“Hello.”

Mokuba twirled in the chair in his room, the phone tucked between his ear and his shoulder. He was glad the phone was picked up so quickly. "Hey Honda. It's me." For most of the day he was unsure if he would call, but damn if his curiosity didn't get the better of him. Besides, he was Mokuba Kaiba, he could do whatever he wanted.

"Hey. Wasn't sure if I’d hear from you."

"Yes, well, I decided to grace you with my presence, or currently my voice, for the moment. Besides, you left before you could share. I don't like that."

"So I gathered."

Mokuba switched the phone to his other ear. "What are you doing right now?"

"Buying food. What are you doing?"

"Just sitting in my room at the moment. I got back from work not too long ago." He paused. "So do you want to come over?"

That was unexpected. "Um. Sure, I guess. Let me just finish up here."

"Or you could just not finish up and come over."

"Impatient, aren't we?"

"I don't like to wait for things."

Honda laughed. "I'll see you in a few minutes."

"Yeah, okay. Bye." Mokuba let the phone slip from his shoulder and into his hand. He hung up, and then went downstairs to get a drink.

A few minutes later, as promised, Honda was at the door. "Sure hope no one tries to kill me."

Mokuba was notified when Honda arrived at the gates by one of the guards, and waited next to the door until he heard Honda walk up. Though he would normally have someone answer the door for him, he decided to do it today. He opened the door and gave Honda a smile. "Not bad time." He motioned his hand to let Honda come in.

"Didn't want you getting too impatient."

"I would have found something else to occupy my time."

"I'm sure." Honda smiled back. "I take it you wanted to pick up where we left off."

"Obviously." Mokuba made his way upstairs, figuring Honda would follow, and into his room. "So you can just sit down and start sharing." Mokuba sat on the sofa in his room, propping his feet up on the table.

Honda walked in and sat down on the sofa next to Mokuba. "Hm, where to begin? This all seemed easier to talk about before we were interrupted."

"Yes, well, you shouldn't have left then. And why you did I don't know."

Honda shrugged. "I thought it best not to make my roommate mad. Since you don't have that problem, I don't expect you to understand."

He rolled his eyes. "Why don't you just live on your own?" Mokuba didn't understand how someone could have a roommate. Sure, he lived with his brother and whoever the hell else his brother decided to let sleep over, but that wasn't exactly a roommate situation since they hardly saw one another.

"Do you want the honest answer or a comfortable lie?"

"I'm not in the mood to decipher lies, so just hit me with the truth."

"Money and sex."

"At least you have good reasons then. It's the ideal living situation." Though this mention of sex reminded Mokuba that he didn't have any today. He knew it was a busy day, but to just not have sex...well, he supposed he would call someone later. "Good for you."

Honda smirked. "I'm having fun messing with your head. You really think truth can be boiled down to two little words?"

Mokuba just stared at him. "Yes, I think it can be. And I thought I said to just be truthful." He sighed, then a thought came to him and he grinned. "Or are you a virgin and just too afraid to say it?”

Honda leaned in close. "Oh, don't worry. I'm not. I'd just like you to realize that perhaps my current living arrangements aren't as simple as you'd like to think. Life rarely is."

Mokuba leaned in closer as well. "Perhaps you would like to enlighten me, then, so we don't have any more misunderstandings. Hmm?"

"No. I don't have any problem with misunderstanding. You're the one who'll have to live with it if you misread the situation." Honda sat back. "I thrive on misdirection."

He growled and glared at Honda. Damn him! As hard as Mokuba tried he couldn't get a read on the boy. He shouldn't have even bothered calling. Hell, maybe he'd kick the jerk out of his room right now. He sighed and rubbed his head. Honda was already here, so he might as well just change the subject to what was at hand. "Like I'm going to lose any sleep on it. I don't particularly care for whatever situation you are living in. Let's just stick to the main topic for discussion, that being your death experiences."

"I was wondering how long I could distract you."

He laughed. "We could have been having wild, wonderful sex and I would have asked you about this when we were done. So let's just stop with the distractions, okay?"

"Aw, but don't you enjoy being..." Honda leaned in until he was almost kissing Mokuba's ear, "...distracted?"

