Chapter Text
It was a quiet, early-spring Saturday morning in Domino; the sun was starting to warm the air as a breeze picked up and carried the smells of the waking town into Yugi’s bedroom through a barely open window. It was too hot in his room last night to keep the window completely closed, but he knew it would get too chilly if he opened it fully. Especially since he was too tired to put any pajamas on. He would realize later he was too tired to do anything to set himself up for a functional morning.
Yugi was balled up on his side in his bed under a weighted blanket and a softer plush throw, with one foot sticking out. The softer plush blanket was pulled completely over his head as his last unconscious attempt to block the incoming sunrise. Some days he regretted being given the honor of having the room with the skylight; it was great for daydreaming, but not so great for trying to lock-in to actual dreaming. At least the window in the wall had blinds blocking most of the light.
Yugi’s body subconsciously tightened like a frightened armadillo in response to his Time Wizard alarm clock breaking the silence in the room and disrupting the dream in Yugi’s head. He groaned. And whined. He lifted his head enough to pull his pillow up and replace it on top of his head to cover his ear and face. He focused his breathing and slipped back into his dream.
“Téa, I love you. You have been by my side for twenty years; through every adversity I’ve experienced… We’ve experienced. Will you—”
“YUGI MUTOU! It is ten-thirty! If you’re not downstairs in fifteen minutes your grandpa is going to have you mop the front sidewalk in the rain for the next year!”
Yugi unfurled like lightning and sprang to his feet, ten-thirty, he thought. Ten-thirty? I didn’t hear any alarms go off. How can it be ten-thirty already? Surely mom’s watch is wrong.
A rush of impatient knocks peppered the door, “YUGI MUTOU! Fifteen minutes!”
He reached for his phone, “Oh no!”
Yugi started moving like a hummingbird around the room, throwing his very-dead phone on the charger, and slipping on a fresh pair of black trousers and matching black sleeveless shirt. He flung open his door and ran down the hall to the bathroom.
“SorrymyphonediedI’llberightthere!” he hurriedly expelled.
Yugi’s mother sighed and shook her head before returning to her own room. The bathroom door was closed before she could ask anything further.
In the bathroom, Yugi splashed cold water on his face and hastily dried it with a towel. He investigated his hair in the mirror, sighing heavily. Well, it’s a good thing I don’t need to leave the shop today, I guess. If I ever get to leave again. Yugi had a feeling his continued tardiness was genuinely starting to upset his grandpa.
He used his damp fingers to return some shapeliness to his hair, retwisting the pointed ends to look at-least semi put-together after being awake until three AM and then oversleeping on every alarm set (all ten of them, plus the Time Wizard alarm). He pondered grabbing his phone… He could at least show its powerless state in an attempt to defend himself, citing that he missed those ten phone alarms. His optimism peaked through his overwhelmed state – maybe grandpa would have some sympathy for him. As he quickly walked past his room to head downstairs, he opted against grabbing his phone. He needed to own up to his mistake and took a moment to mentally prepare a profuse apology to his grandfather. He would kowtow until his legs were numb if it was necessary.
“Grandfather, I’m so sorry! I promise it won’t happen again, I really—”
“Yugi, that’s enough for now. I need your help!” Grandpa Motou was buried behind an ever-growing stack of boxes as a delivery man continued carrying them into the store.
Yugi swore internally. Shit. It’s delivery day, too? I am so cooked. I am never getting out of this one. He stifled his panic over the rapidly diminishing future of his social life and walked briskly across the small shop to start moving boxes.
--
Once all the boxes were unpacked or placed in storage, Yugi returned to the front of the shop. Grandpa was seated on his stool behind the counter, organizing the last of the delivery slips from each of the boxes they had opened. Yugi brisked past him to the middle of the shop floor and dropped to his knees facing his grandfather. He bowed slowly, placing both hands as far out in front of him as he could and touched his forehead to the floor.
“Grandfather, I am embarrassed. This behavior isn’t becoming of an adult. I have a responsibility to respect you and your time. I mean no disrespect to you, ever, and I understand my tardiness is abhorrent. I will do whatever you ask me. I will hold this shame for the rest of my life. This will never happen again.” Yugi kept his forehead glued to the floor, holding back tears and trying to still his breathing. Between trying to recover from his rushed awakening, to lifting heavy boxes, and now staving off a panic attack, he was starting to feel flush and lightheaded. Yugi realized how much he had physically and mentally exerted himself in the past hour.
