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How did one celebrate the birth of the person who freed them from eternal darkness? Atem had run through a few ideas and none of them were good enough for Yugi. Jonouchi had thought that Atem was being dramatic. Whatever you come up with, Yugi will like , had been what Jonouchi said to him when Atem brought up the subject.
Honda, however, took a different approach. You’re overthinking it , he’d said. Don’t worry too much about it , he’d said. Atem couldn’t help but overthink it, however. It was, after all, the first birthday he’d be celebrating with Yugi in a body of his own. It had to be perfect. It had to be just right. Atem had been nervous that maybe if he got this wrong, Yugi would realize that he was dating someone who wasn’t good enough for him. Which was true, despite Yugi’s constant protests that this wasn’t the case.
Regardless, Atem was certain that he’d figured it out. Anzu had agreed to help decorate the Kame Game Shop, though she’d remarked the whole time that she thought he was going a bit over the top. Yugi would be fine with just a quiet night in with just friends and family and you , she’d said. While he was certain she was right, it just didn’t seem right to celebrate Yugi in such a quiet manner. It felt like something that he had to go over the top for. Yugi was worth that much.
“A surprise party,” Yui had asked with a raised brow. Despite that amount of times Yui had insisted upon being called ‘mom’, Atem just couldn’t bring himself to do so. It felt like something he hadn’t quite earned. Still, Yui was the one to turn to in order to make this all go off without a hitch. “I’m not sure Yugi would like that.” She sighed after Atem made a pleading face. “I never said I won’t help. I just think there’s a good chance you are, in fact, going over the top.”
“So you’ll make sure Yugi’s out of the house while we get the finishing touches up?” Yui nodded and Atem beamed.
As the day went on, Jonouchi complained more and more that Atem was being ridiculous and that Yugi probably wouldn’t even notice the decorations. Atem disagreed with that statement. Of course Yugi would notice the amount of work that they’d put into planning this for him. Atem had wanted to bake the cake himself until Honda pointed out that he’d never made a cake before. Ryou wound up baking the cake for the party and teaching Atem the basics of how to make a cake.
The stage was now set. Once again, Jonouchi suggested that Atem might be going just a little over the top. None of that mattered, of course, when Yugi walked through the door. The look of delight on his face when all his friends (and some acquaintances he hadn’t seen in some time) all yelled “surprise” as they jumped out from their hiding spots was all Atem needed to know he’d made the right call. “You threw a party for me?” Yugi asked with a grin on his face. Atem nodded and Yugi pulled him in a hug. “Thank you.”
“Happy birthday, partner.”