Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ Overwhelming ❯ Ice ( Chapter 4 )

Disclaimer: Do I *honestly* have to keep doing this? Oh wait, I almost forgot. Sometime in the last two days since I finished the *last* chapter, I have acquired a Kaiba-esque sum of money, inherited by a recently deceased relative who I knew nothing about until now due to the fact that they were, in fact, a mutant and as such locked in an attic and kept a family secret until they were mauled by a pack of rabid dust bunnies and upon discovery of said mutant's last will and testament, all mysteriously existent (what? I'm as curious about how a mutant locked in an attic made a billion dollars as you are.) and extensive funds were left to me, and I used them to buy all the rights to Yu Gi Oh!, so yeah, I own it now. Yup. And yes, I am aware that that was probably the longest run-on sentence in the history of the English language. Oh, and just to cover my ass, if you believed *any* of that, give me your address so I can find and maul you and your stupidity, okay? Oh yeah, and Blah Blah Blah YAOI Blah Blah LEMON Blah.

A/N: Any yaoi citrusyness in this chapter is all for Koneko Shido. Go read her review of Ch.3 and you'll see why. For some reason I had a really hard time with this chapter. I don't know why, maybe it was because I wasn't really in the mood to write when I started it, which means I *shouldn't* have, but I felt the need to update, so I did anyway. Bad idea. Three days and about seven re-writes, three overhauls, and five proofreads later here it is… usually I just sit down and *write* these things…

Note: for future reference, all cars in this fic are Japanese-style. i.e. driver sits on the right side, and drives on the left side of the road. *laughs at memory of my mom's attempt at driving in Ireland*

Wow… I have so many inspirations lately. I get almost all my inspiration from songs. So no, these aren't song-fics, they're just um… loosely based on/inspired by songs. I don't know if anyone's heard of The Rasmus (yes, Koneko, yes, Miko, I know *you* guys have), but the lead singer's voice actually sounds like Bakky's in the dub, and their song "In the Shadows" might as well just be a duet between Ryou and Bakura. F-f-falling is my Jounouchi-anthem… it goes on. And then there's AFI. Thanks to Koneko and her "Scream Like You Mean It", they were added to my unofficial YGO soundtrack. Listen to "Silver and Cold". Its sooooo beautiful, and it's the ultimate Yami/Hikari anthem. And yeah, I'm ranting. Oops. My point, anyway, is that I have plans for YGO fics for "In the Shadows", along with some other Rasmus stuff, maybe some AFI-inspired ones, and a Trigun Wolfwood/Legato inspired by the song "Asleep in the Chapel" by Thurday (that one will be a tragedy and a half. Look out, kiddies.)..

***

The next day at school, Otogi showed no signs of remembering the kiss until Jou glanced over at him in their shared Biology class and caught Otogi watching him. Their eyes met for a brief second before Otogi turned back to his work, but not before Jou had caught the smallest flicker of a grin. Jou smiled to himself and went back to his worksheet, toying idly with his pencil.

When the final bell rang, Jou headed to his locker, only to find an extremely smug-looking Otogi Ryuuji leaning against it. Jou smiled inwardly to himself, but kept a straight face as he approached.

"Excuse me, but that's my locker you're leanin' against." He said, trying to feign indignation.

"Oh good," Otogi smirked. "I was beginning to think Ryou had given me the wrong number."

Jou smiled as Otogi moved out of the way, allowing him to spin the dial and shove his books inside. "Yeah, well, I woulda been here sooner, but my teacher for Japanese Lit held me back to talk about those spectacular grades I've been pulling this semester." He rolled his eyes. Then he paused. "Wait. *Ryou*?! You asked Ryou for my locker number?"

Otogi raised an elegant eyebrow. "Uh, yeah? Is there something wrong with that?"

Jou shook his head, slamming the locker shut and pushing his bangs out of his eyes, sighing. "Nah. I guess not." Just one more thing for him to ask me about later, Jou added silently. He knew that Ryou didn't fully buy his "I got into a fight" stories pertaining to his bruises. He didn't mind Ryou's caring inquisitions, though; in fact, he generally thought of Ryou as being really sweet. One of these days he was going to have to explain things to the other boy in a little more detail. Ryou deserved it.