Silence. For what felt like minutes. He could feel his sweaty palms slipping away from him on the cold tile floor. He would stay here until his grandpa directed him otherwise.
*ding* The shop door opened.
“So as I was sayin’, she—oh man Yugi, how bad did you mess up this time?”
Yugi choked on his inhale. His shoulders scrunched towards his head as a chill ran down his spine.
The air in the shop was heavy. Joey and Tristan exchanged wide-eyed glances between themselves and then nodded. They both heel-turned to leave.
“Wait!” Grandpa’s tired voice cut through the air like the sharpest knife, “Yugi, stand up.”
Yugi was still frozen. He wasn’t sure he could move. The tension in his shoulders and back felt worse than being thrown to the ground by a blast from Kaiba’s newest hyper realistic dueling system. His back was completely locked up.
Joey and Tristan slowly turned around to face the scene again. They could both feel sweat starting to form on their brows.
“Hey Yugi… do you need help?” Tristan attempted to whisper towards the middle of the shop floor.
The silence, still weighing on everyone in the room, was broken by a choked sob.
Yugi fell over to his side and returned to the familiar ball position he was savoring this morning in bed.
“Joey, the door, please” Grandpa said as he groaned his way off the stool and walked towards his grandson.
“Yes, sir.” Joey reached back to the door and flipped the sign to “Closed for Lunch!” and locked the door.
He and Tristan kept their feet firmly planted in the entryway, unsure of when or where to move, watching Grandpa Mutou as he knelt next to Yugi. He placed one hand on Yugi’s exposed bicep and the other between Yugi’s cheek and the ground.
“Yugi, please. Let’s go in the back and talk about this, okay?” He looked up to the two frozen figures at the door, “you two wait there.”
Tristan and Joey simultaneously nodded.
Yugi wiped his eyes with the back of his hand and stood, offering a hand to his grandfather to help him off his knee. Yugi made quick eye contact with Joey and Tristan before following his grandfather to the back storage room.
“Man… What d’ya think he did this time?”
“I don’t know Joey, but that was intense.”
*beep* Their silent pondering was interrupted by both their phones going off in stereo.
Téa Saturday 11:55 AM (Friday 9:55 PM New York)
Hey guys. Have u heard from Yugi? I sent him an email earlier, a text at dinner, and I just tried to call but he hasn’t responded. I figured I would have heard from him by now :( I hope everything is okay!
The guys exchanged a silent argument with their eyes.
Should we tell her? Joey raised an eyebrow.
Are you crazy? We don’t even know what’s going on! Tristan widened his eyes and grimaced.
Yeah, you’re right. But we can’t lie, right? We promised we wouldn’t lie anymore to cover our buns. Joey relaxed his face and shrugged.
Yeah, but this is different. Tristan widened his eyes further, so hard he started seeing stars, and shook his head while scrunching his face. “Don’t do it, man. We don’t know what’s going on” he let out with a whisper.
Joey 11:57 AM
Hey Téa! His phone died and the shop is reeeeeeally busy. first nice Saturday of the year. the sun is shining and people are breaking their cabin fever
plus its delivery day yknow :)
Téa 11:58 AM
Oh! Ur right! I completely forgot! IDK if I can ever adjust to this time zone change and u guys basically living in the future!
Anyway, thank you for the update. I’m getting ready for bed. Ttyl!
Joey 11:58 AM
Sleep tight!
Tristan 11:58 AM
Goodnight, Téa!
“Man, that was close. I wonder what is so important. She hasn’t reached out to us separately about him for months.” Tristan double checked the text thread and confirmed it was a group chat without Yugi in it. He pocketed his phone and moved to make himself comfortable sitting on the floor.
--
“Yugi, have a seat.”
Yugi complied, sitting opposite his grandpa on a spare crate. His eyes locked with his grandfather’s, searching for any hint of what may be coming next. What he found was weariness and fatigue.
“Yugi, I had hoped you would grow out of your habit of running late,” he took a step closer to his grandson, placing a hand on his shoulder, “but I’m afraid other habits… erm, obligations,” he winked “are hindering you.” He gave a knowing glance to Yugi before stepping even closer and bringing Yugi’s head to his chest.
