Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Love and Basketball ❯ Tryouts ( Chapter 3 )

Disclaimer: I do not own Yugioh or Love and Basketball or Musashi's or Samurai Sushi (if that is a real place).

Hey! I'm so glad I'm getting so many reviews! I'm really shocked. Thank you. I'm also sorry for not updating for so long! My stupid computer wasn't working for a couple weeks there and then my internet wasn't working! But now, everything is alright! I should also be updating my Coffee Shop story soon.

A/N: Um . . . Bakura isn't going to come into the story until the fifth or sixth chapter. I was thinking of putting Yuugi into the story, but I'm not sure what role he'd play. Maybe the younger brother of Yami? Any suggestions? Well, I finally know the whole plot to this story so I'm just going to let you guess on whom Malik ends up with, etc . . . Also, in my story, students are allowed to go eat off campus. I'm pretty sure real Japanese schools don't allow them to go off campus to eat. But, this is fiction. So . . .

Enjoy this chapter!

TRYOUTS

Yami was great out there. He made all of his shots and I can't count how many times he made a great pass to Kaiba and the rest of us. The way he dribbles the ball is wonderful. I wish I'm that good when I become a junior.

I better hurry up before Malik gets bored and leaves me.

I quickly hoisted my backpack on and walked over to the door. As soon as I opened it voices could be heard.

"Seto, not here."

Seto?

"Come on, Yami. No one even knows we're here."

Yami?

I peeked through the slightly opened door and saw Yami pressed against a wall with Kaiba in front of him. The taller boy had one hand on the wall and the other cupping Yami's chin.

"But what if sensei saw us."

"Who cares about him? Besides, even if he did see us, he wouldn't just kick us off the team. We're his star players."

"But, Se-"

My eyes widened as Kaiba leaned down and captured Yami's lips in a kiss. I couldn't take my eyes off of them as Kaiba deepened the kiss by slipping his tongue into the smaller boy's mouth.

Surprisingly, my eyes widened further when Kaiba slid his hand away from Yami's chin to the waistband of his gym shorts. A small groan escaped from the shorter boy as Kaiba slithered his hand underneath the shirt and snaked its way up to caress where I could only guess. Not that I'd want to guess.

I quickly pulled the locker room door closed. I couldn't believe what I saw. Yami and Kaiba were . . . together?

Even though this information shocked me, I couldn't help but feel a slight pang of jealousy. Why? Why am I feeling jealousy towards Kaiba? Yami's a BOY! I like girls, not boys. Yes. I like girls, not boys.

My heartbeat slowed down to its normal pace and I took a deep breath. When I felt ready, I once again opened the locker room door. They were gone. With a sigh of relief, I swiftly walked out.

*~*~*

"What took you so long?" Malik asked. He was casually leaning against the building's brick wall, his arms crossed.

"Um . . . I had to ask Mr. Koshiro when the basketball tryouts were," I lied.

"And when are they?" Malik questioned, his eyebrow raised.

"Uh . . . s-soon," I stuttered. Malik frowned and with a roll of his eyes he began to walk away.

I quickly followed until I fully caught up with him.

"You don't have to lie to me," was all he said.

Hearing those words made me feel guilty. I don't know why I didn't tell him the truth. But what would I say? I saw Yami and Kaiba making out and groping each other so I freaked and didn't want to leave the locker room? Well, I could've said that. Too late now. I could tell Malik was mad that I lied to him.

"So . . . where are we walking to?" I asked, trying to break the tension.

"Somewhere we can eat."

"Where are we going to eat?"

"Somewhere that has decent food."

"And where may that be?"

"Somewhere around here."

"What's the name of this place?"

"I don't know."

How difficult could he be?

"You don't even know the name of the place you're leading me?"

"Well now that I think of it . . . nope."

"Stop being so difficult."

"I'm not being difficult."

"Yes you are."

"No I'm not."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

"HEY! I'm not the one who lied."

"Who cares? Maybe it took me so long because I had something personal to do that I didn't want to share with the whole world."

"But I'm not the whole damn world!"

"That's not my point."

"Then what is your point?"

"My point is, where are we going to go eat?"

"SAMURAI SUSHI, DAMMIT!"

"Oh. That's all I wanted to know."

"Yeah, and all I wanted to know was what took you so long."

"Why are you freaking out over `wanting to know what took me so long'?"

" . . ."

Malik stopped walking. I stopped, too, and stared at the back of his head. What was wrong with him? Why does he care so much about what I was doing?

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I'm just a little stressed about school."

"Oh."

The other boy slowly turned around and stared down at the ground. "I'm sorry for taking out my stress on you. I just don't know why I'm getting all worked up over something little."

Something little like a late school assignment or something else?

"It's okay. I should be the one sorry for lying to you."

"No, I should be sorry for getting into your own business. I've always been a nosy one."

I smiled at his comment and walked over to him. Without really thinking about what I was doing, I wrapped my arms around his shoulders for a hug.

A few seconds passed before I released him. Oddly enough, his cheeks were an interesting shade of red and his lavender eyes were wide in shock.

Unsure of what to do, I simply stated, "I'm hungry."

*~*~*

After what seemed hours of walking, Malik finally stopped outside a glass door that read `Musashi's'.

"Hey, this isn't Samurai Sushi."

"Oops, I guess I lied then."

"Well you're good at lying."

"Not as nearly as good as you," Malik responded fluttering his eyelashes.

