Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

The door to his apartment slammed shut. Atem resisted kicking the wall, but only just . Instead he stomped into his bedroom and yanked open the dark curtains, looking down on the street below.

It started to rain some time ago, and Atem hadn’t even noticed. A twinge of worry tried to break through his fog of anger.

“Do you even like me?”

Atem sneered and dismissed the worry. If Yuugi got wet, he deserved it.

After a few moments of waiting, the doors to his complex swung open and Yuugi stepped out into the wet night. If his child-like stature hadn’t tipped Atem off that this was his date, Yuugi’s wild, unmanageable hair certainly did. Tossed about his face in every direction, hues of gold, red, and black eerily similar to his own billowed around in the wind.

Atem couldn’t see his violet eyes from so far away, but based on how red-rimmed they were when he left, Atem could guess he’d started crying already. Probably as soon as he’d slammed Atem’s door.

He watched Yuugi stutter to a stop as he finally noticed the rain. He briefly paused, as if considering his actions. 

Another impulse stabbed at Atem. Go get him, it whispered. He’s going to walk home like that! He’s upset and not paying attention to the roads.

Atem almost did it. His hand reached out to grab his jacket, to run down the stairs and beg Yuugi to come back. He can stay mad at me while he’s dry–

“Half the time I can’t even tell if I exist in your world.”

“With the way you cling to me, I think I’m the only thing in your world.”

Yuugi crossed his arms inside his flimsy coat and walked out into the rain. The darkness quickly overtook him and he vanished from Atem’s eyesight.

Fine.

Atem closed the curtain again and threw himself onto his bed. He stared into the darkness, fuming and hurt.

“That’s not fair. I am not clingy.”

“Then what is this? This… this constant need to know where I am, and when we’re going to spend time together?”

“That’s called being a boyfriend!”

“Can I just have some space without you showing up at the door when I don’t respond to a text fast enough?”

“That was one time , and you didn’t answer for hours .”

“I was with friends, I was fine.”

“....”

“....”

“I care about you.”

“Well, that was clearly someone’s mistake.”

“Oh, my god. I did it again. I tricked myself into believing you would be different.”

“I don’t know what that means.”

“Don’t even worry about it.”

The reverberation from the slammed door still shook through Atem, even in his bed. Annoyed with himself, he got up and began to undress. He changed into his night clothes and lay back down again, ready to process what had happened.

He and Yuugi had met through their mutual friend (and Yuugi’s roommate) Ryou. They’d hit it off immediately and quickly began dating.

That was four months ago. Four of the slowest months of Atem’s life.

He liked Yuugi. He did. Yuugi was sweet, and caring. He was always willing to listen to Atem’s issues and support him. He usually had no problems letting Atem hyperfixate on work, or to go all week without seeing each other. They usually only got together on the weekends.

A early stem of their argument came back to the forefront of Atem’s mind.

“If you would just talk to me–”

“Yuugi, all we do is talk.”

“That’s a blatant lie, or you don’t remember anything we’ve done today.”

“Then what? What do you want to talk about?”

“I just mean in general, I don’t mean–” Yuugi paused, and exhaled slowly. “Do you even like me?”

That was when Atem became angry. As if he would waste his own time going out with someone he didn’t like. Yuugi was adorable. Yuugi once traveled all the way across town to drop off the work that Atem left at his place. Yuugi once–

Ugh, this was pointless. Yuugi could be the sexiest man in Tokyo and Atem would still be turned off by the sudden clinginess.

Still brimming with anger, Atem closed his eyes and went to sleep.

—

Atem woke sometime later to his ringtone. He sat up and rubbed his eyes. For a confused moment, he thought he might be blind. After a jolt of concern, he realized it was still dark outside. He reached for his phone and glanced at the time. It was 10:30, only about ninety minutes since Yuugi stormed out.

He was already calling? Didn’t this kind of prove Atem’s point?

But no. Instead of Yuugi’s name, Ryou’s lit up the screen. Atem ignored the slightly bitter feeling pulsing through his chest (it’s not like I want to talk to Yuugi anyway) and picked up.

“Hello?”

“Finally!” Ryou let out a semi-annoyed huff. “Where’s Yuugi? Let me talk to him. His phone must have died.”

“What?” Atem sat up. “Yuugi left a while ago. Is he still not back yet?”

There was silence over the phone. Then Atem heard a shuffling noise. Ryou called Yuugi’s name through their apartment, loudly opening and shutting doors.

“Here’s not here.”

A numbness lit in the tips of Atem’s fingers. He gripped his phone tightly.

“I’m sorry? He didn’t make it home?”

“Did he text you after he left?” Ryou asked. “He always texts when he gets somewhere.”

Atem checked his phone. Not a single notification from Yuugi.

“No.”

Another pause.

“Did something happen between you?”

“Is that your business?” Atem drew himself up, immediately on the defensive.

