*Disclaimer: if you do not like guy on guy action, then do not read this fic, this is your only warning!

Also, I do not own Yu-gi-oh!

It was nearly 2 in the morning when he had decided he wanted to do it. And past 3:30 before he had worked up the courage to try. Jack stared blankly at the glowing red numbers on the face of his digital alarm clock. Deliberating was getting him nowhere. In frustration he tossed his pillow against the wall. Which didn't help at all. Now not only could he not sleep, but he was uncomfortable.

Getting up begrudgingly, he retrieved the pillow and decided he wanted a snack. Sleep wasn't happening anyway. He wasn't sure why it had struck him so hard today, but now it was all he could think about. It was ridiculous, he was Jack freaking Atlas damnit! He was supposed to be all cool and in control. And now he couldn't even figure out how to talk to the person he liked. Why?

Because, he told himself. Because I'm afraid I'll fuck things up, again. Jack headed through the kitchen of the shared apartment, not even paying enough attention to notice the lights in the next room. Absentmindedly, he rummaged through the fridge. In his head he was going over all the boneheaded moves he'd made in the past. He knew the real problem was he had just gotten his friend back. He didn't want to screw things up by trying for anything more than that right now.

"Damnit, why is it so hard!!" He asked, punching the freezer door in frustration.

"Why is what so hard?" Came a reply from the doorway.

Turning on the spot, Jack froze. "Yusei!" The attractive brunette was leaning casually against the doorframe smiling at his friend. Wearing a sleeveless shirt and jeans, he was carelessly beautiful.

"Something bothering you, Jack?"

"I was- Well- I- What are you doing up?" Jack spluttered, instantly regretting the accusatory tone his voice took. He felt a blush begin to creep across his cheeks.

Yusei raised an eyebrow "You're up too."

"Couldn't sleep." Jack muttered, the blush deepening. He looked around the dark kitchen, refusing to meet the eyes of the boy he had secretly fallen for years ago. When they had been younger, running off to the city and separating him from his friend by distance had seemed like the best option. When Yusei had tracked him down, Jack had been angry at first, hoping that time and space could erase his feelings. Now, that he was living with Yusei, he knew nothing about the way he felt had changed. And Yusei still knew nothing about it.

"Hmm, how strange, Jack Atlas having trouble getting to sleep? What would all your fangirls think?" Jack glared at his friend, but Yusei still had a smile on his face. Was he teasing him? "I'd try some warm milk. But if you're planning on staying up, you're welcome to join me." Yusei turned and walked back into the adjoining room.

Jack managed to hold back a biting retort to the other boy's joking. Curious, he followed him into the other room. "So what are you doing up?" He asked.

Yusei gestured at the large table in the room as he settled himself into a chair in front of it. The table seemed to have been struck by a small isolated hurricane of cards. Jack smiled, Duel Monsters, it figured. Yusei was just the type to come up with some new strategy in the middle of the night and not be able to wait to rework his deck.

Jack lingered in the doorway, debating mentally whether to ask Yusei if it was alright if he sat down with him. Finally he decided that Yusei had already invited him into the room, so that had to be enough. Pulling up a second chair, Jack flipped it around backwards and straddled it, leaning on the edge of the table and trying to look casual and bored.

Briefly he thought he could have moved his chair closer to Yusei before he sat down, but instantly he pushed the thought from his mind. He tried to interest himself in the cards Yusei was checking carefully so he wouldn't be tempted to stare at the other boy. An internal debate began to form in his head as he sat there. 'Didn't I just decide I needed to do something, to see how he feels, tell him at least some of the truth?' 'It's too soon, you'll drive him away.' 'But I can't keep going like this…' 'He's your friend, be satisfied with that for now.'

"You're unusually quiet tonight." Yusei commented after a few moments.

"Sorry." Jack muttered, still lost in his thoughts.

Yusei stopped and put down the card he was examining. "Sorry? What kind of attitude is that? Who are you and where's Jack Atlas?"

"Hmph! Like its any of your business how I act." Jack snapped. He immediately regretted the harsh tone and looked at his friend.

Yusei was smiling though. "That's more like the Jack I know."

'Damn he's cute when he's smiling' Jack thought as Yusei turned back to his cards. Jack watched him out of the corner of his eyes. His gaze traveled up the boy's arm and down his athletic body. Jack tied hard not to wish that his friend were wearing even less. He couldn't figure out how the boy still looked so handsome this late, and was self-conscious of how he must look, having been tossing and turning in bed for hours.

"So, what's bothering the great Jack Atlas so much that he couldn't sleep?" Yusei asked suddenly. Jack frowned, and Yusei added, "And don't bite my head off for asking."

"I wasn't going to" Jack protested.

"Mmmhmm."

