#Joey || Im gonna duel to my last breath

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@kaibacorpbros​ asked me for... not angst but its what they’re getting.

     Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

     Joey wanted to scream his anger into the sky because this couldn’t be fucking happening. He was furious, exhausted and tired. He wiped at his eyes, trying to keep them from watering because crying wasn’t going to do shit to help him anymore-- just irritate his already tired eyes and make his cheeks wet and cold in the frigid air. It didn’t matter.

     He slumped, not sure what to do with himself. He’d just gotten off work and wanted to go home and sleep and he’d finally looked at his phone and listened to his voicemail. As if he didn’t already have enough on his plate, it was a call from his landlord, and he knew what it was about before he ever even listened to it, and the dread that had filled him was rightfully placed.

     He was being evicted. His hands were shaking as he breathed out and tried to calm himself down and figure out what he was supposed to do from here. It wasn’t like he had the money to pay the fines that would come with trying to stay-- assuming his landlord was willing to even work with him any more than she already had. He was scraping by, between trying to support himself and help his dad and all of the shit that he had going on with him that Joey didn’t ever bring up to anyone around him, even Yugi. He couldn’t.

     “What am I even supposed to do...?” he mumbled to himself.

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Joey in disappearance for the color palette meme?

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@tenaciousthief wanted to cause trouble

      It wasn’t perfect, but it felt like something. Joey had been offered a job at a burlesque club, and the work seemed more steady than what he’d been getting at the speakeasy, and it was honestly a relief. He knew that he wasn’t entirely out of the hole, but he’d take anything at this point. It didn’t stop the way he fidgeted with the uniform for the bartenders, something a bit fancier than what he was used to. At least he looked good, electing for a white button up and a red and black suit vest. He’s examining himself in the mirror carefully in the lobby, ready to be lead to the floor to actually begin work. He had a leg up because he knew how to make a lot of mixed drinks already, so that wasn’t so much of a worry.

     It seemed similar enough-- be polite and friendly with the guests, keep an eye out for anyone who seemed prone to cause trouble for the patrons (or dancers, that part was new), and use his common sense when it came to it. He could do that.

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@kaibacorp-bros asked for a starter from Jou!

     Joey hadn’t been to a proper arcade in years, so he may have been filled with an inexplicable childlike joy for a solid few minutes when he first walked into the building and saw the flashing lights, claw games and shooting gallery machines. It was a little bit of a funny look for a grown, adult man, but he really didn’t care.

     He’d been saving up for weeks just to come, because even every once in a while he needed some time off to himself to just enjoy himself. It still hurt a little as he loaded up most of his bank account onto his arcade card, but he’d been working himself to the bone, and he deserved this. Now to just decide where to start...

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|| anyway have Joey with what his twist out looks like when he takes it down

g o d I’m love him 😭❤️||

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Drabble: TW: for intimacy, mentions of divorce, mentions of child abuse and descriptions of a panic attack.

The world feels soft at the edges as Joey is waking out of sleep, everything washed out by early morning light that filtered through the curtains and warmed the places where it cast streaks of golden light across his skin. It's the sort of morning where he be so content to just close his eyes and drift back to sleep until he finally gathered the energy to climb out of bed.

It wasn't like he had anywhere else to be, so he does just that. He feels a weight shift at his side, and he keeps his eyes closed, soothed by the feeling of another curled up against his body as they drape an arm around his waist.

It's nice. A sort of intimate comfort that he never sought out, as his bedmate placed lazy kisses against his shoulder through his sleep shirt. Something flickers below the surface, telling him he needed to open his eyes, but he was too relaxed.

He can feel them shift again, balacing over his shoulders and leaning down in close enough that he can feel their breath on his face. He tips his chin, knowing what they were leaning in for like it was some kind of instinct.

For a single moment he luxuriates as he feels the soft press of lips against his own, and on a base level its a comfort to him. Or at least it should be, he should feel warm and safe, and loved, but the whole scene seems to shift as something clicks into place in his brain.

He jolts up in his bed, disoriented and feeling like his chest was tight and full and wanting to spill over with a smothering pressure and nausea making his stomach threaten mutiny. His room is still dark, and he's decidely alone, and it was a dream. That doesn't comfort him, though, instead it just fills him with a bone-deep longing at the same time as making him feel disgusted with himself.

It was overwhelming, and he was struggling to stem the sudden flow of tears that seemed to pour out of his eyes. He was trembling, his mind telling him that he was touch starved and wanted that sort of intimacy while also scolding him for needing it in the first place.

His skin was crawling uncomfortably, and he curled in on himself, like he would be able to stave off those thoughts by going into his shell. Like a turtle. It was terrifying, to him, the whole prospect of letting someone that close.

Too easy to get hurt and definitely too easy to hurt someone. He'd watched his parents play mind games and wage wars of attrition. Watched them tear down everything they'd built together and watched his father burn every childhood photograph that had his mother in it. He'd watched the way his father had self destructed and then when there was nothing left in himself to destroy he'd reach for the belt and work on tearing down Joey as well.

It nested in him, too. He'd seen it rear it's ugly face before, and he hadn't been able to look in the mirror at himself for weeks because all he could see was his dad, like someone was holding up a photograph and spoon feeding him every missed sign and bad judgement call and showed him exactly how he'd wind up.