“Shit.” Ryou swore, startling Atem. “Dammit, Atem. Did you cold shoulder Yuugi out into the rain?”

The loud hammering outside his window assured Atem that yes, it was still raining.

“What is that supposed to mean?”

“I know how you are. You’re basically a slightly more emotional Bakura.” Ryou snapped. “You did something, didn’t you?”

“I–”

“God, he could be anywhere.” Ryou continued. “His grandfather is probably still awake. Go check there for him, and I’ll go check some of his old spots from college.”

“Why do I have to go to his grandpa’s house?” Atem felt the sneer fall into place even as he opened his closet to find some clothes.

“Because you’re closer to him, and if something happens to Yuugi because you don’t want to admit to having emotions, I will do something that will make Bakura seem like an angel in comparison.”

Then he hung up the phone.

A shiver ran down Atem’s spine. Angry Ryou was not something he wanted to face down. He redressed in new clothes, including a hoodie. He grabbed a second one in case he ran into Yuugi along the way.

He opened his text messages, thumbing through Yuugi’s messages briefly. Yuugi did, in fact, send a text whenever he got home from one of their dates. He also sent a lot of good morning texts. And texts cheering him on for important work days. One in particular was for finalizing the code for a new game being developed by Kaiba Corp. Atem remembered that one. He’d locked it so it wouldn’t disappear when he cleaned out his phone.

He scrolled back to the bottom. Suddenly irritated at how he’d been forced out of sleep, he sent a text.

<<Call Ryou. He’s trying to get a hold of you.>>

By the time Atem got his shoes on, no response came. Odd, Yuugi usually answered texts quickly, unless he was asleep. And if he wasn’t home or with Atem, he better not be asleep. Atem picked up his phone again.

<<I know you’re angry at me, but don’t ignore your friend. Just tell him you’re safe.>>

He grabbed an umbrella and dashed out the door. When he got down onto the sidewalk, he stopped.

Atem didn’t know where Yuugi’s grandfather lived.

Annoyed again, he called Ryou back. His phone rang twice before it picked up.

“Did you find him?!”

“No, I just left home.” Atem looked up and down the dark sidewalk. “Where does Yuugi’s grandfather live?”

“He still lives in the shop where Yuugi grew up.”

Yuugi grew up in a shop? With his grandfather?

Ryou seemed to catch on quickly. “I’ll text you the address.” The judgment was palpable. “It’s about a mile south of Domino High.”

Ah, yes. Where Atem’s cousin had gone to high school.

He took off in that general direction.

Chapter Text

Atem stood in front of the Kame Game Shop, eyeing it suspiciously. The small shop stood along the road, eerily bright considering the darkness and rain. The lights on the bottom floor were bright and inviting. Every now and again Atem could hear a raucous laughter from inside. The lights on the top floor remained dark.

Yuugi lived here ?

Now that he thought back, he did seem to recall Yuugi telling him about this. Yuugi’s mother left him with his grandfather at a pretty young age and just never came back for him. He’d never mentioned what happened to his father. Had he? Atem didn’t think so, but he was starting to suspect he didn’t listen as often as he should.

Atem took another look at his phone. Still no messages. He exhaled, mood bordering on angry again.

<<Are you going to just ignore me now?>>

The door to the front of the Kame Shop snapped open and an old man reached out and dragged Atem inside.

“Come in!” The man yelled. “You’ll drown out there.”

Atem shook out his umbrella and leaned it against the wall corner, taking in his new surroundings. This store was bright. Impossibly bright. Merchandise huddled on walls and the counter that took up the majority of each side.

In the middle, a large table lay set up, and people huddled over maps and dice. They ignored Atem as he stared, all of their focus solely on the table and the teenager standing at the end.

“Don’t worry about them,” the old man said in a hushed whisper. “It’s their game night. They come and use my supplies every other week.”

Atem frowned, even as he was pushed into the back. “Why?”

The man shrugged. “To play the game Yuugi and his friend Ryou introduced to them. It helps them regulate their emotions and work things out without lashing out at others in the real world.” A small laugh. “And some of them just love the stories they can come up with.”

Then he shut the shop door behind them, cutting off all the noise in the front. Before him lay the house portion of Yuugi’s childhood home. They’d entered straight into the kitchen, a small area with an even smaller table on one end. It pressed up against a wall covered with pictures of people Atem didn’t recognize.

“Please, sit!” The man cried, waving Atem over to a chair at the table. “I was just finishing up some food for the kids out there. Let me make you a plate.”

“Oh, there’s no need to–”

“Nonsense, anyone as close to my grandson as you are isn’t leaving without a meal.”

Two things occurred quickly to Atem. First, this was definitely Yuugi’s grandfather. If he looked closely, he could definitely see similarities. His hair, though shorter and graying, closely resembled Yuugi’s and therefore Atem’s. His eyes and his completely open smile were all Yuugi’s.

