Yu-Gi-Oh! Fan Fiction ❯ A Different Kind of You ❯ Reactions and Occupants ( Chapter 9 )

Tears leaked down Ryou's reddened cheeks as he cried into an equally quivering Malik's arms. It hadn't taken very long for his tears to begin, especially since Malik had already looked like he'd been crying for hours. The thought of Yugi leaving, it tore him apart from the inside out. He couldn't bear it if he was forced to stand this pain alone.

"I'll take him from here, Ryou. Thank you," Marik said, holding gently onto Malik's arms to pull him away. The albino let him and watched as the couple walked away, Malik continuing to cry harshly into his lover's jacket.

Feeling eyes on his back he turned around to stare into the harsh auburn eyes of his look-a-like.

"Hey, Bakura," he rasped, wiping his eyes, but knowing he was probably making the red stand out around them.

"I always knew you were a weakling, but crying for someone you weren't close to? How pathetic can one person get?"

"He was my friend," Ryou said sadly, looking down at the ground, feeling more tears coming to his eyes at the thought. "I really wanted to be with him longer, so we could patch everything up. I'll never get that chance now and I can't help blaming myself because of it."

A surge of sympathy ran through Bakura and he sighed irritatingly at himself before he moved towards Ryou and wrapped him protectively in his arms, letting him cry into his shoulder.

"I-I just don't think Yugi would leave be-because of one thing like Duke, no matter ho-how much h-he l-lo-loved him," Ryou sobbed out, wrenching something inside of Bakura's chest.

"It'll be okay in the end, Ryou. I'm sure you haven't seen the last of him," he tried to comfort.

Ryou wrapped his arms around Bakura's neck and continued to cry uncontrollably. "I'm sure he must've been un-unhappy about man-many other th-things to m-make him leave s-so qui-quickly."

Bakura rocked gently back and forth before leading Ryou to his room. "I'm still here, love, don't worry. I'll be here for you."

~~

"I'm a terrible friend, Marik! I don't deserve to live," Malik cried out, hiding his face as he sobbed into his lover's chest.

"Don't you dare say stuff like that, Malik. You do deserve to live and I won't let you do or think anything to make you do otherwise. I won't let you hurt yourself like this. Now think, Malik, just think, did Yugi ever mention anything about where he lived."

Malik shook his head, "I don't want to talk about this, Marik."

The older looked desperately around his young lover's room for some sort of idea of what he could do. He hated seeing Malik like this and thinking things like, but he didn't know what to do. So he did the only thing he could, what he did whenever he wanted Malik to pay attention to him, he pressed his lips to Malik's and forced his mouth open, exploring the familiar, warm cavern. When he finally felt Malik start to respond to him he pulled away and looked deeply into his lavender eyes, so much more innocent looking than his own.

"I know this isn't the best time to think about Yugi, but you have to, love. It might be the only chance we get at having him back."

Malik nodded, sniffing heavily around his tears and resting his head tiredly on Marik's shoulder, looking as though he hadn't slept well for weeks.

"He never said anything about his parent's place other than the horrible things that made him run away from there," he wheezed out after a few minutes of silence. "There wouldn't really be a reason for him to go back so I don't think he would've gone there."

"What about other relatives?"

"He said they - that they were all dead or just as bad as his parents."

"Any friends he might think of trying."

Malik shook his head, "He never mentioned anyone like that, nobody he could really trust before." More tears soaked into Marik's shirt and he knew it was time to stop.

"Try to rest, love. I'll be here when you wake up," looked back into Malik's watery, red-rimmed eyes he added, "I promise, I will."

The younger nodded and let himself be laid back onto his bed, closing his eyes and clasping Marik's hand in his own when he felt it placed in his.

~~

Amethyst eyes blinked open and looked around the dingy looking apartment he woke up to. "Where am I," he rasped out sleepily, swallowing around his dry throat.

