Work Text:
It was 7:30 in the evening on December 24th, and Seto Kaiba was on his way home after a long day at the office. With the upcoming holiday season, he had been exceptionally busy signing last-minute project requests, meeting with buyers who were demanding additional quantities of product, and dealing with the inevitable personnel shortfall that always occurred at this time of year when everyone seemed to take holidays at the same time.
As he watched the streetlights passing by from the backseat of the limo, he afforded himself the luxury of a wistful sigh. Christmas was tomorrow, and he was not looking forward to it. Of course, he was happy that he’d be spending time with his little brother, but once the presents were opened, and Mokuba had dashed off to play with his new booty, he knew that the overwhelming feeling of loneliness would once again wash over him. He sighed again as he realized that once again, he wouldn’t get what he really wanted for Christmas.
He turned his gaze back inside the car and allowed himself to fall into his thoughts. What he really wanted for Christmas was a puppy. Not a tail-wagging, floppy-eared, four-legged puppy, but his puppy – a tall, sexy, golden blond, honey-eyed puppy by the name of Jounouchi. Unfortunately for him, Jou not only thought he was the most arrogant prick on the face of the earth, he also tended to regard him with the same love one would have for a slug – a creature that has its purpose in the world, but no one wants to share their home with one. Kaiba knew their relationship (or lack thereof!) was entirely his fault. He’d never been kind to Jou from the moment they had first met, always seeing himself as highly superior to the blond. However, as time went on, he found that he had been completely wrong in his initial assessment of Jou, and even admired many of his qualities. The blond was kind to everyone, almost generous to a fault with his sister, loyal to his friends, and yes, he was one hell of a duellist - almost as good as Yugi and him. Only his stubborn pride would not allow him to admit that publicly…
“Jesus Christ!” he heard Kurt, his driver, shout, jarring him from his thoughts. As he was roughly thrown into the door, he could feel that the brakes had locked up, and knew that the car was skidding sideways on the slippery pavement. The driver managed to keep control of the vehicle as he bounced the rear end off the guardrail and brought it to a stop sitting sideways in the centre of the road.
“Kurt, what the hell just happened?” Kaiba asked irritably. “I promised Mokuba I would be right home, and presumably in one piece.”
“I’m sorry, Sir,” came the hasty apology. “But some kid just collapsed in the middle of the road, and I almost didn’t see him. I managed to swerve at the last second.”
“Well, is he alright?”
“I don’t know, Sir. He collapsed, but he hasn’t gotten up yet. I think I’ll call an ambulance just to be on the safe side.”
“Do that,” Kaiba ordered as he opened the car door, pulling his coat tightly around his body when he felt the cold night air whipping by him. Shivering slightly, he walked around to the back of the limo and saw a large gouge and two broken taillights, courtesy of the impact. Not extensive damage, but still, it would be an inconvenience for him to have it fixed. He narrowed his eyes and saw the form of a body lying in the centre of the opposite lane. ‘The next car might not see him,’ Kaiba thought as he walked over to the curled up form. He looked down at the body and his insides turned to ice. It was Jounouchi.
He quickly knelt down and threw off his gloves, the cold wind stinging his hands. The blond was curled up in the fetal position, soaking wet, and not wearing a coat or gloves. Ice crystals could already be seen forming on his wet jeans, and his face was pale and bluish. Kaiba grabbed the blond’s wrist, searching frantically for a pulse. When he felt none, he leaned down and listened for any signs of life. The brunet let out the breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding when he heard the shallow, ragged breathing coming from Jounouchi.
He pulled the blond into a sitting position and tried as best he could to wrap his coat around the two of them. “Kurt!” he shouted. “We need to get him into the car. Come give me a hand.”
Hearing the sound of Kaiba’s voice, Jou’s eyes fluttered open and he croaked, “Kaiba?”
Kaiba looked down at him and nodded, “Yes, Puppy. What are you doing here?”
Jou gazed at him through half-lidded eyes and mumbled, “So tired…want to sleep…”
“No Puppy, you have to stay awake,” Kaiba responded, hefting the blond to his feet with Kurt’s help. “Come on, let’s get you warmed up.” The two led the blond to the limo, Kaiba frowning with concern as Jounouchi’s legs kept giving out on him, causing him to stumble. The brunet ushered him into the car, and shrugging out of his coat, he wrapped the heavy garment around him. “Turn the heat on high,” Kaiba ordered. He climbed into the car beside the blond and ran his hand through the matted blond locks, frowning again when he pulled out a handful of ice crystals. “Jou, talk to me. Where’s your coat?”