I stared in disbelief at him for a moment before bursting out laughing. He didn't seem so `strange' anymore. I guess that hug freed all of his worries. Haha. Corny, Ryou.

A tiny bell jingled as Malik opened the door. There was only a white counter and a few chairs lined against the wall.

"Um . . . is this the restaurant?" I asked, a little confused.

"Of course!" answered a short, bald man standing behind the counter. "Table for two?"

"Yes," Malik confirmed, smiling at the short man. "How are you, Razan-san?"

"Oh, good, good," Razan grinned. "And how may young Malik-kun be?"

"Good, good." Malik and Razan began to laugh.

I felt a little out of place as I watched the two males laugh. Malik must come here often if he's this friendly with the short man.

"Here, here." Razan handed Malik and I a menu.

I was about to ask where we would be eating when Razan grabbed a rope and pulled. Two forest green curtains, that I hadn't noticed before, spread apart to reveal another area.

It was amazing. There were tables all around with miniature chandeliers hanging above them. Scenery from the mountains were brushed across the cream walls. My shoes softly padded on the plush black carpet, and classical music was playing in the background.

Razan led us to a table in the corner. Malik and I knelt on our knees and looked over the menus. Even though my mother was Japanese and I spoke Japanese with my father all the time, I didn't know what any of these foods were.

I peeked up at Malik to see what he was ordering, but he was smirking right at me. My cheeks heated up from embarrassment.

"WE'LL have two miso soups with one mochiko chicken special," Malik ordered for him and me.

Razan smiled and took the menus. When the bald man was gone, Malik began to laugh.

"It's really not that funny," I scowled.

"Yes, it is."

"No it's not."

"Yes it is."

I sighed knowing this wouldn't go anywhere.

Suddenly, a jingle was heard and then muffled voices. After a few seconds, Razan came walking through the curtains leading the two most unlikely people to a table near ours.

"Malik, look!" I frantically whispered.

Malik turned his head and as soon as he spotted them he quickly turned back to me. "What the hell are Yami and Kaiba doing here?"

"Maybe to eat . . ." I answered his question which must've been rhetorical for he shot me a glare.

Fully knowing that Malik's attitude was going to become more difficult, I focused my attention on the two unexpected visitors. Yami and Kaiba were both grazing over the menus while Razan stood there smiling. Soon they ordered their food and handed the menus to Razan, who took them and walked back to the front room.

I stared as Kaiba said something and Yami tried to give him a disapproving look, but ended up blushing. A pang of something shot through me at this sight.

Minutes of silence passed. Every now and then Malik grumbled and I glanced at the other two who seemed to be enjoying them selves.

"Here's your food. Please enjoy," a young woman said, setting down two bowls of rice, two bowls of miso soup, a plate of vegetables, and a plate of what must be mochiko chicken.

"Thank you," I smiled at her. She gave me an odd look and then blushed before walking away.

I heard a snicker and turned my gaze to Malik. He was staring at me with that well-known smirk.

"What?" I asked, rather annoyed.

"Nothing," he shrugged.

I shook my head and we both chanted, "I humbly partake this food."

"Here try this." Malik scooped a few pieces of chicken onto my plate with some of the vegetables.

Feeling empty in the stomach, I reached for my fork but realized it wasn't there. I looked down and saw a pair of chopsticks laying there, as if teasing my inability to use them.

"Wait, don't tell me you not only don't know what Japanese food tastes like, but you don't know how to use chopsticks?" Malik asked, looking as if he was about to laugh again.

"Well, you don't exactly use chopsticks to eat steak and potatoes in England," I snapped, grabbing a chicken with my fingers and taking a bite. "AND, I can only talk and write in Japanese. I had to if I wanted to talk to my mother. After my mother died, my father always talked in Japanese to me. He either thought I looked so much like my mother that he thought it was all I could speak, or he wanted to continue speaking in it to honor my late mother."

After I said these words, Malik began to laugh. He was really beginning to get on my nerves. Out of agitation, I stuffed the rest of the chicken into my mouth.

"I don't see how my mother dying is funny."

Malik just continued to laugh. My calm exterior was about to break when he finally spoke. "I can't understand a word you're saying when you stuff chicken in your mouth while trying to talk. All I hear is mmm mmm mm mmm mmm, and all I see is chicken flying out of your mouth."

When I realized what he was talking about, I swallowed and then blushed. It was rather embarrassing. I usually never talk with my mouth full.

I quickly glanced to the other occupied table and found Kaiba staring at me with those icy, cerulean eyes. Kind of creepy. His mouth moved and Yami turned towards our table. When my eyes met his gleeful amethyst ones, a wide smile spread on his face. Yami said something and Kaiba rolled his eyes.

Before I could tell Malik that we were getting a visitor, Yami had already crawled over to our table.

"Ryou, right?"

Uh . . . "Right."

Malik stopped laughing and stared in horror at the newcomer. His expression quickly changed to a glare.

"You played great today. You would make a fabulous point guard. Are you trying out for the team?"

I could feel my face heat up as Yami intently stared at me. "Um . . . yeah."

"I'm sure you'll make it. Coach would be stupid if he didn't take you. What position are you going for?"

Amazingly, my face heated up more. It felt like my whole body was going to burst into flame. "Uh . . . point guard."

Yami's eyes slightly widened and a small smile fell upon those wonderful, pink lips; those lips that indeed looked inviting. Those lips that . . .

"Yami."