"I wasn't! Not everything I say is an insult." Jack defended himself.

"Could've fooled me, with that tough guy act you always play." Yusei smirked, glancing at Jack for a moment.

"What?!" Jack was stung by his friend's remark.

"I know, I know, Jack Atlas can't show his soft side in front of all his fans." Yusei said slowly, with a wink at his friend.

He's toying with me, Jack realized. Determined not to rise to the provocation, Jack tried to joke back, "Well, I won't bother to stop then, since you're obviously one of my many adoring fans."

"Exactly."

Jack nearly slipped off the chair. Suddenly sitting up straight he scowled, realizing Yusei was chuckling to himself. He was not enjoying the jokes at his expense.

"Though, maybe I should start taking lessons…" Yusei suggested.

"Lessons?" Jack questioned, unable to help himself.

"You know, at all those things you're great at, being arrogant, insulting people, all those things. I mean I am the 'King' now. I should be taking tips from you, your greatness."

"Why you," Jack growled, wanting to storm out angrily yet unable to leave.

"Yes?" Yusei asked, all innocence.

Jack shook his head disgustedly and tried to pretend he wasn't paying attention to his friend's jibes anymore.

"Hmm, should I take this card out, or not, what do you think?" Yusei asked after a moment.

Jack, relieved to find an easy subject to talk about, moved closer to examine the card Yusei indicated. They chatted animatedly about duel strategy for a few moments. Jack was relieved to be talking easily with his friend again, but he didn't mind that he'd had to move in closer to examine the cards, either. After a while, the conversation moved to other duelists they knew.

"What is there between you and Izayoi, anyway?" He asked, trying to sound nonchalant.

"Aki? Well, we're friends," Yusei said thoughtfully, "And then we're both signers."

"But you and I are that too." Jack argued.

"Yeah, but she and I have something else in common, something special." Yusei paused.

Jack grimaced, afraid to ask his friend to elaborate.

"Humility."

Jack half rose out of his chair, fed up with the jokes. He smacked his fist against the table. "Why are you being so annoying?"

"Why are you being so touchy?" Yusei countered.

"Don't avoid the subject." Jack demanded.

Yusei took a moment before responding, sorting through his cards slowly. "I'm pretty sure the one that's avoiding the subject is you." He said carefully.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jack inquired.

"I think you'd realize it if you'd stop putting up that stupid front all the time." Yusei met Jack's eyes. His expression wasn't unkind. "I thought now that we're around each other more, you'd finally talk about things, but no, you're being more guarded than ever. Maybe you realize more than you're letting on, but who would know the way you act?"

Jack bit his lip and waited til he was sure he had mastered the impulse to respond angrily. "What exactly are you wanting me to talk about then?"

Yusei sighed and faced the table again, but plainly wasn't interested in his cards anymore. "Why do you think I went through everything to follow you to the City, Jack?" He asked suddenly.

Jack was caught off guard. "To… get your card back." He responded lamely.

Yusei laughed. "You really never thought there was anything more to it?"

Jack swallowed. His heart seemed to be beating extremely loudly. "Was there?"

"Maybe there was, maybe there wasn't. Doesn't really matter." Yusei started resorting cards again.

"What kind of answer is that? Why wouldn't it matter?" Jack asked frustratedly.

"You really can't accept that someone other than you might be right, can you?" Yusei asked.

"God, why do you have to be so enfuriating?!" Jack cried. "We're friends, aren't we? Why can't we talk honestly?"

"Is that all we are, friends?" Yusei asked quietly.

Jack froze. He didn't want to dare to read into what the boy had said but… "What…" He licked his suddenly dry lips. "What else could we be?"

Yusei refused to answer. After a moment he turned over a card on the table. "What about this one, two copies or three?"

Jack was on his feet before he knew what he was doing. He grabbed Yusei's wrist. "Will you forget about the fucking cards?!"

Yusei met Jack's eyes steadily. "Well, what's so important then?"

Jack trembled, but he knew it wasn't with anger. He wasn't angry at all anymore this close to Yusei. "No, I don't want to be friends. I want to be more than that. I wanted it for years." The words rushed from his mouth now that he was talking. "When I left I was scared, and angry, and I didn't understand why I felt like I did about you. I wanted you to understand. I wanted you to tell me you felt the same. I didn't want to ruin our friendship, and I did it anyway. I've been confused and didn't know what I wanted! And now, now I know, I…" Jack stopped in midsentence, unable to finish.

Yusei kept his eyes locked with him. He pulled his wrist out of Jack's grip, and entwined his finger's in Jack's own, locking hands with him. He rose a few inches off the chair, bringing his face closer to Jack's. He could feel Yusei's hot breath inches from his face. "Yes?" Yusei asked with a small smile.