Mokuba smiled and brushed his lips to Honda's ear. "I guess it depends on the distraction." He bit the boy's ear quickly for emphasis, and then sat back, draping his arms on the top of the sofa.

Honda's hand rose to his ear. "So that's how you play it, huh?"

"No pain, no gain, as the saying goes."

"Well, now I understand the sudden interest. And I highly doubt you'd have any questions for me once you had what you want."

"Think what you like." Mokuba let his hand make a rolling motion in the air. "Your death experiences. Start talking."

"Let's see...when I was three, I was almost hit by a car."

"You're parents just let you wander around in the street?"

"Gee, what do you think?"

Mokuba rolled his eyes. "I'm guessing yes, as you were almost hit by a car."

Honda gave a sly smile. "Moving on...Fell out of a tree at my grandparents' when I was six. It really freaked my sister out, since she was the only one there at the time."

That was unexpected. "You have a sister? Who would have thought. You're parents seem so careless with you who would have thought they would have another."

"Are you assuming my sister is older or younger?"

"I just assumed she was younger."

"Why? Do I seem like the nice big brother type to you?"

"I don't know about nice, but you have a big brother vibe. Am I wrong?"

"I'm not telling. You'll have to figure it out on your own time."

"Then it seems I'll never know because I don't care to look." What the hell was with this guy? Mokuba didn't think someone could be so much of an ass, but Honda was starting to take the cake. "So was that it then?"

"Oh, no. I'm told my sister had a good reason for worrying, apparently there's a limit to how far the human body can fall and still survive. After that, got knifed a few times. Some punk shot me once, don't remember how old I was."

Mokuba winced. He didn't particularly like guns. "Weren't you just the troubled youth. But why did you get knifed?"

"Why does anyone get knifed? Because I was there, I suppose."

He shrugged. "You surprised me in your experiences. I was expecting drab things, like the first few, but getting shot at and stabbed...that's more interesting."

"You consider car accidents and falls from heights drab?"

"Unless someone was aiming to run you over or you were pushed from a tall height, then yes. They're just accidents and don't have too many people involved. That makes it drab."

"Yes, I suppose you'd see it that way. After all, who'd intentionally try to harm a child?" Honda looked down. "You know, that kind of attitude is refreshing after the way my parents made such a huge fuss. Probably part of the reason why I put myself in harm's way so much during junior high."

"Parents, hmm. They seem to get in the way of many people. I'm glad all mine have died because it would be a pity if they got in my way." Mokuba reached into a table drawer by the sofa and pulled out a small bowl of fruit candy. He popped one in his mouth and went to put it away when he thought he'd be nice. "You want one?" He asked, moving the bowl closer to Honda.

"Hm, depends. What kind of candy is that?"

"Just a variety of fruit flavors. Strawberry, rasberry, cherry...that type of thing."

Honda sighed. This nice act wasn't any less strange now that he knew where it was leading. "I'll take...cherry, if that's acceptable to you?"

Mokuba tossed a cherry candy at Honda. "That's fine by me." He grabbed another candy for himself--strawberry--before putting the stash away. "Do you plan to put yourself into any more death experience situations?"

"Haven't decided yet. What about you?" Honda put the candy in his mouth.

"Yes. I've got something being set up and near completion at the moment." He crunched at the candy. "Just need some excitement."

Honda rolled the candy inside his mouth for a moment before responding. "You're an adrenaline junkie, aren't you?"

"You could say that. Sometimes you can't feel how alive you are until you see your life almost end."

"Lovely train of thought. I thought like that at one time, too. Laying in a back alley pretty much cured me of that."

"That's the difference between you and me. I don't go down to the sewers to get my fix. I have class." Mokuba brushed some of the hair out of his face. He glanced over at Honda. Damn, he didn't change his hair at all.

"Yes, well, I didn't plan on dying that way, either."

"Then you need to be more careful. Don't want you to go dying in the wrong spot."

"Careful." Honda smiled. "You almost sound concerned."

Mokuba looked at Honda as if the most horrible clothing had attached itself to the boy and he was forced to watch. "We wouldn't want that, now, would we." He paused. "Well, we wouldn't have these conversations that make me fairly irritated at you."

"Only irritated?"

"Were you hoping for something more?"

"No, of course not." Honda gave his sweetest, sappiest smile. "Irritated is just fine. It means I'm having an effect on you."