The second thing Atem realized was that Yuugi clearly talked about him enough for his grandfather to recognize him on sight. The thought made his chest constrict.

“Do you even like me?”

Mr. Motou continued before Atem could push the thought away. He settled a plate of cookies and a cup of tea in front of Atem and sat himself down with a groan.

“I have to admit, I always thought that Yuugi would bring you around himself, not that you’d wander in all alone one day.” Mr. Motou took a sip of his own tea.

What was Atem supposed to say? This was so awkward. He should just come out and say that he was looking for Yuugi. But that would worry Mr. Motou, and Atem didn’t want to do that unnecessarily. He got the feeling Yuugi wouldn’t appreciate it. 

“He asked me to drop by to pick up something for him.”

What a weak excuse. It was so late at night. Why wouldn’t Yuugi just come himself? This honestly wasn’t that far from his and Ryou’s apartment.

But Mr. Motou nodded thoughtfully. “Sure. Yuugi hates walking by himself at night. You’re so sweet to offer to help him.” He pushed the plate of cookies at Atem.

I seem to have gotten away with something . Atem thought as he took the proffered food.

A thought occurred to him. His mind flashed back to earlier, when Yuugi stood staring into the darkness before walking away at a fast clip. Atem had thought it was due to the rain, but….

“Why doesn’t Yuugi like walking in the dark?”

Mr. Motou studied him closely. “I’m not sure I should divulge my grandson’s secrets,” he narrowed his eyes. “But, Yuugi never will. The boy likes to think he’s bothering people with his problems.”

Atem blinked. Yuugi had no issue with bringing his problems to him. He could remember plenty of them, from issues with museum exhibits running late to some of his food allergies that were pretty rare. Had he told Atem before about his hesitancy to leave at night, and he hadn’t listened?

He does like to leave before sundown. Or stay the night altogether.

“Not that walking at night is a safe thing to do in the first place,” Mr. Motou continued. “But Yuugi’s been… susceptible to bullies in the past. He’s given up a lot of his old habits before he met his friends: Jou, Anzu, and Honda. But not all of them.”

Mr. Motou’s eyes seemed to unfocus as he looked off in the distance. He twiddled his thumbs on top of the cookie he held, sending crumbles absentmindedly across the table. Then he shook his head, suddenly clear-eyed. He stood and motioned for him to follow. “Come on, his room is upstairs.”

The narrow staircase Atem ended up on stored a trail of photos on the walls, up and up until the last step. Pictures of Yuugi at a young age, each photo taken in front of the Kame Shop. As they climbed, Photo Yuugi steadily grew older. He always stood alone. He looked exactly the same as he did now.

Except…

What was different? Atem couldn’t see until he was mostly up the stairs. It was his eyes . He looked so different, in a way that Atem couldn’t describe but felt suspicious about.

The last few photos, Yuugi wasn’t alone. A blonde and two brunettes, grinning and piled on top of Yuugi, hugging him tightly and grinning from ear to ear. This looked more like the Yuugi Atem knew, eyes bright and happy. He shifted his eyes from the last pictures to the rest on the wall.

He could see it now. Younger Yuugi looked lonely.

Now that Atem could see it, he vaguely remembered Yuugi mentioning how he’d met his first friends in high school. Atem had been only half-listening at the time, busy with prepping for his cousin’s demanding work schedule.

Okay, now Atem felt like a heel. Someone who looked that lonely until high school probably prized relationships very highly.

Atem realized that that included him . With a sinking feeling, he came to the conclusion that Yuugi wasn’t being clingy, but reading Atem’s standoffishness nature as disinterest.

Oh, no.

“What did Yuugi ask you to bring him?”

At this point, Atem had a lie ready, something he did remember Yuugi speaking about. “He has some sort of important meeting tomorrow and asked if I would bring him his lucky charm.”

It worked. Mr. Motou nodded and opened Yuugi’s bedroom door. “I know exactly what he means. Wait here.”

Mr. Motou was gone for all of ten seconds. He came back with a small chain necklace held in the air in front of him, swinging gently with the weight of a golden inverted pyramid resting at the end. On the front, an Eye of Horus shone brightly.

“I brought that back from Egypt on one of my expeditions when Yuugi was a small child.” Mr. Motou put it into Atem’s open hand. “He wore it every day until college.”

Atem couldn’t think of anything to say.

Mr. Motou swallowed somewhat nervously. “Are you sure Yuugi’s okay?”

Atem smiled brightly. “Yuugi is okay.”

I hope so . 

Mr. Motou gave him a steady look, lips pinched together. “He’s always been so small. When his mother left him on my doorstep all those years ago, he seemed to shrink inside himself even further. It’s sometimes hard to tell what he’s thinking. I spent the entire time raising him trying to show him nothing but love and acceptance. Sometimes I think it worked.” His unblinking gaze began to unsettle Atem, and he found himself unable to move. “The only reason I’m telling you any of this is because he thinks so highly of you. It feels like a breach of trust, if I’m being honest.”