“I know you love Téa, and I know how hard it is to maintain a relationship across the world.” He paused to exhale a weighted sigh, “well, perhaps it was easier for me; I could only write letters to your grandmother if I had something I wanted to say to her. We didn’t have cellphones to keep us tied at the hip,” Grandpa chuckled at his accidental pun, “and there were no phones in the desert or in the tombs of the kings, you know.”
“I know—wait, how did you know?” Yugi peeled away from his grandpa’s chest, panic flushing across his face as his eyes searched for an answer. Is grandpa creeping outside my door again? I really need to wear headphones when I call Téa. He sighed. Right. Calling Téa… I guess I need to talk to her about arranging something different.
“Yugi, your phone has been glued to your hand more than Duel Monsters cards since the day Téa left. I may be old, but I’m not out of touch,” Grandpa Mutou playfully flicked Yugi’s forehead.
Yugi exhaled a heavy sigh of relief; this was the first moment he’s been able to relax a little in over an hour. At least Grandpa wasn’t listening in on our calls. Sometimes they did more than just talk about how their day went. Sometimes they… Yugi squashed that thought. Now was not the time for the sights and sounds of their explicit calls to flash across his mind.
“Grandpa, I am sorry. I owe you all my time for the rest of my life. I promise I will never be late again. In fact, I’ll be early!” Yugi gripped the sides of Grandpa Mutou’s shirt as he buried his forehead in the man’s chest.
“Yugi…” Grandpa lifted his hands and gently patted the spiked mane, “Yugi, I appreciate how sorry you are, and I appreciate your promises. I expect you to try your best to keep them, you know. But I know you’re not perfect. It’s okay to make mistakes. It’s been a while since you were this late. Let this be the last time, okay? Maybe you can talk to Téa earlier in the evenings, and set a timer, hm? Don’t get carried away. I’m sure video calls do make it harder to disconnect from her pretty face, hm?”
“Grandpaaaa!” Yugi groaned and shook his now-blushing head.
--
“Hey Yug, how ya doin!” Joey stood up from the shop floor and made his way towards Yugi emerging from the back room.
“Hey Joey! Hey Tristan! I’m going to stay here today, I’m sorry. I need to help Grandpa.”
“That’s okay, Yugi. It’s admirable that you want to help him so much,” Tristan stood and dusted his trousers. He knew what it was like to be a built-in employee for the family biz.
“We’ll run and bring you back lunch! We were thinking of getting some burgers if that’s okay with you?”
“You know I’ll never say no to that! Thanks guys!”
“We’ll bring some for gramps and mom too!” Joey announced as he and Tristan turned to leave the shop.
As Joey unlocked the door and flipped the sign back to Open, Tristan turned back to Yugi, “By the way, you may want to check your phone.”
“My ph—” Yugi’s eyes widened and darted to the clock on the wall. Fifteen past noon.
*ding* The door opened and closed as his friends embarked on their next quest.
“Grandpa,” Yugi turned his worried face back towards the elder, “may I please run upstairs to grab my phone? I’ll come right back, and I’ll lock it away once I figure out what’s going on. Okay?”
“Quickly, then!” Grandpa gave Yugi a “shoo” gesture and resumed his perch on the stool.
Yugi sped up the stairs, through the hall and into his room. 100%, his phone was fully charged. He grabbed it and started to power it on as he ran back downstairs. He hoped he was done running for the day. He landed back into the storage room and sat his phone on a box as it powered on and he caught his breath.
*6 beeps escaped his phone*
“What…?” Yugi did some quick math on how long his phone could have possibly been off and how much he could have missed in that time. He stood upright after recovering his oxygen levels and grabbed his phone. He paused when his lock screen hit his eyes; behind the flood of notifications was a selfie—the four of them during the Duelist Kingdom tournament. Yugi eyed the chain hanging from his neck. “I miss you.” He hopelessly shot his pained sentiment into the Aether, hoping it might reach the soul of the intended recipient. His eyes moved to Téa’s face, her cheek pressed against his own. “RIGHT! Téa!” His eyes frantically scrolled the 9 notifications.
“Oh no, no, no, no, no, no.”
“Everything okay back there, Yugi?”