"Don't worry. I'll cleanse myself with a nice bath later and be just fine." He tapped his foot on the table. "You know, you haven't commented on my room."

Honda looked around the room. "It's very nice. What, specifically, are you wanting me to comment on? The table?"

"I redid it and you never made a comment on it. Not that you've seen it before, I know, but it looks damn good. I just wanted to make sure you acknowledged it." He took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

"Fine." Honda looked Mokuba straight in the eyes. "Your room is nice, your room is wonderful, your room is fucking gorgeous. Happy now? Any other adjectives I should be using?"

Mokuba usually would have loved the flattery, but the way Honda said it made him lose all sense of control that he had taken years to master. He threw himself forward and punched Honda, his fist connecting with Honda's right cheek. He sighed and let himself fall back into the sofa, rubbing the knuckles of his right hand. "Yes, now I'm happy."

"Because you punched me? Did your brother teach you to fight?"

"Like we've hung out long enough for him to actually teach me something."

"Sounds like you're the one bottling things up now." Honda stroked the side of his face. "Want to talk about it?"

Mokuba pushed Honda's hand away. "Now you're freaking me out. And it's not like I'm mad that we don't spend time together. I prefer it, actually. So, sorry, no bottled up anything in that regard."

Honda hesitantly moved his hand back to his lap. "My mistake then. I should know better than to compare you and your brother to any other set of siblings."

"That's better. I mean, we're rich, I'm hot, at least. And I'm better then pretty much anyone. Not quite the stuff that ordinary people are made of." Mokuba scooted over a little closer towards Honda. "But why the sudden concern for me? It's like you want something to be wrong with me."

"Not at all. Maybe you're right and I do give off a big brother vibe"

"Oh God, you don't want to try and be my big brother now, do you?"

"Why in the world would I want to do that?"

"Like I would have any idea how your mind works. It was a crazy notion that I'm glad we both agree won't happen...as I'm taking it from your comment that you in no way have that thought." Why did he even think such a thing? It must have been a longer day then he thought.

"You're the one who said I have a big brother vibe. Back when we were discussing my sister."

"Yes, I did. And you do, I think. Or something." He rubbed his head. This was getting very frustrating and sort of confusing him. "Maybe we should talk about something else."

Honda found this all very amusing. "Such as?"

"Such as one day I will be like a god and people will be worshipping me. And being wonderfully dressed, I hope, though not as fantastically dressed as myself."

Honda smirked. "Good luck with that."

"Thank you." Now Honda was back to being fairly nice again. "And sorry for hitting you. Sort of. But you deserved it." He smiled to try and emphasize that he was sorry.

"I deserved it for trying to be obedient?"

"It was the way you said it. You were being rude about it."

"Did you honestly expect me to suddenly act completely subservient to you?"

Mokuba looked at Honda in surprise. "Yes. That's what people are supposed to do. I thought you would too."

"Few people do what they're supposed to. Have I given any indication that I intend to just bow down to you?"

"There have been a few times. Yesterday when you backed away from my pants, and then you got a drink with me. Though you left, that wasn't good. And then when I called and told you to come over and you did. I thought you were going to start being more how you are supposed to be and follow me." What was it with some people in Domino that just didn't do as they should? He hoped this outbreak wouldn't spread to the general population. He wouldn't be able to take that disaster, no matter the amount of yoga or massages or anything.

"I believe I said earlier 'I could just give up without a fight, but what fun would that be? Nothing personal'."

"I thought you were just trying to be amusing. Didn't know you were serious."

"Oh, I was trying to be amusing. Think I succeed, too. Of course, then I worried you might get mad."

Mokuba sighed and kicked the table. "Why would I be mad? It seems like this stupid plague of not worshipping me properly has spread over some people in Domino. Why wouldn't it get you, too?" Damn people and their stupid free will.

Honda snaked an arm around Mokuba's waist. "Is that really what you want? Mindless followers, dependent solely on you? No one relating to you on your own level?"

Mokuba looked down at Honda’s arm, then back up at the boy. "What, exactly, are you implying?"

"You're a smart boy. Do I really have to spell it out for you?"

"You think you can relate to me on my level? Have you looked at yourself?" Mokuba cupped Honda's chin in his hand. "You aren't near my level."

