Diamond Life

Disclaimer: Yu-Gi-Oh! belongs to Kazuki Takahashi.

Despite everything, I think I wrote what will become a happy ending. Joey will survive, move on with Mai, and those two will have a good (if argumentative) life together.
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Seven weeks later, Joey opened the kitchen door. Seto had given him a key a few weeks ago, saying that if he ever found anybody inside the house who didn't look smart enough to break the security codes, he'd turn Joey over to the police without asking questions.

Joey was about to kick it shut when he heard the other set of doors open. He stepped back outside and closed the door, leaving just a crack. He really didn't need to get caught by a guard--Kaiba would probably say he had no idea how he got in the house and have him arrested for breaking and entering.

Joey frowned at the figure opening the fridge and pushed the door open a little wider. His eyes widened when he realized that it was Mokuba. Wasn't the kid supposed to be in bed half an hour agJoeyJoey held his watch to his face, trying to make out the time.

...10:08. He wasn't early. Why was Mokuba still around?

He leaned against the frame with a grunt and folded his arms, glaring at the younger Kaiba. Mokuba fished inside a drawer, pulled out a spoon and dropped it on the counter next to the pudding cup he had removed from the fridge. He climbed up onto the counter and removed the lid, throwing it in the direction of what looked like the trash. It didn't make it in, Joey noted.

He glanced involuntarily at his watch, then grimaced when he realized how whipped he was acting. And there were still twenty-nine weeks to go....

Far away, there was a crash. Joey raised his eyebrows and peered through the crack, but the kitchen entrance was closed. Mokuba looked at the doors, too. After a second bang, the boy sighed and spooned up another bite of pudding, kicking his feet absently against the cabinets.

Joey felt himself relax slightly. Judging by the noise, Kaiba was in the middle of work. Whenever that happened, he either sent Joey home or, sometimes, had him kneel next to his chair for a few hours and occasionally tousled his hair. That was humiliating, but at least he didn't have to sleep with him.

Mokuba scraped his spoon in the cup again, then slid off the counter. He dropped the plastic in the trash and threw the spoon at the sink, where it landed with a clang. At first Joey was surprised he'd be making so much noise when he was supposed to be in bed, but then he realized that, considering how large the mansion was, Mokuba could probably play basketball in the foyer without being overheard. Joey knew Kaiba's room was definitely soundproof.

The sheets were linen, he'd learned.

He waited until he was certain Mokuba would have made it back to his room--wherever that was--before entering the kitchen. He glanced out the second door that led to the hallway and stairs, and when no one was there he checked his watch again.

Joey's eyes widened when he saw it was nearly ten-forty. Had he spent that freakin' long waiting for the kid to finish eating?


However, Joey refused to run or even walk quickly up the stairs, so he didn't reach Seto's room until even later. He opened the door tod Sed Seto typing violently on his laptop. The wall next to the desk had a dent in it, and there was a mangled binder lying on the floor. Joey smirked--Kaiba had apparently thrown a temper tantrum. That would have been worth trying to get on film; it might make good blackmail.

Then again, nearly everyone in the world knew Kaiba was an ass. There wasn't really any point to trying to blackmail him with proof of that. If he could get a picture of him in make-up or something, that would be a different story....

Joey stood on the carpet and glanced at his watch again. Pretty much eleven. "I got here earlier," he started, "but yer--"

Seto slammed the chair back, causing it smash into the ground as he stood up and strode over. Grabbing Joey's shoulders, he shoved the blond back until he hit the wall, then crushed his lips into a kiss.

Joey's head hit the back of the wall and he opened his mouth to snapk, bk, but Seto took the advantage and plunged his tongue in, grinding his hips against Joey's. After staying frozen for a second, Joey dropped his shoulders slightly, letting Seto kiss him.

Seto's hands moved down and started undoing Joey's jeans, wrenching at them and making the zipper squeal metallically in protest as it was nearly pulled apart. Joey tried tove ove him away so he could undo the jeans and keep them from getting wreaked, but Seto grabbed his wrist and jerked Joey forward, before twisting his arm behind his back and slamming him chest first against the wall.

"Ow! Goddamn, ya bastard!" Joey cursed as his head hit the wall again. Seto's free hand wrenched his jeans and boxers away from his waist, shoving them roughly down. Joey started to freeze up. "Wait--"

Seto thrust into him, with preparation or protection. Joey gave a strangled scream as he felt himself tear and groped back blindly with his free hand, trying to push him away.

Seto dug his other hand into Joey's shoulder, pinning him to the wall as he continued to thrust. "Fucking traitors," he growled as he sped up, making Joey press against the wall in an effort to get away. He only wound up trapping himself, however, as Seto continued to rut violently into him.

Joey bit down on his lip until he felt it tear and tried to focus on that, but the pain was too minor; and besides, he could still hear himself screaming in the back of his throat. His face was wet, too, and he tried briefly to shake away the tears. He would not cry, not even if it was just because it hurt--he wasn't giving Kaiba that. He'd rot in hell before he let the other teen think he'd won.

Seto twisted his arm painfully and a strangled moan slipped out of Joey's torn lip. The bastard...he knew Joey had to stay here, no matter what--Serenity had her eyesight back, permanently, and that was what mattered. He had to pay the debt....God, make it STOP!

Seto let go of his arm and Joey let it drop loosely to his side as the brunette groped around his leg. Joey felt a hand slide around his limp cock and shuddered. "No..." he mumbled before he could stop himself.

Seto's thrusts started to slow down, and then he stopped. After a moment, he go go and pulled out, making Joey's knees buckle slightly. He caught himself, though, and leaned heavily against the wall.