“Everything’s fine, Grandpa! I just… I’ll be out in a second!”
“Take your time!”
Yugi knew better than to take advantage of that statement. He sat on a box and unlocked his phone. He cleared away the less important notifications (10 missed alarms bundled together, Joey asking about lunch…) which left him facing 1 new email, 1 new text from Téa, and 1 missed call also from her. Yugi’s heart sank to his stomach. He always sent her a goodnight text before her usual bedtime of 10 PM. Always. Since the day she left. It was now 10:30 PM in New York.
He opened the text first.
Téa 11:30 AM
Hey Yugi! Let me know if you received an email from Juilliard!
His eyes widened and he navigated his email app. There was one new email to his private, personal email: “Your Ticket is Here! Join us for Juilliard Spring Dances”.
Yugi froze. Téa’s school…? A ticket? If Téa hadn’t warned him about it, he would have deleted it as Spam. He kept this email address under wraps, seldom using it except for private matters; no person knew about it besides Téa and Grandpa, not even his mom. His finger tapped the subject to access the message.
An artful image of dancers loaded, followed by the message:
“Mr. Yugi Mutou,
Please review the information below regarding your personal invitation to The Juilliard School for Juilliard Spring Dances, Wednesday March 25th, on behalf of student performer Téa Gardner. Click the link below to accept the invitation and RSVP to the post-performance reception. If you have any questions, please reply and we will assist you as soon as possible.”
The email continued with descriptions of the night’s planned performances, the school’s address and transportation information, and recommended accommodations nearby. Yugi’s finger hovered over the invitation link. March twenty-fifth… why do I feel like this date… Oh. Oh no. Yugi locked his phone and sat it on the box beside him. He hung his head into his hands and exhaled a dejected chuckle.
“Immaculate timing. This is great. I can’t catch a break.”
He shook his head free from his hands and stood to approach his grandfather.
“Hey Grandpa… remind me again when you’re going out of town?”
“Hm?” Grandpa Mutou raised his head from his paperwork and turned to face Yugi, “Oh! March twenty-first through twenty-eighth! Don’t forget! I need you to cover the shop for me.”
Yugi’s heart hit the bottom of his stomach like a free-falling elevator, “Right, thank you for reminding me!" He lingered in the doorway, unsure what to do next. Thank the gods the main door opened.
“Heyyyyy who wants some lunch?” Joey strutted in like a hunter returning with his prize, his arm outstretched presenting two take-out bags to Grandpa. Tristan followed behind, tailed by Bakura.
--
The guys crowded the storage room, using a box as a makeshift table as they sat on the floor around it. The door between the storage room and the shop was closed.
“Soooo…” Joey broke the silence, “Care to tell us what happened this mornin?”
“I overslept.” Yugi was staring a hole into his burger, as if starting at it would be more than enough to nourish him physically and emotionally. His arms felt heavy. He didn’t want to move. He didn’t want to eat. His stomach was doing gymnastics inside his abdomen; how could he eat right now?
“Yugi, you were becoming one with the floor. You say ‘overslept’ so casually, but that bow was more than casually oversleeping… how much?”
“Two hours,” Yugi shortly replied.
“Two—oh Yug… What’s going on? Not getting enough sleep?”
“No, I’m not, Joey.”
“You wanna talk about it?”
“I don’t know.”
“Yugi,” Bakura chimed in. “Is it something you can talk to me about?” The delivery came with a heavy side of understanding. Afterall, who else could relate to Yugi in the way Bakura could? No one else was a reincarnated, formerly possessed, version of an ancient Egyptian being.
“It’s not that, Bakura. I kind of wish it was. There’s some comfort in those memories. I wouldn’t mind if that’s what was keeping me up at night.”
“Well, what is it?” Tristan cut in. He was growing frustrated with the cryptic nature of the conversation and wanted Yugi to be direct so they could help him sooner rather than later.
“I…” Yugi blushed, realizing for the first time he was going to reveal that he and Téa speak on the phone every night while she’s on her mid-day break from classes and rehearsals. “I…”
“Spit it out, Yug” Joey nudged his best friend’s rib.
“I stay up late talking with Téa. Too late, it seems.” Yugi’s soft pink blush deepened to tomato-red.
The other guys laughed out loud.