"Is that so? Then who is? And why are you still playing your little game with me?"

"There aren't many people near my level. Sure, once I admired the great designers, and I still sort of do, but I'm surpassing them." Mokuba smiled and released Honda's chin to tap the boy's nose. "And what is this game you're talking about?"

Honda smiled. "Let me rephrase it then. Why are you being so gracious as to continue talking to me?"

That was a good question. "I'm not quite too sure. I wasn't planning to call you, but I did. And you don't bore me like so many other people do. Don't think I'm implying that you are on the same level as me, but you may be above other people in this city."

"I suppose that's good enough for me for now."

"But if I'm such a bother to you I just won't call you and invite you over. You can just spend your days playing around with your roommate."

"You, a bother? What ever gave you that idea?" Honda teased.

"You just seem like you don't like talking to me, especially when you say you won't be like a minion. It's annoying." Mokuba crossed his arms and pouted. "I don't like it."

"And yet, I'm still here sitting and talking with my arm around your waist."

Mokuba couldn't help but laugh. "And I'm not quite understanding what it's doing there, but I don't mind it."

"Really?" Honda leaned forward and rested his head against Mokuba's. "No helpful suggestions?"

He bit his lip and smiled. "Why don't you offer me some suggestions. That way it'll all be very clear."

"And here you were the one bragging to me about how often you get laid."

"And here I thought you would catch the sexy voice and get what I was implying." Mokuba smiled and licked Honda's jaw line. "On a side note, it's not bragging, it's just telling the truth."

"I see. Please, spell it out for me, since I obviously lack your vast intellect."

"Such a silly boy. I obviously meant for you to do something sexy when I said to offer suggestions." Mokuba leaned in close, his lips just in front of Honda's. "I'll try to be more direct next time."

"Direct is good. I'm more accustomed to manipulating, rather than being manipulated. One question, though," Honda brushed against Mokuba's lips, "do I receive any sort of...payment?"

Mokuba backed up at that. "Excuse me?"

Honda looked down at Mokuba. "What did you think I meant when I said 'money and sex'?"

"Like I'm going to pay you for it. I mean, if we are talking money, you should be paying me."

Honda leaned back a little. "Too bad. Your loss, I suppose. If you don't want to pay me, I'm sure I can find someone else."

Otogi flipped his hair once more, making his grand entrance to Mokuba's place which seemed so unfamiliar to him. He stepped on the doorstep and rang the doorbell.

"Who else did you invite over here?" Honda gave Mokuba a wary look.

"I didn't invite anyone, but I guess I'll go see who it is since the servants are gone for now." He got up and walked to his bedroom door. "Come on, I'm not leaving you here alone." He made his way downstairs and opened the door, surprised at who he saw.

Honda followed, wondering why Mokuba had suddenly stopped.

Otogi was looking at his fingernails, making sure he got all the dirt out and didn't notice Mokuba coming to the door. "Hey," he said in a low voice. "It’s...been a while. I hope I'm not intruding!" He leaned himself against the wall and gave a smile to Mokuba, not noticing Honda in the background.

"Otogi!" Mokuba squeaked out, and then gave the boy a hug. "It's been so long! How have you survived without me?"

Otogi grinned and hugged him back, squeezing him a bit. "I guess I've been alright," he smirked. "It’s been some long nights, but I'm still here."

For a moment Mokuba forgot about Honda, but he felt that presence behind him and figured he should tell Otogi who was here. "Oh, hey, um, Honda's here too. Just visiting."

"Obviously," Honda remarked, walking towards the door. "Should I just leave the two of you, since I'm apparently in the way?"

Otogi blinked and almost fell over as he glanced and saw the all-too-familiar spike of hair. "S-say what?!" His face turned red, standing up and gaining his composure. "Hello, Honda. I guess I didn't notice you." He tried as much as he could to not let his cheeks burn, but to no avail- they did anyway. "Ah, no. You don't have to leave; I was being rude," he said, finally stepping inside.

Mokuba thought that he really should just kick Honda out. "You aren't in the way. It's just been awhile, that's all. Besides, it's not like we were doing anything." He smiled, though he couldn't help but feeling a bit nervous. "Not that it would matter that we were or anything."