Jack couldn't help himself any longer. He leaned down and pressed his lips to Yusei's.

The backflips his stomach was doing could only compare with the fireworks exploding behind his eyelids. He opened his mouth slightly and felt Yusei do the same. His free hand found the back of Yusei's neck and draped around it, holding the boy he loved as close to him as he could. He wished the moment could last forever. It might have, Jack had lost any ability to gauge time. When they drew apart finally, Jack gazed into the eyes of the boy he had shared his first real kiss with. "I love you." He whispered. "I couldn't tell you before."

"I knew." Yusei said simply.

"What?!" Jack exclaimed, pushing back from the boy.

Yusei laughed. "I figured, or maybe I was hoping, that was why you had acted the way you were for so long. You're not that great at hiding things, Jack. I've just been waiting to actually hear you say it. By the way, I love you too."

If the last sentence hadn't kept Jack from further protest, Yusei standing and wrapping his arms around his neck would have. The two moved in as one for another kiss. There was no need to really explain things further. Jack could have easily been irked that Yusei knew all along, or that he hadn't guessed Yusei had the same feelings much sooner. He could have been, but he wasn't. Somehow the feel of Yusei's surprisingly soft lips against his, the feel of his firmly sculpted body leaning into his own drove all other thought from his mind. An electric jolt shook him as their tongues brushed. He moved deeper into the kiss, holding his friend close like he never thought he'd be able to. He had tried to distract himself from it for so long while deep down knowing that Yusei was the only one he ever wanted.

When their lips finally parted, Jack hugged him tighter, afraid to let go. Yusei lowered his head and softly trailed kisses down the other boy's neck.

"Stop that," Jack commanded half-heartedly.

"Why should I?" Yusei gave an impish smile.

"Don't start something you can't finish." Jack countered, finally giving in to his friend's joking nature.

"Oh, I'm pretty sure you started it. Too late to get out of it now." Yusei laughed, lowering his head again and gently nipping Jack on the neck.

Jack yelped, pulling back enough to protect his neck. "Do you mind?"

"Not at all," Yusei laughed, pulling the taller boy closer to him again and burying his face in his chest.

Jack felt himself begin to turn very red. He really didn't want to admit how much he was enjoying the affection he had been dying for for so long. "And what if Crow comes out here right now?"

To his surprise Yusei pulled away from him quickly. "You're right." He glanced around the room. "So, your room or mine?"

"My… room?" Jack asked bleakly. He hadn't been prepared for something like this.

"Good idea, your bed probably makes less noise." Yusei said businesslike, flipping out the light switch. When Jack didn't move, Yusei took him by the hand and began to lead him.

"My… bed?"

"Yes, I think so. But maybe when Crow's at work tomorrow we can try out mine." Yusei grinned, drawing Jack the boy's own room.

Absently, Jack closed the door, wondering what he was supposed to do. He noticed Yusei beginning to pull off his shirt, and suddenly impulse took over and he snapped "Don't do that."

Yusei turned to his friend and said seriously "If you're not ready yet, we can wait, no pressure."

Jack grimaced. "I never said that. But I believe that is my job." He pulled Yusei's hands off his clothing, and began the job of removing it himself. He felt the growingly familiar electric shock as his hands brushed the bare skin under Yusei's shirt. He slowly began to lift it as they kissed again.

Yusei allowed Jack to push him backward until they were at the edge of Jack's bed. Jack pulled apart long enough to pull Yusei's shirt over his head and off. Without hesitation he flung it to the floor and pushed the teen onto his bed. He stopped to admire the sight of the other boy shirtless, but Yusei unexpectedly twisted his leg and pulled Jack's knees out from under him so that he fell on top of him.

Jack didn't mind, especially considering he could now definitely tell the other boy was as turned on as he was. As he pushed his new lover's lips apart and locked him in another kiss, He felt Yusei undoing the buttons to his nightshirt. Before he knew it, his own bare chest was resting against Yusei's. The other boy's body heat mingled with his. He had never realized that Yusei smelled quite so good.

"What kind of cologne do you use?" He queried when they broke the kiss to breath.

Yusei snorted with laughter and gently pushed the other boy off of him. "Only you would ask something like that now."

Jack rolled to the side and lay there, watching the other boy's chest rise and fall rhythmically. Their arms laying next to each other were wrapped together as they clasped hands.

Yusei slowly traced his free hand down Jack's chest. Before he moved close to any sensitive areas, He stopped and looked at Jack seriously. "I mean it, we can wait if you're not ready."

"Oh shut up." Jack snapped. Impulse took over again. He pulled Yusei close to himself and kissed him as deeply as before. Slowly, he pulled his lips apart from the other boy's and moved trailed his kisses down Yusei's neck and chest. He felt the other boy tense up as his muscles (among other things) stiffened.