“Too hot,” mumbled Jounouchi. “Took it off.”
Kaiba frowned again, “What do you mean you took it off? You are aware it’s December?”
“The bridge. Had to find dad, and got too hot looking for him.”
“Bridge?” Kaiba’s eyes widened in surprise. Had there been an accident? “I’ll be right back; wait here,” he told the blond, and once again stepped out into the cold. Shivering uncontrollably without his coat, Kaiba walked about fifty metres down the road to the old bridge, and sure enough, there was a set of skid marks and a broken guardrail. He peered over the edge, and could see a large, black hole in the ice, but no sign of a vehicle, not even a glimpse of headlights. If Jou’s dad had gone down there, he definitely hadn’t come back up.
He returned to the car, and saw that Jou was still awake, but barely. He looked at the blond shivering violently. “Puppy, you need to get warmed up. This is the best way to do so,” he said softly, pulling the blond into his lap and pressing himself against Jou’s body.
A confused look crossed Jou’s face as he eyed the brunet. “I hardly know you, Kaiba,” he mumbled, trying in vain to push the brunet away.
Kaiba sighed inwardly. ‘Even when he’s injured and cold, he still doesn’t want anything to do with me,’ he thought sadly. He lifted his head when he heard the sound of approaching sirens. “Puppy, this is for your own good. Until the ambulance gets here, this is the best thing for you.” Kaiba continued to hold the shivering form until the emergency vehicles arrived on the scene. While the paramedics tended to Jou, Kaiba retrieved his coat and went to speak with the investigating detective.
“You say that there was a vehicle? What kind?” the detective asked after Kaiba had told him what the blond had said.
“I have no idea,” Kaiba replied curtly. “I’m just telling you what the victim told me.”
“About Jounouchi…did you notice anything unusual about him? Was he drunk? Was he maybe high?”
Kaiba could feel his temper rising. Gritting his teeth, he growled, “Jounouchi doesn’t do that sort of thing. Before you go accusing him of anything, why don’t you check out his story?”
The detective rolled his eyes. “Mr. Kaiba, I don’t tell you how to run your company, so don’t tell me how to do my job. It’s just standard procedure, and these are standard questions.”
One of the ambulance attendants came up and said, “Sorry to interrupt, detective. Just letting you know that we’ve got him stabilized, but it’s going to be touchy for a while. We’re taking him up to Mercy; the docs there can give you more info and let you know when you can question him.”
The cop nodded, and the paramedic climbed into the ambulance and drove off. Turning back to the brunet, the detective continued, “Look, I’d love to believe his story, but every winter this happens. Some kid goes out, has a little too much ‘fun’, and inevitably, falls into the river and gets hypothermia. This one’s lucky that you found him. Most just freeze to death and are found the next morning – if they’re not hit by a passing transport truck first.”
“Jounouchi doesn’t lie,” Kaiba stated frostily. “If there’s nothing else, I’ll be going.” As he turned to leave, he heard the detective’s radio crackle with static, then an official voice stated, “Detective Khan, divers have recovered a 1996 Toyota Tercel, one male DB inside.” A satisfied smirk on his lips, Kaiba turned back to the detective and repeated, “Jounouchi doesn’t lie.” As the detective reached for his radio to respond, Kaiba turned on his heel and returned to his car.
Once inside, he warmed his hands in front of the heater vent. “Take me to Mercy Hospital, Kurt,”
When the limo pulled up at the emergency room doors of the hospital, Kaiba saw Mokuba, Yugi, Anzu and Honda climbing out of the back of a taxi. Kaiba had called Mokuba to tell him why he was going to be late, and the young boy had obviously taken it upon himself to inform the other members of the gang. ‘Wonderful,’ he thought sourly, considering the prospect of spending the next few hours with the group. Kaiba sat down on one of the waiting room chairs, crossing his legs in front of him and scowling at the three friends. Anzu was crying and gripping tightly to Yugi’s hand while Honda paced back and forth like a caged animal.
“You know,” he said coldly. “I really don’t think an emergency room is the place to bring the Superfriends.”
“Shut up, Kaiba,” Honda hissed through clenched teeth. “We’re Jou’s friends, and we couldn’t just leave him alone.” Narrowing his hazel eyes, he glared at the brunet. “Why the hell are you here, anyway?”
“I was the one who found him, and the detective might have more questions for me,” he lied. Kaiba cursed himself inwardly. Why couldn’t he just tell them that he was concerned about the blond? ‘Because,’ the little voice inside his head reminded him. ‘They wouldn’t believe you, and besides, that would be showing your sensitive side, wouldn’t it?’ ‘Shut up,’ he growled to himself.