"I'll be more than happy to leave. Mokuba and I were merely having a...disagreement."

"No, really. It's okay." Otogi made a gesture with his hands. "Unless you just want to leave...then that's okay too, I guess," he shrugged. He didn't really want Honda to leave, but he wasn't going to tell him that. Can we say 'awkward'?

"We're all adults here. Sort of. And we all like me. Why don't we just have a seat and hang out?" Mokuba asked.

"Might as well,” Honda replied.

"Fine with me; I can't complain."

Mokuba walked over and took a seat on the sofa. He'd have to remember to take aspirin after this was over. "So, Otogi, what's been going on? I know I would like to know."

"I need a drink. Where are you hiding them?" Honda glared at Mokuba.

"Well, out of nowhere, my family decided they wanted to take me to America, so I've been there for about a week. And unluckily for me, I started school the day I got back," Otogi sighed, rubbing his temples. "And then I saw Honda, who I hadn't seen in ages. It was like a weird...get-together."

Mokuba pointed to a cabinet in the corner. "There should be some glasses and alcohol in there. And bring a glass back for me." He winced when Otogi mentioned America. "Did you find the clothing bad as well?"

"Very much so! I mean, seriously. How can people WEAR shit like that? They all made fun of me for my choice of attire, but I was embarrassed just to been around those Americans." He shook his head, not wanting to remember.

Honda pulled out two glasses. "You want anything Otogi?"

"Sure. I'll have whatever you're having."

"Wait, you two met before?" Mokuba turned toward Honda. "You never mentioned that."

"Yeah, we go to school together. We have for a while. That's how I met him was through Yuugi and Jounouchi." Otogi blinked at Mokuba with a shrug. "I thought you knew."

"It's not like I pay attention to something like that, especially with such a dull meeting." Did no one have excitement in their life anymore, Mokuba wondered.

"Sure, that's it." Honda went back to examining the cabinet.

"Care to be a little quicker with the alcohol?" Mokuba really needed something right now.

Honda sighed. "If you insist. What would you like?" He pulled out a third glass, and a bottle of scotch.

"I don't even know why I bother going home. It's so boring there," Otogi sighed, lying on his side.

"Vodka is good. And forget the glass, I'll just drink from the bottle." Mokuba turned and put a hand on Otogi's head. "You can stay here if you want. You know I won't mind."

"Fine. Whatever." Honda put back a glass, and pulled out the vodka.

“Is that really okay?" Otogi looked up to Mokuba, his eyes greener than usual. "I don't want to be a bother...I mean…your brother," he cringed, not even saying his name.

"Any other requests?" Honda asked.

"Oh, so moody, Honda. Feeling left out?" Mokuba smiled. "And that's all." He then rolled his eyes at Otogi. "Like I need to even worry about him. He's busy doing whatever. Besides, he invites people to stay, I can do the same."

Honda walked over and handed Mokuba the vodka. "Here." He sat down on the floor and started pouring the scotch.

"You know, I can move." Otogi sat up and scooted closer to Mokuba, so Honda could fit on the end. "You don't have to sit on the floor."

Mokuba took the bottle from Honda and downed some. He cringed at the sting in his throat, but that was better then the headache that was coming on quickly. "You can sit on the sofa. Granted, I won't pay you."

"No, I'm just fine here. Besides, at this point I don't care if you pay me or not. I'm already getting my fun in."

Mokuba noted that mysteriousness again. "And what fun is that?"

Otogi arched an eyebrow. "Fun? I'm listening."

"No, I think I'll keep that information to myself. Wouldn't do to stop being difficult."

Mokuba flew up from the sofa and walked over to Honda. He grabbed the bottle of scotch and slammed it down on the table. Luckily the bottle didn't smash. "Would you stop with that crap and just say whatever the hell it is you are talking about?"

Honda stood up. "No, I don't think I will." He smirked and looked down at Mokuba.

Otogi leaned forward, scared to take any action. He grabbed a glass from the table and grabbed his drink, hoping to get some sanity.

"Don't think I'm intimidated by you being taller." Mokuba gave a strong glare then turned around. "You're just always an ass." He walked over to the sofa and sat by Otogi, still seething.

"You didn't seem to mind before Otogi got here." Honda was still smirking.

"Mokuba...are you alright?" Otogi felt his forehead, thinking he had a fever.