. . . he kissed.

"Yes, Seto-san?" Yami turned his gaze away from me to the one who was currently standing, looking extra tall and intimidating.

"Our food," Kaiba shortly explained, giving me a quick glance.

Yami looked back at his table and saw the steaming food that was waiting to be eaten.

"Oh! Right!" He turned back to me and smiled. "See you later, Ryou-kun."

At those words, I saw Kaiba at the corner of my eye glare at me.

"Yeah," I sheepishly replied.

When the two began to leave to their own table, Malik whispered, "I really hate people like him."

"Why?" I asked, confused on why Malik would dislike someone as nice as Yami.

Before Malik answered, the object of Malik's dislike stopped in his `crawling' tracks and turned toward us.

"Oh, wait! Isn't your name Malik?"

"Maybe," Malik answered, pretending the wall was more interesting than the Varsity point guard.

"Well, you played well, too. A few times there I had a tough time getting by you. You should try out for the team. I'm sure you'll make it."

"Thanks . . ." Yami raised an eyebrow and then looked at me. He smiled and continued his retreat to his table. "That's why." (A/N: Don't worry, there'll be a full explanation later on why Malik dislikes Yami.)

*~*~*

After school

When school finally ended, I pulled out the map my father made me. After a few times of trying to turn it the right way, I began my journey home.

A right here, a left there, continue straight, another turn. Realizing I didn't have a watch or cell phone to check the time, I stopped to look up at the sun. The sun will set soon and I'll be walking in the dark if I don't hurry up.

I took a few more steps before distant shouts could be heard. It sounded like two men yelling at each other. Wondering where the sound came from, I continued to walk until I came to an old, run down apartment building. The paint that must've been white was now a rusty yellow with big, brown spots.

"GET THE HELL OUT OF HERE AND DON'T COME BACK!"

"FINE! I DON'T WANNA LIVE HERE ANYWAY!"

The voices that I heard earlier must've been coming from here. Soon the voices became silent and I tentatively listened for any other sounds. It seemed hours of silence passed before a loud crash was heard and the sound of a door slamming echoed throughout the neighborhood.

My eyes widened as I saw Jonouchi swiftly walk out of the building. His hands were in his pockets and he was staring at the ground. He took several more steps before he looked up and spotted me.

"Ryou? What are you doing here?" A confused, yet slightly embarrassed expression was on his face as he stood in front of me.

"Uh . . . I-I live near here," I answered, feeling awkward.

"Oh." Jonouchi frowned and began to stare at the ground again.

"Um . . . is something wrong?" When I asked this, he looked up at me. His frown turned into what seemed like a forced smile.

"Nah. It's just my dad. He's being his usual self." At the mention of his dad, Jou's fake smile slightly twitched.

"Oh." I wasn't sure what to do now. It was weird enough talking to someone who was just arguing with his dad and getting kicked out of his home. "Do you need somewhere to stay? We just got our furniture today so I could sleep on the floor and you could sleep in my bed."

"That's okay." This time Jonouchi smiled a real one. His eyes lightened up and his lips curved up. "I'm going to go over to Honda's house. Besides, I want to be as far away from my father as I can."

"Oh, okay." That was a better idea. I didn't really know Jonouchi enough for him to feel too comfortable around me. And judging by what happened, I'd say he needed a close friend to hang out with right now.

"Well, uh, see you tomorrow at school," he said, giving me a quick wave and walking the direction I came from.

"Yeah. See you tomorrow."

I waited until Jonouchi was out of my sight before I continued to walk home. What was going on between him and his father? Is his father abusive? Is Jonouchi a bad son? I hope he's okay . . .

I turned right on the next street and spotted my new house. Relieved that I didn't lose my way, I walked faster.

When I walked inside, I noticed that our couch and comfy chair were in the living room. There was no T.V., and my basketball trophy from junior high was resting on the floor. I sighed and picked it up, then walked into the kitchen. Our four person dining table was placed in the area near the door. Where was father?

As soon as I asked that, I spotted a white paper on the refrigerator. I walked over and ripped it off. It read:

Ryou,

Some of the furniture is here, and the rest will be delivered tomorrow. Your bed was one of those that will come here tomorrow. If you want, you can sleep on the couch. I won't be home from work until late tonight. There is a Bento dinner on the counter for you. I also left money on the table for your school uniform and lunch tomorrow. Mr. Pegasus called and told me to remind you to go into his office tomorrow morning. I hope your first day of school was fine.

Father

Reading this note made my day become even worse.

After Malik and I ate at the restaurant, we walked back to the school. When we got there, some kids began to tease him about his looks and something else. I didn't quite understand. Malik said something about them thinking he was weird because he had blonde hair and tan skin, instead of looking the normal black hair and light skin. This confused me because: 1. Malik wasn't even full Japanese and he lived in Egypt for most of his life, and 2. There were lots of kids who looked `weird'. They didn't make fun of me for being different.

As I thought about this some more, I began to doubt Malik's reason. Even though I was sure Malik wouldn't lie to me, since he hated liars, there was this part of my mind that kept telling me there was a bigger reason those students were making fun of him and calling him names.

After that episode, Malik and I went inside. The bell rang so I had to go to study while Malik went to English. For all of study hall, the teacher was yelling at the students to shut up. I had a headache by the time the bell finally rang.