Atem valued the words for what they were. He knows something is up, even if I won’t tell him. He was still willing to play along and let Atem go unharassed.

“Yes, sir.” He nodded.

Mr. Motou finally, finally broke eye contact. He dripped the chain into Atem’s palm and closed his fingers safely around the chain. “You’ll tell my boy I love him?”

Atem’s hand gripped the necklace like a lifeline. “Of course.”

On his way out, the teens at the game table paused long enough to look up at Atem. “Hey!” The leader called. “When is Yuugi going to run a game for us like he promised?”

Mr. Motou barked out a laugh. “When you hooligans show improvement in your classes.” He brought out the giant mound of cookies from the kitchen and set them roughly on the table. “Now eat. You’re all so skinny you’re liable to fall through the cracks in the floor.”

The teens burst into laughter and dove into the cookies. Very quickly all that remained on the platter were crumbs.

—

Atem waited to call Yuugi again until he was a few blocks away from the Kame Game shop.

It never rang.

“Hey! It’s Yuugi. Sorry I missed you. Leave a message, or text me.”

Atem’s stomach dropped. He pinched his nose until it hurt. “Yuugi, please tell someone where you are.”

The earlier worry when Ryou jolted him out of sleep came back with a vengeance. What if something happened? What if Yuugi wasn’t just going silent to decompress after a fight, but was in trouble?

He sighed. “I’m sorry. Be angry at me as long as you need, forever if that’s what it takes, but please. Please let someone know you’re alive.”

Atem gripped Yuugi’s necklace as he hung up. The inverted pyramid stabbed into his palm, grounding him without breaking the skin. An image of those photos in Mr. Motou’s home flashed through his mind. He realized he had seen that look in Yuugi’s eyes before: right before he walked out of their argument.

Damn it.

Atem didn’t mean for this to happen. It was just so hard for him to open up to people. He had gotten so used to acting loof in every situation that he hadn’t even noticed it was shutting Yuugi out. And Yuugi, who clearly spent most of his childhood alone, read it as disinterest.

Atem swallowed hard. He wasn’t disinterested in Yuugi. Yuugi, who always smiled and always cared and always had a listening ear. Who was always ready to do whatever Atem wanted for their dates, whatever Atem liked (did they ever do anything that Yuugi liked? What did Yuugi like?). How could Atem be disinterested in someone as fantastic as Yuugi? Did he really not know how much Atem loved him?

The thought itself hit Atem like a ton of bricks. His chest hollowed out. He forced himself to breathe deeply through the initial panic of this realization. I love him. I love him and he’s out there somewhere because I couldn’t be assed to show an emotion.

The “initial” panic neared a full blown attack. Atem typed out a text to Ryou.

<<He’s not at the Kame Shop. Any luck?>>

<<No.>>

<<We could try his job, but the museum is definitely closed.>>

<<I can call his coworkers, but– >>

The text closed down before Atem finished reading. His phone buzzed in his hand, causing his fingers to tremble. A name popped up as a very specific ringtone sang out into the air.

Yuugi.

Atem pressed Accept and slammed the phone to his ear faster than he ever had. The pure relief running through homemade his heartbeat slam.

“Yuugi!” Ra, his hands were trembling. “Are you okay? Where are you?”

“Is this Atem?”

That wasn’t Yuugi’s voice .

Atem’s blood ran cold. His grip on his phone tightened until he could hear the phone creak under the pressure.

“Who is this? Why do you have Yuugi’s phone?” He’d never heard his own voice as cold as when he answered.

“My name is Jounouchi.” That sounded vaguely familiar. “I’m Yuugi’s best friend. He’s here with me.”

Right. “Prove it.”

He heard a snort on the other side of the line. “Yuugi called me to tell me he’d had an argument with Atem the Boyfriend and that he was alone in the rain and the dark.” The judgment was clear in his tone. “We came and picked him up.”

“We?”

“He didn’t want to go home. So we brought him back to our place. We played a game, alcohol got involved… Yuugi can’t hold his liquor.”

That sounded like Yuugi, at least. He’d seen Yuugi drink before. 

“Is he okay?”

“Probably. Yuugi’s always been resilient.” There was a pause. “I knew he’d turned his phone off and hadn’t told his roommate–or you, I guess–where he was, so as soon as he passed out, I took his phone.”

“Did you call Ryou?” Atem kept the growl out of his voice. Jounouchi was deliberately dragging this out, and Atem still didn’t know where Yuugi was.

“The roommate? Nah, I went for this number first.” Jounouchi admitted. “I wasn’t too sure who Other Me would be, but I could guess pretty well.”

That made no sense to Atem. Yuugi sometimes called him Other Me, because they looked so alike. That must be it.

“Please,” he finally broke down, “just tell me where he is.”

