Chapter two
“Master Mokuba,” a butler in a servant’s haori entered Mokuba’s room. “I am pleased to inform you that the Master has arrived, and is entering the premises of the rest house right this moment,”
Mokuba, in a grey and dark grey coloured haori, dropped the game controller and ran out the room. “Niisama’s here!” he almost yelled, his voice disappearing as he ran down the hall. The servant shook his head and paused Mokuba’s game.
Mokuba ran down the expensive wooden stairs, his socked feet in flip flops not making any noise as he ran. He almost bumped into the servants who were carrying towels and sheets, and some even with cleaning equipment. “Sorry! I’m sorry!” he said, dodging a butler who was shining the antique vases in the huge living room. Mokuba ran out the main door and stepped on the stepping stones to the gates, passing by the humungous fountains, and the classic Japanese garden. “Niisama! You’re here!” he said as Seto came into his sight.
“Mokuba, uf-!” the haori dressed boy hugged him by his waist. Yeah. Mokuba was only up to Seto’s waist.
The boy looked up him. “What took you?” he asked.
“Mokuba,” Mokuba let go of him. “This is Mutou Yami, my project partner and he’s going to stay with us for the weekend,”
Mokuba looked at Yami from head to foot. “You’re pretty! Come on! Let’s have you get into a kimono so you can get around the house!” Mokuba grabbed his arm and pulled him into the house.
“Ki-kimono?!” Yami repeated. “Th-that’s for a girl!”
Seto shook his head. Was he going to have to buy another lip balm for him? He went in the house and heard Mokuba demanding for the tailor. “Mokuba!” he said, but Mokuba had already pulled Yami up to his room and locked it. “Dammit,” he murmured. “This is going to be one long night,” he headed for his room, ready to change into his haori.
In Mokuba’s room, Yami was standing in front of the tailor, taking measurements. “I’ve got just the thing! I’ve got kimonos just your size!” said the tailor, snapping his fingers and his assistants approached him. “Get me a kimono is these measures, purple, the one with the cherry blossom design! Lovely, I must say!”
Yami didn’t say anything. If he did it would be disrespecting the owner of the house, who was standing a few feet away from him, watching the tailor take his measurements. And did Mokuba really mean what he said when he pulled him into the house? That he was pretty? And besides, if he denied the offer of clothes then it would be very rude. “Uh…Mokuba-san, do I really have to wear that I mean I…”
“No, you don’t, but it would really look good if you did!” Mokuba smiled at him. “Besides! You’re pretty! And I think Seto thinks so, too!”
Yami blushed madly and turned his gaze to the floor. “Uh…”
“Don’t be shy! I’m positive he’ll like you after the tailor dresses you up!” Mokuba smiled up at him. “Come on! You don’t have to be shy! Really!” Mokuba took his hand and pulled him closer. “It’s rare for Seto to have someone over! Actually this is the first time, and I must say, he has a pretty damn good taste. You’re very pretty. And you’ve got to have a good time! Besides, I really want you to be my friend!”
“O-oh, I see,”
“So you promise you’d have fun?”
“Bu-but I’m only here for the project-”
“Nonsense!” Mokuba cut him off. “ISONO!” Mokuba yelled, and after a few moments, a man in a dark green haori entered the room.
“Yes, Mokuba-sama?” he kneeled.
“Yami-chan, what’s your project?” Mokuba asked him.
“Pre-marital sex among teenagers, and we’re supposed to format it like some thesis,” Yami answered.
“Well, you heard him, Isono, do Yami and Seto’s project. I want it by Sunday morning!” Mokuba ordered him.
Isono bowed. “Hai,” and he left the room.
“Bu-but!”
“See? Told you that you don’t have to worry about it!” Mokuba chuckled. “Oh! There’s your kimono! Hurry! Put it on Yami-chan!” Mokuba slightly pushed him towards the stylists.
“Mo-mokuba-san!”
“You’ll be fine!”
“Isn’t he ready yet?! Is it that hard to get a haori on?!” Seto yelled at particularly nobody as he paced back and forth in the porch outside the main living room. “ISONO!” he yelled. “ISONO!” it’s already been an hour and a half, a lot of wasted time. And yes, he was wearing a haori; a blue one.
