Joey's POV

"Huh? W-where am I?"

I looked around the large room that I was in. The walls were a dark, almost royal blue and there were white curtains on the windows. I was lying in a bed with a white comforter and a silk blue sheet draped over it.

I put a hand to the side of my head, trying to scratch my head, and realized that it was bandaged up. The bandage was dry, no blood on it, and a little too tight for my liking.

I looked at my arms to see similar bandages wrapped around the right one, with a small red tinge, blood beginning to seep through.

It stung and I cringed and winced at the pain.

Then, the door swung open and Riley walked in.

She closed the door behind her and sat beside me on the bed. She engulfed me in a hug, catching me off guard, slightly.

I chuckled softly, hugging back. "What's wit' da hug?"

She smiled up at me. "I'm just happy that you're okay."

"What happened?"

Riley sighed. "Dad beat ya up pretty bad last night. You needed medical attention."

I raised an eyebrow. "Riles, where are we?"

She bit her lip, avoiding eye contact with me. "Um,... Have I ever told you how much I love you, big brother?"

I frowned. "Riley, what's wrong?" I asked in a "no nonsense" tone.

She sighed. "Well,... We're at Seto's house. Because the only other place that I could take you to fix your wounds was the hospital. And I know that you hate the hospital. Plus, they'd ask how it happened. So,... I brought you here..."

I sighed. "An' Koyba's okay dat I'm here?"

She squinted and gritted her teeth, showing me that she was nervous about what she was about to tell me. "Um... Well... Kaiba doesn't know, yet."

My eyes widened to the size of flying saucers. "What?!!!"

"He was asleep when I called and Mokuba told me to come. He didn't give me time to refuse before he hung up and called a cab to pick us up."

I sighed and rubbed my temples, on the verge of a major migraine. "Aren't ya plannin' on tellin' him? Or should we hide in da closet for a week?"

She shook her head. "Don't worry. I'll tell him when he wakes up."

I glared at my little sister. "Go wake him up, Riley. Now."

She sighed, hanging her head and walking out the door. "Alright. I'll go tell him."

Once she left, I face palmed about 30 times. Dis ain't gonna end well. I thought, internally scolding myself for not having the strength to jump out the window and run home. Dis is gonna blow up in ma face... Ugh!

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Riley's POV

I walked into the living room to find Mokuba playing a video game.

He looked up from the console for a second and noticed me. "Oh, hey, Riley! What's up?"

I sighed. "My brother's mad at me, Mokuba." I said.

Mokuba shook his head. "Been there. Brothers these days."

I gave a slight grin. It was short lived, though. Almost directly after, I frowned and said, "Well, Moki, my brother's upset that I brought him here without him or Seto knowing." Mokuba nodded, understanding. "He told me to go tell Seto that I was here. And he seemed real strict about it, too. He wants me to wake him up to tell him."

Mokuba stood up, turning off the game of Mario kart 4 that he had been playing. "Saw no more. I'll show you his room."

Mokuba took my hand and guided me up the stairs toward his older brother's room.

He knocked on the older Kaiba's door. "Bro? Are you awake? I have someone who wants to speak with you." When he didn't hear a reply, he grasped the handle and began to turn it. "Seto, I'm coming in."

We walked into the large room to find a sleeping Seto on the bed. He was clutching his pillow for dear life. "No!" he screamed in his sleep. "You can't take us you stupid doll!!!"

I raised an eyebrow. Probably thinking about the movie. I thought. But, who is 'us'?

Mokuba shook his brother's shoulder in the attempt to wake him up. "Seto, wake up. It's just a dream. You're okay."

When it didn't work, Mokuba sighed and gestured for me to give it a try.

I sat down beside Seto and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, you okay, buddy?" I asked, sympathetically.

Kaiba's eyes fluttered open, immediately. "Pup, what are you doing here?" he asked, confused. He rubbed his head as if it would help him figure out the answer to his question.

I smiled. "Here, let me explain." I began.

Seto sat up in bed as Mokuba left the room so we could talk.

"Ya see,... I had a little problem... Joey and I... Got hurt... And we can't go back home..."

"Why's that?" he asked.

