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𝐈 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐢𝐧 𝐧𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐬, 𝐧𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐬…
𝐈𝐧 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞, 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐠𝐞, 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫.
𝐌𝐲 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐥𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐬,
𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐠𝐢𝐟𝐭, 𝐰𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐤 𝐢𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐬,
𝐈𝐧 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞, 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐠𝐞, 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫.
.𝐑𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐓𝐚𝐠𝐨𝐫𝐞
It is an overwhelming sense familiarity, exasperating, maddening, tip of the tongue near memory. You! You! You who I almost know, but there is nowhere in the nooks and cranny of his thoughts where he could find a similar rounded cheek smile, flushed laughter that goes on till you’ve lost air in your lungs, no you in his memory and it haunts him feverishly, haunts him pleasantly. “Ah! Jounouchi’s friend.” A smile blooms welcoming into his face, friendly if not a little diplomatic but he offers his hand to you nonetheless, too pleased to meet a friend’s friend, too eager to take your name and keep it to himself, perhaps just this ones he will be forgiven for his impertinence, couldn’t wait for you to offer your hand for him to take. “We’ve met before.” He declares, words too sure in spite his own lack of answer or at the very least the answer he would have wanted—he met you before he met you, before this and before that little game.
“It’s you!” Your voice hitched up, gasped in your accusation and something childishly competitive boils in the pit of your stomach again. So it really wasn’t Jou after all! You’ve known it when you’ve lost instantly in a game of digital duel monsters, you knew since you’ve played with Jounouchi too many times, invested in your duel-link rivalry only to one day find yourself annihilated all too brutally— that is just not how Jounouchi played, you’ve known further when a chat came under Jounouchi’s user name. ‘Good game’ he says, good game even when he never let you play. Was that sarcasm? You could imagine a shit-eating smirk, pompous and arrogant. You’ve decided Jounouchi’s friend is probably an asshole and your suspicion and mistrust only grew upon meeting him.
His smile is dignified, his small stature planted proud as he meets your eyes. He is shorter than you imagined and you couldn’t help but feel triumphant at that, childish as it may seem you began smiling pert and cheeky and when you take his hand for a shake you grin. “Yes, it is me.” He says, his hand steady in place almost awkward but even his thoughtlessness seemed deliberate in that moment, nobody ever questions his decisions, not even when it was strange.
“Yami!” His name reverberated amongst the crowed, Jounouchi’s voice cutting through the clattering noise of guest that littered the hallway. You watched as he swings his arms around his neck, drag the shorter boy down but he didn’t seem to mind Jounouchi’s over excitement. “So you’ve finally met!” He goes on, brown eyes meeting yours all too expectantly. He had told Yami about you just as he had told you about Yami, only flattery seem to come out of his mouth, silly little quips that only meant to brighten your image towards each other and it had work with Yami, he had been looking forward to meet the individual that made Jounouchi flutter around animated.
“I have. She’s wonderful.” Yami brings your hand up, swings it gently back and forth as if to show his friend his success but you instead found yourself pursing your lips, pouted frown in your confusion. He is a bit to strange you think, always assuming you’re ‘good’ even when you’ve barely even talked. (Barely even played.) You take your hand away and for a moment his smile falters disappointed but regardless he does not complain. “I’m glad to have finally met you.” He goes on seamlessly, “I knew we’ll meet again.” He says it like it had been a fact, a fated meeting between you and him, Yami believes in this mystery just as he believes in friendship and justice, believes in the persistent prodding in the back of his mind that you have been something special once upon a time, that you’ve reside somewhere in him within the fading memory of his past life and perhaps if you felt what he felt you wouldn’t have looked at him so incredulously, brows knitted curious and unbelieving, Jounouchi would have probably understood why’d you make such a face but Yami Yugi is Yami Yugi and even in the oddness of his words he believed him.
“He must have—” Jounouchi began only to be cut off immediately, your voice almost stern in your curiosity. “Why?” You asked. Why indeed. A question that stretched silence between the three of you, Jounouchi’s own inquisitiveness perked as he glanced over you and Yami. His friends, they’re both really weird huh? He thinks, but that had been only fondness and nothing else.
“Why.” Yami repeats, watches you closely for a moment and there it was again. Flushed hot in a recollection that refused to immortalize— only brief echo of what you use to be dancing around uncollected past events, a puzzle he could not put together. He needs time to answer properly but his mouth opens, first thoughts allowed to be your answer for the time being. “The heart of cards told me so.” Ah, not quite right, not quite true at all in fact but there is a resemblance of belief and sincerity in his words nonetheless, that there is a kind of divinity that brought him to that conclusion.
This is typical of Yami Yugi but this is something you learn in the future, but now as you look at him, his expression serious in his proclamation, you find yourself certain that there must have been a mistake when Jounouchi said he was ‘the most amazing person you’ll ever meet’, as you only see someone too strange—it was not bad, maybe, maybe he was not an asshole but there is definitely no normalness in him, ‘what an odd little guy’ you think, somewhat unsatisfied with his answer but felt that there is no point to ask further.
“Right…” You drawl, watch him quietly in an attempt to figure out your own thoughts. You want to play with him again, you think it was not nice of him to ‘tease’ you after losing a game in far too gruesome manner. You’re not sure if he’s serious but you feel that he is.
“Okay…I’m just going to.” A pause, a glance over Jounouchi and then back again to this boy you’ve deemed your---- wait what is he? “Go now.” You decided you’ll figure that out later, however you’re sure to give him a proper game next time. “Bye!” You finally say, voice returning perky as you run off elsewhere.