a dragon emblazoned on the front. For a moment, he stared sadly at the shirt. The color reminded him of Seto's eyes and the dragon was definitely not helping. He wasn't sure what made him buy it last year. Sighing softly, he pulled off his pajamas and pulled on the clothes he chose.
 
When he was finished getting dressed, he left his bedroom and went into the living room. His black backpack was sitting on the floor by the couch where he had left it yesterday. He picked up the bag and grabbed his iPod on the way out.
 
By the time his feet found the pavement of the sidewalk, Requiem was flowing around him through the headphones. His feet carried him at a decent pace down the street. It wasn't exactly early but early enough for most teenagers to be in bed still. The majority of people out were people shopping or going to work.
 
After about fifteen minutes, Jou found himself at his favorite park. It wasn't the one where Seto had found him last night. Part of the reason why Jou really liked this particular park was because it was quiet and secluded. Tall Sakura trees shaded large parts of the park. There weren't any playgrounds so most families didn't come here. The park wasn't particularly popular on Sundays leading back to it being quiet and secluded. But most of all, Jou found that this was the one place he could go where he could be at peace with his thoughts. The only other thing that could do that was the Requiem he was currently listening to.
 
“I never knew you listened to classical music…”
 
A breeze softly caressed Jou's hair and cheeks. His warm chocolate eyes slowly drifted along the ground to find a pair of feet. As his gaze slowly drew upward, his eyes found a set of sapphire eyes in a pale, calm face. Seto Kaiba stood before him, observing him with a mixture of curiosity and reservation.
 
“Uh, yeah. Anzu got me started on it…it's good stuff.”
 
“Indeed…”
 
Jou continued staring at Seto, their eyes were locked in the stare of the other. Their faces betrayed no emotion yet there was no need; their eyes did all the speaking. Tones of hostility, betrayal, jealousy, and anger were muted by mutual relief though, at present time, the two would never share with the other.
 
Jou paused, “Wait, how d'you know I was listening to classical music?”
 
“You were humming. The piece was Requiem, I believe.”
 
Neither had any idea how long they had stayed like that, their eyes locked in an exchange of deep emotion. Neither wanted to open their mouths and reveal their thoughts. Neither wanted their hearts to suffer more damage…
 
Jou sighed, the animosity between them, which before could send sparks far into the stratosphere, now felt a shadow of what it was. It felt tired, too devoid of energy to continue. It was sad almost, Jou knew or, rather felt, that that animosity was his remaining link to Seto. Once that was lost, he would be nothing to Seto except another being on the planet who lived in the same city as him.
 
At the same time, he didn't know that Seto was thinking the same thing. The brunette couldn't help but stare on the blond sitting under the tree in front of him. He was positive his memory wasn't faulty yet reality seemed to be deluding him. The Jou he knew was energetic, kind, passionate, and, above all, brave. He never let anything get in the way of fighting for what he thought was right.
 
Guilt pounded through his veins again. The stranger before bore a likeness to the Jou he knew, though certainly more contained and less enthusiastic. A melancholy sensation washed over him. It would have been better to know that he was the cause of this. At least, then, he could figure out how to fix it. But, again, the feeling of weakness returned. His dearest love was suffering and he couldn't do anything. Worse yet, he couldn't so much as try to comfort him because his damn pride wouldn' t let him confess to Jou.
 
The breeze and the scent of the sakura blossoms wound themselves around the pair. As Seto caught sight of a blossom drifting to the ground, his heart tightened. He realized he always intended to tell Jou, but for once, his legendary grace and determination had failed him…miserably.
 
His anger at Jou for making him feel this way and himself for being a coward suddenly surged to the forefront. The flow of emotions between suddenly cut off when Seto's eyes suddenly frosted over and the color deepened the color of the night sky.
 
“Hn…I'll see you around, pup.”
 
With that, he turned heel and left the park and Jou staring sadly at his retreating back.
 
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The path remained empty long after Seto left the park yet Jou continued staring. He had never had his emotions so twisted around in one day. Absolute belief to doubt to a little certainty only to be completely crushed again. Growling to himself, he tossed his books into his bag and got up. Yet his feet didn't carry him to his own apartment but rather Yugi's home.
 
He had made a decision, not telling anyone about how he felt had been a terrible idea. He needed to tell someone, so he decided Yugi would be the best idea.
 
I just hope he understands…
 
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Fanfiction.net:
Chibi-the-small: Thanks so much! It's always nice to receive compliments. Hope this chapter was up to par.
Rubisora18117: Well, am I ever thankful that you had a really boring lab to do! Thanks so much for reading and reviewing…even if it was on a whim. Please do continue R&R-ing! And thanks so much for providing some critique as well!
Aeroflux: Yes they do meet again! Though, I daresay it'll be a little bit before they can admit some of their emotions…
Pennypigeon: Hey thanks again for reading
Blank Paper: Hi! Actually I've read three of your fanfics! They were all very good, it's a pleasure for fellow authors to read each other's work. Thanks so much!