A derisive laugh. “Do you know where Kaiba Manor is?”

“What of it?”

“We’re here.”

No, that was too far out of the realm of possibility. “Seto Kaiba is my cousin.”

“Yeah, well, I know that now .” Jounouchi chided. “He’s also my boyfriend.”

Okay, this was starting to come together. Several months ago, Seto mentioned a new boyfriend, although he avoided using that term with a sneer, and even showed Atem a picture of a tall man with spiky blonde hair.

A man that closely resembled the picture of the blonde in Yuugi’s photos.

“I’m coming right now.” Atem hung up the phone before Jounouchi could respond. He sent a quick text to Ryou, updating him on Yuugi’s whereabouts, and took off in the direction of his cousin’s mansion.

Chapter Text

Kaiba Manor was just as uninviting as always.

The gates opened with a high-pitched creak. The security guard waved as Atem walked in. He passed flower patches, benches, and even a fountain on his way to the doors. If it wasn’t the dead of night, he would be able to see the bright colors of each patch, a slow gradient across the color spectrum heading to the front doors.

Beauty definitely not by Seto’s design. He tended to let the gardeners do what they wanted, so long as they didn’t destroy the lawn. 

As usual, Atem didn’t need to knock. The security guard would have called ahead to warn those in the house. Usually one of Seto’s serving staff opened the door. Today, Atem was met with a tall blonde, taller than Atem but shorter than Seto. In a deep contrast to the setting around him, he wore a simple white and blue t-shirt and jeans.

The man nodded at him. “Atem.”

Atem didn’t need an introduction. He nodded in turn. “Jounouchi.”

Jounouchi moved to the side, allowing Atem to step in.

“He’s in here.”

Jounouchi led him through the expansive entryway, past the sprawling staircase and through a side door. Atem knew the route they were taking. He’d come this way many times while visiting his cousin, long before he even came to work for him.

As predicted, they entered Seto’s private office from a small side door, completely bypassing the large entrance everyone usually used.

Atem hadn’t been by in a while, but boy did this place stay unchanged. Seto tapped away on a laptop at his desk, looking up periodically as if checking on something. He situated his desk to face the main entrance. Two leather couches sat at angles to each other, making the occupants visible to the desk and still able to face each other. The large glass coffee table between the couches was usually clean and clear. Currently, empty booze bottles littered the surface.

Yuugi laid down on one of the couches, his head resting on an arm. Someone had thrown a blanket over him. A frown marred his face, even as he slept. Atem didn’t miss the puffiness around his eyes.

Atem leapt across the room and kelt beside him. He laid a hand across Yuugi’s forehead, checking for warmth, then threaded his fingers into Yuugi’s still-damp hair. Yuugi murmured in his sleep and leaned into the touch. Atem’s heart clenched.

“How long has he been asleep?” Atem asked quietly, not taking his eyes from his sleeping boyfriend.

“A while.” Jounouchi slid onto the opposite couch and crossed his arms. “What happened?”

Atem’s first instinct was to bristle. That wasn’t any of Jounouchi’s business. He was a stranger, and his words and stance said he was openly hostile. But then… he was Yuugi’s best friend. Atem knew that. And Atem wasn’t in too much of a position to be mean in turn. He sat on the floor and crossed his legs under him, keeping his hand on top of Yuugi’s. He took a deep breath and braced himself. In order to win back some of what he’d lost, he would need to be honest. 

“I messed up. It’s my fault.”

Seto stopped typing, letting out a bark of a laugh. “You messed up. No shit, Atem.”

Atem bit his cheek and continued. “I didn’t realize– I didn’t know–”

“Figures.” Jounouchi scoffed, then leaned back on the couch and crossed one leg over the other. Atem recognized it as one of Seto’s power moves. From the smirk Seto shot his boyfriend, he did too.

Oblivious to the appreciative stares, Jounouchi continued. “You and Seto have the same problem.”

That shut Seto up. His expression became a glare and he resumed typing, attempting to look uninterested.

Atem frowned. “What do you mean?”

“You are very private, aren’t you?” Jounouchi crossed his arms. “God forbid someone ask you a personal question.”

Atem wanted to argue, but thought back to all the time tonight he’d shut down questions about his life.

“Yes.”

“And you’ve been doing the same to Yuugi.”

“I didn’t see.”

“But he did.” Jounouchi’s tone turned harsh as he jabbed a finger at a restless Yuugi. “He sat there for two hours, drinking and second guessing his entire personality.”

Atem didn’t think he could feel worse, but here he was. He stared at Yuugi, muttering and frowning, fingers twitching as if wanting to grip something. Those fingers unconsciously wrapped around Atem’s hand and squeezed. His face went slack and the muttering calmed.

“I didn’t know. I didn’t mean it.” Being open was getting easier. “I’ll fix it.”