Eventually, Jou’s doctor came out to see them. He looked tired, but he had a soft smile on his lips. “Well, young Jounouchi has a nice case of hypothermia. Fortunately for him, Mr. Kaiba, you had the good sense to get him out of the elements.”
“Yeah, lucky us,” Honda snarled from across the room.
“Is…is he going to be ok?” Anzu asked, her blue eyes once again welling up with tears.
The doctor nodded. “He’ll be fine. Right now, we’re still warming him up and feeding him some nutrient IV’s to keep his body working. His pulse and breathing are almost back to normal, too, but I’d like to keep him overnight, and then we’ll release him sometime tomorrow morning. I think he’s going to make a complete recovery.”
There was a collective sigh of relief from the group.
“Can we see him?” Yugi asked.
The doctor smiled. “Of course – as soon as the detective is finished speaking with him. Just bear in mind that this has been a very strenuous ordeal on his body, so don’t be surprised if he sleeps through most of your visit.” He checked with the ward nurse, and when the detective had left, he led the group to a small, private room. Propped up on a hospital bed lay Jou. He was still very pale, although a faint pink colour had returned to his cheeks. He was covered with several thermal blankets, and an IV was slowly dripping into his veins. They noticed the heart monitor, which showed a steady, even pulse and the core temperature monitor. It was still a few degrees below normal, but it looked like it was rising.
“Hey buddy!” Honda chirped, patting Jou on the arm. “Glad to know you’re going to be ok. Hell, it’d take more than a little water to put you down for the count, eh?”
“Oh Jou, I’m glad you’re ok!” Anzu sobbed, hugging the blond tightly. “When we heard, I knew our friendship could survive…”
“Shit,” Kaiba muttered, walking quickly from the room. The last thing he was in the mood for was a patented Anzu friendship speech. He secretly hoped the group would leave soon so he could visit with Jou privately. He sat down on a bench opposite Jou’s door and pulled out a pad of paper and a pen from his briefcase. After pausing for a moment, he began to write:
Jou,
For some time now, there’s been something I’ve needed to tell you. I have never brought it up before because it never seemed like the ‘right time’. In hindsight, I sometimes wonder if there were a lot of ‘right times’, but I was either too proud or too afraid to see them. Well, after what happened today, I think I have found the ‘right time’. I only hope it’s not too late…
You know, for someone who runs a multi-billion dollar corporation, you would think that writing a letter such as this would be an easy task, but it’s not. I can hear you now, asking why I wouldn’t just tell you this face-to-face. I suppose a letter provides me with some degree of protection; besides, I have a feeling my voice would become inconveniently lost if I tried to say these words to you. That was a joke, Jounouchi…you should be laughing here. Anyway, you have to realize how important this is to me because I’m actually taking the time to hand write this, not type it out on my laptop. This way you can see all my hesitations, my mistakes…everything. I only hope that you will see that I’m serious in what I’m telling you. It’s up to you whether you choose to believe me, or use this information to publicly humiliate me. In either case, I will accept whatever the consequences might be.
I know that we never really got off on the right foot. I don’t blame you for that; I know that it was entirely my fault. For whatever reason, I was blatantly hostile to you. I have no excuse for what I did, but I hope that you can maybe forgive me.
It’s funny, really, how over time, I have grown to enjoy your company. You have to have noticed that our confrontations have changed since we first met. Or maybe not; sometimes I can be overly subtle. At any rate, when we argue, there’s no longer any malicious intent, rather, it’s a very strange form of fl…
Never mind…It’s not important. I know that these are only words, but you’ve heard the saying, ‘The pen is mightier than the sword’? Words improperly chosen can do more damage than the mightiest armies…but I digress.
Christmas is tomorrow, and I hate it. Granted, I get to spend some time with Mokuba, but somehow, it doesn’t seem to be enough. I feel empty, and I’m lonely. It’s bad enough throughout the year, but on Christmas especially, it’s worse. Mokuba asks me every year what I want, and every year, I make something up, because I know that he cannot give me what I truly desire. What I really want is…you.
There, I’ve confessed. I believe that you are the one person who would make me feel complete. It’s strange, but whenever I’m around you, the loneliness fades and it feels as though a heavy weight has been lifted from my shoulders. I know it sounds crazy, but it’s true.
It was hard for me to accept it myself, but I really do have feelings for you, and tonight only confirmed it. When I saw it was you on the road, and you were hurt, I thought I was going to be sick. I felt worry, fear, desperation…everything bad you could possibly imagine when I saw you in that condition. I thought you were dead. I’m happy beyond imagination to know that you’re going to be ok.