The worst part of the day was in literature. I had to sit by this boy named Mokuba. All period he was talking about how great his brother was! I'm sure his brother was a good man, but he wouldn't be quiet. Of course my kind side has to come in and think that he wouldn't be so bad once you get to know him, so I decided to partner up with him when we were assigned a group project.

Since I was trying so hard to listen to Mrs. Hoover and not Mokuba's rambling, I ended up listening to Mokuba and failed to hear what the project was about.

So, my day wouldn't be the worst in history, but it was pretty bad. Right now I'm just dreading Mr. Maximillion's office in the morning.

With a tired yawn, I walked to the front door and grabbed my backpack. I trudged up the stairs to my room. There was an empty space in it where the bed would be. In the corner diagonal from the door, my computer was set up and my dresser was leaning against the wall next to the door.

Pulling my geometry book out, I sat in the spinning chair at my desk. Page 325, problems 1-11 . . .

*~*~*

After I finished my homework, I walked to the kitchen to get the Bento dinner. I grabbed the wrapped plastic fork that came with it and walked back up to my room. Wondering if Malik was online, I got onto the computer, taking a bite of the rice.

As soon as I logged in, an instant message popped up.

LavenderLuver: Guess what!

BallnBrownEyes: What?

I waited a few seconds before Malik's words appeared on screen.

LavenderLuver: They want me! They want me to take pictures for one of their articles! Isn't that great?

BallnBrownEyes: Who wants you?

LavenderLuver: . . . sigh . . . DOMINO'S GLAMOUR! You know, the biggest magazine in Domino and the third biggest in Japan! I can't believe you don't know who they are.

BallnBrownEyes: Well sorry for just moving here one day ago.

LavenderLuver: But I've been talking about them forever! Remember when I sent them a few of my pictures?

Oh . . . now that I thought about it, he did mention them quite a lot.

BallnBrownEyes: Well, CONGRATULATIONS! This calls for a celebration!

LavenderLuver: Don't worry, I have all of that figured out. Guess what the article is on.

Hm . . .

BallnBrownEyes: Me

LavenderLuver: Haha. You wish . . . actually, it's on none other than the graceful bastard, Yami Mutou!

Yami? At the mentioning of this, my throat became drier and my heart began to beat faster.

BallnBrownEyes: Bastard? He's not a bastard.

LavenderLuver: You just don't know him like I do.

BallnBrownEyes: And I'd prefer not to

LavenderLuver: Unfortunately, you will

BallnBrownEyes: Um . . . thanks for the warning?

LavenderLuver: No prob. Well, I have to go. I told Ishizu that once I told you the news I would help her with her campaign slogan.

BallnBrownEyes: Campaign slogan?

LavenderLuver: Yeah, she's running for Student Body President since the current one is going to college next year.

BallnBrownEyes: Oh . . . well, tell her I said good luck!

LavenderLuver: Sure. See you tomorrow

BallnBrownEyes: Bye!

I suddenly felt lonely as Malik's name disappeared from my buddy list. Now I was completely alone, with nothing to do. The computer clock read 8: 17

Deciding to take a shower, I grabbed a pair of jade boxers and a towel.

*~*~*

BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

Ugh! What's that noise? Do I smell smoke?

BEEP. BEEP. BEEP. BEEP.

"Shit!"

Huh? Is that father? I slowly opened my eyes to find that I was in the living room. Oh yeah, I slept on the couch last night.

"Ow!"

I groaned and then sat up. Tossing back the blankets, I set my feet onto the beige carpet and walked through the hall into the kitchen.

The scene that was before my eyes perplexed me. My father was running around the kitchen holding a pan and smoke was steaming up from the stove. I realized the beeping sound was the fire alarms . . . wait, father running around, smoke, and the fire alarm?

"SHIT!" I accidentally shouted. Now was not a good time to apologize for cussing.

I ran over to the sink, grabbing a towel on my way there. Turning the faucet on, I soaked the towel and ran to the stove. There were a few small flames dancing around on the surface. With fear and panic, I began to swipe at them with the wet towel. Some of them distinguished. I swiped a few more times and then decided to throw the whole towel on them. As soon as the wet towel covered the rest of the flames, I turned to my petrified father.

If I had the time, I would've laughed at the sight. Instead, I ran to the crazed man. He was cursing and swinging the pan around.

"Father!" I shouted, hoping he would stop running around. He continued on with his terror-stricken rampage before dashing over to the sink and dropping the pan in it.

My father was hunched over and I could hear his ragged breaths.

"What happened?" I asked with a quizzical expression.

He took a few more deep breaths before answering. "I was cooking some eggs when they suddenly burst into flames."

When he didn't continue on, I simply responded, "Maybe we should get our stove checked at. There must be something wrong with it if the eggs began to flame."

"Yes, I'll call the people today."

Before I could ask him how his first day of work was, he walked out of the kitchen. I could hear his steps echo as he walked up the stairs.

I looked at the clock hanging on the wall and saw school would start in half an hour. Well, I guess I'll just skip breakfast.

*~*~*

When I was ready to go to school, I ran into the kitchen with the map in my hand and grabbed the money. On my way out the door, I yelled bye to my father.

Okay. Now which way does the map go? I turned the paper the opposite way I was holding it yesterday.

*~*~*

After running all the way to school, I slowed down and tried to compose myself before going to see Pegasus.

Once I reached the Main Office, I took a deep breath to try to calm myself. Trying to act cool on the outside, even though my nerves were shooting around like a pinball, I walked up to the lady from yesterday. She immediately looked up at me and scowled before pointing at Pegasus's door.