“Yugi, did ya think we couldn’t guess that? I thought it was somethin more serious, like nightmares!” Joey laughed out.
“I think an infant could have figured that out, Yugi” Bakura added in.
Tristan took notice of Yugi’s changed complexion and grimace, “come on guys, enough. It’s clearly causing some real issues if his sleep is this messed up.”
Bakura straightened, cleared his throat and elbowed Joey’s side.
“Right,” Joey gathered his best serious face. “Listen Yugi… I don’t know how we can help ya pal, but we’re happy to try!”
“I don’t mind giving you a call at eight to make sure you’re awake,” offered Bakura.
“I can call you when I’m heading home from work!” Tristan added. It was then Yugi could see the exhaustion Tristan could no longer hold back from working third shift at his father’s factory.
“Thanks, guys! Perhaps that will help. It would probably help to make sure my phone is charged or charging, too, before I do fall asleep.”
“Well, I can’t do these early mornin’ wake-up calls for ya buddy, but I can text ya at night and remind you to charge ya phone!”
“Thank you, Joey. I appreciate all of you offering to help. Let’s give it a try.” Yugi cracked out a warm smile.
“Great! Now eat! I know you gotta be hungry!”
Yugi stared back at the burger. Despite the rising optimism he felt for this plan to fix his tardiness, his stomach was still doing flips. How was he going to tell Téa he can’t attend the performance? The one hurdle was Grandpa; the man he just spent the morning pleading to for a chance to make amends for his abhorrent lack of punctuality. Flying to NY would be no issue, and booking a hotel? No issue. It wasn’t about money; it wasn’t even about time. It was the timing. A deep, dark part of him wished his grandpa had kicked him out this morning and fired him; at least then he’d be free to run away to NY and spend the rest of his life with Téa. He had enough savings from winning tournaments and was certain he could get some kind of job in the US. He quickly suppressed those thoughts, terrified of where they came from. How could he have any thought of leaving his family, of obliterating filial piety. He owed his grandpa everything. Was he turning into his father? What the hell was wrong with him?
“Earth to Yugi! Hellooooooo!” Joey was waving his hand between Yugi’s face and his now-cold burger.
“Sorry, Joey. I guess I’m not hungry.”
Joey leaned towards Yugi, leaving mere inches between their faces as he searched Yugi’s eyes like a hawk searching for a mouse.
“Nah, something else is wrong. Tell me.”
Yugi sighed. Damn his friend’s intuition.
“Téa invited me to New York. Except it’s when grandpa is out of town and I have to run the shop!” Yugi spat the admission out with more speed and frustration than he expected. He kicked out a sigh, relieved to let this out, too.
“Hey man, don’t fret. Just ask ya grandpa if it’s okay for you to do a quick trip there and back. I’m sure your ma can handle the shop for a couple days. It might be exhausting to take a quick trip like that but you gotta go see Téa! Or why doesn’t he just close the shop completely for the week? Or at least a couple days?”
“Joey, we just talked about what happened this morning. You can’t seriously think I can propose any of those scenarios to him right now.”
“Sorry Yug, just tryin’ to help.”
Tristan took the silence to speak up, “I don’t mean to volunteer you two, but Yugi – what if Joey and Bakura help? Obviously, I can’t help since I have to work but they’re both unemployed right now!”
“Tristan, what the hell is wrong with—” Joey paused and blinked, “Actually? That’s not a bad idea! Let us take your spot, Yugi! I’m sure the two of us,” he wrapped his arm around Bakura’s shoulder and pulled him closer, “could fill your shoes for a few days! Besides, we’re both charming and upstanding gentleman – think of how many new customers you might get once the ladies find out we’re workin’ here!”
Yugi was still staring a hole in the burger, trying to process how he could propose this offer to his grandfather. Before he could speak, Joey was on his feet and headed out the door to the shop.
“Hey Mr. Mutou, I gotta question for ya!”
“Joey, wait!” Yugi moved to stand, but Bakura interrupted him.
“Yugi, please let us help you! I don’t mind. If this works, it works. You should see Téa!”
“Thanks, guys.” Yugi sat back down and fought not to pass out. His head was spinning and his stomach was even tighter. He could barely hear Joey boisterously proposing the idea to Grandpa Mutou over his heart pounding. Even though Grandpa had essentially adopted them all as honorary grandsons, Yugi was still nauseated by the idea of Joey overstepping many boundaries and be so uncouth right now. Sometimes his best friend’s drive to be a savior needed a leash.