Anyway, I think that is enough for now. I would really like to get to know you better…even if only in friendship. In any case, please come by tomorrow afternoon when they release you from the hospital. It would be my pleasure to have you over for the day.
Until then,
SK
Kaiba re-read the letter, then quickly stuffed it in an envelope and sealed it before he could change his mind. He rarely did things impulsively, and never on the spur of the moment, but somehow, the letter felt like the right thing to do. He heard the door to Jou’s room open, and he quickly shoved the letter into his briefcase and set it aside. He watched as the three friends came out, casting a suspicious glance in his direction as they left the hospital. Mokuba climbed onto the bench beside his big brother and asked, “Are you ready to go home, Seto?”
The brunet looked down at the raven-haired boy nestled against him, and he smiled softly. He pulled some money from his wallet and handed it to his younger sibling. “Here, why don’t you go down to the cafeteria and get a hot chocolate and a cookie, and I’ll be there in 10 minutes, I promise. I just have to… attend to something, first.”
Mokuba took the offered cash and hopped off the bench. “Seto, are you sure you’re ok?” he asked, a concerned note in his voice. “I’m worried about you, big brother.”
“I’m fine, Mokuba. Please, just go wait for me downstairs.” When his brother had disappeared from sight, Kaiba quietly slipped into Jou’s room. The blond was still asleep, and with the low lights from the room casting a golden glow on his features, Kaiba thought he looked like a sleeping angel. He dragged one of the visitor’s chairs over to the side of the bed and sat down.
He took the blond’s hand in his and whispered, “You really are beautiful, even when you’re lying in a hospital room. I wrote you a letter. I’ll put it with your things so you can read it in the morning. Maybe this will be the year I get what I want for Christmas…maybe we can both get what we want.” For a few minutes, he sat and watched Jou sleep, observing his rhythmic breathing, admiring his long golden eyelashes, studying the gentle curve of his face. He pulled the letter out of his briefcase and stared at it, turning it over and over in his hands as if contemplating whether to leave it or to walk away. Finally, with a determined look on his face, he walked over to the small wardrobe and stuck the letter in the pocket of Jounouchi’s coat. The investigating detective had recovered it at the scene and had brought it to the hospital earlier. Returning to the blond’s side, he leaned down and placed a soft kiss on Jou’s forehead. “Merry Christmas, Jounouchi. Sweet dreams.”
As he quietly slipped out the door, he didn’t notice the blond’s eyelids slowly flicker open and watch him leave.
By the time Christmas dinner was served the next night, Kaiba found himself feeling severely depressed. Kaiba had telephoned the hospital to check on the blond in the early afternoon, and learned that he’d been released just before noon. As he’d predicted, Mokuba had spent the majority of the day playing with his new video games, and had only recently rejoined his older brother for the evening meal. Kaiba tried to feign interest as his brother excitedly babbled on about his day, even forcing the occasional smile when Mokuba would start to laugh about something, but his mind wasn’t on the conversation. He’d nod his head when he heard his younger brother stop speaking, but in reality, he was lost in thought. He wondered what Jou had thought of the letter, and imagined the taunting jeers he’d hear from Honda when he returned to school. He supposed the group of friends had found the whole situation highly amusing. He sighed heavily and picked his way through his food, not feeling very hungry. Perhaps he would offer to lead that new project at work after all; at least it would keep his mind occupied for the first quarter of the new year.
Cutting off his younger sibling mid-sentence, he pushed himself away from the table and said wearily, “I’ll be in my office if you need anything, Mokuba. Enjoy your games.” His head low, he slowly made his way towards his work area, a profound sadness filling him. He had thought that Jou would have at least acknowledged his letter, even if it was just to call and tell him to forget it. He smirked bitterly; hell, anything would be better than waiting and wondering.
A desperate pounding on his front door pulled his thoughts back to reality. Curious, he wondered who could possibly be on his front porch at this time of day. As far as he knew, Mokuba wasn’t expecting anyone, and he certainly wasn’t. He opened the front door, and let out a small gasp of surprise.
Standing there, bundled up, a familiar looking envelope in his hand, was Jounouchi.
Once he had gotten over his initial shock, Kaiba managed to blurt out, “What are you doing here?” Jou stared at him with a questioning look on his face, still clutching the envelope tightly in his hand, his honey eyes moist, his face streaked with tears. Kaiba wondered if he’d been crying, or if the tears were the work of the cold wind. Quickly realizing how abrupt his question had been, Kaiba cleared his throat and said, “What I meant was, I’m surprised to see you.” He saw Jou’s eyebrows rise in silent confusion. “Pleasantly surprised,” he added.