Before I even knocked, a soft voice said, "Come in, dear."

Please no more pet names!

When I walked in, Pegasus was sitting at his desk, his eyes fixed on me. I gulped and closed the door.

"How was your first day of school, Ryou-boy?" he asked in that voice that could make someone's spine crawl.

"I-It was good," I barely got out.

At my words, Pegasus had the tiniest smile before setting a bag on his desk.

"Here is your school uniform. Would you like to try it on to see if it fits?" he asked, his eyes glinting the same playfulness from yesterday.

"Um, that's okay. I'm sure they fit perfectly."

I usually didn't feel this uneasy around people, but something about him made me feel like a mouse trapped in a corner with a cat about to pounce on it.

"That's a pity," he frowned. "Well, I forgot to get your shoe size so I just guessed you were a 9 ½. I hope these fit you perfectly, too." Pegasus was holding a pair of black dress shoes.

I walked over to his desk and grabbed the bag. When I reached for the shoes, he pulled them away.

I looked at him and he had a suspicious grin on his face. "Say, `Please Mr. Maximillion'."

What? I gave the older man a confused look. Say, `Please Mr. Maximillion?' At first I wasn't sure why he was grinning like that, when I realized the sexual relation those words had.

If I wasn't in complete shock, I would've screamed and ran out of his office right then. Instead, I said, well, more like squeaked, "Please Mr. Maximillion."

A few chuckles came from the man and I grabbed the shoes before he could make me do anything else.

"Come back soon, sweetie!" Pegasus called out before I closed the door.

I released a relieved sigh when the lady at the front desk raised an eyebrow at me. My face heated up and I rushed out of the room.

Okay, now that I have the clothes, I need to find a bathroom to change into them. Walking through the halls towards my first class, I spotted a Boys bathroom and dashed into it.

Crap! In the middle of my changing, the bell rang.

After quickly checking myself in the mirror to make sure everything was on correctly, I rushed out. Which way do I go now? A left, or a right? Um . . . I think I came from this way, so that would mean I would go right, right? I don't know . . .

How could I be so stupid to forget which I way I came from? Okay, think, Ryou. I was walking, then I saw the sign, and . . . I don't know!

Deciding to go right, I walked down the hall and made a left. All the halls in this school looked the same!

Another left and then a right. Okay, this is definitely not the right way. I turned to go back the way I came from when I heard voices.

"So . . . what do you think about that new freshman?"

"You mean, the one with the white hair?"

What? Is that Jou? But who's the other person?

"Yeah, Ryou."

"He's really good. He reminds me of me when I was a freshman."

They're talking about me?

"Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

"Hahaha. It's a good thing."

"Hm . . . what other good freshmen are there?"

"What about, um . . . what's his name? Malik?"

Huh? Malik?

"You mean Ishizu's little brother?"

"Yeah, him."

"HE plays basketball?"

"Yeah."

"Now that's a sight I have to see. I always thought he was the weird-anti-social-photography-lover."

"Well, he is, but I think if he tried out he would make the team."

"Why is that?"

"He has amazing defense. In fact, I think you should take notes on him."

"Hey! My defense is decent, thank you very much."

"You're not welcome, because you're defense sucks."

"No it doesn't!"

"Think what you want."

"Why you-"

"I was just joking. You shouldn't get riled up over something small like that. If I would tell you to improve on one thing, it would be your attitude. The referees for Varsity games aren't lenient with players who shout and cuss at them."

"Hm . . . hey, Yami?"

Yami?

"Yes, Jou?"

"Do you think I'll get a scholarship to a college?"

"Of course I do, Jou."

"Are you just saying that because you're my best friend?"

"No, I'm saying that because you really are good, Jou. I'm sure lots of colleges will want you. Besides, if you don't, you can always go to the same college I do and cheer me on!"

"Haha, not funny. Even if I didn't get a scholarship, I probably couldn't afford going to any fancy college you choose."

"Speaking of this, what happened last night?"

I carefully listened as the question I wanted to ask Jou came from Yami.

"Nothing, big. My pops was just acting his usual self."

I frowned when Jou said the same thing to Yami as he said to me.

"That is big, Jou. Was he drunk?"

"Yeah."

Is that what's wrong with Jou's father? He's an alcoholic?

"You should really call someone before it gets any worse."

"Nah, that's okay. The worst it's gotten was him throwing me out like last night. He hasn't hit me or anything."

"Well, if he ever lays one finger on you out of rage, I'll make sure he pays."

"Thanks, Yami. I know I can always count on you. Well, I better get to class. See you at tryouts after school today!"

"See ya!"

Tryouts? After school TODAY?

Quickly forgetting that I was currently trying to hide from Yami (Jou just left), I walked into the hallway the other was in. I had to ask someone about tryouts, like Malik or . . .

"Ryou?"

Yami.

Crap! I blew my cover! Alright, act cool and pretend you're on an errand.

"Uh . . ." Yeah, real cool.

"Is your class over there?" Yami asked, raising a suspicious eyebrow at me. Great, the last thing I needed was Yami to think I was eavesdropping on him and Jou's conversation, even though I was.

"Um . . . yes." Don't lie to him! "I mean, no."

Yami's eyebrow raised even more. "Well, you should get to class. You wouldn't want to get in trouble on the day of tryouts."

So they are today . . . crap. My day just keeps getting worse.