"That would be my place," a cheerful voice said from somewhere to his left. Yami came into his view and placed a plate of eggs and a couple strips of bacon on the table by the couch, "Good morning, sleepy-head. Did you sleep well?"

"Somewhat, my head feels kind of fuzzy." Yugi sat up, ignoring how the room started to spin and looked around as best as he could, "Is your dad…"

"Gone? Yeah, he left somewhere around two this morning. I'm glad he didn't wake you up, he can be pretty noisy." Yami looked at him for a second before concluding, "Are you feeling okay? You look out of it."

"No, I didn't hear anything," Yugi replied, ignoring Yami's second question. "I did have a rough night though, I guess. Thanks, for…you know; letting me stay here with you and all."

"It's not a problem, you're welcome any time," Yami smiled at him.

Yugi watched him curiously for a minute before finally saying, "You seem cheerful about something."

"And I still say you look out of it."

The younger sighed, knowing he couldn't lie to Yami after everything the elder did for him. He shook his head and resting his head against the back of the couch, "I feel like crap." Just as he finished he felt another wave of dizziness wash over him and he sneezed loudly into his hands.

Yami got up to get a tissue for him, bringing the box with him. "It seems you really did have a rough night; no wonder my dad didn't wake you if you sick. I think I've got some cold medicine."

"Thanks," Yugi wheezed, noticing for the first time how stuffy his nose was.

"Some extra blankets too," Yami said as he stood up and headed down the small hall.

Yugi watched him disappear before carefully leaning over for the plate Yami left behind. Munching on a piece of bacon slowly he waited for his older look-a-like to come back.

"Here," the crimson-eyed teen placed a small measuring cup of a sticky-looking purplish-red liquid in Yugi's unoccupied hand. "Uh….I'll get you something to drink with that. Sorry I couldn't get you pills, I'll have to go out later to get some." He came back with a glass of milk.

"Thanks," the younger nodded gratefully, swallowing the fowl tasting medicine before eagerly drinking the milk Yami handed him. "It doesn't matter how much I take that stuff, I'll never get used to it."

Yami laughed, nodding agreeably. "I know the feeling. I'm just glad I don't have work today or I'd call in for the day off."

"Why?"

The older gave Yugi a look that clearly said `need I answer that?'

"Sorry, I should've figured you wouldn't want to leave me like this, especially after last night. Probably afraid I'll try to skip town again."

Yami was shocked at the answer, but quickly took Yugi in his arms and held him tightly, "Never ever think that, Yugi. I'm not scared you'll try to leave, I'm sure I would, but I trust you more than even myself. I know you won't leave because you're not that kind of person. Please, prove me right, Yugi, please. I can't stand to lose you."

"What are you trying to say, Yami," Yugi asked, slightly scared of what he was hearing. `This can't be the same person I've been meeting at the park dumping and picking up girls every chance he gets, can it?'

"I'm saying that I care for you probably more than is safe, but that doesn't stop me from doing it all the same," he than stood and started down the hall again.

"I thought you didn't believe in love," Yugi derisively said, instantly regretting what he said and how said it when Yami froze in his tracks.

The younger was replied with a gruff tone saying, "I don't and never think that I do for you or anyone else," Yami than started down the hall again and slammed a door behind him.

Yugi never could've seen the frightened look in Yami's eyes as he replied or the tears starting to track down his face after he slammed the door. The younger could've wished for a quiet moment for him to suffer in, but instead he had a sneezing and coughing fit.

The crimson-eyed didn't stay away long. He allowed his worry and concern for Yugi's health get the better of his stubbornness. At first he ignored Yugi, but then joined him on the couch when Yugi nervously asked him to watch a movie with him.

It started innocently enough, Yami knew it had. They were both sitting on separate ends of the couch with Yami leaning against the pillow Yugi had used for the night and Yugi bundled up warmly in a blanket. Somewhere in the middle of the second movie the younger had gotten the chills and another coughing fit and Yami helped to warm him by letting him snuggle up next to him. Towards the end of the same movie both were slightly uncomfortable with the position and Yami had ended up laying down with Yugi laying in front of him. By the time the credits started rolling, both were asleep with their limbs entangling with each other and the younger turned to face Yami.