Jack wasn't exactly sure when or how he had wound up back on top of the other boy, but now in a half sitting position, he raised his head and looked into the other boy's eyes. He had never been sure he could do anything like this with another man, but now meeting eyes that mirrored the tenderness and affection he was feeling in his heart, he knew it was truly what both of them wanted. Both his hands locked with Yusei's, which were raised beside his head. Jack continued to trail kisses lower down the boy's sculpted body. When he reached the trail below his lover's naval, he paused. They squeezed hands in unspoken communication and Jack moved his arms to loosen the other boy's jeans.

His heart pounded in his chest as he pulled the jeans lower, revealing a firm hipline and deep black pubes. With one final tug, the teen's jeans slipped lower than his groin. Fully aroused, he was bigger than Jack had thought. Leaning in, he opened his mouth and began to suck lightly on the exposed head as he ran the fingers of one hand lightly down the underside of the shaft.

Yusei arched his back and shuddered slightly with pleasure. Jack moved in closer, unsure how he simply knew what to do. He began to take in more of the boy's cock, at the same time he played with Yusei's balls with another hand. He was entirely content with the strange new feeling of orally stimulating another guy.

After a moment, Yusei protested, breathing heavily. "Jack, wait, I don't want to, not yet…"

Understanding, Jack pulled away. Yusei seized the opportunity and wriggled out from underneath him. He pulled Jack up into a kneeling position and wrapped his arms around him, kissing his neck firmly. Jack was so caught up in the moment of being with the now fully naked Yusei that he didn't even notice anything until his own pants were abruptly pulled down to his knees, revealing his own package. He had half a mind to protest before Yusei took it in turn to push him down on his back. He sighed with a sort of resigned satisfaction as Yusei fully removed the last of his clothing and began to return the favor.

Jack groaned with pleasure, a part of his mind remembering how not so long ago he had laid in this bed wondering if anything like this moment could ever happen. Somehow, despite everything, he knew he wanted more. Yusei seemed to share the feeling. After a few moments play, he righted himself and slowly lay his body beside Jack again. The tension built as high as it was, Jack almost wished it could be released now without anything further, before he remembered the warning he himself had given about not starting what he couldn't finish. Slowly, his hands ran their way over all the taut muscles in the other boy's naked body. He reached the firm, tight ass he had so often admired from the other side of a pair of jeans.

"Wait Jack," Yusei stopped the other boy and leaned backward to a drawer in a nightstand, retrieving a bottle of lotion Jack had kept hidden there for… personal use. "Use this."

Jack admired the other boy for his practicality as he applied the lotion. He wrapped his body against Yusei tightly, holding back with the first penetration, but then moving closer and deeper inside him.

At first, he moved slowly, overcome with worry that he was hurting the other boy. As it became apparent that Yusei was enjoying the sensation as well, he moved steadily with more confidence, building up to a solid rocking motion. All the difference of the past years was gone in this intimate moment they shared. He started to warn Yusei he was about to reach the last moment he could possibly hold out, but Yusei also called out his lover's name. The final seconds of passion were ecstatic as both lovers reached their climax at the same time.

Afterward, breathing heavily, Jack lay beside Yusei with an arm casually draped across his bare chest. Things wouldn't really ever be the same between them, but that was fine by him. All the pent up feelings were finally expressed, both their hearts lain bare to each other. He turned his head and met Yusei's gaze.

Jack stared, lost in the depths of Yusei's eyes. Hours could have passed and he could have cared less. There was nothing in the world that mattered anymore except him and his boyfriend. When he finally dared to break the spell that sleeping the boy had created, he remembered something he'd wanted to know but hadn't been important at the time. "How did you know the lotion was there?" He demanded.

Yusei gave the boy one of the wicked smiles Jack was coming to know meant trouble. "Don't worry about it, you should see what's in the drawer in my room." He replied.

"And that would be?" Jack asked, ignoring the other boy's hands which had strayed none too innocently back below Jack's waist.

Yusei merely grinned and leaned in for another kiss, moving his hands back to a safer place curled between himself and Jack. After a few moment's silence, he proceeded to snuggle against Jack tightly. "Just remember, you agreed we'd try out my room tomorrow." He mentioned as he attempted to burrow himself into the other boy's chest.

Jack caressed the other boy lightly, trying to think about what tomorrow could mean seemed impossible right now. As he lay here, arms, legs, body, and heart entwined around the boy he had fallen for years ago, the future seemed unimportant. Now was what was worth living for. After a while, he felt himself began to drift off, physically and emotionally drained.

"Oh, one thing," came Yusei's voice from where he was cuddled against Jack's chest. "Do you think you'll like the pink handcuffs or the purple ones?"

"WHAT?!?"