He couldn't do that. No matter how nice the possibility of letting someone in close enough to hold and share and build something together was, he couldn't do it. He would never forgive himself if he turned into the man he saw in the mirror that day.

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Jou in 7 I?

Accepting || expression meme

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@thiefkingyall liked for a starter from Joey!

      He was frustrated, naturally, of course he was. He always was when he was pushing himself to quit smoking, that was nothing new, but this time irritated him moreso than usual. It had made sense at the time-- buy cigarettes which had a lower nicotine content to help wean him off of it. That would work just fine if it didn’t feel like he was trying to smoke a marshmellow.

      “Fuck.” Joey muttered, sighing, flipping open the pack and pulling out a second cigarette and running a hand through his hair, exasperated. He flipped open his lighter and lit it in a practiced motion as he sighed out another: “Fuck.”

     It made sense in his head, he swore. Yet, somehow, it was like his brain knew and just ruined his mood when he tried. He felt relieved almost instantly, his brain knowing his nerves would be soothed soon. He knew he was better than this, and so he sighed again.

[serendipitykismet]

Joey Wheeler permanent Starter!

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Source

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||I have been given one(1) oppertunity to talk about Joey and I'm going to run with it. (Oops)

Honestly a thread I'd love to do with him is working through his problems and actually growing and healing. Even just a little.

Like? He has a lot of hang-ups: he smokes, he feels lost and is starting to show signs of depression, he's stressed out and trying to stretch his money as thin as he can to support himself, hes always busy with work, but he wants to be better.

I want threads where he's breaking down and feeling at his lowest and doesn't know what to do. I want threads where he's trying to grow and even if he keeps coming up short, he's trying to push himself even if it's visibly starting to impact his health.

👀 So if yall ever wanna indulge me and go through some sort of thread with him like that... Hmu||

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"I still think you rely on luck too much for just about...everything. But I do have to admit that the crowds do seem to like it in a duel. Brings a... different kind of energy to the stadium that tactical strategy can't." [Seto]

     Joey actually flushed a little bit at Kaiba’s... backhanded compliment.

       “Wait, nevermind, go back to insulting me. I don’t like it when you compliment me. It makes me not hate you as much and that’s terrible.”

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"Joey! Happy Birthday!" Mokuba says with a wide grin excitedly pushing a gift bag into his hands. Inside is a charged up arcade card and a small handsewn Red Eyes plush. "I hope I did him justice!"

Joey blinked down at the gift, honestly not having expected Mokuba to remember his birthday, let alone get him anything. (He did, in fact, get a bit misty eyed but don't call him out on it.)

He wastes no time in opening it and tugging out the handmade plushie, which he immediately squeezes to his chest in a massive hug while he eyes the arcade card and smiles broadly.

"This is awesome lil dude!" Joey ruffles Mokuba's hair affectionately. "I take it this means you want a rematch at that shooter game huh?"

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@kaibacorp-bros said: [XD them being eternally annoyed with each other gives me life pfft but like also begrudging respect]

“I hate you but I have become pack bonded with you so if you die I’m gonna be really pissed.”

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(For Jou) ✪ {Seto} Kaibacorp-bros [ :3 ]

@kaibacorp-bros

❖  

POSITIVE.

I think you’re awesome ║ I like you ║ I want to go on a date with you ║  I love you ║ You’re cute/handsome ║ I want to marry you ║ You’re attractive ║ I wish we could spend more time together! ║ I’d like to get to know you better ║  I admire you ║ You’re someone that I look up to ║ You’re very kind ║ I consider us friends ║ I secretly have a crush on you ║ I have high respect for you ║ We have common interests ║ I’m happy that I met you

❖   NEGATIVE.

I feel uncomfortable around you ║ You’re bothersome ║ I never want to speak to you again ║ I dislike you ║ I loathe you ║ I’m envious of you ║ I’m worried about you ║ We don’t get along well ║ You’re the worst kind of person ║ You get on my nerves ║ You’re annoying to me ║ We have nothing in common ║ I wish I had never met you ║ I wouldn’t date you if you were the last person alive ║ Not you again

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||I've been thinking about it since I reblogged that post eariler-- but my muses as a whole pretty actively DON'T want a love interest to try and fix them. Help them, maybe, sure, but not 'fix' them.

Joey definitely would be irritated by it, he's already had to deal with his mom pressuring him to change his whole life, and between that and his rebellious streak, he'd just wind up getting irritated and growing to resent a partner or friend if they did try. He's not broken, he doesn't feel broken, and he doesn't feel like he needs to change himself to match someone else's image of him. He can't make himself into something he's not.

Much the same with Kaiba. He'd grow to resent a partner who tried to change him-- and he'd make is displeasure very clear. He knows he's unhealthy, he knows he's traumatized and he doesn't need anyone pointing that out to him or pushing him to alter himself for their sake. He's working on himself for himself and his little brother and not a single other person on the planet.

And Elliot... Frankly she wouldn't put up with it. She'd just throw a partner out.

They're grown adults, and they're their own people. If you value their opinions then no, don't try and "fix" them with love.||