“Listen Mr. Mutou, I know Yugi’s in some deep shit right now, pardon my French, but you know how much Téa means to him, and him to her. She invited him to New York to see her dance. Problem is, it’s at the same time you’re outta town. I know Yugi owes you for being super tardy and all that but please you gotta let him go see her. How can he turn her down like this? It’d break her heart! Hell, it’d break his heart. They’d both be miserable, Mr. Mutou!” Joey didn’t let up, “Bakura and I will help while he’s gone. We don’t mind, really! We’ll be here bright and early to help! You don’t even gotta pay us!”
Yugi blinked rapidly. He was slipping in and out of focus, but he clearly heard Joey’s last statement. Joey offering to work for free? He really means this.
The entire first floor fell coldly silent save for Joey catching his breath after his monologue.
“Hm.” Mr. Mutou’s feet hit the ground as he stood up and nudged Joey out of his way and walked through the doorway into the storage room.
“Yugi, is Joey speaking the truth? Did Téa invite you to New York?”
If Yugi had lasers in his eyes, they certainly would have burned a hole through the burger, the box it was sitting on, the floor, and the foundation of the building. His breath hitched. His heart was still pounding. Stomach so tight it could only be seen on a microscope.
Tristan subtly tapped Yugi’s knee.
“Yes. Yes, Grandpa. Téa has her first public performance on the twenty-fifth. The school emailed a ticket to me this morning.”
“Go.”
Yugi’s eyes closed as he processed what he just heard. He turned his head towards the doorway and opened his eyes. He was on the verge of crying. His mouth opened but he couldn’t speak.
“See, Yugi! Now you accept that invite and get those flights booked!” Joey pumped his fists in excitement.
“Yeah!” Bakura and Tristan exclaimed in unison.
Despite the celebration, Yugi couldn’t break the eye contact he was holding with his grandfather. He could feel his skin flush, and he wished he could break free of his head spinning. He didn’t deserve someone so forgiving. He was going to vow hourly to be better and show up for his grandfather, always.
Mr. Mutou broke their connection first and returned to his perch behind the counter. Yugi looked at Joey and pulled a tight smile. “Thank you, Joey. Thank you all. I owe you. You can’t work for free. Please let me pay you.”
“Don’t worry, Yugi! We’ll leave you to it.” Joey paused in the doorway, “you gonna eat that?” he pointed to the still-waiting burger in front of Yugi.
“No, you can have it.” He stood and handed the burger to Joey before grabbing his phone.
“Promise me you’ll eat something though? It has to have been hours since you last ate.”
“I will. I’m going to get this taken care of first,” he lifted his phone up and the Kuriboh charm attached to it danced in the air.
“We’ll get outta your hair,” Joey laughed; he would never tire of saying that to Yugi, mostly because it always got a chuckle out of him, too.
“Yugi, I’ll call you tomorrow morning,” Bakura reminded as he stood.
“Yeah, me too! I gotta get ready to head to work now,” Tristan added.
As the guys walked out to leave, Yugi overheard Grandpa speaking to Joey.
“You need to be on your best behavior, Mr. Wheeler. No messing around. This isn’t a game. If I hear of any shenanigans, I’ll kick your behind!”
“You got it, sir. No funny business! You got that, Bakura?” Joey chided as he ribbed Bakura with his elbow.
Yugi shook his head and unlocked his phone.
First order of business, accept the invite and RSVP. Then, he figured he would respond to Téa and fire off an apology to her, too. Before he could finish typing the message, he heard his grandfather call out.
“Yugi, it’s time to get back to work!”
Yugi sighed and locked his phone. He’d finish this later. Maybe it would be better to say it to her during the call anyway, he realized. He walked through the doorway into the shop and handed his phone to his grandpa.
“Please lock this away until we close.”
“Thank you, Yugi.” Grandpa received the phone with both hands and chuckled as the Kuriboh charm continued to dance from the movement. “Yugi, this little guy is cute! Do you think we could get some to sell here?”