"Shit," he heard quietly from behind him. Then, louder, "Why didn't you stop me?"

Joey didn't open his eyes. "You own me, remember?" he muttered.

Seto grabbed his arm and turned Joey around, making him wince when his back hit the wall. He noticed that there was blood on Seto's hand and his fading erection, but Seto gripped his chin and jerked his head up to stare in his eyes.

The look he was getting was freaky, enough so to even get through to him through the pain haze--it was like Kaiba was trying to see inside his head. Joey bared his teeth and glared at him. "What th' hell is it?!"

Apparently that's what he wanted to hear, because Seto let go of his chin and took a step back, eyes returning to that professional coldness. "The bathroom's over there," he pointed. "Do you need help?"

"No," Joey bit off. He took an unsteady step forward, keeping a palm on the wall for support.

Seto did him the courtesy of turning his back and walking out of the room. Joey stumbled his way into the bathroom, then struggled to turn on the tub without actually bending down. A ridiculous amount of time later, he managed to remove his clothes and climbed gingerly into the tub, wincing when he realized how hot it was. He slid into the water, biting his lip, and tried to relax.

He realized that there was blood on his shoulder where Seto had grabbed him, and started scooping water over the flesh, trying to rinse it off.

The bathroom door opened and Joey jerked, then bit down a whimper when the sudden movement caused him even more pain. Seto walked in, holding several towelJoeyJoey instinctively pressed his back against the marble of the tub, and Seto gave him an indecipherable look.

"If you need to, you can spend the night in one of the guestrooms," Seto said flatly. The brunette had already taken care of himself--his hands were clean and his clothes were straightened.

"Like hell," Joey growled.

Seto put the towels on the edge of the tub. "I'm clean," he said, making Joey's eyes widen. Oh. shit. He'd just had unprotected sex...."Are you?" Seto continued.

Joey folded his arms over his chest. "Yes."

"You've been tested?"

"I fuckin' know, okay?" he gritted.

Seto nodded curtly. "I'm ending the deal. Don't come back again."

Joey blinked, then sneered. "What, you didn't have enough fun?"

Seto glared at him. "I'm not cruel, dog; just clever." He dropped a washcloth into the wated std strode out.

Joey stared at the closed door for a few minutes, then fished out the rag and scrubbed off his blood.

~~~~~

When Joey made his way out of the bathroom again after taking a few aspirin from a bottle he found in the medicine cabinet, Seto had transferred his anger back to the laptop and didn't look up from where he was typing furiously. Joey spared the room and teenager a final glance before fishing the key out of his pocket and dropping it on the floor.

He didn't bother to slam the door.

~~~~~

Joey made it about halfway home before his legs threatened to collapse on him. A block down, he noticed an all-night diner and went inside. He didn't even try to sit down, and instead leaned against the wall next to the counter.

He had almost no money in his wallet, so he ordered a coke. The waitress behind the counter shoved a glass of ice and the can at him, then disappeared into the kitchen where the sound of a radio playing drifted through the doorway. Joey poured the soda and watched it melt the ice.

"Isn't it past your bedtime?"

Joey jerked his head up. "Mai?" He blinked at the blonde, who was giving him an amused look.

"In the flesh," she answered, sipping her coffee.

He frowned. "What's a girl like you doin' in a place like this?"

Mai gave him a look. "That's the worst pickup line I've heard in a while."

Joey grinned and shook his head slightly. "It's not a pickup line. What are ya doing in a diner?"

Mai paused for a nt, nt, then shrugged to indicate the travel bag over her shoulder. "I just got back from a late flight. This place has great coffee." She took another sip and raised an eyebrow. "So what are you doing here?"

He shrugged and stuck his hands in his pockets, then winced at the movement. "Ah, nothin'. Walkin' back home, stopped for some food."

Mai gave him a disbelieving look. "At midnight?"

"I like to eat," he said defensively.

Mai half-smiled. "No kidding." She drained the rest of her coffee, then tapped her foot a couple times. "Well…do you want a ride home?"

Joey blinked. "Uh…yeah! Thanks."

Mai shrugged. "No problem. Are they still working on your order?"

Joey shook his head. "I hadn't gotten anythin' yet. We c'n go." He pulled a couple dollars out of his wallet and left them on the counter, then followed Mai outside the parking lot. It wasn't until he started walking again that he realized how much it was going to hurt to sit in a car.

…oh, well. So long as it was Mai's car….

~~~~~

The ride home was a terrifying experience that reminded him of a roller coaster about to fly off the track. He'd intended to give Mai slightly misleading directions the trip would last longer, but that idea fizzled fast. Instead he spent most of the time clutching the handlebar, bracing his feet against the floorboard, and fighting down the urge to yell both in pain and in fear of his life. Joey made a note on his list of Mai's characteristics: hot, high maintenance, liked purple, crazy woman driver.

When they reached his block, Joey wound up staring blankly out the windshield while waiting for his internal organs to settle again. "Thanks," he managed weakly.

Mai smiled. "You're welcome." There was a long pause where he struggled to climb out of the seat and turned around to find her watching him. He stared back for a few seconds.

"Well. Take care," Mai said at the same moment he started to close the door.

Joey grinned. "Never fear."

Mai laughed slightly and shook her head. "Yeah. Right," she said under her breath. Then louder: "See you around."

"See ya," he answered a second later. Joey winced as the tires squealed while Mai peeled back into the street. Then he stuck his hands into his pockets and walked back to his apartment, trying to decide whether to scowl or grin.

When the sound of Mai's car roaring to hit a yellow light drifted back, he picked the latter.

Crazy woman driver....