"I'll get to that." I exclaimed. "So, we couldn't go home... We had nowhere to stay... And Joey was hurt... And, real bad, too. He was unconscious!... So, I needed somewhere to go... I tried to call you, but Mokuba answered. And he said that you were asleep... He asked what was wrong and I told him that I needed some place to stay... So, before I could say anything else, he hung up and came to pick us up in the limo..."

Kaiba raised an eyebrow. "I don't understand. If you're asking if you can stay, don't worry. You're always welcome here."

I sighed. "Seto,... My brother is gonna kill me for telling you this, but... We have an abusive father."

The CEO's eyes went wide. "... Riley..." he nearly whispered in a hushed tone. "You're not kidding... Are you?..."

I shook my head. "No... I'm afraid not..."

Seto unexpectedly engulfed me in a hug. "Riley, why didn't you tell me?" he asked.

I sighed, hugging back. "I was scared..."

"Of what?"

I paused. "That you'd be worried..."

He let go of me so we were an arms length apart. "Why does that scare you?"

I sighed. "You're a CEO... I didn't want you to worry about me... You already have enough to worry about..."

Seto smirked. "Hey, I might be a rich snob, but you're this rich snobs best friend. Okay?"

I hugged him, again. "I know... Thanks,... Koyba..." I giggled at his little nickname.

He rolled his eyes, playfully, putting his arm around me. "Alright. So, where is your brother, now?"

"Downstairs. He just woke up and yelled at me."

"Is he hurt or anything?"

"Nah. Moki and I called a nurse last night."

"So, he's fine?"

"Yeah."

"Aw. Too bad."

I playfully punched him in the arm. "Not funny, Moneybags."

Kaiba chuckled. "Alright, alright. Let's go downstairs and make sure that your brother hasn't gone mad or ran away, yet. Shall we?" he stood up, reaching out to help me up, as well.

I took his hand and we walked downstairs to see my brother limping down the hall toward the door.

Nervous, I ran toward him.

Kaiba mumbled, "Told ya." right before I tackled Joey.

"And where do you think you're going?"

Joey bit his lip, averting eye contact. "Um... I was just going outside to... Um... Get some fresh air! Yeah, that's it."

I chuckled, ruffling my big brother's hair. "Joey, where were you really going?"

Joey turned his head so he wasn't facing me and came face to face with Seto. He growled. "Oh... It's you..."

Kaiba smirked. "Yeah, mutt. It's my house, ya know. So, why were you running away?"

My brother rolled his eyes. "I don't answa' ta the likes of you, Moneybags." he sneered.

I shrugged. "Oh well. We'll figure out sooner or later." I linked arms with my brother, and Seto and I dragged him back to the guest room.

Kaiba tossed him on the bed once we were finally done dragging him back inside.

Joey winced in pain, having landed on his bad arm at an odd angle.

I ran up beside him. "Joey! Are you okay?"

Joey glared at Seto. The taller boy was chuckling at my brothers misfortune, trying to hide the fact that he found this situation hilarious.

Sometimes, I just hate Kaiba. He can be such a jerk at times. He hates my brother. My brother hates him... Why am I any different?

I threw a pillow in his face and he immediately stopped laughing. He seemed regretful, in a sense. "I'm sorry, Pup. Maybe I might've took that a little too far."

Oh, yeah. That's why.

My brother growled at my best friend.(Never a good sign) "Riley, why do you like this punk?" he growled, not taking his eyes off of Kaiba.

I rolled my eyes. "Why can't you two idiots get along?!!!"

"I would if the mutt treated me with some respect!"

"I'm disrespectful?!"

"Yes."

"I'll tell ya what, Koyba...!"

They went on and on, yelling at each other like crazy, until I finally cut in.

"QUIT IT!!!!!" I screamed. "I'm tired of hearing your bickering! Just quit it!!!"

I ran out the door and down the long, winding hall. Left, left, right, left, right, right, right, left, yadda yadda yadda... By now, I've almost completely lost track.

I only stopped running once I reached the dead end.

I turned back around and found that I came from one of the 3 paths before me. But which one?

I sat down, my back against the wall, a tear rolling down my cheek. Welp, nothing left for me to do now but wait. I thought. Hopefully, Joey and Kaiba will be able to work together long enough to save me... Oh, who am I kidding! I'm a goner!!! I'm gonna starve to death or something!