"He's just mad that I'm not at his feet."

"I'm fine, Otogi, don't worry." Mokuba sighed and then turned his attention back to Honda. "Why can't you just say what you're thinking? What’s so fun? Why is that so hard to answer?"

"Honda, just communicate with him. I don't want to face his wrath,” Otogi said.

Mokuba took another drink. Damn. He didn't mean to be rude to Otogi. "Look, 'togi, I'm sorry. I shouldn't be mean to you." He gave the boy a kiss on the cheek.

"I get to see you worked up like this. Sounds like fun to me," Honda said.

"It's alright, we all have our womanly days," Otogi shrugged.

"I'm not a woman!" Mokuba crossed his arms.

Honda picked up the bottle of scotch. "Since you two are so cozy, maybe I should leave."

Mokuba sighed, too upset and tired to yell anymore. "If you want to play martyr, fine, then go. But it's not like either of us is asking you too. And exactly what we're doing to exclude you I have no idea. Just whatever."

“Maybe it's because we're all drunk," Otogi said, taking another swig. "It messes with our brains."

"Speak for yourselves, boys."

"It would take some more vodka to get me smashed." And maybe I'll do just that, Mokuba thought. He hadn't been drunk in a while.

"...what's that supposed to mean, Honda?" He was acting awfully strange lately, and Otogi was going to get to the bottom of it.

"I'm nowhere near drunk, and I'm certainly no martyr. If I wanted to baby-sit drunks, I could do that at home. At least they'd pay me."

"Don't try and figure out his attitude, Otogi. He goes from being nice to being a jerk."

"Then why did you invite me over here?" Honda asked.

"I don't know why now. I enjoyed chatting with you the other day, and even today I enjoyed it for awhile. Maybe there really is something in the Domino drinking water." Mokuba sighed. "But why don't you just go. I'm going to get stressed and it'll screw up my complexion if you stay."

Otogi just sat on the couch, propping his legs up. He didn't want to start an even bigger commotion.

"In that case, certainly. Anything for you, hot stuff." Honda walked out the door, still holding the scotch.

And it was comments like that that made Mokuba think about calling him again. Dammit. He leaned into Otogi. "Sorry."

"I think he's bipolar. Sometimes I wonder why I liked him," Otogi shrugged. "Aw, it's alright; I'm used to it at school."

"Hm, maybe you're right." But there was something that bothered Mokuba. "Do you, you know, still like him?"

Otogi blinked and looked at him with as much seriousness as he could muster. "Well...that's what I've been confused about. I go to school with him and as much as I think about you, I can't stop looking at him." He looked up at Mokuba for a split second, then turned away. He was feeling so guilty.

Mokuba downed the rest of the bottle. "Well, it's just been my day, hasn't it. People talk about having bad days, but I'm not the common person and I shouldn't be having one. Yet here I am. I just don't get it."

Otogi sighed and cursed himself for even saying anything. "I'm sorry, Mokuba. I guess it's because we had a fling and the feeling is just...still there, you know?" He brushed a hair out of Mokuba's eyes and kissed his forehead.

He closed his eyes and felt Otogi's lips on his head. His mood felt like it was decreasing and he sighed. "It's okay. It doesn't matter."

"You're right, it doesn't," he said, kissing his neck. "It was just a fling. It's all about us now. Not him."

He tilted his neck, giving Otogi easier access. "I'm glad you're back." He took Otogi's head in his hands and gave him a kiss.

He intertwined his fingers with Mokuba's and straddled him so he was more comfortable as they kissed-for the first time in weeks. Which was very off for them.

Mokuba let the kiss become deeper, letting his hands roam over Otogi's back. He broke the kiss and looked up at the boy. "Did you want to go upstairs?" Mokuba scooted out from under Otogi and stood up. He grabbed the other boy's hand and led him upstairs into his room. Maybe today wouldn't be such a bad day after all.

Otogi followed suit and they walked upstairs into his room. He pinned Mokuba against the wall right as they reached it and whispered in his ear before they went inside. "I'm glad I'm back," were the last words exchanged before they disappeared into his bedroom. So maybe now he was glad Honda had left. And maybe those feelings for him were gone. Because all that mattered to him at that moment was Mokuba and him.