"Anyway," Otogi grinned, "I was gonna ask if you wanted to come hang out at the shop this afternoon. It's a Friday, so we'll have enough staff members there to run things; I'll be able to slack off for the afternoon."

Jou was about to reply when his cell phone rang. Otogi saw the look that passed over Jou's features and shook his head. "Don't answer it, Jou."

Ring.

Jou looked at the flashing blue screen.

"Don't answer it."

Ring.

He looked at Seto's name, where it appeared on the caller id.

"He's using you, Jou. Just turn your damned phone off and forget about him."

Ring.

Jou shook his head. "It isn't that easy. If I do, he'll only come looking for me. You should know he won't back down when there's something he wants. He'll come and find me, and it'll only be worse if he finds me with you."

Ring.

Otogi just shook his head, turning to leave, waving a hand idly. "Yeah. You're right. Alright, then. I'll see you later."

"Otogi"-

Ring.

"Figure it out, Jou. If you need me, you know where to find me." With that, Otogi walked away, thumbs hooked into his pockets, hips swaying.

Jou sighed and glared at the screen.

Ring.

He pushed the "answer" button and held the phone to his ear. "Yeah. Hi, Seto."

"What the hell took you so long, puppy?" Seto sounded distinctly irritated.

"I had a meeting with my Japanese Lit teacher." Alright, so not a complete lie.

"Well since I know it couldn't possibly have been about your spectacular grading achievements, you must be failing again, am I right?"

Jou had to resist the urge to take out his animosity on his cell phone. "No, Seto. As a matter of fact, I'm getting a D. Now are you going to tell me what the fuck it is you want from me, or can we end this now so I can go home?"

Seto breathed a laugh. "The answer is in the question, puppy. And besides, what do I *ever* want from you? I'm sending my driver to pick you up in the usual place."

"Call Ended" flashed on the screen.

***

The combined snow and freezing rain of the past few days had merged with the consistently dropping temperatures, making the entirety of Domino City something like a giant Popsicle.

The ice glittered where it hung in stalactites from lamp posts and tree branches, and it shone blindingly where it reflected the thin, chilly sunlight.

Jou had been almost glad when the driver pulled up in the dark blue limo, scooting into the heated interior and breathing warm air into his freezing hands.

Now he was less happy, being pinned to the bed by one of Seto's hands, while the other conducted extensive research of his annoyingly responsive nether-regions. Alright, so the still [barely] coherent bits of his brain were less than happy. Those parts of him upon which the explorations were being conducted begged to differ. It was the typical, run-of-the-mill conundrum of Jou's life at present.

Seto kissed him hard, pausing in his explorations to run a hand through Jou's hair, pulling his head back for better access. Jou moaned in spite of himself.

Seto began to fiddle with the button on his own pants, licking a trail up Jou's neck as he did so and making the other boy shiver before nipping hard at the sensitive skin just below his jawbone.

"Ahh"- Jou arched his back and groped for Seto's hand, trying to lead it back to where it might do some good.

A ringing broke through the fog of Jou's consciousness. Seto swore loudly and shifted off of Jou, who flopped back, shut his eyes, and sighed. He could try to sneak out now, but he was hampered by the fact that his pants were somewhere on the other side of the room.

Seto was snapping into the phone, irritation prevalent in his voice.

"There was a *what*?! Cant you imbeciles handle it?"

A pause.

"They want to talk to *me*? Yes, I *know* I'm the Chief Executive, but I don't know what that has to do with anything. I'm busy right now, can't this wait?"

Another pause.

"Okay, alright, *fine*. But this had better be all cleared up by the time I get down there, and whoever did this had better hope that I never, ever find out who they are." He slammed the cell phone closed and glared at it.

Jou opened an eye. "What was that about?" He had to try really hard not to sound mocking.

"That was one of my security-level employees, and apparently there was a bomb-threat called in forty minutes ago, and the bomb-squad insists I be there, even though they've cleared the building and haven't found a damn thing." He re-buttoned his pants and adjusted the collar on his shirt. "I'll call you later. You know where the door is." He turned to leave.

Jou thought about this for a second, and then sat up, sudden desperation and defiance surging through him. "I'm busy later."

Seto turned to face him. "Excuse me?" His voice was low and dangerous.

Jou took a deep breath. "I said I'm busy later." He was surprised at the acid tone of his own voice. "You can't just expect me to come running to your beck and call." The words were out of his mouth before he realized it, and he immediately flinched back against the headboard, anticipating the blow that came a moment later.