"Um . . . actually, the reason I was over there was I got lost. I went to the wrong classroom, but the problem is, I don't remember where my biology class is. And it doesn't help that all of these hallways look the same."

Yami's eyebrow lowered and he looked more at ease. "Who's your teacher?"

"Uh . . . I don't know."

"Do you have a schedule?"

Uh . . . "Yeah!"

Since I was too busy digging through my backpack, I didn't see the small smile on Yami's face as he watched me frantically search for my schedule.

"Here it is!" I triumphantly held up the piece of paper and handed it to Yami.

"Hm . . ." he looked over it. "I have Ms. Hampson as my chemistry teacher. Her room is almost on the other side of the school."

I blushed at how far I had ended up from her classroom.

"Don't feel so bad, you're new here." After those words of comfort, Yami began to walk. I closely followed him.

A minute of silence passed, except for the sound of our steps on the tile floor. I looked at Yami's feet and saw he was wearing black shoes. My own feet were covered in ones like his; they were quite comfy. My gaze traveled further up to observe his slender legs. Amazing how these ugly blue pants could look so good, especially on his bu- Eek! What am I thinking? Dammit, Ryou!

Yami slowed down and gave me a confuse glance. He shook his head and sped up to his normal pace. I must've accidentally cursed out loud. Just great.

Another minute passed. How far was this classroom anyway? This whole time of walking and Yami hasn't said one word. I felt a little . . . awkward. Should I say something? What would I talk about though? Is he mad at me? Is it because I was eavesdropping on him and Jounouchi?

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to listen in on you and Jou's conversation. I got lost, and then I heard you two talking and I didn't know what else to do. Please forgive me!"

When I was done begging for forgiveness, Yami stopped in his tracks. "Don't be sorry. I'm not mad at you." Yami turned around and stared directly at me with those amazing amethyst orbs.

"But, you weren't talking at all, and I thought that maybe you were mad at me."

Yami took one step closer to me and I backed up one step. "Didn't I just tell you that I wasn't mad at you?"

Yami took another step closer to me and I took another step back.

"Uh . . . yeah," I sheepishly replied, my face heating up as Yami took another step.

I could hear my heart pounding in my chest as I was soon backed up against the wall and Yami was only a foot away from me. Now that he was this close, he was about three inches shorter than I. If I leaned forward, I would be kissing his forehead. If . . .

"I don't care if you heard or not. Besides, I don't talk when it's not necessary."

A lump formed in my throat. Yami took a step closer and he was now only inches away from me. I stared into his eyes and felt my mind go hazy.

Then before I could do anything else, Buddha forbid what it is, Yami blinked and began to walk away. "You need to get to class. You don't want to get on Ms. Hampson's bad side."

*~*~*

In The Classroom

After showing me to the classroom, Yami left with the words, "See you in gym."

I hesitantly walked in to the science room. There were counters along the back wall with sinks every so often. Next to the sinks were metal handles sticking out of the surface. Everyone was currently working and I slowly walked up to a middle-aged woman.

"Excuse me, Ms. Hampson. I'm new."

The woman looked up from her own work and a big smile graced her face. "Oh! I've been waiting for you! I thought I was supposed to get you yesterday. Oh that's alright. Better late than never, right?" She began to laugh.

Unsure of what else to do, I forced a few giggles. Ms. Hampson stopped laughing and sighed.

"Well, well, lets see. You can sit . . . right there! Next to the cute kid with the black hair," she said, pointing at none other than . . . Mokuba? He's in my science class? Whoopee.

As soon as I sat down at my new desk next to the obnoxious boy, he began to talk to me.

"Hey, Ryou."

"Hey."

"I'm sorry about yesterday. I didn't mean to be so annoying. I just had some candy at lunch, and I got on a sugar high. Also, I didn't mean to talk about my brother so much. I must seem like a freak. Can you forgive me?"

What? "What?"

"Well, you know, yesterday . . . in English. I just kept blabbering about my older brother. I'm sorry for that. Don't deny it, I know you were annoyed. I'm not dumb and I'm usually not like that."

Wow. I guess he isn't that bad after all.

"I forgive you. Just, next time you have candy, make sure I'm absent that day."

Mokuba laughed at my comment and I couldn't help but laugh myself.

"So, are you liking Domino High so far?"

"Hmm . . . it's all right. I'm sure I'll get used to it though."

"Yeah, after a while, you get used to everything. Once you do, it's really not bad at all."

Wow, who knew I would actually be talking to him in a normal conversation?

"Do you want to know a secret?" Mokuba asked me, an evil glint in his eye.

"What?"

Before I could object, Mokuba was leaning into me and his mouth was by my ear. "It takes 1, 321 licks to get to the center of a tootsie pop."

I felt my face swell up with heat. Mokuba pulled away and smiled innocently before continuing to work. (A/N: I don't know how many licks it takes but I figure it would be around there. I'm planning to test that on a day where I have lots of time to just sit there and count.)

Looking at the sheet Mokuba was working on, I decided that tomorrow would be a good day to ask the teacher what everyone is doing.

A few minutes passed before Mokuba put down his pencil and turned to me. "I'm so nervous, I can't really think."

Nervous? "Why are you nervous?"

"Well, the first day of basketball tryouts are tonight. It's the most important night to show off your skill. And, my brother is expecting me to make it since he's going to be on the team."

Right. His oh so wonderful brother.