“I’m sorry, Grandpa. I’m afraid to say it’s one of a kind. Téa made it for me before she left.” Yugi made his way into the shop to start organizing displays with the new stock. He was thankful it wasn’t a busy day. Odd for a beautiful Saturday like this, but he was more than happy with the lack of customers today.
Mr. Mutou held the charm closer to his face; perhaps he needed glasses after all. Upon further examination he realized it was indeed handmade. A small brown pompom with tiny googly eyes glued to it, and four hand-cut green feet made of felt. He gave the Kuriboh a little tap, delighted by how much it swings, before locking the phone away in the cash drawer.
--
The rest of the day passed uneventfully. There was a lingering tension in the air, but Yugi knew both he and his grandpa would sleep it off and be right as rain tomorrow.
Once he locked the door and flipped the sign to “Closed”, he started to make his way upstairs. He wanted to shower and change and then, he thought, he may be able to stomach a meal.
Yugi’s phone broke the awkward silence. Grandpa stared at the locked drawer before remembering what could be making that noise.
“Yugi! Your phone!” He unlocked the drawer, grinning widely as the Kuriboh charm greeted him.
“Coming, grandpa!” Yugi tried not to stumble down the stairs as his heart lead his feet ahead of him to grab his phone. He accepted it with both hands and a polite bow. “Thank you, Grandpa. See you at dinner!”
“You’re welcome, my dear Y—” before he could finish his sentiment, Yugi had taken off upstairs. “It’s these damn phones,” Mr. Mutou grumbled as his locked the cash drawer and slowly made his way upstairs himself.
--
Freshly showered and changed, Yugi felt almost completely back to normal. He washed away all the sweat and tears from the day, the aches and pains from moving the delivery, and he could focus on satiating his stomach pains. He had to make sure he didn’t forgo eating like this again. He had to internalize how much it sucks to be this hungry on top of being mentally exhausted. He entered the dining room, politely greeted his mother, and plopped into a chair at the dining table. He pulled out his phone and unlocked it to reveal the home screen. He set it up so that there were no apps on the main page. Just the image, uninterrupted. He stared until the screen timed out to black. He quickly tapped the screen again to reawaken it before the phone locked.
His mom brisked by, stopping to peer over his shoulder at his phone. She stared too, conscious though not to linger too long. She had seen his lock screen before if she needed to move his phone while cleaning; the screen would awaken at her touch, and she would take a glance to see the four friends’ selfie during the Duelist Kingdom tournament. But she’d never managed to catch his home screen. She honestly didn’t consider it could be a different image. On her phone, her lock screen and home screen are the same image; an artful swirl of colors, set as the default from the day she bought it. Though she didn’t linger, the image on Yugi’s screen did burn quickly into her mind – a selfie of Yugi and Téa, alone by a river, with Téa pressing a firm kiss to his cheek as his face was scrunched with joy and flushed pink with delight. Yugi’s other cheek was occupied by Téa’s hand pushing him into her lips. His mother raised her eyebrows before taking a sharp inhale and shaking her head.
“Yugi… no phones at the table, please.”
Yugi silently locked and pocketed his phone. He took to eating the warm meal in front of him. He was relieved to be relaxed enough to have an appetite again. He knew he was going to be full of regret tomorrow when his body protested the neglect it experienced today. Perhaps he could make amends to himself by going to bed at a decent time and waking up earlier enough for breakfast. There’s that sweet optimism he should always exude.
The three of them ate in silence. The day was still weighing heavily between Mr. Mutou and Yugi.
“So, dad. While you’re gone, Yugi can open the store, on time,” she directed her dagger-laden gaze to Yugi, “and I’ll join after I make us breakfast.”
Yugi froze. He realized neither he nor Grandpa had yet informed his mother of their adjusted plans. In fact, they hadn’t even really considered how she was going to feel being stuck with Joey for a week. “But at least Bakura will be there, too?” his optimism chimed in his head. Bakura was reliable to keep Joey in check, especially if Bakura’s fangirls were around.
Yugi and Grandpa exchanged nervous laughs.
“What’s this?” she looked back and forth between them.
“I… um… mom. We… there’s been a change of plans.”
“It only just happened, you see. I’m sorry we didn’t discuss it with you first!” Grandpa tried to ease his daughter-in-law’s rising concern. “Joey and Bakura are going to help instead! Yugi is going to New York to visit Téa!”