“Hai, Seto-sama?” Isono kneeled by the living room door, imitating what the Japanese servants did back then.
“Get Mutou!” he said, turning around and faced the huge pond in an autumn like setting.
“Hai,” before Isono could stand up, he saw socked feet in purple flip flops, legs wrapped in purple sakura printed and embossed silk material. “Seto-sama, Mutou-sama is already here,” he stood up and left.
Seto turned around. “What took you-” he started angrily, but was cut off by Yami’s appearance. “So long…?”
“Mokuba-san insisted that I wear this kimono,” Yami answered. “Sumimasen deshita,” (4) he made a perfect kneel for apology, but he made sure that his head did not touch the floor.
Seto approached him and took his hand and had him stand up. “Mokuba had Isono do our project, didn’t he?”
He nodded. “Yeah, so there was no point of me coming here,” Yami crossed his arms. “Besides, if I turned down the offer, your brother might not like me,” Yami turned away slightly.
“Change back into your shorts,”
Yami suddenly looked up at him. “You’re serious?”
“Yeah, and I’m changing into something modern,”
“Uh, Earth to Kaiba-kun, I had help going down the stairs, same to go up,” said Yami. “Kimonos are so restrained – uwaaahh!!” Seto swooped him up from the floor. “K-Kaiba-kun! P-put me down!” Yami threw his arms around Seto’s neck, afraid that Seto might let go.
“You said you wanted help going up the stairs to your room,” said Seto, walking down the hallway. “Besides, I’m going to have Isono stop doing our project and we’ll do it on our own.”
“Oh,” he said, still not letting go of Seto’s neck. “Am I also going to have help taking off the kimono? Because there were like…five people who put this on me,”
“Guess so,” said Seto as they started to go up the stairs. “And of course-” flashes of light caused Seto to stop in his steps and turn his head to close his eyes slightly, and for Yami to burry his head in Seto’s neck. “What in the world-” he was cut off by Mokuba giggling away with the special camera he bought just yesterday. The one that snaps almost twenty photos in just one click. “Mokuba? Kaiba Mokuba! You give me that camera right now!” Seto demanded, hurrying up the stairs and being careful not to let Yami go.
“H-hey! Kaiba-kun! Slow down!” Yami tightened his grip on Seto’s neck. He barged into Yami’s room and put him on the bed. “O-oi! Kaiba-kun!” he sighed as Seto ran out again. “Kimonos are so restricted,” he said, trying to reach the huge bow like wide ribbon on his back.
“Mokuba!” he saw the boy in his room, already uploading the pictures. “s**t!”
“Too late!” Mokuba laughed like he was some kind of antagonist. “Come on, Seto, you’ve mentioned Yami a lot of times, and yes, you’ve got good taste, Yami looks perfect for you! And in that kimono? Man, you two are perfect!”
“Mokuba, alright! Alright! I admit it, I like him a little, please just delete those photos!”
“I will if you tell him,”
“So it’s blackmail now?!”
Mokuba thought for second. “Nah, I’m just playing with you!” Mokuba laughed once again. “Come on, Seto! It’s so difficult to please you! And now that you’ve found someone that you like in every way,” Mokuba’s tone turned into a pleading one. “I finally get to have some kind of sister-in-law and you let Yami go. Come on, Seto please? Let Isono do your report! Besides, you’d get A+ even if I do it,”
“Ok! Ok! I’ll find a way!” Seto gave in. “Just make sure you delete those photos!” he made sure.
Mokuba raised his right hand. “Yakosoku suru!” (5)
“Good. Or I’ll ground you for the rest of your teenage years,” Seto left the room and headed for his to change into something more modern. “Damn kid, won’t let me go,” he sighed. Mokuba was right. It was hard to please him.
“Kaiba-kun?” Yami, back in his tee and shorts, walked around the Japanese mansion looking for its owner. “It’s already six-thirty! Can we start on the paper now?”
Seto came out of one of the rooms, startling Yami, making him step back. “Uh, no. Let’s eat first,” he said, pulling up the sleeves of his black shirt up his elbows.