“I found this about an hour ago when it fell out of my pocket,” the blond began hesitantly. “Kaiba,” Jou whispered, his voice a little hoarse, “Is this supposed to be some kind of a joke?”
Now it was Kaiba’s turn to stare in confusion. “What…”
Jou continued, “I mean, parts of this sound almost identical to a conversation I had with Yugi a couple of weeks ago…only the names were different. Are you making fun of me?” His eyes welled up with tears and he hastily blinked them away.
“Making fun…No, I…” Kaiba stammered, his characteristic charisma and confidence failing him in his moment of need. He narrowed his eyes as comprehension dawned on him, and he could feel a streak of jealousy coursing through his body as he demanded, “Wait a minute. What other names?” He growled inwardly. Whoever was capturing his puppy’s interest would be dealt with severely.
Jou must have sensed Kaiba’s rising hostility because he suddenly became very interested in his feet, nervously toeing a small pile of snow. He mumbled something incoherent, then his face flushed a deep crimson.
“Say that again. I didn’t hear you.”
Jou stared into the deep pools of cobalt blue and said, barely audibly, “I said it was me talking about…you.” A fresh wave of embarrassment washed over the blond and he quickly turned his back to Kaiba.
Kaiba felt his anger wane, and as the realization hit him that Jou wanted to be with him as much as he wanted to be with the blond, he felt his heart lift, tears of joy prickling at the corners of his eyes. Maintaining his composure as best he could, Kaiba reached out and grabbed Jou’s hand, pulling his puppy towards him. Kaiba placed his hand under Jou’s chin and tilted his head upwards, noticing the tear trickling down the blond’s cheek. Kaiba’s lips curved upwards into a small smile and as he gently wiped away Jou’s tear with his thumb he said softly, “We make quite the pair, don’t we puppy? We both put on this brave front and try to convince ourselves we can handle anything; we tell ourselves we don’t really need anything.”
He felt his heart racing in his chest as he leaned closer to Jou, his eyes fixed on the blond’s. “I think I’m through pretending.” He bent down and captured Jou’s lips in a soft kiss. When he felt the blond press himself closer to his own body, he deepened the kiss, moaning softly when Jou’s mouth granted his tongue access. As they embraced, Kaiba slowly pulled his puppy inside the house, nudging the door closed behind them with his foot.
When they pulled apart, they stood in the foyer for several moments in each other’s arms. Kaiba finally broke the silence and asked, “How are you feeling?”
“Hmm, better now than I was twenty minutes ago.”
The brunet chuckled softly, “I meant compared to yesterday.”
Jou shrugged, nuzzling his head against Kaiba’s chest. “Physically, I guess I’m doing ok.”
The brunet nodded, “That’s good to hear. Do you remember anything at all about what happened last night?”
Jou sighed, “I remember driving with my dad; we were going to get a Christmas tree, because he thinks the tree guys save the best ones until last. He swore to me he’d only had one beer that night, but from what the detective tells me, he had three times the legal limit in his blood. I guess he lost control on the bridge, and the next thing I remember is climbing out onto the ice and trying to head for shore. Other than that, I don’t remember much. But, I guess I have to figure out what I’m going to do now that my dad’s gone. My mom doesn’t want me, so that’s not even an option…”
“Stay here with me.”
“I can’t. The courts would never allow it.”
“Let me worry about that. Stay here with me.”
“I’ll have to think about it.”
Kaiba smirked, a mischievous sparkle in his eye. “I won’t take ‘no’ for an answer. Now that I have you, I’m not going to let you go.” He once again captured Jou’s lips in a bruising kiss, then him over to the sofa. He pulled the blond down into his lap and covered his face with soft kisses. Cupping Jou’s cheeks in his hands, he stretched up and placed a gentle kiss in the middle of his forehead.
Jou stared at the brunet, a startled expression on his face. “You did that last night, too, didn’t you? I thought that I had dreamed that…”
“I thought you were still asleep…”
The next morning, when Mokuba came downstairs, he stumbled upon a most interesting sight. There, on the living room sofa was Seto, fast asleep, with his arms wrapped around Jounouchi, who was snuggled up against his chest, snoring softly. An assortment of dirty dishes lay askew on top of the coffee table – obviously the remnants of a midnight snack. He giggled quietly to himself, vowing he would tease the pair later when they woke up. As he crept out of the room, shutting the French doors behind him, he glanced over at his big brother and noticed that for the first time in as long as he could remember, Seto slept peacefully, wearing a small smile on his face.