"Well, don't be nervous. Just think of it as a chance to play your hardest instead of a chance to prove anything to anyone."

"Are you trying out?"

"Yeah."

Mokuba smiled. "I'm sure you're going to make it."

"Why do you say that?"

The other boy stopped smiling and became serious. "You wouldn't try out unless you thought you could make it. Plus, I've seen you play."

He's seen me play? I felt another blush creeping up but I pushed it away. "Well then, with the first part in regard, I'm sure you'll also make the team."

Mokuba's cheeks became a light pink and he turned back to his work after whispering a `thank you'.

*~*~*

After Geometry Class

History was boring, but Geometry was fun.

Malik got in trouble again and earned himself another detention.

"Damn Ms. Nitta! Just because I was talking and throwing a calculator at that dumbass Weevil, doesn't mean she can tell me to come in for thirty fricken minutes! It's not my fault that green-haired freak was bragging about his pathetic bug duel monsters! Someone had to tell him to shut the hell up! It just happens that our stupid teacher had to punish me for doing something good!"

I tried not to laugh at Malik's outraged rant. I wondered if he realized how much worse he made the whole scenario sound. It really wasn't that bad. All he did was say, "Weevil, will you shut that fat mouth of yours before I make it fatter?" It just so happened that Weevil told Malik to cram it and the boy followed his threat and threw a calculator at the guy's face.

"If you want my opinion, he deserved it."

Malik stopped talking and stared at me with wide eyes. "Is the innocent Ryou agreeing with my evil thoughts? My boy is growing up so fast. This calls for a celebration!"

Malik began to prance around shouting, "Ryou has an evil side!"

I began to giggle and then saved his pride by saying, "Of course I do, dumb ass."

Malik stopped and took a deep breath. A small smile was on his face and then he began to talk again. "I can't believe how lucky I am. It's amazing and almost unrealistic that Domino's Glamour wanted me out of thousands of photographers."

Turning to stare at the other boy, I myself smiled upon seeing his eyes light up on just talking about photography. Soon I began to giggle.

"What's so funny?" Malik scowled, his dreamy expression disappearing.

"You," I respond. "You're talking like a little kid that just found out he won a year supply of candy."

I just giggled more when Malik's face turned red and he tried to pout.

"You're so cute," I exclaimed between giggles. At this, Malik's face became a dark brick red.

"You know there are basketball tryouts after school, right?" he asked, changing the subject.

My giggling collapsed and I felt a frown on my face. "Yeah. I'm kind of nervous though."

"Why? Do you not have any clothes? I could let you borrow some of mine."

Eek! "No, that's okay. I brought some clothes today. After what happened yesterday, I never want to experience being hit on by a guy again."

When I mentioned this, I noticed Malik slightly frowned for an instant. I didn't seize the chance to investigate on his reaction any further.

*~*~*

Gym Class

Today we were having a fitness day. It turns out that every Tuesday and Thursday we either run or play a game. Unfortunately, today we have to run.

"Okay you little sissies! Now is the time to get in shape! If you want to get a hot date to the Snow Ball then I suggest you stop acting like your normal lazy selves, and work your school boy asses off!"

"Wow, that'll prep you up any day," Malik whispered to me. I held in a giggle.

"Alright, now we're going to start off with a slow jog around the basketball court. After a couple minutes we'll change direction." (A/N: We do this every Tuesday and Thursday. It sucks so much because the teachers just sit and talk and sometimes forget that we're jogging! It's pure torture.)

After a few laps around, a lot of the boys were breathing hard. Malik, me, a few others, and the four basketball players were the only ones not heaving for life.

"I wonder how many will pass out within the next minute. I bet five." Malik said.

I just grinned and shook my head at Malik. He shrugged. I turned my attention back to the air in front of me and I saw Yami. All I could see was his black hair with a few blonde strands flapping in the air. (A/N: I think that's a funny image, seeing Yami run from behind.) He was wearing a white shirt and navy blue Nike shorts. When he turned a corner I caught of a glimpse of his face. There wasn't a drop of sweat on it. For a reason I'd rather not know, the idea of Yami sweating was appealing. His skin would glisten in the light and he'd dab it off with a towel. Then he'd smile and throw the towel to me. . .

Aah! What am I thinking? I heard a squeak pop out from me and Malik gave me a funny look. To ignore his questioning gaze, I looked at the floor. My heart was beating fast I felt sick. I shouldn't be having these thoughts about another GUY! It's just admiration for him. That's all. I just admire his basketball skills, nothing more.

*~*~*

Locker Room

In the locker room after gym class, I quickly changed. I needed to get out into the fresh air ASAP.

"Hey, Ryou. Are we going to go serve our detention during lunch?" Malik asked, taking off his pink shirt and then grabbing his lavender one.

"Uh . . . sure." I answered, my mind still rattled at how I keep thinking about Yami in such a dirty way.

"Okay. We'll get our lunches from the cafeteria and then eat them in Ms. Nitta's classroom."

"Uh . . . sure." I must sound out of it for Malik gave a worried look. He put his lock on his gym locker and grabbed his backpack. "Are you alright?"

He walked over to me and thrust his hand on my forehead. "Hmm . . . you're not hot. Are basketball tryouts really that nerving? Don't worry, you'll make it!"

I stared into Malik's lavender eyes before answering him. "It's not that. I just feel a little . . ." He couldn't tell Malik that he was feeling `dirty' for having horrible thoughts about Yami. " . . . tired. You know, all that running."