They might've fallen asleep comfortably, but waking up was a completely different story. The first thing Yugi noticed was that his and Yami's lips were close enough to be considered a butterfly kiss, the older's arms were entwined around his waist and a leg was thrust between his own. Yami easily noticed the same and, as quickly as he could, tried to move away. His only succession at getting away was pushing Yugi off the couch accidentally and, with the blanket wrapped in tangles around his legs as well as Yugi's, ended up with him laying on top of his younger look-a-like, both blushing madly for their embarrassing predicament.

"Yugi, I-I am so sorry about this. I never, I mean I didn't…"

Before Yami got the chance to finish his stuttering and going-nowhere apology, Yugi unsurely lifted his head and did something he'd been urging to do somewhere in the back of his mind for a while.

The unexpected kiss did wonders in shutting Yami's ramblings off and, after getting over the initial shock, closed his eyes and let himself be lost into the softness of Yugi's mouth moving against his.

When the need for air became an actual need the two separated, staring intently as they gasped silently for breath. When the quietness of it all finally became too intense Yami broke it.

"What…just happened?"

"I think we just shared a kiss together," Yugi paused for a second to touch his fingers to his lips, a small blush and smile warming his cheeks, "and from what I felt we enjoyed it." Of course, to ruin the moment, a few sneezes tickled his nose afterwards, but fortunately it was only a small tickle and didn't end up sneezing all over Yami.

The older slowly pushed away from Yugi and stood up, offering a hand to help Yugi up. "I'm not even sure why it happened."

"It's usually something that two people who care about each other in some way or another share." After he said that a frightened look came over Yugi's face and he shoved Yami away from him forcefully, running to the window and looking away, memories of Duke flashing in front of his face and how he betrayed him to Joey's little sister.

`Betrayed,' Yugi bitterly laughed at himself, `You can't betray someone like that. Duke didn't even know I loved him let alone liked him like that. I bet he was laughing it up all morning when he read that dumb excuse for a goodbye note I left him, if he even went to the room.'

"Yugi," Yami interrupted the younger's thoughts.

"Sorry," Yugi looked away from where Yami was looking at him.

"You looked liked you just saw something you rather wouldn't have seen."

"More like heard, but same concept, I guess."

The older was silent for a minute before something seemed to click. "Yugi, what made you want to leave so urgently last night?"

Yugi finally looked at Yami, tears tracking down his face as he blinked them away from his eyes. He looked at the floor and watched his shoelaces with interest as he explained about how he'd been unhappy about certain things in his life and how he wished they would change and also about Duke and the phone call he'd eavesdropped on accidentally. In the end, Yugi was sobbing hysterically into Yami's shoulder while the older rubbed his back soothingly and whispering things like, "I'm here," and, "I won't let you get hurt again."

When Yami felt Yugi sag heavily against him he knew the younger had blacked out from pure exhaustion. He smiled softly before he picked the younger up carefully and carried him to his bedroom, letting him rest in his room for the night.

~~

Hey all, I am SOOOO sorry for the longest delay I've ever had in my entire writing career. I had no idea what to do for like three weeks after I wrote the eighth chapter and I finally thought of some really good ideas over the last couple days, but I didn't know how to put them. I hope you're happy with the outcome ^_^.

Confused about Ryou and Bakura? You'll find out some time or another. It seems strange now, but all will be explained. I had to put them in there because 1) it just seemed better to get a reaction from him after what happed with Yugi "leaving town" and 2) a lot of people were asking about what happened to him. I know it wasn't much, but I hope that makes at least some of you happy.

Once again, I apologize greatly for the long wait and I'll try not to do it again, but I can't promise anything.