It was probably the stress that Seto was already feeling due to the bomb-threat, coupled with that of not getting to screw Jounouchi into the mattress, but the retort was the final thread breaking.

The slap snapped Jou's head back against the wood of the headboard, making spots dance across his vision, the jarring crack echoing in his ears. By the time he could focus again, Seto was already gone.

He leaned forward, holding a hand to his mouth and spitting the coppery tang of blood into his palm. He could feel a gash along the inside of his left cheek where his teeth must have broken the skin, and his left eye stung and watered. He tentatively reached behind his head and winced at the drop of wetness that came away on his fingers. This was gonna be a fun one to explain.

Moving carefully, trying to ignore the throbbing protests mounted by his head, he looked around until he found his pants and shirt, pulling them on with some effort, and the heading out the door.

He figured he would just go home. After all, in comparison to his comment earlier about having had a meeting with his teacher, the claim to being busy later had been a straight-out lie.

He didn't even know why he had said it. It had been a moment of defiance, maybe just an attempt to prove to himself that he wasn't really as much under Seto's control as Otogi thought. But it had only gotten him slapped; as usual.

He swore under his breath and made his way down the icy drive, once on the sidewalk making a half-assed attempt to cover the bloody spot in his hair before heading for home. He didn't get far.

He had gone about a block and a half before a green vintage Mustang pulled up beside him, Otogi leaning over to yell out the passenger-side window over the motor.

"Need a lift?"

Jou started, looking at Otogi, who in turn grinned back at him deviously.

He paused, for a moment considering not wanting Otogi to see the products of Seto's aggravation, but gave up as a gust of icy wind blew down the street, ruffling his hair and raising chills over his entire body.

"Yeah, sure. Thanks." He pulled open the door and got in, pausing as he reached behind him for the seatbelt. "Wait. How did you know where I was?"

Otogi laughed loudly. "Hah! Aren't we the presumptuous one? How do you even know I was out looking for you in the first place, hmmm?"

Jou felt himself flush red. "Uh, yeah, good point. Whoops." He smiled sheepishly. "Well, thanks anyway."

Otogi let out another snicker. "Actually, I *was* looking for you."

Jou looked at him incredulously. "You were?"

Otogi didn't take his eyes off the road, but Jou saw a familiar mischievous gleam pass through them as he answered. "Yup. Lets just say that I got an anonymous tip about a certain CEO having to leave his house abruptly, due to a call from some poor, hapless security employee down at KaibaCorp about a bomb scare. Since I knew you'd be at Kaiba's, I decided that you would probably be wanting a ride home, is all."

Jou stared at Otogi wide-eyed. "You! You called in the bomb-threat, didn't you!?" he let out a burst of incredulous laughter.

Otogi shrugged. "Ask me no questions, I'll tell you no lies."

Jou snickered. "Ohhh, you should have seen the look on his face when he got that call! He was *furious*."

Otogi smiled wickedly, glancing over at Jou. The smile disappeared immediately upon catching sight of Jou's face. The car skidded a moment on the icy road, and then came to an abrupt halt at the nearest curb.

"What the hell is that?" Otogi demanded, taking Jou's face gently between slender hands and running a thumb over the sensitive abrasions.

Jou turned away from the fluttering fingers and penetrating stare. "What the hell is what?" It was less of a question and more of a dare for Otogi to continue, coupled with a warning of the consequences, should he choose to. He did.

"What do you mean `What the hell is what'?! You've got a bruise around your left eye, and there's blood on your cheek, and is that blood in your *hair*? Holy shit, Jou, what the hell did he do to you?" Otogi ran his delicate fingers through Jou's hair, smoothing it down, and trying to inspect the wound.

Jou shifted uncomfortably, averting his eyes. He was definitely not used to this much physical contact; especially from Otogi, but at the same time, he was being so gentle, it was kind of comforting. "He was a little aggravated, that's all. It's no big deal. Really, Otogi. Just drop me off at home, okay?" From the corner of his eye, Jou saw Otogi sigh and drop his hands to his lap.

Otogi nodded, but suddenly he stopped, and a look of horror crossed his face. "Wait. Did he do this after the phone call? Oh gods, Jou, this is *my* fault! Holy shit, how could I have been so *stupid*!?" He stared at Jou wide-eyed, a hand over his mouth.