“You startled me!”
“Yeah, yeah, come on let’s eat,” Seto knew Mokuba was hiding somewhere and recording his every move, so he whispered something to Yami. “I want you to act like you’re happy after I whisper to you, then you hug me like you’d never heard anything like what I’ve told you. No questions. Just do it. Call me Seto. I’ll get busted if I don’t do this,”
“Seto!” Yami tip toed and reached Seto’s neck and whispered, “Jesus Christ, you’re freaking tall!”
Seto closed his eyes and gave the hug back. “Just act like we’re an item, ok? Just follow my lead.”
Yami let go. “What?!” he exclaimed, appalled.
Scared that Yami blew his cover, he swooped down and kissed him. Within milliseconds of letting go, he pulled Yami in the nearby bathroom. “I never want to have liplocks with you again.”
Trying to keep his voice down, Yami said, “What?! Excuse me! You’re the one who swooped down and kissed me!” he stressed the words to make a point. “What are you trying to prove anyways?!”
“Look, if I don’t act like I have interest in you, the photo wherein I was carrying you in a bridal manner will be posted on the internet for the population of the whole world to see.” Seto started. “Now if you don’t want the whole world to think that you are female, I suggest that you play along!”
“This is your brother’s doing?” Yami asked, sitting on the sill of the bathtub.
“Yes,”
“Wow. I didn’t think that that little cutie would be such a genius. He’s blackmailing you isn’t he?”
“Oh yeah,” he answered. “Look, if you don’t wanna do this, I’m fine, sure. Let the whole world know I’ve married my classmate.”
“I’ll do it, no more than physical contact, which means holding hands, your hand on my waist, on my shoulders, etc. and pecks!” Yami told him, looking through the lotions on display. “Am I clear?”
“Damn clear. Hell I don’t want to French you again,” Yami looked at the mirror and ruffled his hair a bit. “What the hell are you doing?”
Yami looked at him. “Messing my hair so it’d look like we did something, what does it look like?!” he said, also messing up his top. “Any intention of running your hand through your hair?”
“Yeah, yeah,” Seto ran his hand through a few times. “Ready?”
Yami took a deep breath. “Ready,” Seto took Yami’s hand and they stepped out the bathroom. “After dinner can we please do the paper? We’re wasting a lot of time, Seto,”
“It feels really weird when you call me by my first name,” said Seto, putting his hand around Yami’s waist as they went down the stairs. “Not that I’m complaining,”
“That’s what you told me to call you,”
“I know,”
A servant at the foot of the stairs kneeled. “Young Masters, dinner is ready and is served in the gardens as Master Mokuba suggested,”
“The gardens?” Seto repeated. “Why the hell would that kid want to have dinner in the gardens,” he said, making their way to the gardens.
Yami reached up to Seto’s ear. “This might be one of his plans,” he whispered.
“Yeah,”
“Seto! Come on! Food’s getting cold!” Mokuba waved to them as they approached him.
“Mokuba, why’d you have the servants prepare dinner here?” Seto asked, pulling a chair for Yami.
“For the romantic atmosphere,” he giggled. “You two are the only ones having dinner here. I’ve already had dinner in the dining hall,” and ran back into the house.
Seto sighed. “I have got to ground that kid,”
“So let’s take the food to your room and eat while doing the paper,”
“Sure,” servants took the food and followed them to Seto’s room. “Just put it down on the coffee table,” he said, turning on his desktop. “What kind of project are we supposed to do? I mean, thesis in two days? Is he nuts?”
“Maybe that’s just for the people who need boosts in their grades,” Yami answered, taking one of the salmon. “You eat traditional Japanese at the mansion?”
“No.”
“Only here,”
“Yes,”
“Here,” Yami handed him a bowl of ramen. “You do more work than I do. I’ll take a look on the info. We’ll ask a few people tomorrow.” He sat back down on the sofa near by the coffee table. “So you have a desktop at home?”
“Desktop here because nobody can get here. Robbers, if they can get in here, can get a laptop easily. Besides, I don’t need to work when I’m here.”
(4) I’m sorry.
(5) I promise!
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