“See that you do.” Jounouchi sneered. “Or don’t. If you can’t give him the type of relationship he needs, break it off before you fuck with his mind even more.”

Atem knew immediately from the panic in his chest that he did not want to leave Yuugi. He nodded again, trying not to lose himself in the dark emotion.

“I’ll fix it.”

“Fine.” Jounouchi leaned forward and tossed a phone on the carpet in front of him. Yuugi’s phone . Atem picked it up and gingerly tapped the black screen.

The screen lit up immediately. A photo of a grinning Yuugi sitting next to Atem looked back at him. Atem could flinch at his face. He looked so bored .

He thought back to his phone conversation with Jounouchi, and that he called Atem a different name once. He pulled open Yuugi’s recent phone calls and stared at his name.

Other Me .

The image linked to it was one Atem didn’t know he had taken. The Atem in the photo looked through his Duel Monsters deck. His eyes narrowed in concentration even as his lips curled upward in a determined smile. He looked peaceful, even slouching on a couch as he was.

What a lovely picture. Atem hardly recognized himself. Was this how Yuugi saw him?

He locked the phone again and slid it onto the couch beside Yuugi.

“Thank you Jounouchi. Seto.” Atem shifted on the ground so he’d be more comfortable. “I know you don’t think highly of me right now, but I hope someday we could be friends.”

Jounouchi stood and stretched. He held a hand out to Atem, who accepted and shook it. “I’m going to grab him some water and aspirin. If we move him he’ll wake up.” He studied Yuugi.

Atem squeezed his hand in Yuugi’s. “Leave him here. I’ll stay until he wakes up.”

Jounouchi shrugged as he left the room.

Atem inched forward, not releasing his hand, and snagged a cushion from the other couch. He set it under himself, trying not to disturb Yuugi.

“Jou’s right, you know.” Seto broke the silence. Truthfully, Atem forgot he was there. “We’re too much alike. I had the same problem.”

Now that was interesting. Atem hadn’t heard about this until tonight. “How did you fix it?”

Seto was silent for some time. “It took a while to break down the wall I’d made him build.” He slapped a hand on the table and pointed aggressively at Atem. “And don’t think your sorry excuse for a love life is going to grant you an extension on your due dates.”

That sounded more like Seto.

“Yes, boss.”

Atem pulled the blanket up to Yuugi’s shoulders and settled in to wait.

—

“Hnnn… what? Oh, my god .”

Somehow, Atem managed to fall asleep leaning against the couch. His neck raged at him as he lifted his head off of the edge of the couch. He lifted a hand up to rub at it as he opened his eyes.

Yuugi laid on his back, fully awake, rubbing harshly at his eyes. Atem leaned over to the cleaned office table–he and Jounouchi removed the bottles when he returned with the medicine–and snagged the bottle of aspirin. He shook out two pills and held them out to his ailing boyfriend along with the water.

When Yuugi didn’t move to acknowledge him, he spoke softly. “Here, take this.”

Yuugi nearly leapt off the couch in surprise. He stared at Atem with tired eyes, with dark purple circles under them. It took a moment for realization to come to him. His eyes narrowed and a frown marred his features. He ignored the aspirin Atem clearly offered, instead choosing to look around the room.

Only a few hours had passed since Atem came to Kaiba Manor. It was still dark outside, but Jounouchi had been kind enough to leave a lamp on before they turned in for the night.

“It’s still nighttime.” Atem checked his phone to be sure. “Please take the aspirin. Your head–”

“It’s fine.” Yuugi cut him off, sitting up and crossing his legs underneath him. He visibly grit his teeth as he moved.

Atem’s gut reaction was to rescind the offer and let Yuugi deal with the headache like he clearly wanted to. But he was reminded that he’d promised himself to change , at least when it came to Yuugi. He kept the medicine in one hand, the water glass in the other, then spun to face Yuugi, mirroring his posture and crossing his legs.

Yuugi’s eyes raked over Atem. He struggled not to squirm under the closed-off gaze. He’d never seen Yuugi look so guarded. Atem didn’t like being on this suspicious side of Yuugi’s. He bit his lip nervously and looked away.

“What is this?” Yuugi finally asked. His hand made its way halfway to his temple before he pulled it back again. Atem kept his hands in place.

You have to salvage this, Atem reminded himself. He swallowed his nerves and his instinct to clam up.

He couldn’t find the courage to look at Yuugi, though. He didn’t want to see his expression.

“Ryou called me. He was looking for you.” Atem started. Out of his peripheral vision, Yuugi tensed. “We realized no one knew where you were.”

“I forgot to call Ryou….” Yuugi muttered. The soft, concerned tone for his friends was completely replaced by a more curt one as he returned to his questions. “How did you know I was here?”

This was getting marginally easier. “I didn’t. Ryou went one way, I went another. I checked your grandfather’s store.”