Jou shook his head bitterly. "Oh, don't worry about it. He woulda gotten around to this sooner or later, anyway. It's always only a matter of time with him. It's not your fault."

Otogi shook his head vigorously. "No! Oh, *gods* Jou, I am so, so sorry!" He looked into his lap, eyes wide and sad. "I'll just take you home, then." He reached up and started to turn the key in the ignition, but was stopped by Jou's hand on his arm.

"Wait; stop. Otogi, I mean it. Dammit, listen to me! He would have done this anyway. It was only because I shot my mouth off while he was pissed. You'd think I'd know better by now," he smiled bitterly at Otogi, who still looked wide-eyed and slightly sickened by himself. "In fact, I should be *thanking* you," Jou continued. "I mean, if it wasn't for you, I'd still be in there with him. I'm sorta… well, I guess I'm just sorta surprised that anyone would go through that much trouble for me." He laughed. "A *bomb* threat? Shit, Otogi, you're really lucky he doesn't know it was you. Still, I wish you coulda seen his face. It was *priceless*."

Otogi smiled a little in spite of himself, but said quietly, "Yeah, but look what he did to *your* face."

Jou shrugged. "Ahhh, like I said, he woulda gotten around to it sooner or later. You know me; I just can't ever keep my trap shut, can I?"

Otogi rolled his eyes. "That still doesn't validate"- but he was cut short by Jou's mouth on his own, and Jou's hands making idle trails down his arms and chest, circling around his waist and pulling him closer so both boys were poised precariously over the gear-shift.

Otogi's eyes went wide with surprise for a moment, but then he relaxed, sighing into the kiss. He felt Jou's mouth move into an involuntary smile against his own, and raised a hand to tilt Jou's chin gently upwards before breaking away and kissing a trail along his jawbone and down the graceful curve of his neck. In the back recesses of his mind, Otogi noted how nice it was that this part of town was so sparsely populated, as he expected they were making quite a scene.

Jou sighed and arched his neck upwards, giving Otogi more to work with, which was quickly taken advantage of. He felt feathery kisses placed along his collarbones and back up his neck where teeth nibbled at his ear, making him laugh breathily. Turning his face to kiss Otogi deeply, he let one of his hands slip from around the other boy's waist and travel up his shirt, running a hand over the fluttering muscles above the waistband of Otogi's black leather pants. Otogi moaned and pressed up against Jou's traveling hand, making small breathy noises. Then he opened his eyes and swore.

Jou looked at him in surprise. "Um, are you okay?"

Otogi rolled his eyes. "Shit. I had totally forgotten! I have a meeting with one of the guys from the company working on tech advancements for Dungeon Dice Monsters at four thirty! Oh *no*!!"

Jou sat back in his seat, straitening his shirt. "What time is it now?" he looked around, trying to find the car clock.

Otogi pointed to the dash board. "Four fifteen."

Jou gasped. "Oh no! Are you gonna make it?"

Otogi started the engine, still cursing under his breath. "Yeah, I can make it if I take you home right now and speed all the way back. Damn, Jou. I'm so sorry…"

Jou snickered. "Well, at least one of us has a job and some responsibilities. Heh. I could probably learn from your example. Maybe then Seto wouldn't give me so much shit."

Otogi rolled his eyes. "That asshole. He's really got something coming to him one of these days."

They pulled up in front of Jou's apartment building and Jou made to leave, but Otogi caught hold of him and planted a firm kiss on his lips. "I'll see ya Monday, `kay?" He gave Jou a Cheshire cat grin.

Jou grinned back. "Yup. See you Monday." He nodded once, and then got out of the car, fishing in his pocket for the key before letting himself in.

Otogi watched him until the door had closed, and then he pulled away from the curb, still swearing at the dashboard clock.

TBC

Post Script: well, that was an anticlimax. I don't really like this chapter much. The ideas got so scrambled around in my head, banging them out on my laptop felt really awkward. I hope the next chapter is more… graceful. Argh. I hate not being satisfied with my writing. What? Anal-retentive? Me? Whatever do you mean? Oh, and I should also probably figger out how long I wanna make this, and how much more I wanna beat around the bush. Probably not much longer. I don't wanna drag things out.