Yugi sat his utensils next to his plate and sat his hands on his lap. He sat up perfectly straight and stared towards his mother, ready for the barrage of questions he anticipated to receive.
“New York!” She exclaimed, setting her utensils down as well, “Alone? For how long? Why? How are you getting there? When are you leaving? Where are you staying? Why didn’t you bring this up sooner? Two weeks is an awfully short amount of time to let me know you’re going to the other side of the world! And while your grandpa is out of town too? This is out of your father’s playbook. Do you both hate me?”
Yugi winced. He was prepared for the inquisition. He wasn’t prepared for the brick that followed.
“Mother, please. I do not hate you. I am sorry this is so last minute. I only found out today, too. Téa sent me an invitation to watch her first public performance. I wasn’t going to go, but the guys offered to help. I didn’t ask them to cover for me. I couldn’t stop them, and Grandpa agreed to accept their help. They’re doing it for free. I know Joey is like a thorn in your side but please have an open mind. He promised he would be on his best behavior. And Bakura is one of the most polite men in the whole town! I promise, Mom. They’re going to be the best help we can get. Better than me,” he kicked his toe across the floor and looked down at his plate, “Bakura is always early, anyway.”
“Thank you, Yugi. But I still don’t understand how you can so impulsively decide to fly to New York like this!”
Yugi blinked rapidly towards his mother, trying to interpret what she meant. She knows he is in love with Téa. She knows Téa is in love with him.
His face must have been saying what he was thinking, without realizing it, as she added, “I know you two are in love. But Yugi, alone? Can’t Tristan go with you or something? What about her parents? Are they going? Maybe you can tag along with them?”
“I…” Yugi paused. He had no indication her parents may be there, and he didn’t even think about them at all. They’re always so busy working. They also don’t even want Téa to give Yugi the time of day. Why should he think about them first?
“I’ll only be alone for the flight, mom. Once I’m in New York, I’m sure Téa will—” he paused and calculated how to appropriately say not stay off me, but his pause was too long.
“She won’t keep her hands off of you,” she said through a forced smirk that quickly shut into pursed lips. If it weren’t for the over-dramatic brick she thew earlier, Yugi would think she had ESP.
His face flushed and his mouth gaped. Head empty. No thoughts. Maybe one thought… run. But before his brain could tell his legs—run— she spoke again.
“Yugi, I am not stupid. You’re young adults in love and you haven’t seen each other in months. Besides, she was already quite fond of touching you, anyway.”
“I promise I’ll be safe, mom. I’ve already accepted the invitation. I can’t back out now. I’m sorry I didn’t discuss this with you sooner. Please give the guys a chance.”
“If anything happens to you, or this gamble with the shop goes south in any way, Yugi, you’re out of here.”
Yugi felt like he’d been stabbed.
“This isn’t your house to kick me out of,” he mumbled back, toe kicking the floor again as he instantly regretted letting that thought fly free. He hated how much he regressed mentally when his mother was being... well, mother-y.
Mr. Mutou cut in, “Yugi, respect your mother. She is correct. If this doesn’t work out, you’re done. Do you understand me?” He waited for eye contact from Yugi.
“Yes, sir.” He nodded to his grandfather. He pushed his chair back and stood to leave, first deeply bowing towards his mother and then his grandfather before turning to exit the dining room.
--
He flopped onto his back in bed and unlocked his phone to check the time.
Shit. He forgot to send anything to Téa today. Oh no. He saw she had sent another message just before he showered.
Téa 7 PM (5 AM in NY)
Hey Yugi! I’m up for an early rehearsal today. I can’t wait to hear from you!
Yugi 6:30 AM (8:30 PM in Domino)
Good morning, Téa! I’m sorry I didn’t respond to your messages… or call. Or wish you a good night. I promise it won’t happen again. Please forgive me. I will explain when we talk later.
He locked his phone and laid it by his side. He closed his eyes for a few minutes before hearing his phone beep.
In one swift move he grabbed and unlocked his phone while sitting up.
Joey 8:35 PM
charge ur phone!
Yugi 8:35 PM
Got it! Thanks Joey :)
Yugi checked his battery… 85%. He had plenty of time. He set an alarm to plug it in by midnight. I should hear from her before midnight, anyway.