More sudden movement, followed by an audible wince. “You didn’t–”

“No, your grandfather doesn’t know,” Atem reassured. He didn’t miss Yuugi’s quiet sigh. “But I ended up with an old necklace of yours. It’s in my pocket.”

He chanced a look at Yuugi, whose gaze now shifted between Atem’s face and his pocket. Very unsubtly, Atem lifted the water and aspirin.

With a sneer that he only could have learned from a Kaiba, Yuugi took the medicine from him. Atem hid his relieved smile as he sipped the water. True to his nonverbal word, Atem pulled the necklace out of his pocket and laid it in Yuugi’s palm.

Yuugi closed a tight fist around it, holding it against his chest. He continued to sip the water.

“Why are you here?” He finally muttered. He set the water on the side table and crossed his arms. Shoulder haunched, not looking at Atem anymore.

“Jounouchi used your phone to call me,” Atem answered. “And Seto Kaiba is my cousin, so I knew where this was.”

“ No.” Yuugi grounded out. “Why are you here?”

Oh.

That was a harder question to answer, and made Atem’s breathing speed up. Shrug it off, his mind cautioned. Change the subject to something more manageable.

He bit that thought back. If tonight taught him anything, it was that ignoring tough conversations was not helping.

Atem looked away from Yuugi, fighting the lump in his throat preventing him from speaking. He wanted to reach out and touch Yuugi, to grab his hand. Anything for the support he  usually so freely offered.

But Yuugi’s arms remained crossed. His legs tucked underneath him. He kept his shoulders curved, his eyes hardened and staring relentlessly at Atem. They flickered to the ticking clock in the corner of the room, then back again. He grimaced and shifted in place. 

Atem was taking too long. He opened his mouth, intending to speak, to apologize, to explain how he was going to improve. The lump swelled, cutting off all speech and filling his chest with a heavy numbness.

Yuugi let out a long breath. His eyes darkened with what Atem could only label as disappointment . He shifted to the opposite end of the couch and stood.

“Where are my shoes?” He muttered to himself, scratching at his head and holding back another wince. He groaned and grumbled as he looked around. He stumbled into a wall.

Atem jumped to his feet, holding out a hand as if he would help with Yuugi’s balance.

“Wait–”

“It’s fine,” Yuugi repeated. Shoes located, he reached down to try stuffing his feet in them. “It was a stupid question. Forget I asked.”

“I don’t want to.”

Yuugi hummed noncommittally. He pulled out his phone, the screen lit up and scared back at him. He stared for a very long moment at the home screen photo of the two of them, blinking rapidly. His face scrunched once, and then the moment passed. Yuugi swallowed hard and began tapping in earnest. 

“Yuugi, can we just–” Atem’s voice died mid-sentence.

“Just what?” Yuugi’s gaze snapped up to meet Atem’s. He replaced his phone into his pocket and waited.

Now’s your chance , Atem thought. You’ve got his attention again.

“I–I just—” Atem thought about the lonely pictures on the walls of the Kame Shop. The image of the lonely and guarded Yuugi mirrored his current hungover boyfriend, and he steeled his resolve. “I’m so sorry."

Yuugi lifted his eyebrows and crossed his arms again. He shifted from foot to foot, clearly taken by surprise. Atem ignored the obvious squish sounds as Yuugi shifted his weight around in wet shoes.

“It’s fine.” Yuugi repeated.

Atem bit the inside of his cheek. “No, it’s not .” He took a few steps closer to Yuugi, taking Yuugi’s stillness as a good sign. “I–I–”

But Atem’s throat closed again. He growled out loud and slapped a hand to his face. Why can’t I speak when it’s important?

Just explain, he thought. Apologize again. Tell him it was all your fault. Tell him you’ll fix it. A rock settled onto his chest as he opened his mouth. Not even breath escaped. Why was this happening?

If I bare my soul to him and he rejects it….

He shut the thought down. If that happened, Atem would swallow his pride and fix it. He just had to get over this damnable inability to pour his heart out. And here he was, wasting time again. If he didn’t hurry up and say something, Yuugi would move away, and Atem would be left with his thoughts. Alone.

But he still couldn’t speak. Fear took hold of him. Say something. Anything. Before Yuugi gives up completely.

Yuugi let out a long breath he seemed to have held in his chest. He kicked his heels against the wall and grimaced. He turned a vaguely green color. Atem couldn’t tell if the hangover or the wet shoes were causing it.

“Look, I’m not trying to sound like a broken record here, but it’s fine .” Yuugi breathed in and out slowly before heading for the large double doors beside him. “I’m sorry I forgot to text Ryou and he reached out to you. That’s on me. I hope he didn’t bother you too much.”

Atem went numb.

“I’ve already texted him. I’ll go home and talk to him.”

The world twisted. Atem found himself filled with the conviction that that not happen . Yuugi patted his clothes, checking for his phone and wallet, before taking a few steps away from Atem.