Malik gave me a suspicious glance before accepting my answer. "Alright, lets go then."

*~*~*

Detention

When we arrived in the classroom, there were already seven other students. Ms. Nitta may be nice and all, but she doesn't tolerate bad behavior.

Malik and I sat by each other. I saw him reach in his backpack and pull out a piece of blank paper. He pulled his pencil out of his pocket and began to write something. It must be some homework assignment for a class.

I rested my head on my left palm and stared at the other students. None of them looked familiar, but then again, I've only been here for a day and a half.

Sllsshh

The sound of paper sliding over a desk entered my ears. I looked down and saw a sheet of paper on my desk. Looking at Malik, I saw that he was nonchalantly glancing around the classroom.

Do you want to play tic tac toe?

Uh . . .

Sure.

I wrote on the paper with his pencil and gave both back to him. He looked at it and then drew a tic tac toe grid. He marked a circle in the middle-square. Hmph, typical.

I marked an X in the top right square. Malik drew a circle in the right square next to his other. I put an X to block his three in a row. Then he put an O in the bottom right hand corner. Heh heh. I have him now. I put an X in the top left corner. When I gave the sheet to Malik he crumpled it up after realizing he lost.

After that short game, I returned to my previous position. From this, I could stare at everyone, even Malik. He was currently scowling and glaring at any of the kids that happened to look at him. I giggled. Malik glared at me.

Wow. I would've never guessed he would've been like this. Sure he could be `evil' while online, but most the time he was really nice and even had moments where he showed care and understanding. Whenever I was sad or angry, he would comfort me with just words he typed; To think that he would be so stubborn and . . . crazy, and . . . funny. Yep, definitely funny.

Before I knew it, Ms. Nitta told us that twenty minutes were up. Malik shouted for joy.

"Except for you, Malik. Since you're already here, I think it would be better if you gave me at least half of your other detention now," Ms. Nitta said, a grin on her face. Malik's eyes widened in horror.

"Or, I could serve the full thirty minutes some other time." He quickly walked out of the classroom with me behind, barely able to keep up.

Malik and I walked around the school for the last minutes of lunch. We looked at the pictures on the wall of previous teachers. The whole time I was laughing at the comments Malik would make about each of them. A little disappointed that the bell rang, I told Malik I would see him later and walked to study hall.

*~*~*

After School

After the bell to end the day rang, I hurried down to the gym. I definitely didn't want to be late on the first day of tryouts. Even Mokuba said it was the most important day.

Upon arriving at the gym and entering the locker, I was shocked and became even more nervous. There were so many guys that I could barely squeeze my way through the crowd of changing boys. I felt bad because I bumped into two guys and caused them to land on another guy. When I finally reached an open space, I changed as fast as possible. A few times I caught someone staring at me, but I just figured it was because I was new and it's kind of hard not to notice my white hair.

When I squeezed my way back out of the locker room, I walked into the space of the gym. The floor was waxed and there were several groups of guys joking around. How could they be so relaxed on such an important day of their life? They must be really confident which means that I probably won't make it!

"Hey, Ryou. Took you long enough."

I turned around to see who was talking to me when I came face to face with . . . Malik!

"Malik? What are you doing here? I thought basketball wasn't your thing?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "Well, I guess it'll be easier for me since I have to take pictures of Yami. Maybe if I make the team and I'm lucky, I'll get a shot of him dressing."

"Malik!" I knew I was blushing but I didn't know why.

"Relax, I was just joking. I could care less if I make the team or not."

With Malik here, I suddenly became a lot more relaxed.

"Besides, if I don't make the team you definitely are; So then, you could be a great friend and take those pictures of Yami in the locker room for me," Malik said, smiling sweetly.

I just sighed and shook my head. "When will you ever learn Malik? I'm not your slave. I'm not going to do your dirty work."

"Well, I guess you wouldn't be too mad if suddenly pictures of YOU getting dressed happened to appear in the school newspaper."

Oh yeah. How could I forget? Malik was the official photographer for the school's paper.

"But I could just be a good friend and take those pictures." Mentioning that, I felt my heart beat faster. The idea of taking pictures of Yami in such a . . . position, was exciting. No! Ryou! Stop thinking like that! Stop! That's wrong!

Funny how at that exact moment, Yami, Kaiba, Otogi, Honda, and . . . Jou, come walking into the gym.

I turned away from them before I found myself staring at Yami. That would not be good if he thought I had some silly crush on him, which I do NOT have. Yes . . . that's right, Ryou. Think about girls . . .

"Gather up you GIRLS!"

Um . . . please don't start referring us guys as girls, because then I might actually start thinking about girls, or a certain girl. But of course, I won't do that cuz it's just plain weird.

All the guys, which was a whole lot, gathered around Mr. Koshiro.

"FROM NOW ON UNTIL 5 P.M., YOU WILL UNDER MY CONTROL! YOU WILL WORK HARD WHEN I TELL YOU, TOO AND YOU WILL RUN HARD WHEN I TELL YOU, TOO! TODAY WILL BE THE DAY THAT DECIDES THE REST OF YOUR LIFE! NOW LETS SEE IF YOU'RE MAN ENOUGH TO DO LAY UPS!"

Wow, this was going to be very interesting . . .

TBC.

Wow! That was a really long chapter. My hands hurt from typing it all up! Well, I hope you enjoyed it and please review! I need to know if you guys like how I'm doing things.