“You’re leaving?” The sudden jolt of anxiety broke through Atem’s mute spell. “It’s the middle of the night.”

“He’s still awake. I let you know I was leaving this time, too.”

“You hate walking at night.”

“I’ve done it before. I’ll suck it up.”

“It’s still raining.”

“I’ll borrow one of Jou’s jackets.”

“Yuugi–”

“ What ?” Yuugi spun around on his heel, causing a wet squeak to echo across the foyer. He grimaced and pressed his hand to his head, clearly frustrated. “I didn’t know Kaiba was your cousin, or I would have gone somewhere else. I would have just–gone home.”

Atem knew he hadn’t meant “gone home”. He could hear what Yuugi was really trying to say. I would have ignored my best friend to avoid even indirectly getting in your way.

He thinks I had to be talking into looking for him. Hadn’t he? He still thinks the argument from earlier is still valid. And why wouldn’t he?

“It’s fine. I’m fine . I’m going to go home now. I’ll text you later.” Yuugi winced near-imperceptibly. Atem almost missed it. “Damn. Or not. I don’t know. I’ll figure it out.”

Time slowed as Yuugi’s hand reached for the door handle. Atem got the impression that if Yuugi left, Atem wouldn’t see him again. The desperation broke through Atem’s stuck tongue.

“Yuugi, please .” He begged. “I love you.”

Yuugi froze, his fingertips rested against the door handle. His other hand clenched at his side. He didn’t turn to face Atem.

That was fine. A dam broke inside Atem’s mind with his declaration, and now he couldn’t stop the words from spilling out.

“I’m sorry.” He rubbed his hands together nervously. He stared at the ground, certain he would lose his courage as soon as he looked at Yuugi again. “I’m so sorry. I’m not–I don’t talk about my emotions so well. I can’t. Even now, just standing here, I know I’ve hurt you and there’s still a rock in my throat. I’ve been pushing you away because it’s easier than facing the fact that I’m a bad person, and you make me want to be better. So I shut you out while keeping you close and messing with your mind, until now you don’t believe anything I say. That’s my fault.

“And I know I went too far. You have every right to walk out that door and never talk to me again. I would respect those wishes. But I–” Oh, no, Atem’s courage was winding down. In a panic, he began to babble. “But I love you, I do , and I didn't realize that was what I was feeling until you were lost and no one I knew could find you, and I discovered I don’t know a lot of your friends–how could I not know your friends ?– and what if you were hurt or in trouble or in the hospital–”

Arms wrapped tightly around Atem as a small body pressed into his. Effectively surprised out of his ranting, Atem stilled and finally looked up. His arms instinctively wrapped around Yuugi. His grip tightened when he felt Yuugi shivering, though whether it was from the conversation or the still-damp clothing, Atem couldn’t guess.

“It’s okay,” Yuugi finally murmured. “I mean, it's not okay , we’ll need to talk about this later, but….”

Atem’s fingers found their way into Yuugi’s dark hair, a habitual gesture that Atem always enjoyed. From the way Yuugi pressed his head into his shoulder, he appreciated it, too. “You don’t believe me.”

This time, Yuugi hesitated. Atem guessed he was trying to find a way to communicate without restarting the fight. Atem kept his fingers moving in Yuugi’s hair, trying to convey the sheer amount of patience he now had. He would wait here until morning if Yuugi needed it. Or until Seto kicked them out. The building would collapse before Atem would consider moving.

But Yuugi had always been better at words than Atem, and soon he spoke. “When I was very little, my parents would have bad arguments. My dad would pack and leave, and eventually come back. He would apologize and say he’d change. It wouldn’t last. One day he left and never came back.”

Atem knew Yuugi had been young when he was sent to his grandfather. The implication of his words strengthened Atem’s resolve.

“We’re not them,” he murmured in return. “You don’t have to believe me. I’ll prove it to you, for as long as I have to.”

“I don’t want you to have to change who you are just to please me.” Yuugi muttered. “That’s not healthy.”

“And if I’m offering?” Atem felt his old smirk fall into place for a split second. Yuugi is considering it . “Besides, I want to be able to talk with and open up to you , not everyone else.”

He kept his fingers light as they kneaded through Yuugi’s hair, a dark contrast to his pounding heartbeat. Yuugi could still say no. He could pull away and walk off, and Atem would have to live with that.

But… Yuugi hugged him first, hadn’t he? And he still hadn’t pulled away. In fact, he seemed to be actively stopping himself from burrowing closer to Atem, like he normally liked to do.

“I can give you one more chance,” Yuugi finally responded. “Only one. Because I love you, too.”

Atem took the warning seriously, but the sheer relief blowing through him clearly overpowered anything else. He held tightly to Yuugi now, who finally gave in and pulled himself flush against Atem. He could hear himself muttering almost frantically, variations of “I’m so sorry” and “thank you” and “I’m going to fix it”, but couldn’t bring himself to stop.

He meant every word.